Mac-ce csi report control for sp-reports on pucch

Abstract

A method, network node and wireless device (WD) for medium access control (MAC) network energy saving (NES) channel state information (CSI) report control for semi-persistent (SP) reports on a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) are disclosed According to one aspect, a method in a WD includes configuring MAC CE for deactivation and / or activation of semi-persistent reporting on PUCCH. The method includes transmitting the MAC CE to the wireless device.

Description

[0001] MAC-CE CSI REPORT CONTROL FOR SP-REPORTS ON PUCCH

[0002] TECHNICAL FIELD

[0003] The present disclosure relates to wireless communications, and in particular, to medium access control (MAC) channel state information (CSI) report control for semi- persistent (SP) reports on a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH).

[0004] BACKGROUND

[0005] The Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) has developed and is developing standards for Fourth Generation (4G) (also referred to as Long Term Evolution (LTE)) and Fifth Generation (5G) (also referred to as New Radio (NR)) wireless communication systems. Such systems provide, among other features, broadband communication between network nodes, such as base stations, and mobile wireless devices (WD), as well as communication between network nodes and between WDs. The WDs may also be referred to as User Equipments, UEs. The 3GPP is also developing standards for Sixth Generation (6G) wireless communication networks.

[0006] NW energy consumption

[0007] The network (NW) power consumption for NR is said to be lower as compared to LTE because of its lean design. In the current implementation, however, NR will most likely consume more power compared to LTE, e.g., due to the higher bandwidth and due to introduction of additional elements such as 64 transmit / receive (TX / RX) ports with associated digital radio frequency (RF) chains. As the NW is expected to be able to support the WD with its maximum capability (e.g., throughput, coverage, etc.), the NW may need to use full configuration even when the maximum NW support is actually rarely needed by the WDs.

[0008] In addition, an increased number of TX / RX ports also leads to an increase to the number of reference signals (e.g., CSI-RS) needed to be transmitted by the NW (and to be measured by the WD) for a proper signal detection. Thus, the additional TX / RX ports may result in another additional power consumption, i.e., to transmit a larger number of channel state information reference signals (CSI-RS) to the WDs. Furthermore, it should also be noted that the larger number of CSI-RS transmissions may also consume the valuable NW resources.

[0009] NW energy saving by applying antenna muting To provide high-rate cell-edge coverage and high spatial resolution, an NR gNB (network node) may deploy large antenna arrays with hundreds of antenna elements and often up to 32 digital ports (or more). The energy cost associated with RF (power amplifier (PA) and low nose amplifier (LNA)), digital processing (beamforming (BF)), and baseband processing associated with such an array is high. FIG. 1 shows an example of an active antenna array arranged in sub-arrays with 4 antenna elements per sub-array with two different polarizations: +45 and -45 degrees. This example consists of 4 x 8 = 32 subarrays. The total number of antenna elements is 32 x 4 = 128.

[0010] Each sub-array is typically connected to two transceiver chains, one per polarization as shown in FIG. 2. In this example, each transceiver chain corresponds to a digital antenna port. An antenna port is what is “seen” by the baseband (LI processing) in the sense that digital beamforming weights may be applied at baseband across the multiple ports to steer a beam toward a scheduled user. In this example there are two antenna ports per sub-array corresponding to the two polarizations.

[0011] It is quite common that such network nodes are equipped with 64 transceiver chains, and more are foreseen in the future, especially at higher frequencies. The energy consumed by the multitude of these transceiver chains stands for a major part of total consumed network energy.

[0012] In some scenarios (few users, low load, reduced user TP or latency requirements), maintaining sufficient user and system performance may not require full antenna network node array. The network node may then deactivate or mute parts of the antenna panel and transmit with a subset of antenna elements to reduce energy consumption as shown in the example of FIG. 3.

[0013] There is a tradeoff between energy saving gains and WD performance loss. To avoid recurrent reconfigurations and excessive WD performance loss caused by transceiver muting, it is necessary for the network node to acquire knowledge of what performance the different muting patterns would result in prior to the actual transceiver muting decision. This requires that the WD may report not only CSI for current transceiver configuration, e.g., 64 transceivers (64 ports), but also CSI for other candidate configuration(s), e.g., 32, 16, or 8. It is useful to note that current 3GPP specifications only define up to 32 CSI-RS ports for obtaining CSI feedback; however, it is currently being discussed to extend this to 64.

[0014] In 3 GPP RAN1#112, two types of antenna muting have been defined according to the following agreement: For the purpose of further discussions in RANI on Network Energy Saving (NES) spatial domain adaptations, consider the following cases

[0015] • Type 1: all antenna elements associated to a logical antenna port is disabled / enabled

[0016] • Type 2: part / subset of antenna elements associated to a logical antenna port is disabled / enabled

[0017] In FIGS. 1 and 2, there are 64 digital antenna ports with 2 ports per sub-array corresponding to the two polarizations. According to the above agreement, Type-1 antenna muting is when all antenna elements corresponding to a port are disabled. Since there are two elements per port, both of them would be muted.

[0018] Type-2 antenna muting is more relevant to mmWave applications in frequency range 2 when there are a small number of ports (e.g., 2), but many antenna elements associated per port. In this case there is typically a PA associated with each antenna elements, so energy may be saved by muting antenna elements within a port.

[0019] CSI-RS multiplexing and mapping to physical resources

[0020] In NR, the WD estimates CSI based on a CSI-RS resource with a certain number of ports, where the number of ports is consistent with the deployed antenna array. A CSI-RS resource used for CSI reporting may span 1, 2, or 4 orthogonal frequency division multiplexed (OFDM) symbols:

[0021] • One symbol for 1, 2, 4, 8, 12 ports;

[0022] • Two symbols for 4, 8, 12, 16 ports; and / or

[0023] • Four symbols for 24, 32 ports.

[0024] A CSI-RS resource may start at any symbol (0-13) within a slot:

[0025] • Defined by a single start symbol for 1 symbol CSI-RS, 2 symbol CSI-RS, and 4 symbols with time division orthogonal cover code (TD-OCC) span 4; and / or

[0026] • Defined by two start symbol indices in the 4 symbol CSI-RS 2+2 with TD-OCC span 2.

[0027] Components may be mapped to frequency with granularity of component size, 1, 2, or 4 subcarriers. The same subcarriers may be used across all symbols in a resource. See FIG. 4.

[0028] Resource element (RE) level multiplexing with tracking reference signal (TRS) / demodulation reference signal (DMRS) is possible in same OFDM symbol. In most cases RE level multiplexing with DMRS is not possible.

[0029] In NR, CSI-RS resources are generally configured in sets where a set may contain one or more CSI-RS resources. Typically when CSI is requested, a CSI-RS resource set is indicated to the WD, and the WD will perform CSI measurements on the resources within the set.

[0030] CSI-RS Power Offsets

[0031] A non-zero power CSI-RS resource is configured with a number of parameters within the information element (IE) non-zero power (NZP)-CSI-RS-Resource as follows:

[0032] NZP-CSI-RS-Resource information element

[0033] NZP-CSI-RS-Resource ::= SEQUENCE { nzp-CSI-RS-Resourceld NZP-CSI-RS-Resourceld, resourceMapping CSI-RS-ResourceMapping, powerControlOffset INTEGER (-8 .15), powerControlOffsetSS ENUMERATED {db-3, dbO, db3, db6} OPTIONAL, -

[0034] Need R scramblinglD Scrambling! d, periodicity AndOffset CSI-ResourcePeriodicityAndOffset OPTIONAL, - Cond

[0035] PeriodicOrSemiPersistent qcl-InfoPeriodicCSI-RS TCI-Stateld OPTIONAL, — Cond Periodic

[0036] Parameters inform the WD of two different power offsets. The first one, powerControlOffset, is the power offset (in dB) between PDSCH and CSI-RS that the WD shall assume when it estimates and reports CSI for future PDSCH scheduling decisions made by the network node. Since the PDSCH and CSI-RS powers are generally different, and the WD estimates the channel based on CSI-RS samples, it uses this offset to correctly scale its CSI estimates appropriately to account for the power difference.

[0037] The second offset powerControlOffsetSS is the power offset (in dB) between CSI- RS and SSB. The WD may use this offset to compute the absolute power of the CSI-RS since the transmission power of the SSB is signaled to the WD separately.

[0038] CSI-RS transmission types

[0039] In NR, the following three types of CSI-RS transmissions are supported:

[0040] • Aperiodic CSI-RS Transmission: This is a one-shot CSI-RS transmission that may be triggered by a network node via DCI in any slot. Here, one-shot means that CSI-RS transmission only happens once per trigger in one slot. The CSI-RS resources (i.e., the resource element locations which consist of subcarrier locations and OFDM symbol locations) for aperiodic CSI-RS are preconfigured to WDs via higher layer signaling. The transmission of aperiodic CSI-RS is triggered via DCI. As shown in Table 1, aperiodic CSI-RS may be used for aperiodic CSI reporting;

[0041] • Periodic CSI-RS Transmission: These CSI-RS transmissions are preconfigured by higher layer signaling and the preconfiguration includes parameters such as periodicity and slot offset. Periodic CSI-RS is controlled by higher layer signaling only. That is, the periodic CSI-RS transmission starts following RRC configuration following the configured parameters. As shown in Table 1, periodic CSI- RS may be used for periodic CSI reporting, semi-persistent CSI reporting and aperiodic CSI reporting; and

[0042] • Semi-Persistent CSI-RS Transmission: Similar to periodic CSI-RS, resources for semi-persistent CSI-RS transmissions are preconfigured via higher layer signaling with parameters such as periodicity and slot offset. However, unlike periodic CSI-RS, a dynamic allocation activation signaling via a MAC CE is needed to begin transmission of semi-persistent CSI-RS on the preconfigured resources. Furthermore, semi-persistent CSI-RS is transmitted for a limited time duration until the activated semi-persistent CSI-RS is deactivated via a deactivation signaling via a MAC CE. As shown in Table 1, semi-persistent CSI-RS may be used for semi-persistent CSI reporting and aperiodic CSI reporting.

