Reducing user equipment (UE) measurement overhead by using external sources

Abstract

Methods, systems, and devices are described for reducing user equipment (UE) measurement overhead by using an external source. A UE or network may be able to obtain location-specific cell coverage information from an external source, such as a coverage map or database. The network may use the coverage information to configure a measurement gap for the UE. For example, according to an external source, a UE may be located in a cell having a relatively high coverage quality compared to a coverage quality of a neighboring cell. Based on the relative coverage quality, the network may reduce the periodicity of UE measurements, change measurement gaps to aperiodic, or configure the UE to avoid measurements.

Description

[0001] Cross-references

[0002] This patent application claims the benefit of U.S. Patent Application No. 18 / 471,272, filed by WU on September 20, 2023, entitled “Reducing User Equipment (UE) Measurement Overhead by Using an External Source,” which has been assigned to the assignee of this application. Technical Field

[0003] The following relates to wireless communication, including reducing user equipment (UE) measurement overhead by using external sources. Background Technology

[0004] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication content, such as voice, video, packet data, message sending and receiving, broadcasting, and so on. These systems can support communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources (e.g., time, frequency, and power). Examples of such multiple access systems include fourth-generation (4G) systems (such as Long Term Evolution (LTE) systems, LTE-A Advanced (LTE-A) systems, or LTE-A Pro systems) and fifth-generation (5G) systems (which may be referred to as New Radio (NR) systems). These systems may employ technologies such as Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA), or Discrete Fourier Transform Extended Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (DFT-S-OFDM). A wireless multiple access communication system may include one or more base stations, each supporting wireless communication for communication devices, which may be referred to as User Equipment (UE).

[0005] Network entities can configure measurement gaps for the UE. Measurement gaps can correspond to resources allocated to the UE for measuring signal quality information of downlink signals. Downlink signals can be associated with the network entity of the UE's current cell, or with the network entity of a neighboring cell. Summary of the Invention

[0006] The described techniques relate to improved methods, systems, devices, and apparatuses for reducing user equipment (UE) measurement overhead by using external sources. For example, the described techniques provide reduced redundant UE coverage measurements. In some examples, a network entity has access to an external source; in other examples, a UE has access to an external source and can relay coverage information to the network entity. The network entity or the UE can trigger measurement gap configuration. The network entity determines the measurement gap based on coverage information from the external source. The network entity can increase or decrease the periodicity of the measurement gap, configure aperiodic measurement gaps, or avoid configuring measurement gaps (e.g., tell the UE not to measure) in response to relative signal information between the serving cell and one or more neighboring cells. Adjusting the measurement gap with reference to an external source increases communication between the serving cell and the UE while maintaining sufficient coverage. Increased communication between the serving cell and the UE reduces latency. Attached Figure Description

[0007] Figure 1 and Figure 2 An example of a wireless communication system that supports one or more aspects of this disclosure by using an external source to reduce user equipment (UE) measurement overhead is shown.

[0008] Figure 3 An example of a coverage graph supporting the use of an external source to reduce UE measurement overhead is shown, according to one or more aspects of this disclosure.

[0009] Figure 4 and Figure 5 An example of a process flow supporting the use of external sources to reduce UE measurement overhead is shown, according to one or more aspects of this disclosure.

[0010] Figures 6 to 9 A flowchart illustrating a method for reducing UE measurement overhead by using an external source, according to one or more aspects of this disclosure, is shown. Detailed Implementation

[0011] For the purpose of describing the innovative aspects of this disclosure, the following description relates to some specific implementations. However, those skilled in the art will readily recognize that the teachings herein can be applied in a variety of different ways. The specific implementations described can be implemented in any device, system, or network capable of transmitting and receiving radio frequency (RF) signals according to any one of the following IEEE 16.11 standards: IEEE 802.11, Bluetooth, etc. ®Standard, Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), GSM or General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Enhanced Data GSM Environment (EDGE), Terrestrial Trunking Radio (TETRA), Wideband-CDMA (W-CDMA), Evolved Data Optimized (EV-DO), 1xEV-DO, EV-DO Rev A, EV-DO Rev B, High-Speed ​​Packet Access (HSPA), High-Speed ​​Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA), High-Speed ​​Uplink Packet Access (HSUPA), Evolved High-Speed ​​Packet Access (HSPA+), Long Term Evolution (LTE), AMPS, or other known signals used for communication in wireless, cellular, or Internet of Things (IoT) networks, such as systems utilizing third-generation (3G), fourth-generation (4G), fifth-generation (5G), sixth-generation (6G), or other specific implementations thereof.

[0012] Network coverage may not be uniform or available everywhere. When located in areas with poor coverage, user equipment (UE) may be unable to perform various functions. For example, without network connectivity, a UE (e.g., an autonomous vehicle) may be unable to perform functions such as downloading real-time maps from the cloud or server, uploading real-time sensor data to the network, or uploading UE state data to the network. To ensure adequate coverage, the UE may measure signal information for adjacent carriers or cells based on measurement gaps. Measuring signal information can improve mobility (e.g., handover) operations, carrier aggregation decisions, etc. However, UE measurements can be costly and may interrupt communication between the UE and the serving cell.

[0013] Based on the examples described herein, the overhead of measurement gaps can be reduced by referencing external sources (e.g., coverage maps, databases). External sources may contain location-specific and time-specific coverage information of the network along the UE's travel path. In some examples, the network entity has access to the external source; in others, the UE has access to the external source and can relay coverage information to the network entity. The network entity can refer to coverage information when determining measurement gaps. For example, if the coverage in the serving cell is above a threshold (e.g., higher quality than neighboring cells), the network entity can set a measurement gap such that the UE does not perform measurements for a certain period. In other examples, the network entity can increase or decrease the periodicity of the measurement gap in response to relative signal quality information of the serving cell compared to one or more neighboring cells. In still other examples, the network entity can configure the measurement gap to be non-periodic. Adjusting the measurement gap configuration by referencing external sources (e.g., decreasing the periodicity of the measurement gap, configuring it to not perform measurements) results in the UE performing fewer measurements, which reduces measurement overhead and increases communication between the serving cell and the UE. Measurement overhead reduction can be achieved while maintaining sufficient coverage and reducing power consumption. Increased communication between the serving cell and the UE (e.g., uninterrupted or less interrupted) reduces latency and improves the user experience.

[0014] The aspects of this disclosure are first described in the context of a wireless communication system. The aspects of this disclosure are also described in the context of coverage diagrams and process flows. The aspects of this disclosure are further illustrated by and described with reference to apparatus diagrams, system diagrams, and flowcharts relating to reducing UE measurement overhead through the use of external sources.

[0015] Figure 1 An example of a wireless communication system 100, which supports reducing UE measurement overhead by using external sources according to one or more aspects of this disclosure, is shown. The wireless communication system 100 may include one or more network entities 105, one or more UEs 115, and a core network 130. In some examples, the wireless communication system 100 may be a Long Term Evolution (LTE) network, an Advanced LTE (LTE-A) network, an LTE-A Pro network, a New Radio (NR) network, or a network operating under other systems and radio technologies, including future systems and radio technologies not explicitly mentioned herein.

[0016] Network entity 105 may be distributed across a geographical area to form wireless communication system 100, and may include devices employing different forms or having different capabilities. In various examples, network entity 105 may be referred to as a network element, mobility element, radio access network (RAN) node, or network equipment, etc. In some examples, network entity 105 and UE 115 may wirelessly communicate via one or more communication links 125 (e.g., radio frequency (RF) access links). For example, network entity 105 may support coverage area 110 (e.g., a geographical coverage area) within which UE 115 and network entity 105 may establish one or more communication links 125. Coverage area 110 may be an example of a geographical area within which network entity 105 and UE 115 may support the transmission of signals according to one or more radio access technologies (RATs).

[0017] UE 115 can be distributed throughout the coverage area 110 of wireless communication system 100, and each UE 115 can be stationary or mobile, or stationary and mobile at different times. UE 115 can be devices in different forms or with different capabilities. Figure 1 Some example UE 115s are illustrated herein. The UE 115 described herein may be able to support various types of devices, such as... Figure 1 The other UE 115 or network entity 105 shown communicates.

[0018] As described herein, nodes of the wireless communication system 100 (which may be referred to as network nodes or wireless nodes) may be network entity 105 (e.g., any network entity described herein), UE 115 (e.g., any UE described herein), network controller, apparatus, device, computing system, one or more components, or another suitable processing entity configured to perform any of the techniques described herein. For example, a node may be UE 115. Alternatively, a node may be network entity 105. Furthermore, a first node may be configured to communicate with a second or third node. In one aspect of this example, the first node may be UE 115, the second node may be network entity 105, and the third node may be UE 115. In another aspect of this example, the first node may be UE 115, the second node may be network entity 105, and the third node may be network entity 105. In other aspects of this example, the first node, the second node, and the third node may be different from these examples. Similarly, references to UE 115, network entity 105, device, equipment, computing system, etc., may include disclosures of UE 115, network entity 105, device, equipment, computing system, etc., as nodes. For example, a disclosure that UE 115 is configured to receive information from network entity 105 also discloses that a first node is configured to receive information from a second node.

