Simultaneous Reflection and Sensing Modes for Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces

Abstract

A reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) can transmit a capability report associated with the RIS. The capability report can be associated with the RIS's reflection and sensing capabilities. A network node can obtain the capability report associated with the RIS. The network node can transmit a first configuration of resources associated with at least one RS and a second configuration of at least one mode associated with the RIS's reflection and sensing capabilities. The at least one mode can be associated with at least one RS. The at least one mode can include a hybrid sensing and reflection mode. The RIS can receive the first configuration of resources associated with the at least one RS and the second configuration of at least one mode associated with the RIS's reflection and sensing capabilities.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

[0001] The present disclosure relates generally to communication systems, and more particularly to reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) systems. [Background technology]

[0002]

[0002] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various telecommunication services such as telephony, video, data, messaging, and broadcasts. Typical wireless communication systems may employ multiple access technologies capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources. Examples of such multiple access technologies include code division multiple access (CDMA) systems, time division multiple access (TDMA) systems, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) systems, orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) systems, single-carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) systems, and time division synchronous code division multiple access (TD-SCDMA) systems.

[0003] These multiple access technologies have been adopted in various telecommunications standards to provide common protocols that enable various wireless devices to communicate at city, national, regional, or even global levels. An exemplary telecommunications standard is 5G New Radio (NR). 5G NR is part of the continuing mobile broadband evolution promulgated by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) to meet new requirements for latency, reliability, security, scalability (e.g., for the Internet of Things (IoT)), and other requirements. 5G NR includes services associated with enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), massive machine type communications (mMTC), and ultra-reliable low latency communications (URLLC). Some aspects of 5G NR may be based on the 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) standard. Further improvements are needed in 5G NR technology, and these improvements may also be applicable to other multiple access technologies and the telecommunications standards that employ these technologies. Summary of the Invention

[0004]

[0004] The following presents a simplified summary of one or more aspects in order to provide a basic understanding of such aspects. This summary is not an extensive overview of all contemplated aspects. It is not intended to identify key or critical elements of all aspects, nor is it intended to delineate the scope of any or all aspects. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts of one or more aspects in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later.

[0005] In one aspect of the present disclosure, a method, a computer-readable medium, and an apparatus are provided. The apparatus may include, in a network node, a memory and at least one processor coupled to the memory. Based at least in part on information stored in the memory, the at least one processor may be configured to obtain a capability report associated with a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS). The capability report may be associated with reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. Based at least in part on the information stored in the memory, the at least one processor may be configured to transmit a first configuration of resources associated with at least one reference signal (RS) and a second configuration of at least one mode associated with reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The at least one mode may be associated with the at least one RS. The at least one mode may include a hybrid sensing and reflection mode.

[0006]

[0006] In one aspect of the present disclosure, a method, a computer-readable medium, and an apparatus are provided. The apparatus may include, in a RIS, a memory and at least one processor coupled to the memory. Based at least in part on information stored in the memory, the at least one processor may be configured to transmit a capability report associated with the RIS. The capability report may be associated with reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. Based at least in part on information stored in the memory, the at least one processor may be configured to receive a first configuration of resources associated with the at least one RS and a second configuration of at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The at least one mode may be associated with the at least one RS. The at least one mode may include a hybrid sensing and reflection mode.

[0007] To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, the one or more aspects comprise the features hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed out in the claims. The following description and the drawings set forth in detail certain illustrative features of the one or more aspects. These features are indicative, however, of but a few of the various ways in which the principles of the various aspects may be employed. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1]

[0008] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a wireless communication system and an access network. [Figure 2A]

[0009] FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a first frame according to various aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 2B]

[0010] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a downlink (DL) channel within a subframe in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 2C]

[0011] FIG. 10 illustrates an example of a second frame according to various aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 2D]

[0012] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of an uplink (UL) channel within a subframe in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 3]

[0013] FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of a base station and user equipment (UE) in an access network. [Figure 4]

[0014] FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a RIS configured to reflect, sense, or reflect and sense one or more reference signals (RSs) from a network node, in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 5]

[0015] FIG. 1 illustrates an example system model of a RIS, according to various aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 6]

[0016] FIG. 1 is a connection flow diagram illustrating one embodiment of a RIS configured to reflect, sense, or reflect and sense one or more reference signals (RSs) configured by a network node, in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 7]

[0017] FIG. 10 is another connection flow diagram illustrating an embodiment of a RIS configured to reflect, sense, or reflect and sense one or more reference signals (RSs) from a network node in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 8A]

[0018] FIG. 1 illustrates an example configuration for multiple RIS modes, according to various aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 8B]

[0019] FIG. 1 illustrates an example configuration for multiple RIS modes, according to various aspects of the present disclosure. [Figure 9]

[0020] 1 is a flowchart of a method of wireless communication. [Figure 10]

[0021] 10 is another flowchart of a method of wireless communication. [Figure 11]

[0022] 10 is another flowchart of a method of wireless communication. [Figure 12]

[0023] 10 is another flowchart of a method of wireless communication. [Figure 13]

[0024] 10 is another flowchart of a method of wireless communication. [Figure 14]

[0025] FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a hardware implementation for an exemplary network entity. [Figure 15]

[0026] FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a hardware implementation for an exemplary network entity. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009]

[0027] The detailed description set forth below in connection with the accompanying drawings illustrates various configurations and does not represent the only configurations in which the concepts described herein may be practiced. The detailed description includes specific details intended to provide a thorough understanding of the various concepts. However, these concepts may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well-known structures and components are shown in block diagram form to avoid obscuring such concepts.

[0010]

[0028] Several aspects of telecommunications systems are presented with reference to various apparatus and methods. These apparatus and methods are described in the following Detailed Description and illustrated in the accompanying drawings by various blocks, components, circuits, processes, algorithms, etc. (collectively referred to as "elements"). These elements may be implemented using electronic hardware, computer software, or any combination thereof. Whether such elements are implemented as hardware or software depends on the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system.

[0011]

[0029] By way of example, an element, or any portion of an element, or any combination of elements, may be implemented as a "processing system" including one or more processors. Examples of processors include microprocessors, microcontrollers, graphics processing units (GPUs), central processing units (CPUs), application processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), reduced instruction set computing (RISC) processors, systems on a chip (SoC), baseband processors, field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), state machines, gate logic, discrete hardware circuits, and other suitable hardware configured to perform various functionality described throughout this disclosure. One or more processors in a processing system may execute software. Software shall be construed broadly to mean instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subprograms, software components, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executables, threads of execution, procedures, functions, or any combination thereof, whether referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or otherwise.

[0012]

[0030] Thus, in one or more example aspects, implementations, and / or use cases, the functions described may be implemented in hardware, software, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functions may be stored or encoded as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media includes computer storage media. A storage medium may be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer. By way of example, such computer-readable media may include random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage, other magnetic storage devices, a combination of types of computer-readable media, or any other medium that can be accessed by a computer and that can be used to store computer-executable code in the form of instructions or data structures.

[0013]

[0031] Although aspects, implementations, and / or use cases are described herein by way of example for some embodiments, additional or different aspects, implementations, and / or use cases may occur in many different configurations and scenarios. The aspects, implementations, and / or use cases described herein may be implemented across many different platform types, devices, systems, shapes, sizes, and packaging configurations. For example, the aspects, implementations, and / or use cases may occur via integrated chip implementations and other non-modular component-based devices (e.g., end-user devices, vehicles, communications devices, computing devices, industrial equipment, retail / purchasing devices, medical devices, artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled devices, etc.). While some embodiments may or may not be specifically targeted to a use case or application, a wide variety of combined applicability of the described embodiments may arise. Aspects, implementations, and / or use cases may range from chip-level or modular components to non-modular, non-chip-level implementations, and even to aggregated, distributed, or original equipment manufacturer (OEM) devices or systems incorporating one or more techniques herein. In some practical settings, devices incorporating the described aspects and features may also include additional components and features for implementing and practicing the claimed and described aspects. For example, transmitting and receiving wireless signals necessarily involves several components for analog and digital purposes (e.g., hardware components including antennas, RF chains, power amplifiers, modulators, buffers, processor(s), interleavers, summers / analog summers, etc.). The techniques described herein can be practiced in a wide variety of devices, chip-level components, systems, distributed configurations, aggregated or non-aggregated components, end-user devices, etc., of various sizes, shapes, and configurations.

[0014]

[0032] The deployment of a communication system, such as a 5G NR system, can be configured in multiple ways using various components or parts. In a 5G NR system or network, a network node, network entity, network mobility element, radio access network (RAN) node, core network node, network element, or network equipment, such as a base station (BS) or one or more units (or one or more components) performing base station functionality, can be implemented in a centralized or disaggregated architecture. For example, a BS (such as a Node B (NB), evolved NB (eNB), NR BS, 5G NB, access point (AP), transmit receive point (TRP), or cell) can be implemented as a centralized base station (also known as a standalone BS or monolithic BS) or a disaggregated base station.

[0015]

[0033] An aggregated base station may be configured to utilize a radio protocol stack that is physically or logically integrated within a single RAN node. A disaggregated base station may be configured to utilize a protocol stack that is physically or logically distributed among two or more units (e.g., one or more centralized units (CUs), one or more distributed units (DUs), or one or more radio units (RUs)). In some aspects, a CU may be implemented within a RAN node, and one or more DUs may be co-located with the CU or, alternatively, may be geographically or virtually distributed throughout one or more other RAN nodes. A DU may be implemented to communicate with one or more RUs. Each of the CU, DU, and RU may be implemented as a virtual unit, i.e., a virtual central unit (VCU), a virtual distributed unit (VDU), or a virtual radio unit (VRU).

[0016]

[0034] Base station operation or network design can take into account the aggregation characteristics of base station functionality. For example, disaggregated base stations can be utilized in an integrated access backhaul (IAB) network, an open radio access network (O-RAN, such as the network configuration supported by the O-RAN Alliance), or a virtualized radio access network (vRAN, also known as a cloud radio access network (C-RAN)). Disaggregation can include distributing functionality across two or more units in different physical locations as well as virtually distributing functionality for at least one unit, which can allow flexibility in network design. Various units of a disaggregated base station or disaggregated RAN architecture can be configured for wired or wireless communication with at least one other unit.

[0017]

[0035] FIG. 1 is a diagram 100 illustrating one embodiment of a wireless communication system and access network. The illustrated wireless communication system includes a disaggregated base station architecture. The disaggregated base station architecture may include one or more CUs 110 that can communicate directly with a core network 120 via a backhaul link or indirectly with the core network 120 through one or more disaggregated base station units (e.g., a near-real time (RT) RAN Intelligent Controller (RIC) 125 via an E2 link, or a non-real time (non-RT) RIC 115 associated with a Service Management and Orchestration (SMO) framework 105, or both). The CUs 110 can communicate with one or more DUs 130 via respective midhaul links, such as an F1 interface. The DUs 130 can communicate with one or more RUs 140 via respective fronthaul links. The RUs 140 may communicate with each UE 104 via one or more radio frequency (RF) access links. In some implementations, a UE 104 may be served by multiple RUs 140 simultaneously.

[0018]

[0036] Each of the units, i.e., CU 110, DU 130, RU 140, quasi-RT RIC 125, non-RT RIC 115, and SMO framework 105, may include or be coupled to one or more interfaces configured to receive or transmit signals, data, or information (collectively, signals) over a wired or wireless transmission medium. Each of the units, or an associated processor or controller that provides instructions to the unit's communication interface, may be configured to communicate with one or more of the other units over a transmission medium. For example, the units may include a wired interface configured to receive or transmit signals over a wired transmission medium to one or more of the other units. Furthermore, the units may include a wireless interface, which may include a receiver, transmitter, or transceiver (such as an RF transceiver) configured to receive, transmit, or receive signals over a wireless transmission medium to one or more of the other units.

[0019]

[0037] In some aspects, the CU 110 can host one or more higher-layer control functions. Such control functions may include radio resource control (RRC), packet data convergence protocol (PDCP), service data adaptation protocol (SDAP), etc. Each control function may implement an interface configured to communicate signals with other control functions hosted by the CU 110. The CU 110 may be configured to handle user plane functionality (i.e., Central Unit-User Plane (CU-UP)), control plane functionality (i.e., Central Unit-Control Plane (CU-CP)), or a combination thereof. In some implementations, the CU 110 may be logically divided into one or more CU-UP units and one or more CU-CP units. The CU-UP units, when implemented in an O-RAN configuration, may bidirectionally communicate with the CU-CP units via an interface, such as an E1 interface. The CU 110 may be implemented to communicate with the DU 130 as needed for network control and signaling.

[0020]

[0038] The DU 130 may correspond to a logical unit including one or more base station functionalities for controlling the operation of one or more RUs 140. In some aspects, the DU 130 may host one or more of a radio link control (RLC) layer, a medium access control (MAC) layer, and one or more upper physical (PHY) layers (e.g., modules for forward error correction (FEC) encoding and decoding, scrambling, modulation, demodulation, etc.), at least in part according to a functional division such as that defined by 3GPP. In some aspects, the DU 130 may further host one or more lower PHY layers. Each layer (or module) may implement an interface configured to communicate signals with other layers (and modules) hosted by the DU 130 or to communicate signals with control functions hosted by the CU 110.

