Apparatus for random access procedure in next generation network

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to an apparatus for a random access procedure in a next generation network. The apparatus includes a non-transitory memory including instructions for performing random access in a beam scanning network having cells. The apparatus also includes a processor operably coupled to the non-transitory memory. The processor is configured to execute instructions to select an optimal downlink transmission beam for transmission by the cell during the downlink scan subframe. The processor is also configured to execute instructions to determine an optimal downlink receive beam from the optimal downlink transmit beams. The processor is further configured to execute instructions to determine a random access preamble and a physical random access channel (PRACH) resource via resource selection from an optimal downlink transmission beam. The processor is further configured to execute instructions to transmit the selected random access preamble to the node via the PRACH resource and an uplink transmission beam of the uplink subframe.

Description

[0001] This application is a divisional application of the invention patent application with the application date of June 15, 2017, named “A device for a random access process in a next-generation network” and the application number 202210881293.3; the aforementioned invention patent application is a divisional application of the invention patent application with the application date of June 15, 2017, named “A device for a random access process in a next-generation network” and the application number 201780050084.1.

[0002] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0003] This application claims the benefit of priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 62 / 350,379, filed on June 15, 2016, entitled “Random Access Procedures in NextGen Networks,” and U.S. Provisional Application No. 62 / 400,813, filed on September 28, 2016, entitled “NR Random Access,” the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0004] The present application relates to a random access procedure on a device. Background Art

[0005] Next Generation (NextGen) networks are expected to support a variety of use cases including but not limited to mMTC, eMBB UR / LL. Network / RAN slicing is a concept proposed to allow operators to meet the diverse and sometimes conflicting requirements of these use cases. However, traditional procedures such as random access are not designed to support network / RAN slicing architectures. There is a need to develop new random access procedures optimized for NextGen networks configured for network / RAN slicing.

[0006] New Radio (NR) access technologies are currently being studied to identify and develop technology components for systems operating at frequencies up to 100 GHz. Beamforming is expected to be used to compensate for the increased path loss in these high frequency NR (HF-NR) systems. However, existing random access procedures based on omni-directional or sector-based transmissions do not support the functionality required for beamforming-based access, such as beam scanning, beam pairing, beam training, etc. An enhanced random access procedure that supports beamforming for NR networks is needed. Summary of the invention

[0007] The present disclosure is provided to introduce alternative concepts in a simplified manner, which will be further described below in the detailed description. The present disclosure is not intended to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter. The present application relates to random access procedures in next generation networks, thereby largely meeting the above requirements.

[0008] In one aspect, a device is described, including a non-transitory memory including instructions for performing random access in a beam scanning network having a cell. The network includes a downlink scanning subframe, an uplink scanning subframe, and a regular scanning subframe. The device also includes a processor, which is operably coupled to the non-transitory memory. The processor is configured to execute instructions for selecting an optimal downlink transmission beam transmitted by a cell during a downlink scanning subframe. The processor is also configured to execute instructions for determining an optimal downlink reception beam from the optimal downlink transmission beam. The processor is further configured to execute instructions for determining a random access preamble and a physical random access channel (PRACH) resource via resource selection from the optimal downlink transmission beam. The processor is further configured to execute instructions for transmitting the selected random access preamble to a node via the PRACH resource and the uplink transmission beam of the uplink subframe.

[0009] On the other hand, a device is described, including a non-transitory memory, the non-transitory memory including instructions for performing random access in a network. The device also includes a processor, which is operably coupled to the non-transitory memory and is configured to execute instructions for obtaining configuration parameters of a common physical random access channel (PRACH) resource on the network. The processor is also configured to execute instructions for selecting a preamble from a cell based on a device type and a service type. The processor is also configured to execute instructions for transmitting the selected preamble to a node via a common PRACH resource. The processor is further configured to execute instructions for monitoring a downlink control channel for a random access response (RAR). The processor is further configured to execute instructions for receiving a random access response associated with the device type and service type of the selected preamble via a node on the network.

[0010] On the other hand, the present invention describes an apparatus comprising a non-transitory memory including instructions for performing random access to a network. The apparatus also includes a processor operably coupled to the non-transitory memory and configured to execute instructions for obtaining configuration parameters of a slice-specific physical random access channel (PRACH) resource on the network. The processor is also configured to execute instructions for randomly selecting a preamble from a slice of the network based on a device type and a service type. The processor is further configured to execute instructions for transmitting the randomly selected preamble to a node via a slice-specific PRACH resource. The processor is further configured to execute instructions for monitoring a downlink control channel for a random access response (RAR). The processor is further configured to execute instructions for receiving an RAR associated with a device type via a node on the network.

[0011] On the other hand, the present invention describes an apparatus comprising a non-transitory memory including instructions for executing a random access network. The apparatus also includes a processor operably coupled to the non-transitory memory and configured to execute instructions for selecting a preamble from a cell based on a device type and a service type. The processor is also configured to execute instructions for transmitting the selected preamble and an accompanying unlicensed message. The processor is further configured to execute instructions for monitoring a downlink control channel for a random access response (RAR). The processor is further configured to execute instructions for receiving a connection establishment message and an uplink grant from a node. The processor is further configured to execute instructions for transmitting a status message about a connection via the received uplink grant. Thereafter, the processor is configured to execute instructions for receiving downlink data and control signaling from a node.

[0012] There has thus been outlined herein, rather broadly, certain embodiments of the invention in order that the detailed description thereof may be better understood and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] In order to facilitate a more secure understanding of the present application, reference is now made to the accompanying drawings, in which similar elements are marked with similar reference numerals. These drawings should not be interpreted as limiting the present application, but are intended only for illustration.

[0014] Figure 1A An exemplary communication system according to an embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0015] Figure 1B An exemplary device configured for wireless communication according to an embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0016] Figure 1C A system diagram showing a radio access network and a core network according to an embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0017] Figure 1D A system diagram showing a radio access network and a core network according to another embodiment of the present application.

[0018] Figure 1E A system diagram showing a radio access network and a core network according to yet another embodiment of the present application.

[0019] Figure 1F The embodiment according to the present application is shown in FIG. Figure 1A , Figure 1C , Figure 1D and Figure 1E A block diagram of an example computing system in communication with one or more networks is shown.

[0020] Figure 2A is a diagram showing the RRC protocol state machine.

[0021] Figure 2B is a diagram showing a system information acquisition process.

[0022] Figure 3 is a diagram of the measurement model used in LTE.

[0023] Figure 4 This is a diagram of the layer 2 structure of DL.

[0024] Figure 5 This is a diagram of the layer 2 structure of UL.

[0025] Figure 6 is a diagram showing a random access preamble format.

[0026] Figure 7 is a diagram showing PRACH resource definition.

[0027] Figure 8 is a diagram illustrating a contention-based random access procedure.

[0028] Fig. 9 is a diagram of a structure for LTE DL multi-antenna transmission.

[0029] Fig.10 is a diagram of cell coverage with sector beams and multiple high-gain narrow beams.

[0030] Fig.11 It is a diagram of a virtual community.

[0031] Fig.12 is a diagram showing the transition from RRC_IDLE to RRC_CONNECTED.

[0032] Fig.13 is a diagram illustrating the concept of network slicing.

[0033] Fig.14is a diagram showing an exemplary configuration supporting RAN slicing.

[0034] Fig.15 is a diagram showing common PRACH resources.

[0035] Fig.16 is a diagram illustrating common PRACH resources supporting multiple digital schemes.

[0036] Fig.17 is a diagram showing an exemplary common PRACH resource configuration supporting 1 mMTC, 2 eMBB, and 4 UR / LL PRACH resources.

[0037] Fig.18 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary common PRACH resource configuration with “stacked” mMTC PRACH resources.

[0038] Fig.19 is a diagram showing slice-specific PRACH resources.

[0039] Fig. 20 is a diagram showing a random access procedure using common PRACH resources.

[0040] Fig.21 is a diagram illustrating service partitioning based on a random access preamble.

[0041] Fig. 22 is a diagram showing a service type MAC CE.

[0042] Fig.23 is a diagram showing the random access procedure using slice-specific PRACH resources.

[0043] Fig.24 is a diagram illustrating a random access procedure with ungranted transmission.

[0044] FIG. 25A to FIG. 25C is a diagram showing a random access preamble format for ungranted transmission.

[0045] Fig.26 is a diagram of beamforming in HF-NR network.

[0046] Fig. 27 is a diagram of a scanning subframe in which one beam is enabled per scanning time slot.

[0047] FIG. 28A to FIG. 28B is a diagram of a scanning subframe with multiple beams enabled per scanning time slot.

[0048] Fig.29 is a diagram of a self-contained DL / UL scanning subframe.

[0049] Fig.30is a diagram of a frame structure with a self-contained DL / UL scanning subframe.

[0050] Fig.31 is a diagram of a frame structure with independent DL / UL scanning subframes.

[0051] Fig.32 This is a diagram showing the association between UL / DL beams.

[0052] Fig.33 is a diagram of a scanning subframe information element.

[0053] Fig.34 is a diagram of an alternative scanning subframe information element.

[0054] Fig.35 This is a diagram of the NR main information block.

[0055] Fig.36 is a diagram of the cell selection process for beam scanning NR networks.

[0056] Fig.37 It is a diagram that triggers the transmission of other SI.

[0057] Fig.38 is a diagram of an exemplary random access preamble format.

[0058] Fig.39 It is a diagram showing the association between the time resources of the selected DL Tx beam and the time resources of PRACH.

[0059] Fig.40 is a diagram of the association between the time resources of the selected DL Tx beam and the time resources of the PRACH for a self-contained DL / UL scanning subframe.

[0060] Fig.41 is a diagram that partitions the random access preamble into segments that implicitly signals the "optimal" DL Tx beam.

[0061] Fig.42 is a diagram of a random access response window.

[0062] Fig.43 It is a timing diagram of RAR license.

[0063] Fig.44 is a diagram of the proposed measurement model for beamscanning NR networks.

[0064] Fig.45 is a diagram of a graphical user interface of an embodiment.

[0065] Fig.46 is a diagram of a graphical user interface of another embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0066] A detailed description of illustrative embodiments will be discussed with reference to the various figures, embodiments and aspects of this document. Although this description provides detailed examples of possible implementations, it should be understood that these details are intended to be examples and therefore do not limit the scope of this application.

[0067] References in this specification to "one embodiment," "an embodiment," "one or more embodiments," "an aspect," etc., mean that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in conjunction with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present disclosure. In addition, the term "embodiment" in various places in the specification does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. That is, various features are described herein that may be exhibited by some embodiments but not by other embodiments.

[0068] abbreviation

[0069] Provided below are acronyms for terms and phrases commonly used in this application.

[0070] AS = Access Layer

[0071] CDMA = Code Division Multiple Access

[0072] CN = Core Network

[0073] CMAS = Commercial Mobile Alert System

[0074] C-RNTI = Cell Radio Network Temporary Identifier

[0075] DL = Downlink

[0076] DL-SCH = Downlink Shared Channel

[0077] DRX = intermittent reception

[0078] EAB = Extended Access Barring

[0079] eMBB = enhanced mobile broadband

[0080] eNB = Evolved Node B

[0081] ETWS = Earthquake and Tsunami Warning System

[0082] E-UTRA = Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access

[0083] E-UTRAN = Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network

[0084] FFS = Further Study

[0085] GERAN = GSM EDGE Radio Access Network

[0086] GSMG = Global System for Mobile Communications

[0087] IE = Information Element

[0088] IMT = International Mobile Telecommunications

[0089] KPI = Key Performance Indicator

[0090] LTE = Long Term Evolution

[0091] MACM = Media Access Control

[0092] MAC CE = MAC Control Element

[0093] MBB = Mobile Broadband

[0094] MBMS = Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service

[0095] MCL = Maximum Coupling Loss

[0096] MIB = Master Information Block

[0097] MME = Mobility Management Entity

[0098] MTC = Machine Type Communication

[0099] mMTC = Massive Machine Type Communications

[0100] NAS = Non-Access Stratum

[0101] NR = New RAT

[0102] PDCCH = Physical Downlink Control Channel

[0103] PHY = Physical Layer

[0104] PRACH = Physical Random Access Channel

[0105] PUCCH = Physical Uplink Control Channel

[0106] QoS = Quality of Service

[0107] RACH = Random Access Channel

[0108] RAN = Radio Access Network (3GPP)

[0109] RAR = Random Access Response

[0110] RA-RNTI = Random Access Radio Network Temporary Identifier

[0111] RAT = Radio Access Technology

[0112] RE = Resource Element

[0113] RNTI = Radio Network Temporary Identifier

[0114] RRC = Radio Resource Control

[0115] SC-PTM = Single Cell Point-to-Multipoint

[0116] SI = System Information

[0117] SIB = System Information Block

[0118] SMARTER = Feasibility study of new services and market technologies

[0119] SR = Scheduling Request

[0120] sTAG = Secondary Timing Advance Group

[0121] TA = Timing Advance

[0122] TDD = Time Division Duplex

[0123] TRP = Transmission and Reception Point

[0124] TTI = Transmission Time Interval

[0125] UE = User Equipment

[0126] UpPTS = Uplink Pilot Time Slot

[0127] UL = Uplink

[0128] UL-SCH = Uplink Shared Channel

[0129] UTRAN = Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network

[0130] UR / LL=Ultra Reliable-Low Latency

[0131] URLLC = Ultra-Reliable Low Latency Communication

[0132] The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) develops technical standards for cellular telecommunication network technologies, including radio access, core transport networks, and service capabilities, including work on codecs, security, and quality of service. Recent radio access technology (RAT) standards include WCDMA (commonly referred to as 3G), LTE (commonly referred to as 4G), and advanced LTE standards. 3GPP has begun work on the standardization of the next generation of cellular technology, which is called New Radio (NR), also known as "5G". The development of the 3GPP NR standard is expected to include the definition of the next generation of radio access technology (new RAT), which is expected to include the provision of new flexible radio access below 6 GHz and the provision of new ultra-mobile broadband radio access above 6 GHz. Flexible radio access is expected to consist of new, non-backward compatible radio access in new spectrum below 6 GHz, and is expected to include different operating modes that can be multiplexed together in the same spectrum to address a wide set of 3GPP NR use cases with diverging needs. It is expected that ultra-mobile broadband includes centimeter wave and millimeter wave spectrum, which will provide opportunities for ultra-mobile broadband access for indoor applications and hotspots, for example. In particular, UMB is expected to share a common design framework with sub-6 GHz flexible wireless access leveraging centimeter-wave and millimeter-wave specific design optimizations.

[0133] 3GPP has identified various use cases that NR is expected to support, resulting in various user experience requirements for data rates, latency, and mobility. These use cases include the following general categories: enhanced mobile broadband (e.g., broadband access in dense areas, ultra-high broadband access indoors, broadband access in crowds, 50+Mbps everywhere, ultra-low-cost broadband access, in-vehicle mobile broadband), critical communications, large-scale machine-type communications, network operations (e.g., network slicing, routing, migration and interworking, energy conservation), and enhanced cellular vehicle-to-everything (eV2X) communications. Specific services and applications in these categories include, for example, monitoring and sensor networks, device remote control, two-way remote control, personal cloud computing, video streaming, wireless cloud-based offices, first responder connections, automotive emergency calls (ecalls), disaster alerts, real-time gaming, multi-person video calls, autonomous driving, augmented reality, tactile Internet, and virtual reality, among others. All of these use cases and others are considered in this article.

[0134] General Architecture

[0135] Figure 1AAn embodiment of an example communication system 100 is illustrated in which the methods and apparatus described and claimed herein may be implemented. As shown, the example communication system 100 may include wireless transmit / receive units (WTRUs) 102a, 102b, 102c, and / or 102d (which may be generally or collectively referred to as WTRUs 102), a radio access network (RAN) 103 / 104 / 105 / 103b / 104b / 105b, a core network 106 / 107 / 109, a public switched telephone network (PSTN) 108, the Internet 110, and other networks 112, although it should be appreciated that the disclosed embodiments contemplate any number of WTRUs, base stations, networks, and / or network elements. Each of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, 102e may be any type of apparatus or device configured to operate and / or communicate in a wireless environment. Although in the Figure 1A-1E 102e as a handheld wireless communication device, it is understood that with respect to the various use cases contemplated for 5G wireless communications, each WTRU may include or be implemented in any type of device or apparatus configured to send and / or receive wireless signals, including by way of example only a user equipment (UE), a mobile station, a fixed or mobile subscriber unit, a pager, a cellular telephone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a smartphone, a laptop computer, a tablet computer, a netbook, a notebook computer, a personal computer, a wireless sensor, a consumer electronic product, a wearable device such as a smart watch or smart clothing, a medical or e-health device, a robot, an industrial device, a drone, and a transportation vehicle such as a car, truck, train, or airplane.

[0136] The communication system 100 may also include a base station 114a and a base station 114b. The base station 114a may be any type of device configured to wirelessly interface with at least one of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c to facilitate access to one or more communication networks, such as the core network 106 / 107 / 109, the Internet 110, and / or other networks 112. The base station 114b may be any type of device configured to wirelessly interface with at least one of the RRHs (remote radio heads) 118a, 118b and / or TRPs (transmission and reception points) 119a, 119b to facilitate access to one or more communication networks, such as the core network 106 / 107 / 109, the Internet 110, and / or other networks 112. The RRHs 118a, 118b may be any type of device configured to wirelessly interface with at least one WTRU 102c to facilitate access to one or more communication networks, such as the core network 106 / 107 / 109, the Internet 110, and / or other networks 112. The TRPs 119a, 119b may be any type of device configured to wirelessly interface with at least one WTRU 102d to facilitate access to one or more communication networks, such as the core network 106 / 107 / 109, the Internet 110, and / or other networks 112. The base stations 114a, 114b may be, for example, base transceiver stations (BTSs), Node Bs, eNode Bs, Home Node Bs, Home eNode Bs, site controllers, access points (APs), wireless routers, and the like. While the base stations 114a, 114b are each depicted as a single element, it should be appreciated that the base stations 114a, 114b may include any number of interconnected base stations and / or network elements.

