Power saving method and apparatus for extended reality (XR)

Abstract

A method executed by at least one processor in a user equipment (UE) includes monitoring a downlink channel according to one or more parameters associated with an on-duration timer that specifies a period during which the UE monitors a downlink channel and an inactivity timer that specifies a period during which the UE remains on after receiving downlink information on the downlink channel. The method also includes determining whether a predetermined condition is met for modifying the monitoring of the downlink channel. In response to determining that the predetermined condition is met, the method further includes modifying the monitoring of the downlink channel such that power consumption of the UE is reduced.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims priority to U.S. Patent Application No. 63 / 393,462, filed July 29, 2022. The entire disclosure of U.S. Patent Application No. 63 / 393,462 is incorporated herein by reference.

[0002] The present disclosure relates generally to communication systems, and more particularly to power saving methods and apparatus for Extended Reality (XR). [Background technology]

[0003] Extended reality (XR) devices and environments are becoming more and more prevalent. XR can refer to various types of augmented, virtual, and mixed environments in which human-to-machine and human-to-human communication is performed with the assistance of user devices. These devices can be handheld and wearable devices. XR is an important service that is expected to receive more attention in upcoming releases. However, many of the XR devices are expected to have limited battery power resources. Thus, reducing the power consumption of XR devices is desirable. One method of power saving is the use of Discontinuous Reception (DRX). In DRX, the UE is configured with periodic ON durations during which the UE is expected to monitor the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH). When the UE is not in Active time, the UE can reduce processing to save power (38.321). Some releases have adopted a wake-up signal whether to monitor the PDCCH during the ON duration.

[0004] For XR traffic, the DRX cycle may not be aligned with the XR traffic due to random jitter. The jitter is mainly due to time-varying effects in the application (e.g., varying frame coding delay) and the network transmission time. Thus, packets may arrive outside the DRX on duration due to jitter. XR may include multiple traffic flows with different parameters, e.g., video and audio packets with different inter-arrival times. One DRX cycle may not be aligned with two traffic flows. Solutions that attempt to align the DRX cycle with the packet inter-arrival times may increase UE power consumption.

[0005] Several 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

[0006] 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.

[0007] Disclosed herein are power saving methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer readable media for extended reality (XR).

[0008] According to an example embodiment, a method performed by at least one processor in a User Equipment (UE) includes monitoring a downlink channel according to one or more parameters associated with an on duration timer that specifies a period during which the UE monitors a downlink channel and an inactivity timer that specifies a period during which the UE remains on after receiving downlink information on the downlink channel. The method also includes determining whether a predetermined condition is met for modifying the monitoring of the downlink channel. In response to determining that the predetermined condition is met, the method further includes modifying the monitoring of the downlink channel such that power consumption of the UE is reduced.

[0009] According to an exemplary 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 monitoring code. The monitoring code is configured to cause at least one of the at least one processor to monitor a downlink channel according to one or more parameters associated with an on-duration timer that specifies a period during which the UE monitors a downlink channel and an inactivity timer that specifies a period during which the UE remains on after receiving downlink information on the downlink channel. The computer program code also includes a determining code configured to cause at least one of the at least one processor to determine whether a predetermined condition is met for modifying the monitoring of the downlink channel. The computer program code also includes a modifying code configured to cause at least one of the at least one processor to modify the monitoring of the downlink channel such that power consumption of the UE is reduced in response to determining that the predetermined condition is met.

[0010] According to an exemplary embodiment, a non-transitory computer-readable medium has instructions stored thereon that, when executed by a processor in a UE, cause the processor to perform a method, the method including monitoring a downlink channel according to one or more parameters associated with an on-duration timer that specifies a period during which the UE monitors a downlink channel and an inactivity timer that specifies a period during which the UE remains on after receiving downlink information on the downlink channel. The method also includes determining whether a predetermined condition is met for modifying the monitoring of the downlink channel. In addition, the method includes modifying the monitoring of the downlink channel in response to determining that the predetermined condition is met such that power consumption of the UE is reduced.

[0011] Additional embodiments are set forth in the description that 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]

[0012] The above and other aspects, features, and modes of embodiments of the present disclosure will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0013] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a diagram of an exemplary network device in accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0014] [Diagram 2] 1 is a schematic diagram of an example wireless communication system in accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0015] [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is an example time sequence diagram of a DRX cycle in accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0016] [Figure 4]FIG. 2 is an example time sequence diagram of a DRX cycle in accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0017] [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is an example time sequence diagram of a DRX cycle in accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0018] [Figure 6] 6A and 6B show an example time sequence diagram of a DRX cycle according to various embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0019] [Figure 7] 4 is a flow chart of an exemplary power saving process according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0020] The following detailed description of the exemplary embodiments refers to the accompanying drawings, in which the same reference numbers in different drawings may refer to the same or similar elements.

