Transmitting synchronization signal blocks via reconfigurable smart surfaces

Abstract

Methods, systems, and devices for wireless communication are described. In general, the described techniques provide for performing an initial access procedure, including transmitting or receiving an SSB, based on the capability of the UE to use RIS. In some examples, a base station may transmit SSBs using two synchronization grids. For example, a base station may transmit an SSB on a first synchronization grid for UEs that do not support RIS and transmit an SSB on a second synchronization grid for UEs that support RIS. In some examples, a base station may transmit different types of SSBs. For example, a base station may transmit a first type of SSB for UEs that do not support RIS and a second type of SSB for UEs that support RIS. A UE may search and receive SSBs according to capabilities of the UE.

Description

[0001] This application is a divisional application of the patent application filed on October 8, 2020, with international application number PCT / CN2020 / 119863 and Chinese national application date of October 8, 2020, with application number 202080105816.4, entitled "Transmitting Synchronization Signal Blocks via Reconfigurable Smart Surfaces". Technical Field

[0002] The following relates to wireless communication, including the transmission of one or more synchronization signal blocks via one or more reconfigurable smart surfaces. Background Technology

[0003] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication content, such as voice, video, packet data, message sending and receiving, broadcasting, and so on. These systems can support communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources (e.g., time, frequency, and power). Examples of such multiple access systems include fourth-generation (4G) systems (such as Long Term Evolution (LTE) systems, LTE-A Advanced (LTE-A) systems, or LTE-A Pro systems) and fifth-generation (5G) systems, which may be referred to as New Radio (NR) systems. These systems can employ various technologies, such as Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA), or Discrete Fourier Transform Extended Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (DFT-S-OFDM). A wireless multiple access communication system may include one or more base stations or one or more network access nodes, each of which simultaneously supports communication from multiple communication devices, which may also be referred to as User Equipment (UE).

[0004] Overview

[0005] The described technology relates to improved methods, systems, apparatuses, and devices for supporting the transmission of Synchronization Signal Blocks (SSBs) via a reconfigurable Smart Surface (RIS). Generally, the described technology provides an initial access procedure for performing an UE's ability to use the RIS, including transmitting or receiving an SSB, which may include synchronization and system information, as well as other information. In some examples, a base station may use two synchronization grids to transmit an SSB. For example, a base station may transmit an SSB on a first synchronization grid for a UE that does not support RIS (e.g., a legacy UE) and on a second synchronization grid for a UE that supports RIS. In some examples, a base station may transmit different types of SSBs. For example, a base station may transmit a first type of SSB for a UE that does not support RIS (e.g., a legacy UE) and a second type of SSB for a UE that supports RIS. The UE can search for and receive SSBs according to its capabilities.

[0006] A method for wireless communication at a UE is described. The method may include: identifying a first synchronization grid and a second synchronization grid for the UE to receive one or more synchronization signal blocks, the second synchronization grid including frequency locations associated with reconfigurable smart surfaces; monitoring one or more resource elements based on one or more of the first synchronization grid or the second synchronization grid to locate the one or more synchronization signal blocks; and receiving at least one synchronization signal block based on monitoring the one or more resource elements.

[0007] An apparatus for wireless communication at a UE is described. The apparatus may include a processor, a memory coupled to the processor, and instructions stored in the memory. These instructions may be executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: identify a first synchronization grid and a second synchronization grid for the UE to receive one or more synchronization signal blocks, the second synchronization grid including frequency locations associated with reconfigurable smart surfaces; monitor one or more resource elements based on one or more of the first or second synchronization grids to locate the one or more synchronization signal blocks; and receive at least one synchronization signal block based on monitoring the one or more resource elements.

[0008] Another device for wireless communication at a UE is described. The device may include means for: identifying a first synchronization grid and a second synchronization grid for the UE to receive one or more synchronization signal blocks, the second synchronization grid including frequency locations associated with a reconfigurable smart surface; monitoring one or more resource elements based on one or more of the first or second synchronization grid to locate the one or more synchronization signal blocks; and receiving at least one synchronization signal block based on monitoring the one or more resource elements.

[0009] A non-transient computer-readable medium is described, storing code for wireless communication at a UE. The code may include instructions executable by a processor to: identify a first synchronization grid and a second synchronization grid for the UE to receive one or more synchronization signal blocks, the second synchronization grid including a frequency location associated with a reconfigurable smart surface; monitor one or more resource elements based on one or more of the first or second synchronization grid to locate the one or more synchronization signal blocks; and receive at least one synchronization signal block based on monitoring the one or more resource elements.

[0010] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, monitoring the one or more resource elements may include operations, features, means, or instructions for: scanning one or more frequency locations in the first synchronization grid to locate the one or more synchronization signal blocks; failing to detect the one or more synchronization signal blocks at the one or more frequency locations in the first synchronization grid; and scanning one or more frequency locations in the second synchronization grid to locate the one or more synchronization signal blocks, wherein receiving the at least one synchronization signal block may be based on scanning the one or more frequency locations in the second synchronization grid.

[0011] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, monitoring the one or more resource elements may include operations, features, means or instructions for scanning one or more frequency locations in the first synchronization grid to locate the one or more synchronization signal blocks, wherein receiving the at least one synchronization signal block may be based on scanning the one or more frequency locations in the first synchronization grid.

[0012] Some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein may further include operations, features, means or instructions for suppressing scanning of the one or more frequency positions in the second synchronization grid based on receiving the at least one synchronization signal block at the one or more frequency positions in the first synchronization grid.

[0013] Some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein may further include operations, features, means or instructions for determining a priority associated with the first synchronization grid that may differ from a priority associated with the second synchronization grid, wherein monitoring of the one or more resource elements may be based on that determination.

[0014] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, determining the priority associated with the first synchronization grid may differ from the priority associated with the second synchronization grid. This may include operations, features, means, or instructions for determining that the priority associated with the first synchronization grid may be higher than the priority associated with the second synchronization grid.

[0015] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, determining the priority associated with the first synchronization grid may differ from the priority associated with the second synchronization grid. This may include operations, features, means, or instructions for determining that the priority associated with the first synchronization grid may be lower than the priority associated with the second synchronization grid.

[0016] Some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein may further include operations, features, means or instructions for receiving from a base station an instruction from the UE to receive one or more synchronization signal blocks in the first synchronization grid or the second synchronization grid, wherein monitoring of the one or more resource elements may be based on receiving the instruction.

[0017] Some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein may further include operations, features, means, or instructions for receiving from the base station an indication that the second synchronization grid can be associated with the reconfigurable smart surface, wherein the UE uses one or both of the first synchronization grid or the second synchronization grid based on receiving the indication that the second synchronization grid can be associated with the reconfigurable smart surface and whether the UE is able to interact with the reconfigurable smart surface.

[0018] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, identifying the first synchronization grid and the second synchronization grid may include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying a first set of frequency positions in the first synchronization grid and a second set of frequency positions in the second synchronization grid, the second set of frequency positions in the second synchronization grid possibly not overlapping with the first set of frequency positions in the first synchronization grid.

[0019] A method for wireless communication at a UE is described. The method may include: identifying a first type of synchronization signal block and a second type of synchronization signal block associated with the same synchronization grid and available for reception by the UE, wherein the second type of synchronization signal block is associated with a reconfigurable smart surface; monitoring one or more resource elements (REs) to locate one or more synchronization signal blocks including one or more of the first type or the second type of synchronization signal block; and receiving at least one of the first type or the second type of synchronization signal block based on monitoring the one or more REs.

[0020] An apparatus for wireless communication at a UE is described. The apparatus may include a processor, a memory coupled to the processor, and instructions stored in the memory. These instructions may be executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: identify a first type of synchronization signal block and a second type of synchronization signal block associated with the same synchronization grid and for reception by the UE, wherein the second type of synchronization signal block is associated with a reconfigurable smart surface; monitor one or more resource elements (REs) to locate one or more synchronization signal blocks including one or more of the first type or the second type of synchronization signal block; and receive at least one of the first type or the second type of synchronization signal block based on monitoring the one or more REs.

[0021] Another device for wireless communication at a UE is described. The device may include means for: identifying a first type of synchronization signal block and a second type of synchronization signal block associated with the same synchronization grid and for reception by the UE, wherein the second type of synchronization signal block is associated with a reconfigurable smart surface; monitoring one or more resource elements (REs) to locate one or more synchronization signal blocks including one or more of the first type or the second type of synchronization signal block; and receiving at least one of the first type or the second type of synchronization signal block based on monitoring the one or more REs.

[0022] A non-transient computer-readable medium is described, storing code for wireless communication at a UE. The code may include instructions executable by a processor to: identify a first type of synchronization signal block and a second type of synchronization signal block associated with the same synchronization grid and for reception by the UE, wherein the second type of synchronization signal block is associated with a reconfigurable smart surface; monitor one or more resource elements (REs) to locate one or more synchronization signal blocks including one or more of the first type or the second type of synchronization signal block; and receive at least one of the first type or the second type of synchronization signal block based on monitoring the one or more REs.

[0023] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, monitoring the one or more resource elements may include operations, features, means, or instructions for: scanning a first frequency position in the synchronization grid to locate a synchronization signal block of the first type; failing to detect the first type of synchronization signal block at the first frequency position; and scanning the first frequency position in the synchronization grid to locate a synchronization signal block of the second type; wherein receiving at least one synchronization signal block may include operations, features, means, or instructions for: receiving the second type of synchronization signal block based on scanning the first frequency position.

[0024] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, monitoring the one or more resource elements may include operations, features, means, or instructions for: scanning each frequency position in the synchronization grid to locate the first type of synchronization signal block; failing to detect the first type of synchronization signal block at each frequency position in the synchronization grid; and scanning one or more frequency positions in the synchronization grid to locate the second type of synchronization signal block; wherein receiving at least one synchronization signal block may include operations, features, means, or instructions for: receiving the second type of synchronization signal block based on scanning the one or more frequency positions.

[0025] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, monitoring the one or more resource elements may include operations, features, means or instructions for: scanning at least one frequency location in the synchronization grid to locate the first type of synchronization signal block, wherein receiving the at least one synchronization signal block includes receiving the first type of synchronization signal block based on scanning the at least one frequency location.

[0026] Some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein may further include operations, features, means or instructions for determining a priority associated with the first type of synchronization signal block that may be different from the priority associated with the second type of synchronization signal block, wherein monitoring of the one or more resource elements may be based on that determination.

[0027] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, determining the priority associated with the first type of synchronization signal block may differ from the priority associated with the second type of synchronization signal block. This may include operations, features, means, or instructions for determining that the priority associated with the first type of synchronization signal block may be higher than the priority associated with the second type of synchronization signal block.

[0028] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, determining that the priority associated with the first type of synchronization signal block may be different from the priority associated with the second type of synchronization signal block may include operations, features, means, or instructions for determining that the priority associated with the first type of synchronization signal block may be lower than the priority associated with the second type of synchronization signal block.

[0029] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, identifying the first type of synchronization signal block and the second type of synchronization signal block may include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying a first position of the master synchronization signal associated with the first type of synchronization signal block and a second position of the master synchronization signal associated with the second type of synchronization signal block.

[0030] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, identifying the first and second positions may include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying a first time position of the master synchronization signal associated with the first type of synchronization signal block and a second time position of the master synchronization signal associated with the second type of synchronization signal block.

[0031] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, identifying the first type of synchronization signal block and the second type of synchronization signal block may include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying a first mapping order of sub-synchronization signals associated with the first type of synchronization signal block and a second mapping order of sub-synchronization signals associated with the second type of synchronization signal block.

[0032] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, identifying the first mapping order and the second mapping order may include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying a first ascending mapping order of a sub-synchronization signal associated with the first type of synchronization signal block and a second descending mapping order of a sub-synchronization signal associated with the second type of synchronization signal block.

[0033] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, identifying the first mapping order and the second mapping order may include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying a first decreasing mapping order of a sub-synchronization signal associated with the first type of synchronization signal block and a second increasing mapping order of a sub-synchronization signal associated with the second type of synchronization signal block.

[0034] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, the first mapping order and the second mapping order each include an order for mapping symbol sequences associated with a sub-synchronization signal onto one or more resource elements.

[0035] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, identifying the first type of synchronization signal block and the second type of synchronization signal block may include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying a first mapping order of demodulation reference signals associated with the first type of synchronization signal block and a second mapping order of demodulation reference signals associated with the second type of synchronization signal block.

[0036] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, identifying the first mapping order and the second mapping order may include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying a first incrementing mapping order of a demodulation reference signal associated with a synchronization signal block of the first type and a second decrementing mapping order of a demodulation reference signal associated with a synchronization signal block of the second type.

[0037] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, identifying the first mapping order and the second mapping order may include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying a first decreasing mapping order of a demodulation reference signal associated with a synchronization signal block of the first type and a second increasing mapping order of a demodulation reference signal associated with a synchronization signal block of the second type.

[0038] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, the first mapping order and the second mapping order each include an order for mapping symbol sequences associated with a demodulated reference signal onto one or more resource elements.

[0039] Some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein may further include operations, features, means or instructions for receiving from a base station an indication of one of the first type of synchronization signal block or the second type of synchronization signal block, wherein monitoring of the one or more resource elements may be based on receiving the indication.

[0040] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, receiving the indication may include an operation, feature, means, or instruction for receiving a master information block including the indication from a base station.

[0041] A method for wireless communication at a base station is described. The method may include: identifying a first synchronization grid and a second synchronization grid for the base station to transmit one or more synchronization signal blocks, the second synchronization grid including frequency locations associated with reconfigurable smart surfaces; configuring one or more resource elements (REs) based on the first synchronization grid and the second synchronization grid to transmit the one or more synchronization signal blocks; and using the configured one or more REs to transmit the one or more synchronization signal blocks.

