Systems, methods, and devices for signaling and procedures for communications to a ul-only trp

Abstract

Solutions are provided for signaling and procedures for implementing UL communications toward a base station operating as a standalone uplink (UL) transmission and reception point (TRP). One or more of these solutions can be applicable to a contention-based random access (CBRA) procedure. One or more other solutions are provided for a contention-free random access (CFRA) procedure. Solutions are also provided for determining an appropriate timing advance (TA) signal for a UE communicating with a standalone UL TRP. In addition to a transmission power control solution for sounding reference signal (SRS) transmission, transmission power control solutions are provided for UL transmissions via a physical random access (RA) channel (PRACH), a physical UL shared channel (PUSCH), and a PUCCH.

Description

Cross-references to related applications

[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63 / 604,758, filed November 30, 2023, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference for all purposes. Technical Field

[0002] This disclosure relates to wireless communication networks and mobile device capabilities. Background Technology

[0003] Wireless communication networks and services are becoming increasingly dynamic, complex, and ubiquitous. For example, wireless communication networks can be developed to implement fourth-generation (4G), fifth-generation (5G), or new radio (NR) technologies. Such technologies may include solutions for enabling user equipment (UE) and network devices, such as base stations, to communicate with each other. Attached Figure Description

[0004] This disclosure will be readily understood and implemented through detailed description and accompanying drawings. The same reference numerals may designate the same features and structural elements. The drawings and corresponding descriptions are provided as non-limiting examples of aspects, embodiments, etc., of this disclosure, and references to “a” or “an” aspect, embodiment, etc., may not necessarily refer to the same aspect, embodiment, etc., and may mean at least one, one, or more, etc.

[0005] Figure 1 This is a diagram providing an overview of one or more specific implementations described herein.

[0006] Figure 2 This is a diagram of an example network based on one or more specific implementations described in this document.

[0007] Figure 3 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a primary cell group (MCG) and secondary cell group (SCG) based on one or more specific implementations described herein.

[0008] Figures 4 to 7 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a random access (RA) process that can be enhanced by one or more of the techniques described herein.

[0009] Figure 8 This is an illustration of an example of a process for determining whether to configure a User Equipment (UE) for an Uplink-only (UL) Transmit and Receive Point (TRP) according to one or more specific implementations described herein.

[0010] Figure 9 These are examples of information that may be included in a Type 1 System Information Block (SIB1) according to one or more specific implementations described herein.

[0011] Figures 10 to 11 This is a diagram illustrating an example of RA channel (RACH) timing (RO) associated with different synchronization signal blocks (SSBs) according to one or more specific implementations described herein.

[0012] Figure 12 This is a diagram illustrating an example of implementing a UL-only operation together with a main TRP operation, based on one or more specific implementations described herein.

[0013] Figure 13 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a process for switching between UL communication toward a primary TRP and a UL-only TRP, according to one or more specific implementations described herein.

[0014] Figure 14 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a process for switching between UL communication toward a primary TRP and a UL-only TRP, according to one or more specific implementations described herein.

[0015] Figure 15 This is a diagram illustrating an example of providing effective timing advance (TA) for UL TRP only, based on one or more specific implementations described herein.

[0016] Figure 16 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a process for transmit power control based on path loss (PL) according to one or more specific implementations described herein.

[0017] Figure 17 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a process for performing transmit power control on Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) transmissions during a Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH) procedure, according to one or more specific implementations described herein.

[0018] Figures 18 to 20 This is a diagram illustrating an example of signaling and procedures for communication to a UL TRP only, according to one or more specific implementations described herein.

[0019] Figure 21 This is an illustration of an example of a component of a device according to one or more specific implementations described herein.

[0020] Figure 22 This is a block diagram illustrating components according to one or more specific embodiments described herein that are capable of reading instructions from a machine-readable medium or a computer-readable medium (e.g., a non-transitory machine-readable storage medium) and performing any one or more of the methods discussed herein. Detailed Implementation

[0021] The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawings. The same reference numerals in different drawings may identify the same or similar features, elements, operations, etc. Additionally, this disclosure is not limited to the following description, as other specific embodiments and structural or logical changes may be made without departing from the scope of this disclosure.

[0022] Telecommunication networks may include user equipment (UEs) capable of communicating with base stations and / or other network access nodes. UEs and base stations may implement various technologies and communication standards that enable UEs and base stations to discover each other, establish and maintain connectivity, and exchange information in an ongoing manner. The objectives of such technologies may include the UE providing capability information to the base station, the network determining how to configure the UE based on this capability information, the network providing configuration information to the UE, and the UE and base station further communicating based on this configuration information.

[0023] Transmissions from the base station to the UE can be referred to as downlink (DL) communication. Transmissions from the UE to the base station can be referred to as uplink (UL) communication. In some implementations, UL communication may become a bottleneck or limiting factor relative to DL communication. Therefore, UL communication may include protocols for transmitting duplicate, supplementary uplink (SUL), heterogeneous network (HetNet), and other network enhancements to address the need for UL communication. Adding a regular TRP near the primary transmit / receive point (TRP) can improve UL coverage for UEs located at or near the cell edge (e.g., at or near the maximum coverage distance of the primary TRP). The primary TRP may include a base station or a macro cell. A regular TRP may include a relay point, a network-controlled repeater (NCR), or a small cell operating as an intermediate node between the UE and the primary TRP. However, while introducing a regular TRP can improve UL communication, doing so may increase interference with DL communication from the primary TRP. Therefore, a regular TRP may be configured to operate as a UL-only TRP, meaning that the TRP can receive UL communication but not transmit DL communication. UL-only TRP can also be referred to as receive-only (RX) (RX-only) TRP.

[0024] In a UL-only scenario, DL communication can be from the primary TRP to the UE, and UL communication will be from the UE to the UL-only TRP. This arrangement can provide several benefits to UEs located at or near the coverage edge of the primary TRP. Examples of such benefits include: 1) minimal or no DL interference compared to scenarios involving a regular TRP supporting both DL and UL communication; 2) reduced UL transmission power consumption and UL interference compared to UL transmissions that might otherwise be routed to the primary TRP; 3) improved UL resource utilization, given that dedicated, separate UEs can be served via the same Physical Resource Block (PRB); and 4) UL communication can be performed using a single frequency instead of multiple frequencies (as with SUL).

[0025] Despite these benefits, currently available technologies fail to provide any solution or adequate solution because the UE has different communication points (e.g., a primary TRP for DL ​​communication and a regular TRP for UL communication). In typical scenarios (e.g., where UL and DL communication share the same TRP), the characteristics or parameters of UL and DL communication can be determined based on each other or relative to each other. Examples of such parameters may include: 1) timing advance (TA) parameters applied to UL communication may be based on DL communication reception time; 2) UL transmit power may be determined based on DL communication path loss; 3) UL beam management may be based on the state and characteristics of the corresponding UL beam. Therefore, while configuring the UE to communicate UL traffic only to the regular TRP and receive DL traffic only from the primary TRP may offer some benefits, currently available technologies fail to provide a solution that enables such a configuration to operate.

[0026] One or more of the techniques described herein provide solutions to the deficiencies of currently available techniques. For example, various solutions are provided for configuring a UE to communicate with a UL-only TRP that operates in conjunction with a primary TRP. Solutions are also provided for determining the appropriate TA for UL communication, controlling the UL transmit power, and managing the beam for UL communication between the UE and the UL-only TRP. The techniques described herein may also include enabling the UE to switch from UL communication involving a primary TRP to UL communication involving a UL-only TRP. Details and examples of these and other techniques are described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings discussed below.

[0027] As described herein, a TRP can refer to a base station or another type of network node. A primary TRP can refer to a base station operating as a master cell or primary cell (PCell) relative to a specific UE. A regular TRP can refer to a base station operating as a secondary cell (SCell) relative to a PCell and configured to communicate with the UE via DL and UL communications. A UL-only TRP can include a base station operating as an SCell relative to a PCell and configured to communicate with the UE only via UL communications. A macro cell can include a cell involving a combined coverage area and capabilities of multiple coordinating base stations (e.g., PCells and multiple SCells). A primary TRP can include the primary TRPs referenced herein. In some scenarios, a TRP may operate as a regular TRP (transmitting and receiving DL and UL communications) relative to some UEs while operating as a UL-only TRP relative to other UEs.

[0028] As described herein, references to the Random Access (RA) procedure, RACH procedure, and / or PRACH procedure may each refer to the same type of procedure. Additionally or alternatively, references to the RA procedure (and similar terms) herein may refer to a 4-step RA procedure, a 2-step RA procedure, a contention-based RA procedure, or a contention-free RA procedure. Furthermore, references to the RA procedure may refer to an RA procedure directed toward the primary TRP and / or an RA procedure directed toward only the UL TRP.

[0029] Figure 1 This is an example diagram of an overview 100 according to one or more specific embodiments described herein. As shown, overview 100 may include UE 110, base station 120, and base station 130. Base station 120 may operate as a primary TRP. Base station 130 may operate as a UL-only TRP.

[0030] Base station 120 can be configured to determine whether UE 110, base station 120, and / or base station 130 support UL-only configuration (at 1.1). In response to UL-only support, base station 120 can provide UE 110 with configuration information for implementing the UL-only scenario (at 1.2). The UL-only scenario may include an arrangement in which the primary TRP provides DL communication to UE 110 but receives UL communication from UE 110 via the UL-only TRP. The configuration information may include direct instructions for UE 110 to implement the UL-only scenario, conditions for implementing the UL-only scenario, etc.

[0031] Based on configuration information, UE 110 can determine whether to attach to base station 130 as a UL TRP only (at 1.3). For example, when the measured signal strength from base station 120 drops below a threshold strength, UE 110 can determine to attach to a UL TRP only. In another example, UE 110 can determine that the configuration information includes explicit or implicit instructions for the UE to attach to a UL TRP only. UE 110 can perform a random access (RA) procedure toward base station 130 (at 1.4). The RA procedure may include a 4-step RA procedure or a 2-step RA procedure. Additionally or alternatively, the RA procedure may include a contention-based RA (CBRA) procedure or a contention-free RA (CFRA) procedure.

[0032] During the RA procedure, base station 130 can operate as a UL TRP-only device for UE 110. For UL communications intended for base station 120, UE 110 can transmit these UL communications to base station 130 (at 1.5), and base station 130 can relay these UL communications to base station 120 (at 1.6). DL communications from base station 120 can be directly transmitted to UE 110 (at 1.7). Therefore, one or more of the techniques described herein enable UE 110, base station 120, and base station 130 to be configured for and operate in a UL TRP-only scenario. These and other features are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0033] Figure 2 This is an exemplary network 200 according to one or more specific implementations described herein. The example network 200 may include UE 210, 210-2, etc. (collectively referred to as "UE 210" and individually referred to as "UE 210"), radio access network (RAN) 220, core network (CN) 230, application server 240 and external network 250.

[0034] The systems and devices of Example Network 200 may operate according to one or more communication standards, such as 2G, 3G, 4G (e.g., LTE), and / or 5G (e.g., NR) communication standards of the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). Additionally or alternatively, one or more of the systems and devices of Example Network 200 may operate according to other communication standards and protocols discussed herein, including future versions or generations of 3GPP standards (e.g., 6G, 7G, etc.), IEEE standards (e.g., Wireless Metropolitan Area Network (WMAN), Global Microwave Access Interoperability (WiMAX), etc.), and more.

[0035] As shown in the figure, UE 210 may include a smartphone (e.g., a handheld touchscreen mobile computing device capable of connecting to one or more wireless communication networks). Additionally or alternatively, UE 210 may include other types of mobile or non-mobile computing devices capable of wireless communication, such as personal data assistants (PDAs), pagers, laptops, desktop computers, cordless phones, etc. In some implementations, UE 210 may include an Internet of Things (IoT) device (or IoT UE) that may include a network access layer designed to utilize low-power IoT applications with short-lived UE connections. Additionally or alternatively, the IoT UE may utilize one or more types of technologies such as machine-to-machine (M2M) communication or machine-type communication (MTC) (e.g., to exchange data with an MTC server or other device via a Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN), Proximity Services (ProSe) or Device-to-Device (D2D) communication, sensor networks, IoT networks, etc. Depending on the scenario, the M2M or MTC exchange of data may be machine-initiated, and the IoT network may include IoT UEs interconnected with short-lived connections (which may include uniquely identifiable embedded computing devices within an internet infrastructure). In some scenarios, IoT UEs can execute background applications (e.g., keeping track of activity messages, status updates, etc.) to facilitate connectivity in IoT networks.