[0021] The foregoing disclosure provides illustrations and descriptions, 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 practicing the implementations. Furthermore, 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 (at least partially) simultaneously, or the order of one or more operations may be rearranged.

[0022] 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 the 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.

[0023] 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 claims.

[0024] No element, act, or instruction used herein should be construed as critical or required unless expressly stated. Also, as used herein, the articles "a" and "an" are intended to include one or more items and may be used interchangeably with "one or more." When only one item 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 as including only A, only B, or both A and B.

[0025] Throughout this specification, references to "one embodiment," "an embodiment," or similar phrases or phrases mean 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, throughout this specification, the phrases "in one embodiment," "in an embodiment," and similar phrases or phrases may, but do not necessarily, all refer to the same embodiment.

[0026] Furthermore, 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, a person 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.

[0027] Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure relate to reducing UE power consumption by reducing PDCCH monitoring through early termination of active time, dynamic adaptation of DRX parameters, and enhancements to the multi-DRX solution (e.g., applying PDCCH skipping with multi-DRX, where multi-DRX refers to configuring multiple DRX cycles). The embodiments of the present disclosure result in UE power that improves battery life of user devices.

[0028] A DRX cycle may include an on duration during which the UE is turned on to monitor the PDCCH. This one period may be associated with an on duration timer that corresponds to an "on time" of the DRX cycle. The DRX cycle may further include an inactivity timer that may specify the time the UE remains on after receiving the PDCCH. When this timer is on, the UE may remain in the on state, thereby extending the UE on period to a period that would otherwise be off. The active time or activity timer may refer to when the UE is in the on state (e.g., the on duration timer is active or the inactivity timer is active).

[0029] 1 is a diagram of an exemplary device for carrying out embodiments of the present disclosure. Device 100 may correspond to any type of known computer, server, or data processing device. For example, device 100 may comprise a processor, a personal computer (PC), a printed circuit board (PCB) with a computing device, a minicomputer, a mainframe computer, a microcomputer, a telephonic 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.

[0030] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 1, 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.

[0031] Bus 110 may comprise 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 cross-over bar, a network, etc. Although bus 110 is shown 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.

[0032] Device 100 may comprise 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 comprise 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 of the above 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.

[0033] 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).

[0034] Device 100 may further comprise memory 130. In some embodiments, memory 130 may comprise 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.

[0035] Storage component 140 of device 100 may store information and / or computer-readable instructions and / or code related to the operation and use of device 100. For example, storage component 140 may include a hard disk (e.g., a magnetic disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, and / or a 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.

[0036] Device 100 may further comprise 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.).

[0037] Output components 160 of device 100 may include one or more components that may provide output information from device 100 (e.g., a display, a Liquid Crystal Display (LCD), Light-Emitting Diodes (LEDs), Organic Light Emitting Diodes (OLEDs), a haptic feedback device, a speaker, etc.).

[0038] The device 100 may further comprise 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, a fiber optic-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, 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, etc.

[0039] The device 100 may perform one or more processes described herein. The device 100 may 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. A computer-readable medium may refer to a non-transitory memory device. A memory device may include memory space within a single physical storage device and / or memory space distributed across multiple physical storage devices.

[0040] 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 executed by processor 120, may cause device 100 to perform one or more processes described herein.

[0041] 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 particular combination of hardware circuitry and software.

[0042] The number and configuration of components shown in Figure 1 are provided as an example. In practice, there may be additional, fewer, different, or differently configured 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 shown in Figure 1 may perform one or more functions that are described as being performed by another set of components shown in Figure 1.

[0043] 2 illustrates an example of a wireless communication system according to 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.

[0044] One or more UEs 210 may access at least one core network 240 and / or IP services 250 via a connection to one or more base stations 220 through the RAN domain 224 and through at least one transport network 230. Examples of UEs 210 may include cellular phones, smartphones, Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phones, laptops, personal digital assistants (PDAs), satellite radios, global positioning systems (GPS), multimedia devices, video devices, digital audio players (e.g., MP3 players), cameras, game consoles, tablets, smart devices, wearable devices, vehicles, electric meters, gas pumps, large or small kitchen appliances, healthcare devices, implants, sensors / actuators, displays, or any other similarly functioning devices. Some of the one or more UEs 210 may be referred to as Internet-of-Things (IoT) devices (e.g., parking meters, gas pumps, toasters, vehicles, heart monitors, 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 wireless 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.

[0045] One or more base stations 220 may communicate wirelessly with one or more UEs 210 through the RAN domain 224. Each base station of the one or more base stations 220 may 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 may transmit one or more beamformed signals to one or more UEs 210 in one or more transmit directions. One or more UEs 210 may receive beamformed signals from the base station 220 in one or more receive directions. Alternatively or additionally, one or more UEs 210 may transmit beamformed signals to the base station 220 in one or more transmit directions. The base station 220 may receive beamformed signals from one or more UEs 210 in one or more receive directions.

