User equipment and scheduling node

Abstract

To provide user equipment (UE), a scheduling node, and a paging method and device for each of the UE and the scheduling node, which achieve reduction in power consumption and efficient resource usage.SOLUTION: In a wireless communication system, UE includes a transceiver 770 that receives at least one physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) during operation, and a circuit 780 that determines whether to monitor paging downlink control information (DCI) based on the at least one PDCCH during operation.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to transmitting and receiving signals in a communication system, and more particularly to methods and apparatus for such transmission and reception. [Background technology]

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

[0003] For systems such as LTE, LTE-A, and NR, further improvements and options may be made to facilitate efficient operation of the communication system as well as particular devices associated with the system. Summary of the Invention

[0004] One non-limiting and illustrative embodiment facilitates efficient utilization of resources, including UE power and channel occupancy time, when paging is performed or scheduled during channel occupancy time.

[0005] In an embodiment, the techniques disclosed herein feature a user equipment (UE) having a transceiver that receives at least one physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) during operation that is determinable of an allocation of paging occasions to be monitored for paging downlink control information (DCI), and circuitry that determines, during operation based on the at least one PDCCH, whether to monitor the paging downlink control information (DCI), wherein the transceiver, during operation, monitors the paging DCI based on the determination of the allocation of paging occasions.

[0006] It should be noted that the entire or specific embodiments may be realized 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 from 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 explanation of the drawings]

[0008] In the following, exemplary embodiments are explained in more detail with reference to the attached drawings. [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example architecture of a 3GPP NR system. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example user and control plane architecture for LTE eNB, gNB, and UE. [Figure 3] 1 is a schematic diagram showing the division of functions between NG-RAN and 5GC. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a sequence diagram for an RRC connection setup / reconfiguration procedure. [Figure 5] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating usage scenarios of eMBB (enhanced Mobile Broadband), mMTC (massive Machine Type Communications) and URLLC (Ultra Reliable and Low Latency Communications). [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example 5G system architecture. [Figure 7] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a user equipment (UE) and a scheduling node. [Figure 8] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a dynamic paging allocation decision circuit of a UE. [Figure 9]FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a dynamic paging allocation circuit of a scheduling node. [Figure 10] 10 is a flowchart illustrating steps of a paging method for a UE and a paging method for a scheduling node; [Figure 11] FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary allocation of PDCCH monitoring occasions and paging times. [Figure 12] 10 is a flowchart illustrating steps of an example paging method for a UE. [Figure 13] FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary allocation of PDCCH monitoring occasions and paging times. [Figure 14] 10 is a flowchart illustrating steps of an example paging method for a UE. [Figure 15] FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary allocation of PDCCH monitoring occasions and paging times. [Figure 16] 10 is a flowchart illustrating steps of an example paging method for a UE. [Figure 17] FIG. 1 illustrates details of channel occupation (CO) PDCCH signaling. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] 5G NR system architecture and protocol stack 3GPP has been working on the next release of fifth-generation cellular technology, simply called 5G, including the development of New Radio Access Technology (NR), which 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 for the advancement of trials and commercialization of smartphones compliant with the 5G NR standard.

[0010] In particular, the overall system architecture assumes a Next Generation-Radio Access Network (NG-RAN) including gNBs, which provide NG radio access user plane (SDAP / PDCP / RLC / MAC / PHY) and control plane (Radio Resource Control, 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 an NG (Next Generation) interface, more specifically to an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) (e.g., a specific core entity that runs the AMF) by an NG-C interface, and to a User Plane Function (UPF) (e.g., a specific core entity that runs the UPF) by an NG-U interface. The NG-RAN architecture is shown in Figure 1 (see, e.g., 3GPP TS 38.300 v15.6.0, section 4).

[0011] Various different deployment scenarios can be supported (see, for example, 3GPP TR 38.801 v14.0.0, etc.). For example, a decentralized deployment scenario (see, for example, section 5.2 of TR 38.801; a centralized deployment is shown in section 5.4) is presented therein, in which base stations supporting 5G NR can be deployed. Figure 2 illustrates an exemplary decentralized deployment scenario (see, for example, Figure 5.2-1 of TR 38.801), further illustrating an LTE eNB and user equipment (UE) connected to both the gNB and the LTE eNB. The new eNB for NR 5G can illustratively be referred to as a gNB. The eLTE eNB is an evolved version of the eNB that supports connectivity with the Evolved Packet Core (EPC) and Next Generation Core (NGC).

[0012] The user plane protocol stack for NR (see, for example, 3GPP TS 38.300, section 4.4.1) includes the Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP, see section 6.4 of TS 38.300), Radio Link Control (RLC, see section 6.3 of TS 38.300), and Medium Access Control (MAC, see section 6.2 of TS 38.300) sublayers, which are terminated at the gNB on the network side. Furthermore, a new Access Stratum (AS) sublayer (Service Data Adaptation Protocol, SDAP) is introduced on top of PDCP (see, for example, sub-clause 6.5 of 3GPP TS 38.300). A control plane protocol stack is also defined for NR (see, for example, TS 38.300, section 4.4.2). An overview of Layer 2 functions is given in sub-clause 6 of TS 38.300. 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 sub-clause 7 of TS 38.300.

[0013] For example, the MAC layer handles logical channel multiplexing and scheduling and scheduling-related functions, including handling different numerologies.

[0014] 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 the 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 used for the transmission of a particular transport channel, and each transport channel is mapped to a corresponding physical channel. For example, one physical channel is the Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH) used for random access.

[0015] Use cases / deployment scenarios for NR may include enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB), Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communications (URLLC), and massive Machine Type Communication (mMTC), which have diverse requirements regarding data rates, latency, and coverage. For example, eMBB is expected to support peak data rates (20 Gbps in the downlink and 10 Gbps in the 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 user plane latency on UL and DL, respectively) and high reliability (1-10 ms latency within 1 ms). -5 Finally, mMTC is preferably imposed on high connection densities (over 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.

[0016] Therefore, 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 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 short delay spreads. Subcarrier spacing should be optimized accordingly to maintain similar CP overhead. 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 Tu and subcarrier spacing Δf are directly related through the equation Δf = 1 / Tu. Similar to LTE systems, the term "resource element" can be used to denote the smallest resource unit consisting of one subcarrier for the length of one OFDM / SC-FDMA symbol.

[0017] In the new radio system 5G-NR for each numerology and carrier, a resource grid of subcarriers and OFDM symbols is defined for each uplink and downlink. Each element in the resource grid is called a resource element and is identified based on a frequency index in the frequency domain and a symbol position in the time domain (see 3GPP TS 38.211 v15.6.0).

[0018] 5G NR function split between NG-RAN and 5GC

[0019] Figure 3 shows the functional division between NG-RAN and 5GC. The NG-RAN logical node is the gNB or ng-eNB. The 5GC has logical nodes AMF, UPF, and SMF.

[0020] In particular, the gNB and ng-eNB provide the following key functions: Radio resource management functions, such as radio bearer control, radio admission control, connection mobility control, and dynamic resource allocation (scheduling) to UEs in both uplink and downlink. -IP header compression, encryption and integrity protection of data - AMF selection at UE attachment when routing to AMF cannot be determined from information provided by the UE - Routing of user plane data to UPF -Routing of control plane information to AMF -Connection setup and release - Scheduling and sending paging messages Scheduling and transmission of system broadcast information (originating from AMF or OAM) - Measurement and measurement report 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 delivery function -Radio Access Network Sharing -Dual Connectivity - Close cooperation between NR and E-UTRA

[0021] AMF (Access and Mobility Management Function) provides the following main functions: - NAS (Non-Access Stratum) signaling termination -NAS signaling security -AS (Access Stratum) security control - Core Network (CN) inter-node signaling for mobility between 3GPP access networks Idle mode UE reachability (including control and execution of paging retransmissions) -Registration area management - Support for intra-system and inter-system mobility -Access authentication -Access authentication, including roaming rights checks -Mobility management controls (subscriptions and policies) -Network slicing support -SMF (Session Management Function) selection Furthermore, the UPF (User Plane Function) provides the following main functions: -Anchor points for intra-RAT / inter-RAT mobility (when applicable) -External PDU session points for interconnection with data networks -Packet routing and forwarding -User plane part of packet inspection and policy rule enforcement -Traffic usage reports - an uplink classifier to support routing of traffic flows to the data network; - Branching points to support multi-homed PDU sessions - User plane QoS handling, 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 Finally, the SMF (Session Management Function) provides the following main functions: -Session management -UE IP address allocation and management -UP function selection and control - Traffic steering configuration in the UPF (User Plane Function) to route traffic to the correct destination -Policy enforcement and QoS control parts -Downlink data notification

[0022] RRC connection establishment and re-establishment procedures

[0023] Figure 4 shows some interactions between the UE, gNB and AMF (5GC entities) in the context of the UE's transition from RRC_IDLE to RRC_CONNECTED for the NAS part (see TS 38.300 v15.6.0).

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

[0025] Thus, the present disclosure provides a 5th Generation Core (5GC) entity (e.g., AMF, SMF, etc.) that includes: a control circuit that, during operation, establishes a Next Generation (NG) connection with a gNodeB (or gNB); and a transmitter that, during operation, transmits an initial context setup message to the gNodeB via the NG connection, which causes a signaling radio bearer configuration between the gNodeB and a user equipment (UE). In particular, the gNodeB transmits Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling, including a resource allocation configuration information element, to the UE via the signaling radio bearer. The UE then performs uplink transmission or downlink reception based on the resource allocation configuration.

[0026] IMT usage scenarios from 2020 onwards

[0027] Figure 5 shows some use cases for 5G NR. 3GPP NR (3rd Generation Partnership Project New Radio) is considering three use cases that are expected to support a wide range of services and applications with IMT-2020. Phase 1 specifications for eMBB have been finalized. In addition to further extending support for eMBB, current and future work involves standardizing URLLC and mMTC. Figure 5 shows some specific examples of envisioned ideal scenarios for IMT beyond 2020.