[0036] UE 210 can communicate with and establish a connection with RAN 220 (e.g., communicatively coupled), which may involve one or more radio channels 214-1 and 214-2, each of which may include a physical communication interface / layer. In some implementations, the UE may be configured with dual connectivity (DC) as multi-radio access technology (multi-RAT) or multi-radio dual connectivity (MR-DC), where a UE capable of multiple receive and transmit (Rx / Tx) can use resources provided by different network nodes (e.g., 222-1 and 222-2), which may be connected via non-ideal backhaul (e.g., one network node provides NR access and another provides E-UTRA for LTE or NR access for 5G). In such scenarios, one network node may act as a primary node (MN) and the other as a secondary node (SN). MN and SN may be connected via a network interface, and at least MN may be connected to CN 230. Additionally, at least one of the MN or SN can operate via a shared spectrum channel access, and the functionality specified for UE 210 can be used for Integrated Access and Backhaul Mobile Terminal (IAB-MT). Similar to UE 210, the IAB-MT can access the network using a single network node or two different nodes with an Enhanced Dual Connectivity (EN-DC) architecture or a New Radio Dual Connectivity (NR-DC) architecture, etc. In some specific implementations, the base station (as described herein) can be an example of network node 222. In some scenarios, RAN 120 can coordinate with the core network 130 via interfaces 124, 126, and / or 128.

[0037] As described herein, UE 210 may receive and store one or more configurations, instructions, and / or other information for implementing SL-U communication with quality and priority standards. PQI can be determined and used to indicate the QoS associated with SL-U communication (e.g., channels, data streams, etc.). Similarly, L1 priority values ​​can be determined and used to indicate the priority of SL-U transmissions, SL-U channels, SL-U data, etc. PQI and / or L1 priority values ​​can be mapped to CAPC values, and PQI, L1 priority, and / or CAPC can indicate SL Channel Occupancy Time (COT) sharing, Maximum Channel Occupancy Time (MCOT), timing intervals for COT sharing, LBT configuration, traffic, and channel priority, etc.

[0038] As shown in the figure, UE 210 may or alternatively connect to access point (AP) 216 via connection interface 218, which may include an air interface enabling UE 210 to communicatively couple with AP 216. AP 216 may include a wireless local area network (WLAN), a WLAN node, a WLAN endpoint, etc. Connection 216 may include a local wireless connection, such as a connection consistent with any IEEE 702.11 protocol, and AP 216 may include Wi-Fi. ® Router or other access point. Although in Figure 2 While not explicitly described, AP 216 can connect to another network (e.g., the Internet) without needing to connect to RAN 220 or CN230. In some scenarios, UE 210, RAN 220, and AP 216 can be configured to utilize LTE-WLAN aggregation (LWA) technology or LTE / WLAN radio-level technology with integrated IPsec tunneling (LWIP). LWA may involve RAN 220 configuring UE 210 in RRC_CONNECTED state to utilize LTE and WLAN radio resources. LWIP may involve UE 210 using WLAN radio resources (e.g., connection interface 218) to authenticate and encrypt packets (e.g., Internet Protocol (IP) packets) transmitted via connection interface 218 via IPsec protocol tunneling. IPsec tunneling may include encapsulating the entire original IP packet and adding a new packet header to protect the original IP packet header.

[0039] RAN 220 may include one or more RAN nodes 222-1 and 222-2 (collectively referred to as RAN node 222, and individually referred to as RAN node 222) that enable the establishment of channels 214-1 and 214-2 between UE 210 and RAN 220. RAN node 222 may include network access points configured to provide radio baseband functionality for data and / or voice connectivity between the user and the network based on one or more communication technologies described herein (e.g., 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G, WiFi, etc.). Thus, as an example, a RAN node may be an E-UT RAN node B (e.g., enhanced node B, eNodeB, eNB, 4G base station, etc.), a next-generation base station (e.g., 5G base station, NR base station, next-generation eNB (gNB), etc.). RAN node 222 may include roadside units (RSU), transmit / receive points (TRxP or TRP), and one or more other types of ground stations (e.g., ground access points). In some scenarios, RAN node 222 can be dedicated physical equipment such as macro cell base stations and / or low-power (LP) base stations used to provide smaller coverage areas, smaller user capacity, or higher bandwidth compared to macro cells.

[0040] Some or all of the RAN nodes or portions thereof may be implemented as one or more software entities running on a server computer as part of a virtual network that may be referred to as a Centralized RAN (CRAN) and / or a Virtual Baseband Unit Pool (vBBUP). In these specific implementations, the CRAN or vBBUP may be implemented as follows: RAN function splitting, such as Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) splitting, where the Radio Resource Control (RRC) and PDCP layers can be operated by CRAN / vBBUP, and other Layer 2 (L2) protocol entities can be operated by individual RAN nodes 222; Medium Access Control (MAC) / Physical (PHY) layer splitting, where the RRC, PDCP, Radio Link Control (RLC), and MAC layers can be operated by CRAN / vBBUP, and the PHY layer can be operated by individual RAN nodes 222; or “lower PHY” splitting, where the upper portions of the RRC, PDCP, RLC, MAC, and PHY layers can be operated by CRAN / vBBUP, and the lower portions of the PHY layer can be operated by individual RAN nodes 222. This virtualization framework allows the idle processor cores of RAN node 222 to perform or execute other virtualization applications.

[0041] In some implementations, a single RAN node 222 may represent a single gNB distributed unit (DU) connected to the gNB control unit (CU) via a single F1 or other interface. In such implementations, the gNB-DU may include one or more remote radio headends or radio frequency (RF) front-end modules (RFEMs), and the gNB-CU may operate in a manner similar to CRAN / vBBUP by a server (not shown) located in RAN 220 or by a server pool (e.g., a group of servers configured to share resources). Additionally or alternatively, one or more RAN nodes in RAN node 222 may be next-generation eNBs (i.e., gNBs) that provide Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA) user plane and control plane protocol termination to UE 210 and can be connected to the 5G core network (5GC) 230 via an NG interface.

[0042] Any RAN node in RAN 222 can serve as the endpoint of the air interface protocol and can be the first point of contact for UE 210. In some implementations, any RAN node in RAN 222 can perform various logical functions of RAN 220, including but not limited to the functions of the Radio Network Controller (RNC), such as radio bearer management, uplink and downlink dynamic radio resource management, data packet scheduling, and mobility management. UE 210 can be configured to communicate with each other or with any of RAN nodes 222 on a multi-carrier communication channel using Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) communication signals according to various communication technologies, such as, but not limited to, OFDMA communication technologies (e.g., for downlink communication) or single-carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) communication technologies (e.g., for uplink and ProSe or sidelink (SL) communication), but the scope of such implementations is not limited in this respect. OFDM signals may include multiple orthogonal subcarriers.

[0043] In some implementations, the downlink resource grid can be used for downlink transmissions from any of the RAN nodes in RAN node 222 to UE 210, and uplink transmissions can utilize similar techniques. This grid can be a time-frequency grid (e.g., a resource grid or time-frequency resource grid), representing the physical resources of the downlink in each time slot. Such time-frequency representations are common practice for OFDM systems, making radio resource allocation intuitive. Each column and row of the resource grid corresponds to an OFDM symbol and an OFDM subcarrier, respectively. The duration of the resource grid in the time domain corresponds to a time slot in a radio frame. The smallest time-frequency unit in the resource grid is represented as a resource element. Each resource grid comprises resource blocks that describe the mapping of certain physical channels to resource elements. Each resource block may include a set of resource elements (REs); in the frequency domain, this may represent the minimum amount of resources currently available for allocation. Such resource blocks are used to transmit several different physical downlink channels.

[0044] Furthermore, RAN node 222 can be configured to wirelessly communicate with UE 210 and / or with each other via licensed media (also referred to as “licensed spectrum” and / or “licensed band”), unlicensed shared media (also referred to as “unlicensed spectrum” and / or “unlicensed band”), or a combination thereof. Licensed spectrum may correspond to channels or bands selected, reserved, regulated, etc., for certain types of wireless activity (e.g., wireless telecommunications network activity), while unlicensed spectrum may correspond to one or more bands that are unrestricted for certain types of wireless activity. Whether a particular band corresponds to licensed or unlicensed media may depend on one or more factors, such as frequency allocations determined by public sector organizations (e.g., government agencies, regulatory bodies, etc.) or frequency allocations determined by private sector organizations involved in developing wireless communication standards and protocols.

[0045] The PDSCH can carry user data and higher-layer signaling to UE 210. The Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) can carry information such as transmission format and resource allocation related to the PDSCH channel. The PDCCH can also inform UE 210 about transmission format, resource allocation, and Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) information related to the uplink shared channel. Typically, downlink scheduling (assigning control and shared channel resource blocks to UE 210 within the cell) can be performed on any RAN node in RAN node 222 based on channel quality information fed back from any UE in UE 210. Downlink resource allocation information can be transmitted on the PDCCH used for (e.g., assigned to) each UE in UE 210.

[0046] RAN nodes 222 can be configured to communicate with each other via interface 223. In a specific implementation where the system is an LTE system, interface 223 may be an X2 interface. In an NR system, interface 223 may be an Xn interface. The X2 interface may be defined between two or more RAN nodes 222 (e.g., two or more eNBs / gNBs or combinations thereof) connected to the Evolved Packet Core (EPC) or CN 230, or between two eNBs connected to the EPC. In some implementations, the X2 interface may include an X2 user plane interface (X2-U) and an X2 control plane interface (X2-C). X2-U may provide flow control mechanisms for user data packets transmitted through the X2 interface and may be used to convey information about the delivery of user data between eNBs or gNBs. For example, X2-U can provide specific sequence number information for user data transmitted from the primary eNB (MeNB) to the secondary eNB (SeNB); information about the successful in-order delivery of PDCP Packet Data Units (PDUs) from the SeNB to the UE 210 for user data; information about PDCP PDUs not delivered to the UE 210; information about the current minimum expected buffer size at the SeNB for transmitting user data to the UE; and so on. X2-C can provide LTE in-network access mobility functions (e.g., including context passing from the source eNB to the target eNB, user plane transmission control, etc.), load management functions, and inter-cell interference coordination functions.

[0047] One or more of the technologies described herein may include TRP 260. TRP 260 may include a base station (or another type of network access node or repeater) capable of operating as a regular TRP and / or as a UL-only TRP. When operating in regular mode, TRP 260 can transmit and receive DL and UL communications between UE 210 and the network. When operating in UL-only mode, TRP 260 can receive UL communications only from UE 210 and relay these UL communications to the network (e.g., to base station 222-1). In such scenarios, TRP 260 may operate as an SCell, and base station 222-1 may operate as a PCell. One or more of these technologies include solutions for configuring UE 210 to communicate with the UL-only TRP 260 cooperating with a co-master TRP (e.g., base station 222-1). Solutions for determining the appropriate TA for UL communications, controlling UL transmit power, and managing the beam for UL communications between the UE and the UL-only TRP 260 are also described. The techniques described herein may also include enabling UE 210 to switch from UL communication involving the primary TRP to UL communication involving only the UL TRP. For example, when UE 210 moves outside the UL coverage of base station 222-1, UE 210 may switch from UL communication sent directly to base station 222-1 to UL communication sent via only the UL TRP 260.

[0048] As shown in the figure, RAN 220 may be connected (e.g., communicatively coupled) to CN 230. CN 230 may include multiple network elements 232 configured to provide various data and telecommunications services to customers / subscribers (e.g., users of UE210) connected to CN 230 via RAN 220. In some implementations, CN 230 may include an evolved packet core (EPC), a 5G CN, and / or one or more additional or alternative types of CN. Components of CN 230 may be implemented in a physical node or separate physical nodes, including components for reading and executing instructions from machine-readable or computer-readable media (e.g., non-transitory machine-readable storage media). In some implementations, network function virtualization (NFV) may be used to virtualize any or all of the aforementioned network node roles or functions via executable instructions stored in one or more computer-readable storage media (described in further detail below). A logical instance of CN 230 may be referred to as a network slice, and a logical instance of a portion of CN 230 may be referred to as a network subslice. Network Functions Virtualization (NFV) architectures and infrastructures can be used to virtualize one or more network functions onto physical resources, including a combination of industry-standard server hardware, storage hardware, or switches (or alternatively, proprietary hardware). In other words, NFV systems can be used to perform virtual or reconfigurable concrete implementations of one or more EPC components / functions.

[0049] As shown in the figure, CN 230, application server 240, and external network 250 can be interconnected via interfaces 234, 236, and 238, which may include IP network interfaces. Application server 240 may include one or more server devices or network elements (e.g., Virtual Network Functions (VNFs) that provide applications with access to IP bearer resources via CM 230 (e.g., Universal Mobile Telecommunications System Packet Service (UMTSPS) domain, LTE PS Data Service, etc.). Application server 240 may also or alternatively be configured to support one or more communication services for UE 210 via CN 230 (e.g., Voice over IP (VoIP sessions, push-to-talk (PTT) sessions, group communication sessions, social networking services, etc.). Similarly, external network 250 may include one or more networks from various networks, including the Internet, thereby providing network access to various additional services, information, interconnectivity, and other network features to the mobile communication network and UE 210.

[0050] Figure 3This is an illustration of example 300 of a primary cell group (MCG) 310 and a secondary cell group (SCG) 320 according to one or more specific implementations described herein. The MCG may include a set of cells associated with the primary node, including PCells and one or more SCells. The SCG may include a set of serving cells associated with the secondary node, including the primary cell (PSCell) of the secondary cell group and optionally including one or more SCells. The MCG 310 and SCG 320 may each be implemented using one or more base stations 222 and / or another type of RAN node or access point.

