Conditional reconfiguration failure recovery

Abstract

An apparatus comprises means for receiving conditional reconfiguration information for execution by a user equipment during a connection between the user equipment and a primary node, where the conditional reconfiguration information comprises a plurality of radio resource control (RRC) configurations associated with candidate secondary nodes and comprises a reconfiguration failure recovery indication; in response to a reconfiguration failure associated with a first RRC configuration of the plurality of RRC configurations, evaluating a condition associated with a second RRC configuration of the plurality of RRC configurations according to the reconfiguration failure recovery indication; and performing a second RRC configuration associated with one of the candidate secondary nodes according to the satisfaction of the condition.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The examples disclosed herein relate to conditional reconfiguration failure recovery. Some examples relate to conditional RRC reconfiguration failure recovery. Background Technology

[0002] Multiple Wireless Dual Connectivity (MR-DC) enables User Equipment (UE) with multiple receivers / transmitters to utilize resources provided by different network nodes. During dual connectivity, the UE stores its configuration.

[0003] Established dual connectivity can be reconfigured by sending reconfiguration information. In the 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) system, reconfiguration information is called RRC (Radio Resource Control) reconfiguration message or RRC reconfiguration message.

[0004] In some cases, reconfiguration information is conditional reconfiguration information. For example, an RRC reconfiguration message sent to the UE may include multiple configurations for different network cells, and execution conditions related to the radio signal strength and / or quality of that cell. The UE monitors the execution conditions, and when a condition is met, the UE executes the configuration associated with that condition.

[0005] In response to a failure when the UE attempts to apply one of these configurations, the RRC reconfiguration message may need to be prepared again. Summary of the Invention

[0006] Examples are provided, based on various, but not necessarily all, examples as claimed in the appended claims.

[0007] According to various, but not necessarily all, examples, an apparatus is provided that includes components for the following: Receive conditional reconfiguration information for the user equipment to perform during the connection between the user equipment and the master node, wherein the conditional reconfiguration information includes multiple radio resource control (RRC) configurations associated with candidate secondary nodes and includes a reconfiguration failure recovery indication; In response to a reconfiguration failure associated with a first RRC configuration among multiple RRC configurations, conditions associated with a second RRC configuration among multiple RRC configurations are evaluated based on a reconfiguration failure recovery indication; and Execute the second RRC configuration associated with one of the candidate secondary nodes based on the fulfillment of the conditions.

[0008] In some, but not all, examples, the device is a user equipment.

[0009] In some, but not all, examples, reconfiguration failure recovery indications include one or more of the following: Instructions used to attempt recovery in response to reconfiguration failure by at least evaluating the conditions associated with the second RRC configuration; Recovery conditions are based at least in part on wireless signal measurements, and the evaluation is performed conditionally on the satisfaction of the recovery conditions; or The number of allowed recovery attempts.

[0010] In some, but not all, examples, the device includes components for at least one of the following: Determine whether the master node communication link is available, wherein the evaluation is performed on the condition that the master node communication link is available; A subset of multiple RRC configurations, including the first RRC configuration, is rejected based on the determination that reconfiguration has failed. Send a failure message in response to reconfiguration failure;

[0011] In some, but not all, examples, the transmission is initiated by a reconfiguration failure before the second RRC configuration is executed. In some, but not all, examples, the failure message includes an indication that the evaluation of the conditions associated with the second RRC configuration is performed after the failure message is sent.

[0012] In some, but not all, examples, the apparatus includes: a component for aggregating failure information based on one or more reconfiguration failures associated with multiple RRC configurations and sending the aggregated failure information according to at least one of the following: Successful execution of the second RRC configuration; or Monitoring to determine whether the allowed number of recovery attempts has been reached.

[0013] In some, but not all, examples, the apparatus includes: a component for performing a compliance check on a second RRC configuration, wherein the selection of a security counter from a list of security counters depends on the success of the compliance check.

[0014] In some, but not all, examples, the first RRC configuration is an incremental configuration, and the means includes components for determining which of the incremental portion and the reference portion associated with the incremental configuration causes the reconfiguration to fail. In some, but not all, examples, the means includes components for at least one of the following: The incremental configuration is rejected based on the determined reason for the reconfiguration failure in the incremental part, and the second RRC configuration is dependent on the incremental configuration in the reference part; The first and second RRC configurations are rejected based on the determined reason for the reconfiguration failure in the reference section.

[0015] According to various, but not necessarily all, examples, an apparatus is provided that includes components for the following: Conditional reconfiguration information is sent for execution by the user equipment during the connection between the user equipment and the master node. This conditional reconfiguration information includes multiple Radio Resource Control (RRC) configurations associated with candidate secondary nodes, and also includes a reconfiguration failure recovery indication. The reconfiguration failure recovery instruction includes: instructions to attempt recovery in response to a reconfiguration failure associated with a first RRC configuration among a plurality of RRC configurations, wherein the attempt to recover includes: evaluating conditions associated with a second RRC configuration among the plurality of RRC configurations.

[0016] In some, but not all, examples, the device is the master node.

[0017] In some, but not all, examples, the apparatus includes a component for receiving a response based on a plurality of RRC configurations and a reconfiguration failure recovery indication, the response indicating which of the plurality of RRC configurations the user equipment has executed.

[0018] In some, but not all, examples, the apparatus includes: components for receiving failure information from a user equipment in response to a reconfiguration failure. In some, but not all, examples, the failure information includes an indicator that an evaluation of conditions associated with a second RRC configuration is performed after the failure information is sent. In some, but not all, examples, the apparatus includes: components for disabling the preparation of additional conditional reconfiguration information based on the indicator.

[0019] In some, but not all, examples, the failure information is an aggregate of failure information based on one or more reconfiguration failures associated with multiple RRC configurations.

[0020] Based on various, but not necessarily all, examples, a method is provided that includes: Receive conditional reconfiguration information to be performed by the user equipment during the connection between the user equipment and the master node, wherein the conditional reconfiguration information includes multiple radio resource control (RRC) configurations associated with candidate secondary nodes and includes a reconfiguration failure recovery indication; In response to a reconfiguration failure associated with a first RRC configuration among multiple RRC configurations, conditions associated with a second RRC configuration among multiple RRC configurations are evaluated based on a reconfiguration failure recovery indication; and Execute the second RRC configuration associated with one of the candidate secondary nodes based on the fulfillment of the conditions.

[0021] Based on various, but not necessarily all, examples, a method is provided that includes: Conditional reconfiguration information is sent for execution by the user equipment during the connection between the user equipment and the master node. This conditional reconfiguration information includes multiple Radio Resource Control (RRC) configurations associated with candidate secondary nodes, and also includes a reconfiguration failure recovery indication. The reconfiguration failure recovery instruction includes: instructions to attempt recovery in response to a reconfiguration failure associated with a first RRC configuration among a plurality of RRC configurations, wherein the attempt to recover includes: evaluating conditions associated with a second RRC configuration among the plurality of RRC configurations.

[0022] Based on various, but not necessarily all, examples, a computer program is provided that, when executed by one or more processors, causes: Receive conditional reconfiguration information to be performed by the user equipment during the connection between the user equipment and the master node, wherein the conditional reconfiguration information includes multiple radio resource control (RRC) configurations associated with candidate secondary nodes and includes a reconfiguration failure recovery indication; In response to a reconfiguration failure associated with a first RRC configuration among multiple RRC configurations, conditions associated with a second RRC configuration among multiple RRC configurations are evaluated based on a reconfiguration failure recovery indication; and Execute the second RRC configuration associated with one of the candidate secondary nodes based on the fulfillment of the conditions.

[0023] Based on various, but not necessarily all, examples, a computer program is provided that, when executed by one or more processors, causes: Conditional reconfiguration information is sent for execution by the user equipment during the connection between the user equipment and the master node. This conditional reconfiguration information includes multiple Radio Resource Control (RRC) configurations associated with candidate secondary nodes, and also includes a reconfiguration failure recovery indication. The reconfiguration failure recovery instruction includes: instructions to attempt recovery in response to a reconfiguration failure associated with a first RRC configuration among a plurality of RRC configurations, wherein the attempt to recover includes: evaluating conditions associated with a second RRC configuration among the plurality of RRC configurations. Attached Figure Description

[0024] Some examples will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0025] Figure 1 An example wireless communication network system is shown;

[0026] Figure 2An example node implementing the first wireless access technology is shown;

[0027] Figure 3 An example node implementing the second wireless access technology is shown;

[0028] Figure 4 An example reconfiguration process is shown;

[0029] Figure 5 An example reconfiguration process is shown;

[0030] Figure 6 An example reconfiguration process is shown;

[0031] Figure 7 A flowchart of the example method is shown;

[0032] Figure 8 A flowchart of the example method is shown;

[0033] Figure 9 An example device is shown; and

[0034] Figure 10 An example delivery mechanism is shown.

