UAV subscription information

Abstract

Certain aspects of the present disclosure provide techniques for UAV subscription information. An example method performed by a UE includes sending subscription information indicating that the UE is deployed as an over-the-air UE and additional information about the UE to a first network entity, and obtaining an over-the-air service based at least in part on the additional information.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims priority to U.S. Patent Application No. 18 / 466,091 filed on September 13, 2023, which claims the benefit of and priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 63 / 411,543 filed on September 29, 2022, both of which are assigned to the assignee of this application and are hereby expressly incorporated by reference in their entirety as if fully set forth below and for all applicable purposes. Background Art Technical Field

[0003] Aspects of the present disclosure relate to wireless communications, and more particularly to techniques for providing subscription information to aerial user equipment (UE), such as an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).

[0004] Related technologies

[0005] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various telecommunication services such as telephony, video, data, messaging, broadcasts or other similar types of services. These wireless communication systems may employ multiple-access technologies capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing available wireless communication system resources with those users.

[0006] Although wireless communication systems have made tremendous technical progress over the years, challenges still exist. For example, complex and dynamic environments can still attenuate or block signals between wireless transmitters and wireless receivers. Therefore, there is a continuous desire to improve the technical performance of wireless communication systems, including, for example: improving the speed and data carrying capacity of communications, improving the efficiency of using shared communication media, reducing the power used by transmitters and receivers when performing communications, improving the reliability of wireless communications, avoiding redundant transmission and / or reception and related processing, improving the coverage area of ​​wireless communications, increasing the number and types of devices that can access wireless communication systems, increasing the ability of different types of devices to communicate with each other, increasing the number and types of wireless communication media available for use, etc. Therefore, there is a need to further improve wireless communication systems to overcome the above-mentioned technical challenges and other challenges. Summary of the invention

[0007] One aspect provides a method of wireless communication at a first network entity. The method includes receiving subscription information indicating that a user equipment (UE) is deployed as an air UE and additional information about the UE, and performing one or more actions based on the subscription information.

[0008] Another aspect provides a method of wireless communication at a second network entity. The method includes obtaining subscription information indicating that a user equipment (UE) is deployed as an air UE and additional information about the UE; and sending the subscription information to a first network entity.

[0009] Another aspect provides a method of wireless communication at a UE. The method includes sending subscription information indicating that the UE is deployed as an air UE and additional information about the UE to a first network entity, and obtaining an air service based at least in part on the additional information.

[0010] Other aspects provide: an apparatus operable to, configured to, or otherwise adapted to perform any one or more of the foregoing methods and / or those described elsewhere herein; a non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by a processor of the apparatus, cause the apparatus to perform the foregoing methods and those described elsewhere herein; a computer program product embodied on a computer-readable storage medium, comprising code for performing the foregoing methods and those described elsewhere herein; and / or an apparatus comprising components for performing the foregoing methods and those described elsewhere herein. By way of example, an apparatus may include a processing system, a device having a processing system, or a processing system cooperating through one or more networks.

[0011] For purposes of illustration, the following description and drawings set forth certain features. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012] The accompanying drawings depict certain features of the various aspects described herein and should not be considered to limit the scope of the disclosure.

[0013] Figure 1 An example wireless communication network is depicted.

[0014] Figure 2 An example disaggregated base station architecture is depicted.

[0015] Figure 3 Aspects of an example base station and example user equipment are depicted.

[0016] Figure 4A , Figure 4B , Figure 4C and Figure 4D Various example aspects of data structures for a wireless communication network are described.

[0017] Figure 5 An example of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is depicted.

[0018] Figure 6Depicted are example deployments of UAVs in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0019] Figure 7 Depicted is an example architecture for network-assisted support of UAVs.

[0020] Figure 8 An example architecture for network-assisted support of a UAV in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is depicted.

[0021] Fig. 9 , Fig. 10A and Fig. 10B Depicted is an example table illustrating fields for UAV subscription information.

[0022] Fig.11 Depicted are example call flows in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

[0023] Fig.12 A method for wireless communication is described.

[0024] Fig.13 A method for wireless communication is described.

[0025] Fig.14 A method for wireless communication is described.

[0026] Fig.15 Aspects of an example communications device are depicted. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0027] Aspects of the present disclosure provide apparatus, methods, processing systems, and computer-readable media for providing subscription information to aerial user equipment (UE), such as an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).

[0028] An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) (also referred to as a drone) generally refers to an aircraft without any human on board. UAVs can be deployed as part of an unmanned aerial vehicle system (UAS), which typically includes a land-based UAV controller (UAVC). At least some parts of the flight of the UAV can be operated under remote control of an operator, with the assistance of an autopilot, or as a fully autonomous aircraft. Compared to conventional commercial aircraft, UAVs can fly at relatively low levels (e.g., 5,000 feet or less). UAVs can also fly in a collection of scenes that are very different from commercial aircraft, such as in crowded spaces (e.g., with 10 or more UAVs in a 1 square kilometer area).

[0029] In current wireless systems, a radio access network (RAN) supporting over-the-air services is typically provided with only one bit of information indicating whether a UE is an over-the-air UE (e.g., deployed on / as a UAV). This limited amount of information may prevent the RAN from providing services that may be tailored for a certain type of UE or performing a certain type of service.

[0030] However, aspects of the present disclosure provide mechanisms for providing additional information that may allow the RAN to provide customized services. For example, a large drone carrying a heavy item (e.g., a drone performing a delivery service) may receive a higher priority than a lightweight hobbyist drone taking some photos. As another example, an emergency service drone (e.g., delivering medicine) may receive a higher priority than an e-commerce delivery drone.

[0031] In this way, greater granularity of information related to UAV type / subscription can benefit the network and the drone, as well as the recipients of the services provided by the drone.

[0032] Introduction to wireless communication networks

[0033] The techniques and methods described herein can be used in various wireless communication networks. Although various aspects may be described herein using terms commonly associated with 3G, 4G and / or 5G wireless technologies, various aspects of the present disclosure may also be applicable to other communication systems and standards not explicitly mentioned herein.

[0034] Figure 1 An example of a wireless communication network 100 is depicted in which various aspects described herein may be implemented.

[0035] In general, the wireless communication network 100 includes various network entities (alternatively, network elements or network nodes). A network entity is typically a communication device and / or a communication function performed by a communication device (e.g., user equipment (UE), base station (BS), component of a BS, server, etc.). For example, various functions of a network and various devices associated with and interacting with the network may be considered network entities. In addition, the wireless communication network 100 includes ground aspects, such as ground-based network entities (e.g., BS 102), and non-ground aspects, such as satellites 140 and aircraft 145, which may include airborne network entities (e.g., one or more BSs) capable of communicating with other network elements (e.g., ground BSs) and user equipment.

[0036] In the depicted example, the wireless communication network 100 includes a BS 102, a UE 104, and one or more core networks (such as an evolved packet core (EPC) 160 and a 5G core (5GC) network 190) that interoperate to provide communication services over various communication links (including wired and wireless links).

[0037] Figure 1 Various example UEs 104 are depicted, which may more generally include: a cellular phone, a smart phone, a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phone, a laptop, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a satellite radio, a global positioning system, a multimedia device, a video device, a digital audio player, a camera, a game console, a tablet computer, a smart device, a wearable device, a vehicle, an electric meter, a gas pump, a large or small kitchen appliance, a healthcare device, an implant, a sensor / actuator, a display, an Internet of Things (IoT) device, an Always-On (AON) device, an edge processing device, or other similar devices. UE 104 may also be more generally referred to as a mobile device, a wireless device, a wireless communication device, a station, a mobile station, a subscriber station, a mobile subscriber station, a mobile unit, a subscriber unit, a wireless unit, a remote unit, a remote device, an access terminal, a mobile terminal, a wireless terminal, a remote terminal, a handset, and others.

[0038] BS 102 wirelessly communicates with (e.g., transmits signals to or receives signals from) UE 104 via communication link 120. Communication link 120 between BS 102 and UE 104 may include uplink (UL) (also referred to as a reverse link) transmissions from UE 104 to BS 102 and / or downlink (DL) (also referred to as a forward link) transmissions from BS 102 to UE 104. In various aspects, communication link 120 may use multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antenna technology, including spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and / or transmit diversity.