[0028] 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 and production processes, remote medical surgery, power distribution automation in smart grids, and transportation safety. URLLC's ultra-high reliability is supported by identifying technologies to meet the requirements set by TR 38.913. Key requirements for NR URLLC in Release 15 include target user-plane delays of 0.5 ms for the uplink (UL) and 0.5 ms for the downlink (DL). The overall URLLC requirement for a single packet transmission is a block error rate (BLER) of 1E-5 for a 32-byte packet size with a 1-ms user-plane delay.

[0029] From the RAN1 perspective, reliability can be improved in several possible ways. Current scope for improving reliability relates to defining separate CQI tables for URLLC, more compact DCI formats, PDCCH repetition, etc. However, this scope can be expanded to achieve ultra-reliability as NR becomes more stable and developed (a key requirement for NR URLLC). Specific use cases for NR URLLC in Rel. 15 include Augmented Reality / Virtual Reality (AR / VR), e-health, e-safety, and mission-critical applications.

[0030] Furthermore, technology enhancements targeted by NR URLLC target latency improvement and reliability enhancement. Technology enhancements for latency improvement include configurable numerology, non-slot-based scheduling with flexible mapping, grant-free (configured grant) uplink, slot-level repetition of data channels, and downlink preemption. Preemption means that a transmission for which resources have already been allocated is aborted and the already allocated resources are used for another transmission requested later but with lower latency / higher priority requirements. Thus, an already granted transmission is preempted by a subsequent transmission. Preemption is applicable regardless of the specific service type. For example, a transmission of service type A (URLLC) may be preempted by a transmission of service type B (e.g., eMBB). Technology enhancements for reliability improvement include dedicated CQI / MCS (Channel Quality Information / Modulation and Coding Scheme) tables for a target BLER of 1E-5.

[0031] The mMTC use case is characterized by a very large number of connected devices transmitting relatively small amounts of data, which are typically latency sensitive. The devices are required to be low cost and have extremely long battery life. From an NR perspective, utilizing very narrow bandwidth portions is one possible solution to have power savings from the UE perspective and enable long battery life.

[0032] As mentioned above, it is expected that the reliability range in NR will be wider. One key requirement for all cases, especially for URLLC and mMTC, is high or ultra-high reliability. Several mechanisms can be considered to improve reliability from a radio perspective and a network perspective. In general, there are several key areas that may help improve reliability. Among these areas are compact control channel information, data channel / control channel repetition, and diversity in terms of frequency, time, and / or space domains. These areas are generally applicable to reliability, regardless of the specific communication scenario.

[0033] For NR URLLC, further use cases with more stringent requirements have been identified, such as factory automation, transportation industry, and power distribution, including power distribution. The more stringent requirements include higher reliability (10 -6 level), higher availability, packet sizes up to 256 bytes, and time synchronization down to the order of a few microseconds, which can be on the order of 1 or a few microseconds depending on the frequency range and low latency, on the order of 0.5-1 ms, with a target user plane latency of 0.5 ms depending on the use case in particular.

[0034] Furthermore, several technology enhancements from the RAN1 perspective are specified for NR URLLC. Among these are PDCCH (Physical Downlink Control Channel) enhancements related to compact DCI, PDCCH repetition, and increased PDCCH monitoring. Also, UCI (Uplink Control Information) enhancements are related to enhanced Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) and CSI feedback enhancements. Also, PUSCH enhancements related to minislot-level hopping and retransmission / repetition enhancements are specified. The term "minislot" refers to a transmission time interval (TTI) containing fewer symbols than a slot (a slot consisting of 14 or 12 symbols).

[0035] In slot-based scheduling or allocation, a slot corresponds to the timing granularity (TTI: Transmission Time Interval) for the scheduling assignment. Generally, the TTI determines the timing granularity for the scheduling assignment. One TTI is the time interval in which a given signal is mapped to the physical layer. For example, conventionally, the TTI length varies from 14 symbols (slot-based scheduling) to 2 symbols (non-slot-based scheduling). Downlink (DL) and uplink (UL) transmissions are specified to be organized into frames (10 ms duration) consisting of 10 subframes (1 ms duration). In slot-based transmission, the subframes are further divided into slots, the number of slots being determined by the numerology / subcarrier spacing. Specified values range between 10 slots per frame (1 slot per subframe) for a subcarrier spacing of 15 kHz and 80 slots per frame (8 slots per subframe) for a subcarrier spacing of 120 kHz. The number of OFDM symbols per slot is 14 for the normal cyclic prefix and 12 for the extended cyclic prefix (see sections 4.1 (general frame structure), 4.2 (Numerologies), 4.3.1 (frames and subframes), and 4.3.2 (slots) of 3GPP TS 38.211 V15.3.0, Physical channels and modulation, 2018-09). However, the allocation of time resources for transmission may also be non-slot-based. In particular, the TTI in non-slot-based allocation may correspond to a minislot instead of a slot. That is, one or more minislots may be allocated to a requested transmission of data / control signaling. In non-slot-based allocation, the minimum length of a TTI may be, for example, one or two OFDM symbols.

[0036] [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). Therefore, 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 ID (QFI) carried in the encapsulation header over the NG-U interface.

[0037] 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) along with the PDU session, and additional DRBs for the QoS flows of that PDU session can be configured later (when this is up to the NG-RAN), e.g., as described above with reference to FIG. 4. The NG-RAN maps packets belonging to different PDU sessions to different DRBs. NAS-level packet filters in the UE and the 5GC associate UL and DL packets with QoS flows, and AS-level mapping rules in the UE and the NG-RAN associate UL and DL QoS flows with DRBs.

[0038] FIG. 6 illustrates the 5G NR non-roaming reference architecture (see TS 23.501 v16.1.1, section 4.23). Application functions (AFs), such as external application servers providing 5G services exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 5, interact with the 3GPP core network to provide services, e.g., to support application influence on traffic routing, access to the Network Exposure Function (NEF), or interaction with policy control (e.g., QoS control) (see Policy Control Function (PCF)). Based on the operator's deployment, application functions deemed trusted by the operator may be allowed to interact directly with the relevant network functions. Application functions not permitted by the operator to directly access network functions interact with the relevant network functions using an external exposure framework via the NEF.

[0039] Figure 6 further shows the functional units of the 5G architecture, namely, NSSF (Network Slice Selection Function), NRF (Network Repository Function), UDM (Unified Data Management), AUSF (Authentication Server Function), AMF (Access and Mobility Management Function), SMF (Session Management Function) and DN (Data Network) such as operator services, internet access or third party services.

[0040] A terminal, user terminal, or user device is referred to as user equipment (UE) in LTE and NR. This may be a mobile device or communication device such as a wireless telephone, smartphone, tablet computer, or Universal Serial Bus (USB) stick with user equipment functionality. However, the term mobile device is not limited thereto, and in general, a relay may also have the functionality of such a mobile device, or a mobile device may function as a relay.

[0041] A base station is, for example, a network node that forms part of a network for providing services to terminals. A base station is a network node or scheduling device that provides radio connectivity to terminals. Communication between terminals and base stations is typically standardized. In LTE and NR, the radio interface protocol stack includes a physical layer, a Medium Access Control (MAC) layer, and higher layers. In the control plane, an upper layer protocol, the Radio Resource Control (RRC) protocol, is provided. Through RRC, the base station can control the configuration of terminals, and terminals may communicate with the base station to perform control tasks such as connection and bearer establishment and modification, measurements, and other functions. The term used in LTE is eNB (or eNodeB), while the term currently used for 5G NR is gNB.

[0042] A service for the transfer of data provided by one layer to a higher layer is usually called a channel. For example, LTE and NR distinguish between logical channels provided by the MAC layer for higher layers, transport channels provided by the physical layer to the MAC layer, and physical channels that define a mapping on physical resources.

[0043] Logical channels are the various data transfer services provided by the MAC. Each logical channel type is defined by the type of data that is transferred. Logical channels are divided into two groups: control channels and traffic channels. Control channels are used to transfer control plane information only. Traffic channels are used to transfer user plane information only.

[0044] Logical channels are mapped to transport channels by the MAC layer, for example logical traffic channels and some logical control channels may be mapped in the downlink to a transport channel referred to as a Downlink Shared Channel (DL-SCH) and in the uplink to a transport channel referred to as an Uplink Shared Channel (UL-SCH).

[0045] Downlink control channel monitoring, PDCCH, DCI Many of the functions operated by the UE include monitoring a downlink control channel (e.g., PDCCH, see 3GPP TS 38.300 v15.6.0, section 5.2.3) to receive, for example, specific control information or data intended for the UE.

[0046] As mentioned above, PDCCH monitoring is performed by a UE to identify and receive information destined for the UE, such as user traffic (e.g., DCI on the PDCCH and user data on the PDSCH signaled by the PDCCH) as well as control information.

[0047] 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 specified (see TS 38.212 v15.6.0 section 7.3.1).

[0048] The PDCCH monitoring for each of these functions serves a specific purpose and is therefore initiated until completion. PDCCH monitoring is typically controlled at least based on a timer operated by the UE. The timer has a purpose for controlling PDCCH monitoring, such as limiting the maximum time for which the UE monitors the PDCCH. For example, the UE does not need to monitor the PDCCH indefinitely and may stop monitoring after a certain time so as to be able to save power. Correspondingly, a timer may be started when the UE starts PDCCH monitoring for the intended purpose. Then, when the timer expires, the UE may stop PDCCH monitoring for the intended purpose and have the opportunity to save power.

[0049] Paging Procedure in 5G NR An exemplary implementation of a paging function in 5G NR including PDCCH monitoring according to the currently standardized version is described below in a simplified and abbreviated form.

[0050] In 5G NR, there are two different paging procedures: a RAN-based paging procedure (e.g., based on RAN-based notification areas) and a core network-based paging procedure (e.g., 3GPP TS 38.300 v15.6.0, TS 38.304 v15.4.0, and TS 38.331 v15.6.0 refer to RAN paging and CN paging in several sections, such as section 9.2.5 "Paging" in TS 38.300).