[0035] These accompanying figures are not necessarily to scale. For clarity and brevity, some features and views in the figures may be shown schematically or at scale. For example, for ease of explanation, the dimensions of some elements in the figures may be enlarged relative to other elements. Similar reference numerals are used in the figures to indicate similar features. For clarity, not all reference numerals need to be shown in all figures. definition 3GPP: Third Generation Partnership Project 5G: The fifth-generation cellular network standard AMF: Access and Mobility Management Functions AS: Access Layer CHO: Conditional Switching CPAC: Conditional PSCell addition or modification CPC: Conditional PSCell Changes DC: Dual connectivity E-UTRA: Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access eNB: eNodeB EPC: Evolved Packet Core gNB: gNodeB gNB-CU: gNodeB centralized unit gNB-DU: gNodeB Distributed Unit MAC: Media Access Control Layer MCG: Main Cell Group MME: Mobility Management Entity MN: Master Node NAS: Non-Access Layer NR: New Radio NW: Network PCell: Main Cell PCI: Physical Cell Identity PDCP: Packet Data Convergence Protocol PHY: Physical Layer PSCell: Primary and Secondary Communities QoS: Quality of Service RAN: Radio Access Network RAT: Wireless Access Technology RLC: Radio Link Control RLF: Radio link failure RRC: Radio Resource Control RSRP: Reference Signal Received Power RSRQ: Reference Signal Reception Quality S-GW: Service Gateway SCell: Secondary Community SCG: Auxiliary Community Group SCPAC: Subsequent CPAC (Selective Activation of SCG) SDAP: Service Data Adaptation Protocol SgNB: Auxiliary gNodeB SINR: Signal-to-Interference-Ratio SN: Secondary node UE: User Equipment Detailed Implementation

[0036] Figure 1 This is a schematic block diagram illustrating a wireless communication network system 1 configured for dual connectivity. In at least some examples, system 1 is a network system defined by 3GPP.

[0037] Figure 1 System 1 includes UE 100, RAN including at least first node 102 and second node 104, and core NW entity 108. Figure 1 The diagram also illustrates the third node 112 and the fourth node 114 of the RAN, enabling the UE 100 to change nodes during mobility.

[0038] In this document, the term "node" refers to an access node. In System 1 as defined by 3GPP, a node is a base station. A base station implementing NR (First RAT) is called a gNB. A base station implementing E-UTRA (Second RAT) is called an eNB.

[0039] Figure 2 An example of nodes 104 / 114 (e.g., gNB) configured to implement a first RAT (e.g., NR) is illustrated. In this example, node 104 has a decomposed (split) architecture. gNB 104 includes one or more distributed units (gNB-DU) 20 and centralized units (gNB-CU) 10. Device 2 is configured to implement at least a portion of the functionality of nodes 104, 114, such as gNB-CU and / or one or more gNB-DU, or the entire gNB.

[0040] gNB-CU 10 is a logical node configured to host the RRC layer and other layers of gNB 120. gNB-CU 10 controls the operation of one or more gNB-DU 20s. gNB-DU 20 is a logical node configured to host the RLC layer, MAC layer, and PHY layer of access node (gNB) 120. gNB-DU 20 communicates with the RRC layer hosted by gNB-CU via a dedicated interface (F1).

[0041] One gNB-DU 20 can support one or more cells (not shown in the diagram). One cell is supported by one gNB-DU 20.

[0042] Figure 3 An example of nodes 102 / 112 (e.g., eNB) configured to implement a second RAT (e.g., E-UTRA) is illustrated. In this example, node 102 does not have a decomposed architecture. eNB 102 is a logical node configured to host the Radio Resource Control (RRC) layer and other layers of eNB 102. Device 2 is configured to implement at least a portion of the functionality of nodes 102, 112 (such as eNB).

[0043] Refer again Figure 1 Nodes 102, 104, 112, and 114 are operatively coupled to each other via network interface 103. In one example implementation, network interface 103 includes an X2 interface.

[0044] UE 100 can be operatively coupled to node 102 via radio interface 101. In this example, radio interface 101 is a radio interface. In the example implementation, radio interface 101 includes a Uu interface. During dual connectivity, UE 100 can concurrently couple to another node 104 via radio interface 105. In some examples, radio interfaces 101 and 105 include the same type of interface.

[0045] One node 102 to which the UE 100 is operatively coupled can be configured to act as a master node (MN). Another node 104 to which the UE 100 is operatively coupled can be configured to act as a secondary node (SN).

[0046] exist Figure 1 In the diagram, the first node 102 is the first master node (MN1), the second node 104 is the first auxiliary node (SN1), the third node 112 is the second master node (MN2), and the fourth node 114 is the second auxiliary node (SN2). Figure 1 In the diagram, MN1 102 and SN1104 are service (source) nodes.

[0047] At least MN 102 and 112 can be operatively coupled to core network entity 108 via interface 107. SN 104 and 114 can also be operatively coupled to core network entity 108. Figure 1 In this context, MN1 102 and MN2 112 are operably coupled to different core network entities 108 via interface 107, or they can be operably coupled to the same entity.

[0048] In the first example, MNs 102 and 112 are eNBs configured to implement E-UTRA. Core network entity 108 includes an EPC entity. Entity 108 may include an MME and / or an S-GW. Interface 107 includes an S1 interface.

[0049] In the second example, MN 102 and 112 are gNBs configured to implement NR. Core network entity 108 includes a 5G core (5GC) entity. Entity 108 may include an AMF. Interface 107 includes an NG-C interface.

[0050] The following describes examples of dual connectivity (MR-DC). In most, but not all, examples, SN 104, 114 implements a different RAT than MN 102, 112.

[0051] One example is E-UTRA-NR dual connectivity (EN-DC), where the eNB acts as MN 102 / 112 and the gNB acts as SN104 / 114. This example is referenced throughout this specification. However, aspects of this disclosure also apply to other examples listed below.

[0052] Another example is Next Generation RAN (NG-RAN) E-UTRA-NR Dual Connectivity (NGEN-DC), where the eNB (e.g., next generation eNB: ng-eNB) acts as the MN and the gNB acts as the SN.

[0053] Another example of dual connectivity is NR-E-UTRA dual connectivity (NE-DC), where gNB acts as MN and ng-eNB acts as SN.

[0054] Another example of dual connectivity is NR-NR dual connectivity (NR-DC), where one gNB acts as the MN and the other as the SN. In another example of NR-DC, UE 100 connects to two gNB-DUs, one serving the primary cell group (MCG) and the other serving the secondary cell group (SCG), and connects to the gNB-CU, acting as both the MN and SN.

[0055] In at least some examples of dual connectivity, nodes 102, 104, 112, and 114 comprise cell groups of one or more cells. A cell group comprises a primary cell (PCell) and zero or more secondary cells (SCells).

[0056] A cell refers to a geographical area with radio signal coverage, that is, a base station within which a UE can connect and obtain service. Cells can be identified through lower-layer PCI and higher-layer cell identity.

[0057] The PCell of a cell group is a cell operating on the primary frequency, where UE 100 performs the initial connection establishment procedure or initiates a connection re-establishment procedure, or is designated as the primary cell during handover. In at least some examples, the primary cell is a cell configured to provide NAS mobility information during connection establishment, re-establishment, or handover. The primary cell can be configured to provide security input during connection re-establishment or handover.

[0058] A SCell in a cell group is a cell operating on a secondary frequency, which can be configured after an RRC connection is established and can be used to provide additional radio resources. A secondary cell (SCell) can be configured to form a group of serving cells together with a PCell.

[0059] In dual connectivity, the cell group MN 102 / 112 is the primary cell group (MCG). The cell group SN 104 / 114 is the secondary cell group (SCG). An MCG consists of a primary cell (PCell) and zero or more secondary cells (SCells). An SCG consists of a primary-secondary cell (PSCell) and zero or more secondary cells (SCells). In at least some examples, in addition to a PCell or a PSCell, both the MCG and SCG include at least one SCell.

[0060] When dual connectivity is first established, UE 100 stores the configuration in memory. This configuration includes information identifying the MCG and SCG, as well as one or more bearers, where the MCG includes a PCell and zero or more SCells, and the SCG includes a PSCell and zero or more SCells.

[0061] The configuration may include one or more of the following: information for measurement configuration; information for mobility control; radio resource configuration information (including radio bearer, MAC master configuration and physical channel configuration); and / or AS security configuration.

[0062] After the application (execution) configuration is completed, the UE 100 can receive and transmit data via MCG and SCG bearers using the radio links provided by the MN and SN.

