Device, method, apparatus, and computer-readable medium for non-terrestrial networks

Abstract

A device, method, apparatus, and computer-readable medium for coverage window prediction are disclosed. An exemplary terminal device may include at least one processor and at least one memory. The at least one memory can store instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, that can cause the terminal device to at least receive from a network device information regarding a predicted coverage window and measurement information related to the predicted coverage window, where the measurement information includes one or more expected measurements; perform at least one measurement according to the measurement information according to the predicted coverage window; and determine whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate based on a value of the at least one measurement and a corresponding at least one expected measurement from the one or more expected measurements.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] Various exemplary embodiments relate to devices, methods, apparatus, and computer-readable media for non-terrestrial networks (NTNs). [Background technology]

[0002] An NTN is a network or network segment that uses satellites, aircraft, or spacecraft for transmission. Due to the cost of satellites, airborne vehicles, and spacecraft, NTN networks may not be able to provide continuous coverage, especially in the early stages of deployment. Coverage at certain locations on the Earth is discontinuous. Therefore, user equipment (UE) and the network must have a common understanding of when the UE is available for communication, e.g., when the UE monitors paging. With the development of communication technologies, more Internet of Things (IoT) communication scenarios may involve NTN, and terminal equipment may connect to the core network (CN) via satellites or drones. Narrowband IoT (NB-IoT) and / or enhanced machine-based communication (eMTC) devices are cost- and energy-sensitive. These UE devices are expected to operate for years without battery replacement and typically transmit and receive small amounts of application data (e.g., 50 bytes) every few hours to several days. As a solution, the UE can predict its future coverage window based on a system information block (SIB) 32, which provides information about up to four satellites, and report the predicted coverage window to the network (e.g., CN). According to this solution, the UE needs to provide a new or updated coverage window every time a new satellite becomes available to provide coverage. However, if the UE is paged once every 12 or 24 hours on average, the UE is forced to provide many coverage window predictions to the network. Summary of the Invention

[0003] A brief summary of example embodiments is provided below in order to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of various embodiments. Note that this summary is not intended to identify key features or to define the scope of the embodiments, but its sole purpose is to introduce some concepts in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is provided below.

[0004] In a first aspect, a terminal device is disclosed. The terminal device may include at least one processor and at least one memory. The at least one memory may store instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, may cause the terminal device to at least receive, from a network device, information regarding a predicted coverage window and measurement information related to the predicted coverage window, where the measurement information includes one or more expected measurements; perform at least one measurement according to the measurement information according to the predicted coverage window; and determine whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate based on a value of the performed at least one measurement and a corresponding at least one expected measurement from the one or more expected measurements.

[0005] In some demonstrative embodiments, the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the terminal device to send to the network equipment a request for a predicted coverage window, the request including at least one of the number of at least one satellite serving the terminal device, the number of one or more satellites serving the terminal device before the predicted coverage window starts, the period covered by the predicted coverage window, the period when the predicted coverage window starts, the timing when the predicted coverage window starts, or the communication pattern of the terminal device.

[0006] In some exemplary embodiments, the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the terminal device to transmit, to the network equipment, positioning information of the terminal device, wherein the positioning information includes at least one of current location information of the terminal device, information regarding a current serving cell of the terminal device, a mapped cell identifier of the current serving cell of the terminal device, or a movement schedule of the terminal device.

[0007] In some demonstrative embodiments, the measurement information may further include at least one of: one or more timings for performing the corresponding one or more expected measurements; one or more indices corresponding to the one or more expected measurements; or at least one threshold for determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate.

[0008] In some exemplary embodiments, the one or more expected measurements include at least one of a timing of a downlink signal, a received power of the downlink signal, a round-trip time between the terminal equipment and a reference point, a one-way delay between the terminal equipment and the reference point, a start timing of a predicted coverage window, an end timing of a predicted coverage window, or information of an expected cell, and the predicted coverage window may be determined to be inaccurate if a difference between the value of the at least one performed measurement and the corresponding at least one expected measurement exceeds a corresponding threshold, or if the serving cell information from the at least one performed measurement differs from the expected cell information.

[0009] In some demonstrative embodiments, the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, may further cause the terminal device to, if the predicted coverage window is determined to be inaccurate, send an inaccuracy notification to the network device indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate.

[0010] In an exemplary embodiment, the inaccuracy notification may include at least one of a flag indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate, a difference between the value of the at least one measurement performed and the corresponding at least one expected measurement, the value of the at least one measurement performed, the timing of the at least one measurement performed, an index corresponding to the at least one measurement performed, information of the terminal device's serving cell, or current location information of the terminal device.

[0011] In some example embodiments, the inaccuracy notification may be transmitted via an early data transmission procedure or a small data transmission procedure.

[0012] In some exemplary embodiments, the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, may further cause the terminal device to remain in a radio resource control idle state or a radio resource control inactive state if the predicted coverage window is determined to be accurate.

[0013] In some demonstrative embodiments, the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, may further cause the terminal device to send another request to the network equipment for an updated predicted coverage window if at least one of the terminal device observes a change in its location or determines that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate.