[0043] Table 1. Triggering / Activation of CSI Reporting for the possible CSI-RS Configurations

[0044] Semi-Persistent (SP) CSI reporting

[0045] The network node activates the WD’s Semi-persistent reporting on physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) via the medium access control (MAC) layer. This is done by a MAC Control Element (MAC-CE) called “SP CSI reporting on PUCCH Activation / Deactivation MAC CE” as specified in 3GPP Technical Standard (TS) 38.321 (section 6.1.3.16). This MAC-CE has a fixed size of 16 bits with following fields:

[0046] Serving Cell ID: This field indicates the identity of the Serving Cell for which the MAC CE applies. The length of the field is 5 bits;

[0047] BWP ID: This field indicates a UL BWP for which the MAC CE applies as the codepoint of the DCI bandwidth part indicator field as specified in 3GPP TS 38.212 [9], The length of the BWP ID field is 2 bits;

[0048] Si: This field indicates the activation / deactivation status of the Semi- Persistent CSI report configuration within csi-ReportConflgToAddModList , as specified in 3GPP TS 38.331. SO refers to the report configuration which includes PUCCH resources for SP CSI reporting in the indicated BWP and has the lowest CSI- ReportConfigld within the list with type set to semiPer sistentOnPUCCH, SI to the report configuration which includes PUCCH resources for SP CSI reporting in the indicated BWP and has the second lowest CSI-ReportConflgld and so on:

[0049] ■ The Si field is set to 1 to indicate that the corresponding Semi- Persistent CSI report configuration shall be activated;

[0050] ■ The Si field is set to 0 to indicate that the corresponding Semi- Persistent CSI report configuration i shall be deactivated; and

[0051] R: Reserved bit, set to 0.

[0052] See FIG. 5.

[0053] For the sake of NW energy Savings (NES), the NW may wish to request the WD to report CSI based on one or more hypotheses of an antenna muting pattern and / or PDSCH-to-CSI-RS power offset. Based on the CSI report(s), the network may identify if it may still serve the WD sufficiently well while at the same time reducing NW energy cost by muting certain antennas and / or reducing PDSCH transmission power. It is beneficial to be able to request such CSI reports from the WD in a semi persistent fashion when needed.

[0054] Related 3GPP Considerations

[0055] The following was considered in RAN1#113:

[0056] For N>=1 CSI reporting corresponding to N out of L sub-configurations in one reportConfig where each sub-configuration corresponding to an SD adaptation pattern or / [and] a powerControlOffset value:

[0057] • For A-CSI and SP-CSI on PUSCH report, support DCI-based triggering: o For A-CSI-RS, CPU and CSI-RS resource / port counting depend on

[0058] N indicated sub-configurations:

[0059] ■ FFS: How to do the counting; o For future study (FFS): For P-CSI-RS / SP-CSI-RS, CPU and CSI- RS resource / port counting depend on L or N sub-configurations;

[0060] • For SP-CSI on PUCCH report, support MAC-CE-based triggering: o FFS: For P-CSI-RS / SP-CSI-RS, CPU and CSI-RS resource / port counting depend on L or N sub-configurations;

[0061] Note: WD complexity reduction is not precluded:

[0062] • For DCI-based triggering; o Alt 1 : A triggering state corresponding to N sub-configurations is indicated via the existing CSI request field in DCI. Different triggering states may represent different subsets of L sub-configurations:

[0063] ■ The DCI is WD specific (in this case, legacy DCI format applies);

[0064] • For MAC-CE based triggering: o Opt 2: An indication to select to N sub-configurations in a MAC-CE is supported:

[0065] ■ It is up to RAN2 to decide the signaling designs of the MAC-CE (including whether it is a new MAC CE or an existing MAC CE);

[0066] ■ Only one MAC CE is used for this triggering.

[0067] Proposals have been made to study creating a “sub-configuration” within CSI- ReportConfig that is associated with a spatial adaptation pattern which is equivalent to a muting pattern as discussed herein and powerControlOffset value which is also described herein

[0068] In the 3GPP work item on network energy saving, two types of adaptation are being discussed: (1) power domain adaptation (CSI-RS power offsets), and (2) spatial domain adaptation (antenna muting). While the 3GPP RANI agreement shown above mentions “sub-configuration” for the spatial domain, it is an open problem as to how to efficiently configure, trigger, and report CSI for spatial domain adaptation for semi- persistent reporting on PUCCH. SUMMARY

[0069] The present invention is defined in the independent claims, to which reference is now directed.

[0070] Some embodiments advantageously provide methods, network nodes and wireless devices (WDs) for medium access control (MAC) network energy saving (NES) channel state information (CSI) report control for semi-persistent (SP) reports on a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH).

[0071] In some embodiments methods are disclosed by which a WD is pre-configured with one or more spatial domain adaptation and / or one or more power domain adaptation settings. The settings are configured as sub-configurations of radio resource control (RRC) configured CSI-Report Config. Once the NW adopts or requires report on any of these subconfigurations, the WDs may be notified through MAC-CE and RRC signaling.

[0072] Assuming that the WD is configured with semi-persistent reporting on PUCCH and is configured with one or more sub-configurations configured within a CSI reporting configuration (e.g., within the information element CSI-ReportConfig) where a subconfiguration contains a particular combination of spatial and / or power domain adaptation parameter settings, the WD may be informed by MAC-CE and RRC signaling which of the sub-configurations are adopted by the network node and should be assumed for further reception, measurement, and reporting. For example, the WD may be configured with a first set of configurations / sub-configurations of spatial domain (SD) and / or power domain (PD) hypotheses in CSI-ReportConfig, and then L2 MAC-CE signaling is used in order to activate or deactivate a sub-configuration and trigger reports based on the activated subconfigurations.

[0073] Advantages of some embodiments may include flexible, efficient, and reliable activation / deactivation of multiple hypotheses on power and spatial domain adaptation setting for network energy saving.

[0074] According to the present invention there is provided a method implemented in a wireless device configured to communicate with a network node. The method comprises receiving from the network node a medium access control, MAC, control element, CE, for deactivation and / or activation of semi-persistent reporting on a physical uplink control channel, PUCCH, wherein the MAC CE indicates activation and / or deactivation of at least one sub-configuration of a semipersistent Channel State Information, CSI, report configuration. The method further comprises activating and / or deactivating semipersistent reporting on the PUCCH according to the MAC CE. The MAC CE may comprise a field indicating the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration.

[0075] The MAC CE may comprise a field indicating an activation / deactivation status of the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration.

[0076] In some embodiments, the field may comprise a set of bits, each bit in the set of bits indicating an activation / deactivation status of a respective sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration.

[0077] In some embodiments, the MAC CE may further comprise a further field, the further field indicating an activation / deactivation status of the semi-persistent CSI report configuration.

[0078] In some embodiments, the MAC CE may indicate activation and / or deactivation of at least one sub-configuration for each of a plurality of semipersistent CSI report configurations.

[0079] In this case, the MAC CE may comprise a plurality of fields, each of the plurality of fields indicating an activation / deactivation status of at least one sub-configuration of a respective semipersistent CSI report configuration of the plurality of semipersistent CSI report configurations. Each of the plurality of fields may comprise a set of bits, each bit in the set of bits indicating an activation / deactivation status of a respective sub-configuration of the respective semipersistent CSI report configuration. In some embodiments, the MAC CE may further comprise a plurality of further fields, each further field of the plurality of further fields indicating an activation / deactivation status of a respective semipersistent CSI report configuration of the plurality of semipersistent CSI report configurations.

[0080] The MAC CE may, advantageously, have a variable size.

[0081] Activating and / or deactivating semi-persistent reporting on the PUCCH according to the MAC CE may comprise reporting CSI on the PUCCH according to the MAC CE. For example, when the MAC CE indicates activation of the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent Channel State Information, CSI, report configuration, activating and / or deactivating semi-persistent reporting on the PUCCH according to the MAC CE comprises reporting CSI on PUCCH according to the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report.

[0082] The method may further comprise receiving the semipersistent CSI report configuration comprising the at least one sub-configuration via Radio Resource Control, RRC, signaling. Each of the at least one sub-configuration may comprise at least one of a spatial domain adaption parameter and a power domain adaption parameter.

[0083] In some embodiments, the method may further comprise resetting a state of the at least one sub-configuration to inactive upon a configuration update via Radio Resource Control, RRC, signaling.

[0084] According to the present invention, there is further provided a method implemented in a network node configured to communicate with a wireless device. The method comprises configuring a medium access control, MAC, control element, CE, for deactivation and / or activation of semi-persistent reporting on a physical uplink control channel, PUCCH, wherein the MAC CE is configured to indicate activation and / or deactivation of at least one sub-configuration of a semipersistent Channel State Information, CSI, report configuration. The method further comprises transmitting the MAC CE to the wireless device.

[0085] According to the present invention there is further provided a wireless device configured to communicate with a network node. The UE is configured to, and / or comprises a radio interface and / or comprises processing circuitry configured to: receive from the network node a medium access control, MAC, control element, CE, for deactivation and / or activation of semi-persistent reporting on a physical uplink control channel, PUCCH, wherein the MAC CE indicates activation and / or deactivation of at least one sub-configuration of a semipersistent Channel State Information, CSI, report configuration. The wireless device is further configured to, and / or comprises a radio interface and / or comprises processing circuitry configured to: activate and / or deactivate semi-persistent reporting on the PUCCH according to the MAC CE.

[0086] According to the present invention, there is further provided a network node configured to communicate with a wireless device. The network node is configured to, and / or comprises a radio interface and / or comprises processing circuitry configured to: configure a medium access control, MAC, control element, CE, for deactivation and / or activation of semi-persistent reporting on a physical uplink control channel, PUCCH, wherein the MAC CE is configured to indicate activation and / or deactivation of at least one sub-configuration of a semipersistent Channel State Information, CSI, report configuration. The network node is further configured to, and / or comprises a radio interface and / or comprises processing circuitry configured to: transmit the MAC CE to the wireless device. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0087] Some embodiments will now be described, by way of example only, in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

[0088] FIG. 1 is an example antenna arrangement at a network node;

[0089] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a separate transmit / receive chain for each polarization;

[0090] FIG. 3 illustrates different transceiver muting patterns;

[0091] FIG. 4 illustrates example mappings of CSI-RS to physical resources;

[0092] FIG. 5 is an example MAC CE;

[0093] FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of an example network architecture illustrating a communication system connected via an intermediate network to a host computer according to the principles in the present disclosure;

[0094] FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a host computer, a network node, and a wireless device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0095] FIG. 8 is a flowchart of an example process in a network node for medium access control (MAC) network energy saving (NES) channel state information (CSI) report control for semi-persistent (SP) reports on a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH);

[0096] FIG. 9 is a flowchart of an example process in a wireless device for medium access control (MAC) network energy saving (NES) channel state information (CSI) report control for semi-persistent (SP) reports on a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH);

[0097] FIG. 10 is an example CSI-ReportConfig information element;

[0098] FIG. 11 is another example CSI-ReportConfig information element;

[0099] FIG. 12 is an example of a MAC CE according to principles disclosed herein;

[0100] FIG. 13 is another example MAC CE according to principles disclosed herein;

[0101] FIG. 14 is another example MAC CE according to principles disclosed herein;

[0102] FIG. 15 is another example MAC CE according to principles disclosed herein;

[0103] FIG. 16 is another example MAC CE according to principles disclosed herein;

[0104] FIG. 17 is an example of two MAC CEs according to principles disclosed herein;

[0105] FIG. 18 is another example MAC CE according to principles disclosed herein;

[0106] FIG. 19 is another example MAC CE according to principles disclosed herein;

[0107] FIG. 20 is another example MAC CE according to principles disclosed herein;

[0108] FIG. 21 is another example MAC CE according to principles disclosed herein;

[0109] FIG. 22 is another example MAC CE according to principles disclosed herein;

[0110] FIG. 23 is another example MAC CE according to principles disclosed herein; FIG. 24 is an example MAC CE received by a wireless device according to principles disclosed herein;

[0111] FIG. 25 is another example MAC CE according to principles disclosed herein; and FIG. 26 is another example MAC CE according to principles disclosed herein.