[0063] Dual connectivity can be reconfigured by sending a reconfiguration message to be executed (applied) by UE 100. Upon execution, the stored configuration is updated. 3GPP standard 37.340 for dual connectivity defines the reconfiguration message as an RRC reconfiguration message.

[0064] RRC reconfiguration messages initiated by the SN can be sent from either PSCell or SCell, or, in the case of carrier aggregation replication, from either of these. RRC reconfiguration messages initiated by the MN can be sent from either PCell or SCell, or both.

[0065] Examples of reconfiguration messages in dual connectivity include, but are not limited to: a) SN modifications (initiated by MN / SN) are used to modify, establish (add), or release (delete) bearer contexts (configurations / attributes) to transmit bearers to and from SN 104, or to modify other attributes of the UE context within SN 104. Examples include adding, modifying, or releasing SCG RLC bearers (multiple) and split-bearer SCG RLC bearers, as well as configuration changes for MCG bearers used for SN termination. A bearer is a data tunnel associated with an termination point in the RAN or core network. Modifications to a bearer may include changing the termination point, such as from MN to SN, changing the mapping of QoS flows to radio bearers, changing logical channel identities, changing RLC bearer attributes, including timers, and changing RLC modes, such as changing SDAP, PDCP, and RLC attributes. b) SN change (initiated by MN / SN), which is used to transfer the UE context from source SN 104 to target SN 114 and change the SCG configuration in UE 100 from source SN 104 to target SN 114. c) Inter-MN handover (with / without MN-initiated SN change), which is used to transfer context data from source MN 102 to target MN 112, while the context at SN 104 is preserved or moved to another SN 114. During the inter-MN handover, target MN 112 can decide whether to preserve or change source SN 104, or release source SN 104.

[0066] The configuration can be a full configuration or an incremental configuration. An incremental configuration depends on the current reference configuration (e.g., the SCG configuration) stored in the memory of the UE 100, while a full configuration does not depend on the reference configuration it implements.

[0067] Incremental configuration is an incremental update of parameters in a reference configuration that provides the UE 100 with different values ​​(values ​​to be changed, added, or deleted). Parameters with the same values ​​as those in the reference configuration are omitted in the incremental configuration. For other parameters in the reference configuration, the UE 100 uses the existing values ​​from the reference configuration in the new configuration.

[0068] To perform (apply) incremental configuration during mobility (e.g., from SN1 to SN2), UE 100 uses parameter values ​​from the incremental configuration (incremental SN2 configuration) to override existing parameter values ​​in the reference configuration (SN1 configuration) to reach the SN2 configuration. UE 100 maintains existing parameter values ​​in the reference configuration that are not changed by the incremental configuration; these are parameter values ​​common to both the SN1 and SN2 configurations.

[0069] Incremental configuration is prepared by NW to minimize the bandwidth and latency associated with configuration changes during mobility.

[0070] Compared to incremental configuration, a full configuration includes the entire configuration, including those parameter values ​​that remain unchanged relative to the current configuration, as well as those parameters that have different values. NW can provide a full configuration instead of an incremental one if modifying existing parameters presents problems.

[0071] In at least some examples, an RRC reconfiguration message can be a conditional RRC reconfiguration message containing conditional configurations for conditional additions or changes to a PSCell, i.e., mobility to another SN. Examples of these conditional configurations are CPA, CPC, CPAC, and SCPAC.

[0072] A conditional RRC reconfiguration message triggers UE 100 to apply the RRC configuration (SCG configuration) of one of SNs 104 and 114 by satisfying a condition (“Execution Condition” in this document), such as by changing or adding an SCG (current / reference SCG configuration).

[0073] Execution conditions may include one or more trigger conditions. Trigger conditions may involve different trigger values ​​between UE 100 and associated SN104, 114, such as RSRP, RSRQ, SINR.

[0074] CPAC execution conditions can be, for example, based on offsets and / or thresholds.

[0075] When Mt > Ms + offset, the offset-based execution condition can be satisfied, where Mt is the measurement of the target PSCell (e.g., SN2 114), Ms is the measurement of the serving PSCell (e.g., SN1 104), and offset is the configured offset.

[0076] When Ms < threshold1 (Ms becomes less than threshold1) and Mt > threshold2 (Mt becomes greater than threshold2), the threshold-based execution condition can be satisfied. Both the offset method and the threshold method can be applied concurrently, and if at least one is satisfied, the CPAC execution condition can be satisfied.

[0077] Figure 4 is a message sequence diagram illustrating an example reconfiguration process of an SN-initiated conditional SN change involving an MN. This process is used for CPAC configuration and CPAC execution.

[0078] This process is initiated when the UE 100 is connected to at least the first MN (MN1 102). If dual connectivity (e.g., MR-DC) is active, the UE 100 will be concurrently connected to the first SN (SN1 104). Alternatively, this process can start from a single connection with MN1 102 when the UE 100 first attempts to connect to SN 104.

[0079] In summary, Figure 4 illustrates: At box 416, receive conditional reconfiguration information to be executed by the UE 100 during the connection between the UE 100 and MN1 102, where the conditional reconfiguration message includes multiple RRC configurations associated with candidate SN2 114 and SN3 124, and includes a reconfiguration failure recovery indication; At box 434, in response to a reconfiguration failure (box 426) associated with the first RRC configuration among the multiple RRC configurations, evaluate the condition associated with the second RRC configuration among the multiple RRC configurations according to the reconfiguration failure recovery indication; and At box 438, execute the second RRC configuration associated with one of the candidate secondary nodes according to the satisfaction of the condition.

[0080] Figure 4 Also illustrated are other optional boxes 402, 404, 406, 408, 410, 412, 414, 418, 420, 422, 424, 428, 430, 432, 436, 440, 442, 444, and are described below.

[0081] At box 402, SN1 104 sends a request message (“SN / SgNB Change Request”) to MN1 102 to initiate the procedure. This message contains candidate node IDs and may include SN1 104’s service SCG configuration (to support incremental configuration). The candidate node IDs may include identifiers of the candidate SN (target SN), such as… Figure 4 The message requests MN1 102 to prepare the CPAC configuration for candidate SNs 114 and 124.

[0082] CPAC configuration refers to the RRC configuration (SCG configuration) of the secondary node.

[0083] RRC configuration can take the form of a full configuration (full SCG configuration) or an incremental configuration (incremental SCG configuration).

[0084] In response to receiving the request, MN1 102 prepares the CPAC configuration for candidate SNs, in this case SN2 114 and SN3 124. Boxes 404 to 414 illustrate the process. At box 404, MN1 102 sends a request (“SN / SgNB Add Request”) to candidate SN2 114.

[0085] If there are other candidate SNs, such as SN3 124, then box 406 includes MN1 102 sending ("SN / SgNB Add Request") to (the other candidate SNs).

[0086] At box 408 (“Determine the target PSCell”), SN2 114 determines (decides) a set of candidate PSCells associated with SN2 114 in response to the request in box 404. Similarly, at box 410 (“Determine the target PSCell”), SN3 124 determines a set of candidate PSCells associated with SN3 124 in response to the request in box 406.

[0087] If an incremental configuration is provided, SN2 114 and SN3 124 will use the RRC configuration (SCG configuration) of SN1 104 as a reference configuration and generate an incremental configuration to be applied to the RRC configuration (SCG configuration) when the switchover is performed.

[0088] At box 412 (“SN / SgNB Add Request Confirmation”), SN2 114 sends a response (“SN / SgNB Add Request Confirmation”) to MN1102 in the form of an NR RRC reconfiguration message. This reconfiguration message includes the first RRC configuration (SCG configuration) CPAC_1 and the associated first execution condition.

[0089] Similarly, at box 414 (“SN / SgNB Add Request Confirmation”), SN3 124 sends a response (“SN / SgNB Add Request Confirmation”) to MN1 102 in the form of an NR RRC reconfiguration message. This reconfiguration message includes the second RRC configuration (SCG configuration) CPAC_N and the associated second execution condition.

[0090] MN1 102 now has a first SCG configuration and a second SCG configuration (RRC configuration) CPAC_1, CPAC_N, as well as a first execution condition and a second execution condition. MN1 102 also has any other SCG configurations and execution conditions associated with any other SN.

[0091] At box 416 (“RRC Reconfiguration”), MN1 102 sends conditional reconfiguration information to the UE, which will be referred to herein as the RRC Reconfiguration message. This message is used by UE 100 during the connection between UE 100 and MN1 102. The RRC Reconfiguration message includes multiple CPAC configurations, CPAC_1 and CPAC_N. Each CPAC configuration includes an RRC configuration, which includes an SCG configuration prepared by one of the candidate SNs. The RRC Reconfiguration message also includes associated execution conditions.

