Signaling uplink carrier selection information

Abstract

Various aspects generally relate to dynamic uplink carrier selection for uplink control information (UCI) multiplexing. A user equipment can signal uplink carrier selection information to support informed carrier selection while reducing occurrences of switching gaps associated with signaling uplink carrier selection information. A UE can transmit an uplink carrier quality indication associated with multiple carriers on one carrier. A UE can receive a dynamic carrier selection indication and multiplex UCI on a selected carrier.

Description

[0001] Cross-references to related applications

[0002] This patent application claims priority to U.S. Patent Application No. 18 / 500,600, filed November 2, 2023, entitled “SIGNALLING UPLINK CARRIERSELECTION INFORMATION,” which is assigned to the assignee of this application. The disclosure of the earlier application is considered part of this patent application and is incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0003] All aspects of this disclosure relate to wireless communication in general, and more particularly to techniques, apparatus and methods for signaling uplink carrier selection information. Background Technology

[0004] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide a variety of services, including voice, text, messaging, video, data, and / or other services. Services may include unicast, multicast, and / or broadcast services, etc. Typical wireless communication systems employ multiple access radio access technologies (RATs) capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources (e.g., time-domain resources, frequency-domain resources, spatial-domain resources, and / or device transmit power, etc.). Examples of such multiple access RATs include Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) systems, Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) systems, Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) systems, Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) systems, Single-Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) systems, and Time Division Synchronous Code Division Multiple Access (TD-SCDMA) systems.

[0005] The aforementioned Multiple Access RATs have been adopted in various telecommunications standards to provide a common protocol enabling different wireless communication devices to communicate at the city, national, regional, or global level. An example telecommunications standard is New Radio (NR). NR (also known as 5G) is part of the continuous evolution of mobile broadband announced by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). NR (and other mobile broadband evolutions beyond NR) can be designed to better support the Internet of Things (IoT) and reduced-capacity device deployments, industrial connectivity, millimeter-wave (mmWave) expansion, licensed and unlicensed spectrum access, non-terrestrial network (NTN) deployments, sidelinks and other device-to-device direct communication technologies (e.g., cellular vehicle-to-everything (CV2X) communications), massive MIMO, decomposed network architectures and network topology expansion, multi-subscriber implementations, high-precision positioning and / or radio frequency (RF) sensing, and more. As the demand for mobile broadband access continues to grow, further improvements to NR can be implemented, and other radio access technologies (such as 6G) can be introduced to further advance mobile broadband evolution. Summary of the Invention

[0006] Some aspects described herein relate to an apparatus for wireless communication at a user equipment (UE). The apparatus may include one or more memories and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories. The one or more processors may be configured to transmit an enhanced sounding reference signal (eSRS) on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, using a first uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers. The eSRS indicates at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. The one or more processors may be configured to receive uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0007] Some aspects described herein relate to an apparatus for wireless communication at a network node. The apparatus may include one or more memories and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories. The one or more processors may be configured to receive an eSRS on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, using a first uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers. The eSRS indicates at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. The one or more processors may be configured to transmit uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0008] Some aspects described herein relate to an apparatus for wireless communication at a UE. The apparatus may include one or more memories and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories. The one or more processors may be configured to transmit uplink channel state information (CSI) using a first uplink carrier of a plurality of uplink carriers, the uplink channel state information (CSI) indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. The one or more processors may be configured to receive uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0009] Some aspects described herein relate to an apparatus for wireless communication at a network node. The apparatus may include one or more memories and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories. The one or more processors may be configured to receive an uplink CSI using a first uplink carrier of a plurality of uplink carriers, the uplink CSI indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. The one or more processors may be configured to transmit uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0010] Some aspects described herein relate to a method of wireless communication performed at a UE. The method may include the UE transmitting an eSRS on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, using a first uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers. The eSRS indicates at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. The method may also include the UE receiving uplink carrier selection communication associated with the at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or the uplink carrier selection information, the uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0011] Some aspects described herein relate to a method of wireless communication performed at a network node. The method may include receiving an eSRS by the network node and using a first uplink carrier of a plurality of uplink carriers on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers. The eSRS indicates at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. The method may include transmitting uplink carrier selection communication by the network node in association with the at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or the uplink carrier selection information, the uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0012] Some aspects described herein relate to a method of wireless communication performed at a UE. The method may include the UE transmitting an uplink CSI using a first uplink carrier of a plurality of uplink carriers, the uplink CSI indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. The method may include the UE receiving uplink carrier selection communication associated with the at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or the uplink carrier selection information, the uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0013] Some aspects described herein relate to a method of wireless communication performed at a network node. The method may include receiving an uplink CSI by the network node and using a first uplink carrier of a plurality of uplink carriers, the uplink CSI indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. The method may include transmitting uplink carrier selection communication by the network node in association with the at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or the uplink carrier selection information, the uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0014] Some aspects described herein relate to a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a set of instructions for wireless communication by a UE. When executed by one or more processors of the UE, the set of instructions enables the UE to transmit an eSRS on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, using a first uplink carrier. The eSRS indicates at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. When executed by one or more processors of the UE, the set of instructions enables the UE to receive uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0015] Some aspects described herein relate to a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a set of instructions for wireless communication by a network node. When executed by one or more processors of the network node, the set of instructions enables the network node to receive an eSRS on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, the eSRS indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. When executed by one or more processors of the network node, the set of instructions also enables the network node to transmit uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0016] Some aspects described herein relate to a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a set of instructions for wireless communication by a UE. When executed by one or more processors of the UE, the set of instructions enables the UE to transmit an uplink CSI using a first uplink carrier of a plurality of uplink carriers. The uplink CSI indicates at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. When executed by one or more processors of the UE, the set of instructions enables the UE to receive uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0017] Some aspects described herein relate to a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a set of instructions for wireless communication by a network node. When executed by one or more processors of the network node, the set of instructions enables the network node to receive an uplink CSI using a first uplink carrier of a plurality of uplink carriers. The uplink CSI indicates at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. When executed by one or more processors of the network node, the set of instructions enables the network node to transmit uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0018] Some aspects described herein relate to an apparatus for wireless communication. The apparatus may include components for transmitting an eSRS on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, using a first uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers. The eSRS indicates at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. The apparatus may include components for receiving uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0019] Some aspects described herein relate to an apparatus for wireless communication. The apparatus may include components for receiving an eSRS on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, the eSRS indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. The apparatus may also include components for transmitting uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0020] Some aspects described herein relate to an apparatus for wireless communication. The apparatus may include components for transmitting an uplink CSI using a first uplink carrier of a plurality of uplink carriers, the uplink CSI indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. The apparatus may include components for receiving uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0021] Some aspects described herein relate to an apparatus for wireless communication. The apparatus may include components for receiving an uplink CSI using a first uplink carrier of a plurality of uplink carriers, the uplink CSI indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. The apparatus may also include components for transmitting uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0022] Various aspects of this disclosure may be implemented or be implemented as described in whole by or embodied in the methods, apparatus, systems, computer program products, non-transitory computer-readable media, user equipment, base stations, network nodes, network entities, wireless communication devices and / or processing systems as fully described in the specification and drawings and illustrated in the specification and drawings.

[0023] The preceding paragraphs of this section have broadly summarized some aspects of this disclosure. These and additional aspects and their associated advantages will be described below. The disclosed aspects can serve as the basis for modifying or designing other aspects for performing the same or similar purposes of this disclosure. Such equivalent aspects do not depart from the scope of the appended claims. The characteristics of the aspects disclosed herein, their organization and operation, and their associated advantages will be better understood from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Attached Figure Description

[0024] The accompanying drawings illustrate some aspects of this disclosure but do not limit its scope, as other aspects can be achieved by this description. Each drawing in the drawings is provided for illustrative and descriptive purposes and not as a definition of limitation of the claims. Identical or similar reference numerals in different drawings may identify identical or similar elements.

[0025] Figure 1 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a wireless communication network according to the present disclosure.

[0026] Figure 2 This is a diagram illustrating an example network node communicating with an example user equipment (UE) in a wireless network according to the present disclosure.

[0027] Figure 3 This is a diagram illustrating an example decomposed base station architecture according to this disclosure.

[0028] Figure 4 This is a diagram illustrating an example of carrier aggregation according to this disclosure.

[0029] Figure 5 This is a diagram illustrating an example of uplink carrier switching according to this disclosure.

[0030] Figure 6 This is a diagram illustrating an example of an association with signaling notification of uplink carrier selection information according to this disclosure.

[0031] Figure 7 This is a diagram illustrating an example of signaling uplink carrier selection information in accordance with this disclosure.

[0032] Figure 8 This is a diagram illustrating an example process performed, for example, at the UE or a device of the UE, according to this disclosure.

[0033] Figure 9 This is a diagram illustrating an example process performed, for example, at a network node or a device of a network node, according to the present disclosure.

[0034] Figure 10 This is a diagram illustrating an example process performed, for example, at the UE or a device of the UE, according to this disclosure.

[0035] Figure 11 This is a diagram illustrating an example process performed, for example, at a network node or a device of a network node, according to the present disclosure.

[0036] Figure 12 This is a diagram of an example device for wireless communication according to the present disclosure.

[0037] Figure 13 This is a diagram of an example device for wireless communication according to the present disclosure. Detailed Implementation

[0038] Various aspects of this disclosure are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, aspects of this disclosure may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to any specific aspect illustrated or described with reference to the drawings or otherwise presented in this disclosure. Rather, these aspects are provided to make this disclosure thorough and complete, and to fully convey the scope of this disclosure to those skilled in the art. Those skilled in the art will understand that the scope of this disclosure is intended to cover any aspect of this disclosure disclosed herein, whether implemented independently of or in combination with any other aspect of this disclosure. For example, various combinations or numbers of aspects set forth herein may be used to implement an apparatus or a method of practice. Furthermore, the scope of this disclosure is intended to cover apparatuses having structures and / or functions other than those available for practicing the various aspects of this disclosure set forth herein, or methods of practice using those other structures and / or functions. Any aspect of this disclosure disclosed herein may be embodied by one or more elements of the claims.

[0039] Various methods, operations, apparatuses, and techniques will now be presented with reference to them. These methods, operations, apparatuses, and techniques will be described in detail below and illustrated in the accompanying drawings by various blocks, modules, components, circuits, steps, processes, or algorithms (collectively, “elements”). These elements may be implemented using hardware, software, or a combination of hardware and software. Whether these elements are implemented as hardware or software depends on the specific application and the design constraints imposed on the system as a whole.

[0040] Carrier aggregation is a technique that enables two or more component carriers (CCs, sometimes simply called carriers) to be combined (e.g., combined into a single channel) for a single user equipment (UE) to enhance data capacity. Carriers in the same or different frequency bands can be combined. The UE can be configured to perform dual uplink (UL) transmission in inter-band uplink carrier aggregation mode. In some cases, the UE may be equipped with up to two transmit (Tx) chains for uplink transmission. The UE can operate in an inter-band uplink carrier aggregation mode (which may be labeled "F+T") where the primary component carrier (PCC) is a frequency division duplex (FDD) carrier and the secondary component carrier (SCC) is a time division duplex (TDD) carrier, or in an inter-band uplink carrier aggregation mode (which may be labeled "T+F") where the PCC is a TDD carrier and the SCC is an FDD carrier.

[0041] In some cases, up to two uplink carriers (e.g., frequency bands) can be used in multi-carrier operation to configure a two-layer transmitting UE (sometimes referred to as a "2Tx UE"). In some cases, carriers can only be changed via Radio Resource Control (RRC) reconfiguration. Uplink transmit handover can be performed between two uplink carriers. In some cases, network enhancements used to dynamically select carriers using UL Tx handover (e.g., based on data traffic, TDD DL / UL configuration, bandwidth and / or channel conditions of each carrier, rather than RRC-based cell reconfiguration) may potentially achieve higher UL data rates, spectrum utilization, and UL capacity.

[0042] In some cases, the UE can be configured for UL Tx handover across up to three or four carriers (for FR1 UEs, there is a limit of up to two simultaneous transmissions), including mechanisms for implementing more configured UL bands than the UE's simultaneous transmission capability and for configuring both single timing advance groups (TAGs) and multiple TAGs to support dynamic transmission carrier handover across configured bands.

[0043] In some cases, due to heavy uplink traffic, network nodes may not have the opportunity to measure the uplink signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR) based on the PUSCH demodulation reference signal (DMRS). Furthermore, transmitting SRS on multiple carriers can lead to unnecessary uplink transmit chain switching, as each uplink transmit chain requires switching time between carriers. In some cases, network nodes may be configured to perform carrier selection, which may be unoptimized due to the age of SINR measurements associated with multiple carriers, lack of consideration for UE buffer size, and / or lack of consideration for UE battery state. In some cases, the UE may measure downlink carriers to determine the uplink carrier for TDD. Measurements may include transmit timing, path loss, power headroom (PHR), and / or receiver imbalance, etc. For example, in some cases, the UE may transmit an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the first carrier on the first carrier. The UE may transmit an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second carrier on the second carrier, and so on. Between each transmission of the uplink carrier quality indication, the UE switches carriers, creating a switching gap that can lead to uplink and (potentially) downlink interruptions.

[0044] In any case, when switching from one carrier to another, a handover gap is used to facilitate the handover between the transmit chain and / or other hardware and / or software associated with the corresponding carrier. In some cases, for uplink carrier aggregation, the handover gap may be as long as 35 microseconds (μs), 140 μs, and / or 210 μs, or 1, 4, or 6 OFDM symbols (for a 30 kHz subcarrier spacing (SCS)). Both uplink carriers (e.g., the carrier from which the handover occurs and the carrier to which the handover occurs) may be affected by the handover. Additionally, the handover of uplink carriers may interrupt downlink transmission while uplink behavior is disrupted. The interruption can occur on TDD and / or FDD carriers. The interruption from the handover gap may result in reduced uplink throughput, reduced spectral efficiency, and / or increased UE battery consumption.

[0045] Various aspects as a whole relate to uplink carrier selection for UCI multiplexing. Some aspects more specifically relate to dynamic uplink carrier selection for UCI multiplexing. Some aspects of the techniques described herein allow signaling of uplink carrier selection information to support informed carrier selection, while reducing the occurrence of handover gaps associated with signaling uplink carrier selection information. In some aspects, for example, the UE may transmit uplink carrier quality indications associated with multiple carriers on a single carrier. In this way, the UE does not switch to a new carrier to report the uplink carrier quality indication associated with that new carrier, and thus avoids introducing additional uplink carrier handover gaps.

[0046] In some respects, the UE may transmit an enhanced SRS (eSRS) to indicate an uplink carrier quality indication associated with an uplink carrier and / or recommend an uplink carrier for selection. For example, the UE may transmit a first eSRS associated with a first uplink carrier that includes an uplink carrier quality indication, a second eSRS associated with a second uplink carrier that includes an uplink carrier quality indication, and so on. All eSRSs may be transmitted on the same single carrier.

[0047] eSRS is an SRS with attributes that have been modified to implicitly indicate the quality of the uplink carrier associated with the corresponding carrier. For example, modified attributes may include different eSRS pre-decoding on different antenna ports, transmission timing on different antenna ports, amplitude adjustment on different antenna ports, eSRS sequences on different antenna ports, and / or eSRS transmission power on different antenna ports, etc. The UE and / or network node may (e.g., via RRC signaling) indicate which time slots correspond to which carriers and / or which eSRS attributes correspond to which metrics of uplink carrier quality, etc. In this way, the UE may be able to implicitly provide carrier quality information to the network node to facilitate uplink carrier selection.

[0048] In some cases, the UE may transmit a CSI to indicate the quality of the corresponding uplink carrier and / or the recommended uplink carrier. For example, the CSI may indicate the carrier identifier (ID) for the corresponding carrier, the recommended carrier, and / or the quality of the corresponding uplink carrier associated with each uplink carrier configured on the UE. In this way, several aspects enable network nodes to use information provided by the UE on a single carrier to facilitate more appropriate uplink carrier selection. In some cases, the CSI that can be scheduled to be transmitted may be extended to include indications of the carrier ID and / or uplink carrier quality, and in such cases, it may be transmitted in different time slots. By using existing CSI signaling on a single carrier, several aspects facilitate providing relevant carrier selection information to network nodes without introducing additional signaling and / or additional carrier handover.

[0049] Specific aspects of the subject matter described in this disclosure can be implemented to achieve one or more of the following potential advantages. In some examples, the described techniques can be used to mitigate UCI decoding errors by enabling network nodes to dynamically select and indicate one or more uplink carriers for UCI multiplexing. In some examples, by mitigating UCI decoding errors, the described techniques can be used to increase throughput and / or reduce latency, thereby positively impacting UE performance (and (and therefore) user experience). In some examples, by selecting one or more uplink carriers based on uplink carrier quality indications and / or SINR measurements obtained by network nodes, the described techniques can be used to facilitate uplink carrier selection in association with channel quality, thereby enhancing the quality of the channel associated with the selected uplink carrier. Some aspects can facilitate providing relevant carrier selection information to network nodes while reducing the frequency of carrier handover by using eSRS transmitted on a single carrier and / or existing CSI signaling on a single carrier.

