Initiating small data transmission based on one or more conditions specific to device type

Abstract

To provide a wireless communication method, apparatus, program and system for initiating small data transmission based on one or more conditions specific to a device type.SOLUTION: A method comprises obtaining one or more first conditions for small data transmission. The one or more first conditions are specific to a first device type and different compared with one or more second conditions for small data transmission. The one or more second conditions are associated with a second device type different to the first device type. The method also comprises initiating, if the one or more first conditions are fulfilled, a small data transmission procedure, while in a radio resource control inactive state or idle state.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The following exemplary embodiments relate to wireless communications. [Background technology]

[0002] Wireless communication systems are constantly evolving, for example, devices may transmit or receive small amounts of data in an inactive state to reduce signaling overhead from connection establishment and to minimize power consumption. Summary of the Invention

[0003] The scope of protection sought for the various exemplary embodiments is defined by the independent claims. The exemplary embodiments and features described herein that do not fall within the scope of the independent claims, if any, should be interpreted as examples that serve to understand the various exemplary embodiments.

[0004] According to one aspect, an apparatus is provided, comprising at least one processor and at least one memory containing computer program code, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to cause, using the at least one processor, the apparatus to: obtain one or more first conditions for small data transmission, wherein the one or more first conditions are specific to a first device type, the one or more first conditions are different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, and the one or more second conditions are associated with a second device type different from the first device type; and, if the one or more first conditions are satisfied, initiate a small data transmission procedure while in an inactive or idle state of radio resource control.

[0005] According to another aspect, an apparatus is provided that includes: means for obtaining one or more first conditions for small data transmission, wherein the one or more first conditions are specific to a first device type, the one or more first conditions are different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, the one or more second conditions being associated with a second device type different from the first device type; and means for initiating a small data transmission procedure while in an inactive or idle state of radio resource control if the one or more first conditions are satisfied.

[0006] According to another aspect, a method is provided that includes obtaining one or more first conditions for small data transmission, wherein the one or more first conditions are specific to a first device type, the one or more first conditions are different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, the one or more second conditions being associated with a second device type different from the first device type, and initiating a small data transmission procedure while in an inactive or idle state of radio resource control if the one or more first conditions are satisfied.

[0007] According to another aspect, a computer program is provided, the computer program comprising instructions for causing a device to at least: obtain one or more first conditions for small data transmission, the one or more first conditions being specific to a first device type, the one or more first conditions being different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, the one or more second conditions being associated with a second device type different from the first device type; and, if the one or more first conditions are satisfied, initiate a small data transmission procedure while in an inactive or idle state of radio resource control.

[0008] According to another aspect, a computer program product is provided that includes program instructions that, when executed on a computing device, cause the computing device to at least: obtain one or more first conditions for small data transmissions, the one or more first conditions being specific to a first device type, the one or more first conditions being different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmissions, and the one or more second conditions being associated with a second device type that is different from the first device type; and, if the one or more first conditions are satisfied, initiate a small data transmission procedure while in an inactive or idle state of radio resource control.

[0009] According to another aspect, a computer-readable medium is provided that includes program instructions to cause an apparatus to at least: obtain one or more first conditions for small data transmission, the one or more first conditions being specific to a first device type, the one or more first conditions being different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, the one or more second conditions being associated with a second device type different from the first device type; and, if the one or more first conditions are satisfied, initiate a small data transmission procedure while in an inactive or idle state of radio resource control.

[0010] According to another aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium is provided that includes program instructions to cause an apparatus to at least: obtain one or more first conditions for small data transmission, the one or more first conditions being specific to a first device type, the one or more first conditions being different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, the one or more second conditions being associated with a second device type different from the first device type; and, if the one or more first conditions are satisfied, initiate a small data transmission procedure while in an inactive or idle state of radio resource control.

[0011] According to another aspect, an apparatus is provided comprising at least one processor and at least one memory containing computer program code, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured, using the at least one processor, to cause the apparatus to transmit, to one or more first terminal devices of at least a first device type, an indication indicating one or more first conditions for small data transmission, wherein the first indication is specific to the first device type, the one or more first conditions are different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, and the one or more second conditions are associated with a second device type different from the first device type.

[0012] According to another aspect, an apparatus is provided that includes means for transmitting, to at least one or more first terminal devices of a first device type, an indication indicating one or more first conditions for small data transmission, wherein the first indication is specific to the first device type, the one or more first conditions are different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, and the one or more second conditions are associated with a second device type that is different from the first device type.

[0013] According to another aspect, a method is provided that includes transmitting, to at least one or more first terminal devices of a first device type, an indication indicating one or more first conditions for small data transmission, wherein the first indication is specific to the first device type, the one or more first conditions are different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, and the one or more second conditions are associated with a second device type that is different from the first device type.

[0014] According to another aspect, a computer program is provided, the computer program comprising instructions for causing an apparatus to at least: transmit, to one or more first terminal devices of at least a first device type, an indication indicating one or more first conditions for small data transmission, wherein the first indication is specific to the first device type, the one or more first conditions are different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, and the one or more second conditions are associated with a second device type different from the first device type.

[0015] According to another aspect, a computer program product is provided that includes program instructions that, when executed on a computing device, cause the computing device to at least: transmit an indication to one or more first terminal devices of at least a first device type indicating one or more first conditions for small data transmission, wherein the first indication is specific to the first device type, the one or more first conditions are different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, and the one or more second conditions are associated with a second device type that is different from the first device type.

[0016] According to another aspect, a computer-readable medium is provided that includes program instructions to cause an apparatus to at least: transmit, to one or more first terminal devices of at least a first device type, an indication indicating one or more first conditions for small data transmission, wherein the first indication is specific to the first device type, the one or more first conditions are different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, and the one or more second conditions are associated with a second device type that is different from the first device type.

[0017] According to another aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium is provided that includes program instructions to cause an apparatus to at least: transmit, to one or more first terminal devices of at least a first device type, an indication indicating one or more first conditions for small data transmission, wherein the first indication is specific to the first device type, the one or more first conditions are different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, and the one or more second conditions are associated with a second device type that is different from the first device type.

[0018] According to another aspect, a system is provided that includes at least a terminal device of a first device type and a network element of a wireless communication network. The network element is configured to transmit, to the at least terminal device of the first device type, an indication indicating one or more first conditions for small data transmission, the first indication being specific to the first device type, the one or more first conditions being different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, the one or more second conditions being associated with a second device type different from the first device type. The terminal device of the first device type is configured to receive the indication from the network element and, if the one or more first conditions are satisfied, initiate a small data transmission procedure while in an inactive or idle state of radio resource control.

[0019] According to another aspect, a system is provided that includes at least a terminal device of a first device type and a network element of a wireless communication network. The network element includes means for transmitting, to the at least terminal device of the first device type, an indication indicating one or more first conditions for small data transmission, the first indication being specific to the first device type, the one or more first conditions being different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, the one or more second conditions being associated with a second device type different from the first device type. The terminal device of the first device type includes means for receiving the indication from the network element and, if the one or more first conditions are satisfied, initiating a small data transmission procedure while in an inactive or idle state of radio resource control.

[0020] Various exemplary embodiments will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0021] [Figure 1] 1 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a cellular communication network. [Figure 2] 1 illustrates a signaling diagram according to some exemplary embodiments. [Figure 3] 1 illustrates a signaling diagram according to some exemplary embodiments. [Figure 4] 1 illustrates a flowchart in accordance with some example embodiments. [Figure 5] 1 illustrates a flowchart in accordance with some example embodiments. [Figure 6] 1 illustrates a flowchart in accordance with some example embodiments. [Figure 7] 1 illustrates a flowchart in accordance with some example embodiments. [Figure 8] 1 illustrates an apparatus according to some example embodiments. [Figure 9]1 illustrates an apparatus according to some example embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0022] The following embodiments are illustrative. Although the specification may refer to "an," "one," or "some" embodiment(s) in several places throughout the text, this does not necessarily mean that each reference refers to the same embodiment(s) or that a particular feature applies only to a single embodiment. Single features of different embodiments may be combined to provide other embodiments.

