User equipment, scheduling node, method for user equipment, and method for scheduling node

Abstract

To provide a communication device and a communication method for performing indication related to dormancy behavior of a secondary cell (Scell).SOLUTION: In a communication system, a base station eNB / gNB transmits a downlink control information (DCI) signaling, and a communication device UE receives the DCI signaling. The DCI signaling includes an indication that is related to dormancy behavior of a Scell. The Scell is configured with a plurality of bandwidth parts (BPS) that includes a dormant BWP and one or more normal BWPs. If the indication indicates transitioning from dormancy behavior to non-dormancy behavior, a target BWP for performing non-dormancy behavior is determined. Determining the target BWP is executed in accordance with at least one of a priority order of the one or more normal BWPs, a predefined or preconfigured BWP, a legacy BWP indicator field in the DCI signaling, a most recently active normal BWP, and the dormant BWP.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to transmitting and receiving signals in a communication system. In particular, the present disclosure relates to methods and apparatus for such transmitting and receiving. [Background technology]

[0002] Currently, 3GPP (registered trademark: 3rd Generation Partnership Project) is working on technical specifications for next-generation cellular technology, also known as the fifth generation (5G), which includes New Radio Access Technology (NR), a radio access technology (RAT) that operates in the frequency range up to 100 GHz. NR is the successor to technologies represented by LTE (Long Term Evolution) and LTE Advanced (LTE-A).

[0003] For systems such as LTE and NR, further improvements and options may facilitate efficient operation of the communication systems as well as certain devices associated with the systems. Summary of the Invention

[0004] One non-limiting exemplary embodiment facilitates providing efficient determination of a BWP for implementing non-dormant behavior in a wireless communication system.

[0005] In one embodiment, the technology disclosed herein features an apparatus (e.g., user equipment, UE). The apparatus includes a transceiver that, during operation, receives downlink control information (DCI) signaling. The apparatus further includes a circuit that, during operation, obtains an indication from the DCI signaling regarding a dormant behavior of a secondary cell (Scell), the Scell ​​being configured with a plurality of bandwidth portions (BWPs) including a dormant BWP and one or more normal BWPs, and determines a target BWP for performing the non-dormant behavior when the indication indicates transitioning from the dormant behavior to the non-dormant behavior. The determination of the target BWP is performed in response to at least one of a priority of one or more normal BWPs, a predefined or preconfigured BWP, a legacy BWP indicator field of the DCI signaling, a previously active normal BWP, and a dormant BWP, among others.

[0006] It should be noted that the general or specific embodiments may be implemented as a system, a method, an integrated circuit, a computer program, a storage medium, or any combination thereof.

[0007] Further benefits and advantages of the disclosed embodiments will become apparent from the specification and drawings. Benefits and / or advantages may be obtained individually through the various embodiments and features of the specification and drawings, which need not all be provided to obtain one or more of such benefits and / or advantages. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] In the following, exemplary embodiments are explained in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. [Figure 1] FIG. 1 illustrates an example architecture of a 3GPP NR system. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the division of functions between NG-RAN and 5GC. [Diagram 3] FIG. 1 is a sequence diagram of an RRC connection setup / reconfiguration procedure. [Figure 4]FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating usage scenarios for enhanced Mobile Broadband, Massive Machine Type Communications (mMTC) and Ultra Reliable and Low Latency Communications (URLLC). [Diagram 5] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example 5G system architecture for non-roaming. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example functional structure of a network node and a user equipment. [Figure 7] 7 is a block diagram showing an example functional structure of a PDCCH generation circuit that may be included in the example scheduling node of FIG. 6. [Figure 8] 7 is a block diagram showing an example functional structure of a PDCCH monitoring circuit that may be included in the example user equipment of FIG. 6. [Figure 9] 4 is a flow chart showing exemplary steps performed by a network node as well as exemplary steps performed by a user equipment; DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] 5G NR system architecture and protocol stack 3GPP is working on the next release for the fifth generation of cellular technology, simply called 5G, which includes the development of New Radio Access Technology (NR) that will operate in frequencies up to the 100 GHz range. The first version of the 5G standard was completed at the end of 2017, allowing smartphones compliant with the 5G NR standard to proceed to trials and commercial deployment.

[0010] In particular, the overall system architecture assumes a Next Generation-Radio Access Network (NG-RAN) that includes gNBs and provides NG radio access user plane (SDAP / PDCP / RLC / MAC / PHY) and control plane (RRC) protocol termination for UEs. The gNBs are interconnected with each other by an Xn interface. The gNBs are also connected to a Next Generation Core (NGC) by a Next Generation (NG) interface, and more specifically to an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) (e.g., a specific core entity that runs AMF) by an NG-C interface and to a User Plane Function (UPF) (e.g., a specific core entity that runs UPF) by an NG-U interface. The NG-RAN architecture is shown in FIG. 1 (see, for example, Section 4 of 3GPP TS38.300 v15.6.0).

[0011] The NR user plane protocol stack (see, for example, 3GPP TS38.300 section 4.4.1) has the PDCP (Packet Data Convergence Protocol, see section 6.4 of TS38.300) sublayer, the RLC (Radio Link Control, see section 6.3 of TS38.300) sublayer, and the MAC (Medium Access Control, see section 6.2 of TS38.300) sublayer, which are terminated at the gNB on the network side. Furthermore, a new Access Stratum (AS) sublayer (SDAP, Service Data Adaptation Protocol) is introduced on top of the PDCP (see, for example, subclause 6.5 of 3GPP TS38.300). A control plane protocol stack is also specified for NR (see, for example, section 4.4.2 of TS38.300). An overview of Layer 2 functions is given in subclause 6 of TS38.300. The functions of the PDCP, RLC and MAC sublayers are listed in sections 6.4, 6.3 and 6.2 of TS 38.300, respectively. The functions of the RRC layer are listed in subclause 7 of TS 38.300.

[0012] For example, the MAC layer handles logical channel multiplexing and scheduling and scheduling related functions, including handling of different numerologies.

[0013] The physical layer (PHY) is responsible for, for example, coding, PHY HARQ processing, modulation, multi-antenna processing, and mapping of signals to appropriate physical time-frequency resources. It also handles mapping of transport channels to physical channels. The physical layer provides services to the MAC layer in the form of transport channels. A physical channel corresponds to a set of time-frequency resources utilized for transmission of a particular transport channel, and each transport channel is mapped to a corresponding physical channel. For example, the physical channels are PRACH (Physical Random Access Channel), PUSCH (Physical Uplink Shared Channel), and PUCCH (Physical Uplink Control Channel) for the uplink, and PDSCH (Physical Downlink Shared Channel), PDCCH (Physical Downlink Control Channel), and PBCH (Physical Broadcast Channel) for the downlink.

[0014] Use cases / deployment scenarios for NR may include enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB), Ultra Reliable Low-Latency Communications (URLLC) and massive Machine Type Communication (mMTC) with diverse requirements on data rates, latency and coverage. For example, eMBB is expected to support peak data rates (20 Gbps for downlink and 10 Gbps for uplink) and user experienced data rates on the order of three times those offered by IMT-Advanced. On the other hand, in the case of URLLC, tighter requirements are placed on ultra-low latency (0.5 ms for each of UL and DL user plane latency) and high reliability (1-10 ms within 1 ms). -5 ). Finally, mMTC is preferably imposed on high connection density (1,000,000 devices / km in urban environments). 2), large coverage in harsh environments, and extremely long battery life (15 years) for low-cost devices.

[0015] Thus, OFDM numerology (e.g., subcarrier spacing, OFDM symbol duration, cyclic prefix (CP) duration, number of symbols per scheduling interval, etc.) suitable for one use case may not work well for another use case. For example, low latency services may preferably require a shorter symbol duration (and thus a larger subcarrier spacing) and / or fewer symbols per scheduling interval (a.k.a. TTI) than mMTC services. Furthermore, deployment scenarios with large channel delay spreads may preferably require a longer CP duration than scenarios with small delay spreads. To maintain similar CP overhead, the subcarrier spacing should be optimized accordingly. NR may support multiple values ​​of subcarrier spacing. Correspondingly, subcarrier spacings of 15 kHz, 30 kHz, 60 kHz, etc. are currently being considered. The symbol duration T u and the subcarrier spacing Δf is Δf=1 / T u Similar to LTE systems, the term "resource element" can be used to denote the smallest resource unit consisting of one subcarrier for the duration of one OFDM / SC-FDMA symbol.

[0016] In the new radio system 5G-NR, for each numerology and carrier, a resource grid of subcarriers and OFDM symbols is defined for the uplink and downlink, respectively. Each element in the resource grid is called a resource element and is specified based on a frequency index in the frequency domain and a symbol position in the time domain (see 3GPP TS38.211 v15.7.0).

[0017] Compared to LTE numerology (subcarrier spacing and symbol length), NR supports several different types of subcarrier spacing, labeled by parameters (in LTE there is only 15 kHz subcarrier spacing, which corresponds to μ=0 in NR). The NR numerology types are summarized in 3GPP TS 38.211, v 15.7.0.

[0018] 5G NR Functional Split Between NG-RAN and 5GC Figure 2 shows the functional division between NG-RAN and 5GC. The NG-RAN logical node is gNB or ng-eNB. In 5GC, there are logical nodes AMF, UPF, and SMF.