[0021]

[0039] The lower layer functionality may be implemented by one or more RUs 140. In some deployments, the RUs 140 controlled by the DUs 130 may correspond to logical nodes hosting RF processing functions, lower PHY layer functions (such as performing fast Fourier transforms (FFTs), inverse FFTs (iFFTs), digital beamforming, physical random access channel (PRACH) extraction and filtering, etc.), or both, based at least in part on a functional division, such as a lower layer functional division. In such an architecture, the RU(s) 140 may be implemented to handle over-the-air (OTA) communications with one or more UEs 104. In some implementations, real-time and non-real-time aspects of control plane and user plane communications with the RU(s) 140 may be controlled by the corresponding DUs 130. In some scenarios, this configuration may enable the DU(s) 130 and CU 110 to be implemented in a cloud-based RAN architecture, such as a vRAN architecture.

[0022]

[0040] The SMO framework 105 can be configured to support RAN deployment and provisioning of non-virtualized and virtualized network elements. For non-virtualized network elements, the SMO framework 105 can be configured to support deployment of dedicated physical resources for RAN coverage requirements, which can be managed via an operation and maintenance interface (e.g., an O1 interface). For virtualized network elements, the SMO framework 105 can be configured to interact with a cloud computing platform (e.g., an open cloud (O-cloud) 190) to perform lifecycle management of the network elements (e.g., to instantiate virtualized network elements) via a cloud computing platform interface (e.g., an O2 interface). Such virtualized network elements can include, but are not limited to, the CU 110, the DU 130, the RU 140, and the quasi-RT RIC 125. In some implementations, the SMO framework 105 can communicate with hardware aspects of a 4G RAN, such as an open eNB (O-eNB) 111, via the O1 interface. Additionally, in some implementations, the SMO framework 105 can communicate directly with one or more RUs 140 via an O1 interface. The SMO framework 105 can also include a non-RT RIC 115 configured to support the functionality of the SMO framework 105.

[0023]

[0041] The non-RT RIC 115 can be configured to include logic functions that enable non-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources, artificial intelligence (AI) / machine learning (ML) (AI / ML) workflows including model training and updates, or policy-based guidance of applications / functions in the quasi-RT RIC 125. The non-RT RIC 115 can be coupled to or communicate with the quasi-RT RIC 125 (e.g., via an A1 interface). The quasi-RT RIC 125 can be configured to include logic functions that enable near-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources through data collection and action via interfaces (e.g., via an E2 interface) that connect one or more CUs 110, one or more DUs 130, or both, and the O-eNB to the quasi-RT RIC 125.

[0024]

[0042] In some implementations, the non-RT RIC 115 can receive parameters or external enrichment information from an external server to generate AI / ML models to be deployed in the quasi-RT RIC 125. Such information can be utilized by the quasi-RT RIC 125 and can be received at the SMO framework 105 or the non-RT RIC 115 from non-network data sources or from network functions. In some embodiments, the non-RT RIC 115 or the quasi-RT RIC 125 can be configured to adjust RAN behavior or performance. For example, the non-RT RIC 115 can employ AI / ML models to monitor long-term trends and patterns in performance and take corrective action through the SMO framework 105 (e.g., reconfiguration via O1) or through the creation of RAN management policies (e.g., A1 policies).

[0025]

[0043] At least one of the CU 110, the DU 130, and the RU 140 may be referred to as a base station 102. Thus, the base station 102 may include one or more of the CU 110, the DU 130, and the RU 140 (each component is shown with a dotted line to indicate that the component may or may not be included in the base station 102). The base station 102 provides an access point to the core network 120 for the UE 104. The base station 102 may include a macrocell (a high-power cellular base station) and / or a small cell (a low-power cellular base station). Small cells include femtocells, picocells, and microcells. A network including both small cells and macrocells may be known as a heterogeneous network. The heterogeneous network may also include Home Evolved Node Bs (eNBs) (HeNBs) that can serve restricted groups known as closed subscriber groups (CSGs). The communication link between the RU 140 and the UE 104 may include uplink (UL) (also referred to as reverse link) transmissions from the UE 104 to the RU 140 and / or downlink (DL) (also referred to as forward link) transmissions from the RU 140 to the UE 104. The communication link may use multiple-input and multiple-output (MIMO) antenna technology, including spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and / or transmit diversity. The communication link may be over one or multiple carriers. The base station 102 / UE 104 may use spectrum with a bandwidth of up to Y MHz (e.g., 5, 10, 15, 20, 100, 400 MHz, etc.) per carrier allocated in a carrier aggregation of up to Yx MHz (x component carriers) in total used for transmission in each direction, which may or may not be adjacent to one another.The carrier allocation may be asymmetric between DL and UL (e.g., more or fewer carriers may be allocated for DL ​​than for UL). The component carriers may include a primary component carrier and one or more secondary component carriers. The primary component carrier may be referred to as a primary cell (PCell), and the secondary component carrier may be referred to as a secondary cell (SCell).

[0026]

[0044] Particular UEs 104 can communicate with each other using device-to-device (D2D) communication links 158. The D2D communication links 158 can use DL / UL wireless wide area network (WWAN) spectrum. The D2D communication links 158 can use one or more sidelink channels, such as a physical sidelink broadcast channel (PSBCH), a physical sidelink discovery channel (PSDCH), a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH), and a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH). D2D communication can be through various wireless D2D communication systems, such as Bluetooth, Wi-Fi based on the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standard, LTE, or NR.

[0027]

[0045] The wireless communication system may further include a Wi-Fi AP 150 that communicates with UEs 104 (also referred to as Wi-Fi stations (STAs)) via communication links 154, such as in the 5 GHz unlicensed frequency spectrum. When communicating in the unlicensed frequency spectrum, the UEs 104 / AP 150 may perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) prior to communication to determine whether a channel is available.

[0028]

[0046] The electromagnetic spectrum is often subdivided into various classes, bands, channels, etc. based on frequency / wavelength. In 5G NR, two initial operating bands have been identified as frequency range designations FR1 (410 MHz to 7.125 GHz) and FR2 (24.25 GHz to 52.6 GHz). Although a portion of FR1 is higher than 6 GHz, FR1 is often referred to (interchangeably) as the “sub-6 GHz” band in various documents and papers. Similar nomenclature issues may arise with respect to FR2, which is often referred to (interchangeably) as the “millimeter wave” band in documents and papers, even though FR2 is different from the extremely high frequency (EHF) band (30 GHz to 300 GHz) identified as the “millimeter wave” band by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU).

[0029]

[0047] Frequencies between FR1 and FR2 are often referred to as mid-band frequencies. Recent 5G NR studies have identified operating bands for these mid-band frequencies as the frequency range designation FR3 (7.125 GHz to 24.25 GHz). Frequency bands within FR3 may inherit the characteristics of FR1 and / or FR2, thus effectively extending the features of FR1 and / or FR2 to the mid-band frequencies. Furthermore, higher frequency bands are currently being considered to extend 5G NR operation beyond 52.6 GHz. For example, three higher operating bands have been identified as the frequency range designations FR2-2 (52.6 GHz to 71 GHz), FR4 (71 GHz to 114.25 GHz), and FR5 (114.25 GHz to 300 GHz). Each of these higher frequency bands is within the EHF band.

[0030]

[0048] With the above aspects in mind, unless otherwise specified, terms such as "sub-6 GHz," when used herein, may broadly refer to frequencies that may be below 6 GHz, frequencies that may be in the FR1 range, or frequencies that may include mid-band frequencies. Furthermore, unless otherwise specified, terms such as "millimeter wave," when used herein, may broadly refer to frequencies that may include mid-band frequencies, frequencies that may be in the FR2, FR4, FR2-2, and / or FR5 ranges, or frequencies that may be in the EHF band.

[0031]

[0049] The base station 102 and the UE 104 may each include multiple antennas, such as antenna elements, antenna panels, and / or antenna arrays, to facilitate beamforming. The base station 102 may transmit a beamformed signal 182 to the UE 104 in one or more transmit directions. The UE 104 may receive the beamformed signal from the base station 102 in one or more receive directions. The UE 104 may also transmit a beamformed signal 184 to the base station 102 in one or more transmit directions. The base station 102 may receive the beamformed signal from the UE 104 in one or more receive directions. The base station 102 / UE 104 may perform beam training to determine the best receive and transmit directions for each of the base station 102 / UE 104. The transmit and receive directions for the base station 102 may or may not be the same. The transmit and receive directions for the UE 104 may or may not be the same.

[0032]

[0050] The base station 102 may include and / or may be referred to as a gNB, Node B, eNB, access point, base transceiver station, radio base station, radio transceiver, transceiver function, basic service set (BSS), extended service set (ESS), transmit / receive point (TRP), network node, network entity, network equipment, or some other suitable terminology. The base station 102 may be implemented as an integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node, a relay node, a sidelink node, an aggregated (monolithic) base station having a baseband unit (BBU) (including a CU and a DU) and an RU, or as a disaggregated base station including one or more of a CU, a DU, and / or an RU. A set of base stations, which may include disaggregated base stations and / or aggregated base stations, may be referred to as a next generation (NG) RAN (NG-RAN).

[0033]

[0051] The core network 120 may include an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) 161, a Session Management Function (SMF) 162, a User Plane Function (UPF) 163, a Unified Data Management (UDM) 164, one or more location servers 168, and other functional entities. The AMF 161 is a control node that handles signaling between the UE 104 and the core network 120. The AMF 161 supports registration management, connection management, mobility management, and other functions. The SMF 162 supports session management and other functions. The UPF 163 supports packet routing, packet forwarding, and other functions. The UDM 164 supports authentication and key agreement (AKA) credential generation, user identity handling, access authorization, and subscription management. The one or more location servers 168 are shown as including a Gateway Mobile Location Center (GMLC) 165 and a Location Management Function (LMF) 166. However, in general, the one or more location servers 168 may include one or more location / positioning servers, which may include one or more of the GMLC 165, LMF 166, a position determination entity (PDE), a serving mobile location center (SMLC), a mobile positioning center (MPC), etc. The GMLC 165 and LMF 166 support UE location services.The GMLC 165 provides an interface for clients / applications (e.g., emergency services) to access UE positioning information. The LMF 166 receives measurement and assistance information from the NG-RAN and the UE 104 via the AMF 161 to calculate the position of the UE 104. The NG-RAN can utilize one or more positioning methods to determine the position of the UE 104. Positioning the UE 104 can involve signal measurements, position estimation, and optional velocity calculations based on these measurements. Signal measurements can be made by the UE 104 and / or the serving base station 102. The signals measured may include one or more of a satellite positioning system (SPS) 170 (e.g., one or more of a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), a global position system (GPS), a non-terrestrial network (NTN), or other satellite position / location system), an LTE signal, a wireless local area network (WLAN) signal, a Bluetooth signal, a terrestrial beacon system (TBS), sensor-based information (e.g., barometric pressure sensor, motion sensor), an NR enhanced cell ID (NR E-CID) method, an NR signal (e.g., multi-round trip time (multi-RTT), DL angle-of-departure (DL-AoD), DL time difference of arrival (DL-TDOA), UL time difference of arrival (UL-TDOA), and the like. The positioning may be based on one or more of UL-TDOA (ult-delay time-of-arrival), UL-AoA (ult-directional average distance), and UL angle-of-arrival (UL-AoA) positioning, and / or other systems / signals / sensors.

[0034]

[0052] Examples of UEs 104 include a cellular phone, a smartphone, a session initiation protocol (SIP) phone, a laptop, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a satellite radio, a global positioning system, a multimedia device, a video device, a digital audio player (e.g., an MP3 player), a camera, a game console, a tablet, a smart device, a wearable device, a vehicle, an electric meter, a gas pump, a large or small cooking appliance, a healthcare device, an implant, a sensor / actuator, a display, or any other similarly functional device. Some of the UEs 104 may be referred to as IoT devices (e.g., a parking meter, a gas pump, a toaster, a vehicle, a heart monitor, etc.). The UEs 104 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 client, a client, or some other suitable terminology. In some scenarios, the term UE may also apply to one or more companion devices, such as in a device constellation configuration, where one or more of these devices may collectively access the network and / or may individually access the network.

[0035]

[0053] The RIS 106 may be a metasurface configured to receive an incident wave from the base station 102 or from an RU 140 of the base station 102. The RIS 106 may be configured to reflect the incident wave in a desired direction, sense one or more attributes of the incident wave, or reflect a portion of the incident wave and sense one or more attributes of the portion of the incident wave. The one or more attributes may include, for example, the angle of arrival (AoA), phase, or amplitude of the incident wave or portion of the incident wave.

[0036]

[0054] Referring again to FIG. 1 , in certain aspects, the RIS 106 may have a reflection and sensing application component 198 configured to transmit a capability report associated with the RIS. The capability report may be associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The reflection and sensing application component 198 may be configured to receive a first configuration of resources associated with at least one RS and a second configuration of at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The at least one mode may be associated with the at least one RS. The at least one mode may include a hybrid sensing and reflection mode. In certain aspects, the base station 102 may have a reflection and sensing configuration component 199 configured to obtain a capability report associated with the RIS. The capability report may be associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The reflection and sensing configuration component 199 may be configured to transmit a first configuration of resources associated with the at least one RS and a second configuration of at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The at least one mode may be associated with the at least one RS. The at least one mode may include a hybrid sensing and reflection mode. While the following description may focus on RIS devices, the concepts described herein may be applicable to any device capable of sensing a portion of an incident wave and reflecting a portion of an incident wave. Although the following description may focus on 5G NR, the concepts described herein may also be applicable to other similar fields, such as LTE, LTE-A, CDMA, GSM, and other wireless technologies capable of transmitting wireless signals that can be reflected and / or sensed by a RIS device or a RIS-like device.