[0050] Multiple access radio access technology (RAT) has been adopted in various telecommunications standards to provide a common protocol that enables wireless communication devices to communicate at the city, enterprise, national, regional, or global level. For example, 5G New Radio (NR) is part of the continuous mobile broadband evolution announced by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). 5G NR supports a variety of technologies and use cases, including enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC), massive machine-type communication (mMTC), millimeter wave (mmWave) technology, beamforming, network slicing, edge computing, Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity and management, and network function virtualization (NFV).

[0051] As the demand for broadband access increases and as technologies supported by wireless communication networks evolve, further technological improvements can be adopted or implemented in 5G NR or future RATs (such as 6G) to further advance the evolution of wireless communication for a wide range of existing and new use cases and applications. Such technological improvements can be associated with new frequency band extensions, licensed and unlicensed spectrum access, overlapping spectrum use, small cell deployments, non-terrestrial network (NTN) deployments, decomposed network architectures and network topology extensions, device aggregation, advanced duplex communication, sidelinks and other device-to-device direct communication, IoT (including passive or ambient IoT) networks, reduced-capacity (RedCap) UE functionality, industrial connectivity, multi-subscriber implementations, high-precision positioning, radio frequency (RF) sensing and / or artificial intelligence or machine learning (AI / ML), and more. These technological improvements can support use cases such as wireless backhaul, wireless communication hubs, extended reality (XR) and metaverse applications, meta-services for supporting vehicle connectivity, holographic and mixed reality communications, autonomous and collaborative robots, vehicle platooning and collaborative maneuvering, sensor networks, posture monitoring, brain-computer interfaces, digital twin applications, asset management, and general coverage applications using off-ground and / or aerial platforms, among others. The methods, operations, apparatuses, and techniques described herein can implement one or more of the foregoing technologies and / or support one or more of the foregoing use cases.

[0052] Figure 1 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a wireless communication network 100 according to the present disclosure. The wireless communication network 100 may be a 5G (or NR) network or a 6G network, or may include elements of a 5G (or NR) network or a 6G network, etc. The wireless communication network 100 may include a plurality of network nodes 110, shown as network node (NN) 110a, network node 110b, network node 110c, and network node 110d. Network nodes 110 may support communication with a plurality of UEs 120 (shown as UE 120a, UE 120b, UE 120c, UE 120d, and UE 120e).

[0053] Network nodes 110 and UEs 120 of wireless communication network 100 can communicate using the electromagnetic spectrum, which can be subdivided into various categories, frequency bands, carriers, and / or channels according to frequency or wavelength. For example, devices of wireless communication network 100 can communicate using one or more operating frequency bands. In some aspects, multiple wireless networks 100 can be deployed in a given geographical area. Each wireless communication network 100 can support a specific radio access technology (RAT) (which may also be referred to as an air interface) and can operate on one or more carrier frequencies in one or more frequency ranges. Examples of RATs include 4G RAT, 5G / NR RAT, and / or 6G RAT, etc. In some examples, when multiple RATs are deployed in a given geographical area, each RAT in that geographical area can operate on a different frequency to avoid interference with each other.

[0054] Various operating frequency bands have been defined as frequency ranges designated FR1 (410 MHz to 7.125 GHz), FR2 (24.25 GHz to 52.6 GHz), FR3 (7.125 GHz to 24.25 GHz), FR4a or FR4-1 (52.6 GHz to 71 GHz), FR4 (52.6 GHz to 114.25 GHz), and FR5 (114.25 GHz to 300 GHz). Although a portion of FR1 is greater than 6 GHz, in some documents and articles, FR1 is often (interchangeably) referred to as the “sub-6 GHz” band. Similarly, in some documents and articles, FR2 is often (interchangeably) referred to as the “millimeter wave” band, but this is different from the Very High Frequency (EHF) band (30 GHz to 300 GHz) identified as the “millimeter wave” band by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). The frequencies between FR1 and FR2 are often referred to as the mid-band frequencies, including FR3. Frequency bands falling within FR3 can inherit FR1 or FR2 characteristics, thereby effectively extending the characteristics of FR1 or FR2 into mid-band frequencies. Therefore, "below 6 GHz" (if used herein) can broadly refer to frequencies less than 6 GHz, within FR1, and / or included in mid-band frequencies. Similarly, the term "millimeter wave" (if used herein) can broadly refer to frequencies included in mid-band frequencies, within FR2, FR4, FR4-a, FR4-1, or FR5, and / or within the EHF band. Higher frequency bands can extend 5G NR operation, 6G operation, and / or other RATs above 52.6 GHz. For example, each of FR4a, FR4-1, FR4, and FR5 falls within the EHF band. In some examples, the wireless communication network 100 can implement dynamic spectrum sharing (DSS), where multiple RATs (e.g., 4G / LTE and 5G / NR) are implemented within a single frequency band using dynamic bandwidth allocation (e.g., based on user demand). It is conceivable that the frequencies included in these operating frequency bands (e.g., FR1, FR2, FR3, FR4, FR4-a, FR4-1 and / or FR5) can be modified, and the techniques described herein are applicable to those modified frequency ranges.

[0055] Network node 110 may include one or more devices, components, or systems that enable communication between UE 120 and one or more devices, components, or systems of wireless communication network 100. Network node 110 may be, may include, or may also be referred to as an NR network node, 5G network node, 6G network node, node B, eNB, gNB, access point (AP), transmit / receive point (TRP), mobility element, core, network entity, network element, network equipment, and / or another type of device, component, or system included in a radio access network (RAN).

[0056] Network node 110 may be implemented as a single physical node (e.g., a single physical structure) or as two or more physical nodes (e.g., two or more different physical structures). For example, network node 110 may be a device or system implementing a portion of a radio protocol stack, a device or system implementing a complete radio protocol stack (such as a complete gNB protocol stack), or a collection of devices or systems collectively implementing a complete radio protocol stack. For example, and as shown, network node 110 may be an aggregated network node (with an aggregated architecture), meaning that network node 110 can implement a complete radio protocol stack physically and logically integrated within a single node (e.g., a single physical structure) in the wireless communication network 100. For example, aggregated network node 110 may consist of a single standalone base station or a single TRP that uses a complete radio protocol stack to implement or facilitate communication between UE 120 and the core network of wireless communication network 100.

[0057] Alternatively, and also as shown in the figure, network node 110 can be a decomposed network node (sometimes referred to as a decomposed base station), meaning that network node 110 can realize a radio protocol stack that is physically distributed and / or logically distributed among two or more nodes in the same or different geographical locations. For example, a decomposed network node may have a decomposed architecture. In some deployments, decomposed network node 110 may be used in integrated access and backhaul (IAB) networks, in open radio access networks (O-RAN) (such as network configurations compliant with the O-RAN Alliance), or in virtualized radio access networks (vRAN) (also referred to as cloud radio access networks (C-RAN)) to facilitate scaling by decomposing base station functionality into multiple units that can be deployed independently.

[0058] Network nodes 110 of the wireless communication network 100 may include one or more central units (CUs), one or more distributed units (DUs), and / or one or more radio units (RUs). CUs may host one or more higher-layer control functions, such as Radio Resource Control (RRC) functions, Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) functions, and / or Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP) functions, etc. DUs may host one or more of the Radio Link Control (RLC) layer, Media Access Control (MAC) layer, and / or one or more higher physical (PHY) layers, depending at least in part on a functional split (such as functional splits defined by 3GPP). In some examples, DUs may also host one or more lower PHY layer functions, such as Fast Fourier Transform (FFT), Inverse FFT (iFFT), beamforming, Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH) extraction and filtering, and / or scheduling of resources for one or more UEs 120, etc. RUs may host RF processing functions or lower PHY layer functions, such as FFT, iFFT, beamforming, or PRACH extraction and filtering, etc., depending on a functional split (such as lower-layer functional splits). In this type of architecture, each RU can be operated to handle over-the-air (OTA) communications with one or more UE 120s.

[0059] In some aspects, network node 110 may include a combination of one or more CUs, one or more DUs, and / or one or more RUs. Additionally or alternatively, network node 110 may include one or more near real-time (near RT) RAN Intelligent Controllers (RICs) and / or one or more non-real-time (non-RT) RICs. In some examples, CUs, DUs, and / or RUs may be implemented as virtual units, such as Virtual Central Units (VCUs), Virtual Distributed Units (VDUs), or Virtual Radio Units (VRUs), etc. Virtual units may be implemented as virtual network functions, such as those associated with cloud deployments.

[0060] Some network nodes 110 (e.g., base stations, RUs, or TRPs) can provide communication coverage for specific geographic areas. In 3GPP, the term "cell" can refer to the coverage area of ​​network node 110 or to network node 110 itself, depending on the context in which the term is used. Network node 110 can support one or more (e.g., three) cells. In some examples, network node 110 can provide communication coverage for macro cells, pico cells, femto cells, or another type of cell. A macro cell can cover a relatively large geographic area (e.g., a radius of several kilometers) and can allow unrestricted access by UE 120 with a service subscription. A pico cell can cover a relatively small geographic area and can allow unrestricted access by UE 120 with a service subscription. A femto cell can cover a relatively small geographic area (e.g., a residential area) and can allow restricted access by UE 120 associated with that femto cell (e.g., UE 120 in a Closed Subscriber Group (CSG)). The network node 110 used for a macro cell may be referred to as a macro network node. Network node 110 used for a pico cell may be referred to as a pico network node. Network node 110 used for a femtocell may be referred to as a femto network node or a home network node. In some examples, the cell may not necessarily be stationary. For example, the geographical area of ​​the cell may be mobile based on the location of the associated mobile network node 110 (e.g., a train, satellite base station, unmanned aerial vehicle, or non-terrestrial network (NTN) network node).

[0061] The wireless communication network 100 can be a heterogeneous network, comprising different types of network nodes 110, such as macro network nodes, piconet nodes, femtonet nodes, relay network nodes, aggregation network nodes, and / or decomposition network nodes, etc. Figure 1 In the example shown, network node 110a can be a macro network node for macro cell 130a, network node 110b can be a pico network node for pico cell 130b, and network node 110c can be a femto network node for femto cell 130c. Compared to other types of network nodes 110, the various types of network nodes 110 typically transmit at different power levels, serve different coverage areas, and / or have different effects on interference in the wireless communication network 100. For example, macro network nodes may have high transmit power levels (e.g., 5 watts to 40 watts), while pico network nodes, femto network nodes, and relay network nodes may have lower transmit power levels (e.g., 0.1 watts to 2 watts).

[0062] In some examples, network node 110 may be, may include, or operate as a RU, TRP, or base station communicating with one or more UEs 120 via a radio access link (which may be referred to as a "Uu" link). The radio access link may include a downlink and an uplink. A "downlink" (or "DL") refers to the communication direction from network node 110 to UE 120, and an "uplink" (or "UL") refers to the communication direction from UE 120 to network node 110. Downlink channels may include one or more control channels and one or more data channels. Downlink control channels may be used to transmit downlink control information (DCI) (e.g., scheduling information, reference signals, and / or configuration information) from network node 110 to UE 120. Downlink data channels may be used to transmit downlink data (e.g., user data associated with UE 120) from network node 110 to UE 120. Downlink control channels may include one or more physical downlink control channels (PDCCH), and downlink data channels may include one or more physical downlink shared channels (PDSCH). The uplink channel may similarly include one or more control channels and one or more data channels. The uplink control channel can be used to transmit uplink control information (UCI) from UE 120 to network node 110 (e.g., transmitting corresponding reference signals and / or feedback with one or more downlinks). The uplink data channel can be used to transmit uplink data (e.g., user data associated with UE 120) from UE 120 to network node 110. The uplink control channel may include one or more physical uplink control channels (PUCCH), and the uplink data channel may include one or more physical uplink shared channels (PUSCH). The downlink and uplink may each include a set of resources on which network node 110 and UE 120 can communicate.

[0063] Downlink and uplink resources may include time-domain resources (frames, subframes, time slots, and / or symbols), frequency-domain resources (bands, component carriers, subcarriers, resource blocks, and / or resource elements), and / or spatial-domain resources (specific transmission directions and / or beam parameters). Frequency-domain resources in some bands may be subdivided into bandwidth portions (BWPs). A BWP may be a contiguous block of frequency-domain resources allocated to one or more UEs 120 (e.g., a contiguous block of resource blocks). UEs 120 may be configured using both uplink and downlink BWPs (where the uplink and downlink BWPs may be the same BWP or different BWPs). BWPs may be dynamically configured and / or reconfigured (e.g., by sending DCI configuration to one or more UEs 120 via network node 110), meaning that BWPs may be adjusted in real-time (or near real-time) based on changing network conditions in the wireless communication network 100 and / or based on the specific requirements of one or more UEs 120. This allows for more efficient use of available frequency domain resources in the wireless communication network 100, as fewer frequency domain resources can be allocated to the BWP for UE 120 (which reduces the number of frequency domain resources that UE 120 needs to monitor), thus allowing more frequency domain resources to be distributed across multiple UE 120s. Therefore, the BWP can also assist in the implementation of such UE 120s by facilitating the configuration of smaller bandwidths for communications performed by lower-capacity UE 120s.

[0064] As described above, in some aspects, the wireless communication network 100 may be an IAB network, may include an IAB network, or may be included in an IAB network. In an IAB network, at least one network node 110 is an anchor network node communicating with a core network. The anchor network node 110 may also be referred to as an IAB donor (or "IAB donor"). The anchor network node 110 may be connected to the core network via a wired backhaul link. For example, the Ng interface of the anchor network node 110 may terminate at the core network. Additionally or alternatively, the anchor network node 110 may be connected to one or more devices in the core network that provide core access and mobility management functions (AMF). An IAB network typically also includes multiple non-anchor network nodes 110, which may also be referred to as relay network nodes or simply IAB nodes (or "IAB-nodes"). Each non-anchor network node 110 can directly communicate with the anchor network node 110 via a wireless backhaul link to access the core network, or can indirectly communicate with the anchor network node 110 via one or more other non-anchor network nodes 110 and an associated wireless backhaul link forming a backhaul path to the core network. Some anchor network nodes 110 or other non-anchor network nodes 110 can also directly communicate with one or more UEs 120 via a wireless access link carrying access services. For example, network resources used for wireless communication (such as time resources, frequency resources, and / or spatial resources) can be shared between the access link and the backhaul link.

[0065] In some examples, any network node 110 relaying communication may be referred to as a relay network node, a relay station, or simply a repeater. A repeater may receive communications from an upstream station (e.g., another network node 110 or UE 120) and transmit communications to a downstream station (e.g., UE 120 or another network node 110). In this case, the wireless communication network 100 may include or be referred to as a "multi-hop network." Figure 1 In the example shown, network node 110d (e.g., a relay network node) can communicate with network node 110a (e.g., a macro network node) and UE 120d to facilitate communication between network node 110a and UE 120d. Additionally or alternatively, UE 120 can be a relay station capable of relaying transmissions to or from other UE 120s, or can operate as such a relay station. UE 120 relaying communication can be referred to as a UE repeater or relay UE, etc.

[0066] UE 120 may be physically distributed throughout the wireless communication network 100, and each UE 120 may be stationary or mobile. UE 120 may be, may include, an access terminal, another terminal, a mobile station, or a subscriber unit, or may be included in an access terminal, another terminal, a mobile station, or a subscriber unit. UE 120 may be, or may include, a cellular phone (e.g., a smartphone), a personal digital assistant (PDA), a wireless modem, a wireless communication device, a handheld device, a laptop computer, a cordless phone, a wireless local loop (WLL) station, a tablet computer, a camera, a gaming device, a netbook, a smartbook, an ultrabook, a medical device, a biometric device, a wearable device (e.g., a smartwatch, smart clothing, smart glasses, a smart wristband and / or smart jewelry (such as a smart ring or smart bracelet)), an entertainment device (e.g., a music device, a video device and / or a satellite radio), an extended reality (XR) device, a vehicle component or sensor, a smart meter or sensor, industrial manufacturing equipment, a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) device (such as a Global Positioning System device or another type of positioning device), a UE function of a network node, and / or any other suitable device or function that can communicate via a wireless medium, or may be coupled to them.

[0067] UE 120 and / or network node 110 may include one or more chips, system-on-a-chip (SoC), chipsets, packages, or devices that individually or collectively constitute or include a processing system. The processing system includes processor (or “processing”) circuitry in the form of one or more processors, microprocessors, processing units (such as central processing units (CPUs), graphics processing units (GPUs), neural processing units (NPUs), and / or digital signal processors (DSPs)), processing blocks, application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), programmable logic devices (PLDs) (such as field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs)), or other discrete gate or transistor logic components or circuits (all of which are generally referred to herein individually as “processors” or collectively as “processors” or “processor circuitry”). One or more of these processors may be individually or collectively configured to perform the various functions or operations described herein. A group of processors that can be configured or configured to perform a set of functions may include a first processor that can be configured or configured to perform a first function in the set, and a second processor that can be configured or configured to perform a second function in the set, or may include the entire group of processors that are configured or configured to perform the set of functions.

