UE-initiated beam switching

Abstract

Systems, methods, and apparatuses perform UE-initiated beam switching. The UE (110) receives (304) a UE-initiated beam switching configuration from a network entity (120), the UE-initiated beam switching configuration indicating a plurality of reference signals (RSs) associated with a plurality of beams. The UE receives (308), from a network entity, one or more RSs associated with the one or more beams. The UE sends (312), based on the one or more RSs, an indication to the network entity to switch from communicating via the at least one first beam to communicating via the at least one second beam. The UE and the network entity communicate with each other via at least one second beam (318).

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The various aspects of this disclosure generally relate to wireless communications and techniques for UE-initiated beam switching. Background Technology

[0002] Beamforming is a technique that enhances signal quality between network entities and UEs, thereby improving data rates, reducing latency, and increasing overall network performance. In beamforming, the transmitter directs radio frequency (RF) transmissions in a specific direction (e.g., toward a intended receiver), creating a "beam" that focuses energy rather than radiating the signal evenly in all directions. Summary of the Invention

[0003] The systems, methods, and apparatuses disclosed herein each have several innovative aspects, and no single innovative aspect is solely responsible for the desired properties disclosed herein.

[0004] One innovative aspect of the subject matter described in this disclosure can be implemented as a method for wireless communication by a user equipment. The method may include: receiving from a network entity a beam-switching configuration initiated by a UE, the UE-initiated beam-switching configuration indicating multiple reference signals (RS) associated with multiple beams. The method may further include: receiving from the network entity one or more RSs associated with one or more beams. The method may further include: sending to the network entity an indication, based on the one or more RSs, of switching from communication via at least one first beam to communication via at least one second beam. The method may further include: communicating with the network entity via at least one second beam.

[0005] Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in this disclosure can be implemented as a method for wireless communication by a network entity. The method may include: transmitting to a user equipment (UE) a UE-initiated beam switching configuration indicating multiple reference signals (RS) associated with multiple beams. The method may further include: transmitting to the UE one or more RSs associated with one or more beams. The method may further include: receiving from the UE an indication to switch from communication via at least one first beam to communication via at least one second beam. The method may further include: communicating with the UE via at least one second beam.

[0006] Details of one or more implementations of the subject matter described in this disclosure are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the following description. Other features, aspects, and advantages will become apparent from the description, drawings, and claims. Attached Figure Description

[0007] It should be noted that the relative dimensions in the following figures may not be drawn to scale. The same reference numerals and names in the various figures indicate the same elements. To facilitate identification of any particular element or action being discussed, one or more of the highest significant digits in the reference numerals refer to the figure number that first introduced that element.

[0008] Figure 1 This is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example wireless system that includes user equipment communicating with network entities.

[0009] Figure 2 This is a block diagram illustrating example configurations of network entities and user equipment.

[0010] Figure 3 This is a sequence diagram illustrating example operations for a communication process initiated by a UE for beam switching.

[0011] Figure 4 This is a flowchart illustrating an example UE operation for a method of beam switching initiated by the UE.

[0012] Figure 5 This is a flowchart illustrating an example network entity operation for a method of beam switching initiated by a UE.

[0013] Figure 6 This is a flowchart illustrating an example network entity operation used to detect beam switching request events.

[0014] Figure 7A This is a diagram illustrating an example of beam switching based on the indicated TCI state.

[0015] Figure 7B This is a diagram illustrating an example of beam switching based on multiple indicated TCI states.

[0016] Figure 7C This is a diagram illustrating an example of a UE-initiated joint uplink and downlink beam switching.

[0017] Figure 7D This is a diagram illustrating an example of a separate uplink and downlink beam switching initiated by the UE.

[0018] Figure 8A This is a diagram illustrating an example of joint uplink and downlink beam switching in response to a beam switching initiated by a UE.

[0019] Figure 8B This is a diagram illustrating an example of separate uplink and downlink beam switching in response to a beam switching initiated by a UE.

[0020] Figure 9 This is a diagram illustrating an example timeline used for an additional TRS set identified by QCL parameters.

[0021] Figure 10 This is a diagram illustrating an example timeline for an additional TRS with dynamic QCL updates based on QCL parameter identifiers.

[0022] Figure 11 This is a diagram illustrating an example timeline including scheduling constraints following beam switching. Detailed Implementation

[0023] For the purpose of describing the innovative aspects of this disclosure, the following description relates to certain implementations. However, those skilled in the art will readily recognize that the teachings herein can be applied in a variety of different ways. Some examples in this disclosure are based on wireless communications according to 3GPP wireless standards, such as the 4th generation (4G) Long Term Evolution (LTE) standard and the 5th generation (5G) New Radio (NR) standard. However, the described implementations can be implemented in any device, system, or network capable of transmitting and receiving radio frequency signals or other known signals according to any wireless communication standard, including any of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11, 802.15, or 802.16 wireless standards, for communication within wireless, cellular, or Internet of Things (IoT) networks, such as systems utilizing 3G, 4G, 5G, WiFi, or future radio technologies.

[0024] As discussed above, beamforming is a technique that enhances signal quality between network entities and UEs, thereby improving data rates, reducing latency, and increasing overall network performance. In beamforming, the transmitter directs radio frequency (RF) transmissions in a specific direction (e.g., toward a intended receiver), creating a "beam" that focuses energy, rather than radiating the signal evenly in all directions.

[0025] A problem with beamforming is the potential for unwanted delays when switching from one beam to another. In existing systems, network entities can initiate beam switching based on signal quality information received from the UE. Network entities can also initiate beam switching based on beam quality indicators. For example, the UE can use reference signals such as Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS) or Synchronization Signal Block (SSB) to measure beam quality and send a beam quality indicator to the network entity. For instance, before applying the corresponding active Transmission Configuration Indicator (TCI) state, the UE can measure the CSI-RS or the quasi-co-occupied Synchronization Signal Block (SSB) with the CSI-RS in the TCI state. The UE can measure the CSI-RS or SSB once for time and frequency offset tracking. The UE can also measure the SSB multiple times (e.g., eight times) for UE beam scanning. In one example, given an SSB period of 20ms, such a TCI activation delay could be 20ms or 160ms. If the UE is configured with Discontinuous Reception (DRX), the activation delay could be 160ms. Additional latency can be introduced based on the exchange of messages between the network entity and the UE. A network-initiated beam handover can involve the exchange of four messages (two round trips) between the network entity and the UE. Each message can introduce additional latency when a beam handover occurs.

[0026] The aforementioned latency may impact network performance, leading to user dissatisfaction. Additionally, network entities may initiate beam switching too frequently, increasing the overhead for the UE to handle beam switching. Furthermore, network entities may fail to detect network conditions that would favor beam switching, resulting in degraded network performance.

[0027] According to various aspects of this disclosure, the UE and network entity can use different techniques to facilitate UE-initiated beam handover. The network entity can send CSI-RS or SSB, and the UE can use CSI-RS or SSB to measure beam quality. Then, if the difference between the measured beam quality of the current beam and the measured quality of a candidate new beam exceeds a threshold difference, the UE can initiate a beam handover. In some aspects, the UE can initiate a beam handover by sending a beam handover request to the network entity. In other aspects, the UE can initiate a beam handover by indicating a beam handover request in a beam report. A technical advantage of the techniques disclosed herein is that the disclosed UE-initiated beam handover can be implemented using fewer transmissions than existing systems, thereby reducing the latency involved in beam handover.

[0028] Figure 1 This is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example wireless system that includes user equipment communicating with network entities. Figure 1In the example shown, wireless communication system 100 includes a UE 110 that wirelessly communicates with network entity 120. The UE may communicate directly with network entity 120 or via one or more transmit / receive points (TRPs) (e.g., TRP 122A or 122B). Network entity 120 may be coupled to TRPs 122A and 122B via corresponding fronthaul networks 130A and 130B. For example, fronthaul networks 130A and 130B may be high-performance networks such as fiber optic networks.

[0029] Despite Figure 1 While UE 110 is exemplified as a smartphone, it can be implemented as any suitable computing or electronic device, such as a mobile communication device, modem, cellular phone, gaming device, navigation device, media device, laptop computer, desktop computer, tablet computer, smart appliance, vehicle-based communication system, Internet of Things (IoT) device (e.g., sensor node, controller / actuator node, combination thereof), etc. Network entity 120 (e.g., base station, Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network Node B (E-UTRAN Node B), Evolved Node B, eNodeB, eNB, Next Generation Node B, gNodeB, gNB, ng-eNB, access point, radio head, etc.) can be implemented in macro cells, micro cells, small cells, pico cells, etc., or any combination thereof. Network entity 120 can be configured to use multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication to exchange radio signals with UE 110. Additionally, network entity 120 can use beamforming when communicating with UE 110. For example, network entity 120 can be configured with beam 124A to communicate with UE 110. In some respects, UE 110 can communicate with network entity 120 via multiple TRPs (e.g., TRPs 122A and 122B) associated with network entity 120. In such respects, TRPs 122A and 122B can be configured with beams 124B and 124C, respectively, for communicating with UE 110.

[0030] In some respects, the functionality of network entity 120, and therefore its hardware components, can be distributed across multiple network nodes or devices and can be distributed in a manner used to perform the functions described herein. As an example, the functionality of network entity 120 can be distributed across radio units (RUs), distributed units (DUs), or central units (CUs).

[0031] UE 110 can use a wireless link ( Figure 1(Not shown) communicates with network entity 120 and TRPs 122A and 122B. This radio link can be implemented as any suitable type of radio link. The radio link may include one or more radio links (e.g., radio links) or bearers, which are implemented using any suitable communication protocol or standard, or a combination of communication protocols or standards (such as 3GPP LTE, 5G NR, etc.). Multiple radio links can be aggregated in carrier aggregation to provide a higher data rate for UE 110.

[0032] Network entity 120, as well as TRPs 122A and 122B, support wireless communication with one or more UEs (such as UE110) via radio frequency (RF) signaling using one or more applicable radio access technologies (RATs) as specified by one or more communication protocols or standards. Network entity 120, as well as TRPs 122A and 122B, can adopt any of a variety of RATs, such as NodeB (or Base Transceiver Station (BTS)) operation as a Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) RAT (also known as "3G"), Enhanced NodeB ("eNB") operation as a 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) RAT, 5G NodeB ("gNB") operation as a 3GPP 5th Generation (5G) New Radio (NR) RAT, etc.

