Method and apparatus for network energy saving status indication

Abstract

A method performed by at least one processor in a user equipment (UE) includes receiving one or more resources from a base station operating in a non-energy saving mode. The method further includes receiving control information included in a downlink control channel from the base station, the control information indicating whether the base station is operating in the energy saving mode. The method further includes determining whether the base station is operating in the energy saving mode based on the control information. The method further includes modifying reception of the one or more resources in response to determining that the base station is operating in the energy saving mode.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 63 / 393,455, filed July 29, 2022, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference in its entirety herein.

[0002] The present disclosure relates generally to communication systems, and more particularly to a method and apparatus for network energy saving status indication and device status indication. [Background technology]

[0003] In previous specification releases (e.g., NR Rel-17), mechanisms for activation / deactivation of capacity booster cells have been specified (e.g., TS28.310, TR36.887, and TR36.927). However, these solutions are limited to cell activation / deactivation and do not provide a more dynamic way for the gNB to enter sleep mode to save power. Therefore, there is a need to achieve more efficient operation and more precise adaptation of transmission and / or reception in one or more of network energy saving techniques in time, frequency, space, and power domains dynamically and / or semi-statically with potential support / feedback from the UE, potential UE assistance information, and information exchange / coordination over the network interface.

[0004] Improvements are presented herein that may also be applicable to other multi-access technologies and telecommunications standards that use these technologies. Summary of the Invention [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] The following presents a simplified summary of one or more embodiments of the present disclosure in order to provide a basic understanding of such embodiments. This summary is not an extensive overview of all possible embodiments, and is not intended to identify key or critical elements of all embodiments or to delineate the scope of any or all embodiments. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts of one or more embodiments of the present disclosure in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later.

[0006] SUMMARY Disclosed by the present disclosure are methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer readable media for network energy saving status indication and device status indication.

[0007] According to an example embodiment, a method performed by at least one processor in a user equipment (UE) includes receiving one or more resources from a base station operating in a non-energy saving mode. The method further includes receiving control information from the base station included in a downlink control channel, the control information indicating whether the base station is operating in the energy saving mode. The method further includes determining whether the base station is operating in the energy saving mode based on the control information. The method further includes modifying reception of the one or more resources in response to determining that the base station is operating in the energy saving mode.

[0008] According to an example embodiment, a user equipment (UE) includes at least one memory configured to store computer program code and at least one processor configured to access the at least one memory and operate as instructed by the computer program code. The computer program code includes a first receiving code configured to cause at least one of the at least one processor to receive one or more resources from a base station operating in a non-energy saving mode. The computer program code includes a second receiving code configured to cause at least one of the at least one processor to receive control information from the base station included in a downlink control channel, the control information indicating whether the base station is operating in an energy saving mode. The computer program code includes a determining code configured to cause at least one of the at least one processor to determine whether the base station is operating in an energy saving mode based on the control information. The computer program code includes a modifying code configured to cause at least one of the at least one processor to modify the reception of one or more resources in response to a determination that the base station is operating in an energy saving mode.

[0009] According to an example embodiment, a non-transitory computer-readable medium having instructions stored therein that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method performed in a user equipment (UE). The method includes receiving one or more resources from a base station operating in a non-energy saving mode. The method further includes receiving control information from the base station included in a downlink control channel, the control information indicating whether the base station is operating in the energy saving mode. The method further includes determining whether the base station is operating in the energy saving mode based on the control information. The method further includes modifying reception of the one or more resources in response to determining that the base station is operating in the energy saving mode.

[0010] Additional embodiments are set forth in the description which follows, and in part will be apparent from the description and / or may be learned by practice of presented embodiments of the present disclosure. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] The above and other aspects, features, and aspects of embodiments of the present disclosure will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0012] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a diagram of an exemplary network device in accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure. [Diagram 2] 1 is a schematic diagram of an exemplary wireless communication system in accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is an exemplary time sequence diagram according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 4] 4 is an exemplary time sequence diagram according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. [Diagram 5] 4 is an exemplary time sequence diagram according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 6] 4 is a flowchart of an exemplary network energy saving status indication process according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 7] 4 is a flowchart of an exemplary network energy saving status indication process according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0013] The following detailed description of the exemplary embodiments refers to the accompanying drawings, in which the same reference numbers in different drawings may identify the same or similar elements.

[0014] The foregoing disclosure provides illustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the implementation to the precise form disclosed. Modifications and variations are possible in light of the above disclosure or may be acquired from practice of the implementations. Moreover, one or more features or components of one embodiment may be incorporated or combined with another embodiment (or one or more features of another embodiment). Furthermore, in the flowcharts and descriptions of operations provided below, it is understood that one or more operations may be omitted, one or more operations may be added, one or more operations may be performed simultaneously (at least in part), and the order of one or more operations may be interchanged.

[0015] It will be apparent that the systems and / or methods described herein may be implemented in various forms of hardware, firmware, or a combination of hardware and software. The actual dedicated control hardware or software code used to implement these systems and / or methods is not intended to limit the implementation. Thus, the operation and behavior of the systems and / or methods are described herein without reference to specific software code, and it will be understood that software and hardware can be designed to implement the systems and / or methods based on the description herein.

[0016] Although particular combinations of features are recited in the claims and / or disclosed herein, these combinations are not intended to limit the disclosure of possible implementations. Indeed, many of these features may be combined in ways not specifically recited in the claims and / or disclosed in the specification. Although each dependent claim listed below may depend directly on only one claim, the disclosure of possible implementations includes each dependent claim in combination with every other claim in the claim set.

[0017] No element, act, or instruction used herein should be construed as critical or essential unless expressly stated to be so. Also, as used herein, the articles "a" and "an" are intended to include one or more things and may be used interchangeably with "one or more." When only one thing is intended, the term "one" or similar terms are used. Also, as used herein, terms such as "has," "have," "having," "include," "including," and the like are intended to be open-ended terms. Furthermore, the phrase "based on" is intended to mean "based at least in part on," unless otherwise specified. Furthermore, phrases such as "at least one of [A] and [B]" or "at least one of [A] or [B]" should be understood to include only A, only B, or both A and B.