[0019] In some examples, network entity 105 may communicate with core network 130, communicate with each other, or both. For example, network entity 105 may communicate with core network 130 via one or more backhaul communication links 120 (e.g., according to S1, N2, N3, or other interface protocols). In some examples, network entities 105 may communicate with each other directly (e.g., directly between network entities 105) or indirectly (e.g., via core network 130) via backhaul communication links 120 (e.g., according to X2, Xn, or other interface protocols). In some examples, network entities 105 may communicate with each other via midhaul communication link 162 (e.g., according to midhaul interface protocol) or fronthaul communication link 168 (e.g., according to fronthaul interface protocol) or any combination thereof. Backhaul communication link 120, midhaul communication link 162, or fronthaul communication link 168 may be or include one or more wired links (e.g., electrical links, fiber optic links), one or more wireless links (e.g., radio links, wireless optical links), etc., or various combinations thereof. UE 115 can communicate with core network 130 via communication link 155.

[0020] One or more network entities in network entity 105 described herein may include or be referred to as base station 140 (e.g., transceiver base station, radio base station, NR base station, access point, radio transceiver, node B, eNodeB (eNB), next-generation node B or gigabit node B (any of which may be referred to as gNB), 5G NB, next-generation eNB (ng-eNB), home node B, home evolution node B, or other suitable terms). In some examples, network entity 105 (e.g., base station 140) may be implemented in an aggregated (e.g., monolithic, standalone) base station architecture that may be configured to utilize a protocol stack that is physically or logically integrated within a single network entity 105 (e.g., a single RAN node, such as base station 140).

[0021] In some examples, network entity 105 may be implemented in a decomposed architecture (e.g., a decomposed base station architecture, a decomposed RAN architecture) that can be configured to utilize protocol stacks physically or logically distributed across two or more network entities 105, such as an integrated access backhaul (IAB) network, an open RAN (O-RAN) (e.g., a network configuration sponsored by the O-RAN Alliance), or a virtualized RAN (vRAN) (e.g., a cloud RAN (C-RAN)). For example, network entity 105 may include one or more of the following: a central unit (CU) 160, a distributed unit (DU) 165, a radio unit (RU) 170, a RAN intelligent controller (RIC) 175 (e.g., a near real-time RIC, a non-real-time RIC), a service management and orchestration (SMO) 180 system, or any combination thereof. 170 may also be referred to as a radio headend, intelligent radio headend, remote radio headend (RRH), remote radio unit (RRU), or transmit / receive point (TRP). One or more components of network entity 105 in a decomposed RAN architecture may be co-located, or one or more components of network entity 105 may be located in distributed locations (e.g., separate physical locations). In some examples, one or more network entities 105 in a decomposed RAN architecture may be implemented as virtual units (e.g., virtual CU (VCU), virtual DU (VDU), virtual RU (VRU)).

[0022] The functional splitting among CU 160, DU 165, and RU 170 is flexible and can support different functionalities depending on which functions (e.g., network layer functions, protocol layer functions, baseband functions, RF functions, and any combination thereof) are performed at CU 160, DU 165, or RU 170. For example, a protocol stack functional splitting can be used between CU 160 and DU 165, allowing CU 160 to support one or more layers of the protocol stack, and DU 165 to support one or more different layers of the protocol stack. In some examples, CU 160 can host higher protocol layer (e.g., Layer 3 (L3), Layer 2 (L2)) functionalities and signaling (e.g., Radio Resource Control (RRC), Serving Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP), Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP)). CU 160 can connect to one or more DU 165 or RU 170, and one or more DU 165 or RU 170 can host lower protocol layers, such as Layer 1 (L1) (e.g., Physical (PHY) layer) or L2 (e.g., Radio Link Control (RLC) layer, Medium Access Control (MAC) layer) functionality and signaling, and each can be at least partially controlled by CU 160. Alternatively or additionally, a protocol stack functional split can be employed between DU 165 and RU 170, such that DU 165 can support one or more layers of the protocol stack, and RU 170 can support one or more different layers of the protocol stack. DU 165 can support one or more different cells (e.g., via one or more RU 170). In some cases, functional decomposition between CU 160 and DU 165, or between DU 165 and RU 170, can be performed within the protocol layer (e.g., some functions of the protocol layer can be performed by one of CU 160, DU 165, or RU 170, while other functions of the protocol layer can be performed by different of CU 160, DU 165, or RU 170). CU 160 can be further functionally decomposed into CU control plane (CU-CP) functions and CU user plane (CU-UP) functions. CU 160 can be connected to one or more DU 165 via midhaul communication link 162 (e.g., F1, F1-c, F1-u), and DU 165 can be connected to one or more RU 170 via fronthaul communication link 168 (e.g., open fronthaul (FH) interface). In some examples, the midhaul communication link 162 or the fronthaul communication link 168 may be implemented based on the interfaces (e.g., channels) between the layers of the protocol stack, which are supported by the corresponding network entities 105 communicating via such communication links.

[0023] In a wireless communication system (e.g., wireless communication system 100), the infrastructure and spectrum resources for radio access can support wireless backhaul link capabilities to supplement wired backhaul connections, thereby providing an IAB network architecture (e.g., to core network 130). In some cases, in an IAB network, one or more network entities 105 (e.g., IAB node 104) may be partially controlled by each other. One or more IAB nodes 104 may be referred to as donor entities or IAB donors. One or more DU 165s or one or more RU 170s may be partially controlled by one or more CU 160s associated with donor network entity 105 (e.g., donor base station 140). One or more donor network entities 105 (e.g., IAB donors) may communicate with one or more additional network entities 105 (e.g., IAB node 104) via supported access and backhaul links (e.g., backhaul communication link 120). IAB node 104 may include an IAB mobile terminal (IAB-MT) controlled (e.g., scheduled) by a DU 165 of a coupled IAB donor. The IAB-MT may include a separate set of antennas for relaying communication with UE 115, or may share the same antennas (e.g., those of RU 170) for access to IAB node 104 via DU 165 of IAB node 104. (e.g., referred to as a virtual IAB-MT (vIAB-MT)). In some examples, IAB node 104 may include a DU 165 that supports communication links with additional entities (e.g., IAB node 104, UE 115) within a relay chain or configuration (e.g., downstream) of the access network. In such cases, one or more components of the decomposed RAN architecture (e.g., one or more IAB nodes 104 or components of IAB node 104) may be configured to operate according to the techniques described herein.

[0024] When the techniques described herein are applied in the context of a decomposed RAN architecture, one or more components of the decomposed RAN architecture can be configured to support reducing UE measurement overhead by using external sources, as described herein. For example, some operations described as being performed by UE 115 or network entity 105 (e.g., base station 140) may additionally or alternatively be performed by one or more components of the decomposed RAN architecture (e.g., IAB node 104, DU 165, CU 160, RU 170, RIC 175, SMO 180).

[0025] UE 115 may include or be referred to as a mobile device, wireless device, remote device, handheld device, or subscriber device, or any other suitable term, wherein "device" may also be referred to as a cell, station, terminal, or client, etc. UE 115 may also include or be referred to as a personal electronic device, such as a cellular phone, personal digital assistant (PDA), tablet computer, laptop computer, or personal computer. In some examples, UE 115 may include or be referred to as a wireless local loop (WLL) station, Internet of Things (IoT) device, Internet of Everything (IoE) device, or machine-type communication (MTC) device, etc., which may be implemented in various objects such as appliances or vehicles, meters, etc.

[0026] The UE 115 described herein may be able to communicate with various types of devices, such as other UEs 115 that may sometimes act as relays, as well as network entities 105 and network equipment including macro eNBs or gNBs, small cell eNBs or gNBs, or relay base stations, etc. Figure 1 As shown.

[0027] UE 115 and network entity 105 can wirelessly communicate with each other via one or more communication links 125 (e.g., access links) using resources associated with one or more carriers. The term "carrier" can refer to a set of RF spectrum resources having a defined physical layer structure for supporting communication link 125. For example, a carrier for communication link 125 may include a portion of the RF spectrum band (e.g., a bandwidth portion (BWP)) operating according to one or more physical layer channels for a given radio access technology (e.g., LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, NR). Each physical layer channel may carry acquisition signaling (e.g., synchronization signals, system information), control signaling coordinating carrier operation, user data, or other signaling. Wireless communication system 100 may support communication with UE 115 using carrier aggregation or multi-carrier operation. Depending on the carrier aggregation configuration, UE 115 may be configured to utilize multiple downlink component carriers and one or more uplink component carriers. Carrier aggregation can be used in conjunction with both frequency division duplex (FDD) component carriers and time division duplex (TDD) component carriers. Communication between network entity 105 and other devices can refer to communication between these devices and any part of network entity 105 (e.g., entity, sub-entity). For example, the terms “send,” “receive,” or “communicate” when referring to network entity 105 can refer to any part of the RAN’s network entity 105 (e.g., base station 140, CU 160, DU 165, RU 170) communicating with another device (e.g., directly or via one or more other network entities 105).

[0028] The signal waveform transmitted via a carrier may include multiple subcarriers (e.g., using multi-carrier modulation (MCM) techniques, such as orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) or discrete Fourier transform extended OFDM (DFT-S-OFDM)). In a system employing MCM, a resource element may refer to a resource of one symbol period (e.g., the duration of one modulation symbol) and one subcarrier, in which case the symbol period and subcarrier spacing may be inversely related. The number of bits carried by each resource element may depend on the modulation scheme (e.g., the order of the modulation scheme, the decoding rate of the modulation scheme, or both), such that a relatively high number of resource elements (e.g., in the transmission duration) and a relatively high modulation scheme order may correspond to a relatively high communication rate. Wireless communication resources may refer to a combination of RF spectrum resources, temporal resources, and spatial resources (e.g., spatial layers or beams), and the use of multiple spatial resources may increase the data rate or data integrity used for communication with UE 115.