[0023] In the following, different exemplary embodiments are described using radio access architectures based on Long Term Evolution Advanced (LTE-Advanced, LTE-A) or New Radio (NR, 5G) as examples of access architectures to which the exemplary embodiments may be applied, without limiting the exemplary embodiments to such architectures. It will be clear to those skilled in the art that the exemplary embodiments may also be applied to other types of communication networks having appropriate means by suitably adjusting parameters and procedures. Some examples of other options for suitable systems may include Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Radio Access Network (UTRAN or E-UTRAN), Long Term Evolution (LTE, essentially the same as E-UTRA), Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN or Wi-Fi), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX), Bluetooth®, Personal Communications Services (PCS), ZigBee®, Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), systems using Ultra Wideband (UWB) technology, sensor networks, Mobile Ad Hoc Networks (MANET), and Internet Protocol Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), or any combination thereof.

[0024] 1 shows a simplified example of a system architecture showing several elements and functional entities, all of which are logical units whose implementation may differ from those shown. The connections shown in FIG. 1 are logical connections; the actual physical connections may differ. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the system may have different functionality and structure than that shown in FIG. 1.

[0025] However, the exemplary embodiment is not limited to the system given as an example, and a person skilled in the art can apply the solution to other communication systems with the required characteristics.

[0026] The example of FIG. 1 shows a portion of an exemplary radio access network.

[0027] 1 shows user devices 100 and 102 configured to wirelessly connect over one or more communication channels in a cell served by an access node (e.g., (e / g)NodeB) 104. The physical link from the user devices to the (e / g)NodeB may be referred to as an uplink or reverse link, and the physical link from the (e / g)NodeB to the user devices may be referred to as a downlink or forward link. It should be understood that the (e / g)NodeB or its functionality may be implemented by using any node, host, server, or access point, or other entity suitable for such use.

[0028] A communication system may include two or more (e / g)NodeBs, in which case the (e / g)NodeBs may also be configured to communicate with each other via wired or wireless links designed for the purpose. These links may be utilized for signaling purposes. An (e / g)NodeB may be a computing device configured to control radio resources of the communication system to which it is coupled. An (e / g)NodeB may be considered as a base station, an access point, or any other type of interface device, including a relay station operable in a wireless environment. An (e / g)NodeB may include or be coupled to a transceiver. A connection may be provided from the transceiver of the (e / g)NodeB to an antenna unit that establishes a bidirectional radio link to a user device. The antenna unit may include multiple antennas or antenna elements. An (e / g)NodeB may further be connected to a core network 110 (CN or Next Generation Core NGC). Depending on the system, the counterpart on the CN side may be a Serving Gateway (S-GW, routing and forwarding of user data packets), a Packet Data Network Gateway (P-GW) providing connectivity of a User Device (UE) to an external packet data network, or a Mobility Management Entity (MME), etc.

[0029] A user device (also referred to as UE, user equipment, user terminal, terminal device, etc.) represents one type of device capable of allocating and assigning resources over the air interface; therefore, any feature described herein using a user device can be implemented using a corresponding device, such as a relay node. An example of such a relay node may be a Layer 3 relay (self-backhauling relay) toward a base station. A self-backhauling relay node may also be referred to as an Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB) node. An IAB node may have two logical parts: a Mobile Termination (MT) part that manages backhaul link(s) (i.e., link(s) between the IAB node and a donor node, also known as a parent node), and a Distributed Unit (DU) part that manages access link(s), i.e., child link(s) between the IAB node and UE(s) and / or between the IAB node and other IAB nodes (multi-hop scenarios).

[0030] A user device may refer to a portable computing device, including a wireless mobile communication device that operates with or without a subscriber identity module (SIM), including, but not limited to, the following types of devices: mobile stations (cell phones), smartphones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), handsets, devices using wireless modems (such as alarm or measurement devices), laptop and / or touchscreen computers, tablets, game consoles, notebooks, and multimedia devices. It should be understood that a user device may be a mostly uplink-only device, an example of which may be a camera or video camera that loads images or video clips onto a network. A user device may also be a device capable of operating in an Internet of Things (IoT) network, a scenario in which objects may be provided with the ability to transfer data over a network without the need for human-to-human or human-to-computer interaction. A user device may also utilize the cloud. In some applications, a user device may include a small portable device (such as a watch, earphones, or glasses) with a radio section, and computations may be performed in the cloud. A user device (or in some exemplary embodiments, a Layer 3 relay node) can be configured to perform one or more of the user equipment functions. A user device may also be referred to as a subscriber unit, mobile station, remote terminal, access terminal, user terminal, terminal device, or user equipment (UE), to name just a few names or devices.

[0031] The various techniques described herein can also be applied to cyber-physical systems (CPS), systems of collaborating computational elements that control physical entities. CPS may enable the implementation and utilization of large numbers of interconnected ICT devices (sensors, actuators, processor microcontrollers, etc.) embedded in physical objects at various locations. Mobile cyber-physical systems, where the physical systems in question can have inherent mobility, are a subcategory of cyber-physical systems. Examples of mobile physical systems include mobile robotics and mobile electronics carried by humans or animals.

[0032] Furthermore, although the device is shown as a single entity, it may be implemented with different units, processors and / or memory units (not all of which are shown in FIG. 1).

[0033] 5G can use multiple-input, multiple-output (MIMO) antennas and many more base stations or nodes than LTE (the so-called small cell concept), including macro sites that operate in cooperation with smaller base stations and employ various radio technologies depending on service needs, use cases, and / or available spectrum. 5G mobile communications can support a wide range of use cases and related applications, including video streaming, augmented reality, various data sharing methods, and various forms of machine-type applications (e.g., (massive) machine-type communications (mMTC) including vehicle safety, various sensors, and real-time control). 5G can be expected to have multiple air interfaces, namely, sub-6 GHz, centimeter wave (cmWave), and millimeter wave (mmWave), and to be integrable with existing legacy radio access technologies such as LTE. Integration with LTE, at least initially, can be implemented as a system in which macro coverage is provided by LTE and 5G air interface access can come from small cells through aggregation to LTE. In other words, 5G can support both inter-RAT operation (e.g., LTE-5G) and inter-RI operation (between air interfaces, such as below 6 GHz (cmWave), below 6 GHz (cmWave-mmWave)). One concept that is likely to be used in 5G networks may be network slicing, which allows the creation of multiple independent and dedicated virtual sub-networks (network instances) within substantially the same infrastructure to run services with different requirements for latency, reliability, throughput, and mobility.

[0034] The current architecture of LTE networks can be fully distributed in the radio and fully centralized in the core network. Low-latency applications and services in 5G will require content to be closer to the radio, which may result in local breakout and multi-access edge computing (MEC). 5G may enable analytics and knowledge generation to occur at the source of data. This approach may require leveraging resources that may not be continuously connected to the network, such as laptops, smartphones, tablets, and sensors. MEC can provide a distributed computing environment for application and service hosting. MEC can also provide the ability to store and process content closer to cellular subscribers to reduce response times. Edge computing can cover a wide range of technologies such as wireless sensor networks, mobile data acquisition, mobile signature analysis, collaborative distributed peer-to-peer ad-hoc networking and processing which can also be categorized as local cloud / fog computing and grid / mesh computing, due computing, mobile edge computing, cloudlets, distributed data storage and retrieval, autonomous self-healing networks, remote cloud services, augmented and virtual reality, data caching, Internet of Things (massive connectivity and / or latency critical), critical communications (autonomous vehicles, road safety, real-time analytics, time-critical control, healthcare applications), etc.

