Synchronous buffer status reporting

Abstract

Systems, methods, apparatus, and computer program products are provided for synchronization of buffer status reporting to other communication events, such as discontinuous reception cycles. For example, the method may include receiving a configuration from a network, the configuration including a discontinuous reception configuration, a reporting configuration, or both a discontinuous reception configuration and a reporting configuration. The method may also include starting a discontinuous reception on duration timer for the user equipment according to the discontinuous reception configuration. The method may also include determining to conditionally transmit a report for the user equipment upon starting the discontinuous reception on duration timer according to the configuration. The method may further include transmitting the report to the network if an uplink grant is present for the user equipment.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] Some exemplary embodiments may relate generally to communications involving mobile or wireless communication systems such as Long Term Evolution (LTE) or fifth generation (5G) radio access technologies or new radio (NR) radio access technologies, or other communication systems including future versions of the same or similar standards. For example, certain exemplary embodiments relate generally to synchronization of buffer status reporting to other communication events, such as discontinuous reception cycles. [Background technology]

[0002] Examples of mobile or wireless telecommunications systems may include Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), Terrestrial Radio Access Network (UTRAN), Long Term Evolution (LTE) Evolved (Evolved) UTRAN (E-UTRAN), LTE Advanced (LTE-A), MultiFire, LTE-A Pro, and / or fifth-generation (5G) radio access technologies, or New Radio (NR) access technologies. 5G radio systems refer to next-generation (NG) radio systems and network architectures. 5G systems are often built based on 5G New Radio (NR), but 5G (or NG) networks can also be built based on E-UTRA radio. Starting with Release 18 (Rel-18), 5G is referred to as 5G Advanced. NR is estimated to provide bit rates on the order of 10G-20Gbit / s or greater and be capable of supporting at least service categories such as enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC), and massive machine-type communication (mMTC). NR is expected to provide large-scale networking with ultra-wideband, ultra-robust low-latency connectivity to support the Internet of Things (IoT). As IoT and machine-to-machine (M2M) communications become more widespread, networks that meet the needs for lower power consumption, lower data rates, and longer battery life will become increasingly necessary. The next-generation radio access network (NG-RAN) represents the RAN for 5G, capable of delivering both NR and LTE (and LTE Advanced).It should be noted that in 5G, a node capable of providing radio access functionality to user equipment (i.e., similar to a Node B, NB, in UTRAN, or an evolved NB, eNB, in LTE) may be referred to as a next-generation NB (gNB) if built based on NR radio, or a next-generation eNB (NG-eNB) if built based on E-UTRA radio. 6G is currently under development and may replace 5G and 5G Advanced. Summary of the Invention [Means for solving the problem]

[0003] One embodiment may be directed to an apparatus. The apparatus includes at least one processor and a memory including a computer program. The at least one memory and the computer program can be configured, by the at least one processor, to at least cause the apparatus to receive, from a network, a configuration including a discontinuous reception configuration, a reporting configuration, or both a discontinuous reception configuration and a reporting configuration; start a discontinuous reception on-duration timer for a user equipment according to the discontinuous reception configuration; trigger a report for the user equipment upon starting the discontinuous reception on-duration timer according to the configuration; and transmit the report to the network if an uplink grant exists for the user equipment.

[0004] One embodiment may be directed to a method that may include receiving, from a network, a discontinuous reception configuration, a reporting configuration, or a configuration including both a discontinuous reception configuration and a reporting configuration; starting a discontinuous reception on-duration timer for a user equipment according to the discontinuous reception configuration; triggering a report for the user equipment upon starting the discontinuous reception on-duration timer according to the configuration; and, if an uplink grant exists for the user equipment, transmitting the report to the network.

[0005] One embodiment may be directed to an apparatus that may include: means for receiving, from a network, a discontinuous reception configuration, a reporting configuration, or a configuration including both a discontinuous reception configuration and a reporting configuration; means for starting a discontinuous reception on duration timer for a user equipment according to the discontinuous reception configuration; means for triggering a report for the user equipment upon starting the discontinuous reception on duration timer according to the configuration; and means for transmitting the report to the network if an uplink grant is present for the user equipment.

[0006] For an appreciation of the illustrative embodiments, reference should be made to the accompanying drawings, in which: [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] FIG. 10 shows a first example in which grants can be given exactly at the beginning of each on-duration. [Figure 2] FIG. 10 illustrates a second example in which padding buffer status reporting is used. [Figure 3] FIG. 10 illustrates a third example in which the scheduler may miss an on-duration. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 illustrates a rule flow for one implementation of a particular embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 illustrates a rule flow for another implementation of a particular embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 shows a signal flow diagram of a method according to certain embodiments. [Figure 7A] FIG. 1 illustrates a method according to certain embodiments. [Figure 7B] FIG. 1 illustrates a further method according to certain embodiments. [Figure 8] FIG. 1 illustrates an example block diagram of a system according to one embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0008] It will be readily appreciated that the components of the specific example embodiments outlined herein and illustrated in the Figures may be arranged and designed in a wide variety of different configurations. Thus, the following detailed description of several example embodiments of systems, methods, apparatuses and computer program products that provide synchronization of buffer status reporting to other communication events, such as discontinuous receive cycles, is not intended to limit the scope of the particular embodiments, but rather represents selected example embodiments.