[0051] Paging allows the network to reach UEs in RRC_IDLE and RRC_INACTIVE states via paging messages, and to notify UEs in RRC_IDLE, RRC_INACTIVE, and RRC_CONNECTED states of system information changes and public warning information (such as ETWS (Earthquake and Tsunami Warning System) / CMAS (Commercial Mobile Alert System)) notifications via short messages. Both paging messages and short messages are addressed by the Paging Radio Network Temporary Identifier (P-RNTI) on the PDCCH monitored by the UE. However, the actual paging message (e.g., via a paging record) is sent on the Paging Control Channel (PCCH) as signaled by the PDCCH, while short messages can be sent directly over the PDCCH.

[0052] In RRC_IDLE, the UE monitors the paging channel for CN-initiated paging, while in RRC_INACTIVE, the UE also monitors the paging channel for RAN-initiated paging. The UE does not need to continuously monitor the paging channel, but paging DRX is specified in which a UE in RRC_IDLE or RRC_INACTIVE is only required to monitor the paging channel for one paging occasion (PO) per DRX cycle (see, for example, 3GPP TS 38.304 v15.3.0 sections 6.1 and 7.1). The paging DRX period is configured by the network.

[0053] The UE's POs for CN-initiated paging and RAN-initiated paging are based on the same UE ID, and both POs overlap. The number of different POs in a DRX cycle is configurable via system information, and the network may distribute these POs to UEs based on their IDs. A PO is a set of PDCCH monitoring opportunities and may consist of multiple time slots (e.g., subframes or OFDM symbols) in which paging DCI can be transmitted. One paging frame (PF) is one radio frame and may include one or more POs or the start point of a PO.

[0054] When in RRC_CONNECTED, the UE monitors the paging channel on any PO indicated in the system information for SI (System Information) change indications and / or PWS (Public Warning System) notifications. In case of BA (Bandwidth Adaptation) (see section 6.10 in TS 38.300), a UE in RRC_CONNECTED only monitors the paging channel on active BWPs where a common search space is configured.

[0055] When the UE receives the paging message, PDCCH monitoring can be stopped by the UE. Depending on the cause of the paging, the UE may continue to, for example, acquire system information or establish an RRC connection with the base station and receive traffic / instructions from the network.

[0056] For example, according to the paging configuration of 3GPP NR Release-15, the UE monitors the paging PDCCH according to the configuration of paging occasions (POs) and paging frames (PFs). A PO is a set of paging PDCCH monitoring opportunities, each of which corresponds to one transmit beam in multi-beam operation. Here, the same paging message is repeated in all transmit beams. Therefore, the UE assumes that the same paging message is repeated in all transmitted beams, and the selection of the beam for receiving the paging message is up to the UE implementation. The paging message is the same for both RAN-initiated paging and CN-initiated paging.

[0057] When the UE receives the RAN initiated paging, it initiates the RRC Connection Resume procedure. If the UE receives the CN initiated paging in the RRC_INACTIVE state, it transitions to RRC_IDLE and notifies the NAS.

[0058] The UE is semi-statically configured with a PF and PO for the System Frame Number (SFN) based on a formula including the SFN, UE_ID, and other RRC configuration parameters. The PF and PO for paging are determined by the following formula (see 38.304 v15.3.0 section 7.1, User Equipment (UE) procedures in Idle mode and RRC Inactive state 2019-03): The SFN of the PF is: (SFN+PF_offset)mod T=(T div N)*(UE_ID mod N) The index of PO, Index(i_s), is determined by i_s=floor(UE_ID / N)mod Ns is determined by.

[0059] The PDCCH monitoring occasion for paging is determined according to the pagingSearchSpace as specified in 3GPP TS 38.213: "NR; Physical layer procedures for control" V15.5.0 and the firstPDCCH-MonitoringOccasionOfPO if configured as specified in 3GPP TS 38.331: "NR, Radio Resource Control (RRC) - Protocol Specification" V15.6.0. If SearchSpaceId=0 is configured for PagingSearchSpace, the PDCCH monitoring occasion for paging is the same as the RMSI as specified in clause 13 of TS 38.213.

[0060] When SearchSpaceId=0 is set in pagingSearchSpace, Ns is either 1 or 2. For Ns=1, there is only one PO starting from the first PDCCH monitoring opportunity for paging in the PF. For Ns=2, the PO is in either the first frame (i_s=0) or the second frame (i_s=1) of the PF.

[0061] If a SearchSpaceId other than 0 is set in pagingSearchSpace, the UE monitors the (i_s+1)th PO. A PO is a set of "S" consecutive PDCCH monitoring opportunities, where "S" is the number of actually transmitted SSBs determined according to ssb-PositionsInBurst in SIB1 (System Information Block 1). The Kth PDCCH monitoring opportunity for paging in a PO corresponds to the Kth transmitted SSB. PDCCH monitoring opportunities for paging that do not overlap with UL symbols (determined according to tdd-UL-DL-ConfigurationCommon) are numbered sequentially from 0, starting from the first PDCCH monitoring opportunity for paging in the PF. If firstPDCCH-MonitoringOccasionOfPO is present, the number of PDCCH monitoring opportunities at the start of the (i_s+1)th PO is the (i_s+1)th value of the firstPDCCH-MonitoringOccasionOfPO parameter; otherwise, it is equal to i_s*S.

[0062] Note that a PO associated with a PF may start at or after the PF. Furthermore, a PDCCH monitoring opportunity for a PO may span multiple radio frames. When a SearchSpaceId other than 0 is set in paging-SearchSpace, a PDCCH monitoring opportunity for a PO may span multiple periods of the paging search space.

[0063] In the above formula, the following parameters are used to calculate PF and i_s: T: UE DRX cycle (T is determined by the shortest UE-specific DRX value, if configured by RRC or higher layers, and the default DRX value broadcast in the system information. If UE-specific DRX is not configured by RRC or higher layers, the default value is applied.) Total number of paging frames in N:T Ns: Number of paging opportunities for the PF PF_offset: Offset used to determine PF UE_ID:5G-S-TMSI mod 1024

[0064] The parameters Ns and nAndPagingFrameOffset and the length of the default DRX cycle are signaled in SIB1 (System Information Block 1). The values of N and PF_offset are derived from the parameter nAndPagingFrameOffset defined in 3GPP TS 38.331: "NR; Radio Resource Control (RRC) - Protocol Specification" V15.6.0. The parameter first-PDCCH-MonitoringOccasionOfPO is signaled in SIB1 for paging in the initial DL BWP. For paging in a DL BWP other than the initial DL BWP, the parameter first-PDCCH-MonitoringOccasionOfPO is signaled in the corresponding BWP configuration.

[0065] 5G-S-TMSI (Temporary Mobile Subscriber Identity) is a 48-bit string as specified in 3GPP TS 23.501: "System Architecture for the 5G System; Stage 2" V15.6.0. 5G-S-TMSI is interpreted as a binary number with the leftmost bit representing the most significant bit.

[0066] If the UE does not have 5G-S-TMSI, for example, if the UE is not yet registered with the network, the UE uses UE_ID=0 as the default identifier in the above PF and i_s formulas.

[0067] In NR, the paging DCI is included in a set of resources commonly referred to as a CORESET (Configuration Resource SET). Therefore, in order to receive a paging message, the UE needs to identify and receive the paging CORESET.

[0068] Paging CORESETs can be transmitted in different OFMD symbols (hereafter referred to as symbols) within a slot. Once a paging CORESET is configured, its duration is fixed. Therefore, symbol determination is required to indicate to the UE the exact time location of the paging CORESET to be monitored.

[0069] 3GPP is considering NR-based operation in unlicensed spectrum (NR-U) (see, for example, 3GPP TR 38.889, Study on NR-based access to unlicensed spectrum, v16.0.0). NR-U may operate in sub-7 GHz bands at 5 GHz or 6 GHz. However, the present disclosure is not limited to a particular band and may also apply to millimeter wave bands such as 52 GHz.

[0070] The Listen-Before-Talk (LBT) procedure is defined as a mechanism by which a device, such as a base station or user equipment, applies a Clear Channel Assessment (CCA) check before using a channel. CCA utilizes at least energy detection to determine the presence or absence of other signals on a channel to determine whether the channel is occupied or clear, respectively. For example, European and Japanese regulations mandate the use of LBT in unlicensed spectrum. Apart from regulatory requirements, this carrier sensing via LBT is a method for fair sharing of unlicensed spectrum and is therefore considered a key feature for fair and friendly operation in unlicensed spectrum in a single global solution framework.

[0071] If the detected energy level exceeds the set CCA threshold (e.g., -73 dBm / MHz for Europe, see clause 4.8.3 of ETSI 301 893), the channel is considered occupied; conversely, if the detected power level is below the set CCA threshold, the channel is considered free. If the channel is classified as free, the device is allowed to transmit immediately. The maximum transmission duration is limited to facilitate fair resource sharing with other devices operating in the same band.

[0072] In unlicensed band operation, after acquiring a channel via LBT, the initiating device (e.g., a scheduling device such as an NR gNB or LTE eNB) can occupy the channel up to a maximum channel occupation time (COT). For example, depending on the LBT requirements, the maximum COT may be assumed to be 8 ms or 9 ms. For example, for a 15 kHz subcarrier spacing, a COT of 8 ms corresponds to 8 slots, and for a 30 kHz subcarrier spacing, it corresponds to 16 slots.

[0073] The initiating device (e.g., gNB) may share the acquired time-frequency resources with responding devices (e.g., one or more transmitting and receiving devices, such as UEs). Sharing the acquired time-frequency resources may facilitate enabling flexible resource usage between uplink (UL) and downlink (DL). For example, DL and UL resources can be reallocated based on traffic demands in each direction.

[0074] When the above-mentioned paging configuration of 3GPP NR Rel-15 is applied in unlicensed operation, the times for paging (or “paging times”) are semi-statically configured and the availability of resources is subject to the results of the LBT, so the gNB has no or limited control over whether these semi-statically configured resources are available.