[0035] The communications system may also communicate with or use services provided by other networks, such as the public switched telephone network or the Internet 112. The communications network may also be able to support the use of cloud services, e.g., at least a portion of the core network operations may be performed as cloud services (this is illustrated in FIG. 1 by "cloud" 114). The communications system may also have a central control entity, or the like, to provide facilities for networks of different operators to cooperate, for example in spectrum sharing.

[0036] An edge cloud can be incorporated into a radio access network (RAN) by utilizing network function virtualization (NFV) and software-defined networking (SDN). The use of an edge cloud may mean that access node operations are performed, at least in part, in a server, host, or node operatively coupled to a remote radio head (RRH) or radio unit (RU), or a base station comprising a radio part. It may also be possible for node operations to be distributed across multiple servers, nodes, or hosts. Executing real-time functions of the RAN on the RAN side (distributed unit, DU 104) and non-real-time functions of the RAN centralized (aggregation unit, CU 108) may be possible, for example, by applying a cloudRAN architecture.

[0037] It should also be understood that the division of labor between core network operations and base station operations may be different from that in LTE, or may not even exist. Some other technological advances that may be used may be big data and all-IP, which may change the way networks are built and managed. 5G (or New Radio, NR) networks may be designed to support multiple hierarchies, and MEC servers may be located between the core and base stations or NodeBs (gNBs). It should be understood that MEC may also be applied to 4G networks.

[0038] 5G can also utilize satellite communications to extend or complement 5G service coverage, for example, by providing backhauling. Possible use cases could be providing service continuity to machine-to-machine (M2M) or Internet of Things (IoT) devices or vehicle occupants, or ensuring service availability for critical communications and future rail, maritime, and aviation communications. Satellite communications can utilize geostationary Earth orbit (GEO) satellite systems, but can also utilize low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite systems, particularly megaconstellations (systems in which hundreds of (nano)satellites are deployed). At least one satellite 106 in a megaconstellation can cover several satellite-enabled network entities, creating ground cells. Ground cells can be created via terrestrial relay nodes 104 or by gNBs located on the ground or within the satellites.

[0039] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the illustrated system is only an example of a part of a radio access system, and in practice, the system may include multiple (e / g)NodeBs, allowing a user device to access multiple radio cells, and the system may also include other devices such as physical layer relay nodes or other network elements, etc. At least one of the (e / g)NodeBs may be a Home(e / g)NodeB.

[0040] Furthermore, (e / g) a NodeB or base station can also be divided into a radio unit (RU) including a radio transceiver (TRX), i.e., a transmitter (TX) and a receiver (RX), one or more distributed units (DUs) that can be used for so-called Layer 1 (L1) processing and real-time L2 (L2) processing, and a centralized unit (CU) that can be used for non-real-time L2 and L3 (L3) processing. The CU may be connected to one or more DUs, for example, using an F1 interface. Such division can enable centralization of the CU to the cell site and the DU, while the DU can be more distributed and even remain at the cell site. The CU and DU together can also be referred to as a baseband or baseband unit (BBU). The CU and DU may also be included in a radio access point (RAP).

[0041] A CU may be defined as a logical node that hosts higher layer protocols, such as Radio Resource Control (RRC), Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP), and / or Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP), of a (e / g)NodeB or base station. A DU may be defined as a logical node that hosts the Radio Link Control (RLC), Medium Access Control (MAC), and / or Physical (PHY) layers of a (e / g)NodeB or base station. The operation of the DU may be controlled, at least in part, by the CU. A CU may include a control plane (CU-CP), which may be defined as a logical node that hosts, for the (e / g)NodeB or base station, the RRC and the control plane portion of the PDCP protocol of the CU. A CU may further include a user plane (CU-UP), which may be defined as a logical node that hosts, for the (e / g)NodeB or base station, the user plane portion of the PDCP protocol and the SDAP protocol of the CU.

[0042] A cloud computing platform can also be used to execute the CU and / or DU. The CU can execute on the cloud computing platform, sometimes referred to as a virtualized CU (vCU). In addition to the vCU, there can also be a virtualized DU (vDU) executed on the cloud computing platform. Furthermore, there can also be combinations in which the DU uses a so-called bare metal solution, for example, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or a system-on-chip (SoC) solution that is a customer standard product (CSSP). It should also be understood that the distribution of work between the above base station units or between different core network operations and base station operations can differ.

[0043] Furthermore, within the geographical area of ​​a wireless communication system, not only multiple radio cells but also multiple radio cells of different types may be provided. The radio cells may be macrocells (or umbrella cells), which may be large cells with a diameter of up to tens of kilometers, or smaller cells such as microcells, femtocells, or picocells. Any type of these cells can be provided by the (e / g)NodeBs of FIG. 1. A cellular wireless system may be implemented as a multi-layer network including multiple types of cells. In a multi-layer network, one access node can provide one cell or multiple cells of one type, and therefore multiple (e / g)NodeBs may be required to provide such a network structure.

[0044] To meet the need to improve the deployment and performance of communication systems, the concept of "Plug and Play" (e / g) NodeB can be introduced. A network that may be able to use "Plug and Play" (e / g) NodeB may include a Home NodeB Gateway, or HNB-GW (not shown in FIG. 1), in addition to Home (e / g) NodeBs (H(e / g)NodeBs). The HNB Gateway (HNB-GW) may be installed within an operator's network and may aggregate traffic from multiple HNBs back to the core network.

[0045] It is expected that the number of devices that frequently or infrequently generate (transmit) small amounts of data, such as sensors, actuators, and similar devices for (high-volume) machine-type communications, or smartphones with chat apps, will increase exponentially. (The above list should be understood as a non-limiting list of examples of devices that can transmit small amounts of data.) To reduce signaling overhead from connection establishment and minimize power consumption, 5G and beyond may use a process called the small data transmission (SDT) procedure to enable devices to transmit small amounts of data in an inactive state. A device in an inactive state can initiate the small data transmission procedure when certain criteria are met, for example, when the amount of uplink data to be transmitted is smaller than a data volume threshold. The data amount may also be referred to as data volume or data quantity. In other words, using 5G terminology, SDT is a procedure that enables data transmission while in the RRC_INACTIVE state (i.e., without transitioning to the RRC_CONNECTED state). Thus, the SDT procedure can avoid the signaling overhead and delay associated with transitioning from the RRC_INACTIVE state to the RRC_CONNECTED state. SDT can be enabled per radio bearer and can be initiated by the UE when there is less than a configured amount of uplink (UL) data waiting to be transmitted over the SDT-enabled radio bearers, the measured reference signal received power (RSRP) in the cell is above a configured threshold, and valid resources for SDT transmission are available.

[0046] RRC_INACTIVE is a state in which the UE remains in CM-CONNECTED state and can move within the area established by the RAN without notifying the RAN. CM is an acronym for connection management. In RRC_INACTIVE state, the last serving gNB maintains the UE context and UE-related connections with the serving Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) and User Plane Function (UPF). The RRC_INACTIVE state can be used to reduce UE power consumption by reducing the control plane (CP) procedures required for RRC state changes and associated latency. When the UE is in RRC_INACTIVE state, the radio connection is stopped while core network connectivity remains active (i.e., the UE remains in CM-CONNECTED state). To quickly resume the stopped connection, both the UE and RAN store a UE Access Stratum (AS) context (referred to as the UE inactive AS context), which includes the latest radio bearer configuration used for data / signaling transmission, as well as security keys and algorithms for integrity protection and ciphering on the air interface. Based on this retained information, the UE can resume radio connectivity with significantly less delay and associated signaling overhead compared to a UE in RRC_IDLE state, which would need to establish a new connection to both the radio network and the core network.

[0047] The SDT procedure can be performed on random access channel (RACH) resources or type 1 configuration grant (CG) resources. For CG, the SDT resource can be configured either on the initial bandwidth portion (BWP) or on a dedicated BWP. For RACH, the network can also configure whether two-step and four-step random access types can be used. If two random access types are available, the UE can select one of the two random access types.