[0033] Network entity 120, along with TRPs 122A and 122B, may be part of a radio access network (RAN) (e.g., Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network E-UTRAN, 5G NR RAN, or NR RAN). Network entity 120 may connect to core network 150. For example, when connecting to a 5G core network, network entity 120 may connect to core network 150 via the NG2 interface for control plane signaling and the NG3 interface for user plane data communication, or when connecting to an evolved packet core (EPC) network, it may connect to that core network using the Si interface for control plane signaling and user plane data communication. Network entity 120 may communicate via the Xn interface using the Xn Application Protocol (XnAP) or via the X2 interface using the X2 Application Protocol (X2AP) to exchange user plane and control plane data. UE 110 may connect to one or more wide area networks (WANs) 160 or other packet data networks (PDNs) such as the Internet via core network 150.

[0034] Communication between network entity 120 and UE 110 utilizes uplink (UL) transmission path 112 for RF transmission from UE 110 to network entity 120, and downlink (DL) transmission path 114 for RF transmission from network entity 120 to UE 110. Therefore, in the context of UL transmission path 112, UE 110 acts as a data transmitter and network entity 120 acts as a data receiver, while in the context of DL transmission path 114, network entity 120 acts as a data transmitter and UE 110 acts as a data receiver. UL transmission path 112 and DL transmission path 114 can utilize multiple communication channels for signal transmission. These multiple channels can each have different purposes.

[0035] UL transmission path 112 may include a Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH), a Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH), and a Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH). The PUSCH is used for the transmission of user data, such as voice data, video data, or text message data, from UE 110 to network entity 120. Additionally, the PUSCH can be used to transmit control information (e.g., uplink control information (UCI)). The PUSCH can be shared by multiple UEs. The PUCCH is used to transmit control information (e.g., UCI) from the UE to the network, such as channel quality feedback, scheduling requests, and acknowledgments. The PRACH is used for random access in the uplink direction, enabling the UE to access the system.

[0036] DL transmission path 114 may include one or more of the following: Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH), Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH), Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH), or Paging Channel. The PDSCH is used for the transmission of user data from a network entity to the UE. The PDSCH can be shared by multiple UEs. Similar to the PUSCH, the data can be any type of information, such as voice data, video data, or text message data. The Paging Channel is used to notify UE 110 of the presence of an incoming service from network entity 120.

[0037] During operation, UE 110 can measure the quality of beams 124A, 124B, and / or 124C. In response to the beam quality measurement, the UE can detect that one or more of the currently used beams should be replaced with other beams having better beam quality. The UE can initiate a beam switch by instructing network entity 120 to perform the beam switch via a beam report or beam request. Network entity 120 can respond to the UE-initiated beam switch by indicating the timing of the action for the beam switch. After the timing of the action, UE 110 and the network entity can use the new beams for uplink and / or downlink communication. Compared to existing systems, the disclosed techniques can improve communication performance by reducing the latency involved in beam switching.

[0038] exist Figure 1 The example shown illustrates two TRPs, 122A and 122B. However, a wireless communication system may include more than two TRPs.

[0039] The following text is about Figures 2 to 11 Further details on the various techniques and aspects of this disclosure are provided.

[0040] Figure 2 This is a block diagram illustrating an example configuration of network entities and user equipment. Note that the depicted hardware configuration represents the processing and communication components associated with the HARQ procedure management performed by network entity 120 and UE 110. Certain components that are well understood to be frequently implemented in such electronic devices, such as displays, peripherals, power supplies, etc., may be omitted from the depicted hardware configuration.

[0041] UE 110 includes an antenna 202, a radio frequency front-end (RF front-end) 204, and radio frequency transceivers (e.g., LTE transceiver 206 and 5G NR transceiver 208) for communication with network entity 120 and / or one or more TRPs (e.g., Figure 1 TRP 122A and 122B communication.

[0042] The RF front end 204 includes one or more modems, one or more analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), one or more digital-to-analog converters (DACs), signal processors, etc., configured for the corresponding RAT (e.g., 3GPP 5G NR) adopted. Figure 2 In the example illustrated, the RF front-end 204 of UE 110 can couple or connect the LTE transceiver 206 and the 5G NR transceiver 208 to the antenna 202 to facilitate various types of wireless communication. The RF front-end 204 actually operates as a physical (PHY) transceiver interface to conduct and process signaling between one or more processors 214 and the antenna 202 in order to facilitate various types of wireless communication.

[0043] The antenna 202 of UE 110 may include an array of multiple antennas that can be tuned to one or more frequency bands associated with a corresponding RAT. Antenna 202 and RF front-end 204 can be tuned to and / or are capable of being tuned to one or more frequency bands defined by the 3GPP LTE and 5G NR communication standards and implemented by LTE transceiver 206 and / or 5G NR transceiver 208. Additionally, antenna 202, RF front-end 204, LTE transceiver 206, and / or 5G NR transceiver 208 can be configured to support beamforming for use with network entity 120 and / or with one or more TRPs (e.g., Figure 1 The transmission and reception of communications (TRP 122A and 122B). By way of example and not limitation, antenna 202 and RF front end 204 can be implemented for operation in sub-gigahertz bands, sub-6 GHz bands and / or above 6 GHz bands as defined by 3GPP LTE and 5G NR communication standards.

[0044] UE 110 also includes a processor 214 and a computer-readable storage medium (CRM) 216. The processor 214 may include, for example, one or more central processing units, graphics processing units (GPUs), or other application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs). For illustration, the processor 214 may include an application processor (AP) used by UE 110 to execute an operating system and various user-level software applications, as well as one or more processors utilized by a modem or baseband processor of the RF front end 204.

[0045] CRM 216 may include any suitable memory or storage device, such as random access memory (RAM), static RAM (SRAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM), non-volatile RAM (NVRAM), read-only memory (ROM), flash memory, solid-state drive (SSD), or other high-capacity storage devices, which may be used to store one or more executable software instruction sets and associated data that manipulate one or more processors 214 and other components of UE 110 to perform the various functions described herein and attributed to UE 110. The executable software instruction sets include, for example, an operating system (OS) and various drivers (not shown) and various software applications (not shown), which may be executed by processor 214 to enable user plane communication, control plane signaling, and user interaction with UE 110. Data 218 stored in CRM 216 represents, for example, user data, multimedia data, beamforming codebooks, software application configuration information, etc.

[0046] Data 218 may include beam report configuration 219 and beam quality measurement 220. Beam report configuration 219 includes information that UE 110 can use to perform UE-initiated beam detection. UE 110 can receive the beam report configuration from network entity 120. References will follow below. Figures 3 to 11 Further details regarding this type of configuration information are discussed. Beam quality measurement 220 may include various parameters measured by UE 110 that indicate the quality of the beam used for communication between UE 110 and network entity 120. UE 110 may provide beam quality measurement 220 to network entity 120 in a beam report (e.g., a beam report in beam report 261).

[0047] CRM 216 also includes a communication controller 222. Alternatively or additionally, the communication controller 222 may be implemented, in whole or in part, as a hardware logic or circuit system integrated or separate from other components of the UE 110. In some aspects, the communication controller 222 configures the RF front end 204, the LTE transceiver 206, and / or the 5G NR transceiver 208 to implement the beam switching techniques described herein for UE-initiated applications.

[0048] In some respects, UE 110 may include an inference engine 224. The inference engine 224 may use model 221 to predict future beam quality based on current or past beam quality measurements 220. For example, model 221 may be a machine learning model trained to predict beam quality.

[0049] Turn to the hardware configuration of network entity 120, note that although Figure 2 The implementation of network entity 120 is exemplified as a single network node (e.g., a 5G NR node B or "gNB"), but the functionality of network entity 120 and therefore its hardware components can be distributed across multiple network nodes or devices, and can be distributed in a manner used to perform the functions described herein. As an example, the functionality of network entity 120 can be distributed across radio units (RUs), distributed units (DUs), or central units (CUs).

[0050] Network entity 120 includes an antenna 252, a radio frequency front-end (RF front-end) 254, one or more LTE transceivers 256 and / or one or more 5G NR transceivers 258 for communicating with UE 110. The RF front-end 254 of network entity 120 can couple or connect the LTE transceivers 256 and 5G NR transceivers 258 to the antenna 252 to facilitate various types of wireless communication. Similar to RF front-end 204, RF front-end 254 includes one or more modems, one or more ADCs, one or more DACs, etc. RF front-end 254 receives one or more RF signals, such as RF signals from UE 110, and preprocesses the one or more RF signals to generate data from the RF signals, which is provided as input to processes and / or applications performed on network entity 120. Such preprocessing may include, for example, power amplification, conversion of band signaling to baseband signaling, initial analog-to-digital conversion, etc.

[0051] The antenna 252 of network entity 120 can be configured individually and / or configured as one or more arrays of multiple antennas. The antenna 252 and RF front-end 254 can be tuned to and / or are capable of being tuned to one or more frequency bands defined by the 2GPP LTE and 5G NR communication standards and implemented by the LTE transceiver 256 and / or the 5G NR transceiver 258. Additionally, the antenna 252, RF front-end 254, LTE transceiver 256, and / or 5G NR transceiver 258 can be configured to support beamforming, such as massive MIMO, for transmission and reception of communications with UE 110.

[0052] Network entity 120 also includes processor 260 and computer-readable storage medium (CRM) 262. Processor 260 may include, for example, one or more central processing units, graphics processing units (GPUs), or other application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs). For illustration, processor 260 may include an application processor (AP) used by network entity 120 to execute an operating system and various user-level software applications, as well as one or more processors or a baseband processor of RF front-end 254 utilized by a modem to enable communication with UE 110.

[0053] CRM 262 may include any suitable memory or storage device that can be used to store device data of network entity 120, such as random access memory (RAM), static RAM (SRAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM), non-volatile RAM (NVRAM), read-only memory (ROM), or flash memory. Device data may include data 264, which includes network scheduling data, radio resource management data, beamforming codebooks, software application configuration information, UE transmitter power level and / or TRP configuration data, etc.

[0054] Data 264 may also include beam report 261 and UE capability information 263. The UE capability information includes data regarding the UE 110's ability to perform UE-initiated beam switching. The following will discuss... Figures 3 to 11 Further details regarding this type of data are provided. Beam report 261 includes data on the beam quality of the beam used to transmit information between UE 110 and network entity 120. Beam report 261 may include beam quality measurement 220 or information derived from beam quality measurement 220.

[0055] Additionally, CRM 262 includes a communication controller 271. Alternatively or additionally, the communication controller 271 may be implemented, wholly or partially, as a hardware logic or circuit system integrated or separate from other components of network entity 120. Like the communication controller 222 of UE 110, the communication controller 271 configures the RF front end 254, LTE transceiver 256, and / or 5G NR transceiver 258 to implement the beam switching techniques described herein for UE-initiated applications.