[0019] In particular, the gNB and ng-eNB host the following main functions: Functions for radio resource management such as radio bearer control, radio admission control, connection mobility control, dynamic allocation (scheduling) of resources to UEs in both uplink and downlink IP header compression, encryption, data integrity protection Selection of AMF at UE attachment if routing to the AMF cannot be determined from information provided by the UE Routing user plane data to the UPF Routing of control plane information to AMF Setting up and disconnecting a connection Scheduling and sending paging messages Scheduling and transmission of system broadcast information (originating from AMF or OAM) Measurement and measurement reporting configuration for mobility and scheduling Transport-level packet marking in the uplink Session Management Network slicing support QoS flow management and mapping to data radio bearers Support for UEs in RRC_INACTIVE state -NAS message distribution function Radio Access Network Sharing Dual Connectivity Close interaction between NR and E-UTRA

[0020] The Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) hosts the following main functions: Non-Access Stratum (NAS), signaling termination NAS signaling security · Access Layer (AS), security control · Signaling between Core Network (CN) nodes for mobility between 3GPP access networks Idle mode UE reachability (including control and execution of paging retransmissions) -Registration area management Supporting intra- and inter-system mobility Access authentication Access permissions including roaming rights checks Mobility management controls (subscriptions and policies) Network slicing support Session Management Function (SMF), selection

[0021] In addition, the User Plane Function (UPF) hosts the following main functions: Anchor points for intra / inter-RAT mobility (if applicable) External PDU session points for interconnection to data networks Packet Routing and Forwarding Packet inspection and user plane parts for policy rule enforcement Traffic usage report Uplink classifier that supports routing of traffic flows to the data network Branching points supporting multi-homed PDU sessions QoS processing for the user plane, including packet filtering, gating, and UL / DL rate enforcement Uplink traffic validation (SDF to QoS flow mapping) Downlink packet buffering and downlink data notification triggering

[0022] Finally, the Session Management Function (SMF) hosts the following main functions: Session Management ·UE IP address allocation and management ·UP function selection and control Configuring traffic steering in the User Plane Function (UPF) to route traffic to the appropriate destination Policy enforcement and QoS control parts Downlink data notification

[0023] RRC connection setup and reconfiguration procedures Figure 3 illustrates some interactions between the UE, gNB, and AMF (5GC entities) in the context of a UE transition from RRC_IDLE to RRC_CONNECTED for part of the NAS (see TS38.300 v15.6.0).

[0024] RRC is a higher layer signaling (protocol) used for UE and gNB configuration. In particular, this transition involves the AMF preparing UE context data (including, for example, PDU session context, security keys, UE radio capabilities and UE security capabilities, etc.) and sending it to the gNB with an INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST. The gNB then activates AS security with the UE. This is performed by the gNB sending a SecurityModeCommand message to the UE and the UE responding to the gNB with a SecurityModeComplete message. The gNB then performs a reconfiguration to configure the signaling radio bearer 2 (SRB2), and the data radio bearer (DRB(s)) by sending an RRCReconfiguration message to the UE and in response receiving an RRCReconfigurationComplete message from the UE by the gNB. In case of a signaling only connection, SRB2 and DRB are not configured, so the steps related to RRCReconfiguration are skipped. Finally, the gNB informs the AMF that the configuration procedure is complete with an INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP RESPONSE.

[0025] Therefore, the present disclosure provides a fifth generation core (5GC) entity (e.g., AMF, SMF, etc.) that includes a control circuit that, in operation, establishes a next generation (NG) connection with a gNodeB, and a transmitter that, in operation, transmits an initial context setup message to the gNodeB via the NG connection to trigger a signaling radio bearer setup between the gNodeB and a user equipment (UE). Specifically, the gNodeB transmits a radio resource control (RRC), which is a signaling including a resource allocation setting information element, to the UE via the signaling radio bearer. The UE then performs uplink transmission or downlink reception based on the resource allocation setting.

[0026] IMT usage scenarios after 2020 Figure 4 shows some use cases for 5G NR. Three use cases are considered in 3GPP NR (3rd Generation Partnership Project new radio) that are envisioned to support a wide variety of services and applications by IMT-2020. Phase 1 specifications for eMBB (enhanced mobile broadband) are being finalized. In addition to further extending eMBB support, current and future work will involve standardization for Ultra Reliable and Low Latency Communications (URLLC) and Massive Machine Type Communications. Figure 5 shows some examples of envisioned usage scenarios for IMT beyond 2020 (see, for example, Figure 2 of ITU-R M.2083).

[0027] URLLC use cases have stringent requirements for capabilities such as throughput, latency, and availability, and are envisioned as one of the enablers for future vertical applications such as wireless control of industrial manufacturing or production processes, remote medical surgery, distribution automation in smart grids, and transportation safety. High reliability of URLLC is supported by identifying technologies that meet the requirements set by TR 38.913. For NR URLLC in Release 15, key requirements include a target user plane latency of 0.5 ms for UL (uplink), and 0.5 ms for DL ​​(downlink). Typical URLLC requirements for one transmission of a packet are a BLER (block error rate) of 1E-5 for a packet size of 32 bytes with a user plane latency of 1 ms.

[0028] From a physical layer perspective, reliability can be improved in many possible ways. Current scope for improving reliability includes defining separate CQI tables for URLLC, more compact DCI formats, PDCCH repetition, etc. However, as NR becomes more stable and developed (for NR URLLC key requirements), the scope for achieving high reliability may increase. Specific use cases for NR URLLC in Rel.15 include augmented reality / virtual reality (AR / VR), e-health, e-safety, and mission-critical applications.

[0029] Furthermore, technology enhancements targeted by NR URLLC aim at improving latency and improving reliability. Technology enhancements for latency improvement include configurable numerology, non-slot-based scheduling with flexible mapping, free (configured grant) uplink grants, slot-level repetition of data channels, and downlink preemption. Preemption means stopping a transmission for which resources have already been allocated, and the already allocated resources are used for another transmission requested later, but with lower latency and higher priority requirements. Thus, a transmission that has already been granted is preempted by a later transmission. Preemption is applicable independent of the specific service type. For example, a transmission for service type A (URLLC) can be preempted by a transmission for service type B (eMBB, etc.). Technology enhancements for reliability improvement include dedicated CQI / MCS tables for a target BLER of 1E-5.

[0030] The use case of massive machine type communication (mMTC) is characterized by a very large number of connected devices that typically transmit a relatively small amount of non-latency sensitive data. The devices are required to be low cost and have a very long battery life. From an NR perspective, utilizing a very narrow portion of the bandwidth is one possible solution that has power savings from the UE perspective and allows for a long battery life.

[0031] Thus, it is expected that the reliability scope of NR will be broadened. One key requirement for all cases, especially for URLLC and mMTC, is high or ultra reliability. Several mechanisms can be considered to improve reliability from a radio perspective and from a network perspective. In general, there are several important potential areas that can help improve reliability. Among these areas are compact control channel information, repetition of data / control channels, and diversity with respect to frequency, time, and / or spatial domains. These areas are generally applicable to reliability, regardless of the specific communication scenario.

[0032] For NR URLLC, further use cases with more stringent requirements have been identified, such as factory automation, the transportation industry, and power supply, including power distribution. The more stringent requirements are driven by higher reliability (10 6 level), higher effectiveness, packet sizes up to 256 bytes, time synchronization up to a few μs, values ​​can be 1 μs or a few μs depending on the frequency range, short latency on the order of 0.5-1 ms depending on the use case, specifically a target user plane latency of 0.5 ms.

[0033] Additionally, for NR URLLC, several technology enhancements from a physical layer perspective have been identified. Among these are PDCCH (Physical Downlink Control Channel) enhancements related to compact DCI, PDCCH repetition, and increased PDCCH monitoring. Additionally, UCI (Uplink Control Information) enhancements are related to enhanced HARQ (Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request) and CSI feedback enhancements. Also identified are PUSCH enhancements related to minislot level hopping and retransmission / repetition enhancements. The term "minislot" refers to a transmission time interval (TTI) that contains fewer symbols than a slot (a slot containing 14 symbols).

[0034] QoS Control The 5G Quality of Service (QoS) model is based on QoS flows and supports both QoS flows that require a guaranteed flow bit rate (GBR QoS flows) and QoS flows that do not require a guaranteed flow bit rate (non-GBR QoS flows). Thus, at the NAS level, QoS flows are the finest granularity of QoS differentiation in a PDU session. QoS flows are identified within a PDU session by a QoS Flow Identifier (QFI) carried in the encapsulation header on the NG-U interface.

[0035] For each UE, the 5GC establishes one or more PDU sessions. For each UE, the NG-RAN establishes at least one Data Radio Bearer (DRB) together with the PDU session, and additional DRB(s) for the QoS flow(s) of that PDU session may be configured subsequently (it is up to the NG-RAN when to do so), e.g., as shown above with reference to FIG. 3. The NG-RAN maps packets belonging to different PDU sessions to different DRBs. NAS-level packet filters in the UE and in the 5GC associate UL and DL packets with QoS flows, while AS-level mapping rules in the UE and in the NG-RAN associate UL and DL QoS flows with DRBs.

[0036] Figure 5 shows the 5G NR non-roaming reference architecture (see TS 23.501 v16.1.0, section 4.23). Application Functions (AFs), e.g., external application servers hosting 5G services as exemplarily described in Figure 4, interact with the 3GPP core network to provide services supporting, e.g., application influence on traffic routing, or access to the Network Exposure Function (NEF), or interaction with a policy framework (e.g., QoS control) for policy control (see Policy Control Function, PCF). Based on the operator's deployment, application functions that are considered trusted by the operator can interact directly with the relevant network functions. Application functions that are not allowed by the operator to access network functions directly interact with the relevant network functions using an external exposure framework via the NEF.

[0037] Figure 5 shows further functional units of the 5G architecture, namely Network Slice Selection Function (NSSF), Network Repository Function (NRF), Unified Data Management (UDM), Authentication Server Function (AUSF), Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), Session Management Function (SMF) and Data Network (DN), i.e. operator services, Internet access or third party services. All or part of the core network functions and application services may be deployed and run in a cloud computing environment.

[0038] Thus, in the present disclosure, there is provided an application server (e.g., an AF in a 5G architecture) comprising a transmitter which, during operation, sends a request including QoS requirements for at least one of URLLC, eMMB and mMTC services to at least one of the 5GC functions (e.g., NEF, AMF, SMF, PCF, UPF, etc.) to establish a PDU session including a radio bearer between a gNodeB and a UE in accordance with the QoS requirements, and, during operation, performs a service using the established PDU session.

[0039] Terminal and base station A terminal, user terminal or user device is referred to as user equipment (UE) in LTE and NR. It may be a mobile or communication device such as a wireless phone, a smartphone, a tablet computer, or a universal serial bus (USB) stick having the functionality of a user device. However, the term mobile device is not so limited and in general a relay may have the functionality of such a mobile device and a mobile device may also function as a relay.