[0075] As a result, the available resources may be insufficient when they do not necessarily match the configured resources, so that the UE may not be able to be paged on time.

[0076] To compensate for the uncertainty due to LBT, the UE may be configured to monitor more paging occasions. However, this may unnecessarily increase the UE power consumption associated with the additional monitoring. For example, the additional paging occasions may be blocked due to LBT failures, and the UE may not need to be paged.

[0077] The present disclosure provides techniques for configuring and verifying paging resources for unlicensed operations, such as NR unlicensing.

[0078] In this disclosure, scheduling nodes such as UEs, base stations, and corresponding methods are described for NR as envisioned for 5G mobile communication systems such as 3GPP NR, but may also be utilized in LTE communication systems.

[0079] Furthermore, although the specific terminology used in the context of NR for the upcoming 3GPP 5G communication system has not yet been loosely decided or may eventually change, some of the terms used below, such as procedures, entities, and layers, are closely related to the terms used in the LTE / LTE-A system or the current 3GPP 5G standard. Therefore, the terminology may change in the future without affecting the functionality of the embodiments. As a result, those skilled in the art will recognize that the present embodiments and their scope of protection should not be limited to the specific terminology used herein for illustrative purposes due to the lack of newer or ultimately agreed-upon terminology.

[0080] Communication devices such as UEs and scheduling nodes may include transceivers and circuits such as processing circuits. The transceiver may have and / or function as a receiver and a transmitter. The processing circuit may be one or more hardware components, such as one or more processors or any large-scale integration (LSI). Between the transceiver and the processing circuit, there are input / output points (or nodes) through which the processing circuit can control the transceiver during operation, i.e., control the receiver and / or transmitter, and exchange receive / transmit data. The transceiver may include a radio frequency (RF) front end, including one or more antennas, amplifiers, RF modulators / demodulators, etc., as a transmitter and receiver. The processing circuit may perform control tasks such as transmitting user data and control data provided by the processing circuit and / or controlling the transceiver to receive user data and control data that are further processed by the processing circuit. The processing circuit may also be responsible for performing other processes, such as decisions, calculations, measurements, etc. The transmitter may be responsible for performing transmission processing and other related processes. The receiver may be responsible for performing reception processing and other processing associated therewith, such as channel monitoring.

[0081] In FIG. 7, a user equipment (UE) 760 and a scheduling node 710 are provided, both of which are shown.

[0082] The user equipment 760 includes a transceiver 770 and circuitry 780 (which may also be referred to herein as a "UE transceiver" and "UE circuitry"). The UE transceiver 770 receives at least one PDCCH during operation from which an assignment of monitored paging times to paging DCIs can be determined. The UE circuitry 780 determines the assignment of monitored paging times based on the at least one PDCCH received during operation. The UE transceiver performs monitoring for paging DCIs based on the result of the paging time determination during operation.

[0083] The scheduling node includes a transceiver 720 (also referred to as the "scheduling node transceiver") and circuitry 730 (the "scheduling node circuitry").

[0084] The scheduling node 710 includes a transceiver 720 (also referred to as a "scheduling node transceiver") and circuitry 730 ("scheduling node circuitry"). In operation, the scheduling node circuitry 730 performs paging time assignments for paging downlink control information (DCI) monitored by user equipment units (UEs) and generates at least one physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) on which the monitored paging time assignments can be determined. In operation, the transceiver transmits at least one PDCCH and performs paging DCI transmissions based on the received at least one PDCCH.

[0085] A base station, such as an eNB or a gNB, is a specific example of a scheduling node according to the present disclosure.

[0086] As shown in FIG. 7, the UE and the scheduling node communicate over a channel, such as a radio channel, of a communication system, such as an NR, LTE, or similar wireless communication system.

[0087] As further shown in Figure 7, the UE circuitry may include, for example, dynamic paging assignment determination circuitry 785, and the scheduling node circuitry 730 may include dynamic paging assignment circuitry 735. An exemplary dynamic paging assignment circuitry 735 of the scheduling node is shown in Figure 8 and includes a paging assignment determination circuitry 836 and a PDCCH generation circuitry 837. An exemplary PDCCH dynamic paging assignment determination circuitry 785 shown in Figure 10 includes a PDCCH processing circuitry 886 and a monitoring determination circuitry 887.

[0088] Corresponding to the UE 760 and the base station 710, respective paging methods performed by the user equipment and the base station are provided as shown in FIG.

[0089] The scheduling node's paging method includes step S1010 of performing a paging time assignment for paging downlink control information (DCI) to be monitored by a user equipment (UE) and step S1020 of generating at least one physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) from which the monitored paging time assignment can be determined. In step S1030, the scheduling node transmits the at least one PDCCH. Correspondingly, the UE paging method (or "UE paging method") includes step S1040 of receiving at least one PDCCH from which the monitored paging time assignment for paging downlink control information (DCI) can be determined. Furthermore, the UE paging method includes step S1050 of determining the monitored paging time assignment based on the received at least one PDCCH. The scheduling node's paging method includes step S1060 of performing a paging DCI transmission according to the paging time assignment, and correspondingly, the UE paging method includes step S1070 of monitoring the paging DCI based on the determined paging time assignment.

[0090] "Paging DCI" is transmitted / received via the paging PDCCH. Thus, the UE monitors the paging PDCCH for the paging DCI. The paging DCI may typically include scheduling information for the paging message (transmitted via the PDSCH channel). If the paging message is sufficiently short, the paging DCI itself may include the paging message. In such a case, no scheduling information in the paging DCI needs to be provided.

[0091] Meanwhile, the above-mentioned "at least one PDCCH" may be referred to as an "allocation determination PDCCH" for determining allocation of paging times to be monitored, and is a PDCCH different from the paging PDCCH. The at least one PDCCH includes scheduling information based on whether the time for monitoring the paging PDCCH is recognized by the UE. A specific example of the at least one PDCCH for determining allocation of paging times is provided in the present disclosure.

[0092] In the present disclosure, performing paging time assignment for monitoring includes determining whether one or more UEs should be paged and whether a paging DCI is assigned to the paging time. Furthermore, "determining a paging time assignment" includes determining whether a paging DCI is assigned to any paging time. Consequently, "performing transmission according to the paging time assignment" and "performing reception based on the determination of the paging time assignment" include transmitting, monitoring the paging PDCCH, and omitting transmission, respectively.

[0093] The term "paging time instance" includes resources in the time domain that are configured or scheduled to be monitored by one or more UEs for a paging PDCCH carrying paging DCI. For example, an allocation decision PDCCH may indicate one or more symbols within a slot or one or more symbols within multiple slots, respectively, where a slot may be configured, for example, by the channel occupation time (COT) of the scheduling node. For example, a paging time instance corresponds to a paging occasion (PO) within a paging frame (PF) or a paging PDCCH monitoring occasion within a PO that includes one or more symbols. A paging time instance may also be referred to as a "paging monitoring occasion," a "paging PDCCH monitoring occasion," or a "paging DCI monitoring occasion."

[0094] According to the present disclosure, paging times or times for monitoring paging and paging PDCCHs are dynamically allocated by transmitting at least one PDCCH for which the paging times are determinable.

[0095] For example, the scheduling node and UE communicate with each other in unlicensed operation and transmit and receive within a channel occupation time obtained by the scheduling node through LBT. For example, a scheduling node 710 operating on an unlicensed frequency, which may include an unlicensed wideband carrier or a subband of a 20 MHz wide unlicensed wideband carrier, may perform an LBT operation, obtain a channel occupation time based on the results of the LBT operation, and assign paging times to be monitored for paging DCI to resources in the COT. When the scheduling node 710, such as a gNB, starts the COT, it may dynamically assign times for paging and times for monitoring the paging PDCCH for paging DCI.

[0096] Thus, by enabling dynamic allocation, the techniques of the present disclosure may facilitate full utilization of the COT to accommodate more channel signals for semi-static allocation of time. For example, resources semi-statically allocated at paging time may be utilized for different signals or channels. Furthermore, separate LBT procedures and COTs used solely for paging may be avoided. Furthermore, dynamic allocation may facilitate control over resource utilization by the scheduling node or gNB. On the UE side, dynamic allocation according to the present disclosure may facilitate UE power conservation by not unnecessarily monitoring paging, e.g., by providing more accurate information regarding the allocation of paging times to the UE.

[0097] As will be illustrated by some examples described in more detail below, dynamic allocation according to the present disclosure includes, first, indicating a "new" time, meaning that the paging time is not, for example, semi-statically set, and, second, validating or invalidating the semi-statically set time that was set before the base station acquired the COT. Furthermore, the indication of a new time and the validating or invalidating of the set time may be combined.

[0098] The at least one PDCCH for determining paging time allocation may carry at least one of the following: Signalling a Channel Occupancy Time (COT) configuration indicating, for example, the allocation of downlink and non-downlink symbols for the COT of the scheduling node serving the user equipment in unlicensed operation. For example, the COT configuration signalling may include, for each symbol within one or more slots covered by the COT, an indication of whether the symbol is a downlink symbol (D or DL), an uplink symbol (U or UL) or a flexible symbol (F) available for both uplink and downlink, with the final use of the flexible symbol depending on the actual scheduling. Paging notification indicating whether the paging time should be monitored for paging DCI. For a given number of times, e.g., symbols, a bitmap indicates for each time whether it should be monitored as a paging time or not.

[0099] In the former case of downlink and non-downlink symbol allocation, the UE circuitry determines at least one allocated downlink symbol, indicated by, for example, notification of a COT configuration, to be a paging time to be monitored.

[0100] For example, a UE in idle state RRC_IDLE and RRC_INACTIVE that receives notification of a COT configuration will interpret the symbol indication as "downlink" as a paging time to be monitored, and interpret the symbol indication as "uplink" or "flexible" as a symbol not to be monitored for paging.