[0046] 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 (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.

[0047] 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 through 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.

[0048] The transport network 230 may transmit 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.

[0049] 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), and 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 to 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.

[0050] Power saving of the UE may be achieved according to various embodiments. In some embodiments, the receiver may terminate reception and / or monitoring of at least one channel (e.g., PDSCH, PDCCH, etc.). In the following, the receiver may be referred to as a UE or a UE receiver, but the embodiments of the present disclosure are equally applicable to other types of receivers. The termination may be performed by the UE at a time before the termination is indicated to stop monitoring the channel and / or receiving information on the channel. For example, the UE may terminate monitoring the PDCCH before the end of the active time in the DRX cycle. In another example, the UE may terminate reception of the PDSCH before the last symbol and / or slot of the resource allocation.

[0051] The instruction to the UE to terminate receiving / monitoring the channel may be explicit (e.g., by at least one of L1 signaling, higher layer configuration, etc.) and / or may be implicit. In some embodiments, the termination may refer to stopping receiving and / or monitoring the channel before receiving and / or monitoring all resource elements indicated to the receiving node, where the resource elements may refer to resources in the time domain and / or frequency domain and / or spatial domain. In some embodiments, the termination may apply to search spaces being monitored on the PDCCH (e.g., the UE may terminate monitoring at least one search space).

[0052] In some embodiments, the termination may be associated with an active time in a DRX cycle, where the association may mean that the termination refers to the UE no longer being in the active time. In some other embodiments, the termination may be associated with an active time in a DRX cycle, where the association may mean that the termination refers to the UE stopping and / or resetting at least one timer associated with the active time. In some embodiments, the termination may be associated with an on-duration timer and / or an inactivity timer and / or any timer that instructs the UE to perform reception and / or monitoring of at least one channel. The UE may, for example, terminate reception and / or monitoring of at least one channel while at least one of these timers is running and / or at least one of these timers may be stopped and / or reset.

[0053] Figure 3 shows an example time sequence 300 in which early termination may be used. As shown in Figure 3, a DRX cycle includes an ON duration during which the UE is turned on. In Figure 3, data may arrive outside the ON duration, in an interval shown as jitter. In some embodiments, the ON duration may be extended to also cover jitter, and power saving techniques such as early termination may be used to conserve UE power.

[0054] In various embodiments, the UE may be provided with an indication to perform termination of monitoring of the downlink channel. In some embodiments, the inactivity timer may be dynamically started and / or restarted and / or reset (e.g., L1 signaling is used to provide the indication). For example, at least one bit and / or code point in the Downlink Control Information (DCI) may be used for this purpose. In some embodiments, the inactivity timer may be dynamically activated and / or deactivated (e.g., using L1 signaling and / or MAC CE). The activation / deactivation indication may be applicable in the current DRX cycle in which the indication is received. The activation / deactivation indication may also apply in future DRX cycles. Deactivation may refer to setting the inactivity timer to 0. Activation may refer to setting the inactivity timer to a value other than 0.

[0055] In some embodiments, the value of the inactivity timer may be dynamically changed using, for example, L1 signaling, MAC CE, and / or higher layer configuration. For example, higher layer configuration may set the inactivity timer to a fixed value. The MAC CE may be used to indicate a set of values ​​for the inactivity timer. The L1 signaling (e.g., a code point in the DCI) may indicate one value among the set of values ​​indicated by the MAC CE. In some embodiments, while the timer is running, the value of the inactivity timer may be changed based on the occurrence of an event (e.g., the timer skipping). For example, the inactivity timer may start running at 20 ms. When the timer is at 16 ms, a PDCCH is received and / or a DCI is decoded. The timer may skip 5 ms and continue running from 11 ms. In some embodiments, setting the timer to a different value may be performed only when the number of resources (e.g., slots) scheduled by the DCI exceeds a threshold and / or when a specific RNTI is used. The above embodiments may also be applied to other timers. For example, these embodiments may be applied to the on-duration timer. In some embodiments, the timer may be configured such that once the timer starts, the timer is not reset until the timer expires.