[0029] The time interval for network entity 105 or UE 115 can be expressed as a multiple of a basic time unit, such as the sampling period. seconds, of which It can represent the supported subcarrier spacing, and This can represent the supported Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) size. The time interval of the communication resources can be organized according to radio frames, each with a specified duration (e.g., 10 milliseconds (ms)). Each radio frame can be identified by a System Frame Number (SFN) (e.g., ranging from 0 to 1023).

[0030] Each frame may include multiple consecutively numbered subframes or time slots, and each subframe or time slot may have the same duration. In some examples, a frame may (e.g., in the time domain) be divided into subframes, and each subframe may be further divided into a number of time slots. Alternatively, each frame may include a variable number of time slots, and the number of time slots may depend on the subcarrier spacing. Each time slot may include a number of symbol periods (e.g., depending on the length of the cyclic prefix appended to each symbol period). In some wireless communication systems 100, time slots may be further divided into multiple micro-time slots associated with one or more symbols. Excluding the cyclic prefix, each symbol period may be associated with one or more (e.g., The duration of a symbol period is associated with a (number) sampling period. The duration of a symbol period can depend on the subcarrier spacing or the operating frequency band.

[0031] A subframe, time slot, micro-time slot, or symbol can be the smallest scheduling unit of the wireless communication system 100 (e.g., in the time domain) and can be referred to as a transmission time interval (TTI). In some examples, the duration of the TTI (e.g., the number of symbol periods in the TTI) can be variable. Alternatively, the smallest scheduling unit of the wireless communication system 100 can be dynamically selected (e.g., in a burst of shortened TTIs (sTTIs)).

[0032] Depending on the technology, carriers can be used to multiplex physical channels for communication. One or more of Time Division Multiplexing (TDM), Frequency Division Multiplexing (FDM), or hybrid TDM-FDM techniques can be used, for example, to multiplex physical control channels and physical data channels for signaling via a downlink carrier. The control region (e.g., control resource set (CORESET)) of the physical control channel can be defined by a set of symbol periods and can extend across the system bandwidth of the carrier or a subset of that bandwidth. One or more control regions (e.g., CORESET) can be configured for a set of UEs 115. For example, one or more UEs in UE 115 can monitor or search for control regions to obtain control information based on one or more search space sets, and each search space set can include one or more control channel candidates in one or more aggregation levels arranged in a concatenated manner. The aggregation level of control channel candidates can refer to the amount of control channel resources (e.g., control channel elements (CCEs)) associated with coded information for a control information format having a given payload size. The search space set may include: a common search space set configured to transmit control information to multiple UEs 115, and a UE-specific search space set used to transmit control information to a specific UE 115.

[0033] Network entity 105 may provide communication coverage via one or more cells (e.g., macro cells, small cells, hotspots, or other types of cells, or any combination thereof). The term "cell" may refer to a logical communication entity used (e.g., using a carrier) to communicate with network entity 105 and may be associated with an identifier used to distinguish adjacent cells (e.g., Physical Cell Identifier (PCID), Virtual Cell Identifier (VCID), or other identifier). In some examples, a cell may also refer to a coverage area 110 or a portion of coverage area 110 (e.g., a sector) in which a logical communication entity operates. Depending on various factors such as the capabilities of network entity 105, the range of such cells may be from smaller areas (e.g., structures, subsets of structures) to larger areas. For example, a cell may be a building, a subset of buildings, or external space between or overlapping coverage areas 110, or may include buildings, subsets of buildings, or external space between or overlapping coverage areas.

[0034] Macro cells typically cover a relatively large geographic area (e.g., a radius of several kilometers) and allow unrestricted access to UE 115 that has a service subscription with a network provider supporting the macro cell. In contrast, small cells may be associated with a lower-power network entity 105 (e.g., a lower-power base station 140) and may operate using the same or different (e.g., licensed, unlicensed) frequency bands as macro cells. Small cells may provide unrestricted access to UE 115 that has a service subscription with a network provider, or restricted access to UE 115 associated with a small cell (e.g., UE 115 in a Closed Subscriber Group (CSG), or UE 115 associated with a user in a home or office). Network entity 105 may support one or more cells and may also use one or more component carriers to support communication via one or more cells.

[0035] In some examples, a carrier can support multiple cells and can be configured with different cells based on different protocol types that provide access for different types of devices (e.g., MTC, Narrowband IoT (NB-IoT), Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB)).

[0036] In some examples, network entity 105 (e.g., base station 140, RU 170) may be mobile, and thus provide communication coverage to mobile coverage areas 110. In some examples, different coverage areas 110 associated with different technologies may overlap, but the different coverage areas 110 may be supported by the same network entity 105. In some other examples, overlapping coverage areas 110 associated with different technologies may be supported by different network entities 105. The wireless communication system 100 may include, for example, a heterogeneous network in which different types of network entities 105 use the same or different radio access technologies to provide coverage for various coverage areas 110.

[0037] Wireless communication system 100 may be configured to support ultra-reliable communication or low-latency communication, or various combinations thereof. For example, wireless communication system 100 may be configured to support ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC). UE 115 may be designed to support ultra-reliable or low-latency or critical functions. Ultra-reliable communication may include private or group communication and may be supported by one or more services, such as push-to-talk, video, or data. Support for ultra-reliable, low-latency functions may include prioritization of services, and such services may be used for public safety or general business applications. The terms “ultra-reliable,” “low-latency,” and “ultra-reliable low-latency” are used interchangeably herein.

[0038] In some examples, UE 115 may be configured to support direct communication with other UE 115s via device-to-device (D2D) communication link 135 (e.g., according to peer-to-peer (P2P), D2D, or sidelink protocols). In some examples, one or more UE 115s performing D2D communication in a group may be within the coverage area 110 of network entity 105 (e.g., base station 140, RU 170), which may support aspects of such D2D communication configured (e.g., scheduled by network entity 105). In some examples, one or more UE 115s in such a group may be outside the coverage area 110 of network entity 105, or may otherwise be unable or not configured to receive transmissions from network entity 105. In some examples, the group of UE 115s communicating via D2D communication may support a one-to-many (1:M) system, where each UE 115 transmits to each of the other UE 115s in the group. In some examples, network entity 105 may facilitate the scheduling of resources used for D2D communication. In other examples, D2D communication may be performed between UEs 115 without involving network entity 105.

[0039] Core network 130 provides user authentication, access authorization, tracking, Internet Protocol (IP) connectivity, and other access, routing, or mobility functions. Core network 130 may be an evolved packet core (EPC) or a 5G core (5GC), which may include at least one control plane entity (e.g., a mobility management entity (MME), access and mobility management function (AMF)) for managing access and mobility, and at least one user plane entity (e.g., a serving gateway (S-GW), packet data network (PDN) gateway (P-GW), or user plane function (UPF)) for routing packets or interconnecting to external networks. The control plane entity manages non-access stratum (NAS) functions, such as mobility, authentication, and bearer management of UE 115 served by network entity 105 (e.g., base station 140) associated with core network 130. User IP packets can be delivered through the user plane entity, which provides IP address allocation and other functions. The user plane entity may connect to one or more network operator IP services 150. IP services 150 may include access to the Internet, intranets, IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), or packet-switched streaming services.

[0040] Wireless communication system 100 can operate using one or more frequency bands in the range of 300 MHz to 300 GHz. Generally, the area from 300 MHz to 3 GHz is referred to as the Ultra High Frequency (UHF) band or decimeter band because the wavelength range is approximately one decimeter to one meter in length. UHF waves may be blocked or redirected by buildings and environmental features (which may be referred to as clusters), but these waves are sufficient to penetrate structures so that macrocells can provide service to UE 115 located indoors. Compared to communication using smaller frequencies and longer waves in the High Frequency (HF) or Very High Frequency (VHF) portions of the spectrum below 300 MHz, communication using UHF waves can be associated with smaller antennas and shorter ranges (e.g., less than 100 km).

[0041] Wireless communication system 100 may utilize both licensed and unlicensed RF spectrum bands. For example, wireless communication system 100 may use unlicensed bands (such as the 5 GHz Industrial, Scientific, and Medical (ISM) band) to employ Licensed Assisted Access (LAA), LTE Unlicensed (LTE-U) radio access technology, or NR technology. When operating with unlicensed RF spectrum, devices such as network entity 105 and UE 115 may employ carrier sensing for collision detection and avoidance. In some examples, operation using unlicensed bands may be combined with component carriers operating with licensed bands based on carrier aggregation configurations (e.g., LAA). Operation using unlicensed spectrum may include downlink transmission, uplink transmission, P2P transmission, or D2D transmission, etc.

[0042] Network entity 105 (e.g., base station 140, RU 170) or UE 115 may be equipped with multiple antennas that can be used to employ techniques such as transmit diversity, receive diversity, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication, or beamforming. The antennas of network entity 105 or UE 115 may be located within one or more antenna arrays or antenna panels, which can support MIMO operation or transmit or receive beamforming. For example, one or more base station antennas or antenna arrays may be co-located at an antenna assembly (such as an antenna tower). In some examples, the antennas or antenna arrays associated with network entity 105 may be located at different geographical locations. Network entity 105 may include an antenna array having a collection of multiple rows and columns of antenna ports that network entity 105 can use to support beamforming for communication with UE 115. Similarly, UE 115 may include one or more antenna arrays that can support various MIMO or beamforming operations. Additionally or alternatively, the antenna panel may support RF beamforming for signals transmitted via the antenna ports.