[0112] FIG. 27 is a flowchart showing a method in a wireless device according to embodiments of the present invention; and

[0113] FIG. 28 is a flowchart showing a method in a network node according to embodiments of the present invention.

[0114] DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0115] Before describing in detail example embodiments, it is noted that the embodiments reside primarily in combinations of apparatus components and processing steps related to medium access control (MAC) network energy saving (NES) channel state information (CSI) report control for semi-persistent (SP) reports on a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH). Accordingly, components have been represented where appropriate by conventional symbols in the drawings, showing only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments so as not to obscure the disclosure with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the description herein. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout the description.

[0116] As used herein, relational terms, such as “first” and “second,” “top” and “bottom,” and the like, may be used solely to distinguish one entity or element from another entity or element without necessarily requiring or implying any physical or logical relationship or order between such entities or elements. The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the concepts described herein. As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “includes” and / or “including” when used herein, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and / or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and / or groups thereof.

[0117] In embodiments described herein, the joining term, “in communication with” and the like, may be used to indicate electrical or data communication, which may be accomplished by physical contact, induction, electromagnetic radiation, radio signaling, infrared signaling or optical signaling, for example. One having ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that multiple components may interoperate and modifications and variations are possible of achieving the electrical and data communication.

[0118] In some embodiments described herein, the term “coupled,” “connected,” and the like, may be used herein to indicate a connection, although not necessarily directly, and may include wired and / or wireless connections.

[0119] The term “network node” used herein may be any kind of network node comprised in a radio network which may further comprise any of base station (BS), radio base station, base transceiver station (BTS), base station controller (BSC), radio network controller (RNC), g Node B (gNB), evolved Node B (eNB or eNodeB), Node B, multistandard radio (MSR) radio node such as MSR BS, multi-cell / multicast coordination entity (MCE), integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node, relay node, donor node controlling relay, radio access point (AP), transmission points, transmission nodes, Remote Radio Unit (RRU) Remote Radio Head (RRH), a core network node (e.g., mobile management entity (MME), self-organizing network (SON) node, a coordinating node, positioning node, MDT node, etc.), an external node (e.g., 3rd party node, anode external to the current network), nodes in distributed antenna system (DAS), a spectrum access system (SAS) node, an element management system (EMS), etc. The network node may also comprise test equipment. The term “radio node” used herein may be used to also denote a wireless device (WD) such as a wireless device (WD) or a radio network node.

[0120] In some embodiments, the non-limiting terms wireless device (WD) or a user equipment (UE) are used interchangeably. The WD herein may be any type of wireless device capable of communicating with a network node or another WD over radio signals, such as wireless device (WD). The WD may also be a radio communication device, target device, device to device (D2D) WD, machine type WD or WD capable of machine to machine communication (M2M), low-cost and / or low-complexity WD, a sensor equipped with WD, Tablet, mobile terminals, smart phone, laptop embedded equipped (LEE), laptop mounted equipment (LME), USB dongles, Customer Premises Equipment (CPE), an Internet of Things (loT) device, or a Narrowband loT (NB-IOT) device, etc.

[0121] Also, in some embodiments the generic term “radio network node” is used. It may be any kind of a radio network node which may comprise any of base station, radio base station, base transceiver station, base station controller, network controller, RNC, evolved Node B (eNB), Node B, gNB, Multi-cell / multicast Coordination Entity (MCE), IAB node, relay node, access point, radio access point, Remote Radio Unit (RRU) Remote Radio Head (RRH).

[0122] Note that although terminology from one particular wireless system, such as, for example, 3GPP LTE and / or New Radio (NR), may be used in this disclosure, this should not be seen as limiting the scope of the disclosure to only the aforementioned system. Other wireless systems, including without limitation Wide Band Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax), Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB) and Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), may also benefit from exploiting the ideas covered within this disclosure.

[0123] Note further, that functions described herein as being performed by a wireless device or a network node may be distributed over a plurality of wireless devices and / or network nodes. In other words, it is contemplated that the functions of the network node and wireless device described herein are not limited to performance by a single physical device and, in fact, may be distributed among several physical devices.

[0124] Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure belongs. It will be further understood that terms used herein should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of this specification and the relevant art and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein.

[0125] Some embodiments provide medium access control (MAC) network energy saving (NES) channel state information (CSI) report control for semi-persistent (SP) reports on a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH).

[0126] Returning now to the drawing figures, in which like elements are referred to by like reference numerals, there is shown in FIG. 6 a schematic diagram of a communication system 10, according to an embodiment, such as a 3 GPP-type cellular network that may support standards such as LTE and / or NR (5G), which comprises an access network 12, such as a radio access network, and a core network 14. The access network 12 comprises a plurality of network nodes 16a, 16b, 16c (referred to collectively as network nodes 16), such as NBs, eNBs, gNBs or other types of wireless access points, each defining a corresponding coverage area 18a, 18b, 18c (referred to collectively as coverage areas 18). Each network node 16a, 16b, 16c is connectable to the core network 14 over a wired or wireless connection 20. A first wireless device (WD) 22a located in coverage area 18a is configured to wirelessly connect to, or be paged by, the corresponding network node 16a. A second WD 22b in coverage area 18b is wirelessly connectable to the corresponding network node 16b. While a plurality of WDs 22a, 22b (collectively referred to as wireless devices 22) are illustrated in this example, the disclosed embodiments are equally applicable to a situation where a sole WD is in the coverage area or where a sole WD is connecting to the corresponding network node 16. Note that although only two WDs 22 and three network nodes 16 are shown for convenience, the communication system may include many more WDs 22 and network nodes 16.

[0127] Also, it is contemplated that a WD 22 may be in simultaneous communication and / or configured to separately communicate with more than one network node 16 and more than one type of network node 16. For example, a WD 22 may have dual connectivity with a network node 16 that supports LTE and the same or a different network node 16 that supports NR. As an example, WD 22 may be in communication with an eNB for LTE / E-UTRAN and a gNB for NR / NG-RAN.

[0128] The communication system 10 may itself be connected to a host computer 24, which may be embodied in the hardware and / or software of a standalone server, a cloud- implemented server, a distributed server or as processing resources in a server farm. The host computer 24 may be under the ownership or control of a service provider, or may be operated by the service provider or on behalf of the service provider. The connections 26, 28 between the communication system 10 and the host computer 24 may extend directly from the core network 14 to the host computer 24 or may extend via an optional intermediate network 30. The intermediate network 30 may be one of, or a combination of more than one of, a public, private or hosted network. The intermediate network 30, if any, may be a backbone network or the Internet. In some embodiments, the intermediate network 30 may comprise two or more sub-networks (not shown).

[0129] The communication system of FIG. 6 as a whole enables connectivity between one of the connected WDs 22a, 22b and the host computer 24. The connectivity may be described as an over-the-top (OTT) connection. The host computer 24 and the connected WDs 22a, 22b are configured to communicate data and / or signaling via the OTT connection, using the access network 12, the core network 14, any intermediate network 30 and possible further infrastructure (not shown) as intermediaries. The OTT connection may be transparent in the sense that at least some of the participating communication devices through which the OTT connection passes are unaware of routing of uplink and downlink communications. For example, a network node 16 may not or need not be informed about the past routing of an incoming downlink communication with data originating from a host computer 24 to be forwarded (e.g., handed over) to a connected WD 22a. Similarly, the network node 16 need not be aware of the future routing of an outgoing uplink communication originating from the WD 22a towards the host computer 24.

[0130] A network node 16 is configured to include a configuration unit 32 which may be configured to configure a medium access control, MAC, control element, CE, for deactivation and / or activation of semi-persistent reporting on a physical uplink control channel, PUCCH. A wireless device 22 is configured to include an SP reporting unit 34 which is configured to activate and / or deactivate semi-persistent reporting on the PUCCH according to the MAC CE

[0131] Example implementations, in accordance with an embodiment, of the WD 22, network node 16 and host computer 24 discussed in the preceding paragraphs will now be described with reference to FIG. 7. In a communication system 10, a host computer 24 comprises hardware (HW) 38 including a communication interface 40 configured to set up and maintain a wired or wireless connection with an interface of a different communication device of the communication system 10. The host computer 24 further comprises processing circuitry 42, which may have storage and / or processing capabilities. The processing circuitry 42 may include a processor 44 and memory 46. In particular, in addition to or instead of a processor, such as a central processing unit, and memory, the processing circuitry 42 may comprise integrated circuitry for processing and / or control, e.g., one or more processors and / or processor cores and / or FPGAs (Field Programmable Gate Array) and / or ASICs (Application Specific Integrated Circuitry) adapted to execute instructions. The processor 44 may be configured to access (e.g., write to and / or read from) memory 46, which may comprise any kind of volatile and / or nonvolatile memory, e.g., cache and / or buffer memory and / or RAM (Random Access Memory) and / or ROM (Read-Only Memory) and / or optical memory and / or EPROM (Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory).

[0132] Processing circuitry 42 may be configured to control any of the methods and / or processes described herein and / or to cause such methods, and / or processes to be performed, e.g., by host computer 24. Processor 44 corresponds to one or more processors 44 for performing host computer 24 functions described herein. The host computer 24 includes memory 46 that is configured to store data, programmatic software code and / or other information described herein. In some embodiments, the software 48 and / or the host application 50 may include instructions that, when executed by the processor 44 and / or processing circuitry 42, causes the processor 44 and / or processing circuitry 42 to perform the processes described herein with respect to host computer 24. The instructions may be software associated with the host computer 24.

[0133] The software 48 may be executable by the processing circuitry 42. The software 48 includes a host application 50. The host application 50 may be operable to provide a service to a remote user, such as a WD 22 connecting via an OTT connection 52 terminating at the WD 22 and the host computer 24. In providing the service to the remote user, the host application 50 may provide user data which is transmitted using the OTT connection 52. The “user data” may be data and information described herein as implementing the described functionality. In one embodiment, the host computer 24 may be configured for providing control and functionality to a service provider and may be operated by the service provider or on behalf of the service provider. The processing circuitry 42 of the host computer 24 may enable the host computer 24 to observe, monitor, control, transmit to and / or receive from the network node 16 and or the wireless device 22.