[0092] In other words, the RRC reconfiguration message sent by MN1 102 at box 416 includes the CPAC configuration, i.e., the list of RRC reconfiguration messages for SN. The RRC reconfiguration message also includes the associated execution conditions. In box 412 or 414, each RRC reconfiguration message in this list contains the RRC configuration (SCG configuration) for SN 114, 124.

[0093] Optionally, the RRC reconfiguration message sent by MN1 102 at box 416 may include an updated MCG configuration, for example, to configure execution conditions.

[0094] Optionally, the RRC reconfiguration message sent by MN1 102 at box 416 may include an RRC reconfiguration message generated by source (current service) SN1 104, which contains the RRC configuration (SCG configuration) of SN1 104, for example, to configure conditional measurements.

[0095] The RRC configuration sent at box 416 may include full configuration and / or incremental configuration.

[0096] In the event of a compliance issue (failure) when UE 100 applies one of its RRC configurations while its relevant execution conditions are met, the RRC reconfiguration message sent at box 416 advantageously also includes a reconfiguration failure recovery indication (“RRC reconfiguration failure recovery information”) to control how UE 100 handles such a failure. This will be described in more detail later, starting from box 426.

[0097] At box 418 (“RRC reconfiguration complete”), UE 100 sends an acknowledgment of the message received at box 416. UE 100 also stores the RRC configurations for candidate SNs 114 and 124.

[0098] At box 420 (“SN / SgNB Change Confirmation”), MN1 102 sends a message to SN1 104 to indicate that CPAC (RRC Configuration) has been configured in UE 100. After receiving this message, SN1 104 continues to provide user data to UE 100.

[0099] At box 422 (“UE evaluates CPAC conditions”), UE 100 begins to evaluate the execution conditions associated with the CPAC configurations CPAC_1 and CPAC_N.

[0100] At box 424 (“CPAC_1 condition satisfied”), one of the execution conditions is true (satisfied), such as the CPAC_1 execution condition.

[0101] At box 426 (“RRC reconfiguration failed (compliance)”), UE 100 attempts to execute (apply) the RRC configuration associated with CPAC_1 and SN2114, but a compliance issue associated with the RRC configuration exists (reconfiguration failed). Box 426 can be viewed as the operation in which UE 100 performs a compliance check.

[0102] Some compliance issues may arise from the RRC configuration itself, rather than from the execution conditions. This means that the UE 100 cannot accept certain fields or values ​​in the RRC configuration. For example, the NW may incorrectly request features that the UE 100 does not support, such as dual connectivity or multi-panel UE.

[0103] If the RRC reconfiguration message received by UE 100 in box 416 does not include a reconfiguration failure recovery indication that controls how UE 100 handles such a failure, the first (no recovery) method is for UE 100 to handle the failure by rejecting all CPAC configurations (RRC configurations of candidate SNs 114 and 124). UE 100 notifies MN1 102 of the failure, applies the RRC configurations used prior to box 416, and rejects the CPAC configurations by not evaluating / ignoring them (instead of releasing them). As a result, NW can re-prepare the CPAC configurations and execution conditions (boxes 404-414).

[0104] However, the effects of the aforementioned non-recovery method include: -UE 100 experienced an interruption on the SN link with SN1 104 until MN1 102 reconfigured a new SN link for UE 100, because UE 100 returned to the previous RRC configuration and rejected the rest of the CPAC (RRC configuration). The re-preparation of CPAC (RRC configuration) and execution conditions, as well as the retransmission of RRC configuration and execution conditions over the air, will result in significant overhead. - In the case of incremental configuration, UE 100 does not distinguish between non-compliance of incremental configuration and reference configuration. Therefore, CPAC re-preparation should include both reference configuration and incremental configuration.

[0105] The aforementioned non-recovery methods may be relevant when a compliance issue associated with one RRC configuration is highly likely to be associated with compliance issues in other RRC configurations.

[0106] However, this disclosure considers that compliance issues with an RRC configuration may arise for various reasons and may not necessarily affect all other RRC configurations. If at least one of the other RRC configurations does not have compliance issues, then there is no need to re-prepare, and the aforementioned impact can be advantageously avoided.

[0107] Therefore, the RRC reconfiguration message received by UE 100 in box 416 has been configured to include a reconfiguration failure recovery indication. This second (recovery) method allows UE 100 to continue evaluating other CPACs (RRC configurations) received in box 416 in response to a reconfiguration failure associated with a CPAC in box 426. This procedure is shown in boxes 428-444 and is described below.

[0108] First, the reconfiguration failure recovery indication may include a flag (“recovery indication”) or equivalent instruction that causes UE 100 to attempt recovery in response to a reconfiguration failure by evaluating (continuing to evaluate) (multiple) other execution conditions of (multiple) other RRC configurations. For example, when UE 100 fails to execute (apply) the CPAC_1 configuration, UE 100 may continue to evaluate the execution conditions of CPAC_N.

[0109] The value of a flag or the presence / absence of a reconfiguration failure recovery indicator can indicate whether to follow a non-recovery method (if available) or to attempt recovery via a recovery method. The value of the flag can be predetermined by NW or determined automatically.

[0110] Alternatively or additionally, the reconfiguration failure recovery indication may include at least some of the recovery conditions based on radio signal measurements. These recovery conditions are referred to herein as the recovered “radio state.” The recovery condition requires the UE to continuously evaluate other performance conditions conditioned on the satisfaction of the radio condition.

[0111] Radio conditions refer to radio signal measurement conditions, such as any one or more of RSRP, RSRQ, SINR, etc. Radio conditions are separate conditions that differ from the execution conditions configured in the RRC. For example, a radio condition associated with the same trigger quantity as the execution condition may have a lower threshold and / or offset than the execution condition, and is therefore easier to satisfy than the execution condition.

[0112] Therefore, the wireless conditions advantageously allow UE 100 to predict and avoid future reconfiguration failures at an early stage.

[0113] The threshold or offset for wireless conditions can be determined automatically by the NW or predetermined.

[0114] The radio conditions ensure that the radio signal measurement performed by UE 100 on another candidate cell SN3 124 reaches the threshold signal strength as a candidate for recovery.

[0115] In the example, the reconfiguration failure recovery indication can include multiple wireless conditions. Different wireless conditions among these can be used to evaluate different execution conditions. This is advantageous when different execution conditions have different thresholds / offsets.

[0116] Alternatively or additionally, the reconfiguration failure recovery indication may include the number of allowed recovery attempts (“maximum recovery attempts”). The number of allowed recovery attempts may specify the number of times the UE 100 is allowed to attempt recovery. The number of allowed attempts may be one or more, depending on the implementation.

[0117] The number of allowed recovery attempts can be less than the number of RRC configurations (the number of candidate SNs 114 and 124). If the failure of one RRC configuration indicates that all other RRC configurations are likely to fail, the NW vendor can advantageously decide to set the allowed number of attempts to be less than the number of RRC configurations. In some cases, the NW can automatically determine the number of allowed recovery attempts.

[0118] A recovery attempt is defined as an attempt to complete (end execution) another CPAC configuration, such as the CPAC_N configuration SN3 124. If box 438, described later, is executed, the recovery attempt succeeds. If a failure occurs relative to another RRC configuration (box 426), the recovery attempt fails.

[0119] Description boxes 428-444 now control the behavior of UE 100 in response to reconfiguration failure, which depends on the reconfiguration failure recovery indication.

[0120] First, UE 100 can determine whether the MN communication link (e.g., the communication link with the MCG) is available (e.g., active). Initiate (multiple) recovery attempts conditioned on the availability of the MN communication link.

[0121] Box A) covers situations where MCG is affected (e.g., paused). Box B) covers situations where MCG is unaffected (active).

[0122] Within box A), box 428 (“Initial Reconstruction”) includes UE 100 initiating the reconstruction process. UE 100 releases all preparations (RRC configuration and execution conditions) received at box 416 and re-establishes the MN communication link with PCell.

[0123] After reconstruction, the method can return to box 402 or 404, causing the RRC reconfiguration message to be reprepared.

[0124] Within box B), MCG is unaffected, so boxes 430-434 are performed, and then boxes 436 (option B.1) or boxes 438-444 (option B.2) are performed.

[0125] At box 430 (“Apply Previous RRC Configuration”), UE 100 performs (applies) the previous RRC configuration used before the reconfiguration failed.

[0126] In other words, a reconfiguration failure may result in UE 100 not having an available RRC configuration, so UE 100 reverts to its previous RRC configuration.