[0043] Beamforming (also known as spatial filtering, directional transmission, or directional reception) is a signal processing technique that can be used at a transmitting or receiving device (e.g., network entity 105, UE 115) to shape or guide an antenna beam (e.g., a transmit beam, a receive beam) along a spatial path between the transmitting and receiving devices. Beamforming can be achieved by combining signals transmitted via antenna elements of an antenna array such that some signals propagating along a specific orientation relative to the antenna array experience constructive interference, while other signals experience destructive interference. Adjustments to the signals transmitted via the antenna elements may include applying amplitude shifts, phase shifts, or both to the signals carried via the antenna elements associated with the device. The adjustments associated with each of these antenna elements may be defined by a beamforming weight set associated with a specific orientation (e.g., relative to the antenna array of the transmitting or receiving device or relative to some other orientation).

[0044] Network coverage may not be uniform or available everywhere. For example, some geographic areas (e.g., roads) may not be covered by network coverage (e.g., outside coverage area 110) or may have poor coverage for various reasons. Even if an area has network coverage (e.g., within coverage area 110), the coverage may not be uniform. The unavailability or variability of network coverage can negatively impact the connectivity and user experience of UE 115. When located in an area with poor coverage, UE 115 may be unable to perform various functions. For example, UE 115 (e.g., a vehicle) may be unable to perform infotainment-related functions (e.g., infotainment may rely on wirelessly connected vehicles to access services). As another example, a UE 115 capable of autonomous driving may be unable to download maps from the cloud or server, such as real-time HD maps (e.g., maps containing details not typically presented in traditional digital maps, providing accuracy that may not be achievable in traditional digital maps, etc.). UE 115 may also be unable to upload real-time sensor data or UE 115 (e.g., vehicle) status data to the network.

[0045] To ensure adequate coverage, UE 115 (e.g., an RRC-connected UE) may measure signal information for adjacent carriers or cells during measurement gaps. Measuring signal information can improve mobility (e.g., handover) operations, carrier aggregation decisions, etc. However, UE 115 measurements can have high overhead and may interrupt communication between UE 115 and the corresponding network entity 105 of the serving cell. For example, during a measurement gap, UE 115 may tune its radio frequency to the target cell or carrier for measurement, and therefore, communication between UE 115 and the network entity 105 associated with the serving cell may be interrupted (e.g., suspended) during the measurement gap. For example, if UE 115 (e.g., in NR) has a measurement gap configuration with a measurement gap length of 4 ms and a periodicity of 20 ms (e.g., periodic measurements every 20 ms), then 20% of the time may be dedicated to that measurement gap (in other words, there is a 20% overhead for measuring a single object). In some examples, communication between UE 115 and network entity 105 associated with the serving cell may also be interrupted during time slots adjacent to the measurement interval (e.g., time slots used for measurement-related authorization and feedback (e.g., HARQ)). Additionally, more carriers or cells available at the mobile network operator (MNO) may result in increased overhead from measurements. Similarly, if UE 115 operates at multiple frequencies, the overhead from measurements may increase.

[0046] The overhead of measuring gaps can be reduced by referencing external sources (e.g., coverage maps, databases). External sources (e.g., coverage maps, vehicle coverage maps, databases) can be tools for network coverage prediction. For example, external sources may have location-specific and time-specific coverage information about the network (e.g., Reference Received Power (RSRP), Reference Received Quality (RSRQ), Channel State Information (CSI), or expected user experience data rate, etc.). In some examples, external sources can be used for RAN optimization (e.g., overhead reduction, beam management, etc.). In some examples, external sources can be used to predict the connectivity quality of a UE 115 (e.g., a vehicle) along a route. The prediction can then be used for route planning (e.g., finding routes with guaranteed network connectivity), pre-downloading / pre-buffering (e.g., for HD maps, streaming media, etc. along the route). For example, routes with guaranteed network connectivity can be valuable for remotely operated driving. In some examples, the real-time location of the vehicle may be readily available, which may make external sources such as coverage maps particularly useful.

[0047] The external source may contain location-specific and time-specific coverage information of the network along the travel route of UE 115. In other words, the communication system may refer to the external source to obtain coverage information, rather than measuring it. In some examples, network entity 105 has access to the external source; in other examples, UE 115 has access to the external source and can relay coverage information to network entity 105. In some examples, both UE 115 and network entity 105 have access to the external source. The coverage information may include at least information about the coverage of neighboring cells (e.g., RSRP, RSRQ, signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR), etc.). The coverage information may indicate the coverage at UE 115's current location, the coverage at UE 115's future location, or both. UE 115's future location may be based on UE 115's path planning (e.g., based on a navigation map).

[0048] Network entity 105 may reference coverage information when determining measurement gaps (e.g., measurement periodicity). For example, if the coverage in the serving cell is above a threshold (e.g., higher quality than neighboring cells), network entity 105 may set a measurement gap such that UE 115 does not perform measurements for a certain period of time. In other examples, network entity 105 may increase or decrease the periodicity of the measurement gap in response to relative signal information of the serving cell compared to one or more neighboring cells. In other examples, network entity 105 may send an aperiodic measurement gap configuration to UE 115. Adjusting the measurement gap configuration by referencing an external source (e.g., decreasing the periodicity of the measurement gap, configuring it to not perform measurements) causes the UE to perform fewer measurements, which reduces measurement overhead and increases communication between the serving cell and the UE. Measurement overhead reduction can be achieved while maintaining sufficient coverage and reducing power consumption. Increased communication between the serving cell and the UE (e.g., uninterrupted or less interrupted) reduces latency and improves user experience.

[0049] Figure 2An example of a wireless communication system 200 supporting the reduction of UE measurement overhead by using an external source, according to one or more aspects of this disclosure, is shown. The wireless communication system 200 may be implemented or may be implemented as aspects of wireless communication system 100. The wireless communication system 200 may include network entity 205, UE 210, locations 215 (e.g., locations 215-a, 215-b, 215-c, and 215-d), and path 220. Network entity 205 may be an example of network entity 105, and UE 210 may be an example of UE 115. In some examples, UE 210 may be a vehicle, and path 220 may be a road. In some examples, path 220 includes curves, turns, changes in altitude, etc. Path 220 may be located in an urban environment, rural area, desert, or any type of terrain. Path 220 may be represented by a set of locations 215. In some examples, UE 210 may be at location 215-c and may move along path 220 away from location 215-b and toward location 215-d (e.g., UE 210 was at location 215-a at a previous time and may be at location 215-d at a future time). Location 215 may be a sampling location or may be associated with geotagged coverage measurements.

[0050] In some examples, UE 210 may access external sources (e.g., coverage maps, databases, etc.) corresponding to a location 215 adjacent to UE 210 (e.g., location 215-d). In some examples, UE 210 may access external sources (e.g., coverage maps, databases, etc.) corresponding to multiple locations 215 (e.g., locations 215-a to 215-d). Location 215-c may correspond to a cell (e.g., serving cell) associated with network entity 205-a, and location 215-d may correspond to a cell (e.g., neighboring cell) associated with network entity 205-b. A cell may be an intra-frequency cell, an inter-frequency cell, an intra-RAT cell, or an inter-RAT cell.

[0051] In some examples, UE 210 may indicate to network entity 205-a its ability to access external sources. UE 210 may obtain location-specific and time-specific coverage information from the external sources. UE 210 may compare the coverage information obtained from the external sources and associated with location 215-d (e.g., the future location of UE 210) with the coverage information obtained from measurements performed by UE 210 and associated with location 215-c (e.g., the current location of UE 210). UE 210 may compare the coverage information obtained from the external sources associated with location 215-d with the coverage information obtained from the external sources associated with location 215-c. UE 210 may compare the coverage information obtained from the external sources associated with location 215-d with the coverage information obtained from the external sources associated with location 215-c and the coverage information obtained from measurements performed by UE 210 (e.g., a weighted average of the two). If the coverage information associated with location 215-c indicates a higher or lower signal quality (e.g., higher or lower RSRP, RSRQ, SINR, etc.) than the coverage information associated with location 215-d, then UE 210 may trigger measurement gap configuration.

[0052] In some examples, network entity 205-a may obtain location-specific and time-specific coverage information from an external source. Network entity 205-a may compare the coverage information obtained from the external source and associated with location 215-d (e.g., the future location of UE 210) with the coverage information obtained from measurements performed by UE 210 and associated with location 215-c (e.g., the current location of UE 210). Network entity 205-a may compare the coverage information obtained from the external source associated with location 215-d with the coverage information obtained from the external source associated with location 215-c and the coverage information obtained from measurements performed by UE 210 (e.g., a weighted average of the two). If the coverage information associated with location 215-c indicates a higher or lower signal quality (e.g., higher or lower RSRP, RSRQ, SINR, etc.) than the coverage information associated with location 215-d, then network entity 205-a can trigger measurement gap configuration.

[0053] Network entity 205-a can configure the measurement gaps for UE 210 based on the relative signal quality at locations 215-c and 215-d. For example, if the signal quality at location 215-c is higher than that at location 215-d, network entity 205-a can reduce the periodicity of the measurement gap configuration, or it can avoid configuring measurement gaps altogether (e.g., network entity 205-a does not tell UE 210 to perform any measurements or avoids periodically scheduled measurements), or it can configure non-periodic measurement gaps. If the signal quality at the current location (e.g., location 215-c) is higher than the signal quality at a future location (e.g., location 215-d), network entity 205-a can avoid handing over UE 210 to network entity 205-b, and the signal quality measurements performed by UE 210 may be irrelevant. Therefore, in such cases, the number of measurements performed by UE 210 can be reduced.