[0039] BS 102 may generally include: NodeB, enhanced NodeB (eNB), next generation enhanced NodeB (ng-eNB), next generation NodeB (gNB or gNodeB), access point, base transceiver station, radio base station, radio transceiver, transceiver function, transmission and reception point, and / or other. Each of BS 102 may provide communication coverage for a corresponding geographic coverage area 110, which may sometimes be referred to as a cell, and may overlap in some cases (e.g., a small cell 102' may have a coverage area 110' that overlaps with the coverage area 110 of a macro cell). For example, a BS may provide communication coverage for a macro cell (covering a relatively large geographic area), a pico cell (covering a relatively small geographic area, such as a stadium), a femto cell (relatively small geographic area (e.g., a home)), and / or other types of cells.

[0040] Although BS102 is depicted as a single communication device in various aspects, BS102 can be implemented in various configurations. For example, one or more components of the base station may be decomposed, including a central unit (CU), one or more distributed units (DU), one or more radio units (RU), a near real-time (near RT) RAN intelligent controller (RIC) or a non-real-time (non-RT) RIC, to name a few examples. In another example, various aspects of the base station may be virtualized. More generally, a base station (e.g., BS102) may include components located at a single physical location or components located at various physical locations. In an example in which the base station includes components located at various physical locations, the various components may each perform a function so that the various components together implement functionality similar to that of a base station located at a single physical location. In some aspects, a base station including components located at various physical locations may be referred to as a decomposed radio access network architecture (such as an open RAN (O-RAN) or virtualized RAN (VRAN) architecture). Figure 2 An example decomposed base station architecture is depicted and described.

[0041] Different BSs 102 within the wireless communication network 100 may also be configured to support different radio access technologies (such as 3G, 4G, and / or 5G). For example, a BS 102 configured for 4G LTE (collectively referred to as Evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN)) may interface with the EPC 160 via a first backhaul link 132 (e.g., an S1 interface). A BS 102 configured for 5G (e.g., 5G NR or Next Generation RAN (NG-RAN)) may interface with the 5GC 190 via a second backhaul link 184. The BSs 102 may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., via the EPC 160 or the 5GC 190) over a third backhaul link 134 (e.g., an X2 interface), which may be wired or wireless.

[0042] The wireless communication network 100 may subdivide the electromagnetic spectrum into various categories, frequency bands, channels, or other characteristics. In some aspects, the subdivision is provided based on wavelength and frequency, where frequency may also be referred to as a carrier, subcarrier, channel, tone, or subband. For example, 3GPP currently defines frequency range 1 (FR1) as including 410 MHz-7125 MHz, which is often (interchangeably) referred to as "below 6 GHz". Similarly, 3GPP currently defines frequency range 2 (FR2) as including 24,250 MHz-52,600 MHz, which is sometimes (interchangeably) referred to as "millimeter wave" ("mmW" or "mmWave"). A base station (e.g., a mmWave base station such as BS180) configured to communicate using mmWave / near mmWave radio bands may utilize beamforming (e.g., 182) with a UE (e.g., 104) to improve path loss and range.

[0043] The communication link 120 between the BS 102 and, for example, the UE 104 may be through one or more carriers, which may have different bandwidths (e.g., 5 MHz, 10 MHz, 15 MHz, 20 MHz, 100 MHz, 400 MHz, and / or other MHz) and may be aggregated in various aspects. The carriers may or may not be adjacent to each other. The allocation of carriers may be asymmetric with respect to DL and UL (e.g., more or fewer carriers may be allocated for DL ​​compared to UL).

[0044] Communications using higher frequency bands may have higher path loss and shorter range than communications at lower frequencies. Figure 1 180) may utilize beamforming 182 with UE 104 to improve path loss and range. For example, BS 180 and UE 104 may each include multiple antennas, such as antenna elements, antenna panels, and / or antenna arrays, to facilitate beamforming. In some cases, BS 180 may send beamformed signals to UE 104 in one or more transmit directions 182'. UE 104 may receive beamformed signals from BS 180 in one or more receive directions 182". UE 104 may also send beamformed signals to BS 180 in one or more transmit directions 182". BS 180 may also receive beamformed signals from UE 104 in one or more receive directions 182'. BS 180 and UE 104 may then perform beam training to determine the best receive direction and transmit direction for each of BS 180 and UE 104. It is noteworthy that the transmit direction and receive direction of BS 180 may be the same or may not be the same. Similarly, the transmit direction and receive direction of UE 104 may or may not be the same.

[0045] Wireless communication network 100 also includes Wi-Fi AP 150 that communicates with Wi-Fi station (STA) 152 via communication link 154 in, for example, the 2.4 GHz and / or 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum.

[0046] Certain UEs 104 may communicate with each other using a device-to-device (D2D) communication link 158. The D2D communication link 158 may use one or more sidelink channels, such as a physical sidelink broadcast channel (PSBCH), a physical sidelink discovery channel (PSDCH), a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH), a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH), and / or a physical sidelink feedback channel (PSFCH).

[0047] The EPC 160 may include various functional components, including: a mobility management entity (MME) 162, other MMEs 164, a serving gateway 166, a multimedia broadcast multicast service (MBMS) gateway 168, a broadcast multicast service center (BM-SC) 170, and / or a packet data network (PDN) gateway 172, such as in the depicted example. The MME 162 may communicate with a home subscriber server (HSS) 174. The MME 162 is a control node that handles signaling between the UE 104 and the EPC 160. In general, the MME 162 provides bearer and connection management.

[0048] Generally, user Internet Protocol (IP) packets are delivered through the Serving Gateway 166, which itself is connected to the PDN Gateway 172. The PDN Gateway 172 provides UE IP address allocation and other functions. The PDN Gateway 172 and the BM-SC 170 are connected to the IP Services 176, which may include, for example, the Internet, an Intranet, an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), a Packet Switched (PS) streaming media service, and / or other IP services.

[0049] The BM-SC 170 may provide functionality for MBMS user service provisioning and delivery. The BM-SC 170 may serve as an entry point for content provider MBMS delivery, may be used to authorize and initiate MBMS bearer services within a public land mobile network (PLMN), and / or may be used to schedule MBMS delivery. The MBMS Gateway 168 may be used to distribute MBMS services to BSs 102 belonging to a multicast broadcast single frequency network (MBSFN) area broadcasting a specific service, and / or may be responsible for session management (start / stop) and for collecting eMBMS related charging information.

[0050] 5GC 190 may include various functional components, including: access and mobility management function (AMF) 192, other AMFs 193, session management function (SMF) 194, and user plane function (UPF) 195. AMF 192 may communicate with unified data management (UDM) 196.

[0051] AMF 192 is a control node that handles signaling between UE 104 and 5GC 190. AMF 192 provides, for example, Quality of Service (QoS) flow and session management.

[0052] Internet Protocol (IP) packets are delivered through UPF 195, which is connected to IP Services 197 and provides UE IP address allocation and other functions for 5GC 190. IP Services 197 may include, for example, the Internet, Intranet, IMS, PS streaming services, and / or other IP services.

[0053] In various aspects, a network entity or network node may be implemented as a converged base station, a decomposed base station, a component of a base station, an integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node, a relay node, a sidelink node, to name a few examples.

[0054] Figure 2 An example disaggregated base station 200 architecture is depicted. The disaggregated base station 200 architecture may include one or more central units (CUs) 210 that may communicate directly with a core network 220 via a backhaul link, or indirectly with the core network 220 through one or more disaggregated base station units, such as a near real-time (near-RT) RAN intelligent controller (RIC) 225 via an E2 link, or a non-real-time (non-RT) RIC 215 associated with a service management and orchestration (SMO) framework 205, or both. The CU 210 may communicate with one or more distributed units (DUs) 230 via respective midhaul links, such as an F1 interface. The DU 230 may communicate with one or more radio units (RUs) 240 via respective fronthaul links. The RU 240 may communicate with respective UEs 104 via one or more radio frequency (RF) access links. In some implementations, a UE 104 may be served simultaneously by multiple RUs 240.

[0055] Each of the units (e.g., CU 210, DU 230, RU 240, and near-RT RIC 225, non-RT RIC 215, and SMO framework 205) may include or be coupled to one or more interfaces configured to receive or send signals, data, or information (collectively, signals) via a wired or wireless transmission medium. Each of the units or an associated processor or controller that provides instructions to the communication interface of the unit may be configured to communicate with one or more of the other units via a transmission medium. For example, the units may include a wired interface configured to receive or send signals to one or more of the other units via a wired transmission medium. Additionally or alternatively, the unit may include a wireless interface that may include a receiver, transmitter, or transceiver (such as a radio frequency (RF) transceiver) configured to receive signals on a wireless transmission medium or send signals to one or more of the other units, or both.