[0051] MCG 310 may be implemented by one or more base stations and may include one or more layers. Examples of such layers may include a PDCP layer, an RLC layer, a MAC layer, and multiple PHY layers. Each PHY layer may correspond to a different implementation of the cell relative to UE 210. Additionally or alternatively, the PHY layers may operate in conjunction with (e.g., managed, controlled, etc. by) the PDCP, RLC, and MAC layers. In some implementations, a PHY layer 340 may operate as a PCell or a special cell (SpCell), and other PHY layers 342 and 344 may operate as SCells to the PCell.

[0052] SCG 320 may also include multiple layers, including an RLC layer, a MAC layer, and multiple PHY layers 350, 352, and 354. SCG 320 may not include a PDCP layer, but may instead rely on the PDCP layer of MCG 310 via connection 330. Similar to the PHY layers of MCG 310, the PHY layers of SCG 320 may each function or operate as a cell relative to UE 210. In some implementations, a PHY layer 350 may operate as a primary cell (PCell) for PHY layers 352 and 354, and may operate as a secondary cell for the PCells of PHY layer 350. Additionally, MCG 310 and SCG 320 may each include PCells (e.g., 340 and 350), and these PCells may be referred to herein as special cells or special primary cells, denoted as SpCell. In addition, the SCell of the MCG 310 or SCG 320 can operate as a scheduling secondary cell (sSCell), which is configured to provide configuration, scheduling, activation, deactivation and other functions or commands to the SpCell of the MCG 310 or SCG 320.

[0053] MCG 310 and SCG 320 can be involved in dual-connectivity scenarios with UE 210, in which case procedures such as the Random Access Channel (RACH) can be routed to MCG 310. MCG 310 and SCG 320 can also implement standalone (SA) and / or non-standalone (NSA) network environments for UE 210. In an SA network environment, MCG 310 and SCG 320 can communicate with UE 210 using the 5G NR communication standard. In an NSA network environment, MCG 310 and SCG 320 can communicate with UE 210 using a combination of 4G LTE and 5G NR communication standards. MCG 310 and / or SCG 320 can be configured to implement and support the signaling and procedures described herein for communication via ULTRP only, or operate according to these technologies. For example, one or more of the techniques described herein may include solutions for scenarios in which a macro cell (e.g., base station 222 operating as an MCG or PCell relative to UE 210) causes or enables UL-only communication via another base station 222 operating as an SCG or SCell.

[0054] One or more of the techniques described herein can be implemented as enhancements to one or more aspects of the RA process in one or more ways. Examples of such RA processes may include a 4-step competition-based RA (CBRA) process, a 4-step competition-free RA (CFRA) process, a 2-step CRBA process, and a 2-step CFRA process. Figures 4 to 7 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a RA process that can be enhanced by one or more of the techniques described herein. The following is an example of such an enhancement. Figure 8 Examples of such enhancements are further described in the following figures.

[0055] Figure 4 This is a diagram illustrating an example of process 400 for a RACH procedure according to one or more specific implementations described herein. Process 400 may include a four-step contention-based RA (CBRA) procedure. Typically, the RACH procedure may include a series of operations whereby UE 210 and base station 222 can discover each other and connect to each other. Process 400 may be implemented by UE 210 and one or more base stations 222. In some implementations, some or all of process 400 may be implemented by one or more other systems or devices (including...). Figure 2 The process 400 may be performed by one or more devices in the system. For example, one or more operations of process 400 may involve a base station 222 operating as a PCell, while one or more other operations of process 400 may involve a different base station 222 operating as an SCell relative to that PCell base station. Additionally, process 400 may include operations related to… Figure 4The operations shown are fewer, additional, in a different order, and / or arranged than those of other operations. In some specific implementations, some or all of the operations of process 400 may be performed independently, sequentially, simultaneously, etc., with respect to other operations of process 400. Therefore, the techniques described herein are not limited to those of other operations of process 400. Figure 4 The number, sequence, arrangement, timing, etc. of the operations or processes described.

[0056] As shown in the figure, process 400 may include UE 210 and base station 222 establishing DL synchronization. This may include UE 210 scanning various frequencies for synchronization signals periodically broadcast by base station 222. For example, base station 222 may periodically broadcast (via physical broadcast channel (PBCH)) a signal including a synchronization signal block (SSB) (box 410). The SSB / PBCH may include a primary synchronization signal (PSS), a secondary synchronization signal (SSS), a demodulation reference signal (DMRS), and one or more additional or alternative types of information (e.g., PBCH data) transmitted via the PBCH.

[0057] This information enables UE 210 to synchronize and interpret additional communications from base station 222. Examples of such communications may include the transmission of signals containing System Information Block (SIB) Type 1 (SIB1) (box 420). SIB1 may include various information from one or more types of information configured to enable communication between UE 210 and base station 222, such as Master Information Block (MIB), SIB1-RRC information, Cell Identity Group (Cell ID), Tracking Area Code (TAC), etc. MIB may include information such as system bandwidth, frame structure, and physical layer timing information. MIB may also include Physical Cell Identity (PCI), which can be a unique identifier for base station 222 within a specific geographical area. SIB1-RRC information may include information related to the RRC layer, which is responsible for managing the connection between UE 210 and base station 222.

[0058] SIB1-RRC information may include parameters describing or indicating the frequency bands supported by the network, beamforming information, SIB scheduling information, DL control information, etc. The cell ID group may indicate the cell group identity of base station 222, which can be used by UE 210 for cell selection and / or cell reselection. The TAC may include a unique identifier for a tracking area, which may correspond to a geographic area managed by the network. The TAC enables UE 210 to identify the geographic location and / or network associated with base station 222, which may enable UE 210 or allow the UE to operate in one or more ways, such as determining whether to continue connecting to the network of base station 222.

[0059] As shown in the figure, process 400 may include UL synchronization and UL scheduling. For example, UE 210 may communicate a first RACH message (MSG 1) to base station 222 (box 430). MSG 1 may include preamble transmission, whereby UE 210 may select a random access preamble from a set of predefined preambles. The preamble may be based on a short preamble format or a long preamble format, or consistent with both, and UE 210 may additionally or alternatively select a random sequence number for the preamble. The preamble and / or random sequence number may be used by UE 210 as a signature for UL transmission from UE 210 to base station 222. After selecting the preamble and sequence number, UE 210 may transmit the preamble to base station 222 via physical RACH (PRACH).

[0060] Base station 22 may receive MSG 1 from UE 212 and may respond by transmitting a Random Access Response (RAR) message to UE 210 (box 440). The RAR message may be referred to as the second message (MSG 2) of the RACH procedure. MSG 2 may include TA commands for timing adjustments, a Random Access Preamble ID (RAPID) matching the preamble transmitted by UE 210, and initial UL grant information for UE 210 to continue transmitting information to base station 222. MSG 2 may also include a temporary identifier for base station 222, which may include a RA Radio Network Temporary Identifier (RA-RNTI).

[0061] UE 210 can respond to MSG 2 (box 450) by transmitting a third message (MSG 4) of the RACH procedure. UE 210 can do this using the UL permission provided in MSG 2. This may involve UE 210 using the Physical UL Shared Channel (PUSCH). MSG 4 may include one or more types of higher-layer information, such as RRC messages (e.g., resource requests (RrcRequest messages)) and / or include information at the physical layer.

[0062] After processing MSG 4, base station 222 may respond by transmitting a fourth RACH message (e.g., MSG 4) (box 460). MSG 4 may include MAC information for contention resolution. Contention resolution may refer to a scenario where multiple UEs 210 have requested the same, overlapping, or otherwise interfering resources for communication with base station 222. The contention resolution message may contain the identity of UE 210, which confirms that base station 222 has correctly identified UE 210 from among the contending UEs and / or indicates that the contention has been resolved. Base station 222 may provide UE 210 with a Cell Radio Network Temporary Identifier (C-RNTI), which UE 210 can use to continue communicating with base station 222 (box 470). Therefore, UE 210 and base station 222 may perform a RACH procedure to enable UE 210 and base station 222 to identify each other and establish resources for communication with each other.

[0063] In some embodiments, base station 222 may be a primary TRP that directly transmits DL communications to UE 210 and receives UL communications from UE 210 via a UL-only TRP (not shown). In some embodiments, base station 222 may be a UL-only TRP that receives UL communications from UE 210 and relays these UL communications to the primary TRP. Additional examples of these and other features and embodiments are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0064] Figure 5 This is a diagram illustrating an example of process 500 for a contention-free RA procedure according to one or more specific implementations described herein. Process 500 may include a four-step contention-free RA (CFRA) procedure. Typically, the RA procedure may include a series of operations whereby UE 210 and base station 222 can discover each other and connect to each other. Process 500 may be implemented by UE 210 and one or more base stations 222. In some implementations, some or all of process 500 may be performed by one or more other systems or devices (including...). Figure 2 The process 500 may be performed by one or more devices (among other devices in the system). For example, one or more operations of process 500 may involve a base station 222 operating as a PCell, while one or more other operations of process 500 may involve a different base station 222 operating as an SCell relative to that PCell base station. Additionally, process 500 may include operations related to... Figure 5 The ones shown are compared to one or more operations that are fewer, additional, have a different order, and / or arrangement. For example, process 500 may include those used in the above reference. Figure 4The operations of SSB / PBCH and SIB1 transmission described herein (boxes 410 and / or 420). In some specific implementations, some or all of the operations of process 500 may be performed independently, sequentially, simultaneously, etc., with respect to one or more other operations of process 500. Therefore, the techniques described herein are not limited to... Figure 5 The number, sequence, arrangement, timing, etc. of the operations or processes described.

[0065] Procedure 500 may include UE 210 receiving an RA preamble assignment from base station 222 as a TRP operation (at 510). The CFRA procedure may involve base station 222 transmitting an SIB index, PRACH preamble, RACH timing (RO), and one or more additional types of information to UE 210. This information may be transmitted by base station 222 as system information. UE 210 may respond with an MSG 1 RA message (at 520). This message may include an RA preamble message. The preamble allows base station 222 to identify which MSG 1 is being received from which UE 210. Since the RA preamble in procedure 400 is selected by base station 222, procedure 400 may be a contention-free RA procedure, as base station 222 may not receive an MSG 1 RA message with the same preamble.

[0066] Base station 222 can receive the MSG 1 RA message and respond with an MSG 2 RA message (also referred to as the RAR message) (at 530). The RAR message may include TA commands for timing adjustments, RAPID matching the preamble transmitted by UE 210, and initial UL permission for UE 210 to continue transmitting information to base station 222. The RAR may also include a temporary identifier for base station 222, which may include RA-RNTI. Upon receiving the RAR message, UE 210 may continue communicating with base station 222 via UL communication and DL communication (at 540).

[0067] In some embodiments, base station 222 may be a primary TRP that directly transmits DL communications to UE 210 and receives UL communications from UE 210 via a UL-only TRP (not shown). In some embodiments, base station 222 may be a UL-only TRP that receives UL communications only from UE 210 and relays these UL communications to the primary TRP. Additional examples of these and other features and embodiments are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0068] Figure 6This is a diagram illustrating an example of process 600 for a RA procedure according to one or more specific embodiments described herein. Process 600 may include a two-step CBRA procedure. Typically, the RA procedure may include a series of operations whereby the UE 210 and base station 222 can discover each other and connect to each other. Process 600 may be implemented by the UE 210 and one or more base stations 222. In some specific embodiments, some or all of process 600 may be implemented by one or more other systems or devices (including...). Figure 2 The process 600 may be performed by one or more devices (among other devices in the system). For example, one or more operations of process 600 may involve a base station 222 operating as a PCell, while one or more other operations of process 600 may involve a different base station 222 operating as an SCell relative to that PCell base station. Additionally, process 600 may include operations related to... Figure 6 The ones shown are compared to one or more operations that are fewer, additional, have a different order, and / or arrangement. For example, process 500 may include those used in the above reference. Figure 4 The operations of SSB / PBCH and SIB1 transmission described herein (blocks 410 and / or 420). In some specific implementations, some or all of the operations of process 600 may be performed independently, sequentially, simultaneously, etc., with respect to one or more other operations of process 600. Therefore, the techniques described herein are not limited to... Figure 6 The number, sequence, arrangement, timing, etc. of the operations or processes described.

[0069] As shown in the figure, process 600 may include UE 210 transmitting an RA preamble to base station 222 (at 610). UE 210 may transmit the RA preamble in a MsgA-PRACH message. UE 210 may select the RA preamble, making it possible for base station 222 to receive MsgA-PRACH messages with the same RA preamble from different UEs 210. This scenario may trigger contention resolution. UE 210 may also transmit a PUSCH payload to base station 222 (at 620). This may include a MsgA-PRACH message. The MsgA-PRACH message and MsgA-PRACH message may include information similar to MSG 1 and MSG 3 in a 4-step RACH process. Base station 222 may respond with a MsgB message (at 630). The MsgB message may include a RAR message and / or a contention resolution message. The RAR message may include TA commands for timing adjustments, RAPID matching the preamble transmitted by UE 210, and initial UL permission for UE 210 to continue transmitting information to base station 222. The RAR may also include a temporary identifier for base station 222, which may include RA-RNTI. Therefore, just as the MsgA message may resemble MSG 1 and MSG 3 in a 4-step RACH procedure, the MsgB message may resemble a combination of MSG 3 and MSG 4 in a 4-step RACH procedure. Upon receiving the RAR message, UE 210 may continue communicating with base station 222 via UL and DL communication (at 640).