[0054] In some examples, UE 210 triggers or requests measurement gap configuration based on obtained location-specific coverage information. In some examples, network entity 205-a avoids configuring measurement gaps unless triggered by UE 210. Measurements performed by UE 210 can confirm coverage information from an external source. In some examples, network entity 205-a configures measurement gaps, but UE 210 ignores them. UE 210 may not perform measurements until UE 210 requests measurement gap configuration. In other words, network entity 205-a may configure measurement gaps without information from an external source, but UE 210 performs measurements based on coverage information from an external source. The UE may send an indication to network entity 205-a that UE 210 did not perform measurements.

[0055] By performing no measurements or performing fewer measurements based on coverage information from external sources, UE 210 reduces measurement overhead. Network entity 205-a and UE 210 can then use resources to continue other signaling communications and communicate more efficiently, thereby improving the user experience.

[0056] Figure 3 An example of a coverage diagram 300 supporting the reduction of UE measurement overhead through the use of an external source, according to one or more aspects of this disclosure, is shown. Coverage diagram 300 is an example of an external source that may be stored locally or in a server or in the cloud. Aspects of coverage diagram 300 may correspond to other types of external sources, and other aspects may differ. Coverage diagram 300 may be implemented or be implemented as aspects of wireless communication system 100, wireless communication system 200, or both. Location 315 (e.g., locations 315-a to 315-N) may correspond to location 215 and may refer to a geographic location (e.g., geotagged).

[0057] In some examples, the network entity (such as network entity 105 or network entity 205) has access to the external source; in other examples, the UE (such as UE 115 or UE 210) has access to the external source and can relay coverage information to the network entity. In some examples, both the UE and the network entity can access the external source. The UE and the network entity can determine which device can access the external source.

[0058] Coverage map 300 depicts general signal quality 305; however, many parameters can be included in coverage map 300, such as RSRP, RSRQ, SINR, communication statistics (e.g., modulation and decoding scheme (MCS), user experience data rate), etc. Location-specific cell coverage information in coverage map 300 may include the UE's current location and the UE's predicted future location.

[0059] Path 310 can be an example of path 220. The UE can, for example, travel from location 315-a to location 315-N, passing through each of the depicted locations in between. Each location 315 can be associated with signal quality. Location 315 can be a sampling location or can be associated with a geotagged coverage measurement.

[0060] Information in coverage map 300 can be accessed based on the UE's real-time location (e.g., location 315) or path planning (e.g., path 310 to the UE's destination based on navigation information). Coverage information associated with the UE's current and future locations can be determined based on coverage map 300. In some examples, the UE's real-time location may be based on a UE with Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) capability.

[0061] Coverage map 300 (e.g., from other external sources such as vehicle coverage maps or databases) can be a tool for network coverage prediction. For example, coverage map 300 may have location-specific and time-specific coverage information about the network (e.g., RSRP, RSRQ, CSI, expected user experience data rate, SINR, corresponding cell information (e.g., cell ID), synchronization signal frequency (e.g., SSB frequency in NR), carrier frequency (e.g., in LTE), subcarrier spacing, etc.). Each location 315 may have specific coverage information. The construction of coverage map 300 may be based on crowdsourcing of measurements (e.g., RSRP, etc.) or communication performance statistics (e.g., spectral efficiency, data rate, etc.) from the UE, and the UE's location at the time the measurements are performed. Coverage information from coverage map 300 can replace some measurement mechanisms used by the UE. For example, periodic measurements of neighboring cells can be disabled or adjusted to have a larger period.

[0062] Coverage map 300 (or other external sources) may already contain network coverage information, thus reducing the information obtained via UE measurements. Coverage map 300 may contain real-time measurements for other UEs (e.g., vehicles) located in neighboring cells, or coverage patterns learned from past crowdsourced measurements. Coverage map 300 may be an example of vehicle connectivity available at the real-time location of a vehicle UE. Coverage information from coverage map 300 can be used to trigger mobility events (e.g., triggering measurement reports similar to those in NR, such as events A4, A6, etc.).

[0063] In some examples, the UE can obtain information from coverage map 300 during periods when no active measurement gap configuration exists at the UE. In other words, if the UE does not have a measurement gap configuration, it can obtain coverage information about the current cell, neighboring cells, or multiple cells.

[0064] Adjusting the measurement gap configuration by referring to the coverage diagram 300 (e.g., reducing the periodicity of the measurement gap, configuring it to not perform measurements) causes the UE to perform fewer measurements, which reduces measurement overhead and increases communication between the serving cell and the UE.

[0065] Figure 4 An example of a process flow 400 supporting the reduction of UE measurement overhead through the use of an external source, according to one or more aspects of this disclosure, is shown. Process flow 400 may be implemented or be implemented as aspects of wireless communication system 100, wireless communication system 200, or both. Network entity 405 may be an example of network entity 205, network entity 105, or both. UE 410 may be an example of UE 210, UE 115, or both. Process flow 400 illustrates examples of signaling and other processes that may occur when UE 410 has access to an external source. The external source may correspond to coverage figure 300.

[0066] In the following description of process flow 400, operations (such as reporting or providing) may be performed in a different order than those shown, or operations performed by the example device may be performed in a different order or at different times. For example, a particular operation may be omitted from process flow 400, or other operations may be added to process flow 400. Furthermore, although some operations or signaling are shown to occur at different times for discussion purposes, these operations may actually occur simultaneously.

[0067] At 415, UE 410 may send an indication to network entity 405. This indication may indicate (e.g., report) the network's ability to access coverage information from external sources. This indication may also indicate the availability of coverage information related to UE 410's planned (e.g., future) location. In some examples, UE 410 may send (e.g., report) the indication in UE Auxiliary Information (UAI), in NR, or in another auxiliary information format.

[0068] At 420, UE 410 can obtain location-specific cell coverage information from external sources (e.g., coverage maps, databases) based on its capabilities. In some examples, UE 410 can determine whether and when to perform a measurement based on the coverage information from the external source. Coverage information from the coverage map can be used to trigger mobility events (e.g., triggering measurement reports similar to those in NR, such as events A4, A6, etc.). UE 410 can determine when to activate a measurement gap.

[0069] At 425, UE 410 can compare location-specific coverage information. UE 410 can compare coverage information obtained from an external source with coverage information obtained through measurements by UE 410. UE 410 can compare coverage information associated with one cell with coverage information associated with another cell. UE 410 can compare coverage information or its derivative with a threshold. For example, the RSRP of a neighboring cell (obtained from an external source) may be higher than the RSRP of UE 410's serving cell (obtained from an external source or measured by UE 410).

[0070] At 430, UE 410 may send a message to network entity 405. This message may be a PHY layer or MAC layer message. The message may include a request for (e.g., triggering, activating) measurement gap configuration. The message may indicate a mobility event triggered by location-specific cell coverage information obtained at 420, measurements performed by UE 410, or a combination thereof (e.g., a weighted average). The message may include information determined by UE 410 at 425. The message may include a request for measurement gap configuration based on a coverage information comparison performed at 425. In some examples, this message is triggered by UE 410 determining to perform measurements based on coverage information from an external source. For example, the coverage information may indicate that the signal quality (e.g., RSRP) of a neighboring cell meets a threshold (e.g., a deviation higher than the RSRP of the cell where UE 410 is located). If the signal quality of the neighboring cell meets the threshold, UE 410 may send an indication at 430 to network entity 405 to trigger measurement configuration for the neighboring cell. In other words, UE 410 can use coverage information from an external source as a reference to trigger UE 410 measurements.

[0071] At 435, network entity 405 may send a measurement gap configuration to UE 410 (e.g., via RRC signaling, for the measurement object). In some examples, network entity 405 may configure the measurement gap of UE 410 differently based on coverage information from an external source. Network entity 405 may trigger the measurement gap configuration based on a previously or already configured measurement gap configuration. In some examples, network entity 405 may determine whether and how to perform a measurement based on coverage information from an external source, as indicated by UE 410. In some examples, network entity 405 may configure the measurement gap (e.g., whether and when to perform a measurement based on coverage information) based on a determination made by UE 410 (e.g., a determination made by UE 410 based on coverage information from an external source). The measurement gap configuration may be an updated measurement gap configuration (e.g., UE 410 operated with a different measurement gap configuration before 435), or it may be a new measurement gap configuration (e.g., there was no measurement gap configuration before 435). Network entity 405 can configure the measurement gap configuration to include large periodicity, small periodicity, include non-periodic measurements, or not perform any measurements.

[0072] In some examples, network entity 405 may configure measurement gaps such that UE 410 avoids measuring neighboring cells (e.g., corresponding to UE 410's future location) or avoids performing periodically scheduled measurements. In other words, network entity 405 may avoid sending or configuring measurement gaps (e.g., based on the comparison at 425). UE 410 may already have coverage information corresponding to neighboring cells (e.g., via an external source), and therefore any measurements may be redundant. In this example, the coverage information measured by UE 410 may confirm coverage information from an external source. Network entity 405 may not configure measurement gap configuration unless UE 410 triggers the configuration.

[0073] At 440, UE 410 may perform one or more measurements based on the measurement gap configuration sent at 435. UE 410 may use the measurements for UE 410 mobility purposes (e.g., determining whether to report the measurements to network entity 405).

[0074] At 445, UE 410 may send data associated with one or more measurements performed at 440 to network entity 405. UE 410 may use coverage information from the coverage map or coverage information from the measurements of UE 410 to trigger a mobility event (e.g., trigger a measurement report). In some examples, both coverage information from the coverage map and coverage information from the measurements of UE 410 (e.g., their weighted average) trigger a mobility event.