[0056] In some aspects, CU 210 may host one or more higher layer control functions. Such control functions may include radio resource control (RRC), packet data convergence protocol (PDCP), service data adaptation protocol (SDAP), etc. Each control function may be implemented using an interface configured to communicate signals with other control functions hosted by CU 210. CU210 may be configured to handle user plane functionality (e.g., central unit-user plane (CU-UP)), control plane functionality (e.g., central unit-control plane (CU-CP)), or a combination thereof. In some specific implementations, CU 210 may be logically split into one or more CU-UP units and one or more CU-CP units. When implemented in an O-RAN configuration, the CU-UP unit may communicate bidirectionally with the CU-CP unit via an interface (such as an E1 interface). As needed, CU 210 may be implemented to communicate with DU 230 for network control and signaling.

[0057] DU 230 may correspond to a logical unit that includes one or more base station functions for controlling the operation of one or more RUs 240. In some aspects, DU 230 may host one or more of a radio link control (RLC) layer, a medium access control (MAC) layer, and one or more high physical (PHY) layers (such as modules for forward error correction (FEC) encoding and decoding, scrambling, modulation and demodulation, etc.) depending at least in part on functional divisions such as those defined by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). In some aspects, DU 230 may also host one or more low PHY layers. Each layer (or module) may be implemented using an interface that is configured to communicate signals with other layers (and modules) hosted by DU 230 or with control functions hosted by CU 210.

[0058] The lower layer functionality may be implemented by one or more RUs 240. In some deployments, the RU 240 controlled by the DU 230 may correspond to a logical node that hosts RF processing functions or low PHY layer functions (such as performing Fast Fourier Transform (FFT), Inverse FFT (iFFT), digital beamforming, physical random access channel (PRACH) extraction and filtering, etc.), or both, based at least in part on a functional split (such as a lower layer functional split). In such an architecture, the RU 240 may be implemented to handle over-the-air (OTA) communications with one or more UEs 104. In some implementations, real-time and non-real-time aspects of control plane and user plane communications with the RU 240 may be controlled by the corresponding DU 230. In some scenarios, this configuration may enable the implementation of the DU 230 and the CU 210 in a cloud-based RAN architecture (such as a vRAN architecture).

[0059] The SMO framework 205 may be configured to support RAN deployment and provisioning of non-virtualized network elements and virtualized network elements. For non-virtualized network elements, the SMO framework 205 may be configured to support the deployment of dedicated physical resources for RAN coverage requirements, which may be managed via an operation and maintenance interface (such as an O1 interface). For virtualized network elements, the SMO framework 205 may be configured to interact with a cloud computing platform (such as an open cloud (O-Cloud) 290) to perform network element lifecycle management (such as to instantiate virtualized network elements) via a cloud computing platform interface (such as an O2 interface). Such virtualized network elements may include, but are not limited to, CU 210, DU 230, RU 240, and near-RT RIC 225. In some specific implementations, the SMO framework 205 may communicate with hardware aspects of the 4G RAN (such as an open eNB (O-eNB) 211) via the O1 interface. In addition, in some specific implementations, the SMO framework 205 may communicate directly with one or more RUs 240 via the O1 interface. The SMO framework 205 may also include a non-RT RIC 215 configured to support the functionality of the SMO framework 205 .

[0060] The non-RT RIC 215 may be configured to include logic functions that enable non-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources, artificial intelligence / machine learning (AI / ML) workflows including model training and updating, or policy-based guidance of applications / features in the near-RT RIC 225. The non-RT RIC 215 may be coupled to or in communication with the near-RT RIC 225 (such as via an A1 interface). The near-RT RIC 225 may be configured to include logic functions that enable near-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources via data collection and actions through an interface (such as via an E2 interface) that connects one or more CUs 210, one or more DUs 230, or both, and the O-eNB with the near-RT RIC 225.

[0061] In some implementations, in order to generate an AI / ML model to be deployed in the near-RT RIC 225, the non-RT RIC 215 may receive parameters or external enrichment information from an external server. Such information may be utilized by the near-RT RIC 225 and may be received from a non-network data source or from a network function at the SMO framework 205 or the non-RT RIC 215. In some examples, the non-RT RIC 215 or the near-RT RIC 225 may be configured to tune RAN behavior or performance. For example, the non-RT RIC 215 may monitor long-term trends and patterns of performance and employ AI / ML models to perform corrective actions through the SMO framework 205 (such as via reconfiguration of O1) or via creation of RAN management policies (such as A1 policies).

[0062] Figure 3 Aspects of an example BS 102 and UE 104 are depicted.

[0063] In general, BS 102 includes various processors (e.g., 320, 330, 338, and 340), antennas 334a-334t (collectively 334), transceivers 332a-332t (collectively 332) including modulators and demodulators, and other aspects that enable wireless transmission of data (e.g., data source 312) and wireless reception of data (e.g., data sink 339). For example, BS 102 can transmit and receive data between BS 102 and UE 104. BS 102 includes a controller / processor 340 that can be configured to implement various functions described herein related to wireless communication.

[0064] Generally speaking, the UE 104 includes various processors (e.g., 358, 364, 366, and 380), antennas 352a-352r (collectively 352), transceivers 354a-354r (collectively 354) including modulators and demodulators, and other aspects that enable wireless transmission of data (e.g., retrieved from a data source 362) and wireless reception of data (e.g., provided to a data sink 360). The UE 104 includes a controller / processor 380 that can be configured to implement various functions described herein related to wireless communications.

[0065] Regarding example downlink transmissions, BS 102 includes a transmit processor 320 that can receive data from a data source 312 and control information from a controller / processor 340. The control information can be for a physical broadcast channel (PBCH), a physical control format indicator channel (PCFICH), a physical HARQ indicator channel (PHICH), a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), a group common PDCCH (GC PDCCH), and / or others. In some examples, the data can be for a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH).

[0066] The transmit processor 320 may process (e.g., encode and symbol map) data and control information to obtain data symbols and control symbols, respectively. The transmit processor 320 may also generate reference symbols (such as for a primary synchronization signal (PSS), a secondary synchronization signal (SSS), a PBCH demodulation reference signal (DMRS), and a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS)).

[0067] The transmit (TX) multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) processor 330 may perform spatial processing (e.g., pre-decoding) on ​​data symbols, control symbols, and / or reference symbols, where applicable, and may provide an output symbol stream to a modulator (MOD) in a transceiver 332a-332t. Each modulator in the transceiver 332a-332t may process a corresponding output symbol stream to obtain an output sample stream. Each modulator may further process (e.g., convert to analog, amplify, filter, and up-convert) the output sample stream to obtain a downlink signal. The downlink signals from the modulators in the transceivers 332a-332t may be transmitted via antennas 334a-334t, respectively.

[0068] To receive downlink transmissions, UE 104 includes antennas 352a-352r that can receive downlink signals from BS 102 and can provide received signals to demodulators (DEMODs) in transceivers 354a-354r, respectively. Each demodulator in transceivers 354a-354r can condition (e.g., filter, amplify, downconvert, and digitize) a corresponding received signal to obtain input samples. Each demodulator can further process the input samples to obtain received symbols.

[0069] A MIMO detector 356 may obtain received symbols from all demodulators in transceivers 354a-354r, perform MIMO detection on the received symbols if applicable, and provide detected symbols. A receive processor 358 may process (e.g., demodulate, deinterleave, and decode) the detected symbols, provide decoded data for UE 104 to a data sink 360, and provide decoded control information to a controller / processor 380.

[0070] With respect to example uplink transmissions, the UE 104 also includes a transmit processor 364 that may receive and process data from a data source 362 (e.g., for a PUSCH) and control information from a controller / processor 380 (e.g., for a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH)). The transmit processor 364 may also generate reference symbols for reference signals (e.g., for a sounding reference signal (SRS)). The symbols from the transmit processor 364 may be pre-decoded by a TX MIMO processor 366, if applicable, further processed by a modulator in the transceivers 354a-354r (e.g., for SC-FDM), and transmitted to the BS 102.