[0048] Once initiated, the SDT procedure may continue unless the UE is explicitly directed to RRC_IDLE or RRC_INACTIVE state (via RCR release) or directed to RRC_CONNECTED state (via RCR resume). After the initial SDT transmission, subsequent transmissions may be handled differently depending on the type of resource configured. When using CG resources, the network can schedule subsequent UL transmissions using dynamic grants or may take them to the next CG resource opportunity. When using RACH resources, the network can schedule subsequent UL and downlink (DL) transmissions using dynamic grants and allocations, respectively, after the random access procedure is completed.

[0049] A UE can perform a random access procedure to access the network. The purpose of performing the random access procedure may be, for example, initial access, handover, scheduling request, or timing synchronization. The random access procedure may be a contention-based random access procedure (CBRA) or a contention-free random access procedure (CFRA). CFRA may also be referred to as non-contention-based random access. In CFRA, a given UE has a dedicated (i.e., UE-specific) random access preamble allocated by the network, whereas in CBRA, the UE can randomly select a preamble from a pool of preambles shared with other UEs in the cell. CFRA is not currently supported for SDT over RACH. In CBRA, contention (or collision) may occur if two or more UEs attempt a random access procedure by using the same random access procedure on the same resource.

[0050] To avoid contention in CBRA, RACH preambles can be divided into two groups: Group A and Group B. Once the UE selects which group to use, it can select a preamble from the selected group to transmit to the network. Group A can be used to request normal UL resources when the amount of uplink data to transmit is small and / or the UE is in poor coverage (e.g., low RSRP). Group B can be used to request larger resources when the amount of uplink data to transmit in Msg3 is large and the UE is in good coverage (e.g., high RSRP).

[0051] 5G is designed to accommodate a wide range of use cases, such as enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable low-latency communications (URLLC), and massive machine-type communications (mMTC), which have different requirements in terms of data rate, latency, reliability, coverage, energy efficiency, and connection density. mMTC may cover cellular low-power wide-area (LPWA) technologies such as narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) and long-term evolution for machine-type communications (LTE-MTC). Another use case for 5G is time-sensitive communications (TSC). However, between these use cases, there are also several other mid-range use cases, such as industrial wireless sensor networks, video surveillance, and wearables (e.g., smart watches, rings, eHealth-related devices, personal protection equipment, medical monitoring devices, etc.). In other words, the requirements of these mid-range use cases may be higher than LPWA but lower than eMBB and URLLC. To efficiently serve these mid-range use cases, the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) is introducing reduced capability (RedCap) devices in NR Release 17 (Rel-17). RedCap devices may also be referred to as RedCap UE devices, NR-Lite devices, or NR-Light devices.

[0052] A RedCap device may have lower complexity (e.g., reduced bandwidth and antenna count), longer battery life, and a smaller form factor than high-end NR UEs such as eMBB and URLLC devices. For example, a RedCap device may have one receiver branch and one transmitter branch (1Rx / 1Tx) or two receiver branches and one transmitter branch (2Rx / 1Tx) in both Frequency Range 1 (FR1) and Frequency Range 2 (FR2). A RedCap device may support all FR1 and FR2 bands for frequency division duplexing (FDD) and time division duplexing (TDD).

[0053] Industrial wireless sensors and actuators are examples of RedCap devices. It may be desirable to connect these sensors and actuators to 5G wireless access and core networks for the purposes of improving flexibility, increasing productivity and efficiency, and improving operational safety. Industrial wireless sensors can include, for example, pressure sensors, humidity sensors, thermometers, motion sensors, and / or accelerometers. Use cases for industrial wireless sensor networks include URLLC services with very high requirements, as well as relatively low-end services with small device form factor requirements and / or fully wireless services with several years of battery life. These low-end services can be provided by RedCap devices. Industrial wireless sensors associated with low-end services may also have the following use-case-specific requirements: communication service availability may be 99.99%, end-to-end latency may be less than 100 ms, and the reference bit rate may be less than 2 Mbps (asymmetric, e.g., with the possibility of heavy UL traffic) for all use cases, while the device is in a steady state. For safety-related sensors, latency requirements may be lower, e.g., 5–10 ms.

[0054] Video surveillance cameras are another example of RedCap devices. Surveillance camera deployments can be beneficial for smart city use cases, as well as factories and industries, to more efficiently monitor and control city / factory resources. Similar to connected industries, 5G connectivity can serve as a catalyst for the next wave of smart city innovation. For video surveillance use cases, the following requirements can be applied: a reference economic video bitrate of 2-4 Mbps, latency of less than 500 ms, and reliability of 99%-99.9%. High-end video (e.g., for agriculture) may require a video bitrate of 7.5-25 Mbps. Note that traffic patterns may be dominated by UL transmissions.

[0055] Wearables, such as smart watches, rings, eHealth-related devices, personal protection equipment, and / or medical monitoring devices, are other examples of RedCap devices. One feature of this use case is the small size of the device. For wearables, the following requirements can be applied: the reference bit rate for smart wearable applications can be 5-50 Mbs DL and 2-5 Mbs UL, and the peak bit rate of the device can be high, up to 150 Mbs downlink and 50 Mbs uplink. In addition, the battery of the wearable device should last for several days (e.g., up to 1-2 weeks).

[0056] The maximum bandwidth of an FR1 RedCap device during and after initial access may be 20 MHz. The maximum bandwidth of an FR2 RedCap device during and after initial access may be 100 MHz.

[0057] In frequency bands where a legacy NR UE is required to be equipped with a minimum of two Rx antenna ports, the minimum number of Rx branches supported for a RedCap device may be 1. This specification also supports two Rx branches for RedCap devices in these bands. Rx is an acronym for receiver.

[0058] In frequency bands where legacy NR UEs (excluding 2-Rx vehicular UEs) are required to be equipped with a minimum of four Rx antenna ports, the minimum number of Rx branches supported for a RedCap device may be 1. This specification may also support two Rx branches for RedCap devices in these bands.

[0059] A RedCap device with one Rx branch may support one DL MIMO layer. A RedCap device with two Rx branches may support two DL MIMO layers. The gNB can know the number of Rx branches of the UE. Support for 256QAM (Quadrature Amplitude Modulation) in DL may be optional (not required) for FR1 RedCap devices.

[0060] RedCap devices can prevent the use of features such as carrier aggregation, dual connectivity, and higher bandwidth.

[0061] During the random access procedure, the RedCap device may be explicitly identifiable to the network through early indication in Message 1 (Msg1, i.e., the RACH preamble) and / or Message 3 (Msg3), and, if supported, through early indication in Message A (MsgA), including the capability to be configurable by the network for early indication. Msg1 and Msg3 may be used in a four-step random access procedure, whereas MsgA may be used in a two-step random access procedure. In a two-step random access procedure, Msg1 and Msg3 may be combined into a single message (i.e., MsgA).

[0062] The system information indication can be used to indicate whether the RedCap device can camp on a cell / frequency. This indication can be specific to the number of Rx branches of the RedCap device.

[0063] RedCap devices may support extended discontinuous reception (eDRX) for the RRC_INACTIVE and RRC_IDLE states with an eDRX cycle of up to 10.24 seconds without using a paging time window (PTW) and a paging hyperframe (PH). There may be one common design (e.g., a common set of eDRX values) between RRC_INACTIVE and RRC_IDLE. Some RedCap devices may support eDRX with an eDRX cycle of up to 10485.76 seconds for the RRC_INACTIVE and RRC_IDLE states. The SDT may be used with an eDRX cycle of at least 10.24 seconds or less.

[0064] For RRC_INACTIVE / RRC_IDLE and / or RRC_CONNECTED, there may be Radio Resource Management (RRM) mitigation in neighboring cells of the RedCap device. Enabling and disabling of RRM mitigation is under the control of the network and may be signaled by broadcast or dedicated signaling.

[0065] It should be noted that RedCap devices may coexist with non-RedCap UEs (ie, there may be both RedCap devices and non-RedCap UEs in a given cell).