[0068] The processing system may also include memory circuitry in the form of one or more memory devices, memory blocks, memory elements, or other discrete gate or transistor logic components or circuits, each of which may include tangible storage media such as random access memory (RAM) or read-only memory (ROM) or combinations thereof (all of which are generally referred to herein individually as "memory" or collectively as "memory" or "memory circuitry"). One or more of these memories may be coupled to one or more processors in the processor (e.g., operatively coupled, communicatively coupled, electronically coupled, or electrically coupled) and may store processor-executable code (such as software) individually or collectively, which, when executed by one or more processors in the processor, may configure one or more processors in the processor to perform the various functions or operations described herein. Additionally or alternatively, in some examples, one or more processors in the processor may be pre-configured to perform the various functions or operations described herein without being configured by software. The processing system may also include or be coupled to one or more modems (such as Wi-Fi (e.g., IEEE compliant) modems or cellular (e.g., 3GPP 4G LTE, 5G, or 6G compliant) modems). In some embodiments, one or more processors of the processing system include or implement one or more modems among the modems. The processing system may also include, or be coupled to, multiple radio components (collectively, “radio components”), multiple RF chains, or multiple transceivers, each of which may in turn be coupled to one or more antennas among multiple antennas. In some embodiments, one or more processors of the processing system include or implement one or more of the radio components, RF chains, or transceivers. UE 120 may be included or may be contained in a housing that houses components associated with UE 120, including the processing system.

[0069] Some UEs 120 may be considered Machine Type Communication (MTC) UEs, Evolved or Enhanced Machine Type Communication (eMTC) UEs, Further Enhanced eMTC (feMTC) UEs, or Enhanced feMTC (efeMTC) UEs, or further evolutions thereof, all of which may be collectively referred to as "MTC UEs". MTC UEs may be, may include, or may be included in or coupled with the following: robots, unmanned aerial vehicles or drones, remote devices, sensors, meters, monitors, and / or location tags. Some UEs 120 may be considered IoT devices and / or may be implemented as NB-IoT (Narrowband IoT) devices. IoT UEs or NB-IoT devices may be, may include, or may be included in or coupled with the following: industrial machines, appliances, refrigerators, doorbell camera devices, home automation devices, and / or lighting fixtures, etc. Some UEs 120 may be considered customer premises equipment, which may include telecommunications equipment installed at a customer location (such as a home or office) to enable access to a service provider’s network (such as being included in or communicating with the wireless communication network 100).

[0070] Some UEs 120 can be categorized according to different categories associated with varying levels of complexity and / or capabilities. UEs 120 in the first category facilitate large-scale IoT within the wireless communication network 100 and offer lower complexity and / or cost compared to UEs 120 in the second category. UEs 120 in the second category may include mission-critical IoT devices, legacy UEs, baseline UEs, high-level UEs, advanced UEs, full-capability UEs, and / or premium UEs capable of ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC), enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), and / or precise positioning, etc., within the wireless communication network 100. UEs 120 in the third category may have intermediate-level complexity and / or capabilities (e.g., capabilities between UEs 120 in the first category and UEs 120 in the second category). UEs 120 in the third category may be referred to as reduced-capability UEs (“RedCap UEs”), intermediate-level UEs, NR lightweight UEs, and / or NR simplified UEs, etc. RedCap UEs bridge the gap in capabilities and complexity between NB-IoT devices and / or eMTC UEs and mission-critical IoT devices and / or premium UEs. RedCap UEs can include, for example, wearable devices, IoT devices, industrial sensors, and / or cameras associated with limited bandwidth, power capacity, and / or transmission range. RedCap UEs can support healthcare environments, building automation, power distribution, process automation, transportation and logistics, and / or smart city deployments, among others.

[0071] In some examples, two or more UEs 120 (e.g., shown as UE 120a and UE 120e) can communicate directly with each other using sidelink communication (e.g., without communicating through a network node 110 acting as an intermediary). As an example, UE 120a can send data, control information, or other signaling directly to UE 120e as sidelink communication. This contrasts with, for example, UE 120a first sending data to network node 110 in UL communication, and then that network node sending data to UE 120e in DL communication. In various examples, UE 120 can use peer-to-peer (P2P) communication protocols, device-to-device (D2D) communication protocols, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication protocols (which may include vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) protocols, vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) protocols, and / or vehicle-to-pedestrian (V2P) protocols), and / or mesh network communication protocols to send and receive sidelink communication. In some deployments and configurations, network node 110 may schedule and / or allocate resources for sidelink communication between UEs 120 in the wireless communication network 100. In some other deployments and configurations, UE 120 (instead of network node 110) may perform or cooperate with or negotiate with one or more other UEs to perform scheduling operations, resource selection operations, and / or other operations for sidelink communication.

[0072] In various examples, in addition to half-duplex operation, some network nodes and UEs in the wireless communication network 100, including network node 110 and UE 120, can also be configured for full-duplex operation. Network node 110 or UE 120 operating in half-duplex mode can perform only one of transmission or reception during a specific time resource period (such as a specific time slot, symbol, or other time period). Half-duplex operation may involve time division duplex (TDD), where the DL transmission of network node 110 and the UL transmission of UE 120 do not occur in the same time resource (i.e., the transmissions do not overlap in time). In contrast, network node 110 or UE 120 operating in full-duplex mode can transmit and receive communications concurrently (e.g., within the same time resource). By operating in full-duplex mode, network node 110 and / or UE 120 can generally increase the capacity of the network and radio access links. In some examples, full-duplex operation may involve frequency division duplex (FDD), in which network node 110 performs DL transmission in a first frequency band or on a first component carrier, and UE 120 performs transmission in a second frequency band or on a second component carrier, the second frequency band or the second component carrier being different from the first frequency band or the first component carrier, respectively. In some examples, full-duplex operation may be enabled for UE 120 but not for network node 110. For example, UE 120 may simultaneously transmit UL to the first network node 110 and receive DL transmissions from the second network node 110 in the same time resources. In some other examples, full-duplex operation may be enabled for network node 110 but not for UE 120. For example, network node 110 may simultaneously transmit DL to the first UE 120 and receive UL transmissions from the second UE 120 in the same time resources. In some other examples, full-duplex operation may be enabled for both network node 110 and UE 120.

[0073] In some examples, UE 120 and network node 110 can perform MIMO communication. "MIMO" generally refers to the simultaneous transmission or reception of multiple signals (such as multiple layers or multiple data streams) using the same time and frequency resources. MIMO technology typically utilizes multipath propagation. MIMO can be implemented using various spatial processing or spatial multiplexing operations. In some examples, MIMO can support simultaneous transmission to multiple receivers, which is called multi-user MIMO (MU-MIMO). Some radio access technologies (RATs) can employ advanced MIMO techniques such as mTRP operation (including redundant transmission or reception on multiple TRPs), reciprocity in the time or frequency domain, single-frequency network (SFN) transmission, or noncoherent joint transmission (NC-JT).

[0074] In some aspects, the UE (e.g., UE 120) may include a communication manager 140. As described in more detail elsewhere herein, the communication manager 140 may: transmit an enhanced sounding reference signal (eSRS) on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, using a first uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, the eSRS indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier; and receive uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0075] In some aspects, the communication manager 140 may: transmit uplink channel state information (CSI) using a first uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, the uplink channel state information (CSI) indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication or an uplink carrier selection information associated with a second uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers; and receive uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers. Additionally or alternatively, the communication manager 140 may perform one or more other operations described herein.

[0076] In some aspects, a network node (e.g., network node 110) may include a communication manager 150. As described in more detail elsewhere herein, the communication manager 150 may: receive an eSRS on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, using a first uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, the eSRS indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier; and transmit uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0077] In some aspects, the communication manager 150 may: receive an uplink CSI using a first uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, the uplink CSI indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier; and transmit uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers. Additionally or alternatively, the communication manager 150 may perform one or more other operations described herein.

[0078] As indicated above, Figure 1 This is provided as an example. Other examples are available with reference to [the relevant information]. Figure 1 The examples described are different.

[0079] Figure 2 This is a diagram illustrating an example network node 110 communicating with an example UE 120 in a wireless network according to the present disclosure.

[0080] like Figure 2 As shown, network node 110 may include a data source 212, a transmit processor 214, a transmit (TX) MIMO processor 216, a set of modems 232 (shown as 232a to 232t, where t≥1), a set of antennas 234 (shown as 234a to 234v, where v≥1), a MIMO detector 236, a receive processor 238, a data sink 239, a controller / processor 240, a memory 242, a communication unit 244, a scheduler 246, and / or a communication manager 150, etc. In some configurations, one or a combination of antennas 234, modems 232, MIMO detectors 236, receive processors 238, transmit processors 214, and / or TX MIMO processors 216 may be included in the transceiver of network node 110. The transceiver may be under the control of and used by one or more processors (such as controller / processor 240), and in some respects, may perform aspects of the methods, procedures and / or operations described herein in conjunction with processor-readable code stored in memory 242. In some respects, network node 110 may include one or more interfaces, communication components and / or other components that facilitate communication with UE 120 or another network node.

[0081] The terms “processor,” “controller,” or “controller / processor” can refer to one or more controllers and / or one or more processors. For example, references to “a / the processor,” “a / the controller / processor,” etc. (in the singular) should be understood as referring to a combination of… Figure 2 The processor described refers to any one or more processors, such as a single processor or a combination of multiple different processors. The reference to "one or more processors" should be understood as a combination of references. Figure 2 Any one or more processors described herein. For example, one or more processors of network node 110 may include transmit processor 214, TX MIMO processor 216, MIMO detector 236, receive processor 238, and / or controller / processor 240. Similarly, one or more processors of UE 120 may include MIMO detector 256, receive processor 258, transmit processor 264, TX MIMO processor 266, and / or controller / processor 280.

[0082] In some aspects, a single processor can perform all operations described as being performed by one or more processors. In some aspects, a first set of one or more processors can perform a first operation described as being performed by that one or more processors, and a second set of one or more processors can perform a second operation described as being performed by that one or more processors. The first set of processors and the second set of processors can be the same set of processors or can be different sets of processors. The reference to "one or more memories" should be understood to refer to any one or more memories of the corresponding device, such as combined... Figure 2 The memory described. For example, an operation described as being performed by one or more memories can be performed by the same subset of the one or more memories or by different subsets of the one or more memories.

[0083] For downlink communication from network node 110 to UE 120, transmitting processor 214 may receive data (“downlink data”) intended for use by UE 120 (or a set of UEs including UE 120) from data source 212 (such as a data pipeline or data queue). In some examples, transmitting processor 214 may select one or more MCSs for UE 120 based on one or more Channel Quality Indicators (CQIs) received from UE 120. Network node 110 may process the data (e.g., including encoding the data) based on the MCS selected for UE 120 for transmission to UE 120 on the downlink, thereby generating data symbols. Transmitting processor 214 may process system information (e.g., semi-static resource partitioning information (SRPI)) and / or control information (e.g., CQI requests, grants, and / or upper-layer signaling) and provide overhead symbols and / or control symbols. The transmitting processor 214 can generate reference symbols for reference signals (e.g., cell-specific reference signals (CRS), demodulation reference signals (DMRS), or channel state information (CSI) reference signals (CSI-RS)) and / or synchronization signals (e.g., primary synchronization signal (PSS) or secondary synchronization signal (SSS)).

[0084] The TX MIMO processor 216 can perform space processing (e.g., pre-decoding) on ​​data symbols, control symbols, overhead symbols, and / or reference symbols where applicable, and can output a set of symbol streams (e.g., TA set of output symbol streams is provided to modem 232. For example, each output symbol stream may be provided to a corresponding modulator component (shown as MOD) of modem 232. Each modem 232 may use the corresponding modulator component to process (e.g., modulate) the corresponding output symbol stream (e.g., for orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM)) to obtain an output sample stream. Each modem 232 may further use the corresponding modulator component to process (e.g., convert to analog, amplify, filter, and / or up-convert) the output sample stream to obtain a time-domain downlink signal. Modems 232a to 232t may transmit the set of downlink signals (e.g., [missing information]) together via a set of corresponding antennas 234. T (One downlink signal).

[0085] Downlink signals may include DCI communication, MAC control element (MAC-CE) communication, RRC communication, downlink reference signals, or another type of downlink communication. Downlink signals may be transmitted on the PDCCH, PDSCH, and / or on another downlink channel. Downlink signals may carry one or more transport blocks (TBs) of data. A TB may be a data unit transmitted via the air interface in the wireless communication network 100. A data stream (e.g., from data source 212) may be encoded into multiple TBs for transmission via the air interface. The number of TBs used to carry data associated with a particular data stream may be associated with a TB size shared by multiple TBs. The TB size may be based on the radio channel conditions of the air interface, the MCS used to encode the data, downlink resources allocated for transmitting data, and / or other parameters, or otherwise associated with them. Generally, a larger TB size allows for a larger amount of data to be transmitted in a single transmission, reducing signaling overhead. However, a larger TB size may be more prone to transmission and / or reception errors than a smaller TB size, but such errors can be mitigated through more robust error correction techniques.

[0086] For uplink communication from UE 120 to network node 110, the uplink signal from UE 120 may be received by antenna 234, processed by modem 232 (e.g., demodulator component of modem 232, shown as DEMOD), detected where applicable by MIMO detector 236 (e.g., receive (Rx) MIMO processor), and / or further processed by receive processor 238 to obtain decoded data and / or control information. Receive processor 238 may provide the decoded data to data sink 239 (which may be a data pipeline, data queue, and / or another type of data sink) and provide the decoded control information to processors such as controller / processor 240.

[0087] Network node 110 may use scheduler 246 to schedule one or more UEs 120 for downlink or uplink communication. In some aspects, scheduler 246 may use DCI to dynamically schedule DL transmissions to and / or UL transmissions from UE 120. In some examples, scheduler 246 may allocate repetitive time-domain and / or frequency-domain resources that UE 120 may use to transmit and / or receive communication using RRC configuration (e.g., semi-static configuration), for example, to perform semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) or to configure configuration grant (CG) for UE 120.

[0088] One or more of the following may be included in the RF chain of network node 110: transmit processor 214, TX MIMO processor 216, modem 232, antenna 234, MIMO detector 236, receive processor 238, and / or controller / processor 240. The RF chain may include one or more filters, mixers, oscillators, amplifiers, analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), and / or other devices for converting analog signals (such as those used for transmission or reception via an air interface) to digital signals (such as those used for processing by one or more processors of network node 110). In some aspects, the RF chain may be a transceiver of network node 110, or may be included in such a transceiver.

[0089] In some examples, network node 110 may use communication unit 244 to communicate with the core network and / or other network nodes. Communication unit 244 may support wired and / or wireless communication protocols and / or connections, such as Ethernet, fiber optic, Common Public Radio Interface (CPRI), and / or wired or wireless backhaul, etc. Network node 110 may use communication unit 244 to send and / or receive data associated with UE 120, or to perform network control signaling, etc. Communication unit 244 may include transceivers and / or interfaces, such as network interfaces.

[0090] UE 120 may include a collection of antennas 252 (shown as antennas 252a to 252r, where r ≥ 1), a collection of modems 254 (shown as modems 254a to 254u, where u ≥ 1), a MIMO detector 256, a receive processor 258, a data sink 260, a data source 262, a transmit processor 264, a TX MIMO processor 266, a controller / processor 280, a memory 282, and / or a communication manager 140, etc. One or more components of UE 120 may be included in housing 284. In some aspects, one or a combination of antenna 252, modem 254, MIMO detector 256, receive processor 258, transmit processor 264, or TX MIMO processor 266 may be included in a transceiver included in UE 120. The transceiver may be under the control of and used by one or more processors (such as controller / processor 280), and in some respects, may perform aspects of the methods, procedures, or operations described herein in conjunction with processor-readable code stored in memory 282. In some respects, UE 120 may include another interface, another communication component, and / or another component that facilitates communication with network node 110 and / or another UE 120.

[0091] For downlink communication from network node 110 to UE 120, the set of antennas 252 can receive downlink communication or signals from network node 110, and can receive the set of downlink signals (e.g., R Each received signal is provided to a set of modems 254. For example, each received signal may be provided to a corresponding demodulator component (shown as DEMOD) of modem 254. Each modem 254 may use the corresponding demodulator component to condition (e.g., filter, amplify, down-convert, and / or digitize) the received signal to obtain an input sample. Each modem 254 may use the corresponding demodulator component to further demodulate or process the input sample (e.g., for OFDM) to obtain a received symbol. MIMO detector 256 may obtain the received symbols from the set of modems 254, may perform MIMO detection on the received symbols where applicable, and may provide the detected symbols. Receiver processor 258 may process (e.g., decode) the detected symbols, may provide the decoded data for UE 120 to data sink 260 (which may include data pipelines, data queues, and / or applications executed on UE 120), and may provide the decoded control information and system information to controller / processor 280.