[0101] Note that the indication of downlink or non-downlink symbols can be different for different UEs, e.g., UEs on different beams, to facilitate spatial reuse. For example, for the same set of symbols, the indication can be "downlink" for one group of UEs in one beam direction, but "non-downlink" for another group of UEs in another beam direction. Instead of or in combination with separating different UE groups by beam direction, the separation can be performed by different Radio Network Temporary Identifiers (RNTIs). More specifically, UEs are separated into different groups by configuring UEs with different RNTIs for (descrambling) the Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) of the PDCCH carrying the COT configuration notification. The number of UEs in each group can be controlled by the gNB via assigning the same RNTI to groups of UEs.

[0102] For example, if a given symbol is semi-statically configured as a possible paging monitoring occasion and the COT configuration indication indicates the symbol as "downlink," the UE determines that the symbol is a paging time to be monitored. On the other hand, if the COT configuration indication indicates the symbol as a non-downlink, e.g., uplink or flexible, the UE determines not to monitor a symbol previously configured as a paging monitoring occasion. Alternatively, if there is no paging monitoring occasion configuration and the COT configuration indication indicates a "new" paging time, the UE determines each symbol designated as "downlink" that is a paging time to be monitored and each symbol not designated as downlink (uplink or flexible) that is not a paging time to be monitored.

[0103] Furthermore, at least one PDCCH may carry both a COT configuration indication and a paging indication, where the COT configuration indication and the paging indication may be included in the same PDCCH, in different PDCCHs, or in the same PDCCH with different CRC-scrambling RNTIs. If both a COT configuration indication and a paging indication are used to determine the paging time to be monitored, the announced or enabled paging time may further need to be verified by the paging indication (e.g., the time indicated as "downlink" in the COT configuration).

[0104] Disable or enable the paging time that is set In some embodiments, the paging times are semi-statically configured via RRC signaling, and at least one PDCCH indicates whether to enable or disable the configured paging times.

[0105] For example, the configuration from RRC signaling indicates multiple paging occasions, and the Allocation Decision PDCCH informs the UE which of these paging occasions are enabled and therefore should be monitored, disabled, or not monitored. The determination of whether the Allocation Decision PDCCH is enabled or disabled may depend on whether the configured paging occasions are assumed by default, by the standard, or by configuration to be disabled (not monitored unless otherwise indicated in dynamic signaling) or enabled (monitored unless otherwise indicated in dynamic signaling).

[0106] In some embodiments where the paging time is configured via RRC signaling, it is determined that the paging DCI is assigned to the configured paging time unless at least one PDCCH indicates that the assignment of the paging DCI to the configured paging time is invalid. The UE receives the paging time configuration semi-statically via RRC, which is considered valid without any additional activation step. Note that the above decision is to adjust the UE's behavior of paging PDCCH monitoring. The gNB may still have the freedom to decide whether or not to actually page the UE. In other words, the above decision from the UE side ensures that the UE can be paged as long as there is a need from the scheduling node, e.g., the gNB side.

[0107] Thus, without being overridden by the allocation decision PDCCH, the UE monitors the configured paging times, which may be configured with the paging frame and paging occasion for the SFN / slot index or the start of the transmission window for the SSB or SS / PBCH block (synchronization signal blocks carrying the primary and secondary synchronization signals (PSS / SSS) and the physical broadcast channel (PBCH)), similar to the semi-static signaling of the paging configuration according to NR-Rel.15 described above.

[0108] As an option for overriding the paging time set by dynamic indication, the allocation decision PDCCH is a CO-PDCCH (Channel Occupancy PDCCH) that includes a COT configuration allocation indicating the allocation of DL, UL and flexible symbols for one or more slots included in the COT obtained by a scheduling node, such as a gNB, serving the UE.

[0109] For example, the configured paging time may then be determined to be invalid and therefore not monitored by the UE if indicated as an UL or flexible symbol by the CO-PDCCH.

[0110] Alternatively, in some embodiments, if at least one PDCCH includes a COT configuration indication and an RRC-configured paging time is assigned to a symbol following at least one PDCCH in the COT, the UE determines that the configured paging time is invalid. For example, when a UE receives a CO-PDCCH, regardless of the content of the CO-PDCCH, all subsequent paging times in the COT indicated by the CO-PDCCH (paging times received after in time the symbol at which the CO-PDCCH is received or the beginning of the first symbol in time for the CO-PDCCH) are invalidated once the CO-PDCCH is received. However, the UE may still be paged if it receives a paging PDCCH on a configured paging time that precedes the CO-PDCCH in time.

[0111] As another option for signaling the deactivation of configured paging occasions, the UE may receive a paging indication indicating whether the configured paging times should be monitored, rather than indicating the deactivation through a COT configuration. For example, the COT may include N given paging times or N paging times per beam. The paging indication may be a bitmap including N bits, as described above, indicating, for each of the N configured paging times, whether it should be monitored as a paging time. As described above, a paging indication such as a bitmap may be transmitted within the CO-PDCCH, within another PDCCH, or within the same PDCCH with a CRC scrambled by another RNTI.

[0112] In multi-beam operation, the UE will Note that the UE needs to know which beam the remaining times correspond to. For example, the UE may know which beam each remaining paging time belongs to based on a known pattern, a configuration or a defined association between symbols and beams. The known pattern may be configured when the paging time is configured.

[0113] As a specific example, two paging times are configured to be located at symbols #0 and #7, respectively, for slots #0 to #3 (a total of four slots) in the PF. Overall, there are 2 × 4 = 8 paging times in the PF. Furthermore, from system broadcast information such as SIB1, the UE knows that the gNB is transmitting S beams. Then, the UE can derive the corresponding beam for each paging time using modulo arithmetic, such as beam_i = mod(i, S), where beam_i is the index of the corresponding beam for the ith paging time, and i is the index of the configured paging time (e.g., i = 0, 1, ... 7).

[0114] Thus, the UE may not need to monitor paging times that correspond to beams that are not disabled but are different from the beams received by the UE.

[0115] In Figure 11, an example use case is shown where semi-statically configured paging times are overridden, and paging shares the same COT via SSB.

[0116] According to the SSB window setting for the example of Figure 11, the SSB window starts at slot #0 of the radio frame with radio frame index (SFN mod 40) = 0. The SSB window spans slot #0 through slot #4, containing 10 candidate positions (two candidate positions for each of the four symbols per slot).

[0117] Additionally, similar to the SSB window, an exemplary configuration of paging times is shown starting in slot #0 of the frame with frame index (SFN mod 40) = 0. The paging time configuration spans six slots and includes a total of 12 configured times for paging.

[0118] In FIG. 11, paging times are grouped into three paging clusters, each covering all transmit beams (four beams in this example). A "paging cluster" is a pattern of paging times possibly associated with multiple beams across one or more slots (e.g., two slots as in FIG. 11). For example, as shown in FIG. 11, one paging cluster includes a respective paging time for each transmit beam. Thus, indicating that a paging cluster is disabled disables one paging time per beam. Regarding the relationship between paging clusters and paging occasions (POs), a paging cluster can be a subset of a PO. For example, in FIG. 11, one PO can be defined to include all three paging clusters to allow for beam repetition within the PO (multiple paging times for each beam). In some other cases, it may be convenient to define one PO to include each beam only once. In such cases, one paging cluster corresponds to one PO.

[0119] The gNB acquires the LBT and acquires the COT over four slots starting from slot #2. In the absence of further instructions, all configured paging times or paging PDCCH monitoring occasions are considered valid.

[0120] Here, as a first alternative, a CO-PDCCH including a COT configuration indication indicating non-DL symbols may be used to disable the configured paging times in these slots. For example, to disable the configured paging times in slots #2 and #3, the CO-PDCCH in slot #2 indicates "DUDDDDDUDDDDDD;DUDDDDDUDDDDDD" for slots #2 and #3. Therefore, the second symbol (symbol #1) and the ninth symbol (symbol #8) in these slots are disabled by the indication as uplink. Note that the UL, DL, or flexible indications for the remaining symbols (in this example, "uplink" for all symbols) are not relevant to the paging indication because these symbols are not configured to carry paging times. Therefore, in this and other examples of COT configuration indications of the present disclosure, the COT configuration values that do not correspond to the configured paging times may be replaced by a different structure.

[0121] As a second alternative, the paging indication may indicate that a paging cluster or paging time is to be disabled. For example, the paging indication may include a bitmap in which each bit corresponds to one cluster of paging times. For example, a paging indication for slot #2 may indicate a bitmap of "00" that disables paging cluster #1 and paging cluster #2 (slots #2 to #5). Thus, the number of bits in the bitmap may correspond to the number of paging clusters included in the COT.

[0122] An exemplary flowchart of method steps performed by a UE according to an embodiment in which a CO-PDCCH indicates the invalidation of a paging time is shown in FIG. 12. In step 1210, the UE receives a paging configuration, e.g., PF, PO, paging search space, etc., in SIB1 and is thus enabled to determine the paging time configured by RRC. The UE assumes that resources for paging, e.g., the configured paging time, are valid. In step 1220, an idle or inactive UE receives a CO-PDCCH monitoring configuration (and / or a paging indication monitoring configuration) in SIB1. For RRC-connected UEs, this configuration can be configured by dedicated RRC. In step 1230, the UE monitors both the CO-PDCCH (and / or paging indication) and paging according to the configuration. In step 1240, the UE decodes the CO-PDCCH (or paging indication) to determine whether the configured paging time is invalid, and, according to the decoding, determines whether the configured paging time should be monitored in step 1250. If the paging time is not disabled, the UE returns to step S1230 and monitors for paging (e.g., monitors the paging time for paging DCI), and if the paging time is disabled, in step S1260, the UE skips paging monitoring for the disabled paging time according to the instruction.

[0123] It has been described above how one or more configured paging occasions are dynamically assigned by the allocation decision PDCCH in some embodiments.

[0124] Furthermore, the present disclosure provides an embodiment in which the paging time is configured via RRC signaling, and the paging DCI is determined to be assigned to the RRC-configured paging time if at least one PDCCH indicates that assignment of the paging DCI for the configured paging time is enabled.

[0125] In particular, a paging DCI is determined to be assigned to an RRC-configured paging time only if at least one PDCCH indicates that the assignment of the paging DCI for the configured paging time is valid. Otherwise, if at least one PDCCH does not indicate that the assignment of the paging DCI for the configured paging time is valid, it is assumed or determined that the paging DCI is not assigned to the configured paging time.