[0009] The features, structures, or characteristics of the exemplary embodiments described throughout this specification may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more exemplary embodiments. For example, the use of the phrase "certain embodiments," "some embodiments," or other similar language throughout this specification indicates that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with an embodiment may be included in at least one embodiment. Thus, the appearances of the phrases "certain embodiments," "some embodiments," "other embodiments," or other similar expressions throughout this specification do not necessarily all refer to the same group of embodiments, and the described features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more exemplary embodiments.

[0010] Particular embodiments may have various aspects and features that may be applied alone or in any desired combination with one another. Other features, procedures, and elements may also be applied in combination with some or all of the aspects and features disclosed herein.

[0011] Moreover, if desired, different functions or procedures described below may be performed in different orders and / or in parallel with one another. Also, if desired, one or more of the functions or procedures described may be optional or may be combined. The following description should therefore be considered as illustrative of the principles and teachings of particular exemplary embodiments, and not limiting thereof.

[0012] Third generation partnership project (3GPP) technical specification (TS) 38.321 specifies buffer status report (BSR) for new radio (NR), and 3GPP TS 36.321 specifies BSR for LTE. For ease of explanation, the following discussion focuses on the details of BSR in the context of the NR specifications, but the same principles are applicable to LTE or other systems, whether standardized or not.

[0013] In NR, a periodic buffer status report is triggered when the periodic BSR timer, i.e., periodicBSR-Timer, expires. Also, in NR, the periodic BSR timer is started or restarted whenever a buffer status report is triggered and the buffer status report is not a truncated buffer status report. A buffer status report may be considered not truncated when it contains a complete picture of the buffer status. In NR, a truncated BSR may include a long or short truncated BSR and an extended long or short truncated BSR. The medium access control (MAC) entity may be responsible for starting or restarting the periodic BSR timer.

[0014] When discontinuous reception (DRX) is configured, it may not be possible to guarantee that data transmission starts with a periodic BSR for every DRX cycle. In some scenarios, it may be useful to have a periodic BSR for every DRX cycle, such as to feed information to a scheduler that operates on a fixed time scale, or to deal with services that have known patterns and for which too frequent scheduling requests (SRs) may not be useful or even possible to anticipate. For example, there may be high priority data arrivals that only occur in empty buffers, and buffers may not always be empty. For example, the gNB may decide to stop scheduling even when it knows that the UE buffer is not empty.

[0015] There are at least three example scenarios, identified for convenience only as first, second and third, in which the periodic BSR timer can be configured equal to the DRX cycle with the aim of having one BSR for every cycle.

[0016] Figure 1 shows a first example in which grants may be given exactly at the beginning of each on-duration. This can be considered a theoretical case. If grants were always given exactly at the beginning of every on-duration and no padding BSRs other than truncated BSRs were sent at the end of a series of grants or data bursts, it would theoretically be possible to align periodic BSR reporting with the DRX cycle. Unfortunately, this only works in theory, since it is impossible to guarantee that only truncated BSRs are sent when padding BSRs are needed. This theoretical case is shown in Figure 1, where BSRs A, B, and C are aligned with the DRX cycle and are sent at the start of series of grants 1, 2, and 3, respectively. Figure 2 shows a second example in which padding buffer status reporting is used. Since the periodic BSR timer may be restarted when a non-truncated BSR is sent, the periodic BSR timer may also be restarted at the end of every data burst. This padding case is shown in Figure 2, where the first series of grants (1) is completed by a padding BSR (B), which restarts the periodic BSR timer. As a result, the periodic BSR timer is still running when the second grant arrives (2), and no periodic BSR is sent on the second occurrence of the on duration.

[0017] Figure 3 shows a third example in which the scheduler can miss an on-duration. When the scheduler is unable to provide grants at exactly the beginning of every duration, for example due to a temporary overload, the periodic BSR timer may be started late enough to miss the next on-duration. Figure 3 shows such a case, where the periodic BSR (B) sent for the second series of grants (2) starts a periodic BSR timer that does not expire before the occurrence of the third series of grants (3).

[0018] One approach that would solve the above problem would be to set the periodic BSR timer to a value short enough that it always expires at the next on-duration, no matter how late the BSR timer in the previous cycle was started. Such an approach would significantly increase the periodic BSR overhead in bursts due to the network (NW) continuously scheduling the UE, as the timer continues to expire. The current standardized values ​​for the periodic BSR and DRX cycles are described in 3GPP TS38.331.

[0019] In certain embodiments, starting the drx-onDurationTimer for a DRX group can trigger a periodic BSR in addition to starting the drx-onDurationTimer. Such an approach can ensure that a periodic BSR is transmitted for every On Duration.