[0042] An apparatus for wireless communication at a base station is described. The apparatus may include a processor, a memory coupled to the processor, and instructions stored in the memory. These instructions may be executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: identify a first synchronization grid and a second synchronization grid for the base station to transmit one or more synchronization signal blocks, the second synchronization grid including frequency locations associated with reconfigurable smart surfaces; configure one or more resource elements (REs) based on the first and second synchronization grids to transmit the one or more synchronization signal blocks; and use the configured one or more REs to transmit the one or more synchronization signal blocks.

[0043] Another device for wireless communication at a base station is described. The device may include means for: identifying a first synchronization grid and a second synchronization grid for the base station to transmit one or more synchronization signal blocks, the second synchronization grid including frequency locations associated with a reconfigurable smart surface; configuring one or more resource elements (REs) based on the first and second synchronization grids to transmit the one or more synchronization signal blocks; and using the configured one or more REs to transmit the one or more synchronization signal blocks.

[0044] A non-transient computer-readable medium is described, storing code for wireless communication at a base station. The code may include instructions executable by a processor to: identify a first synchronization grid and a second synchronization grid for the base station to transmit one or more synchronization signal blocks, the second synchronization grid including frequency locations associated with reconfigurable smart surfaces; configure one or more resource elements (REs) based on the first and second synchronization grids to transmit the one or more synchronization signal blocks; and use the configured one or more REs to transmit the one or more synchronization signal blocks.

[0045] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, configuring the one or more resource elements may include operations, features, means, or instructions for: configuring the resource element at one or more frequency positions in the first synchronization grid; and configuring the resource element at one or more frequency positions in the second synchronization grid; wherein transmitting the one or more synchronization signal blocks may include operations, features, means, or instructions for: using the resource element at the one or more frequency positions in the first synchronization grid and the resource element at the one or more frequency positions in the second synchronization grid to transmit the one or more synchronization signal blocks.

[0046] Some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein may further include operations, features, means or instructions for transmitting to one or more UEs an instruction to one of the first synchronization grids or the second synchronization grids for the UEs to receive the one or more synchronization signal blocks, wherein the configuration of the one or more resource elements may be based on the instruction.

[0047] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, identifying the first synchronization grid and the second synchronization grid may include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying a first set of frequency positions in the first synchronization grid and a second set of frequency positions in the second synchronization grid, the second set of frequency positions in the second synchronization grid possibly not overlapping with the first set of frequency positions in the first synchronization grid.

[0048] A method for wireless communication at a base station is described. The method may include: identifying a first type of synchronization signal block and a second type of synchronization signal block associated with the same synchronization grid and for transmission by the base station, wherein the second type of synchronization signal block is associated with a reconfigurable smart surface; configuring one or more resource elements to transmit one or more synchronization signal blocks including one or more of the first type or the second type; and using the configured one or more resource elements to transmit the one or more synchronization signal blocks.

[0049] An apparatus for wireless communication at a base station is described. The apparatus may include a processor, a memory coupled to the processor, and instructions stored in the memory. These instructions may be executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: identify a first type of synchronization signal block and a second type of synchronization signal block associated with the same synchronization grid and transmitted by the base station, wherein the second type of synchronization signal block is associated with a reconfigurable smart surface; configure one or more resource elements to transmit one or more synchronization signal blocks including one or more of the first type or the second type of synchronization signal block; and use the configured one or more resource elements to transmit the one or more synchronization signal blocks.

[0050] Another device for wireless communication at a base station is described. The device may include means for: identifying a first type of synchronization signal block and a second type of synchronization signal block associated with the same synchronization grid and transmitted by the base station, wherein the second type of synchronization signal block is associated with a reconfigurable smart surface; configuring one or more resource elements to transmit one or more synchronization signal blocks including one or more of the first type or the second type of synchronization signal block; and using the configured one or more resource elements to transmit the one or more synchronization signal blocks.

[0051] A non-transient computer-readable medium is described, storing code for wireless communication at a base station. The code may include instructions executable by a processor to: identify a first type of synchronization signal block and a second type of synchronization signal block associated with the same synchronization grid and for transmission by the base station, wherein the second type of synchronization signal block is associated with a reconfigurable smart surface; configure one or more resource elements to transmit one or more synchronization signal blocks including one or more of the first type or the second type of synchronization signal block; and use the configured one or more resource elements to transmit the one or more synchronization signal blocks.

[0052] Some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein may further include operations, features, means or instructions for transmitting to one or more UEs an instruction to monitor one of the first type of synchronization signal block or the second type of synchronization signal block, wherein the configuration of the one or more resource elements may be based on the instruction.

[0053] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, transmitting the instruction may include operations, features, means or instructions for transmitting a main information block including the instruction.

[0054] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, identifying the first type of synchronization signal block and the second type of synchronization signal block may include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying a first position of the master synchronization signal associated with the first type of synchronization signal block and a second position of the master synchronization signal associated with the second type of synchronization signal block.

[0055] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, identifying the first and second positions may include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying a first time position of the master synchronization signal associated with the first type of synchronization signal block and a second time position of the master synchronization signal associated with the second type of synchronization signal block.

[0056] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, identifying the first type of synchronization signal block and the second type of synchronization signal block may include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying a first mapping order of sub-synchronization signals associated with the first type of synchronization signal block and a second mapping order of sub-synchronization signals associated with the second type of synchronization signal block.

[0057] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, identifying the first mapping order and the second mapping order may include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying a first ascending mapping order of a sub-synchronization signal associated with the first type of synchronization signal block and a second descending mapping order of a sub-synchronization signal associated with the second type of synchronization signal block.

[0058] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, identifying the first mapping order and the second mapping order may include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying a first decreasing mapping order of a sub-synchronization signal associated with the first type of synchronization signal block and a second increasing mapping order of a sub-synchronization signal associated with the second type of synchronization signal block.

[0059] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, the first mapping order and the second mapping order each include an order for mapping symbol sequences associated with a sub-synchronization signal onto one or more resource elements.

[0060] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, identifying the first type of synchronization signal block and the second type of synchronization signal block may include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying a first mapping order of demodulation reference signals associated with the first type of synchronization signal block and a second mapping order of demodulation reference signals associated with the second type of synchronization signal block.

[0061] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, identifying the first mapping order and the second mapping order may include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying a first incrementing mapping order of a demodulation reference signal associated with a synchronization signal block of the first type and a second decrementing mapping order of a demodulation reference signal associated with a synchronization signal block of the second type.

[0062] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, identifying the first mapping order and the second mapping order may include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying a first decreasing mapping order of a demodulation reference signal associated with a synchronization signal block of the first type and a second increasing mapping order of a demodulation reference signal associated with a synchronization signal block of the second type.

[0063] In some examples of the methods, apparatus (devices) and non-transient computer-readable media described herein, the first mapping order and the second mapping order each include an order for mapping symbol sequences associated with a sub-synchronization signal onto one or more resource elements. Brief description of the attached diagram

[0064] Figure 1 Examples of wireless communication systems that transmit one or more blocks of synchronization signals via one or more reconfigurable smart surfaces, supported by various aspects of this disclosure, are described.

[0065] Figure 2 Examples of wireless communication systems that transmit one or more blocks of synchronization signals via one or more reconfigurable smart surfaces, supported by various aspects of this disclosure, are described.

[0066] Figure 3 An example of a process flow for transmitting one or more synchronization signal blocks via one or more reconfigurable smart surfaces, supported by various aspects of this disclosure, is described.

[0067] Figure 4 An example of a process flow for transmitting one or more synchronization signal blocks via one or more reconfigurable smart surfaces, supported by various aspects of this disclosure, is described.

[0068] Figures 5A-5B An example of a resource mapping scheme for transmitting one or more synchronization signal blocks via one or more reconfigurable smart surfaces, supported by various aspects of this disclosure, is described.

[0069] Figures 6A-6B An example of a resource mapping scheme for transmitting one or more synchronization signal blocks via one or more reconfigurable smart surfaces, supported by various aspects of this disclosure, is described.

[0070] Figures 7A-7B An example of a resource mapping scheme for transmitting one or more synchronization signal blocks via one or more reconfigurable smart surfaces, supported by various aspects of this disclosure, is described.

[0071] Figure 8 and 9 A block diagram of a device for transmitting one or more synchronization signal blocks via one or more reconfigurable smart surfaces, supported by various aspects of this disclosure, is described.

[0072] Figure 10 A block diagram is shown of a communication manager that supports the transmission of one or more synchronization signal blocks via one or more reconfigurable smart surfaces, according to various aspects of this disclosure.

[0073] Figure 11 A diagram is shown of a system including a device that supports the transmission of one or more synchronization signal blocks via one or more reconfigurable smart surfaces, according to various aspects of this disclosure.

[0074] Figure 12 and 13 A block diagram of a device for transmitting one or more synchronization signal blocks via one or more reconfigurable smart surfaces, supported by various aspects of this disclosure, is described.

[0075] Figure 14 A block diagram is shown of a communication manager that supports the transmission of one or more synchronization signal blocks via one or more reconfigurable smart surfaces, according to various aspects of this disclosure.

[0076] Figure 15 A diagram is shown of a system including a device that supports the transmission of one or more synchronization signal blocks via one or more reconfigurable smart surfaces, according to various aspects of this disclosure.

[0077] Figures 16 to 21 A flowchart illustrating a method for transmitting one or more synchronization signal blocks via one or more reconfigurable smart surfaces, according to various aspects of this disclosure, is shown. Detailed description

[0078] Some wireless communication systems (such as fifth-generation (5G) New Radio (NR) systems) may include reconfigurable Smart Surfaces (RIS) to extend wireless communication coverage. For example, a wireless communication system may employ RIS to extend communication coverage around or due to obstructions, with negligible power costs. RIS can extend coverage by reflecting one or more directional beams transmitted by the base station around obstructions, allowing the base station to serve one or more UEs even if there are blocked paths or channels between the user equipment (UE) and the base station. In some examples, a wireless communication system supporting RIS may have UEs that support RIS and UEs that do not (e.g., legacy UEs, non-RIS UEs). Therefore, the base station can use different initial access procedures for each type of UE (e.g., RIS UE or non-RIS UE), and can use methods that allow both the base station and the UE to know whether or not RIS can be used or is being used.

[0079] Some methods for providing different initial access procedures may include methods for a base station to transmit a synchronization signal block (SSB), which may include synchronization and system information, as well as other information. In some examples, a base station may use two different synchronization grids to transmit the SSB. For example, a base station may use a first synchronization grid to transmit the SSB for UEs that do not support RIS (e.g., legacy UEs, non-RIS UEs) and a second synchronization grid to transmit the SSB for UEs that support or are using RIS. Each type of UE may search for and receive an SSB at a frequency location in either the first or second synchronization grid, depending on the UE's capabilities (e.g., the UE's ability to communicate based on one or more RIS). For example, a RIS-using UE may search for an SSB at a frequency location in the first grid but fail to detect it, possibly due to a blocked path or channel between the UE and the base station. In response to the failure to detect any SSB, the UE may search for a frequency location in the second grid and receive the SSB accordingly.

[0080] In some examples, a base station can transmit two types of SSBs on the same synchronization grid. For example, a base station can transmit a first type of SSB for UEs that do not support RIS and a second type of SSB for UEs that support or are using RIS. Each type of UE can search for and receive either the first or second type of SSB depending on its capabilities. For example, a UE that supports or is using RIS may search for the first type of SSB at every frequency location (or at least some frequency locations) in the synchronization grid and fail to detect it. In response to the failure to detect the first type of SSB, the UE can monitor (e.g., scan) the synchronization grid to look for the second type of SSB and receive at least one SSB accordingly. In some implementations, the two types of SSBs can be distinguished by, for example, the location of the primary synchronization signal (PSS), the mapping order of the secondary synchronization signals (SSS), the mapping order of the demodulation reference signal (DMRS) associated with the physical broadcast channel (PBCH), one or more other factors, or any combination thereof. In some examples, implementing one or more aspects of this disclosure can enable the base station and the UE to perform an initial access procedure based on whether the RIS is being used and whether the UE supports the RIS, and can enable the UE to receive one or more SSBs according to its capabilities.

[0081] The aspects of this disclosure are initially described in the context of wireless communication systems. These aspects are further described in the context of process flows and resource mapping schemes. The aspects of this disclosure are further illustrated and described with reference to apparatus diagrams, system diagrams, and flowcharts relating to the transmission of SSBs via RIS.

[0082] Figure 1 Examples of a wireless communication system 100 supporting the transmission of one or more SSBs via one or more RISs according to various aspects of this disclosure are described. The wireless communication system 100 may include one or more base stations 105, one or more UEs 115, and a core network 130. In some examples, the wireless communication system 100 may be a Long Term Evolution (LTE) network, an Advanced LTE (LTE-A) network, an LTE-A Pro network, or a New Radio (NR) network. In some examples, the wireless communication system 100 may support enhanced broadband communication, ultra-reliable (e.g., mission-critical) communication, low latency communication, communication with low-cost and low-complexity devices, or any combination thereof.

[0083] Base station 105 can be distributed across a geographical area to form wireless communication system 100, and can be different types of devices or devices with different capabilities. Base station 105 and UE 115 can communicate wirelessly via one or more communication links 125. Each base station 105 can provide a coverage area 110, and UE 115 and base station 105 can establish one or more communication links 125 on the coverage area 110. Coverage area 110 can be an example of a geographical area over which base station 105 and UE 115 can support signal communication according to one or more radio access technologies.

[0084] Each UE 115 can be distributed throughout the coverage area 110 of the wireless communication system 100, and each UE 115 can be stationary or mobile, or stationary and mobile at different times. Each UE 115 can be a different type of device or a device with different capabilities. Figure 1 The document describes some example UE 115s. The UE 115 described herein can communicate with various types of devices, such as other UE 115s, base station 105, or network equipment (e.g., core network nodes, relay equipment, integrated access and backhaul (IAB) nodes, or other network equipment). Figure 1 As shown in the image.