[0070] In some embodiments, base station 222 may be a primary TRP that directly transmits DL communications to UE 210 and receives UL communications from UE 210 via a UL-only TRP (not shown). In some embodiments, base station 222 may be a UL-only TRP that receives UL communications only from UE 210 and relays these UL communications to the primary TRP. Additional examples of these and other features and embodiments are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0071] Figure 7 This is a diagram illustrating an example of process 700 for a RA procedure according to one or more specific implementations described herein. Process 700 may include a two-step CFRA procedure. Typically, the RA procedure may include a series of operations whereby the UE 210 and base station 222 can discover each other and connect to each other. Process 700 may be implemented by the UE 210 and one or more base stations 222. In some implementations, some or all of process 700 may be performed by one or more other systems or devices (including...). Figure 2The process 700 may be performed by one or more devices (among other devices in the system). For example, one or more operations of process 700 may involve a base station 222 operating as a PCell, while one or more other operations of process 700 may involve a different base station 222 operating as an SCell relative to that PCell base station. Additionally, process 700 may include operations related to... Figure 7 The ones shown are compared to one or more operations that are fewer, additional, have a different order, and / or arrangement. For example, process 600 may include those used in the above reference. Figure 4 The operations of SSB / PBCH and SIB1 transmission described herein (boxes 410 and / or 420). In some specific implementations, some or all of the operations of process 700 may be performed independently, sequentially, simultaneously, etc., with respect to one or more other operations of process 700. Therefore, the techniques described herein are not limited to... Figure 7 The number, sequence, arrangement, timing, etc. of the operations or processes described.

[0072] Procedure 700 may include UE 210 receiving an RA preamble assignment from base station 222, which is operating as a TRP (at 710). The CFRA procedure may involve base station 222 transmitting an SIB index, PRACH preamble, RO, and one or more additional types of information to UE 210. This information may be transmitted by base station 222 as system information. UE 210 may respond to base station 222 by transmitting the RA preamble in a MsgA-PRACH message (at 720). UE 210 may also transmit a PUSCH payload in a MsgA-PUSCH message (at 720). Since the RA preamble in procedure 700 is selected by base station 222, procedure 700 may be a CFRA procedure because base station 222 may not receive a competing message from another UE 210 using the same RA preamble. The MsgA-PRACH and MsgA-PUSCH messages may include information similar to MSG 1 and MSG 3 in a 4-step RACH procedure. Base station 222 may respond with a RAR via a MsgB message (at 740). The RAR message may include TA commands for timing adjustments, a RAPID matching the preamble transmitted by UE 210, and initial UL permission for UE 210 to continue transmitting information to base station 222. The RAR may also include a temporary identifier for base station 222, which may include RA-RNTI. The MsgB message may be similar to MSG 3 RAR in a 4-step RACH procedure. Upon receiving the RAR message, UE 210 and base station 222 may continue exchanging UL and / or DL ​​communications with each other (at 750).

[0073] In some embodiments, base station 222 may be a primary TRP that directly transmits DL communications to UE 210 and receives UL communications from UE 210 via a UL-only TRP (not shown). In some embodiments, base station 222 may be a UL-only TRP that receives UL communications only from UE 210 and relays these UL communications to the primary TRP. Additional examples of these and other features and embodiments are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0074] Figure 8 This is an illustration of an example of a process 800 for determining whether to configure a UE for a UL-only TRP, according to one or more specific embodiments described herein. Process 800 may be implemented by a base station 222 operating as a primary TRP relative to UE 210. In some embodiments, some or all of process 400 may be implemented by one or more other systems or devices (including...). Figure 2 The process is performed by one or more devices in the device. Additionally, process 800 may include... Figure 8 The operations shown are fewer, additional, in a different order, and / or arranged than those of other operations. In some specific implementations, some or all of the operations of process 800 may be performed independently, sequentially, simultaneously, etc., with respect to one or more other operations of process 800.

[0075] As shown in the figure, process 800 may include determining whether UL-only communication is supported (block 810). For example, base station 222 may determine whether base station 222 is capable of operating as a primary TRP relative to a specific UE 210. Additionally or alternatively, base station 210 may determine whether one or more other base stations 222 (or cells) are capable of operating as a UL-only TRB relative to a specific UE 210 and / or relative to base station 222 operating as a primary TRP. In some implementations, the determination performed by base station 222 may be part of a dynamic operation that may depend on one or more conditions, such as network congestion, signal interference, TRP availability, etc. In some implementations, the determination performed by base station 222 may be based on the static configuration of base station 222.

[0076] When UL TRP-only is not supported (box 820—No), base station 222 may avoid or abandon configuring UE 210 for UL TRP-only communication (box 830). For example, base station 222 may continue by transmitting SIB1 to UE 210 that does not include configuration information that enables UE 210, allows the UE to, or otherwise configures the UE to communicate with base station 222 via UL TRP-only. When UL TRP-only is supported (box 820—Yes), base station 222 may continue by transmitting information to UE 210 that enables UE 210, allows the UE to, or otherwise configures the UE to communicate with base station 222 via UL TRP-only (box 840). Configuration information may be included in SIB1, and examples and details of such information are discussed below.

[0077] Figure 9 This is an example of information 900 that may be included in SIB1 according to one or more specific implementations described herein. As shown, information 900 may include one or more types of information elements (IEs) and / or parameters 910-660. Although Figure 9 Specific IEs and / or parameters 910-960 are specified, but the techniques described herein may include IEs and / or parameters similar to those depicted. Therefore, the techniques described herein are not limited to IEs and / or parameters 910-960.

[0078] Typically, SIB1 may include configuration information enabling UE 210 to communicate with the primary TRP via a UL-only TRP. For example, when the primary TRP supports UL-only TRPs, SIB1 may include RxOnlyTrpConfigCommon 910, which may be part of the ServingCellConfigCommonSIB IE. In some implementations, RxOnlyTrpConfigCommon 910 may alternatively be provided via dedicated signaling (e.g., RRC messages). In addition to the uplinkConfigCommon IE, RxOnlyTrpConfigCommon 910 may also be provided for direct communication between UE 210 and the primary TRP. In some implementations, when both supplementary UL (SUL) and UL-only TRPs are supported, UE 210 may not be configured with a supplementaryUplinkConfig IE and a RxOnlyTrpConfigCommon IE. In such scenarios, SIB1 may include configuration information (e.g., IEs or parameters) for one but not the other.

[0079] In some specific implementations, SIB1 may include a threshold parameter associated with the UL-only TRP (e.g., rsrp-ThresholdSSB-RxOnlyTrp 920). The threshold parameter may be a threshold for the Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP). UE210 may use the threshold parameter to select between the primary TRP and the UL-only TRP. For example, when the RSRP associated with the primary TRP is below the threshold parameter (e.g., the RSRP threshold), UE210 may switch from transmitting UL communication to the primary TRP to transmitting UL communication to the UL-only TRP. In another example, the RACH timing (RO) and / or preamble associated with each SSB may be divided between a RACH procedure toward the primary TRP and a RACH procedure toward the UL-only TRP, or associated with either a RACH procedure toward the primary TRP or a RACH procedure toward the UL-only TRP. The RO may include one or more time-frequency resources designated for initiating or executing the RACH procedure. SIB1 may include indications of RO and preamble (PA) that UE 210 can use to initiate or perform a RACH procedure with the base station.

[0080] In another example, SIB1 may include the RACH-ConfigGeneric IE in RACH-ConfigCommon, which may include different values ​​to indicate whether UE 210 performs a PRACH operation toward a regular TRP or toward a UL-only TRP. prach-ConfigurationIndex 930 may include two values ​​for different types of TRPs. One value may correspond to the long format RACH, as the long format RACH provides more coverage for UE 210 communicating with the primary TRP or the primary TRP. The other value may correspond to the short format RACH, as the short format RACH may be preferred for UE 210 located at the cell edge of the primary TRP but close to the UL-only TRP. In other specific implementations, a single IE parameter or value may be used, but interpreted differently depending on the scenario. For example, for a RACH procedure directed to the primary TRP, this value may be mapped to the short format. In contrast, for a RACH process oriented to only UL TRP, the value can be mapped to a long PRACH process and / or mapped according to the FR2 method, where a single index can be mapped to an entry in a different table (e.g., a table for frequency range 1 (FR1) and / or frequency range 2 (FR2)).

[0081] In some implementations (e.g., in RACH-ConfigCommon), RACH-ConfigGeneric may include preambleReceivedTargetPower 940. The value of preambleReceivedTargetPower 940 may be smaller for RACH procedures directed to a UL-only TRP compared to the value for RACH procedures directed to a primary TRP or a regular TRP. In some scenarios, this may be because UE 210 may be relatively close to a UL-only TRP when it is located at the cell edge of the primary TRP; in this case, a lower value of preambleReceivedTargetPower 940 may be sufficient or more efficient. In some implementations (e.g., in RACH-ConfigCommon), RACH-ConfigGeneric may include preambleTransMax 950. In such scenarios, a value of preambleTransMax 950 better ensures that UL transmissions do not interfere with UL signals from other UE 210s attempting to communicate with the primary TRP. As shown in the figure, SIB1 may also or alternatively include one or more IEs or parameters 960 to enable UE 210 to communicate via UL TRP only.

[0082] Figures 10 to 11 Examples 1000 and 1100 are ROs associated with different SSBs according to one or more specific implementations described herein. As mentioned above, SIB1 may indicate to UE 210 that base station 222 may communicate additional SIBs. Each RACH resource (e.g., RO and / or preamble (PA)) may be associated with an SSB block. This allows the NW (e.g., base station 222) to know the orientation of UE 210. UE 210 may perform the RACH procedure on the resource associated with the strongest SSB RSRP. Each SSB may be mapped to different / orthogonal RACH resources. Some RACH resources may be available for RACH toward UL TRP only, while others may be available for RACH toward regular TRP. In Example 1 (e.g., Figure 10 In Example 2, orthogonal RACH resources can be implemented through orthogonal RACH timings, where each SSB is associated with two distinct ROs (and each timing has 4 preambles), while in Example 2 (e.g., Figure 11 In this context, orthogonal RACH resources can be implemented using separate RACH preambles, where each SSB is associated with an RO, each RO has 8 preambles, 4 preambles are assigned to RACH toward macro TRP, and 4 preambles are assigned to RACH toward UL TRP only.

[0083] refer to Figure 10 The first RO (RO#0) and the second RO (RO#1) may be associated with SSB0. The third RO (RO#2) and the fourth RO (RO#3) may each be associated with SSB1. SSB0 and SSB1 may each be instances of SIB1. SSB0 may be an instance of SIB1 for the main TRP, and SSB0 may be an instance of SIB1 for the UL-only TRP. Each SSB may be associated with two ROs, and each RO may be associated with four preambles. This may include two long PAs and two short PAs, or another arrangement of PAs. Additionally, the ROs for the main TRP (e.g., RO#0 and RO#1) may be separate from the ROs for the UL-only TRP (e.g., RO#2 and RO#3), which may be represented by the following IE and parameters. ssb-perRACH-OccasionAndCB-PreamblesPerSSB {oneHalf, n4} msg1-FDM=1

[0084] refer to Figure 11 In some specific implementations, two SSB ROs can be combined. As shown in the figure, the first RO (RO#0) can be associated with SSB0. The second RO (RO#1) can be associated with SSB1. SSB0 and SSB1 can each be an instance of SIB1. SSB0 can be an instance of SIB1 for the main TRP, and SSB1 can be an instance of SIB1 for the UL-only TRP. Each SSB can be associated with an RO having 4 PAs. Some PAs can be used to communicate with the main TRP, while others can be used to communicate with the UL-only TRP, which can be represented by the following IEs and parameters. ssb-perRACH-OccasionAndCB-PreamblesPerSSB {one, n8} msg1-FDM=1

[0085] Figure 12This is a diagram illustrating Example 1200, based on one or more specific embodiments described herein, for implementing UL-only operation together with a primary TRP operation. As shown, Example 1200 may include a primary TRP 1210, a UL-only TRP 1220, and UEs 210-1, 210-2, and 210-3. The primary TRP 1210 may be implemented by a base station 222 operating as a PCell or primary TRP. The UL-only TRP 1220 may be implemented by another base station operating as an SCell or Rx-only TRP. The primary TRP 1210 may include a coverage area for UL transmission and a different coverage area for DL ​​transmission. As shown, the coverage area for DL ​​transmission may be farther from the primary TRP 1210 than the coverage area for UL transmission.