[0037]

[0055] FIG. 2A is a diagram 200 illustrating an example of a first subframe in a 5G NR frame structure. FIG. 2B is a diagram 230 illustrating an example of a DL channel in a 5G NR subframe. FIG. 2C is a diagram 250 illustrating an example of a second subframe in a 5G NR frame structure. FIG. 2D is a diagram 280 illustrating an example of a UL channel in a 5G NR subframe. The 5G NR frame structure can be frequency division duplexed (FDD), where for a particular set of subcarriers (carrier system bandwidth), subframes within that set of subcarriers are dedicated to either DL or UL, or time division duplexed (TDD), where for a particular set of subcarriers (carrier system bandwidth), subframes within that set of subcarriers are dedicated to both DL and UL. In the examples provided by FIGS. 2A and 2C, the 5G NR frame structure is assumed to be TDD, with subframe 4 configured with (mostly DL) slot format 28, where D is DL, U is UL, and F is flexible in terms of DL / UL usage, and subframe 3 configured with (all UL) slot format 1. Subframes 3 and 4 are shown with slot formats 1 and 28, respectively, although any particular subframe can be configured with any of the various available slot formats 0 through 61. Slot formats 0 and 1 are all DL and all UL, respectively. The other slot formats 2 through 61 contain a mix of DL symbols, UL symbols, and flexible symbols. The UE is configured with the slot format through a received slot format indicator (SFI) (either dynamically through DL control information (DCI) or semi-statically / statically through radio resource control (RRC) signaling). Please note that the following description also applies to the 5G NR frame structure, which is TDD.

[0038]

[0056] 2A-2D illustrate one frame structure, and aspects of the present disclosure may be applicable to other wireless communication technologies that may have different frame structures and / or different channels. A frame (10 ms) can be divided into 10 equally sized subframes (1 ms). Each subframe may include one or more time slots. A subframe may also include a minislot, which may include 7, 4, or 2 symbols. Each slot may include 14 or 12 symbols depending on whether the cyclic prefix (CP) is normal or extended. With a normal CP, each slot may include 14 symbols, and with an extended CP, each slot may include 12 symbols. Symbols on the DL may be CP orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols. Symbols on the UL can be CP-OFDM symbols (for high-throughput scenarios) or discrete Fourier transform (DFT) spread OFDM (DFT-s-OFDM) symbols (also called single-carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) symbols) (for power-limited scenarios, i.e., when limited to single-stream transmission). The number of slots in a subframe is based on the CP and numerology. This numerology defines the subcarrier spacing (SCS), which effectively defines the symbol length / duration equal to 1 / SCS.

[0039] [Table 1]

[0040]

[0057] For the normal CP (14 symbols / slot), the different numerologies μ0-μ4 allow 1, 2, 4, 8, and 16 slots per subframe, respectively. For the extended CP, numerology 2 allows 4 slots per subframe. Therefore, for the normal CP and numerology μ, 14 symbols / slot and 2 μ There are slots / subframes. The subcarrier spacing is 2 μ *15 kHz, where μ is a numerology from 0 to 4. Therefore, numerology μ=0 has a subcarrier spacing of 15 kHz, and numerology μ=4 has a subcarrier spacing of 240 kHz. The symbol length / duration is inversely proportional to the subcarrier spacing. Figures 2A-2D provide an example of a normal CP with 14 symbols per slot and a numerology μ=2 with 4 slots per subframe. The slot duration is 0.25 ms, the subcarrier spacing is 60 kHz, and the symbol duration is approximately 16.67 μs. Within a set of frames, there may be one or more different bandwidth parts (BWPs) (see Figure 2B), which are frequency-division multiplexed. Each BWP may have a specific numerology and CP (normal or extended).

[0041]

[0058] A resource grid can be used to represent the frame structure. Each time slot contains resource blocks (RBs) (also called physical RBs (PRBs)), spanning 12 consecutive subcarriers. The resource grid is divided into multiple resource elements (REs). The number of bits carried by each RE depends on the modulation scheme.

[0042]

[0059] As shown in Figure 2A, some of the REs carry reference (pilot) signals (RS) for the UE. The RSs may include demodulation RSs (DM-RSs) (shown as R for one particular configuration, but other DM-RS configurations are possible) and channel state information reference signals (CSI-RSs) for channel estimation at the UE. The RSs may also include beam measurement RSs (BRSs), beam refinement RSs (BRRSs), and phase tracking RSs (PT-RSs).

[0043]

[0060] 2B illustrates an example of various DL channels within a subframe of a frame. The physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) carries DCI within one or more control channel elements (CCEs) (e.g., 1, 2, 4, 8, or 16 CCEs), where each CCE includes six RE groups (REGs), and each REG includes 12 consecutive REs within an OFDM symbol of an RB. The PDCCHs within one BWP may be referred to as a control resource set (CORESET). During PDCCH monitoring opportunities on the CORESET, a UE is configured to monitor PDCCH candidates within a PDCCH search space (e.g., a common search space, a UE-specific search space), where the PDCCH candidates have different DCI formats and aggregation levels. Additional BWPs may be deployed at higher and / or lower frequencies across the channel bandwidth. A primary synchronization signal (PSS) may be present in symbol 2 of a particular subframe of a frame. The PSS is used by the UE 104 to determine the subframe / symbol timing and the physical layer identity. A secondary synchronization signal (SSS) may be present in symbol 4 of a particular subframe of a frame. The SSS is used by the UE to determine the physical layer cell identity group number and the timing of the radio frame. Based on the physical layer identity and the physical layer cell identity group number, the UE can determine the physical cell identifier (PCI). Based on the PCI, the UE can determine the location of the DM-RS.The physical broadcast channel (PBCH), which carries the master information block (MIB), may be logically grouped with the PSS and SSS to form a synchronization signal (SS) / PBCH block (also referred to as an SS block (SSB)). The MIB provides the number of RBs in the system bandwidth and the system frame number (SFN). The physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) carries user data, broadcast system information not transmitted over the PBCH, such as system information blocks (SIBs), and paging messages.

[0044]

[0061] As shown in FIG. 2C , some of the REs carry DM-RS (denoted as R for one particular configuration, although other DM-RS configurations are possible) for channel estimation at the base station. The UE can transmit DM-RS for the physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) and DM-RS for the physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH). The PUSCH DM-RS can be transmitted within the first one or two symbols of the PUSCH. The PUCCH DM-RS can be transmitted in different configurations depending on whether a short or long PUCCH is transmitted and the specific PUCCH format used. The UE can transmit sounding reference signals (SRS). The SRS can be transmitted within the last symbol of a subframe. The SRS can have a comb structure, and the UE can transmit the SRS in one of the combs. The SRS can be used by the base station for channel quality estimation to enable frequency-dependent scheduling on the UL.

[0045]

[0062] 2D shows one example of various UL channels within a subframe of a frame. The PUCCH, in one configuration, can be arranged as shown. The PUCCH carries uplink control information (UCI), such as scheduling requests, channel quality indicators (CQIs), precoding matrix indicators (PMIs), rank indicators (RIs), and hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) acknowledgment (ACK) (i.e., one or more HARQ ACK bits indicating one or more ACKs and / or negative ACKs (NACKs)). The PUSCH carries data and can also be used to carry buffer status reports (BSRs), power headroom reports (PHRs), and / or UCIs.

[0046]

[0063] 3 is a block diagram of a base station 310 communicating with a UE 350 in an access network. In the DL, Internet protocol (IP) packets can be provided to a controller / processor 375. The controller / processor 375 implements Layer 3 and Layer 2 functionality. Layer 3 includes a Radio Resource Control (RRC) layer, and Layer 2 includes a Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP) layer, a Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer, a Radio Link Control (RLC) layer, and a Medium Access Control (MAC) layer. The controller / processor 375 is responsible for RRC layer functionality associated with broadcasting system information (e.g., MIBs, SIBs), RRC connection control (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), inter-radio access technology (RAT) mobility, and measurement configuration for UE measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with header compression / decompression, security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification), and handover support functions; RLC layer functionality associated with forwarding higher layer packet data units (PDUs), error correction via ARQ, concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC service data units (SDUs), re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing MAC SDUs onto transport blocks (TBs), and MAC SDUs from TBs. It provides MAC layer functionality associated with demultiplexing of SDUs, scheduling information reporting, error correction through HARQ, priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0047]

[0064] The transmit (Tx) processor 316 and receive (Rx) processor 370 implement Layer 1 functionality associated with various signal processing functions. Layer 1, including the physical (PHY) layer, may include error detection on transport channels, forward error correction (FEC) encoding / decoding of transport channels, interleaving, rate matching, mapping onto physical channels, modulation / demodulation of physical channels, and MIMO antenna processing. The Tx processor 316 handles mapping to signal constellations based on various modulation schemes (e.g., binary phase-shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase-shift keying (QPSK), M-phase-shift keying (M-PSK), and M-quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM)). The coded and modulated symbols can then be split into parallel streams. Each stream can then be mapped to an OFDM subcarrier, multiplexed with a reference signal (e.g., a pilot) in the time and / or frequency domain, and then combined together using an Inverse Fast Fourier Transform (IFFT) to generate a physical channel carrying a time-domain OFDM symbol stream. This OFDM stream is spatially precoded to generate multiple spatial streams. Channel estimates from a channel estimator 374 can be used to determine coding and modulation schemes and for spatial processing. The channel estimates can be derived from a reference signal and / or channel condition feedback transmitted by the UE 350. Each spatial stream can then be provided to a different antenna 320 via a separate transmitter 318Tx. Each transmitter 318Tx can modulate a radio frequency (RF) carrier with the respective spatial stream for transmission.

[0048]

[0065] At the UE 350, each receiver 354Rx receives signals through its respective antenna 352. Each receiver 354Rx recovers information modulated onto an RF carrier and provides the information to a receive (Rx) processor 356. The Tx processor 368 and the Rx processor 356 implement Layer 1 functionality associated with various signal processing functions. The RX processor 356 can perform spatial processing on the information to recover any spatial streams destined for the UE 350. If multiple spatial streams are destined for the UE 350, the RX processor 356 can combine them into a single OFDM symbol stream. The Rx processor 356 then converts the OFDM symbol stream from the time domain to the frequency domain using a fast Fourier transform (FFT). This frequency-domain signal includes a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. The symbols on each subcarrier, as well as the reference signal, are recovered and demodulated by determining the most likely signal constellation point transmitted by the base station 310. These soft decisions may be based on channel estimates calculated by a channel estimator 358. The soft decisions are then decoded and deinterleaved to recover the data and control signals originally transmitted by the base station 310 on the physical channel. The data and control signals are then provided to a controller / processor 359, which implements Layer 3 and Layer 2 functionality.

[0049]

[0066] The controller / processor 359 can be associated with a memory 360 that stores program codes and data. The memory 360 may be referred to as a computer-readable medium. In the UL, the controller / processor 359 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets. The controller / processor 359 is also responsible for error detection using an ACK and / or NACK protocol to support HARQ operations.

[0050]

[0067] Similar to the functionality described in connection with DL transmissions by base station 310, controller / processor 359 provides RRC layer functions associated with obtaining system information (e.g., MIBs, SIBs), RRC connection, and measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with header compression / decompression and security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functionality associated with forwarding upper layer PDUs, error correction via ARQ, concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC SDUs, resegmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functionality associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing MAC SDUs onto TBs, demultiplexing MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction via HARQ, priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0051]

[0068] Channel estimates derived by the channel estimator 358 from a reference signal or feedback transmitted by the base station 310 can be used by the Tx processor 368 to select an appropriate coding and modulation scheme and to facilitate spatial processing. The spatial streams generated by the Tx processor 368 can be provided to different antennas 352 via separate transmitters 354Tx. Each transmitter 354Tx can modulate an RF carrier with a respective spatial stream for transmission.

[0052]

[0069] The UL transmissions are processed at the base station 310 in a manner similar to that described with respect to the receiver functions at the UE 350. Each receiver 318Rx receives the signal through a respective antenna 320. Each receiver 318Rx recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to the Rx processor 370.

[0053]

[0070] The controller / processor 375 can be associated with a memory 376 that stores program codes and data. The memory 376 may also be referred to as a computer-readable medium. In the UL, the controller / processor 375 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets. The controller / processor 375 is also responsible for error detection using an ACK and / or NACK protocol to support HARQ operations.

[0054]

[0071] At least one of the Tx processor 316, the Rx processor 370, and the controller / processor 375 may be configured to perform aspects associated with the reflecting and sensing configuration component 199 of FIG.

[0055]

[0072] 4 is a diagram 400 illustrating one embodiment of a RIS 406 configured to receive a signal 403 from a network node 402 and reflect a reflected signal 405 toward a UE 404. One or more of the meta-surface meta-elements 407 of the RIS 406 may have a sensing mode, a reflecting mode, or a hybrid sensing and reflecting mode.

[0056]

[0073] When the meta-element 407 is switched into a reflective mode, the meta-element 407 can be configured to reflect the signal 403 in a desired direction. The configuration of one or more reflective elements, such as the meta-element 407, can be used to aim the signal 403 in a desired direction. For example, by varying one or more reflection coefficients of the meta-element 407, the direction in which the reflected signal 405 is focused can be changed. For example, by varying a first coefficient, the amplitude of the reflected signal 405 from the meta-element 407 can be changed, and by varying a second coefficient, the phase of the reflected signal 405 from the meta-element 407 can be shifted. The configuration of the meta-element 407 in the RIS 406 can depend on knowledge of the direction of the incident wave of the signal 403. In other words, the accuracy of where the meta-element 407 focuses or aims the reflected signal 405 can be improved using information about the direction from which the signal 403 is approaching the meta-element 407 or the AoA of the signal 403 relative to the meta-element 407. However, if meta-element 407 is configured to have a reflection mode and not a sensing mode, it may be difficult for the components of RIS 406 to estimate the direction of the incident wave and therefore the reflection coefficient or coefficients of meta-element 407.