[0056] In some embodiments, the value of the on-duration timer may be reduced upon successful reception of a DCI in the PDCCH. These embodiments may be applicable to a particular set of RNTIs, search spaces, DCI types, etc. In other embodiments, the value of the on-duration timer may be reduced upon successful reception of a dynamically or semi-statically scheduled data transmission. For example, the on-duration timer may be set to 10 ms at the start of the timer. When the timer is at 7 ms, scheduled data is received. After reception of this data, the timer may skip 2 ms and continue running from 5 ms. How much the timer value is reduced may be configurable. The change in the value of the timer may depend on the number of time units (e.g., slots) left in the on-duration after reception of a channel such as the PDCCH or PDSCH. For example, the on-duration timer may be set to a smaller value if the number of slots left in the on-duration after successful decoding of the PDCCH is above a threshold. In other embodiments, the change in the value of the timer may depend on the number of resources allocated in the DCI. For example, if the DCI assigns a group of slots (multiple slots) and the number of slots in the group is above a threshold, the on-duration timer may be set to 0 after all slots are successfully received. The embodiments disclosed above may also be applied to other timers, such as an inactivity timer.

[0057] In some embodiments, Active Time termination may be determined by the UE, for example, when certain conditions are met. As an example, Active Time may be terminated if the number of bits scheduled and / or successfully received during Active Time or within the current DRX cycle is above a threshold and / or the total number of time and / or frequency resources scheduled during Active Time or within the current DRX cycle is above a threshold. In other embodiments, the UE may decide to switch to a new set of search space when these conditions are met.

[0058] In some embodiments, a separate set of search spaces may be monitored during the on duration. Under certain conditions, e.g., when there is jitter in the system, the probability of transmission in some slots of the on duration may be lower than the probability of transmission in some other slots of the on duration. For example, the likelihood of receiving a transmission in a slot at the edge of the on duration may be low. FIG. 4 illustrates an example time sequence 400 in which the on duration is divided into L slots during a DRX cycle. As an example, each slot may correspond to an equal amount of time. In some embodiments, the UE may monitor the PDCCH of a slot during the edge of the on duration having a first search space set, and the UE may monitor the PDCCH during the remaining slots having a second search space set. FIG. 5 illustrates an example in which the on duration is divided into two different search spaces (e.g., search space 1 and search space 2). In some embodiments, the slots of the on duration may be grouped into k groups, and a search space set may be monitored within each group. The set of search spaces to be monitored within each group may be indicated by the gNB or determined by the UE. For example, for each group, one bit may be used to indicate a first search space (e.g., search space 1) or a second search space (e.g., search space 2) to monitor. In some embodiments, the UE may feed back information to the gNB that may be used by the gNB to determine which search space set to indicate for each slot group. For example, the UE may feed back an index of a slot and / or slot group for which sparser monitoring of the PDCCH may be used.

[0059] In some embodiments, the start time of the on-duration may be changed. The change may be indicated and / or determined as a shift in time, e.g., a positive shift or a negative shift. As an example, if the on-duration starts in slot n, the shifted on-duration may start in slot n+k or slot nk. The change may be indicated by the DCI and / or MAC CE and / or gNB in ​​a higher layer configuration. For example, a set of possible shifts may be configured and a code point in the DCI may indicate one of the configured shift values. Figure 6(A) illustrates an example time sequence in which the on-duration may be shifted to an earlier start time by kms (k milliseconds) to align the on-duration with the expected data arrival interval. of FIG. 6(B) shows an example time sequence in which the on-duration may be shifted to a later start time by kms to align the on-duration with the expected data arrival interval. of show.

[0060] In some embodiments, the on-duration may be divided into at least two intervals, and the inactivity timer value associated with each interval may be separate and / or different. For example, the inactivity timer may be started and / or restarted upon receipt of a PDCCH at least in a particular interval during the on-duration.

[0061] In some embodiments, more than one DRX may be configured. In the following examples, two DRX cycles are used for illustrative purposes. However, the disclosed embodiments may be equally applicable to any number of DRX cycles. The terms DRX, DRX configuration, DRX functionality, and DRX cycle may be used interchangeably.

[0062] A DRX cycle may be activated and / or deactivated using L1 signaling and / or MAC CE. Activation may mean that the UE is expected to monitor the PDCCH according to the requirements of the activated DRX configuration. Each DRX may be associated with a separate set of parameters. For example, each DRX may be configured with a separate DRX on duration timer and an inactivity timer. Each DRX may be associated with a separate set of timers. In some embodiments, the search space monitored according to each DRX may be different. For example, the UE may monitor search space set 1 while in active time according to DRX cycle 1, and the UE may monitor search space set 2 while in active time according to DRX cycle 2. In some embodiments, if a PDCCH is received according to search space set 1, a timer associated with DRX1 may be started and / or restarted, and if a PDCCH is received according to search space set 2, a timer associated with DRX2 may be started and / or restarted.

[0063] In some embodiments, which DRX cycle to use and / or activate may be determined by at least one of the DCI type, the RNTI, and a traffic flow index. The traffic flow index may be used to distinguish between different types of traffic flows (e.g., video or voice). The traffic flow index may be determined by a MAC parameter (e.g., logical channel, etc.). In some embodiments, if a PDCCH is received in a slot associated with the active time of both DRX cycles, a preconfigured or predefined set of timers (e.g., the inactivity timer of the shorter DRX cycle) may be started or restarted.