[0126] In this case, the UE still receives semi-static configuration of paging times by RRC (in terms of SFN / slot index or SSB transmission window, as described above), however, these configured times are not valid and will not be used to monitor the paging PDCCH without an activation step by dynamic allocation.

[0127] As a first alternative for signaling enablement, the UE receives a CO-PDCCH containing a COT configuration indication including DL, UL and flexible symbol allocation for one or more slots, and if a paging occasion is indicated as a DL symbol by the CO-PDCCH, it is considered to be enabled for monitoring the paging PDCCH, and if not, monitoring of the invalid paging occasion is not performed by the UE.

[0128] As a second alternative for signaling enablement, the UE receives a paging indication indicating whether the configured paging times are enabled or which of the preconfigured paging times are enabled. The paging indication may be a bitmap indication, similar to the paging indication used in the above-described embodiment where the configured paging times are dynamically disabled via the PDCCH. Yet again, the paging indication may be transmitted in a CO-PDCCH, in a separate PDCCH, or in the same PDCCH with a CRC scrambled by a separate RNTI.

[0129] Because paging times are dynamically enabled, the UE does not need to monitor for paging unless explicitly indicated to do so, which may facilitate, for example, UE power savings.

[0130] In multi-beam operation, the UE needs to know which beam corresponds to which time when a time is enabled. As with embodiments using dynamic deactivation, the correspondence between beams and time may be known based on a known pattern, as described above. Thus, the UE may not need to monitor paging times that correspond to beams that are enabled but different from the beam received by the UE.

[0131] An example for dynamically activating the configured paging time is shown in Figure 13. The figure shows a paging time configuration in slot #0 of a frame with (SFN mod 40) = 0, which is the same slot as the start slot of the SSB window.

[0132] The paging time configuration spans six slots and includes a total of 12 configured paging times. Since four beams are transmitted, there are three configured paging times per beam. In the example of Figure 13, no paging clusters are formed. However, in such cases, the configured paging times can be enabled individually.

[0133] As shown in Figure 13, the gNB obtains the LBT and starts a four-slot COT at the beginning of slot #1. As can be seen, in this example, the configured paging time is valid in slot #3 and slot #4, while the configured paging time is not valid in slot #1 and slot #2.

[0134] Thus, an exemplary COT configuration instruction for both slot#1 and slot#2 may be "UUDDDDDUUDDDDD," and for both slot#3 and slot#4 it may be "DDDDDDDDDDDDDD."

[0135] Note that in the above COT structure of slots #1 and #2, the second symbol of each slot is shown as an uplink, although it is allocated for CO-PDCCH monitoring. However, for such a configuration where CO-PDCCH and paging monitoring are allocated to the same symbol, the UE may be configured or agreed by the standard to use the COT configuration indication on this symbol to determine whether the paging PDCCH should be monitored, while for CO-PDCCH monitoring, the CO-PDCCH configuration overrides any dynamic indication via the PDCCH.

[0136] To enable the configured paging time in slot #3 and slot #4 but not in slot #1 and slot #2, a paging indication, e.g., a bitmap with one bit corresponding to one slot, may be used as follows: In slot #1, a paging indication indicating "001" means that paging and monitoring of the paging PDCCH are not enabled in the current slot (slot #1) and the next slot (slot #2), but are enabled in slot #3. Correspondingly, a paging indication transmitted in slot #2 indicates "011", which means that paging is enabled in slot #3 and slot #4. Furthermore, a paging indication received in slot #3 indicates "110".

[0137] As can be seen from the above paging indication for slot #3, the paging indication may indicate one or more slots outside the gNB's channel occupancy time (slot #5 in this example). Therefore, the number of bits in the bitmap does not need to change depending on the distance between the slot in which the paging indication is received and the end of the COT. To avoid unnecessary monitoring of paging outside the COT, bits referencing slots outside the COT indicate "0" (corresponding to not enabling paging time in this slot). Alternatively, the paging indication or another bit field in the COT PDCCH can inform the UE of the end slot of the COT so that the UE knows where to stop monitoring any PDCCHs.

[0138] Furthermore, the number of bits in the bitmap in this example is illustrative, but must be sufficient to cover all paging times on the same beam that transmits a paging indication that precedes the next paging indication on the same beam.

[0139] Exemplary method steps that may be performed by a UE in an embodiment in which paging is dynamically enabled are shown in FIG. 14. In step S1410, the UE receives paging configuration, such as PF, PO, and paging search space, in SIB1 and is thus enabled to determine the paging time configured by RRC. In contrast to step S1210 of FIG. 12, the UE assumes that these resources are not enabled. In step S1420, an idle / inactive UE receives CO-PDCCH monitoring configuration (and / or paging indication monitoring configuration) in SIB1. For RRC-connected UEs, this can be configured by dedicated RRC. In step S1430, the UE monitors the CO-PDCCH (and / or paging indication) according to the configuration. In step S1440, the UE decodes the CO-PDCCH (or paging indication) to determine whether the configured paging time is valid, and in step S1450, determines whether a given paging time outside the configured paging time is valid. If so, the UE decodes the paging PDCCH on the enabled paging time in step S1460, otherwise, the UE returns to step S1430 and performs further monitoring of the CO-PDCCH and / or paging indication.

[0140] While Figure 11 shows a paging time configuration in which paging times for different beams are grouped into paging clusters, in the configuration in Figure 13 no paging clusters are formed. However, this configuration option is merely exemplary, and the embodiment of dynamically enabling and disabling paging is not limited to a particular paging configuration. Thus, for example, when no paging clusters are formed, deactivation via PDCCH may also be performed, and when paging clusters are formed, activation may be performed.

[0141] Thus, in some embodiments, whether enabling or disabling of configured paging times is performed dynamically, the COT includes a paging cluster or multiple paging clusters, each of which may include a respective configured paging time for each of multiple beams swept by the scheduling node, and at least one PDCCH indicates whether each of the multiple paging clusters is enabled or not.

[0142] Indicating a new paging time In some embodiments, the COT configuration indication included in the CO-PDCCH specifies an allocation of paging times to be monitored by the UE.

[0143] Thus, rather than activating or deactivating configured paging times, the CO-PDCCH received by the UE and utilized by the scheduling node may include a specification of a "new" paging time that has not yet been configured.

[0144] The UE may receive a CO-PDCCH containing a COT configuration indication including allocation of downlink and non-downlink (uplink and flexible) symbols as signaling for indication of designated downlink symbols, as well as the CO-PDCCH described above used to enable and disable configured times.

[0145] The UE then interprets or determines the downlink symbols indicated in the CO-PDCCH as the paging times to be monitored.

[0146] However, multiple levels of indication are available in one or more allocation decision PDCCHs to dynamically specify the paging times to be monitored.

[0147] Determining the paging time based on the CO-PDCCH and COT configuration indication contained therein may be the first level.

[0148] Optionally, as a second level of verification, the UE may monitor for paging on the indicated DL symbol only if it receives a paging indication, which may be received in the same CO-PDCCH or in a separate PDCCH, as described in the above examples.

[0149] The paging indication may be a bitmap similar to the bitmap described above that indicates whether each of a plurality of paging times is a monitoring target, but is used to verify dynamically specified paging times rather than semi-statically set paging times.

[0150] In the second level of verification, the scheduling node may utilize the indicated DL symbols for transmitting other DL signals and / or channels without having to consider wasting UE power due to incorrect paging monitoring. However, since the second level of verification is optional, the COT configuration indication may be utilized without further verification via paging indication. In this case, signaling overhead is reduced at the expense of increased UE power consumption.

[0151] In multi-beam operation, when a UE is instructed or specified to monitor a time, it needs to know which beam corresponds to which time, and based on this knowledge, it may monitor only paging times on beams that it receives. The UE may know the correspondence based on a configured beam sweeping pattern (e.g., within an SSB window) or by dynamic instruction or specification via the PDCCH.

[0152] On the other hand, if the PDCCH content (e.g., COT configuration indication and / or paging indication) is "per beam," the indicated time uses the same beam as the CO-PDCCH. For example, at least one PDCCH may be a beam-specific PDCCH transmitted on one of multiple beams swept by the scheduling node, and the assignment of at least one downlink symbol that the circuit determines to be the monitored paging time may be beam-specific. For example, the symbol indicated as downlink or non-downlink, or the bit indicating validation of the indicated downlink symbol, may differ between different beams.

[0153] On the other hand, if the PDCCH content specifying the paging time to be monitored is common to all beams, a start beam for the indicated paging time may be indicated first. For example, at least one PDCCH may be common to multiple beams swept by the scheduling node and indicate, for each of the multiple beams, multiple downlink symbols including the paging time to be monitored and a start beam in which the monitored paging time is assigned to the first symbol in time from the multiple beams. The UE may determine the paging time to be monitored on the corresponding beam from each of the multiple paging times based on beam determination starting from the indicated start beam or a configured cyclic order.

[0154] A specific use case example of an embodiment where at least one allocation decision PDCCH specifies a paging time not previously configured is shown in Figure 15. In this example, the gNB obtains an LBT and starts a COT for five slots starting from slot #3.

[0155] Therefore, the COT partially overlaps with the SSB window starting at the beginning of slot #0. Within the SSB window, the beam sweeping has a set pattern (as shown). However, outside such a window, the beam sweeping pattern may need to be dictated.

[0156] In the above-mentioned case of common PDCCH content for all beams, the CO-PDCCH in slot #3 or / and slot #4 can indicate a paging time for slot #5, such as "DDDDDDDDFFFFFF." Note that from the Paging Control Resource Set (CORESET) configuration, the UE can know that one paging monitoring time consists of two symbols. Therefore, by receiving notification of eight DL symbols, the UE can know that four paging monitoring times can be included. Furthermore, the starting beam can be indicated via the PDCCH, and the beams can be swept according to a determined pattern, e.g., a pattern known from the standard or a semi-statically configured pattern. For example, "01" can indicate starting from beam #1 on the first and second symbols indicated by the above COT configuration indication for the downlink. In this example, the beams can be swept according to a known order, e.g., beam #1 -> beam #2 -> beam #3 -> beam #0.