[0018] Throughout this specification, reference to "one embodiment," "an embodiment," or similar language means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the illustrated embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the solution. Thus, the phrases "in one embodiment," "in an embodiment," and similar language throughout this specification may, but do not necessarily, all refer to the same embodiment.

[0019] Moreover, the described features, advantages, and characteristics of the present disclosure may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. In light of the description herein, one skilled in the art will recognize that the present disclosure can be practiced without one or more of the specific features or advantages of a particular embodiment. In other instances, additional features and advantages may be recognized in certain embodiments that may not be present in all embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0020] Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to providing an indication of a gNB entering an energy saving mode. In particular, a gNB can enter one of various sleep modes at a given time (e.g., deep sleep, light sleep, etc.). The gNB can further dynamically indicate the sleep mode to a UE. This indication allows the UE to know the state of operation of the gNB (e.g., a gNB operating in a sleep mode) so that the UE does not monitor a particular channel or signal when the gNB is operating in a sleep mode. This indication may be provided to the UE in control information in a downlink control channel. The determination of whether the base station is in one of a plurality of sleep modes may be based on one or more bits included in the control information and the periodicity at which the control information is received. Embodiments of the present disclosure enable energy saving in a network, which may result in reduced network operational costs and environmental impact.

[0021] 1 is a diagram of an exemplary device for performing PRACH detection. The device 100 may correspond to any type of known computer, server, or data processing device. For example, the device 100 may include a processor, a personal computer (PC), a printed circuit board (PCB) including a computing device, a minicomputer, a mainframe computer, a microcomputer, a telephone computing device, a wired / wireless computing device (e.g., a smartphone, a personal digital assistant (PDA)), a laptop, a tablet, a smart device, or any other similarly functional device.

[0022] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 1, the device 100 may include a set of components such as a processor 120, a memory 130, a storage component 140, an input component 150, an output component 160, and a communication interface 170.

[0023] Bus 110 includes one or more components that enable communication between a set of components of device 100. For example, bus 110 may be a communication bus, a crossover bar, a network, etc. Although bus 110 is illustrated in FIG. 1 as a single line, bus 110 may be implemented using multiple (two or more) connections between a set of components of device 100. This disclosure is not limited in this respect.

[0024] Device 100 may include one or more processors, such as processor 120. Processor 120 may be implemented in hardware, firmware, and / or a combination of hardware and software. For example, processor 120 may include a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), an accelerated processing unit (APU), a microprocessor, a microcontroller, a digital signal processor (DSP), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a general-purpose single-chip or multi-chip processor, or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, or any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. Processor 120 may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration. In some embodiments, particular processes and methods may be performed by circuitry that is specific to a given function.

[0025] The processor 120 may control the overall operation of the device 100 and / or a set of components of the device 100 (eg, memory 130, storage components 140, input components 150, output components 160, communication interface 170).

[0026] Device 100 may further include memory 130. In some embodiments, memory 130 may include random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), flash memory, magnetic memory, optical memory, and / or another type of dynamic or static storage device. Memory 130 may store information and / or instructions for use (e.g., execution) by processor 120.

[0027] Storage component 140 of device 100 can store information and / or computer-readable instructions and / or code related to the operation and use of device 100. For example, storage component 140 can include a hard disk (e.g., a magnetic disk, optical disk, magneto-optical disk, and / or solid-state disk), a compact disc (CD), a digital versatile disc (DVD), a universal serial bus (USB) flash drive, a Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA) card, a floppy disk, a cartridge, a magnetic tape, and / or another type of non-transitory computer-readable medium along with a corresponding drive.

[0028] Device 100 may further include input component 150. Input component 150 may include one or more components that enable device 100 to receive information via user input, etc. (e.g., a touch screen, a keyboard, a keypad, a mouse, a stylus, a button, a switch, a microphone, a camera, etc.). Alternatively or additionally, input component 150 may include sensors for sensing information (e.g., a global positioning system (GPS) component, an accelerometer, a gyroscope, an actuator, etc.).

[0029] Output components 160 of device 100 may include one or more components capable of providing output information from device 100 (e.g., a display, a liquid crystal display (LCD), a light-emitting diode (LED), an organic light emitting diode (OLED), a haptic feedback device, a speaker, etc.).

[0030] The device 100 may further include a communication interface 170. The communication interface 170 may include a receiver component, a transmitter component, and / or a transceiver component. The communication interface 170 may enable the device 100 to establish a connection and / or transfer a communication with another device (e.g., a server, another device). The communication may occur via a wired connection, a wireless connection, or a combination of wired and wireless connections. The communication interface 170 may enable the device 100 to receive information from another device and / or provide information to another device. In some embodiments, communication interface 170 may provide communication with another device over a network, such as a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN), a metropolitan area network (MAN), a private network, an ad-hoc network, an intranet, the Internet, an optical fiber-based network, a cellular network (e.g., a fifth generation (5G) network, a long-term evolution (LTE) network, a third generation (3G) network, a code division multiple access (CDMA) network, etc.), a public land mobile network (PLMN), a telephone network (e.g., a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN)), etc., and / or a combination of these or other types of networks. Alternatively or additionally, the communication interface 170 may provide communication with another device via a device-to-device (D2D) communication link, such as FlashLinQ, WiMedia, Bluetooth, ZigBee, Wi-Fi, LTE, 5G, etc.In other embodiments, communication interface 170 may include an Ethernet interface, an optical interface, a coaxial interface, an infrared interface, a radio frequency (RF) interface, or the like.

[0031] The device 100 can perform one or more processes described herein. The device 100 can perform operations based on the processor 120 executing computer-readable instructions and / or code, which may be stored by a non-transitory computer-readable medium, such as the memory 130 and / or the storage component 140. The computer-readable medium may refer to a non-transitory memory device. The memory device may include memory space within a single physical storage device and / or memory space distributed across multiple physical storage devices.