[0137] The base station 114a may be part of the RAN 103 / 104 / 105, which may also include other base stations and / or network elements (not shown), such as a base station controller (BSC), a radio network controller (RNC), a relay node, etc. The base station 114b may be part of the RAN 103b / 104b / 105b, which may also include other base stations and / or network elements (not shown), such as a base station controller (BSC), a radio network controller (RNC), a relay node, etc. The base station 114a may be configured to send and / or receive wireless signals in a specific geographic area, which may be referred to as a cell (not shown). The base station 114b may be configured to send and / or receive wired and / or wireless signals in a specific geographic area, which may be referred to as a cell (not shown). The cell may be further divided into cell sectors. For example, the cell associated with the base station 114a may be divided into three sectors. Thus, in one embodiment, the base station 114a may include three transceivers, for example, one transceiver for each sector of the cell. In one embodiment, the base station 114a may employ multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) technology and may therefore use multiple transceivers for each sector of the cell.

[0138] The base station 114a may communicate with one or more of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over an air interface 115 / 116 / 117, which may be any suitable wireless communication link (e.g., radio frequency (RF), microwave, infrared (IR), ultraviolet (UV), visible light, centimeter wave, millimeter wave, etc.). The air interface 115 / 116 / 117 may be established using any suitable radio access technology (RAT).

[0139] The base station 114b may communicate with one or more of the RRHs 118a, 118b and / or TRPs 119a, 119b via a wired or air interface 115b / 116b / 117b, which may be any suitable wired (e.g., cable, optical fiber, etc.) or wireless communication link (e.g., radio frequency (RF), microwave, infrared (IR), ultraviolet (UV), visible light, centimeter wave, millimeter wave, etc.). The air interface 115b / 116b / 117b may be established using any suitable radio access technology (RAT).

[0140] The RRHs 118a, 118b and / or the TRPs 119a, 119b may communicate with one or more of the WTRUs 102c, 102d via an air interface 115c / 116c / 117c, which may be any suitable wireless communication link (e.g., radio frequency (RF), microwave, infrared (IR), ultraviolet (UV), visible light, centimeter wave, millimeter wave, etc.). The air interface 115c / 116c / 117c may be established using any suitable radio access technology (RAT).

[0141] More specifically, as described above, the communication system 100 may be a multiple-access system and may employ one or more channel access schemes such as CDMA, TDMA, FDMA, OFDMA, SC-FDMA, etc. For example, the base station 114a in the RAN 103 / 104 / 105 and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c or the RRHs 118a, 118b and TRPs 119a, 119b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d in the RAN 103b / 104b / 105b may implement a radio technology such as Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), which may use Wideband CDMA (WCDMA) to establish the air interface 115 / 116 / 117 or 115c / 116c / 117c, respectively. WCDMA may include communication protocols such as High Speed ​​Packet Access (HSPA) and / or Evolved HSPA (HSPA+). HSPA may include High Speed ​​Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) and / or High Speed ​​Uplink Packet Access (HSUPA).

[0142] In one embodiment, the base station 114a and the RRHs 118a, 118b and TRPs 119a, 119b in the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c or RAN 103b / 104b / 105b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may implement a radio technology such as Evolved UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA), which may establish the air interface 115 / 116 / 117 or 115c / 116c / 117c, respectively, using Long Term Evolution (LTE) and / or Advanced LTE (LTE-A). In the future, the air interface 115 / 116 / 117 may implement 3GPP NR technology.

[0143] In one embodiment, the base station 114a in the RAN 103 / 104 / 105 and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c or the RRHs 118a, 118b and TRPs 119a, 119b in the RAN 103b / 104b / 105b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may implement a radio technology such as IEEE 802.16 (e.g., Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX)), CDMA2000, CDMA2000 1X, CDMA2000 EV-DO, Interim Standard 2000 (IS-2000), Interim Standard 95 (IS-95), Interim Standard 856 (IS-856), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE) and GSM EDGE (GERAN), etc.

[0144] For example, Figure 1A The base station 114c in the example may be a wireless router, a Home NodeB, a Home eNodeB, or an access point, and may utilize any suitable RAT to facilitate wireless connectivity in a local area, such as a business location, a home, a transportation vehicle, a campus, etc. In one embodiment, the base station 114c and the WTRU 102e may implement a radio technology such as IEEE 802.11 to establish a wireless local area network (WLAN). In one embodiment, the base station 114c and the WTRU 102d may implement a radio technology such as IEEE 802.15 to establish a wireless personal area network (WPAN). In another embodiment, the base station 114c and the WTRU 102e may utilize a cellular-based RAT (e.g., WCDMA, CDMA2000, GSM, LTE, LTE-A, etc.) to establish a picocell or a femtocell. Figure 1A As shown, base station 114b may have a direct connection to the Internet 110. Therefore, base station 114c may not need to access the Internet 110 via core network 106 / 107 / 109.

[0145] The RAN 103 / 104 / 105 and / or the RAN 103b / 104b / 105b may be in communication with a core network 106 / 107 / 109, which may be any type of network configured to provide voice, data, applications, and / or voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services to one or more of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d. For example, the core network 106 / 107 / 109 may provide call control, billing services, mobile location-based services, pre-paid calling, Internet connectivity, video distribution, etc., and / or perform high-level security functions such as user authentication.

[0146] Although not in Figure 1A 105b and / or the core network 106 / 107 / 109 may be in direct or indirect communication with other RANs, which may employ the same RAT as the RAN 103 / 104 / 105 and / or the RAN 103b / 104b / 105b or a different RAT. For example, in addition to being connected to the RAN 103 / 104 / 105 and / or the RAN 103b / 104b / 105b, which may employ E-UTRA radio technology, the core network 106 / 107 / 109 may also be in communication with another RAN (not shown) employing a GSM radio technology.

[0147] The core network 106 / 107 / 109 may also serve as a gateway for the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, 102e to access the PSTN 108, the Internet 110, and / or other networks 112. The PSTN 108 may include a circuit-switched telephone network that provides plain old telephone service (POTS). The Internet 110 may include a global system of interconnected computer networks and devices that use common communication protocols, such as the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), the User Datagram Protocol (UDP), and the Internet Protocol (IP) in the TCP / IP Internet Protocol suite. The networks 112 may include wired or wireless communication networks owned and / or operated by other service providers. For example, the networks 112 may include another core network connected to one or more RANs, which may employ the same RAT as the RAN 103 / 104 / 105 and / or the RAN 103b / 104b / 105b or a different RAT.

[0148] Some or all of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d in the communication system 100 may include multi-mode capabilities. For example, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, and 102e may include multiple transceivers for communicating with different wireless networks via different wireless links. Figure 1A The WTRU 102e shown in FIG. 1 may be configured to communicate with the base station 114a, which may employ a cellular-based radio technology, and the WTRU 102e may be configured to communicate with the base station 114c, which may employ an IEEE 802 radio technology.

[0149] Figure 1B 1 is a block diagram of an example apparatus or device (eg, WTRU 102) configured for wireless communication according to the embodiments described herein. Figure 1BAs shown, the example WTRU 102 may include a processor 118, a transceiver 120, a transmit / receive element 122, a speaker / microphone 124, a keyboard 126, a display / touchpad / indicator 128, a non-removable memory 130, a removable memory 132, a power supply 134, a global positioning system (GPS) chipset 136, and other peripherals 138. It should be appreciated that the WTRU 102 may include any sub-combination of the foregoing elements while remaining consistent with an embodiment. Moreover, embodiments contemplate that the base stations 114a and 114b and / or the nodes that the base stations 114a and 114b may represent, such as but not limited to, a transceiver station (BTS), a Node B, a site controller, an access point (AP), a Home Node B, an evolved Home Node B (eNode B), a Home Evolved Node B (HeNB), a Home Evolved Node B gateway, and a proxy node, etc. may include Figure 1B Some or all of the elements depicted in and described herein.

[0150] The processor 118 may be a general purpose processor, a special purpose processor, a conventional processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors associated with a DSP core, a controller, a microcontroller, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) circuit, any other type of integrated circuit (IC) and state machine, etc. The processor 118 may perform signal coding, data processing, power control, input / output processing, and / or any other functionality that enables the WTRU 102 to operate in a wireless environment. The processor 118 may be coupled to the transceiver 120, which may be coupled to the transmit / receive element 122. Although Figure 1B The processor 118 and the transceiver 120 are depicted as separate components, but it is understood that the processor 118 and the transceiver 120 may be integrated together in an electronic package or chip.

[0151] The transmit / receive element 122 may be configured to transmit or receive signals to or from a base station (e.g., base station 114a) via the air interface 115 / 116 / 117. For example, in an embodiment, the transmit / receive element 122 may be an antenna configured to transmit and / or receive RF signals. In an embodiment, although not shown in FIG. Figure 1AAlthough not shown in the figure, it will be appreciated that the RAN 103 / 104 / 105 and / or the core network 106 / 107 / 109 may be in direct or indirect communication with other RANs, which employ the same RAT as the RAN 103 / 104 / 105 or a different RAT. For example, in addition to being connected to the RAN 103 / 104 / 105, which may utilize an E-UTRA radio technology, the core network 106 / 107 / 109 may also be in communication with another RAN (not shown) employing a GSM radio technology.

[0152] The core network 106 / 107 / 109 may also serve as a gateway for the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d to access the PSTN 108, the Internet 110, and / or other networks 112. The PSTN 108 may include a circuit-switched telephone network that provides plain old telephone service (POTS). The Internet 110 may include a global system of interconnected computer networks and devices that use common communication protocols, such as the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), the User Datagram Protocol (UDP), and the Internet Protocol (IP) in the TCP / IP Internet protocol suite. The networks 112 may include wired or wireless communication networks owned and / or operated by other service providers. For example, the networks 112 may include another core network connected to one or more RANs, which may employ the same RAT as the RAN 103 / 104 / 105 or a different RAT.

[0153] Some or all of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d in the communication system 100 may include multi-mode capabilities. For example, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, and 102d may include multiple transceivers for communicating with different wireless networks via different wireless links. Figure 1A The WTRU 102c shown in FIG. 1 may be configured to communicate with the base station 114a, which may employ a cellular-based radio technology, and the WTRU 102c may be configured to communicate with the base station 114b, which may employ an IEEE 802 radio technology.

[0154] Figure 1B 1 is a block diagram of an example apparatus or device (eg, WTRU 102) configured for wireless communication according to the embodiments described herein. Figure 1BAs shown, the example WTRU 102 may include a processor 118, a transceiver 120, a transmit / receive element 122, a speaker / microphone 124, a keyboard 126, a display / touchpad / indicator 128, a non-removable memory 130, a removable memory 132, a power supply 134, a global positioning system (GPS) chipset 136, and other peripherals 138. It should be appreciated that the WTRU 102 may include any sub-combination of the foregoing elements while remaining consistent with an embodiment. Moreover, embodiments contemplate that the base stations 114a and 114b and / or the nodes that the base stations 114a and 114b may represent, such as but not limited to, a transceiver station (BTS), a Node B, a site controller, an access point (AP), a Home Node B, an evolved Home Node B (eNode B), a Home Evolved Node B (HeNB), a Home Evolved Node B gateway, and a proxy node, etc. may include Figure 1B Some or all of the elements depicted in and described herein.

[0155] The processor 118 may be a general purpose processor, a special purpose processor, a conventional processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors associated with a DSP core, a controller, a microcontroller, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) circuit, any other type of integrated circuit (IC) and state machine, etc. The processor 118 may perform signal coding, data processing, power control, input / output processing, and / or any other functionality that enables the WTRU 102 to operate in a wireless environment. The processor 118 may be coupled to the transceiver 120, which may be coupled to the transmit / receive element 122. Although Figure 1B The processor 118 and the transceiver 120 are depicted as separate components, but it is understood that the processor 118 and the transceiver 120 may be integrated together in an electronic package or chip.

[0156] The send / receive element 122 may be configured to send a signal to a base station (e.g., base station 114a) or receive a signal from a base station (e.g., base station 114a) via an air interface 115 / 116 / 117. For example, in one embodiment, the send / receive element 122 may be an antenna configured to send and / or receive RF signals. In an embodiment, the send / receive element 122 may be a transmitter / detector configured to, for example, send and / or receive IR, UV, or visible light signals. In yet another embodiment, the send / receive element 122 may be configured to send and receive RF and light signals. It should be understood that the send / receive element 122 may be configured to send and / or receive any combination of wireless signals.

[0157] In addition, although the transmission / reception element 122 is Figure 1BAlthough depicted as a single element in the figure, the WTRU 102 may include any number of transmit / receive elements 122. More specifically, the WTRU 102 may employ MIMO technology. Thus, in an embodiment, the WTRU 102 may include two or more transmit / receive elements 122 (e.g., multiple antennas) for transmitting and receiving wireless signals over the air interface 115 / 116 / 117.

[0158] The transceiver 120 may be configured to modulate signals to be transmitted by the transmit / receive element 122 and to demodulate signals received by the transmit / receive element 122. As described above, the WTRU 102 may have multi-mode capabilities. Thus, the transceiver 120 may include multiple transceivers to enable the WTRU 102 to communicate via multiple RATs, such as UTRA and IEEE 802.11.

[0159] The processor 118 of the WTRU 102 may be coupled to a speaker / microphone 124, a keypad 126, and / or a display / touchpad / indicator 128 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD) display unit or an organic light emitting diode (OLED) display unit), and may receive user input data therefrom. The processor 118 may also output user data to the speaker / microphone 124, the keypad 126, and / or the display / touchpad / indicator 128. In addition, the processor 118 may access information from and store data in any type of suitable memory, such as a non-removable memory 130 and / or a removable memory 132. The non-removable memory 130 may include a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), a hard disk, or any other type of memory storage device. The removable memory 132 may include a subscriber identity module (SIM) card, a memory stick, a secure digital (SD) memory card, and the like. In an embodiment, the processor 118 may access information from, and store data in, memory that is not physically located on the WTRU 102, such as on a server or a home computer (not shown).

[0160] The processor 118 may receive power from the power source 134 and may be configured to distribute and / or control the power to the other components in the WTRU 102. The power source 134 may be any suitable device for powering the WTRU 102. For example, the power source 134 may include one or more dry cell batteries, solar cells, fuel cells, and the like.

[0161] The processor 118 may also be coupled to the GPS chipset 136, which may be configured to provide location information (e.g., longitude and latitude) regarding the current location of the WTRU 102. In addition to or in lieu of the information from the GPS chipset 136, the WTRU 102 may receive location information from a base station (e.g., base stations 114a, 114b) over the air interface 115 / 116 / 117 and / or determine its location based on the timing of signals received from two or more nearby base stations. It will be appreciated that the WTRU 102 may acquire location information by any suitable location-determination method while remaining consistent with an embodiment.

[0162] The processor 118 may also be coupled to other peripherals 138, which may include one or more software and / or hardware modules that provide additional features, functionality, and / or wired or wireless connectivity. For example, the peripherals 138 may include various sensors, such as an accelerometer, a biometric (e.g., fingerprint) sensor, an electronic compass, a satellite transceiver, a digital camera (for photos or videos), a universal serial bus (USB) port or other interconnect interface, a vibration device, a television transceiver, a hands-free headset, modules, FM radio units, digital music players, media players, video game player modules, and Internet browsers, etc.

[0163] The WTRU 102 may be implemented in other devices or equipment, such as sensors, consumer electronics, wearable devices such as smart watches or smart clothing, medical or e-health equipment, robots, industrial equipment, drones, transportation vehicles such as cars, trucks, trains or airplanes, etc. The WTRU 102 may be connected to other components, modules, or systems of such devices or equipment via one or more interconnect interfaces, such as an interconnect interface that may include one of the peripheral devices 138.

[0164] Figure 1C 1 is a system diagram of the RAN 103 and the core network 106 according to an embodiment. As described above, the RAN 103 may employ UTRA radio technology to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, and 102c over the air interface 115. The RAN 103 may also be in communication with the core network 106. Figure 1CAs shown, the RAN 103 may include Node-Bs 140a, 140b, 140c, which may each include one or more transceivers for communicating with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 115. The Node-Bs 140a, 140b, 140c may each be associated with a particular cell (not shown) within the RAN 103. The RAN 103 may also include RNCs 142a, 142b. It will be appreciated that the RAN 103 may include any number of Node-Bs and RNCs while remaining consistent with an embodiment.

[0165] like Figure 1C As shown, Node B 140a, 140b can communicate with RNC 142a. Additionally, Node B 140c can communicate with RNC 142b. Node B 140a, 140b, 140c can communicate with corresponding RNC 142a, 142b via Iub interface. RNC 142a, 142b can communicate with each other via Iur interface. Each of RNC 142a, 142b can be configured to control the corresponding Node B 140a, 140b, 140c connected thereto. In addition, each of RNC 142a, 142b can be configured to perform or support other functions, such as outer loop power control, load control, admission control, packet scheduling, handover control, macro diversity, security functions and data encryption, etc.

[0166] Figure 1C The core network 106 shown in FIG. 1 may include a media gateway (MGW) 144, a mobile switching center (MSC) 146, a serving GPRS support node (SGSN) 148, and / or a gateway GPRS support node (GGSN) 150. Although each of the foregoing elements is depicted as part of the core network 106, it should be understood that any of these elements may be owned and / or operated by an entity other than a core network operator.

[0167] The RNC 142a in the RAN 103 may be connected to the MSC 146 in the core network 106 via an IuCS interface. The MSC 146 may be connected to the MGW 144. The MSC 146 and the MGW 144 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to circuit-switched networks, such as the PSTN 108, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and traditional land-line communications devices.