[0085] Each base station 105 may communicate with the core network 130, or with each other, or both. For example, base station 105 may interface with the core network 130 via one or more backhaul links 120 (e.g., via S1, N2, N3, or other interfaces). Base stations 105 may communicate with each other directly (e.g., directly between base stations 105), indirectly (e.g., via the core network 130), or directly and indirectly on backhaul links 120 (e.g., via X2, Xn, or other interfaces). In some examples, backhaul link 120 may be or include one or more radio links.

[0086] One or more of the base stations 105 described herein may include, or may be referred to by those skilled in the art as, base transceiver station, radio base station, access point, radio transceiver, B node, evolved B node (eNB), next-generation B node or gigabit B node (any of which may be referred to as gNB), home B node, home evolved B node, or other suitable terms.

[0087] UE 115 may include or be referred to as a mobile device, wireless device, remote device, handheld device, or subscriber device, or any other suitable term, wherein "device" may also be referred to as a unit, station, terminal, or client, etc. UE 115 may also include or be referred to as a personal electronic device, such as a cellular phone, personal digital assistant (PDA), tablet computer, laptop computer, or personal computer. In some examples, UE 115 may include or be referred to as a wireless local loop (WLL) station, Internet of Things (IoT) device, Internet of Everything (IoE) device, or machine-type communication (MTC) device, which may be implemented in various objects such as appliances or vehicles, meters, etc.

[0088] The UE 115 described herein can communicate with various types of devices, such as other UEs 115 that sometimes act as relays, as well as base station 105 and network equipment including macro eNBs or gNBs, small cell eNBs or gNBs, relay base stations, etc. Figure 1 As shown in the image.

[0089] UE 115 and base station 105 can wirelessly communicate with each other via one or more communication links 125 on one or more carriers. The term "carrier" can refer to a set of radio frequency spectrum resources having a defined physical layer structure for supporting communication link 125. For example, a carrier for communication link 125 may include a portion of the radio spectrum band (e.g., a bandwidth portion (BWP)) operating according to one or more physical layer channels for a given radio access technology (e.g., LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, NR). Each physical layer channel may carry acquisition signaling (e.g., synchronization signals, system information), control signaling coordinating carrier operation, user data, or other signaling. Wireless communication system 100 may support communication with UE 115 using carrier aggregation or multi-carrier operation. UE 115 may be configured to have multiple downlink component carriers and one or more uplink component carriers according to a carrier aggregation configuration. Carrier aggregation may be used in conjunction with both frequency division duplex (FDD) and time division duplex (TDD) component carriers.

[0090] In some examples (e.g., in a carrier aggregation configuration), the carrier may also have acquisition signaling or control signaling to coordinate the operation of other carriers. The carrier may be associated with a frequency channel (e.g., an Evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA) Absolute Radio Frequency Channel Number (EARFCN)) and may be located according to a channel grid for discovery by UE 115. The carrier may operate in an autonomous mode in which initial acquisition and connection can be performed by UE 115 via that carrier, or in a non-autonomous mode in which the carrier may connect to carriers anchored using different carriers (e.g., different carriers of the same or different radio access technologies).

[0091] The communication link 125 shown in the wireless communication system 100 may include uplink transmission from UE 115 to base station 105, or downlink transmission from base station 105 to UE 115. The carrier may carry downlink or uplink communication (e.g., in FDD mode), or may be configured to carry both downlink and uplink communication (e.g., in TDD mode).

[0092] A carrier may be associated with a specific bandwidth of the radio frequency spectrum, and in some examples, the carrier bandwidth may be referred to as the carrier or the “system bandwidth” of the wireless communication system 100. For example, the carrier bandwidth may be one of several defined bandwidths (e.g., 1.4, 3, 5, 10, 15, 20, 40, or 80 MHz) of a carrier for a particular radio access technology. Devices of the wireless communication system 100 (e.g., base station 105, UE 115, or both) may have a hardware configuration that supports communication over a specific carrier bandwidth, or may be configurable to support communication over a single carrier bandwidth within a set of carrier bandwidths. In some examples, the wireless communication system 100 may include a base station 105 or UE 115 that supports simultaneous communication via carriers associated with multiple carrier bandwidths. In some examples, each served UE 115 may be configured to operate over a portion (e.g., a subband, BWP) or all of the carrier bandwidth.

[0093] The signal waveform transmitted on the carrier may include multiple subcarriers (e.g., using multi-carrier modulation (MCM) techniques, such as orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) or discrete Fourier transform extended OFDM (DFT-S-OFDM)). In a system employing MCM, a resource element may include a symbol period (e.g., the duration of a modulation symbol) and a subcarrier, where the symbol period and subcarrier spacing are inversely related. The number of bits carried by each resource element may depend on the modulation scheme (e.g., the order of the modulation scheme, the code rate of the modulation scheme, or both). Thus, the more resource elements the UE 115 receives and the higher the order of the modulation scheme, the higher the data rate the UE 115 can achieve. Wireless communication resources can refer to a combination of radio frequency spectrum resources, temporal resources, and spatial resources (e.g., spatial layers or beams), and using multiple spatial layers can further improve the data rate or data integrity of communication with the UE 115.

[0094] The time interval of base station 105 or UE 115 can be expressed as a multiple of a basic time unit, such as the sampling period T. s =1 / (Δf) max ·N f ) seconds, where Δf max This can represent the maximum supported subcarrier spacing, while N fThis can represent the maximum supported Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) size. The time interval of the communication resources can be organized according to radio frames, each with a specified duration (e.g., 10 milliseconds (ms)). Each radio frame can be identified by a System Frame Number (SFN) (e.g., ranging from 0 to 1023).

[0095] Each frame may include multiple consecutively numbered subframes or time slots, and each subframe or time slot may have the same duration. In some examples, a frame may (e.g., in the time domain) be divided into subframes, and each subframe may be further divided into several time slots. Alternatively, each frame may include a variable number of time slots, and the number of time slots may depend on the subcarrier spacing. Each time slot may include several symbol periods (e.g., depending on the length of the cyclic prefix added before each symbol period). In some wireless communication systems 100, time slots may be further divided into multiple mini-time slots containing one or more symbols. Excluding the cyclic prefix, each symbol period may contain one or more (e.g., N) symbols. f (Number) sampling periods. The duration of a symbol period can depend on the subcarrier interval or the operating frequency band.

[0096] A subframe, time slot, mini-slot, or symbol can be the smallest scheduling unit of the wireless communication system 100 (e.g., in the time domain) and can be referred to as a transmission time interval (TTI). In some examples, the duration of the TTI (e.g., the number of symbol periods in the TTI) can be variable. Additionally or alternatively, the smallest scheduling unit of the wireless communication system 100 can be dynamically selected (e.g., in bursts of shortened TTIs (sTTIs)).

[0097] Physical channels can be multiplexed on a carrier using various techniques. Physical control channels and physical data channels can be multiplexed on a downlink carrier, for example, using one or more of Time Division Multiplexing (TDM), Frequency Division Multiplexing (FDM), or hybrid TDM-FDM techniques. A control region (e.g., a control resource set (CORESET)) for physical control channels can be defined by the number of symbol periods and can extend across the system bandwidth or a subset of the system bandwidth of the carrier. One or more control regions (e.g., CORESET) can be configured for a set of UEs 115. For example, one or more UEs 115 can monitor or search control regions for control information based on one or more search space sets, and each search space set can include one or more control channel candidates in one or more aggregation levels arranged in a cascaded manner. An aggregation level for control channel candidates can refer to the number of control channel resources (e.g., control channel elements (CCEs)) associated with coded information in a control information format having a given payload size. The search space set may include a common search space set configured to send control information to multiple UEs 115 and a UE-specific search space set configured to send control information to a specific UE 115.

[0098] In some examples, base station 105 may be mobile, and thus provide communication coverage to mobile geographic coverage areas 110. In some examples, different geographic coverage areas 110 associated with different technologies may overlap, but the different geographic coverage areas 110 may be supported by the same base station 105. In other examples, overlapping geographic coverage areas 110 associated with different technologies may be supported by different base stations 105. Wireless communication system 100 may include, for example, a heterogeneous network, in which different types of base stations 105 use the same or different radio access technologies to provide coverage to various geographic coverage areas 110.

[0099] The wireless communication system 100 can support synchronous or asynchronous operation. For synchronous operation, base stations 105 can have similar frame timing, and transmissions from different base stations 105 can be approximately time-aligned. For asynchronous operation, base stations 105 can have different frame timing, and transmissions from different base stations 105 may not be time-aligned in some examples. The techniques described herein can be used for both synchronous and asynchronous operation.

[0100] Some UEs 115 can be configured to operate in reduced-power modes, such as half-duplex communication (e.g., a mode that supports unidirectional communication via transmission or reception but not simultaneous transmission and reception). In some examples, half-duplex communication can be performed at a reduced peak rate. Other power-saving techniques for UEs 115 include entering a power-saving deep sleep mode when not engaged in active communication, operating on limited bandwidth (e.g., according to narrowband communication), or a combination of these techniques. For example, some UEs 115 can be configured to operate using a narrowband protocol type associated with a defined portion or range (e.g., subcarriers or resource block (RB) set) within the carrier, within the carrier's guard band, or outside the carrier.

[0101] Wireless communication system 100 may be configured to support ultra-reliable communication or low latency communication, or various combinations thereof. For example, wireless communication system 100 may be configured to support ultra-reliable low latency communication (URLLC) or mission-critical communication. UE 115 may be designed to support ultra-reliable, low latency, or mission-critical functions (e.g., mission-critical functions). Ultra-reliable communication may include private or group communication and may be supported by one or more mission-critical services, such as Mission-Critical Talk-to-Talk (MCPTT), Mission-Critical Video (MCVideo), or Mission-Critical Data (MCData)). Support for mission-critical functions may include prioritization of services, and mission-critical services may be used for public safety or general business applications. The terms ultra-reliable, low latency, mission-critical, and ultra-reliable low latency are used interchangeably herein.

[0102] In some examples, UE 115 may also be able to communicate directly with other UE 115 on a device-to-device (D2D) communication link 135 (e.g., using a peer-to-peer (P2P) or D2D protocol). One or more UE 115s utilizing D2D communication may be within the geographic coverage area 110 of base station 105. Other UE 115s in such a group may be outside the geographic coverage area 110 of base station 105 or may be unable to receive transmissions from base station 105 for other reasons. In some examples, groups of UE 115s communicating via D2D communication may utilize a one-to-many (1:M) system, where each UE 115 transmits to every other UE 115 in the group. In some examples, base station 105 facilitates the scheduling of resources for D2D communication. In other cases, D2D communication is performed between the individual UE 115s without involving base station 105.

[0103] Core network 130 provides user authentication, access authorization, tracking, Internet Protocol (IP) connectivity, and other access, routing, or mobility functions. Core network 130 can be an evolved packet core (EPC) or a 5G core (5GC). The EPC or 5GC may include at least one control plane entity (e.g., a Mobility Management Entity (MME), Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF)) managing access and mobility, and at least one user plane entity (e.g., a Serving Gateway (S-GW), Packet Data Network (PDN) Gateway (P-GW), or User Plane Function (UPF)) routing packets or interconnecting to external networks. The control plane entity manages non-access stratum (NAS) functions, such as mobility, authentication, and bearer management of UE 115 served by base station 105 associated with core network 130. User IP packets can be delivered through the user plane entity, which provides IP address allocation and other functions. The user plane entity may be connected to one or more network operator IP services 150. The IP service 150 may include access to the Internet, intranet, IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), or packet-switched streaming services.

[0104] Some network devices (such as base station 105) may include sub-components, such as access network entity 140, which may be an example of an access node controller (ANC). Each access network entity 140 may communicate with each UE 115 through one or more other access network transport entities 145, which may be referred to as a radio headend, smart radio headend, or transmit / receive point (TRP). Each access network transport entity 145 may include one or more antenna panels. In some configurations, the various functions of each access network entity 140 or base station 105 may be distributed across various network devices (e.g., radio headends and ANCs) or combined into a single network device (e.g., base station 105).

[0105] Wireless communication system 100 can operate using one or more frequency bands, typically in the range of 300 MHz to 300 GHz. Generally, the 300 MHz to 3 GHz band is referred to as a UHF band or decimeter band because the wavelengths range from approximately 1 decimeter to 1 meter. UHF waves can be blocked or redirected by buildings and environmental features, but these waves can penetrate various structures sufficiently for macrocells to provide service to UE 115 located indoors. Compared to transmissions using smaller frequencies and longer waves in the lower HF or VHF portions of the spectrum below 300 MHz, UHF wave transmission can be associated with smaller antennas and shorter ranges (e.g., less than 100 km).

[0106] Wireless communication system 100 may utilize both licensed and unlicensed radio spectrum bands. For example, wireless communication system 100 may employ licensed assisted access (LAA), LTE unlicensed (LTE-U) radio access technology, or NR technology in unlicensed frequency bands (such as the 5 GHz Industrial, Scientific, and Medical (ISM) band). When operating in unlicensed radio spectrum bands, devices (such as base station 105 and UE 115) may employ carrier sensing for collision detection and avoidance. In some examples, operation in unlicensed frequency bands may be based on carrier aggregation configuration (e.g., LAA) in coordination with component carriers operating in licensed frequency bands. Operation in unlicensed spectrum may include downlink transmissions, uplink transmissions, P2P transmissions, or D2D transmissions, etc.

[0107] Base station 105 or UE 115 may be equipped with multiple antennas that can be used to employ technologies such as transmit diversity, receive diversity, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication, or beamforming. The antennas of base station 105 or UE 115 may be located within one or more antenna arrays or antenna panels that can support MIMO operation or transmit or receive beamforming. For example, one or more base station antennas or antenna arrays may coexist at an antenna assembly (such as an antenna tower). In some examples, the antennas or antenna arrays associated with base station 105 may be located in different geographical locations. Base station 105 may have an antenna array with several rows and columns of antenna ports that base station 105 can use to support beamforming for communication with UE 115. Similarly, UE 115 may have one or more antenna arrays that can support various MIMO or beamforming operations. Additionally or alternatively, the antenna panel may support radio frequency beamforming for signals transmitted via the antenna ports.