[0064] In some embodiments, at least one bit in the DCI may be used to instruct the UE to skip monitoring the PDCCH until the end of the DRX cycle. The skipping indication may be applied to the DRX cycle associated with the PDCCH for which the indication was received. For example, if the DCI was received in search space set 1, the skipping may be applied to DRX cycle 1. In some examples, the DRX cycle for which the skipping is applied may be indicated using a code point in the DCI. Exemplary bits that may instruct the UE to skip monitoring the downlink channel until the corresponding DRX cycle ends or to skip a preconfigured duration are shown below. The skipping may only be applied to a specific search space type, e.g., only to a UE-specific search space. Exemplary bits that indicate whether the UE should skip monitoring the PDCCH are shown below. Bit 00: Do not skip monitoring the PDCCH Bit 01: Skip monitoring the PDCCH associated with the DRX1 cycle (e.g., do not monitor the SS associated with DRX1) Bit 10: Skip monitoring the PDCCH associated with the DRX2 cycle (e.g., do not monitor the SS associated with DRX2) Bit 11: Skip monitoring the PDCCH associated with both DRX cycles

[0065] In some embodiments, the indication may indicate the DRX cycle to which the indication applies. Exemplary indications are provided below. Bit 00: Do not skip monitoring the PDCCH Bit 01: Skip monitoring PDCCH until the next DRX1 on duration Bit 10: Skip monitoring PDCCH until next DRX2 on duration Bit 11: Reserved bit

[0066] In some embodiments, one bit or two code points in the DCI may indicate the DRX cycle to which the indication applies, and the remaining bits / code points may indicate the skip duration. One of the skipping values ​​may indicate skipping until the end of the corresponding DRX cycle. For example, the first bit may indicate the DRX index as shown below: Bit 00: Skip L1 slots in DRX1 Bit 01: Skip L2 slots in DRX1 Bit 10: Skip K1 slots in DRX2 Bit 11: Skip K2 slots in DRX2

[0067] FIG. 7 shows a flow chart of an embodiment of a process 700 for performing a power saving process. The process 700 may be performed by a UE. The process may start with an operation S702 in which the UE performs monitoring of a downlink channel according to one or more parameters associated with an on-duration timer and an inactivity timer. The on-duration timer may specify a period during which the UE monitors the downlink channel, and the inactivity timer may specify a period during which the UE remains on after receiving downlink information on the downlink channel. The downlink channel may be a PDCCH. The process proceeds to an operation S704 in which the UE determines whether a predetermined condition for modifying the monitoring of the downlink channel is met. For example, the UE may determine whether an indicator is received on the downlink channel indicating whether the UE should modify the monitoring of the downlink channel. Furthermore, the condition may be based on a number of resources or a type of resource received. The process proceeds to an operation S706 in which the UE modifies the monitoring of the downlink channel such that power consumption of the UE is reduced in response to the determined condition being met. For example, the UE may perform early termination of monitoring of the downlink channel or shift the timing of monitoring of the downlink channel.

[0068] The foregoing disclosure provides illustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the implementations to the precise forms disclosed. Modifications and variations are possible in light of the above disclosure or may be acquired from practicing the implementations.

[0069] It is understood that the particular order or hierarchy of blocks in the processes / flowcharts disclosed herein is an example of an exemplary approach. It is understood that the particular order or hierarchy of blocks in the processes / flowcharts may be rearranged based on design choices, priorities, and / or preferences. Further, some blocks may be combined or omitted. Although the method claims present elements of various blocks in an exemplary order, the elements of the blocks are not limited to the particular order or hierarchy presented.

[0070] Some embodiments may relate to systems, methods, and / or computer-readable media at any possible level of technical detail of configuration. Furthermore, one or more of the above components described above may be implemented as instructions stored in 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 or media having computer-readable program instructions for causing a processor to perform operations.

[0071] A computer-readable storage medium may be a tangible device that can hold and store instructions for use by an instruction execution device. A computer-readable storage medium may be, for example, but is 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 these devices. 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 disc read-only memories (CD-ROMs), digital versatile discs (DVDs), memory sticks, floppy disks, mechanically encoded devices such as punch cards or ridge structures in grooves with instructions recorded on them, and any suitable combination of the above. As used herein, a computer-readable storage medium should not be interpreted as a transitory signal itself, such as electric waves or other freely propagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves propagating through a waveguide or other transmission medium (e.g., light pulses passing through a fiber optic cable), or electrical signals transmitted through wires.

[0072] The computer-readable program instructions described herein can be downloaded from the computer-readable storage medium to the respective computing / processing device or to an external computer or 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 comprise 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 transfers the computer-readable program instructions for storage in a computer-readable storage medium in the separate computing / processing device.