[0066] However, the SDT procedure is currently not optimal for RedCap devices because the limited capabilities of RedCap devices (e.g., reduced number of antennas, reduced bandwidth support, etc.) are not currently taken into account in the SDT procedure. For example, a RedCap device with a reduced number of antennas may not be able to transmit and / or receive at the power required for a successful SDT session, which may cause certain impairments and interference to other devices running SDT. Therefore, there is a need to improve the SDT procedure for RedCap devices.

[0067] In some exemplary embodiments, SDT resource selection and / or SDT budget determination for devices such as RedCap devices may be enhanced. In some exemplary embodiments, the criteria for SDT budget determination and resource selection for RedCap devices may be adjusted to take into account the limited capabilities of the RedCap device.

[0068] 2 illustrates a signaling diagram according to an exemplary embodiment in which the network explicitly indicates how RedCap devices should adjust the condition(s) for SDT. Referring to FIG. 2, a network element of a wireless communication network sends an indication to one or more UEs to adjust one or more conditions for SDT (201). This indication is specific to RedCap devices (i.e., non-RedCap UEs can ignore this indication). One or more UEs may be equipped with at least one RedCap device. The network element may be a base station, such as a gNB.

[0069] The indication 201 may include at least one threshold and / or a rule for adjusting one or more conditions. The rule and at least one threshold may be specific to the RedCap device (i.e., non-RedCap UEs may not use them). Alternatively or additionally, the indication 201 may include at least an offset value for adjusting at least one of the one or more conditions.

[0070] The at least one threshold may include at least one of an uplink data volume threshold for adjusting uplink data volume requirements to an SDT budget, an RSRP threshold for adjusting RSRP requirements to an SDT budget, and / or a RACH preamble group (A or B) data volume threshold for resource selection, which thresholds may be RedCap device specific.

[0071] The indication 201 can be sent to the at least one RedCap device by using dedicated signaling (ie, by sending a device-specific indication to the at least one RedCap device).

[0072] Alternatively, the indication 201 may be broadcast, e.g., via system information block (SIB) signaling, to a plurality of UEs (e.g., all UEs in a cell), including at least one RedCap device and at least one non-RedCap UE. The broadcast may cause a subset of the plurality of UEs to adjust one or more conditions for SDT. For example, the subset of the plurality of UEs may include at least one RedCap device, but may not include non-RedCap UEs. In other words, the indication (e.g., including at least one threshold) may be broadcast to both RedCap devices and non-RedCap UEs, but only RedCap devices may use the indication to adjust one or more conditions. Thus, only certain types of devices (e.g., RedCap devices) may be able to perform adjustment of SDT condition(s).

[0073] The at least one RedCap device adjusts (202) one or more conditions based at least in part on the rules, at least one threshold, and / or offset value in the indication received from the network element.

[0074] If the at least one RedCap device determines (203) that one or more of the adjusted conditions are met, the at least one RedCap device initiates (204) an SDT procedure and sends a small data transmission to the network element.

[0075] The adjusted one or more conditions may be referred to as one or more first conditions, and the original (unadjusted) one or more conditions may be referred to as one or more second conditions. In other words, one or more first conditions may be obtained by adjusting one or more second conditions.

[0076] It should be noted that some example embodiments are not limited to RedCap devices, and one or more conditions for SDT may be adjusted by other types of devices / UEs.

[0077] 3 shows a signaling diagram according to another example embodiment, in which a network signals different sets of conditions for SDT to different types of UEs. Referring to FIG. 3, a network element of a wireless communication network sends 301 a first indication to one or more first UEs (denoted as UE1) indicating one or more first conditions for SDT. The network element sends 302 a second indication to one or more second UEs (denoted as UE2) indicating one or more second conditions for SDT.

[0078] The one or more first conditions are specific to a first device type including one or more first UEs. The one or more second conditions are associated with or specific to a second device type including one or more second UEs. The one or more first conditions and the one or more second conditions are at least partially different. For example, the one or more first conditions may include a first uplink data volume threshold and / or a first RSRP threshold for an SDT budget, and the one or more second conditions may include a second uplink data volume threshold and / or a second RSRP threshold for an SDT budget, where the value of the second uplink data volume threshold and / or the value of the second RSRP threshold may be different from the value of the first uplink data volume threshold and / or the value of the first RSRP threshold, respectively.

[0079] The first device type is different compared to the second device type. For example, the first device type may include or refer to a RedCap device, in which case one or more first UEs may be RedCap device(s). The second device type may include or refer to a non-RedCap UE, in which case one or more second UEs may be non-RedCap UE(s). The network element may be a base station, such as a gNB.

[0080] As another example, the first device type may refer to a 1Rx RedCap device, in which case one or more first UEs may be 1Rx RedCap device(s). In this case, the second device type may include or refer to a 2Rx RedCap device and / or a non-RedCap UE, in which case one or more second UEs may include 2Rx RedCap device(s) and / or a non-RedCap UE. A 1Rx RedCap device refers to a RedCap device that includes a single receiver. A 2Rx RedCap device refers to a RedCap device that includes two receivers.

[0081] If one or more first conditions are met for one or more first UEs, the one or more first UEs initiate (303) an SDT procedure and send a first small data transmission to the network element, and if one or more second conditions are met for one or more second UEs, the one or more second UEs initiate (304) an SDT procedure and send a second small data transmission to the network element.

[0082] It should be noted that some example embodiments are not limited to RedCap devices, and the first device type may be some other device type other than a RedCap device.

[0083] 4 illustrates a flowchart according to an exemplary embodiment. The functions illustrated in FIG. 4 may be performed by or included in an apparatus, such as a network element, such as a base station. Referring to FIG. 4, an indication indicating one or more first conditions for SDT is transmitted (401) to one or more first UEs of at least a first device type, where the first indication is specific to the first device type. The one or more first conditions are different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, where the one or more second conditions are associated with a second device type different from the first device type.

[0084] The first device type may be, for example, associated with a RedCap device, and the one or more first UEs may include one or more RedCap devices. The second device type may be, for example, associated with a non-RedCap UE.

[0085] As another example, the first device type may refer to a 1Rx RedCap device, in which case the one or more first UEs may be a 1Rx RedCap device(s), in which case the second device type may include or refer to a 2Rx RedCap device and / or a non-RedCap UE, in which case the one or more second UEs may include a 2Rx RedCap device(s) and / or a non-RedCap UE.

[0086] The indication 401 may include at least one threshold specific to the first device type. The at least one threshold may include at least one of an uplink data volume threshold, an RSRP threshold, and / or a RACH preamble group data volume threshold. Alternatively or additionally, the indication 401 may include at least an offset value for adjusting at least one of the one or more second conditions.

[0087] The indication 401 can be broadcast to multiple UEs, including at least one or more first UEs and one or more second UEs of a second device type. The broadcast can cause the one or more first UEs to acquire the one or more first conditions by adjusting the one or more second conditions based on the indication, for example, by applying the indicated at least one threshold and / or offset value to the one or more second conditions. Alternatively, the indication 401 can be transmitted to the one or more first UEs by using dedicated signaling.

[0088] FIG. 5 illustrates a flowchart according to an exemplary embodiment for determining an SDT allowance. The functionality illustrated in FIG. 5 may be executable by an apparatus such as a terminal device (UE) (e.g., a RedCap device) or may be included in such a terminal device (UE). Referring to FIG. 5, one or more first conditions for SDT are obtained (step 501). The one or more first conditions are specific to a first device type. The one or more first conditions are different compared to one or more second conditions for SDT, and the one or more second conditions are associated with a second device type different from the first device type. For example, the one or more first conditions may include a condition for uplink data volume and / or a condition for RSRP.

[0089] The first device type may be, for example, associated with a RedCap device, and the one or more first UEs may include one or more RedCap devices. The second device type may be, for example, associated with a non-RedCap UE.