[0056] CRM 262 also includes an RF resource manager 265. In some aspects, the RF resource manager 265 of network entity 120 is implemented to perform various functions associated with allocating physical access (e.g., resource blocks) or communication resources for the air interface of network entity 120. The air interface of network entity 120 may be partitioned or divided into various units (e.g., frames, subframes, or time slots) of one or more of bandwidth, time, symbol, or spatial layers. For example, within the framework of the 5G NR protocol, the RF resource manager 265 may allocate bandwidth and access time intervals in resource blocks, each resource block may be wholly or partially allocated to one or more channels for communication with UE 110. Channels may include one or more of PRACH, PUCCH, PUSCH, PDCCH, PDSCH, PBCH, or paging channels. A resource block may include multiple subcarriers, each subcarrier spanning a portion of the frequency domain of the resource block. Subcarriers may be further divided into resource elements or orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols, each resource element or OFDM symbol spanning a portion of the time domain of the subcarrier. Therefore, a resource block comprises multiple OFDM symbols, which can be grouped into subcarriers together with other OFDM symbols having a common frequency bandwidth. In some aspects, OFDM symbols can be Discrete Fourier Transform Extended Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (DFT-s-OFDM) symbols. In other aspects, OFDM symbols can be Cyclic Prefix Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (CP-OFDM) symbols.

[0057] CRM 262 also includes a network entity manager 266. Alternatively or additionally, the network entity manager 266 may be implemented wholly or partially as a hardware logic or circuit system integrated or separate from other components of network entity 120. In at least some aspects, the network entity manager 266 configures the LTE transceiver 256 and the 5G NR transceiver 258 for communication with the UE 110, via the fronthaul interface 267 and the TRP (e.g., Figure 1 Communication with TRP 122A and 122B, and with the core network 150 ( Figure 1 ) communications.

[0058] In some aspects, network entity 120 includes a network entity inter-site interface 268, such as an Xn and / or X2 interface, which network entity manager 266 configures to exchange user plane and control plane data between another network entity to manage communication between network entity 120 and UE 110. Network entity 120 includes a core network interface 270, which network entity manager 266 configures to exchange user plane and control plane data with core network functions and entities.

[0059] Figures 3 to 6 , Figures 7A to 7D , Figure 8A , Figure 8B and Figures 9 to 11 The accompanying description below describes various techniques for UE-initiated beam switching. In some examples below, the operation may be described using Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling. Unless otherwise stated, RRC signaling may instruct an RRC reconfiguration message from a network entity to the UE, or a System Information Block (SIB), where the SIB may be an existing SIB (e.g., SIB1) or a new SIB (e.g., SIB2) sent by the network entity. J ,in J (It is an integer greater than 21).

[0060] Figure 3 This is a sequence diagram illustrating an example operation of a communication procedure 300 for a UE-initiated beam switching. In the following discussion, the "current beam" is the beam currently used for communication between UE 110 and network entity 120 before the beam switching. The "new" beam is the beam indicated by the UE for beam switching to be used for future communication between UE 110 and network entity 120. Furthermore, in the following discussion, the UE can initiate a beam switch via information included in a beam report sent to the network entity; this can be referred to as "report-based beam switching." Additionally, the UE can initiate a beam switch via information in a specific request sent to the network entity; this can be referred to as "request-based beam switching." Although not illustrated for clarity, it is possible to implement... Figure 3 The various confirmations of the messages illustrated in the example ensure reliable operation for beam switching initiated by the UE.

[0061] At operation 302, UE 110 may send or report to network entity 120 its capability to support UE-initiated beam switching. In some aspects, UE 110 may send UE capability information to network entity 120 during the initial communication session establishment process between UE 110 and network entity 120. UE capability information may include supported frequency bands, radio access technologies, maximum transmission power, maximum data rate, and network protocols. In some aspects, UE 110 may send UE capability information indicating whether the UE supports UE-initiated beam switching, and if so, indicating the type of UE-initiated beam switching supported by UE 110. For example, UE 110 may instruct the UE to support beam switching using a UE request for beam switching (request-based beam switching), an indication for beam switching in a beam switching report (report-based beam switching), or both request-based and report-based UE-initiated beam switching.

[0062] In some respects, UE capability information may include one or more of the following: An indicator that shows whether the UE supports beam switching based on beam reports.

[0063] An indicator that indicates whether the UE supports beam switching based on a UE request. (In some respects, depending on whether the new beam indicated by the UE can come from the set of active beams, the indicator may include two indicators.) The maximum number of SSB or CSI-RS resources in the set used for beam measurements for beam switching based on UE reports or requests.

[0064] The maximum number of SSB or CSI-RS resource sets used for beam measurements for beam switching based on UE reports or requests.

[0065] The maximum number of beams reported in the beam report.

[0066] The maximum number of beams requested in the UE request.

[0067] Indicates whether the UE supports reporting beam quality indicators other than SSB Resource Indicator (SSBRI) or CRI reports.

[0068] An indicator that shows whether the UE supports reporting predicted beam quality.

[0069] An indicator that shows whether the UE supports using beam prediction to report / request beams for beam switching.

[0070] Minimal action delay for beam switching based on UE reports or requests.

[0071] Maximum action delay for beam switching based on UE report or request.

[0072] exist Figure 3 In the example, UE 110 sends UE capability information to network entity 120. In some implementations, the network entity can send this information from the core network (e.g., from...). Figure 1 The core network 150 receives UE capabilities from the Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF). In some other implementations, the network entity receives UE capabilities from another network entity (e.g., a gNB or eNB).

[0073] At operation 304, network entity 120 may configure the UE for UE-initiated beam handover based on the UE capability information received at operation 302. In some aspects, network entity 120 may do so via RRC signaling (e.g., CSI- ReportConfig Configure UE 110 via ). In some other respects, network entity 120 can be configured via RRCReconfiguration Configure UE 110.

[0074] The network entity can provide one or more of the following parameters for UE-initiated beam handover configuration: The first set of SSBs or CSI-RS for beam measurements.

[0075] The first set of TCI states used for beam measurement and / or quasi-co-position (QCL) and / or power control parameter identification.

[0076] Beam switching schemes, for example, indicate whether a common beam or a separate beam is used for beam switching between uplink and downlink channels. (In some examples, this RRC parameter follows a uniform TCI state for a single type (e.g., unifiedTCI-StateTypeThe RRC parameter of )). In some examples, network entity 120 may not configure this RRC parameter, and the indication of whether a common beam or a separate beam is used for beam switching for uplink and downlink channels may follow a unified TCI state for a type (e.g., unifiedTCI-StateType The RRC parameter of ).

[0077] The target or applicable uplink and / or downlink channel or RS used for beam switching.

[0078] Following the beam switching process, a second set of CSI-RS (called Tracking Reference Signals (TRS)) is used to track the QCL-Type A parameter identifier.

[0079] The set of uplink power control parameters used for uplink power control after the beam switching process.

[0080] In some respects, for multiple transmit and receive point (mTRP) operations, network entity 120 can be configured with more than one set of SSBs or CSI-RSs or more than one set of TCIs or TCI states for beam measurement, wherein each set corresponds to or is associated with a TRP. CORESETPoolIndex Values ​​are related.

[0081] In some respects, some of the parameters mentioned above may be predefined. In one example, the number of reported SSBRIs, CSI Reference Signal Resource Indicators (CRIs), and TCIs may be one (1) or equal to the number of sets of SSBs, CSI-RSs, or TCIs used for beam measurement. In other respects, the reporting amount may instruct UE 110 to report only SSBRIs, CRIs, or TCI indices. In yet another respect, the target or applicable uplink and / or downlink channel or RS used for report-based beam switching may be predefined, for example, a channel or RS sharing the indicated uniform TCI state. In a further respect, the target or applicable uplink and / or downlink channel or RS used for report-based beam switching may not be the target or applicable uplink and / or downlink channel or RS used for the indicated uniform TCI state, or vice versa. Table 1 below illustrates an example of a target channel for beam switching, where the search space type is defined in 3GPP Technical Specification (TS) 38.213. In some respects, the beam reporting scheme may be predefined. For example, if network entity 120 configures separate uplink and downlink TCI states, UE 110 can report separate SSBRIs or CRIs for the uplink and downlink channels. Otherwise, UE 110 can report a common SSBRI or CRI for the uplink and downlink channels.

[0082]

[0083] In some implementations, some of the RRC parameters described above may be the same as, or inferred from, the RRC parameters used for beam fault recovery (BFR) (e.g., the RS set of candidate beam identifiers). In some aspects, the RRC parameters may be different from those used for BFR or may be separate from those used for BFR.

[0084] In some aspects, network entity 120 can configure the UE to measure beam quality based on a set of SSBs or CSI-RSs. In some other implementations, network entity 120 can configure the UE 110 to measure beam quality based on a downlink reference signal configured in the TCI state. In some aspects, network entity 120 can configure one SSB or CSI-RS in the TCI state for beam measurement. In some other aspects, the UE 110 can measure beam quality based on an SSB or CSI-RS used for QCL indication. If more than one SSB or CSI-RS exists in the TCI state for QCL indication, the UE 110 can select the SSB or CSI-RS based on the indicated QCL type (e.g., QCL-TypeD (Spatial Receive Parameters)). In some other aspects, the UE 110 can measure beam quality based on an SSB quasi-co-located with a CSI-RS used for QCL indication in the TCI state. In some other respects, the UE can measure beam quality based on the SSB used for QCL indication in the TCI state. As used herein, the TCI state can indicate the joint TCI state, downlink TCI state, uplink TCI state, or spatial relationship information.

[0085] In some other aspects, network entity 120 can configure both a first set of one or more SSBs or CSI-RSs and a first set of TCI states for beam measurement. Network entity 120 can configure the association between each configured SSB or CSI-RS and the TCI state. In some aspects, the configured SSB or CSI-RS and TCI state can be associated one-to-one. UE 110 can measure beam quality based on the configured SSBs or CSI-RS, and if UE 110 selects an SSB or CSI-RS for beam switching, UE 110 can identify QCL and / or power control parameters based on the TCI state associated with the selected SSB or CSI-RS.

[0086] In some aspects, network entity 120 may configure a first set of one or more SSBs or CSI-RSs within the same serving cell. In other aspects, network entity 120 may configure a first set of one or more SSBs or CSI-RSs within another serving cell in the same serving cell list to which the serving cell belongs. For example, network entity 120 may configure the serving cell index of the serving cell list.

[0087] To configure report-based beam switching, network entity 120 can provide one or more of the following additional parameters: An indicator that indicates whether the beam report is used for beam switching.

[0088] The number of reported SSBRI, CRI, or TCI statuses.

[0089] Uplink resources used for beam reporting, such as Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) resources or Configuration-based Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH).

[0090] The amount of beam reporting. The amount of reporting can indicate whether UE 110 reports only SSBRI, CRI and / or TCI indexes, or reports beam quality in addition to SSBRI, CRI and / or TCI indexes.

[0091] For beam switching action delay, it indicates the delay between the last symbol of the beam report or response to the beam report and the first symbol of applying the reported beam to the target uplink and / or downlink channel.