[0168] The RNC 142a in the RAN 103 may also be connected to the SGSN 148 in the core network 106 via an IuPS interface. The SGSN 148 may be connected to the GGSN 150. The SGSN 148 and the GGSN 150 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to packet-switched networks, such as the Internet 110, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and IP-enabled devices.

[0169] As described above, core network 106 may also be connected to networks 112, which may include other wired or wireless networks owned and / or operated by other service providers.

[0170] Figure 1D 1 is a system diagram of the RAN 104 and the core network 107 according to an embodiment. As described above, the RAN 104 may employ an E-UTRA radio technology to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, and 102c over the air interface 116. The RAN 104 may also be in communication with the core network 107.

[0171] The RAN 104 may include eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c, though it will be appreciated that the RAN 104 may include any number of eNode-Bs while remaining consistent with an embodiment. The eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may each include one or more transceivers for communicating with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. In one embodiment, the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may implement MIMO technology. Thus, the eNode-B 160a, for example, may use multiple antennas to transmit wireless signals to, and receive wireless signals from, the WTRU 102a.

[0172] Each of the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, and 160c may be associated with a particular cell (not shown) and may be configured to handle radio resource management decisions, handover decisions, and scheduling of users in the uplink and / or downlink, among other things. Figure 1D As shown, the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may communicate with one another via an X2 interface.

[0173] Figure 1D The core network 107 shown in FIG. 1 may include a mobility management gateway (MME) 162, a serving gateway 164, and a packet data network (PDN) gateway 166. While each of the foregoing elements is depicted as part of the core network 107, it should be understood that any of these elements may be owned and / or operated by an entity other than the core network operator.

[0174] The MME 162 may be connected to each of the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, and 160c in the RAN 104 via an S1 interface and may serve as a control node. For example, the MME 162 may be responsible for authenticating users of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, bearer activation / deactivation, and selecting a particular serving gateway during an initial attach of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c. The MME 162 may also provide a control plane function for switching between the RAN 104 and other RANs (not shown) that employ other radio technologies, such as GSM or WCDMA.

[0175] The serving gateway 164 may be connected to each of the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, and 160c in the RAN 104 via an S1 interface. The serving gateway 164 may generally route and forward user data packets to / from the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c. The serving gateway 164 may also perform other functions, such as anchoring a user plane during inter-eNodeB handovers, triggering paging when downlink data is available for the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, managing and storing the context of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, and the like.

[0176] The serving gateway 164 may also be connected to the PDN gateway 166, which may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to packet-switched networks, such as the Internet 110, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and IP-enabled devices.

[0177] The core network 107 may facilitate communications with other networks. For example, the core network 107 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to circuit-switched networks, such as the PSTN 108, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and traditional land-line communications devices. For example, the core network 107 may include, or may be in communication with, an IP gateway (e.g., an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) server) as an interface between the core network 107 and the PSTN 108. In addition, the core network 107 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to the networks 112, which may include other wired or wireless networks owned and / or operated by other service providers.

[0178] Figure 1E1 is a system diagram of the RAN 105 and the core network 109 according to an embodiment. The RAN 105 may be an access service network (ASN) that employs IEEE 802.16 radio technology to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, and 102c over the air interface 117. As will be discussed further below, the communication links between the different functional entities of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, the RAN 105, and the core network 109 may be defined as reference points.

[0179] like Figure 1E As shown, the RAN 105 may include base stations 180a, 180b, 180c and an ASN gateway 182, but it should be understood that the RAN 105 may include any number of base stations and ASN gateways while being consistent with the embodiment. The base stations 180a, 180b, 180c may each be associated with a particular cell in the RAN 105 and may include one or more transceivers for communicating with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 117. In an embodiment, the base stations 180a, 180b, 180c may implement MIMO technology. Thus, the base station 180a, for example, may use multiple antennas to send wireless signals to the WTRU 102a and receive wireless signals from the WTRU 102a. The base stations 180a, 180b, 180c may also provide mobility management functions, such as handover triggering, tunnel establishment, radio resource management, service classification, and quality of service (QoS) policy enforcement. The ASN gateway 182 may serve as a traffic aggregation point and may be responsible for paging, caching user profiles, and routing to the core network 109, among other things.

[0180] The air interface 117 between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and the RAN 105 may be defined as an R1 reference point that implements the IEEE 802.16 specification. In addition, each of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, and 102c may establish a logical interface (not shown) with the core network 109. The logical interface between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and the core network 109 may be defined as an R2 reference point, which may be used for authentication, authorization, IP host configuration management, and / or mobility management.

[0181] The communication link between each of the base stations 180a, 180b, and 180c may be defined as an R8 reference point, which includes protocols for facilitating WTRU handovers and data transfer between base stations. The communication link between the base stations 180a, 180b, 180c and the ASN gateway 182 may be defined as an R6 reference point. The R6 reference point may include protocols for facilitating mobility management based on mobility events associated with each of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c.

[0182] like Figure 1E As shown, the RAN 105 may be connected to a core network 109. The communication link between the RAN 105 and the core network 109 may be defined as an R3 reference point, which includes, for example, protocols for facilitating data transmission and mobility management capabilities. The core network 109 may include a mobile IP home agent (MIP-HA) 184, an authentication, authorization, accounting (AAA) server 186, and a gateway 188. While each of the foregoing elements is depicted as part of the core network 109, it will be appreciated that any of these elements may be owned and / or operated by an entity other than the core network operator.

[0183] The MIP-HA may be responsible for IP address management and may enable the WTRUs 102a, 102b, and 102c to roam between different ASNs and / or different core networks. The MIP-HA 184 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, and 102c with access to packet-switched networks, such as the Internet 110, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, and 102c and IP-enabled devices. The AAA server 186 may be responsible for user authentication and supporting user services. The gateway 188 may facilitate interworking with other networks. For example, the gateway 188 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, and 102c with access to circuit-switched networks, such as the PSTN 108, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, and 102c and traditional land-line communications devices. In addition, the gateway 188 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to the networks 112, which may include other wired or wireless networks that are owned and / or operated by other service providers.

[0184] Although not in Figure 1E 105 may be connected to other ASNs, and the core network 109 may be connected to other core networks. The communication link between the RAN 105 and the other ASNs may be defined as an R4 reference point, which may include protocols for coordinating the mobility of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c between the RAN 105 and the other ASNs. The communication link between the core network 109 and the other core networks may be defined as an R5 reference point, which may include protocols for facilitating interworking between a home core network and a visited core network.

[0185] The entities described here and described in Figure 1A , Figure 1C , Figure 1D as well as Figure 1E The core network entities shown in FIG. 1 are shown in FIG. 1 , but it should be understood that these entities and functions may be identified by other names in the future, and certain entities or functions may be combined in future specifications released by 3GPP, including future 3GPP NR specifications. Therefore, the present invention is provided only as an example. Figure 1A , Figure 1B , Figure 1C , Figure 1D as well as Figure 1E The specific network entities and functionality described and illustrated in the , and it should be understood that the subject matter disclosed and claimed herein may be implemented or realized in any similar communication system (whether currently defined or defined in the future).

[0186] Figure 1F It can be achieved Figure 1A , Figure 1C , Figure 1D as well as Figure 1E 10 is a block diagram of an exemplary computing system 90 of one or more devices of a communication network illustrated in FIG. 1 , such as certain nodes or functional entities in the RAN 103 / 104 / 105, the core network 106 / 107 / 109, the PSTN 108, the Internet 110 or other network 112. The computing system 90 may include a computer or server and may be primarily controlled by computer-readable instructions, which may be in the form of software, regardless of where or by any other means such software is stored or accessed. Such computer-readable instructions may be executed within a processor 91 to cause the computing system 90 to operate. The processor 91 may be a general-purpose processor, a special-purpose processor, a conventional processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors associated with a DSP core, a controller, a microcontroller, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) circuit, any other type of integrated circuit (IC) and state machine, etc. The processor 91 may perform signal encoding, data processing, power control, input / output processing, and / or any other functions that enable the computing system 90 to operate in a communication network. Coprocessor 81 is an optional processor distinct from main processor 91 that may perform additional functions or assist processor 91. Processor 91 and / or coprocessor 81 may receive, generate, and process data related to the methods and apparatus disclosed herein.

[0187] In operation, processor 91 fetches, decodes and executes instructions, and transmits information to and from other resources via the computing system's main data transfer path (system bus 80). Such a system bus connects components in computing system 90 and defines a medium for data exchange. System bus 80 typically includes data lines for sending data, address lines for sending addresses, and control lines for sending interrupts and for operating the bus. An example of such a system bus 80 is a PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) bus.

[0188] The memory coupled to the system bus 80 includes a random access memory (RAM) 82 and a read-only memory (ROM) 93. Such memory includes circuits that allow information to be stored and retrieved. ROM 93 generally contains stored data that is not easily modified. Data stored in RAM 82 can be read or changed by a processor 91 or other hardware device. Access to RAM 82 and / or ROM 93 can be controlled by a memory controller 92. The memory controller 92 can provide an address translation function that converts a virtual address into a physical address when an instruction is executed. The memory controller 92 can also provide a memory protection function that isolates processes within the system and isolates system processes from user processes. Therefore, a program running in the first mode can only access memory mapped by its own process virtual address space; unless memory sharing between processes has been set, it cannot access memory within the virtual address space of another process.

[0189] In addition, computing system 90 may include a peripheral device controller 83 , which is responsible for transmitting instructions from processor 91 to peripheral devices such as printer 94 , keyboard 84 , mouse 95 , and disk drive 85 .

[0190] The display 86 controlled by the display controller 96 is used to display the visual output generated by the computing system 90. Such visual output may include text, graphics, animated graphics, and video. The visual output may be provided in the form of a graphical user interface (GUI). The display 86 may be implemented with a CRT-based video display, an LCD-based flat panel display, a gas plasma-based flat panel display, or a touch pad. The display controller 96 includes the electronic components required to generate the video signal sent to the display 86.

[0191] In addition, computing system 90 may include communications circuitry such as network adapter 97, which may be used to connect computing system 90 to other networks such as, Figure 1A , Figure 1B , Figure 1C , Figure 1D as well as Figure 1EThe processor 91 may be connected to an external communication network of the RAN 103 / 104 / 105, core network 106 / 107 / 109, PSTN 108, Internet 110 or other network 112 to enable the computing system 90 to communicate with other nodes or functional entities of those networks. Communication circuits alone or in combination with the processor 91 may be used to perform the sending and receiving steps of certain devices, nodes, or functional entities described herein.

[0192] It should be understood that any or all of the devices, systems, methods, and processes described herein may be implemented in the form of computer executable instructions (e.g., program code) stored on a computer readable storage medium, which, when executed by a processor such as processor 118 or 91, causes the processor to perform and / or implement the systems, methods, and processes described herein. Specifically, any step, operation, or function described herein may be implemented in the form of such computer executable instructions executed on a processor of a device or computing system configured for wireless and / or wired network communication. Computer readable storage media include volatile and non-volatile, removable and non-removable media implemented in any non-temporary (e.g., tangible or physical) method or technology for storing information, but such computer readable storage media do not include signals. Computer readable storage media include, but are not limited to, RAM, ROM, EEPROM, flash memory or other storage technology, CD-ROM, digital versatile disk (DVD) or other optical disk storage, cassette, tape, disk storage or other magnetic storage device, or any other tangible or physical medium that can be used to store the required information and can be accessed by a computing system.

[0193] like Figure 2A As shown, in LTE, the terminal can be in two different states in LTE, namely RRC_CONNECTED and RRC_IDLE. In RRC_CONNECTED, there is a radio resource control (RRC) context. The cell to which the user equipment (UE) belongs is known, and the identity of the UE, i.e., the cell radio network temporary identifier (C-RNTI) used for signaling purposes between the UE and the network, has been configured. RRC_CONNECTED is intended for data transfer to and from the UE.

[0194] Furthermore, in RRC_IDLE, no RRC context exists in the Radio Access Network (RAN) and the UE does not belong to a specific cell. No data transfer occurs in RRC_IDLE. A UE in RRC_IDLE monitors the paging channel to detect incoming calls and changes to system information. Discontinuous Reception (DRX) is used to save UE power. When moving to RRC_CONNECTED, an RRC context needs to be established in the RAN and the UE.

[0195] System Information (SI) is information broadcast by the Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN) that needs to be acquired by the UE to be able to access and operate within the network. SI is divided into Master Information Block (MIB) and several System Information Blocks (SIBs). A high-level description of MIB and SIB is provided in 3GPP TS 36.300. A detailed description is available in 3GPP TS 36.331. Table 1 provides some MIB and SIB information.

[0196]

[0197]

[0198] Table 1

[0199] The physical random access channel (PRACH) configuration and common random access parameters in the system are specified in the PRACH-Config IE and RACH-ConfigCommon IE of SIB2 as shown below.

[0200] RACH-ConfigCommon IE

[0201]

[0202]

[0203] PRACH-Config Information Element

[0204]

[0205] Figure 2B The figure shows the system information acquisition process. Here, the UE applies the system information acquisition process described in 3GPP TS 36.331 to acquire the access stratum (AS) and non-access stratum (NAS) related system information broadcast by E-UTRAN. This process is applied to UEs in RRC_IDLE and UEs in RRC_CONNECTED.

[0206] The UE applies the system information acquisition process for the following situations:

[0207] (i) After selecting (e.g., powering on) and reselecting a cell;

[0208] (ii) After the handover is completed;

[0209] (iii) After entering E-UTRA from another Radio Access Technology (RAT);

[0210] (iv) after recovery from loss of coverage;

[0211] (v) after receiving notification that system information has been changed;

[0212] (vi) upon receiving an indication of the existence of an ETWS notification, a CMAS notification and / or a notification that EAB parameters have been changed;

[0213] (vii) after receiving a request from the CDMA2000 upper layer;

[0214] (viii) after the maximum validity period has expired.

[0215] Section 10.6 of 3GPP 36.300 defines the measurement model currently used in LTE. Figure 3 The model is shown in .

[0216] A: Measurements (samples) inside the physical layer.

[0217] Layer 1 filtering: Internal layer 1 filtering of the input measured at point A. The exact filtering is implementation dependent. How the measurement is actually performed in the physical layer by the implementation (input A and layer 1 filtering) is not constrained by the standard. The following measurements A to D are discussed in turn.

[0218] B: Measurements reported by Layer 1 to Layer 3 after Layer 1 filtering.

[0219] Layer 3 filtering: Filtering is performed on the measurements provided at point B. The behavior of the layer 3 filter is standardized and the configuration of the layer 3 filter is provided by RRC signaling. The filtering reporting period at C is equal to one measurement period at B.

[0220] C: Measurement after processing in the layer 3 filter. The reporting rate is the same as the reporting rate at point B. This measurement is used as input to the evaluation of one or more reporting criteria.

[0221] Reporting criteria evaluation: This checks whether an actual measurement report is needed at point D. The evaluation can be based on more than one measurement flow at reference point C, e.g., to compare between different measurements. This is illustrated by inputs C and C'. The UE shall evaluate the reporting criteria at least every time a new measurement result is reported at points C, C'. The reporting criteria are standardized and the configuration is provided by RRC signaling (UE measurements).

[0222] D: Measurement report information (message) sent on the radio interface.

[0223] Layer 1 filtering will introduce a certain level of measurement averaging. How and when exactly the UE performs the required measurements will be an implementation decision for the output at B to meet the performance requirements set in 3GPP TS 36.133 (Requirements for Support of Radio Resource Management (Release 13)) V13.2.0. The layer 3 filtering and parameters used are specified in 3GPP TS 36.331 and the sample availability between B and C does not introduce any delay. The measurements at points C, C' are the inputs used in the event evaluation.

[0224] Layer 2 is divided into the following sublayers: Medium Access Control (MAC), Radio Link Control (RLC), and Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP), as described in 3GPP 36.300 [3GPP TS 36.300, Overview; Stage 2 (Release 13), V13.3.0]. Figure 4 and Figure 5 The PDCP / RLC / MAC architecture for the downlink and uplink are shown respectively.

[0225] like Figure 6 The physical layer random access preamble shown consists of a cyclic prefix of length TCP and a sequence part of length TSEQ. The parameter values ​​are listed in Table 2 below and depend on the frame structure and random access configuration. The higher layer controls the preamble format.

[0226]

[0227] Table 2

[0228] Figure 6 The figure shows the PRACH resource definition.

[0229] Used to control the location of PRACH resources in the frequency domain.

[0230]

[0231] The offset of the PRB relative to the 0th PRB

[0232] k 0 The first resource element (RE) corresponding to the PRACH resource

[0233]

[0234] The offset of RE relative to RE k, where

[0235] In the uplink, the carrier frequency f0 is centered between the two UL subcarriers.

[0236] As described in 3GPP TS 36.211, random access preambles are generated from one or several root Zadoff-Chu sequences. The network configures the set of preamble sequences that are allowed for the UE. Starting from the configured root sequence index, there are 64 preambles in each cell. The UE identifies the set of preambles by allocating the maximum cyclic shift number allowed for each root sequence and then proceeds to the next logical root sequence until all 64 preambles have been identified.

[0237] The u-th root Zadoff-Chu sequence is defined by:

[0238]

[0239] where NZC, the length of the Zadoff-Chu sequence, is given in Table 3.

[0240] Leading format <![CDATA[N ZC ]]> 0–3 839 4 139

[0241] Table 3

[0242] Starting from the u-th root Zadoff-Chu sequence, the random access preamble with a zero correlation zone of length NCS-1 is defined by a cyclic shift according to:

[0243] x u,v (n) = x u ((n + C v ) mod N ZC )

[0244] When using the restricted set, C v is determined as follows:

[0245]

[0246] The parameters of the restricted set of cyclic shifts depend on the variable d u , where the cyclic shift corresponds to a Doppler shift of magnitude 1 / TSEQ. The variable d u is defined as follows:

[0247]

[0248] where p is the multiplicative inverse of u modulo NZC; i.e., the smallest non-negative integer such that (pu) mod NZC = 1.