[0090] As another example, the first device type may refer to a 1Rx RedCap device, in which case the one or more first UEs may be a 1Rx RedCap device(s), in which case the second device type may include or refer to a 2Rx RedCap device and / or a non-RedCap UE, in which case the one or more second UEs may include a 2Rx RedCap device(s) and / or a non-RedCap UE.

[0091] The one or more first conditions may be obtained based at least in part on at least one of the bandwidth available to the device (the bandwidth supported by the device), the number of antennas included in the device, the number of receivers included in the device, and / or the battery life of the device, thereby taking into account limitations of a first device type (e.g., a RedCap device) compared to a second device type (e.g., a non-RedCap device).

[0092] The one or more first conditions and / or the one or more second conditions may be obtained, for example, from a predefined 3GPP specification, in other words, the one or more first conditions and / or the one or more second conditions may be predefined.

[0093] Alternatively, the one or more first conditions and / or the one or more second conditions may be obtained by receiving the one or more first conditions and / or the one or more second conditions from a network (e.g., via broadcast or dedicated signaling from the network).

[0094] Alternatively, the one or more first conditions may be obtained by adjusting, for example, by dividing, multiplying, adding, or subtracting the currently configured values ​​of the one or more second conditions. In this case, the one or more second conditions may refer to default condition(s) or existing condition(s) set for all UEs in the cell, for example, by a predefined 3GPP specification or by broadcast from the network. Thus, this adjustment causes the one or more first conditions to be different compared to the one or more second conditions. The rules for adjusting the one or more second conditions may be predefined (e.g., statically specified in a 3GPP specification) or indicated from the network.

[0095] The condition for uplink data volume (included in the one or more first conditions) may be associated with an uplink data volume threshold for enabling initiation of the SDT procedure. The condition for uplink data volume (included in the one or more first conditions) may be obtained by adjusting the uplink data volume threshold associated with the one or more second conditions. For example, the uplink data volume threshold may be adjusted by decreasing the uplink data volume threshold. In other words, the uplink data volume threshold may be scaled down so that less data is allowed for a first device type (e.g., a RedCap device) than for a second device type (e.g., a non-RedCap UE) due to limitations (e.g., antenna and bandwidth limitations) of the RedCap device compared to a non-RedCap UE. The rules and / or values ​​used to adjust the uplink data volume threshold may be predefined (e.g., statically specified in a 3GPP specification) or may be indicated by the network.

[0096] The condition for RSRP (included in the one or more first conditions) may be associated with an RSRP threshold for enabling initiation of an SDT procedure. The condition for RSRP (included in the one or more first conditions) may be obtained by adjusting an RSRP threshold associated with one or more second conditions. For example, the RSRP threshold may be adjusted by increasing the RSRP threshold such that the RSRP threshold for a first device type (e.g., RedCap device) is higher than the RSRP threshold for a second device type (e.g., non-RedCap UE) that can enable initiation of an SDT procedure. The rules and / or values ​​used to adjust the RSRP threshold may be predefined (e.g., statically specified in a 3GPP specification) or may be indicated by the network.

[0097] If one or more first conditions are met, a small data transmission procedure is initiated while in a radio resource control inactive state (RRC_INACTIVE) or a radio resource control idle state (RRC_IDLE) (502).

[0098] If the uplink data volume value of the small data transmission procedure (i.e., the volume of data to be transmitted by SDT) is equal to or less than the adjusted uplink data volume threshold, the condition for the uplink data volume (included in the one or more first conditions) may be met. On the other hand, if the uplink data volume value exceeds the (adjusted) uplink data volume threshold, SDT may not be allowed in the RedCap device.

[0099] If the RSRP value measured by the device is equal to or greater than the adjusted RSRP threshold, the condition for RSRP (included in the one or more first conditions) may be satisfied. On the other hand, if the measured RSRP value is less than the adjusted RSRP threshold, SDT may not be permitted for the RedCap device. The RSRP value may be measured based on a reference signal received from the network (e.g., a base station) before initiating the SDT procedure.

[0100] In some exemplary embodiments, a 1Rx RedCap device and a 2Rx RedCap device may perform different adjustments. For example, only the 1Rx RedCap device may be able to adjust one or more conditions for SDT, while the 2Rx RedCap device may utilize settings for non-RedCap devices. For example, if the network measures settings applicable to a 2Rx RedCap device, the 1Rx RedCap device may need to adjust one or more conditions for SDT. Therefore, different device characteristics (such as the number of receivers) may be utilized when configuring and determining the condition(s) for SDT. In other words, the condition(s) for SDT may be different for different device types. As described above, one approach to obtaining SDT condition(s) for a specific device type is to adjust the SDT condition(s) for different device types. To name a few, the adjustments may be performed according to a predetermined criterion or criteria or according to settings received from the network.

[0101]

[0023] Figure 6 shows a flowchart according to another exemplary embodiment. Figure 6 shows rules for adjusting one or more conditions for an SDT allowance and initiating an SDT procedure based on the adjusted one or more conditions. The functionality shown in Figure 6 may be executable by or included in an apparatus such as a terminal device of a first device type (e.g., a RedCap device).

[0102] Referring to FIG. 6, when at least one offset value for adjusting at least one condition for the SDT budget is received from a network element (e.g., a base station) of a wireless communication network (601: Yes), the at least one condition for the SDT budget is adjusted by applying (e.g., adding or subtracting) the at least one offset value to the at least one condition (602). The at least one condition may include, for example, a condition for the amount of uplink data and / or a condition for RSRP. The offset value may be a positive or negative numerical value. As a non-limiting example, an offset value of +3 dB may be added to the RSRP threshold of the condition for RSRP to increase the RSRP threshold.

[0103] On the other hand, if an offset value for adjusting at least one condition for the SDT is not received (601: No), the SDT is not permitted (605). In other words, if the network does not set adjustment value(s) and / or offset value(s) via dedicated or broadcast signaling for the device (e.g., RedCap device), the SDT is not permitted for the device. In one example, this restriction may only apply to 1Rx RedCap devices, but may not apply to 2Rx RedCap devices.

[0104] If at least one adjusted condition is met (603: YES), an SDT procedure is initiated (604). For example, at least one adjusted condition may be met if the amount of uplink data to be transmitted is less than or equal to the adjusted uplink data amount threshold of the adjusted condition for the uplink data amount and / or if the measured RSRP value is greater than or equal to the adjusted RSRP threshold of the adjusted condition for the RSRP.

[0105] On the other hand, if at least one adjusted condition is not met (603: No), the SDT is not allowed (605).

[0106] 7 shows a flowchart according to an example embodiment for SDT resource determination. The functions shown in FIG. 7 may be executable by or included in a terminal device of a first device type (e.g., a RedCap device).

[0107] 7, one or more thresholds for selecting between RACH preamble groups are adjusted 701. For example, the device (e.g., RedCap device) may increase or decrease the data volume threshold and / or RSRP threshold of a RACH preamble group to be higher or lower than a second device type (e.g., non-RedCap UE) such that the device (e.g., RedCap device) is less likely to select RACH preamble group B (after increasing the threshold) or more likely to select RACH preamble group B (after decreasing the threshold) compared to a second device type (e.g., non-RedCap UE).

[0108] A RACH preamble group is selected based at least in part on the adjusted one or more thresholds (702). The selected RACH preamble group may be, for example, Group A or Group B. For example, Group A may be selected when the amount of uplink data to be transmitted is small, i.e., equal to or less than the adjusted RACH preamble group data volume threshold, and / or when the device coverage is poor (e.g., when the measured RSRP value is less than the adjusted RSRP threshold). Group B may be selected when the amount of uplink data to be transmitted is larger, i.e., exceeds the adjusted RACH preamble group data volume threshold, and / or when the device coverage is good (e.g., when the measured RSRP value is equal to or greater than the adjusted RSRP threshold).

[0109] Alternatively, the device may not be allowed to select a RACH preamble from group B.