[0127] At box 432 (“Release only non-compliant configurations”), UE 100 rejects (e.g., releases, ignores, or discards) a subset of multiple CPAC configurations (e.g., one CPAC configuration) associated with a reconfiguration failure. For example, in the case of a reconfiguration failure associated with CPAC_1, UE 100 rejects the RRC configuration and enforcement conditions associated with CPAC_1.

[0128] Synchronization of security keys in a dynamic key environment is relevant because this selective activation process allows for partial failures without forcing the re-preparation of RRC reconfiguration messages. In this context, the UE 100 applies a security key to connect to candidate SNs 114 and 124, a security key known to the UE 100, MN 102, and the relevant SN. The security key is generated based on a security counter selected from a list of security counters. The NW can disable the reuse of security keys, thus disabling the list of security counters. When executing... Figure 4 During the process, UE 100 can determine whether to connect to another SN 114, 124 (box 424) before returning to service SN 104 (box 430). By requiring compliance checks to succeed before UE 100 selects a security counter, issues of key synchronization or key reuse can be avoided.

[0129] At box 434 ("If one or more radio conditions are met, continue to evaluate other CPAC configurations"), UE100 evaluates the execution conditions associated with (multiple) other RRC configurations, as permitted by the reconfiguration failure recovery indication.

[0130] In other words, boxes 432-434 cause UE 100 to reject non-compliant configurations and continue to evaluate the remaining CPAC configurations (RRC configurations).

[0131] This can effectively reduce signaling overhead because it eliminates the need to re-prepare the RRC reconfiguration message.

[0132] The evaluation of the RRC configuration can be conditional on the satisfaction of the associated wireless conditions, as provided by MN1 102 in box 416.

[0133] Regarding reporting information to MN1 102, box B.1) defines option 1: "Report SCG failure after each failure".

[0134] In Option 1, Box 436 (“SCG failure information, such as a flag” indicating a recovery attempt) includes UE 100 notifying MN1 102 of the failed attempt before another RRC configuration is executed.

[0135] In other words, UE 100 sends a failure message (“SCG failure message”) in response to a reconfiguration failure, where the sending is initiated by the reconfiguration failure. The failure message received by MN1 102 can be regarded as an immediate response from UE 100 in response to the configuration failure.

[0136] This method indicates that a failure message is sent in response to a weight configuration failure. If both CPAC_1 and CPAC_N configurations fail, two such failure message messages are sent.

[0137] If UE 100 continues to evaluate one of the other RRC configurations after sending a failure message, the failure message may include an indication that the evaluation of another execution condition associated with the other RRC configuration was performed by the UE after the failure message was sent. This signals to MN1 102 that recovery is in progress at UE 100. This helps prevent NW from attempting recovery, so MN1 102 will not execute boxes 404-414 (PSCell re-preparation, i.e., RRC configuration) again.

[0138] Alternatively or concurrently, the failure information may indicate which of the RRC configurations the reconfiguration failure is associated with, and / or which of the RRC configurations(s) the UE 100 evaluates after the reconfiguration failure.

[0139] If the allowed number of recovery attempts has been reached, the failure message sent at box 436 may instruct UE 100 to no longer evaluate the CPAC configuration, and / or may include a request for re-preparation.

[0140] Box B.2) defines option 2: "Report multiple SCG failures in a single message". Failure information is not sent immediately, but is triggered / initiated by the arrival (if limited) of the allowed number of successful executions or recovery attempts of another RRC configuration (whichever occurs first).

[0141] In option 2, box 438 ("If the UE successfully completes the execution of another CPAC") refers to UE 100 successfully executing (applying) one of the RRC configurations after one or more recovery attempts. For example, UE 100 can successfully execute (apply) a second RRC configuration associated with CPAC_N.

[0142] Box 438 can be viewed as an operation in which the UE 100 performs a compliance check on the second RRC configuration. If a reconfiguration failure is identified, the process of boxes 428-438 can be repeated to evaluate and attempt to execute an additional RRC configuration (if it exists) from the message received at box 416.

[0143] Regarding security, in some examples, the UE's selection of a security counter from the security counter list may depend on the success of the compliance check. Following box 432, if UE 100 encounters a reconfiguration failure due to the compliance check at box 438, UE 100 will not attempt to generate an SN security key using the SN security counter from the security counter list provided to UE 100. This helps maintain the synchronization of security keys.

[0144] Box 438 acts as a trigger / initiator for UE 100 to send a message (“RRC reconfiguration complete message with SCG failure information with failed CPAC”) to MN1 102 at box 440.

[0145] This message can be an RRC reconfiguration completion message received by MN1 102 as a response from UE 100. This message indicates which of the multiple RRC configurations UE 100 has executed (applied).

[0146] MN1 102 then responds to the message by performing a mobility procedure (box 440). This procedure is outside the scope of this disclosure and also enables a handover from SN1 104 to SN3 124.

[0147] In some examples, the message also includes aggregated (bundled) failure information (“SCG failure information”) that identifies (multiple) RRC configurations where (multiple) reconfiguration failures occurred.

[0148] In other words, UE 100 aggregates failure information based on one or more reconfiguration failures associated with multiple RRC configurations (box 426) and sends aggregated (bundled) failure information ("SCG failure information of failed CPAC", i.e. failed RRC configuration).

[0149] Unlike Option 1, in Option 2, the sending of the failure message is initiated by the successful execution of an RRC configuration within the RRC configuration (e.g., by a PSCell change). Furthermore, the failure message can be embedded within an existing RRC configuration completion message, which identifies the RRC configuration already applied by the UE 100.

[0150] In option 2, box 442 ("If the UE reaches the maximum number of retries") refers to the situation where the allowed number of recovery attempts is reached without the successful execution of the RRC configuration, i.e., the recovery attempt fails (reconfiguration fails), and recovery attempts are no longer allowed.

[0151] Box 442 acts as a trigger / initiator for UE 100 to send a message (“CG Failure Message for All Failed CPACs”) to MN1 102 at box 444. This message can be the type described with respect to box 436, except that this time the message includes aggregated (bundled) failure information.

[0152] Compared to option A), options B.1) and B.2) advantageously reduce signaling overhead because failure information is aggregated rather than sent in response to individual weight configuration failures.

[0153] A conditional SN change initiated by an MN is another SN change process. Embodiments of this disclosure also apply to conditional SN changes initiated by an MN. Figure 5 The diagram illustrates the initial stage of a conditional SN change initiated by MN.

[0154] At box 502, MN1 102 sends a request message (“SN Add Request”) to candidate SN2 114 to initiate the procedure. By sending this message, MN1 102 requests candidate SN2 114 to allocate resources to UE 100 through the SN Add procedure, indicating that the request is for CPAC. MN1 102 also provides SN2 114 with candidate cells recommended by MN1 102 via the latest radio measurements, so that SN2 114 can select and configure SCG cells. MN1 102 also provides an upper limit on the number of PSCells that can be prepared by candidate SN2 114.

[0155] Box 504 is the message type of Box 502, but it is sent to candidate SN3 124.

[0156] Within the cell list indicated in the measurement results indicated by MN 102, candidate SN2 114 and SN3 124 determine the list of (multiple) PSCells to be prepared (considering the upper limit indicated by MN1 102). For the prepared PSCells, candidate SN2 114 and SN3 124 determine other SCG SCells to form part of the SCG configuration.

[0157] Candidates SN2 114 and SN3 124 can accept or reject individual candidate cells listed in the measurement results indicated by MN 102, and may not be allowed to configure any alternative candidates.

[0158] At box 506 (“SN / SgNB Add Request Confirmation”), SN2 114 sends the corresponding RRC configuration (SCG configuration) to MN1 102 in the form of an NR RRC reconfiguration message included in the SN Add Request Confirmation message, which carries the prepared PSCell(multiple) identifiers.

[0159] Messages from candidates SN2 114 and SN3 124 include an indication of whether the configuration is a full configuration or an incremental configuration.

[0160] Box 508 is the type of message sent from Box 506 but from candidate SN3 124.

[0161] Box 510 (“RRC Reconfiguration Message”) is as described with respect to Box 416 and includes the RRC configurations for candidate SN2 114 and SN3 124 and a reconfiguration failure recovery indication.

[0162] Box 512 (“RRC reconfiguration complete”) defines the UE's confirmation, as described with respect to Box 418.

[0163] At box 514 (“Xn-U Address Indication”), MN1 102 sends a message to SN1 104 via the Xn-U Location Indication procedure to notify SN1 104 that CPAC (RRC Configuration) has been configured in UE 100. After receiving this message, SN1 104 continues to provide user data to UE 100.

[0164] Subsequent processes include Figure 4 Boxes 422-444, for the sake of simplicity, Figure 5 These boxes are not repeated in the text.

[0165] Figure 6 This is a message sequence diagram illustrating the alternative reconfiguration process that can be used when the RRC configuration is incremental.