[0075] Adjusting the measurement gap configuration by referencing external sources (e.g., reducing the periodicity of the measurement gap, configuring it to not perform measurements) causes UE 410 to perform fewer measurements, which reduces measurement overhead and increases communication between network entity 405 and UE 410. This reduction in measurement overhead can be achieved while maintaining sufficient coverage and reducing power consumption. The increased communication between network entity 405 and UE 410 (e.g., uninterrupted or less interrupted) reduces latency and improves user experience.

[0076] Figure 5 An example of process flow 500 supporting the reduction of UE measurement overhead by using an external source, according to one or more aspects of this disclosure, is shown. Process flow 400 may be implemented or be implemented as an implementation of aspects of wireless communication system 100, wireless communication system 200, or both. Network entity 505 may be an example of network entity 205, network entity 105, or both. UE 510 may be an example of UE 210, UE 115, or both. UE 510 may be a vehicle, mobile device, or other type of UE. Process flow 500 illustrates examples of signaling and other processes that may occur when network entity 505 has access to an external source. The external source may correspond to overlay diagram 300. Some aspects of both process flow 400 and process flow 500 may be combined to create a single process.

[0077] In the following description of process flow 500, operations (such as reporting or providing) may be performed in a different order than those shown, or operations performed by the example device may be performed in a different order or at different times. For example, a particular operation may be omitted from process flow 500, or other operations may be added to process flow 500. Furthermore, although some operations or signaling are shown to occur at different times for discussion purposes, these operations may actually occur simultaneously.

[0078] At point 515, UE 510 may send an indication of its current location to network entity 505. UE 510 may also send an indication of its future location (e.g., navigation information). The future location of UE 510 may correspond to a neighboring cell (e.g., a cell associated with a network entity that is not network entity 505). In some examples, UE 510 may periodically send its current or future location.

[0079] At 520, network entity 505 may obtain location-specific cell coverage information corresponding to the locations of neighboring cells of UE 510 from an external source (e.g., coverage map, database). Network entity 505 may obtain location-specific cell coverage information corresponding to multiple locations associated with the path of UE 510 (e.g., information associated with UE 510's current location, multiple neighboring cells, etc.) from an external source. In some examples, network entity 505 may determine whether and when to configure UE 510 to perform measurements (e.g., configure measurement gaps) based on coverage information from an external source.

[0080] At 525, network entity 505 can compare location-specific coverage information. Network entity 505 can compare coverage information obtained from an external source with coverage information obtained via measurements from UE 510. Network entity 505 can compare coverage information associated with one cell with coverage information associated with another cell. Network entity 505 can compare coverage information or its derivative with a threshold. When coverage information from an external source meets certain conditions, network entity 505 can activate measurements from UE 510. The activated measurement (e.g., a measurement performed by UE 510 rather than obtained via an external source) can confirm that a neighboring cell has higher coverage than the current cell. For example, the RSRP of a neighboring cell (obtained from an external source) may be higher than the RSRP of the serving cell of UE 510 (obtained from an external source or measured by UE 510). Based on the relative RSRP values, network entity 505 can configure (e.g., trigger) UE 510 to perform at least one measurement on a neighboring cell, perform at least one measurement on the current serving cell, perform at least one measurement on multiple cells, or avoid performing measurements.

[0081] At 530, network entity 505 may send (e.g., via RRC signaling) a measurement gap configuration to UE 510. Network entity 505 may trigger UE 510 to perform a measurement (e.g., activate the measurement based on the configured measurement configuration). The measurement gap configuration may have an adjusted periodicity relative to a previous measurement gap configuration (e.g., larger periodicity, smaller periodicity, aperiodicity). Network entity 505 may avoid sending the measurement gap configuration to UE 510 (e.g., based on a comparison at 525).

[0082] At 535, UE 510 can perform one or more measurements according to the configuration set by network entity 505.

[0083] At 540, UE 510 may send data associated with one or more measurements performed at 535 to network entity 505. Network entity 505 may compare the data associated with the one or more measurements with location-specific cell coverage information from an external source.

[0084] Adjusting the measurement gap configuration by referencing external sources (e.g., reducing the periodicity of the measurement gap, configuring it to not perform measurements) causes UE 510 to perform fewer measurements, which reduces measurement overhead and increases communication between network entity 505 and UE 510. This reduction in measurement overhead can be achieved while maintaining sufficient coverage and reducing power consumption. Increased communication between network entity 505 and UE 510 (e.g., uninterrupted or less interrupted) reduces latency and improves user experience.

[0085] Figure 6 A flowchart illustrating a method 600 for reducing UE measurement overhead by using an external source, according to various aspects of this disclosure, is shown. Operation of method 600 may be implemented by a UE or its components as described herein. For example, operation of method 600 may be performed by the UE. In some examples, the UE may execute a set of instructions to control functional elements of the UE to perform the described functions. Additionally or alternatively, the UE may use dedicated hardware to perform aspects of the described functions.

[0086] At 605, the method may include sending an indication to a network entity associated with the serving cell of the UE's ability to obtain location-specific cell coverage information from an external source, wherein the location-specific cell coverage information in the external source relates to at least one neighboring cell adjacent to the serving cell. Operation of block 605 may be performed according to examples as disclosed herein.

[0087] At 610, the method may include obtaining location-specific cell coverage information from the external source based on the capability. Operation of box 610 may be performed according to examples as disclosed herein.

[0088] At 615, the method may include sending a message to the serving cell based on location-specific cell coverage information. The operation of box 615 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein.

[0089] Figure 7 A flowchart illustrating a method 700 for reducing UE measurement overhead by using an external source, as exemplified by various aspects of this disclosure, is shown. The operation of method 700 can be implemented by a UE or its components as described herein. In some examples, the UE can execute a set of instructions to control functional elements of the UE to perform the described functions. Additionally or alternatively, the UE can use dedicated hardware to perform aspects of the described functions.

[0090] At 705, the method may include sending an indication to a network entity associated with the serving cell of the UE's ability to obtain location-specific cell coverage information from an external source, wherein the location-specific cell coverage information in the external source relates to at least one neighboring cell adjacent to the serving cell. Operation of block 705 may be performed according to examples as disclosed herein.

[0091] At 710, the method may include obtaining location-specific cell coverage information from the external source based on the capability. The method may include sending UE assistance information including the indication. Operation of block 710 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein.

[0092] At 715, the method may include comparing location-specific cell coverage information or its derived value with a threshold. The operation of box 715 may be performed according to examples disclosed herein.

[0093] At 720, the method may include sending a message to the serving cell based on location-specific cell coverage information. The operation of box 720 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein.

[0094] At 725, the method may include receiving a measurement gap configuration based on the capability of the UE from the network entity. Operation of block 725 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein.

[0095] Figure 8 A flowchart illustrating a method 800 for reducing UE measurement overhead by using an external source, according to various aspects of this disclosure, is shown. The operation of method 800 may be implemented by a network entity or its components as described herein. In some examples, the network entity may execute a set of instructions to control the functional elements of the network entity to perform the described functions. Additionally or alternatively, the network entity may use dedicated hardware to perform aspects of the described functions.

[0096] At 805, the method may include receiving from a UE associated with the serving cell an indication of the UE's ability to obtain location-specific cell coverage information from an external source, wherein the location-specific cell coverage information in the external source relates to at least one neighboring cell adjacent to the serving cell. Operation of block 805 may be performed according to examples as disclosed herein.

[0097] At 810, the method may include receiving a message from the UE based on the UE's capability. The operation of block 810 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein.

[0098] Figure 9A flowchart illustrating a method 900 for reducing UE measurement overhead by using an external source, according to various aspects of this disclosure, is shown. Operation of method 900 may be implemented by a network entity or its components as described herein. For example, operation of method 900 may be performed by the network entity. In some examples, the network entity may execute a set of instructions to control functional elements of the network entity to perform the described functions. Additionally or alternatively, the network entity may use dedicated hardware to perform aspects of the described functions.

[0099] At 905, the method may include obtaining location-specific cell coverage information from an external source, wherein the location-specific cell coverage information in the external source relates to at least one neighboring cell adjacent to the serving cell used for communication between the network entity and the UE. Operation of block 905 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein.

[0100] At 910, the method may include sending a message to the UE that triggers a measurement at the UE based on a measurement gap configuration and location-specific cell coverage information from the external source. Operation of block 910 may be performed according to examples as disclosed herein.

[0101] The following aspects are given in an illustrative manner. Examples of the following aspects may be combined with examples or embodiments shown or discussed with reference to the accompanying drawings or elsewhere herein.

[0102] Aspect 1: A method for wireless communication at a UE, the method comprising: sending to a network entity associated with a serving cell an indication of the UE's ability to obtain location-specific cell coverage information from an external source, wherein the location-specific cell coverage information in the external source relates to at least one neighboring cell adjacent to the serving cell; obtaining the location-specific cell coverage information from the external source according to the ability; and sending a message to the serving cell based at least in part on the location-specific cell coverage information.

[0103] Aspect 2: According to the method of aspect 1, the external source is an overlay graph or a database, and is stored locally or on a server.

[0104] Aspect 3: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 2, wherein sending the indication of the capability of the UE comprises: sending UE assistance information including the indication.

[0105] Aspect 4: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 3, wherein location-specific cell coverage information is obtained from the external source when there is no active measurement gap configuration at the UE.

[0106] Aspect 5: According to the method of aspect 4, wherein the message sent to the serving cell indicates a mobility event triggered by location-specific cell coverage information.