[0040] A base station is a network node that forms part of a network for providing services to terminals, for example. A base station is a network node or scheduling node that provides radio access to terminals. The communication between terminals and base stations is typically standardized. In LTE and NR, the wireless interface protocol stack includes a physical layer, a Medium Access Control (MAC) layer, and higher layers. In the control plane, the higher layer protocol Radio Resource Control Protocol is provided. Through RRC, the base station can control the configuration of the terminals, and the terminals can communicate with the base station to perform control tasks such as connection and bearer establishment, modification, measurements, and other functions. The term used in LTE is eNB (or eNodeB), while the term currently used in 5G NR is gNB.

[0041] The services provided by a layer for transferring data to higher layers are usually referred to as channels. For example, LTE and NR distinguish between logical channels provided by the MAC layer to higher layers, transport channels provided by the physical layer to the MAC layer, and physical channels that define a mapping on physical resources.

[0042] Logical channels are the different kinds of data transfer services offered by the MAC. Each logical channel type is defined by the type of information it transfers. Logical channels are classified into two groups: control channels and traffic channels. Control channels are used only for the transfer of control plane information. Traffic channels are used only for the transfer of user plane information.

[0043] The logical channels are then mapped to transport channels by the MAC layer, for example, logical traffic channels and some logical control channels may be mapped in the downlink onto a transport channel called the Downlink Shared Channel (DL-SCH) and in the uplink onto a transport channel called the Uplink Shared Channel (UL-SCH).

[0044] As the present disclosure relates to scheduling, both entities participate: a scheduled device (typically a communication device / transceiver device) and a scheduling device (typically a network node). The present invention further provides a system including a scheduled scheduling device, as well as corresponding methods and programs.

[0045] In the following, UEs, base stations, and procedures are described for a new radio access technology that is assumed for a 5G mobile communication system, but may also be used in an LTE mobile communication system. Various embodiments and variants are also described. The following disclosure is facilitated by, and may be based, for example, at least in part on, the above discussion and findings.

[0046] In general, it should be noted that many assumptions are made herein so that the principles underlying the present disclosure can be explained in a clear and understandable manner, however, these assumptions may be understood as merely examples made herein for illustrative purposes that should not limit the scope of the present disclosure.

[0047] Furthermore, some of the terms such as procedures, entities, layers, etc. used below are closely related to the terms used in the LTE / LTE-A system or current 3GPP 5G standardization, even though the specific terms used in the context of new radio access technologies for the upcoming 3GPP 5G communication system have not yet been fully determined or may eventually change. Thus, the terms may be changed in the future without affecting the functionality of the embodiments. Therefore, those skilled in the art will recognize that the embodiments and their scope of protection should not be limited to the specific terms used illustratively herein due to the lack of newer or finally agreed upon terms, but may be more broadly understood with respect to the functions and concepts underlying the functions and principles of the present disclosure.

[0048] For example, a mobile station or mobile node or user terminal or user equipment (UE) is a physical entity (physical node) in a communication network. There may be multiple functional entities in one node. A functional entity refers to a software or hardware module that implements and / or provides a given set of functions to other functional entities of the same or another node or network. A node may have one or more interfaces that connect the node to communication facilities or media over which the node can communicate. Similarly, a network entity may have logical interfaces that connect a functional entity to communication facilities or media over which it can communicate with other functional entities or corresponding nodes.

[0049] Here, the term "base station" or "radio base station" refers to a physical entity in a communication network. Similar to a mobile station, a base station may have several functional entities. A functional entity refers to a software or hardware module that implements and / or provides a given set of functions to other functional entities of the same or another node or network. A physical entity performs some control task for the communication device, including one or more of scheduling and configuration. It should be noted that base station functions and communication device functions may be integrated in a single device. For example, a mobile terminal may also implement the functionality of a base station for other terminals. The term used in LTE is eNB (or eNodeB), while the term currently used for 5G NR is gNB.

[0050] Downlink control channel monitoring, PDCCH, DCI Many of the functions operated by the UE include, for example, monitoring a downlink control channel (eg, PDCCH, see 3GPP TS 38.300 v15.6.0, section 5.2.3) to receive specific control information or data intended for the UE.

[0051] A non-exhaustive list of these features is provided below. - Paging message monitoring function - System information acquisition function Signaling monitoring operation for DRX function, which is discontinuous reception -Non-activity monitoring for DRX function, which is discontinuous reception · Random access response reception for random access function - Packet data convergence protocol PDCP layer reordering function

[0052] As described above, PDCCH monitoring is performed by the UE to identify and receive information intended for the UE, such as control information and user traffic (e.g., DCI on the PDCCH and user data on the PDSCH indicated by the PDCCH).

[0053] The control information in the downlink (which can be called Downlink Control Information, DCI) has the same purpose in 5G NR as DCI in LTE, i.e. it is a special set of control information that schedules, for example, a downlink data channel (e.g., PDSCH) or an uplink data channel (e.g., PUSCH). In 5G NR, there are several different DCI formats already defined (see TS 38.212 v15.6.0 section 7.3.1).

[0054] The above DCI formats represent the predetermined formats in which the respective information is formed and transmitted. In particular, DCI formats 0_1 and 1_1 are used for scheduling PUSCH and PDSCH, respectively, in one cell.

[0055] The PDCCH monitoring of each of these functions serves a specific purpose and is therefore initiated at the end of the above. PDCCH monitoring is typically controlled based on a timer operated at least by the UE. The timer has the purpose of controlling the PDCCH monitoring, for example limiting the maximum amount of time that the UE should monitor the PDCCH. For example, the UE does not need to monitor the PDCCH indefinitely, but can stop monitoring after a certain time so that power can be saved.

[0056] As mentioned above, one of the purposes of DCI on PDCCH is dynamic scheduling of resources in the downlink or uplink or sidelink. In particular, some formats of DCI are provided to carry an indication of resources (resource allocation, RA) allocated to a data channel for a particular user. Resource allocation may include specification of resources in the frequency domain and / or the time domain.

[0057] Physical Resource Blocks In general, the term "physical resource block" (PRB) refers to the smallest allocable resource unit available for (user) data transmission. In LTE and NR, a PRB has a predetermined number (e.g., 12) of consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and a predetermined number of symbols in the time domain (e.g., 14 OFDM symbols in LTE).

[0058] Cell types: primary cell, secondary cell, serving cell The term "cell" refers to a component carrier (CC) on which allocatable resources (such as time-frequency-spatial resources) are located. For example, there may be more carriers used by the terminals to increase the number of available resources. These CCs may be referred to as cells.

[0059] A primary cell (Pcell) operates on a primary frequency on which a UE performs an initial connection establishment procedure and / or initiates a connection re-establishment procedure. A Pcell may be a cell that is explicitly indicated in a handover procedure.

[0060] A secondary cell (Scell) operating on a secondary frequency may be configured once an RRC connection is established and may be used to provide additional radio resources.

[0061] For a UE in RRC_CONNECTED that is not configured with carrier aggregation (CA), there is only one serving cell, which is the primary cell. For a UE in RRC_CONNECTED that is configured with CA, the term "serving cell" refers to the primary cell and all secondary cells. In other words, the serving cell is the cell from which the UE is configured to transmit and / or receive data.

[0062] Bandwidth parts (BWPs) In general, for each cell (eg, a serving cell), multiple BWPs may be configured (eg, by RRC signaling).

[0063] In NR, a BWP consists of a group of consecutive PRBs. The bandwidth (BW) of a BWP cannot exceed the component carrier (CC) BW configured for the UE and must be as large as at least one synchronization signal (SS) block BW, but the BWP may or may not include an SS block. Each BWP is associated with a specific numerology, i.e., sub-carrier spacing (SCS) and cyclic prefix (CP) type. Thus, the BWP is also a means to reconfigure the UE with a certain numerology. For each cell, multiple BWPs may be configured for the UE via radio resource control (RRC) signaling, which may overlap in frequency. The granularity of the BW configuration is one PRB. For each serving cell, DL and UL BWPs are configured separately and independently for the paired spectrum, and up to four BWPs may be configured for each of DL and UL. For unpaired spectrum, a DL BWP and a UL BWP are configured together as a pair, and up to four pairs can be configured. There can be up to four UL BWPs configured for the supplemental UL (SUL) as well. Each configured DL BWP includes at least one control resource set (CORESET) with a UE-specific search space (USS). The USS is a search space for the UE to monitor for possible reception of control information for the UE (e.g., a UE-specific PDCCH carrying DCI(s)).

[0064] The search space is a set of candidate resources that the UE monitors for PDCCH, similar to LTE. Monitoring includes, for example, blind detection and decoding of the PDCCH in the candidate resources. The PDCCH destined for the UE is provided by a cyclic redundancy check (CRC) mask that depends on, for example, a UE identifier. For example, in LTE or NR, the UE identifier may be a temporary identifier assigned to the UE by the network, such as a Radio Network Temporary Identifier (RNTI). The RNTI may be used to scramble the CRC. If the candidate resource carries a PDCCH addressed to the UE, the UE can identify the PDCCH addressed to this UE and successfully decode the DCI, which means that the CRC does not fail.

[0065] For the primary carrier, at least one of the configured DL BWPs includes one CORESET with a common search space (CSS). The CSS is a search space for the UE to monitor possible reception of control information common to all UEs or for a specific UE. If the CORESET of an active DL BWP is not configured with a CSS, the UE does not need to monitor it. Note that the UE is expected to receive and transmit only within the frequency range configured for the active BWP with the associated value. However, there are exceptions, and the UE may perform Radio Resource Management (RRM) measurements or transmit a sounding reference signal (SRS) outside its active BWP via a measurement gap. The BWP is also a tool for switching the UE's operating value. The DL BWP configuration numerology is used at least for the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), the physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH), and the corresponding demodulation RS (DMRS). Similarly, the UL BWP configuration numerology is used for at least the physical uplink control channel (PUCCH), the physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH), and the corresponding DMRS. However, it should be noted that at least in early versions of NR, there are constraints on the configuration of numerology, i.e., the same numerology is used within the same PUCCH group that includes both DL and UL.