[0249] For NCS ≤ d u < NZC / 3, the parameters are given by:

[0250]

[0251] For NZC / 3 ≤ d u ≤ (NZC - NCS) / 2, the parameters are given by:

[0252]

[0253] For d u For all other values ​​of , there are no cyclic shifts in the restricted set.

[0254] The baseband PRACH signal is defined in 3GPP TS 36.211 as a time-continuous signal as follows:

[0255]

[0256] in:

[0257] 0≤t<(TSEQ+TCP);

[0258] PRACH is the amplitude scaling factor used for power control;

[0259] NZC is the length of the Zadoff-Chu sequence;

[0260] xu, v(n) is a Zadoff-Chu sequence of length NZC with root u and cyclic shift v;

[0261] φ is a fixed offset used to determine the frequency position of the preamble within its allocated PRB;

[0262] K = Δf / ΔfRA accounts for the difference in subcarrier spacing between RACH preamble and uplink data transmission;

[0263]

[0264] ΔfRA is the subcarrier spacing of the RACH preamble;

[0265] The random access baseband parameters ΔfRA and φ are defined in Table 4.

[0266] Leading format <![CDATA[△f RA ]]> φ 0–3 1250Hz 7 4 7500Hz 2

[0267] Table 4

[0268] In LTE, the random access procedure is performed for the following events:

[0269] Initial access from RRC_IDLE;

[0270] RRC connection reestablishment process;

[0271] Switch;

[0272] DL data arrival during RRC_CONNECTED requires a random access procedure:

[0273] For example, when the UL synchronization state is "out of synchronization".

[0274] UL data arrival during RRC_CONNECTED requires a random access procedure:

[0275] For example, when the UL synchronization state is "non-synchronization" or there is no PUCCH resource available for SR.

[0276] During RRC_CONNECTED, a random access procedure is required for positioning purposes;

[0277] For example, when UE positioning requires timing advance.

[0278] The random access procedure takes two different forms:

[0279] Competition-based (applicable to the first five events);

[0280] Non-contention based (only applicable to handover, DL data arrival, positioning and acquisition of timing advance calibration of secondary timing advance group (sTAG)).

[0281] Contention-based random access uses Figure 8 The process shown.

[0282] Figure 8 Step 1 of 1 describes the random access preamble on RACH in the uplink. Here, transmitting the RACH preamble allows the eNB to estimate the transmission timing of the UE.

[0283] Figure 8 Step 2 of describes the random access response generated by the MAC on the DL-SCH. Here, the network sends a timing advance command to adjust the UE transmit timing. The network also allocates UL resources to the UE for use in step 3 described below.

[0284] Figure 8 Step 3 of UL-SCH describes the first scheduled UL transmission. The mobile terminal identity is transmitted to the network using UL-SCH.

[0285] Figure 8 Step 4 of 10 describes contention resolution on the DL. Transmission of contention resolution messages occurs from the network to the UE on the DL-SCH.

[0286] Contention-free random access is only used to reestablish uplink synchronization after downlink data arrival, handover and positioning. In this case, only the first two steps of the above process can be applied. This is because no contention resolution is required when performing the contention-free random access process. 3GPP TS 36.213 and 3GPP TS 36.321 can respectively describe the random access process in more detail from the perspective of the PHY and MAC layers.

[0287] The random access response includes a 20-bit UL grant called a random access response grant [3GPP TS 36.213]. The context of these 20 bits starting with the MSB and ending with the LSB is as follows:

[0288] Transition flag—1 bit

[0289] Fixed size resource block allocation—10 bits

[0290] Truncated modulation coding scheme—4 bits

[0291] TPC command for scheduling PUSCHT—3 bits

[0292] Physical layer measurements are defined in 3GPP TS 36.300 as shown below.

[0293] Physical layer measurements to support mobility are categorized as follows:

[0294] Within E-UTRAN (intra-frequency, inter-frequency);

[0295] Between E-UTRAN and GERAN / UTRAN (inter-RAT);

[0296] Between E-UTRAN and non-3GPP RAT (Inter-3GPP Access System Mobility).

[0297] For measurements within E-UTRAN, two basic UE measurement quantities shall be supported:

[0298] Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP);

[0299] Reference Signal Received Quality (RSRQ).

[0300] In addition, the following UE measurement quantities may be supported:

[0301] Received signal strength indication (RSSI);

[0302] Reference signal-to-interference and noise ratio (RS-SINR).

[0303] RSRP measurement is based on the following signals:

[0304] cell-specific reference signal; or

[0305] Configure the CSI reference signal in the discovery signal.

[0306] Multi-antenna transmission in LTE can be described as the mapping from data modulation output to different antenna ports, such as Fig. 9[4G LTE / LTE Advanced for Mobile Broadband, Erik Dahlman, Stefan Parkvall and Johan [Author: Academic Press, ISBN: 978-0-12-385489-6]. The input to antenna mapping includes modulation symbols (QPSK, 16QAM, 64QAM) corresponding to one or two transport blocks. The output of antenna mapping is a set of symbols for each antenna port. The symbol for each antenna port is then applied to the OFDM modulator. Accordingly, it is mapped to the basic OFDM time-frequency grid corresponding to that antenna port.

[0307] Different multi-antenna transmission schemes correspond to different so-called transmission modes. There are ten different transmission modes defined for LTE. They differ in the specific structure of the antenna mapping, but also in the reference signals assumed for demodulation (cell-specific reference signals or demodulation reference signals, respectively) and in the type of CSI feedback these signals rely on.

[0308] The following summarizes the transmission modes and associated multi-antenna transmission schemes defined for LTE.

[0309] Transmission mode 1: single antenna transmission.

[0310] Transmission mode 2: Transmit diversity.

[0311] Transmission mode 3: open-loop codebook based precoding in case of more than one layer, transmit diversity in case of rank 1 transmission.

[0312] Transmission mode 4: closed-loop codebook based precoding.

[0313] Transmission Mode 5: A multi-user MIMO version of Transmission Mode 4.

[0314] Transmission mode 6: A special case of closed-loop codebook based precoding limited to single-layer transmission.

[0315] Transmission mode 7: Release 8 supports only non-codebook based precoding for single-layer transmission.

[0316] Transmission mode 8: Release 9 supports up to two layers of non-codebook based precoding.

[0317] Transmission mode 9: Release 10 supports up to 8 layers of non-codebook based precoding.

[0318] Transmission mode 10: An extension of transmission mode 9 in Release 11 to enhance support for different downlink coordination and transmission methods, also known as CoMP.

[0319] NR Beamforming Access

[0320] Currently, 3GPP standardization is working on designing a framework for beamforming access. The characteristics of higher frequency wireless channels are significantly different from the sub-6 GHz channels on which LTE is currently deployed. The key challenge in designing new radio access technologies (RATs) for higher frequencies is to overcome the larger path loss at the higher frequency bands. In addition to this larger path loss, higher frequencies are affected by unfavorable scattering environments due to blocking caused by bad diffraction. Therefore, MIMO / beamforming is critical to ensure sufficient signal levels at the receiving end.

[0321] Relying solely on MIMO digital precoding used by digital BF to compensate for the additional path loss in higher frequencies does not seem to be sufficient to provide similar coverage below 6 GHz. Therefore, using analog beamforming to achieve additional gain may be an alternative in combination with digital beamforming. Sufficiently narrow beams should be formed with several antenna elements, which may be completely different from the scheme assumed for LTE evaluation. For large beamforming gains, the beamwidth tends to decrease accordingly, so a beam with large directional antenna gain cannot cover the entire horizontal sector area, especially in a 3-sector configuration. The limiting factors for the number of concurrent high-gain beams include the cost and complexity of the transceiver architecture.

[0322] Based on these points, multiple transmissions are required in the time domain, where narrow coverage beams are steered to cover different service areas. Inherently, the analog beams of the subarrays are capable of being steered towards a single direction with a time resolution of an OFDM symbol or any suitable time interval unit defined for the purpose of beam steering across different service areas within the cell, and thus the number of subarrays determines the number of beam directions and the corresponding coverage on each OFDM symbol or time interval unit defined for beam steering purposes. In some literature, the multiple narrow coverage beams provided for this purpose are referred to as "beam scanning". For both analog and hybrid beamforming, beam scanning appears to be necessary to provide basic coverage in NR. This concept is described in detail in the literature. Fig.10 As described above, the coverage of the sector-level cell is achieved using sector beams and multiple high-gain narrow beams. In addition, for analog and hybrid beamforming with massive MIMO, multiple transmissions in the time domain and steering of narrow coverage beams covering different service areas are necessary to cover the entire coverage area within the service cell in NR.

[0323] A concept closely related to beam scanning is the concept of beam pairing. Beam pairing is used to select the best beam pair between the UE and its serving cell, which can be used for control signaling or data transmission. For downlink transmission, the beam pair will consist of the UE RX beam and the NR node TX beam, while for uplink transmission, the beam pair will consist of the UE TX beam and the NR node RX beam.

[0324] Another related concept is the concept of beam training for beam refinement. Fig.10 As shown, coarser sector beamforming can be applied during the beam scanning and sector beam pairing process. Beam training can then follow, where, for example, the antenna weight vector is refined and then high-gain narrow beams are paired between the UE and the NR node.

[0325] C-plane latency in LTE-Advanced is documented in 3GPP TR 36.912. Fig.12 The figure shows the transition from RRC_IDLE to RRC_CONNECTED.

[0326]

[0327] Table 5

[0328] NAS establishment is performed in parallel with RRC establishment. Therefore, NAS delay does not appear in the total (assuming the total delay of steps 11 to 14 is less than or equal to the total delay of steps 7 to 10).

[0329] It is expected that IMT beyond 2020 will expand and support a variety of usage scenarios and application ranges that will continue to exceed the current IMT. In addition, various performances will be closely integrated with these expected different usage scenarios and applications of IMT beyond 2020.

[0330] The use cases of IMT after 2020 include:

[0331] eMBB (enhanced mobile broadband)

[0332] Macro and Small Cells

[0333] 1ms delay (air interface)

[0334] Spectrum allocated at WRC-15 could result in up to 8Gbps of additional throughput

[0335] Support high mobility

[0336] URLLC (Ultra-Reliable Low Latency Communication)

[0337] Low to medium data rates (50kbps to 10Mbps)

[0338] <1ms air interface delay

[0339] 99.999% reliability and availability

[0340] Low connection establishment latency

[0341] Mobility from 0 to 500 km / h

[0342] mMTC (Massive Machine Type Communications)

[0343] Low data rate (1~100kbps)

[0344] High density equipment (up to 200,000 / km 2 )

[0345] Delay: seconds to hours

[0346] Low power consumption: battery life up to 15 years

[0347] Asynchronous access

[0348] Network Operations

[0349] Network operations addresses topics such as network slicing, routing, migration and interworking, energy conservation, etc.

[0350] 3GPP TR 38.913 [3GPP TR 38.913, Study on Scenarios and Requirements for Next Generation Access Technologies; (Release 14), V0.3.0 defines scenarios and requirements for next generation access technologies. The key performance indicators (KPIs) for eMBB, URLLC, and mMTC devices are summarized in Table 6.

[0351]

[0352]

[0353] Table 6

[0354] Network Slicing

[0355] under Fig.13 Provides a high-level illustration of the concept of network slicing. A network slice consists of a set of logical network functions that support the communication service requirements of (multiple) specific use cases. It should be possible to steer terminals to the selected slice in a way that meets operator or user needs (e.g. based on subscription or terminal type). Network slicing is primarily aimed at partitioning of the core network, but does not exclude that the radio access network (RAN) may require specific functions to support multiple slices or even partition resources for different network slices.

[0356] The beam scanning frame structure can include a beam scanning subframe consisting of a plurality of scanning slots, wherein each scanning slot may consist of one or more OFDM symbols.

[0357] A method can be used to associate uplink (UL) and downlink (DL) scanning time slots in a beam scanning subframe.A scanning subframe information element (IE) may be used to signal the scanning subframe configuration.

[0358] A process for performing cell selection in a beam scanning NR network is described.

[0359] A mechanism for triggering the transmission of other SI based on the detection of a random access preamble is described. The other SI may be broadcast on all DL beams / DL scanning slots or on a subset of the DL beams / DL scanning slots.

[0360] It is now widely believed that the new RAT (NR) will use beamforming for control information such as initial access information. Therefore, the present disclosure also discloses a random access procedure assuming control information beamforming.

[0361] Radio Access Network (RAN) slicing has been proposed to support various NextGen use cases and requirements under consideration. A RAN configured for RAN slicing can support multiple digital schemes such as Fig.14 As shown, each digital scheme is optimized for the service provided by the slice.

[0362] For illustration purposes, it can be assumed that the eMBB digital scheme is primarily based on LTE; i.e., 15kHz subcarrier spacing and 1ms subframe. Fig.14 The digital schemes for mMTC and UR / LL slicing shown are then defined as shown in Table 7. However, the present application does not require that any of these digital schemes be based on the LTE digital scheme. The present application is also not limited to network configurations where the subcarrier spacing and subframe duration are integer multiples of each other.

[0363]

[0364] Table 7

[0365] During step 1 of the random access procedure, a new configuration of PRACH resources can be used to transmit preambles. An extension of PRACH-Config IE and RACH-ConfigCommon IE is signaled as part of the system information using broadcast or dedicated signaling, such as via SIB2, and is used to specify the PRACH configuration and control the behavior of the UE when the random access procedure is performed in a RAN configured to support RAN slicing and / or multiple use cases / services with different requirements. A new method of performing random access by using new PRACH resources can be used.

[0366] Public PRACH resources

[0367] Common PRACH resources are defined in this section. When initiating a random access procedure, the UE uses common PRACH resources to transmit a random access preamble, regardless of the device type and / or service(s) supported by the UE. The resources used to perform the remaining steps of the random access procedure can be selected based on the device type and / or requested service(s). Fig.15 An exemplary embodiment of common PRACH resources for a RAN supporting mMTC, eMBB and UR / LL slicing is shown in FIG.

[0368] In this embodiment of the present invention, common PRACH resources (which can be one or several PRACH resource subbands) are configured in the eMBB slice, and each PRACH resource subband occupies K eMBB PRBs in the frequency domain and L eMBB (OFDM) symbols in the time domain (where L symbols can be equal to or greater than 1 subframe). However, the present invention supports configuring common PRACH resources in any one of the available slices.

[0369] Alternatively, the digital scheme (subcarrier spacing, symbol length, etc.) of the common PRACH resources can be scaled relative to the digital scheme of the slices in which the common PRACH resources are configured or a different digital scheme can be used; that is, a digital scheme that is not based on the slices in which the common PRACH resources are configured.

[0370] The common PRACH resources can be multiplexed with the rest of the resources in a slice by using TDM and FDM. The digital scheme (subcarrier spacing, symbol length, etc.) used by the common PRACH resource subbands can be different from the digital scheme used by all use cases (e.g., eMBB, mMTC, UR / LL) and their corresponding resource slices.

[0371] Which slice is used for common PRACH resources can be determined by the network operator and may depend on the deployment scenario, the services supported, the digital schemes of the different slices, etc. For example, in some scenarios, it may be advantageous to configure common PRACH resources in slices using the traditional LTE digital scheme; i.e., Δf=15kHz, Tsubframe=1ms. Alternatively, common PRACH resources can be configured in slices using narrower subcarrier spacing / longer subframes, which may be beneficial for supporting low-complexity IoT devices; or common PRACH resources can be configured in slices using wider subcarrier spacing / shorter subframes, which may be beneficial for supporting low-latency devices.

[0372] The first physical resource block assigned to the common PRACH resource subband can be defined as in Expressed as a physical resource block number and signaled to the UE as part of system information; for example, via the PRACH-FreqOffset IE. In networks supporting multiple digital schemes, the definition of PRBs may be slice-specific, and It can be defined assuming the definition of default or reference PRBs. The default / reference PRB definition may be based on the LTE definition or the PRB definition of the new RAT (NR) as defined in 3GPP TS 36.211 section 5.2.3. The parameters for defining the default / reference PRBs may be pre-configured at the UE or signaled as part of the system information.

[0373] Alternatively, Can be defined as the offset of the slice specific PRB relative to the first PRB of the slice where the common PRACH resources are configured. The slices where the common PRACH resources are configured can be signaled as part of the system information. In one embodiment, a new IE called PRACH-Slice can be used to signal the slices where the common PRACH resources are configured, where the slices are Fig.15 The slices are numbered as shown; that is, a value of 0 maps to slices in the lowest subband, a value of 1 maps to slices in the next higher subband, and so on.

[0374] The bandwidth of the common PRACH resources can be signaled in the system information, which can be represented by PRBs associated with the digital scheme. In one embodiment, a new IE called PRACH-BW can be used to signal the bandwidth of the common PRACH resources. An exemplary PRACH-Config IE that has been extended to include PRACH-Slice and PRACH-BW IEs is shown below. According to this embodiment, maxSLICES is defined as 3. However, the present application can be used with any number of slices.

[0375] Extended PRACH-ConfigInfo IE

[0376]

[0377] For LTE, the subcarrier spacing ΔfRA for the random access preamble is defined as 1.25kHz for preamble formats 0 to 3 and 7.5kHz for preamble format 4. For slices using a digital scheme different from the traditional LTE digital scheme, one option for defining ΔfRA is to scale the LTE value by a factor equal to the ratio (Δf / Δf0), where Δf is the subcarrier spacing for a given slice and Δf0=15kHz is the subcarrier spacing for LTE. For small cell deployment scenarios using a small cyclic prefix, the duration of the PRACH resource can be scaled by the inverse of this factor. Table 8 shows an exemplary common PRACH resource configuration for the NR digital scheme, where preamble formats A to E are based on LTE preamble formats 0 to 4, respectively. In Table 8, the digital scheme for the eMBB slice corresponds to the LTE digital scheme. In addition, BW, when expressed in MHz, depends on the PRB definition and subcarrier spacing specific to the digital scheme.