[0032] Computer readable instructions and / or code may be loaded into memory 130 and / or storage component 140 from another computer readable medium or from another device via communications interface 170. The computer readable instructions and / or code stored in memory 130 and / or storage component 140, when or if executed by processor 120, can cause device 100 to perform one or more processes described herein.

[0033] Alternatively, or in addition, hardwired circuitry may be used in place of, or in combination with, software instructions to implement one or more processes described herein. Thus, the embodiments described herein are not limited to any specific combination of hardware circuitry and software.

[0034] The number and arrangement of components shown in Figure 1 are provided as an example. In practice, there may be additional, fewer, different, or differently arranged components than those shown in Figure 1. Furthermore, two or more of the components shown in Figure 1 may be implemented within a single component, or a single component shown in Figure 1 may be implemented as multiple distributed components. Additionally or alternatively, a set of components (or components) shown in Figure 1 may perform one or more functions described as being performed by another set of components shown in Figure 1.

[0035] 2 illustrates an example of a wireless communication system in accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure. The wireless communication system 200 (which may also be referred to as a wireless wide area network (WWAN)) may include one or more user equipment (UE) 210, one or more base stations 220, at least one transport network 230, and at least one core network 240. The device 100 (FIG. 1) may be incorporated into the UE 210 or the base station 220.

[0036] One or more UEs 210 can access at least one core network 240 and / or IP services 250 via a connection to one or more base stations 220 by the RAN domain 224 and through at least one transport network 230. Examples of UEs 210 can include a mobile phone, a smart phone, a session initiation protocol (SIP) phone, a laptop, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a satellite radio, a global positioning system (GPS), a multimedia device, a video device, a digital audio player (e.g., MP3 player), a camera, a game console, a tablet, a smart device, a wearable device, a vehicle, an electric meter, a gas pump, a large or small kitchen appliance, a healthcare device, an implant, a sensor / actuator, a display, or any other similarly functioning device. Some of the one or more UEs 210 may be referred to as Internet of Things (IoT) devices (e.g., a parking meter, a gas pump, a toaster, a vehicle, a heart monitor, etc.). One or more UEs 210 may also be referred to as a station, a mobile station, a subscriber station, a mobile unit, a subscriber unit, a radio unit, a remote unit, a mobile device, a wireless device, a wireless communication device, a remote device, a mobile subscriber station, an access terminal, a mobile terminal, a wireless terminal, a remote terminal, a handset, a user agent, a mobile agent, a client, or some other suitable terminology.

[0037] One or more base stations 220 can wirelessly communicate with one or more UEs 210 via the RAN domain 224. Each base station of the one or more base stations 220 can provide communication coverage to one or more UEs 210 located within the geographic coverage area of ​​that base station 220. In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 2, a base station 220 can transmit one or more beamformed signals to one or more UEs 210 in one or more transmit directions. The one or more UEs 210 can receive the beamformed signals from the base station 220 in one or more receive directions. Alternatively or additionally, the one or more UEs 210 can transmit beamformed signals to the base station 220 in one or more transmit directions. The base station 220 can receive the beamformed signals from the one or more UEs 210 in one or more receive directions.

[0038] The one or more base stations 220 may include macrocells (e.g., high-power cellular base stations) and / or small cells (e.g., low-power cellular base stations). Small cells may include femtocells, picocells, and microcells. The base station 220, whether a macrocell or a large cell, may include and / or be referred to as an access point (AP), an evolved (or evolved universal terrestrial radio access network (E-UTRAN)) Node B (eNB), a next generation Node B (gNB), or any other type of base station known to one skilled in the art.

[0039] The one or more base stations 220 may be configured to interface (e.g., establish connections, transfer data, etc.) with at least one core network 240 via at least one transport network 230. In addition to other functions, the one or more base stations 220 may perform one or more of the following functions: forwarding data (e.g., uplink data) received from one or more UEs 210 to the at least one core network 240 via the at least one transport network 230; forwarding data (e.g., downlink data) received from the at least one core network 240 to the one or more UEs 210 via the at least one transport network 230.

[0040] The transport network 230 may transport data (e.g., uplink data, downlink data) and / or signaling between the RAN domain 224 and the CN domain 244. For example, the transport network 230 may provide one or more backhaul links between one or more base stations 220 and at least one core network 240. The backhaul links may be wired or wireless.

[0041] The core network 240 may be configured to provide one or more services (e.g., enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable low-latency communications (URLLC), massive machine type communications (mMTC), etc.) to one or more UEs 210 connected to the RAN domain 224 via the TN domain 234. Alternatively or additionally, the core network 240 may serve as an entry point for IP services 250. The IP services 250 may include the Internet, an intranet, an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS), streaming services (e.g., video, audio, games, etc.), and / or other IP services.

[0042] In some embodiments, the transmitter and / or receiver may be associated with at least one energy saving state in a given time interval. The terms power saving and energy saving may be used interchangeably. An energy saving mode may be defined by how much energy a node (a node may refer to a transmitter and / or a receiver) may consume in that state. An energy saving mode may be defined by which portions of the baseband and RF components may be active while operating in the energy saving mode and which portions of the baseband and RF components are in a sleep mode. An energy saving node may include multiple sleep modes.

[0043] A sleep mode may refer to a state in which at least certain RF and / or baseband components may be deactivated. For example, one energy saving state may be associated with a deep sleep mode and another energy saving mode may be associated with a micro sleep mode. In micro sleep, most RF and baseband components may be active and certain transmit / receive operations may be stopped (e.g., no downlink data transmission). In deep sleep mode, most RF and baseband components may be deactivated. In light sleep mode, most RF components may be deactivated. In some embodiments, there is a one-to-one mapping between energy saving states and certain sleep modes.

[0044] In some embodiments, each sleep mode may be associated with particular transmission and / or reception characteristics. For example, in a deep sleep mode, a gNB may not transmit certain channels and / or signals, such as synchronization signal blocks (SSBs), remaining minimum system information (RMSI), channel state information reference signals (CSI-RS), etc. For example, in a light sleep mode, a gNB may be expected to transmit some common channels and signals, such as SSBs, with reduced periodicity.