[0073] The computer readable program code / instructions for performing the operations may be either assembler instructions, Instruction-Set-Architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions, machine dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions, state-setting data, configuration data for integrated circuit devices, or source or object code written in any combination of one or more programming languages, including 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 on a 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., through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider). In some embodiments, electronic circuit devices including, for example, programmable logic devices, field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), or programmable logic arrays (PLAs), may execute computer readable program instructions by utilizing state information of the computer readable program instructions to personalize the electronic circuit devices to perform aspects or operations.

[0074] 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 such that the instructions, executed via the processor of the computer, produce means for performing the function / acts specified in the block(s) of the flowcharts and / or block diagrams to manufacture a machine. These computer readable program instructions may also be stored in a computer readable storage medium capable of directing a computer, programmable data processing apparatus, and / or other device to function in a particular manner such that the computer readable storage medium having the instructions stored therein comprises an article of manufacture including instructions that perform aspects of the function / acts specified in the block(s) of the flowcharts and / or block diagrams.

[0075] Also, the computer readable program instructions may 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, perform the function / acts specified in the block(s) of the flowcharts and / or block diagrams.

[0076] 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 of the flowcharts or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portion of instructions that includes one or more executable instructions for implementing a specified logical function(s). The methods, computer systems, and computer-readable media may include additional, fewer, different, or differently configured blocks compared to the blocks shown in the figures. In some alternative implementations, the functions described in the blocks may occur in a different order than the order described in the figures. For example, two blocks shown in succession may in fact be executed simultaneously or nearly simultaneously, or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the 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 performs the specified functions or actions or executes a combination of dedicated hardware and computer instructions.

[0077] 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 the 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 any specific software code, and it is understood that software and hardware can be designed to implement the systems and / or methods based on the description herein. It is understood that the exemplary embodiments are not limited thereto and may be implemented in a variety of different architectures (e.g., a bare metal architecture, any cloud-based architecture or deployment architecture, such as Kubernetes, Docker, OpenStack, etc.).

[0078] The above disclosure also encompasses the embodiments (features) listed below.

[0079] (1) A method executed by at least one processor in a user equipment (UE), comprising: monitoring a downlink channel in accordance with one or more parameters associated with an on-duration timer that specifies a period during which the UE monitors a downlink channel and an inactivity timer that specifies a period during which the UE remains on after receiving downlink information on the downlink channel; determining whether a predetermined condition for modifying the monitoring of the downlink channel is met; and in response to determining that the predetermined condition is met, modifying the monitoring of the downlink channel such that power consumption of the UE is reduced.

[0080] (2) The method according to (1), wherein the predetermined condition specifies receiving an indicator in downlink information that modifies one of an on-duration timer and an inactivity timer.

[0081] (3) The method of any one of (2) above, wherein modifying one of the on duration timer and the inactivity timer includes starting one of the on duration timer and the inactivity timer upon receiving the indicator.

[0082] (4) modifying one of the on-duration timer and the inactivity timer upon receiving the indicator; of The method according to claim 2, further comprising resetting.

[0083] (5) The method of feature (2), wherein modifying one of the on duration timer and the inactivity timer includes, upon receiving the indicator, changing a value of one of the on duration timer and the inactivity timer such that a remaining period of the one of the on duration timer and the inactivity timer is reduced.

[0084] (6) The method according to (5), wherein the predetermined condition further specifies a resource threshold, and in response to determining that the number of resources received on the downlink channel is greater than or equal to the resource threshold, a value of one of the on-duration timer and the inactivity timer is altered.

[0085] (7) The method according to feature (1), wherein the predetermined condition specifies a time threshold, and in response to determining that scheduled data is received on a downlink channel at a time when the remaining duration of the on duration timer is equal to or greater than the time threshold, modifying one of the on duration timer and the inactivity timer includes reducing the remaining duration of the on duration period.

[0086] (8) the predetermined condition specifies a data threshold, and an amount of scheduled data received on the downlink channel exceeds the data threshold. That's all. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein in response to determining that the inactivity timer is inactive, modifying one of the on duration timer and the inactivity timer includes setting the on duration timer to zero.

[0087] (9) The method of (1), wherein the predetermined condition is a data threshold, and in response to determining that an amount of scheduled data received on the downlink channel during the on duration timer or the inactivity timer exceeds the data threshold, modifying one of the on duration timer and the inactivity timer includes terminating whichever of the on duration timer and the inactivity timer is active.

[0088] (10) The method according to feature (1), further comprising the step of dividing the on duration period into a plurality of slots, each slot of the plurality of slots being assigned to one of a first search space and a second search space, the first search space being closer to a center of the on duration period than the second search space, the predetermined condition specifying receiving an indicator indicative of one of the first search space and the second search space, and modifying one of the on duration timer and the inactivity timer includes monitoring one of the first search space and the second search space based on the indicator.