[0020] A wake-up signal or downlink (DL) control information (DCI) (DCP) using a cyclic redundancy check (CRC) scrambled by a power saving radio network temporary identity (PS-RNTI) can be configured. Once the WUS / DCP is configured, if the drx-onDurationTimer is not started by the WUS, the periodic BSR cannot be automatically triggered by the WUS / DCP, and therefore the periodic BSR will not be triggered either.

[0021] If a short DRX cycle is also configured, the BSR trigger may be limited to the long cycle or may include both the long and short cycles, or the network may configure the UE to follow either behavior.

[0022] The periodic BSR trigger can be configured to occur upon every N firings of the On Duration timer, where N can be any integer, e.g., the value of N can be set to a single value, e.g., 2, or the value of N can be configurable, e.g., ranging from 1 to 10. Other values ​​can also be used.

[0023] A trigger can be linked to a specific logical channel (LCH) or logical channel group (LCG) by the presence of data for the LCH / LCG in the uplink transport block or by having data buffered for the LCH / LCG. This approach can be beneficial for schedulers that are only interested in obtaining periodic update data for a subset of LCHs / LCGs.

[0024] The behavior can also be extended to Power Headroom Reports (PHRs), or any Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (CE) that reports information to the network, so additional triggers can be applied to other MAC CEs.

[0025] Figure 4 shows the rule flow for one implementation of a particular embodiment. As shown in Figure 4, once DRX is configured, if a short DRX cycle is used for a DRX group and [(SFN x 10) + subframe number] modulo (drx-ShortCycle) = (drx-StartOffset) modulo (drx-ShortCycle), the MAC can start the drx-onDurationTimer for this DRX group drx-SlotOffset after the start of the subframe, and can trigger a BSR, such as a periodic BSR, if onDuration-based BSR triggering is enabled. Thus, in a particular embodiment, a BSR can be triggered if a short DRX cycle is used for the DRX group and [(SFN x 10) + subframe number] modulo (drx-ShortCycle) = (drx-StartOffset) modulo (drx-ShortCycle), and OnDuration-based BSR triggering is enabled. Although periodic BSRs are used as an example, certain embodiments are applicable to other types of reports, such as aperiodic BSRs, and to reporting of characteristics other than buffer status, such as power headroom reports.

[0026] If a long DRX cycle is used for the DRX group and [(SFN × 10) + subframe number] modulo (drx-LongCycle) = drx-StartOffset, and DCP monitoring is configured for an active DL BWP as specified in clause 10.3 of 3GPP TS38.213; and a DCP indication associated with the current DRX cycle received from lower layers indicates to start the drx-onDurationTimer, or all DCP opportunities in the time domain associated with the current DRX cycle are received grants / allocations / DRX command MAC CE / long DRX command MAC If this occurs within the active time, taking into account the CE and scheduling requests transmitted up to 4 ms before the start of the last DCP opportunity, or during a measurement gap, or when the MAC entity monitors for PDCCH transmissions in the search space indicated by recoverySearchSpaceId for the SpCell identified by the C-RNTI while the ra-ResponseWindow is running, or if ps-Wakeup is configured with a true value and no DCP indication associated with the current DRX cycle has been received from lower layers, the MAC can start the drx-onDurationTimer drx-SlotOffset from the start of the subframe and trigger a periodic BSR if OnDuration-based BSR is enabled. Thus, in a particular embodiment, a periodic BSR can be triggered if a long DRX cycle is used for the DRX group and OnDuration-based BSR triggering is enabled when [(SFN × 10) + subframe number] modulo (drx-LongCycle) = (drx-StartOffset).

[0027] Otherwise, the MAC may start the drx-onDurationTimer for this DRX group drx-SlotOffset after the start of the subframe and may trigger a periodic BSR if OnDuration-based BSR triggering is enabled.

[0028] Figure 5 illustrates the flow of rules for another implementation of a particular embodiment. Figure 5 can be considered an alternative implementation to the implementation of Figure 4. For example, Figure 4 can illustrate an implementation of rules as part of a specification for DRX, while Figure 5 can illustrate an implementation of rules as part of a specification for buffer status reporting.

[0029] As shown in Figure 5, a BSR may be triggered when any of the following events occur for an activated cell group: uplink (UL) data of a logical channel belonging to an LCG becomes available to the MAC entity and this UL data belongs to a logical channel with a higher priority than the priority of any logical channel belonging to any LCG that contains available UL data, or none of the logical channels belonging to the LCG contain any available UL data, in which case the BSR may be called a periodic BSR; or UL resources are allocated and the number of padding bits is equal to or greater than the size of the BufferStatusReport MAC CE plus the subheader, in which case the BSR may be called a padding BSR; or the retxBSR-Timer expires and at least one of the logical channels belonging to the LCG contains UL data, in which case the BSR may be called a periodic BSR; or the periodic BSR timer expires and the BSR may be called a periodic BSR; or the drx-onDurationTimer is started and OnDuration-based BSR triggering is enabled, in which case the BSR may be called a periodic BSR. A buffer status report can be provided in the MAC CE and can indicate the current amount of data in the user equipment buffer waiting for transmission from the user equipment. In a short BSR, the BSR can include a logical channel group (LCG) identifier and the size of the corresponding buffer. In a long BSR, the buffer sizes of four LCG groups can be provided sequentially. These are example BSR implementations, but other BSRs are possible.