[0378]

[0379] Table 8

[0380] The physical random access preamble consists of a cyclic prefix and a preamble sequence. For LTE, the length of the cyclic prefix (TCP) and the preamble sequence (TSEQ) is defined in terms of the basic time unit Ts = 1 / (15000×2048) seconds. The TCP values ​​used for different formats depend on the deployment scenario (e.g., macro cell, small cell) and do not need to be changed when using different digital schemes. However, the value of TSEQ depends on the digital scheme and should therefore be appropriately sized for the slice to which the common PRACH resources are assigned.

[0381] The preamble sequence length (TSEQ) should be defined so that the combined duration of the cyclic prefix, preamble and guard period is less than or equal to the duration of the PRACH resource in the time domain. It is also optimal if the duration of the guard period is approximately equal to the duration of the cyclic prefix. Therefore, for some deployments, the TSEQ used for different digital schemes may not be simply scaled by the same factor that scales the duration of the common PRACH resource. In addition, in scenarios where large cyclic prefixes are used, the common PRACH resource may need to be extended to additional symbols to accommodate the large cyclic prefix. Alternatively, the definition of the common PRACH resource can be extended in the frequency domain, allowing the same amount of information to be signaled using a shorter sequence length.

[0382] In LTE, the prach-ConfigIndex IE is used to signal the preamble format and subframes that allow random access preamble transmission. A similar mechanism can be used to signal this information for common PRACH resource configuration. This index can be used to determine the parameters of the reference configuration, which may require the UE to perform digital scheme-dependent scaling based on the digital scheme of the slices that configure the common PRACH resources.

[0383] For illustration purposes, the parameters of the reference configuration can correspond to those already defined for LTE. Furthermore, if it is assumed that the digital scheme of the eMBB slice is the same as the digital scheme of the reference configuration; i.e., based on LTE, the parameters of the reference configuration can be used directly. Then, by using configuration index 6 as described in Tables 5.7.1 to 5.7.2 of 3GPP TS 36.211; i.e., preamble format 0 appearing in subframes 1 and 6 of each frame, it is possible to signal as Figures 15 to 19 The configuration of common PRACH resources is shown.

[0384] If common PRACH resources are configured for mMTC slices, the configuration index 6 will still be signaled to the UE. However, the mMTC parameters of preamble format A shown in Table 8 will be applied.

[0385] The common PRACH resources of the examples discussed in the previous paragraphs appear the same; i.e., appear in subframes 1 and 6 of each frame. However, since the duration of a subframe depends on the digital scheme of the slice, the periodicity of the PRACH resources in each slice is not the same. Table 9 shows the periodicity of the common PRACH resources corresponding to configuration index 6 of the exemplary NR digital scheme.

[0386]

[0387] Table 9

[0388] In the above example, the prach-ConfigIndex IE is used to signal the index corresponding to the reference configuration. How the UE interprets this configuration depends on the digital scheme that configures the slices of the common PRACH resources; i.e., the UE performs any digital scheme-dependent scaling of the corresponding parameters that may be required.

[0389] Alternatively, the preamble format can be defined so that the preamble format also implies the digital scheme. For example, the legacy preamble formats 0 to 4 can be used for slices based on the LTE digital scheme. Additional preamble formats can be defined for other supported digital schemes; for example, preamble formats 5 to 9 can be defined for slices based on the exemplary mMTC digital scheme, while preamble formats 10 to 14 can be defined for slices based on the exemplary UR / LL digital scheme. An exemplary NR preamble format is shown as Table 10. The definition of the PRACH configuration index can be extended to include configurations 64 to 191 as shown in Table 11 to provide support for signaling random access configurations related to the digital scheme.

[0390]

[0391] Table 10

[0392] The preamble formats defined in the table assume that the PRACH resource occupies 6 PRBs. However, the present invention also supports defining new preamble formats, in which the PRACH is configured to occupy any number of PRBs.

[0393]

[0394]

[0395]

[0396]

[0397] Table 11

[0398] Common PRACH resources supporting hybrid digital solutions

[0399] In the above embodiments, it is assumed that the common PRACH resources are configured to use a single random access subcarrier spacing consistent with the digital scheme of the slices in which the common PRACH resources are configured. Alternatively, the common PRACH resources can be configured to simultaneously support multiple random access subcarrier spacings, for example a hybrid digital scheme, thereby allowing the UE to use any of the supported random access subcarrier spacings for preamble transmission. The UE will then be able to use a random access subcarrier spacing optimized for the device type and / or service request, regardless of the digital scheme of the slices in which the common PRACH resources are configured. In addition, supporting this feature in the network can reduce the complexity of the UE because it can reduce the number of random access subcarrier spacings that the UE needs to support; for example, only mMTC devices may be required to support ΔfRA, mMTC = 0.625kHz.

[0400] In one embodiment, the common PRACH resource will be configured with a BW wide enough to accommodate the digital scheme with the widest BW random access preamble and a duration long enough to accommodate the digital scheme with the longest duration random access preamble. Using the exemplary NR preamble digital scheme described above, this would correspond to 6 UR / LL PRBs or a BW of 2.16 MHz in the frequency domain and 1 mMTC subframe or a duration of 2 ms in the time domain. Fig. 22 As shown, the common PRACH resources configured in this way will be able to simultaneously support 4 mMTC PRACH resources plus 4 eMBB PRACH resources plus 4 UR / LL PRACH resources.

[0401] Operators will be able to configure which PRACH resources to use based on network requirements and expected RACH strength for a given service. For example, to ensure low latency, an operator may configure 4 UR / LL PRACH resources. But if the density of mMTC devices is low, only 1 or 2 of these mMTC resources may be configured. Fig.23 A common PRACH resource configuration supporting 1 mMTC PRACH resource, 2 eMBB PRACH resources and 4 UR / LL PRACH resources is shown.

[0402] PRACH resources can also be "stacked" in the frequency domain. Fig.24 An exemplary common PRACH resource configuration supporting 2 “stacked” mMTC PRACH resources, 2 eMBB PRACH resources, and 4 UR / LL PRACH resources is shown.

[0403] In the above example, additional PRACH resources can be configured to increase capacity. Alternatively, additional PRACH resources can be used to increase reliability or coverage rather than increase capacity. For example, additional UR / LLP RACH resources can be used for redundant transmission of random access preambles for UR / LL devices, thereby increasing the probability of preamble detection. Redundancy can be achieved by using repeated identical preamble sequences, or a set of different preambles from a set of allowed preamble groups can be used. Redundancy can be achieved in the time domain using PRACH resources in consecutive subframes or in the frequency domain using "stacked" PRACH resources. Alternatively, the UE can randomly select a preamble for each PRACH opportunity, which will cause the UE to perform multiple simultaneous random access procedures. The UE will then continue the process of receiving a random access response (RAR). If multiple RARs are received, the UE can optionally continue multiple random access procedures.

[0404] Slice-specific PRACH resources

[0405] The use of slice-specific PRACH resources for each slice is described in this section. The UE selects PRACH resources from the appropriate slice based on device type and / or service request. The random access procedure can then be completed using resources from the selected slice; that is, Fig. 20 , Fig.23 and Fig.24 Follow steps 1 to 4. Fig.19 An exemplary embodiment of slice-specific PRACH resources for a network supporting mMTC, eMBB, and UR / LL slicing is shown in FIG.

[0406] In this embodiment of the invention, each slice-specific PRACH resource (which can be one or several PRACH resource subbands) is shown as occupying K in the frequency domain of the corresponding slice. i = 6 PRBs and L in the time domain i = 1 (OFDM) symbol (where L i A symbol may be equal to or greater than 1 subframe). The subscript i of the terms K and L corresponds to the slice number. However, the slice-specific PRACH resources are not limited to occupying the same number of PRBs and subframes in each slice; nor is the present invention limited to network configurations where the digital schemes used only for different slices are integer multiples of each other. Alternatively, the slice-specific PRACH resource subband may use a different digital scheme (subcarrier spacing, symbol length, etc.) from the resource slice in which the PRACH subband (in the frequency domain) is located. The slice-specific PRACH resources may be multiplexed with the rest of the resources in the slice by using TDM and FDM. The digital scheme (subcarrier spacing, symbol length, etc.) used by the slice-specific PRACH resource subband may be different from the digital scheme used by all use cases (e.g., eMBB, mMTC, UR / LL) and their corresponding resource slices.

[0407] The configuration of slice-specific PRACH resources can be signaled to the UE as part of system information. In one embodiment, a reference configuration can be signaled to the UE. The configured parameters are then interpreted / scaled based on the digital scheme of different slices before the UE applies the configuration.

[0408] Alternatively, the slice-specific random access configuration for each slice can be explicitly signaled to the UE. In one embodiment, the slice-specific PRACH-Config IE can be signaled as part of the system information, allowing slice-specific PRACH resources to be configured independently for each slice. The system information can also include a slice-specific RACH-ConfigCommon IE, which can be used to signal the remaining parameters for controlling the behavior of the random access procedure. An exemplary RadioResourceConfigCommon IE that has been extended to support slice-specific configuration of slice-specific PRACH resources and common random access parameters is shown below.

[0409] ExtendedRadioResourceConfigCommon IE

[0410]

[0411] In this embodiment, maxSLICES is defined as 3. However, the present application can be used with any number of slices.

[0412] To configure Fig.13 For slice-specific PRACH resources as shown, the network can use the extended RadioResourceConfigCommon IE to explicitly signal the PRACH-Config-Common IE and PRACH-Config IE applicable to each slice. For the prach-ConfigIndex IE of mMTC, eMBB and UR / LL slices, the network will signal values ​​of 3, 6 and 9 respectively, while for their prach-FreqOffset IE, the network will signal values ​​of 0, 4 and 0 respectively. Example values ​​signaled for the prach-ConfigIndex IE assume Defined as the offset of the slice-specific PRB relative to the first PRB of the slice where the slice-specific PRACH resources are configured.

[0413] When initiating a random access procedure, the UE selects PRACH resources based on the service being requested. The random access procedure can then be completed using resources from the corresponding slice. The mechanism for PRACH resource selection and execution of the random access procedure is further described below.

[0414] Random access process

[0415] According to another embodiment, Fig.19The steps of the LTE contention-based random access procedure are shown in FIG. A similar procedure can be used to perform contention-based random access in a NextGen network, but the steps of the procedure are enhanced as described below. For illustration purposes, the contention-based random access procedure can be initiated by the RRC sublayer to establish an RRC connection with the network.

[0416] Before initiating the random access procedure, the UE obtains the required configuration parameters. The system information may be obtained by using a system information acquisition procedure (such as the system information acquisition procedure described in 3GPP TS 36.331) or any other mechanism designed for obtaining system information in a NextGen network.

[0417] In one embodiment, the configuration parameters required to perform the random access procedure are included in the PRACH-Config IE and RACH-ConfigCommon IE signaled as part of the system information. The following describes the extension of these IEs to configure PRACH resources and control the behavior of the UE when performing a random access procedure in a network configured to use common PRACH resources or slice-specific PRACH resources.

[0418] The higher layers are aware of the device type and / or service request. When the higher layers request to initiate a random access procedure, this information can be provided to the MAC sublayer, and the MAC sublayer uses this information when initializing and performing the random access procedure. Alternatively, the device type / service request can be configured in a non-volatile or semi-static parameter that the MAC entity reads when initializing the random access procedure.

[0419] Random access procedure using common PRACH resources

[0420] In this embodiment, a scenario is described where the network is configured to use common PRACH resources. The first step uses common PRACH resources. Some or all of the remaining steps of the random access procedure optionally use resources from a service-specific slice. Fig. 20 A signaling diagram of a random access procedure using common PRACH resources is shown in FIG.

[0421] Fig. 20 Step 0 in is related to initialization. Here, the UE obtains the required configuration parameters. By using an extension of the PRACH-Config IE, the configuration parameters for common PRACH resources can be signaled to the UE.

[0422] When a higher layer requests to initiate a random access procedure, the MAC entity may perform random access resource selection according to the procedure described in Section 5.1.2 of 3GPP TS 36.331 or any other procedure designed for random access resource selection. When selecting a preamble, the MAC entity first selects a preamble group based on the amount of data that the terminal needs to transmit in step 3. If the preamble group is partitioned into service-specific subsets, the MAC randomly selects a preamble from the service-specific subset of the selected preamble group, where the service-specific subset is selected based on the device type / requested service. Otherwise, the MAC entity randomly selects a preamble from the selected preamble group.

[0423] For a beam-centric architecture, the eNB may transmit beamformed initial access information, such as system information, synchronization, and broadcast information, via multiple OFDM symbols. The antenna beam may be steered toward a single direction for each OFDM symbol to enhance cell coverage. Another option is to define a mini-subframe (e.g., with 12 or 14 or fewer OFDM symbols) and use it to transmit initial access information; this reduces initial access overhead time by using very short mini-subframes. The initial access symbol may be configured or predefined and may be transmitted periodically or dynamically from the eNB to the UE. Alternatively, since beam scanning may be used at least in the DL direction, each Tx beam at the eNB may also systematically transmit beamformed initial access information to increase the probability of each NR eNB Tx beam covering the UE to the received initial access information to reliably identify the best UE's DL Rx beam, the best NR eNB's Tx beam, and the reduced initial access delay.

[0424] As described above, transmission synchronization signals (used for cell search, i.e., obtaining frequency and symbol synchronization of the cell, obtaining the frame timing of the cell, and determining the physical layer cell identity of the cell) and broadcast channels (e.g., PBCH carrying MIB and PDSCH carrying various SIBs) and DL reference signals can be beamformed.

[0425] The UE uses these beamforming signals received from the eNB to identify the best or preferred UE's DL Rx beam and the best or preferred NR eNB's DL Tx beam. The UE can feed back the best or preferred NR eNB's DL Tx beam information to the NR eNB in ​​step 1, i.e., using PRACH preamble transmission.

[0426] It is contemplated that a mapping between a UE Tx beam and one or more of the PRACH preamble and RACH resources in the frequency domain and the time domain. The eNB may use the mapping to derive the best or preferred UE's UL Tx beam for the UE, i.e., the UE's Tx beam from which the received preamble originates (among all potential UL Tx beams). The eNB may also identify / record the best NR eNB's UL Rx beam associated with the received preamble. The eNB may, for example, feedback the best or preferred UE's UL Tx beam information to the UE in step 2.

[0427] To allow the UE to indicate the device type / service request to the network during preamble transmission, such as Fig.21 As shown, the preamble group can be partitioned into service-specific subsets based on the slice-specific services provided by the network. When the random access procedure is initialized, the UE selects a preamble from the appropriate preamble group and service-specific subset.

[0428] Alternatively, if the common PRACH resource is configured to support a hybrid digital scheme, the digital scheme used to transmit the preamble will indicate the device type / service request to the network. Fig.21 The diagram illustrates service-based partitioning of random access preambles.

[0429] Random Access Response (RAR) message

[0430] Fig. 20 Step 1 of the random access procedure involves preamble transmission. In step 1 of the random access procedure, the UE transmits a selected random access preamble. The power level at which the preamble is transmitted can depend on the device type and / or the requested service.

[0431] In one embodiment, the UE transmits the selected random access preamble according to the procedure described in Section 5.1.3 of 3GPP TS 36.331. The preamble is transmitted at a power level controlled by the parameter PREAMBLE_RECEIVED_TARGET_POWER, which is set to preambleInitialReceivedTargetPower+DELTA_PREAMBLE+(PREAMBLE_TRANSMISSION_COUNTER-1)*powerRampingStep. DELTA_PREAMBLE can be configured so that the offset also depends on the device type and / or the requested service. The DELTA_PREAMBLE_VALUE will then be selected based on the preamble format and the device type / requested service. A set of exemplary device / service-related preamble offsets for mMTC, eMBB, and UR / LL devices / services are shown below in Table 12. In this example, the eMBB value is equal to the value used for LTE.

[0432]

[0433] Table 12

[0434] For a beam-centric architecture, the UE may receive the required configuration parameters via multiple beams. The UE may select the best or preferred UE Rx beam and NR eNB Tx beam based on initial access signaling measurements for DL ​​beamforming, and provide feedback to the eNB with the Tx beam index of the best or preferred NR eNB. By exploiting beam reciprocity, the UE may transmit a PRACH preamble by using the resources selected based on the mechanism in the previous section, and the eNB may receive the PRACH preamble by using the selected beam with high RX antenna array gain toward the transmitting UE.

[0435] For TDD systems, due to channel reciprocity, the UE (with MIMO capability) can apply beamforming weights based on DL initial access beamforming information and then transmit beamformed PRACH preamble to further enhance the PRACH Tx performance gain.

[0436] For FDD systems, a similar process can be applied at the UE site to transmit the PRACH preamble via multiple symbols, where the beam is steered towards a single direction for each OFDM symbol to enhance the coverage of the random access procedure. It should be noted that for static or semi-static scenarios, the UL beam scanning and beam selection process may not need to be performed frequently, and the UE can perform the transmission, record the beam index, and use the beam index for a long time. The same PRACH preamble can then be reused by different UEs belonging to different spatially separated directional beams to enhance PRACH capacity. The UE can use the preamble transmission to feedback the best or preferred NR eNB's DL Tx beam information to the NReNB.

[0437] exist Fig. 20 In step 2 of , the UE monitors a DL control channel, e.g., PDCCH, for a random access response (RAR). The network is able to transmit the RAR by using resources from a DL slice corresponding to the device type / requested service. The network determines the device type / requested service based on the service-specific subset from which the preamble is selected. The network uses this information when determining which slice to use for transmitting the RAR.