[0057]

[0074] When the meta-element 407 is switched into a sensing mode, the meta-element 407 can be configured to sense one or more attributes of the signal 403. The meta-element can sense the signal 403 at a waveguide coupled to each meta-atom of the meta-element 407. Connecting each waveguide to an RF chain can enable the RIS 406 to locally process a portion of the received signal in the digital domain. By evaluating one or more phases of the waveguide signal associated with one or more meta-elements (e.g., meta-element groups), the RIS 406 can calculate the AoA of the incoming signal. In one aspect, when multiple waveguides are arranged in a linear fashion, the AoAθ can be calculated as:

[0058]

number

[0059] where φ may be the phase difference between the waveguides, d may be the distance between the waveguides, and λ may be the wavelength of the received signal. Based on the calculated AoA, the RIS 406 may determine one or more reflection coefficients of each meta-element 407 for DL ​​transmission (e.g., a signal from the network node 402 reflected from the RIS 406 to the UE 404) or UL transmission (e.g., a signal from the UE 404 reflected from the RIS 406 to the network node 402).

[0060]

[0075] When one or more meta-elements 407 of the RIS 406 are switched to a reflection mode, it may be difficult for the RIS 406 to determine an appropriate reflection coefficient for each meta-element 407 to focus the direction of the reflected signal 405 toward the antenna of the UE 404. When one or more meta-elements 407 of the RIS 406 are switched to a sensing mode, the RIS 406 may be able to determine one or more reflection coefficients for the signal 403 to focus the direction of the reflected signal 405, but the meta-elements 407 in the sensing mode cannot reflect the signal 403. One or more meta-elements 407 of the RIS 406 can be configured to have both reflection and sensing capabilities such that the metasurface of the RIS 406 can controllably reflect a portion of the incident signal while simultaneously sensing another portion of the incident signal. In other words, one or more meta-elements 407 may have a hybrid sensing and reflection mode. In some aspects, one or more meta-elements 407 can be switched into a sensing mode while one or more other meta-elements can be switched into a reflection mode. Such sensing capability can enable the RIS 406 to perform both channel estimation and localization. Based on the results of processing a received signal, such as signal 403, using the sensing mode, the RIS 406 can determine one or more reflection coefficients for each meta-element 407 to optimize the direction of the reflected signal 405 so as to focus the reflected signal 405 toward the UE 404 or the antenna of the UE 404.

[0061]

[0076] The network node 402 may include a reflection and sensing configuration component 199. The reflection and sensing configuration component 199 may be configured to obtain a capability report associated with a RIS. The capability report may be associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The reflection and sensing configuration component 199 may be configured to transmit a first configuration of resources associated with at least one RS and a second configuration of at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The at least one mode may be associated with the at least one RS. The at least one mode may include a hybrid sensing and reflection mode.

[0062]

[0077] The RIS 406 may include a reflection and sensing application component 198. The reflection and sensing application component 198 may be configured to transmit a capability report associated with the RIS. The capability report may be associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The reflection and sensing application component 198 may be configured to receive a first configuration of resources associated with at least one RS and a second configuration of at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The at least one mode may be associated with the at least one RS. The at least one mode may include a hybrid sensing and reflection mode.

[0063]

[0078] As discussed above, the reflection and sensing application component 198 is configured to transmit a capability report associated with the RIS. The capability report can be associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The reflection and sensing application component 198 can be configured to receive a first configuration of resources associated with at least one RS and a second configuration of at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The at least one mode can be associated with at least one RS. The at least one mode can include a hybrid sensing and reflection mode. The reflection and sensing application component 198 can reside within a processor of the RIS 406. The reflection and sensing application component 198 can be one or more hardware components specifically configured to perform the described processes / algorithms, implemented by one or more processors configured to execute the described processes / algorithms, stored in a computer-readable medium for implementation by one or more processors, or some combination thereof. In one configuration, the RIS 406 includes means for transmitting a capability report associated with the RIS. The RIS 406 may include means for receiving a first configuration of resources associated with the at least one RS and a second configuration of at least one mode associated with reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The RIS 406 may include means for activating the at least one mode based on the second configuration of the at least one mode. The RIS 406 may include means for activating the at least one mode based on the second configuration of the at least one mode by activating at least one of a sensing mode or a reflection mode. The RIS 406 may include means for activating the at least one mode based on the second configuration of the at least one mode by activating a sensing mode associated with a first time period.The RIS 406 may include means for activating the at least one mode based on the second configuration of the at least one mode by activating a hybrid sensing and reflective mode associated with a second time period. The RIS 406 may include means for activating the at least one mode based on the second configuration of the at least one mode by activating a reflective mode during a third time period between the first time period and the second time period. The RIS 406 may include means for activating the at least one mode based on the second configuration of the at least one mode by activating a second sensing mode associated with a fourth time period. The RIS 406 may include means for activating the at least one mode based on the second configuration of the at least one mode by activating a second hybrid sensing and reflective mode associated with a fifth time period. The RIS 406 may include means for activating the at least one mode based on the second configuration of the at least one mode by activating a sensing mode during the overlapping time period in response to the first time period overlapping with the second time period during the overlapping time period. The RIS 406 may include means for activating the at least one mode based on a second configuration of the at least one mode by periodically activating the at least one mode. The RIS 406 may include means for applying a first ratio of sense power to reflected power to the hybrid sense and reflect mode in response to SNR performance of the at least one RS being equal to or greater than an SNR threshold. The RIS 406 may include means for applying a second ratio of sense power to reflected power to the hybrid sense and reflect mode in response to SNR performance of the at least one RS being equal to or less than an SNR threshold. The RIS 406 may include means for estimating an AoA of the at least one RS based on the first configuration of resources during at least one of the sense mode or the hybrid sense and reflect mode of the at least one mode. The RIS 406 may include means for adjusting a meta-element reflection coefficient based on the AoA estimate.The RIS 406 may include means for reflecting at least one RS during at least one of the hybrid sensing and reflecting mode or the reflecting mode, which may be the reflecting and sensing application components 198 of the RIS 406 configured to perform the functions recited by the means.

[0064]

[0079] 5 is a diagram 500 illustrating one embodiment of a system model of a RIS having a metasurface 510 configured to sense an incident signal 502 and reflect the incident signal 502 to generate a reflected signal 504. The metasurface 510 can have multiple metaelements, numbered metaelement 1 520 through metaelement N 540. The metasurface 510 can be configured to operate in at least one mode associated with the reflective and sensing capabilities of the RIS, such as a reflective mode, a sensing mode, or a hybrid sensing and reflective mode.

[0065]

[0080] A portion of the incident signal 502 can be received by meta-element 1 520, which receives incident signal 521 at element 1 via receive antenna 522. If meta-element 1 520 operates in a hybrid sense-and-reflect mode, the hybrid RIS can split the incoming signal power so that a portion of the power is reflected and a portion of the power is received. Power divider 523 can split the received incident signal 521 at element 1 so that ρ1 of the power is directed toward meter 524 for reflection and 1-ρ1 of the power is directed toward meters 525-526 for sensing, where ρ1≦1. If ρ1=0, meta-element 1 520 can be configured to operate in sense mode. If ρ1=1, meta-element 1 520 can be configured to operate in reflect mode. If 0<ρ1<1, meta-element 1 520 can be configured to operate in hybrid sense-and-reflect mode.

[0066]

[0081] A portion of incident signal 521 at element 1 that is directed towards meter 524 may be reflected back through antenna 531 as reflected signal 532 at element 1. One or more reflection coefficients of antenna 531 may be used to focus reflected signal 532 at element 1 towards a target device, such as network node 402 of FIG. 4 or UE 404 of FIG. 4.

[0067]

[0082] The portion of the incident signal 521 at element 1 directed toward meter 525 can be accumulated by accumulator 527 for feeding into RF chain 528. Accumulator 527 can also receive the portion of the incident signal 541 at element N directed toward meter 545. The received signal accumulated by accumulator 527 can be used to boost the sense signal power by connecting multiple meta-elements to a common waveguide in RF chain 528 to generate sense signal 529 in RF chain 1. The RF chain can have an analog-to-digital converter for converting sense signal 529 in RF chain 1 to a digital signal. Multiple channel outputs can be propagated to multiple ports in the microstrip to feed digital controller 580, which can sense one or more attributes of the accumulated signal, such as the phase difference between the waveguides or the wavelength, for the received signal. Digital controller 580 can provide feedback to power divider 523 to control the power division. The digital controller 580 may provide feedback to one or more of the meters 524, 525, and 526 to control the phase shift of the received signal.

[0068]

[0083] A portion of the incident signal 502 can be received by meta-element N 540, which receives the incident signal at element N 541 via receive antenna 542. If meta-element N 540 operates in a hybrid sense and reflect mode, the hybrid RIS can split the incoming signal power so that some of the power is reflected and some of the power is received. Power divider 543 divides ρ of the power N is reflected and directed towards the meter 544, and 1-ρ N can be split so that the incident signal 541 at the receiving element N is directed towards the meters 545-546 for sensing, in which case ρ N ≦1. N If ρ = 0, then meta-element N 540 can be configured to operate in sensing mode. N If ρ = 1, then meta-element N 540 can be configured to operate in a reflective mode. N If <1, then meta-element N 540 can be configured to operate in a hybrid sensing and reflecting mode.

[0069]

[0084] A portion of incident signal 541 at element N that is directed towards meter 544 may be reflected back through antenna 551 as reflected signal 552 at element N. One or more reflection coefficients of antenna 551 may be used to focus reflected signal 552 at element N towards a target device, such as network node 402 of FIG. 4 or UE 404 of FIG. 4.

[0070]

[0085] The portion of the incident signal 541 at element N directed toward meter 545 can be accumulated by accumulator 547 to feed RF chain 548. Accumulator 547 can also receive the portion of the incident signal 521 at element 1 directed toward meter 525. The received signal accumulated by accumulator 547 can be used to boost the sense signal power by connecting multiple meta-elements to a common waveguide in RF chain 548 to generate sense signal 549 in RF chain 1. The RF chain can have an analog-to-digital converter to convert sense signal 549 in RF chain 1 to a digital signal. Multiple channel outputs can be propagated to multiple ports in the microstrip to feed digital controller 580, which can sense one or more attributes of the accumulated signal, such as the phase difference between the waveguides or the wavelength, relative to the received signal. Digital controller 580 can provide feedback to power divider 543 to control the power division. Digital controller 580 can provide feedback to one or more of meters 544, 545, and 546 to control the phase shift of the received signal. Digital controller 580 can be configured to perform aspects associated with reflectance and sensing application component 198 of FIG. 1, for example, by activating a RIS mode.

[0071]

[0086] Each of meta-elements 1 520-N 540 can be configured to operate individually and independently in one of three modes, or the metasurfaces 510 of meta-elements 1-N 540 can be configured to operate together as a meta-element group in one of three modes.

[0072]

[0087] The sensing mode can be used to sense all of the received power (e.g., ρ 1-N=0). Using the sensing mode, the metasurface 510 can be used to estimate the AoA of the received incident signal 502. Using the sensing mode, the direction of a transmitting device, such as the network node 402 or the UE 404 of FIG. 4, can be first detected. Based on the AoA direction, the reflection and sensing adaptation component 198 can determine the appropriate reflection coefficient (e.g., phase value) for each of the meta-elements 1 520 through N 540 of the metasurface 510. Therefore, the reflection and sensing adaptation component 198 can maximize the power received by the network node in the UL or the power received by the UE in the DL. The sensing mode can be used when the received signal strength from a transmitting device, such as a new UE, is unknown, allowing all of the received power of the incident signal 521 at element 1 to be used in sensing.

[0073]

[0088] The reflection mode can be used to reflect all of the received power (e.g., ρ 1-N =1). By using the reflection mode, after sensing is performed by the RIS, the metasurface 510 can be used for data transmission between two wireless devices, such as a network node and a UE.

[0074]

[0089] The hybrid sense and reflect mode can allocate a portion of the received power to sensing and a portion of the received power to reflecting, respectively. The hybrid sense and reflect mode can be used to track the movement of a UE. The hybrid sense and reflect mode can use a portion of the received power for sensing and a portion of the received power for reflecting (e.g., 0<ρ 1-N<1). Hybrid sense and reflect mode can be used when the received signal strength from a transmitting device such as a UE is known. The RIS can successfully sense the attributes of the incident signal 521 at element 1 in sensing with less power dedicated to sensing, allowing the unused portion of the power to be reflected to improve throughput and spectral efficiency. Protocols and signaling messages can be used by the reflect and sense application component 198 to determine which mode to switch to, the power distribution in the hybrid sense and reflect mode, and the reflection coefficients of meta-elements 1 520-N 540.

[0075]

[0090] FIG. 6 is a connection flow diagram 600 illustrating one embodiment of a RIS 604 configured to reflect, sense, or reflect and sense one or more reference signals (RSs) configured by a network node 602 with respect to a UE 606.

[0076]

[0091] The RIS 604 can transmit a capability report 608 to the network node 602. The network node 602 can receive the capability report 608 from the RIS 604. The capability report 608 can include an indication that the RIS 604 supports a sensing mode or an indication that the RIS 604 does not support a sensing mode. The capability report 608 can include an indication that the RIS 604 supports a hybrid sensing and reflecting mode or an indication that the RIS 604 does not support a hybrid sensing and reflecting mode. The capability report 608 can include an indication of the length of time domain to complete sensing when the RIS 604 is switched to the sensing mode or the hybrid sensing and reflecting mode. The capability report 608 can include an indication of the latency to complete sensing when the RIS 604 is switched to the sensing mode or the hybrid sensing and reflecting mode.