[0030] FIG. 6 shows a signal flow diagram of a method according to a particular embodiment. As shown in FIG. 6, at 610, a gNB can configure a UE with a DRX configuration and a BSR configuration. Both configurations do not need to be provided in the same message. The gNB can provide a configuration that may include enabling on-duration-based BSR triggering. This configuration can be implemented as a BSR configuration (see, for example, FIG. 5) or a DRX configuration (see, for example, FIG. 4). At 620, if on-duration-based BSR triggering is enabled, an on-duration timer is started, and then a BSR can be triggered in the UE, for example, by the UE's MAC entity. Here, triggering a report can refer to a decision to send a report, as distinguished from an actual transmission, which may be subject to further conditions. After the BSR is triggered, the BSR will be reported when there is an UL grant. The content of the BSR can be in or carried in the MAC CE. Thus, at 630, the UE can send a BSR to the network, for example, the gNB, if there is an existing uplink grant. Thus, the presence of an uplink grant can be a further condition by which the report is actually sent. Next, at 640, the network can schedule the UE taking the BSR into account.

[0031] Therefore, as shown in Figure 6, the NW can enable or disable on-duration based BSR triggering. The NW can enable / disable the triggering by providing an appropriate configuration to the UE. If the triggering is enabled, the UE can trigger BSR when the drx-onDurationTimer is started and can include BSR in the MAC Protocol Data Unit (PDU) if there is an UL grant. The NW can take BSR into account when scheduling the UE.

[0032] 7A illustrates a method according to a particular embodiment. As shown in FIG. 7A, the method may include starting a discontinuous reception on duration timer for the user equipment at diagram 710. The method may include triggering a report, such as a periodic buffer status report, for the user equipment upon starting the discontinuous reception on duration timer at 720.

[0033] When a wake-up signal is configured for the user equipment, periodic buffer status reporting is not triggered if the discontinuous reception on duration timer is not started by the wake-up signal. When a short discontinuous reception cycle is also configured for the user equipment, triggering periodic buffer status reporting can only be in response to starting the long discontinuous reception cycle duration timer, e.g., starting the long discontinuous reception cycle on duration timer. Similarly, when a short discontinuous reception cycle is also configured for the user equipment, triggering periodic buffer status reporting can be in response to starting the short discontinuous reception cycle on duration timer, e.g., in addition to the long discontinuous reception cycle on duration timer.

[0034] Triggering of periodic buffer status reporting may be conditional on the occurrence of a predetermined number of firings of the discontinuous receive on duration timer, which may be more than one in certain embodiments.

[0035] The triggering of periodic buffer status reporting can be further conditioned on a particular subset of communications. The particular subset can be a particular logical channel or a particular group of logical channels. A further condition can be the presence of data in an uplink transport block for the particular subset or that data is buffered for the particular subset.

[0036] The triggering of a particular buffer status report may be according to a configuration received at the user equipment from the network.

[0037] 7B illustrates a further method according to a particular embodiment. As shown in FIG. 7B, the method may include, at 715, providing a discontinuous reception configuration to the user equipment. The method may further include, at 725, providing a buffer status reporting configuration to the user equipment. The discontinuous reception configuration and the buffer status configuration may cause the user equipment to start a discontinuous reception on duration timer for the user equipment and to trigger periodic buffer status reporting for the user equipment upon starting the discontinuous reception on duration timer.

[0038] The method may also include, at 735, scheduling the user equipment taking into account reports, such as buffer status reports, received from the user equipment according to the discontinuous reception configuration and the buffer status reporting configuration.

[0039] 8 illustrates an example of a system including apparatus 10 according to one embodiment. In one embodiment, apparatus 10 may be a node, host, or server in a communications network or serving such a network. For example, apparatus 10 may be a network node, satellite, base station, Node B, evolved Node B (eNB), 5G Node B or access point, next generation Node B (NG-NB or gNB), TRP, HAPS, integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node, and / or WLAN access point associated with a radio access network such as an LTE network, 5G, or NR. In some example embodiments, apparatus 10 may be, for example, a gNB or other similar wireless node.

[0040] It should be understood that in some illustrative examples, apparatus 10 may include an edge cloud server as a distributed computing system, in which case the server and wireless nodes may be standalone devices that communicate with each other via wireless paths or via wired connections, or may be located within the same entity that communicates via wired connections. For example, in a particular illustrative embodiment in which apparatus 10 represents a gNB, the apparatus may be configured with a central unit (CU) and distributed unit (DU) architecture that divides gNB functions. In such an architecture, the CU may be a logical node that includes gNB functions such as user data transmission, mobility control, radio access network sharing, positioning, and / or session management. The CU may control the operation of the DU via a midhaul interface, referred to as the F1 interface, and the DU may have one or more radio units (RUs) connected to the DU via a fronthaul interface. The DU may be a logical node that includes a subset of gNB functions, depending on the functional division option. Note that those skilled in the art will recognize that apparatus 10 may include components or features not shown in FIG. 8 .