[0086] The main TRP 1210 can be configured to transmit different SSB1 signals via different beams (e.g., SIB_IDX1, SIB_IDX2, and SSB_IDX3), and UEs 210-1, 210-2, and 210-3 can communicate with TRPs 1210 and 1220 via beams 1230-1, 1230-2, and 1230-3, respectively. For a RACH procedure toward only UL TRP 1220, UEs 210-1 and 210-2 can use the same UL beam on different ROs to transmit multiple MSG 1 transmissions, where each RO is associated with a corresponding SIB. For example, UE 210-1 may transmit MSG 1 based on the RO associated with SSB_IDX1; UE 210-2 may transmit MSG 1 based on the RO associated with SSB_IDX2; and UE 210-3 may transmit MSG 1 based on the RO associated with SSB_IDX3. In some specific implementations, only UL TRP 1220 may perform beam scanning to connect with UEs 210-1 and 210-2s. Additionally or alternatively, only UL TRP 1220 may determine the direction of the only UL beam for UE 210 based on the relative direction of the DL beam used by main TRP 1210 to communicate with the corresponding UE 210. Additionally or alternatively, UEs 210-1 and 210-2 may perform UL beamfinding and / or scanning procedures when performing a RACH procedure directed to only UL TRP 1220. UE210-1, 210-2, and 210-3 may transmit different MSG 1 transmissions during the RACH procedure, which may result in an increase in the duration (or number of slots) of the window (e.g., ra-ResponseWindow) used for MSG 2 responses.

[0087] Figure 13This is a diagram illustrating an example of process 1300 for transitioning between UL communication toward a primary TRP and a UL-only TRP, according to one or more specific implementations described herein. As shown, process 1300 may include UE 210, primary TRP 1210, and UL-only TRP 1220. Process 1300 may be provided by one or more other systems or devices (including...). Figure 2 The main TRP 1210 may be implemented by a base station 222 operating as a PCell or main TRP relative to the UE 210. The UL-only TRP 1220 may be implemented by another base station operating as an SCell or Rx-only TRP relative to the UE 210. Additionally, process 1300 may include... Figure 13 The operations shown are fewer, additional, in a different order, and / or arranged than those of other operations. In some specific implementations, some or all of the operations of process 1300 may be performed independently, sequentially, simultaneously, etc., with respect to other operations of process 1300. Therefore, the techniques described herein are not limited to those of other operations of process 1300. Figure 13 The number, sequence, arrangement, timing, etc. of the operations or processes described.

[0088] As shown in the figure, UE 210 can traverse the cell edge of the primary TRP (at 1310). For example, UE 210 may be located within the UL coverage area of ​​primary TRP 1210 and move to a location outside the UL coverage area. Alternatively, UE 210 may be located outside the UL coverage area of ​​primary TRP 1201 and move to the UL coverage area of ​​primary TRP 1210. In either scenario, UE 210 can maintain a DL connection with primary TRP 1210. Primary TRP 1210 can determine changes in the location of UE 210 and / or may send configuration information to UE 210 based on changes in location. For example, primary TRP 1210 may send DCI to UE 210 (at 1320).

[0089] DCI format 1_0 or another type of DCI format can be used. The DCI may include a PDCCH-Order IE using DCI format 1_0. In some implementations, the DCI may include a random access (RA) preamble index. UE 210 may determine whether the preamble is associated with the primary TRP 1210 or with the UL-only TRP 1220 (at 1330). This may be because the preamble and / or RO associated with each SSB can be allocated for the RACH procedure toward the primary TRP 1210 or the UL-only TRP 1220. UE 210 may also, or alternatively, perform a RACH procedure toward the primary TRP 1210 (at 1040) or an RACH procedure toward the UL-only TRP 1220 (at 1350) based on the preamble. When the DCI includes a preamble, the RACH procedure may be a contention-free random access (CFRA) procedure. In other implementations, the DCI may not include a preamble. Conversely, the DCI may include a 1-bit indicator in the PDCCH-Order IE that the UE 210 can use to determine whether to perform a RACH procedure toward the primary TRP 1210 or a RACH procedure toward only the UL TRP 1220. When the DCI does not include a preamble, the UE 210 may select a preamble for either the primary TRP 1210 or only the UL TRP 1220 (based on the 1-bit indicator) and perform a contention-based random access (CBRA) procedure.

[0090] Figure 14 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a process 1400 for transitioning between UL communication toward a primary TRP and a UL-only TRP, according to one or more specific embodiments described herein. As shown, process 1400 may be performed by UE 210. In some embodiments, process 1400 may be performed by one or more other systems or devices, including base station 222 operating as either a primary TRP 1210 or a UL-only TRP 1220. Additionally, process 1400 may include... Figure 14 The operations shown are fewer, additional, in a different order, and / or arranged than those of other operations. In some specific implementations, some or all of the operations of process 1400 may be performed independently, sequentially, simultaneously, etc., with respect to other operations of process 1400. Therefore, the techniques described herein are not limited to those of other operations of process 1400. Figure 14 The number, sequence, arrangement, timing, etc. of the operations or processes described.

[0091] As shown in the figure, process 1400 may include receiving a threshold RSRP for communicating with the UL-only TRP 1220, and determining whether the threshold RSRP is met (block 1410). For example, base station 222 may provide UE 210 with control information indicating the threshold RSRP for communicating with the UL-only TRP 1220. The threshold RSRP may be included in an rsrp-ThresholdSSB-RxOnlyTrp-delta IE, which may be received via a higher-layer configuration (e.g., RRC information). The threshold RSRP may include a change in a threshold or value corresponding to the measured RSRP for triggering a switch between UL communication toward the primary TRP 1210 and the UL-only TRP 1220. The threshold RSRP may correspond to an RSRP from the measured RSRP or an RSRP from the UL-only TRP 1220. UE 210 may monitor and measure the RSRP and determine whether the measured RSRP is met.

[0092] When the threshold RSRP is not met (1120—No), procedure 1400 may include directing UL communication to UL-only TRP 1220 (block 1430). For example, when the measured RSRP is from primary TRP 1210 and the threshold RSRP is not met (e.g., because UE 210 is too far from primary TRP 1210), UE 210 may perform a RACH procedure toward UL-only TRP 1220. If UE 210 is already communicating with UL-only TRP 1220, UE 210 may continue to direct communication to UL-only TRP 1220. This RACH procedure may be a CBRA procedure unless UE 210 receives control information indicating a preamble and / or RO associated with primary TRP 1210 or UL-only TRP 1220.

[0093] When the threshold RSRP is met (1120—Yes), process 1400 may include directing UL communication to UL-only TRP 1220 (box 140). For example, when the measured RSRP is from primary TRP 1210 and the threshold RSRP is met (e.g., because UE 210 is not too far from primary TRP 1210), UE 210 may perform a RACH procedure toward primary TRP 1220. If UE 210 has already transmitted UL communication toward primary TRP 1210, UE 210 may continue to direct communication to UL-only TRP 1220. This RACH procedure may be a CBRA procedure unless UE 210 receives control information indicating a preamble and / or RO associated with primary TRP 1210 or UL-only TRP 1220.

[0094] Figure 15 This is a diagram of Example 1500, based on one or more specific implementations described herein, for providing a valid TA for a UL-only TRP 1220. As shown, Example 1500 may include a primary TRP 1210, a UL-TRP 1220, UE 210-1, and UE 210-2. UE 210-1 and UE 210-2 may receive DL communications from the primary TRP 1210 and send UL communications to the UL-only TRP 1220. The TA may include a command or notification from the primary TRP 1210 or UL-TRP 1220 to UE 210, which enables UE 210 or allows the UE to adjust the transition time for UL communications. The TA technique may be applicable to communications during RACH procedures and / or to communications when UE 210 is in RRC connected mode.

[0095] The UL TRP 1220 alone can determine the effective TA and indicate the effective TA to UE 210-1 and UE 210-2. Because UE 210-1's effective TA may differ from UE 210-2's effective TA due to their different distances from the main TRP 1210, resulting in different DL timings. The UL TRP 1220 alone can determine the effective TA by subtracting the propagation delay (A) between the UL TRP 1220 and the main TRP 1210 from the calculated TA at the UL TRP 1220 alone. For example, since UE 210-1 is located at or near the UL TRP 1220 alone, UE 210-1's calculated TA before adjustment may be equal to A. Therefore, UE 210-1's effective TA before adjustment can be determined as A – A = 0. In contrast, due to the increased distance R between only UL TRP 220 and UE 210-2, the pre-adjustment calculated TA can be determined to be equal to A+2R (e.g., A+R+R), and the effective TA for only UL TRP 1220 before adjustment can be equal to A+2R-A (e.g., 2R).

[0096] Only UL TRP 1220 can provide valid TAs and / or corresponding TA commands to UE 210-1 and UE 210-2, and UE 210-1 and UE 210-2 can use these valid TAs with reference to DL communications received from the master TRP 1210. However, since each valid TA includes an adjustment A, UL communications from UE 210-1 and UE 210-2 can be received simultaneously by only UL TRP 1220. Alternatively, the UL timing for UE 210 to send PRACH signals to only UL TRP 1220 can be based on a global time reference (rather than the DL reception time at each given UE). In such an implementation, when a TA is issued by only UL TRP 1220, UE 210 can apply the TA with reference to this global timing reference (rather than the different DL reception times for different UEs 210).

[0097] Figure 16 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a process 1600 for transmit power control based on path loss (PL) according to one or more specific embodiments described herein. Process 1600 may correspond to determining the transmit power used for PRACH transmission. Process 1600 may be performed by UE 210. In some embodiments, process 1600 may be performed by one or more other systems or devices, including base station 222 operating as a primary TRP 1210 or as a UL-only TRP 1220. Additionally, process 1600 may include... Figure 16 The operations shown are fewer, additional, in a different order, and / or arranged than those of other operations. In some specific implementations, some or all of the operations of process 1600 may be performed independently, sequentially, simultaneously, etc., with respect to other operations of process 1600. Therefore, the techniques described herein are not limited to those of other operations of process 1600. Figure 16 The number, sequence, arrangement, timing, etc. of the operations or processes described.

[0098] Process 1600 may include obtaining the RO and / or preamble (block 1610). For example, UE 210 may obtain the RO and / or preamble for the RACH procedure. In some implementations, the RO and / or preamble may be provided by base station 222. In some implementations, the RO and / or preamble may be randomly selected and determined by UE 210.

[0099] Process 1600 may include determining whether an RO and / or preamble is associated with the primary TRP 1210 or with the UL-only TRP 1220 (box 1620). For example, UE 210 may determine whether an RO and / or preamble used for the RACH procedure is associated with the primary TRP 1210 or with the UL-only TRP 1220. In some implementations, UE 210 may be configured with an index or store of configuration information that associates some ROs and / or preambles with the primary TRP 1210 and others with the UL-only TRP 1220. In such scenarios, UE 210 may determine whether a particular RO and / or preamble belongs to the primary TRP 1210 or the UL-only TRP 1220 by comparing the RO and / or preamble with the configuration information.

[0100] When the RO and / or preamble are associated with the primary TRP 1220 (box 1630—Yes), process 1600 may include determining the PL for RACH transmit power based on the primary TRP parameters (box 1640). When the RO and / or preamble are associated with the UL-only TRP 1220 (box 1630—Yes), process 1600 may include determining the PL for RACH transmit power based on the UL-only TRP parameters (box 1650). For example, for RACH transmission on the UL bandwidth portion (BWP) B of carrier F in serving cell C, the PL for RACH transmit power may be based on PL BFC Determined by subtracting the Δ value D. PL BFC The Δ value D can be determined based on the measured RSRP corresponding to the SS / PBCH block transmitted via RACH. When the RO and / or preamble is associated with the main TRP 1210, the Δ value D can be equal to zero. When the RO and / or preamble is associated with the UL-only TRP 1210, the Δ value D can be greater than or equal to zero. For example, when the measured RSRP is less than a power threshold (e.g., the rsrp-ThresholdSSB-RxOnlyTrp value), the UE 210 can transmit MSG 1 on the RACH resource associated with the UL-only TRP 1220 and corresponding to the SS / PBCH transmission.

[0101] Additionally or alternatively, when the RACH transmission from UE 210 is not in response to receiving a corresponding instruction (e.g., PDCCH-Order IE) from the primary TRP 1210, the Δ value D may be configured by configuration information (e.g., RACH-ConfigCommon IE) and may be constrained by a power threshold (e.g., rsrp-ThresholdSSB-RxOnlyTrp IE). For example, when the measured RSRP meets the power threshold, the Δ value D may be zero, but when the measured RSRP does not meet the power threshold, the Δ value D may be configured or indicated by the configuration information. The configuration information not indicating the Δ value D for such scenarios could be an indication that base station 222 does not support UL-only TRP scenarios.

[0102] In some implementations, configuration information (e.g., RACH-ConfigCommon IE) may include a set of Δ values ​​D. In some implementations, RACH-ConfigCommon may include four possible values ​​indicated by a 2-bit field in the DCI, which can be mapped to different Δ values. In such scenarios, when the DCI indicates a RACH procedure toward the primary TRP 1210, UE 210 may determine that the Δ value D is zero. When the DCI indicates a RACH procedure toward only the UL TRP 1220, UE 210 may determine the Δ value D based on the mapping of the 2-bit field to the Δ value D.

[0103] Figure 17 This is an illustration of an example of a process 1700 for performing transmit power control on PUSCH transmission during a PRACH procedure, according to one or more specific embodiments described herein. Process 1700 may correspond to determining the transmit power used for MSG 3 transmission via PUSCH. Process 1700 may be performed by UE 210. In some embodiments, process 1700 may be performed by one or more other systems or devices, including base station 222 operating as a primary TRP 1210 or as a UL-only TRP 1220. Additionally, process 1700 may include... Figure 17 The operations shown are fewer, additional, in a different order, and / or arranged than those of other operations. In some specific implementations, some or all of the operations of process 1700 may be performed independently, sequentially, simultaneously, etc., with respect to other operations of process 1700. Therefore, the techniques described herein are not limited to those of other operations of process 1700. Figure 17 The number, sequence, arrangement, timing, etc. of the operations or processes described.