[0071] At BS 102, uplink signals from UE 104 may be received by antennas 334 a-334 t, processed by demodulators in transceivers 332 a-332 t, detected by MIMO detector 336 if applicable, and further processed by receive processor 338 to obtain decoded data and control information transmitted by UE 104. Receive processor 338 may provide decoded data to data sink 339 and decoded control information to controller / processor 340.

[0072] Memory 342 and memory 382 may store data and program codes for BS 102 and UE 104, respectively.

[0073] The scheduler 344 may schedule UEs for data transmission on the downlink and / or uplink.

[0074] In various aspects, the BS 102 may be described as sending and receiving various types of data associated with the methods described herein. In these contexts, "sending" may refer to various mechanisms for outputting data, such as outputting data from a data source 312, a scheduler 344, a memory 342, a transmit processor 320, a controller / processor 340, a TX MIMO processor 330, a transceiver 332a-332t, an antenna 334a-334t, and / or other aspects described herein. Similarly, "receiving" may refer to various mechanisms for obtaining data, such as obtaining data from an antenna 334a-334t, a transceiver 332a-332t, a RX MIMO detector 336, a controller / processor 340, a receive processor 338, a scheduler 344, a memory 342, and / or other aspects described herein.

[0075] In various aspects, the UE 104 may also be described as sending and receiving various types of data associated with the methods described herein. In these contexts, "sending" may refer to various mechanisms for outputting data, such as outputting data from a data source 362, a memory 382, ​​a transmit processor 364, a controller / processor 380, a TX MIMO processor 366, a transceiver 354a-354t, an antenna 352a-352t, and / or other aspects described herein. Similarly, "receiving" may refer to various mechanisms for obtaining data, such as obtaining data from an antenna 352a-352t, a transceiver 354a-354t, a RX MIMO detector 356, a controller / processor 380, a receive processor 358, a memory 382, ​​and / or other aspects described herein.

[0076] In some aspects, the processor may be configured to perform various operations (such as those associated with the methods described herein) and send (output) data to or receive (obtain) data from another interface configured to send or receive data, respectively.

[0077] Figure 4A , Figure 4B , Figure 4C and Figure 4D Describes a method for use in a wireless communication network such as Figure 1 Various aspects of the data structure of the wireless communication network 100).

[0078] Specifically, Figure 4A is a diagram 400 illustrating an example of a first subframe within a 5G (e.g., 5G NR) frame structure, Figure 4B is a diagram 430 illustrating an example of a DL channel within a 5G subframe, Figure 4C is a diagram 450 illustrating an example of a second subframe within a 5G frame structure, and Figure 4D FIG480 is a diagram illustrating an example of UL channels within a 5G subframe.

[0079] Wireless communication systems may utilize orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) with a cyclic prefix (CP) on both the uplink and downlink. Such systems may also support half-duplex operation using time division duplex (TDD). OFDM and single carrier frequency division multiplexing (SC-FDM) can be used to maximize the system bandwidth (e.g., Figure 4B and Figure 4D The modulation symbols may be transmitted in the frequency domain using OFDM and / or in the time domain using SC-FDM.

[0080] The wireless communication frame structure may be frequency division duplex (FDD), where for a particular set of subcarriers, subframes within the set of subcarriers are dedicated to either DL or UL. The wireless communication frame structure may also be time division duplex (TDD), where for a particular set of subcarriers, subframes within the set of subcarriers are dedicated to both DL and UL.

[0081] exist Figure 4A and Figure 4C In the wireless communication frame structure, TDD is used, where D is DL, U is UL, and X is used flexibly between DL / UL. The UE can be configured with a time slot format (dynamically configured by DL control information (DCI) or semi-statically / statically configured by radio resource control (RRC) signaling) through the received time slot format indicator (SFI). In the depicted example, the 10ms frame is divided into 10 equally sized 1ms subframes. Each subframe may include one or more time slots. In some examples, each time slot may include 7 or 14 symbols, depending on the time slot format. The subframe may also include micro-time slots, which typically have fewer symbols than the entire time slot. Other wireless communication technologies may have different frame structures and / or different channels.

[0082] In certain aspects, the number of time slots within a subframe is based on the time slot configuration and the parameter set. For example, for time slot configuration 0, different parameter sets (μ) 0 to 5 allow each subframe to have 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, and 32 time slots, respectively. For time slot configuration 1, different parameter sets 0 to 2 allow each subframe to have 2, 4, and 8 time slots, respectively. Therefore, for time slot configuration 0 and parameter set μ, there are 14 symbols / time slot and 2μ time slots / subframe. The subcarrier spacing and symbol length / duration are functions of the parameter set. The subcarrier spacing can be equal to 2 μ × 15kHz, where μ is parameter set 0 to 5. Thus, parameter set μ=0 has a subcarrier spacing of 15kHz, and parameter set μ=5 has a subcarrier spacing of 480kHz. The symbol length / duration is inversely related to the subcarrier spacing. Figure 4A , Figure 4B , Figure 4C and Figure 4D An example is provided for slot configuration 0 with 14 symbols per slot and parameter set μ=2 with 4 slots per subframe. The slot duration is 0.25 ms, the subcarrier spacing is 60 kHz, and the symbol duration is approximately 16.67 μs.

[0083] like Figure 4A , Figure 4B , Figure 4C and Figure 4DAs depicted in , a resource grid may be used to represent a frame structure. Each time slot includes a resource block (RB) (also referred to as a physical RB (PRB)) extending, for example, over 12 consecutive subcarriers. The resource grid is divided into a plurality of resource elements (REs). The number of bits carried by each RE depends on the modulation scheme.

[0084] like Figure 4A As illustrated, some REs carry Figure 1 and Figure 3 The RS may include a demodulation RS (DMRS) and / or a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) for channel estimation at the UE. The RS may also include a beam measurement RS (BRS), a beam refinement RS (BRRS), and / or a phase tracking RS (PT-RS).

[0085] Figure 4B Examples of various DL channels within a subframe of a frame are illustrated.The Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) carries DCI within one or more Control Channel Elements (CCEs), each CCE comprising, for example, nine RE Groups (REGs), each REG comprising, for example, four consecutive REs in an OFDM symbol.

[0086] The primary synchronization signal (PSS) may be in symbol 2 of a particular subframe of a frame. The PSS is transmitted by a UE (e.g., Figure 1 and Figure 3 104) is used to determine subframe / symbol timing and physical layer identity.

[0087] A Secondary Synchronization Signal (SSS) may be within symbol 4 of a particular subframe of a frame. The SSS is used by the UE to determine the physical layer cell identity group number and radio frame timing.

[0088] Based on the physical layer identifier and the physical layer cell identifier group number, the UE can determine the physical cell identifier (PCI). Based on the PCI, the UE can determine the location of the aforementioned DMRS. The physical broadcast channel (PBCH) carrying the master information block (MIB) can be logically grouped with the PSS and SSS to form a synchronization signal (SS) / PBCH block. The MIB provides the system frame number (SFN) and the number of RBs in the system bandwidth. The physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) carries user data, broadcast system information (such as system information blocks (SIBs)) that is not sent via the PBCH, and / or paging messages.

[0089] like Figure 4CAs illustrated, some REs carry DMRS for channel estimation at the base station (indicated as R for one particular configuration, but other DMRS configurations are possible). The UE may send DMRS for PUCCH and DMRS for PUSCH. The PUSCH DMRS may be sent, for example, in the first one or two symbols of the PUSCH. The PUCCH DMRS may be sent in different configurations depending on whether a short PUCCH or a long PUCCH is sent and depending on the specific PUCCH format used. The UE 104 may send a sounding reference signal (SRS). The SRS may be sent, for example, in the last symbol of a subframe. The SRS may have a comb structure, and the UE may send the SRS on one of the comb structures in the comb structure. The SRS may be used by the base station for channel quality estimation to achieve frequency-dependent scheduling of the UL.

[0090] Figure 4D Examples of various UL channels within a subframe of a frame are illustrated. The PUCCH may be located at a position as indicated in one configuration. The PUCCH carries uplink control information (UCI), such as scheduling requests, channel quality indicator (CQI), precoding matrix indicator (PMI), rank indicator (RI), and HARQ ACK / NACK feedback. The PUSCH carries data and may additionally be used to carry a buffer status report (BSR), a power headroom report (PHR), and / or UCI.