[0092] To configure request-based beam switching, network entity 120 can provide one or more of the following additional parameters: The number of SSBRI, CRI, or TCI requested.

[0093] The first threshold used to identify new beams.

[0094] A second threshold used to determine the beam quality of the current beam.

[0095] The number of beam switching request events used to send beam switching requests.

[0096] The interval for detecting beam switching request events.

[0097] The request amount for beam switching by the UE. The request amount can indicate whether the request initiated by UE 110 for beam switching includes only SSBRI and / or CRI, or beam quality in addition to SSBRI and / or CRI.

[0098] Uplink resources (e.g., PUCCH resources) used to send beam switching requests.

[0099] A scheduling request (SR) used to request uplink authorization for beam switching request transmission.

[0100] The maximum number of retransmissions for a beam switching request.

[0101] A counter used to count the (re)transmissions of beam switching requests.

[0102] The monitoring window during the response to a beam switching request.

[0103] For beam switching action delay, it indicates the delay between the last symbol of the beam report or response to the beam report and the first symbol of applying the reported beam to the target uplink and / or downlink channel.

[0104] In some aspects, network entity 120 can configure common resources for beam-switching requests for both uplink and downlink beam-switching. In other aspects, network entity 120 can configure one resource for beam-switching requests for uplink channels and another resource for beam-switching requests for downlink channels.

[0105] In some aspects, where UE 110 is configured for UE-initiated beam handover based on reports, at operation 306, network entity 120 may optionally trigger a beam report for beam handover. For example, network entity 120 may send a Media Access Control (MAC) control element (CE) or downlink control information (DCI) to trigger the beam report. In some aspects, network entity 120 may send a MAC CE to activate or deactivate semi-persistent beam reports for beam handover. In other aspects, network entity 120 may send a DCI to trigger aperiodic beam reports for beam handover. In some aspects, when beam reports for beam handover are activated or triggered, the MAC CE or DCI may indicate one or more of the UE-initiated beam handover configuration parameters discussed above.

[0106] At operation 308, network entity 120 sends a set of one or more SSBs or CSI-RS for beam measurement.

[0107] At operation 310, UE 110 detects a beam switching event. The beam switching event can be detected based on one or more of the following criteria: In some respects, the difference in beam quality—such as the difference in Layer 1 Reference Signal Received Power (L1-RSRP), Layer 1 Signal-to-Interference-plus-Noise Ratio (L1-SINR), Hypothesis Block Error Rate (BLER), Channel Quality Indicator (CQI), or Spectral Efficiency (SE) between the current beam and the candidate new beam—exceeds a first threshold relative to any current beam in the current beam. In other respects, the difference in beam quality can be relative to the current beam with the best beam quality among all current beams in the current beam.

[0108] In some respects, the beam quality (e.g., L1-RSRP, L1-SINR, CQI, or SE) of one or any of the current beams is below a second threshold, or the BLER of one or any of the current beams is above a third threshold. In some other respects, the beam quality of the beam with the best beam quality among the current beams is compared with the second or third threshold.

[0109] Figure 6 This is a flowchart illustrating an example UE operation of method 600 for detecting a beam switching request event. The example operation of method 600 can be, for example, provided by... Figures 1 to 3 The UE 110 performs this operation. Example operations of method 600 can be performed once per event detection interval. The UE 110 can determine the event detection interval based on the minimum or maximum periodicity of the SSB or CSI-RS used for beam measurement, and / or a predefined or configured maximum or minimum detection interval. In some aspects, network entity 120 configures the detection interval, for example, as in... Figure 3 The operation described at point 304.

[0110] In some respects, for mTRP operations, for example, when a network entity configures more than one set of SSBs or CSI-RSs for beam measurement, UE 110 can perform the operations of method 600 based on each TRP (e.g., each set of SSBs or CSI-RSs) or across TRPs (e.g., across all configured sets of SSBs or CSI-RSs).

[0111] At box 602, UE 110 sets the detection counter used for the current event detection interval to zero (0). In some aspects, a detection counter is maintained for each serving cell or each bandwidth portion (BWP). The detection counter can be set to zero when one or more of the following occur: UE 110 activates the serving cell (e.g., the secondary cell (SCell)).

[0112] UE 110 switched to another BWP in the serving cell.

[0113] UE 110 adds the serving cell to the primary and secondary cell (PSCell), which is configured with beam handover based on UE requests.

[0114] UE 110 failed to detect a beam switching event within the beam switching request event detection interval.

[0115] At box 604, UE 110 can receive a set of one or more SSBs or CSI-RSs for beam measurement within the current detection interval (e.g., Figure 3 Operation 308).

[0116] At decision box 606, UE 110 can determine whether the beam switching event criteria (discussed above) have been met.

[0117] If the beam switching event condition has not yet been met (the "No" branch of block 606), UE 110 resets the detection counter to zero (0) and returns to block 604 to wait for the next SSB or CSI-RS to be received for beam measurement.

[0118] If the beam switching criterion has been met within the current detection interval (the "Yes" branch of block 606), then at block 610, UE 110 increments the detection counter.

[0119] At decision box 612, UE 110 determines whether the detection counter is equal to the threshold number of detection events. In some aspects, the detection counter can determine whether N consecutive detection events have occurred, where N can be predefined or configured by network entity 120. In some aspects, if N is not defined or configured, N can be set to one (1), and the UE sends a beam switching event when a beam switching event occurs.

[0120] If the threshold number of detected events has been reached (the "Yes" branch of box 612), UE 110 triggers a beam handover initiated by the UE from the current beam to the new beam and resets the event detection counter to zero (0).

[0121] If the threshold number of detected events has not yet been reached (the "No" branch of box 612), UE 110 returns to box 604 to wait for the next SSB or CSI-RS to be received for beam measurement.

[0122] Return to Figure 3Upon detecting a beam switching event, at operation 312, UE 110 sends an indication to network entity 120 to perform a beam switch from one or more current beams to one or more new beams. In some aspects, UE 110 may send a beam report identifying one or more new beams for the beam switch. In some other aspects, UE 110 may send a request to perform a beam switch. In some aspects, the indication to perform a beam switch may include an indicator identifying the requested new beam. As an example, UE 110 may send one or more indices associated with the new beam from a first set of configured SSBs, CSI-RS, or TCIs in the report or request. In some aspects, the indication to perform a beam switch may include an indicator identifying the new beam. In some aspects, UE 110 may indicate at least one SSB Resource Indicator (SSBRI) or CSI-RS Resource Indicator (CRI) or TCI index indicating the new beam.

[0123] Instructions for performing beam switching may include one or more of the following parameters: The serving cell index or serving cell list index indicates the target serving cell or serving cell index to apply the new beam.

[0124] The number of SSBRI, CRI, and TCI indexes reported.

[0125] One or more SSBRI, CRI, or TCI indices indicating a new beam are selected from the first set of configured SSB, CSI-RS, or TCI.

[0126] The reported beam quality of SSBRI, CRI, TCI (e.g., L1-RSRP, L1-SINR, assumed BLER, CQI, or SE).

[0127] The first indicator indicates whether the UE has obtained the best UE beam for each or all SSB, CRI, or TCI indicated by the reported SSBRI, CRI, or TCI (which can be used to indicate whether additional delays may occur in UE beam scanning for SSB, CRI, or TCI).

[0128] The second indicator indicates whether the UE has obtained the QCL parameters for each or all SSB, CRI, or TCI indicated by the reported SSBRI, CRI, or TCI index (which can be used to indicate whether additional delays may occur for time and frequency offset tracking of SSB, CRI, or TCI).

[0129] The third indicator indicates whether the UE has obtained the Layer 3 RSRP (L3-RSRP) of the SSB, CRI, or TCI indicated by the reported SSBRI, CRI, or TCI index (which may indicate whether additional delay may have occurred in the path loss reference signal (PL-RS) measurement for the SSB, CRI, or TCI).

[0130] The beam quality of the current beam (e.g., L1-RSRP, L1-SINR, assumed BLER, CQI, or SE).

[0131] The fourth indicator indicates whether the beam quality is based on actual beam measurements or predicted beam measurements at the configured or reported action time.

[0132] Preferred action delay or action time for switching to a new beam.

[0133] The target channel for the new beam.

[0134] The fifth indicator indicates which of the reported SSBRI, CRI, or TCI is used for beam switching.

[0135] In some cases, UE 110 can indicate beam switching via uplink control information (UCI) on the MAC CE or PUSCH. For UE-requested beam switching, if UE 110 does not receive uplink grant for PUSCH transmission, the UE can send an SR. If an SR is not configured, UE 110 can send a PRACH to request uplink grant for the beam switching request. In some other aspects, the UE can directly send a PRACH for the beam switching request. In some other aspects, UE 110 can send indications for beam switching via PUCCH, where PUCCH resources can be configured by network entity 120.

[0136] UE 110 can transmit indications for beam switching via UCI on a PUSCH or a long PUCCH (e.g., a PUCCH with more than 4 symbols). In some aspects, UE 110 can transmit information regarding indications for beam switching in CSI Part 1. In other aspects, UE 110 can transmit information regarding indications for beam switching via CSI Part 2. In further aspects, UE 110 can transmit some information (e.g., the number of reported SSBRIs or CRIs) within the information regarding indications for beam switching via CSI Part 1, and other information regarding indications for beam switching via CSI Part 2. CSI Part 1 and CSI Part 2 are defined in 3GPP TS 38.212.

[0137] In some aspects, UE 110 may indicate a preferred action time for beam switching by indicating a preferred slot index, subframe index, and / or frame index of the reported SSBRI or CRI. In some aspects, the UE may indicate a preferred action time for beam switching by indicating a row or logical index mapped to a row in a table listing candidate action times. In some other aspects, UE 110 may report an action delay for the reported SSBRI, CRI, or TCI. In such aspects, UE 110 may apply the reported SSBRI, CRI, or TCI after an action delay relative to the last symbol of the indication for beam switching or after receiving a response to the indication for beam switching from network entity 120.

[0138] Some or all of the information described above may be predefined. In some aspects, UE 110 may identify the optimal UE beam for each reported SSBRI, CRI, or TCI before the UE sends an indication for beam switching. Therefore, no additional delay for UE beam scanning is required before UE 110 switches to the corresponding SSBRI, CRI, or TCI. In this respect, UE 110 may not need to report a first indicator indicating whether the UE has acquired the optimal UE beam for any or all of the SSBRI, CRI, or TCI indicated by the reported SSBRI, CRI, or TCI index. In another aspect, UE 110 may identify the QCL parameters for each reported SSBRI, CRI, or TCI before the UE sends an indication for beam switching. Therefore, no additional delay for time and frequency offset tracking is required before UE 110 switches to the corresponding SSBRI, CRI, or TCI. In this respect, the UE may not need to report a second indicator indicating whether it has obtained the QCL parameters of any or all of the SSB, CRI, or TCI indicated by the reported SSBRI, CRI, or TCI index. In another respect, the UE 110 may identify the L3-RSRP of each reported SSBRI, CRI, or TCI before sending an indication for beam switching. Therefore, no additional delay for path loss measurement is required before the UE 110 switches to the corresponding SSBRI, CRI, or TCI. In this respect, the UE may not need to report a third indicator indicating whether it has obtained the L3-RSRP of the SSB, CRI, or TCI indicated by the reported SSBRI, CRI, or TCI index.