[0108] Base station 105 or UE 115 can use MIMO communication to leverage multipath signal propagation and improve spectral efficiency by transmitting or receiving multiple signals via different spatial layers. This technique is known as spatial multiplexing. For example, a transmitting device may transmit multiple signals via different antennas or different combinations of antennas. Similarly, a receiving device may receive multiple signals via different antennas or different combinations of antennas. Each of the multiple signals may be referred to as a separate spatial stream and may carry bits associated with the same data stream (e.g., the same codeword) or different data streams (e.g., different codewords). Different spatial layers may be associated with different antenna ports used for channel measurement and reporting. MIMO techniques include single-user MIMO (SU-MIMO), where multiple spatial layers are transmitted to the same receiving device; and multi-user MIMO (MU-MIMO), where multiple spatial layers are transmitted to multiple devices.

[0109] Beamforming (also known as spatial filtering, directional transmission, or directional reception) is a signal processing technique that can be used at a transmitting or receiving device (e.g., base station 105, UE 115) to shape or guide an antenna beam (e.g., a transmit beam, a receive beam) along a spatial path between the transmitting and receiving devices. Beamforming can be achieved by combining signals transmitted via antenna elements of an antenna array, such that some signals propagating relative to a particular orientation of the antenna array experience constructive interference, while others experience destructive interference. Adjustments to the signals transmitted via the antenna elements may include the transmitting or receiving device applying amplitude offset, phase offset, or both to the signals carried via the antenna elements associated with that device. The adjustments associated with each antenna element may be defined by a beamforming weight set associated with a particular orientation (e.g., the antenna array relative to the transmitting or receiving device, or relative to some other orientation).

[0110] Base station 105 or UE 115 may use beamsweeping techniques as part of beamforming operations. For example, base station 105 may use multiple antennas or antenna arrays (e.g., antenna panels) to perform beamforming operations for directional communication with UE 115. Some signals (e.g., synchronization signals, reference signals, beam selection signals, or other control signals) may be transmitted multiple times by base station 105 in different directions. For example, base station 105 may transmit signals according to different beamforming weight sets associated with different transmission directions. Transmissions in different beam directions may be used (e.g., by the transmitting device (such as base station 105) or the receiving device (such as UE 115)) to identify the beam direction that base station 105 will use for later transmission or reception.

[0111] Some signals (such as data signals associated with a specific receiving device) may be transmitted by base station 105 in a single beam direction (e.g., the direction associated with the receiving device (such as UE 115)). In some examples, the beam direction associated with transmission along a single beam direction may be determined based on the signals transmitted in one or more beam directions. For example, UE 115 may receive one or more signals transmitted by base station 105 in different directions and may report to base station 105 an indication of the signals received by UE 115 with the highest signal quality or other acceptable signal quality.

[0112] In some examples, transmissions performed by a device (e.g., by base station 105 or UE 115) may be executed using multiple beam directions, and the device may use a combination of digital precoding or radio frequency beamforming to generate combined beams for transmission (e.g., from base station 105 to UE 115). UE 115 may report feedback indicating precoding weights for one or more beam directions, and this feedback may correspond to a configured number of beams across the system bandwidth or one or more subbands. Base station 105 may transmit reference signals that may be precoded or unprecoded (e.g., cell-specific reference signals (CRS), channel state information reference signals (CSI-RS)). UE 115 may provide feedback for beam selection, which may be a precoding matrix indicator (PMI) or codebook-based feedback (e.g., multi-panel type codebook, linear combination type codebook, port selection type codebook). Although these techniques are described with reference to signals transmitted by base station 105 in one or more directions, UE 115 may use similar techniques to transmit signals multiple times in different directions (e.g., to identify the beam direction used by UE 115 for subsequent transmission or reception) or to transmit signals in a single direction (e.g., to transmit data to a receiving device).

[0113] A receiver device (e.g., UE 115) may attempt multiple receive configurations (e.g., directional listening) when receiving various signals (such as synchronization signals, reference signals, beam selection signals, or other control signals) from base station 105. For example, the receiver device may attempt multiple receive directions by: receiving via different antenna subarrays; processing received signals according to different antenna subarrays; receiving according to different sets of receive beamforming weights applied to signals received at multiple antenna elements of the antenna array (e.g., different directional listening weight sets); or processing received signals according to different sets of receive beamforming weights applied to signals received at multiple antenna elements of the antenna array, any of which may be referred to as "listening" according to different receive configurations or receive directions. In some examples, the receiver device may use a single receive configuration to receive along a single beam direction (e.g., when receiving a data signal). The single receive configuration may be aligned on a beam direction determined based on listening according to different receive configuration directions (e.g., a beam direction determined to have the highest signal strength, highest signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), or other acceptable signal quality based on listening according to multiple beam directions).

[0114] Due to obstacles or obstructions, wireless communication system 100 may include a Reflection Array (RIS) to extend communication coverage. For example, wireless communication system 100 may use a RIS to reflect a directional beam transmitted by base station 105, allowing base station 105 to serve one or more UEs experiencing a blocked path or channel. If wireless communication system 100 supports the use of RIS, base station 105 may execute a different initial access procedure than UE 115 based on whether UE 115 supports RIS. Such procedures may include base station 105 transmitting SSBs to accommodate one or more RIS-enabled UEs 115 and one or more RIS-unsupported UEs 115. For example, base station 105 may transmit one or more SSBs on different synchronization grids for different types of UEs 115. Additionally or alternatively, base station 105 may transmit different types of SSBs. UEs 115 may search for and receive one or more SSBs based on their capabilities, including their ability to support RIS and other factors.

[0115] Figure 2 Examples of a wireless communication system 200 supporting one or more RISs for transmitting one or more SSBs according to one or more aspects of this disclosure are described. In some examples, the wireless communication system 200 may be provided by reference to Figure 1 The described aspects of the wireless communication system 100 are implemented or can be implemented. The wireless communication system 200 may include UE 115-a and UE 115-b, which may be as described in reference... Figure 1 An example of UE 115 is described. The wireless communication system 200 may also include a base station 105-a, which may be a reference... Figure 1 An example of a described base station 105. In some examples, base station 105-a may use directional communication techniques to communicate with UE 115-a or UE 115-b. For example, base station 105-a may communicate with UE 115-a or UE 115-b via one or more beams 205.

[0116] UE 115-a or UE 115-b may execute an initial access procedure to establish a connection with base station 105-a. Some initial access procedures may include UE 115-a or UE 115-b (or both) obtaining synchronization and system information from base station 105-a via (e.g., transmitted on the PBCH) one or more SSBs. For example, base station 105-a may transmit (e.g., broadcast) one or more SSBs associated with beam 205. In some implementations, base station 105-a may use time-division multiplexing techniques or use different frequency locations defined by a synchronization grid to transmit SSBs for each beam 205. UE 115-a or UE 115-b (or both) may receive at least one SSB based on which of the beams 205 UE 115-a or UE 115-b (or both) monitors. For example, UE 115-a can receive SSB using beam 205-d, but may not monitor any of beams 205-a, 205-b, or 205-c.

[0117] In some examples, one or more beams 205 may be obstructed by obstruction 220, preventing base station 105-a from establishing a connection with UE 115-b. To mitigate the impact of obstruction 220, wireless communication system 200 may include a RIS 225. The RIS 225 may reflect one or more beams 205 used by base station 105-a. For example, base station 105-a may use beams 205-a, 205-b, 205-c, or 205-d to transmit information. In some examples, beams 205-c and 205-d may be obstructed by obstruction 220 and therefore may not be used by base station 105-a to communicate with UE 115-b. However, beams 205-a and 205-b may not be obstructed by obstruction 220 and may instead be reflected by the RIS 225 to produce reflected beams 210-a and 210-b. Reflected beams 210-a and 210-b can bypass blockade 220 and can therefore be used by base station 105-a to communicate with UE 115-b. In some examples, base station 105-a can communicate with RIS 225 via link 215. In some implementations, link 215 can be unidirectional, where base station 105-a can communicate with RIS 225, or link 215 can be bidirectional, where RIS 225 can also communicate with base station 105-a. Therefore, base station 105-a can adjust a set of phase weights, positions, orientations, other factors, or any combination thereof of RIS 225 to change the reflection direction of one or more beams 205. In some implementations, RIS 225 can be an example demonstrating a nearly passive device with relatively low power consumption.

[0118] In the case where the wireless communication system 200 uses RIS225, the path or channel between base station 105-a and UE 115-b may differ from the path or channel between base station 105-a and UE 115-a. For example, the path or channel between UE 115-b and base station 105-a may include RIS225, while the path or channel between UE 115-a and base station 105-a may be direct. Due to the existence of different paths or channels, the initial access procedures performed by base station 105-a and UE 115-a may differ from the initial access procedures performed by base station 105-a and UE 115-b. For example, as part of one or more initial access procedures, base station 105-a and UE 115-a or UE 115-b may distinguish between the SSB received by UE 115-a and the SSB received by UE 115-b.

[0119] In some examples, base station 105-a may use frequency locations defined by multiple synchronization grids to transmit SSBs. For example, base station 105-a may transmit an SSB at a frequency location defined by a first synchronization grid for use by UE 115-a, and may transmit an SSB at a frequency location defined by a second synchronization grid for use by UE 115-b. In some implementations, the first and second synchronization grids may be different (e.g., non-overlapping), such that a frequency location used in the first synchronization grid is not used in the second synchronization grid. Although described herein with reference to UE 115-a and UE 115-b, the SSBs transmitted using the first and second synchronization grids may not be unique to UE 115-a or UE 115-b, but may be received by any number of UE 115s using a channel similar to one of the channels used by UE 115-a or UE 115-b. In some implementations, base station 105-a may send an indication to UE 115-a or UE 115-b to indicate a synchronization grid for monitoring to find SSBs. By using two synchronization grids to transmit SSBs, base station 105-a enables UE 115-a and UE 115-b to determine whether the connection established with base station 105-a uses RIS225 and to receive one or more SSBs that may include synchronization and system information, among other advantages.

[0120] In some examples, base station 105-a can transmit two types of SSBs. For example, base station 105-a can transmit a first type of SSB for use by UE 115-a and a second type of SSB for use by UE 115-b. In some implementations, base station 105-a, UE 115-a, or UE 115-b can distinguish between the first type of SSB and the second type of SSB by, for example, location (e.g., time location, frequency location) or the synchronization order of the reference signals associated with the SSB.

[0121] In some implementations, base station 105-a may send a message (e.g., a message that may include a Master Information Block (MIB)) to UE 115-a or UE 115-b (or both) indicating the type of SSB to be used. For example, base station 105-a may transmit an indication in the MIB, where one value (e.g., bit value 0) indicates one type of SSB (e.g., type 1) and a different value (e.g., bit value 1) indicates another type of SSB (e.g., type 2). As a supplement or alternative to other techniques described herein, UE 115-a or UE 115-b (or both) may distinguish the type of SSB or may select the type of SSB to use based on the received indication. In some implementations, the indication may include any number of bits corresponding to multiple types of SSBs (e.g., it may indicate one, two, or more types of SSBs).

[0122] Although described with reference to UE 115-a and UE 115-b, the two types of SSBs may not be unique to UE 115-a or UE 115-b, but may be used by any number of UE 115s using a path or channel similar to one of the channels used by UE 115-a or UE 115-b (or both). By transmitting both types of SSBs, base station 105-a enables UE 115-a or UE 115-b to determine whether a connection established with base station 105-a uses RIS225, and to receive one or more SSBs that may include synchronization and system information, among other advantages. Implementing one or more aspects of this disclosure enables wireless communication system 200 to support both connections between base station 105 and UE 115 that supports RIS225 and connections between base station 105 and UE 115 that does not support RIS225.

[0123] Figure 3 Examples of process flow 300, which supports the transmission of one or more SSBs via one or more RISs according to one or more aspects of this disclosure, are described. In some examples, process flow 300 may be provided by, as referenced Figure 1 and 2The described aspects of the wireless communication system 100 or 200 are implemented or can be implemented as shown in reference. Figure 1 and 2 The wireless communication system 100 or 200 described herein includes various aspects. Process flow 300 may include UE 115-c, UE 115-d, and base station 105-b, which may be examples of corresponding devices as described herein. In some examples, UE 115-c may experience a blocked path or channel between UE 115-c and base station 105-b, and UE 115-d may experience a non-blocking path or channel between UE 115-d and base station 105-b. Thus, UE 115-c may be an example of a UE 115 that supports communication with base station 105-b using RIS. Similarly, UE 115-d may be an example of a UE 115 that does not support the use of RIS (e.g., a legacy UE 115). Alternative examples are possible, some of which may be performed in a different order than described or not at all. In some implementations, processes may include additional features not mentioned below, or further processes may be added.

[0124] In some examples, such as if UE 115-c or UE 115-d (or both) is operating in a connected mode (e.g., Radio Resource Control (RRC) connected mode), at 301, base station 105-b may transmit one or more indications to UE 115-c or UE 115-d (or both). When one or both of UE 115-c or UE 115-d are in RRC idle mode, base station 105-b may not transmit one or more indications to UE 115-c or UE 115-d (or both) at 301. In some implementations, base station 105-b may transmit an indication of the synchronization grid that UE 115-c or UE 115-d (or both) will use to receive an SSB. For example, base station 105-b may instruct UE 115-c to search for a first or second synchronization grid to find an SSB. Additionally or alternatively, base station 105-b may transmit an indication that a second synchronization grid will be used to receive SSBs when one or more RIS are in use. UE 115-c or UE 115-d (or both) may determine whether to search for the first or second synchronization grid based on the received indication regarding the association of the second synchronization grid with the RIS. In some examples, if UE 115-c or UE 115-d (or both) is operating in idle mode (e.g., RRC disconnected or idle mode), base station 105-b may not transmit an indication.