[0157] If the allocation decision PDCCH is beam-specific, the CO-PDCCH in slot#3 on beam#2 (the CO-PDCCH transmitted in one or both of the first two symbols of the slot) may indicate "FFDDFFFFFFFFF" for slot#5, which may mean that a UE served on beam#2 may monitor for paging on the third and fourth symbols in slot#5 corresponding to beam#2.

[0158] Exemplary method steps for a UE receiving a PDCCH that dynamically specifies a new / unconfigured paging time are shown in Figure 16. In step S1610, the UE receives a control resource set (CORESET) and search space (SS) configuration for paging in SIB1 (if not, it follows CORESET#0 (initial CORESET) and SS#0), but assumes that these resources and search space are not valid. In step S1620, a UE in idle or inactive state receives a CO-PDCCH monitoring configuration (and optionally, a paging indication monitoring configuration) in SIB1. For RRC-connected UEs, this can be configured by dedicated RRC. In step S1630, the UE monitors the CO-PDCCH (and optionally, a paging indication) according to the configuration. The UE then decodes the CO-PDCCH (and optionally the paging indication) in step S1640 to determine whether any paging time is assigned in step S1650. If no paging time is indicated to be assigned, the UE continues to step S1630 and monitors subsequent CO-PDCCHs and, optionally, paging indications. If it is determined in step S1650 that an assigned paging time is indicated, the UE may further learn the corresponding beam for the indicated paging time from the CO-PDCCH or PDCCH containing the paging indication. In step S1670, the UE decodes the paging at the indicated time using the corresponding beam.

[0159] As mentioned above, embodiments of the present disclosure include signaling of CO-PDCCH and paging indication as dynamic indications for monitoring paging.

[0160] On the other hand, for CO-PDCCH, the bit field may indicate a COT configuration including DL, UL, or flexible symbols for one or more consecutive slots. The value of the bit field may correspond to code points representing the patterns of UL, DL, and flexible symbols according to a semi-statically configured mapping of code points to configure a slot pattern or configuration selected from the complete set of possible slot patterns given by the NR standard specification (see Figure 17).

[0161] If a bit field in the CO-PDCCH indicates a configuration spanning multiple consecutive slots, it may be updated in a partially overlapping manner, e.g., the bit field of the first slot indicates the configuration of the first slot and the second slot, and the bit field of the second slot indicates the updated configuration of the second slot and the configuration of the third slot in chronological order.

[0162] The configuration of the codepoint to slot pattern mapping may be sent in CORESET#0 for idle UEs. Furthermore, the search space to be monitored for the allocation decision PDCCH and / or the paging PDCCH may be the same as that of SS#0, or may be a different search space. Upon entering connected mode, the UE enters RRC connected mode, and a dedicated RRC may configure the UE with a new RNTI to monitor a different CO-PDCCH. Otherwise, if a new RNTI is not configured, the connected UE and the idle / inactive UE monitor the same CO-PDCCH.

[0163] On the other hand, a paging indication, which may be transmitted on a CO-PDCCH or another PDCCH, indicates whether the UE will be paged at the next paging time using a flag bit. One bit can indicate one PO or one cluster within a PO (as described with reference to Figure 11), one PO or one paging time (as described with reference to Figure 13). Furthermore, for example, in the above-mentioned case of a common decision allocation PDCCH content for all beams, the indication may additionally or alternatively indicate a start beam for which the first paging time of the indicated paging time should be monitored.

[0164] Furthermore, it should be noted that the different paging allocation examples shown in Figures 11, 13, and 15 are applicable to each of the different embodiments described above, including enabling or disabling a configured paging time and dynamically specifying a new paging time. For example, the allocation of paging times outside the SSB window in Figure 15 may be applied when paging times are semi-statically configured and dynamically enabled / disabled, while the paging cluster shown in Figure 11 is applicable to the case of dynamically specifying a new paging time.

[0165] Furthermore, it should be noted that the present disclosure deals with the time domain allocation of paging times, including the symbols to which the paging PDCCH can be assigned. With respect to the frequency domain, resources are configured, for example, according to steps S1210, S1410 and S1610 of Figures 12, 14 and 16, where the CORESET or search space configuration is configured.

[0166] Additionally, similar to step S1610 of Figure 16, receipt of a CORESET configuration is also received in embodiments where a configured paging time is enabled or disabled, whereas in embodiments where a new unconfigured paging time is dynamically indicated or specified, parameters such as PF and PO received in step S1210 of Figure 12 and step S1410 of Figure 14 are not required for determining which paging times are monitored.

[0167] 11, 13, and 15 each show a COT starting at the first symbol in time of the slot, the present disclosure is also applicable to a COT starting at a symbol other than the start symbol of the slot. Furthermore, the present disclosure is applicable to slot-based allocation as shown, or to non-slot-based allocation where the TTI corresponds to a unit containing fewer symbols than a slot, e.g., a "minislot."

[0168] The present disclosure may be realized by software, hardware, or software interlocked with hardware. Each functional block described in the above embodiments may be partially or entirely realized by an LSI (Large Scale Integration) such as an integrated circuit, and each process described in each embodiment may be partially or entirely controlled by the same LSI or a combination of LSIs. The LSI may be formed as an individual chip, or a single chip may be formed to include some or all of the functional blocks. The LSI may also include data input / output devices coupled thereto. Here, LSI may be referred to as an IC, system LSI, super LSI, or ultra LSI depending on the degree of integration. However, the technology for realizing an integrated circuit is not limited to LSI, and may be realized using dedicated circuits, general-purpose processors, or application-specific processors. Furthermore, a field programmable gate array (FPGA), which allows reconfiguration of the connections and settings of circuit cells arranged within the LSI or a reconfigurable processor that can be programmed after fabrication, may also be used. The present disclosure may be realized as digital processing or analog processing. As a result of advances in semiconductor technology and other derivative technologies, if future integrated circuit technologies replace LSI, functional blocks can be integrated using future integrated circuit technologies. Biotechnology is also applicable.

[0169] The present disclosure may be implemented by any type of apparatus, device or system having communication capabilities, referred to as a communications apparatus.

[0170] Some non-limiting examples of such communication devices include telephones (e.g., mobile (cell) phones, smartphones), tablets, personal computers (PCs) (e.g., laptops, desktops, netbooks), cameras (e.g., digital still / video cameras), digital players (digital audio / video players), wearable devices (e.g., wearable cameras, smart watches, tracking devices), game consoles, digital book readers, telehealth / telemedicine (remote health and remote medical) devices, and vehicles (e.g., automobiles, airplanes, ships) that provide communication capabilities, and various combinations thereof.

[0171] The communications apparatus is not limited to being portable or mobile, but may include any type of apparatus, device or system that is non-portable or fixed, such as smart home devices (e.g., appliances, lighting, smart meters, control panels), vending machines and any other "thing" in an "Internet of Things (IoT)" network.

[0172] Communications may include, for example, exchanging data via cellular systems, wireless LAN systems, satellite systems, and the like, as well as various combinations thereof.

[0173] A communications apparatus may include devices such as a controller or a sensor coupled to the communications device to perform the communications functions described in this disclosure. For example, a communications apparatus may include a controller or a sensor that generates control or data signals used by the communications device to perform the communications functions of the communications apparatus.

[0174] Communications equipment may also include infrastructure facilities such as base stations, access points, and any other equipment, device, or system that communicates with or controls equipment such as those in the above non-limiting examples.

[0175] A user equipment (UE), A UE is provided, comprising: a transceiver for receiving at least one physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) during operation from which an assignment of paging times to be monitored for paging downlink control information (DCI) can be determined; and circuitry for determining, during operation, the assignment of paging times to be monitored based on the received at least one PDCCH, wherein, during operation, the transceiver performs monitoring for the paging DCI based on the determination of the assignment of paging times.

[0176] For example, the UE operates on an unlicensed frequency.

[0177] For example, the at least one PDCCH includes at least one of a channel occupation time (COT) configuration indication indicating allocation of downlink and non-downlink symbols for a COT of a scheduling node serving the user equipment in unlicensed operation, and a paging indication indicating whether the paging time is subject to monitoring.

[0178] For example, during operation, the circuitry determines at least one assigned downlink symbol indicated by the COT configuration indication for the monitored paging time.

[0179] In some embodiments, the paging time is configured via Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling, and the at least one PDCCH indicates whether the configured paging time is enabled or disabled.

[0180] In some embodiments, the circuitry determines that the paging DCI is assigned to the configured paging time if, during operation, the at least one PDCCH does not indicate that assignment of the paging DCI to the configured paging time is invalid.

[0181] For example, if the at least one PDCCH includes the COT configuration indication and the set paging time is assigned to a symbol after the at least one PDCCH in the COT, the circuit determines during operation that the set paging time is invalid.

[0182] In some embodiments, the circuitry determines that the paging DCI is assigned to the configured paging time if, during operation, the at least one PDCCH indicates that assignment of the paging DCI to the configured paging time is valid.

[0183] In some embodiments, the COT includes a plurality of paging clusters, each of the plurality of paging clusters including a respective paging time set for each of a plurality of beams swept by the scheduling node, and the at least one PDCCH indicates whether each of the plurality of paging clusters is valid.

[0184] In some embodiments, the COT configuration directive specifies paging time allocations for the monitored objects.

[0185] In some embodiments, the at least one PDCCH is a beam-specific PDCCH transmitted on one beam from a plurality of beams swept by the scheduling node, and the allocation of the at least one downlink symbol at which the circuit determines that the monitored paging time is is beam-specific.

[0186] For example, the at least one PDCCH is common to a plurality of beams swept by the scheduling node, and indicates, for each of the plurality of beams, a plurality of downlink symbols including respective paging times to be monitored, and a start beam in which the paging time to be monitored is assigned to the first symbol in time from the plurality of beams, and the circuit determines the paging time to be monitored based on a set cyclic order of beams starting from the indicated start beam during operation.