[0166] In summary, if the RRC configuration configured on UE 100 is an incremental configuration, then at box 632, UE 100 performs compliance checks on both the incremental and reference configurations in response to the reconfiguration failure in box 426. If the incremental configuration (incremental portion) is non-compliant, the incremental configuration is rejected. If the reference configuration (reference portion) is non-compliant, then the dependent configurations depending on the non-compliant reference configuration are rejected. Therefore, UE 100 can advantageously predict and avoid future reconfiguration failures at an early stage.

[0167] The initial operation depends on whether the process is initiated by SN or MN. When the process is initiated by SN, such as... Figure 6 As shown, boxes 402 to 430 are... Figure 4 The process is executed in the manner described above. When the process is initiated by MN, Figure 5 The diagram illustrates different initial operations.

[0168] Following box 430, box 632 is executed: "If the radio conditions are met, perform compliance checks on the incremental and reference configurations." In other words, at box 426, UE 100 determines which one or both of the incremental portion (incremental configuration) and the reference portion (reference configuration) caused the reconfiguration failure. UE 100 may, for example, perform separate compliance checks on the incremental portion and the reference portion.

[0169] Compliance checks can be performed on the condition that the wireless conditions described above are met.

[0170] At box 634 ("Release the incremental configuration if the incremental is non-compliant"), UE 100 rejects the incremental portion based on the definite reason that the incremental portion is the reconfiguration failure. UE 100 can continue to evaluate other RRC configurations, including other incremental portions that depend on the reference portion.

[0171] At box 636 ("Release all dependent configurations if reference is non-compliant"), UE 100 identifies and rejects other incremental parts (RRC configurations) that depend on the reference part based on the determined reason that the reference part is the reconfiguration failure.

[0172] In this example, a subset of rejected RRC configurations may include multiple RRC configurations, where more than one RRC configuration depends on the reference section.

[0173] Box 638 (“SCG Failure Information”) is as described with respect to Box 436; in other words, UE 100 sends a failure message to MN1 102 in response to each reconfiguration failure / each reconfiguration failure. At Box 640 (“Continue to Evaluate Other CPAC Configurations”), UE 100 continues to evaluate other RRC configurations besides those rejected at Boxes 632-636.

[0174] The above methods and Figure 4 The option 1 (box B.1) is consistent with the one in the box, where MN1 102 is immediately notified.

[0175] However, it should be understood that it is permissible to follow Figure 4 Option 2 (box B.2) states that failure information is aggregated (bundled) and sent in response to the achievement of the allowed number of successful execution or recovery attempts of another RRC configuration (whichever occurs first).

[0176] Figure 7 An example of a computer-implemented method 700 that can be executed by UE 100 is illustrated. The method includes: At box 702, conditional reconfiguration information is received to be performed by the user equipment during the connection between the user equipment and the master node, wherein the conditional reconfiguration information includes multiple radio resource control (RRC) configurations associated with candidate secondary nodes and includes a reconfiguration failure recovery indication. At box 704, in response to a reconfiguration failure associated with a first RRC configuration among a plurality of RRC configurations, the conditions associated with a second RRC configuration among the plurality of RRC configurations are evaluated according to a reconfiguration failure recovery indication; and At box 706, a second RRC configuration associated with one of the candidate secondary nodes is executed based on the satisfaction of the conditions.

[0177] Figure 8 An example of a computer-implemented method 800 that can be executed by MN 102 is illustrated. The method includes: At box 802, conditional reconfiguration information is sent for execution by the user equipment during the connection between the user equipment and the master node. This conditional reconfiguration information includes multiple Radio Resource Control (RRC) configurations associated with candidate secondary nodes, and also includes a reconfiguration failure recovery indication. The reconfiguration failure recovery instruction includes: instructions to attempt recovery in response to a reconfiguration failure associated with a first RRC configuration among a plurality of RRC configurations, wherein the attempt to recover includes: evaluating conditions associated with a second RRC configuration among the plurality of RRC configurations.

[0178] Figure 9 Examples of controller 900 applicable to devices 100, 102, and 104 are illustrated. The controller 900 can be implemented as a controller circuit system. The controller 900 can be implemented solely in hardware, have certain aspects in software including separate firmware, or be a combination of hardware and software (including firmware).

[0179] like Figure 9 As shown, the controller 900 can be implemented using instructions that enable hardware functions, for example, by using executable instructions of a computer program 906 in a general-purpose or special-purpose processor 902, which can be stored on a computer-readable storage medium (disk, memory, etc.) for execution by such processor 902.

[0180] Processor 902 is configured to read from and write to memory 904. Processor 902 may also include an output interface and an input interface, through which data and / or commands are output by processor 902 and through which data and / or commands are input to processor 902.

[0181] Memory 904 stores computer program 906, which includes computer program instructions (computer program code) that control the operation of devices 100, 102, and 104 when loaded into processor 902. The computer program instructions of computer program 906 provide logic and routines that enable the devices to perform the methods shown in the figures. Processor 902 is able to load and execute computer program 906 by reading memory 904.

[0182] Device 100 includes: At least one processor 902; and At least one memory 904 including computer program code, At least one memory 904 and computer program code are configured, together with at least one processor 902, to cause the device 100 to perform at least the following: At box 702, conditional reconfiguration information is received to be performed by the user equipment during the connection between the user equipment and the master node, wherein the conditional reconfiguration information includes multiple radio resource control (RRC) configurations associated with candidate secondary nodes and includes a reconfiguration failure recovery indication. At box 704, in response to a reconfiguration failure associated with a first RRC configuration among a plurality of RRC configurations, the conditions associated with a second RRC configuration among the plurality of RRC configurations are evaluated according to a reconfiguration failure recovery indication; and At box 706, a second RRC configuration associated with one of the candidate secondary nodes is executed based on the satisfaction of the conditions.

[0183] Device 102 includes: At least one processor 902; and At least one memory 904 including computer program code, At least one memory 904 and computer program code are configured, together with at least one processor 902, to cause the device 102 to perform at least the following: At box 802, conditional reconfiguration information is sent for execution by the user equipment during the connection between the user equipment and the master node. This conditional reconfiguration information includes multiple Radio Resource Control (RRC) configurations associated with candidate secondary nodes, and also includes a reconfiguration failure recovery indication. The reconfiguration failure recovery instruction includes: instructions to attempt recovery in response to a reconfiguration failure associated with a first RRC configuration among a plurality of RRC configurations, wherein the attempt to recover includes: evaluating conditions associated with a second RRC configuration among the plurality of RRC configurations.

[0184] Device 100 includes: At least one processor 902; and At least one memory 904 stores instructions that, when executed by at least one processor 902, cause the device to at least: At box 702, conditional reconfiguration information is received to be performed by the user equipment during the connection between the user equipment and the master node, wherein the conditional reconfiguration information includes multiple radio resource control (RRC) configurations associated with candidate secondary nodes and includes a reconfiguration failure recovery indication. At box 704, in response to a reconfiguration failure associated with a first RRC configuration among a plurality of RRC configurations, the conditions associated with a second RRC configuration among the plurality of RRC configurations are evaluated according to a reconfiguration failure recovery indication; and At box 706, a second RRC configuration associated with one of the candidate secondary nodes is executed based on the satisfaction of the conditions.

[0185] Device 102 includes: At least one processor 902; and At least one memory 904 stores instructions that, when executed by at least one processor 902, cause the device to at least: At box 802, conditional reconfiguration information is sent for execution by the user equipment during the connection between the user equipment and the master node. This conditional reconfiguration information includes multiple Radio Resource Control (RRC) configurations associated with candidate secondary nodes, and also includes a reconfiguration failure recovery indication. The reconfiguration failure recovery instruction includes: instructions to attempt recovery in response to a reconfiguration failure associated with a first RRC configuration among a plurality of RRC configurations, wherein the attempt to recover includes: evaluating conditions associated with a second RRC configuration among the plurality of RRC configurations.

[0186] like Figure 10 As shown, computer program 906 can reach devices 100, 102, and 104 via any suitable delivery mechanism 908. Delivery mechanism 908 can be, for example, a machine-readable medium, a computer-readable medium, a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, a computer program product, a memory device, a recording medium such as an optical disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) or digital versatile optical disc (DVD) or solid-state storage, or an article of art that includes or tangibly embodies computer program 906. The delivery mechanism can be a signal configured to reliably transmit computer program 906. Devices 100, 102, and 104 can propagate or transmit computer program 906 as a computer data signal.