[0041] As shown in the example of FIG. 8, device 10 may include processor 12 for processing information and executing instructions or operations. Processor 12 may be any type of general-purpose or special-purpose processor. Indeed, processor 12 may include, by way of example, one or more of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a processor based on a multi-core processor architecture, or any other processing means. While a single processor 12 is shown in FIG. 8, multiple processors may be used according to other embodiments. For example, it should be understood that in certain embodiments, device 10 may include two or more processors capable of forming a multiprocessor system capable of supporting multiprocessing (e.g., in this case, processor 12 may represent the multiprocessor). In certain embodiments, the multiprocessor system may be tightly or loosely coupled (e.g., to form a computer cluster).

[0042] Processor 12 may perform functions associated with the operation of device 10, including, for example, precoding of antenna gain / phase parameters, encoding and decoding of individual bits forming communication messages, formatting of information, and overall control of device 10, including processes related to synchronizing buffer status reporting to other communication events, such as discontinuous reception cycles.

[0043] Device 10 may further include or be coupled to memory 14 (internal or external) couplable to processor 12 for storing information and instructions executable by processor 12. Memory 14 may be one or more memories and may be of any type suitable for the local application environment and may be implemented using any suitable volatile or non-volatile data storage technology, such as semiconductor-based memory devices, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory, and / or removable memory. For example, memory 14 may be comprised of any combination of random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), static storage such as a magnetic or optical disk, a hard disk drive (HDD), or any other type of non-transitory machine- or computer-readable medium, or other suitable storage means. The instructions stored in memory 14 may include program instructions or computer program code that, when executed by processor 12, enable device 10 to perform the tasks described herein.

[0044] In one embodiment, device 10 may further include or be coupled to a drive or port (internal or external) configured to accept and read an external computer-readable storage medium, such as an optical disk, a USB drive, a flash drive, or any other storage medium. For example, the external computer-readable storage medium may store a computer program or software for execution by processor 12 and / or device 10.

[0045] In some embodiments, device 10 may also include or be coupled to one or more antennas 15 for transmitting signals and / or data to and receiving signals and / or data from device 10. Device 10 may further include or be coupled to a transceiver 18 configured to transmit and receive information. Transceiver 18 may also include multiple wireless interfaces, which may be coupled to antenna 15, for example, or may include any other suitable transmission and reception means. The wireless interfaces may support multiple wireless access technologies, including one or more of global system for mobile communications (GSM), narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT), LTE, 5G, WLAN, Bluetooth (BT), Bluetooth Low Energy (BT-LE), near-field communication (NFC), radio frequency identification (RFID), ultra-wideband (UWB), MulteFire, etc. The air interface may include components such as filters, converters (e.g., digital-to-analog converters), mappers, and fast Fourier transform (FFT) modules to generate symbols for transmission over one or more downlinks and receive symbols (e.g., over an uplink).

[0046] Thus, transceiver 18 may be configured to modulate information onto a carrier waveform for transmission by antenna 15, and to demodulate information received via antenna 15 for further processing by other elements of device 10. In other embodiments, transceiver 18 may be capable of directly transmitting and receiving signals or data. Additionally or alternatively, in some embodiments, device 10 may include input and / or output devices (I / O devices) or input / output means.

[0047] In one embodiment, memory 14 may store software modules that provide functionality when executed by processor 12. The modules may include, for example, an operating system that provides operating system functionality for device 10. The memory may also store one or more functional modules, such as applications or programs, to provide additional functionality for device 10. Components of device 10 may be implemented in hardware or as any suitable combination of hardware and software.

[0048] According to some embodiments, the processor 12 and memory 14 may be included in or form part of a processing circuit / means or a control circuit / means. Further, in some embodiments, the transceiver 18 may be included in or form part of a transceiver circuit / means.

[0049] As used herein, the term “circuitry” may refer to a hardware-only circuit implementation (e.g., analog and / or digital circuitry), a combination of hardware circuitry and software, a combination of software / firmware and analog and / or digital hardware circuitry, any portion of a hardware processor (including, e.g., a digital signal processor) with software that, in combination, causes a device (e.g., device 10) to perform various functions, and / or hardware circuits and / or processors that use software for operation but may not be present if software is not necessary for operation, or portions thereof. As a further example, as used herein, the term “circuitry” may cover implementations of only a hardware circuit or processor (or multiple processors), or portions of a hardware circuit or processor and its associated software and / or firmware. The term circuitry also covers baseband integrated circuits in a server, cellular network node or device, or other computing or network device.