[0187] Also provided is a scheduling node comprising: circuitry adapted, during operation, to perform allocation of paging times to be monitored by a user equipment (UE) for paging downlink control information (DCI), and to generate at least one physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) on which said monitored paging time allocation is determinable; and a transceiver adapted, during operation, to transmit said at least one PDCCH, and to perform transmission of said paging DCI in accordance with said paging time allocation.

[0188] For example, the scheduling node operates on an unlicensed frequency, the transceiver performs a Listen Before Talk (LBT) operation during operation, and the circuit obtains a channel occupancy time based on a result of the LBT operation during operation and allocates a paging time to be monitored for the paging DCI to a resource in the COT.

[0189] For example, the at least one PDCCH includes at least one of a channel occupation time (COT) configuration indication indicating allocation of downlink and non-downlink symbols for a COT of a scheduling node serving the user equipment in unlicensed operation, and a paging indication indicating whether the paging time is subject to monitoring.

[0190] For example, at least one allocated downlink symbol is indicated by the COT configuration indication, which is determined as a paging time of the monitored object.

[0191] In some embodiments, the paging time is configured via Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling, and the at least one PDCCH indicates whether the configured paging time is enabled or disabled.

[0192] In some embodiments, if the at least one PDCCH does not indicate that allocation of the paging DCI for the configured paging time is invalid, the paging DCI is allocated to the configured paging time.

[0193] For example, if the at least one PDCCH includes the COT configuration indication and the set paging time is assigned to a symbol after the at least one PDCCH in the COT, the set paging time is indicated as invalid.

[0194] In some embodiments, the paging DCI is assigned to the configured paging time if the at least one PDCCH indicates that the assignment of the paging DCI for the configured paging time is valid.

[0195] In some embodiments, the COT includes a plurality of paging clusters, each of the plurality of paging clusters including a respective paging time set for each of a plurality of beams swept by the scheduling node, and the at least one PDCCH indicates whether each of the plurality of paging clusters is valid.

[0196] In some embodiments, the COT configuration directive specifies paging time allocations for the monitored objects.

[0197] In some embodiments, the at least one PDCCH is a beam-specific PDCCH transmitted on one beam from a plurality of beams swept by the scheduling node, and the allocation of the at least one downlink symbol at which the circuit determines that the monitored paging time is is beam-specific.

[0198] For example, the at least one PDCCH is common to a plurality of beams swept by the scheduling node, and indicates, for each of the plurality of beams, a plurality of downlink symbols including respective paging times to be monitored, and a start beam in which the paging time to be monitored is assigned to the first symbol in time from the plurality of beams, and the circuit determines the paging time to be monitored based on a set cyclic order of beams starting from the indicated start beam during operation.

[0199] Further provided is a paging method performed by a user equipment (UE), comprising: receiving at least one physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) on which an allocation of paging times to be monitored for paging downlink control information (DCI) can be determined; determining the allocation of paging times to be monitored based on the received at least one PDCCH; and performing monitoring on the paging DCI based on the determination of the allocation of paging times.

[0200] For example, the method is performed while operating on an unlicensed frequency.

[0201] For example, the at least one PDCCH includes at least one of a channel occupation time (COT) configuration indication indicating allocation of downlink and non-downlink symbols for a COT of a scheduling node serving the user equipment in unlicensed operation, and a paging indication indicating whether the paging time is subject to monitoring.

[0202] For example, at least one allocated downlink symbol indicated by the COT configuration indication is determined to be the monitored paging time.

[0203] In some embodiments, the paging time is configured via Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling, and the at least one PDCCH indicates whether the configured paging time is enabled or disabled.

[0204] In some embodiments, if the at least one PDCCH does not indicate that allocation of the paging DCI for the configured paging time is invalid, it is determined that the paging DCI is allocated to the configured paging time.

[0205] For example, if the at least one PDCCH includes the COT configuration indication and the set paging time is assigned to a symbol after the at least one PDCCH in the COT, it is determined that the set paging time is invalid.

[0206] In some embodiments, if the at least one PDCCH indicates that allocation of the paging DCI for the configured paging time is valid, it is determined that the paging DCI is allocated to the configured paging time.

[0207] In some embodiments, the COT includes a plurality of paging clusters, each of the plurality of paging clusters including a respective paging time set for each of a plurality of beams swept by the scheduling node, and the at least one PDCCH indicates whether each of the plurality of paging clusters is valid.

[0208] In some embodiments, the COT configuration directive specifies paging time allocations for the monitored objects.

[0209] In some embodiments, the at least one PDCCH is a beam-specific PDCCH transmitted on one beam from a plurality of beams swept by the scheduling node, and the allocation of the at least one downlink symbol at which the circuit determines that the monitored paging time is is beam-specific.

[0210] For example, the at least one PDCCH is common to a plurality of beams swept by the scheduling node, and indicates, for each of the plurality of beams, a plurality of downlink symbols including respective paging times to be monitored, and a start beam in which the paging time to be monitored is assigned to the first symbol in time from the plurality of beams, and the paging time to be monitored is determined based on a set cyclic order of the beams starting from the indicated start beam.

[0211] Further provided is a paging method performed by a scheduling node, comprising: performing an allocation of paging times to be monitored by a user equipment (UE) for paging downlink control information (DCI); generating at least one physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) on which the allocation of paging times to be monitored can be determined; transmitting the at least one PDCCH; and performing transmission of the paging DCI according to the allocation of paging times.

[0212] For example, the method may be performed during operation on an unlicensed frequency, and may include performing a Listen Before Talk (LBT) operation, obtaining a channel occupancy time based on a result of the LBT operation, and allocating resources in the COT to monitored paging times for the paging DCI.

[0213] For example, the at least one PDCCH includes at least one of a channel occupation time (COT) configuration indication indicating allocation of downlink and non-downlink symbols for a COT of a scheduling node serving the user equipment in unlicensed operation, and a paging indication indicating whether the paging time is subject to monitoring.

[0214] For example, at least one allocated downlink symbol is indicated by the COT configuration indication, which is determined as a paging time of the monitored object.

[0215] In some embodiments, the paging time is configured via Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling, and the at least one PDCCH indicates whether the configured paging time is enabled or disabled.

[0216] In some embodiments, if the at least one PDCCH does not indicate that allocation of the paging DCI for the configured paging time is invalid, the paging DCI is allocated to the configured paging time.

[0217] For example, if the at least one PDCCH includes the COT configuration indication and the set paging time is assigned to a symbol after the at least one PDCCH in the COT, the set paging time is indicated as invalid.

[0218] In some embodiments, the paging DCI is assigned to the configured paging time if the at least one PDCCH indicates that the assignment of the paging DCI for the configured paging time is valid.

[0219] In some embodiments, the COT includes a plurality of paging clusters, each of the plurality of paging clusters including a respective paging time set for each of a plurality of beams swept by the scheduling node, and the at least one PDCCH indicates whether each of the plurality of paging clusters is valid.

[0220] In some embodiments, the COT configuration directive specifies paging time allocations for the monitored objects.

[0221] In some embodiments, the at least one PDCCH is a beam-specific PDCCH transmitted on one beam from a plurality of beams swept by the scheduling node, and the allocation of the at least one downlink symbol at which the circuit determines that the monitored paging time is is beam-specific.

[0222] For example, the at least one PDCCH is common to a plurality of beams swept by the scheduling node, and indicates, for each of the plurality of beams, a plurality of downlink symbols including respective paging times to be monitored, and a start beam in which the paging time to be monitored is assigned to the first symbol in time from the plurality of beams, and the paging times to be monitored are specified based on a set cyclic order of the beams starting from the indicated start beam.

[0223] In summary, there are provided a user equipment (UE), a scheduling node, and respective paging methods between the UE and the scheduling node, wherein the UE comprises a transceiver for receiving at least one physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) on which an allocation of monitored paging times for paging downlink control information (DCI) can be determined during operation, and a circuit for determining, based on the received at least one PDCCH during operation, the allocation of monitored paging times, and wherein the transceiver performs monitoring for the paging DCI based on the determination of the allocation of paging times during operation.

Claims

1. A communication device, a transceiver configured to receive at least one physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) during operation; a circuit for determining, during operation, whether to monitor paging downlink control information (DCI) based on the at least one PDCCH; A communication device comprising:

2. The communications device of claim 1 , wherein the transceiver monitors paging DCIs according to paging occasion assignments during operation.

3. The communication device of claim 1 , wherein a paging occasion is configured via Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling, and the at least one PDCCH indicates whether the configured paging occasion is enabled or disabled.

4. The communications device of claim 3 , wherein the circuitry determines that the paging DCI is assigned to the configured paging occasion if the configured paging occasion is indicated as valid during operation.

5. 4. The communications device of claim 3, wherein the circuitry determines that the paging DCI is not assigned to the configured paging occasion if the configured paging occasion is not indicated as valid during operation.

6. a scheduling node, a circuit for generating at least one physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) including information regarding whether the communication device monitors paging downlink control information (DCI) during operation; a transceiver configured to transmit the at least one PDCCH during operation; A scheduling node having:

7. 1. A paging method performed by a communication device, comprising: receiving at least one physical downlink control channel (PDCCH); determining whether to monitor paging downlink control information (DCI) based on the at least one PDCCH; A paging method comprising:

8. A paging method performed by a scheduling node, comprising: generating at least one physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) including information regarding whether the communication device monitors paging downlink control information (DCI); transmitting the at least one PDCCH; A paging method comprising:

9. An integrated circuit for controlling processing of a communication device, the processing comprising: receiving at least one physical downlink control channel (PDCCH); determining whether to monitor paging downlink control information (DCI) based on the at least one PDCCH; , an integrated circuit.

10. An integrated circuit for controlling a process of a scheduling node, the process comprising: generating at least one physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) including information regarding whether the communication device monitors paging downlink control information (DCI); transmitting the at least one PDCCH; , an integrated circuit.

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