[0187] Computer program 906 may include instructions for causing device 100 to perform at least the following operations or for performing the following operations: At box 702, conditional reconfiguration information is received to be performed by the user equipment during the connection between the user equipment and the master node, wherein the conditional reconfiguration information includes multiple radio resource control (RRC) configurations associated with candidate secondary nodes and includes a reconfiguration failure recovery indication. At box 704, in response to a reconfiguration failure associated with a first RRC configuration among a plurality of RRC configurations, the conditions associated with a second RRC configuration among the plurality of RRC configurations are evaluated according to a reconfiguration failure recovery indication; and At box 706, a second RRC configuration associated with one of the candidate secondary nodes is executed based on the satisfaction of the conditions.

[0188] Computer program 906 may include instructions for causing device 102 to perform at least the following operations or for performing the following operations: At box 802, conditional reconfiguration information is sent for execution by the user equipment during the connection between the user equipment and the master node. This conditional reconfiguration information includes multiple Radio Resource Control (RRC) configurations associated with candidate secondary nodes, and also includes a reconfiguration failure recovery indication. The reconfiguration failure recovery instruction includes: instructions to attempt recovery in response to a reconfiguration failure associated with a first RRC configuration among a plurality of RRC configurations, wherein the attempt to recover includes: evaluating conditions associated with a second RRC configuration among the plurality of RRC configurations.

[0189] Computer program instructions can be included in a computer program, a non-transitory computer-readable medium, a computer program product, or a machine-readable medium. In some, but not all, examples, computer program instructions can be distributed across more than one computer program.

[0190] Although memory 904 is illustrated as a single component / circuit system, it can be implemented as one or more separate components / circuit systems, some or all of which may be integrated / removable and / or provide permanent / semi-permanent / dynamic / cached storage.

[0191] Although processor 902 is illustrated as a single component / circuit system, it can be implemented as one or more separate components / circuit systems, some or all of which can be integrated or removable. Processor 902 can be a single-core or multi-core processor.

[0192] References to “computer-readable storage medium,” “computer program product,” “computer program tangibly embodied,” or “controller,” “computer,” “processor,” etc., should be understood to encompass not only computers with different architectures, such as single / multiprocessor architectures and sequential (von Neumann) / parallel architectures, but also special-purpose circuits, such as field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application-specific circuits (ASICs), signal processing devices, and other processing circuitry systems. References to computer programs, instructions, code, etc., should be understood to encompass software or firmware used with programmable processors, such as the programmable content of hardware devices, whether instructions for the processor or configuration settings for fixed-function devices, gate arrays, or programmable logic devices.

[0193] As used in this application, the term "circuit system" may refer to one or more or all of the following: (a) Hardware circuit implementation only (such as implementation in analog and / or digital circuit systems only) and (b) A combination of hardware circuitry and software, such as (if applicable): (i) A combination of (multiple) analog and / or digital hardware circuits and software / firmware, and (ii) Any part of a hardware processor (including digital signal processors), software, and memory (including multiple memory) having software, which work together to enable a device such as a mobile phone or server to perform various functions, and (c) (Multiple) hardware circuits and / or (multiple) processors, such as (multiple) microprocessors or a portion thereof, which require software (e.g., firmware) to operate, but may be absent when the software is not required to operate.

[0194] This definition of circuit system applies to all uses of the term in this application, including in any claim. As another example, as used in this application, the term circuit system also covers only the implementation of hardware circuitry or processors and their accompanying software and / or firmware. For example, if applicable to a particular claim element, the term circuit system also covers baseband integrated circuits for mobile devices, or similar integrated circuits in servers, cellular network devices, or other computing or networking devices.

[0195] The blocks shown in the accompanying drawings may represent steps in the method and / or code segments in computer program 906. The illustration of a specific order of blocks does not necessarily indicate a required or preferred order, and the order and arrangement of blocks can vary. Furthermore, some blocks may be omitted.

[0196] When a structural feature is described, it can be replaced by a component that performs one or more functions of the structural feature, whether or not the function or these functions are described explicitly or implicitly.

[0197] According to the examples of this disclosure, the device can be located in an electronic device, such as a mobile terminal. However, it should be understood that a mobile terminal is merely an example of an electronic device that will benefit from implementations of this disclosure, and therefore should not be considered as limiting the scope of this disclosure. While in some implementation examples the device can be located in a mobile terminal, other types of electronic devices, such as, but not limited to: mobile communication devices, portable electronic devices, wearable computing devices, portable digital assistants (PDAs), pagers, mobile computers, desktop computers, televisions, gaming devices, laptop computers, cameras, video recorders, GPS devices, and other types of electronic systems, can readily adopt the examples of this disclosure. Furthermore, devices can readily adopt the examples of this disclosure regardless of their intention to provide mobility.

[0198] The term "comprise" as used in this document is inclusive rather than exclusive. That is, any reference to X that includes Y means that X may include only one Y or may include more than one Y. If the intention is to use "comprise" with an exclusive meaning, it will be clearly stated in the context by referring to "comprising only one" or using "consisting".

[0199] In this specification, “connection,” “coupling,” and “communication,” and their derivatives, refer to operational connection / coupling / communication. It should be understood that any number or combination of intermediate components (including no intermediate components) may be present to provide direct or indirect connection / coupling / communication. Any such intermediate component may include hardware and / or software components.

[0200] As used herein, the term "determine" (and its grammatical variations) can include at least: calculating, processing, deriving, measuring, investigating, identifying, searching (e.g., looking in a table, database, or other data structure), confirming, etc. Furthermore, "determine" can include receiving (e.g., receiving information), accessing (e.g., accessing data in memory), obtaining, etc. Additionally, "determine" can include parsing, selecting, picking, building, etc.

[0201] Various examples are referenced in this specification. Descriptions of features or functions associated with examples indicate that such features or functions exist in that example. The use of the terms “example,” “for example,” “may,” or “may” in the text indicates (whether explicitly stated or not) that such features or functions exist at least in the described example, whether or not they are described as examples, and that they may, but not necessarily, exist in some or all other examples. Therefore, “example,” “for example,” “may,” or “may” refers to a specific instance of a class of examples. An instance’s property can be a property of only that instance, a property of the class, or a property of a subclass of a class that includes some, but not all, instances of that class. Therefore, it is implicitly disclosed that features described with reference to one example and not another may be used as part of a working composition in that other example where possible, but are not necessarily required to be used in that other example.

[0202] Although examples have been described with reference to various examples in the preceding paragraphs, it should be understood that modifications may be made to the given examples without departing from the scope of the claims.

[0203] The features described above can be used in combinations other than those explicitly described above.

[0204] Although some features have been described with reference to certain characteristics, these functions can be performed by other features, whether or not they are described.

[0205] Although features have been described with reference to some examples, these features may also exist in other examples, whether or not they are described.

[0206] The terms “a,” “an,” or “the” used in this document are inclusive, not exclusive. That is, any reference to X that includes a (a) / an / the Y indicates that X may include only one Y or may include more than one Y, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. If “a,” “an,” or “the” is intended to have an exclusive meaning, it will be clearly stated in the context. In some cases, “at least one” or “one or more” may be used to emphasize inclusion, but the omission of these terms should not be construed as inferring any exclusive meaning.

[0207] The presence of a feature (or combination of features) in a claim is a reference to that feature or combination of features itself, as well as a reference to a feature (equivalent feature) that achieves substantially the same technical effect. Equivalent features include, for example, features that are variations and achieve substantially the same result in substantially the same manner. Equivalent features include, for example, features that perform substantially the same function in substantially the same manner to achieve substantially the same result.

[0208] In this specification, various examples are referenced, and adjectives or adjective phrases are used to describe the characteristics of the examples. Such descriptions of characteristics associated with examples indicate that the characteristic exists exactly as described in some examples and substantially as described in others.

[0209] The foregoing description illustrates some examples of this disclosure; however, those skilled in the art will recognize possible alternative structural and methodological features that provide equivalent functionality to the specific examples of such structures and features described above, and for the sake of brevity and clarity, these alternative structures and features have been omitted from the foregoing description. Nevertheless, the foregoing description should be understood to implicitly include references to such alternative structural and methodological features that provide equivalent functionality, unless such alternative structural or methodological features are expressly excluded in the foregoing description of the examples of this disclosure.