[0045] The transmission characteristics of the sleep mode may be known by the receiver, for example, through configuration, MAC CE, L1 signaling, or a combination. As an example, for a given sleep mode, the UE may be provided with an indication of one or more of the following parameters as a configuration: {SSB ON or SSB OFF, full periodicity SSB or reduced periodicity SSB, RMSI ON or RMSI OFF, low overhead SSB on or off, etc.}. Additionally, the UE may be provided with an indication of the transmission parameters of the CSI-RS, including on or off, the number of transmitted SSBs in a burst and their indexes, etc.

[0046] The gNB may dynamically indicate to the UE the upcoming sleep mode, which may be valid for a period of time, using L1 signaling (e.g., the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH)). At least one of the following embodiments and / or a combination thereof may be used by the gNB and the UE.

[0047] In some embodiments, the energy saving mode information may be indicated in control information (e.g., downlink control information (DCI)). The DCI may be a scheduling DCI or a group common signaling DCI. The scheduling DCI may schedule data to or from the UE. The group common signaling DCI may not schedule data from and / or to the UE. At least one bit and / or code point in the DCI may be allocated and / or used for indication. For example, the gNB may indicate with one bit whether the next sleep mode is a light sleep mode or a deep sleep mode. Bit 0: gNB is about to enter light sleep mode. Bit 1: gNB is about to enter deep sleep mode.

[0048] In some embodiments, there may be a delay between the time the indication is received at the UE and the time the indicated mode is applied and / or assumed to be applicable. For example, the indication may be received in slot n and the UE may assume that the gNB is in deep sleep mode starting in slot n+k, where both n and k may be integers. The UE may not expect transmission of a particular channel and signal from the gNB starting in slot n+k.

[0049] The receiver may be configured with at least one search space for monitoring the PDCCH to receive an indication. The monitoring may be performed on periodic monitoring occasions. In one example, the UE may be configured with two or more monitoring occasions with separate periodicities. These features may be achieved by configuring the UE with multiple search spaces and / or search spaces with multiple periodicities. Although the following examples use two search spaces, the embodiments may be applied to more general cases (e.g., three or more search spaces) as well. Furthermore, although the following examples use two sleep modes, the disclosed embodiments are applicable to more general cases (e.g., three or more sleep modes). In some embodiments, there may be certain sleep modes that the gNB does not indicate to the UE. For example, the gNB may enter a microsleep mode when there is no scheduled data to transmit and / or receive.

[0050] In some embodiments, an indication received on a monitoring occasion that may be monitored with distinct periodicity may be associated with a distinct sleep mode (e.g., the indication may be used to activate and / or deactivate its associated sleep mode) and may not apply to sleep modes associated with other monitoring occasions. The UE may interpret the indication (e.g., bits and / or code points) based on the associated sleep mode. For example, an indication associated with a deep sleep mode may be transmitted every T1 ms (e.g., T1=100 ms), and an indication associated with a light sleep mode may be transmitted every T2 ms (e.g., T2=20 ms). As an example, a 1-bit indication received on a monitoring occasion with T1 periodicity may indicate (1: activate deep sleep, 0: do not activate deep sleep). In this regard, if the indicator is 1, the UE determines that the base station is in an energy saving mode, and because the indicator is received at T1 intervals, the UE determines that the base station has entered a deep sleep mode. In this same example, a one bit indication received at a monitoring opportunity in period T2 may indicate (1 activates light sleep, 0 does not activate light sleep).

[0051] FIG. 3 illustrates an example timeline 300 in which a base station is determined to be in one of a plurality of sleep modes based on the time of receipt of an indicator. In FIG. 3, the UE monitors a first search space with a periodicity of 100 ms and a second search space with a periodicity of 20 ms. In a monitoring opportunity with a periodicity of 100 ms (e.g., at time 0 ms), a bit 1 is received indicating that the base station is in an energy saving mode, and a deep sleep mode is determined to be active because the bit 1 is received with a periodicity of 100 ms (e.g., 0 ms, 100 ms, 200 ms, etc.). Since the deep sleep mode is activated, the following four monitoring opportunities with a periodicity of 20 ms are not monitored. In this regard, the following monitoring opportunities of the second search space with a second periodicity are skipped (e.g., not monitored). These monitoring opportunities may be associated with another one of a plurality of sleep modes, such as a light sleep mode.

[0052] In some embodiments, activation and / or deactivation of a search space may be triggered by the content of a PDCCH received in another search space. Alternatively or additionally, a particular monitoring opportunity of a first search space may be activated and / or deactivated by the content of a PDCCH received in the same search space or in a second search space, but with a different periodicity than the first search space. For example, at time 100 ms, the UE receives bit 0, indicating that deep sleep is not active. The UE then starts monitoring the PDCCH with a periodicity of 20 ms. The UE receives bit 1 can indicate that a light sleep mode is activated for 20 ms, and the UE receives bit 0 can indicate that light sleep is not activated.

[0053] In some embodiments, if monitoring occasions associated with different sleep modes overlap in time (e.g., 0 ms, 100 ms, 200 ms), a predefined rule can be used for interpreting the indication. This indication may be used for sleep modes with greater periodicity or greater power saving gain. For example, a bit 1 received at 100 ms is included in both the T1 period (100 ms) of the deep sleep mode and the T2 period (20 ms) of the light sleep mode. Since the deep sleep mode has greater periodicity than the light sleep mode, the UE can determine that the base station is in the deep sleep mode rather than the light sleep mode based on the predefined rule.

[0054] Sleep mode may also refer to discontinuous transmission (DTX). Multiple DTX cycles may be defined (e.g., a long DTX cycle of 100 ms and a short DTX cycle of 20 ms). Each DTX cycle may imply a particular transmission and reception operation. For example, in a long DTX cycle, the gNB may not be expected to transmit any channel and / or signal. The UE does not monitor any channel and / or does not try to receive any signal. For example, in a short DTX cycle, the gNB may be expected to transmit some signals, such as CSI-RS, and the UE is expected to receive those signals but not monitor any channel. If a long DTX cycle is activated, a short DTX cycle may not be expected to be activated. A DTX cycle may be expected to start only at a particular time instance. Activation of a DTX cycle may be achieved by an indication in the PDCCH. In some embodiments, no more than one DTX cycle may be activated at a given time. Activation of a first DTX cycle can trigger deactivation of a second DTX cycle for a certain period of time.