[0014] In a second aspect, a network device is disclosed. The network device may include at least one processor and at least one memory. The at least one memory may store instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the network device to at least determine a predicted coverage window and measurement information related to the predicted coverage window for a terminal device, and transmit information regarding the predicted coverage window and the measurement information related to the predicted coverage window to the terminal device, where the measurement information includes one or more expected measurements for the terminal device to determine whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate.

[0015] In some demonstrative embodiments, the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the network equipment to receive a request from the terminal equipment for a predicted coverage window, the request including at least one of the number of at least one satellite serving the terminal equipment, the number of one or more satellites serving the terminal equipment before the predicted coverage window starts, the period covered by the predicted coverage window, the period when the predicted coverage window starts, the timing when the predicted coverage window starts, or the communication pattern of the terminal equipment.

[0016] In some exemplary embodiments, the predicted coverage window may be determined based on at least one of satellite movement information, satellite coverage information, current location information of the terminal equipment, information regarding the current serving cell of the terminal equipment, a mapped cell identifier of the current serving cell of the terminal equipment, a movement schedule of the terminal equipment, or information regarding the communication pattern of the terminal equipment.

[0017] In some demonstrative embodiments, the measurement information may further include at least one of: one or more timings for performing the corresponding one or more expected measurements; one or more indices corresponding to the one or more expected measurements; or at least one threshold for determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate.

[0018] In some exemplary embodiments, the one or more expected measurements may include at least one of: timing of a downlink signal; received power of a downlink signal; round trip time between the terminal equipment and a reference point; one-way delay between the terminal equipment and a reference point; start timing of a predicted coverage window; end timing of a predicted coverage window; or expected cell information.

[0019] In some demonstrative embodiments, the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the network device to determine an updated predicted coverage window for the terminal device when at least one of detecting that the terminal device performs a tracking area update or receiving an inaccuracy notification from the terminal device indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate.

[0020] In some exemplary embodiments, the inaccuracy notification may include at least one of: a flag indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate; a difference between a value of at least one measurement performed by the terminal device and a corresponding at least one expected measurement in the measurement information; a value of at least one measurement performed by the terminal device; a timing of at least one measurement performed by the terminal device; an index corresponding to at least one measurement performed by the terminal device; information of the serving cell of the terminal device; or current location information of the terminal device.

[0021] In a third aspect, a method performed by a terminal device is disclosed. The method may include receiving, from a network device, information regarding a predicted coverage window and measurement information related to the predicted coverage window, where the measurement information includes one or more expected measurements, performing at least one measurement according to the measurement information according to the predicted coverage window, and determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate based on a value of the performed at least one measurement and a corresponding at least one expected measurement from the one or more expected measurements.

[0022] In some demonstrative embodiments, the method may further include transmitting to the network equipment a request for a predicted coverage window, the request including at least one of the number of at least one satellite serving the terminal equipment, the number of one or more satellites serving the terminal equipment before the predicted coverage window begins, the period covered by the predicted coverage window, the period when the predicted coverage window begins, the timing when the predicted coverage window begins, or a communication pattern of the terminal equipment.

[0023] In some exemplary embodiments, the method may further include transmitting, to the network equipment, positioning information of the terminal equipment, the positioning information including at least one of current location information of the terminal equipment, information regarding a current serving cell of the terminal equipment, a mapped cell identifier of the current serving cell of the terminal equipment, or a movement schedule of the terminal equipment.

[0024] In some demonstrative embodiments, the measurement information may further include at least one of: one or more timings for performing the corresponding one or more expected measurements; one or more indices corresponding to the one or more expected measurements; or at least one threshold for determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate.

[0025] In some exemplary embodiments, the one or more expected measurements include at least one of: a timing of a downlink signal, a received power of a downlink signal, a round-trip time between the terminal equipment and a reference point, a one-way delay between the terminal equipment and a reference point, a start timing of a predicted coverage window, an end timing of a predicted coverage window, or information of an expected cell, and the predicted coverage window may be determined to be inaccurate if a difference between the value of the at least one performed measurement and the corresponding at least one expected measurement exceeds a corresponding threshold, or if the serving cell information from the at least one performed measurement differs from the information of an expected cell.

[0026] In some demonstrative embodiments, the method may further include, if the predicted coverage window is determined to be inaccurate, sending an inaccuracy notification to the network equipment indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate.

[0027] In an exemplary embodiment, the inaccuracy notification may include at least one of a flag indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate, a difference between the value of the at least one measurement performed and the corresponding at least one expected measurement, the value of the at least one measurement performed, the timing of the at least one measurement performed, an index corresponding to the at least one measurement performed, information of the terminal device's serving cell, or current location information of the terminal device.

[0028] In some example embodiments, the inaccuracy notification may be transmitted via an early data transmission procedure or a small data transmission procedure.

[0029] In some exemplary embodiments, the method may further include remaining in a radio resource control idle state or a radio resource control inactive state if the predicted coverage window is determined to be accurate.