[0139] In some respects, UE 110 can indicate one or more target or applicable channels for a new beamband by indicating whether the new beamband is for an uplink channel or a downlink channel. In other respects, some target channels may be predefined, and UE 110 may indicate additional target channels, as shown in Table 2 below. In yet another respect, UE 110 may report the replaced indicated uniform TCI state index. The target channel may indicate a channel to which the indicated uniform TCI state is applied. If network entity 120 indicates a uniform TCI state, UE 110 may not report the replaced indicated uniform TCI state index. The target channel may be a channel to which the indicated uniform TCI state is applied. If network entity indicates more than one uniform TCI state (e.g., W (W>1) TCI states), UE 110 may indicate the replaced uniform TCI state index based on the W indicated TCI states. The following discussion... Figure 7AAn example of an indication initiated by a UE for a beam switch in response to one of the indicated TCI states is given below. Figure 7B An example of an indication initiated by a UE for beam switching in response to multiple indicated TCI states is shown.

[0140]

[0141] In some aspects, for beam switching based on a UE request, the UE may begin monitoring the network entity's response to the request X time slots or symbols after the first or last symbol of the request sent by UE 110. X can be predefined (e.g., X=0 or X=4) or configured by network entity 120 via RRC signaling. UE 110 may start or reset the watch timer. If UE 110 detects a response to the request, the UE may stop or reset the watch timer. After the watch timer expires, if the number of retransmissions of the request is less than the maximum number of retransmissions, the UE may retransmit the request.

[0142] In some aspects, at operation 314, the network entity may send a response to an instruction to perform a beam switching. The response may indicate acknowledgment of the instruction to perform a beam switching sent at operation 312. Network entity 120 may send the response as a PDCCH associated with a Private Radio Network Temporary Identifier (RNTI), as a PDCCH in a Private Search Space (SS), or a Control Resource Set (CORESET). The RNTI may be predefined or configured by network entity 120. Similarly, the SS or CORESET may be configured by network entity 120. In some aspects, network entity 120 may send a PDCCH as an uplink grant that schedules a new transmission of the same HARQ procedure as the Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) procedure used for PUSCH transmission, which includes the instruction to perform a beam switching sent by UE 110.

[0143] In some implementations, network entity 120 may also send at least one or more of the following parameters in response to an instruction to perform beam switching: Action delay or action time for beams reported / requested by the UE; Select from the reported SSBRI, CRI, and / or TCI for joint or individual uplink and downlink beam switching; An indication of whether to apply the new beam to uplink and / or downlink communications (e.g., uplink and / or downlink channels sharing the indicated uniform TCI state).

[0144] An indication of whether to apply the new beam to additional uplink and / or downlink channels (e.g., uplink and / or downlink channels that do not share the indicated uniform TCI state).

[0145] Network entity 120 can send the aforementioned additional information via DCI or MAC CE. This is discussed below. Figure 8A An example is shown of the selection of SSBRI, CRI, or TCI for joint uplink and downlink beam switching in response to an indication initiated by a UE for beam switching. The following discussion... Figure 8B An example is shown of the selection of SSBRI, CRI, or TCI for separate uplink and downlink beam switching in response to an instruction initiated by a UE for beam switching.

[0146] At operation 316, UE 110 may calculate one or more QCL parameters and / or uplink power control parameters for channels associated with one or more new beams. In some aspects, UE 110 may identify QCL parameters for downlink channels associated with new beams and uplink power control parameters for uplink channels associated with new beams.

[0147] In some aspects, network entity 120 can configure a second set of TRSs for QCL-Type A parameter identification (e.g., Doppler shift, Doppler spread, average delay, delay spread), wherein each SSB or CSI-RS in the first set can be associated with one TRS in the second set. In some aspects, network entity 120 can configure an associated TRS for each SSB or CSI-RS in the first set. In some other aspects, TRSs in the two sets are associated with an SSB or CSI-RS one-to-one. In such aspects, when determining or selecting an SSB or CSI-RS for beam switching, UE 110 can determine the QCL parameters based on the associated TRS. In yet another aspect, network entity 120 can configure a second set of TRSs for QCL-Type A parameter identification in the first set of configured TCI states, wherein network entity 120 can configure the TRS as the source reference signal indicated by QCL-Type A. This is discussed below. Figure 9 An example of an additional TRS set based on the QCL parameter identifier is shown.

[0148] In some respects, network entity 120 may configure a second set of TRSs for QCL-Type A parameter identification, wherein each TRS may be associated with a reported or selected SSBRI or CRI. Upon receiving a UE-initiated indication for beam switching or after sending a response to such indication, network entity 120 may dynamically update the beams used for the TRSs based on the reported or selected SSBRI or CRI.

[0149] In some aspects, network entity 120 may update the beams used for TRS based on the TRS resource set index and / or the order or index of the reported or selected SSBRI or CRI. In one example, network entity 120 may send a first TRS (the TRS with the lowest resource set index) based on the beam for the first reported or selected SSBRI or CRI. In some other examples, network entity 120 may indicate the beams used for each TRS via MAC CE or DCI based on the reported or selected SSBRI or CRI.

[0150] In some respects, the UE can constrain or limit the scheduling of PDSCH after a UE-initiated beam switch. In some examples, if UE 110 does not have a TRS for QCL-TypeA parameter identification, then network entity 120 can avoid scheduling PDSCH based on a modulation and code processing scheme (MCS) equal to or higher than a threshold after UE 110 switches to a new beam and before the UE applies the newly indicated TCI state. The threshold can be predefined (e.g., an MCS corresponding to 16QAM with a minimum code processing rate) or can be reported by UE 110 via UE capability information.

[0151] In some other respects, after UE 110 switches to the new beam and before the UE applies the newly indicated TCI state, network entity 120 can avoid scheduling PDSCHs with a number of layers equal to or higher than a threshold. The threshold can be predefined (e.g., 2) or can be reported by the UE via UE capability information.

[0152] In other respects, UE 110 can use the same QCL-TypeA parameters from the previously used joint / DL TCI state before applying the newly indicated TCI state.

[0153] The following discussion Figure 11 An example of scheduling constraints after beam switching and before TCI indication is given.

[0154] In addition to the QCL parameter identifiers discussed above, UE 110 can also identify power control parameters. In some aspects, network entity 120 can configure a list of power control parameter sets for power control parameter identification, wherein each SSB or CSI-RS in the first set is associated with a power control parameter set in the list. In some aspects, network entity 120 can configure an associated power parameter control set for each SSB or CSI-RS in the first set. In some other aspects, the power control parameter sets in the list are associated one-to-one with the SSBs or CSI-RS in the first set. In still other aspects, network entity 120 configures some or all of the power control parameters in the first set of configured TCI states. When an SSB or CSI-RS is indicated for beam switching, UE 110 can determine the uplink power control parameters. The power control parameters configured in each set may include at least one of P0, α, Path Loss Reference Signal (PL-RS), and Closed-Loop Index (CLI).

[0155] In some other respects, UE 110 may determine the PL-RS based on the indicated SSBRI or CRI. The SSB or CSI-RS indicated by the SSBRI / CRI can be used as the PL-RS.

[0156] In some implementations, network entity 120 can configure common P0 and α for the indicated SSBRI or CRI. In other implementations, network entity 120 can configure individual P0 and α for the indicated SSBRI or CRI corresponding to different sets of SSBs or CSI-RS used for beam measurements.

[0157] In some aspects, network entity 120 can configure a common CLI for the indicated SSBRI or CRI. In some other implementations, network entity 120 can configure a separate CLI for the SSBRI or CRI corresponding to a different set of SSBs or CSI-RS used for beam measurement. In yet another aspect, network entity 120 can configure the CLI for each of the indicated SSBRI or CRI via RRC signaling, MAC CE, or DCI (e.g., in response to an indication initiated by a UE for beam switching).

[0158] At operation 318, UE 110 and the network entity communicate using a new beam specified by an indication initiated by the UE for beam switching. UE 110 may communicate with network entity 120 based on the QCL parameters and / or uplink power control parameters for the corresponding channel calculated at operation 316. In some cases, the UE may not recognize the QCL parameters for the downlink channel associated with the new beam and / or the uplink power control parameters for the uplink channel associated with the new beam. In this case, the UE may use the default set of QCL parameters and / or the default set of uplink power control parameters.

[0159] Figure 4 This is a flowchart illustrating an example UE operation for a beam switching method 400 initiated by a UE. The example operation of method 400 can be, for example, performed by... Figures 1 to 3 UE 110 execution.

[0160] At box 402, and as mentioned above... Figure 3 As described in operation 302, the UE may send UE capability information to a network entity. In some aspects, the UE may send UE capability information indicating whether the UE supports UE-initiated beam switching, and if so, indicating the type of UE-initiated beam switching supported by UE 110. For example, UE 110 may indicate that the UE supports beam switching initiated using a UE request for beam switching (request-based beam switching), an indication for beam switching in a beam switching report (report-based beam switching), or both request-based and report-based UE-initiated beam switching. The UE capability information may also include: the maximum number of SSB or CSI-RS resources in the set of beam measurements for UE-report-based or request-based beam switching; the maximum number of SSB or CSI-RS resource sets for beam measurements for UE-report-based or request-based beam switching; the maximum number of beams reported in the beam report; or the maximum number of beams requested in the UE request.

[0161] At box 404, and as mentioned above... Figure 3 As described in operation 304, the UE may receive configuration for UE-initiated beam switching. In some aspects, the configuration information may include: a first set of SSBs or CSI-RS for beam measurement; a first set of TCI states for beam measurement and / or QCL and / or power control parameter identification; or a beam switching scheme (e.g., whether it indicates whether a common beam or a separate beam is used for beam switching for uplink and downlink channels).

[0162] For report-based beam switching, the configuration information may also include: an indicator indicating whether beam reports are used for beam switching; the number of reported SSBRI, CRI, or TCI states; or uplink resources used for beam reporting (e.g., PUCCH resources or configuration-authorized PUSCH (CG-PUSCH)).

[0163] For request-based beam switching, the configuration for UE-initiated beam switching may include: the number of requested SSBRI, CRI, or TCI; a first threshold for identifying the new beam; a second threshold for determining the beam quality of the current beam; the number of beam switching request events for sending the beam switching request; or the interval for detecting beam switching request events.