[0125] At 305, UE 115-c, UE 115-d, and base station 105-b can identify a first synchronization grid and a second synchronization grid for transmitting or receiving SSBs. In some implementations, the first synchronization grid (i.e., grid 0) can be used by UE 115 traversing a non-blocking channel between UE 115 and base station 105. Similarly, the second grid (i.e., grid 1) can be used by UE 115 to establish a connection with base station 105 using RIS in the event of a blocked path or channel between UE 115 and base station 105. In some implementations, UE 115-c can be able to or configured to use both the first and second synchronization grids, but UE 115-d can be able to or configured to use only the first synchronization grid. In some implementations, the first and second synchronization grids can be non-overlapping, such that if a frequency position is used in the first synchronization grid, the same frequency position is not used in the second synchronization grid. In some implementations, the first and second synchronization grids can be pre-configured so that the UE 115 can store or otherwise reference the first and second synchronization grids. In some implementations, the base station 105 can transmit (e.g., broadcast) SSBs on one or both synchronization grids.

[0126] At 310, UE 115-d can scan (e.g., monitor) one or more frequency locations in the first synchronization grid to find an SSB. Similarly, at 315, UE 115-c can scan one or more frequency locations in the first synchronization grid. In some examples, UE 115-c or UE 115-d (or both) can search some or all frequency locations in the first synchronization grid. For example, UE 115-c or UE 115-d (or both) can search a subset of frequency locations in the grid based on a pattern. In some examples, UE 115-c or UE 115-d (or both) can search frequency locations until an SSB is found or scan all frequency locations. In some examples, UE 115-c can select the first or second synchronization grid for the initial search based on the priority associated with the synchronization grid. For example, UE 115-c can determine (e.g., based on pre-configuration, signaling received from base station 105-b, etc.) that the first synchronization grid has a higher priority than the second synchronization grid. Therefore, UE 115-c can search for the first synchronization grid before searching for the second synchronization grid. Alternatively, UE 115-c can determine that the second synchronization grid has a higher priority than the first synchronization grid and select the grid to search accordingly.

[0127] At 320, UE 115-d can detect the SSB transmitted by base station 105-b at a frequency location defined in the first synchronization grid. At 330, UE 115-d can communicate with base station 105-b in response to receiving the SSB at the frequency location in the first synchronization grid.

[0128] In 325, UE 115-c may fail to detect an SSB at one or more frequency locations in the first grid. In some examples, UE 115-c may fail to detect an SSB on the first synchronization grid due to obstacles in the path or channel between UE 115-c and base station 105-b.

[0129] At 335, in response to the failure to detect an SSB on the first synchronization grid, UE 115-c may scan one or more frequency locations in the second synchronization grid. At 340, UE 115-c may detect an SSB transmitted by base station 105-b at a frequency location in the second synchronization grid. In some examples, UE 115-c may detect an SSB on the first synchronization grid. In such examples, UE 115-c may suppress scanning of frequency locations in the second synchronization grid.

[0130] At 345, UE 115-c can communicate with base station 105-b in response to receiving an SSB. The implementation of various aspects of process flow 300 allows the wireless communication system to support initial access procedures for both UE 115 that supports and does not use RIS.

[0131] Figure 4 Examples of process flow 400, which supports the transmission of one or more SSBs via one or more RISs according to one or more aspects of this disclosure, are described. In some examples, process flow 400 may be provided by, as referenced Figure 1-3 The described wireless communication system 100 or 200, process flow 300, or any combination thereof can be implemented or can be implemented as shown in reference. Figure 1-3 The described wireless communication system 100 or 200, process flow 300, or any combination thereof are aspects thereof. Process flow 400 may include UE 115-e, UE 115-f, and base station 105-c, which may be examples of corresponding devices as described herein. In some examples, UE 115-e may experience a blocked path or channel between UE 115-e and base station 105-c, and UE 115-f may experience a non-blocking path or channel between UE 115-f and base station 105-c. Thus, UE 115-c may be an example of UE 115 that supports communication with base station 105-b using RIS. Similarly, UE 115-d may be an example of UE 115 that does not support the use of RIS (e.g., legacy UE 115). Alternative examples are possible, some of which may be performed in a different order than described or not at all. In some implementations, processes may include additional features not mentioned below, or further processes may be added.

[0132] In some examples, at 401, base station 105-c can transmit an indication to UE 115-e or UE 115-f (or both) of the type of SSB to be used. For example, base station 105-c can transmit an indication to UE 115-e or UE 115-f (or both) of that UE 115 should search for a first type or a second type of SSB. UE 115-e or UE 115-f (or both) can determine the type of SSB to be used for monitoring the synchronization grid based on the received indication. In some implementations, base station 105-c can transmit the indication in the MIB. For example, base station 105-c can use one or more bits in the MIB to indicate the type of SSB, where one value can indicate a first type of SSB and different values ​​can indicate a second type of SSB.

[0133] In 405, UE 115-e, UE 115-f, and base station 105-c can identify a first type of SSB and a second type of SSB used in the initial access procedure. In some implementations, a first type of SSB (i.e., type 0) can be used by UE 115 traversing a non-blocking path or channel between UE 115 and base station 105. Similarly, a second type of SSB (i.e., type 1) can be used by UE 115 that can establish a connection with base station 105 using RIS in the event of a blocking path or channel between UE 115 and base station 105. In some implementations, UE 115-c may be able to use both first and second type SSBs, but UE 115-d may only use first type SSBs. In some implementations, the first and second type SSBs may differ in the location (i.e., time or frequency location), order, etc., of the synchronization or reference signal associated with the SSB. In some implementations, the first and second type SSBs may be transmitted by base station 105 using the same synchronization grid (e.g., broadcast).

[0134] At 410, UE 115-f can scan (e.g., monitor) frequency locations on the synchronization grid to look for a first type of SSB. Similarly, at 415, UE 115-e can scan the synchronization grid to look for a first type of SSB. In some examples, UE 115-e or UE 115-d (or both) can search some or all frequency locations in the synchronization grid to look for a first type of SSB. For example, UE 115-e or UE 115-d (or both) can search a subset of frequency locations in the grid based on a pattern, or can search each frequency location until an SSB is found or scan all frequency locations. In some implementations, UE 115-e can search all frequency locations in the synchronization grid to look for a first type of SSB before searching for a second type of SSB. Alternatively, UE 115-e can search each frequency location for both a first type of SSB and a second type of SSB (if UE 115-e does not detect a first type of SSB). In some examples, UE 115-e can select one type of SSB for initial search based on the priority associated with the first and second type SSBs. For example, UE 115-e can determine (e.g., based on pre-configuration, signaling received from base station 105-c, etc.) that the first type of SSB has a higher priority than the second type of SSB, and therefore can search for the first type of SSB before searching for the second type of SSB. Alternatively, UE 115-e can determine that the second type of SSB has a higher priority than the first type of SSB and select one type of SSB for search accordingly.

[0135] At 420, UE 115-f can detect a first type of SSB transmitted by base station 105-c. At 430, UE 115-f can communicate with base station 105-c in response to receiving a first type of SSB.

[0136] At 425, UE 115-e may fail to detect a first type of SSB due to a congested channel between UE 115-e and base station 105-c. At 435, in response to the failure to detect a first type of SSB, UE 115-e may search for frequency locations in the synchronization grid to find a second type of SSB. In some implementations, UE 115-e may search for at least a subset (if not all) of the frequency locations in the synchronization grid to find a first type of SSB before searching for a second type of SSB. In some implementations, UE 115-e may search for one frequency location in the synchronization grid to find both a first type and a second type of SSB before searching for other frequency locations in the synchronization grid.

[0137] At 440, UE 115-e can detect a second type of SSB transmitted by base station 105-c in the synchronization grid. At 445, UE 115-e can communicate with base station 105-c in response to receiving the second type of SSB. Implementing various aspects of process flow 400 allows the wireless communication system to support initial access procedures for both UE 115 that supports RIS and UE 115 that does not support RIS.

[0138] Figure 5A and Figure 5B The present disclosure describes example resource mapping schemes 500-a and 500-b that support the transmission of one or more SSBs via one or more RIS systems according to one or more aspects of this disclosure. In some examples, resource mapping schemes 500-a and 500-b may be provided by reference to Figure 1-4 The described wireless communication system 100 or 200, process flow 300 or 400, or any combination thereof, are implemented or can be implemented as shown in reference. Figure 1-4 The described aspects are the wireless communication system 100 or 200, the process flow 300 or 400, or any combination thereof. In some examples, resource mapping schemes 500-a and 500-b can be implemented by the UE 115, the base station 105, or any combination thereof.

[0139] Figure 5A The example illustrates resource mapping scheme 500-a, which can correspond to an SSB of type 1 (i.e., type 0 SSB). Figure 5A In the example, PSS can be mapped to a resource element that is earlier in time than the resource elements associated with PBCH DMRS, SSS, etc.

[0140] Figure 5B The example illustrates resource mapping scheme 500-b, which can correspond to a second type of SSB (i.e., a type 1 SSB). Figure 5B In the example, the PSS can be mapped to a resource element that is later in time than the resource element associated with the PBCH DMRS, SSS, etc. Therefore, in some implementations, a type 0 SSB can be distinguished from a type 1 SSB based on the location of the PSS associated with the SSB. For example, any combination of UE 115 or base station 105 can identify the first and second type SSBs based on determining the location (e.g., time location) of the PSS within each type of SSB.

[0141] In some examples (such as the example of a wireless communication system using RIS), base station 105 can transmit one or two types of SSBs to UE 115. UE 115 that does not support the use of RIS (e.g., a legacy UE) can search for and receive the first type of SSB. UE 115 that supports or is using RIS can search for and receive the second type of SSB. Therefore, each type of UE 115 can receive SSBs based on its capabilities and can determine whether RIS is being used based on the type of SSB received by UE 115.

[0142] Figure 6A and Figure 6B Example resource mapping schemes 600-a and 600-b, which support the transmission of one or more SSBs via one or more RIS systems according to one or more aspects of this disclosure, are described. In some examples, resource mapping schemes 600-a and 600-b may be provided by, as referenced Figure 1 -5 describes aspects of the wireless communication system 100 or 200, process flow 300 or 400, resource mapping scheme 500-a or 500-b, or any combination thereof, as shown in reference. Figure 1 The wireless communication system 100 or 200, process flow 300 or 400, resource mapping scheme 500-a or 500-b, or any combination thereof, are described in section -5. In some examples, resource mapping schemes 600-a and 600-b can be implemented by UE 115, base station 105, or any combination thereof. In some implementations, sequences associated with SSS can be scaled and mapped onto time / frequency resources.

[0143] Figure 6A The example illustrates resource mapping scheme 600-a, which can correspond to an SSB of type 1 (i.e., type 0 SSB). Figure 6A In the example, the first mapping order can be used to map SSS associated with SSB to resource elements. For example, sequences associated with SSS can be mapped to resource elements in ascending order of frequency.

[0144] Figure 6B The example illustrates resource mapping scheme 600-b, which can correspond to a second type of SSB (i.e., a type 1 SSB). Figure 6BIn the example, a second mapping order can be used to map SSSs associated with an SSB to resource elements. For example, sequences associated with SSSs can be mapped to resource elements in descending order of frequency. Although the order of ascending or descending frequency is described, the first and second mapping orders can include additional mapping orders (e.g., other mapping directions) or patterns (e.g., alternation, repetition, etc.). In some implementations, a type 0 SSB can be distinguished from a type 1 SSB based on the mapping order of the SSSs associated with the SSB. For example, any combination of UE 115 or base station 105 can identify first and second type SSBs based on determining the mapping order of SSSs in each type of SSB.

[0145] In some examples (such as wireless communication systems using one or more RIS), base station 105 can transmit one or two types of SSBs to UE 115. UE 115 that does not support the use of RIS (e.g., legacy UEs) can search for and receive the first type of SSB. UE 115 that supports or is using RIS can search for and receive the second type of SSB. Therefore, each type of UE 115 can receive SSBs based on its capabilities and can determine whether RIS is being used based on the type of SSB received by UE 115.

[0146] Figure 7A and Figure 7B The present disclosure describes example resource mapping schemes 700-a and 700-b that support the transmission of one or more SSBs via one or more RIS systems according to one or more aspects of this disclosure. In some examples, resource mapping schemes 700-a and 700-b may be provided by reference to [reference needed]. Figure 1 -6 describes aspects of the wireless communication system 100 or 200, process flow 300 or 400, resource mapping scheme 500-a, 500-b, 600-a, 600-b, or any combination thereof, as shown in reference . Figure 1 The wireless communication system 100 or 200, process flow 300 or 400, and resource mapping schemes 500-a, 500-b, 600-a, 600-b, or any combination thereof described in section -6 are all aspects of the wireless communication system 100 or 200, process flow 300 or 400, and resource mapping schemes 500-a, 500-b, or any combination thereof. In some examples, resource mapping schemes 700-a and 700-b may be implemented by UE 115, base station 105, or any combination thereof. In some implementations, the sequence associated with DMRS for PBCH transmission may be scaled to conform to PBCH power allocation and mapped to time / frequency resources in ascending frequency order.

[0147] Figure 7A The example illustrates resource mapping scheme 700-a, which can correspond to an SSB of type 1 (i.e., type 0 SSB). Figure 7AIn the example, the DMRS used for PBCH transmission can be mapped to resource elements using the first mapping order. For example, sequences associated with DMRS can be mapped to resource elements in ascending frequency and time order.