[0110] A random access preamble from the selected RACH preamble group is transmitted to a network element of the wireless communication network requesting uplink resources for the SDT 703. The uplink resources may include time resources and / or frequency resources.

[0111] An indication, eg, an uplink grant included in a random access response (ie, Msg2), indicating uplink resources for the SDT is received from the network element (704).

[0112] The SDT procedure is initiated by using the indicated uplink resource (705). In other words, the small data transmission may be sent by using the indicated uplink resource.

[0113] The functions and / or blocks described above with reference to Figures 2-7 are not in an absolute chronological order, and some of these functions and / or blocks may be performed simultaneously or in a different order than that described above. Other functions and / or blocks may also be performed between or within them.

[0114] A technical advantage provided by some exemplary embodiments is that they may provide improved SDT procedures that take into account limitations of a device (e.g., a RedCap device). According to some exemplary embodiments, UL and DL SDT transmissions for devices such as RedCap devices may be improved so that SDT procedures are not attempted when radio conditions are poor and / or when there is too much data to transmit.

[0115] FIG. 8 illustrates an apparatus 800 according to an exemplary embodiment. The apparatus 800 may be an apparatus such as a terminal device of a first device type, or may be an apparatus included in a terminal device of the first device type. The terminal device may also be referred to herein as a UE, user equipment, or RedCap device. The apparatus 800 includes a processor 810. The processor 810 interprets computer program instructions and processes data. The processor 810 may include one or more programmable processors. The processor 810 may include programmable hardware with embedded firmware, and alternatively or additionally, may include one or more application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs).

[0116] The processor 810 is coupled to the memory 820. The processor 810 is configured to read from and write to the memory 820. The memory 820 may include one or more memory units. The memory units may be volatile or nonvolatile. It should be noted that in some exemplary embodiments, there may be one or more nonvolatile memory units and one or more volatile memory units, or there may be one or more nonvolatile memory units, or there may be one or more volatile memory units. The volatile memory may be, for example, a random access memory (RAM), a dynamic random access memory (DRAM), or a synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM). The nonvolatile memory may be, for example, a read-only memory (ROM), a programmable read-only memory (PROM), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a flash memory, an optical storage device, or a magnetic storage device. In general, memory may be referred to as a non-transitory computer-readable medium. The memory 820 stores computer-readable instructions that are executed by the processor 810. For example, non-volatile memory stores computer-readable instructions, and processor 810 executes the instructions using volatile memory for temporary storage of data and / or instructions.

[0117] The computer-readable instructions may be pre-stored in memory 820 or alternatively or additionally may be received by the device via an electromagnetic carrier signal and / or copied from a physical entity such as a computer program product. Execution of the computer-readable instructions causes device 800 to perform one or more of the functions described above.

[0118] In the context of this document, "memory" or "computer-readable medium" or "computer-readable mediums" may be any non-transitory medium or media or means capable of containing, storing, communicating, propagating, or transporting instructions used by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device such as a computer.

[0119] The device 800 may further include or be connected to an input unit 830. The input unit 830 may include one or more interfaces for receiving input. The one or more interfaces may comprise, for example, one or more temperature sensors, motion and / or orientation sensors, one or more cameras, one or more accelerometers, one or more microphones, one or more buttons, and / or one or more touch detection units. Furthermore, the input unit 830 may include an interface to which an external device can be connected.

[0120] The device 800 may also have an output unit 840. The output unit may include or be connected to one or more displays capable of rendering visual content, such as a light-emitting diode (LED) display, a liquid crystal display (LCD) and / or a liquid crystal on silicon (LCoS) display. The output unit 840 may further include one or more audio outputs. The one or more audio outputs may be, for example, speakers.

[0121] The device 800 further includes a connectivity unit 850. The connectivity unit 850 enables wireless connectivity to one or more external devices. The connectivity unit 850 includes at least one transmitter and at least one receiver, which may be integrated into the device 800 or to which the device 800 may be connected. The at least one transmitter includes at least one transmitting antenna, and the at least one receiver includes at least one receiving antenna. The connectivity unit 850 may include an integrated circuit or a set of integrated circuits that provide the device 800 with wireless communication capabilities. Alternatively, the wireless connectivity may be a hardwired application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC). The connectivity unit 850 may include one or more components, such as a power amplifier, a digital front end (DFE), an analog-to-digital converter (ADC), a digital-to-analog converter (DAC), a frequency converter, a modulator (demodulator), and / or an encoder / decoder circuit, controlled by a corresponding control unit.

[0122] It should be noted that the device 800 may further include various components not shown in Figure 8. The various components may be hardware and / or software components.

[0123] The apparatus 900 of FIG. 9 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of an apparatus such as a base station or an apparatus included in a base station. The base station may be referred to as, for example, a network element, a RAN node, a NodeB, an LTE evolved NodeB (eNB), a gNB, an NR base station, a 5G base station, an access node, an access point (AP), a distributed unit (DU), a aggregation unit (CU), a baseband unit (BBU), a radio unit (RU), a radio head, a remote radio head (RRH), or a transmit / receive point (TRP). The apparatus may have, for example, a circuit or chipset applicable to a base station to implement some of the described exemplary embodiments. The apparatus 900 may be an electronic device including one or more electronic circuits. The apparatus 900 may include communication control circuitry 910, such as at least one processor, and at least one memory 920 including computer program code (software) 922, the at least one memory and the computer program code (software) 922 configured to cause the apparatus 900, using the at least one processor, to perform some of the above-described exemplary embodiments.

[0124] The processor is coupled to memory 920. The processor is configured to read from and write to memory 920. Memory 920 may include one or more memory units. The memory units may be volatile or nonvolatile. It should be noted that in some exemplary embodiments, there may be one or more nonvolatile memory units and one or more volatile memory units, or there may be one or more nonvolatile memory units, or there may be one or more volatile memory units. The volatile memory may be, for example, random access memory (RAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), or synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM). The nonvolatile memory may be, for example, read-only memory (ROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), flash memory, optical storage, or magnetic storage. In general, memory may be referred to as a non-transitory computer-readable medium. The memory 920 stores computer-readable instructions that are executed by the processor. For example, non-volatile memory stores computer-readable instructions, and a processor executes the instructions using volatile memory for temporary storage of data and / or instructions.

[0125] The computer-readable instructions may be pre-stored in memory 920 or alternatively or additionally may be received by the device via an electromagnetic carrier signal and / or copied from a physical entity such as a computer program product. Execution of the computer-readable instructions causes device 900 to perform one or more of the functions described above.

[0126] The memory 920 may be implemented using any suitable data storage technology, such as semiconductor-based memory devices, flash memory, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory, and / or removable memory. The memory may include a configuration database for storing configuration data. For example, the configuration database may store a current neighbor cell list and, in some exemplary embodiments, the frame structure used by detected neighbor cells.

[0127] The apparatus 900 may further include a communication interface 930 including hardware and / or software for enabling communication connectivity according to one or more communication protocols. The communication interface 930 includes at least one transmitter (TX) and at least one receiver (RX), which may be integrated into the apparatus 900 or to which the apparatus 900 may be connected. The communication interface 930 provides the apparatus with wireless communication capabilities for communicating in a cellular communication system. The communication interface may, for example, provide a radio interface to a terminal device. The apparatus 900 may further include another interface directed to a core network, such as a network coordinator apparatus, and / or another interface to an access node of the cellular communication system. The apparatus 900 may further include a scheduler 940 configured to allocate resources.

[0128] As used in this application, the term "circuitry" may refer to one or more, or all, of the following: a) a hardware-only circuit implementation (such as an implementation with only analog and / or digital circuitry); b) a combination of hardware circuitry and software, for example (where applicable): i) a combination of analog and / or digital hardware circuit(s) and software / firmware; and ii) a combination of any portion of hardware processor(s) and software (including digital signal processor(s), software, and memory(s) that cooperate to cause a device such as a mobile phone to perform various functions); and c) hardware circuit(s) and / or processor(s), such as microprocessor(s) or portions of microprocessor(s), that require software (e.g., firmware) to operate, but may not be present if the software is not necessary for operation.