[0134] The communication system 10 further includes a network node 16 provided in a communication system 10 and including hardware 58 enabling it to communicate with the host computer 24 and with the WD 22. The hardware 58 may include a communication interface 60 for setting up and maintaining a wired or wireless connection with an interface of a different communication device of the communication system 10, as well as a radio interface 62 for setting up and maintaining at least a wireless connection 64 with a WD 22 located in a coverage area 18 served by the network node 16. The radio interface 62 may be formed as or may include, for example, one or more RF transmitters, one or more RF receivers, and / or one or more RF transceivers. The communication interface 60 may be configured to facilitate a connection 66 to the host computer 24. The connection 66 may be direct or it may pass through a core network 14 of the communication system 10 and / or through one or more intermediate networks 30 outside the communication system 10.

[0135] In the embodiment shown, the hardware 58 of the network node 16 further includes processing circuitry 68. The processing circuitry 68 may include a processor 70 and a memory 72. In particular, in addition to or instead of a processor, such as a central processing unit, and memory, the processing circuitry 68 may comprise integrated circuitry for processing and / or control, e.g., one or more processors and / or processor cores and / or FPGAs (Field Programmable Gate Array) and / or ASICs (Application Specific Integrated Circuitry) adapted to execute instructions. The processor 70 may be configured to access (e.g., write to and / or read from) the memory 72, which may comprise any kind of volatile and / or nonvolatile memory, e.g., cache and / or buffer memory and / or RAM (Random Access Memory) and / or ROM (Read-Only Memory) and / or optical memory and / or EPROM (Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory).

[0136] Thus, the network node 16 further has software 74 stored internally in, for example, memory 72, or stored in external memory (e.g., database, storage array, network storage device, etc.) accessible by the network node 16 via an external connection. The software 74 may be executable by the processing circuitry 68. The processing circuitry 68 may be configured to control any of the methods and / or processes described herein and / or to cause such methods, and / or processes to be performed, e.g., by network node 16. Processor 70 corresponds to one or more processors 70 for performing network node 16 functions described herein. The memory 72 is configured to store data, programmatic software code and / or other information described herein. In some embodiments, the software 74 may include instructions that, when executed by the processor 70 and / or processing circuitry 68, causes the processor 70 and / or processing circuitry 68 to perform the processes described herein with respect to network node 16. For example, processing circuitry 68 of the network node 16 may include a configuration unit 32 which may be configured to configure a medium access control, MAC, control element, CE, for deactivation and / or activation of semi-persistent reporting on a physical uplink control channel, PUCCH.

[0137] The communication system 10 further includes the WD 22 already referred to. The WD 22 may have hardware 80 that may include a radio interface 82 configured to set up and maintain a wireless connection 64 with a network node 16 serving a coverage area 18 in which the WD 22 is currently located. The radio interface 82 may be formed as or may include, for example, one or more RF transmitters, one or more RF receivers, and / or one or more RF transceivers.

[0138] The hardware 80 of the WD 22 further includes processing circuitry 84. The processing circuitry 84 may include a processor 86 and memory 88. In particular, in addition to or instead of a processor, such as a central processing unit, and memory, the processing circuitry 84 may comprise integrated circuitry for processing and / or control, e.g., one or more processors and / or processor cores and / or FPGAs (Field Programmable Gate Array) and / or ASICs (Application Specific Integrated Circuitry) adapted to execute instructions. The processor 86 may be configured to access (e.g., write to and / or read from) memory 88, which may comprise any kind of volatile and / or nonvolatile memory, e.g., cache and / or buffer memory and / or RAM (Random Access Memory) and / or ROM (Read-Only Memory) and / or optical memory and / or EPROM (Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory).

[0139] Thus, the WD 22 may further comprise software 90, which is stored in, for example, memory 88 at the WD 22, or stored in external memory (e.g., database, storage array, network storage device, etc.) accessible by the WD 22. The software 90 may be executable by the processing circuitry 84. The software 90 may include a client application 92. The client application 92 may be operable to provide a service to a human or non-human user via the WD 22, with the support of the host computer 24. In the host computer 24, an executing host application 50 may communicate with the executing client application 92 via the OTT connection 52 terminating at the WD 22 and the host computer 24. In providing the service to the user, the client application 92 may receive request data from the host application 50 and provide user data in response to the request data. The OTT connection 52 may transfer both the request data and the user data. The client application 92 may interact with the user to generate the user data that it provides.

[0140] The processing circuitry 84 may be configured to control any of the methods and / or processes described herein and / or to cause such methods, and / or processes to be performed, e.g., by WD 22. The processor 86 corresponds to one or more processors 86 for performing WD 22 functions described herein. The WD 22 includes memory 88 that is configured to store data, programmatic software code and / or other information described herein. In some embodiments, the software 90 and / or the client application 92 may include instructions that, when executed by the processor 86 and / or processing circuitry 84, causes the processor 86 and / or processing circuitry 84 to perform the processes described herein with respect to WD 22. For example, the processing circuitry 84 of the wireless device 22 may include an SP reporting unit 34 which is configured to activate and / or deactivate semi-persistent reporting on the PUCCH according to the MAC CE

[0141] In some embodiments, the inner workings of the network node 16, WD 22, and host computer 24 may be as shown in FIG. 7 and independently, the surrounding network topology may be that of FIG. 6.

[0142] Although FIGS. 6 and 7 show various “units” such as configuration unit 32, and SP reporting unit 34 as being within a respective processor, it is contemplated that these units may be implemented such that a portion of the unit is stored in a corresponding memory within the processing circuitry. In other words, the units may be implemented in hardware or in a combination of hardware and software within the processing circuitry. FIG. 8 is a flowchart of an example process in a network node 16 for medium access control (MAC) network energy saving (NES) channel state information (CSI) report control for semi-persistent (SP) reports on a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH). One or more blocks described herein may be performed by one or more elements of network node 16 such as by one or more of processing circuitry 68 (including the configuration unit 32), processor 70, radio interface 62 and / or communication interface 60. Network node 16 such as via processing circuitry 68 and / or processor 70 and / or radio interface 62 and / or communication interface 60 is configured to configure a medium access control, MAC, control element, CE, for deactivation and / or activation of semi- persistent reporting on a physical uplink control channel, PUCCH (Block SI 34). The process also includes transmitting the MAC CE to the WD 22 (Block S136).

[0143] In some embodiments, the MAC CE includes a field indicating an activation / deactivation status of a semi-persistent channel state information, CSI, report configuration. In some embodiments, the MAC CE includes a field indicating at least one sub-configuration of semi-persistent reporting. In some embodiments, the MAC CE indicates at least one sub-configuration of semi-persistent reporting for each of a plurality of channel state information, CSI, report configurations. In some embodiments, the field indicating at least one sub-configuration of semi-persistent reporting includes a field corresponding to each of four CSI report configurations. In some embodiments, the MAC CE is configured to indicate activation and / or deactivation of at least one subconfiguration of semi-persistent reporting. In some embodiments, the method includes initially activating each of at least one sub-configuration of semi-persistent reporting by radio resource control, RRC, signaling.

[0144] FIG. 9 is a flowchart of an example process in a wireless device 22 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. One or more blocks described herein may be performed by one or more elements of wireless device 22 such as by one or more of processing circuitry 84 (including the SP reporting unit 34), processor 86, radio interface 82 and / or communication interface 60. Wireless device 22 such as via processing circuitry 84 and / or processor 86 and / or radio interface 82 is configured to receive from the network node a medium access control, MAC, control element, CE, for deactivation and / or activation of semi-persistent reporting on a physical uplink control channel, PUCCH. The method includes activating and / or deactivating semi-persistent reporting on the PUCCH according to the MAC CE.

[0145] In some embodiments, the MAC CE includes a field indicating an activation / deactivation status of a semi-persistent channel state information, CSI, report configuration. In some embodiments, the MAC CE includes a field indicating at least one sub-configuration of semi-persistent reporting. In some embodiments, the MAC CE indicates at least one sub-configuration of semi-persistent reporting for each of a plurality of channel state information, CSI, report configurations. In some embodiments, the field indicating at least one sub-configuration of semi-persistent reporting includes a field corresponding to each of four CSI report configurations. In some embodiments, the MAC CE is configured to indicate activation and / or deactivation of at least one subconfiguration of semi-persistent reporting. In some embodiments, the process includes initially activating each of at least one sub-configuration of semi-persistent reporting based on radio resource control, RRC, signaling from the network node.

[0146] Having described the general process flow of arrangements of the disclosure and having provided examples of hardware and software arrangements for implementing the processes and functions of the disclosure, the sections below provide details and examples of arrangements for medium access control (MAC) network energy saving (NES) channel state information (CSI) report control for semi-persistent (SP) reports on a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH).

[0147] Disclosed herein are examples of methods by which a WD 22 is notified which of the sub-configurations (hypotheses) related to power and / spatial domain (SD / PD) adaptations become activated or inactivated by the network node 16. It may be assumed that the WD 22 has been pre-configured with the sub-configurations (hypotheses) via RRC signaling. This may be done by extending the existing RRC CSI-ReportConfig to contain one or more sub-configurations as depicted below, in which each of the sub-configurations (SubConfigx) contain optional / conditional settings or parameters for SD / PD adaptations. See FIG. 10, for example.

[0148] For example, the one or more of the CSI-ReportConfigs may be configured as follows including 4 sub-configurations. See FIG. 11, for example.

[0149] Alternatively, the sub-configurations may be configured by RRC outside the CSI- ReportConfig information element (IE), e.g., as a separate IE containing a list of subconfigurations. In this case the separate IE may contain an index of the associated CSI- ReportConfig.

[0150] In this CSI-ReportConfig (CSI-ReportConfig n), SubConfigl represents a subconfiguration with both SD and PD hypotheses including both a 32-port SD setting and a - 3 dB power offset PD setting. SubConfig2 and SubConfig3 on the other hand each only include an SD hypothesis. Lastly SubConfig4 includes only a PD hypothesis. Note that the example simplified high level SD / PD configuration parameters above is a non-limiting example only. In reality, there may be multitude of parameters applicable to each of SD and PD, such as one or more of the following:

[0151] • A PDSCH-to-CSI-RS power offset, e.g., parameter powerControlOffset;

[0152] • A CSI-RS to SSB power offset, e.g., parameter powerControlOffsetSS;

[0153] • PDSCH power;

[0154] • PDSCH DMRS-to-PDSCH power;

[0155] • A number of antenna ports and / or antenna panels;

[0156] • Indicator(s) of a subset of antenna ports within a codebook;

[0157] • Indicator(s) of a subset of antenna elements within a port;

[0158] • Indicator(s) of a subset of CSI-RS resources within a CSI-RS resource set on which CSI feedback is based;

[0159] • Indicator of a potential spatial or power adaptation delay, e.g., {0, 0.5, 1, 1.5, ..., 3} ms or in terms of slots and so on (potentially pre-specified if not signaled);

[0160] • QCL source information for the resources in a CSI-RS resource set;

[0161] • A number of CSI reports the WD 22 shall make;

[0162] • Indicator(s) of a codebook subset / ri restriction;

[0163] • Rank restriction; and / or

[0164] • CQI table indication.