[0107] Aspect 6: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 5, the method further comprising: receiving from the network entity a measurement gap configuration at least in part based on the capabilities of the UE.

[0108] Aspect 7: The method according to aspect 6, wherein the measurement gap configuration includes measurement periodicity based on the capability of the UE.

[0109] Aspect 8: The method according to aspect 6, wherein the measurement gap configuration is based on the UE's capability to indicate that the UE measurement is non-periodic.

[0110] Aspect 9: The method according to any one of Aspects 6 to 8, wherein the message sent to the serving cell indicates a mobility event triggered by a measurement performed by the UE according to the measurement gap configuration, or a mobility event triggered by a combination of the measurement and the location-specific cell coverage information.

[0111] Aspect 10: The method according to aspect 9, wherein the combination is a weighted average of the measurement and the location-specific cell coverage information.

[0112] Aspect 11: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 10, wherein the at least one neighboring cell is an intra-frequency or inter-frequency cell, or an intra-Radio Access Technology (RAT) or inter-RAT cell relative to the serving cell.

[0113] Aspect 12: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 11, the method further comprising: comparing the location-specific cell coverage information or its derived value with a threshold.

[0114] Aspect 13: According to the method of aspect 12, wherein the message sent to the serving cell is a request for measuring gap configuration, the sending of the request being at least in part based on the comparison.

[0115] Aspect 14: The method according to any one of Aspects 12 to 13, the method further comprising: receiving a measurement gap configuration from the network entity via radio resource control message transmission, wherein the message sent to the serving cell is a request to activate the measurement gap configuration, the transmission of the request being at least in part based on the comparison.

[0116] Aspect 15: The method according to any one of Aspects 12 to 14, wherein the comparison is performed between the threshold and the deviation between the neighboring signal quality of the at least one neighboring cell and the serving signal quality of the serving cell.

[0117] Aspect 16: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 15, wherein the location-specific cell coverage information in the external source includes the current location of the UE and the predicted future location of the UE.

[0118] Aspect 17: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 16, wherein the location-specific cell coverage information includes one or more of the following for a specific location: reference signal received power, reference signal received quality, signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio, and cell information of a cell associated with the location of the UE, wherein the cell information includes one or more of synchronization signal frequency, carrier frequency, or subcarrier spacing.

[0119] Aspect 18: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 17, the method further comprising: avoiding the performance of periodic scheduling measurements based at least in part on the capabilities of the UE and the location-specific cell coverage information.

[0120] Aspect 19: The method according to any one of aspects 1 to 18, wherein the UE is a means of transportation.

[0121] Aspect 20: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 19, wherein the message triggers or activates the measurement gap configuration, and the message is a physical (PHY) layer or media access control (MAC) layer message.

[0122] Aspect 21: A method for wireless communication at a network entity, the method comprising: receiving from a UE associated with a serving cell an indication of the UE's ability to obtain location-specific cell coverage information from an external source, wherein the location-specific cell coverage information in the external source relates to at least one neighboring cell adjacent to the serving cell; and receiving from the UE a message at least in part based on the UE's capability.

[0123] Aspect 22: According to the method of aspect 21, receiving the indication of the capability of the UE includes: receiving UE assistance information including the indication.

[0124] Aspect 23: The method according to any one of aspects 21 to 22, the method further comprising: sending to the UE a measurement gap configuration at least in part based on the capabilities of the UE.

[0125] Aspect 24: The method according to aspect 23, wherein the measurement gap configuration includes measurement periodicity based on the capability of the UE.

[0126] Aspect 25: The method according to aspect 23, wherein the measurement gap configuration is based on the capability of the UE to indicate that the UE measurement is non-periodic.

[0127] Aspect 26: The method according to any one of Aspects 23 to 25, wherein the message received from the UE indicates a mobility event triggered by a measurement performed by the UE according to the measurement gap configuration, or a mobility event triggered by a combination of the measurement and the location-specific cell coverage information.

[0128] Aspect 27: The method according to aspect 26, wherein the combination is a weighted average of the measurement and the location-specific cell coverage information.

[0129] Aspect 28: The method according to any one of Aspects 21 to 27, wherein the at least one neighboring cell is an intra-frequency or inter-frequency cell, or an intra-Radio Access Technology (RAT) or inter-RAT cell, relative to the serving cell.

[0130] Aspect 29: The method according to any one of Aspects 21 to 28, wherein the message triggers or activates the measurement gap configuration, and the message is a physical (PHY) layer or media access control (MAC) layer message.

[0131] Aspect 30: A method for wireless communication at a network entity, the method comprising: obtaining location-specific cell coverage information from an external source, wherein the location-specific cell coverage information in the external source relates to at least one neighboring cell adjacent to a serving cell used for communication between the network entity and a UE; and sending a message to the UE, the message triggering a measurement at the UE based on a measurement gap configuration and the location-specific cell coverage information from the external source.

[0132] Aspect 31: The method according to aspect 30, the method further comprising: receiving an indication of the location of the UE, wherein the location-specific cell coverage information from the external source is obtained at least in part based on the location of the UE or a predicted future location of the UE.

[0133] Aspect 32: The method according to any one of Aspects 30 to 31, the method further comprising: determining that the difference between location-specific cell coverage information associated with the serving cell and location-specific cell coverage information associated with the at least one neighboring cell satisfies a threshold; and avoiding sending to the UE a configuration based at least in part on the determined second measurement gap.

[0134] Aspect 33: The method according to any one of Aspects 30 to 32, wherein the message triggers the UE to perform a measurement according to a configured measurement gap configuration.

[0135] Aspect 34: According to the method of aspect 33, the method further includes: in response to the message, receiving one or more measurements from the UE, wherein the one or more measurements are compared with location-specific cell coverage information.

[0136] Aspect 35: The method according to any one of Aspects 30 to 34, wherein the message includes a measurement gap configuration based at least in part on location-specific cell coverage information from the external source.

[0137] Aspect 36: A UE comprising: one or more memories storing processor-executable code; and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories and capable of operating individually or jointly to execute the code, so that the UE performs a method according to any one of aspects 1 to 20.

[0138] Aspect 37: A UE comprising at least one component for performing the method according to any one of aspects 1 to 20.

[0139] Aspect 38: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code, said code comprising instructions executable by a processor to perform the method according to any one of aspects 1 to 20.

[0140] Aspect 39: A network entity comprising: one or more memories storing processor-executable code; and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories and capable of operating individually or jointly to execute the code to cause the network entity to perform a method according to any one of Aspects 21 to 29.

[0141] Aspect 40: A network entity comprising at least one component for performing the method according to any one of aspects 21 to 29.

[0142] Aspect 41: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code, said code comprising instructions executable by a processor to perform the method according to any one of aspects 21 to 29.

[0143] Aspect 42: A network entity comprising: one or more memories storing processor-executable code; and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories and capable of operating individually or jointly to execute the code to cause the network entity to perform a method according to any one of aspects 30 to 35.

[0144] Aspect 43: A network entity comprising at least one component for performing the method according to any one of aspects 30 to 35.

[0145] Aspect 44: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code, said code comprising instructions executable by a processor to perform the method according to any one of aspects 30 to 35.

[0146] It should be noted that the methods described herein describe possible specific implementations, and the operations and steps can be rearranged or otherwise modified, and other specific implementations are also possible. Furthermore, aspects from two or more of these methods can be combined.

[0147] While aspects of LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, or NR systems may be described for illustrative purposes, and the terms LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, or NR may be used in most of the description, the techniques described herein are also applicable to networks other than LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, or NR networks. For example, the techniques described are applicable to a variety of other wireless communication systems, such as Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20, Flash-OFDM, and other systems and radio technologies not explicitly mentioned herein.

[0148] The information and signals described herein can be represented using any of a variety of different techniques and methods. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips mentioned throughout the description can be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, light fields or optical particles, or any combination thereof.

[0149] The various exemplary blocks and components described herein can be implemented or performed using a general-purpose processor, DSP, ASIC, CPU, FPGA or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic device, discrete hardware component, or any combination thereof, designed to perform the functions described herein. A general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in alternative embodiments, a processor may be any processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices (e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors cooperating with a DSP core, or any other such configuration). Any function or operation described herein that can be performed by a processor may be performed by multiple processors capable of performing the described functions or operations individually or jointly.

[0150] The functionality described herein can be implemented using hardware, software executed by a processor, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using software executed by a processor, the functionality can be stored as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium or transmitted using one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Other examples and specific implementations are within the scope of this disclosure and the appended claims. For example, due to the nature of software, the functionality described herein can be implemented using software executed by a processor, hardware, firmware, hardwiring, or any combination of these. Features implementing the functionality can also be physically located in various locations, including portions distributed such that the functionality is implemented at different physical locations.

[0151] Computer-readable media includes both non-transitory computer storage media and communication media, encompassing any medium that facilitates the transfer of a computer program from one location to another. Non-transitory storage media can be any available medium accessible by a general-purpose or special-purpose computer. By way of example, and not limitation, non-transitory computer-readable media may include RAM, ROM, electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), flash memory, compressed optical disc (CD) ROM or other optical disc storage devices, magnetic disk storage devices or other magnetic storage devices, or any other non-transitory medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code components in the form of instructions or data structures, and accessible by a general-purpose or special-purpose computer or a general-purpose or special-purpose processor. Furthermore, any connection is appropriately referred to as computer-readable media. For example, if software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave, then coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included within the definition of computer-readable media. As used herein, disks and optical discs include CDs, laser discs, optical discs, digital multifunction discs (DVDs), floppy disks, and Blu-ray discs. Disks can magnetically reproduce data, and optical discs can optically reproduce data using lasers. Combinations of the above are also included within the scope of computer-readable media. Any function or operation described herein that can be performed by memory can be performed by multiple memories capable of performing the described function or operation individually or jointly.