[0129] This definition of "circuit" applies to all uses of the term in this application, including any claims. As a further example, the term circuit, as used herein, encompasses an embodiment of a simple hardware circuit or processor (or processors), or a portion of a hardware circuit or processor, as well as its (or their) accompanying software and / or firmware. The term circuit also encompasses, for example, baseband or processor integrated circuits for mobile devices, or similar integrated circuits in servers, cellular network devices, or other computing or network devices, if applicable to certain claim elements.

[0130] The techniques and methods described herein may be implemented by various means. For example, the techniques may be implemented as hardware (one or more devices), firmware (one or more devices), software (one or more modules), or a combination thereof. In a hardware implementation, the apparatus(es) of the exemplary embodiments may be implemented within one or more application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), digital signal processors (DSPs), digital signal processing devices (DSPDs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), graphics processing units (GPUs), processors, controllers, microcontrollers, microprocessors, other electronic units designed to perform the functions described herein, or a combination thereof. In the case of firmware or software, the implementation may be by modules (e.g., procedures, functions, etc.) of at least one chipset that perform the functions described herein. The software code may be stored in a memory unit and executed by the processor. The memory unit may be implemented within the processor or external to the processor. In the latter case, the memory unit may be communicatively coupled to the processor via various means, as is well known in the art. Furthermore, the components of the systems described herein may be rearranged and / or supplemented with additional components to facilitate accomplishment of the various aspects described therein, etc., and are not limited to the precise configurations shown in the given drawings, as will be understood by those skilled in the art.

[0131] It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that as technology advances, the concept of the present invention can be implemented in various ways. The embodiments are not limited to the exemplary embodiments described above, but can be modified within the scope of the claims. Therefore, all words and expressions should be interpreted broadly, and they are intended to illustrate, not limit, the exemplary embodiments.

Claims

1. 1. An apparatus comprising at least one processor and at least one memory containing computer program code, the at least one memory and the computer program code being configured to cause the apparatus, using the at least one processor, to: obtaining one or more first conditions for small data transmission, the one or more first conditions being specific to a first device type, the one or more first conditions being different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, the one or more second conditions being associated with a second device type different from the first device type; initiating a small data transmission procedure while in an inactive or idle state of radio resource control if the one or more first conditions are met; The apparatus is configured to cause the

2. the one or more first conditions include at least a condition on an amount of uplink data; The apparatus further comprises: and obtaining a condition for the uplink data volume by adjusting an uplink data volume threshold for small data transmission, wherein the uplink data volume threshold is included in the one or more second conditions. were made to do so, The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the condition for the uplink data amount is met when an uplink data amount value of the small data transmission procedure is less than or equal to the adjusted uplink data amount threshold.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the uplink data volume threshold is adjusted by decreasing the uplink data volume threshold.

4. the one or more first conditions include at least a condition on reference signal received power; The apparatus further comprises: and adjusting a reference signal received power threshold for small-scale data transmission to obtain a condition for the reference signal received power, wherein the reference signal received power threshold is included in the one or more second conditions. were made to do so, 10. An apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the condition on reference signal received power is met if a measured reference signal received power value is greater than or equal to the adjusted reference signal received power threshold.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the reference signal received power threshold is adjusted by increasing the reference signal received power threshold.

6. The apparatus further comprises: Adjusting a random access channel preamble group data volume threshold; selecting a random access channel preamble group based at least in part on the adjusted random access channel preamble group data volume threshold; transmitting a random access preamble from the selected random access channel preamble group to request uplink resources for the small data transmission procedure; receiving an indication indicating the uplink resources for the small data transmission procedure; were made to do so, 10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the small data transmission procedure is initiated by using the indicated uplink resources.

7. 10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the one or more first conditions are obtained by dividing, multiplying, adding, or subtracting a constituent value of at least one condition of the one or more second conditions.

8. The apparatus further comprises: receiving at least one offset value to adjust at least one condition of the one or more second conditions; applying the at least one offset value to the at least one condition of the one or more second conditions to obtain the one or more first conditions; were made to do so, The device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the small data transmission procedure is initiated when the at least one offset value is received and the one or more first conditions are met.

9. 10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the one or more first conditions are obtained based at least in part on at least one of a bandwidth, a number of antennas, a number of receivers, and a battery life of the apparatus.

10. The apparatus further comprises: obtaining the one or more first conditions and / or the one or more second conditions by receiving the one or more first conditions and / or the one or more second conditions from a network element of a wireless communication network; 10. An apparatus according to any preceding claim, adapted to perform

11. 10. Apparatus according to any preceding claim, wherein the first device type refers to a reduced function device, and the apparatus is or is included in a reduced function device.

12. 1. An apparatus comprising at least one processor and at least one memory containing computer program code, the at least one memory and the computer program code being configured to cause the apparatus, using the at least one processor, to: transmitting, to at least one or more first terminal devices of a first device type, an indication indicating one or more first conditions for small data transmission, the first indication being specific to the first device type, the one or more first conditions being different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, the one or more second conditions being associated with a second device type different from the first device type; The apparatus is configured to cause the

13. the indication includes at least one threshold value that is specific to the first device type; The apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the at least one threshold comprises at least one of an uplink data volume threshold, a reference signal received power threshold, and a random access channel preamble group data volume threshold.

14. The apparatus according to any one of claims 12 to 13, wherein the indication comprises at least an offset value for adjusting at least one of the one or more second conditions.

15. the indication is broadcast to a plurality of terminal devices including at least the one or more first terminal devices and one or more second terminal devices of the second device type; The apparatus of any of claims 12 to 14, wherein the broadcasting causes the one or more first terminal devices to acquire the one or more first conditions by adjusting the one or more second conditions based at least in part on the indication.

16. The apparatus according to any of claims 12 to 14, wherein the indication is transmitted to the one or more first terminal devices by using dedicated signaling.

17. The apparatus of any of claims 12 to 16, wherein the first device type refers to a reduced function device, and the one or more first terminal devices include one or more reduced function devices.

18. 1. A method comprising: obtaining one or more first conditions for small data transmission, the one or more first conditions being specific to a first device type, the one or more first conditions being different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, the one or more second conditions being associated with a second device type different from the first device type; initiating a small data transmission procedure while in an inactive or idle state of radio resource control if the one or more first conditions are met; The method comprising:

19. 1. A method comprising: transmitting, to at least one or more first terminal devices of a first device type, an indication indicating one or more first conditions for small data transmission, the first indication being specific to the first device type, the one or more first conditions being different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, the one or more second conditions being associated with a second device type different from the first device type; The method comprising:

20. A computer program comprising: At least the following: obtaining one or more first conditions for small data transmission, the one or more first conditions being specific to a first device type, the one or more first conditions being different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, the one or more second conditions being associated with a second device type different from the first device type; initiating a small data transmission procedure while in an inactive or idle state of radio resource control if the one or more first conditions are met; The computer program comprising instructions for causing an apparatus to perform the above.

21. A computer program comprising: At least the following: transmitting, to at least one or more first terminal devices of a first device type, an indication indicating one or more first conditions for small data transmission, the first indication being specific to the first device type, the one or more first conditions being different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, the one or more second conditions being associated with a second device type different from the first device type; The computer program comprising instructions for causing an apparatus to perform the above.

22. A system including at least a terminal device of a first device type and a network element of a wireless communication network, the network element: transmitting, to at least the terminal devices of the first device type, an indication indicating one or more first conditions for small data transmission, the first indication being specific to the first device type, the one or more first conditions being different compared to one or more second conditions for small data transmission, the one or more second conditions being associated with a second device type different from the first device type; and The terminal device, receiving the indication from the network element; initiating a small data transmission procedure while in an inactive or idle state of radio resource control if the one or more first conditions are met; The system is configured to:

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