[0091] Overview of UAV

[0092] As mentioned above, an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) generally refers to an aircraft without any human on board that can be deployed as part of an unmanned aerial system (UAS). UAVs can be deployed in different scenarios with different objectives for uplink transmit power control.

[0093] For example, Figure 5 As shown at 502 in the scenario 500 depicted in , over the cellular (Uu) link, the UAV may support different applications, such as video and remote command and control (C2) applications. As shown at 504, it may be necessary to identify the UAV connected everything (U2X) application, for example, using flight information (e.g., broadcast via sidelink / PC5). As shown at 506, the U2X detection and avoidance (DAA) application identification may be primarily used for conflict control (e.g., broadcast via PC5). As shown at 508, U2X-C2 remote command and control (controller-drone) can reach up to 10km, communicate through PC5 and may be bidirectional.

[0094] Aspects of the present disclosure provide mechanisms to implement network-based aerial services for UAVs.As described above, a UAV may be deployed as part of a UAS that typically includes a ground-based UAV controller (UAVC).

[0095] As in Figure 6 As shown in example scenario 600, a radio access network (RAN) 602 may act as a localized USS and / or UAS traffic management (UTM) node.

[0096] RAN nodes may enhance spatial awareness of UAVs within the UAS 604 based on information collected on the UAVs (and other piloted aircraft). The network assisted services presented herein may rely on gNBs and other information sources to feed data to the air services. In some cases, sensors (e.g., DAA broadcast receivers, BRIDB receivers, ADS-B receivers, weather, radar, NR sensing, LIDAR, etc.) may be deployed at gNBs. The air service nodes may implement service separation algorithms and conflict notification features across one or more cells. The UAV is visible to multiple air services.

[0097] In some cases, certain air services / service providers may interact with and utilize various 5G core network functions, such as network functions (NFs) that utilize network exposure functions (NEFs) to interact with global UTMs and USS 606. In some cases, air services may provide (expose via NEFs) air congestion information application programming interfaces (APIs) and UAV information to the USS, which may help support the USS in flight authorization.

[0098] In some cases, the UAV may first need to discover whether the network provides network-based air service support (e.g., the air service exists). In addition, or as an alternative, the network may need to know whether the UE can participate in network-based air service support (e.g., can communicate with the air service).

[0099] To achieve this discovery, the UE (deployed on the UAV) may send signaling indicating that the UE is associated with an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). The signaling may indicate that the UE is capable of supporting air services (or network-assisted DAA, NA-DAA). The indication may be provided via non-access stratum (NAS) signaling, such as 5G mobility management (5GMM) capability signaling. In some cases, the UE / UAV may receive signaling indicating that the network supports network-based air services. For example, the network may provide an indication of air services.

[0100] In some cases, when registering in a public land mobile network (PLMN) registration process, the PLMN may indicate that over-the-air services are supported in the UE registration process. In some cases, over-the-air service availability may be indicated per PLMN. In other cases, over-the-air service availability may be indicated per registration area (RA). In some cases, the access and mobility management function (AMF) may also generate RAs in a manner designed to ensure that over-the-air services are uniformly available in the RAs.

[0101] Over-the-air services may not be available at all locations within a wireless network. Therefore, in some cases, when over-the-air services are available, the cell system information block (SIB) may include an indication of "over-the-air available". Similar such indications may be transmitted via RRC setup signaling. In either case, the gNB may be configured to be aware of whether over-the-air services are available.

[0102] As described herein, the network-assisted DAA (NADAA) solution proposed herein can leverage existing infrastructure and support of UAVs via wireless networks. Aspects of the present disclosure also provide a mechanism that enables a core network to configure the RAN with information about the UAVs and policies related to NADAA services supported by local DAA services (over-the-air services).

[0103] In some cases, the over-the-air service may be provided by the RAN, and the communication between the UAV and the over-the-air service may occur in the form of (modified) RRC signaling. In some cases, the over-the-air service may be provided by an edge server, and the communication may be performed via user plane (UP) signaling between the UAV and the edge.

[0104] In some cases, the AMF may retrieve information from the Unified Data Manager (UDM), receive explicit instructions from the UAV, and receive policies related to over-the-air services from the Policy Control Function (PCF), and configure the RAN accordingly.

[0105] In some cases, if the over-the-air service is authorized, for example via the (UAS) Service Provider (USS) UAV Authorization / Authentication (UUAA) process and UUAA Session Management (UUAA-SM) is used (at the time of PDU session establishment), the SMF may provide configuration information to the RAN.

[0106] As described above, AMF to RAN communications can be used to support NADAA proposed in this document. In some cases, after the UE registers, the UE can indicate a subscription. If the UE subscription is for an airborne UE (UAV UE deployed on the UE), and if the AMF successfully authenticates the UAV UE, the AMF can authenticate and authorize the UAV. In this case, the AMF can indicate to the RAN whether the air service is authorized to the UE. In some cases, the AMF may also require successful UUAA authentication / authorization. In some cases, the UAV can also be expected to indicate (for example, with 5GMM capabilities) that it supports air services.

[0107] For the scenario where UUAA-SM is performed, the SMF may indicate to the RAN (e.g., by adding a new indication in the N2SM message) whether over-the-air services are authorized for the UE after UUAA-SM is completed.

[0108] As described above, in some cases, new Network Open Function (NEF) services may be defined to support UAVs with network-assisted air services. For example, new NEF services may be introduced to enable air services to register themselves with a UAS NF (e.g., NEF) and with a USS in order to retrieve information about the UAVs being served by the air service and receive configuration information from the USS.

[0109] As described above, a UE capable of over-the-air services may indicate, for example, that the UE supports over-the-air services at the application layer during a UUAA procedure to a USS. After the UAV indicates its over-the-air service capabilities to the USS, upon a successful UUAA procedure, the USS may provide an indication to the UAS NF that NADAA is authorized.

[0110] In some cases, the air service may also interact with the USS to report detected UAS conflicts (e.g., potential UAV conflicts) and corrective actions to the USS. In some cases, an interface may be defined between the air service to the NEF / UAS NF to trigger signaling to the USS. In this case, it may be assumed that the air service is unaware of the serving USS. In other words, no information about the serving USS may be provided to the air service, and the air service may not discover the serving USS. Therefore, even if the USS is unaware of the air service serving the UAV, the air service may communicate with the UAS NF, which communicates with the USS.

[0111] Figure 7An example architecture 700 of a network capable of providing network-assisted over-the-air services to a UE 104 (e.g., a UE on a UAV) is illustrated. As shown, the over-the-air services may be located in a RAN (e.g., NG-RAN) or in a data network 702 (e.g., with a USS). As described above, the over-the-air services may interact with the USS via a UAS NF or NEF. In some cases, once the over-the-air services detect a UAV, the over-the-air services may retrieve UAV information (e.g., common information such as UAV category, mission type, etc.) from the USS via the NEF.

[0112] refer to Figure 8 800, for LTE implementation, support for over-the-air UE functionality may be stored in the user's subscription information in the HSS 802. The HSS 802 sends this information to the MME during the attach, service request, and tracking area update procedures.

[0113] The subscription information may be provided from the MME to the eNB via the S1-AP Initial Context Setup Request during the Attach, Tracking Area Update, and Service Request procedures. The subscription information may also be updated via the S1-AP UE Context Modification Request message. Additionally, for X2-based handovers, the source eNodeB may include the subscription information in the X2-AP Handover Request message to the target eNodeB. For intra-MME and inter-MME S1-based handovers, the MME provides the subscription information to the target eNB after the handover procedure.

[0114] In some cases, an eNB supporting air UE functionality handling uses per-user information provided by the MME to determine whether to allow the UE to use air UE functionality. Support of air UE functionality is stored in the user's subscription information in the HSS 802. The HSS 802 sends this information to the MME via an update location message during the attach and tracking area update procedures. The home operator can revoke the user's subscription authorization to operate air UE at any time.

[0115] The MME 804 supporting air UE functionality provides the eNB with user subscription information regarding air UE authorization via the S1 AP Initial Context Setup Request during the attach, tracking area update, and service request procedures. For intra-MME and inter-MME S1 based handover (intra-RAT) or inter-RAT handover to E-UTRAN, the air UE subscription information for the user is included in the S1-AP UE Context Modification Request message transmitted to the target eNodeB after the handover procedure.