[0055] In some embodiments, the UE may be configured with a search space, and the UE may monitor monitoring occasions with a periodicity corresponding to the search space. For example, the UE may monitor with a periodicity of 20 ms. At the monitoring occasion, a DCI, if received, may indicate which sleep mode is activated. In these embodiments, bits / code points may be mapped to specific sleep modes. Also, the duration (period) of each sleep mode may be configured. The mapping of received bits / code points to sleep modes and durations may be performed according to the following example: Example 1 Bit 0: gNB is about to enter light sleep mode (duration 20ms) Bit 1: gNB is about to enter deep sleep mode (duration 100ms) Example 2: Bit 00: gNB is about to enter light sleep mode (duration 20ms) Bit 01: gNB is about to enter light sleep mode (duration 50ms) Bit 10: gNB is about to enter deep sleep mode (duration 100ms) Bit 11: gNB is about to enter deep sleep mode (duration 200ms)

[0056] In some embodiments, one set of bits can indicate the sleep mode and another set of bits can indicate the duration. For example, in a three-bit configuration, the first bit can indicate light sleep or deep sleep, and the remaining two bits can select one of up to four durations for the sleep mode listed below. Bits: 000: Light sleep mode, 20ms Bit: 010: Light sleep mode, 40ms Bit: 100: Light sleep mode, 60ms Bit: 110: Light sleep mode, 80ms Bit: 001: Deep sleep mode, 100ms Bit: 011: Deep sleep mode, 150ms Bit: 101: Deep sleep mode, 200ms Bit: 111: Deep sleep mode, 250ms In this example, the least significant bit may be used to indicate the sleep mode. In another example, the most significant bit may be used to indicate the sleep mode.

[0057] In some embodiments, if the PDCCH is not detected at a monitoring opportunity, the UE behavior may be predefined or configured. The UE may assume that no sleep mode is indicated and return to normal operation, or the UE may assume that one of the sleep modes is indicated (e.g., the last indicated mode). In some embodiments, one bit and / or code point may be assigned to normal operation (e.g., a bit / code point is mapped to normal operation without sleep mode). Normal operation may be a non-energy saving mode.

[0058] 4 and 5 show example timelines 400 and 500, respectively, with a monitoring period of, for example, 20 ms. In FIG. 4, at time 0 ms, a light sleep mode is shown for a duration (period) of 20 ms. A deep sleep mode is shown for a duration of 100 ms at time 60 ms. In FIG. 5, a light sleep mode of 40 ms duration is shown at time 60 ms, and a deep sleep mode of at least 80 ms is shown at time 140 ms. In FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, when one of the sleep modes is indicated, the UE may not perform monitoring for the duration of the indicated sleep mode.

[0059] In some embodiments, if the UE is checking at a fixed periodicity, the DTX cycle may be activated at specific discrete time instances, e.g., one of at least two cycles may be activated at a given time, and which cycle is activated may be indicated to the UE.

[0060] In some embodiments, the sleep mode may be indicated by an index of a sleep mode setting and may be indicated for the length of time that the indicated setting may be valid. The setting may include at least one sleep mode and the duration of the sleep mode. For example, L represents a light sleep mode, D represents a deep sleep mode, and R represents a normal operation mode (e.g., a non-energy saving mode). Furthermore, the duration of the sleep mode may be 20 ms for L and R, and 100 ms for D. As an example, the DCI may indicate one of the following 2-bit indexes shown below: Index 0:LLLDDLL Index 1: DDLLLL Index 2: LLLLLLLLLLLLLD Index 3: RRRRRD

[0061] In the above example, the total duration of each configuration is 300 ms. The UE may monitor the PDCCH at a particular monitoring occasion to receive an index of one of the configurations. The indicated configuration may be activated with a fixed or predefined delay after the monitoring occasion. In some embodiments, the configuration of a particular mode may include a state and a duration. For example, modes L and M may represent "light sleep for 20 ms" and "light sleep for 40 ms", respectively. In some embodiments, the duration of each state may be indicated separately. For example, 8 bits may be used to indicate up to 256 configurations including R, L, and D, and one bit (2 bits) may be used to indicate the possible durations of up to 2 (4) states. As an example, one bit may indicate one of the following two duration combinations: duration set 1 is {D: 100 ms, L: 20 ms, R: 20 ms}, and duration set 2 is {D: 200 ms, L: 40m, R: 20 ms}.

[0062] In some embodiments, when using an index to indicate a particular configuration, the type of DTX cycle (e.g., long cycle, short cycle) and the time interval of each cycle may be activated for a fixed or predefined period and indicated to the UE. A common PDCCH (e.g., cell-common or UE-common) may be used.

[0063] In some embodiments, the sleep mode can include more modes than just the "light sleep mode" and the "deep sleep mode". For example, different common channels can carry different levels of energy, and the periodicity of a subset of these channels can be changed independently depending on the use case to conserve energy. In some embodiments, each mode can include one or a subset or multiple common channels with respective periodicity. For example, multiple sleep modes (SM) can be defined as follows: SM0: bits 000: SSB has a periodicity of 20 ms SM1: Bits 001: SSB has a periodicity of 50 ms SM2: Bit 010: RMS-I has a periodicity of 20 ms SM3: bit 011: RMS-I has a periodicity of 50 ms SM4: bit 100: CSI-RS has a periodicity of 20 ms SM5: bit 101: CSI-RS has a periodicity of 50 ms SM6: bit 110: SSB and CSI-RS have a periodicity of 20 ms SM7: bit 111: SSB and CSI-RS have a periodicity of 50 ms

[0064] 6 shows a flow chart of one embodiment of a network energy saving status indication process 600 performed in a UE. The process may begin at operation S602, where one or more resources are received from a base station (e.g., a gNB). The resources may correspond to channels and / or signals, such as SSB, RMSI, CSI-RS, etc., that transmit information to the UE. The process proceeds to operation S604, where information is received in a downlink control channel that includes information regarding whether the base station is operating in an energy saving mode.