[0066] It is further defined herein that the UE may be configured with a bandwidth portion of up to four carriers in the uplink, with a bandwidth portion of a single uplink carrier active at a given time. If the UE is configured with an auxiliary uplink, the UE may be further configured with a bandwidth portion of up to four carriers in the auxiliary uplink, with a bandwidth portion of a single auxiliary uplink carrier active at a given time. The UE does not transmit PUSCH or PUCCH outside the active bandwidth portion. The numerology is defined by the subcarrier spacing and the cyclic prefix (CP). A resource block (RB) is generally defined as 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain. A physical resource block (PRB) is numbered within the BWP, and the PRB numbering of the BWP starts from 0.

[0067] The size of the BWP can vary from a minimum of one PRB to a maximum size of the system bandwidth. Currently, up to four BWPs can be configured with a single active downlink and uplink BWP in a given TTI (transmission time interval) with higher examples and parameters for each DL (downlink) and UL (uplink). However, the present disclosure is not limited to the case defined in TS 38.211 of a UE being configured with up to four bandwidth portions. The number of bandwidth portions may be greater than four in the uplink and / or downlink. For example, a UE can be configured with eight BWPs.

[0068] The TTI (Transmission Time Interval) determines the timing granularity of the scheduling assignment. One TTI is the time interval in which a given signal is mapped to the physical layer. The TTI length can vary from 14 symbols (slot-based scheduling) to 2 symbols (non-slot-based scheduling). Downlink and uplink transmissions are specified to be organized into frames (10 ms duration) consisting of 10 subframes (1 ms duration). In slot-based transmissions, the subframes are then divided into slots, the number of slots being defined by the numerology / subcarrier spacing, with the specified value range being between 10 slots at a subcarrier spacing of 15 kHz to 320 slots at a subcarrier spacing of 240 kHz. The number of OFDM symbols per slot is 14 for normal cyclic prefix and 12 for extended cyclic prefix (see sections 4.1 (general frame structure), 4.2 (numerology), 4.3.1 (frames and subframes), and 4.3.2 (slots) of 3GPP TS 38.211 V15.0.0(2017-12)). However, the transmission may be non-slot-based. In non-slot-based communication, the minimum length of the TTI may be two OFDM symbols. The BWP concept in NR is to allow dynamic configuration of a relatively small active bandwidth for smaller data packets, which allows power savings for the UE because, for a small active BWP, the UE needs to monitor fewer frequencies or use fewer frequencies for transmission.

[0069] Activating / Deactivating BWP At a given time, only one of the configured BWPs of a cell may be active, which is also referred to as the (currently) active BWP of the cell. Note that in this disclosure, the term "currently active" BWP refers to the BWP that is active when a DCI containing a dormant switching indication (described below) is received. In other words, the currently active BWP may be the BWP that is active when the target BWP is determined and / or when the priority of the BWPs is determined (also described below).

[0070] If a cell has an active BWP, the cell is also called an active / activated cell. In general, one or more cells may be active at the same time. For example, a UE may have an active Pcell and one or more active Scells. In general, a UE is not expected to receive PDSCH, PDCCH, CSI-RS, or TRS outside of an active BWP. Therefore, the UE does not report CSI for inactive BWPs.

[0071] More specifically, for each cell, the active bandwidth portion of the user equipment (e.g., the bandwidth portion used by the UE for transmitting and receiving signals in a TTI) can be switched between configured BWPs. For example, depending on the current need, the active BWP can be switched to a larger BWP or to a smaller BWP to save battery power for the UE. This is possible by dynamic indication in the DCI of the active BWP to be used in the next TTI. The DCI transports downlink and uplink scheduling information (e.g., resource allocation and / or grants), requests for aperiodic CQI reports, or uplink power control commands for one cell and one RNTI. The DCI coding includes information element multiplexing, CRC (Cyclic Redundancy Check) attachment, channel coding, and rate matching. The DCI carries transmission parameters such as MCS, redundancy version, or HARQ process number. The DCI consists of several fields (e.g., bit fields / bitmaps) that carry different types of control information or parameters. The location of certain parameters and the number of bits that code each parameter are known to the base station transmitting the DCI and to the UE receiving the DCI. However, such switching of the active BWP increases latency, since the UE needs to decode the DCI and then initiate hardware tuning to the new active BWP.

[0072] In NR, the BWP can be activated / deactivated via dedicated RRC signaling or DCI signaling. Although faster than MAC control element (CE) based activation / deactivation, the DCI based mechanism requires additional consideration for error case handling, i.e., the UE fails to decode the DCI containing the BWP activation / deactivation command. To help recover from such DCI loss cases, timer-based activation / deactivation of DL BWP (or DL / UL BWP pair in case of unpaired spectrum) is also supported. With this mechanism, if the UE is not scheduled for a certain amount of time, i.e., timer expiry, the UE switches its active DL BWP (or DL / UL BWP pair) to a default BWP. There is an initial active BWP for the UE during initial access until the UE is explicitly configured with a BWP during or after RRC connection establishment. The initial active BWP is the default BWP unless otherwise configured. In Release 15, for a UE, there is at most one active DL BWP and at most one active UL BWP (for each cell). When the UE's active BWP switches, HARQ retransmissions between different BWPs are supported. However, this disclosure is not limited thereto. In general, there may be multiple active BWPs for each cell.

[0073] Pausing and non-pausing behavior Dormant-like and non-dormant-like behaviors are defined in 3GPP RAN1 to support UE power saving and efficient and low latency serving cell configuration / activation / setup. Note that in this disclosure, the terms "dormant behavior" and "dormant-like behavior" are used interchangeably. Similarly, the terms "non-dormant behavior" and "non-dormant-like behavior" are used interchangeably.

[0074] More specifically, a dormant-like behavior is that in an activated Scell, the UE does not monitor the PDCCH and only reports periodic CSI as configured. A non-dormant-like behavior is that in an activated Scell, the UE must monitor the PDCCH and also report periodic CSI. In general, the UE can perform a dormant-like behavior in one (activated) Scell ​​and a non-dormant-like behavior in another (activated) Scell. The UE can then report CSI periodically for both Scells (for any of the BWPs configured for the Scells), but can only monitor the PDCCH in the activated BWPs of the Scell ​​for which the non-dormant behavior is performed.

[0075] The configured BWPs of a cell may include normal BWP(s), and the normal BWP(s) may be configured BWPs excluding dormant BWP(s) as well as the dormant BWP(s) above. In other words, generally, one or more of the configured BWPs may be dormant BWP(s), and one or more of the BWP(s) may be normal BWP(s). Here, a dormant BWP is a BWP in which the UE can perform dormant-like behavior.

[0076] More specifically, when the UE performs a dormant-like behavior for a cell, only the dormant BWP of the BWP configured for the cell may be active, and the normal BWP may not be active. Therefore, the UE performs a dormant-like behavior for the active dormant BWP, so it does not monitor the PDCCH in the dormant BWP. Since the other configured BWPs are not active, the UE also does not monitor the PDCCH of the other BWPs. In other words, it does not monitor the PDCCH in the cell performing the dormant-like behavior. However, the UE may still report CSI for the active dormant BWP of the dormant cell.

[0077] Meanwhile, when the UE performs a non-dormant-like behavior for a (activated) cell, any of the configured BWPs for the above cell may be activated, and the non-dormant-like behavior is performed for the active BWP. In other words, when the non-dormant-like behavior is performed for a cell, the UE can monitor the PDCCH in the active BWP, which can be any of the configured BWPs (dormant or normal), and can further report the CSI for the above active BWP.

[0078] Generally, a single dormant BWP may be configured for each cell. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. Generally, one or more dormant BWPs may be configured for each cell. In particular, one cell may have only one (single) configured dormant BWP, while another cell may have two or more configured dormant BWPs. At the same time, there may also be cells with zero dormant BWPs configured.

[0079] Switching between hibernation and non-hibernation An L1 (physical layer) based Scell ​​dormancy indication (e.g., via DCI) may be transmitted in the primary cell during the active time. More specifically, an explicit information field in the DCI indicates switching to / from the dormancy BWP configured for the Scell. For example, the PDCCH may schedule data for the primary cell (Pcell) and indicate dormancy for one or more Scells. However, the PDCCH may also indicate dormancy for one or more Scell(s) without scheduling data. Whether the PDCCH with the dormancy indication schedules data for the Pcell may also be indicated to the UE (e.g., by the DCI). In general, the BWP framework may be used for behavior indication.

[0080] For a certain Scell, the dormant BWP may be a relatively narrower BWP than other configured BWPs for the UE to perform dormant behavior. This allows the UE to save more power. When traffic arrives, the UE can switch to other BWPs as needed for small packet traffic or larger packet traffic for higher throughput. Meanwhile, the dormant BWP may also be a relatively wider BWP than other configured BWPs. This may be a trade-off for the UE to save power and prepare for high throughput traffic by only measuring / reporting CSI without monitoring PDCCH. When traffic arrives with large data packets and high throughput and latency requirements, the UE can quickly switch to another wideband BWP to start data transmission by using the past wideband CSI reports.

[0081] For example, for each Scell ​​or group of Scells, the dormancy indication may be a one-bit field (e.g., a flag) in the DCI. The network node may then set the flag to "0" and "1" to indicate dormant and non-dormant behavior, respectively (or vice versa). In other words, each value of the bit field may be associated with and therefore indicate a different one of dormant and non-dormant behavior. Alternatively, for example, the flag may be used as a toggle flag. One of its values, e.g., "1", may indicate toggling the dormant behavior, and the other value, e.g., "0", may be used to indicate not toggling the dormant behavior.