[0104] Procedure 1700 may include receiving MSG 3 preamble parameters (block 1710). For example, UE 210 may receive configuration information corresponding to the MSG 3 transmission. In some implementations, this may include a msg3-DeltaPreamble IE of the PUSCH-ConfigCommon IE. The msg3-DeltaPreamble IE may indicate a power offset (e.g., 2x (-1...6) dB) between the MSG 3 and RACH preamble transmissions used for RACH procedural communication toward the primary TRP 1220. UE 210 may also, or alternatively, receive a msg3-DeltaPreamble_RxonlyTrp IE, which may indicate a power offset between the MSG 3 and RACH preamble transmissions used for RACH procedural communication directed to the UL-only TRP 1220. In some implementations, the power offset may be 2x (-6...1) dB.

[0105] Procedure 1700 may include determining whether the MSG 3 preamble parameters are associated with the primary TRP 1210 or with the UL-only TRP 1220 (box 1720). For example, UE 210 may determine whether the MSG 3 preamble parameters used for the RACH procedure are associated with the primary TRP 1210 or with the UL-only TRP 1220. The msg3-DeltaPreamble IE may be associated with the primary TRP 1210, and the msg3-DeltaPreamble_RxonlyTrp IE may be associated with the UL-only TRP 1220. When the MSG 3 preamble parameters are associated with the UL-only TRP 1220 (box 1730—Yes), procedure 1700 may include determining the MSG 3 transmission power for the PRACH toward the UL-only TRP 1210 (box 1740). When the MSG 3 preamble parameters are not associated with UL TRP 1220 only (box 1730—No), process 1700 may include determining the MSG 3 transmit power based on the PRACH toward the main TRP 1210 (box 1750).

[0106] For MSG 3 transmission on UL BWP B of carrier F in serving cell C under RRC connection, UE 210 can be configured with two msg3-Alpha parameters. For MSG 3 transmission toward primary TRP 1210, UE 210 can determine the transmission power based on the msg3-Alpha parameter. For MSG 3 transmission toward UL TRP 1220 only, UE 210 can determine the transmission power based on the msg3-Alpha_RxonlyTrp parameter. Additionally or alternatively, for MSG 3 transmission on UL BWP B of carrier F in serving cell C, UE 210 can be configured to transmit PRACH signals toward UL TRP only with a fixed configuration power. In this scenario, the fixed configuration power can be indicated by referenceSignalPowerPrach IE, and UL TRP 210 only can calculate PL based on the transmitted PRACH signal.

[0107] In some implementations, UE 210 may be configured to use different transmit power parameters implicitly or explicitly. In some implementations, when MSG 3 transmission is scheduled by RAR UL permission derived from the RACH procedure associated with the UL TRP 1220 and / or preamble, UE 210 may be implicitly configured to use msg3-DeltaPreambleIE or msg3-DeltaPreamble_RxonlyTrpIE. In some implementations, UE 210 may be implicitly configured to use msg3-DeltaPreambleIE or msg3-DeltaPreamble_RxonlyTrpIE based on a reserved 1-bit indicator in the MSG 3 configuration information received by UE 210.

[0108] Additionally or alternatively, UE 210 may implement transmit power control techniques involving PUXCH, PUCCH, and SRS transmission. In some implementations, UE 210 may be configured to transmit SRS signals at a fixed power. The fixed power may be indicated by control information from base station 222, such as referenceSignalPowerSrs IE. The network may determine the power level (PL) for SRS signals at only UL TRP 1220. In some implementations, UE 210 may determine the transmit power of the SRS signal based on implicit conditions. For example, when instructing SRS transmission after a PDCCH command using DCI format 1_0 to perform RACH using a preamble associated with only Rx TRP, UE 210 may transmit the SRS signal at the configured fixed power based on referenceSignalPowerSrs IE. In some implementations, UE 210 may determine the transmit power of the SRS signal based on implicit conditions. For example, SRS resource configuration may be associated with a given referenceSignalPowerSrs. Once the SRS resource is activated in the SRS request bit field (or a similar procedure for P / SP-SRS), UE 210 can determine the transmit power of the SRS signal based on a configured fixed power, which can be indicated in the referenceSignalPowerSrs IE. The master TRP 1210 can determine the PL for signaling from UE 210 to the UL-only TRP 1220 and can indicate the PL to UE 210 via configuration information such as MAC control elements (CE), DCI signaling, etc.

[0109] In some implementations, base station 222 may provide UE 210 with configuration information indicating different (Po, α) sets (e.g., one for UL communication directed to primary TRP 1210, and another for UL communication directed to UL-only TRP 1220). (Po, α) can be used by UE 210 as the target received power (Po) and path loss (PL) compensation factor (α) at ​​the receiver. Control information (e.g., DCI or configuration grant (CG) configuration) may include a 1-bit or 2-bit field indicating which (Po, α) set UE 210 should use. Primary TRP 1210 may send a determined PL for PUCCH and / or SRS from UE 210 to UL-only TRP 1220, and may indicate this PL to UE 210 via configuration information such as MAC control element (CE), DCI signaling, etc.

[0110] Figure 18This is a diagram illustrating an example of process 1800 for signaling and procedures for communication to a UL TRP 1220 only, according to one or more specific implementations described herein. Process 1800 may be performed by UE 210. Additionally, process 1800 may include... Figure 18 The operations shown are fewer, additional, in a different order, and / or arranged than those of other operations. In some specific implementations, some or all of the operations of process 1800 may be performed independently, sequentially, simultaneously, etc., with respect to other operations of process 1800. Therefore, the techniques described herein are not limited to those of other operations. Figure 18 The number, sequence, arrangement, timing, etc. of the operations or processes described.

[0111] As shown in the figure, process 1800 may include receiving configuration information from the primary TRP 1220 for a RA procedure toward another base station 222 operating as a UL-only TRP (box 1810). Process 1800 may also include performing the RA procedure toward the UL-only TRP (box 1820). Process 1800 may also include communicating with the primary TRP by receiving DL communications from the primary TRP and sending UL communications to the UL-only TRP (box 1830).

[0112] Figure 19 This is a diagram illustrating an example of process 1900 for signaling and procedures for communication to a UL-only TRP 1220, according to one or more specific implementations described herein. Process 1900 may be executed by the master TRP 1210. Additionally, process 1900 may include... Figure 19 The operations shown are fewer, additional, in a different order, and / or arranged than those of other operations. In some specific implementations, some or all of the operations of process 1900 may be performed independently, sequentially, simultaneously, etc., with respect to other operations of process 1900. Therefore, the techniques described herein are not limited to those of other operations. Figure 19 The number, sequence, arrangement, timing, etc. of the operations or processes described.

[0113] As shown in the figure, process 1900 may include transmitting configuration information to UE 210 for a RA procedure toward a UL-only TRP (box 1910). Process 1900 may also include receiving UL communications originating from UE 210 from a UL-only TRP (box 1920). Process 1900 may also include transmitting DL communications directly to UE 210 (box 1930).

[0114] Figure 20 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a process 2000 for signaling and procedures for communication to a UL TRP 1220-only, according to one or more specific implementations described herein. Process 2000 can be performed by the UL TRP 1220-only. Additionally, process 2000 may include... Figure 20 The operations shown are fewer, additional, in a different order, and / or arranged than those of other operations. In some specific implementations, some or all of the operations of process 2000 may be performed independently, sequentially, simultaneously, etc., with respect to other operations of process 2000. Therefore, the techniques described herein are not limited to those of other operations. Figure 20 The number, sequence, arrangement, timing, etc. of the operations or processes described.

[0115] As shown in the figure, process 2000 may include performing a RA procedure for UE 222 (block 2010). Process 2000 may also include UL-only TRP 1220 operation for UE 222 and main TRP 1210 by receiving UL communications from UE 210 and transmitting these UL communications to main TRP 1210 (block 2030).

[0116] Figure 21 This is an illustration of examples of components of a device according to one or more embodiments described herein. In some embodiments, device 2100 may include at least application circuitry 2102, baseband circuitry 2104, RF circuitry 2106, front-end module (FEM) circuitry 2108, one or more antennas 2110, and power management circuitry (PMC) 2112 coupled together as shown. In some embodiments, device 2100 may include fewer components (e.g., the RAN node may not utilize application circuitry 2102, but may instead include a processor / controller to process data received from the core network). In some embodiments, device 2100 may include additional components such as, for example, memory / storage devices, displays, cameras, sensors (including one or more temperature sensors, such as a single temperature sensor, multiple temperature sensors at different locations in device 2100, etc.), or input / output (I / O) interfaces. In other embodiments, the components described below may be included in more than one device (e.g., the circuitry may be individually included in more than one device for a cloud-RAN (C-RAN) embodiment).

[0117] Application circuitry 2102 may include one or more application processors. For example, application circuitry 2102 may include circuitry such as, but not limited to, one or more single-core or multi-core processors. The processor may include any combination of general-purpose processors and special-purpose processors (e.g., graphics processors, application processors, etc.). The processor may be coupled to or may include a memory / storage device and may be configured to execute instructions stored in the memory / storage device to enable various applications or operating systems to run on device 2100. In some specific implementations, the processor of application circuitry 2102 may process data packets received from a core network.

[0118] Baseband circuitry 2104 may include circuitry such as, but not limited to, one or more single-core or multi-core processors. Baseband circuitry 2104 may include one or more baseband processors or control logic components to process baseband signals received from the receive signal path of RF circuitry 2106 and generate baseband signals for the transmit signal path of RF circuitry 2106. Baseband circuitry 2104 may interact with application circuitry 2102 to generate and process baseband signals and control the operation of RF circuitry 2106. For example, in some implementations, baseband circuitry 2104 may include a 3G baseband processor 2104A, a 4G baseband processor 2104B, a 5G baseband processor 2104C, or other baseband processors 2104D for other existing, developing, or future generations (e.g., 5G, 6G, 7G, etc.). Baseband circuitry 2104 (e.g., one or more baseband processors among baseband processors 2104A-D) may handle various radio control functions that enable communication with one or more radio networks via RF circuitry 2106. In other embodiments, some or all of the functions of the baseband processors 2104A-D may be included in modules stored in memory 2104G and executed via a central processing unit (CPU) 2104E. Radio control functions may include, but are not limited to, signal modulation / demodulation, encoding / decoding, and radio frequency shifting. In some embodiments, the modulation / demodulation circuitry of the baseband circuitry 2104 may include Fast Fourier Transform (FFT), pre-decoding, or constellation mapping / demapping functionality. In some embodiments, the encoding / decoding circuitry of the baseband circuitry 2104 may include convolution, tail-biting convolution, turbo, Viterbi, or low-density parity-check (LDPC) encoder / decoder functionality. Specific implementations of the modulation / demodulation and encoder / decoder functions are not limited to these examples and may include other suitable functions in other respects.

[0119] In some specific implementations, memory 2104G may receive and / or store information and instructions that enable UE 210 to communicate with a UL-only TRP as described herein. The UL-only TRP may include a first base station 222 operating as a SCell and a second base station 222 operating as a primary TRP or PCell. Information and instructions 2255 may also enable the determination of the TA for UL communication, control of UL transmit power, and management of the beam for UL communication between the UE and the UL-only TRP. Information and instructions 2255 may also include enabling the UE to switch from UL communication involving a primary TRP to UL communication involving a UL-only TRP. Information and instructions 2255 may implement these and many other features and examples described herein.

[0120] In some embodiments, baseband circuitry 2104 may include one or more audio digital signal processors (DSPs) 2104F. The audio DSP 2104F may include elements for compression / decompression and echo cancellation, and in other embodiments may include other suitable processing elements. In some embodiments, components of baseband circuitry 2104 may be suitably combined in a single chip, a single chipset, or disposed on the same circuit board. In some embodiments, some or all components of baseband circuitry 2104 and application circuitry 2102 may be implemented together, for example, on a system-on-a-chip (SoC).

[0121] In some implementations, baseband circuit 2104 can provide communication compatible with one or more radio technologies. For example, in some implementations, baseband circuit 2104 can support communication with NG-RAN, Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (EUTRAN), or other Wireless Metropolitan Area Networks (WMAN), Wireless Local Area Networks (WLAN), Wireless Personal Area Networks (WPAN), etc. Implementations in which baseband circuit 2104 is configured to support radio communication with more than one radio protocol may be referred to as multimode baseband circuits.

[0122] RF circuit 2106 can communicate with a wireless network using modulated electromagnetic radiation through a non-solid medium. In various embodiments, RF circuit 2106 may include switches, filters, amplifiers, etc., to facilitate communication with the wireless network. RF circuit 2106 may include a receive signal path, which may include circuitry for down-converting the RF signal received from FEM circuit 2108 and providing a baseband signal to baseband circuit 2104. RF circuit 2106 may also include a transmit signal path, which may include circuitry for up-converting the baseband signal provided by baseband circuit 2104 and providing an RF output signal to FEM circuit 2108 for transmission.