[0148] Figure 7B The example illustrates resource mapping scheme 700-b, which can correspond to a second type of SSB (i.e., a type 1 SSB). Figure 7B In the example, a second mapping order can be used to map DMRS used for PBCH transmission to resource elements. For example, sequences associated with DMRS can be mapped to resource elements in an ascending frequency and a descending time order. Although the ascending or descending time order is described, the first and second mapping orders can include additional mapping orders (e.g., other mapping directions) or patterns (e.g., alternation, repetition, etc.). In some implementations, type 0 SSBs can be distinguished from type 1 SSBs based on the mapping order of the DMRS associated with the SSB. For example, any combination of UE 115 or base station 105 can identify first and second type SSBs based on determining the mapping order of DMRS in each type of SSB.

[0149] In some examples (such as wireless communication systems using one or more RIS), base station 105 can transmit one or two types of SSBs to UE 115. UE 115 that does not support the use of RIS (e.g., legacy UEs) can search for and receive the first type of SSB. UE 115 that supports or is using RIS can search for and receive the second type of SSB. Therefore, each type of UE 115 can receive SSBs based on its capabilities and can determine whether RIS is being used based on the type of SSB received by UE 115.

[0150] Figure 8 A block diagram 800 of a device 805 supporting the transmission of one or more SSBs via one or more RIS is shown according to aspects of this disclosure. Device 805 may be an example of aspects of UE 115 as described herein. Device 805 may include a receiver 810, a communication manager 815, and a transmitter 820. Device 805 may also include a processor. Each of these components may be in communication with each other (e.g., via one or more buses).

[0151] Receiver 810 can receive information such as packets, user data, or control information associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, and information related to SSB transmission via RIS). The information can be transmitted to other components of device 805. Receiver 810 can be a reference... Figure 11Examples of various aspects of the transceiver 1120 described herein. The receiver 810 may utilize a single antenna or a set of antennas.

[0152] Communication manager 815 may identify a first synchronization grid and a second synchronization grid for the UE to receive one or more SSBs, the second synchronization grid including a frequency location associated with a RIS; monitor one or more resource elements based on the first synchronization grid or the second synchronization grid to locate the one or more SSBs; and receive at least one SSB based on monitoring the one or more resource elements. Communication manager 815 may also identify a first type of SSB and a second type of SSB associated with the same synchronization grid and for the UE to receive, wherein the second type of SSB is associated with a RIS; monitor one or more resource elements to locate one or more SSBs including one or more of the first type or second type of SSBs; and receive at least one first type or second type of SSB based on monitoring the one or more REs. Communication manager 815 may be an example of aspects of communication manager 1110 described herein.

[0153] The communication manager 815 or its sub-components may be implemented in hardware, code executed by a processor (e.g., software or firmware), or any combination thereof. If implemented in code executed by a processor, the functionality of the communication manager 815 or its sub-components may be performed by a general-purpose processor, digital signal processor (DSP), application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof, designed to perform the functions described in this disclosure.

[0154] The communication manager 815 or its subcomponents may be physically located at various locations, including being distributed such that portions of the functionality are implemented by one or more physical components at different physical locations. In some examples, according to various aspects of this disclosure, the communication manager 815 or its subcomponents may be separate and distinct components. In some examples, according to various aspects of this disclosure, the communication manager 815 or its subcomponents may be combined with one or more other hardware components, including but not limited to input / output (I / O) components, transceivers, network servers, another computing device, one or more other components described in this disclosure, or combinations thereof.

[0155] Transmitter 820 can transmit signals generated by other components of device 805. In some examples, transmitter 820 may be co-located with receiver 810 in a transceiver module. For example, transmitter 820 may be a reference... Figure 11 Examples of various aspects of the transceiver 1120 described herein. The transmitter 820 may utilize a single antenna or an antenna set.

[0156] In some examples, the communication manager 815 may be implemented as an integrated circuit or chipset for a mobile device modem, and the receiver 810 and transmitter 820 may be implemented as analog components (e.g., amplifiers, filters, antennas) coupled to the mobile device modem to enable wireless transmission and reception over one or more frequency bands.

[0157] The communication manager 815 described herein can be implemented to achieve one or more potential advantages. One implementation may allow device 805 to receive SSBs according to the capabilities of device 805. Based on the technology used to receive SSBs, device 805 can support obtaining accurate channel information for the channel between device 805 and another device. Thus, device 805 can exhibit improved reliability, improved data reliability, reduced latency, and other benefits.

[0158] Figure 9 A block diagram 900 of a device 905 supporting the transmission of one or more SSBs via one or more RIS is shown according to aspects of this disclosure. Device 905 may be an example of aspects of device 805 or UE 115 as described herein. Device 905 may include a receiver 910, a communication manager 915, and a transmitter 940. Device 905 may also include a processor. Each of these components may be in communication with each other (e.g., via one or more buses).

[0159] Receiver 910 can receive information such as packets, user data, or control information associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, and information related to SSB transmission via RIS). The information can be transmitted to other components of device 905. Receiver 910 can be a reference... Figure 11 Examples of various aspects of the transceiver 1120 described herein. The receiver 910 may utilize a single antenna or a set of antennas.

[0160] Communication manager 915 may be an example of aspects of communication manager 815 as described herein. Communication manager 915 may include synchronization grid manager 920, resource monitor 925, SSB receiver 930, and type manager 935. Communication manager 915 may be an example of aspects of communication manager 1110 as described herein.

[0161] The synchronization grid manager 920 can identify a first synchronization grid and a second synchronization grid for the UE to use to receive one or more SSBs, the second synchronization grid including the frequency position associated with the RIS.

[0162] Resource monitor 925 can monitor one or more resource elements based on one or more of the first synchronization grid or the second synchronization grid to locate the one or more SSBs.

[0163] SSB receiver 930 can receive at least one SSB based on monitoring the one or more resource elements.

[0164] The type manager 935 can identify a first type of SSB and a second type of SSB associated with the same synchronization grid and received by the UE, wherein the second type of SSB is associated with RIS.

[0165] Resource Monitor 925 can monitor one or more resource elements to find one or more SSBs, including one or more of the first type or the second type.

[0166] SSB receiver 930 can receive at least one SSB of type 1 or type 2 based on monitoring one or more REs.

[0167] Transmitter 940 can transmit signals generated by other components of device 905. In some examples, transmitter 940 may be co-located with receiver 910 in a transceiver module. For example, transmitter 940 may be a reference... Figure 11 Examples of various aspects of the transceiver 1120 described. The transmitter 940 may utilize a single antenna or an antenna set.

[0168] Figure 10 A block diagram 1000 of a communication manager 1005 supporting the transmission of one or more SSBs via one or more RISs is shown according to aspects of this disclosure. The communication manager 1005 may be an example of aspects of the communication manager 815, communication manager 915, or communication manager 1110 described herein. The communication manager 1005 may include a synchronization grid manager 1010, a resource monitor 1015, an SSB receiver 1020, a priority manager 1025, a grid indicator receiver 1030, a RIS indicator receiver 1035, a type manager 1040, and a type indicator receiver 1045. Each of these modules may communicate directly or indirectly with each other (e.g., via one or more buses).

[0169] The synchronization grid manager 1010 may identify a first synchronization grid and a second synchronization grid for the UE to receive one or more SSBs, the second synchronization grid including frequency positions associated with RIS. In some examples, the synchronization grid manager 1010 may identify a first set of frequency positions in the first synchronization grid and a second set of frequency positions in the second synchronization grid, the second set of frequency positions in the second synchronization grid not overlapping with the first set of frequency positions in the first synchronization grid.

[0170] Resource monitor 1015 can monitor one or more resource elements based on one or more of the first synchronization grid or the second synchronization grid to locate the one or more SSBs.

[0171] In some examples, resource monitor 1015 can monitor one or more resource elements to look for one or more SSBs, including one or more of the first type or the second type.

[0172] In some examples, resource monitor 1015 may scan one or more frequency locations in the first synchronization grid to locate the one or more SSBs. In some examples, resource monitor 1015 may fail to detect the one or more SSBs at one or more frequency locations in the first synchronization grid. In some examples, resource monitor 1015 may scan one or more frequency locations in the second synchronization grid to locate the one or more SSBs, wherein receiving the at least one SSB is based on scanning the one or more frequency locations in the second synchronization grid.

[0173] In some examples, resource monitor 1015 may scan one or more frequency locations in the first synchronization grid to locate the one or more SSBs, wherein receiving the at least one SSB is based on scanning the one or more frequency locations in the first synchronization grid.

[0174] In some examples, resource monitor 1015 may suppress scanning of one or more frequency locations in the second synchronization grid based on receiving the at least one SSB at the one or more frequency locations in the first synchronization grid.

[0175] In some examples, resource monitor 1015 may scan a first frequency location in the synchronization grid to find a first type of SSB. In some examples, resource monitor 1015 may fail to detect a first type of SSB at the first frequency location. In some examples, resource monitor 1015 may scan the first frequency location in the synchronization grid to find a second type of SSB, wherein receiving the at least one SSB includes receiving the second type of SSB based on scanning the first frequency location.

[0176] In some examples, resource monitor 1015 may scan each frequency location in the synchronization grid to look for Type I SSBs. In some examples, resource monitor 1015 may fail to detect Type I SSBs at each frequency location in the synchronization grid.

[0177] In some examples, the resource monitor 1015 may scan one or more frequency locations in the synchronization grid to look for a second type of SSB, wherein receiving the at least one SSB includes receiving the second type of SSB based on scanning the one or more frequency locations.

[0178] In some examples, the resource monitor 1015 may scan at least one frequency location in the synchronization grid to find a first type of SSB, wherein receiving the at least one SSB includes receiving the first type of SSB based on scanning the at least one frequency location.

[0179] SSB receiver 1020 can receive at least one SSB based on monitoring the one or more resource elements. In some examples, SSB receiver 1020 can receive at least one SSB of type 1 or type 2 based on monitoring the one or more REs.

[0180] The type manager 1040 can identify a first type of SSB and a second type of SSB associated with the same synchronization grid and received by the UE, wherein the second type of SSB is associated with RIS.

[0181] In some examples, type manager 1040 may identify a first position of the master synchronization signal associated with the first type of SSB and a second position of the master synchronization signal associated with the second type of SSB. In some examples, type manager 1040 may identify a first time position of the master synchronization signal associated with the first type of SSB and a second time position of the master synchronization signal associated with the second type of SSB.

[0182] In some examples, type manager 1040 may identify a first mapping order of secondary synchronization signals associated with the first type of SSB and a second mapping order of secondary synchronization signals associated with the second type of SSB.

[0183] In some examples, type manager 1040 may identify a first ascending mapping order of the secondary synchronization signal associated with the first type of SSB and a second descending mapping order of the secondary synchronization signal associated with the second type of SSB.

[0184] In some examples, type manager 1040 may identify a first decreasing mapping order of the secondary synchronization signal associated with the first type of SSB and a second increasing mapping order of the secondary synchronization signal associated with the second type of SSB.

[0185] In some examples, type manager 1040 may identify a first mapping order of demodulation reference signals associated with the first type of SSB and a second mapping order of demodulation reference signals associated with the second type of SSB.

[0186] In some examples, type manager 1040 may identify a first ascending mapping order of demodulation reference signals associated with the first type of SSB and a second descending mapping order of demodulation reference signals associated with the second type of SSB.

[0187] In some examples, type manager 1040 may identify a first decreasing mapping order of demodulation reference signals associated with the first type of SSB and a second increasing mapping order of demodulation reference signals associated with the second type of SSB.

[0188] In some cases, the first mapping order and the second mapping order each include an order for mapping a symbol sequence associated with a secondary synchronization signal onto one or more resource elements. In some cases, the first mapping order and the second mapping order each include an order for mapping a symbol sequence associated with a demodulation reference signal onto one or more resource elements.

[0189] In some examples, the priority manager 1025 may determine that the priority associated with a first type of SSB is different from the priority associated with a second type of SSB, wherein monitoring of the one or more resource elements is based on this determination. In some examples, the priority manager 1025 may determine that the priority associated with a first type of SSB is higher than the priority associated with a second type of SSB. In some examples, the priority manager 1025 may determine that the priority associated with a first type of SSB is lower than the priority associated with a second type of SSB.

[0190] The grid indication receiver 1030 can receive from the base station an indication that the UE will use to receive one or more SSBs in the first synchronization grid or the second synchronization grid, wherein monitoring of the one or more resource elements is based on receiving the indication.

[0191] The RIS indication receiver 1035 can receive from the base station an indication that the second synchronization grid is associated with the RIS, wherein the UE uses one or both of the first synchronization grid or the second synchronization grid based on receiving the indication that the second synchronization grid is associated with the RIS and whether the UE is able to interact with the RIS.

[0192] The type indication receiver 1045 can receive from the base station an indication of either a first type of SSB or a second type of SSB, wherein monitoring of the one or more resource elements is based on receiving the indication. In some examples, the type indication receiver 1045 can receive from the base station a master information block including the indication.

[0193] Figure 11A diagram of a system 1100 including a device 1105 supporting the transmission of one or more SSBs via one or more RISs is shown according to aspects of this disclosure. Device 1105 may be an example of device 805, device 905, or UE 115 as described herein, or a component including the aforementioned devices. Device 1105 may include components for bidirectional voice and data communication, including components for transmitting and receiving communications, including a communication manager 1110, an I / O controller 1115, a transceiver 1120, an antenna 1125, a memory 1130, and a processor 1140. These components may be in electronic communication via one or more buses (e.g., bus 1145).

[0194] The communication manager 1110 can identify a first synchronization grid and a second synchronization grid for the UE to receive one or more SSBs, the second synchronization grid including a frequency location associated with a RIS; monitor one or more resource elements based on the first synchronization grid or the second synchronization grid to locate the one or more SSBs; and receive at least one SSB based on monitoring the one or more resource elements. The communication manager 1110 can also identify a first type of SSB and a second type of SSB associated with the same synchronization grid and for the UE to receive, wherein the second type of SSB is associated with a RIS; monitor one or more resource elements to locate one or more SSBs including one or more of the first type or second type of SSBs; and receive at least one SSB of the first or second type based on monitoring the one or more REs.