[0082] In general, the UE may receive, e.g., via DCI, an indication related to a dormant and / or non-dormant behavior, referred to herein as a "dormant indication", "Scell ​​dormant indication", etc. Said dormant indication, which may be related / associated with the dormant behavior of one or more (active) cells (e.g., a single cell, or a corresponding group of cells), may indicate a switching / transition from dormant behavior to non-dormant behavior or a switching from non-dormant behavior to dormant behavior in the associated cells. In general, a dormant indication may also indicate no switching / change of dormant behavior in activated cells. A dormant indication indicating a change / switch of dormant behavior of one or more cells is also referred to herein as a "dormant switching indication".

[0083] As just mentioned, the dormancy indication relates to the dormancy behavior of one or more cells. This cell or cell group can be configured / indicated, for example, by the RRC. In other words, before receiving a DCI containing a dormancy indication, the UE can receive an indication via the RRC indicating the cell or group of cells to which the dormancy indication or indications apply. For example, there can be a cell group of one or more cells that can be configured and reconfigured by the RRC, and each dormancy indication can relate to a cell group that is configured when the DCI with the respective dormancy indication is received. Alternatively, the dormancy indication can be defined or configured to be for all Scells configured with a dormant and non-dormant like behavior switch.

[0084] In general, the Scell ​​dormancy indication may be received in the DCI of the Pcell. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and the dormancy indication may be received, for example, in the DCI of the Scell. In other words, in general, the dormancy indication may be received in the DCI of any cell that is a serving cell of the UE.

[0085] In general, when a UE receives an instruction to switch its dormancy behavior in a cell, it may change the active BWP of that cell, which is also referred to herein as the target BWP. In other words, the target BWP is the BWP of the cell that is active after the UE performs the transition indicated by the dormancy instruction. In other words, the UE performs the dormancy behavior indicated in the target BWP after receiving an instruction to change its dormancy behavior. In other words, when performing the dormancy behavior transition indicated by the dormancy instruction, the target BWP becomes the active BWP. In general, the target BWP may be different from the current active BWP (e.g., the BWP that is active when the dormancy instruction is received) or may be the current active BWP. It is further noted that if the dormancy instruction relates to two or more cells, there may be a respective target BWP for each of the above cells. Specifically, if the UE receives an instruction to switch from dormancy to non-dormancy after the UE switches to the target BWP, the UE performs non-dormancy-like behavior (PDCCH monitoring and CSI reporting) in the above target BWP.

[0086] For example, assume that one dormant BWP and multiple normal BWPs are configured for an Scell. Then, when L1 signaling (dormancy indication) indicates a transition from non-dormant to dormant for a cell or cell group, the UE behavior is clear, i.e., the active BWP switches to the dormant BWP. In other words, the dormant BWP is the target BWP, the dormant BWP becomes the active BWP, and the UE performs dormant-like behavior in the dormant BWP.

[0087] However, if L1 signaling indicates a transition from dormant to non-dormant, either the dormant BWP or one of several normal BWPs may be the target BWP for implementing non-dormant-like behavior, in other words, the UE behavior when switching to which target BWP may have to be defined.

[0088] However, the number of bits for the L1 dormancy indication may be limited, especially if the DCI containing the above L1 signaling also schedules data. For example, in NR, the upper limit of the number of bits for the dormancy indication during active time (also denoted as X2) may be 5 (X2=5).

[0089] To address these issues, the present disclosure provides various embodiments that facilitate determining a target BWP without requiring explicit signaling over a DCI.

[0090] An exemplary user equipment, UE, according to an embodiment is shown on the right side of FIG. 6. According to this embodiment, a UE 660 is provided. The UE comprises a transceiver 670 that receives, during operation, a downlink control information (DCI) signaling (e.g., on a primary cell (Pcell)). The UE further includes a circuit 680 that obtains, during operation, an indication regarding a dormant behavior of a secondary cell (Scell) from the DCI signaling, where the Scell ​​is configured with multiple bandwidth portions (e.g., four BWPs), BWPs, including a dormant BWP and one or more normal BWPs. If the indication indicates transitioning from a dormant behavior to a non-dormant behavior, the circuit 680 determines a target BWP for performing a non-dormant behavior according to at least one of a priority of the one or more normal BWPs, a predefined or pre-configured BWP, a legacy BWP indicator field of the DCI signaling, a previously active normal BWP, and a dormant BWP.

[0091] The circuit 680 may implement more functions than the above-mentioned acquisition of a dormant indication and determination of a target BWP. Thus, the circuit 680 may be considered to include a PDCCH monitoring circuit 685, which is configured to perform the above-mentioned acquisition and determination. The configuration may be provided by hardware adaptation and / or software.

[0092] 8 illustrates an exemplary functional structure of the PDCCH monitoring circuit 685. In particular, the PDCCH monitoring circuit 685 may include a dormant monitoring circuit 836 and a target BWP determination circuit 837. The dormant monitoring circuit 836 can obtain a dormant indication from the DCI / PDCCH and set the dormant behavior in the cell accordingly. Thus, the dormant monitoring circuit 836 can activate / deactivate PDCCH monitoring of the PDCCH monitoring circuit 685 in the cell where the non-dormant / dormant behavior is indicated in the DCI. The BWP determination circuit 837 is configured to determine the respective target BWP(s) when the dormant indication obtained by the dormant monitoring circuit 836 indicates a transition from dormant behavior to non-dormant behavior for one or more Scells.

[0093] It should be noted that the PDCCH monitoring circuitry 685 may implement more functionality, for example, since it may determine resources for transmitting / receiving data. The processing circuitry 680 may, for example, receive a PDDCH / DCI and further control the transceiver 670 to receive or transmit data on resources indicated in the PDCCH / DCI.

[0094] In particular, the circuitry 680 (particularly the dormant monitoring circuitry 836) may, during operation, transition from a dormant behavior for an Scell ​​to a non-dormant behavior and perform the non-dormant behavior at the determined target BWP if a dormant indication indicates transitioning from the dormant behavior to a non-dormant behavior. In particular, if an indication to switch from the dormant behavior to the non-dormant behavior is received for an Scell, the circuitry may control the transceiver 670 to monitor the PDCCH in said Scell.

[0095] According to another exemplary embodiment, a network node 610 is provided (left side of FIG. 7). The network node comprises a transceiver 620 for transmitting, in operation, a downlink control information (DCI) signaling addressed to a user equipment. The DCI signaling includes an instruction regarding a dormant behavior of a secondary cell (Scell) of the UE. The Scell ​​is configured with a number of bandwidth portions including a dormant BWP and one or more normal BWPs. The network further includes a circuit 630. If the instruction indicates to transition from a dormant behavior to a non-dormant behavior, the circuit 630 determines, in operation, a target BWP for performing the non-dormant behavior. The circuit 630 can determine the target BWP depending on at least one of a priority of one or more normal BWPs, a predefined or pre-configured BWP, a legacy BWP indicator field of the DCI signaling, a previously active normal BWP, and a dormant BWP.

[0096] The scheduling device 610 may further include, as part of the circuitry 630, an allocation circuit for performing scheduling of one UE or multiple UEs. As a result of the scheduling, the circuitry 630 may generate a time domain resource allocation and corresponding DCI signaling indicating the resource allocation. The processing circuitry 630 may then control the transceiver 620 to transmit the DCI and to receive or transmit data on the resources indicated in the generated PDCCH / DCI.

[0097] An exemplary functional structure of the PDCCH generation circuit 635 is shown in Figure 9. In particular, the PDCCH generation circuit 685 may include a dormancy decision circuit 736 and a target BWP decision circuit 737. The PDCCH generation circuit 635 may further perform scheduling, for example, collecting measurements from one or more UEs and allocating resources to each UE based thereon and / or based on requests from the UEs and / or based on the availability of the resources. The PDCCH generation circuit 635 may then generate DCI including resource allocations and associations according to the scheduling results for each one or more UEs.

[0098] The dormancy decision circuit 736 may determine a dormancy behavior that the UE should perform for one or more of its cells. The PDCCH generation circuit 685 may then include a corresponding dormancy indication in the DCI addressed to the UE, indicating the result of the dormancy decision performed by the dormancy decision circuit 736.

[0099] The target BWP determination circuit 737 is configured to determine if the dormancy determination circuit 736 determines that the UE is to transition from a dormant behavior to a non-dormant behavior for one or more SCells, respective target BWP(s). It should be noted that the target BWP determination circuit 737 may determine the target BWP of a cell before the dormancy determination circuit 736 determines the dormant behavior of said cell. In practice, the dormancy determination circuit 736 may determine the dormant behavior of a cell or cell group taking into account the target BWP of the cell or cell group.

[0100] As can be further seen from FIG. 6, the UE 660 and the scheduling node 610 may form a communication system, i.e., communicate over a channel 650.

[0101] In general, a UE instructed to transition from a dormant-like behavior to a non-dormant-like behavior for an activated Scell ​​may determine a target BWP based on one or a combination of priorities of one or more normal BWPs, predefined or preconfigured BWPs, a legacy BWP indicator field in the DCI signaling, a previously active normal BWP, and a dormant BWP.

[0102] It should be noted that in order for the UE and the network node from the communication system to use an activation BWP for which the UE will perform a non-dormant behavior, the UE and the network node must know / determine the (same) target BWP. Thus, in general, the UE and the network node can individually determine the target BWP using a method that at least produces the same result (e.g., the target BWP determination circuit 737 and the target BWP determination circuit 837 may operate substantially similarly or be identical). In other words, the determination method according to the present disclosure can generally be performed on the side of the UE and / or the base station (network node). Alternatively, one of the two communication entities can determine the target BWP and send a corresponding instruction to the other. For example, the network node (e.g., the target BWP determination circuit 737) can determine a target BWP for an Scell ​​and send a corresponding instruction to the UE, which can then determine the target BWP for said Scell ​​based on / according to said instruction (e.g., the BWP determination circuit 837). In other words, in this disclosure, if the UE determines the target BWP using a particular method, the base station can determine the target BWP in the same or similar manner. Of course, this may not apply if the UE determines the target BWP based on DCI and / or RRC indications received from the base station. In this case, the base station can determine the target BWP and generate a corresponding indication taking into account other UEs, available resources, service quality, requests from the UE, received channel state information, traffic load, battery status of the UE, etc.