[0077]

[0092] At 610, the network node 602 can configure one or more RS resources for the RIS 604 to reflect or can also configure one or more RS resources for the UE 606 to transmit. At 610, the network node 602 can also configure one or more RIS modes for the RIS 604 to switch to over one or more time periods. In one aspect, the network node 602 can configure an UL reference signal resource (e.g., an SRS) with an associated attribute that indicates to the RIS 604 that it should switch to a mode such as a reflecting mode, a sensing mode, or a hybrid sensing and reflecting mode. In addition to configuring UL reference signal parameters for transmission (e.g., for transmission by the UE 606 to the network node 602), the network node 602 can also configure UL reference signal parameters for reception (e.g., for reception by the RIS 604 from the UE 606). The length of the time domain for the UL reference signal for the sensing mode or the hybrid sensing and reflecting mode can be based on the sensing capability of the RIS 604. In other words, the length of the time domain for the UL reference signal for the sensing mode or hybrid sensing and reflecting mode may be based on the capability report 608 from the RIS 604 received by the network node 602 .

[0078]

[0093] In one aspect, the network node 602 can configure a DL reference signal (e.g., CSI-RS) with an associated attribute that indicates to the RIS 604 that the RIS 604 should switch to a mode such as a reflective mode, a sensing mode, or a hybrid sensing and reflecting mode. In addition to configuring DL reference signal parameters for transmission (e.g., for transmission by the network node 602 to the UE 606), the network node 602 can also configure DL reference signal parameters for reception (e.g., for reception from the network node 602 by the RIS 604). The length of the time domain for the DL reference signal, for the sensing mode or the hybrid sensing and reflecting mode, can be based on the sensing capabilities of the RIS 604. In other words, the length of the time domain for the DL reference signal, for the sensing mode or the hybrid sensing and reflecting mode, can be based on a capability report 608 from the RIS 604 received by the network node 602.

[0079]

[0094] The one or more RS resource configurations 612 may include, for example, a DCI or a medium access control (MAC) control element (MAC-CE) that schedules an UL reference signal or a DL reference signal. The one or more RS resource configurations 612 may include an instruction to the RIS 604 to switch between modes, such as sensing mode, reflective mode, or hybrid transmit and reflective mode, over a period of time. The instruction may be in a field or a portion of a field of the DCI or MAC-CE. The network node 602 may be configured to schedule an UL reference signal or a DL reference signal during a period in which the network node 602 schedules the RIS 604 to set to reflective mode. The network node 602 may be configured to schedule an UL reference signal but not a DL reference signal during a period in which the network node 602 schedules the RIS 604 to set to sensing mode or hybrid sensing and reflective mode. The one or more RS resource configurations 612 may schedule a periodic pattern or a non-periodic trigger for mode switching for the RIS 604. In other words, one or more of the modes can be scheduled to repeat periodically or can be scheduled over a specific period of time. One or more RS resource configurations 612 can schedule resources for multiple UEs. The one or more RS resource configurations 612 can include transmission grants to the UEs 606. The one or more RS resource configurations 612 can include a resource identifier, for example, an SRS resource identifier. Such an identifier can be useful in a system with multiple UEs that transmit or receive data during overlapping periods of time.

[0080]

[0095] The one or more RS resource configurations 614 may be the same as the one or more RS resource configurations 612. In an aspect, the one or more RS resource configurations 612 and the one or more RS resource configurations 614 may include DCI or MAC-CE that schedules UL or DL ​​reference signals for the UE 606. The one or more RS resource configurations 614 may be different from the one or more RS resource configurations 612. In an aspect, the one or more RS resource configurations 614 may include DCI or MAC-CE that schedules UL or DL ​​reference signals for the UE 606, and the one or more RS resource configurations 612 may include a signal that includes one or more indicators of one or more attributes or parameters of the one or more RSs 622.

[0081]

[0096] The network node 602 may transmit one or more RS resource configurations 614 to the UE 606. The UE 606 may receive one or more RS resource configurations 614 from the network node 602. The UE 606 may use the one or more RS resource configurations 614 to transmit UL reference signals to the network node 602 via the RIS 604 or to receive DL reference signals from the network node 602 via the RIS 604.

[0082]

[0097] The network node 602 can transmit one or more RS resource configurations 612 to the RIS 604. The RIS 604 can receive the one or more RS resource configurations 612 from the network node 602. The RIS 604 can use the one or more RS resource configurations 612 to configure one or more parameters for reflection of one or more RSs 622 transmitted by the UE 606 to the RIS 604.

[0083]

[0098] At 616, the network node 602 can configure one or more RIS modes for the RIS 604. The network node 602 can transmit one or more RIS mode configurations 618 to the RIS 604. The RIS 604 can receive the one or more RIS mode configurations 618 from the network node 602. In one aspect, the one or more RIS mode configurations 618 can be the same as the one or more RS resource configurations 612. For example, the one or more RS resource configurations 612 and the one or more RIS mode configurations 618 can include DCI or MAC-CE that schedule one or more UL or DL ​​reference signals for the UE 606, and can also include an indicator for the RIS 604 to switch to a mode during the scheduled transmission, such as a sensing mode for a first UL transmission and a hybrid sensing and reflecting mode for a second UL transmission.

[0084]

[0099] At 620, the RIS 604 may activate a RIS mode. If the mode is a sensing mode, the RIS 604 may perform sensing but may not perform reflection of one or more RSs 622. If the mode is a reflection mode, the RIS 604 may perform reflection of one or more RSs 622 from the UE 606 to generate one or more reflected RSs 624 to the network node 602. If the mode is a hybrid sensing and reflection mode, the RIS 604 may perform sensing for one or more RSs 622 using a portion of the power of the one or more RSs 622 and may reflect one or more RSs 622 using a portion of the power of the one or more RSs 622 to generate one or more reflected RSs 624. In some aspects, the RIS 604 may periodically activate a mode, e.g., may activate the sensing mode or the reflection mode after a period of time over a number of cycles.

[0085]

[0100] In one aspect, while the RIS 604 is in hybrid sensing and reflection mode, the RIS 604 can vary the power allocated for sensing based on fluctuations in the incident signal. For example, the RIS 604 can be configured to vary the ratio of power for sensing to power for reflection in response to movement of the UE 606, changes in the strength of the incoming signal from one or more RSs 622, or changes in the number and / or distribution of multiple incoming paths to the RIS 604. The sensing mode of the RIS 604 can include estimating the direction or AoA of one or more RSs 622 from the UE 606. Such estimation can be performed by the RIS 604 based on Rx beam sweeping, multiple signal classification (MUSIC), compressive sensing, or machine learning algorithms. In one aspect, the RIS 604 can be configured to improve the SNR based on the number of UEs communicating with the RIS 604, the number of propagation paths, the distance from the RIS 604 to which the UE 606 travels, or the speed at which the UE 606 travels.

[0086]

[0101] In one aspect, the RIS 604 can be configured to re-determine the power allocation between reflected and sensing and use the new power ratio for reflecting and sensing. For example, the RIS 604 can be configured to update the power allocation based on sensing performance. If sensing performance is deteriorating (e.g., the SNR of the sensing signal is below a threshold), the RIS 604 can allocate more power to sensing (e.g., decrease the value of ρ). If sensing performance is improving (e.g., the SNR of the sensing signal is above a threshold), the RIS 604 can allocate less power to sensing (e.g., increase the value of ρ). In one aspect, the network node 602 can be configured at 616 to detect the SNR from the RIS 604 and provide feedback to the RIS 604 in one or more RIS mode configurations 618. The network node 602 can be configured to determine the UL transmission format based on the recent received power of one or more reflected RSs 624 (e.g., SRSs) while the RIS 604 is in the hybrid sensing and reflecting mode. For example, the network node 602 may determine a PUSCH format, which may include a modulation and coding scheme (MCS), a number of layers of the format, or a precoding matrix of the format.

[0087]

[0102] In one aspect, when the RIS 604 is operating in a reflection mode or a hybrid transmit and reflection mode, the RIS 604 can reflect one or more RSs 622 using a reflection coefficient determined while the RIS 604 was in a sensing mode or using a reflection coefficient determined while the RIS 604 is in a hybrid transmit and reflection mode.

[0088]

[0103] The UE 606 can transmit one or more RSs 622 to the RIS 604 based on one or more RS resource configurations 614. The UE 606 can transmit one or more RSs 622 to the RIS 604 when the RIS 604 is in a sensing mode or when the RIS 604 is in a hybrid sensing and reflection mode. When the RIS 604 is in a sensing mode or a hybrid sensing and reflection mode, the RIS 604 can measure one or more attributes of the one or more RSs 622 and use these attributes to calculate the AoA of the incoming signal. When the RIS 604 is in a sensing mode, the RIS 604 can perform sensing using all of the received power of the one or more RSs 622 to estimate the AoA of the one or more RSs 622 and determine the reflection coefficient for each meta-element of the RIS 604. When the RIS 604 is in hybrid sensing and reflection mode, the RIS 604 can perform sensing using the partial received power of one or more RSs 622 to estimate the AoA of one or more RSs 622 and determine a reflection coefficient for each meta-element of the RIS 604. When the RIS 604 is in sensing mode or hybrid sensing and reflection mode, while the UE 606 is transmitting or receiving a reference signal, the RIS 604 can use stored directions sensed by the RIS 604 to generate corresponding DL / UL reflection coefficients for one or more meta-elements of the RIS 604. When the RIS 604 is in hybrid sensing and reflection mode, the RIS 604 can determine the power distribution between reflected and sensed based on the received signal power and / or sensing conditions. The RIS 604 can reflect one or more reflected RSs 624 using the determined reflected power.

[0089]

[0104] In one aspect, if a UE 606 transmits one or more RSs 622, such as SRSs, to the RIS 604 and no other UEs transmit signals to the RIS 604, the RIS 604 can sense a set of directions or paths associated with the one or more RSs 622. Accordingly, the RIS 604 can determine one or more reflection coefficients based on the sensed directions or primary paths. In another aspect, if there are multiple UEs transmitting signals received by the RIS 604, and one of the multiple UEs is the UE 606 transmitting one or more RSs 622 to the RIS 604, the RIS 604 can sense multiple directions or paths associated with the multiple UEs. The RIS 604 can estimate and store a direction or AoA for each reference signal (e.g., each SRS resource), which can be equivalent to associating each direction or AoA with a separate UE among the multiple UEs. In other words, if the RIS 604 receives several SRS resources, the RIS 604 can link each SRS resource to one UE. While the UE 606 is transmitting one or more RSs 622, the RIS 604 can use the stored UE directions or AoAs to generate corresponding UL reflection coefficients of the meta-elements. Corollary, if the RIS 604 receives a set of RSs from a network node, the RIS 604 can use the stored UE directions or AoAs to generate corresponding DL reflection coefficients of the meta-elements of the RIS 604.

[0090]

[0105] In one aspect, if the RIS 604 is operating in a reflection mode, in a DL or UL slot or symbol, the RIS 604 can be configured to use the corresponding reflection coefficient for the DL or UL, respectively. In another aspect, if the RIS 604 is operating in a hybrid sense and reflection mode, the RIS 604 can use the corresponding reflection coefficient for the UL to reflect one or more RSs 622. The RIS 604 performs sensing to determine the appropriate reflection.

[0091]

[0106] When the RIS 604 is in a reflection mode or a hybrid sensing and reflection mode, the RIS 604 can use a reflection coefficient based on one or more attributes of one or more RSs 622. In its sensing mode, the RIS 604 can perform sensing to determine appropriate reflection coefficients of its meta-elements so that the SNR of one or more reflected RSs 624 can be improved. When the RIS 604 is in a hybrid sensing and reflection mode, the RIS 604 can use a partial received power for its sensing operation, and the remainder of the received power can be reflected to deliver one or more reflected RSs 624 so that spectral efficiency can be improved. Such a hybrid mode also provides low latency for tracking the movement of the UE 606.

[0092]

[0107] At 626, the network node 602 may process one or more reflected RSs 624, such as by measuring a reference signal received power (RSRP) of the one or more reflected RSs 624 or by measuring a phase shift of the one or more reflected RSs 624. The network node 602 may generate one or more updated RS resource configurations based on the processing of the one or more reflected RSs 624. For example, the network node 602 may update a transmission format of the RIS 604 based on the measured RSRP of the one or more reflected RSs 624.

[0093]

[0108] FIG. 7 is a connection flow diagram 700 illustrating one embodiment of a RIS 704 configured to reflect, sense, or reflect and sense one or more reference signals (RSs) from a UE 706 to a network node 702. At 708, the RIS 704 may activate a sensing mode. The UE 706 may transmit one or more RSs 710 to the RIS 704. The RIS 704 may receive one or more RSs 710 from the UE 706. At 712, the RIS 704 may perform sensing on the one or more RSs 710 to sense one or more attributes (e.g., wavelength, phase difference between waveguides) of the one or more RSs 710 transmitted from the UE 706 to the RIS 704. The RIS 704 may calculate one or more reflection coefficients based on the sensed attributes. At 714, the RIS 704 may activate a reflection mode. The UE 706 may transmit one or more RSs 716 to the RIS 704. The RIS 704 may receive one or more RSs 716 from the UE 706. The RIS 704 may reflect the one or more RSs 716 using one or more reflection coefficients calculated at 712 based on the sensed attributes. The RIS 704 may receive the one or more RSs 716 and may reflect the one or more RSs 716 using the total power and one or more reflection coefficients calculated at 712 to generate one or more reflected RSs that are transmitted to the network node 702. The network node 702 may receive one or more reflected RSs 718 and may process the one or more reflected RSs 718 at 720.