[0050] As outlined above, in certain embodiments, apparatus 10 may be or may be part of a network element or RAN node, such as a base station, access point, Node B, eNB, gNB, TRP, HAPS, IAB node, relay node, WLAN access point, satellite, etc. In one embodiment, apparatus 10 may be a gNB or other radio node, or may be a CU and / or DU of a gNB. According to certain embodiments, apparatus 10 is controllable by memory 14 and processor 12 to perform functions associated with any of the embodiments described herein. For example, in some embodiments, apparatus 10 may be configured to perform one or more of the processes illustrated in any of the flowcharts or signaling diagrams described herein, such as those shown in FIGS. 1-7B, or any other method described herein. In some embodiments, apparatus 10 may be configured to perform procedures related to providing synchronization of buffer status reporting with respect to other communication events, such as discontinuous reception cycles, as described herein.

[0051] 8 further illustrates an example of apparatus 20 according to one embodiment. In one embodiment, apparatus 20 may be a node or element in a communications network or associated with such a network, such as a UE, communications node, mobile equipment (ME), mobile station, mobile device, fixed device, IoT device, or other device. As described herein, a UE may alternatively be referred to as, for example, a mobile station, mobile equipment, mobile unit, mobile device, user device, subscriber station, wireless terminal, tablet, smartphone, IoT device, sensor or NB-IoT device, watch or other wearable, head-mounted display (HMD), vehicle, drone, medical device and applications (e.g., remote surgery), industrial device and applications (e.g., robots and / or other wireless devices operating in industrial and / or automated processing chain environments), consumer electronic device, device operating in a commercial and / or industrial wireless network, etc. By way of example, apparatus 20 may be implemented as, for example, a wireless handheld device, a wireless plug-in accessory, etc.

[0052] In some example embodiments, device 20 may include one or more processors, one or more computer-readable storage media (e.g., memory, storage, etc.), one or more wireless access components (e.g., modems, transceivers, etc.), and / or a user interface. In some embodiments, device 20 is configurable to operate using one or more wireless access technologies, such as GSM, LTE, LTE-A, NR, 5G, WLAN, WiFi, NB-IoT, Bluetooth, NFC, MulteFire, and / or any other wireless access technology. Note that one skilled in the art will recognize that device 20 may include components or features not shown in FIG. 8 .

[0053] As shown in the example of FIG. 8 , device 20 may include or be coupled to processor 22 for processing information and performing instructions or operations. Processor 22 may be any type of general-purpose or special-purpose processor. Indeed, processor 22 may include, by way of example, one or more of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), and a processor based on a multi-core processor architecture. While a single processor 22 is shown in FIG. 8 , multiple processors may be used according to other embodiments. For example, it should be understood that in certain embodiments, device 20 may include two or more processors capable of forming a multiprocessor system capable of supporting multiprocessing (e.g., in this case, processor 22 may represent the multiprocessor). In certain embodiments, the multiprocessor system may be tightly or loosely coupled (e.g., to form a computer cluster).

[0054] Processor 22 may perform functions associated with the operation of device 20, including, as a few examples, precoding of antenna gain / phase parameters, encoding and decoding of individual bits forming communication messages, formatting of information, and overall control of device 20, including processes related to management of communication resources.

[0055] Apparatus 20 may further include or be coupled to memory 24 (internal or external) couplable to processor 22 for storing information and instructions executable by processor 22. Memory 24 may be one or more memories and may be of any type suitable for the local application environment and may be implemented using any suitable volatile or non-volatile data storage technology, such as semiconductor-based memory devices, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory, and / or removable memory. For example, memory 24 may include any combination of random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), static storage such as a magnetic or optical disk, a hard disk drive (HDD), or any other type of non-transitory machine- or computer-readable medium. The instructions stored in memory 24 may include program instructions or computer program code that, when executed by processor 22, enable apparatus 20 to perform the tasks described herein.

[0056] In one embodiment, device 20 may further include or be coupled to a drive or port (internal or external) configured to accept and read an external computer-readable storage medium, such as an optical disk, a USB drive, a flash drive, or any other storage medium. For example, the external computer-readable storage medium may store a computer program or software for execution by processor 22 and / or device 20.

[0057] In some embodiments, device 20 may also include or be coupled to one or more antennas 25 for receiving downlink signals and for transmitting from device 20 via the uplink. Device 20 may further include a transceiver 28 configured to transmit and receive information. Transceiver 28 may also include a wireless interface (e.g., a modem) coupled to antenna 25. The wireless interface may support multiple wireless access technologies, including one or more of GSM, LTE, LTE-A, 5G, NR, WLAN, NB-IoT, Bluetooth, BT-LE, NFC, RFID, UWB, etc. The wireless interface may include other components, such as filters, converters (e.g., digital-to-analog converters), symbol demappers, signal shaping components, inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) modules, etc., to process symbols, such as OFDM symbols, carried by the downlink or uplink.

[0058] For example, transceiver 28 may be configured to modulate information onto a carrier waveform for transmission by antenna 25 and to demodulate information received via antenna 25 for further processing by other elements of device 20. In other embodiments, transceiver 28 may be capable of directly transmitting and receiving signals or data. Additionally, or alternatively, in some embodiments, device 20 may include input and / or output devices (I / O devices). In particular embodiments, device 20 may further include a user interface, such as a graphical user interface or a touch screen.