[0103] In general, the target BWP may be a predefined or preconfigured BWP. Thus, in general, a UE instructed to transition / switch to a non-dormant-like behavior for an active Scell ​​may switch to a predefined / configured BWP to perform the non-dormant-like behavior and / or may select a predefined / configured BWP as a target BWP to support the non-dormant-like behavior.

[0104] In some embodiments, this predefined / configured BWP is a normal BWP, i.e., in some embodiments, the target BWP is a normal BWP, or if there are more than one normal BWP configured for the Scell, the target is one of the normal BWPs. For example, a given BWP (i.e., the target BWP) may be given by a criterion. The criterion may directly define the target BWP (e.g., the index of the target BWP). Alternatively, the criterion may define the approach / method by which the BWP is determined. For example, each BWP may be associated with a respective index, and the BWP with the lowest or highest index may be defined to be the target BWP (the lowest or highest among the indices of the configured BWPs).

[0105] The pre-configured BWP may be configured by radio resource control (RRC) signaling, which is semi-static signaling, or, to increase configurability, the target BWP may be explicitly indicated or configured by the base station, for example, via a DCI.

[0106] Advantageously, in this embodiment, the UE does not need to perform calculations to determine the target BWP, and the base station (gNB) can set the target normal BWP through implementation.

[0107] However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. In general, a predefined or preconfigured BWP may be the default BWP. In general, the default may be configured as a dormant or normal BWP. However, in some embodiments, the dormant BWP may be configured and selected only from BWPs other than the default BWP. That is, the default BWP in the current NR specification may be configured only as a normal BWP, not a dormant BWP. Thus, a UE instructed to transition to a non-dormant-like behavior for an active Scell ​​may switch to the default BWP, which is the target BWP, to perform the non-dormant-like behavior.

[0108] Advantageously, the UE behavior is well-defined with only minor specification influences and no additional RRC parameters are present, thereby preventing additional overhead.

[0109] In general, the target BWP may be determined according to (or based on) the legacy BWP indicator field of the DCI. In other words, the UE may determine the target BWP for the Scell ​​by using the legacy BWP indicator field of the DCI carrying a dormant behavior indication indicating a transition to a non-dormant-like behavior for the Scell. Correspondingly, the base station may set the legacy BWP indicator field of the DCI to indicate the determined target BWP when determining the target BWP and generating the DCI indicating a transition to a non-dormant-like behavior. For example, the target BWP may be determined based on an index indicated by the legacy BWP indicator field.

[0110] It should be noted that the legacy BWP indicator field is a field of a cell's DCI used by the base station to indicate the BWP of said cell to the UE. The legacy BWP indicator field may be used, for example, to indicate the BWP in which the scheduled resource is located in the above DCI (or a subsequent DCI of said cell). The legacy BWP indicator field may be used to activate the indicated BWP and, as a result, deactivate the currently active BWP. The legacy BWP indicator field may indicate or correspond to an index. More specifically, the legacy BWP indicator field is a field present in DCI formats 0_1 and 1_1 in NR for BWP switching operation, as defined, for example, in 3GPP TS 38.212.

[0111] Note that the legacy BWP indicator was not used in NR Rel.15 for dormancy indication or to indicate the target BWP when switching to non-dormant behavior. It was used to change the active BWP in the serving cell scheduled with data. More specifically, in NR Rel.15, the legacy BWP indicator was included in the DCI (format 0_1 / 1_1) of the Pcell or Scell ​​and was a field that was used to indicate the BWP also scheduled data for said Pcell / Scell ​​and was activated in said Pcell / Scell ​​where scheduled data is received / transmitted.

[0112] However, in some embodiments of the present invention, for a dormant indication during active time, for each active Scell ​​configured to support dormant behavior switching, the determination of the target BWP index for non-dormant behavior is based on the BWP indicator for the Pcell. More specifically, the dormant switching indication may be received in the DCI of a cell (which may be a Pcell or an Scell ​​for which the UE performs a non-dormant-like behavior) that also schedules data and includes a legacy BWP indicator field. The legacy BWP indicator field may then be used to determine the target BWP of one or more Scells to which said dormant switching indication pertains.

[0113] However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto, since the dormancy transition indication may be received in the DCI of a non-dormant Scell ​​(referring to an Scell ​​in which the UE does not perform a dormant-like behavior when receiving the DCI). In this case, for example, a legacy BWP indicator field in the DCI of the Scell ​​may be used to determine the target BWP.

[0114] In general, each configured BWP of an Scell ​​may be associated with or correspond (e.g., in a one-to-one correspondence) to an index. This association may be used to determine the target BWP using the index indicated by the legacy BWP indicator field.

[0115] For example, in an exemplary implementation, the target BWP is always determined to be the BWP among the configured BWPs that corresponds to the index indicated by the legacy BWP indicator field.

[0116] In another exemplary embodiment, (simply) if the index corresponds to a normal BWP, the target BWP may be determined to be a BWP among the configured BWPs corresponding to the index indicated by the legacy BWP indicator field, and if the index corresponds to a dormant BWP, the target BWP may be determined according to a pre-determined or pre-defined manner. In other words, the UE determines the target BWP based on the legacy BWP indicator only if the index in the received legacy BWP indicator does not refer to the current dormant BWP of the Scell. On the other hand, if the index in the received legacy BWP indicator refers to the current dormant BWP of the Scell, the UE determines the target BWP based on at least one of the pre-defined or pre-configured BWP, the immediately preceding active normal BWP, the priority of the configured BWP, the priority of the normal BWP, and the dormant BWP, as described in other parts of this disclosure.

[0117] Using the legacy BWP indicator field (or the index indicated by the legacy BWP indicator field to indicate the target BWP) reduces the impact on the specification and prevents increased overhead when signaling the target BWP to the UE.

[0118] In general, the target BWP may be determined taking into account the activity of the configured normal BWP and / or dormant BWP. For example, according to another embodiment, the target BWP is the last active normal BWP among the normal BWPs configured for the respective cell of the UE. In other words, the UE (as well as the base station) can determine the target BWP as the last activated BWP, which is the normal BWP, i.e., the dormant / non-dormant BWP. More specifically, a UE instructed to transition to a non-dormant-like behavior for an active Scell ​​can determine the target BWP as the last active BWP for which the UE performed a non-dormant-like behavior. Determining the target BWP based on the latest activity provides the advantage of low impact on the specifications. Furthermore, no additional signaling from the base station to the UE indicating the target BWP is required. This reduces overhead and thereby increases the efficiency of communication.

[0119] In some embodiments, it is determined that the target BWP is a dormant BWP. In other words, the UE (as well as the base station) determines the target BWP from the dormant BWP(s). If there are more than one dormant BWPs configured for the Scell, the target BWP may be determined from all dormant BWPs, or from the BWP that is the currently active dormant BWP for which the UE performs dormant-like behavior, for example, when a DCI with a dormant switching indication is received for which the target BWP should be determined. For example, the target BWP may be a dormant BWP, in which case the UE does not switch to a different BWP and performs a non-dormant-like behavior in the currently active dormant BWP.

[0120] As mentioned above, in some embodiments, the target BWP is determined according to (or based on) a priority order. For a UE indicated to transition to a non-dormant-like behavior for an active Scell, the UE (e.g., the processing circuit 680) determines the target BWP, for example, by calculating a priority of a normal BWP. Based on this priority calculated by the UE, the UE selects a target BWP to support a non-dormant-like behavior.

[0121] In general, such a priority may be the priority of (all) configured BWPs, or the priority of (one or more) normal BWPs, or the priority of configured BWPs excluding, for example, currently active dormant BWPs. Without prejudice thereto, and for the sake of clarity, only the priority of normal BWPs is explicitly mentioned.

[0122] In general, a priority of BWPs can be an ordering of BWPs, a ranking of BWPs, or a sequence of BWPs, where each relevant BWP appears exactly once. In a priority order, each BWP may have or be associated with a priority, either explicitly or implicitly. The priority may be a value, and in a priority order, BWPs may be ordered according to the size of said priority values. Thus, a priority order can be constructed from rules that assign / associate each BWP with a (priority) value. Then, for each BWP, the corresponding priority can be determined / calculated by calculating the priority of each BWP and ordering the BWPs according to the calculated priority.

[0123] In general, if two BWPs are associated with the same priority, the two BWPs may be ordered arbitrarily, or one or more additional criteria may be defined to make a distinction as to which BWP has the higher priority.

[0124] In order to determine the target BWP according to the priority, it may not be necessary to explicitly determine the priority. For example, only the priority of the BWP may be determined, and the BWP with the highest priority may be selected.

[0125] Generally, the BWP with the highest priority (value) may be determined to be the target BWP, however, in some embodiments, other criteria are considered and the BWP with the highest priority that meets these criteria is selected as the target BWP.

[0126] For example, in some implementations in which the target BWP is determined according to priority, for each normal BWP, the priority of the normal BWP increases as the overlap in terms of bandwidth between the normal BWP and the dormant BWP increases. More specifically, a BWP has a higher priority (than the other BWPs) if it has more overlapping bandwidth with the currently active dormant BWP (than the other BWPs). Thus, the target BWP is the normal BWP that has the highest overlap (among the normal BWPs) with the currently active dormant BWP in terms of bandwidth.

[0127] For example, if BWP#1 has an overlap bandwidth of 10 MHz with the current dormant BWP and BWP#2 has an overlap bandwidth of 5 MHz with the current dormant BWP, the UE may determine, for example, that the priority of BWP#1 is 10 and the priority of BWP#2 is 5. The UE may therefore select BWP#1 as the target BWP to behave like a non-dormant state. In general, the UE may therefore determine / calculate for each normal BWP the overlap between the normal BWP and the currently active dormant BWP and select as the target BWP the normal BWP for which the UE has calculated the highest overlap.

[0128] Advantageously, this embodiment enables the gNB to utilize past CSI reports for a currently active dormant BWP received from the UE (when the UE performed a dormant-like behavior in said BWP).