[0094]

[0109] At 722, the RIS 704 may activate a hybrid sensing and reflection mode. The RIS 704 may use reflection coefficients calculated based on the attributes calculated at 712 during the RIS 704's sensing mode. The UE 706 may transmit one or more RSs 724 to the RIS 704. The RIS 704 may receive one or more RSs 724 from the UE 706. The RIS 704 may use a portion of the received power of the one or more RSs 724 to reflect one or more reflected RSs 728. At 726, the RIS 704 may use a portion of the received power of the one or more RSs 724 to sense attributes of the one or more RSs 724, such as a new AoA or the speed at which the UE 706 is traveling. The RIS 704 may continually update one or more attributes of the one or more RSs 724 to update any reflection coefficients the RIS 704 may be using. The RIS 704 may reflect the one or more RSs 724 using the updated reflection coefficients to generate one or more Reflected RSs 728. The RIS 704 may transmit or reflect the one or more Reflected RSs 728 to the network node 702. The network node 702 may receive the one or more Reflected RSs 728. At 730, the network node 702 may process the one or more Reflected RSs 728.

[0095]

[0110] FIG. 8A is a diagram 800 illustrating one example of a configuration for multiple RIS modes. Diagram 800 may represent a configuration received by a RIS, such as one or more RIS mode configurations 618 of FIG. 6. This configuration may include, for example, a sensing mode 802 starting at time 0, which may be periodic and repeat every six time slots as sensing mode 806 at time 6. This configuration may also include a hybrid sensing and reflecting mode 804 at timeslots 3 and 4, and a hybrid sensing and reflecting mode 808 at timeslot 7. Sensing modes 802 and 806 may be considered periodic RIS modes that repeat every six time slots. Hybrid sensing and reflecting modes 804 and 808 may be considered non-repeating dynamic or aperiodic RIS modes.

[0096]

[0111] The periodic or semi-persistent mode pattern can be configured by a network node, such as network node 602 of FIG. 6. A sensing mode, such as sensing modes 802 and 806, can be associated with a longer period than the hybrid sensing and reflective mode. If the sensing mode and the hybrid mode have an overlapping period, the RIS 604 can be configured to apply the sensing mode during the overlap. In diagram 800 of FIG. 8A, this configuration may not have a reflective mode. The RIS can be configured to apply the reflective mode any interval between two sensing modes, between two hybrid sensing and reflective modes, or between a sensing mode and a hybrid sensing and reflective mode.

[0097]

[0112] FIG. 8B is a diagram 850 illustrating one embodiment of an updated configuration of diagram 500 for multiple RIS modes. Diagram 850 shows sensing mode 802 at time 0, reflective mode 803 applied at times 1 and 2 between sensing mode 802 and hybrid sensing and reflective mode 804, and hybrid sensing and reflective mode 804 at times 3 and 4. Diagram 850 also illustrates that sensing mode 806 may be periodic and repeat at time 6, and that the RIS may apply reflective mode 805 between sensing mode 806 at time 5 and hybrid sensing and reflective mode 804 at time 4. The RIS may also apply reflective mode 809 after any scheduled sensing mode or hybrid sensing and reflective mode. If the network node detects that the received SNR is deteriorating, the network node may configure a dynamic or aperiodic sensing mode or hybrid sensing and reflective mode to readjust the reflection coefficient of the RIS.

[0098]

[0113] 9 is a flowchart 900 of a method of wireless communication. The method may be performed by a network node (e.g., base station 102, base station 310, network node 402, network node 602, network node 702, network entity 1402, network entity 1560). At 902, the network node may obtain a capability report associated with a RIS. The capability report may be related to the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. For example, 902 may be performed by network node 602 of FIG. 6, associated with RIS 604, and capable of obtaining capability report 608 from RIS 604. The capability report 608 may be related to the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. Furthermore, 902 may be performed by component 199 of FIG. 14 or FIG. 15.

[0099]

[0114] At 904, the network node may transmit a first configuration of resources associated with at least one RS. The network node may transmit a second configuration of at least one mode associated with a reflection and sensing capability of the RIS. The at least one mode may be associated with the at least one RS. The at least one mode may include a hybrid sensing and reflection mode. For example, 904 may be performed by the network node 602 of FIG. 6, which may transmit one or more RS resource configurations 612 associated with one or more RSs 622 to the RIS 604 or transmit one or more RS resource configurations 614 associated with one or more RSs 622 to the UE 606. The network node 602 may transmit one or more RIS mode configurations 618 to the RIS 604 for at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capability of the RIS 604. The at least one mode may be associated with the RIS 604. The at least one mode may include a hybrid sensing and reflection mode. Furthermore, 904 can be performed by component 199 of FIG. 14 or FIG.

[0100]

[0115] FIG. 10 is a flowchart 1000 of a method of wireless communication. The method may be performed by a network node (e.g., base station 102, base station 310, network node 402, network node 602, network node 702, network entity 1402, network entity 1560). At 1002, the network node may obtain a capability report associated with a RIS. The capability report may be associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. For example, 1002 may be performed by network node 602 of FIG. 6, which is associated with RIS 604 and capable of obtaining capability report 608 from RIS 604. The capability report 608 may be associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. Furthermore, 1002 may be performed by component 199 of FIG. 14 or FIG. 15.

[0101]

[0116] At 1004, the network node may transmit a first configuration of resources associated with at least one RS and a second configuration of at least one mode associated with a reflection and sensing capability of the RIS, where the at least one mode may be associated with the at least one RS. The at least one mode may include a hybrid sensing and reflection mode. For example, 1004 may be performed by the network node 602 of FIG. 6, which may transmit one or more RS resource configurations 612 associated with one or more RSs 622 to the RIS 604 or transmit one or more RS resource configurations 614 associated with one or more RSs 622 to the UE 606. The network node 602 may transmit one or more RIS mode configurations 618 to the RIS 604 for at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capability of the RIS 604. The at least one mode may be associated with the RIS 604. The at least one mode may include a hybrid sensing and reflection mode. Furthermore, 1004 can be performed by component 199 of FIG. 14 or FIG.

[0102]

[0117] At 1001, a network node may configure resources associated with at least one RS and at least one mode associated with at least one RS based on the capability report. For example, 1001 may be performed by network node 602 of Figure 6, which may configure 610 RS resources associated with one or more RSs 622 and at least one mode associated with one or more RSs 622 based on the capability report 608. Furthermore, 1001 may be performed by component 199 of Figure 14 or Figure 15.

[0103]

[0118] At 1008, the network node may receive a reflected RS from the RIS. The first configuration of resources associated with at least one RS may include a transmission format based on the RSRP measurement of the reflected RS. For example, 1008 may be performed by the network node 602 of FIG. 6, which may receive one or more reflected RSs 624 from the RIS 604. At 626, the network node 602 may process the one or more reflected RSs 624. The network node 602 may update one or more RS resource configurations 612 associated with the one or more RSs 622 using the updated transmission format based on the RSRP measurement of the one or more reflected RSs 624. Furthermore, 1008 may be performed by component 199 of FIG. 14 or FIG. 15.

[0104]

[0119] 11 is a flowchart 1100 of a method of wireless communication at a RIS. At 902, the RIS may transmit a capability report associated with the RIS. The capability report may be associated with the reflective and sensing capabilities of the RIS. For example, 1102 may be performed by the RIS 604 of FIG. 6, which may transmit a capability report 608 associated with the RIS 604 to the network node 602. The capability report 608 may be associated with the reflective and sensing capabilities of the RIS 604. Furthermore, 1102 may be performed by component 198 of FIG. 4 or FIG. 5.

[0105]

[0120] At 1104, the RIS may receive a first configuration of resources associated with at least one RS. The RIS may receive a second configuration of at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The at least one mode may be associated with the at least one RS. The at least one mode may include a hybrid sensing and reflection mode. For example, 1104 may be performed by the RIS 604, which may receive one or more RS resource configurations 612 associated with one or more RSs 622 from the network node 602. The RIS 604 may receive one or more RIS mode configurations 618 of at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS 604. The at least one mode may be associated with one or more RSs 622. Furthermore, 1104 may be performed by component 198 of FIG. 4 or FIG. 5.

[0106]

[0121] FIG. 12 is a flowchart 1200 of a method of wireless communication at a RIS. At 1202, the RIS may transmit a capability report associated with the RIS. The capability report may be associated with the reflective and sensing capabilities of the RIS. For example, 1202 may be performed by the RIS 604 of FIG. 6, which may transmit a capability report 608 associated with the RIS 604 to the network node 602. The capability report 608 may be associated with the reflective and sensing capabilities of the RIS 604. Furthermore, 1202 may be performed by component 198 of FIG. 4 or FIG. 5.

[0107]

[0122] At 1204, the RIS may receive a first configuration of resources associated with at least one RS and a second configuration of at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The at least one mode may be associated with the at least one RS. The at least one mode may include a hybrid sensing and reflection mode. For example, 1204 may be performed by the RIS 604, which may receive one or more RS resource configurations 612 associated with one or more RSs 622 from the network node 602. The RIS 604 may receive one or more RIS mode configurations 618 of at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS 604. The at least one mode may be associated with one or more RSs 622. Furthermore, 1204 may be performed by component 198 of FIG. 4 or FIG. 5.

[0108]

[0123] At 1206, the RIS activates the at least one mode based on a second configuration of the at least one mode. For example, 1206 may be performed by RIS 604 of Figure 6, which may activate 620 the at least one mode based on one or more RIS mode configurations 618. Furthermore, 1206 may be performed by component 198 of Figure 4 or Figure 5.

[0109]

[0124] At 1208, the RIS can activate at least one of the sensing mode or the reflective mode. For example, 1208 can be performed by RIS 604 of Figure 6, which can activate at least one of the sensing mode or the reflective mode at 620. 1208 can also be performed by RIS 704 of Figure 7, which can activate the sensing mode at 708 or the reflective mode at 714. Furthermore, 1208 can be performed by component 198 of Figure 4 or Figure 5.

[0110]

[0125] The RIS can periodically activate at least one mode at 1210. For example, 1210 can be performed by RIS 604 of Figure 6, which can periodically activate at least one mode at 620. Furthermore, 1210 can be performed by component 198 of Figure 4 or Figure 5.

[0111]

[0126] At 1212, the RIS can activate a sensing mode associated with the first time period. For example, 1212 can be performed by RIS 604 of FIG. 6, which can activate at 620 a sensing mode associated with the first time period, e.g., sensing mode 802 of FIG. 8A, for a period of time. Furthermore, 1212 can be performed by component 198 of FIG. 4 or FIG. 5.

[0112]

[0127] At 1214, the RIS may activate a hybrid sensing and reflecting mode associated with the second time period. For example, 1214 may be performed by RIS 604 of FIG. 6, which may activate a hybrid sensing and reflecting mode associated with the second time period, such as hybrid sensing and reflecting mode 804 of FIG. 8A. Furthermore, 1214 may be performed by component 198 of FIG. 4 or FIG. 5.

[0113]

[0128] At 1216, the RIS can activate a reflective mode during a third time period between the first time period and the second time period. For example, 1216 can be performed by RIS 604 of FIG. 6, which can activate a reflective mode during a third time period between the first time period and the second time period, such as reflective mode 803 of FIG. 8B, between sensing mode 802 and hybrid sensing and reflective mode 804. Furthermore, 1216 can be performed by component 198 of FIG. 4 or FIG. 5.

[0114]

[0129] At 1218, the RIS can activate a second sensing mode associated with the fourth time period. For example, 1218 can be performed by RIS 604 of FIG. 6, which can activate a second sensing mode associated with the fourth time period, such as sensing mode 806 of FIG. 8A. Furthermore, 1218 can be performed by component 198 of FIG. 4 or FIG. 5.

[0115]

[0130] At 1220, the RIS may activate a second hybrid sensing and reflecting mode associated with a fifth time period. The fourth time period and the fifth time period may be consecutive. For example, 1220 may be performed by RIS 604 of FIG. 6, which may activate a second hybrid sensing and reflecting mode associated with a fifth time period, such as hybrid sensing and reflecting mode 808 of FIG. 8A. The time period associated with sensing mode 806 may be consecutive with the time period associated with hybrid sensing and reflecting mode 808. Furthermore, 1220 may be performed by component 198 of FIG. 4 or FIG. 5.

[0116]

[0131] FIG. 13 is a flowchart 1300 of a method of wireless communication at a RIS. At 1302, the RIS may transmit a capability report associated with the RIS. The capability report may be associated with the reflective and sensing capabilities of the RIS. For example, 1302 may be performed by the RIS 604 of FIG. 6, which may transmit a capability report 608 associated with the RIS 604 to the network node 602. The capability report 608 may be associated with the reflective and sensing capabilities of the RIS 604. Furthermore, 1302 may be performed by component 198 of FIG. 4 or FIG. 5.

[0117]

[0132] At 1304, the RIS may receive a first configuration of resources associated with at least one RS and a second configuration of at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The at least one mode may be associated with the at least one RS. The at least one mode may include a hybrid sensing and reflection mode. For example, 1304 may be performed by the RIS 604, which may receive one or more RS resource configurations 612 associated with one or more RSs 622 from the network node 602. The RIS 604 may receive one or more RIS mode configurations 618 of at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS 604. The at least one mode may be associated with one or more RSs 622. Furthermore, 1304 may be performed by component 198 of FIG. 4 or FIG. 5.