[0123] In some embodiments, the receive signal path of RF circuit 2106 may include mixer circuit 2106A, amplifier circuit 2106B, and filter circuit 2106C. In some embodiments, the transmit signal path of RF circuit 2106 may include filter circuit 2106C and mixer circuit 2106A. RF circuit 2106 may also include synthesizer circuit 2106D, which synthesizes the frequency used by mixer circuit 2106A in both the receive and transmit signal paths. In some embodiments, mixer circuit 2106A in the receive signal path may be configured to down-convert the RF signal received from FEM circuit 2108 based on the synthesized frequency provided by synthesizer circuit 2106D. Amplifier circuit 2106B may be configured to amplify the down-converted signal, and filter circuit 2106C may be a low-pass filter (LPF) or band-pass filter (BPF), configured to remove unwanted signals from the down-converted signal to generate an output baseband signal. The output baseband signal can be provided to the baseband circuit 2104 for further processing. In some embodiments, the output baseband signal may be a zero-frequency baseband signal, but this may not be necessary. In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 2106A for the received signal path may include a passive mixer, but the scope of the implementation is not limited in this respect.

[0124] In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 2106A of the transmit signal path can be configured to up-convert the input baseband signal based on the synthesis frequency provided by the synthesizer circuit 2106D to generate an RF output signal for the FEM circuit 2108. The baseband signal can be provided by the baseband circuit 2104 and can be filtered by the filter circuit 2106C. In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 2106A of the receive signal path and the mixer circuit 2106A of the transmit signal path can include two or more mixers and can be arranged for quadrature down-conversion and up-conversion, respectively. In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 2106A of the receive signal path and the mixer circuit 2106A of the transmit signal path can include two or more mixers and can be arranged for image suppression. In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 2106A of the receive signal path and the mixer circuit 2106A can be arranged for direct down-conversion and direct up-conversion, respectively. In some implementations, the mixer circuit 2106 for the receive signal path and the mixer circuit 2106A for the transmit signal path can be configured for superheterodyne operation.

[0125] In some embodiments, the output baseband signal and the input baseband signal may be analog baseband signals, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect. In some alternative embodiments, the output baseband signal and the input baseband signal may be digital baseband signals. In these alternative embodiments, RF circuit 2106 may include analog-to-digital converter (ADC) and digital-to-analog converter (DAC) circuitry, and baseband circuit 2104 may include a digital baseband interface for communication with RF circuit 2106.

[0126] In some dual-mode implementations, separate radio integrated circuits can be provided to process the signal for each spectrum, but the scope of implementation is not limited in this respect. In some implementations, the synthesizer circuit 2106D can be a fractional-N synthesizer or a fractional-N / N+1 synthesizer, but the scope of implementation is not limited in this respect, as other types of frequency synthesizers can also be suitable. For example, the synthesizer circuit 2106D can be a Δ-∑ synthesizer, a frequency multiplier, or a synthesizer including a phase-locked loop with a frequency divider.

[0127] Synthesizer circuit 2106D can be configured to synthesize an output frequency based on a frequency input and a divider control input for use by mixer circuit 2106A of RF circuit 2106. In some embodiments, synthesizer circuit 2106D can be a fractional N / N+1 synthesizer. In some embodiments, the frequency input can be provided by a voltage-controlled oscillator (VCO). The divider control input can be provided by baseband circuit 2104 or application circuit 2102 according to the desired output frequency. In some embodiments, the divider control input (e.g., N) can be determined from a lookup table based on the channel indicated by application circuit 2102.

[0128] The synthesizer circuit 2106D of the RF circuit 2106 may include a frequency divider, a delay-locked loop (DLL), a multiplexer, and a phase accumulator. In some embodiments, the frequency divider may be a dual-mode divider (DMD), and the phase accumulator may be a digital phase accumulator (DPA). In some embodiments, the DMD may be configured to divide the input signal by N or N+1 (e.g., based on carry output) to provide a fractional division ratio. In some example embodiments, the DLL may include cascaded, tunable, delay elements, a phase detector, a charge pump, and a set of D-type flip-flops. In these embodiments, the delay elements may be configured to divide the VCO period into Nd equal phase groups, where Nd is the number of delay elements in the delay line. In this way, the DLL provides negative feedback to help ensure that the total delay through the delay line is one VCO period.

[0129] In some embodiments, synthesizer circuit 2106D may be configured to generate a carrier frequency as the output frequency, while in other embodiments, the output frequency may be a multiple of the carrier frequency (e.g., twice the carrier frequency, four times the carrier frequency) and may be used in conjunction with quadrature generator and frequency divider circuitry to generate multiple signals having multiple different phases relative to each other at that carrier frequency. In some embodiments, the output frequency may be the LO frequency (fLO). In some embodiments, RF circuit 2106 may include an in-phase / quadrature (I / Q) / polarity converter.

[0130] FEM circuit 2108 may include a receive signal path, which may include circuitry configured to operate on RF signals received from one or more antennas 2110, amplify the received signals, and provide an amplified version of the received signals to RF circuit 2106 for further processing. FEM circuit 2108 may also include a transmit signal path, which may include circuitry configured to amplify signals provided by RF circuit 2106 for transmission via one or more of the one or more antennas 2110. In various embodiments, amplification via the transmit signal path or the receive signal path may be performed only in RF circuit 2106, only in FEM circuit 2108, or in both RF circuit 2106 and FEM circuit 2108.

[0131] In some implementations, FEM circuit 2108 may include a transmit / receive switch to switch between transmit and receive mode operation. FEM circuit 2108 may include a receive signal path and a transmit signal path. The receive signal path of FEM circuit 2108 may include a low-noise amplifier to amplify the received RF signal and provide the amplified received RF signal as an output (e.g., to RF circuit 2106). The transmit signal path of FEM circuit 2108 may include a power amplifier to amplify the input RF signal (e.g., provided by RF circuit 2106) and include one or more filters to generate an RF signal for subsequent transmission (e.g., through one or more antennas in one or more antennas 2110).

[0132] In some implementations, the PMC 2112 manages the power supplied to the baseband circuitry 2104. Specifically, the PMC 2112 controls power selection, voltage scaling, battery charging, or DC-to-DC (DC-to-DC) conversion. The PMC 2112 is typically included when the device 2100 is capable of being battery powered, for example, when the device 2100 is included in a UE. The PMC 2112 can improve power conversion efficiency while providing the desired implementation size and thermal characteristics.

[0133] and Figure 21PMC 2112 is shown coupled only to baseband circuit 2104. However, in other specific implementations, PMC 2112 may additionally or alternatively be coupled to other components, such as, but not limited to, application circuit 2102, RF circuit 2106, or FEM circuit 2108, and perform similar power management operations thereto.

[0134] In some implementations, PMC 2112 may control or otherwise be part of various power-saving mechanisms of device 2100. For example, if device 2100 is in the RRC_Connected state, where device 2100 is still connected to the RAN node because device 2100 expects to receive traffic immediately, then after a certain period of inactivity, device 2100 may enter a state known as Discontinuous Receive Mode (DRX). During this state, device 2100 may be powered down for short intervals and thus save power.

[0135] If no data traffic activity persists for an extended period, device 2100 may transition to the RRC_Idle state. In this state, device 2100 disconnects from the network and does not perform operations such as channel quality feedback or handover. Device 2100 may enter a very low power state and may perform paging, during which it may periodically wake up again to listen to the network before powering down again. Device 2100 cannot receive data in this state; to receive data, device 2100 may transition back to the RRC_Connected state.

[0136] An additional power-saving mode allows the device to be unavailable from the network for periods exceeding the paging interval (ranging from seconds to hours). During this time, the device 2100 may be unable to connect to the network and may be completely powered off. Any data transmitted during this time may cause significant delays, and the device 2100 may assume that the delays are acceptable.

[0137] The processor of application circuit 2102 and the processor of baseband circuit 2104 can be used to execute elements of one or more instances of the protocol stack. For example, the processor of baseband circuit 2104 can be used alone or in combination to execute layer 3, layer 2, or layer 1 functionality, and the processor of baseband circuit 2104 can utilize data received from these layers (e.g., packet data) and further execute layer 4 functionality (e.g., transmit communication protocol (TCP) and user datagram protocol (UDP) layers). As mentioned herein, layer 3 may include the radio resource control layer. As mentioned herein, layer 2 may include the media access control layer, the radio link control layer, and the packet data convergence protocol layer, which will be described in further detail below. As mentioned herein, layer 1 may include the physical layer of the UE / RAN node.

[0138] Figure 22This is a block diagram illustrating components, according to some examples, capable of reading instructions from a machine-readable or computer-readable medium (e.g., a non-transitory machine-readable storage medium) and executing any or more methods discussed herein. Specifically, Figure 22 A schematic representation of hardware resource 2200 is shown, which includes one or more processors 2210 (or processor cores), one or more memory / storage devices 2220, and one or more communication resources 2230, each of which is communicatively coupled via bus 2240. For a specific implementation utilizing node virtualization or network function virtualization, a hypervisor can be executed to provide an execution environment for one or more network slices / subslices to utilize hardware resource 2200. Hardware resource 2200 can interact with hypervisor 2202. For example, hypervisor 2202 can schedule or otherwise manage hardware resource 2200.

[0139] Processor 2210 (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a reduced instruction set computing (RISC) processor, a complex instruction set computing (CISC) processor, a graphics processing unit (GPU), a digital signal processor (DSP) (such as a baseband processor), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a radio frequency integrated circuit (RFIC), another processor, or any suitable combination thereof) may include, for example, processor 2212 and processor 2214.

[0140] In some implementations, memory / storage device 2220 receives and / or stores information and instructions 2255 that enable UE 210 to communicate with a UL-only TRP as described herein. The UL-only TRP may include a first base station 222 operating as a SCell and a second base station 222 operating as a primary TRP or PCell. Information and instructions 2255 may also enable the determination of the TA for UL communication, control of UL transmit power, and management of the beam for UL communication between the UE and the UL-only TRP. Information and instructions 2255 may also include enabling the UE to switch from UL communication involving a primary TRP to UL communication involving a UL-only TRP. Information and instructions 2255 may implement these and many other features and examples described herein.

[0141] Communication resource 2230 may include interconnect or network interface components or other suitable devices for communicating with one or more peripheral devices 2204 or one or more databases 2206 via network 2208. For example, communication resource 2230 may include wired communication components (e.g., for coupling via a universal serial bus), cellular communication components, near-field communication components, Bluetooth, etc. ® Components (e.g., Bluetooth) ® Low power consumption, Wi-Fi ®Components and other communication components.

[0142] Instructions 2250A, 2250B, 2250C, 2250D, and / or 2250E may include software, programs, applications, applets, or other executable code for causing at least one processor in processor 2210 to perform any one or more of the methods discussed herein. Instructions 2250 may reside wholly or partially within at least one of processors 2210 (e.g., within cache memory), memory / storage device 2220, or any suitable combination thereof. Furthermore, any portion of instructions 2250A-E may be passed from any combination of peripheral device 2204 or database 2206 to hardware resource 2200. Therefore, the memory of processor 2210, memory / storage device 2220, peripheral device 2204, and database 2206 are examples of computer-readable and machine-readable media.

[0143] The embodiments and / or specific implementations herein may include subjects such as methods, components for performing actions or blocks of the method, at least one machine-readable medium including executable instructions that, when executed by a machine (e.g., a processor with memory, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), etc.), cause the machine to perform actions of a method, apparatus, or system for concurrent communication using various communication technologies according to the described specific implementations and embodiments.

[0144] In Embodiment 1 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), a user equipment (UE) may include: a memory; and one or more processors configured to, when executing instructions stored in the memory, cause the UE to: receive configuration information from a base station operating as a primary transmit and receive point (TRP) for a random access (RA) procedure toward a base station operating as an uplink-only (UL) TRP; perform the RA procedure toward the UL-only TRP; and communicate with the primary TRP by: receiving downlink (DL) communication from the primary TRP; and sending UL communication to the UL-only TRP.

[0145] In Embodiment 2 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the configuration information includes System Information Block Type 1 (SIB1), which includes an RxOnlyTrpConfigCommom information element (IE) for UL communication to the ULTRP-only protocol. In Embodiment 3 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the configuration information includes System Information Block Type 1 (SIB1), which includes a Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP) threshold; and the UE is configured to determine whether to perform the RA procedure based on a comparison of a measured RSRP with the RSRP threshold.

[0146] In Embodiment 4 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the configuration information includes: at least one System Information Block (SIB) associated with at least one Radio Access Channel (RACH) timing (RO) and at least one RA preamble for UL communication toward the primary TRP; and at least one SIB associated with at least one other RO and at least one other RA preamble for UL communication toward the UL-only TRP. In Embodiment 5 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the UE is configured to transmit multiple MSG 3 transmissions using UL beams on different ROs associated with the at least one SIB for UL communication toward the UL-only TRP.