[0092] For uplink communication from UE 120 to network node 110, the transmitting processor 264 may receive and process data (“uplink data”) from data source 262 (such as data pipelines, data queues, and / or applications running on UE 120) and control information from controller / processor 280. The control information may include one or more parameters, feedback, one or more signal measurements, and / or other types of control information. In some aspects, the receiving processor 258 and / or controller / processor 280 may determine one or more parameters related to the transmission of uplink communication for received signals (such as those received from network node 110 or another UE). One or more parameters may include a Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP) parameter, a Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) parameter, a Reference Signal Received Quality (RSRQ) parameter, a Channel Quality Indicator (CQI) parameter, or a Transmit Power Control (TPC) parameter, etc. The control information may include indications of RSRP, RSSI, RSRQ, CQI, TPC, and / or another parameter. Control information can facilitate parameter selection and / or scheduling for UE 120 by network node 110.

[0093] Transmit processor 264 can generate reference symbols for one or more reference signals, such as uplink DMRS, uplink SRS, and / or another type of reference signal. Symbols from transmit processor 264 may (where applicable) be pre-decoded by TX MIMO processor 266 and further processed by an assembly of modems 254 (e.g., for DFT-s-OFDM or CP-OFDM). TX MIMO processor 266 may (where applicable) perform spatial processing (e.g., pre-decoding) on ​​data symbols, control symbols, overhead symbols, and / or reference symbols, and may provide an output symbol stream set (e.g., ...) to the assembly of modems 254. U Each output symbol stream may be provided to a corresponding modulator component (shown as MOD) of modem 254. Each modem 254 may use the corresponding modulator component to process (e.g., modulate) the corresponding output symbol stream (e.g., for OFDM) to obtain an output sample stream. Each modem 254 may further use the corresponding modulator component to process (e.g., convert to analog, amplify, filter, and / or upconvert) the output sample stream to obtain an uplink signal.

[0094] Modems 254a to 254u can transmit uplink signal sets (e.g., via a corresponding set of antennas 252) R One uplink signal or UUplink signals may include UCI communication, MAC-CE communication, RRC communication, or another type of uplink communication. Uplink signals may be transmitted on PUSCH, PUCCH, and / or another type of uplink channel. Uplink signals may carry one or more TBs of data. Sidelink data and control transmission (i.e., transmission directly between two or more UEs 120) may typically use techniques similar to those described for uplink data and control transmission, and may use sidelink-specific channels such as the Physical Sidelink Shared Channel (PSSCH), Physical Sidelink Control Channel (PSCCH), and / or Physical Sidelink Feedback Channel (PSFCH).

[0095] One or more antennas in the set of antennas 252 or the set of antennas 234 may include one or more antenna panels, one or more antenna groups, one or more sets of antenna elements, or one or more antenna arrays, etc., or may be included in one or more antenna panels, one or more antenna groups, one or more sets of antenna elements, or one or more antenna arrays, etc. Antenna panels, antenna groups, sets of antenna elements, or antenna arrays may include one or more antenna elements (within a single housing or multiple housings), a set of coplanar antenna elements, a set of non-coplanar antenna elements, or with one or more transmitting or receiving components (such as...) Figure 2 An antenna module is a combination of one or more antenna elements coupled to one or more components. As used herein, "antenna" can mean one or more antennas, one or more antenna panels, one or more antenna groups, one or more collections of antenna elements, or one or more antenna arrays. "Antenna panel" can mean a group of antennas (such as antenna elements) arranged in an array or panel that can facilitate beamforming by manipulating the parameters of that group of antennas. "Antenna module" can mean a circuit that includes one or more antennas, and may also include one or more other components (such as filters, amplifiers, or processors) associated with integrating the antenna module into a wireless communication device.

[0096] In some examples, each antenna element of antenna 234 or antenna 252 may include one or more sub-elements for radiating or receiving radio frequency signals. For example, a single antenna element may include a first sub-element cross-polarized with a second sub-element, which can be used to independently transmit cross-polarized signals. Antenna elements may include patch antennas, dipole antennas, and / or other types of antennas arranged in a linear pattern, a two-dimensional pattern, or another pattern. The spacing between antenna elements can allow signals with a desired wavelength transmitted individually by the antenna elements to interact or interfere (e.g., to form a desired beam) in various directions. For example, given a desired wavelength or frequency range, the spacing may provide a quarter wavelength, half a wavelength, or another fraction of the wavelength between adjacent antenna elements to allow desired constructive and destructive interference modes of signals transmitted by individual antenna elements within that desired range.

[0097] The amplitude and / or phase of signals transmitted via antenna elements and / or sub-elements can be modulated and (e.g., by manipulating phase shifts, phase offsets, and / or amplitudes) shifted relative to each other to generate one or more beams; this is known as beamforming. The term "beam" can refer to the directional transmission of a wireless signal toward a receiving device or otherwise in a desired direction. "Beam" can also generally refer to the direction associated with such directional signal transmission, the set of directional resources associated with the signal transmission (e.g., angle of arrival, horizontal direction, and / or vertical direction), and / or a set of parameters indicating one or more aspects of the directional signal, the direction associated with the signal, and / or the set of directional resources associated with the signal. In some implementations, antenna elements can be individually selected or deselected for the directional transmission of a signal (or multiple signals) by controlling the amplitude of one or more corresponding amplifiers and / or the phase of the signal to form one or more beams. The shape of the beam (such as amplitude, width, and / or the presence of sidelobes) and / or the direction of the beam (such as the angle of the beam relative to the surface of the antenna array) can be dynamically controlled by modifying the phase shifts, phase offsets, and / or amplitudes of multiple signals relative to each other.

[0098] Different UEs 120 or network nodes 110 may include different numbers of antenna elements. For example, UE 120 may include a single antenna element, two antenna elements, four antenna elements, eight antenna elements, or different numbers of antenna elements. As another example, network node 110 may include eight antenna elements, 24 antenna elements, 64 antenna elements, 128 antenna elements, or different numbers of antenna elements. Generally speaking, a larger number of antenna elements provides increased control over the parameters used for beamforming compared to a smaller number of antenna elements, while a smaller number of antenna elements may be less complex to implement and can use less power. Multiple antenna elements can support multi-layer transmission, in which the same time and frequency resources are used to utilize spatial multiplexing to transmit a first layer of communication (which may include a first data stream) and a second layer of communication (which may include a second data stream).

[0099] Although Figure 2 The boxes in the diagram are illustrated as different components, but the functions described above with respect to these boxes may be implemented in a single hardware, software, or combined component, or in various combinations of components. For example, the functions described with respect to transmit processor 264, receive processor 258, and / or TX MIMO processor 266 may be performed by or under the control of controller / processor 280.

[0100] Figure 3 This is an illustration of an example decomposed base station architecture 300 according to the present disclosure. One or more components of the example decomposed base station architecture 300 may be, may include, or may be included in one or more network nodes (such as one or more network nodes 110). The decomposed base station architecture 300 may include a CU 310, which may communicate directly with the core network 320 via a backhaul link, or may communicate indirectly with the core network 320 via one or more decomposed control units (e.g., non-RT RIC 350 and / or near-RT RIC 325 (e.g., via an E2 link) associated with a Service Management and Orchestration (SMO) framework 360). The CU 310 may communicate with one or more DUs 330 via a corresponding midhaul link (such as via an F1 interface). Each DU in the DU 330 may communicate with one or more RUs 340 via a corresponding fronthaul link. Each RU in the RU 340 may communicate with one or more UEs 120 via a corresponding RF access link. In some deployments, a UE 120 may be served simultaneously by multiple RUs 340.

[0101] Each component of the disassembled base station architecture 300 (including CU 310, DU 330, RU 340, near-RT RIC 370, non-RT RIC 350, and SMO frame 360) may include one or more interfaces or be coupled to one or more interfaces for receiving or transmitting signals, such as data or information, via wired or wireless transmission media.

[0102] In some respects, the CU 310 can be logically divided into one or more CU-UP units and one or more CU-CP units. When implemented in an O-RAN configuration, the CU-UP units can communicate bidirectionally with the CU-CP units via an interface such as an E1 interface. The CU 310 can be deployed to communicate with one or more DU 330s for network control and signaling, as needed. Each DU 330 may correspond to a logical unit that includes one or more base station functions for controlling the operation of one or more RU 340s. For example, the DU 330 may host various layers, such as the RLC layer, MAC layer, or one or more PHY layers (such as one or more high PHY layers or one or more low PHY layers). Each layer (which may also be referred to as a module) can be implemented using an interface for signaling to other layers (and modules) hosted by the DU 330, or for signaling to control functions hosted by the CU 310. Each RU 340 may implement lower-layer functionality. In some respects, the real-time and non-real-time aspects of communication with the control plane and user plane of the RU 340 can be controlled by the corresponding DU 330.

[0103] The SMO framework 360 supports RAN deployment and provisioning for both non-virtualized and virtualized network elements. For non-virtualized network elements, the SMO framework 360 supports the deployment of dedicated physical resources for RAN coverage requirements, which can be managed via operation and maintenance interfaces such as the O1 interface. For virtualized network elements, the SMO framework 360 can interact with cloud computing platforms such as the Open Cloud (O-Cloud) platform 390 to perform network element lifecycle management (such as instantiating virtualized network elements) via cloud computing platform interfaces such as the O2 interface. Virtualized network elements may include, but are not limited to, CU 310, DU 330, RU 340, non-RT RIC 350, and / or near-RT RIC 370. In some aspects, the SMO framework 360 can communicate with hardware aspects of the 4G RAN, 5G NR RAN, and / or 6G RAN (such as the Open eNB (O-eNB) 380) via the O1 interface. Additionally or alternatively, the SMO framework 360 can communicate directly with each of one or more RUs 340 via the corresponding O1 interface. In some deployments, this configuration enables each DU 330 and CU 310 to be implemented in a cloud-based RAN architecture, such as a vRAN architecture.

[0104] The non-RT RIC 350 may include or implement logical functions that enable non-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources, including artificial intelligence / machine learning (AI / ML) workflows for model training and updates, and / or policy-based guidance of applications and / or features in the near-RT RIC 370. The non-RT RIC 350 may be coupled to or communicate with the near-RT RIC 370, such as via an A1 interface. The near-RT RIC 370 may include or implement logical functions that enable near real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources via an interface, such as an E2 interface, through data collection and actions, connecting one or more CU 310s, one or more DU 330s, and / or O-eNBs to the near-RT RIC 370.

[0105] In some aspects, to generate AI / ML models to be deployed in the near-RT RIC 370, the non-RT RIC 350 may receive parameters or external enrichment information from an external server. This information can be utilized by the near-RT RIC 370 and can be received from non-network data sources or network functions at the SMO framework 360 or the non-RT RIC 350. In some examples, the non-RT RIC 350 or near-RT RIC 370 may modulate RAN behavior or performance. For example, the non-RT RIC 350 may monitor long-term trends and patterns in performance and may employ AI / ML models to perform corrective actions via the SMO framework 360 (such as reconfiguration via the O1 interface) or via the creation of RAN management policies (such as A1 interface policies).

[0106] As indicated above, Figure 3 This is provided as an example. Other examples are available with reference to [the relevant information]. Figure 3 The examples described are different.

[0107] Figure 1 , Figure 2 or Figure 3 Network node 110, its controller / processor 240, UE 120, UE 120's controller / processor 280, CU 310, DU 330, RU 340, or any other component may implement one or more technologies or perform one or more operations associated with signaling uplink carrier selection information, as described in more detail elsewhere herein. For example, network node 110's controller / processor 240, UE 120's controller / processor 280, CU 310, DU 330, RU 340, or any other component may implement one or more technologies or perform one or more operations associated with signaling uplink carrier selection information, as described in more detail elsewhere herein. Figure 2 Any other component, CU 310, DU 330, or RU 340, may (alone or in conjunction with one or more other processors) perform or direct, for example... Figure 8 The process 800 Figure 9 The process 900 Figure 10 Process 1000 Figure 11The operation of process 1100 or other processes as described herein. Memory 242 may store data and program code for network node 110, CU 310, DU 330, or RU 340. Memory 282 may store data and program code for UE 120. In some examples, memory 242 or memory 282 may include a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instruction sets (e.g., code or program code) for wireless communication. Memory 242 may include one or more memories, such as a single memory or multiple different memories (of the same or different types). Memory 282 may include one or more memories, such as a single memory or multiple different memories (of the same or different types). For example, the instruction set may be made to be executed by one or more processors of network node 110, UE 120, CU 310, DU 330, or RU 340 (e.g., directly, or after compilation, transformation, or interpretation). Figure 8 The process 800 Figure 9 The process 900 Figure 10 Process 1000 Figure 11 The process 1100 or other processes as described herein. In some examples, the execution instructions may include run instructions, transform instructions, compile instructions, and / or interpret instructions, etc.

[0108] In some aspects, a UE (e.g., UE 120) includes: means for transmitting an eSRS by the UE and using a first uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers, the eSRS indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier; and / or means for receiving uplink carrier selection communication by the UE in association with at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or uplink carrier selection information, the uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0109] In some aspects, a UE (e.g., UE 120) includes: components for transmitting an uplink CSI by the UE and using a first uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, the uplink CSI indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier; and / or components for receiving uplink carrier selection communication by the UE in association with at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or uplink carrier selection information, the uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers. Components for the UE to perform the operations described herein may include, for example, one or more of a communication manager 140, an antenna 252, a modem 254, a MIMO detector 256, a receive processor 258, a transmit processor 264, a TX MIMO processor 266, a controller / processor 280, or a memory 282.

[0110] In some aspects, a network node (e.g., network node 110) includes: means for receiving an eSRS by the network node and using a first uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers, the eSRS indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier; and / or means for transmitting uplink carrier selection communication by the network node in association with at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or uplink carrier selection information, the uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0111] In some aspects, a network node (e.g., network node 110) includes: components for receiving an uplink CSI by the network node and using a first uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, the uplink CSI indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier; and / or components for transmitting uplink carrier selection communication by the network node in association with at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or uplink carrier selection information, the uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers. Components for the network node to perform the operations described herein may include, for example, one or more of the following: a communication manager 150, a transmit processor 220, a TX MIMO processor 230, a modem 232, an antenna 234, a MIMO detector 236, a receive processor 238, a controller / processor 240, a memory 242, or a scheduler 246.

[0112] Figure 4 This is a diagram illustrating example 400 of carrier aggregation according to this disclosure.

[0113] Carrier aggregation is a technique that enables two or more component carriers (CCs, sometimes referred to as carriers) to be combined (e.g., combined into a single channel) for a single UE 120 to enhance data capacity. As shown, carriers can be combined in the same or different frequency bands. Additionally or alternatively, contiguous or discontinuous carriers can be combined. Network node 110 can configure carrier aggregation for UE 120 (such as in Radio Resource Control (RRC) messages, Downlink Control Information (DCI) and / or other signaling messages).

[0114] As indicated by reference numeral 405, in some aspects, carrier aggregation can be configured in an intra-band continuous mode, wherein the aggregated carriers are continuous with each other and in the same frequency band. As indicated by reference numeral 410, in some aspects, carrier aggregation can be configured in an intra-band discontinuous mode, wherein the aggregated carriers are discontinuous with each other and in the same frequency band. As indicated by reference numeral 415, in some aspects, carrier aggregation can be configured in an inter-band discontinuous mode, wherein the aggregated carriers are discontinuous with each other and in different frequency bands.

[0115] In carrier aggregation, UE 120 can be configured using a primary carrier or primary cell (PCell) and one or more secondary carriers or secondary cells (SCells). In some aspects, the primary carrier may carry control information (e.g., downlink control information and / or scheduling information) for scheduling data communications on one or more secondary carriers; this may be referred to as cross-carrier scheduling. In some aspects, a carrier (e.g., a primary carrier or a secondary carrier) may carry control information for scheduling data communications on that carrier; this may be referred to as self-carrier scheduling or carrier self-scheduling.

[0116] As indicated above, Figure 4 This is provided as an example. Other examples are available with reference to [the relevant information]. Figure 4 The examples described are different.

[0117] The UE can be configured to perform dual uplink (UL) transmission in inter-band uplink carrier aggregation mode. In some cases, the UE may be equipped with up to two transmit (Tx) chains for uplink transmission. The UE can operate in an inter-band uplink carrier aggregation mode (which may be labeled "F+T") where the primary component carrier (PCC) is a frequency division duplex (FDD) carrier and the secondary component carrier (SCC) is a time division duplex (TDD) carrier, or in an inter-band uplink carrier aggregation mode (which may be labeled "T+F") where the PCC is a TDD carrier and the SCC is an FDD carrier.

[0118] In some cases, during multi-carrier operation, up to two uplink carriers (e.g., frequency bands) can be used to configure a two-layer transmitting UE (sometimes referred to as a "2Tx UE"). In other cases, carriers can only be changed via RRC reconfiguration. Uplink transmission handover can be performed between two uplink carriers. In some cases, network enhancements used to dynamically select carriers using UL Tx handover (e.g., based on data traffic, TDD DL / UL configuration, bandwidth and / or channel conditions of each carrier, rather than RRC-based cell reconfiguration) may potentially achieve higher UL data rates, spectral efficiency, and UL capacity.