[0118]

[0133] At 1306, the RIS can activate the sensing mode during the overlap period in response to a first period corresponding to the sensing mode overlapping with a second period corresponding to the hybrid sensing and reflective mode. The second configuration of the at least one mode can include first instructions for activating the sensing mode associated with the first period and second instructions for activating the hybrid sensing and reflective mode associated with the second period. The first period overlaps with the second period during the overlap period. For example, 1306 can be performed by the RIS 604 of FIG. 6 , which can activate the sensing mode during the overlap period in response to a first period corresponding to the sensing mode overlapping with a second period corresponding to the hybrid sensing and reflective mode. The second configuration of the at least one mode can include first instructions for activating the sensing mode associated with the first period and second instructions for activating the hybrid sensing and reflective mode associated with the second period. The first period overlaps with the second period during the overlap period. Furthermore, 1306 can be performed by component 198 of FIG. 4 or FIG.

[0119]

[0134] At 1308, the RIS can apply a first sense power to reflected power ratio to the hybrid sense and reflect mode in response to the SNR performance of the at least one RS being greater than or equal to an SNR threshold. The second configuration of the at least one mode can include an indication of a sense power to reflected power ratio associated with the hybrid sense and reflect mode of the at least one mode based on a comparison of the SNR performance associated with the at least one RS to an SNR threshold. For example, 1308 can be performed by RIS 604 of FIG. 6, which can apply a first sense power to reflected power ratio to the hybrid sense and reflect mode in response to the SNR performance of the at least one RS being greater than or equal to an SNR threshold. The second configuration of the at least one mode can include an indication of a sense power to reflected power ratio associated with the hybrid sense and reflect mode of the at least one mode based on a comparison of the SNR performance associated with the at least one RS to an SNR threshold. Furthermore, 1308 can be performed by component 198 of FIG. 4 or FIG. 5.

[0120]

[0135] At 1310, the RIS can apply the second sense power to reflected power ratio to the hybrid sense and reflect mode in response to the SNR performance of the at least one RS being less than or equal to the SNR threshold. For example, 1310 can be performed by RIS 604 of FIG. 6, which can apply the second sense power to reflected power ratio to the hybrid sense and reflect mode in response to the SNR performance of the at least one RS being less than or equal to the SNR threshold. Furthermore, 1310 can be performed by component 198 of FIG. 4 or FIG. 5.

[0121]

[0136] FIG. 14 is a diagram 1400 illustrating one example of a hardware implementation for a network entity 1402. The network entity 1402 may be a BS, a component of a BS, or may implement the functionality of a BS. The network entity 1402 may include at least one of a CU 1410, a DU 1430, or an RU 1440. For example, depending on the layer functionality processed by the component 199, the network entity 1402 may include a CU 1410, both the CU 1410 and the DU 1430, each of the CU 1410, the DU 1430, and the RU 1440, both the DU 1430, the DU 1430, and the RU 1440, or an RU 1440. The CU 1410 may include a CU processor 1412. The CU processor 1412 may include an on-chip memory 1412′. In some aspects, the CU 1410 may further include an additional memory module 1414 and a communication interface 1418. The CU 1410 communicates with the DU 1430 through a midhaul link, such as an F1 interface. The DU 1430 may include a DU processor 1432. The DU processor 1432 may include an on-chip memory 1432′. In some aspects, the DU 1430 may further include an additional memory module 1434 and a communication interface 1438. The DU 1430 communicates with the RU 1440 through a fronthaul link. The RU 1440 may include an RU processor 1442. The RU processor 1442 may include an on-chip memory 1442′. In some aspects, the RU 1440 may further include an additional memory module 1444, one or more transceivers 1446, an antenna 1480, and a communication interface 1448. The RU 1440 communicates with the UE 104. The on-chip memories 1412', 1432', 1442' and the additional memory modules 1414, 1434, 1444 can each be considered a computer-readable medium / memory. Each computer-readable medium / memory can be non-transitory. Each of the processors 1412, 1432, 1442 is responsible for overall processing, including the execution of software stored on the computer-readable medium / memory.The software, when executed by a corresponding processor(s), causes the processor(s) to perform the various functions described above. The computer-readable medium / memory may also be used to store data that is manipulated by the processor(s) when executing the software.

[0122]

[0137] As discussed above, component 199 is configured to obtain a capability report associated with the RIS. The capability report may be associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. Component 199 may be configured to transmit a first configuration of resources associated with at least one RS and a second configuration of at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The at least one mode may be associated with at least one RS. The at least one mode may include a hybrid sensing and reflection mode. Component 199 may reside within one or more processors of one or more of CU 1410, DU 1430, and RU 1440. Component 199 may be one or more hardware components specifically configured to perform the described processes / algorithms, implemented by one or more processors configured to execute the described processes / algorithms, stored in a computer-readable medium for implementation by one or more processors, or some combination thereof. Network entity 1402 may include various components configured for various functions. In one configuration, the network entity 1402 includes means for obtaining a capability report associated with the RIS. The network entity 1402 may include means for transmitting a first configuration of resources associated with at least one RS and a second configuration of at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The network entity 1402 may include means for configuring resources associated with the at least one RS and at least one mode associated with the at least one RS based on the capability report. The network entity 1402 may include means for receiving a reflected RS from the RIS. These means may be components 199 of the network entity 1402 configured to perform the functions recited by the means.As described above, the network entity 1402 may include the Tx processor 316, the Rx processor 370, and the controller / processor 375. Thus, in one configuration, these means may be the Tx processor 316, the Rx processor 370, and / or the controller / processor 375 configured to perform the functions recited by the means.

[0123]

[0138] FIG. 15 is a diagram 1500 illustrating one example of a hardware implementation for a network entity 1560. In one example, the network entity 1560 may reside within the core network 120. The network entity 1560 may include a network processor 1512. The network processor 1512 may include an on-chip memory 1512′. In some aspects, the network entity 1560 may further include an additional memory module 1514. The network entity 1560 communicates with the CU 1502 via a network interface 1580, either directly (e.g., via a backhaul link) or indirectly (e.g., through a RIC). The on-chip memory 1512′ and the additional memory module 1514 may each be considered a computer-readable medium / memory. Each computer-readable medium / memory may be non-transitory. The processor 1512 is responsible for overall processing, including executing software stored on the computer-readable medium / memory. The software, when executed by a corresponding processor(s), causes the processor(s) to perform the various functions described above. The computer-readable medium / memory may also be used to store data that is manipulated by the processor(s) when executing the software.

[0124]

[0139] As discussed above, component 199 is configured to obtain a capability report associated with the RIS. The capability report may be associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. Component 199 may be configured to transmit a first configuration of resources associated with at least one RS and a second configuration of at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The at least one mode may be associated with at least one RS. The at least one mode may include a hybrid sensing and reflection mode. Component 199 may reside within processor 1512. Component 199 may be one or more hardware components specifically configured to perform the described processes / algorithms, implemented by one or more processors configured to execute the described processes / algorithms, stored in a computer-readable medium for implementation by one or more processors, or some combination thereof. Network entity 1560 may include various components configured for various functions. In one configuration, network entity 1560 includes means for obtaining a capability report associated with the RIS. The network entity 1560 may include means for transmitting a first configuration of resources associated with the at least one RS and a second configuration of at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The network entity 1560 may include means for configuring resources associated with the at least one RS and at least one mode associated with the at least one RS based on the capability report. The network entity 1560 may include means for receiving a reflected RS from the RIS. These means may be components 199 of the network entity 1560 configured to perform the functions recited by the means.

[0125]

[0140] A system having a RIS, such as RIS 604 of FIG. 6 , configured to switch between sensing mode, reflection mode, and hybrid sensing and reflection mode allows a network node to adjust the mode of the RIS to dynamically adjust its performance for optimization purposes. In one aspect, a RIS that switches between sensing mode to derive reflection coefficients and reflection mode to reflect incident signals may have a high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) for sensing at the RIS or for data reception at a UE or network node that receives the reflected signal. However, frequent sensing may lead to low spectral efficiency if channel conditions change slowly (e.g., channel conditions change once every five periodic sensing modes). Furthermore, infrequent sensing may lead to delayed updates of reflection coefficients if channel conditions change rapidly. In one aspect, a RIS using hybrid sensing and reflection mode may have a good balance between real-time sensing and high data transmission throughput. However, a RIS using hybrid sense and reflect mode may have a low SNR for sensing at the RIS or a low SNR for data reception at the UE or network node receiving the reflected signal. By allowing the network node to dynamically change the mode of the RIS between sense mode, reflect mode, and hybrid sense and reflect mode, the network node can optimize the performance of the RIS to maximize SNR while also maintaining a good balance between real-time sensing and high data transmission throughput.

[0126]

[0141] It should be understood that the specific order or hierarchy of the blocks in the disclosed processes / flowcharts is an example of an example approach. Based on design preferences, it should be understood that the specific order or hierarchy of the blocks in those processes / flowcharts can be rearranged. Furthermore, some blocks may be combined or omitted. The accompanying method claims present elements of the various blocks in an example order and are not limited to the specific order or hierarchy presented.

[0127]

[0142] The foregoing description is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the various aspects described herein. Various modifications to these aspects will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other aspects. Therefore, the claims are not limited to the aspects described herein but are to be accorded the full scope consistent with the language of the claims. Reference to an element in the singular does not mean "only one" unless expressly stated otherwise, but rather "one or more." Terms such as "if," "when," and "while" do not imply an immediate temporal relationship or response. That is, these phrases, such as "when," do not imply immediate action upon or during the occurrence of an action; they simply mean that an action will occur if a condition is met, but that the action does not require a specific or immediate time constraint for its occurrence. The word "exemplary" is used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration." Any aspect described herein as "exemplary" should not necessarily be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects. Unless expressly stated otherwise, the term "some" refers to one or more. Combinations such as "at least one of A, B, or C," "one or more of A, B, or C," "at least one of A, B, and C," "one or more of A, B, and C," and "A, B, C, or any combination thereof" include any combination of A, B, and / or C, and may include multiple As, multiple Bs, or multiple Cs.Specifically, combinations such as "at least one of A, B, or C," "one or more of A, B, or C," "at least one of A, B, and C," "one or more of A, B, and C," and "A, B, C, or any combination thereof" can be A only, B only, C only, A and B, A and C, B and C, or A, B, and C, and any such combination can include one or more elements of A, B, or C. A set should be interpreted as a set of elements, the number of elements being one or more. Thus, with respect to a set of X, X will include one or more elements. When a first device receives data from or transmits data to a second device, the data can be received / transmitted directly between the first and second devices or indirectly between the first and second devices through a set of devices. All structural and functional equivalents to the elements of the various aspects described throughout this disclosure that are known or later become known to those skilled in the art are expressly incorporated herein by reference and encompassed by the claims. Furthermore, nothing disclosed herein is intended to be made public, regardless of whether such disclosure is expressly recited in the claims. Terms such as "module," "mechanism," "element," and "device" may not be substitutes for the word "means." Therefore, no element of a claim should be construed as a means-plus-function unless the element is expressly recited using the phrase "means for."

[0128]

[0143] As used herein, the phrase "based on" should not be construed as a reference to a closed set of information, one or more conditions, one or more factors, etc. In other words, the phrase "based on A" (where "A" can be information, a condition, a factor, etc.) shall be construed as "based on at least A," unless expressly stated otherwise.

[0129]

[0144] A device configured to "output" data, such as a transmission, signal, or message, can transmit the data, for example, using a transceiver, or can transmit the data to a device that transmits the data. A device configured to "receive" data, such as a transmission, signal, or message, can receive, for example, using a transceiver, or can retrieve the data from a device that receives the data.

[0130]

[0145] The following aspects are exemplary only and can be combined with other aspects or teachings described herein without limitation.

[0131]

[0146] Aspect 1 is a method of wireless communication in a UE, the method may include obtaining a capability report associated with a RIS. The capability report may be associated with reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The method may include transmitting a first configuration of resources associated with at least one RS and a second configuration of at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The at least one mode may be associated with the at least one RS. The at least one mode may include a hybrid sensing and reflection mode.

[0132]

[0147] Aspect 2 is the method of aspect 1, wherein the method may include configuring resources associated with the at least one RS and at least one mode associated with the at least one RS based on the capability report.

[0133]

[0148] Example 3 is the method of any of Examples 1 and 2, wherein the at least one mode can further include at least one of a sensing mode or a reflective mode.

[0134]

[0149] Example 4 is the method of any of Examples 1-3, wherein the second configuration of the at least one mode can include a first instruction to activate a sensing mode associated with the first time period and a second instruction to activate a hybrid sensing and reflective mode associated with the second time period.

[0135]

[0150] Aspect 5 is the method of aspect 4, wherein at least one of the first period or the second period may have a start time that is the same as a start time of an UL transmission of at least one RS associated with the first configuration of resources.

[0136]

[0151] Aspect 6 is any of the methods of aspects 1 to 5, wherein the first configuration of resources does not include DL transmission resources that overlap with a period of a sensing mode or a hybrid sensing and reflection mode of the second configuration of at least one mode.

[0137]

[0152] Example 7 is the method of any of Examples 1-6, wherein the second configuration of the at least one mode can include instructions for periodically activating the at least one mode.

[0138]

[0153] Example 8 is the method of any of Examples 1-7, wherein the second configuration of the at least one mode may include an indication of a ratio of sensed power to reflected power associated with a hybrid sense and reflect mode of the at least one mode based on a comparison of an SNR performance associated with the at least one RS to an SNR threshold.