[0164] At box 406, and as mentioned above... Figure 3 As described in operation 306, if the UE is configured for report-based beam switching, the UE can receive triggers for beam reports for beam switching from a network entity. For example, the UE can receive a MAC CE or DCI that triggers the beam report. In some aspects, the UE can receive a MAC CE that activates or deactivates semi-persistent beam reports for beam switching. In some other aspects, the UE can receive a DCI that triggers aperiodic beam reports for beam switching. In some aspects, when beam reports for beam switching are activated or triggered, the MAC CE or DCI can indicate one or more of the UE-initiated beam switching configuration parameters discussed above.

[0165] At box 408, and as mentioned above... Figure 3 As described in Operation 308, the UE receives a set of one or more SSBs or CSI-RSs from a network entity for beam measurement.

[0166] At box 410, and as mentioned above... Figure 3As described in operation 310, the UE detects a beam switching event. As discussed above, a beam switching event can be detected based on satisfying one or more of the following criteria: (A) the difference in beam quality between the current beam and the candidate new beam (e.g., the difference between L1-RSRP, L1-SINR, BLER, CQI, or SE) is higher than a first threshold relative to any current beam in the current beam. In some other aspects, the difference in beam quality may be relative to the current beam with the best beam quality among all current beams in the current beam, or (B) the beam quality of one or any current beam (e.g., L1-RSRP, L1-SINR, CQI, or SE) is lower than a second threshold, or the BLER of one or any current beam is higher than a third threshold. In some other aspects, the beam quality of the beam with the best beam quality among the current beams is compared to the second or third threshold.

[0167] In some respects and as referenced Figure 6 As described, the UE can be configured to detect N consecutive beam switching events during the detection interval before initiating a beam switching.

[0168] At box 412, and as mentioned above... Figure 3 As described in operation 312, the UE sends an indication to network entity 120 to perform a beam handover from one or more current beams to one or more new beams. In some aspects, the UE may send a beam report identifying one or more new beams for the beam handover. In some other aspects, the UE may send a request to perform a beam handover. In some aspects, the indication to perform a beam handover may include an indicator identifying the requested new beam. As an example, UE 110 may send one or more indices associated with the new beam from a first set of configured SSBs, CSI-RS, or TCIs in the report or request. In some aspects, the indication to perform a beam handover may include an indicator identifying the new beam. In some aspects, UE 110 may indicate at least one SSBRI, CRI, or TCI index indicating the new beam.

[0169] At box 414, and as mentioned above... Figure 3 As described in operation 314, the UE may receive a response from a network entity to an instruction to perform a beam switching. The response may indicate acknowledgment of the instruction to perform a beam switching sent at block 412. In some aspects, the UE may receive an action delay or action time for a beam reported / requested by the UE, and / or an SSBRI, CRI, and / or TCI selected from the reported SSBRI, CRI, and / or TCI for joint or individual uplink and downlink beam switching.

[0170] At box 416, and as mentioned above... Figure 3 As described in operation 316, the UE can calculate one or more QCL parameters and / or uplink power control parameters for channels associated with one or more new beams. In some aspects, the UE can identify QCL parameters for downlink channels associated with new beams and uplink power control parameters for uplink channels associated with new beams.

[0171] At box 418, and as mentioned above... Figure 3 As described in operation 318, the UE communicates with the network entity using a new beam specified by an indication initiated by the UE for beam switching. The UE may communicate with the network entity 120 based on the QCL parameters and / or uplink power control parameters for the corresponding channel calculated at block 416.

[0172] Figure 5 This is a flowchart illustrating example network entity operations for a UE-initiated beam switching method 500. The example operations of method 500 can be, for example, performed by... Figures 1 to 3 UE 110 execution.

[0173] At box 502, and as mentioned above... Figure 3 As described in operation 302, a network entity may receive UE capability information from a UE. In some aspects, the network entity may receive UE capability information indicating whether the UE supports UE-initiated beam switching, and if so, indicating the type of UE-initiated beam switching supported by UE 110. For example, UE 110 may indicate that it supports request-based beam switching, report-based beam switching, or both. In some aspects, the network entity may receive UE capability information including information such as regarding... Figure 4 The similar UE capabilities described in box 402.

[0174] At box 504, and as mentioned above... Figure 3 As described in operation 304, the network entity may send configuration for UE-initiated beam switching. In some aspects, the configuration information may include: a first set of SSBs or CSI-RS for beam measurement; a first set of TCI states for beam measurement and / or QCL and / or power control parameter identification; or a beam switching scheme (e.g., whether it indicates whether a common beam or a separate beam is used for beam switching for uplink and downlink channels).

[0175] For report-based beam switching, the configuration information may also include: an indicator indicating whether beam reports are used for beam switching; the number of reported SSBRI, CRI, or TCI states; or uplink resources (e.g., PUCCH resources or CG-PUSCH) used for beam reporting.

[0176] For request-based beam switching, the configuration for UE-initiated beam switching may include: the number of requested SSBRI, CRI, or TCI; a first threshold for identifying the new beam; a second threshold for determining the beam quality of the current beam; the number of beam switching request events for sending the beam switching request; or the interval for detecting beam switching request events.

[0177] At box 506, and as mentioned above... Figure 3 As described in operation 306, if the UE is configured for report-based beam switching, the network entity may send a trigger to the UE for beam reporting for beam switching. For example, the network entity may send a MAC CE or DCI to trigger beam reporting. In some aspects, the network entity may send a MAC CE to activate or deactivate semi-persistent beam reporting for beam switching. In some other aspects, the network entity may send a DCI to trigger aperiodic beam reporting for beam switching. In some aspects, the MAC CE or DCI may indicate one or more of the beam switching configuration parameters initiated by the UE for beam switching.

[0178] At box 508, and as mentioned above... Figure 3 As described in Operation 308, the network entity sends a set of one or more SSBs or CSI-RS to the UE for beam measurement.

[0179] At box 512, and as mentioned above... Figure 3 As described in operation 312, the network entity receives from the UE an indication to perform a beam handover from one or more current beams to one or more new beams. In some aspects, the network entity may receive a beam report identifying one or more new beams for the beam handover. In some other aspects, the network entity may receive a request to perform a beam handover. In some aspects, the indication to perform a beam handover may include an indicator identifying the requested new beam. As an example, the network entity may receive one or more indices associated with the new beam from a first set of configured SSBs, CSI-RS, or TCIs in the report or request. As discussed above, in some aspects, the indication to perform a beam handover may include an indicator identifying the new beam. In some aspects, the indication to perform a beam handover may indicate at least one SSBRI, CRI, or TCI index identifying the new beam.

[0180] At box 514, and as mentioned above... Figure 3 As described in operation 314, the network entity may send a response to the UE indicating an instruction to perform a beam switching. The response may indicate acknowledgment of the instruction to perform a beam switching received at block 512. As discussed above, in some aspects, the network entity may send an action delay or action time for a beam reported / requested by the UE, and / or an SSBRI, CRI, and / or TCI selected from the reported SSBRI, CRI, and / or TCI for joint or separate uplink and downlink beam switching.

[0181] At box 518, and as mentioned above... Figure 3 As described in operation 318, the network entity uses a new beam specified by an indication initiated by the UE for beam switching to communicate with the UE.

[0182] Figures 7A to 7D , Figure 8A , Figure 8B and Figures 9 to 11 This is a conceptual diagram illustrating various examples of the aspects of this disclosure described above. Figures 7A to 7D , Figure 8A , Figure 8B and Figures 9 to 11 This includes a timeline illustrating the relative timing of various operations performed during a beam switching initiated by the UE. The timeline may not be drawn to scale, and the durations between various operations may differ from those shown in the figure. Figures 7A to 7D , Figure 8A and Figure 8B The example concept diagram shown represents thirty-two beams and is illustrated with respect to the azimuth (AoD) and zenith (ZoD) departure angles. In these examples, the thirty-two beams (labeled 0-31) are represented by a grid, with the beams situated within a grid based on AoD (X-axis) and ZoD (Y-axis).

[0183] Figure 7A This is a diagram illustrating an example of beam switching based on the indicated TCI state. Figure 7A In the example shown, grid 700 represents the beam state before beam switching. Grid 705 represents the beam state after beam switching. Timeline 710 represents the timing of various operations before and after beam switching.

[0184] In this example, beams 18 and 11 are the beams currently used for communication between the UE and the network entity. At time T0, the TCI indication is shown as TCI state 11 associated with SSB or CSI-RS 11 and TCI state 18 associated with SSB or CSI-RS 18. Between times T1 and T2, the UE performs beam measurement operations to measure beam quality based on SSB or CSI-RS 0, SSB or CSI-RS 1, ..., SSB or CSI-RS 31. At time T3, the UE initiates a beam switch, indicating that beam 28 will replace beam 18. For example, the UE may indicate that the target channel used for the first reported SSBRI, CRI, or TCI (e.g., SSB, CSI-RS, or TCI 28) should replace the first indicated TCI state (TCI state 18). Figure 7A In the example shown, the action time for beam switching is T4. This action time can be indicated by a network entity or based on an action time requested by the UE. Mesh 705 illustrates the beam state after beam switching at time T4.

[0185] Figure 7B This is a diagram illustrating an example of beam switching based on multiple indicated TCI states. Figure 7B In the example shown, grid 720 represents the beam state before beam switching. Grid 725 represents the beam state after beam switching. Timeline 730 represents the timing of various operations before and after beam switching.

[0186] In this example, beams 18 and 11 are the beams currently used for communication between the UE and network entities. At time T0, the TCI indication is shown as TCI state 11 associated with SSB or CSI-RS 11 and TCI state 18 associated with SSB or CSI-RS 18. Between times T1 and T2, the UE performs beam measurement operations to measure beam quality based on SSB or CSI-RS 0, SSB or CSI-RS 1, ..., SSB or CSI-RS 31. At time T3, the UE initiates beam switching using multiple (two) TCI states, indicating that beam 28 will replace beam 11 and beam 21 will replace beam 18. For example, the UE may instruct that the target channel used for the first report (SSBRI, CRI, or TCI 28) should replace the first indicated TCI state (TCI state 11), and the target channel used for the second report (SSBRI, CRI, or TCI 21) should replace the second indicated TCI state (TCI state 18). Figure 7BIn the example shown, the action time for beam switching is T4. This action time can be indicated by a network entity or based on an action time requested by the UE. Grid 725 illustrates the beam state after beam switching at time T4.

[0187] Figure 7C This is a diagram illustrating an example of a UE-initiated joint uplink and downlink beam switching. Figure 7C In the example shown, grid 740 represents the beam state before beam switching. Grid 745 represents the beam state after beam switching. Timeline 750 represents the timing of various operations before and after beam switching.