[0438] Alternatively, DL resources from the slice corresponding to the slice configured with common PRACH resources can be used to signal the RAR. In this embodiment, the RAR can be extended to include IE to indicate the slice that should be used for the remaining steps of the random access procedure (i.e., transmitting Msg3 and receiving Msg4).

[0439] The RAR may include a timing advance (TA) command, which indicates a change in uplink timing relative to the current uplink timing.

[0440] In one embodiment, the TA command may be expressed as a multiple of the basic time unit as in LTE; i.e., a multiple of 16·Ts. Alternatively, the timing advance command can be expressed as a multiple of a slice-specific basic time unit. For the considered exemplary digital scheme, the slice-specific basic time unit can be defined as follows:

[0441] Ts,mMTC=(Δf / ΔfmMTC)x Ts=2·Ts

[0442] Ts,eMBB=(Δf / ΔfeMBB)x Ts=Ts

[0443] Ts,UR / LL=(Δf / ΔfmMTC)x Ts=1 / 2·Ts

[0444] Whether the TA command is expressed as a multiple of a reference value of Ts or a multiple of a slice-specific value of Ts can be standardized / pre-configured at the UE or signaled via system information; that is, when requesting mMTC service, TA can be expressed as a multiple of Ts,mMTC regardless of the slice in which the common preamble is configured, or the TA command can be expressed as a multiple of the reference value of Ts regardless of the slice in which the common PRACH resources are configured or the service is being requested.

[0445] The RAR may carry a backoff value for the random access procedure. An example of backoff signaling is that the backoff indicator subheader is included in the RAR, and the MAC entity sets the backoff parameter value as indicated by the BI field of the backoff indicator subheader. The definition of the backoff parameter can be extended so that the value also depends on the device type / requested service. The backoff parameter value will then be selected based on the BI field of the backoff indicator subheader and the device type / requested service. A set of exemplary device / service-related backoff parameter values ​​for mMTC, eMBB, and UR / LL devices / services are shown in Table 13 below.

[0446]

[0447] Table 13

[0448] The eNB can feed back the UE the best or preferred UL Tx beam information of the UE in the Random Access Response (RAR) message. The UE can use this information to select the UL Tx beam for Fig. 20 The Tx beam transmitted by message 3 (Msg3) in step 3.

[0449] The eNB may transmit the RAR message on the best DL Tx beam of the NR eNB identified from the PRACH preamble transmission in step 1.

[0450] The UE can also use the RAR message to identify the best or preferred DL Tx beam of the NR eNB.

[0451] Fig. 20 Step 3 of the UE describes the terminal identification and connection request. Here, the UE transmits a message for establishing a connection. The message is transmitted by using the UL resources allocated in the grant as part of the RAR received in step 2. The message may include one or more IEs that can be used to assist the network in establishing a connection.

[0452] In one embodiment, the UE may transmit an RRCConnectionRequest message. The message includes an establishmentCause field that provides the establishment cause of the RRC connection request as provided by upper layers. The definition of the EstablishmentCause IE can be extended to allow the UE to indicate the requested service type, as shown below. The network can use this information to assist in slice (re)selection in the RAN and / or CN.

[0453] When the random access preamble is partitioned as described in this example, it may not be necessary to explicitly signal the type of service requested in the RRCConnectionRequest message. However, in this scenario, the present invention does not exclude the use of an extended EstablishmentCause IE to signal the requested service type.

[0454] Extended EstablishmentCause IE

[0455]

[0456] Alternatively, a Service Type MAC CE defined as follows can be used to indicate the type of service request.

[0457] ST Service Type 0 mMTC 1 eMBB 2 UR / LL 3 reserve

[0458] Table 14

[0459] index LCID value 00000 CCCH 00001-01010 Logical channel identification 01011 CCCH 01100-10100 reserve 10101 Service Type 10110 Truncated Side Link BSR 10111 Sidelink BSR 11000 Dual Connectivity Power Headroom Report 11001 Extended Power Headroom Reporting 11010 Power Headroom Report 11011 C-RNTI 11100 Truncated BSR 11101 Short BSR 11110 Long BSR 11111 filling

[0460] Table 15

[0461] The UE may transmit Msg3 on the beam identified by the NR eNB in ​​the RAR message as the best or preferred UE's UL Tx beam.

[0462] The UE can provide feedback to the NR eNB. This can be Fig. 20 Step 0 or Fig. 20 The best or preferred NR eNB DL Tx beam identified in step 2.

[0463] Fig. 20 Step 4 of 3GPP TS 36.321 describes contention resolution. This contention resolution may be performed as described in Section 5.1.5 of 3GPP TS 36.321 or according to any other mechanism designed for contention resolution in NextGen networks. The eNB may Fig. 20 Step 1 or Fig. 20 In step 3 the UE communicates to the NR eNB by transmitting message 4 on the best DL Tx beam of the eNB.

[0464] It should be understood that the execution Fig. 20 The entities of the steps shown may be logical entities that may be stored in a device configured for wireless and / or network communications or such. Figure 1B and Figure 1F In other words, the present invention is implemented in the form of software (i.e., computer executable instructions) stored in a memory of a computer system and executed on a processor thereof. Fig. 20 The method shown can be used to store Figure 1B and Figure 1F The computer system or the computer system shown in the embodiment of the present invention is implemented in the form of software (i.e., computer executable instructions) in the memory of the device or computer system, and the computer executable instructions are executed by the processor of the device to perform the following operations: Fig. 20 It should also be understood that Fig. 20 Any of the transmission and reception steps shown may be performed by the communication circuitry of the device under the control of a processor of the device and computer-executable instructions (eg, software) executed thereon.

[0465] Random access procedure using slice-specific PRACH resources

[0466] In yet a further embodiment, a scenario is described where the network is configured to use slice-specific PRACH resources. Fig.23 Step 1 of the random access procedure uses slice-specific PRACH resources selected by the UE based on device type / service request. The remaining steps of the random access procedure use resources from the selected service-specific slice. Fig.23 The signaling diagram of the random access procedure using slice-specific PRACH resources is shown in FIG.

[0467] Fig.23 Step 0 of describes the initialization procedure. The UE obtains the required configuration parameters. By using the extended RadioResourceConfigCommon IE, the configuration parameters for slice-specific PRACH resources can be signaled to the UE.

[0468] When higher layers request to initiate a random access procedure, the MAC entity first selects the slice from which the PRACH preamble will be selected. The slice selected by the UE is determined based on the device type / requested service. Thereafter, the MAC entity performs random access resource selection according to the procedure described in 3GPP TS 36.331 Section 5.1.2 or any other procedure designed for random access resource selection.

[0469] For slice-specific processes, different PRACH digital schemes are required to support different deployment scenarios; therefore, for each digital scheme in NR, each initial access subframe or mini-subframe needs to support different sizes and corresponding different numbers of symbols.

[0470] Fig.23 Step 1 of describes the preamble transmission. Here, the UE transmits the selected random access preamble. The power level of the transmitted preamble can depend on the device type and / or the requested service. In one embodiment, the power level of the transmitted preamble depends on the slice-specific PowerRampingParameters and the device / service-dependent DELTA_PREAMBLE_VALUE signaled via the extended RadioResourceConfigCommon IE, such as those proposed in Table 12. Similar mechanisms can be applied to the beam-centric model.

[0471] Again, for slice-specific processes, different PRACH digital schemes are required to support different deployment scenarios; therefore, for each digital scheme in NR, each PRACH subframe or mini-subframe needs to support different sizes and corresponding different numbers of symbols.

[0472] Fig.23 Step 2 of describes random access response reception. Here, the UE monitors DL control channels, such as PDCCH, for RAR. The UE is able to use slice specific configuration parameters to control the UE behavior. In one embodiment, the UE is able to use slice specific ra-SupervisionInfo when performing this step of the process. For example, when determining the size of the RAR window, the UE will use the slice specific ra-ResponseWindowSize signaled via the extended RadioResourceConfigCommon IE. If the RAR reception is considered unsuccessful, the UE will also use the slice specific preambleTransMax parameter when determining whether another random access transmission should be performed.

[0473] The RAR may include a timing advance (TA) command.If the RAR includes a backoff indicator subheader, the UE can apply slice specific backoff parameter values ​​such as those proposed in Table 13 above.

[0474] The network can transmit the RAR by using the DL resources corresponding to the UL slice of the detected preamble. Therefore, the UE is only required to monitor the DL control channel; e.g., PDCCH for the RAR on the corresponding DL slice. For example, if the UE uses UR / LL slices to transmit the random access preamble, the UE will monitor the DL control channel; e.g., PDCCH for the RAR on the corresponding UR / LL DL slice.

[0475] Step 3 describes the terminal identification and connection request. Here, the UE transmits a message for establishing a connection; for example, an RRCConnectionRequest message. Fig.23 The message is transmitted using the UL resources allocated in the grant of a portion of the RAR received in step 2. The message may include one or more IEs that can be used to assist the network in establishing a connection by using an extended EstablishmentCause IE or a service type MAC CE.

[0476] In the random access process Fig.17 In step 4, contention resolution is performed. The contention resolution may be performed as described in Section 5.1.5 of 3GPP TS 36.321 or according to any other mechanism designed for contention resolution.

[0477] In one embodiment, after transmitting Msg3, the UE sets the mac-ContentionResolutionTimer and waits for the contention resolution message to be received, i.e., Msg4. The UE can set the mac-ContentionResolutionTimer to a slice-specific value signaled via the extension RadioResourceConfigCommon. If the contention resolution is considered unsuccessful, the UE will also use the slice-specific preambleTransMax parameter when determining whether another random access transmission should be made.

[0478] Random access with unlicensed transmission

[0479] According to yet further embodiments, a method for performing unlicensed transmission as part of a random access procedure is described. Unlicensed transmission can be used to transmit control plane (CP) or user plane (UP) data. CP / UP data may include connection request messages (e.g., RRCConnectionRequest), IEs that assist the network in establishing or maintaining a connection, "keep alive" messages, periodic status / health indicators, infrequent small data packets, etc. Fig.24 A signaling diagram of a random access procedure with ungranted transmission is shown in FIG.

[0480] Fig.24 Step 1 of describes the transmission of the preamble plus the unlicensed message. Here, the UE transmits the selected random access preamble and the unlicensed message. The unlicensed message can be multiplexed with the preamble in TDD or FDD mode. In one embodiment, the unlicensed message will be transmitted in the OFDM symbol after the preamble. Alternatively, the unlicensed message can be transmitted in the same OFDM symbol as the preamble by using unlicensed resources adjacent to those used for the preamble transmission.

[0481] Fig.25A is an exemplary random access preamble format that can be used to multiplex the transmission of unlicensed messages in a TDD manner. The same frequency resources used for the preamble transmission can be used to transmit the message. Alternatively, a different set of frequency resources can be used to transmit the message, i.e., unlicensed resources. The location of the unlicensed resources can be signaled to the UE as part of the system information or notified to the UE via dedicated signaling. Unlicensed transmissions can use non-orthogonal multiple access schemes such as MUSA, RSMA, SCMA, etc. Fig.25B is another alternative embodiment where there is no CP between the sequence and the message.

[0482] Alternatively, the unlicensed message may be transmitted in the same OFDM symbol as the preamble using unlicensed resources different from the physical resources used for the preamble transmission, for example, adjacent to the PRACH resources. Fig.25C is an exemplary random access preamble format that can be used to multiplex the transmission of the ungranted message in FDD mode. According to the application, it is contemplated that one or more guard periods may be FIG. 25A to FIG. 25C The message, sequence, or sequence / message shown in is provided afterwards.

[0483] This parameter set can enable the transmitter / receiver to modulate / demodulate and encode / decode an unlicensed data transmission as a signature of the transmission. Among non-orthogonal UEs with unlicensed UL transmissions that multiplex some or all of the resources, each UE must transmit with a unique signature so that the data can be decoded unambiguously. It should be noted that the real identity of the UE (such as C-RNTI) itself does not necessarily need to be part of the signature. The selected PRACH resources and preamble can be transmitted by the UE, implicitly indicating the signature associated with the unlicensed data.

[0484] In one embodiment, according to a non-orthogonal multiple access scheme, the selected preamble sequence may be mapped to parameters defining a signature, which may be one or more of the following:

[0485] Spread Spectrum Sequence

[0486] Scrambling sequence (e.g. initial state of the scrambler)

[0487] Interleaver Mode

[0488] Resource Mapping Mode

[0489] For example, the UE can use RSMA signaling for unlicensed UL transmission. The initial state of the scrambling sequence for data is used as a signature for UL unlicensed transmission. According to the solution of the present application, the preamble ID is mapped to the scrambling sequence and interleaving pattern that the UE should use to transmit its data.

[0490] The message portion of the transmission may be used to transmit CP or UP data. In one embodiment, the message portion may be used to transmit a connection request message. The structure of the message may be similar to the RRCConnectionRequest message defined for LTE or the new message structure defined for NR RAN. The message may optionally include IEs that may assist the network in establishing or maintaining a connection. An exemplary NR-ConnectionRequest message is defined as follows.

[0491] NR-ConnectionRequest message

[0492]

[0493] For scenarios where small data packets need to be sent from the UE to the network, the UE transmits an NR-GrantlessData message in the message part of the transmission. An exemplary NR-GrantlessData message is defined as follows.

[0494] NR-GrantlessData Message

[0495]

[0496] exist Fig.24 In step 2, the UE monitors the DL control channel for RAR; for example, PDCCH. Fig.18 If an NR-ConnectionRequest message is transmitted in step 1 of the RAR, the network responds with a connection establishment message (e.g., NR-ConnectionSetup) that includes the IEs required to establish the connection. The RAR also includes a UL grant for transmitting Msg3. If an NR-GrantlessData message is transmitted in step 1, the network responds with an ACK or NACK, depending on whether the data message is successfully received.

[0497] Fig.24 Step 3 of UL describes the transmission of UL data and control signaling. This step is only applicable to Fig.18Here, the UE uses the resources provided in the UL grant to send a message to indicate the status of the connection (e.g., connection establishment success or connection establishment failure) and any UL data or control signaling.

[0498] Fig.24 The transmission of DL data and control signaling is described in step 4 of . Here, DL data and control signaling are transmitted to the UE. UL / DL data and control signaling can continue to be transmitted by using the established connection.

[0499] The goal of the access technology study project for random access (NR) is to identify and develop the technical components required for systems operating at frequencies up to 100 GHz [3GPP TR 38.913][RP-161214, SI Revision: New Radio Access Technology Study, NTT DOCOMO]. Beamforming is expected to be widely used to compensate for the increased path loss in these high frequency NR (HF-NR) systems. However, existing random access procedures based on omni-directional or sector-based transmissions do not support the functions required for beamforming-based access; for example, beam scanning, beam pairing, beam training, etc. Therefore, there is a need for an enhanced random access procedure that supports beamforming for NR networks.

[0500] According to another aspect of the present application, solutions for enabling beam scanning in NR networks will be discussed. These solutions are expected to be used in HF-NR systems, but their use in systems operating at lower frequencies is not excluded. Although NR nodes are used herein for exemplary illustration or description purposes, the proposed mechanism can be performed at NR nodes, RRHs or TRPs.

[0501] Beam scanning frame structure

[0502] According to one embodiment of this aspect, a scanning subframe is defined to enable beam scanning in an NR network. The scanning subframe consists of multiple scanning slots, where each scanning slot can consist of 1 or more OFDM symbols. The DL beam enabled during a given scanning slot can be used to transmit synchronization signals, beam training reference signals (BT-RS), and DL physical channels. The UL beam enabled during a given scanning slot can be used to transmit random access preambles, sounding reference signals (SRS), BT-RS, and UL physical channels.

[0503] To perform beam scanning, the NR node enables a subset of beams during each scanning time slot. Fig. 27 As shown, the NR node enables a single beam during each scanning time slot. In this embodiment, the NR node uses 12 separate beams to provide coverage, which requires 12 scanning time slots to scan the entire set of beams.

[0504] Alternatively, the NR node may enable multiple beams during each scanning slot. Fig.28A An embodiment is shown in which 1 sector consisting of 4 beams is enabled per scanning time slot. In this embodiment, the entire set of 12 beams is scanned in 3 scanning time slots. Fig.28B An embodiment is shown in which 1 beam in each sector is enabled in each scanning time slot. In this embodiment, the entire set of 12 beams is scanned in 4 scanning time slots. Some configurations (such as Fig.28A The configuration shown in FIG. 1 may be more susceptible to inter-beam interference. In this case, to minimize inter-beam interference, adjacent beams may be configured to use non-overlapping subbands; that is, different frequency resources.

[0505] In FDD systems, this can be achieved by using scanning subframes (such as Fig. 27 or scanning subframes as shown in FIG28) to simultaneously scan the UL and DL beams. Fig. 27 In the scenario shown, during scanning time slot n, the NR node transmits and receives using beam n. In addition, during scanning time slot n+1, it transmits and receives using beam n+1. This process continues until all beams are scanned.

[0506] Alternatively, for a TDD system, separate DL and UL scanning slots may be used to define the scanning subframe. Fig.29 An embodiment of a self-contained scanning subframe with DL / UL scanning slots separated by a guard period to allow Rx / Tx switching is shown.

[0507] like Fig.30 As shown, the scanning subframe may occur periodically or may be dynamically configured. Alternatively, a separate DL / UL scanning subframe may be configured. Fig.31 An embodiment is shown in which DL and UL scanning subframes appear periodically in subframes N and (N+3), respectively.

[0508] According to the present application, it is conceivable to use scanning subframes to carry the signaling required to support the initial access process (e.g., cell search, cell (re)selection, random access, etc.), and use regular subframes to communicate with UEs that have established connections. Scanning subframes can also be used to transmit small data packets that do not require a full connection to be established, and can also be used to support mobility; for example, to facilitate detection and measurement of additional beams that can be configured as service beams.