[0059] In one embodiment, memory 24 may store software modules that provide functionality when executed by processor 22. The modules may include, for example, an operating system that provides operating system functionality for device 20. The memory may also store one or more functional modules, such as applications or programs, to provide additional functionality for device 20. Components of device 20 may be implemented in hardware or as any suitable combination of hardware and software. According to one exemplary embodiment, device 20 may optionally be configured to communicate with device 10 via a wireless or wired communication link 70 according to any radio access technology, such as NR.

[0060] According to some embodiments, the processor 22 and memory 24 may be included in or form part of processing or control circuitry. Additionally, in some embodiments, the transceiver 28 may be included in or form part of transceiver circuitry.

[0061] As mentioned above, in some embodiments, apparatus 20 may be, for example, a UE, SL, UE, relay UE, mobile device, mobile station, ME, IoT device, and / or NB-IoT device. According to particular embodiments, apparatus 20 is controllable by memory 24 and processor 22 to perform functions associated with any of the embodiments described herein, such as one or more of the operations shown in or described with respect to FIGS. 1-7B , or any other method described herein. For example, in one embodiment, apparatus 20 is controllable to perform processes related to providing synchronization of buffer status reporting with respect to other communication events, such as discontinuous reception cycles, as detailed elsewhere herein.

[0062] In some embodiments, an apparatus (e.g., apparatus 10 and / or apparatus 20) may include means for performing any of the methods, processes, or variations described herein. Examples of the means may include one or more processors, memories, controllers, transmitters, receivers, and / or computer program code for causing any of the operations described herein.

[0063] In light of the above, certain exemplary embodiments provide several technical improvements, enhancements, and / or advantages over existing technical processes and constitute improvements to at least the field of radio network control and / or management. Particular embodiments may have various benefits and advantages. For example, in certain embodiments, a periodic BSR may be triggered at the start of every DRX cycle, regardless of burst periodicity, scheduler decision, periodic BSR timer configuration, or DRX cycle configuration. Furthermore, in certain embodiments, no extra overhead may be incurred if the NW does not schedule a UE in that DRX cycle, while if the NW schedules a UE during OnDuration, the NW can obtain up-to-date buffer status information without setting a very short value for the periodic BSR timer. Accordingly, certain embodiments may improve communications, including communications for services such as extended reality (XR).

[0064] In some example embodiments, the functionality of any of the methods, processes, signaling diagrams, algorithms or flowcharts described herein may be implemented by software and / or computer program code or portions of code stored in a memory or other computer-readable or tangible medium and executable by a processor.

[0065] In some exemplary embodiments, a device may include or be associated with at least one software application, module, unit, or entity configured as an arithmetic operation executable by at least one computing processor or controller, or as a program or part of a program (including additional or updated software routines). A program, also referred to as a program product or computer program, including software routines, applets, and macros, may be stored on any device-readable data storage medium and include program instructions that perform specific tasks. A computer program product may include one or more computer-executable components configured to perform some exemplary embodiments when the program is executed. One or more computer-executable components may be at least one software code or part of code. Modifications and configurations necessary to implement the functionality of an exemplary embodiment may be made as routines that can be implemented as additional or updated software routines. In one example, the software routines are downloadable to the device.

[0066] As an example, the software or computer program code or portions of code may be in source code form, object code form, or any intermediate form, and may be stored on any kind of carrier, distribution medium, or computer-readable medium, which may be any entity or device capable of carrying a program. Such carriers may include, for example, recording media, computer memory, read-only memory, optical and / or electrical carrier wave signals, communication signals, and / or software distribution packages. Depending on the required processing power, the computer program may be executed in a single electronic digital computer or distributed among several computers. The computer-readable medium or computer-readable storage medium may be a non-transitory medium.

[0067] In other exemplary embodiments, the functionality of the exemplary embodiments may be performed by hardware or circuitry included in the device, for example, using an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a programmable gate array (PGA), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or any other combination of hardware and software. In yet another exemplary embodiment, the functionality of the exemplary embodiments may be implemented as a signal, such as a non-tangible means that may be carried by an electromagnetic signal downloaded from the internet or other network.

[0068] According to one exemplary embodiment, an apparatus such as a node, device or corresponding component may be configured as a circuit, computer or microprocessor, such as a single-chip computer element, or as a chipset that may include at least a memory for providing storage capacity used for arithmetic operations and / or an arithmetic processor for performing arithmetic operations.

[0069] The example embodiments described herein are applicable to both singular and plural implementations, regardless of whether the singular or plural is used in connection with describing a particular embodiment. For example, an embodiment describing the operation of a single network node is also applicable to example embodiments including multiple instances of the network node, and vice versa.

[0070] Those skilled in the art will readily recognize that the exemplary embodiments, such as those described above, may be implemented in a different order and / or with hardware elements in different configurations than those disclosed. Thus, while several embodiments have been described based on these exemplary embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that certain modifications, variations, and alternative constructions will be apparent while remaining within the spirit and scope of the exemplary embodiments.