[0165] The network node 16 (de-)activates one or more of the sub-configurations / hypotheses based on internal assessment or based on reports from the WDs specific to the hypotheses. The WD 22 may for example have been dynamically triggered to measure and report CSI on an UL channel corresponding to one or more spatial domain and / or one or more power domain adaptation hypotheses earlier. The (de-)activation signaling is through MAC-CE and RRC signaling which are very reliable as there is acknowledgement / non- acknowledgement (ACK / NACK) feedback from the WD 22 upon reception. MAC-CE signaling is used herein for the case of sp-reporting on PUCCH which brings necessary dynamics for making the methods efficient. In some embodiments, various designs of MAC-CE are provided for the purpose of (de-)activation of semi-persistent reporting on PUCCH.

[0166] For the sake of simplicity, it is assumed that up to a maximum of 4 CSI- ReportConfigs may be configured in the WD 22. It is further assumed that each of the CSI-ReportConfigs may in turn contain up to a maximum of 4 PD / SD sub-configurations (i.e., L<=Lmax where Lmax = 4). The network node 16 may then via MAC-CE (de-)activate N out of the L sub-configurations. The sub-configurations may address any combination of SD / PD adaptations.

[0167] For the cases considered below in which a new MAC-CE is designed / used rather than reusing the existing “SP CSI reporting on PUCCH Activation / Deactivation MAC CE”, the fields BWP ID and / or Serving Cell ID may be absent in some embodiments when the behavior with regards to applicability of the command to BWP / Cell- ID is either pre-specified or pre-configured with e.g., RRC signaling. For the sake of simplicity, all the embodiments below include these fields.

[0168] Embodiment #1

[0169] In this embodiment, the new MAC-CE is based on the existing MAC-CE called “SP CSI reporting on PUCCH Activation / Deactivation MAC CE”, for example as specified in 3GPP TS 38.321 (section 6.1.3.16). See FIG. 12. This MAC-CE has a fixed size of 16 bits with following fields:

[0170] • Serving Cell ID: This field indicates the identity of the Serving Cell for which the MAC CE applies. The length of the field is 5 bits;

[0171] • BWP ID: This field indicates a UL BWP for which the MAC CE applies as the codepoint of the DCI bandwidth part indicator field as specified in 3GPP TS 38.212. The length of the BWP ID field is 2 bits;

[0172] • Si: This field indicates the activation / deactivation status of the Semi-Persistent CSI report configuration within csi-ReportConfigToAddModList, as specified in 3GPP TS 38.331. SO refers to the report configuration which includes PUCCH resources for SP CSI reporting in the indicated BWP and has the lowest CSI- ReportConflgld within the list with type set to semiPersistentOnPUCCH, SI to the report configuration which includes PUCCH resources for SP CSI reporting in the indicated BWP and has the second lowest CSI-ReportConflgld and so on:

[0173] - The Si field is set to 1 to indicate that the corresponding Semi-Persistent CSI report configuration shall be activated;

[0174] - The Si field is set to 0 to indicate that the corresponding Semi-Persistent CSI report configuration i shall be deactivated;

[0175] • R: Reserved bit, set to 0. where 4 ReportConfigs are pointed out by SO... S3. In this example, the reserved bits (denoted as R) for pointing out the newly introduced sub-configurations / hypotheses. This is depicted in the following figure where HO denotes the first hypothesis (SubConfig) configured by the associated CSI-ReportConfig(s), Hl the second hypothesis (Subconfig) and so on. Note that the position of these bits depicted below is example, in another example the position of the bits may be reversed such that HO occupies the left-most bit instead etc. See FIG. 13.

[0176] When the H bit is set to 1, this means that the associated SubConfig is activated and the WD 22 measures / reports according to that sub-configuration. Conversely when the bit is set to 0 the associated SubConfig is deactivated. See FIG. 14.

[0177] SO = 1, H0=l, and H2=l. This means that in the first configured ReportConfig (SO), the first (HO) and the third (H2) sub-configurations are activated whereas other ReportConfigs and sub-configurations are inactive / deactivated. After such configuration, if the WD 22 receives the following MAC-CE. See FIG. 15

[0178] It means that the first and third SubConfigs of the first ReportConfig are now deactivated. The WD behavior in case of SubConfig deactivation is now described for this example. In one sub-embodiment, the WD 22 in this scenario, since S0=l, reverts to reporting according to the original / legacy configuration of the first ReportConfig, i.e. S0=l denotes that SO is still active but not its associated sub-configurations.

[0179] In a variation of this embodiment, if all H bits are set to zero and 80=1, the first CSI-ReportConfig is deactivated.

[0180] The above embodiment is realized by either defining a new MAC-CE which is based on the existing “SP CSI reporting on PUCCH Activation / Deactivation MAC CE” Another option not defining a new MAC-CE, but instead just reusing and the R bit of the first octet is used / repurposed to indicate that WD 22 interprets the first 4 bits (H bits) of the second octet as described in above embodiments. With the reused MAC-CE option, new WDs that support this feature understand that H bits are used for sub-configurations based on R bit of the first octet set to 1, while legacy WDs ignore the R bit of the first octet.

[0181] In another sub-embodiment, the reserved R bit of the first octet is used as an active / deactivate indicator. So in the following example, in contrast to the previous example, the original configuration from first ReportConfig (SO) is active only if A / D flag=l otherwise the ReportConfig is not active. See FIG. 16

[0182] In this embodiment, if the NW wants to control (de-)activate SubConfigs residing in different ReportConfigs, a separate MAC-CE may be transmitted to the WD 22. For example, two separate MAC-CEs may be provided to the WD 22 each controlling separate ReportConfigs as exemplified in FIG. 17, where the first (left-hand side) MAC-CE controls HO of SO, whereas the second (right-hand side) MAC-CE controls HO of SI.

[0183] Embodiment #2

[0184] In this embodiment, the WD 22 may at maximum be configured with a certain number of sub-configurations across all ReportConfigs. For example, the WD 22 may at maximum be configured with 4 SubConfigs across 4 ReportConfigs. The distribution of the SubConfigs residing in various ReportConfigs is decided by the NW. For example, up to 4 SubConfigs may be configured in the first ReportConfig, whereas as the other 3 ReportConfig contain no SubConfig. Alternately, there may be 4 ReportConfigs each with one SubConfig. Or any other combination so long as the maximum of 4 SubConfigs are not exceeded. In this embodiment, H0..H3 are used to control the SubConfigs irrespective of which ReportConfig they are associated with. Hence, in the figure below, if e.g., H2=l, it means that the third SubConfig, regardless of which ReportConfig it was configured by, is activated and regardless of the Si settings. See FIG. 18.

[0185] Once again, this embodiment is realized by either defining a new MAC-CE which is based on the existing “SP CSI reporting on PUCCH Activation / Deactivation MAC CE”, or another option is that the MAC-CE as described above is not defined as new MAC-CE but just reused and the R bit of the first octet is used / repurposed to indicate that WD 22 interprets the first 4 bits (H bits) of the second octet as described above.

[0186] Embodiment #3

[0187] In this embodiment, the WD 22 may at maximum be configured with a certain number of sub-configurations across all ReportConfigs. For example, the WD 22 may at maximum be configured with 4 SubConfigs across 4 ReportConfigs. The distribution of the SubConfigs residing in various ReportConfigs is decided by the NW. For example, up to 4 SubConfigs may be configured in the first ReportConfig, whereas as the other 3 ReportConfig contain no SubConfig. Alternately, there may be 4 ReportConfigs each with a SubConfig. Or any other combination so long as the maximum of 4 SubConfigs are not exceeded. In this embodiment, H0..H3 are used to control the SubConfigs irrespective of which ReportConfig they are associated with. However, in contrast to previous embodiment #2, the SubConfig may only be active if the associated ReportConfig is active, otherwise the SubConfig is inactive / deactivated. Same realization options with either existing MAC-CE reuse or new MAC-CE applies here. See FIG. 19.

[0188] In a variation of this embodiment, the S bits are repurposed to indicate subconfigurations, such that all 8 bits (4 H bits + 4 S bits) may be used to activate / deactivate up to 8 sub-configurations. To indicate whether the bits are repurposed, the R bit may be used. In this case, a separate legacy MAC-CE needs to first activate a CSI-ReportConfig before the MAC-CE with repurposed bits may indicate if the sub-configurations are activated.

[0189] Embodiment #4

[0190] In this embodiment, the WD 22 may at maximum be configured with a certain number of sub-configurations per ReportConfig. For example, the WD 22 may at maximum be configured with 4 SubConfigs in each of 4 ReportConfigs. In this embodiment, for each ReportConfig, there is an associated set of H0..H3 are used to control the SubConfigs of each ReportConfig. However, the SubConfig may only be active if the associated ReportConfig is active, otherwise the SubConfig is inactive / deactivated. An example is given below for this embodiment, note that the position of the H bits are example. Se FIG. 20.

[0191] Again, similar to the other embodiments above, in a sub-embodiment, if Si=l but the associated Hi=0, it means that the WD 22 measures / reports according to the original configuration and disregards the SubConfig parameters. Whereas in another subembodiment, this behavior is controlled via an A / D flag (e.g. by reusing the R in the first octet) such that the original configuration of Si=l is only used if the A / D bit = 1.

[0192] Embodiment #4A

[0193] In this embodiment, the WD 22 may at maximum be configured with a certain number of sub-configurations per ReportConfig. For example, the WD 22 may at maximum be configured with 4 SubConfigs in each of 4 ReportConfigs. In this embodiment, for each ReportConfig, there is an associated set of H0..H3 are used to control the SubConfigs of each ReportConfig. The SubConfig may be directly active / deactivated using a new MAC-CE using a bitmap without needing a separate bitmap for the ReportConfigs. An example is given below for this embodiment. A first set of bits (e.g. first four bits) of the bitmap are associated with the first set of SubConfigs of a first ReportConfig, and a second set of bits (e.g. fifth to eighth bit) of the bitmap are associated with the second set of SubConfigs of a second ReportConfig:

[0194] • H0-S0, H ISO, H2-S0,H0-S0 (i.e., H bits in figure below associated with SO) refers to the first, second third and fourth report sub-configuration for the report configuration which includes PUCCH resources for SP CSI reporting in the indicated BWP and has the lowest CSI-ReportConfigld within the list with type set to semiPersistentOnPUCCEf

[0195] • HQS1,H1S1,H2S1,H3S1 refers to the first, second third and fourth report sub-conflguration for the report configuration which includes PUCCH resources for SP CSI reporting in the indicated BWP and has the second lowest CSI- ReportConflgld within the list with type set to semiPersistentOnPUCCH, and so on:

[0196] The Hi-Sj field is set to 1 to indicate that the corresponding Semi- Persistent CSI report sub-configuration shall be activated;

[0197] The Hi-Sj field is set to 0 to indicate that the corresponding Semi- Persistent CSI report sub-configuration i shall be deactivated;

[0198] • In certain embodiments, if a report configuration (e.g. S2) does not contain any sub-configurations, then a pre-determined bit / bits within the bitmap corresponding to the sub-configurations of that report configuration may be used to activate / deactivate the corresponding report sub-configuration.