[0509] When UL Rx beam scanning is used at the NR node, the UE must transmit when the NR node is receiving in the direction of the transmitting UE using the UL Rx beam. If beam reciprocity is supported at the NR node, this can be done by defining an association between the DL Tx beam and the corresponding UL Rx beam. Fig.32An embodiment of associating (multiple) DL Tx beams enabled during a DL scan slot with (multiple) UL Rx beams enabled during a UL scan slot is shown. In this example, a UE that has synchronized to a DL beam transmitted during a given DL scan slot will perform UL transmissions during the corresponding UL scan slot. For example, a UE that has synchronized to DL beam 0 will perform UL transmissions during scan slot 0 of a UL scan subframe. In order to support scenarios where multiple DL beams are enabled during a given scan slot, the UE can signal the beam ID of the DL beam to which it has synchronized when performing an UL transmission. The association between UL / DL beams can be specified in the standard or can be signaled as part of the SI broadcast by the NR node. If reciprocity is not supported at the NR node, the UE may need to repeat its transmissions in all scan slots of the UL scan subframe because it will not know when the UL Rx beam is pointing in its direction. The NR node's support for reciprocity can be signaled as part of the SI broadcast by the NR node.

[0510] RAN2 has agreed that the minimum SI needs to be broadcast periodically and should include the information required to support cell selection in order to obtain other SI defined as all content not broadcast in the minimum SI and access cells [3GPP TR 38.804, New Radio Access Technology Research; Radio Interface Protocol Aspects (Release 14), V0.2.0 1]. This information corresponds to the IE signaled by MIB, SIB1 and SIB2 for LTE. The present invention proposes that the scanning subframe configuration is included in the minimum SI broadcast periodically by the NR node. Fig.33 An exemplary IE that may be used to signal a scanning subframe configuration is shown in FIG. Fig.34 An alternative scanning subframe IE is shown which explicitly specifies the DL and UL scanning subframe configurations. Alternatively, the scanning subframe configurations may be defined in the standard specification.

[0511]

[0512] Table 16

[0513]

[0514]

[0515] Table 17

[0516] It is envisioned that the minimum SI is broadcast during the DL scanning time slot by using the NR Physical Broadcast Channel (NR-PBCH) and the NR Physical Downlink Shared Channel (NR-PDSCH). In one embodiment, the NR-PBCH will be used to transmit a subset of the minimum SI; i.e., the NR-MIB, and the NR-PDSCH will be used to transmit the rest of the minimum SI; i.e., the IEs corresponding to NR-SIB1 and NR-SIB2. The present invention proposes that, if Fig.35 As shown, the scanning subframe configuration is included in the NR-MIB. Alternatively, the scanning subframe configuration may be included in NR-SIB1 or NR-SIB2. The minimum SI may be obtained by using a system information acquisition procedure (such as the system information acquisition procedure described above) or any other mechanism designed for obtaining SI in an NR network.

[0517] Cell selection in beam scanning NR networks

[0518] The UE performs cell selection to find a suitable cell to camp on. During the cell selection process, the UE performs measurements on the DL beams transmitted by the (multiple) NR cells during the DL scanning subframes. As part of the cell selection process, the UE also determines / selects the "best" DL Tx beam, where the "best" DL Tx beam can be the beam with the maximum RSRP measurement. The UE can perform beam pairing during the cell selection process; that is, determine the "best" DL Rx beam to use when receiving the "best" DL Tx beam.

[0519] As part of the cell selection process, the UE may also obtain the minimum SI broadcast by the (multiple) NR cells, which may include scanning subframe configuration, PRACH configuration and / or additional SI required to access the cell. If this minimum SI is broadcast while the UE is performing the cell (re)selection process, the UE may optionally obtain other SI.

[0520] After selecting a cell to camp on, the UE may continue to perform measurements on the DL beam(s) transmitted by the selected cell and / or DL ​​beams transmitted from any other cell that the UE can detect; and may reselect another cell and / or DL ​​Tx / Rx beam pair based on an evaluation of the DL measurements and / or any other cell selection criteria. Fig.36 An exemplary NR cell selection process is shown in FIG.

[0521] It should be understood that the execution Fig.36 The entities of the steps shown may be logical entities that are stored in a device configured for wireless and / or network communications or such. Figure 1B and Figure 1FIn other words, the present invention is implemented in the form of software (i.e., computer executable instructions) stored in a memory of a computer system and executed on a processor thereof. Fig.36 The method shown can be used to store Figure 1B and Figure 1F The computer system or the computer system shown in the embodiment of the present invention is implemented in the form of software (i.e., computer executable instructions) in the memory of the device or computer system, and the computer executable instructions are executed by the processor of the device to perform the following operations: Fig.23 It should also be understood that Fig.36 Any of the transmission and reception steps shown may be performed by the communication circuitry of the device under the control of a processor of the device and computer-executable instructions (eg, software) executed thereon.

[0522] Transmission of other SI

[0523] According to further embodiments of this aspect, the minimum SI may be extremely limited in periodic broadcasting by the NR node during the DL scanning subframe. In some scenarios, it may be undesirable to delay the acquisition of other SI, defined as all content not broadcast in the minimum SI [3GPP TR 38.804], until after the random access process has been successfully completed. For such scenarios, it is envisioned that detection of the preamble by the NR node can be used to trigger the broadcast of some or all of the other SI during the DL scanning subframe. If a subset of the other SI is to be broadcast, the subset can be predetermined, or the subset can be determined dynamically; for example, the UE can request a subset of the other SI to be broadcast via data "piggy backed" with the preamble transmission. The other SI can be broadcast on all DL beams / DL scanning slots or on a subset of the DL beams / DL scanning slots, where the subset of the DL beams / DL scanning slots can be based on the detected (multiple) preambles and / or the (multiple) PRACHs on which these preambles are detected. Other SI may be broadcast during one or more DL scanning subframes, where the multiple DL scanning subframes may or may not be consecutive. Throughout the random access procedure, the UE may optionally monitor the PDCCH for broadcasting other SI. Fig.37 An exemplary signaling diagram for triggering the transmission of other SI is shown in FIG.

[0524] It should be understood that the execution Fig.37 The entities of the steps shown may be logical entities that may be stored in a device configured for wireless and / or network communications or such. Figure 1B and Figure 1F In other words, the present invention is implemented in the form of software (i.e., computer executable instructions) stored in a memory of a computer system and executed on a processor thereof. Fig.37 The method shown can be used to store Figure 1Band Figure 1F The computer system or the computer system shown in the embodiment of the present invention is implemented in the form of software (i.e., computer executable instructions) in the memory of the device or computer system, and the computer executable instructions are executed by the processor of the device to perform the following operations: Fig.37 It should also be understood that Fig.37 Any of the transmission and reception steps shown may be performed by the communication circuitry of the device under the control of a processor of the device and computer-executable instructions (eg, software) executed thereon.

[0525] Random access in beam-scanning NR networks

[0526] To support random access in beam scanning NR networks, it is envisaged that PRACH resources are configured during the UL scanning slot. The random access preamble parameters may be optimized based on the scanning subframe configuration. An exemplary random access preamble format that has been optimized for the scanning subframe configuration is provided in Table 18 below and is provided in Table 18. Fig.38 The parameters of this new preamble format are listed in Table 19 below. In this example, the present invention assumes a digital scheme with a scanning subframe length of 0.125ms, a subcarrier spacing Δf=480kHz, and a corresponding basic time unit T's=1 / (480000×2048).

[0527] parameter value subframe 0 numSweepingSlots 4 numSymbolsPerSlot 7 ulSweepingSubframeOffset 3 Period n10 reciprocityIndicator TRUE

[0528] Table 18

[0529]

[0530] Table 19

[0531] The subcarrier spacing ΔfRA of the random access preamble is chosen to be (1 / 12×Δf) as it is used for LTE. The length TCP of the CP is chosen to support a cell size of up to 500 meters.

[0532] The NR node may be configured with the same PRACH configuration for all UL scanning slots; i.e., for all UL beams. Alternatively, the NR node may be configured with a different PRACH configuration for each UL scanning slot. The PRACH configuration(s) may be signaled using an IE similar to the PRACH-Config IE signaled in SIB2 and broadcast to the UE during the DL scanning subframe.

[0533] The PRACH-ConfigIndex included in the PRACH-Config IE may be used to determine the random access configuration. Table 20 below shows a set of exemplary NR random access configurations. By extending the number of configurations defined in this table, additional random access configurations may be signaled using this mechanism, which may include optimizations for specific use cases, deployment scenarios, etc.

[0534]

[0535]

[0536] Table 20

[0537] Random access process

[0538] In another embodiment of this aspect, the UE may perform a cell (re)selection prior to initiating the random access procedure. The steps of the LTE contention-based random access procedure are discussed above. An enhanced procedure for performing contention-based random access in a beam scanning NR network is proposed. Prior to starting random access preamble transmission, the UE performs random access resource selection to determine the random access preamble and PRACH. If the NR node supports beam reciprocity and is configured with scanning subframes, the time resources of the PRACH (i.e., the UL scanning slot) can be determined from the time resources (i.e., the DL scanning slot) used by the NR node to transmit the DL beam selected by the UE (i.e., the "best" DL Tx beam) during the cell selection procedure. For example, if Fig.39 As shown, if the UE selects a DL Tx beam transmitted during scanning slot N of a DL scanning subframe, the time resource corresponding to the PRACH will be scanning slot N of the UL scanning subframe.

[0539] Fig.40 It shows how an exemplary association may be defined if a self-contained DL / UL scanning subframe is configured. The frequency resource for the corresponding PRACH may be determined from the PRACH-Config IE signaled as part of the minimum SI broadcast by the NR node. If multiple PRACH resources are configured in the UL scanning slot, the UE may randomly select a PRACH resource from the set of PRACH resources.

[0540] If the NR node does not support beam reciprocity, it may not be possible to establish an association between the time resources of the selected DL Tx beam and the time resources of the PRACH. In this scenario, the UE may randomly select a PRACH from the set of PRACH resources. Alternatively, if the UE has successfully completed a random access procedure in the past, the UE may select a PRACH configured with the same time resources as the PRACH selected when the random access procedure was successfully completed. For scenarios where the NR node does not support beam reciprocity, the DL beam selected by the UE may not be determined from the PRACH detected for the random access preamble. Therefore, the present invention proposes that, if Fig.41 As shown, the preamble space is partitioned. A given UE will select a preamble from the subset assigned to the corresponding DL beam selected by the UE as the "best" DL Tx beam. The NR node will then be able to determine the "best" DL Tx beam for a given UE based on the detected preambles.

[0541] like Fig.41 The implicit signaling of the "best" DL Tx beam through the partitioned random access preamble as shown can also be used in the scenario where the NR node configures multiple UL Rx beams during a given UL scanning slot. If the UL Rx beams configured during the UL scanning slot overlap or cover similar areas of the cell, a single preamble transmission can be detected on the PRACH of multiple UL Rx beams. The NR node can use this information to determine which DL Tx beam to use to transmit the RAR response to avoid sending the RAR on a DL Tx beam that is not selected by the UE and is not monitored by the UE for RAR.

[0542] In some scenarios, it may be advantageous for the UE to select multiple PRACH resources corresponding to one or more UL scan slots. For example, if the NR node does not support beam reciprocity, the UE may select a PRACH resource from each of the UL scan slots; i.e., transmit a random access preamble during each UL scan slot. This approach will allow for reduced latency in the random access procedure compared to an approach where the UE must wait for a considered RAR response to be unsuccessful before attempting another random access transmission.

[0543] If the UE supports beam scanning, the beam used for the transmitted preamble may also be selected. If the UE supports beam reciprocity, the "best" UL Tx beam can be determined from the "best" DL Rx beam. If the UE does not support beam reciprocity, the UE may select any UL Tx beam; for example, randomly. Alternatively, if the UE has successfully completed a random access procedure in the past, the UE may select the UL Tx beam that was used when the random access procedure was successfully completed.

[0544] If the random access response is considered unsuccessful, the UE may attempt another random access transmission. If the NR node and / or the UE does not support beam reciprocity, the UE may scan the UL Tx beam when subsequently retransmitting the random access preamble. Before switching the UL Tx beam, the UE completes power ramping by using the selected UL Tx beam. When the maximum number of attempts is reached by using a given beam, the UE switches the UL Tx beam and resets PREAMBLE_RECEIVED_TARGET_POWER to preambleInitialReceivedTargetPower + DELTA_PREAMBLE + (PREAMBLE_TRANSMISSION_COUNTER–1)*powerRampingStep. This process may be repeated until all UL Tx beams have been scanned or the random access procedure is successfully completed.

[0545] In step 1 of the random access procedure, the UE transmits the selected (multiple) random access preambles by using the selected (multiple) PRACHs and the selected UL Tx beams. In step 2 of the random access procedure, the UE monitors the DL control channel, e.g., PDCCH, for a random access response (RAR). The UE monitors the PDCCH for the RAR identified with the RA-RNTI corresponding to the PRACH resources used to transmit the random access preamble. It is envisaged that the RA-RNTI is redefined so that the parameter t_id (0≤t_id<28) corresponds to the time resource of the PRACH; i.e., the UL scanning time slot. In one embodiment, it can be as follows: RA-RNTI=1+t_id+10*f_id

[0546] Redefining the RA-RNTI in this way allows the NR node to implicitly signal the time resource at which the PRACH of the preamble was detected, which can be used to facilitate UL beam pairing in systems where the NR node does not support beam reciprocity.

[0547] The UE monitors the PDCCH as described above during the random access response window. In an NR network configured for beam scanning, the present invention proposes that, Fig.42 As shown, the random access response window is defined as a number of DL scanning subframes. The parameter ra-ResponseWindowSize included in the RACH-ConfigCommon IE may be used to signal this value.

[0548] After successfully receiving a RAR containing a random access preamble identifier matching the transmitted random access preamble, the UE may stop monitoring the RAR. Alternatively, if the UE transmits multiple random access preambles, the UE may continue to monitor additional RARs until all random access procedures initiated by the UE are successfully completed; i.e., confirmed by a RAR containing the random access preamble identifier of the transmitted random access preamble or a timeout; i.e., no RAR containing the random access preamble identifier of the transmitted random access preamble is received within the random access response window.

[0549] RAR includes UL approval. Fig.30 As shown in the figure, when the UL delay field of the grant is set to "0", the grant is applied to the first UL scanning subframe after the DL subframe in which the RAR is received; when it is set to "1", the grant is applied to the second UL scanning subframe after the DL subframe in which the RAR is received. The present invention proposes that the UL scanning slot for the grant is the same as the UL scanning slot for the preamble transmission in step 1 of the random access procedure, and thus can be not explicitly signaled by the grant.

[0550] Alternatively, the RAR grant can be used for resources in a scheduling regular UL subframe, where the timing of the Msg3 transmission can be based on the LTE timing; that is, "…if the UL Delay field is set to zero, the UE shall transmit the UL-SCH transport block in the first subframe n+k1 according to the information in the response, k1≥6, where n+k1 is the first available UL subframe for PUSCH transmission, where for the TDD serving cell, the first UL subframe for PUSCH transmission is determined based on the UL / DL configuration indicated by the higher layer (i.e., parameter subframeAssignment). If this field is set to 1, the UE shall postpone the PUSCH transmission to the next available UL subframe after n+k1". Fig.43 An example of a RAR license is shown in .

[0551] The CSI request field of the RAR grant is reserved when performing contention-based random access for LTE. It is envisaged that this field is used when performing contention-based random access in NR networks. The beamforming training reference signal (BT-RS) measured by the UE to calculate the CSI may correspond to the "best" DL Tx beam; i.e., the DL Tx beam selected during the cell (re)selection process, or the BT-RS may be signaled as part of the SI or a set of beams determined from the BT-RS of the "best" DL Tx beam. Alternatively, the BT-RS to be measured may be dynamically signaled by using a field in the RAR.

[0552] It is further envisaged that the NR node transmits the RAR by using the "best" DL Tx beam, and the UE attempts to receive the RAR by using the DL Rx beam paired with the "best" DL Tx beam, where the beam pairing may have been performed during cell (re)selection. If the NR node supports beam reciprocity, the "best" DL Tx beam can be determined from the UL Tx beam in which the random access preamble is detected. If the NR node does not support beam reciprocity, the preamble can be used to implicitly signal the "best" DL Tx beam by partitioning the preamble space as described above.

[0553] In step 3 of the random access procedure, the UE transmits a message that may be used to request (re)establishment of a connection, e.g., RRCConnectionRequest, RRCConnectionReestablishmentRequest. The message is transmitted using the UL resources allocated in the grant that was part of the RAR received in step 2. If a CSI request is included in the RAR, the UE includes a CSI report in the transmission.

[0554] It is envisaged that the UL beam pair used for the preamble is also used for Msg3, and the UE transmits a BT-RS that can be used to assist in UL beam training. The BT-RS used for transmission can be dynamically signaled as part of the RAR. Alternatively, a mapping between preamble and BT-RS can be defined, where the selected preamble is used to "find" the BT-RS;

[0555] The NR node may use the transmitted BT-RS to refine the UL Rx beam for receiving the initial transmission and / or retransmission of Msg3. The NR node may use the beam training results from this step to configure the UL Rx beam that may be used to receive subsequent UL transmissions from the UE, which may occur during UL scanning subframes and / or regular UL subframes.

[0556] In step 4 of the random access procedure, contention resolution is performed. The NR node may include messages to (re)establish the connection in this transmission, such as RRCConnectionSetup, RRCConnectionReestablishment. The present invention proposes that the DL beam pair used for RAR is also used in Msg4. It is also envisaged that Msg4 optionally includes (multiple) beam management feedback / commands that can be used for beam refinement / training of subsequent UL / DL transmissions, which may occur during scanning subframes and / or regular subframes.