[0195] I / O controller 1115 manages the input and output signals of device 1105. I / O controller 1115 can also manage peripheral devices not integrated into device 1105. In some cases, I / O controller 1115 may represent a physical connection or port to an external peripheral device. In some cases, I / O controller 1115 may utilize an operating system, such as... Or another known operating system. In other cases, I / O controller 1115 may represent or interact with a modem, keyboard, mouse, touchscreen, or similar device. In some cases, I / O controller 1115 may be implemented as part of a processor. In some cases, a user may interact with device 1105 via I / O controller 1115 or via hardware components controlled by I / O controller 1115.

[0196] Transceiver 1120 can communicate bidirectionally via one or more antennas, wired or wireless links, as described above. For example, transceiver 1120 can represent a wireless transceiver and can communicate bidirectionally with another wireless transceiver. Transceiver 1120 may also include a modem to modulate packets and provide the modulated packets to the antenna for transmission, and to demodulate packets received from the antenna.

[0197] In some cases, the wireless device may include a single antenna 1125. However, in other cases, the device may have more than one antenna 1125, which may be able to transmit or receive multiple wireless transmissions concurrently.

[0198] Memory 1130 may include random access memory (RAM) and read-only memory (ROM). Memory 1130 may store computer-readable, computer-executable code 1135, including instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to perform the various functions described herein. In some cases, memory 1130 may particularly include a basic input / output system (BIOS) that controls basic hardware or software operations, such as interaction with peripheral components or devices.

[0199] Processor 1140 may include intelligent hardware devices (e.g., general-purpose processors, DSPs, central processing units (CPUs), microcontrollers, ASICs, FPGAs, programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic components, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof). In some cases, processor 1140 may be configured to use a memory controller to operate a memory array. In other cases, the memory controller may be integrated into processor 1140. Processor 1140 may be configured to execute computer-readable instructions stored in memory (e.g., memory 1130) to cause device 1105 to perform various functions (e.g., functions or tasks supporting the transfer of SSBs via RIS).

[0200] Code 1135 may include instructions for implementing various aspects of this disclosure, including instructions for supporting wireless communication. Code 1135 may be stored in a non-transient computer-readable medium, such as system memory or other types of memory. In some cases, code 1135 may not be directly executed by processor 1140, but may cause a computer (e.g., when compiled and executed) to perform the functions described herein.

[0201] Figure 12A block diagram 1200 of an apparatus 1205 supporting the transmission of one or more SSBs via one or more RIS is shown according to aspects of this disclosure. Apparatus 1205 may be an example of aspects of base station 105 as described herein. Apparatus 1205 may include a receiver 1210, a communication manager 1215, and a transmitter 1220. Apparatus 1205 may also include a processor. Each of these components may be in communication with each other (e.g., via one or more buses).

[0202] Receiver 1210 can receive information such as packets, user data, or control information associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, and information related to SSB transmission via RIS). The information can be transmitted to other components of device 1205. Receiver 1210 can be a reference... Figure 15 Examples of various aspects of the transceiver 1520 described herein. The receiver 1210 may utilize a single antenna or an antenna set.

[0203] Communication manager 1215 may identify a first synchronization grid and a second synchronization grid for the base station to transmit one or more SSBs, the second synchronization grid including a frequency location associated with a RIS; configure one or more resource elements based on the first synchronization grid and the second synchronization grid to transmit the one or more SSBs; and use the configured one or more REs to transmit the one or more SSBs. Communication manager 1215 may also identify a first type of SSB and a second type of SSB associated with the same synchronization grid and for transmission by the base station, wherein the second type of SSB is associated with a reconfigurable smart surface; configure one or more resource elements to transmit one or more SSBs including one or more of the first type or the second type of SSB; and use the configured one or more resource elements to transmit the one or more SSBs. Communication manager 1215 may be an example of aspects of communication manager 1510 described herein.

[0204] The communication manager 1215 or its sub-components may be implemented in hardware, code executed by a processor (e.g., software or firmware), or any combination thereof. If implemented in code executed by a processor, the functionality of the communication manager 1215 or its sub-components may be performed by a general-purpose processor, DSP, application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), FPGA or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof, designed to perform the functions described in this disclosure.

[0205] The communication manager 1215 or its subcomponents may be physically located at various locations, including being distributed such that portions of the functionality are implemented by one or more physical components at different physical locations. In some examples, according to various aspects of this disclosure, the communication manager 1215 or its subcomponents may be separate and distinct components. In some examples, according to various aspects of this disclosure, the communication manager 1215 or its subcomponents may be combined with one or more other hardware components, including but not limited to input / output (I / O) components, transceivers, network servers, another computing device, one or more other components described in this disclosure, or combinations thereof.

[0206] Transmitter 1220 can transmit signals generated by other components of device 1205. In some examples, transmitter 1220 may be co-located with receiver 1210 in a transceiver module. For example, transmitter 1220 may be a reference... Figure 15 Examples of various aspects of the transceiver 1520 described. The transmitter 1220 may utilize a single antenna or an antenna set.

[0207] Figure 13 A block diagram 1300 of a device 1305 supporting the transmission of one or more SSBs via one or more RIS is shown according to aspects of this disclosure. Device 1305 may be an example of aspects of device 1205 or base station 105 as described herein. Device 1305 may include a receiver 1310, a communication manager 1315, and a transmitter 1340. Device 1305 may also include a processor. Each of these components may be in communication with each other (e.g., via one or more buses).

[0208] Receiver 1310 can receive information such as packets, user data, or control information associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, and information related to SSB transmission via RIS). The information can be passed to other components of device 1305. Receiver 1310 can be a reference... Figure 15 Examples of various aspects of the transceiver 1520 described herein. The receiver 1310 may utilize a single antenna or an antenna set.

[0209] Communication manager 1315 may be an example of aspects of communication manager 1215 as described herein. Communication manager 1315 may include synchronization grid manager 1320, resource component 1325, SSB transmitter 1330, and type manager 1335. Communication manager 1315 may be an example of aspects of communication manager 1510 as described herein.

[0210] The synchronization grid manager 1320 can identify a first synchronization grid and a second synchronization grid for the base station to transmit one or more SSBs, the second synchronization grid including a frequency location associated with a RIS.

[0211] Resource component 1325 can configure one or more resource elements to transmit the one or more SSBs based on the first synchronization grid and the second synchronization grid.

[0212] SSB transmitter 1330 can use one or more configured REs to transmit the one or more SSBs.

[0213] The type manager 1335 can identify a first type of SSB and a second type of SSB associated with the same synchronization grid and transmitted by the base station, wherein the second type of SSB is associated with a reconfigurable smart surface.

[0214] Resource component 1325 can be configured with one or more resource elements to deliver one or more SSBs, including one or more of the first type or the second type of SSB.

[0215] SSB transmitter 1330 can use one or more configured resource elements to transmit the one or more SSBs.

[0216] Transmitter 1340 can transmit signals generated by other components of device 1305. In some examples, transmitter 1340 may be co-located with receiver 1310 in a transceiver module. For example, transmitter 1340 may be a reference... Figure 15 Examples of various aspects of the transceiver 1520 are described. The transmitter 1340 may utilize a single antenna or an antenna set.

[0217] Figure 14 A block diagram 1400 of a communication manager 1405 supporting the transmission of one or more SSBs via one or more RIS is shown according to aspects of this disclosure. The communication manager 1405 may be an example of aspects of the communication manager 1215, communication manager 1315, or communication manager 1510 described herein. The communication manager 1405 may include a synchronization grid manager 1410, a resource component 1415, an SSB transmitter 1420, a grid indicator transmitter 1425, a type manager 1430, and a type indicator transmitter 1435. Each of these modules may communicate directly or indirectly with each other (e.g., via one or more buses).

[0218] The synchronization grid manager 1410 may identify a first synchronization grid and a second synchronization grid for the base station to transmit one or more SSBs, the second synchronization grid including frequency positions associated with RIS. In some examples, the synchronization grid manager 1410 may identify a first set of frequency positions in the first synchronization grid and a second set of frequency positions in the second synchronization grid, the second set of frequency positions in the second synchronization grid not overlapping with the first set of frequency positions in the first synchronization grid.

[0219] Resource component 1415 may configure one or more resource elements based on the first synchronization grid and the second synchronization grid to transmit the one or more SSBs. In some examples, resource component 1415 may configure one or more resource elements to transmit one or more SSBs, including one or more of a first type or a second type of SSB.

[0220] In some examples, resource component 1415 may configure resource elements at one or more frequency locations in the first synchronization grid. In some examples, resource component 1415 may configure resource elements at one or more frequency locations in the second synchronization grid; wherein transmitting the one or more SSBs includes transmitting the one or more SSBs using resource elements at the one or more frequency locations in the first synchronization grid and resource elements at the one or more frequency locations in the second synchronization grid.

[0221] SSB transmitter 1420 can use one or more configured REs to transmit the one or more SSBs.

[0222] The type manager 1430 can identify a first type of SSB and a second type of SSB associated with the same synchronization grid and transmitted by the base station, wherein the second type of SSB is associated with a reconfigurable smart surface.

[0223] In some examples, type manager 1430 may identify a first position of the master synchronization signal associated with the first type of SSB and a second position of the master synchronization signal associated with the second type of SSB. In some examples, type manager 1430 may identify a first time position of the master synchronization signal associated with the first type of SSB and a second time position of the master synchronization signal associated with the second type of SSB.

[0224] In some examples, type manager 1430 may identify a first mapping order of secondary synchronization signals associated with the first type of SSB and a second mapping order of secondary synchronization signals associated with the second type of SSB. In some examples, type manager 1430 may identify a first ascending mapping order of secondary synchronization signals associated with the first type of SSB and a second descending mapping order of secondary synchronization signals associated with the second type of SSB. In some examples, type manager 1430 may identify a first descending mapping order of secondary synchronization signals associated with the first type of SSB and a second ascending mapping order of secondary synchronization signals associated with the second type of SSB.

[0225] In some examples, type manager 1430 may identify a first mapping order of demodulation reference signals associated with the first type of SSB and a second mapping order of demodulation reference signals associated with the second type of SSB. In some examples, type manager 1430 may identify a first ascending mapping order of demodulation reference signals associated with the first type of SSB and a second descending mapping order of demodulation reference signals associated with the second type of SSB. In some examples, type manager 1430 may identify a first descending mapping order of demodulation reference signals associated with the first type of SSB and a second ascending mapping order of demodulation reference signals associated with the second type of SSB. In some cases, the first mapping order and the second mapping order each include an order for mapping symbol sequences associated with sub-synchronization signals to one or more resource elements.

[0226] The grid indication transmitter 1425 can transmit an indication to one or more UEs to one of the first synchronization grids or the second synchronization grids for the UEs to receive one or more SSBs, wherein the configuration of the one or more resource elements is based on the indication.

[0227] The type indication transmitter 1435 can transmit to one or more UEs an indication of which of the first type of SSB or the second type of SSB these UEs should monitor, wherein the configuration of the one or more resource elements is based on the indication. In some examples, the type indication transmitter 1435 can transmit a main information block including the indication.

[0228] Figure 15A diagram of a system 1500 including a device 1505 supporting the transmission of one or more SSBs via one or more RISs is shown according to aspects of this disclosure. Device 1505 may be an example of device 1205, device 1305, or base station 105 as described herein, or a component including such devices. Device 1505 may include components for bidirectional voice and data communication, including components for transmitting and receiving communications, including a communication manager 1510, a network communication manager 1515, a transceiver 1520, an antenna 1525, a memory 1530, a processor 1540, and an inter-station communication manager 1545. These components may be in electronic communication via one or more buses (e.g., bus 1550).

[0229] The communication manager 1510 can identify a first synchronization grid and a second synchronization grid for the base station to transmit one or more SSBs, the second synchronization grid including a frequency location associated with a RIS; configure one or more resource elements based on the first synchronization grid and the second synchronization grid to transmit the one or more SSBs; and use the configured one or more REs to transmit the one or more SSBs. The communication manager 1510 can also identify a first type of SSB and a second type of SSB associated with the same synchronization grid and for transmission by the base station, wherein the second type of SSB is associated with a reconfigurable smart surface; configure one or more resource elements to transmit one or more SSBs including one or more of the first type or the second type of SSB; and use the configured one or more resource elements to transmit the one or more SSBs.

[0230] The network communication manager 1515 can manage communication with the core network (e.g., via one or more wired backhaul links). For example, the network communication manager 1515 can manage the delivery of data communication by client devices (such as one or more UEs 115).

[0231] Transceiver 1520 can communicate bidirectionally via one or more antennas, wired or wireless links, as described above. For example, transceiver 1520 can represent a wireless transceiver and can communicate bidirectionally with another wireless transceiver. Transceiver 1520 may also include a modem to modulate packets and provide the modulated packets to the antenna for transmission, and to demodulate packets received from the antenna.

[0232] In some cases, the wireless device may include a single antenna 1525. However, in other cases, the device may have more than one antenna 1525, which may be able to transmit or receive multiple wireless transmissions concurrently.

[0233] Memory 1530 may include RAM, ROM, or a combination thereof. Memory 1530 may store computer-readable code 1535 including instructions that, when executed by a processor (e.g., processor 1540), cause the device to perform the various functions described herein. In some cases, memory 1530 may, in particular, include a BIOS that controls basic hardware or software operations, such as interaction with peripheral components or devices.

[0234] Processor 1540 may include intelligent hardware devices (e.g., general-purpose processors, DSPs, CPUs, microcontrollers, ASICs, FPGAs, programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic components, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof). In some cases, processor 1540 may be configured to use a memory controller to operate a memory array. In some cases, the memory controller may be integrated into processor 1540. Processor 1540 may be configured to execute computer-readable instructions stored in memory (e.g., memory 1530) to cause device 1505 to perform various functions (e.g., functions or tasks supporting the transfer of SSBs via RIS).