[0116] Example enhancements to UAV subscription information

[0117] As described above, in current wireless systems, a RAN supporting over-the-air services is typically provided with only one bit of information indicating whether a UE is an airborne UE (eg, deployed on / as a UAV).

[0118] This information may be conveyed in a variety of ways. For example, the information may be included in, for example, an Initial Context Setup Request (S1-AP: MME->eNB), a UE Context Modification Request (S1-AP: MME->eNB), a Handover Request (S1-AP: MME->target eNB; X2-AP: source eNB->target eNB), a Path Switch Request Acknowledgement (S1-AP: MME->eNB), or a Retrieve UE Context Response (X2-AP: source eNB->target eNB).

[0119] exist Fig. 9 An example of an information element (IE) 900 for conveying the over-the-air subscription information is shown in FIG. The network (e.g., eNB / gNB) can use the IE 900 to understand whether the UE is allowed to use the over-the-air UE function. As shown, the IE can include a single mandatory field (presence=M) indicating whether the UE is allowed or not allowed to use the over-the-air UE function.

[0120] As described above, this limited amount of information may prevent the RAN from providing services that may be customized for a certain type of UE or performing a certain type of service.

[0121] However, aspects of the present disclosure provide mechanisms for providing additional information that may allow the RAN to perform certain actions, such as providing customized services. For example, a large drone carrying a heavy item (e.g., a drone performing a delivery service) may receive a higher priority than a lightweight amateur drone taking some photos. As another example, an emergency service drone (e.g., delivering medicine) may receive a higher priority than an e-commerce delivery drone. While priority may be determined based on type, in some cases, priority information may be indicated solely as a type differentiator.

[0122] Generally speaking, a network entity (eg, a RAN node) may receive subscription information indicating that a user equipment (UE) is deployed as an over-the-air UE and additional information about the UE. The RAN node may then take one or more actions based on the subscription information.

[0123] There are various options for how a network entity such as a RAN node obtains the additional subscription information. According to a first option, the core network (CN) provides this information to the RAN. According to a second option, the UE provides this information to the RAN. According to a third option, the RAN obtains this information directly from the UAS / USS / UTM. The specific option may depend on the specific UE implementation.

[0124] According to the first option, the CN may provide different UAV type information to the RAN. For example, in some cases, the AMF provides additional air subscription information to the RAN node. The additional information may include the UAV type (e.g., service / emergency / police / commercial / priority, etc.). In some cases, for example, if the AMF is updated by the UDM or UAS-NF, the AMF updates the additional information (e.g., UAV type) to the RAN node.

[0125] In some cases, the first RAN node (RAN Node 1) may send additional subscription information to RAN Node 2. In this way, greater granularity of information related to UAV type / subscription may benefit the network and the drone, as well as the recipients of the services provided by the drone.

[0126] like Fig. 10A As shown in Table 1000 of FIG. 1000 , in some cases, IE (e.g., Fig. 9 ) can be extended to include additional information. For example, UAV type information can be included as optional (presence=0). Fig. 10B As shown in Table 1050 of FIG. 1050 , in other cases, the new IE (or table) may include all information in a single field.

[0127] In some cases, the AMF may obtain the additional subscription information from another core network node. For example, the AMF may obtain the additional information from the UDM, in which case the additional subscription information may be stored in the UDM. As another example, the AMF may obtain the additional information from the UAS-NF, in which case the additional subscription may be obtained from the USS / UTM.

[0128] There are various options on how to manage additional subscription information (e.g., emergency drones, service vehicles, commercial drones, delivery drones, hobby drones, etc.) in the CN node. According to a first option, the additional subscription information is stored in the UDM (e.g., if the additional information is static for the subscription). According to a second option, the additional subscription information may be provided by the UAS-NF. For example, Fig.11As shown in call flow diagram 1100 of , additional information may be provided during the UUAA-MM process, as shown at 1102 (e.g., if the additional information is semi-static). In some aspects, Fig.11 The UE shown in FIG. 1 may be related to Figure 1 and Figure 3 An example of a UE 104 is depicted and described.

[0129] In case the UE provides additional information to the RAN, this may be based on UE capability reporting or based on UE category. In some cases, new UE capabilities may be introduced to indicate different types of UAV UEs.

[0130] However, the same UAV may change its mission at a particular time, effectively changing the UAV type. In this case, a solution based on UE capabilities may provide capability updates, for example using Tracking Area Update (TAU). In this case, the AMF may provide the (updated) UE capabilities to the RAN node after authorization.

[0131] As an alternative, RRC signaling may be used to indicate the UAV type. This may allow a more dynamic change of mission type with respect to capabilities, without the UE having to go into IDLE or do a TAU update. For example, an emergency drone inbound may be a higher priority, but returning after the mission may be a normal priority. In case of an update, the RAN node may check with the serving AMF whether the (updated) type is authorized by the subscription.

[0132] Other options for signaling are also possible. Such options include (new or existing) MAC CE or may be based on control information (e.g., DCI) or some other physical (PHY) layer signaling. Although certain proposals have been described with reference to NR 5GC nodes, these techniques may also be applicable to LTE / EPC network nodes.

[0133] One option is by extending the UAV subscription information stored in the HSS, which is then provided to the MME during the attach, service request and tracking area update procedures. It can then also be provided to the eNB using the above procedures.

[0134] Example operation of the first network entity

[0135] Fig.12 It is shown that at a first network entity (such as Figure 1 and Figure 3 BS102, about Figure 2 The decomposed base station in question, or Figure 7 or Figure 8 An example of a method 1200 for performing wireless communication at a network entity) as shown in FIG.

[0136] Method 1200 begins at step 1205 by receiving subscription information indicating that a user equipment (UE) is deployed as an airborne UE and additional information about the UE. In some cases, the operation of this step refers to the following steps. Fig.15 The described circuits for receiving and / or codes for receiving may be performed by the circuits and / or codes.

[0137] Method 1200 then proceeds to step 1210, that is, performing one or more actions based on the subscription information. In some cases, the operation of this step refers to the operation described in reference to Fig.15 The described circuits for performing and / or codes for performing, or can be performed by the circuits and / or the codes.

[0138] In one aspect, method 1200 or any aspect related thereto may be performed by an apparatus such as Fig.15 The method 1200 is performed by a communication device 1500 that includes various components operable, configured, or adapted to perform the method 1200. The communication device 1500 is described in more detail below.

[0139] Please note that Fig.12 This is merely one example of a method, and other methods including fewer, additional, or alternative steps may also be consistent with the present disclosure.

[0140] Example Operation of User Equipment

[0141] Fig.13 It is shown that in a UE (such as Figure 1 and Figure 3 An example of a method 1300 for performing wireless communications at a UE 104).

[0142] Method 1300 begins at step 1305, namely, sending subscription information indicating that the UE is deployed as an airborne UE and additional information about the UE to the first network entity. In some cases, the operation of this step refers to the following steps. Fig.15 The described circuits for transmitting and / or codes for transmitting, or can be performed by the circuits and / or the codes.

[0143] Then, method 1300 proceeds to step 1310, i.e., obtaining air service based at least in part on the additional information. In some cases, the operation of this step refers to the operation of Fig.15 The described circuit for obtaining and / or code for obtaining, or can be executed by the circuit and / or the code.

[0144] In one aspect, method 1300 or any aspect related thereto may be performed by an apparatus such as Fig.15The method 1300 is performed by a communication device 1500 that includes various components operable, configured, or adapted to perform the method 1300. The communication device 1500 is described in more detail below.

[0145] Please note that Fig.13 This is merely one example of a method, and other methods including fewer, additional, or alternative steps may also be consistent with the present disclosure.

[0146] Example Operation of the Second Network Entity

[0147] Fig.14 In the second network entity (such as Figure 1 and Figure 3 BS102, about Figure 2 The decomposed base station in question, or Figure 7 or Figure 8 An example of a method 1400 for performing wireless communication at a network entity) as shown in FIG.

[0148] Method 1400 begins at step 1405 by obtaining subscription information indicating that a user equipment (UE) is deployed as an airborne UE and additional information about the UE. In some cases, the operation of this step refers to the following steps: Fig.15 The described circuit for obtaining and / or code for obtaining, or can be executed by the circuit and / or the code.