[0089] (11) The method according to feature (1), further comprising a step of dividing an on duration period into a plurality of slots, the predetermined condition specifying receipt of an indicator indicating to shift the on duration timer by a predetermined number of slots, and modifying one of the on duration timer and the inactivity timer including shifting the on duration timer by the predetermined number of slots.

[0090] (12) The method according to any one of the features (1), further comprising dividing the on-duration period into a plurality of slots, each of the plurality of slots being associated with a separate inactivity timer, and the predetermined condition specifying that upon receiving downlink information in one of the plurality of slots, an inactivity timer corresponding to one of the slots is started or restarted.

[0091] (13) The step of monitoring a downlink channel includes monitoring the downlink channel for a plurality of discontinuous reception cycles (DRX), each DRX cycle of the plurality of DRX cycles setting a separate on-duration timer and an inactivity timer. To A method according to the associated feature (1).

[0092] (14) The method according to the feature (13), wherein the downlink channel is a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) and the predetermined condition specifies that one of an on-duration timer and an inactivity timer is started or restarted in each DRX cycle in which a PDCCH is received.

[0093] (15) The method according to the feature (13), wherein the downlink channel is a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), and the predetermined condition specifies receiving an indicator indicating one of: (i) not skipping monitoring the PDCCH, (ii) skipping monitoring the PDCCH for at least one DRX cycle of a plurality of DRX cycles, and (iii) skipping monitoring the PDCCH for each DRX cycle of a plurality of DRX cycles.

[0094] (16) The method according to the feature (13), wherein each DRX cycle of a plurality of DRX cycles is divided into a plurality of slots, and the predetermined condition specifies receiving an indicator indicative of (i) at least one DRX cycle of the plurality of DRX cycles and (ii) a number of slots to be skipped in monitoring a downlink channel.

[0095] (17) A user equipment (UE) having 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 including monitoring code configured to cause at least one of the at least one processor to monitor a downlink channel in accordance with one or more parameters associated with an on-duration timer and an inactivity timer, the on-duration timer specifying a period for which the UE monitors the downlink channel and the inactivity timer specifying a period for which the UE remains on after receiving downlink information on the downlink channel, the computer program code further including: a determination code configured to cause at least one of the at least one processor to determine whether a predetermined condition is met for modifying the monitoring of the downlink channel; and a modification code configured to cause the at least one of the at least one processor to modify the monitoring of the downlink channel such that power consumption of the UE is reduced in response to determining that the predetermined condition is met.

[0096] (18) The UE according to feature (17), wherein the UE specifies receiving an indicator in the downlink information that a predetermined condition modifies one of the on-duration timer and the inactivity timer.

[0097] (19) The UE of feature (18), wherein the modification code is further configured to cause at least one of the at least one processor to start one of an on duration timer and an inactivity timer upon receiving the indicator.

[0098] (20) A non-transitory computer-readable medium having instructions stored thereon that, when executed by a processor in a UE, cause the processor to perform a method including: monitoring a downlink channel in accordance with one or more parameters associated with an on-duration timer that specifies a period during which the UE monitors a downlink channel and an inactivity timer that specifies a period during which the UE remains on after receiving downlink information on the downlink channel; determining whether a predetermined condition is met for modifying the monitoring of the downlink channel; and in response to determining that the predetermined condition is met, modifying the monitoring of the downlink channel such that power consumption of the UE is reduced.

Claims

1. 1. A method performed by at least one processor in a user equipment (UE), comprising: monitoring the downlink channel according to one or more parameters associated with an on-duration timer that specifies a period during which the UE monitors a downlink channel and an inactivity timer that specifies a period during which the UE remains on after receiving downlink information on the downlink channel; determining whether a predetermined condition for modifying said monitoring of said downlink channel is met; modifying the monitoring of the downlink channel such that power consumption of the UE is reduced in response to determining that the predetermined condition is met; The method according to claim 1,

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the predetermined condition specifies receipt of an indicator in the downlink information that modifies one of the on-duration timer and the inactivity timer.

3. 3. The method of claim 2, wherein modifying one of the on duration timer and the inactivity timer comprises starting one of the on duration timer and the inactivity timer upon receiving the indicator.

4. 3. The method of claim 2, wherein modifying one of the on duration timer and the inactivity timer comprises resetting the one of the on duration timer and the inactivity timer upon receiving the indicator.

5. 3. The method of claim 2, wherein modifying one of the on duration timer and the inactivity timer includes changing a value of one of the on duration timer and the inactivity timer such that a remaining period of the one of the on duration timer and the inactivity timer is reduced upon receiving the indicator.