[0557] Random access process optimization

[0558] The above describes a unified NR random access procedure. This section describes optimizations for specific trigger events, use cases, deployment scenarios, etc.

[0559] Optimization for power-constrained devices and extended coverage use cases

[0560] The above solution can be used to compensate for the increased path loss in HF-NR systems. However, the solution can also be applied to low-frequency NR (LF-NR) systems to support use cases that may need to support power-limited UEs and / or high maximum coupling loss (MCL), such as extended / extreme coverage use cases. For example, high-gain beams scanned during scanning subframes can be used to provide extended coverage for power-limited UEs. Appropriate selection of PRACH resources will allow reliable detection of preambles for power-limited UEs at lower Tx powers compared to the case where beamforming is not used. High-gain beams can also be used to overcome the high MCL that may be experienced in certain mMTC use cases, such as sensor network deployments that require RF signals to penetrate walls or other building materials.

[0561] Optimization of mobility management

[0562] When performing intra-cell mobility, it is envisaged that L2-based beam management procedures are used. If beams originating from the same TRP experience the same propagation delay, a "rach-less" procedure can be used for intra-TRP mobility. As the UE moves through the entire coverage area of ​​the TRP, beam management commands signaled via the serving beam(s) can be used to add / remove serving beams.

[0563] Beams originating from different TRPs may not experience the same propagation delay. It is envisioned that the random access procedure is used to establish UL synchronization when performing inter-TRP mobility. A contention-based random access procedure may be used to enable UE-based inter-TRP mobility. It is envisioned that Msg3 of the random access procedure signals a beam management command for requesting configuration of a new service beam between the UE and the target TRP. Msg4 of the random access procedure may then be used for ACK / NACK of the request. In one embodiment, the request includes the beam ID of the DL beam that the UE requests to be added, and Msg4 includes an ACK / NACK for the request. Alternatively, the request may include a request indication, and Msg4 may include the beam ID of the new DL service beam.

[0564] A non-contention-based random access procedure can be used to enable NW-based inter-TRP mobility. The beam management command signaled via (multiple) service beams can be used to signal the beam ID of the DL beam to be added and the dedicated random access parameters to be used when performing the non-contention-based random access procedure. Alternatively, in order to reduce latency and signaling overhead, a two-step random access procedure can be used for intra-cell mobility management. In the aforementioned embodiment, the beam management command signaled via Msg3 can be "piggybacked" with the preamble transmission and the beam management command signaled via Msg4 can be signaled via Msg2. When performing inter-cell mobility, RRC signaling carried via a non-contention-based random access procedure can be used.

[0565] Measurement Model for Beamscanning NR Networks

[0566] In the 5G new radio interface operating in the mmWave frequency band, all mobility-related procedures of the conventional LTE should be reconsidered from the perspective of beams. It is particularly important to carefully study the impact of beams on measurements, which are performed by the UE for various purposes (e.g., cell addition / deletion and handover). In this section, beam-based operations and the measurement model for beam scanning NR networks are described in view of the measurement model in LTE. Fig.44 is a diagram of the proposed measurement model for beamscanning NR networks, as detailed below.

[0567] In HF-NR with beam operation, multiple beams provided by one TRP or multiple TRPs cover the cell, and each beam has its own reference signal. Measurements on beam-specific reference signals are not only used by lower layers for beam management (beam training, beam switching, etc.), but are also used for mobility at the TRP / cell level. When the UE performs measurements on different beams, the UE is able to derive a set of measurement results, where each element corresponds to a beam. The merging operation of the measurement results of different beams must be determined to represent the overall TRP / cell quality. Based on the measurement model adopted by LTE, the following modifications are proposed:

[0568] Layer 1 filtering:

[0569] like Fig.44 As shown, beam-based measurements are added to layer 1 filtering with distinguishable cell ID, TRP ID and beam ID. In this layer 3 filtering, the original beam-specific measurements from layer 1 filtering are converted to TRP / cell level measurements. Some candidate conversion metrics are listed below:

[0570] 1. Average or weighted moving average RSRP / RSRQ / RS-SINR / RSSI of the best beam.

[0571] 2. Average or weighted moving average RSRP / RSRQ / RS-SINR / RSSI of the N best beams (N≥1, weights can be the same or different).

[0572] 3. Average or weighted moving average RSRP / RSRQ / RS-SINR / RSSI of all detected beams.

[0573] 4. Average or weighted moving average RSRP / RSRQ / RS-SINR / RSSI of beams with RSRP above the threshold.

[0574] 5. Aggregate RSRP / RSRQ / RS-SINR / RSSI of beams whose RSRP / RSRQ / RS-SINR / RSSI are above the threshold.

[0575] 6. Number of beams with RSRP / RSRQ / RS-SINR / RSSI above the threshold.

[0576] Depending on the UE category and use case, these metrics can be used in different situations. That is, various UEs may have different RF / computing / storage capabilities. For example, these metrics can be switched via RRC (re)configuration, or statically configured by the operator or manufacturer and saved to on-chip memory. In addition, different use cases in NR (e.g., eMBB, mMTC, URLLC) also tend to use these metrics flexibly. For example, mMTC devices focus more on energy efficiency than data rate, and RRC (re)configuration is expensive and relatively slow from an overhead perspective. As a result, it is recommended to carefully consider the different impacts of PHY and RRC on these metrics during implementation. Below is an example of a comparison between the first three metrics.

[0577] Optimal Beam

[0578] Description: RRC takes the result of the best beam as the result for the corresponding cell / TRP. In this way, all existing cell-based measurement reporting criteria in LTE can be reused. Impact on PHY and RRC: Simple for both PHY and RRC; beams penetrate RRC; In this way, all existing cell-based measurement reporting criteria and procedures in LTE can be reused.

[0579] N beams

[0580] Description: For each cell / TRP, average measurement results of N beams from PHY to RRC. RRC takes the average result as the result for the corresponding cell. Impact on PHY and RRC: Some averaging criteria for N beams needs to be introduced in PHY (maybe no need to specify, only left to PHY implementation); for RRC it is simple: beams penetrate RRC; all existing cell-based measurement reporting criteria and procedures in LTE can still be reused.

[0581] All detected beams

[0582] Description: Measurements of all detected beams from PHY to RRC for each cell / TRP. RRC gets all raw beam-specific measurements. Impact on PHY and RRC: RRC handles all beam-specific measurements (not scalable when number of detected beams is large), so it is simple for PHY but complex for RRC; some filtering methods are needed to convert these beam-specific measurements to cell-specific measurements before performing cell / TRP based measurement reporting criteria. Some new measurement reporting criteria based on these beam-specific measurements should be introduced.

[0583] Proposed measurement report configuration:

[0584] The following measurement configurations are proposed (provided to the UE) and include the following parameters:

[0585] Report Configuration: A list of report configurations, where each report configuration consists of the following elements:

[0586] Reporting Criteria: The criteria that triggers the UE to send a measurement report. This can be described as periodic or single event.

[0587] Reporting format: The quantity and associated information that the UE includes in the measurement report (e.g., the number of cells to report).

[0588] In the case of event-based measurement reporting, a set of triggering events (e.g., A1-A6, etc.) have been defined. In NR, it is envisioned that similar reporting criteria should also be included. Effective design of reporting criteria can potentially reduce unnecessary signal overhead and interference in the air interface, and still maintain rapid, accurate and reliable measurement results to facilitate mobility decisions. Examples of reporting triggering criteria in NR may include one or more of the following:

[0589] Event NR-A1: Serving beam or / and TRP becomes better than a threshold. This event can be used to trigger whether to send a measurement report.

[0590] Examples of entry conditions and exit conditions can be defined as: Ms - Hys > Thresh (entry condition) and Ms + Hys < Thresh (exit condition).

[0591] Ms is the measurement result of the serving beam (for the case of using multiple beams simultaneously, a certain weighted average method can be used and is implementation - related), without considering any offset. In the case of TRP evaluation, Ms can be the measurement result of the serving TRP to which the serving beam belongs, and can be transformed from the measurement at the beam level to the value of Ms by using the selected transition metric (see the above - mentioned layer 3 filtering).

[0592] Hys is the hysteresis parameter for this event. In the case where the measured value of Ms fluctuates around the target value (Thresh), the measurement report will not be triggered unless the fluctuation is wider than Hys.

[0593] Thresh is the threshold parameter for this event.

[0594] In the case of RSRP and RSSI, Ms is expressed in dBm, or in the case of RSRQ and RS - SINR, Ms is expressed in dB.

[0595] Hys is expressed in dB.

[0596] Thresh is expressed in the same unit as Ms.

[0597] When the entry condition is satisfied, the transmission of the measurement report can be temporarily stopped to reduce the signal overhead and interference in the network and the energy consumption of the UE. When the exit condition is satisfied, the transmission of the measurement report can be resumed unless it is necessary to evaluate other events / triggers.

[0598] Event NR - A2: The serving beam or / and TRP becomes worse than threshold 1, and the neighboring beam or / and TRP becomes better than threshold 2. This event can be used to trigger the start of intra - TRP, inter - TRP, and inter - cell mobility evaluations (at the beam level or the TRP / cell level).

[0599] Examples of entry conditions and exit conditions can be defined as: Ms + Hys < Thresh1 (entry condition 1), Mn + Ofn + Ocn - Hys > Thresh2 (entry condition 2), Ms - Hys > Thresh1 (exit condition 1), and Mn + Ofn + Ocn + Hys < Thresh2 (exit condition 2).

[0600] Ms and Hys are the same as those in event NR - A1.

[0601] Mn is the measurement result of the neighboring beam without considering any offset. In the case of neighboring TRP evaluation, Mn can be the measurement result of the neighboring TRP to which the neighboring beam belongs, and can be transformed from the measurement at the beam level to the value of Mn by using the selected transition metric (see the above layer 3 filtering).

[0602] Ofn is the frequency-specific offset of the frequency of the neighboring beam. Different frequencies may have different Ofn values. This value can be configurable such that the operator or network can provide preferences for some frequencies.

[0603] Ocn is the TRP / cell-specific offset of the neighboring beam and is set to zero if not configured for the neighboring TRP / cell. This value can be configurable such that the operator or network can provide preferences for some TRP / cells.

[0604] Ofn, Ocn, Hys are expressed in dB.

[0605] Thresh1 is expressed in the same unit as Ms. Thresh2 is expressed in the same unit as Mn.

[0606] When the entry conditions 1 and 2 are met, the UE can send measurement reports more frequently, and if the duration defined for the timer meets this condition, mobility decisions at the beam level, TRP level, or even cell level can be made based on the selected neighboring beams, TRPs, and cells. When the exit condition 1 or 2 is met, the UE can return to the measurement report behavior before entering this event.

[0607] Event NR-A3: The serving beam or / and TRP becomes worse than the threshold. This event can be used to immediately trigger a mobility decision without having to meet a predefined duration.

[0608] Examples of the entry condition and exit condition can be defined as: Ms + Hys < Thresh (entry condition) and Ms - Hys > Thresh (exit condition).

[0609] Ms, Hys, Thresh are the same as those in event NR-A1.

[0610] When the entry condition is met, it means that the quality of the serving beam may be significantly lower than a certain value, and it is recommended to immediately perform a beam switch. When the exit condition is met, other reporting evaluation criteria before this event can be restored, such as continuously measuring the quality of the serving beam within the duration defined in event NR-A2.

[0611] The measurement event can be based on the expiration of a periodic timer. This can be applied to periodic measurement reports. The UE can be configured with a periodic measurement report timer for a given measurement configuration.

[0612] Contents of the measurement report at point D:

[0613] It includes not only the measured cell information (e.g., NR cell ID), but also the measured TRP / beam information (e.g., TRP ID, beam ID) that meets the measurement reporting criteria. It may also include the TRP (beam or cell) where the UE experiences radio link failure or weak signal quality.

[0614] It should be understood that the execution Fig.18 The entities of the steps shown may be logical entities that may be stored in a device configured for wireless and / or network communications or such. Figure 1B and Figure 1F In other words, the present invention is implemented in the form of software (i.e., computer executable instructions) stored in a memory of a computer system and executed on a processor thereof. Fig.18 The method(s) shown may be used to store Figure 1B and Figure 1F The computer system or the computer system shown in the embodiment of the present invention is implemented in the form of software (i.e., computer executable instructions) in the memory of the device or computer system, and the computer executable instructions are executed by the processor of the device to perform the following operations: Figure 20 to Figure 24 Steps shown.

[0615] An interface such as a GUI can be used to assist the user in controlling and / or configuring functions related to beam scanning frame structure and NR random access. Fig.45 32 is a diagram showing an interface 3202 that allows a user to view and configure functions related to beam scanning frame structure and NR random access. It should be understood that the interface 3202 can use a display (such as Figure 1C to Figure 1D those displays shown) to generate.

[0616] Fig.46 2002 is a diagram showing a GUI 2002 that allows a user to input parameters corresponding to index values. It should be understood that the interface 2002 can use a display (such as Figure 1B and Figure 1F The computer executable instructions, when executed by the processor of the device, perform the following Figure 20 to Figure 24 Steps shown.

[0617] Although the systems and methods have been described in terms of what are considered to be specific aspects in this application, the application is not necessarily limited to the disclosed aspects. This application is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the claims, and the scope of these claims should be given the broadest interpretation so as to include all such modifications and similar structures. The present disclosure includes any and all aspects of the following claims.

Claims

1. A wireless transmit / receive unit WTRU, comprising a processor, wherein the processor is configured to: receiving a configuration parameter associated with a physical random access channel (PRACH), the configuration parameter indicating a plurality of random access preambles and a plurality of PRACH resources; selecting a random access preamble from the plurality of random access preambles based on a device type and a service type; transmitting the selected random access preamble via at least one PRACH resource among the plurality of PRACH resources; as well as In response to transmitting the selected random access preamble, a downlink control channel is monitored for information associated with a random access response, RAR.

2. The WTRU of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of random access preambles comprises a plurality of random access preamble subsets, wherein the selected random access preamble is associated with the random access preamble subset corresponding to the service type.

3. The WTRU of claim 1 , wherein the configuration parameters associated with the PRACH are received via a system information broadcast.

4. The WTRU of claim 1 , wherein the RAR comprises a timing advance command.

5. The WTRU of claim 2, wherein the service type corresponds to a network slice, and the random access preamble subset associated with the selected random access preamble is associated with the network slice.

6. The WTRU of claim 1, wherein the at least one PRACH resource among the plurality of PRACH resources corresponds to a slice-specific PRACH resource.

7. The WTRU of claim 1 , wherein the at least one of the plurality of PRACH resources corresponds to a device type-specific PRACH resource.

8. A method implemented by a wireless transmit / receive unit WTRU, the method comprising: receiving a configuration parameter associated with a physical random access channel (PRACH), the configuration parameter indicating a plurality of random access preambles and a plurality of PRACH resources; selecting a random access preamble from the plurality of random access preambles based on a device type and a service type; transmitting the selected random access preamble via at least one PRACH resource among the plurality of PRACH resources; as well as In response to transmitting the selected random access preamble, a downlink control channel is monitored for information associated with a random access response, RAR.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the plurality of random access preambles comprises a plurality of random access preamble subsets, wherein the selected random access preamble is associated with the random access preamble subset corresponding to the service type.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the configuration parameter associated with the PRACH is received via system information broadcast. The method of claim 8 , wherein the RAR comprises a timing advance command.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the service type corresponds to a network slice, and the random access preamble subset associated with the selected random access preamble is associated with the network slice.

13. The method of claim 8, wherein the at least one PRACH resource among the plurality of PRACH resources corresponds to a slice-specific PRACH resource.

14. The method of claim 8, wherein the at least one of the plurality of PRACH resources corresponds to a device type-specific PRACH resource.

15. A base station, comprising a processor, wherein the processor is configured to: broadcasting a configuration parameter associated with a physical random access channel PRACH, the configuration parameter indicating a plurality of random access preambles and a plurality of PRACH resources; receiving a first random access preamble through a first PRACH resource among the plurality of PRACH resources, wherein the first random access preamble is associated with a device type and a service type; and In response to receiving the first random access preamble, a downlink control channel transmission including information associated with a random access response, RAR, is sent to a wireless transmit receive unit WTRU.

16. An apparatus comprising: a non-transitory memory including instructions for communicating in a beam scanning network having cells, the network including downlink scanning subframes, uplink scanning subframes, and regular subframes; and A processor operably coupled to the non-transitory memory and configured to execute the following instructions: Transmitting a first beam in the downlink scanning subframe, wherein the downlink scanning subframe is used to transmit initial access information, the initial access information including system information, synchronization signal and broadcast information; as well as A first random access preamble is received from a user equipment in the cell through a first physical random access channel (PRACH) resource, wherein the first random access preamble and the first PRACH resource are associated with a first transmission beam selected based on a measurement of the first beam.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the first random access preamble is randomly selected from a set of random access preambles associated with a first beam of the transmission.

18. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the set of random access preambles is partitioned among all beams.

19. A method for communicating in a beam scanning network having cells, the network comprising downlink scanning subframes, uplink scanning subframes and regular subframes, the method comprising: Transmitting a first beam in the downlink scanning subframe, wherein the downlink scanning subframe is used to transmit initial access information, the initial access information including system information, synchronization signal and broadcast information; as well as A first random access preamble is received from a user equipment in the cell through a first physical random access channel (PRACH) resource, wherein the first random access preamble and the first PRACH resource are associated with a first transmission beam selected based on a measurement of the first beam.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein configuring a first PRACH resource during an uplink scan time slot of the uplink subframe, wherein a time resource of the first PRACH resource is determined by a first transmission beam, The random access response RAR includes a random access preamble identifier that matches the first random access preamble.

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