[0149] Then, the method 1400 proceeds to step 1410, that is, sending subscription information to the first network entity. In some cases, the operation of this step refers to the following Fig.15 The described circuits for transmitting and / or codes for transmitting, or can be performed by the circuits and / or the codes.

[0150] In one aspect, method 1400 or any aspect related thereto may be performed by an apparatus such as Fig.15 The method 1400 is performed by a communication device 1500 that includes various components operable, configured, or adapted to perform the method 1400. The communication device 1500 is described in more detail below.

[0151] Please note that Fig.14 This is merely one example of a method, and other methods including fewer, additional, or alternative steps may also be consistent with the present disclosure.

[0152] Example Communication Device

[0153] Fig.15 Aspects of an example communications device 1500 are depicted. In some aspects, communications device 1500 is a network entity such as Figure 1 and Figure 3BS102 or as relative to Figure 2 In some aspects, the communication device 1500 is a user equipment (UE), such as the one described above with respect to Figure 1 and Figure 3 UE 104 is described.

[0154] The communication device 1500 includes a processing system 1505 coupled to a transceiver 1582 (e.g., a transmitter and / or a receiver). The transceiver 1582 is configured to transmit and receive signals for the communication device 1500 via an antenna 1584, such as various signals as described herein. The communication device 1500 is configured to obtain and transmit signals via a communication link (such as a backhaul link, a midhaul link, and / or a fronthaul link), such as those described herein. Figure 2 Processing system 1505 may be configured to perform processing functions for communication device 1500 , including processing signals received and / or to be transmitted by communication device 1500 .

[0155] The processing system 1505 includes one or more processors 1510. In various aspects, such as for Figure 3 As described, the one or more processors 1510 may represent one or more of the receive processor 338, the transmit processor 320, the TX MIMO processor 330, and / or the controller / processor 340. The one or more processors 1510 are coupled to the computer-readable medium / memory 1545 via the bus 1580. In certain aspects, the computer-readable medium / memory 1545 is configured to store instructions (e.g., computer-executable code) that, when executed by the one or more processors 1510, cause the one or more processors 1510 to perform: Fig.12 Method 1200 or any aspect thereof as described; and / or with respect to Fig.13 The method 1300 described herein or any aspect related thereto; and / or with respect to Fig.14 The described method 1400 or any aspect related thereto. Note that references to a processor of the communication device 1500 that performs a function may include one or more processors 1510 of the communication device 1500 that perform that function.

[0156] In the depicted example, computer readable medium / memory 1545 stores code (e.g., executable instructions) such as code for receiving 1550, code for executing 1555, code for sending 1560, and code for obtaining 1565. Processing of code for receiving 1550, code for executing 1555, code for sending 1560, and code for obtaining 1565 may cause communication device 1500 to perform operations related to Fig.12Method 1200 described herein or any aspect thereof; and / or with respect to Fig.13 The method 1300 described herein or any aspect related thereto; and / or with respect to Fig.14 The described method 1400 or any aspect related thereto.

[0157] The one or more processors 1510 include circuits configured to implement (e.g., execute) code stored in the computer-readable medium / memory 1545, including circuits such as circuits for receiving 1515, circuits for executing 1520, circuits for sending 1525, and circuits for obtaining 1530. The processing of the circuits for receiving 1515, the circuits for executing 1520, the circuits for sending 1525, and the circuits for obtaining 1530 may enable the communication device 1500 to perform operations related to the communication device 1500. Fig.12 Method 1200 described herein or any aspect thereof; and / or with respect to Fig.13 The method 1300 described herein or any aspect related thereto; and / or with respect to Fig.14 The described method 1400 or any aspect related thereto.

[0158] The various components of the communication device 1500 may provide means for performing the following: Fig.12 Method 1200 or any aspect thereof as described; and / or with respect to Fig.13 The method 1300 described herein or any aspect related thereto; and / or with respect to Fig.14 The method 1400 described herein or any aspect related thereto. The means for sending, transmitting or outputting for sending may include Figure 3 The transceiver 332 and / or antenna 334 of BS 102 are shown, and / or Figure 3 The transceiver 354 and / or antenna 352 of the UE 104 are shown, and / or Fig.15 The communication device 1500 is shown with a transceiver 1582 and an antenna 1584. Components for receiving or obtaining may include Figure 3 The transceiver 332 and / or antenna 334 of BS 102 are shown, and / or Figure 3 The transceiver 354 and / or antenna 352 and / or Fig.15 The communication device 1500 is shown with a transceiver 1582 and an antenna 1584 .

[0159] Sample Clauses

[0160] Specific implementation examples are described in the following numbered clauses:

[0161] Clause 1: A method of wireless communication at a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: sending subscription information indicating that the UE is deployed as an air UE and additional information about the UE to a first network entity; and obtaining an air service based at least in part on the additional information.

[0162] Clause 2: The method of clause 1, wherein the UE is deployed on an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).

[0163] Clause 3: The method of clause 2, wherein the additional information indicates a priority of a service for the UAV.

[0164] Clause 4: The method of clause 2, wherein the additional information indicates a type of the UAV.

[0165] Clause 5: The method of clause 4, wherein the type of the UAV indicates a type of service performed by the UAV.

[0166] Clause 6: The method of clause 5, wherein the service type comprises one or more of: emergency service, police service, amateur service, commercial service, or delivery service, or some other type of service.

[0167] Clause 7: A method as described in clause 2, wherein at least the additional information is sent via a UE capability report.

[0168] Clause 8: The method of clause 2, further comprising sending an update to the additional information to the first network entity.

[0169] Clause 9: A method according to clause 8, wherein the update is sent via at least one of: UE capability report; tracking area update (TAU); radio resource control (RRC) signaling; medium access control (MAC) control element (MAC-CE) signaling; or physical layer (PHY) signaling.

[0170] Clause 10: A method of wireless communications at a first network entity, the method comprising: receiving subscription information indicating that a user equipment (UE) is deployed as an air UE and additional information about the UE; and performing one or more actions based on the subscription information.

[0171] Clause 11: The method of clause 10, wherein performing one or more actions comprises determining a priority of services for the UE.

[0172] Clause 12: The method of clause 10, wherein the UE is deployed on an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).

[0173] Clause 13: The method of clause 12, wherein the additional information indicates a priority of service for the UAV.

[0174] Clause 14: The method of clause 12, wherein the additional information indicates a type of the UAV.

[0175] Clause 15: The method of clause 14, wherein the type of the UAV indicates a type of service performed by the UAV.

[0176] Clause 16: The method of clause 14, wherein the service type comprises one or more of: emergency service, police service, amateur service, commercial service, or delivery service, or some other type of service.

[0177] Clause 17: The method of clause 12, wherein at least the additional information is obtained from the second network entity.

[0178] Clause 18: A method as described in clause 17, wherein: the first network entity comprises a radio access network (RAN) node; and the second network entity comprises a core network node.

[0179] Clause 19: The method of clause 17, further comprising receiving an update to the subscription information from the second network entity.

[0180] Clause 20: A method as described in clause 17, wherein the subscription information is conveyed in: at least one mandatory field indicating that the UE is deployed on a UAV; and at least one optional field indicating the additional information.

[0181] Clause 21: A method as described in clause 17, wherein the subscription information is conveyed in: a single field indicating that the UE is deployed on a UAV and the additional information.

[0182] Clause 22: A method as described in clause 12, wherein at least the additional information is obtained from the UE.

[0183] Clause 23: A method as described in clause 22, wherein at least the additional information is obtained via a UE capability report.

[0184] Clause 24: The method of clause 22, further comprising receiving an update to the additional information from the UE.

[0185] Clause 25: A method according to clause 24, wherein the update is received via at least one of: UE capability report; tracking area update (TAU); radio resource control (RRC) signaling; medium access control (MAC) control element (MAC-CE) signaling; or physical layer (PHY) signaling.

[0186] Clause 26: The method of clause 12, wherein at least the additional information is received from at least one of: an unmanned aerial system (UAS) node; a UAS traffic management (UTM) node; or a UAS service provider (USS) node.

[0187] Clause 27: A method of wireless communication at a second network entity, the method comprising: obtaining subscription information indicating that a user equipment (UE) is deployed as an air UE and additional information about the UE; and sending the subscription information to a first network entity.

[0188] Clause 28: The method of clause 27, wherein the UE is deployed on an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).

[0189] Clause 29: The method of clause 28, wherein the additional information indicates a priority of service for the UAV.