[0188] As discussed above, the UE can report the beam quality of N beams and can indicate M of the N beams for beam switching. Therefore, M beams are used for beam switching, and NM beams are used for normal beam reporting. In this example, before the beam switching, beam 9 is currently used for downlink and uplink beam indication. At times T0 to T1, the UE performs beam measurement operations to measure beam quality based on SSB or CSI-RS 0, SSB or CSI-RS 1, ..., SSB or CSI-RS 31. At time T2, the UE initiates beam switching via beam reporting. At time T3, the UE sends a beam report indicating the quality of beams 11, 12, 18, and 28, and indicating that beam 28 will replace beam 9 for uplink and downlink beam indication. Therefore, in this example, N=4 and M=1. Grid 745 illustrates that after beam switching at time T4, beam 28 has replaced beam 9.

[0189] Figure 7D This is a diagram illustrating an example of a separate uplink and downlink beam switching initiated by the UE. Figure 7D In the example shown, grid 760 represents the beam state before beam switching. Grid 765 represents the beam state after beam switching. Timeline 770 represents the timing of various operations before and after beam switching.

[0190] This example is similar to Figure 7CThe example shown is similar, except that instead of the UE providing joint uplink and downlink beam indications in the beam report, the UE provides separate uplink and downlink beam indications. In this example, before the beam switch, beam 9 is currently used for downlink indication and beam 2 is used for uplink beam indication. At times T0 to T1, the UE performs beam measurement operations to measure beam quality based on SSB or CSI-RS 0, SSB or CSI-RS 1, ..., SSB or CSI-RS 31. At time T3, the UE initiates a beam switch via the beam report. The beam report indicates the quality of beams 11, 12, 18, and 28, indicates that beam 28 will replace beam 2 for downlink beam indication, and indicates that beam 12 will replace beam 9 for uplink beam indication. Grid 765 illustrates that after the beam switch at time T4, beam 28 has replaced beam 2 and beam 12 has replaced beam 9.

[0191] Figure 8A This is a diagram illustrating an example of joint uplink and downlink beam switching in response to a beam switching initiated by a UE. Figure 8A In the example shown, grid 800 represents the beam state before beam switching. Grid 805 represents the beam state after beam switching. Timeline 810 represents the timing of various operations before and after beam switching.

[0192] As discussed above, the UE can report the beam quality of N beams and can indicate M of the N beams for beam switching. In this example, before the beam switching, beam 9 is currently used for downlink and uplink beam indication. At times T0 to T1, the UE performs beam measurement operations to measure beam quality based on SSB or CSI-RS 0, SSB or CSI-RS 1, ..., SSB or CSI-RS 31. At time T2, the UE initiates beam switching via beam reporting. The report indicates the quality of beams 11, 12, 18, and 28, and indicates that beam 28 will replace beam 9 for uplink and downlink beam indication. At time T3, the network entity sends a response to the beam report. The response indicates that, as requested, beam 28 will replace beam 9 for uplink and downlink beam indication at the action time. Grid 805 illustrates that after beam switching at time T4, beam 28 has replaced beam 9.

[0193] Figure 8B This is a diagram illustrating examples of separate uplink and downlink beam switching in response to a beam switching initiated by a UE. Figure 8BIn the example shown, grid 820 represents the beam state before beam switching. Grid 825 represents the beam state after beam switching. Timeline 830 represents the timing of various operations before and after beam switching.

[0194] This example is similar to Figure 8A The example shown is similar, except that instead of the network response to the UE-initiated beam switching indicating joint uplink and downlink beam indication in the beam report, the network entity indicates separate uplink and downlink beam indications in the response. In this example, prior to the beam switch, beam 9 is currently used for downlink indication and beam 2 is used for uplink beam indication. At times T0 to T1, the UE performs beam measurement operations to measure beam quality based on SSB or CSI-RS 0, SSB or CSI-RS 1, ..., SSB or CSI-RS 31. At time T2, the UE initiates a beam switch via the beam report. The beam report indicates the quality of beams 11, 12, 18, and 28, indicates that beam 28 will replace beam 2 for uplink beam indication, and indicates that beam 12 will replace beam 9 for downlink beam indication. At time T3, the network entity sends a response to the beam report. In response to the instruction, as requested, beam 28 will replace beam 2 at the action time for uplink beam indication, and beam 12 will replace beam 9 at the action time for downlink beam indication. Mesh 765 illustrates that after beam switching at time T4, beam 28 has replaced beam 2 and beam 12 has replaced beam 9.

[0195] Figure 9 This is a diagram illustrating an example timeline 900 for using an additional TRS set based on QCL parameter identification. In this example, at times T0 to T1, the UE measures beam quality based on SSB or CSI-RS 0, SSB or CSI-RS 1, ..., SSB or CSI-RS 31. At time T2, the UE initiates a report-based or request-based beam handover via a transmission to the network entity. The report or request indicates that a new beam associated with SSBRI 12 or CRI 12 will replace the current beam. In response to the beam handover, the network entity configures the UE to use TRS 12 for the QCL parameter identification of the new beam associated with SSBRI 12 or CRI 12. At times T3 to T5, the UE can use TRS 0, ..., TRS 12, ..., and TRS 31 for the QCL parameter identification of its associated beam.

[0196] Figure 10This is a diagram illustrating example timeline 1000 for an additional TRS with dynamic QCL updates based on QCL parameter identifiers. In this example, at times T0 to T1, the UE measures beam quality based on SSB or CSI-RS 0, SSB or CSI-RS 1, ..., SSB or CSI-RS 31. At times T2 and T3, the network entity sends TRS 0 associated with the first current beam and TRS 1 associated with the second current beam, respectively. At time T4, the UE initiates a report-based or request-based beam handover via a transmission to the network entity. The report or request indicates that the beam associated with SSBRI 8 or CRI 8 will replace the first current beam, and indicates that the beam associated with SSBRI 12 or CRI 12 will replace the second current beam. In response to beam switching, at time T5, the network entity configures the UE to use TRS 0 for the QCL parameter identifier of the new beam associated with SSBRI 8 or CRI 8. At time T6, the network entity configures the UE to use TRS 1 for the QCL parameter identifier of the new beam associated with SSBRI 12 or CRI 12.

[0197] Figure 11 This is a diagram illustrating example timeline 1100, including scheduling constraints following beam switching. Figure 11 In the example shown, between times T0 and T1, the UE measures beam quality based on SSB or CSI-RS 0, SSB or CSI-RS 1, ..., SSB or CSI-RS 31. At time T2, the UE initiates a beam handover via a beam report. The beam report indicates that a new beam associated with SSBRI 8 or CRI 8 replaces the current beam and indicates the action time T3. In this example, the network entity does not send the TCI indication until time T4. Therefore, the network entity indicates an action time later than T4 (e.g., T5).

[0198] It should be noted that throughout this disclosure, the expression "X / Y" can include the meaning of "X or Y". It should be noted that throughout this disclosure, the expression "X / Y" can include the meaning of "X and Y". It should be noted that throughout this disclosure, the expression "X / Y" can include the meaning of "X and / or Y". It should be noted that throughout this disclosure, the expression "(A) B" or "B (A)" can include the concept of "B only". It should be noted that throughout this disclosure, the expression "(A) B" or "B (A)" can include the concept of "A+B" or "B+A".

[0199] It should be noted that some or all of the aforementioned or following implementations may be combined or combined to form a new or another implementation.

[0200] It should be noted that the foregoing or following techniques can be used to solve at least (but not limited to) the problems or scenarios mentioned in this disclosure.

[0201] The following additional considerations apply to the foregoing and the following discussion.

[0202] It should be noted that any two or more of the foregoing or following paragraphs, (sub)bullets, points, actions or claims described in each method / technique / implementation may be logically, reasonably and appropriately combined to form a particular method.

[0203] It should be noted that any sentence, paragraph, (sub)bullet, point, action, or claim described in each of the foregoing or following techniques / implementations / concepts may be implemented independently and separately to form a particular method. Dependencies such as “based on,” “more specifically,” “wherein,” etc., in the techniques / implementations / concepts mentioned in this disclosure are merely one possible implementation that does not limit the particular method.

[0204] Certain techniques described in this disclosure are included as logic or multiple components or modules. A module can be a software module (such as code stored on a non-transitory machine-readable medium) or a hardware module. A hardware module is a tangible unit capable of performing certain operations and can be configured or arranged in a particular manner. A hardware module may include a dedicated circuit system or logic (such as a dedicated processor, such as a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC)) permanently configured to perform certain operations. A hardware module may also include programmable logic or circuit systems temporarily configured by software to perform certain operations (e.g., contained within a general-purpose processor or other programmable processor). The decision to implement a hardware module in a dedicated and permanently configured circuit system or in a temporarily configured circuit system (e.g., configured by software) may be driven by cost and time considerations.

[0205] Figures 1 to 6 , Figures 7A to 7D , Figure 8A , Figure 8B and Figures 9 to 11 The operations described herein are examples intended to aid in understanding exemplary implementations and should not be used to limit potential implementations or the scope of the claims. Some implementations may include additional operations, fewer operations, operations in parallel or different orders, and several different operations.

[0206] As used herein, the terms “component” and “module” are intended to be interpreted broadly as hardware, firmware, or a combination of hardware and software. As used herein, a processor is implemented in hardware, firmware, or a combination of hardware and software. As used herein, the phrase “based on” is intended to be interpreted broadly as “at least partially based on”.

[0207] This article describes several aspects in conjunction with thresholds. As used in this article, meeting a threshold can mean that the value is greater than the threshold, greater than or equal to the threshold, less than the threshold, less than or equal to the threshold, equal to the threshold, or not equal to the threshold.

[0208] As used herein, the phrase “at least one of” or “one or more of” in the list of references refers to any combination of these items, including a single member. For example, “at least one of the following: a, b, or c” is intended to cover the following possibilities: only a, only b, only c, a combination of a and b, a combination of a and c, a combination of b and c, and a combination of a, b, and c.

[0209] In this disclosure, the term "can" indicates capability, or alternatively, a possible implementation option. The term "may" indicates permission, or a possible implementation option.

[0210] The various illustrative components, logic, logic blocks, modules, circuits, operations, and algorithmic processes described in connection with the implementations disclosed herein can be implemented as electronic hardware, firmware, software, or a combination of hardware, firmware, or software, including the structures disclosed herein and their structural equivalents. The interchangeability of hardware, firmware, and software has been generally described in terms of functionality, and has been illustrated in the various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and processes described above. Whether such functionality is implemented in hardware, firmware, or software depends on the specific application and design constraints imposed on the system as a whole.