[0235] Inter-site communication manager 1545 manages communication with other base stations 105 and may include a controller or scheduler for cooperating with other base stations 105 to control communication with UE 115. For example, inter-site communication manager 1545 may coordinate the scheduling of transmissions to UE 115 for various interference mitigation techniques, such as beamforming or joint transmission. In some examples, inter-site communication manager 1545 may provide an X2 interface within LTE / LTE-A wireless communication network technology to facilitate communication between base stations 105.

[0236] Code 1535 may include instructions for implementing various aspects of this disclosure, including instructions for supporting wireless communication. Code 1535 may be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium, such as system memory or other types of memory. In some cases, code 1535 may not be directly executed by processor 1540, but may cause a computer (e.g., when compiled and executed) to perform the functions described herein.

[0237] Figure 16 A flowchart illustrating method 1600 for transmitting one or more SSBs via one or more RISes according to various aspects of this disclosure is shown. Operation of method 1600 may be implemented by UE 115 or its components as described herein. For example, operation of method 1600 may be implemented by, as referenced... Figures 8 to 11 The described communication manager is used to perform this function. In some examples, the UE can execute a set of instructions to control the functional elements of the UE to perform the following functions. Alternatively or alternatively, the UE can use dedicated hardware to perform aspects of the following functions.

[0238] At 1605, the UE may identify a first synchronization grid and a second synchronization grid for receiving one or more SSBs, the second synchronization grid including a frequency position associated with the RIS. Operation of 1605 may be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of operation of 1605 may be provided as referenced... Figures 8 to 11 The described synchronization grid manager is used to perform this.

[0239] At 1610, the UE can monitor one or more resource elements based on one or more of the first synchronization grid or the second synchronization grid to locate the one or more SSBs. The operation of 1610 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operation of 1610 can be derived from, as referenced... Figures 8 to 11 The resource monitor described is used to perform this.

[0240] At point 1615, the UE can receive at least one SSB based on monitoring the one or more resource elements. The operation of point 1615 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operation of point 1615 can be determined by referring to... Figures 8 to 11 The SSB receiver described is used to perform this.

[0241] Figure 17 A flowchart illustrating method 1700, which explains how to transmit one or more SSBs via one or more RIS according to various aspects of this disclosure, is shown. Operation of method 1700 may be implemented by UE 115 or its components as described herein. For example, operation of method 1700 may be implemented by, as described in reference... Figures 8 to 11 The described communication manager is used to perform this function. In some examples, the UE can execute a set of instructions to control the functional elements of the UE to perform the following functions. Alternatively or alternatively, the UE can use dedicated hardware to perform aspects of the following functions.

[0242] At 1705, the UE may identify a first synchronization grid and a second synchronization grid for receiving one or more SSBs, the second synchronization grid including a frequency position associated with the RIS. Operation of 1705 may be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of operation of 1705 may be provided as referenced... Figures 8 to 11 The described synchronization grid manager is used to perform this.

[0243] At 1710, the UE can scan one or more frequency locations within the first synchronization grid to locate the one or more SSBs. Operation of 1710 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of operation of 1710 can be derived from, as referenced... Figures 8 to 11 The resource monitor described is used to perform this.

[0244] At 1715, the UE may fail to detect one or more SSBs at one or more frequency locations within the first synchronization grid. Operation at 1715 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of operation at 1715 may be determined by reference to... Figures 8 to 11 The resource monitor described is used to perform this.

[0245] At 1720, the UE can scan one or more frequency locations in the second synchronization grid to locate the one or more SSBs. Operation at 1720 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of operation at 1720 can be determined by referring to... Figures 8 to 11 The resource monitor described is used to perform this.

[0246] At 1725, the UE can receive at least one SSB based on scanning one or more frequency positions in the second synchronization grid. Operation at 1730 can be performed according to the method described herein. In some examples, aspects of operation at 1730 can be determined by referring to... Figures 8 to 11 The SSB receiver described is used to perform this.

[0247] Figure 18 A flowchart illustrating method 1800, which explains how to transmit one or more SSBs via one or more RIS according to various aspects of this disclosure, is shown. Operation of method 1800 may be implemented by UE 115 or its components as described herein. For example, operation of method 1800 may be implemented by, as described in reference... Figures 8 to 11 The described communication manager is used to perform this function. In some examples, the UE can execute a set of instructions to control the functional elements of the UE to perform the following functions. Alternatively or alternatively, the UE can use dedicated hardware to perform aspects of the following functions.

[0248] At 1805, the UE can identify a first type of SSB and a second type of SSB associated with and available for reception by the UE on the same synchronization grid, wherein the second type of SSB is associated with a RIS. Operation at 1805 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of operation at 1805 can be determined by reference to... Figures 8 to 11 The type manager described is used for execution.

[0249] At 1810, the UE can monitor one or more resource elements to locate one or more SSBs, including one or more of the first type or the second type. The operation of 1810 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operation of 1810 can be described as follows: Figures 8 to 11 The resource monitor described is used to perform this.

[0250] At point 1815, the UE can receive at least one SSB of type 1 or 2 based on monitoring the one or more REs. Operation of point 1815 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of operation of point 1815 can be determined by reference to... Figures 8 to 11 The SSB receiver described is used to perform this.

[0251] Figure 19 A flowchart illustrating method 1900, which explains how to transmit one or more SSBs via one or more RIS according to various aspects of this disclosure, is shown. Operation of method 1900 may be implemented by UE 115 or its components as described herein. For example, operation of method 1900 may be implemented by, as described in reference... Figures 8 to 11 The described communication manager is used to perform this function. In some examples, the UE can execute a set of instructions to control the functional elements of the UE to perform the following functions. Alternatively or alternatively, the UE can use dedicated hardware to perform aspects of the following functions.

[0252] At 1905, the UE can identify a first type of SSB and a second type of SSB associated with and available for reception by the UE on the same synchronization grid, wherein the second type of SSB is associated with RIS. Operation at 1905 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of operation at 1905 can be determined by reference to... Figures 8 to 11 The type manager described is used for execution.

[0253] At 1910, the UE can scan the first frequency position in the synchronization grid to find the first type of SSB. Operation at 1910 can be performed according to the method described herein. In some examples, aspects of operation at 1910 can be determined by referring to... Figures 8 to 11 The resource monitor described is used to perform this.

[0254] At 1915, the UE may fail to detect a first type of SSB at this first frequency location. Operation at 1915 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of operation at 1915 can be determined by referring to... Figures 8 to 11 The resource monitor described is used to perform this.

[0255] At 1920, the UE can scan the first frequency position in the synchronization grid to locate the second type of SSB. Operation at 1920 can be performed according to the method described herein. In some examples, aspects of operation at 1920 can be determined by referring to... Figures 8 to 11 The resource monitor described is used to perform this.

[0256] At 1925, the UE can receive at least one SSB of type 1 or 2 by scanning a first frequency position in the synchronization grid to locate the second type of SSB. Operation at 1930 can be performed according to the method described herein. In some examples, aspects of operation at 1930 can be determined by referring to... Figures 8 to 11 The SSB receiver described is used to perform this.

[0257] Figure 20 A flowchart illustrating a method 2000 for transmitting one or more SSBs via one or more RISes according to various aspects of this disclosure is shown. Operation of method 2000 may be implemented by a base station 105 or its components as described herein. For example, operation of method 2000 may be implemented by, as described in reference... Figures 12 to 15 The described communication manager is used to perform this. In some examples, the base station can execute a set of instructions to control the functional elements of the base station to perform the following functions. Additionally or alternatively, the base station may use dedicated hardware to perform aspects of the following functions.

[0258] In 2005, the base station may identify a first synchronization grid and a second synchronization grid for the base station to transmit one or more SSBs, the second synchronization grid including a frequency location associated with a RIS. Operation of 2005 may be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operation of 2005 may be provided by reference to... Figures 12 to 15 The described synchronization grid manager is used to perform this.

[0259] In 2010, the base station can configure one or more resource elements based on the first synchronization grid and the second synchronization grid to transmit the one or more SSBs. Operation of 2010 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of operation of 2010 can be derived from, as referenced... Figures 12 to 15 The resource components described are used to execute.

[0260] In 2015, the base station can use one or more configured REs to transmit the one or more SSBs. Operation in 2015 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of operation in 2015 can be determined by referring to... Figures 12 to 15 The described SSB transmitter is used to perform this.

[0261] Figure 21 A flowchart illustrating method 2100 for transmitting one or more SSBs via one or more RIS according to various aspects of this disclosure is shown. Operation of method 2100 may be implemented by base station 105 or its components as described herein. For example, operation of method 2100 may be implemented by, as described in reference... Figures 12 to 15The described communication manager is used to perform this. In some examples, the base station can execute a set of instructions to control the functional elements of the base station to perform the following functions. Additionally or alternatively, the base station may use dedicated hardware to perform aspects of the following functions.

[0262] At 2105, the base station can identify a first type of SSB and a second type of SSB associated with and for transmission by the same synchronization grid, wherein the second type of SSB is associated with a reconfigurable smart surface. Operation of 2105 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operation of 2105 can be determined by reference to... Figures 12 to 15 The type manager described is used for execution.

[0263] In 2110, the base station can be configured with one or more resource elements to transmit one or more SSBs, including one or more of a first type or a second type of SSB. Operation of 2110 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operation of 2110 can be determined by referring to... Figures 12 to 15 The resource components described are used to execute.

[0264] At 2115, the base station can use one or more configured resource elements to transmit the one or more SSBs. The operation of 2115 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operation of 2115 can be determined by referring to... Figures 12 to 15 The described SSB transmitter is used to perform this.

[0265] It should be noted that the methods described in this paper describe possible implementations, and the operations and steps can be rearranged or otherwise modified, and other implementations are also possible. Furthermore, aspects from two or more methods can be combined.

[0266] While aspects of LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, or NR systems may be described for illustrative purposes, and the terms LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, or NR may be used in most of the description, the techniques described herein can also be applied to networks other than LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, or NR networks. For example, the described techniques can be applied to a variety of other wireless communication systems, such as Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20, Flash-OFDM, and other systems and radio technologies not explicitly mentioned herein.

[0267] The information and signals described herein can be represented using any of a wide variety of different techniques and methods. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referred to throughout this description can be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, light fields or light particles, or any combination thereof.

[0268] The various illustrative boxes and components described herein can be implemented or executed using a general-purpose processor, DSP, ASIC, CPU, FPGA or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in alternatives, the processor may be any processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices (e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors working in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration).

[0269] The functions described herein may be implemented in hardware, software executed by a processor, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software executed by a processor, the functions may be stored or transmitted as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Other examples and implementations fall within the scope of this disclosure and the appended claims. For example, due to the nature of software, the functions described herein may be implemented using software executed by a processor, hardware, firmware, hardwired, or any combination thereof. Features implementing the functions may also be physically located in various locations, including being distributed such that different parts of the function are implemented at different physical locations.

[0270] Computer-readable media includes both non-transient computer storage media and communication media, encompassing any medium that facilitates the transfer of a computer program from one location to another. Non-transient storage media can be any available medium accessible to a general-purpose or special-purpose computer. By way of example and not limitation, non-transient computer-readable media may include RAM, ROM, electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), flash memory, compact disc (CD) ROM or other optical disc storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other non-transient medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and is accessible to a general-purpose or special-purpose computer, or a general-purpose or special-purpose processor. Similarly, any connection is also legitimately referred to as computer-readable media. For example, if software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave, then that coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of computer-readable media. As used in this article, disk and disc include CDs, laser discs, optical discs, DVDs, floppy disks, and Blu-ray discs, where disks often magnetically reproduce data while discs optically reproduce data using lasers. Combinations of these media are also included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0271] As used herein (including in the claims), the word "or" in an enumeration of items (e.g., an enumeration of items accompanied by phrases such as "at least one of" or "one or more of") indicates an inclusive enumeration, such that an enumeration of at least one of, for example, A, B, or C means A or B or C or AB or AC or BC or ABC (i.e., A and B and C). Similarly, as used herein, the phrase "based on" should not be interpreted as referring to a closed set of conditions. For example, an example step described as "based on condition A" may be based on both condition A and condition B without departing from the scope of this disclosure. In other words, as used herein, the phrase "based on" should be interpreted in the same manner as the phrase "at least partially based on".

[0272] In the accompanying drawings, similar components or features may have the same reference numerals. Furthermore, components of the same type may be distinguished by a dash following the reference numeral and a second reference numeral used to differentiate between similar components. If only the first reference numeral is used in the description, the description may apply to any of the similar components having the same first reference numeral, regardless of the second reference numeral or other subsequent reference numerals.

[0273] The descriptions herein, illustrated with reference to the accompanying drawings, depict exemplary configurations and are not representative of all examples that may be implemented or fall within the scope of the claims. The term "example" as used herein means "serving as an example, instance, or illustration" and does not imply "superior" or "outperforming" other examples. This detailed description includes specific details to provide an understanding of the described techniques. However, these techniques may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form to avoid obscuring the concepts of the described examples.

[0274] The description provided herein is intended to enable those skilled in the art to make or use this disclosure. Various modifications to this disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the universal principles defined herein can be applied to other variations without departing from the scope of this disclosure. Therefore, this disclosure is not limited to the examples and designs described herein, but should be granted the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A method for performing wireless communication at a user equipment (UE), comprising: A first synchronization grid and a second synchronization grid are identified for the UE to receive one or more synchronization signal blocks, the second synchronization grid including a frequency location associated with a reconfigurable smart surface; One or more resource elements are monitored, at least in part, based on one or more of the first or second synchronization grids, to locate the one or more synchronization signal blocks; as well as At least one synchronization signal block is received, at least in part, based on monitoring the one or more resource elements.

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