[0071] Simple glossary BSR Buffer Status Reporting DRX Discontinuous Reception LCG Logical Channel Group LCH Logical Channel WUS Wake-up signaling

Claims

1. at least one processor; at least one memory containing computer program code; An apparatus comprising: At least one memory and computer program code are configured by at least one processor to provide an apparatus with at least: receiving, from the network, a discontinuous reception configuration, a reporting configuration, or a configuration including both a discontinuous reception configuration and a reporting configuration; Starting a discontinuous reception on duration timer for the user equipment in accordance with a discontinuous reception configuration; triggering a report for the user equipment upon starting of a discontinuous reception on duration timer in accordance with the configuration; If an uplink grant exists for the user equipment, the network is caused to send a report. The apparatus is configured to:

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the report comprises a buffer status report or a power headroom report.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein triggering a report comprises triggering a periodic report, and wherein sending a report comprises an instance of the periodic report.

4. 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein when a wake-up signal is configured for the user equipment, reporting is not triggered if the discontinuous reception on duration timer is not started by the wake-up signal.

5. 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein when a short discontinuous reception cycle is also configured for the user equipment, triggering the report is in response to starting a long discontinuous reception cycle on duration timer only, or to both starting a long discontinuous reception cycle on duration timer or starting a short discontinuous reception cycle on duration timer.

6. 10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein triggering a report is conditioned on a predetermined number of initiations of a discontinuous receive on duration timer occurring.

7. 10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein triggering a report is further conditioned on a particular subset of communications, the particular subset including a particular logical channel or a particular group of logical channels.

8. 8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the further condition is that data is present in an uplink transport block for the particular subset or that data is buffered for the particular subset.

9. 10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the report includes a control element that identifies a current amount of data waiting to be sent from a buffer of the user equipment.

10. receiving a configuration from a network that includes a discontinuous reception configuration, a reporting configuration, or both a discontinuous reception configuration and a reporting configuration; starting a discontinuous reception on duration timer for the user equipment in accordance with a discontinuous reception configuration; triggering a report for the user equipment upon starting a discontinuous reception on duration timer according to the configuration; If there is an uplink grant for the user equipment, sending a report to the network; A method comprising:

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the report comprises a buffer status report or a power headroom report.

12. The method of claim 10 , wherein triggering a report comprises determining to trigger a periodic report, and wherein sending a report comprises an instance of the periodic report.

13. 11. The method of claim 10, wherein when a wake-up signal is configured for the user equipment, reporting is not triggered if the discontinuous reception on duration timer is not started by the wake-up signal.

14. 11. The method of claim 10, wherein when a short discontinuous reception cycle is also configured for the user equipment, triggering the report is in response to starting a long discontinuous reception cycle on duration timer only, or to both starting a long discontinuous reception cycle on duration timer or starting a short discontinuous reception cycle on duration timer.

15. 11. The method of claim 10, wherein triggering a report is conditioned on a predetermined number of initiations of a discontinuous receive on duration timer occurring.

16. 11. The method of claim 10, wherein triggering the report is further conditioned on a particular subset of communications, the particular subset including a particular logical channel or a particular group of logical channels.

17. 17. The method of claim 16, wherein the further condition is that data is present in an uplink transport block for the particular subset or that data is buffered for the particular subset.

18. 11. The method of claim 10, wherein the report includes a control element that identifies a current amount of data waiting to be sent from a buffer in the user equipment.

19. means for receiving from a network a discontinuous reception configuration, a reporting configuration, or a configuration including both a discontinuous reception configuration and a reporting configuration; means for starting a discontinuous reception on duration timer for the user equipment in accordance with a discontinuous reception configuration; means for triggering a report for the user equipment upon starting of a discontinuous reception on duration timer in accordance with the configuration; means for transmitting a report to the network if an uplink grant exists for the user equipment; An apparatus comprising:

20. 20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the report comprises a buffer status report or a power headroom report.

21. 20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein triggering a report comprises determining to trigger a periodic report, and wherein sending a report comprises an instance of the periodic report.

22. 20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein when a wake-up signal is configured for the user equipment, reporting is not triggered if the discontinuous reception on duration timer is not started by the wake-up signal.

23. 20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein when a short discontinuous reception cycle is also configured for the user equipment, triggering the report is in response to starting a long discontinuous reception cycle on duration timer only, or to both starting a long discontinuous reception cycle on duration timer or starting a short discontinuous reception cycle on duration timer.

24. 20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein triggering a report is conditioned on a predetermined number of initiations of a discontinuous receive on duration timer occurring.

25. 20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein triggering a report is further conditioned on a particular subset of communications, the particular subset including a particular logical channel or a particular group of logical channels.

26. 26. The apparatus of claim 25, wherein the further condition is that data is present in an uplink transport block for the particular subset or that data is buffered for the particular subset.

27. 20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the report includes a control element that identifies a current amount of data waiting to be sent from a buffer of the user equipment.

28. 19. A computer program product encoding instructions for performing the method of any one of claims 10 to 18.

29. A non-transitory computer readable medium encoded with instructions that, when executed by hardware, perform the method of any one of claims 10 to 18.

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