[0152] As used herein, the word "or" in a list of items (e.g., a list of items accompanied by phrases such as "at least one of" or "one or more of") in the claims indicates an inclusive list, such that a list of at least one of, for example, A, B, or C means A or B or C or AB or AC or BC or ABC (i.e., A and B and C). Furthermore, as used herein, the phrase "based on" should not be construed as a reference to a closed set of conditions. For example, an example step described as "based on condition A" may be based on both condition A and condition B without departing from the scope of this disclosure. In other words, as used herein, the phrase "based on" should be interpreted in the same manner as the phrase "at least partially based on".

[0153] As used herein, including in claims, the article “a” preceding a noun is open-ended and is understood to refer to “at least one” or “one or more” of those nouns. Therefore, the terms “a,” “at least one,” “one or more,” and “at least one of one or more” are interchangeable. For example, where a claim enumerates “components” performing one or more functions, each of the individual functions may be performed by a single component or by any combination of multiple components. Thus, the term “component” having a characteristic or performing a function may refer to “at least one of one or more components” having a particular characteristic or performing a particular function. Subsequent references to a component introduced with the article “a” using the terms “the” or “the” can refer to any or all of the one or more components. For example, a component introduced with the article “a” can be understood to mean “one or more components,” and subsequent reference to “the component” in a claim can be understood as equivalent to referring to “at least one of the one or more components.” Similarly, subsequent references to a component introduced with the terms “the” or “the” as “one or more components” can refer to any or all of the one or more components. For example, reference to "the one or more components" in the subsequent claims can be understood as equivalent to reference to "at least one of the one or more components".

[0154] The term "determine" encompasses a variety of actions, and therefore, "determine" can include calculation, computation, processing, derivation, investigation, lookup (such as by searching in a table, database, or other data structure), identification, and similar actions. Furthermore, "determine" can include receiving (e.g., receiving information), accessing (e.g., accessing data stored in memory), etc. Moreover, "determine" can include parsing, obtaining, selecting, choosing, building, and other similar actions.

[0155] In the accompanying drawings, similar components or features may have the same reference numerals. Furthermore, various components of the same type can be distinguished by adding a dash after the reference numeral and a second reference numeral to differentiate them. If only the first reference numeral is used in the description, the description can be applied to any of the similar components having the same first reference numeral, regardless of the second or other subsequent reference numerals.

[0156] The description herein, illustrated with reference to the accompanying drawings, describes an example configuration and does not represent all achievable examples or those within the scope of the claims. The term "example" as used herein means "serving as an example, instance, or illustration," not "preferred" or "advantageous over other examples." The detailed description includes specific details used to provide an understanding of the described techniques. However, these techniques can be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form to avoid obscuring the concept of the described examples.

[0157] The description herein is provided to enable those skilled in the art to implement or use this disclosure. Various modifications to this disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other variations without departing from the scope of this disclosure. Therefore, this disclosure is not limited to the examples and designs described herein, but should be granted the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A user equipment (UE), the user equipment (UE) comprising: One or more memories, wherein the one or more memories store processor-executable code; and One or more processors, coupled to one or more memories and capable of operating individually or jointly to execute the code to enable the UE: Send an indication to a network entity associated with the serving cell of the UE’s ability to obtain location-specific cell coverage information from an external source, wherein the location-specific cell coverage information in the external source relates to at least one neighboring cell adjacent to the serving cell; Based on the capability, obtain location-specific cell coverage information from the external source; as well as Messages are sent to the serving cell based at least in part on location-specific cell coverage information.

2. The UE according to claim 1, wherein the external source is an overlay map or a database, and is stored locally or on a server.

3. The UE according to claim 1, wherein, In order to send the indication of the capabilities of the UE, the one or more processors can operate individually or jointly to execute the code to enable the UE to: Send UE assistance information including the indicated information.

4. The UE of claim 1, wherein, in the absence of an active measurement gap configuration at the UE, location-specific cell coverage information is obtained from the external source.

5. The UE of claim 4, wherein the message sent to the serving cell indicates a mobility event triggered by location-specific cell coverage information.

6. The UE of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are individually or jointly capable of further operating to execute the code to cause the UE to: Receive from the network entity a measurement gap configuration based at least in part on the capabilities of the UE.

7. The UE of claim 6, wherein the measurement gap configuration includes measurement periodicity based on the capabilities of the UE.

8. The UE of claim 6, wherein the measurement gap configuration is based on the UE's capability to indicate that the UE measurement is non-periodic.

9. The UE of claim 6, wherein the message sent to the serving cell indicates a mobility event triggered by a measurement performed by the UE according to the measurement gap configuration, or a mobility event triggered by a combination of the measurement and the location-specific cell coverage information.

10. The UE of claim 9, wherein the combination is a weighted average of the measurement and the location-specific cell coverage information.

11. The UE of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are individually or jointly capable of further operating to execute the code to cause the UE to: The location-specific cell coverage information or its derived value is compared with a threshold.

12. The UE of claim 11, wherein the message sent to the serving cell is a request for measurement gap configuration, the sending of the request being at least in part based on the comparison.

13. The UE of claim 11, wherein the one or more processors are individually or jointly further operable to execute the code to cause the UE to: Measurement gap configuration is received from the network entity via radio resource control message transmission, wherein the message sent to the serving cell is a request to activate the measurement gap configuration, the sending of which is at least in part based on the comparison.

14. The UE of claim 11, wherein the comparison is performed between the threshold and the deviation between the neighbor signal quality of the at least one neighboring cell and the serving signal quality of the serving cell.

15. The UE of claim 1, wherein the location-specific cell coverage information in the external source includes the current location of the UE and the predicted future location of the UE.

16. The UE of claim 1, wherein the location-specific cell coverage information includes one or more of the following for a specific location: reference signal received power, reference signal received quality, signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio, and cell information of a cell associated with the location of the UE, wherein the cell information includes one or more of synchronization signal frequency, carrier frequency, or subcarrier spacing.

17. The UE of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are individually or jointly capable of further operating to execute the code to cause the UE to: Measurements that require periodic scheduling are avoided, at least in part, based on the capabilities of the UE and the location-specific cell coverage information.

18. A network entity, the network entity comprising: One or more memories, wherein the one or more memories store processor-executable code; and One or more processors, coupled to one or more memories and capable of operating individually or jointly to execute the code to enable the network entity: The UE associated with the serving cell receives an indication of the UE's ability to obtain location-specific cell coverage information from an external source, wherein the location-specific cell coverage information from the external source relates to at least one neighboring cell adjacent to the serving cell; as well as Receive messages from the UE that are at least partially based on the capabilities of the UE.

19. The network entity according to claim 18, wherein, In order to receive the indication of the capabilities of the UE, the one or more processors can operate individually or jointly to execute the code to enable the network entity to: Receive UE assistance information including the indicated information.

20. The network entity of claim 18, wherein the one or more processors are individually or jointly further operable to execute the code to cause the network entity to: Send a measurement gap configuration to the UE, at least in part based on the UE's capabilities.

21. A network entity, the network entity comprising: One or more memories, wherein the one or more memories store processor-executable code; and One or more processors, coupled to one or more memories and capable of operating individually or jointly to execute the code to enable the network entity: Location-specific cell coverage information is obtained from an external source, wherein the location-specific cell coverage information in the external source relates to at least one neighboring cell, the at least one neighboring cell being adjacent to the serving cell used for communication between the network entity and the user equipment (UE); as well as A message is sent to the UE, which triggers a measurement at the UE based on the measurement gap configuration and the location-specific cell coverage information from the external source.

22. The network entity of claim 21, wherein the one or more processors are individually or jointly further operable to execute the code to cause the network entity to: Receive an indication of the location of the UE, wherein the location-specific cell coverage information from the external source is obtained at least in part based on the location of the UE or a predicted future location of the UE.

23. The network entity of claim 21, wherein the one or more processors are individually or jointly further operable to execute the code to cause the network entity to: Determine that the difference between the location-specific cell coverage information associated with the serving cell and the location-specific cell coverage information associated with the at least one neighboring cell satisfies a threshold; and Avoid sending the UE with at least part of the determined second measurement gap configuration.

24. The network entity of claim 21, wherein the message triggers the UE to perform a measurement according to a configured measurement gap configuration.

25. A method for conducting wireless communication at a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: Send an indication to a network entity associated with the serving cell of the UE’s ability to obtain location-specific cell coverage information from an external source, wherein the location-specific cell coverage information in the external source relates to at least one neighboring cell adjacent to the serving cell; Based on the capability, obtain location-specific cell coverage information from the external source; as well as Messages are sent to the serving cell based at least in part on location-specific cell coverage information.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the external source is an overlay graph or a database, and is stored locally or on a server.

27. The method of claim 25, wherein sending the indication of the capability of the UE comprises: Send UE assistance information including the indicated information.

28. The method of claim 25, wherein, in the absence of an active measurement gap configuration at the UE, location-specific cell coverage information is obtained from the external source.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the message sent to the serving cell indicates a mobility event triggered by location-specific cell coverage information.

30. The method according to claim 25, further comprising: Receive from the network entity a measurement gap configuration based at least in part on the capabilities of the UE.

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