[0119] In some cases, the UE can be configured for UL Tx handover across up to three or four carriers (for FR1 UEs, there is a limit of up to two simultaneous transmissions), including mechanisms for implementing more configured UL bands than the UE's simultaneous transmission capability and for configuring both single timing advance groups (TAGs) and multiple TAGs to support dynamic transmission carrier handover across configured bands.

[0120] Figure 5This is a diagram illustrating example 500 of uplink carrier switching according to this disclosure. As shown in example 500, the UE can be configured using three carriers (shown as "Carrier 1", "Carrier 2", and "Carrier 3"). In some cases, the UE can transmit two single-layer transmissions (shown as "1 Tx") 502 simultaneously on two carriers (e.g., during the same time slot such as "Time Slot 1"), or transmit two-layer transmissions (shown as "2 Tx") 504 on one carrier during time slots such as "Time Slot 2" or "Time Slot 3", as shown. Based on channel conditions, the UE can switch from one or two uplink carriers to another one or two uplink carriers. For example, as shown, the UE can use carriers 1 and 3 to transmit two single-layer transmissions 502 in time slot 1. The UE can then determine to switch to carrier 2 for subsequent two-layer transmissions 504 in time slot 2, and switch to carrier 3 for two-layer transmissions 504 in time slot 3.

[0121] For example, in some cases, when switching between carriers, the UE may employ non-codebook-based pre-decoding. In uplink non-codebook-based pre-decoding, the UE can select what it deems an appropriate uplink multilayer pre-decoder based on downlink measurements (e.g., measurements associated with a configured CSI reference signal (CSI-RS)). Therefore, non-codebook-based pre-decoding relies on the assumption of channel reciprocity, which states that the UE can obtain detailed knowledge of the uplink channel based on downlink measurements.

[0122] In some cases, uplink carrier handover can be triggered by a two-port TDD PUSCH and / or a Sounding Reference Signal (SRS) TX via downlink control information (e.g., DCI0-1), configured uplink grant, and / or a two-port SRS. In other cases, uplink carrier handover can be triggered by a one-port FDD PUSCH and / or SRS transmission via DCI, configured uplink grant, PUCCH, and / or a one-port SRS. In cases where Dynamic Grant (DG) and Configured Grant (CG) conflict, DG has higher priority. In some cases, if uplink grant is skipped, the UE may discard PUSCH transmission.

[0123] In some cases, due to heavy uplink traffic, network nodes may not have the opportunity to measure the uplink signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR) based on the PUSCH demodulation reference signal (DMRS). Furthermore, transmitting SRS on multiple carriers can lead to unnecessary uplink transmit chain switching, as each uplink transmit chain requires switching time between carriers. In some cases, network nodes may be configured to perform carrier selection, which may be unoptimized due to the age of SINR measurements associated with multiple carriers, lack of consideration for UE buffer size, and / or lack of consideration for UE battery state. In some cases, the UE may measure downlink carriers to determine the uplink carrier for TDD. Measurements may include transmit timing, path loss, power headroom (PHR), and / or receiver imbalance, etc. For example, in some cases, the UE may transmit an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the first carrier on the first carrier. The UE may transmit an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second carrier on the second carrier, and so on. Between each transmission of the uplink carrier quality indication, the UE switches carriers, creating a switching gap that can lead to uplink and (potentially) downlink interruptions.

[0124] In any case, when switching from one carrier to another, a handover gap 506 is used to facilitate the handover between the transmit chain and / or other hardware and / or software associated with the corresponding carrier. In some cases, for uplink carrier aggregation, the handover gap may be as long as 35 microseconds (μs), 140 μs, and / or 210 μs, or 1, 4, or 6 OFDM symbols (for a 30 kHz subcarrier spacing (SCS)). Both uplink carriers (e.g., the carrier from which the handover occurs and the carrier to which the handover occurs) may be affected by the handover. Additionally, while uplink behavior is interrupted by a handover of an uplink carrier, downlink transmission may also be interrupted. The interruption can occur on TDD carriers and / or FDD carriers. An interruption from the handover gap may result in reduced uplink throughput, reduced spectral efficiency, and / or increased UE battery consumption.

[0125] Some aspects of the techniques described herein allow for signaling uplink carrier selection information to support informed carrier selection, while reducing the occurrence of handover gaps associated with signaling uplink carrier selection information. In some aspects, for example, the UE may transmit uplink carrier quality indications associated with multiple carriers on a single carrier. In this way, the UE does not switch to a new carrier to report the uplink carrier quality indication associated with that new carrier, and thus avoids introducing additional uplink carrier handover gaps.

[0126] In some respects, the UE may transmit an enhanced SRS (eSRS) to indicate an uplink carrier quality indication associated with an uplink carrier and / or recommend an uplink carrier for selection. For example, the UE may transmit a first eSRS associated with a first uplink carrier that includes an uplink carrier quality indication, a second eSRS associated with a second uplink carrier that includes an uplink carrier quality indication, and so on. All eSRSs may be transmitted on the same single carrier.

[0127] eSRS is an SRS with attributes that have been modified to implicitly indicate the quality of the uplink carrier associated with the corresponding carrier. For example, modified attributes may include different eSRS pre-decoding on different antenna ports, transmission timing on different antenna ports, amplitude adjustment on different antenna ports, eSRS sequences on different antenna ports, and / or eSRS transmission power on different antenna ports, etc. The UE and / or network node may (e.g., via RRC signaling) indicate which time slots correspond to which carriers and / or which eSRS attributes correspond to which metrics of uplink carrier quality, etc. In this way, the UE may be able to implicitly provide carrier quality information to the network node to facilitate uplink carrier selection.

[0128] In some cases, the UE may transmit a CSI to indicate the quality of the corresponding uplink carrier and / or the recommended uplink carrier. For example, the CSI may indicate the carrier ID for the corresponding carrier, the recommended carrier, and / or the quality of the corresponding uplink carrier associated with each uplink carrier configured on the UE. In this way, several aspects enable network nodes to use information provided by the UE on a single carrier to facilitate more appropriate uplink carrier selection. In some cases, the CSI that can be scheduled to be transmitted may be extended to include indications of the carrier ID and / or uplink carrier quality, and in such cases, it may be transmitted in different time slots. By using existing CSI signaling on a single carrier, several aspects facilitate providing relevant carrier selection information to network nodes without introducing additional signaling and / or additional carrier handover.

[0129] As indicated above, Figure 5 This is provided as an example. Other examples are available with reference to [the relevant information]. Figure 5 The examples described are different.

[0130] Figure 6 This is a diagram illustrating example 600 associated with signaling uplink carrier selection information according to this disclosure. (See diagram for example 60 ... Figure 6 As shown, UE 602 can communicate with network node 604. In some aspects, UE 602 and network node 604 can be part of a wireless network (e.g., wireless network 100). In some aspects, UE 602 can be, similar to, or include... Figures 1 to 3 The UE 120 depicted, or included in the UE 120. In some aspects, the network node 604 may be, similar to, or include. Figure 1 and Figure 2 The network node 110 and / or Figure 3 One or more components of the depicted decomposed base station architecture 300, or components thereof. In some aspects, actions described as being performed by network node 604 may be performed by multiple different network nodes 604. For example, configuration actions may be performed by a first network node 604 (e.g., CU and / or DU), and radio communication actions may be performed by a second network node 604 (e.g., DU and / or RU). UE 602 and network node 604 may... Figure 6 The operation shown has been performed with a wireless connection already established.

[0131] As indicated by reference numeral 606, UE 602 may receive one or more signals, and network node 604 may transmit the one or more signals (directly or via one or more other network nodes). The one or more signals may include downlink reference signals, control signals, and / or data signals. As indicated by reference numeral 608, UE 602 may obtain measurements. Measurements may be associated with one or more signals. For example, in some aspects, measurements may include buffer size, transmit power, transmit timing, multiple receiver imbalance, switching between receive and transmit antenna chains, path loss, path loss difference between a downlink carrier and an associated uplink carrier, PHR, PHR difference between at least two uplink carriers, UE battery capacity, and / or service quality requirements.

[0132] As indicated by reference numeral 610, UE 602 may transmit RRC communication (directly or via one or more other UEs and / or network nodes), and network node 604 may receive such RRC communication. The RRC communication may indicate the association between each time slot in a set of corresponding time slots (e.g., time slot 1, time slot 2, and time slot 3) and a corresponding uplink carrier (e.g., carrier 1, carrier 2, and carrier 3) among a plurality of uplink carriers. For example, UE 602 may indicate via RRC communication that time slot 1 corresponds to carrier 1, time slot 2 corresponds to carrier 2, and time slot 3 corresponds to carrier 3. In some respects, the time slots need not be consecutive. For example, time slot 1 may represent the first time slot, time slot 2 may represent the tenth time slot, and time slot 3 may represent the twentieth time slot.

[0133] As shown by reference numeral 612, UE 602 may transmit a set of eSRS and / or CSI (directly or via one or more other UEs and / or network nodes), and network node 604 may receive this set. The eSRS and / or CSI may indicate one or more recommended uplink carriers among a plurality of uplink carriers. In some aspects, the eSRS and / or CSI may indicate uplink carrier quality information (e.g., channel quality information) associated with the corresponding carrier. For example, uplink carrier quality information may include a CSI associated with each carrier. The CSI may include, for example, a pre-decoding matrix indicator (PMI), a rank indicator (RI), a reference received power (RSRP) value, a received signal strength indicator (RSRI), and / or SINR, etc. In some aspects, the one or more recommended uplink carriers may be based on at least one measurement associated with at least one downlink carrier corresponding to at least one uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers. In some aspects, the one or more recommended uplink carriers may be based on measurements obtained by UE 602.

[0134] As indicated by reference numeral 614 in the accompanying drawings, network node 604 may select one or more uplink carriers. For example, network node 604 may select one or more uplink carriers based on eSRS and / or CSI. In some aspects, additionally or alternatively, network node 604 may select one or more uplink carriers based on SINR measurements performed by network node 604 (e.g., associated with eSRS).

[0135] As indicated above, Figure 6 This is provided as an example. Other examples are available with reference to [the relevant information]. Figure 6 The descriptions are different.

[0136] Figure 7 This is a diagram illustrating Example 700 associated with signaling uplink carrier selection information according to this disclosure. (See diagram for example.) Figure 7 As shown, UE 702 can communicate with network node 704. In some aspects, UE 702 and network node 704 can be part of a wireless network (e.g., wireless network 100). In some aspects, UE 702 can be, similar to, or include... Figure 6 The UE 602 and / or described Figures 1 to 3 The UE 120 depicted, or included therein, may be, be similar to, or include in some respects network node 704. Figure 6 The network node 604 described Figure 1 and Figure 2 The network node 110 and / or Figure 3One or more components of the depicted decomposed base station architecture 300, or components thereof. In some aspects, actions described as being performed by network node 704 may be performed by multiple different network nodes 704. For example, configuration actions may be performed by a first network node 704 (e.g., CU and / or DU), and radio communication actions may be performed by a second network node 704 (e.g., DU and / or RU). UE 702 and network node 704 may... Figure 7 The operation shown has been performed with a wireless connection already established.

[0137] As indicated by reference numeral 706, UE 702 may transmit UE capability information (directly or via one or more other UEs and / or network nodes), and network node 704 may receive such UE capability information. In some aspects, the UE capability information may indicate UE capabilities supporting dynamic uplink carrier selection for UCI multiplexing configuration. In some aspects, the UE capability information may indicate the capability to provide eSRS indicating a recommended carrier and / or uplink carrier quality indication. In some aspects, the UE capability information may indicate the capability to provide CSI indicating a recommended carrier and / or uplink carrier quality indication.

[0138] As indicated by reference numeral 708, network node 704 may send configuration information (directly or via one or more other network nodes), and UE 702 may receive such configuration information. In some aspects, UE 702 may receive the configuration information via RRC signaling, one or more Media Access Control (MAC) control elements (CE) and / or DCI, etc. In some aspects, the configuration information may include indications of one or more configuration parameters for UE 702 to select (e.g., known to UE 702 and / or previously indicated by network node 704 or another network device) and / or explicit configuration information for UE 702 to use to configure UE 702, etc.

[0139] In some aspects, the configuration information may indicate dynamic uplink carrier selection configuration. In some aspects, the configuration information may indicate that the UE will receive dynamic uplink carrier selection communication, provide uplink carrier recommendation indication, and / or provide uplink carrier quality indication to support uplink carrier selection. In some aspects, the UE 702 may configure itself at least in part based on the received configuration information. In some aspects, the UE 702 may be configured to perform one or more of the operations described herein, at least in part based on the configuration information.

[0140] As indicated by reference numeral 710, network node 704 may send activation communication, and UE 702 may receive this activation communication (directly or via one or more other UEs and / or network nodes). The activation communication may be associated with a dynamic uplink carrier selection configuration. For example, the activation communication may enable UE 702 to activate a configuration in which UE 702 can receive an indication of a dynamically selected uplink carrier.

[0141] As shown by reference numeral 712, UE 702 can receive multiple downlink signals on multiple carriers, and network node 704 can transmit these multiple downlink signals (directly or via one or more other network nodes). Signals may include downlink reference signals, control signals, and / or data signals. As shown by reference numeral 714, UE 702 can obtain measurements. Measurements may be associated with signals. For example, in some aspects, measurements may include buffer size, transmit power, transmit timing, multiple receiver imbalance, switching between receive and transmit antenna chains, path loss, path loss difference between a downlink carrier and an associated uplink carrier, PHR, PHR difference between at least two uplink carriers, UE battery capacity, and / or service quality requirements, etc.

[0142] As shown by reference numeral 716, UE 602 may transmit RRC communication (directly or via one or more other UEs and / or network nodes), and network node 704 may receive such RRC communication. The RRC communication may indicate the association between each time slot in a given time slot and a corresponding uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers. For example, the RRC communication may indicate the association between each time slot in a set of given time slots (e.g., time slot 1, time slot 2, and time slot 3) and a corresponding uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers (e.g., carrier 1, carrier 2, and carrier 3). For example, the RRC communication may indicate that a first time slot will include a first eSRS or first uplink CSI communication associated with a first carrier, a second time slot will include a second eSRS or second uplink CSI communication associated with a second carrier, and a third time slot will include a third eSRS or third uplink CSI communication associated with a third carrier.

[0143] As shown by reference numeral 718, UE 702 may transmit one or more eSRS and / or CSIs (directly or via one or more other UEs and / or network nodes), and network node 704 may receive the one or more eSRS and / or CSIs. The one or more eSRS and / or CSIs may indicate one or more recommended uplink carriers among a plurality of uplink carriers. In some aspects, the one or more eSRS and / or CSIs may indicate uplink carrier quality information (e.g., channel quality information) associated with the plurality of carriers. For example, uplink carrier information may include CSIs associated with each carrier. CSIs may include, for example, PMI, RI, RSRP values, RSRI, and / or SINR, etc.

[0144] In some aspects, for example, UE 702 may use a first uplink carrier of a plurality of uplink carriers to transmit an eSRS on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers. The eSRS may indicate at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. In some aspects, the plurality of uplink carriers may include more than two uplink carriers. In some aspects, the uplink carrier selection information may indicate that at least one of the plurality of uplink carriers has been recommended as an uplink carrier.

[0145] In some aspects, at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or uplink carrier selection information may include a corresponding uplink carrier quality indication associated with each corresponding uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers. For example, the corresponding uplink carrier quality indication may be based on at least one measurement associated with a corresponding downlink carrier among a plurality of downlink carriers that corresponds to the corresponding uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers. For example, in some aspects, at least one measurement may include buffer size, transmit power, transmit timing, imbalance of multiple receivers, switching between receive antenna chains and transmit antenna chains, path loss, path loss difference between a downlink carrier and an associated uplink carrier, PHR, PHR difference between at least two uplink carriers, UE battery capacity and / or service quality requirements, etc.

[0146] In some aspects, at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or uplink carrier selection information may include eSRS characteristics of the eSRS. For example, eSRS characteristics may include at least one of the following: eSRS pre-decoding at the antenna port, transmission timing, amplitude adjustment at the antenna port, eSRS sequence at the antenna port, or eSRS transmit power at the antenna port. In some aspects, one or more processors may be further configured to transmit multiple eSRSs including the eSRS on corresponding time slots of a plurality of time slots including a dedicated uplink time slot.

[0147] In some aspects, UE 702 may use a first uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers to transmit an uplink CSI, which indicates at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. The uplink CSI may include a set of dedicated bits associated with at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or uplink carrier selection information. In some aspects, the set of dedicated bits may indicate a corresponding uplink carrier ID and a corresponding channel quality for each of the plurality of uplink carriers. In some aspects, for example, the uplink CSI may indicate an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier, an uplink carrier ID associated with a second uplink carrier, an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a first uplink carrier, and an uplink carrier ID associated with the first uplink carrier.