[0211] Hardware and data processing apparatuses for implementing the various illustrative components, logic, logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in conjunction with the aspects disclosed herein can be implemented or executed using general-purpose single-chip or multi-chip processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) or other programmable logic devices (PLDs), discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof. A general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor, or any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor can also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors combined with a DSP core, or any other such configuration. In some implementations, specific processes, operations, and methods can be performed by a circuit system specific to a given function.

[0212] As described above, in some aspects, implementations of the subject matter described herein can be implemented as software. For example, the various functions of the components disclosed herein, or the various blocks or steps of the methods, operations, processes, or algorithms disclosed herein, can be implemented as one or more modules of one or more computer programs. Such computer programs may include non-transitory processor-executable instructions or computer-executable instructions encoded on one or more tangible processor-readable or computer-readable storage media for execution by, or control of, a data processing apparatus including the apparatus described herein. By way of example, and not limitation, such storage media may include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to store program code in the form of instructions or data structures. Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of storage media. When implemented in software, the technology may be provided as part of an operating system, a library used by multiple applications, a specific software application, etc. The software may be executed by one or more general-purpose processors or one or more special-purpose processors.

[0213] As used herein, the terms “user device,” “user equipment” (e.g., UE 110), “wireless communication device,” “mobile communication device,” “communication device,” or “mobile device” refer to any or all of the following: cellular phone, smartphone, portable computing device, personal or mobile multimedia player, laptop computer, tablet computer, smartbook, Internet of Things (IoT) device, handheld computer, wireless email receiver, cellular phone with multimedia Internet support, wireless game controller, display subsystem, driver assistance system, vehicle controller, vehicle system controller, vehicle communication system, infotainment system, vehicle telematics system or subsystem, vehicle display system or subsystem, vehicle data controller, point-of-sale (POS) terminal, health monitoring device, drone, camera, media streaming dongle or other personal media device, wearable device (such as a smartwatch), wireless hotspot, femtocell, broadband router, or other type of router, as well as similar electronic devices including programmable processors and memories configured to perform the operations described herein. Furthermore, in some cases, the user device may be embedded in electronic systems such as a vehicle’s main unit or an advanced driver assistance system (ADAS). Furthermore, mobile internet devices (MIDs). Depending on the type, a user device may include one or more general-purpose processors, computer-readable storage, a user interface, one or more network interfaces, one or more sensors, etc.

[0214] Various modifications to the implementations described in this disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein can be applied to other implementations without departing from the spirit or scope of this disclosure. Therefore, the claims are not intended to be limited to the implementations shown herein, but are given the widest scope consistent with this disclosure, the principles disclosed herein, and the novel features.

[0215] Furthermore, the various features described in this specification in the context of individual implementations can also be implemented in combination within a single implementation. Conversely, the various features described in the context of a single implementation can also be implemented individually or in any suitable sub-combination in multiple implementations. Thus, although features may be described above as functioning in a particular combination and even initially claimed in this way, in some cases one or more features from the claimed combination can be removed from the combination, and the claimed combination may involve sub-combinations or variations of sub-combinations.

[0216] Similarly, although operations are depicted in a specific order in the accompanying drawings, this should not be construed as requiring such operations to be performed in the specific order shown or in sequential order, or requiring all illustrated operations to be performed to achieve the desired result. Furthermore, the drawings may schematically depict one or more example processes in the form of a flowchart or table. However, other operations not depicted may be incorporated into the schematically shown example processes. For example, one or more additional operations may be performed before, after, simultaneously with, or between any illustrated operations. In some cases, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Moreover, the separation of the various system components in the implementations described above should not be construed as requiring such separation in all implementations, and it should be understood that the described program components and systems can generally be integrated together in a single software product or packaged into multiple software products. Additionally, other implementations are within the scope of the appended claims. In some cases, the actions set forth in the claims may be performed in a different order and still achieve the desired result.

[0217] The foregoing disclosure provides illustrations and descriptions, but is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the aspects to the precise form disclosed. Modifications and variations can be made based on the foregoing disclosure, or modifications and variations can be derived from practice of these aspects. Although aspects of this disclosure have been described with reference to various examples, any combination of aspects from any example is also within the scope of this disclosure. The examples in this disclosure are provided for illustrative purposes only.

Claims

1. A method for wireless communication by a user equipment (UE) (110), comprising: Receive (304) a beam switching configuration initiated by the UE from network entity (120), the beam switching configuration initiated by the UE indicating multiple reference signals RS associated with multiple beams; Receive (308) one or more RS associated with one or more beams from the network entity; Based on the one or more RSs, send (312) an instruction to the network entity to switch from communication via at least one first beam to communication via at least one second beam; as well as Communicating with the network entity via the at least one second beam (318).

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the beam switching configuration initiated by the UE includes one or more of the following: An indicator that indicates whether beam reports are used for beam switching; The number of reported Synchronization Signal Block (SSB) Resource Indicator (SSBRI), Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS) Resource Indicator (CRI), or Transmission Configuration Indicator (TCI) indices; The first uplink resource for beam reporting used for beam switching; The amount of beam reports used for beam switching; The target uplink or downlink channel used for beam switching; The first set of one or more SSBs or CSI-RSs used for beam measurement; The second set of CSI-RS for the tracking reference signal TRS used for quasi-common QCL TypeA parameter identification; Regarding the action delay of the beam switching; A set of uplink power control parameters used for uplink power control after beam switching; The number of SSBRI, CRI, or TCI indexes requested; A first threshold for identifying the at least one second beam; A second threshold used to determine the beam quality of the at least one first beam; The number of beam switching request events used to trigger beam switching requests; The detection interval for beam switching event detection; Indicate whether the indicator includes a beam quality indicator with an SSBRI, CRI, or TCI index associated with the beam; The second uplink resource used to send beam switching requests; A scheduling request (SR) used to request uplink authorization for beam switching request transmission; The maximum number of retransmissions for a beam switching request; or A monitoring window used to respond to the beam switching request.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising: The UE detects (310) at least one beam switching event based on the one or more RSs; wherein the indication to send the switching is in response to the detection of the at least one beam switching event.

4. The method according to claim 3, further comprising: Calculate one or more beam quality measurements associated with one or more of the plurality of beams, the one or more beam quality measurements including at least one first beam quality measurement associated with the at least one first beam and at least one second beam quality measurement associated with the at least one second beam; and Detecting the at least one beam switching event includes at least one of the following: Determined that the difference between the at least one first beam quality measurement and the at least one second beam quality measurement exceeds a first threshold difference; or It is determined that the quality measurement of at least one first beam is below a second threshold.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the at least one first beam quality measurement and the at least one second beam quality measurement comprise one or more of the following: Layer 1 reference signal received power L1-RSRP; Layer 1 signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (L1-SINR); Channel Quality Indicator (CQI); Assume a block error rate (BLER); or Spectral efficiency (SE).

6. The method of claim 4, wherein calculating the one or more beam quality measurements comprises one or more of the following: The one or more beam quality measurements are calculated based on the one or more RS; The one or more beam quality measurements are calculated based on downlink reference signals configured in one or more TCI states; The one or more beam quality measurements are calculated based on the TRS used for QCL indication; The one or more beam quality measurements are calculated based on the first SSB, which is quasi-co-located with the CSI-RS quasi-co-located with the QCL indication used in the first TCI state. or The one or more beam quality measurements are calculated based on the second SSB indicated by the QCL in the second TCI state.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising: The network entity sends UE capability information, which indicates whether the UE supports beam switching initiated by the UE.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, further comprising one or more of the following: The optimal UE beam for each SSBRI, CRI, or TCI index is identified in the switching instruction. Identify the QCL parameter for each SSBRI, CRI, or TCI index in the switching instruction; or The switching instruction identifies the Layer 3 Reference Signal Received Power (L3-RSRP) for each SSBRI, CRI, or TCI index.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, further comprising: Detect a predetermined or configurable number of beam switching events within a predetermined or configurable detection interval.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the RS comprises at least one of a synchronization signal block SSB or a channel state information reference signal CSI-RS.

11. The method of any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the indication for switching includes at least one of an SSB resource indicator (SSBRI) associated with the at least one second beam, a CSI-RS resource indicator (CRI) associated with the at least one second beam, or a transmission configuration indicator (TCI) index associated with the at least one second beam.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising: The quasi-co-location QCL parameters are determined based on one or more of the following: The tracking reference signal TRS indicated by the SSBRI, the CRI, or the TCI index, or The configured TRS; as well as The QCL parameters are applied to communication with the network entity via the at least one second beam.

13. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein sending the switching instruction includes sending the instruction to the network entity in a beam report.

14. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein sending the switching instruction comprises: The instruction is sent to the network entity in the request to switch from the at least one first beam to the at least one second beam.

15. A method for wireless communication by a network entity (120), comprising: Send (304) a UE-initiated beam switching configuration to the user equipment (UE) (110), the UE-initiated beam switching configuration indicating multiple reference signals RS associated with multiple beams; Send (308) one or more RS associated with one or more beams to the UE; The UE receives (312) an instruction to switch from communication via at least one first beam to communication via at least one second beam; as well as Communicating with the UE via the at least one second beam (318).

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising: Sending a response to the UE in response to receiving the handover indication, the response including one or more of the following: Action delay or action time for switching to communication via the at least one second beam; In the handover indication, one or more Synchronization Block SSB Resource Indicators (SSBRI), Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS) Resource Indicators (CRI), or one or more Transmission Configuration Indicators (TCI) indices are received from the UE; or Another indication of the target uplink or downlink channel associated with the at least one second beam.

17. The method of claim 15 or 16, wherein the UE-initiated beam switching configuration includes one or more of the following: An indicator that indicates whether beam reports are used for beam switching; The number of reported Synchronization Signal Block (SSB) Resource Indicator (SSBRI), Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS) Resource Indicator (CRI), or Transmission Configuration Indicator (TCI) indices; The first uplink resource for beam reporting used for beam switching; The amount of beam reports used for beam switching; The target uplink or downlink channel used for beam switching; The first set of one or more SSBs or CSI-RSs used for beam measurement; The second set of CSI-RS for the tracking reference signal TRS used for quasi-common QCL TypeA parameter identification; Regarding the action delay of the beam switching; A set of uplink power control parameters used for uplink power control after beam switching; The number of SSBRI, CRI, or TCI indexes requested; A first threshold for identifying the at least one second beam; A second threshold used to determine the beam quality of the at least one first beam; The number of beam switching request events used to trigger beam switching requests; The detection interval for beam switching event detection; Indicate whether the indicator includes a beam quality indicator with an SSBRI, CRI, or TCI index associated with the beam; The second uplink resource used to send beam switching requests; A scheduling request (SR) used to request uplink authorization for beam switching request transmission; The maximum number of retransmissions for a beam switching request; or A monitoring window used to respond to the beam switching request.

18. An apparatus comprising: Communication unit; as well as A processing system configured to control the communication unit to implement any of the methods according to claims 1 to 17.

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