[0129] In another embodiment in which the target BWP is determined according to priority, for each normal BWP, the priority of the normal BWP increases as the difference between the center frequency of the normal BWP and the center frequency of the dormant BWP decreases. More specifically, if the center frequency of the BWP is closer to the center frequency of the current dormant BWP, the BWP has a higher priority. In general, the UE can therefore determine / calculate for each normal BWP the difference in center frequency of the normal BWP to the center frequency of the currently active dormant BWP and select as the target BWP the normal BWP for which the UE has calculated the smallest difference.

[0130] Advantageously, this implementation allows the gNB to utilize past CSI reports for a currently active dormant BWP received from the UE (when the UE performed a dormant-like behavior in the above BWP).

[0131] According to another embodiment, a method for a UE is provided. The method includes receiving DCI signaling and obtaining an indication regarding a dormant behavior of an Scell. The Scell ​​is configured with a plurality of BWPs, the plurality of BWPs including a dormant BWP and one or more normal BWPs. If the indication indicates a transition from a dormant behavior to a non-dormant behavior, the method further includes determining a target BWP for performing the non-dormant behavior. The target BWP is determined according to at least one of a priority of the one or more normal BWPs, a predefined or preconfigured BWP, a legacy BWP indicator field of the DCI signaling, a previously active normal BWP, and a dormant BWP.

[0132] According to another embodiment, a method for a network node is provided. The method includes a step of transmitting DCI signaling, the DCI signaling being destined for a UE and including an instruction regarding a dormant behavior of an Scell ​​in the UE. The Scell ​​is configured with multiple BWPs, including a dormant BWP and one or more normal BWPs. If the instruction indicates transition from a dormant behavior to a non-dormant behavior, the method further includes a step of determining a target BWP for performing the non-dormant behavior according to at least one of a priority of the one or more normal BWPs, a predefined or preconfigured BWP, a legacy BWP indicator field of the DCI signaling, a previously active normal BWP, and a dormant BWP.

[0133] The left and right sides of FIG. 9 illustrate example methods according to the present disclosure for a base station and a UE, respectively.

[0134] In step S910, the base station determines the dormancy behavior of the UE's Scell ​​(S910). This determination can take into account other UEs, available resources, quality of service, requests from the UE, received channel state information, traffic load, battery status of the UE, etc. If the UE is currently performing a dormant-like behavior for the Scell, this determination can further take into account an available target BWP (e.g., in an implementation, the base station can select a target BWP and indicate the selected target BWP to the UE in the DCI together with the dormant switching indication) or a BWP that will be the target BWP (e.g., in an embodiment, the base station cannot indicate the target BWP to the UE in the DCI together with the dormant switching indication).

[0135] In other words, if the UE is currently performing a dormant-like behavior for the Scell, the base station decides whether the UE should i) continue to perform a dormant behavior for the Scell, or ii) switch to a non-dormant behavior in the Scell. The base station may also determine a target BWP as part of this step. On the other hand, if the UE is currently performing a non-dormant-like behavior for the Scell, the base station decides whether the UE should i) continue to perform a non-dormant-like behavior for the Scell, or ii) switch to a dormant behavior in the Scell. In other words, the base station decides whether the switching of the dormant behavior of the Scell ​​should be instructed to the UE.

[0136] It should be noted that if more than one cell of the UE supports a dormant-like behavior, the dormant behavior of more than one cell may be determined in this step, particularly advantageously, this determination is performed jointly for more than one cell.

[0137] As shown in Figure 9, the base station may re-evaluate the dormancy behavior of the Scell. For example, the base station may periodically / periodically (re)determine whether a dormancy behavior switch should be indicated to the UE. Alternatively or additionally, the (re)determination of the dormancy behavior of the Scell ​​may be triggered by some event, such as a request of the UE to transmit data or an increase / decrease in traffic associated with the UE.

[0138] Specifically, in step S920, the base station generates a PDCCH / DCI including a dormancy indication indicating to switch or maintain the dormancy behavior of the Scell ​​according to the determination of the dormancy behavior in step S910 (S920). This DCI may include further control information and may schedule or not schedule data. The DCI may be generated for the PDCCH of the UE's Pcell or another Scell ​​of the UE for which the UE does not currently perform a dormant-like behavior.

[0139] In step S930, the base station transmits the DCI generated in step S920 to the UE (S930). As just mentioned, the DCI may be transmitted in the Scell ​​or the Pcell.

[0140] In step S980, the base station transmits data DCI on the PDCCH of the Pcell or the Scell. If data is not transmitted or received from the UE, this step may be omitted. If the Scell ​​is switched from a dormant-like behavior to a non-dormant-like behavior, the UE will now also monitor the PDCCH of the Scell, so the base station can now also transmit DCI scheduling data on the PDCCH of the Scell.

[0141] In step S1010, the UE monitors the PDCCH of the Pcell (S1010). Note that on the right side of Figure 9, it is assumed that the UE is currently performing a dormant-like behavior with respect to the Scell(s).

[0142] In step S1030, the UE receives, in the PDCCH of the Pcell, a DCI including a dormancy indication related to the Scell(s) while monitoring the above PDCCH of the Pcell.

[0143] In step S1040, the UE obtains a dormancy indication from the DCI of the PDCCH of the Pcell (S1040). The UE can then determine whether the dormancy indication indicates a transition from dormant-like behavior to non-dormant-like behavior for one or more cells. If the dormancy indication does not indicate a transition, the UE continues to monitor only the PDCCH of the Pcell. On the other hand, if the dormancy indication indicates a switch to non-dormant-like behavior, the UE determines a target BWP for implementing non-dormant-like behavior for each Scell ​​to which the dormancy indication is associated (S1060), as described elsewhere in this disclosure.

[0144] If there are one or more Scells for which the UE is currently performing a non-dormant-like behavior, the UE may determine for each of these one or more cells whether the dormancy indication indicates a transition from a non-dormant-like behavior to a dormant-like behavior. In case of such an indication, the dormant BWP(s) of these Scell(s) become active BWP(s) and the UE starts performing a dormant-like behavior for these Scell(s).

[0145] In step S1080, the UE monitors the PDCCH in the Pcell and the Scell. More specifically, for each Scell, the UE monitors the PDCCH in the target BWP determined in step S1060.

[0146] It should be noted that all embodiments and implementations described in this disclosure apply not only within the active time (C-DRX on period) but also to the external active time where the non-sleep indication is included in DCI format 3_0, known as WUS (Wake-up Signal) or PoSS (Power Saving Signal / Channel).

[0147] In other words, in some of the above embodiments, the dormancy indication is carried by the DCI during the active time. For example, a DCI format that also schedules data may be used for that purpose. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and the dormancy indication may be included in a DCI that does not schedule data. For example, the dormancy indication may be included in a DCI that is a wake-up signal from some power saving operation, for example from discontinuous reception (DRX) as described above. DRX is a cycle of on periods during which the UE monitors the PDCCH for scheduling assignments and off periods (for power saving purposes) during which the UE does not monitor the PDCCH for scheduling assignments.

[0148] For example, in the case of an on-period, when waking up from DRX OFF, the UE may determine the target BWP according to one or more of the priorities of one or more normal BWPs, a predefined or preconfigured BWP, a legacy BWP indicator field in DCI signaling, and a dormant BWP, as described above. Note that the present invention is not limited to the above determination example, and in general, the target BWP may be determined to be the immediately previous active normal BWP, but the effectiveness of the determination will be low if the DRX OFF period is long.

[0149] In other cases, i.e., non-DRX operation or transition during active time, the target BWP may be determined as the most recently active normal BWP. In this scenario (active time), determining the target BWP as the most recently active normal BWP may provide an efficient means for initiating non-dormant behavior, e.g., reducing the probability that a change in the active BWP needs to be performed immediately.

[0150] As already mentioned above, for the pause indication during active time, any of the above mentioned BWP determination approaches can be used alone or in combination.

[0151] According to another embodiment, a non-transitory computer readable storage medium is provided that stores a program that, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform steps of a method according to the present disclosure.

[0152] The embodiments of, for example, the UE 660 and base station 610, and the functions described herein with reference to, for example, the UE 660 and base station 610, may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functions may be stored on a computer-readable medium or transmitted over a communication medium as one or more instructions or code and executed by a hardware-based processing unit. A computer-readable medium may include a computer-readable storage medium corresponding to a tangible medium, such as a data storage medium, or a communication medium including any medium that facilitates the transfer of a computer program from one place to another, for example according to a communication protocol. In this manner, a computer-readable medium may generally correspond to (1) a tangible computer-readable storage medium that is non-transitory, or (2) a communication medium, such as a signal or carrier wave. A data storage medium may be any available medium accessible by one or more computers or one or more processors to retrieve instructions, code and / or data structures for implementation of the techniques described in this disclosure. A computer program product may include a computer-readable medium.

[0153] By way of example, and not limitation, such computer-readable storage media may include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage, flash memory, or any other medium that can be used to store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer. Also, any connection is properly referred to as a computer-readable medium. For example, if instructions are transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave, the coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of media. However, it should be understood that computer-readable storage media and data storage media do not include connections, carrier waves, signals, or other transitory media, but instead cover non-transitory tangible storage media. As used herein, disks include compact disks (CDs), laser disks, optical disks, digital versatile disks (DVDs), floppy disks, and Blu-ray disks, where disks typically reproduce data magnetically and disks reproduce data optically with a laser. Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of computer readable media.

[0154] The instructions may be executed by one or more processors, such as one or more digital signal processors (DSPs), general-purpose microprocessors, application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field programmable logic arrays (FPGAs), or other equivalent integrated or discrete logic circuitry. Thus, the term "processor" as used herein may refer to any of the foregoing structures, or any other structure suitable for implementing the techniques described herein. Furthermore, in some aspects, the functionality described herein may be provided within dedicated hardware and / or software modules configured for encoding and decoding, or may be incorporated into a combined codec. Also, the techniques may be implemented entirely in one or more circuit or logic elements.