[0148] In some aspects, UE 702 may transmit a CSI in the first uplink time slot, and the uplink CSI may indicate an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier and an uplink carrier ID associated with the second uplink carrier. UE 702 may transmit an additional uplink CSI in the second uplink time slot. The additional CSI may include an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the first uplink carrier and an uplink carrier ID associated with the first uplink carrier.

[0149] As shown by reference numeral 720 in the accompanying drawings, network node 704 may send dynamic uplink carrier selection communication, and UE 702 may receive such dynamic uplink carrier selection communication. In some aspects, receiving dynamic uplink carrier selection communication may include receiving dynamic uplink carrier selection communication according to UE capabilities. In some aspects, UE 702 may receive (and network node 704 may send) dynamic uplink carrier selection communication according to a dynamic uplink carrier selection configuration.

[0150] In some aspects, dynamic uplink carrier selection communication can indicate one or more selected uplink carriers from a plurality of uplink carriers for transmitting UCI according to a UCI multiplexing configuration. For example, in some aspects, at least one selected uplink carrier may include a single selected uplink carrier associated with two-layer transmission. In some aspects, at least one selected uplink carrier may include a first selected uplink carrier associated with a first-layer transmission and a second selected uplink carrier associated with a second-layer transmission.

[0151] In some aspects, dynamic uplink carrier selection communication may include a DCI carried on the PDCCH. The DCI may include a DCI Physical Uplink Control Channel Resource Indicator, which includes at least one uplink carrier field indicating one or more selected uplink carriers. In some aspects, dynamic uplink carrier selection communication may include RRC communication with a PUCCH resource table indicating one or more uplink carrier IDs associated with one or more selected uplink carriers for UCI resources. In some aspects, the one or more selected uplink carriers are associated with at least one uplink measurement at network node 504. For example, the at least one uplink measurement may include a SINR measurement associated with SRS.

[0152] As shown by reference numeral 722 in the accompanying drawing, UE 702 may transmit a UCI multiplexed with one or more selected uplink carriers (directly or via one or more other UEs and / or network nodes), and network node 704 may receive the UCI. In this way, network node 704 may be able to dynamically select one or more UE carriers for the UCI multiplexed with the PUSCH based on uplink carrier quality indications, uplink carrier recommendations, and / or one or more uplink measurements, thereby mitigating UCI decoding errors. Because UE 702 can transmit recommendations for all carriers on a single carrier, dynamic uplink carrier selection is supported, while reducing the frequency of uplink channel handover, thereby improving uplink throughput, spectral efficiency, and / or UE power efficiency.

[0153] As indicated above, Figure 7 This is provided as an example. Other examples are available with reference to [the relevant information]. Figure 7 The descriptions are different.

[0154] Figure 8 This is a diagram illustrating an example process 800 performed, for example, at a UE or a device of a UE, according to this disclosure. Example process 800 is an example in which the device or the UE (e.g., UE 702) performs operations associated with signaling uplink carrier selection information.

[0155] like Figure 8 As shown, in some aspects, process 800 may include transmitting an eSRS on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers using a first uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers. The eSRS indicates at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier (block 810). For example, the UE (e.g., using...) Figure 12The described transmitting component 1204 and / or communication manager 1206 may use a first uplink carrier of a plurality of uplink carriers to transmit an eSRS on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier of a plurality of uplink carriers. The eSRS indicates at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier, as described above.

[0156] like Figure 8 Further shown, in some aspects, process 800 may include receiving uplink carrier selection communication (block 820) indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers. For example, the UE (e.g., using...) Figure 12 The depicted receiving component 1202 and / or communication manager 1206 can receive uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, as described above.

[0157] Process 800 may include additional aspects, such as any single aspect or any combination of aspects described below and / or in conjunction with one or more other processes described elsewhere in this document.

[0158] In the first aspect, multiple uplink carriers include more than two uplink carriers.

[0159] In the second aspect, either alone or in combination with the first aspect, the uplink carrier selection information indicates that at least one of a plurality of uplink carriers has been recommended as an uplink carrier.

[0160] In the third aspect, either alone or in combination with the second aspect, at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or uplink carrier selection information includes a corresponding uplink carrier quality indication associated with each of the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0161] In the fourth aspect, either alone or in combination with the third aspect, the quality indication of the corresponding uplink carrier is based on at least one measurement associated with the corresponding downlink carrier among the plurality of downlink carriers and the corresponding uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0162] In the fifth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to fourth aspects, at least one measurement is associated with at least one of the following: buffer size, transmit power, transmit timing, multiple receiver imbalance, switching between receive antenna chains and transmit antenna chains, path loss, path loss difference between downlink carriers and associated uplink carriers, PHR, PHR difference between at least two uplink carriers, UE battery capacity and / or service quality requirements.

[0163] In the sixth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to fifth aspects, process 800 includes the UE sending UE capability information indicating the ability to provide eSRS.

[0164] In the seventh aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to sixth aspects, at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or uplink carrier selection information includes the eSRS feature of eSRS.

[0165] In the eighth aspect, alone or in combination with the seventh aspect, the eSRS characteristics include at least one of the following: eSRS pre-decoding at the antenna port, transmission timing, amplitude adjustment at the antenna port, eSRS sequence at the antenna port, or eSRS transmission power at the antenna port.

[0166] In the ninth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to eighth aspects, process 800 includes transmitting a plurality of eSRSs including the eSRS on a corresponding time slot in a plurality of time slots including a dedicated uplink time slot.

[0167] In the tenth aspect, alone or in combination with the ninth aspect, process 800 includes sending RRC communication indicating the association between each time slot in the corresponding time slot and a corresponding uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers.

[0168] In the eleventh aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to tenth aspects, at least one selected uplink carrier includes a single selected uplink carrier associated with two-layer transmission.

[0169] In the twelfth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to eleventh aspects, at least one selected uplink carrier includes a first selected uplink carrier associated with a first layer transmission and a second selected uplink carrier associated with a second layer transmission.

[0170] although Figure 8 An example box of process 800 is shown, but in some respects, process 800 may include... Figure 8 The boxes depicted in the diagram may be fewer, different, or arranged differently than additional boxes. Alternatively, two or more boxes in the process 800 may be executed in parallel.

[0171] Figure 9 This is a diagram illustrating an example process 900 performed, for example, at a network node or a device of a network node, according to the present disclosure. Example process 900 is an example in which a device or network node (e.g., network node 704) performs operations associated with signaling uplink carrier selection information.

[0172] like Figure 9 As shown, in some aspects, process 900 may include receiving an eSRS on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, using a first uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, the eSRS indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier (box 910). For example, a network node (e.g., using...) Figure 13 The described receiving component 1302 and / or communication manager 1306 may use a first uplink carrier of a plurality of uplink carriers to receive an eSRS on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier of a plurality of uplink carriers, the eSRS indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier, as described above.

[0173] like Figure 9 Further shown, in some aspects, process 900 may include sending uplink carrier selection communication (block 920) indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers. For example, a network node (e.g., using...) Figure 13 The described transmitting component 1304 and / or communication manager 1306 can transmit uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, as described above.

[0174] Process 900 may include additional aspects, such as any single aspect or any combination of aspects described below and / or in conjunction with one or more other processes described elsewhere in this document.

[0175] In the first aspect, multiple uplink carriers include more than two uplink carriers.

[0176] In the second aspect, either alone or in combination with the first aspect, the uplink carrier selection information indicates that at least one of a plurality of uplink carriers has been recommended as an uplink carrier.

[0177] In the third aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first and second aspects, at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or uplink carrier selection information includes a corresponding uplink carrier quality indication associated with each of the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0178] In the fourth aspect, either alone or in combination with the third aspect, the quality indication of the corresponding uplink carrier is based on at least one measurement associated with the corresponding downlink carrier among the plurality of downlink carriers and the corresponding uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0179] In the fifth aspect, either alone or in combination with the fourth aspect, at least one measurement is associated with at least one of the following: buffer size, transmit power, transmit timing, multiple receiver imbalance, switching between receive antenna chains and transmit antenna chains, path loss, path loss difference between downlink carriers and associated uplink carriers, PHR, PHR difference between at least two uplink carriers, UE battery capacity and / or service quality requirements.

[0180] In the sixth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to fifth aspects, process 900 includes receiving UE capability information from the network node indicating the ability to provide eSRS.

[0181] In the seventh aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to sixth aspects, at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or uplink carrier selection information includes the eSRS feature of eSRS.

[0182] In the eighth aspect, alone or in combination with the seventh aspect, the eSRS characteristics include at least one of the following: eSRS pre-decoding at the antenna port, transmission timing, amplitude adjustment at the antenna port, eSRS sequence at the antenna port, or eSRS transmission power at the antenna port.

[0183] In the ninth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to eighth aspects, process 900 includes receiving a plurality of eSRS including the eSRS on a corresponding time slot of a plurality of time slots including a dedicated uplink time slot.

[0184] In the tenth aspect, alone or in combination with the ninth aspect, process 900 includes receiving RRC communication indicating the association between each time slot in the corresponding time slot and a corresponding uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers.

[0185] In the eleventh aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to tenth aspects, at least one selected uplink carrier includes a single selected uplink carrier associated with two-layer transmission.

[0186] In the twelfth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to eleventh aspects, at least one selected uplink carrier includes a first selected uplink carrier associated with a first layer transmission and a second selected uplink carrier associated with a second layer transmission.

[0187] although Figure 9 An example box of process 900 is shown, but in some respects, process 900 may include... Figure 9 The boxes depicted in the diagram may be fewer, different, or arranged differently than additional boxes. Alternatively, two or more boxes in the process 900 may be executed in parallel.

[0188] Figure 10 This is a diagram illustrating an example process 1000 performed, for example, at a UE or a device of a UE, according to this disclosure. Example process 1000 is an example in which the device or the UE (e.g., UE 702) performs operations associated with signaling uplink carrier selection information.

[0189] like Figure 10 As shown, in some aspects, process 1000 may include transmitting an uplink CSI using a first uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, the uplink CSI indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier (box 1010). For example, the UE (e.g., using...) Figure 12 The depicted transmitting component 1204 and / or communication manager 1206 may use a first uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers to transmit an uplink CSI, which indicates at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers or uplink carrier selection information associated with a second uplink carrier, as described above.

[0190] like Figure 10 Further shown, in some aspects, process 1000 may include receiving uplink carrier selection communication (block 1020) indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers. For example, the UE (e.g., using...) Figure 12 The depicted receiving component 1202 and / or communication manager 1206 can receive uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, as described above.

[0191] Process 1000 may include additional aspects, such as any single aspect or any combination of aspects described below and / or in conjunction with one or more other processes described elsewhere in this document.

[0192] In the first aspect, multiple uplink carriers include more than two uplink carriers.

[0193] In the second aspect, either alone or in combination with the first aspect, the uplink carrier selection information indicates that at least one of a plurality of uplink carriers has been recommended as an uplink carrier.

[0194] In the third aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first and second aspects, at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or uplink carrier selection information includes a corresponding uplink carrier quality indication associated with each of the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0195] In the fourth aspect, either alone or in combination with the third aspect, the quality indication of the corresponding uplink carrier is based on at least one measurement associated with the corresponding downlink carrier among the plurality of downlink carriers and the corresponding uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0196] In the fifth aspect, either alone or in combination with the fourth aspect, at least one measurement is associated with at least one of the following: buffer size, transmit power, transmit timing, multiple receiver imbalance, switching between receive antenna chains and transmit antenna chains, path loss, path loss difference between downlink carriers and associated uplink carriers, PHR, PHR difference between at least two uplink carriers, UE battery capacity and / or service quality requirements.

[0197] In the sixth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to fifth aspects, process 1000 includes the UE transmitting UE capability information indicating the ability to provide uplink CSI.

[0198] In the seventh aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to sixth aspects, the uplink CSI includes a set of dedicated bits associated with at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or uplink carrier selection information.

[0199] In the eighth aspect, either alone or in combination with the seventh aspect, the dedicated bit set indicates the corresponding uplink carrier ID and the corresponding channel quality for each of the multiple uplink carriers.

[0200] In the ninth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to eighth aspects, the uplink CSI indicates the uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier, the uplink carrier ID associated with the second uplink carrier, the uplink carrier quality indication associated with the first uplink carrier, and the uplink carrier ID associated with the first uplink carrier.

[0201] In the tenth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to ninth aspects, transmitting the CSI includes transmitting the CSI in a first uplink time slot, and the uplink CSI indicates an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier and an uplink carrier ID associated with the second uplink carrier, and the process 1000 includes the UE transmitting an additional uplink CSI in a second uplink time slot using the first uplink carrier, wherein the additional CSI includes an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the first uplink carrier and an uplink carrier ID associated with the first uplink carrier.

[0202] In the eleventh aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to tenth aspects, at least one selected uplink carrier includes a single uplink carrier associated with two-layer transmission.

[0203] In the twelfth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to eleventh aspects, at least one selected uplink carrier includes a first uplink carrier associated with a first layer transmission and a second uplink carrier associated with a second layer transmission.

[0204] although Figure 10 An example box of process 1000 is shown, but in some respects, process 1000 may include... Figure 10 The boxes depicted in the diagram are compared to additional boxes, fewer boxes, different boxes, or boxes arranged in a different manner. Additionally or alternatively, two or more boxes in the process 1000 may be executed in parallel.

[0205] Figure 11 This is a diagram illustrating an example process 1100 performed, for example, at a network node or a device of a network node, according to the present disclosure. Example process 1100 is an example in which a device or network node (e.g., network node 704) performs operations associated with signaling uplink carrier selection information.

[0206] like Figure 11 As shown, in some aspects, process 1100 may include receiving an uplink CSI using a first uplink carrier of a plurality of uplink carriers, the uplink CSI indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier (box 1110). For example, a network node (e.g., using...) Figure 13The described receiving component 1302 and / or communication manager 1306 may use a first uplink carrier of a plurality of uplink carriers to receive an uplink CSI, the uplink CSI indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier of a plurality of uplink carriers or uplink carrier selection information associated with a second uplink carrier, as described above.

[0207] like Figure 11 Further shown, in some aspects, process 1100 may include sending uplink carrier selection communication (block 1120) indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers. For example, a network node (e.g., using...) Figure 13 The described transmitting component 1304 and / or communication manager 1306 can transmit uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, as described above.

[0208] Process 1100 may include additional aspects, such as any single aspect or any combination of aspects described below and / or in conjunction with one or more other processes described elsewhere in this document.

[0209] In the first aspect, multiple uplink carriers include more than two uplink carriers.

[0210] In the second aspect, either alone or in combination with the first aspect, the uplink carrier selection information indicates that at least one of a plurality of uplink carriers has been recommended as an uplink carrier.

[0211] In the third aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first and second aspects, at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or uplink carrier selection information includes a corresponding uplink carrier quality indication associated with each of the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0212] In the fourth aspect, either alone or in combination with the third aspect, the quality indication of the corresponding uplink carrier is based on at least one measurement associated with the corresponding downlink carrier among the plurality of downlink carriers and the corresponding uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0213] In the fifth aspect, either alone or in combination with the fourth aspect, at least one measurement is associated with at least one of the following: buffer size, transmit power, transmit timing, multiple receiver imbalance, switching between receive antenna chains and transmit antenna chains, path loss, path loss difference between downlink carriers and associated uplink carriers, PHR, PHR difference between at least two uplink carriers, UE battery capacity and / or service quality requirements.

[0214] In the sixth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to fifth aspects, process 1100 includes receiving UE capability information from a network node indicating the ability to provide uplink CSI.

[0215] In the seventh aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to sixth aspects, the uplink CSI includes a set of dedicated bits associated with at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or uplink carrier selection information.

[0216] In the eighth aspect, either alone or in combination with the seventh aspect, the dedicated bit set indicates the corresponding uplink carrier ID and the corresponding channel quality for each of the multiple uplink carriers.

[0217] In the ninth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to eighth aspects, the uplink CSI indicates the uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier, the uplink carrier ID associated with the second uplink carrier, the uplink carrier quality indication associated with the first uplink carrier, and the uplink carrier ID associated with the first uplink carrier.

[0218] In the tenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first to ninth aspects, receiving the CSI includes receiving the CSI in a first uplink time slot, and the uplink CSI indicates an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier and an uplink carrier ID associated with the second uplink carrier, and process 1100 includes receiving an additional uplink CSI by a network node in a second uplink time slot using the first uplink carrier, wherein the additional CSI includes an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the first uplink carrier and an uplink carrier ID associated with the first uplink carrier.

[0219] In the eleventh aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to tenth aspects, at least one selected uplink carrier includes a single uplink carrier associated with two-layer transmission.

[0220] In the twelfth aspect, either alone or in combination with one or more of the first to eleventh aspects, at least one selected uplink carrier includes a first uplink carrier associated with a first layer transmission and a second uplink carrier associated with a second layer transmission.