[0199] Two representations of this embodiment are depicted in FIGS. 21 and 22.

[0200] In a sub-embodiment, the sub-configurations MAC-CE above operates together with the existing MAC-CE “SP CSI reporting on PUCCH Activation / Deactivation MAC CE” for controlling configurations and sub-configuration. The existing MAC-CE controls the status of the legacy configuration while the new MAC-CE controls the subconfigurations. For example, assume the new MAC-CE of this embodiment received by the WD 22 has the HOSO bit set to 1, while the MAC-CE “SP CSI reporting on PUCCH Activation / Deactivation MAC CE” received by the WD is as follows. See FIGS. 23 and 24

[0201] Based on the combination of these MAC-CEs the WD 22 having received both of them understands that:

[0202] - SI is activated without any sub-configurations (legacy / original configuration applies);

[0203] - SO is activated including sub-configuration HO (HO parameters override the original configuration of SO);

[0204] In one sub-embodiment, the H bits of the new MAC-CE are only applicable if the corresponding S bit in the received “SP CSI reporting on PUCCH Activation / Deactivation MAC CE” is set to 1.

[0205] Embodiment #4B

[0206] This embodiment is similar to Embodiment #4A, except that only the new MAC- CE from Embodiment #4a is used to simultaneously activate / de-activate subconfigurations for a CSI-ReportConfig. See FIG. 25. For example, if all H bits corresponding to a particular CSI-ReportConfig are set to 0, then the both the sub-configurations and the CSI-ReportConfig is deactivated. If at least one of the H bits corresponding to a particular CSI-ReportConfig is set to 1, then the CSI- ReportConfig is activated along with the indicated sub-configurations. If a CSI- ReportConfig contains no sub-configurations, this method may still be used, and the WD 22 simply performs a logical ‘OR’ operation amongst the H bits to determine activation / deactivation status for the CSI-ReportConfig. In this way it is not necessary to explicitly signal S bits since the activation status may be derived from the H bits.

[0207] This MAC CE may either be fixed size if number of the Semi-Persistent CSI report configurations needed to be activated / deactivated is fixed, or it may be of variable size. For this embodiment no separate reception of “SP CSI reporting on PUCCH Activation / Deactivation MAC CE” is necessary since the control of both S and H are handled by one MAC-CE.

[0208] Embodiment #5

[0209] In this embodiment, a new MAC-CE is defined which enables to activate / deactivate a Semi-Persistent CSI report configuration and to select the active sub-configurations for each. This is exemplified below for 4 main configurations with 4 sub-configurations each (again the position of Si and Hi are example). See FIG. 26.

[0210] • Serving Cell ID: This field indicates the identity of the Serving Cell for which the MAC CE applies. The length of the field is 5 bits;

[0211] • BWP ID: This field indicates a UL BWP for which the MAC CE applies as the codepoint of the DCI bandwidth part indicator field as specified in 3GPP TS 38.212 [9], The length of the BWP ID field is 2 bits;

[0212] • Si: This field indicates the activation / deactivation status of the Semi-Persistent CSI report configuration within csi-ReporlConfigToAddModl.isl. as specified in 3GPP TS 38.331. SO refers to the report configuration which includes PUCCH resources for SP CSI reporting in the indicated BWP and has the lowest CSI- ReportConflgld within the list with type set to semiPersistentOnPUCCH, SI to the report configuration which includes PUCCH resources for SP CSI reporting in the indicated BWP and has the second lowest CSI-ReportConflgld and so on:

[0213] The Si field is set to 1 to indicate that the corresponding Semi-Persistent CSI report configuration shall be activated;

[0214] The Si field is set to 0 to indicate that the corresponding Semi-Persistent CSI report configuration i shall be deactivated; • Hi: This field indicates the activation / deactivation status of the sub-configuration of a Semi-Persistent CSI report configuration within csi- ReportConfigToAddModList, as specified in 3GPP TS 38.331. HO refers to the first sub-configuration for the Semi-Persistent CSI report configuration as indicated by Si of the same octet, Hl refers to the second sub-configuration for the Semi-Persistent CSI report configuration as indicated by Si of the same octet and so on:

[0215] The Hi field is set to 1 to indicate that the corresponding Semi-Persistent CSI report configuration shall be activated;

[0216] - The Hi field is set to 0 to indicate that the corresponding Semi-Persistent CSI report configuration i shall be deactivated;

[0217] • R: Reserved bit, set to 0.

[0218] The above MAC CE may either be fixed size if the number of the Semi-Persistent CSI report configurations needed to be activated / deactivated is fixed, or it may be of variable size. For this embodiment no separate reception of “SP CSI reporting on PUCCH Activation / Deactivation MAC CE” is necessary since the control of both S and H are combined in one MAC-CE.

[0219] Embodiment #6 (common to all above)

[0220] For all the embodiments above, the WD 22 may be indicated through RRC signaling whether one or more of the sub-configurations are initially active (e.g., already during the configuration step), rather than first being configured by RRC and then activated through MAC-CE. I.e., the initial state of the hypotheses is configured and may be later changed via lower layer signaling such as with the MAC-CE examples given above. In another option, it is fixed in specification which configurations or how many are active upon RRC configuration, or handover.

[0221] In another embodiment, the initial state of the sub-configuration is always reset to a specified state (e.g., inactive) upon configuration update via RRC signaling. For example, the network node 16 may have activated a certain hypothesis, but after an RRC reconfiguration (e.g., in which CSI-RS is reconfigured, or any other types of RRC reconfiguration such as related to handover), the WD 22 reverts to the specified state (e.g., back to inactive).

[0222] Figure 27 is a flow chart showing a method in a wireless device configured to communicate with a network node according to embodiments of the present invention. The method comprises, at 270, receiving from the network node a medium access control, MAC, control element, CE, for deactivation and / or activation of semi-persistent reporting on a physical uplink control channel, PUCCH, the MAC CE indicating activation and / or deactivation of at least one sub-configuration of a semipersistent Channel State Information, CSI, report configuration. The method further comprises, at 272, activating and / or deactivating semi-persistent reporting on the PUCCH according to the MAC CE.

[0223] The MAC CE may comprise a field indicating the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration.

[0224] The MAC CE may comprise a field indicating an activation / deactivation status of the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration.

[0225] In some embodiments, this field may comprise a set of bits, each bit in the set of bits indicating an activation / deactivation status of a respective sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration.

[0226] In some embodiments, the MAC CE may further comprise a further field, the further field indicating an activation / deactivation status of the semi-persistent CSI report configuration.

[0227] In some embodiments, the MAC CE may indicate activation and / or deactivation of at least one sub-configuration for each of a plurality of semipersistent CSI report configurations. In this case, the MAC CE may comprise a plurality of fields, each of the plurality of fields indicating at least one sub-configuration of a respective semipersistent CSI report configuration of the plurality of semipersistent CSI report configurations. Each of the plurality of fields may comprise a set of bits, each bit in the set of bits indicating an activation / deactivation status of a respective sub-configuration of the respective semipersistent CSI report configuration. In some embodiments, the MAC CE may further comprise a plurality of further fields, each further field indicating an activation / deactivation status of a respective semipersistent CSI report configuration of the plurality of semipersistent CSI report configurations.

[0228] The MAC CE may, advantageously, have a variable size.

[0229] Activating and / or deactivating semi-persistent reporting on the PUCCH according to the MAC CE may comprise reporting CSI on PUCCH according to the MAC CE. For example, when the MAC CE indicates activation of the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent Channel State Information, CSI, report configuration, activating and / or deactivating semi-persistent reporting on the PUCCH according to the MAC CE may comprise reporting CSI on PUCCH according to the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report. The method may further comprise receiving the semipersistent CSI report configuration comprising the at least one sub-configuration via Radio Resource Control, RRC, signaling. Each of the at least one sub-configuration may comprise at least one of a spatial domain adaption parameter and a power domain adaption parameter.

[0230] In some embodiments, the method may further comprise resetting a state of the sub-configuration to inactive upon a configuration update via Radio Resource Control, RRC, signaling.

[0231] Figure 28 is a flow chart showing a method in a network node configured to communicate with a wireless device. The method comprises, at 280, configuring a medium access control, MAC, control element, CE, for deactivation and / or activation of semi-persistent reporting on a physical uplink control channel, PUCCH, wherein the MAC CE is configured to indicate activation and / or deactivation of at least one subconfiguration of a semipersistent Channel State Information, CSI, report configuration. The method further comprises, at 282, transmitting the MAC CE to the wireless device.

[0232] The MAC CE may be configured to comprise a field indicating the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration.

[0233] The MAC CE may be configured to comprise a field indicating an activation / deactivation status of the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration.

[0234] In some embodiments, the field may comprise a set of bits, each bit in the set of bits indicating an activation / deactivation status of a respective sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration. The MAC CE may be further configured to comprise a further field, the further field indicating an activation / deactivation status of the semi-persistent CSI report configuration.

[0235] According to some embodiments, the MAC CE may be configured to indicate activation and / or deactivation of at least one sub-configuration for each of a plurality of semipersistent CSI report configurations. In this case, the MAC CE may be configured to comprise a plurality of fields, each of the plurality of fields indicating an activation / deactivation status of at least one sub-configuration of a respective semipersistent CSI report configuration of the plurality of semipersistent CSI report configurations. Each of the plurality of fields may comprise a set of bits, each bit in the set of bits indicating an activation / deactivation status of a respective sub-configuration of the respective semipersistent CSI report configuration. According to some embodiments, the MAC CE may be configured to comprise a plurality of further fields, each further field indicating an activation / deactivation status of a respective semipersistent CSI report configuration of the plurality of semipersistent CSI report configurations.

[0236] The MAC CE may have a variable size.

[0237] The method may further comprise configuring the UE with the semipersistent CSI report configuration comprising the at least one sub-configuration via Radio Resource Control, RRC, signaling.

[0238] Each of the at least one sub-configuration may comprise at least one of a spatial domain adaption parameter and a power domain adaption parameter.

[0239] According to some embodiments, the method may further comprise resending the MAC CE to the wireless device after sending the wireless device a configuration update via Radio Resource Control, RRC, signaling.