[0190] Clause 30: The method of clause 28, wherein the additional information indicates a type of the UAV.

[0191] Clause 31: The method of clause 30, wherein the type of the UAV indicates a type of service performed by the UAV.

[0192] Clause 32: The method of clause 30, wherein the type of service comprises one or more of: emergency service, police service, amateur service, commercial service, or delivery service, or some other type of service.

[0193] Clause 33: The method of clause 28, wherein: the first network entity comprises a radio access network (RAN) node; and the second network entity comprises a first core network node.

[0194] Clause 34: The method of clause 33, wherein the second network entity obtains the additional information from a second core network node.

[0195] Clause 35: A method according to clause 34, wherein: the first core network node includes an access and mobility management function (AMF) node; and the first core network node includes at least one of a unified data management (UDM) or an unmanned aerial system network function (UAS-NF) node.

[0196] Clause 36: The method of clause 28, further comprising sending an update to the subscription information from the second network entity.

[0197] Clause 37: A method as described in clause 28, wherein the subscription information is conveyed in: at least one mandatory field indicating that the UE is deployed on a UAV; and at least one optional field indicating the additional information.

[0198] Clause 38: A method as described in clause 28, wherein the subscription information is conveyed in: a single field indicating that the UE is deployed on a UAV and the additional information.

[0199] Additional considerations

[0200] The foregoing description is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the various aspects described herein. The examples discussed herein are not limited to the scope, applicability or aspects set forth in the claims. Various modifications to these aspects will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other aspects. For example, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, the functions and arrangements of the elements discussed may be changed. Various examples may omit, replace or add various procedures or components as appropriate. For example, the described methods may be performed in an order different from the order described, and various actions may be added, omitted or combined. In addition, the features described for some examples may be combined in some other examples. For example, any number of aspects set forth herein may be used to implement a device or practice method. In addition, the scope of the present disclosure is intended to cover such devices or methods practiced using other structures, functionality or structures and functionality that are supplementary or alternative to the various aspects of the present disclosure set forth herein. It should be understood that any aspect of the disclosure disclosed herein may be embodied by one or more elements of the present invention.

[0201] The various illustrative logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in conjunction with the present disclosure may be implemented or performed using a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an ASIC, a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device (PLD), discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof, designed to perform the functions described herein. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in an alternative, the processor may be any commercially available processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, for example, a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, a system on a chip (SoC), or any other such configuration.

[0202] As used herein, "processor", "at least one processor" or "one or more processors" generally refers to a single processor configured to perform one or more operations or multiple processors configured to perform one or more operations together. In the case of multiple processors, the execution of one or more operations may be divided between different processors, but one processor may perform multiple operations and multiple processors may perform a single operation together. Similarly, "memory", "at least one memory" or "one or more memories" generally refers to a single memory configured to store data and / or instructions, multiple memories configured to store data and / or instructions together.

[0203] As used herein, a phrase referring to "at least one of" a list of items refers to any combination of those items (including single members). For example, "at least one of a, b, or c" is intended to cover a, b, c, ab, ac, bc, and abc, as well as any combination with multiple identical elements (e.g., aa, aaa, aab, aac, abb, acc, bb, bbb, bbc, cc, and ccc, or any other ordering of a, b, and c).

[0204] As used herein, the term "determining" encompasses a wide variety of actions. For example, "determining" may include calculating, computing, processing, deriving, investigating, searching (e.g., searching in a table, a database, or another data structure), ascertaining, and the like. Additionally, "determining" may include receiving (e.g., receiving information), accessing (e.g., accessing data in a memory), and the like. Additionally, "determining" may include resolving, selecting, choosing, establishing, and the like.

[0205] The method disclosed herein includes one or more actions for implementing the method. The method actions are interchangeable with each other without departing from the scope of the claims. In other words, unless a specific order of actions is specified, the order and / or use of specific actions may be modified without departing from the scope of the claims. In addition, the various operations of the method described above may be performed by any appropriate component capable of performing the corresponding function. The component may include various hardware and / or software components and / or modules, including but not limited to circuits, application specific integrated circuits (ASICs) or processors.

[0206] The following claims are not intended to be limited to the various aspects shown herein, but should be given the full scope consistent with the language of the claims. Within the claims, unless otherwise specified, reference to an element in the singular form is not intended to mean "one and only one", but "one or more". Unless otherwise specified, the term "some" refers to one or more. Any claim element is not interpreted according to the provisions of 35 U.S.C. § 112 (f) unless the element is explicitly stated using the phrase "parts for...". All structural and functional equivalents of the elements of the various aspects described throughout the present disclosure that are known or will be known later to a person of ordinary skill in the art are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended to be covered by the claims. In addition, nothing disclosed herein is intended to be dedicated to the public, regardless of whether such disclosure is explicitly stated in the claims.

Claims

1. An apparatus for wireless communication at a user equipment (UE), the apparatus comprising: at least one memory, the at least one memory comprising computer executable instructions; and one or more processors configured to execute the computer-executable instructions and cause the apparatus to: sending subscription information indicating that the UE is deployed as an air UE and additional information about the UE to a first network entity; and Over-the-air service is obtained based at least in part on the additional information.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the UE is deployed on an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the additional information indicates a priority of a service for the UAV.

4. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the additional information indicates a type of the UAV.

5. An apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the type of the UAV indicates a type of service performed by the UAV.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the service type comprises one or more of: an emergency service, a police service, an amateur service, a commercial service, or a delivery service, or some other type of service.

7. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein at least the additional information is sent via a UE capability report.

8. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to execute the computer-executable instructions and cause the apparatus to send an update to the additional information to the first network entity.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the update is sent via at least one of: UE capability report; Tracking Area Update (TAU); Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling; Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (MAC-CE) signaling; or Physical layer (PHY) signaling.

10. An apparatus for wireless communication at a first network entity, the apparatus comprising: at least one memory, the at least one memory comprising computer executable instructions; and one or more processors configured to execute the computer-executable instructions and cause the apparatus to: receiving subscription information indicating that a user equipment (UE) is deployed as an air UE and additional information about the UE; and One or more actions are performed based on the subscription information.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein performing one or more actions comprises determining a priority of services for the UE.

12. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the UE is deployed on an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the additional information indicates a priority of a service for the UAV.

14. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the additional information indicates a type of the UAV.

15. An apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the type of the UAV indicates a type of service performed by the UAV.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the type of service performed by the UAV comprises one or more of: emergency service, police service, amateur service, commercial service, or delivery service, or some other type of service.

17. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein at least the additional information is obtained from the second network entity.

18. The device according to claim 17, wherein: The first network entity comprises a Radio Access Network (RAN) node; and The second network entity comprises a core network node.

19. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to execute the computer-executable instructions and cause the apparatus to receive an update to the subscription information from the second network entity.

20. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the subscription information is conveyed in: at least one mandatory field indicating that the UE is deployed on a UAV; and At least one optional field indicating the additional information.

21. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the subscription information is conveyed in: a single field indicating that the UE is deployed on a UAV and the additional information.

22. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein at least the additional information is obtained from the UE.

23. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein at least the additional information is obtained via a UE capability report.

24. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to execute the computer-executable instructions and cause the apparatus to receive an update to the additional information from the UE.

25. The apparatus of claim 24, wherein the update is received via at least one of: UE capability report; Tracking Area Update (TAU); Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling; Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (MAC-CE) signaling; or Physical layer (PHY) signaling.

26. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein at least the additional information is received from at least one of: Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) nodes; UAS Traffic Management (UTM) node; or UAS Service Provider (USS) node.

27. An apparatus for wireless communication at a second network entity, the apparatus comprising: at least one memory, the at least one memory comprising computer executable instructions; and one or more processors configured to execute the computer-executable instructions and cause the apparatus to: obtaining subscription information indicating that a user equipment (UE) is deployed as an airborne UE and additional information about the UE; as well as The subscription information is sent to the first network entity.

28. The apparatus of claim 27, wherein: The UE is deployed on an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), and The additional information indicates at least one of: a priority of a service for the UAV, a type of the UAV, or a type of service performed by the UAV.

29. The apparatus of claim 28, wherein: The first network entity comprises a Radio Access Network (RAN) node; and The second network entity includes a first core network node.

30. The apparatus of claim 28, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to execute the computer-executable instructions and cause the apparatus to send an update to the subscription information to the first network entity.

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