[0065] The process proceeds to operation S606, where it is determined whether the base station is operating in an energy saving mode based on the control information. For example, it is determined whether the base station is operating in an energy saving mode including one of a plurality of sleep modes based on an indicator included in the control information and a particular interval during which the indicator was received (e.g., FIG. 3). As another example, it is determined whether the base station is operating in an energy saving mode including one of a plurality of sleeping modes based on the presence of an indicator including one or more bits (e.g., FIG. 4 and FIG. 5).

[0066] The process proceeds to operation S608, where in response to determining that the base station is operating in an energy saving mode, the UE modifies reception of one or more resources. For example, in response to determining that the base station is operating in one of a plurality of sleep modes for a particular period of time, the UE may deactivate monitoring of one or more channels and / or signals for the particular period of time. Process 600 may end after operation S608.

[0067] 7 shows a flow chart of an embodiment of a network energy saving status indication process 700 performed at a base station (e.g., a gNB). The process may begin at operation S702, where a base station operating in a non-energy saving mode transmits one or more resources to one or more UEs. The one or more resources may correspond to one or more resources described with respect to operation S602. The process proceeds to operation S704, where the base station transmits control information in a downlink control channel to one or more UEs indicating that the base station is operating in an energy saving mode.

[0068] The process proceeds to operation S706, where the base station modifies transmission of at least one of the one or more resources during the energy saving mode. For example, during the energy saving mode, the base station may deactivate transmission of information on one or more channels. As another example, during the energy saving mode, the base station may transmit information on one or more data channels with reduced periodicity. The process proceeds to operation S708, where unmodified transmission of the one or more resources is resumed after the energy saving mode has ended. For example, after the duration of the energy saving mode has completed, the base station may reactivate any deactivated channels or resume transmitting information periodically. The process 700 may end after operation S708.

[0069] The foregoing disclosure provides illustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the implementation to the precise form disclosed. Modifications and variations are possible in light of the above disclosure or may be acquired from practice of the implementations.

[0070] It is understood that the particular order or hierarchy of blocks in the processes / flowcharts disclosed herein represents an example approach. It is understood that the particular order or hierarchy of blocks in the processes / flowcharts can be rearranged based on design preferences. Also, some blocks may be combined or omitted. The accompanying method claims present various block elements in a sample order, and are not meant to be limited to the particular order or hierarchy presented.

[0071] Some embodiments may relate to systems, methods, and / or computer-readable media at any possible level of technical detail of integration. Furthermore, one or more of the above components described above may be implemented as instructions stored on a computer-readable medium and executable by at least one processor (and / or may include at least one processor). The computer-readable medium may include a computer-readable non-transitory storage medium(s) having computer-readable program instructions for causing a processor to perform operations.

[0072] A computer-readable storage medium can be a tangible device that can hold and store instructions for use by an instruction execution device. A computer-readable storage medium can be, for example, but not limited to, an electronic storage device, a magnetic storage device, an optical storage device, an electromagnetic storage device, a semiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. A non-exhaustive list of more specific examples of computer-readable storage media includes portable computer diskettes, hard disks, random access memories (RAMs), read-only memories (ROMs), erasable programmable read-only memories (EPROMs or flash memories), static random access memories (SRAMs), portable compact disk read-only memories (CD-ROMs), digital versatile disks (DVDs), memory sticks, floppy disks, mechanically encoded devices such as punch cards or ridges in grooves structures with instructions recorded on them, and any suitable combination of the above. A computer-readable storage medium as used herein should not be interpreted as being itself a transitory signal such as an electric wave or other freely propagating electromagnetic wave, an electromagnetic wave propagating through a wave guide or other transmission medium (e.g., a light pulse passing through a fiber optic cable), or an electrical signal transmitted through a wire.

[0073] The computer-readable program instructions described herein may be downloaded from a computer-readable storage medium into each computing / processing device, or may be downloaded to an external computer or external storage device via a network, such as the Internet, a local area network, a wide area network, and / or a wireless network. The network may include copper transmission cables, optical transmission fiber, wireless transmission, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers, and / or edge servers. A network adapter card or network interface in each computing / processing device receives the computer-readable program instructions from the network and forwards the computer-readable program instructions for storage in a computer-readable storage medium within the respective computing / processing device.

[0074] The computer readable program code / instructions for performing the operations may be either source code or object code written in any combination of one or more programming languages, including assembler instructions, instruction-set-architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions, machine-dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions, state setting data, configuration data for integrated circuits, or object-oriented programming languages ​​such as Smalltalk, C++, and procedural programming languages ​​such as the "C" programming language or similar programming languages. The computer readable program instructions may be executed entirely on the user's computer, partially on the user's computer, as a standalone software package, partially on the user's computer and partially on a remote computer, or entirely on a remote computer or server. In the latter scenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer via any type of network, including a local area network (LAN) or wide area network (WAN), or may be connected to an external computer (e.g., via the Internet using an Internet Service Provider). In some embodiments, electronic circuitry including, for example, programmable logic circuits, field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), or programmable logic arrays (PLAs), can execute computer readable program instructions by utilizing state information of the computer readable program instructions to personalize the electronic circuitry to perform aspects or operations.

[0075] These computer readable program instructions may be provided to a processor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus, to produce a machine, such that the instructions, executed via the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, produce means for implementing the function / operation identified in the block(s) of the flowcharts and / or block diagrams. These computer readable program instructions may also be stored on a computer readable storage medium that can direct a computer, programmable data processing apparatus, and / or other device to function in a particular manner, such that a computer readable storage medium having instructions stored therein includes an article of manufacture including instructions that implement aspects of the function / operation identified in the block(s) of the flowcharts and / or block diagrams.