[0210] Although efforts have been made in the foregoing specification to draw attention to features deemed important, it should be understood that the applicant may seek protection by means of the claims for any patentable feature or combination of features mentioned above and / or shown in the drawings, whether or not they are emphasized.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising components for: Receive conditional reconfiguration information to be performed by the user equipment during the connection between the user equipment and the master node, wherein the conditional reconfiguration information includes multiple Radio Resource Control (RRC) configurations associated with candidate secondary nodes and includes a reconfiguration failure recovery indication; In response to a reconfiguration failure associated with a first RRC configuration among the plurality of RRC configurations, conditions associated with a second RRC configuration among the plurality of RRC configurations are evaluated according to the reconfiguration failure recovery indication; and The second RRC configuration associated with one of the candidate auxiliary nodes is executed based on the satisfaction of the conditions.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the reconfiguration failure recovery indication comprises: Instructions for attempting recovery in response to reconfiguration failure by at least evaluating the conditions associated with the second RRC configuration.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 or 2, wherein the reconfiguration failure recovery indication includes recovery conditions based at least in part on wireless signal measurements, and wherein the evaluation is performed conditionally on the satisfaction of the recovery conditions.

4. The apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the reconfiguration failure recovery indication includes the allowed number of recovery attempts.

5. The apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, comprising: The component is used to determine whether the master node communication link is available, wherein the evaluation is performed conditioned on the availability of the master node communication link.

6. The apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, comprising: A component for rejecting a subset of the plurality of RRC configurations based on determining that the reconfiguration has failed, the subset including the first RRC configuration.

7. The apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, comprising: A component for sending a failure message in response to the reconfiguration failure.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the transmission is initiated by the reconfiguration failure before the second RRC configuration is executed.

9. The apparatus of claim 7 or 8, wherein the failure information includes an indicator regarding the evaluation of the conditions associated with the second RRC configuration being performed after the transmission of the failure information.

10. The apparatus of claim 7, comprising: A component for aggregating failure information based on one or more reconfiguration failures associated with the plurality of RRC configurations and sending the aggregated failure information according to at least one of the following: Successful execution of the second RRC configuration; or Monitoring to determine whether the allowed number of recovery attempts has been reached.

11. The apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, comprising: The component is used to perform a compliance check on the second RRC configuration, wherein the selection of a security counter from the list of security counters depends on the success of the compliance check.

12. The apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the first RRC configuration is an incremental configuration, and wherein the apparatus comprises: A component used to determine which of the incremental portion and reference portion associated with the incremental configuration caused the reconfiguration failure.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, comprising: A component for rejecting the incremental configuration based on the determination that the incremental portion is the reason for the reconfiguration failure, wherein the second RRC configuration is an incremental configuration dependent on the reference portion.

14. The apparatus according to claim 12 or 13, comprising: A component for rejecting the first RRC configuration and the second RRC configuration depending on the reference portion, based on the determination that the reference portion is the reason for the reconfiguration failure.

15. The apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the apparatus is a user equipment.

16. An apparatus comprising components for: Conditional reconfiguration information is sent to be performed by the user equipment during the connection between the user equipment and the master node, wherein the conditional reconfiguration information includes multiple Radio Resource Control (RRC) configurations associated with candidate secondary nodes, and the conditional reconfiguration information also includes a reconfiguration failure recovery indication. The reconfiguration failure recovery indication includes: An instruction to attempt recovery in response to a reconfiguration failure associated with a first RRC configuration among the plurality of RRC configurations, wherein attempting the recovery includes: evaluating conditions associated with a second RRC configuration among the plurality of RRC configurations.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, comprising: A component for receiving a response based on the plurality of RRC configurations and the reconfiguration failure recovery indication, the response indicating which of the plurality of RRC configurations the user equipment has executed.

18. The apparatus of claim 16 or 17, wherein the reconfiguration failure recovery indication comprises: Instructions for attempting recovery in response to reconfiguration failure by at least evaluating the conditions associated with the second RRC configuration.

19. The apparatus of any one of claims 16 to 18, wherein the reconfiguration failure recovery indication includes recovery conditions based at least in part on wireless signal measurements, and wherein the evaluation is performed conditionally on the satisfaction of the recovery conditions.

20. The apparatus according to any one of claims 16 to 19, wherein the reconfiguration failure recovery indication includes the allowed number of recovery attempts.

21. The apparatus according to any one of claims 16 to 20, comprising a component for receiving failure information from the user equipment in response to the reconfiguration failure.

22. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the failure information includes an indicator regarding the evaluation of the conditions associated with the second RRC configuration being performed after the transmission of the failure information.

23. The apparatus of claim 22, further comprising a component for preventing the preparation of additional conditional reconfiguration information based on the indicator.

24. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the failure information is an aggregate of one or more reconfiguration failures associated with the plurality of RRC configurations.

25. The apparatus according to any one of claims 16 to 24, wherein the apparatus is a master node.

26. A method comprising: Receive conditional reconfiguration information to be performed by the user equipment during the connection between the user equipment and the master node, wherein the conditional reconfiguration information includes multiple Radio Resource Control (RRC) configurations associated with candidate secondary nodes and includes a reconfiguration failure recovery indication; In response to a reconfiguration failure associated with a first RRC configuration among the plurality of RRC configurations, conditions associated with a second RRC configuration among the plurality of RRC configurations are evaluated according to the reconfiguration failure recovery indication; as well as The second RRC configuration associated with one of the candidate auxiliary nodes is executed based on the satisfaction of the conditions.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the reconfiguration failure recovery indication includes one or more of the following: Instructions for attempting recovery in response to reconfiguration failure by at least evaluating the conditions associated with the second RRC configuration; Recovery conditions are based at least in part on wireless signal measurements, and the evaluation is performed conditionally on the satisfaction of said recovery conditions; or The number of allowed recovery attempts.

28. The method according to any one of claims 26 to 27, comprising: Determine whether the master node communication link is available, wherein the evaluation is performed conditioned on the availability of the master node communication link.

29. The method according to any one of claims 26 to 28, comprising: A subset of the plurality of RRC configurations, including the first RRC configuration, is rejected based on the determination that the reconfiguration has failed.

30. The method according to any one of claims 26 to 29, comprising: A failure message is sent in response to the reconfiguration failure.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein the transmission is initiated by the reconfiguration failure before the second RRC configuration is executed.

32. The method of claim 30 or 31, wherein the failure information includes an indicator that the evaluation of the condition associated with the second RRC configuration is performed after the transmission of the failure information.

33. The method of claim 30, comprising: Failure information is aggregated based on one or more reconfiguration failures associated with the plurality of RRC configurations, and the aggregated failure information is sent according to at least one of the following: Successful execution of the second RRC configuration; or Monitoring to determine whether the allowed number of recovery attempts has been reached.

34. The method according to any one of claims 26 to 33, comprising: A compliance check is performed on the second RRC configuration, wherein the selection of a security counter from the security counter list depends on the success of the compliance check.

35. The method of any one of claims 26 to 34, wherein the first RRC configuration is an incremental configuration, and wherein the method comprises: Determine which of the incremental portion and reference portion associated with the incremental configuration caused the reconfiguration to fail.

36. The method of claim 35, comprising: The incremental configuration is rejected based on the determination that the incremental portion is the reason for the reconfiguration failure, and wherein the second RRC configuration is an incremental configuration dependent on the reference portion, and / or The first RRC configuration and the second RRC configuration, which depend on the reference portion, are rejected based on the determination reason for the reconfiguration failure.

37. A method comprising: Conditional reconfiguration information is sent to be performed by the user equipment during the connection between the user equipment and the master node, wherein the conditional reconfiguration information includes multiple Radio Resource Control (RRC) configurations associated with candidate secondary nodes, and the conditional reconfiguration information also includes a reconfiguration failure recovery indication. The reconfiguration failure recovery instruction includes: an instruction to attempt recovery in response to a reconfiguration failure associated with a first RRC configuration among the plurality of RRC configurations, wherein attempting the recovery includes: evaluating conditions associated with a second RRC configuration among the plurality of RRC configurations.

38. The method of claim 37, comprising: A response is received based on the plurality of RRC configurations and the reconfiguration failure recovery indication, the response indicating which of the plurality of RRC configurations the user equipment has executed.

39. The method of claim 37 or 38, wherein the reconfiguration failure recovery indication includes one or more of the following: Instructions for attempting recovery in response to reconfiguration failure by at least evaluating the conditions associated with the second RRC configuration; Recovery conditions are based at least in part on wireless signal measurements, and the evaluation is performed conditionally on the satisfaction of said recovery conditions; or The number of allowed recovery attempts.

40. The method according to any one of claims 37 to 39, comprising: A failure message is received from the user equipment in response to the reconfiguration failure.

41. The method of claim 40, wherein the failure information includes an indicator regarding the evaluation of the conditions associated with the second RRC configuration being performed after the transmission of the failure information.

42. The method of claim 41, comprising: The preparation of additional conditional reconfiguration information is prohibited based on the indicator.

43. The method of claim 40, wherein the failure information is an aggregate of one or more reconfiguration failures associated with the plurality of RRC configurations.

44. A computer program, when executed by one or more processors, causes the method according to any one or more of claims 26 to 43 to be performed.

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