[0240] With reference back to Figure 7, the wireless device 22 may thus be configured to, and / or comprises a radio interface 82 and / or comprises processing circuitry 84 configured to perform any of the methods described above as performed by a wireless device. For example, the wireless device may be configured to and / or comprises a radio interface 82 and / or comprises processing circuitry 84 configured to receive from the network node 16 a medium access control, MAC, control element, CE, for deactivation and / or activation of semi-persistent reporting on a physical uplink control channel, PUCCH, the MAC CE indicating activation and / or deactivation of at least one sub-configuration of a semipersistent Channel State Information, CSI, report configuration. The WD 22 may be further configured to, and / or comprises a radio interface 82 and / or comprises processing circuitry 84 configured to activate and / or deactivate semi-persistent reporting on the PUCCH according to the MAC CE.

[0241] The MAC CE may comprise a field indicating the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration. In particular, the MAC CE may comprise a field indicating an activation / deactivation status of the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration. The field may comprise a set of bits, each bit in the set of bits indicating an activation / deactivation status of a respective sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration. The MAC CE may further comprise a further field, the further field indicating an activation / deactivation status of the semipersistent CSI report configuration.

[0242] According to some embodiments, the MAC CE may indicate activation and / or deactivation of at least one sub-configuration of each of a plurality of semipersistent CSI report configurations. In this case, the MAC CE may comprise a plurality of fields, each of the plurality of fields indicating at least one sub-configuration of a respective semipersi stent CSI report configuration of the plurality of semipersistent CSI report configurations. For example, each of the plurality of fields may indicate an activation / deactivation status of at least one sub-configuration of a respective semipersistent CSI report configuration of the plurality of semipersistent CSI report configurations. Each of the plurality of fields may comprise a set of bits, each bit in the set of bits indicating an activation / deactivation status of a respective sub-configuration of the respective semipersistent CSI report configuration. The MAC CE may comprise a plurality of further fields, each further field of the plurality of further fields indicating an activation / deactivation status of a respective semipersistent CSI report configuration of the plurality of semipersistent CSI report configurations.

[0243] According to some embodiments, the MAC CE may, advantageously, have a variable size.

[0244] The wireless device 22 may be configured to, and / or comprises a radio interface 82 and / or comprises processing circuitry 84 configured to activate and / or deactivate semipersistent reporting on the PUCCH according to the MAC CE by reporting CSI on PUCCH according to the MAC CE. For example, the wireless device 22 may be configured to, and / or comprises a radio interface 82 and / or comprises processing circuitry 84 configured to, when the MAC CE indicates activation of the at least one subconfiguration of the semipersistent Channel State Information, CSI, report configuration, report CSI on PUCCH according to the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report.

[0245] The wireless device 22 may be further configured to, and / or comprises a radio interface 82 and / or comprises processing circuitry 84 configured to receive the semipersistent CSI report configuration comprising the at least one sub-configurations via Radio Resource Control, RRC, signaling. Each of the at least one sub-configuration may comprise at least one of a spatial domain adaption parameter and a power domain adaption parameter.

[0246] The wireless device 22 may be further configured to, and / or comprises a radio interface 82 and / or comprises processing circuitry 84 configured to reset a state of the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration to inactive upon a configuration update via Radio Resource Control, RRC, signaling.

[0247] Similarly with reference back to Figure 7 the network node 16 may be configured to, and / or comprise a radio interface 62 and / or comprise processing circuitry 68 configured to perform any of the methods described above as performed by a network node. For example, the network node 16 may be to, and / or comprise a radio interface 62 and / or comprise processing circuitry 68 configured to configure a medium access control, MAC, control element, CE, for deactivation and / or activation of semi-persistent reporting on a physical uplink control channel, PUCCH, wherein the MAC CE is configured to indicate activation and / or deactivation of at least one sub-configuration of a semipersistent Channel State Information, CSI, report configuration. The network node 16 may further be configured to, and / or comprise a radio interface 62 and / or comprise processing circuitry 68 configured to: transmit the MAC CE to the wireless device 22.

[0248] The MAC CE may be configured to comprise a field indicating the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration. The field may indicate an activation / deactivation status of the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration. The field may comprise a set of bits, each bit in the set of bits indicating an activation / deactivation status of a respective sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration. The MAC CE may be configured to comprise a further field, the further field indicating an activation / deactivation status of the semipersistent CSI report configuration.

[0249] In some embodiments, the MAC CE may be configured to indicate activation and / or deactivation of at least one sub-configuration of each of a plurality of semipersistent CSI report configurations. The MAC CE may be configured to comprise a plurality of fields, each of the plurality of fields indicating an activation / deactivation status of at least one sub-configuration of a respective semipersistent CSI report configuration of the plurality of semipersistent CSI report configurations. Each of the plurality of fields may comprise a set of bits, each bit in the set of bits indicating an activation / deactivation status of a respective sub-configuration of the respective semipersistent CSI report configuration. The MAC CE may be configured to comprise a plurality of further fields, each further field indicating an activation / deactivation status of a respective semipersistent CSI report configuration of the plurality of semipersistent CSI report configurations.

[0250] The MAC CE may have a variable size.

[0251] The network node 16 may be further configured, and / or comprise a radio interface 62 and / or comprise processing circuitry 68 configured to activate and / or deactivate semipersistent reporting on the PUCCH according to the MAC CE by reporting CSI on PUCCH according to the MAC CE. For example, the network node 16 may be further configured, and / or comprise a radio interface 62 and / or comprise processing circuitry 68 configured to, when the MAC CE indicates activation of the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent Channel State Information, CSI, report configuration, report CSI on PUCCH according to the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration.

[0252] The network node 16 may be further configured, and / or comprise a radio interface 62 and / or comprise processing circuitry 68 configured to: configure the wireless 22 with the semipersistent CSI report configuration comprising the at least one sub-configurations via Radio Resource Control, RRC, signaling. Each sub-configuration of the at least one sub-configuration may comprise at least one of a spatial domain adaption parameter and a power domain adaption parameter.

[0253] The network node 16 may be further configured to, and / or comprise a radio interface 62 and / or comprise processing circuitry 68 configured to: resend the MAC CE to the wireless device 22 after sending the wireless device 22 a configuration update via Radio Resource Control, RRC, signaling.

[0254] As will be appreciated by one of skill in the art, the concepts described herein may be embodied as a method, data processing system, computer program product and / or computer storage media storing an executable computer program. Accordingly, the concepts described herein may take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects all generally referred to herein as a “circuit” or “module.” Any process, step, action and / or functionality described herein may be performed by, and / or associated to, a corresponding module, which may be implemented in software and / or firmware and / or hardware. Furthermore, the disclosure may take the form of a computer program product on a tangible computer usable storage medium having computer program code embodied in the medium that may be executed by a computer. Any suitable tangible computer readable medium may be utilized including hard disks, CD-ROMs, electronic storage devices, optical storage devices, or magnetic storage devices.

[0255] Some embodiments are described herein with reference to flowchart illustrations and / or block diagrams of methods, systems and computer program products. It will be understood that each block of the flowchart illustrations and / or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the flowchart illustrations and / or block diagrams, may be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions may be provided to a processor of a general purpose computer (to thereby create a special purpose computer), special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, create means for implementing the functions / acts specified in the flowchart and / or block diagram block or blocks.

[0256] These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer readable memory or storage medium that may direct a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer readable memory produce an article of manufacture including instruction means which implement the function / act specified in the flowchart and / or block diagram block or blocks.

[0257] The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus to produce a computer implemented process such that the instructions which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus provide steps for implementing the functions / acts specified in the flowchart and / or block diagram block or blocks.

[0258] It is to be understood that the functions / acts noted in the blocks may occur out of the order noted in the operational illustrations. For example, two blocks shown in succession may in fact be executed substantially concurrently or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon the functionality / acts involved. Although some of the diagrams include arrows on communication paths to show a primary direction of communication, it is to be understood that communication may occur in the opposite direction to the depicted arrows.

[0259] Computer program code for carrying out operations of the concepts described herein may be written in an object oriented programming language such as Python, Java® or C++. However, the computer program code for carrying out operations of the disclosure may also be written in conventional procedural programming languages, such as the "C" programming language. The program code may execute entirely on the user's computer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote computer or entirely on the remote computer. In the latter scenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer (for example, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider). Many different embodiments have been disclosed herein, in connection with the above description and the drawings. It will be understood that it would be unduly repetitious and obfuscating to literally describe and illustrate every combination and subcombination of these embodiments. Accordingly, all embodiments may be combined in any way and / or combination, and the present specification, including the drawings, shall be construed to constitute a complete written description of all combinations and subcombinations of the embodiments described herein, and of the manner and process of making and using them, and shall support claims to any such combination or subcombination.

[0260] Abbreviations that may be used in the preceding description include:

[0261] Abbreviation Explanation

[0262] SD Spatial Domain

[0263] PD Power Domain

[0264] SP Semi-persistent

[0265] NES Network Energy Saving

[0266] It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that the embodiments described herein are not limited to what has been particularly shown and described herein above. In addition, unless mention was made above to the contrary, it should be noted that all of the accompanying drawings are not to scale. A variety of modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings.

[0267] Some embodiments may be described as follows:

[0268] Embodiment Al . A network node configured to communicate with a wireless device (WD), the network node configured to, and / or comprising a radio interface and / or comprising processing circuitry configured to: configure a medium access control, MAC, control element, CE, for deactivation and / or activation of semi-persistent reporting on a physical uplink control channel, PUCCH; and transmit the MAC CE to the WD.

[0269] Embodiment A2. The network node of Embodiment Al , wherein the MAC CE is configured to include a field indicating an activation / deactivation status of a semi- persistent channel state information, CSI, report configuration.

[0270] Embodiment A3. The network node of any of Embodiments Al and A2, wherein the MAC CE is configured to include a field indicating at least one subconfiguration of semi-persistent reporting. Embodiment A4. The network node of Embodiment A3, wherein the MAC

[0271] CE is configured to indicate at least one sub-configuration of semi-persistent reporting for each of a plurality of channel state information, CSI, report configurations.

[0272] Embodiment A5. The network node of any of Embodiments A3 and A4, wherein the field indicating at least one sub-configuration of semi-persistent reporting includes a field corresponding to each of four CSI report configurations.

[0273] Embodiment A6. The network node of any of Embodiments A1-A5, wherein the MAC CE is configured to indicate activation and / or deactivation of at least one subconfiguration of semi-persistent reporting.

[0274] Embodiment A7. The network node of any of Embodiments A1-A6, wherein the network node, radio interface and / or processing circuitry are further configured to initially activate each of at least one sub-configuration of semi-persistent reporting by radio resource control, RRC, signaling.

[0275] Embodiment Bl . A method implemented in a network node configured to communicate with a wireless device, WD, the method comprising: configuring a medium access control, MAC, control element, CE, for deactivation and / or activation of semi-persistent reporting on a physical uplink control channel, PUCCH; and transmitting the MAC CE to the WD.