[0076] The computer readable program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other device to cause the computer, other programmable apparatus, or other device to perform a series of operational steps to generate a computer-implemented process, such that the instructions executing on the computer, other programmable apparatus, or other device implement the functions / operations identified in the block(s) of the flowcharts and / or block diagrams.

[0077] The flowcharts and block diagrams in the figures illustrate the architecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementations of systems, methods, and computer-readable media according to various embodiments. In this regard, each block in the flowcharts or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or part of instructions that includes one or more executable instructions for implementing a particular logical function. The methods, computer systems, and computer-readable media may include additional, fewer, different, or differently arranged blocks compared to the blocks shown in the figures. In some alternative implementations, the functions described in the blocks may be performed in a different order than the order described in the figures. For example, two blocks shown in succession may actually be executed simultaneously or substantially simultaneously, or the blocks may sometimes be executed in reverse order depending on the functionality involved. It should also be noted that each block of the block diagrams and / or flowchart diagrams, as well as combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and / or flowchart diagrams, may be implemented by a dedicated hardware-based system that executes a particular function or operation or executes a combination of dedicated hardware and computer instructions.

[0078] It will be apparent that the systems and / or methods described herein may be implemented in various forms of hardware, firmware, or a combination of hardware and software. The actual dedicated control hardware or software code used to implement these systems and / or methods is not intended to limit the implementation. Thus, the operation and behavior of the systems and / or methods are described herein without reference to specific software code, and it will be understood that software and hardware can be designed to implement the systems and / or methods based on the description herein.

[0079] The above disclosure also encompasses the embodiments listed below.

[0080] (1) A method executed by at least one processor in a user equipment (UE), the method including: receiving one or more resources from a base station operating in a non-energy saving mode; receiving control information from the base station contained in a downlink control channel, the control information indicating whether the base station is operating in an energy saving mode; determining whether the base station is operating in an energy saving mode based on the control information; and modifying reception of the one or more resources in response to determining that the base station is operating in an energy saving mode.

[0081] (2) The method of feature (1), wherein modifying reception of the one or more resources includes (i) deactivating monitoring of at least one channel over which data or signaling information is transmitted from the base station to the UE, or (ii) receiving the one or more resources with reduced periodicity.

[0082] (3) The method of feature (2), wherein the energy saving mode includes a plurality of sleep modes including at least a first sleep mode and a second sleep mode, and in response to determining that the base station is in the first sleep mode, the method includes modifying reception of one or more resources, deactivating a greater number of channels, or receiving one or more resources with significantly less periodicity than in the second sleep mode.

[0083] (4) The method of feature (3), wherein in response to a determination that the control information indicates that an energy saving mode is active, the base station is determined to be operating in a first sleep mode, and the control information is received at a first time interval, and in response to a determination that the control information indicates that an energy saving mode is active, the base station is determined to be operating in a second sleep mode, and the indication is received at a second time interval that is shorter than the first time interval.

[0084] (5) The method of any one of features (3) to (4), wherein the base station is determined to be operating in an energy saving mode in response to determining that the control information includes an indicator that indicates that the energy saving mode is active.

[0085] (6) The method of any one of (5) to (7), wherein in response to determining that the control information does not include the indicator, it is determined that the base station is operating in a non-energy saving mode.

[0086] (7) The method of any one of features (5) or (6), wherein the indicator includes one or more bits indicating (i) one of the plurality of sleep modes and (ii) a time period during which the energy saving mode remains active.

[0087] (8) The method of feature (7), wherein the one or more bits of the indicator include at least a first bit indicating one of a plurality of sleep modes and at least a second bit indicating a period during which the energy saving mode remains active.

[0088] (9) The method of any one of features (3) to (8), wherein the control information identifies one of a plurality of indexes, each index being associated with a separate setting indicating an operating state of the base station and a duration (period) of the operating state of the base station, and the operating state of the base station indicating whether the base station is operating in one of a plurality of sleep modes or in a non-energy saving mode.

[0089] (10) The method according to feature (9), wherein each configuration specifies a plurality of operating states of the base station as a sequence.

[0090] (11) The method of any one of features (2) to (10), wherein the control information identifies one of a plurality of operating modes, each mode identifying at least one of a plurality of signals and an operating duration (operating period), each signal carrying a different level of energy.

[0091] (12) The method of any one of features (2) to (11), wherein the plurality of signals includes a synchronization signal block (SSB), a residual minimum system information (RMS-I), and a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS).

[0092] (13) A user equipment (UE) comprising: at least one memory configured to store computer program code; and at least one processor configured to access the at least one memory and operate as instructed by the computer program code, the computer program code comprising: a first receiving code configured to cause at least one of the at least one processor to receive one or more resources from a base station operating in a non-energy saving mode; a second receiving code configured to cause the at least one of the at least one processor to receive control information from the base station comprised in a downlink control channel, the control information indicating whether the base station is operating in an energy saving mode; a determining code configured to cause the at least one of the at least one processor to determine whether the base station is operating in an energy saving mode based on the control information; and a modifying code configured to cause the at least one of the at least one processor to modify reception of the one or more resources in response to a determination that the base station is operating in an energy saving mode.

[0093] (14) The UE of feature (13), wherein the modification code is further configured to cause at least one of the at least one processor to: (i) deactivate monitoring of at least one channel over which data or signaling information is transmitted from a base station to the UE; or (ii) receive one or more resources with reduced periodicity.

[0094] (15) The UE of feature (14), wherein the energy saving mode includes a plurality of sleep modes including at least a first sleep mode and a second sleep mode, and in response to determining that the base station is in a first sleep mode, the modification code is further configured to cause at least one of the at least one processor to deactivate a greater number of channels or receive the one or more resources with significantly less periodicity than in the second sleep mode.

[0095] (16) The UE of feature (15), wherein in response to a determination that the control information indicates that the energy saving mode is active, the base station is determined to be operating in a first sleep mode, the control information being received at a first time interval, and in response to a determination that the control information indicates that the energy saving mode is active, the base station is determined to be operating in a second sleep mode, the indication being received at a second time interval that is shorter than the first time interval.