[0139]

[0154]

[0013] Example 9 is the method of any of Examples 1-8, wherein the method may include receiving a reflected RS from a RIS. The first configuration of resources associated with the at least one RS may include a transmission format based on an RSRP measurement of the reflected RS.

[0140]

[0155] Example 10 is the method of any of Examples 1-9, wherein the first configuration of resources associated with the at least one RS may include at least one parameter associated with the at least one RS. The at least one parameter may include one or more of at least one set of resources associated with the at least one RS, at least one grant associated with the at least one RS, or at least one RS identifier associated with the at least one RS.

[0141]

[0156] Example 11 is the method of any of Examples 1-10, wherein the capability report may include a length of a first time region associated with the RIS for completing sensing. The first configuration of resources may include a length of a second time region associated with at least one RS based on the length of the first time region.

[0142]

[0157] Aspect 12 is a method of wireless communication in a RIS, the method may include transmitting a capability report associated with the RIS. The capability report may be associated with reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The method may include receiving a first configuration of resources associated with at least one RS and a second configuration of at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS. The at least one mode may be associated with the at least one RS. The at least one mode may include a hybrid sensing and reflection mode.

[0143]

[0158] Example 13 is the method of example 12, wherein the method may include activating the at least one mode based on a second configuration of the at least one mode.

[0144]

[0159] Example 14 is the method of example 13, wherein activating at least one mode based on the second configuration of the at least one mode may include activating at least one of a sensing mode or a reflective mode.

[0145]

[0160] Example 15 is the method of any of Examples 13 and 14, wherein activating the at least one mode based on the second configuration of the at least one mode can include activating a sensing mode associated with the first time period. Activating the at least one mode based on the second configuration of the at least one mode can include activating a hybrid sensing and reflective mode associated with the second time period.

[0146]

[0161] Example 16 is the method of example 15, wherein at least one of the first time period or the second time period has a start time that is the same as a start time of an UL transmission of the first configuration of resources.

[0147]

[0162] Example 17 is the method of any of Examples 15 and 16, wherein activating at least one mode based on the second configuration of the at least one mode can include activating a reflective mode during a third period between the first period and the second period.

[0148]

[0163] Example 18 is the method of Example 17, wherein activating the at least one mode based on the second configuration of the at least one mode can include activating a second sensing mode associated with a fourth time period. Activating the at least one mode based on the second configuration of the at least one mode can include activating a second hybrid sensing and reflective mode associated with a fifth time period. The fourth time period and the fifth time period can be consecutive.

[0149]

[0164] Example 19 is the method of any of Examples 13-18, wherein the second configuration of the at least one mode can include first instructions for activating a sensing mode associated with a first time period and second instructions for activating a hybrid sensing and reflective mode associated with a second time period. The first time period can overlap with the second time period during an overlap period. Activating the at least one mode based on the second configuration of the at least one mode can include activating the sensing mode during the overlap period in response to the first time period overlapping with the second time period during the overlap period.

[0150]

[0165] Example 20 is any of the methods of Examples 13-19, wherein the first configuration of resources may not include DL transmission resources that overlap with a period of a sensing mode or a hybrid sensing and reflection mode of the second configuration of at least one mode.

[0151]

[0166] Example 21 is the method of any of Examples 13-20, wherein activating the at least one mode based on the second configuration of the at least one mode may include periodically activating the at least one mode.

[0152]

[0167] Example 22 is the method of any of Examples 12-21, wherein the second configuration of the at least one mode may include an indication of a ratio of sensed power to reflected power associated with a hybrid sense and reflect mode of the at least one mode based on a comparison of an SNR performance associated with the at least one RS to an SNR threshold.

[0153]

[0168] Example 23 is the method of Example 22, wherein the method may include applying a first ratio of sensed power to reflected power to the hybrid sense and reflect mode in response to SNR performance of the at least one RS being greater than or equal to an SNR threshold. The method may include applying a second ratio of sensed power to reflected power to the hybrid sense and reflect mode in response to SNR performance of the at least one RS being less than or equal to an SNR threshold.

[0154]

[0169] Example 24 is the method of any of Examples 13-23, wherein the first configuration of resources may include at least one parameter associated with the at least one RS. The at least one parameter may include one or more of at least one set of resources associated with the at least one RS, at least one grant associated with the at least one RS, at least one RS identifier associated with the at least one RS, or at least one transmission format associated with the at least one RS.

[0155]

[0170] Example 25 is the method of any of Examples 13-24, wherein the capability report may include at least one of a first indication to support a sensing mode, a second indication to support a hybrid sensing and reflective mode, or a length of a first time domain for the RIS to complete sensing.

[0156]

[0171] Example 26 is the method of any of Examples 13-25, wherein the method may include estimating an AoA of the at least one RS based on the first configuration of resources during at least one of the at least one mode: a sensing mode or a hybrid sensing and reflection mode. The method may include adjusting a meta-element reflection coefficient based on the AoA estimation. The method may include reflecting the at least one RS during at least one of the at least one mode: a hybrid sensing and reflection mode or a reflection mode.

[0157]

[0172] Example 27 is the method of example 26, wherein adjusting the meta-element reflection coefficient may include adjusting the meta-element reflection coefficient during the hybrid sensing and reflection mode based on an estimate of the AoA received during the hybrid sensing and reflection mode.

[0158]

[0173]

[0030] Example 28 is the method of any of Examples 26 and 27, wherein the first configuration of resources may include at least one RS identifier associated with the at least one RS. Reflecting the at least one RS may include reflecting the at least one RS based on the at least one RS identifier associated with the at least one RS.

[0159]

[0174] Aspect 29 is a wireless communication apparatus including: a memory; and at least one processor coupled to the memory, wherein the at least one processor is configured to implement any of aspects 1-28 based at least in part on information stored in the memory.

[0160]

[0175] Example 29 is the apparatus of Example 28, further comprising at least one of an antenna or a transceiver coupled to the at least one processor.

[0161]

[0176] Aspect 30 is an apparatus for wireless communication that includes means for implementing any of aspects 1-28.

[0162]

[0177] Aspect 31 is a computer-readable medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable medium) that stores computer-executable code that, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to implement any of aspects 1 to 28.

Claims

1. An apparatus for wireless communication in a network node, comprising: Memory and at least one processor coupled to the memory, wherein based at least in part on information stored in the memory, the at least one processor: acquiring a capability report associated with a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS), the capability report being associated with the reflective and sensing capabilities of the RIS; 1. An apparatus configured to transmit a first configuration of resources associated with at least one reference signal (RS) and a second configuration of at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS, the at least one mode being associated with the at least one RS, the at least one mode comprising a hybrid sensing and reflection mode.

2. the at least one processor:

2. The apparatus of claim 1, further configured to configure the resources associated with the at least one RS and the at least one mode associated with the at least one RS based on the capability report.

3. The device of claim 1 , wherein the at least one mode further comprises at least one of a first sensing mode or a first reflective mode.

4. 2. The device of claim 1, wherein the second configuration of the at least one mode includes a first instruction to activate a sensing mode associated with a first time period and a second instruction to activate the hybrid sensing and reflective mode associated with a second time period.

5. 5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein at least one of the first time period or the second time period has a start time that is the same as a start time of an uplink (UL) transmission of the at least one RS associated with the first configuration of resources.

6. 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first configuration of resources does not include downlink (DL) transmission resources that overlap with a sensing mode or a hybrid sensing and reflecting mode period of the second configuration of the at least one mode.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the second configuration of the at least one mode includes instructions for periodically activating the at least one mode.

8. 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the second configuration of the at least one mode includes an indication of a ratio of sensed power to reflected power associated with the hybrid sense and reflect mode of the at least one mode based on a comparison of a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) performance associated with the at least one RS to an SNR threshold.

9. the at least one processor:

2. The apparatus of claim 1, further configured to receive a reflected RS from the RIS, wherein the first configuration of resources associated with the at least one RS comprises a transmission format based on a reference signal received power (RSRP) measurement of the reflected RS.

10. 2. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising: a transceiver coupled to the at least one processor; and wherein transmitting the first configuration of resources comprises transmitting the first configuration of resources using the transceiver, the first configuration of resources associated with the at least one RS including at least one parameter associated with the at least one RS, the at least one parameter including one or more of: at least one set of resources associated with the at least one RS, at least one grant associated with the at least one RS, or at least one RS identifier associated with the at least one RS.

11. 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the capability report includes a length of a first time region associated with the RIS for completing sensing, and the first configuration of resources includes a length of a second time region associated with the at least one RS that is based on the length of the first time region.

12. An apparatus for wireless communication in a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) Memory and at least one processor coupled to the memory, wherein based at least in part on information stored in the memory, the at least one processor: transmitting a capability report associated with the RIS, the capability report being associated with the reflective and sensing capabilities of the RIS; 1. An apparatus configured to receive a first configuration of resources associated with at least one reference signal (RS) and a second configuration of at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS, the at least one mode being associated with the at least one RS, the at least one mode comprising a hybrid sensing and reflection mode.

13. the at least one processor: The apparatus of claim 12 , further configured to activate the at least one mode based on the second configuration of the at least one mode.

14. to activate the at least one mode based on the second configuration of the at least one mode, the at least one processor: The device of claim 13 , further configured to activate at least one of a first sensing mode or a first reflective mode.

15. to activate the at least one mode based on the second configuration of the at least one mode, the at least one processor: activating a sensing mode associated with the first time period; The apparatus of claim 13 , further configured to activate the hybrid sensing and reflecting mode associated with a second time period.

16. 16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein at least one of the first period or the second period has a start time that is the same as a start time of an uplink (UL) transmission of the first configuration of resources.

17. to activate the at least one mode based on the second configuration of the at least one mode, the at least one processor:

16. The apparatus of claim 15, further configured to activate a first reflective mode during a third period between the first period and the second period.

18. to activate the at least one mode based on the second configuration of the at least one mode, the at least one processor: activating a second sensing mode associated with a fourth time period; 20. The apparatus of claim 17, further configured to activate a second hybrid sensing and reflectance mode associated with a fifth time period, the fourth time period and the fifth time period being consecutive.

19. the second configuration of the at least one mode includes first instructions for activating a sensing mode associated with a first time period and second instructions for activating the hybrid sensing and reflective mode associated with a second time period, the first time period overlapping with the second time period for an overlap time period, and the at least one processor is configured to:

14. The apparatus of claim 13, further configured to activate the sensing mode during the overlap period in response to the first period overlapping with the second period during the overlap period.

20. 14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the first configuration of resources does not include downlink (DL) transmission resources that overlap with a sensing mode or a hybrid sensing and reflecting mode period of the second configuration of the at least one mode.

21. to activate the at least one mode based on the second configuration of the at least one mode, the at least one processor: The apparatus of claim 13 , further configured to periodically activate the at least one mode.

22. 13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the second configuration of the at least one mode includes an indication of a ratio of sensed power to reflected power associated with the hybrid sense and reflect mode of the at least one mode based on a comparison of a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) performance associated with the at least one RS to an SNR threshold.

23. the at least one processor: apply a first sense power to reflected power ratio to the hybrid sense and reflect mode in response to the SNR performance associated with the at least one RS being greater than or equal to the SNR threshold; 23. The apparatus of claim 22, further configured to apply a second sense power to reflected power ratio to the hybrid sense and reflect mode in response to the SNR performance associated with the at least one RS being less than or equal to the SNR threshold.

24. 13. The apparatus of claim 12, further comprising: a transceiver coupled to the at least one processor to receive the first configuration of resources, the at least one processor being further configured to receive the first configuration of resources using the transceiver, the first configuration of resources including at least one parameter associated with the at least one RS, the at least one parameter including one or more of at least one set of resources associated with the at least one RS, at least one grant associated with the at least one RS, at least one RS identifier associated with the at least one RS, or at least one transmission format associated with the at least one RS.

25. 13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the capability report includes at least one of a first indication to support a sensing mode, a second indication to support the hybrid sensing and reflective mode, or a length of a first time domain for the RIS to complete sensing.

26. the at least one processor: During at least one of a sensing mode or the hybrid sensing and reflecting mode of the at least one mode, estimating an angle of arrival (AoA) of the at least one RS based on the first configuration of resources; adjusting a meta-element reflection coefficient based on the estimate of the AoA; 13. The apparatus of claim 12, further configured to reflect the at least one RS during at least one of the hybrid sensing and reflecting mode or a first reflecting mode of the at least one mode.

27. To adjust the meta-element reflection coefficient, the at least one processor:

27. The apparatus of claim 26, further configured to adjust the meta-element reflection coefficient during the hybrid sensing and reflection mode based on the estimate of the AoA received during the hybrid sensing and reflection mode.

28. The first configuration of resources includes at least one RS identifier associated with the at least one RS, and to reflect the at least one RS, the at least one processor:

27. The apparatus of claim 26, further configured to reflect the at least one RS based on the at least one RS identifier associated with the at least one RS.

29. 1. A method of wireless communication in a network node, comprising: obtaining a capability report associated with a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS), the capability report being associated with the reflective and sensing capabilities of the RIS; 1. A method comprising: transmitting a first configuration of resources associated with at least one Reference Signal (RS) and a second configuration of at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS, the at least one mode being associated with the at least one RS, the at least one mode comprising a hybrid sensing and reflection mode.

30. 1. A method of wireless communication in a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS), comprising: Transmitting a capability report associated with the RIS, the capability report being associated with the reflecting and sensing capabilities of the RIS; receiving a first configuration of resources associated with at least one Reference Signal (RS) and a second configuration of at least one mode associated with the reflection and sensing capabilities of the RIS, the at least one mode being associated with the at least one RS, the at least one mode comprising a hybrid sensing and reflection mode.

Images