6. 6. The method of claim 5, wherein the predetermined condition further specifies a resource threshold, and in response to determining that a number of resources received on the downlink channel is greater than or equal to the resource threshold, the value of one of the on-duration timer and the inactivity timer is altered.

7. 2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the predetermined condition specifies a time threshold, and in response to determining that scheduled data is received on the downlink channel at a time when a remaining period of the on duration timer is equal to or greater than the time threshold, modifying one of the on duration timer and the inactivity timer includes reducing the remaining period of the on duration period.

8. 2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the predetermined condition specifies a data threshold, and in response to determining that an amount of scheduled data received on the downlink channel is greater than or equal to the data threshold, modifying one of the on-duration timer and the inactivity timer includes setting the on-duration timer to zero.

9. 2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the predetermined condition is a data threshold, and in response to determining that an amount of scheduled data received on the downlink channel during the on-duration timer or the inactivity timer exceeds the data threshold, modifying one of the on-duration timer and the inactivity timer includes terminating whichever of the on-duration timer and the inactivity timer is active.

10. The method further comprises dividing an on-duration period into a plurality of slots, each slot of the plurality of slots being assigned to one of a first search space and a second search space, the first search space being closer to a center of the on-duration period than the second search space; the predetermined condition specifies receiving an indicator indicative of one of the first search space and the second search space; 2. The method of claim 1, wherein modifying one of the on-duration timer and the inactivity timer comprises monitoring one of the first search space and the second search space based on the indicator.

11. The method further comprises dividing the on-duration period into a number of slots; the predetermined condition specifies receiving an indicator to shift the on-duration timer by a predetermined number of slots; 2. The method of claim 1, wherein modifying the one of the on duration timer and the inactivity timer comprises shifting the on duration timer by the predetermined number of slots.

12. The method further comprises dividing the on-duration period into a number of slots; each slot of the plurality of slots is associated with a separate inactivity timer; 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the predetermined condition specifies that upon receiving the downlink information in one of the plurality of slots, the inactivity timer corresponding to the one of the slots is started or restarted.

13. and monitoring the downlink channel includes monitoring the downlink channel for a plurality of discontinuous reception cycles (DRX); The method of claim 1 , wherein each DRX cycle of the plurality of DRX cycles includes and is associated with a separate on-duration timer and an inactivity timer.

14. 14. The method of claim 13, wherein the downlink channel is the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) and the predetermined condition specifies that one of the on-duration timer and the inactivity timer is started or restarted in each of the DRX cycles in which the PDCCH is received.

15. 14. The method of claim 13, wherein the downlink channel is the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), and the predetermined condition specifies receiving an indicator indicating one of: (i) not skipping monitoring the PDCCH, (ii) skipping monitoring the PDCCH for at least one DRX cycle of the plurality of DRX cycles, and (iii) skipping monitoring the PDCCH for each DRX cycle of the plurality of DRX cycles.

16. 14. The method of claim 13, wherein each DRX cycle of the plurality of DRX cycles is divided into a plurality of slots, and the predetermined condition specifies receipt of an indicator indicative of (i) at least one DRX cycle of the plurality of DRX cycles and (ii) a number of slots to be skipped in the monitoring of the downlink channel.

17. A user equipment (UE), at least one memory configured to store computer program code; 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: monitoring code configured to cause at least one of the at least one processor to monitor a downlink channel according to one or more parameters associated with an on-duration timer and an inactivity timer, the on-duration timer specifying a period for which the UE monitors the downlink channel and the inactivity timer specifying a period for which the UE remains on after receiving downlink information on the downlink channel; The computer program code further comprises: determining code configured to cause at least one of the at least one processor to determine whether a predetermined condition for modifying the monitoring of the downlink channel is satisfied; and modification code configured to cause at least one of the at least one processor, in response to determining that the predetermined condition is met, to modify the monitoring of the downlink channel such that power consumption of the UE is reduced; A user equipment (UE).

18. 18. The UE of claim 17, wherein the predetermined condition specifies receipt of an indicator in the downlink information that modifies one of the on-duration timer and the inactivity timer.

19. 20. The UE of claim 18, wherein the modifying code is further configured to: upon receiving the indicator, cause at least one of the at least one processor to start one of the on-duration timer and the inactivity timer.

20. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by a processor in a UE, cause the processor to perform a method, the method comprising: monitoring the downlink channel according to one or more parameters associated with an on-duration timer that specifies a period during which the UE monitors a downlink channel and an inactivity timer that specifies a period during which the UE remains on after receiving downlink information on the downlink channel; determining whether a predetermined condition for modifying said monitoring of said downlink channel is met; and in response to determining that the predetermined condition is met, modifying the monitoring of the downlink channel such that power consumption of the UE is reduced.

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