[0096] (17) The UE of feature (15) or (16), wherein the base station is determined to be operating in an energy saving mode in response to determining that the control information includes an indicator that the energy saving mode is active.

[0097] (18) The UE of feature (17), wherein in response to determining that the control information does not include the indicator, it is determined that the base station is operating in a non-energy saving mode.

[0098] (19) The UE of feature (17) or (18), wherein the indicator includes: (i) one of a plurality of sleep modes; and (ii) one or more bits indicating a time period for which the energy saving mode remains active.

[0099] (20) A non-transitory computer-readable medium having instructions stored therein that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method executed in a user equipment (UE), the method including receiving one or more resources from a base station operating in a non-energy saving mode; receiving control information from the base station contained in a downlink control channel, the control information indicating whether the base station is operating in an energy saving mode; determining whether the base station is operating in an energy saving mode based on the control information; and modifying reception of the one or more resources in response to determining that the base station is operating in an energy saving mode.

Claims

1. 1. A method performed by at least one processor in a user equipment (UE), comprising: receiving one or more resources from a base station operating in a non-energy saving mode; receiving control information contained in a downlink control channel from the base station, the control information indicating whether the base station is operating in an energy saving mode; determining whether the base station is operating in the energy saving mode based on the control information; and modifying the reception of the one or more resources in response to determining that the base station is operating in the energy saving mode. method.

2. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the modifying the reception of the one or more resources comprises: (i) deactivating monitoring of at least one channel over which data or signaling information is transmitted from the base station to the UE; or (ii) receiving the one or more resources with reduced periodicity.

3. the energy saving mode includes a plurality of sleep modes including at least a first sleep mode and a second sleep mode; In response to determining that the base station is in the first sleep mode, modifying the reception of the one or more resources includes deactivating a greater number of channels or receiving the one or more resources with significantly less periodicity than in the second sleep mode. The method of claim 2.

4. In response to determining that the control information indicates that the energy saving mode is active, the base station is determined to be operating in the first sleep mode, and the control information is received at a first time interval; in response to determining that the control information indicates that the energy saving mode is active, determining that the base station is operating in the second sleep mode, and the indication is received at a second time interval that is shorter than the first time interval. The method according to claim 3.

5. In response to determining that the control information includes an indicator indicating that the energy saving mode is active, the base station is determined to be operating in the energy saving mode. The method according to claim 3.

6. in response to determining that the control information does not include the indicator, determining that the base station is operating in the non-energy saving mode. The method according to claim 5.

7. the indicator includes: (i) one of the plurality of sleep modes; and (ii) one or more bits indicating a time period for which the energy saving mode remains active. The method according to claim 5.

8. the one or more bits of the indicator include at least a first bit indicating the one of the plurality of sleep modes and at least a second bit indicating the period during which the energy saving mode remains active. The method of claim 7.

9. the control information identifies one of a plurality of indexes, each index being associated with a distinct configuration indicative of an operational state of the base station and a duration of the operational state of the base station; the operating state of the base station indicates whether the base station is operating in one of the plurality of sleep modes or the non-energy saving mode; The method according to claim 3.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein each configuration specifies a number of operational states for the base station in a sequence.

11. 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the control information identifies one of a plurality of operational modes, each mode identifying at least one of a plurality of signals and a period of operation, each signal carrying a different level of energy.

12. the plurality of signals includes a synchronization signal block (SSB), a residual minimum system information (RMS-I), and a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS); The method of claim 2.

13. at least one memory configured to store computer program code; and at least one processor configured to access the at least one memory and to operate as instructed by the computer program code, the computer program code comprising: first receiving code configured to cause at least one of the at least one processor to receive one or more resources from a base station operating in a non-energy saving mode; second receiving code configured to cause at least one of the at least one processor to receive control information contained in a downlink control channel from the base station, the control information indicating whether the base station is operating in an energy saving mode; and determining code configured to cause at least one of the at least one processor to determine whether the base station is operating in the energy saving mode based on the control information; and modification code configured to cause at least one of the at least one processor to modify the reception of the one or more resources in response to determining that the base station is operating in the energy saving mode. User Equipment (UE).

14. 14. The UE of claim 13, wherein the modifying code is further configured to cause at least one of the at least one processor to: (i) deactivate monitoring of at least one channel over which data or signaling information is transmitted from the base station to the UE; or (ii) receive the one or more resources with reduced periodicity.

15. the energy saving mode includes a plurality of sleep modes including at least a first sleep mode and a second sleep mode; In response to determining that the base station is in the first sleep mode, the modification code is further configured to cause at least one of the at least one processor to deactivate a greater number of channels or to receive the one or more resources with significantly less periodicity than in the second sleep mode. The UE of claim 14.

16. In response to determining that the control information indicates that the energy saving mode is active, determining that the base station is operating in the first sleep mode, the control information being received at a first time interval; and in response to determining that the control information indicates that the energy saving mode is active, determining that the base station is operating in the second sleep mode, and the indication is received at a second time interval that is shorter than the first time interval. The UE of claim 15.

17. in response to determining that the control information includes an indicator indicating that the energy save mode is active, determining that the base station is operating in the energy save mode. The UE of claim 15.

18. in response to determining that the control information does not include the indicator, determining that the base station is operating in the non-energy saving mode.

18. The UE of claim 17.

19. the indicator includes: (i) one of the plurality of sleep modes; and (ii) one or more bits indicating a time period for which the energy saving mode remains active.

18. The UE of claim 17.

20. A non-transitory computer readable medium having instructions stored therein that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform a method executed in a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: receiving one or more resources from a base station operating in a non-energy saving mode; receiving control information contained in a downlink control channel from the base station, the control information indicating whether the base station is operating in an energy saving mode; determining whether the base station is operating in the energy saving mode based on the control information; and modifying the reception of the one or more resources in response to determining that the base station is operating in the energy saving mode. Non-transitory computer-readable medium.

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