[0155] The techniques of this disclosure may be implemented in a wide variety of devices or apparatuses, including wireless handsets, integrated circuits (ICs), or sets of ICs (e.g., chipsets). Various components, modules, or units are described in this disclosure to highlight functional aspects of devices configured to perform the disclosed techniques, but do not necessarily require realization by different hardware units. Rather, as described above, the various units may be combined into a codec hardware unit or may be provided by a collection of interoperating hardware units, including one or more processors as described above, along with appropriate software and / or firmware.

[0156] According to a first embodiment, an apparatus (e.g., a user equipment, UE) is provided. The apparatus comprises a transceiver for receiving, during operation, a downlink control information (DCI) signaling. The apparatus further comprises a circuit for obtaining, during operation, an indication on a dormant behavior of a secondary cell (Scell) from the DCI signaling, the Scell ​​being configured with a plurality of bandwidth portions (BWPs) including a dormant BWP and one or more normal BWPs, and the circuit for determining, during operation, a target BWP for performing the non-dormant behavior when the indication indicates transitioning from the dormant behavior to the non-dormant behavior. The determination of the target BWP is performed according to at least one of a priority of the one or more normal BWPs, a predefined or preconfigured BWP, a legacy BWP indicator field of the DCI signaling, a previously active normal BWP, and a dormant BWP.

[0157] According to the second embodiment, in the device of the first embodiment, the predefined or preconfigured BWP is at least one of: set by Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling, being the lowest BWP, being the highest indexed BWP, and being explicitly indicated by the base station.

[0158] According to the third embodiment, in the device of the first or second embodiment, the predefined or preconfigured BWP is a default BWP configured as a normal BWP.

[0159] According to a fourth embodiment, in the apparatus of the first embodiment, the circuitry (in operation) determines a target BWP based on an index indicated by the legacy BWP indicator field.

[0160] According to a fifth embodiment, in the device of the fourth embodiment, if the index corresponds to an index of a normal BWP among one or more normal BWPs, the circuit determines (during operation) that the target BWP is the normal BWP, and if the index corresponds to an index of a dormant BWP, the circuit determines that the target BWP is a dormant BWP or the target BWP according to a pre-determined or pre-defined manner.

[0161] According to a sixth embodiment, in the device of the first embodiment, the circuit determines (during operation) that the target BWP is the previously active normal BWP among one or more normal BWPs.

[0162] According to a seventh embodiment, in the device of the first embodiment, the circuit determines (during operation) that the target BWP is a dormant BWP.

[0163] According to the eighth embodiment, in the device of the first embodiment, in the priority order of each normal BWP, the priority of the normal BWP increases as the bandwidth overlap between the normal BWP and the sleep BWP increases.

[0164] According to the ninth embodiment, in the device of the first embodiment, in the priority order of each normal BWP, the priority of the normal BWP increases as the difference between the center frequency of the normal BWP and the center frequency of the idle BWP decreases.

[0165] According to a tenth embodiment, in an apparatus of any of the first to ninth embodiments, when an instruction indicates, during operation, to transition from a dormant behavior to a non-dormant behavior, for an Scell, the circuit transitions from the dormant behavior to a non-dormant behavior and executes the non-dormant behavior at a determined target BWP.

[0166] According to an eleventh embodiment, a method (e.g., a method for a user equipment (UE)) is provided. The method includes receiving a downlink control information (DCI) signaling and obtaining an indication from the DCI signaling regarding a dormant behavior of a secondary cell (Scell), the Scell ​​being configured with a plurality of bandwidth portions (BWPs) including a dormant BWP and one or more normal BWPs. The method further includes determining a target BWP for performing the non-dormant behavior if the indication indicates transition from a dormant behavior to a non-dormant behavior. In particular, the determining step is performed according to at least one of a priority of one or more normal BWPs, a predefined or preconfigured BWP, a legacy BWP indicator field of the DCI signaling, a previously active normal BWP, and a dormant BWP.

[0167] According to a twelfth embodiment, a network node is provided. The network node comprises a transceiver for transmitting, during operation, a downlink control information (DCI) signaling addressed to a user equipment (UE), the DCI signaling including an instruction for a dormant behavior of a secondary cell (Scell) in the UE, the Scell ​​being configured with a plurality of bandwidth portions (BWPs) including a dormant BWP and one or more normal BWPs. The network node comprises, during operation, a circuit for determining a target BWP for performing the non-dormant behavior when the instruction indicates transition from the dormant behavior to the non-dormant behavior according to at least one of a priority of the one or more normal BWPs, a predefined or preconfigured BWP, a legacy BWP indicator field of the DCI signaling, a previously active normal BWP, and a dormant BWP.

[0168] According to a thirteenth embodiment, a method for a network node is provided, comprising: transmitting downlink control information (DCI) signaling addressed to a user equipment (UE), the DCI signaling including an indication for a dormant behavior of a secondary cell (Scell) in the UE, the Scell ​​being configured with a number of bandwidth parts (BWPs) including a dormant BWP and one or more normal BWPs. If the indication indicates transition from dormant behavior to non-dormant behavior, the method comprises determining a target BWP for performing the non-dormant behavior according to at least one of a priority of the one or more normal BWPs, a predefined or preconfigured BWP, a legacy BWP indicator field of the DCI signaling, a previously active normal BWP, and a dormant BWP.

[0169] According to a fourteenth embodiment, a computer-readable recording medium is provided, which stores a program that, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform the steps of the method according to either the eleventh or thirteenth embodiment described above.

[0170] It should be noted that the steps performed by the above-mentioned circuits during operation also constitute steps of respective corresponding methods, which may be embodied in a computer program that may be stored on a non-transitory computer-readable recording medium.

[0171] The present disclosure relates to a communication device, a base station, and respective methods for the communication device and the base station. Specifically, the base station transmits downlink control information (DCI) signaling, and the communication device receives the DCI signaling. The DCI signaling includes an instruction related to a dormant behavior of a secondary cell (Scell). The Scell ​​is configured with multiple bandwidth parts (BWPs), and the multiple BWPs include a dormant BWP and one or more normal BWPs. If the instruction indicates a transition from the dormant behavior to a non-dormant behavior, a target BWP for performing the non-dormant behavior is determined. The determination of the target BWP is performed according to at least one of a priority of one or more normal BWPs, a predefined or preconfigured BWP, a legacy BWP indicator field of the DCI signaling, a previously active normal BWP, and a dormant BWP, among others.

Claims

1. A transceiver for receiving downlink control information (DCI) signaling including an instruction regarding a dormant behavior of a secondary cell (Scell); if the indication indicates a non-sleep behavior, determining a target bandwidth portion (BWP) for implementing the non-sleep behavior; Including, When the DCI signaling is a first DCI signaling, the indication relates to a dormant or non-dormant behavior within an active time; When the DCI signaling is a second DCI signaling, the indication relates to a dormant or non-dormant behavior outside an active time. Communications equipment.

2. During operation, when the indication indicates the non-dormant behavior, the circuit determines the target BWP for performing the non-dormant behavior according to at least one of the following three methods: a pre-configured BWP, a legacy BWP indicator field of the DCI signaling, and a previously active normal BWP. The communication device according to claim 1 .

3. The pre-configured BWP is configured by radio resource control (RRC) signaling. The communication device according to claim 2 .

4. The preset BWP is a default BWP set as a normal BWP. The communication device according to claim 2 .

5. the first BWP is determined according to one of the three methods; If the first BWP is a rest BWP, the first BWP is determined to be the target BWP; If the first BWP is not the rest BWP, a second BWP determined according to a method different from the one of the three methods is determined to be the target BWP. The communication device according to claim 2 .

6. If the instruction indicates a sleep behavior, the sleep behavior is executed using a sleep BWP. The communication device according to claim 1 .

7. Receive downlink control information (DCI) signaling including an instruction regarding a dormant behavior of a secondary cell (Scell); If the indication indicates a non-sleep behavior, determining a target bandwidth portion (BWP) for implementing the non-sleep behavior; When the DCI signaling is a first DCI signaling, the indication relates to a dormant or non-dormant behavior within an active time; When the DCI signaling is a second DCI signaling, the indication relates to a dormant or non-dormant behavior outside an active time. Communication methods.

8. If the indication indicates the non-dormant behavior, determining the target BWP for performing the non-dormant behavior according to at least one of a pre-configured BWP, a legacy BWP indicator field of the DCI signaling, a previously active normal BWP, and the dormant BWP. The communication method according to claim 7.

9. receiving downlink control information (DCI) signaling including an instruction regarding a dormant behavior of a secondary cell (Scell); and if the indication indicates a non-sleep behavior, determining a target bandwidth portion (BWP) for implementing the non-sleep behavior. When the DCI signaling is a first DCI signaling, the indication relates to a dormant or non-dormant behavior within an active time; When the DCI signaling is a second DCI signaling, the indication relates to a dormant or non-dormant behavior outside an active time. Integrated circuits.

10. A transceiver for transmitting downlink control information (DCI) signaling including an instruction regarding a dormant behavior of a secondary cell (Scell); if the instruction indicates a non-sleep behavior, determining a target BWP for implementing the non-sleep behavior; Including, When the DCI signaling is a first DCI signaling, the indication relates to a dormant or non-dormant behavior within an active time; When the DCI signaling is a second DCI signaling, the indication relates to a dormant or non-dormant behavior outside an active time. Scheduling node.

11. Transmitting downlink control information (DCI) signaling including an instruction regarding a dormant behavior of a secondary cell (Scell); If the instruction indicates a non-sleep behavior, determining a target BWP for implementing the non-sleep behavior; When the DCI signaling is a first DCI signaling, the indication relates to a dormant or non-dormant behavior within an active time; When the DCI signaling is a second DCI signaling, the indication relates to a dormant or non-dormant behavior outside an active time. Communication methods.

12. transmitting downlink control information (DCI) signaling including an instruction regarding a dormant behavior of a secondary cell (Scell); if the instruction indicates a non-sleep behavior, determining a target BWP for implementing the non-sleep behavior; When the DCI signaling is a first DCI signaling, the indication relates to a dormant or non-dormant behavior within an active time; When the deferred DCI signaling is a second DCI signaling, the indication relates to a dormant or non-dormant behavior outside an active time. Integrated circuits.

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