[0276] Embodiment B2. The method of Embodiment Bl, wherein the MAC CE is configured to include a field indicating an activation / deactivation status of a semi- persistent channel state information, CSI, report configuration.

[0277] Embodiment B3. The method of any of Embodiments Bl and B2, wherein the MAC CE is configured to include a field indicating at least one sub-configuration of semi- persistent reporting.

[0278] Embodiment B4. The method of Embodiment B3, wherein the MAC CE is configured to indicate at least one sub-configuration of semi-persistent reporting for each of a plurality of channel state information, CSI, report configurations.

[0279] Embodiment B5. The method of any of Embodiments B3 and B4, wherein the field indicating at least one sub-configuration of semi-persistent reporting includes a field corresponding to each of four CSI report configurations.

[0280] Embodiment B6. The method of any of Embodiments B1-B5, wherein the MAC CE is configured to indicate activation and / or deactivation of at least one subconfiguration of semi-persistent reporting. Embodiment B7. The method of any of Embodiments B1-B6, further comprising initially activating each of at least one sub-configuration of semi-persistent reporting by radio resource control, RRC, signaling.

[0281] Embodiment Cl . A wireless device (WD) configured to communicate with a network node, the WD configured to, and / or comprising a radio interface and / or processing circuitry configured to: receive from the network node a medium access control, MAC, control element, CE, for deactivation and / or activation of semi-persistent reporting on a physical uplink control channel, PUCCH; and activate and / or deactivate semi-persistent reporting on the PUCCH according to the MAC CE.

[0282] Embodiment C2. The WD of Embodiment Cl, wherein the MAC CE is configured to include a field indicating an activation / deactivation status of a semi- persistent channel state information, CSI, report configuration.

[0283] Embodiment C3. The WD of any of Embodiments Cl and C2, wherein the MAC CE is configured to include a field indicating at least one sub-configuration of semi- persistent reporting.

[0284] Embodiment C4. The WD of Embodiment C3, wherein the MAC CE is configured to indicate at least one sub-configuration of semi-persistent reporting for each of a plurality of channel state information, CSI, report configurations.

[0285] Embodiment C5. The WD of any of Embodiments C3 and C4, wherein the field indicating at least one sub-configuration of semi-persistent reporting includes a field corresponding to each of four CSI report configurations.

[0286] Embodiment C6. The WD of any of Embodiments C1-C5, wherein the MAC CE is configured to indicate activation and / or deactivation of at least one subconfiguration of semi-persistent reporting.

[0287] Embodiment C7. The WD of any of Embodiments C1-C6, wherein the WD, processing circuitry and / or radio interface are configured to initially activate each of at least one sub-configuration of semi-persistent reporting based at least in part on radio resource control, RRC, signaling from the network node.

[0288] Embodiment DI . A method implemented in a wireless device (WD) configured to communicate with a network node, the method comprising receiving from the network node a medium access control, MAC, control element, CE, for deactivation and / or activation of semi-persistent reporting on a physical uplink control channel, PUCCH; and activating and / or deactivating semi-persistent reporting on the PUCCH according to the MAC CE.

[0289] Embodiment D2. The method of Embodiment DI, wherein the MAC CE is configured to include a field indicating an activation / deactivation status of a semi- persistent channel state information, CSI, report configuration.

[0290] Embodiment D3. The method of any of Embodiments DI and D2, wherein the MAC CE is configured to include a field indicating at least one sub-configuration of semi- persistent reporting.

[0291] Embodiment D4. The method of Embodiment D3, wherein the MAC CE is configured to indicate at least one sub-configuration of semi-persistent reporting for each of a plurality of channel state information, CSI, report configurations.

[0292] Embodiment D5. The method of any of Embodiments D3 and D4, wherein the field indicating at least one sub-configuration of semi-persistent reporting includes a field corresponding to each of four CSI report configurations.

[0293] Embodiment D6. The method of any of Embodiments D1-D5, wherein the MAC CE is configured to indicate activation and / or deactivation of at least one subconfiguration of semi-persistent reporting.

[0294] Embodiment D7. The method of any of Embodiments D1-D6, further comprising initially activating each of at least one sub-configuration of semi-persistent reporting based at least in part on radio resource control, RRC, signaling from the network node.

Claims

CLAIMS:

1. A method implemented in a wireless device configured to communicate with a network node, the method comprising: receiving (270) from the network node a medium access control, MAC, control element, CE, for deactivation and / or activation of semi -persistent reporting on a physical uplink control channel, PUCCH, wherein the MAC CE indicates activation and / or deactivation of at least one sub-configuration of a semipersistent Channel State Information, CSI, report configuration; and activating and / or deactivating semi-persistent reporting on the PUCCH according to the MAC CE (272).

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the MAC CE comprises a field indicating the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the MAC CE comprises a field indicating an activation / deactivation status of the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration.

4. The method according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the field comprises a set of bits, each bit in the set of bits indicating an activation / deactivation status of a respective sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration.

5. The method according to any preceding claim, wherein the MAC CE comprises a further field, the further field indicating an activation / deactivation status of the semi-persistent CSI report configuration.

6. The method according to any preceding claim, wherein the MAC CE indicates activation and / or deactivation of at least one sub-configuration for each of a plurality of semipersistent CSI report configurations.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the MAC CE comprises a plurality of fields, each of the plurality of fields indicating an activation / deactivation status of at least one sub-configuration of a respective semipersistent CSI reportconfiguration of the plurality of semipersistent CSI report configurations.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein each of the plurality of fields comprises a set of bits, each bit in the set of bits indicating an activation / deactivation status of a respective sub-configuration of the respective semipersistent CSI report configuration.

9. The method of any of claims 6 to 8, wherein the MAC CE comprises a plurality of further fields, each further field of the plurality of further fields indicating an activation / deactivation status of a respective semipersistent CSI report configuration of the plurality of semipersistent CSI report configurations.

10. The method according to any preceding claim, wherein the MAC CE has a variable size.

11. The method according to any preceding claim, wherein activating and / or deactivating semi-persistent reporting on the PUCCH according to the MAC CE (272) comprises reporting CSI on PUCCH according to the MAC CE.

12. The method according to any preceding claim, wherein the MAC CE indicates activation of the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent Channel State Information, CSI, report configuration; and wherein activating and / or deactivating semi-persistent reporting on the PUCCH according to the MAC CE comprises reporting CSI on PUCCH according to the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report.

13. The method according to any preceding claim, further comprising receiving the semipersistent CSI report configuration comprising the at least one subconfiguration via Radio Resource Control, RRC, signaling.

14. The method according to any preceding claim, wherein each of the at least one sub-configuration comprises at least one of a spatial domain adaption parameter and a power domain adaption parameter.

15. The method according to any preceding claim, further comprising resetting a state of the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report configurationto inactive upon a configuration update via Radio Resource Control, RRC signaling.

16. A method implemented in a network node configured to communicate with a wireless device, the method comprising: configuring (280) a medium access control, MAC, control element, CE, for deactivation and / or activation of semi-persistent reporting on a physical uplink control channel, PUCCH, wherein the MAC CE is configured to indicate activation and / or deactivation of at least one sub-configuration of a semipersistent Channel State Information, CSI, report configuration; and transmitting the MAC CE to the wireless device (282).

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein the MAC CE is configured to comprise a field indicating the at least one sub-configuration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration.

18. The method according to claim 16 or 17, wherein the MAC CE is configured to comprise a field indicating an activation / deactivation status of the at least one subconfiguration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein the field comprises a set of bits, each bit in the set of bits indicating an activation / deactivation status of a respective subconfiguration of the semipersistent CSI report configuration.

20. The method according to any of claims 16 to 19, wherein the MAC CE is configured to comprise a further field, the further field indicating an activation / deactivation status of the semi-persistent CSI report configuration.

21. The method according to any of claims 16 to 20, wherein the MAC CE is configured to indicate activation and / or deactivation of at least one subconfiguration for each of a plurality of semipersistent CSI report configurations.

22. The method according to claim 21, wherein the MAC CE is configured to comprise a plurality of fields, each of the plurality of fields indicating an activation and / or deactivation status of at least one sub-configuration of a respectivesemipersistent CSI report configuration of the plurality of semipersistent CSI report configurations.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein each of the plurality of fields comprises a set of bits, each bit in the set of bits indicating an activation / deactivation status of a respective sub-configuration of the respective semipersistent CSI report configuration.

24. The method of any of claims 21 to 23, wherein the MAC CE is configured to comprise a plurality of further fields, each further field of the plurality of further fields indicating an activation / deactivation status of a respective semipersistent CSI report configuration of the plurality of semipersistent CSI report configurations.

25. The method according to any of claims 16 to 24, wherein the MAC CE has a variable size.

26. The method according to any of claims 16 to 25, further comprising configuring the wireless device with the semipersistent CSI report configuration comprising the at least one sub-configuration via Radio Resource Control, RRC, signaling.

27. The method according to any of claims 16 to 26, wherein each of the at least one sub-configuration comprises at least one of a spatial domain adaption parameter and a power domain adaption parameter.

28. The method according to any of claims 16 to 27, further comprising resending the medium access control, MAC, control element, CE, for deactivation and / or activation of semi-persistent reporting on a physical uplink control channel, PUCCH, after sending a configuration update via Radio Resource Control, RRC, signaling.

29. A wireless device (22) configured to communicate with a network node (16), the wireless device (22) configured to, and / or comprising a radio interface (62) and / or comprising processing circuitry (68) configured to: receive from the network node (16) a medium access control, MAC, control element, CE, for deactivation and / or activation of semi-persistent reporting on a physical uplink control channel, PUCCH, the MAC CE indicating activationand / or deactivation of at least one sub-configuration of a semipersistent Channel State Information, CSI, report configuration; and activate and / or deactivate semi-persistent reporting on the PUCCH according to the MAC CE.

30. The wireless device (22) according to claim 29, wherein the wireless device is configured to, and / or comprises a radio interface (62) and / or processing circuitry (68) configured to: perform the method of any of claims 2 to 15.

31. A network node (16) configured to communicate with a wireless device (22), the network node (16) configured to, and / or comprising a radio interface (62) and / or comprising processing circuitry (68) configured to: configure a medium access control, MAC, control element, CE, for deactivation and / or activation of semi-persistent reporting on a physical uplink control channel, PUCCH, wherein the MAC CE is configured to indicate activation and / or deactivation of at least one sub-configuration of a semipersistent Channel State Information, CSI, report configuration; and transmit the MAC CE to the wireless device (22).

32. The network node (16) according to claim 31, wherein the network node (16) is configured to, and / or comprises a radio interface (62) and / or comprises processing circuitry (68) configured to: perform the method according to any of claims 16 to 28.

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