[0221] although Figure 11 An example box of process 1100 is shown, but in some respects, process 1100 may include... Figure 11The boxes depicted herein are compared to additional boxes, fewer boxes, different boxes, or boxes arranged in a different manner. Additionally or alternatively, two or more boxes in the process 1100 may be executed in parallel.

[0222] Figure 12 This is a diagram of an example device 1200 for wireless communication according to the present disclosure. Device 1200 may be a UE, or a UE may include device 1200. In some aspects, device 1200 includes a receiving component 1202, a transmitting component 1204, and / or a communication manager 1206 that can communicate with each other (e.g., via one or more buses and / or one or more other components). In some aspects, communication manager 1206 is combined with... Figure 1 The described communication manager 140. As shown, device 1200 can communicate with another device 1208 (such as a UE or a network node (such as a CU, DU, RU or base station)) using receiving component 1202 and transmitting component 1204.

[0223] In some respects, device 1200 can be configured to perform the functions described herein. Figure 6 and Figure 7 One or more operations described herein. Additionally or alternatively, the apparatus 1200 may be configured to perform one or more processes described herein, such as Figure 8 The process 800 Figure 10 The process 1000 or a combination thereof. In some respects, Figure 12 The illustrated device 1200 and / or one or more components may include a combination Figure 2 One or more components of the described UE. Additionally or alternatively, Figure 12 One or more components shown can be combined Figure 2 Implemented within one or more of the described components. Additionally or alternatively, one or more of the components in the group may be implemented at least partially as software stored in one or more memories. For example, a component (or a portion thereof) may be implemented as instructions or code stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium and executable by one or more controllers or one or more processors to perform the function or operation of the component.

[0224] Receiver 1202 may receive communications from device 1208, such as reference signals, control information, data communications, or combinations thereof. Receiver 1202 may provide the received communications to one or more other components of device 1200. In some aspects, receiver 1202 may perform signal processing (such as filtering, amplification, demodulation, analog-to-digital conversion, demultiplexing, deinterleaving, demapping, equalization, interference cancellation, or decoding, etc.) on the received communications, and may provide the processed signals to one or more other components of device 1200. In some aspects, receiver 1202 may include combinations of... Figure 2 The described UE includes one or more antennas, one or more modems, one or more demodulators, one or more MIMO detectors, one or more receiver processors, one or more controllers / processors, one or more memories, or combinations thereof.

[0225] Transmitting component 1204 may transmit communications, such as reference signals, control information, data communications, or combinations thereof, to device 1208. In some aspects, one or more other components of device 1200 may generate communications and provide the generated communications to transmitting component 1204 for transmission to device 1208. In some aspects, transmitting component 1204 may perform signal processing (such as filtering, amplification, modulation, digital-to-analog conversion, multiplexing, interleaving, mapping, or encoding, etc.) on the generated communications and may transmit the processed signals to device 1208. In some aspects, transmitting component 1204 may include combinations of... Figure 2 The described UE may include one or more antennas, one or more modems, one or more modulators, one or more transmit MIMO processors, one or more transmit processors, one or more controllers / processors, one or more memories, or combinations thereof. In some aspects, the transmit component 1204 may co-located with the receive component 1202 in one or more transceivers.

[0226] The communication manager 1206 may support the operation of the receiving component 1202 and / or the transmitting component 1204. For example, the communication manager 1206 may receive information associated with configuring the reception of communications by the receiving component 1202 and / or the transmission of communications by the transmitting component 1204. Additionally or alternatively, the communication manager 1206 may generate control information and / or provide control information to the receiving component 1202 and / or the transmitting component 1204 to control the reception and / or transmission of communications.

[0227] The transmitting component 1204 may transmit an eSRS on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers using a first uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers. The eSRS indicates at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. The receiving component 1202 may receive uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0228] Transmitting component 1204 can transmit UE capability information indicating the ability to provide eSRS. Transmitting component 1204 can transmit multiple eSRSs, including the eSRS, on corresponding timeslots among multiple timeslots including dedicated uplink timeslots. Transmitting component 1204 can transmit RRC communications indicating the association between each timeslot in the corresponding timeslot and a corresponding uplink carrier among multiple uplink carriers.

[0229] The transmitting component 1204 may use a first uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers to transmit an uplink CSI, which indicates at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. The receiving component 1202 may receive uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers. The transmitting component 1204 may transmit UE capability information indicating the ability to provide an uplink CSI.

[0230] Figure 12 The number and arrangement of components shown are provided as an example. In reality, they can exist in... Figure 12 The components shown are compared to additional components, fewer components, different components, or components arranged in a different manner. Furthermore, Figure 12 The two or more components shown can be implemented within a single component, or Figure 12 The single component shown can be implemented as multiple distributed components. Additionally or alternatively, Figure 12 The component collection (one or more components) shown can be executed as described by Figure 12 The other set of components shown performs one or more functions.

[0231] Figure 13This is a diagram of an example device 1300 for wireless communication according to the present disclosure. Device 1300 may be a network node, or a network node may include device 1300. In some aspects, device 1300 includes a receiving component 1302, a transmitting component 1304, and / or a communication manager 1306 that can communicate with each other (e.g., via one or more buses and / or one or more other components). In some aspects, communication manager 1306 is combined with... Figure 1 The described communication manager 150. As shown, device 1300 can communicate with another device 1308 (such as a UE or a network node (such as a CU, DU, RU or base station)) using receiving component 1302 and transmitting component 1304.

[0232] In some respects, device 1300 can be configured to perform the functions described herein. Figure 6 and Figure 7 One or more operations described herein. Additionally or alternatively, the apparatus 1300 may be configured to perform one or more processes described herein, such as Figure 9 The process 900 Figure 11 The process 1100 or a combination thereof. In some respects, Figure 13 The illustrated device 1300 and / or one or more components may include a combination Figure 2 One or more components of the described network node. Additionally or alternatively, Figure 13 One or more components shown can be combined Figure 2 Implemented within one or more of the described components. Additionally or alternatively, one or more of the components in the group may be implemented at least partially as software stored in one or more memories. For example, a component (or a portion thereof) may be implemented as instructions or code stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium and executable by one or more controllers or one or more processors to perform the function or operation of the component.

[0233] Receiver 1302 may receive communications from device 1308, such as reference signals, control information, data communications, or combinations thereof. Receiver 1302 may provide the received communications to one or more other components of device 1300. In some aspects, receiver 1302 may perform signal processing on the received communications (such as filtering, amplification, demodulation, analog-to-digital conversion, demultiplexing, deinterleaving, demapping, equalization, interference cancellation, or decoding, etc.) and may provide the processed signals to one or more other components of device 1300. In some aspects, receiver 1302 may include combinations of... Figure 2The described network node may include one or more antennas, one or more modems, one or more demodulators, one or more MIMO detectors, one or more receiver processors, one or more controllers / processors, one or more memories, or combinations thereof. In some aspects, receiver component 1302 and / or transmitter component 1304 may include or be included in a network interface. The network interface may be configured to acquire and / or output signals for device 1300 via one or more communication links, such as backhaul links, midhaul links, and / or fronthaul links.

[0234] Transmitting component 1304 may transmit communications, such as reference signals, control information, data communications, or combinations thereof, to device 1308. In some aspects, one or more other components of device 1300 may generate communications and provide the generated communications to transmitting component 1304 for transmission to device 1308. In some aspects, transmitting component 1304 may perform signal processing (such as filtering, amplification, modulation, digital-to-analog conversion, multiplexing, interleaving, mapping, or encoding, etc.) on the generated communications and may transmit the processed signals to device 1308. In some aspects, transmitting component 1304 may include combinations of... Figure 2 The described network node includes one or more antennas, one or more modems, one or more modulators, one or more transmit MIMO processors, one or more transmit processors, one or more controllers / processors, one or more memories, or combinations thereof. In some aspects, the transmit component 1304 may co-located with the receive component 1302 in one or more transceivers.

[0235] The communication manager 1306 may support the operation of the receiving component 1302 and / or the transmitting component 1304. For example, the communication manager 1306 may receive information associated with configuring the reception of communications by the receiving component 1302 and / or the transmission of communications by the transmitting component 1304. Additionally or alternatively, the communication manager 1306 may generate control information and / or provide control information to the receiving component 1302 and / or the transmitting component 1304 to control the reception and / or transmission of communications.

[0236] The receiving component 1302 may receive an eSRS on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers using a first uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers. The eSRS indicates at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. The transmitting component 1304 may transmit uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers.

[0237] The receiving component 1302 can receive UE capability information indicating the ability to provide eSRS. The receiving component 1302 can receive multiple eSRSs, including eSRS, on a corresponding time slot among multiple time slots including a dedicated uplink time slot. The receiving component 1302 can receive RRC communications indicating the association between each time slot in the corresponding time slot and a corresponding uplink carrier among multiple uplink carriers.

[0238] The receiving component 1302 may use a first uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers to receive an uplink CSI, the uplink CSI indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. The transmitting component 1304 may transmit uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers. The receiving component 1302 may receive UE capability information indicating the ability to provide uplink CSI.

[0239] Figure 13 The number and arrangement of components shown are provided as an example. In reality, they can exist in... Figure 13 The components shown are compared to additional components, fewer components, different components, or components arranged in a different manner. Furthermore, Figure 13 The two or more components shown can be implemented within a single component, or Figure 13 The single component shown can be implemented as multiple distributed components. Additionally or alternatively, Figure 13 The component collection (one or more components) shown can be executed as described by Figure 13 The other set of components shown performs one or more functions.

[0240] The following provides an overview of some aspects of this disclosure: Aspect 1: A method of wireless communication performed at a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: transmitting, by the UE and using a first uplink carrier of a plurality of uplink carriers, an enhanced sounding reference signal (eSRS) on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers, the eSRS indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier; and receiving, by the UE, uplink carrier selection communication associated with the at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or the uplink carrier selection information, the uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0241] Aspect 2: According to the method of aspect 1, the plurality of uplink carriers includes more than two uplink carriers.

[0242] Aspect 3: The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the uplink carrier selection information indicates that at least one of the plurality of uplink carriers has been recommended as an uplink carrier.

[0243] Aspect 4: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 3, wherein the at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or the uplink carrier selection information includes a corresponding uplink carrier quality indication associated with each corresponding uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0244] Aspect 5: According to the method of aspect 4, wherein the corresponding uplink carrier quality indication is based on at least one measurement associated with a corresponding downlink carrier among a plurality of downlink carriers corresponding to the corresponding uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0245] Aspect 6: According to the method of aspect 5, the at least one measurement is associated with at least one of the following: buffer size, transmit power, transmit timing, multiple receiver imbalance, switching between receive antenna chains and transmit antenna chains, path loss, path loss difference between downlink carriers and associated uplink carriers, power headroom (PHR), PHR difference between at least two uplink carriers, UE battery capacity and / or service quality requirements.

[0246] Aspect 7: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 6, the method further comprising the UE transmitting UE capability information indicating the capability to provide the eSRS.

[0247] Aspect 8: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 7, wherein at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or the uplink carrier selection information includes the eSRS characteristics of the eSRS.

[0248] Aspect 9: According to the method of aspect 8, the eSRS characteristics include at least one of the following: eSRS pre-decoding on the antenna port, transmission timing, amplitude adjustment on the antenna port, eSRS sequence on the antenna port, or eSRS transmission power on the antenna port.

[0249] Aspect 10: The method according to any one of aspects 1 to 9, the method further comprising transmitting a plurality of eSRS including the eSRS on a corresponding time slot of a plurality of time slots including the dedicated uplink time slot.

[0250] Aspect 11: According to the method of aspect 10, the method further includes transmitting radio resource control (RRC) communications, the radio resource control (RRC) communications indicating the association between each time slot in the corresponding time slot and a corresponding uplink carrier in the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0251] Aspect 12: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 11, wherein the at least one selected uplink carrier comprises a single selected uplink carrier associated with two-layer transmission.

[0252] Aspect 13: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 12, wherein the at least one selected uplink carrier includes a first selected uplink carrier associated with a first layer transmission and a second selected uplink carrier associated with a second layer transmission.

[0253] Aspect 14: A method of wireless communication performed at a network node, the method comprising: receiving, by the network node and using a first uplink carrier of a plurality of uplink carriers, an enhanced sounding reference signal (eSRS) on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers, the eSRS indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier; and transmitting, by the network node, an uplink carrier selection communication associated with the at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or the uplink carrier selection information, the uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0254] Aspect 15: According to the method of aspect 14, the plurality of uplink carriers includes more than two uplink carriers.

[0255] Aspect 16: The method of claim 14 or 15, wherein the uplink carrier selection information indicates that at least one of the plurality of uplink carriers has been recommended as an uplink carrier.

[0256] Aspect 17: The method according to any one of Aspects 14 to 16, wherein the at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or the uplink carrier selection information includes a corresponding uplink carrier quality indication associated with each corresponding uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0257] Aspect 18: The method according to aspect 17, wherein the corresponding uplink carrier quality indication is based on at least one measurement associated with a corresponding downlink carrier among a plurality of downlink carriers corresponding to the corresponding uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0258] Aspect 19: According to the method of aspect 18, the at least one measurement is associated with at least one of the following: buffer size, transmit power, transmit timing, multiple receiver imbalance, switching between receive antenna chains and transmit antenna chains, path loss, path loss difference between downlink carriers and associated uplink carriers, power headroom (PHR), PHR difference between at least two uplink carriers, UE battery capacity and / or service quality requirements.

[0259] Aspect 20: The method according to any one of aspects 14 to 19, the method further comprising receiving UE capability information indicating the capability to provide the eSRS by the network node.

[0260] Aspect 21: The method according to any one of aspects 14 to 20, wherein at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or the uplink carrier selection information includes the eSRS characteristics of the eSRS.

[0261] Aspect 22: According to the method of aspect 21, the eSRS characteristics include at least one of the following: eSRS pre-decoding on the antenna port, transmission timing, amplitude adjustment on the antenna port, eSRS sequence on the antenna port, or eSRS transmission power on the antenna port.

[0262] Aspect 23: The method according to any one of aspects 14 to 22, the method further comprising receiving a plurality of eSRS including the eSRS on a respective time slot of a plurality of time slots including the dedicated uplink time slot.

[0263] Aspect 24: According to the method of aspect 23, the method further includes receiving radio resource control (RRC) communications, the radio resource control (RRC) communications indicating the association between each time slot in the corresponding time slot and a corresponding uplink carrier in the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0264] Aspect 25: The method according to any one of aspects 14 to 24, wherein the at least one selected uplink carrier comprises a single selected uplink carrier associated with two-layer transmission.

[0265] Aspect 26: The method according to any one of Aspects 14 to 25, wherein the at least one selected uplink carrier includes a first selected uplink carrier associated with a first layer transmission and a second selected uplink carrier associated with a second layer transmission.

[0266] Aspect 27: A method of wireless communication performed at a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: transmitting uplink channel state information (CSI) by the UE and using a first uplink carrier of a plurality of uplink carriers, the uplink channel state information (CSI) indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier; and receiving uplink carrier selection communication by the UE in association with the at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or the uplink carrier selection information, the uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0267] Aspect 28: According to the method of aspect 27, the plurality of uplink carriers includes more than two uplink carriers.

[0268] Aspect 29: The method of claim 27 or 28, wherein the uplink carrier selection information indicates that at least one of the plurality of uplink carriers has been recommended as an uplink carrier.

[0269] Aspect 30: The method according to any one of Aspects 27 to 29, wherein the at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or the uplink carrier selection information includes a corresponding uplink carrier quality indication associated with each corresponding uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0270] Aspect 31: The method according to aspect 30, wherein the corresponding uplink carrier quality indication is based on at least one measurement associated with a corresponding downlink carrier among a plurality of downlink carriers corresponding to the corresponding uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0271] Aspect 32: According to the method of aspect 31, the at least one measurement is associated with at least one of the following: buffer size, transmit power, transmit timing, multiple receiver imbalance, switching between receive antenna chains and transmit antenna chains, path loss, path loss difference between downlink carriers and associated uplink carriers, power headroom (PHR), PHR difference between at least two uplink carriers, UE battery capacity and / or service quality requirements.

[0272] Aspect 33: The method according to any one of Aspects 27 to 32, the method further comprising the UE transmitting UE capability information indicating the capability to provide the uplink CSI.

[0273] Aspect 34: The method according to any one of Aspects 27 to 33, wherein the uplink CSI includes a set of dedicated bits associated with at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or the uplink carrier selection information.

[0274] Aspect 35: According to the method of aspect 34, wherein the dedicated bit set indicates a corresponding uplink carrier identifier (ID) and corresponding channel quality for each of the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0275] Aspect 36: The method according to any one of Aspects 27 to 35, wherein the uplink CSI indicates: the uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier, the uplink carrier identifier (ID) associated with the second uplink carrier, the uplink carrier quality indication associated with the first uplink carrier, and the uplink carrier ID associated with the first uplink carrier.