[0147] In Embodiment 6 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the UE is configured to perform beam scanning and refinement to perform the RA procedure toward the UL-only TRP. In Embodiment 7 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the configuration information includes: a RACH configuration index associated with the UL-only TRP; a target transmit power for communicating the RA preamble to the UL-only TRP; and a maximum transmit power for communicating the RA preamble to the UL-only TRP. In Embodiment 8 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the RA procedure may be a contention-based RA (CBRA) procedure or a contention-free RA (CFRA) procedure.

[0148] In Embodiment 9 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the configuration information includes at least one RA preamble associated with the UL-only TRP. In Embodiment 10 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the configuration information includes at least one reserved bit in the downlink control information (DCI) indicating an RA procedure toward the UL-only TRP. In Embodiment 11 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the UE is configured to initiate the RA procedure toward the UL-only TRP in response to determining that the measured RSRP corresponding to the downlink (DL) beam from the primary TRP is below an RSRP threshold.

[0149] In Embodiment 12 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the UE is configured to initiate a RA procedure toward the primary TRP in response to determining that a measured RSRP corresponding to a downlink (DL) beam from the primary TRP is higher than an RSRP threshold. In Embodiment 13 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the UE is configured to receive an effective timing advance (TA) from the UL-only TRP, wherein the effective TA is based on a calculated TA at the UL-only TRP minus the propagation delay between the UL-only TRP and the primary TRP; and to apply the effective TA to UL communication toward the UL-only TRP. In Embodiment 14 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the UE is configured to determine a transmit power for UL transmission toward the UL-only TRB based on a measured RSRP lower than a threshold RSRP.

[0150] In Embodiment 15 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the UE is configured to determine the transmit power for UL transmission toward the UL-only TRB based on the DCI received from the primary TRP. In Embodiment 16 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the UE is configured to determine the transmit power for MSG 3 transmission based on a power offset for UL transmission toward the UL-only TRB, the power offset for UL transmission toward the UL-only TRB being different from the power offset for UL transmission toward the primary TRB. In Embodiment 17 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the UE is configured to determine the transmit power for MSG 3 transmission based on a power transmission modification factor received from the primary TRP in RRC connection mode.

[0151] In Example 18 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the UE is configured to receive path loss (PL) from the primary TRP for UL communication toward the UL-only TRP. In Example 19 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the UE is configured to determine the transmission power of the probe reference signal (SRS) toward the UL-only TRP based on referenceSignalPowerSrs IE received via DCI. In Example 20 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the UE is configured to determine the transmission power of the probe reference signal (SRS) toward the UL-only TRP based on a (Po, α) set different from the (Po, α) set associated with the primary TRP.

[0152] In Embodiment 21 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), a base station includes: a memory; and one or more processors configured to, when executing instructions stored in the memory, cause the base station to: transmit configuration information to a user equipment (UE) for a random access (RA) procedure toward an uplink-only (UL) TRP; receive uplink (UL) communications originating from the UE from the UL-only TRP; and transmit downlink (DL) communications directly to the UE. In Embodiment 22 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the configuration information includes at least one of the following: an RxOnlyTrpConfigCommom information element (IE) associated with the UL-only TRP; at least one radio access channel (RACH) timing (RO) associated with the UL-only TRP; at least one RA preamble associated with the UL-only TRP; or a reference signal received power (RSRP) threshold.

[0153] In Embodiment 23 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the configuration information includes at least one of the following: a prach-ConfigurationIndex IE associated with the UL TRP only; a preambleReceivedTargetPower IE associated with the UL TRP only; or a preambleTransMax IE associated with the UL TRP only. In Embodiment 24 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the configuration information includes at least one of the following: a DCI including a RACH preamble index associated with the UL TRP only; or a Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP) threshold. In Embodiment 25 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the base station is configured to: receive path loss (PL) information associated with the UL signal between the UE and the UL TRP only from the UL TRP only; and communicate the PL information to the UE.

[0154] In Embodiment 26 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the configuration information includes at least one of the following: information for transmit power control toward the UL TRP-only PRACH communication; or information for transmit power control toward the UL TRP-only SRS communication. In Embodiment 27 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), a method performed by a user equipment (UE) according to one or more embodiments described herein. In Embodiment 28 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), a baseband processor including: a memory; and one or more processors configured to cause the baseband processor to perform according to one or more embodiments described herein when executing instructions stored in the memory.

[0155] In Embodiment 29 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), a base station includes: a memory; and one or more processors configured to, when executing instructions stored in the memory, cause the base station to: perform a random access (RA) channel procedure with respect to a user equipment (UE); and, as an uplink-only (UL) transmit and receive point (TRP) and primary TRP operation for the UE, receive UL communication from the UE; and transmit the UL communication to the primary TRP. In Embodiment 30 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the base station is configured to: determine a timing advance (TA) for the UE; and communicate the TA to the UE.

[0156] In Embodiment 31 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), the base station is configured to: determine path loss (PL) for UL communication from the UE; and communicate the PL to the master TRP. In Embodiment 32 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), a method performed by a base station according to one or more embodiments described herein. In Embodiment 33 (which may also include one or more embodiments described herein), a computer-readable medium storing instructions configured to cause one or more processors to execute according to one or more embodiments described herein.

[0157] The embodiments discussed above are also extended to methods, computer-readable media, and components plus functional claims and specific implementations, which may include one or more of the features or operations of any embodiment or combination of the embodiments mentioned above.

[0158] The above description of the subject matter of this disclosure, including the illustrative examples, embodiments, aspects, etc., as described in the specification summary, is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosed aspects to the precise form disclosed. While specific examples, embodiments, aspects, etc., have been described herein for illustrative purposes, various modifications may be contemplated within the scope of such examples, embodiments, aspects, etc., as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art.

[0159] In this regard, although the subject matter of this disclosure has been described in conjunction with various examples, embodiments, aspects, and corresponding drawings, it should be understood where applicable that other similar aspects may be used or modifications and additions may be made to the disclosed subject matter to perform the same, similar, alternative, or substitute functions without departing from the disclosed subject matter. Therefore, the disclosed subject matter should not be limited to any single example, embodiment, or aspect described herein, but should be interpreted in accordance with the breadth and scope of the appended claims.

[0160] In particular, regarding the various functions performed by the aforementioned components or structures (assemblies, devices, circuits, systems, etc.), unless otherwise stated, the terminology used to describe such components (including references to "part") is intended to correspond to any component or structure that performs the specified functions of the described component (e.g., functionally equivalent), even if it is not structurally equivalent to the disclosed structure that performs the functions in the exemplary embodiments illustrated herein. Furthermore, although certain features have been disclosed with respect to only one of several embodiments, it may be desirable and advantageous for any given application to combine such features with one or more other features of other embodiments.

[0161] As used herein, the term “or” is intended to mean inclusive “or” rather than exclusive “or.” That is, unless otherwise stated or clearly apparent from the context, “X adopts A or B” is intended to mean any natural inclusive arrangement of natural inclusive arrangements. That is, if X adopts A; X adopts B; or X adopts both A and B, then “X adopts A or B” is satisfied in any of the foregoing cases. Additionally, the articles “a” and “an” used in this application and the appended claims should generally be interpreted as meaning “one or more” unless otherwise stated or clearly apparent from the context to refer to the singular form. Furthermore, to the extent that the terms “comprising,” “including,” “having,” “having,” “with,” or variations thereof are used in the embodiment or claims, such terms are intended to be included in a manner similar to the term “including.” Additionally, in the case of discussing one or more numbered items (e.g., “first X,” “second X,” etc.), generally, the one or more numbered items may be different or they may be the same, but in some cases, the context may indicate that they are different or that they are the same.

[0162] The system may include, but is not limited to, one or more components, devices, and / or networks capable of communicating with or otherwise interacting with each other. For example, the system may include a processor communicatively coupled to a memory device storing one or more machine-readable instructions. The system may also or alternatively include computing devices (e.g., mobile devices, computers, etc.) capable of communicating with or otherwise interacting with another computing device and / or network device (e.g., routers, base stations, repeaters, network hubs, etc.). The system may also or alternatively include network components capable of communicating with or otherwise interacting with each other. Devices may include, but are not limited to, physical objects comprising one or more components configured to communicate with or otherwise interact with each other. For example, a device may include a processor coupled via a communication interface to a memory device, an antenna, and / or one or more other types of components. Methods may include, but are not limited to, one or more operations, functions, processes, and / or other types of state-changing actions that may be performed by one or more systems, devices, and / or components, or any combination thereof.

[0163] As is widely recognized, the use of personally identifiable information should comply with privacy policies and measures that are generally accepted to meet or exceed industry or governmental requirements for protecting user privacy. In particular, personally identifiable information data should be managed and disposed of to minimize the risk of unintentional or unauthorized access or use, and users should be clearly informed of the nature of authorized use.

Claims

1. A user equipment (UE), the user equipment (UE) comprising: Memory; and One or more processors, the one or more processors being configured to cause the UE to: when executing instructions stored in the memory. Receive configuration information from the primary transmit and receive point (TRP) for the random access (RA) procedure toward the uplink-only (UL) (UL-only) TRP; Perform the RA process toward the UL TRP only; and Communicate with the master TRP in the following ways: Receive downlink (DL) communication from the primary TRP; and Send UL communication to the UL-only TRP.

2. The UE according to claim 1, wherein the configuration information includes System Information Block Type 1 (SIB1), and the System Information Block Type 1 (SIB1) includes an RxOnlyTrpConfigCommom information element (IE) for UL communication to the UL-only TRP.

3. The UE according to claim 1, wherein: The configuration information includes System Information Block Type 1 (SIB1), which includes a Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP) threshold. and The UE is configured to determine whether to perform the RA procedure based on a comparison between the measured RSRP and the RSRP threshold.

4. The UE according to claim 1, wherein the configuration information includes: At least one system information block (SIB) associated with at least one radio access channel (RACH) timing (RO) and at least one RA preamble for UL communication toward the main TRP; and At least one SIB associated with at least one other RO and at least one other RA preamble for UL communication toward the UL-only TRP.

5. The UE of claim 1, wherein the UE is configured to transmit multiple MSG 3 transmissions using UL beams on different ROs associated with the at least one SIB for UL communication toward the UL-only TRP.

6. The UE of claim 1, wherein the UE is configured to perform beam scanning and thinning to perform the RA process toward the UL TRP only.

7. The UE according to claim 1, wherein the configuration information includes: The RACH configuration index associated with the aforementioned UL TRP only; Power used to transmit the RA preamble to the target that only transmits the UL TRP; and The maximum transmission power used to communicate the RA preamble to the UL-only TRP.

8. The UE according to claim 1, wherein the RA procedure can be a contention-based RA (CBRA) procedure or a contention-free RA (CFRA) procedure.

9. The UE of claim 1, wherein the configuration information includes at least one RA preamble associated with the UL-only TRP.

10. The UE of claim 1, wherein the configuration information includes at least one reserved bit in the downlink control information (DCI) indicating the RA procedure toward the UL TRP-only procedure.

11. The UE according to claim 1, wherein the UE is configured to: In response to determining that the measured RSRP corresponding to the downlink (DL) beam from the main TRP is below the RSRP threshold, the RA process toward the UL-only TRP is initiated.

12. The UE of claim 11, wherein the UE is configured to: In response to determining that the measured RSRP corresponding to the downlink (DL) beam from the main TRP is higher than the RSRP threshold, a RA process toward the main TRP is initiated.

13. The UE according to claim 1, wherein the UE is configured to: Receive effective timing advance (TA) from the UL-only TRP, wherein the effective TA is based on a calculated TA at the UL-only TRP minus the propagation delay between the UL-only TRP and the main TRP; and Apply the valid TA to UL communications toward the UL TRP only.

14. The UE according to claim 1, wherein the UE is configured to: The transmission power used for UL transmission toward the UL TRB only is determined based on the measured RSRP being below the threshold RSRP.

15. The UE according to claim 1, wherein the UE is configured to: The transmission power for UL transmission toward the UL-only TRB is determined based on the DCI received from the main TRP.

16. The UE of claim 1, wherein the UE is configured to: The transmission power for MSG 3 transmission is determined based on the power offset used for UL transmission toward the UL-only TRB, and the power offset used for UL transmission toward the UL-only TRB is different from the power offset used for UL transmission toward the main TRB.

17. The UE according to claim 1, wherein the UE is configured to: The transmit power for MSG 3 transmission is determined based on the power transmission modification factor received from the main TRP in RRC connection mode.

18. The UE according to claim 1, wherein the UE is configured to: Receive path loss (PL) from the main TRP for UL communication toward the UL-only TRP.

19. A base station, the base station comprising: Memory; and One or more processors, the one or more processors being configured to cause the base station to: when executing instructions stored in the memory. Transmit configuration information to the User Equipment (UE) for a random access (RA) procedure toward an uplink-only (UL) TRP; Receive uplink (UL) communication originating from the UE from the UL-only TRP; and Downlink (DL) communication is transmitted directly to the UE.

20. A base station, the base station comprising: Memory; and One or more processors, the one or more processors being configured to cause the base station to: when executing instructions stored in the memory. Receive uplink (UL) transmissions associated with the random access (RA) channel procedure between the user equipment (UE) and the primary transmit and receive point (TRP); and The UL is transmitted to the main TRP. The downlink (DL) transmissions associated with the RA channel procedure are directly communicated from the primary TRP and the UE.

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