[0276] Aspect 37: The method according to any one of Aspects 27 to 36, wherein transmitting the CSI includes transmitting the CSI in a first uplink time slot, and wherein the uplink CSI indicates an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier and an uplink carrier identifier (ID) associated with the second uplink carrier, the method further comprising transmitting an additional uplink CSI by the UE and using the first uplink carrier in a second uplink time slot, wherein the additional CSI includes an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the first uplink carrier and an uplink carrier ID associated with the first uplink carrier.

[0277] Aspect 38: The method according to any one of Aspects 27 to 37, wherein the at least one selected uplink carrier comprises a single uplink carrier associated with two-layer transmission.

[0278] Aspect 39: The method according to any one of Aspects 27 to 38, wherein the at least one selected uplink carrier includes a first uplink carrier associated with a first layer transmission and a second uplink carrier associated with a second layer transmission.

[0279] Aspect 40: A method of wireless communication performed at a network node, the method comprising: receiving uplink channel state information (CSI) by the network node and using a first uplink carrier of a plurality of uplink carriers, the uplink channel state information (CSI) indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier; and transmitting uplink carrier selection communication by the network node in association with the at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or the uplink carrier selection information, the uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0280] Aspect 41: According to the method of aspect 40, the plurality of uplink carriers includes more than two uplink carriers.

[0281] Aspect 42: The method of claim 40 or 41, wherein the uplink carrier selection information indicates that at least one of the plurality of uplink carriers has been recommended as an uplink carrier.

[0282] Aspect 43: The method according to any one of aspects 40 to 42, wherein the at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or the uplink carrier selection information includes a corresponding uplink carrier quality indication associated with each corresponding uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0283] Aspect 44: According to the method of aspect 43, wherein the corresponding uplink carrier quality indication is based on at least one measurement associated with a corresponding downlink carrier among a plurality of downlink carriers corresponding to the corresponding uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0284] Aspect 45: According to the method of aspect 44, the at least one measurement is associated with at least one of the following: buffer size, transmit power, transmit timing, multiple receiver imbalance, switching between receive antenna chains and transmit antenna chains, path loss, path loss difference between downlink carriers and associated uplink carriers, power headroom (PHR), PHR difference between at least two uplink carriers, UE battery capacity and / or service quality requirements.

[0285] Aspect 46: The method according to any one of Aspects 40 to 45, the method further comprising receiving UE capability information indicating the capability to provide the uplink CSI by the network node.

[0286] Aspect 47: The method according to any one of Aspects 40 to 46, wherein the uplink CSI includes a set of dedicated bits associated with at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or the uplink carrier selection information.

[0287] Aspect 48: According to the method of aspect 47, wherein the dedicated bit set indicates a corresponding uplink carrier identifier (ID) and corresponding channel quality for each of the plurality of uplink carriers.

[0288] Aspect 49: The method according to any one of Aspects 40 to 48, wherein the uplink CSI indicates: the uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier, the uplink carrier identifier (ID) associated with the second uplink carrier, the uplink carrier quality indication associated with the first uplink carrier, and the uplink carrier ID associated with the first uplink carrier.

[0289] Aspect 50: The method according to any one of Aspects 40 to 49, wherein receiving the CSI includes receiving the CSI in a first uplink time slot, and wherein the uplink CSI indicates an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier and an uplink carrier identifier (ID) associated with the second uplink carrier, the method further comprising receiving an additional uplink CSI by the network node and using the first uplink carrier in a second uplink time slot, wherein the additional CSI includes an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the first uplink carrier and an uplink carrier ID associated with the first uplink carrier.

[0290] Aspect 51: The method according to any one of Aspects 40 to 50, wherein the at least one selected uplink carrier comprises a single uplink carrier associated with two-layer transmission.

[0291] Aspect 52: The method according to any one of Aspects 40 to 51, wherein the at least one selected uplink carrier includes a first uplink carrier associated with a first layer transmission and a second uplink carrier associated with a second layer transmission.

[0292] Aspect 53: An apparatus for wireless communication at a device, the apparatus comprising: one or more processors; one or more memories coupled to the one or more processors; and instructions stored in the one or more memories and executable by the one or more processors to cause the apparatus to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 1 to 13.

[0293] Aspect 54: An apparatus for wireless communication at a device, the apparatus comprising one or more memories and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories, the one or more processors being configured to cause the device to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 1 to 13.

[0294] Aspect 55: An apparatus for wireless communication, the apparatus comprising at least one component for performing the method according to one or more of aspects 1 to 13.

[0295] Aspect 56: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communication, the code including instructions executable by one or more processors to perform the methods described in one or more of aspects 1 to 13.

[0296] Aspect 57: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a set of instructions for wireless communication, the set of instructions comprising one or more instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a device, cause the device to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 1 to 13.

[0297] Aspect 58: A device for wireless communication, the device including a processing system comprising one or more processors and one or more memories coupled to the one or more processors, the processing system being configured to cause the device to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 1 to 13.

[0298] Aspect 59: An apparatus for wireless communication at a device, the apparatus comprising one or more memories and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories, the one or more processors being individually or collectively configured to cause the device to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 1 to 13.

[0299] Aspect 60: An apparatus for wireless communication at a device, the apparatus comprising: one or more processors; one or more memories coupled to the one or more processors; and instructions stored in the one or more memories and executable by the one or more processors to cause the apparatus to perform one or more of the methods according to aspects 14 to 26.

[0300] Aspect 61: An apparatus for wireless communication at a device, the apparatus comprising one or more memories and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories, the one or more processors being configured to cause the device to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 14 to 26.

[0301] Aspect 62: An apparatus for wireless communication, the apparatus comprising at least one component for performing the method according to one or more of aspects 14 to 26.

[0302] Aspect 63: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communication, the code including instructions executable by one or more processors to perform the methods described in one or more of aspects 14 to 26.

[0303] Aspect 64: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a set of instructions for wireless communication, the set of instructions comprising one or more instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a device, cause the device to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 14 to 26.

[0304] Aspect 65: A device for wireless communication, the device including a processing system comprising one or more processors and one or more memories coupled to the one or more processors, the processing system being configured to cause the device to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 14 to 26.

[0305] Aspect 66: An apparatus for wireless communication at a device, the apparatus comprising one or more memories and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories, the one or more processors being individually or collectively configured to cause the device to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 14 to 26.

[0306] Aspect 67: An apparatus for wireless communication at a device, the apparatus comprising: one or more processors; one or more memories coupled to the one or more processors; and instructions stored in the one or more memories and executable by the one or more processors to cause the apparatus to perform one or more of the methods according to aspects 27 to 39.

[0307] Aspect 68: An apparatus for wireless communication at a device, the apparatus comprising one or more memories and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories, the one or more processors being configured to cause the device to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 27 to 39.

[0308] Aspect 69: An apparatus for wireless communication, the apparatus comprising at least one component for performing the method according to one or more of aspects 27 to 39.

[0309] Aspect 70: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communication, said code including instructions executable by one or more processors to perform the methods described in one or more of aspects 27 to 39.

[0310] Aspect 71: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a set of instructions for wireless communication, the set of instructions comprising one or more instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a device, cause the device to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 27 to 39.

[0311] Aspect 72: A device for wireless communication, the device including a processing system comprising one or more processors and one or more memories coupled to the one or more processors, the processing system being configured to cause the device to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 27 to 39.

[0312] Aspect 73: An apparatus for wireless communication at a device, the apparatus comprising one or more memories and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories, the one or more processors being individually or collectively configured to cause the device to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 27 to 39.

[0313] Aspect 74: An apparatus for wireless communication at a device, the apparatus comprising: one or more processors; one or more memories coupled to the one or more processors; and instructions stored in the one or more memories and executable by the one or more processors to cause the apparatus to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 40 to 52.

[0314] Aspect 75: An apparatus for wireless communication at a device, the apparatus comprising one or more memories and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories, the one or more processors being configured to cause the device to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 40 to 52.

[0315] Aspect 76: An apparatus for wireless communication, the apparatus comprising at least one component for performing the method according to one or more of aspects 40 to 52.

[0316] Aspect 77: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communication, the code including instructions executable by one or more processors to perform the methods described in one or more of aspects 40 to 52.

[0317] Aspect 78: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a set of instructions for wireless communication, the set of instructions comprising one or more instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a device, cause the device to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 40 to 52.

[0318] Aspect 79: A device for wireless communication, the device including a processing system comprising one or more processors and one or more memories coupled to the one or more processors, the processing system being configured to cause the device to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 40 to 52.

[0319] Aspect 80: An apparatus for wireless communication at a device, the apparatus comprising one or more memories and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories, the one or more processors being individually or collectively configured to cause the device to perform the method according to one or more of aspects 40 to 52.

[0320] While the foregoing disclosure provides examples and descriptions, it is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the aspects to the precise form disclosed. Modifications and variations may be made based on the foregoing disclosure, or from various forms of practice.

[0321] As used herein, the term "component" is intended to be broadly interpreted as hardware or a combination of hardware and at least one of software or firmware. "Software" should be broadly interpreted as instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subroutines, software modules, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable programs, threads of execution, procedures, or functions, whether referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description languages, or other terms. As used herein, a "processor" is implemented in hardware or a combination of hardware and software. It will be apparent that the systems or methods described herein may be implemented in various forms of hardware or combinations of hardware and software. The actual dedicated control hardware or software code used to implement these systems or methods is not limited in any way. Therefore, the operation and behavior of these systems or methods are described herein without reference to specific software code, as those skilled in the art will understand that the software and hardware can be designed to implement these systems or methods, at least in part, based on the description herein. Unless otherwise stated, a component configured to perform a function means that the component has the capability to perform that function, but it is not necessary for the component to actually perform that function.

[0322] As used in this article, depending on the context, "meeting the threshold" can mean a value greater than the threshold, greater than or equal to the threshold, less than the threshold, less than or equal to the threshold, equal to the threshold, not equal to the threshold, etc.

[0323] As used in this article, the phrase “at least one of” in a list of items refers to any combination of these items, including a single member. As an example, “at least one of a, b, or c” is intended to cover: a, b, c, a+b, a+c, b+c, and a+b+c, as well as any combination with multiple identical elements (e.g., a+a, a+a+a, a+a+b, a+a+c, a+b+b, a+c+c, b+b, b+b+b, b+b+c, c+c, and c+c+c, or any other ordering of a, b, and c).

[0324] No element, action, or instruction used herein should be construed as essential or necessary unless explicitly stated otherwise. Furthermore, as used herein, the articles “a” and “an” are intended to include one or more items and are used interchangeably with “one or more.” Similarly, as used herein, the article “described” is intended to include one or more items mentioned in connection with the article “described” and is used interchangeably with “one or more.” Furthermore, as used herein, the terms “group” and “cluster” are intended to include one or more entries and are used interchangeably with “one or more.” If only one item is desired, the phrase “only one” or similar terminology will be used. Moreover, as used herein, the terms “having” and similar terms are intended as open-ended terms that do not limit the elements they modify (e.g., “having” A may also have B). Additionally, the phrase “based on” is intended to mean “based on or otherwise related to” unless otherwise explicitly stated. Furthermore, as used herein, the term “or” is intended to be inclusive when used consecutively and is interchangeable with “and / or” unless otherwise explicitly stated (e.g., if used in conjunction with “either of the two” or “only one of them”). It should be understood that “one or more” is equivalent to “at least one”.

[0325] Although specific combinations of features are set forth in the claims or disclosed in the description, these combinations are not intended to limit the disclosure of various aspects. Many of these features may be combined in ways not specifically stated in the claims or disclosed in the description. The disclosure of various aspects includes each dependent claim in combination with each other claim in the claim set.

Claims

1. An apparatus for wireless communication at a user equipment (UE), the apparatus comprising: One or more memory units; and One or more processors, which are configured individually or jointly and at least in part based on information stored in the one or more memories, to: Using a first uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, an enhanced sounding reference signal (eSRS) is transmitted on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers. The enhanced sounding reference signal (eSRS) indicates at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. as well as Receive uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the plurality of uplink carriers comprises more than two uplink carriers.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the uplink carrier selection information indicates that at least one of the plurality of uplink carriers has been recommended as an uplink carrier.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or the uplink carrier selection information includes a corresponding uplink carrier quality indication associated with each of the plurality of uplink carriers.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the corresponding uplink carrier quality indication is based on at least one measurement associated with a corresponding downlink carrier among a plurality of downlink carriers corresponding to the corresponding uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the at least one measurement is associated with at least one of the following: buffer size, transmit power, transmit timing, multiple receiver imbalance, switching between receive antenna chains and transmit antenna chains, path loss, path loss difference between a downlink carrier and an associated uplink carrier, power headroom (PHR), PHR difference between at least two uplink carriers, UE battery capacity, and / or service quality requirements.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to transmit UE capability information indicating the capability to provide the eSRS.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or the uplink carrier selection information includes the eSRS characteristic of the eSRS.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the eSRS characteristic includes at least one of the following: eSRS pre-decoding at the antenna port, transmission timing, amplitude adjustment at the antenna port, eSRS sequence at the antenna port, or eSRS transmission power at the antenna port.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to transmit a plurality of eSRSs including the eSRS on a corresponding time slot of a plurality of time slots including the dedicated uplink time slot.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to transmit Radio Resource Control (RRC) communications indicating the association between each of the respective time slots and a respective uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one selected uplink carrier comprises a single selected uplink carrier associated with two-layer transmission.

13. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one selected uplink carrier includes a first selected uplink carrier associated with a first layer transmission and a second selected uplink carrier associated with a second layer transmission.

14. An apparatus for wireless communication at a network node, the apparatus comprising: One or more memory units; and One or more processors, which are configured individually or jointly and at least in part based on information stored in the one or more memories, to: Using a first uplink carrier of a plurality of uplink carriers, an enhanced sounding reference signal (eSRS) is received on a dedicated uplink time slot associated with a second uplink carrier of the plurality of uplink carriers. The enhanced sounding reference signal (eSRS) indicates at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier. as well as Send uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or the uplink carrier selection information includes the eSRS characteristic of the eSRS.

16. An apparatus for wireless communication at a user equipment (UE), the apparatus comprising: One or more memory units; and One or more processors, which are configured individually or jointly and at least in part based on information stored in the one or more memories, to: Uplink channel state information (CSI) is transmitted using a first uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, the uplink channel state information (CSI) indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier; as well as Receive uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the plurality of uplink carriers comprises more than two uplink carriers.

18. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the uplink carrier selection information indicates that at least one of the plurality of uplink carriers has been recommended as an uplink carrier.

19. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or the uplink carrier selection information includes a corresponding uplink carrier quality indication associated with each of the plurality of uplink carriers.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the corresponding uplink carrier quality indication is based on at least one measurement associated with a corresponding downlink carrier among a plurality of downlink carriers corresponding to the corresponding uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

21. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the at least one measurement is associated with at least one of the following: buffer size, transmit power, transmit timing, multiple receiver imbalance, switching between receive antenna chains and transmit antenna chains, path loss, path loss difference between a downlink carrier and an associated uplink carrier, power headroom (PHR), PHR difference between at least two uplink carriers, UE battery capacity, and / or service quality requirements.

22. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to transmit UE capability information indicating the ability to provide the uplink CSI.

23. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the uplink CSI includes a set of dedicated bits associated with at least one of the uplink carrier quality indication or the uplink carrier selection information.

24. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the dedicated bit set indicates a corresponding uplink carrier identifier (ID) and corresponding channel quality for each of the plurality of uplink carriers.

25. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the uplink CSI indicates: The uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier. Uplink carrier identifier (ID) associated with the second uplink carrier. Uplink carrier quality indication associated with the first uplink carrier, and The uplink carrier ID associated with the first uplink carrier.

26. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein, in order to transmit the CSI, the one or more processors are configured to transmit the CSI in a first uplink time slot, and wherein the uplink CSI indicates an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier and an uplink carrier identifier (ID) associated with the second uplink carrier, and wherein the one or more processors are further configured by the UE and using the first uplink carrier to transmit an additional uplink CSI in a second uplink time slot, wherein the additional CSI includes an uplink carrier quality indication associated with the first uplink carrier and an uplink carrier ID associated with the first uplink carrier.

27. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the at least one selected uplink carrier comprises a single uplink carrier associated with two-layer transmission.

28. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the at least one selected uplink carrier includes a first uplink carrier associated with a first layer transmission and a second uplink carrier associated with a second layer transmission.

29. An apparatus for wireless communication at a network node, the apparatus comprising: One or more memory units; and One or more processors, which are configured individually or jointly and at least in part based on information stored in the one or more memories, to: Uplink channel state information (CSI) is received using a first uplink carrier among a plurality of uplink carriers, the uplink channel state information (CSI) indicating at least one of an uplink carrier quality indication associated with a second uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers or uplink carrier selection information associated with the second uplink carrier; as well as Send uplink carrier selection communication indicating at least one selected uplink carrier among the plurality of uplink carriers.

30. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein the uplink CSI indicates: The uplink carrier quality indication associated with the second uplink carrier. Uplink carrier identifier (ID) associated with the second uplink carrier. Uplink carrier quality indication associated with the first uplink carrier, and The uplink carrier ID associated with the first uplink carrier.

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