[0030] In some exemplary embodiments, the method may further include sending another request to the network equipment for an updated predicted coverage window upon at least one of observing a change in the location of the terminal equipment or determining that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate.

[0031] In a fourth aspect, a method performed by a network device is disclosed. The method may include determining a predicted coverage window and measurement information related to the predicted coverage window for a terminal device, and transmitting information regarding the predicted coverage window and the measurement information related to the predicted coverage window to the terminal device, the measurement information including one or more expected measurements for the terminal device to determine whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate.

[0032] In some demonstrative embodiments, the method may further include receiving a request from the terminal device for a predicted coverage window, the request including at least one of the number of at least one satellite serving the terminal device, the number of one or more satellites serving the terminal device before the predicted coverage window begins, the period covered by the predicted coverage window, the period when the predicted coverage window begins, the timing when the predicted coverage window begins, or a communication pattern of the terminal device.

[0033] In some exemplary embodiments, the predicted coverage window may be determined based on at least one of satellite movement information, satellite coverage information, current location information of the terminal equipment, information regarding the current serving cell of the terminal equipment, a mapped cell identifier of the current serving cell of the terminal equipment, a movement schedule of the terminal equipment, or information regarding the communication pattern of the terminal equipment.

[0034] In some demonstrative embodiments, the measurement information may further include at least one of: one or more timings for performing the corresponding one or more expected measurements; one or more indices corresponding to the one or more expected measurements; or at least one threshold for determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate.

[0035] In some exemplary embodiments, the one or more expected measurements may include at least one of: timing of a downlink signal, received power of a downlink signal, round trip time between the terminal equipment and a reference point, one-way delay between the terminal equipment and a reference point, start timing of a predicted coverage window, end timing of a predicted coverage window, or expected cell information.

[0036] In some example embodiments, the method may further include determining an updated predicted coverage window for the terminal device when at least one of detecting that the terminal device performs a tracking area update or receiving an inaccuracy notification from the terminal device indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate.

[0037] In some exemplary embodiments, the inaccuracy notification may include at least one of: a flag indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate; a difference between a value of at least one measurement performed by the terminal device and a corresponding at least one expected measurement in the measurement information; a value of at least one measurement performed by the terminal device; a timing of at least one measurement performed by the terminal device; an index corresponding to at least one measurement performed by the terminal device; information of the serving cell of the terminal device; or current location information of the terminal device.

[0038] In a fifth aspect, an apparatus is disclosed, wherein the apparatus as a terminal device may include: means for receiving, from a network device, information regarding a predicted coverage window and measurement information related to the predicted coverage window, the measurement information including one or more expected measurement values; means for performing at least one measurement according to the measurement information according to the predicted coverage window; and means for determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate based on a value of the performed at least one measurement and a corresponding at least one expected measurement value from the one or more expected measurement values.

[0039] In some demonstrative embodiments, the apparatus may further include means for transmitting, to the network equipment, a request for a predicted coverage window, the request including at least one of: a number of at least one satellite serving the terminal equipment; a number of one or more satellites serving the terminal equipment before the predicted coverage window begins; a period covered by the predicted coverage window; a period when the predicted coverage window begins; a timing when the predicted coverage window begins; or a communication pattern of the terminal equipment.

[0040] In some exemplary embodiments, the apparatus may further comprise means for transmitting, to the network equipment, positioning information of the terminal equipment, the positioning information including at least one of current location information of the terminal equipment, information on a current serving cell of the terminal equipment, a mapped cell identifier of the current serving cell of the terminal equipment, or a movement schedule of the terminal equipment.

[0041] In some demonstrative embodiments, the measurement information may further include at least one of: one or more timings for performing the corresponding one or more expected measurements; one or more indices corresponding to the one or more expected measurements; or at least one threshold for determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate.

[0042] In some exemplary embodiments, the one or more expected measurements include at least one of: a timing of a downlink signal, a received power of a downlink signal, a round-trip time between the terminal equipment and a reference point, a one-way delay between the terminal equipment and a reference point, a start timing of a predicted coverage window, an end timing of a predicted coverage window, or information of an expected cell, and the predicted coverage window may be determined to be inaccurate if a difference between the value of the at least one performed measurement and the corresponding at least one expected measurement exceeds a corresponding threshold, or if the serving cell information from the at least one performed measurement differs from the information of an expected cell.

[0043] In some demonstrative embodiments, the apparatus may further comprise means for, if the predicted coverage window is determined to be inaccurate, sending an inaccuracy notification to the network device indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate.

[0044] In an exemplary embodiment, the inaccuracy notification may include at least one of a flag indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate, a difference between the value of the at least one measurement performed and the corresponding at least one expected measurement, the value of the at least one measurement performed, the timing of the at least one measurement performed, an index corresponding to the at least one measurement performed, information of the terminal device's serving cell, or current location information of the terminal device.

[0045] In some exemplary embodiments, the inaccuracy notification may be transmitted via an early data transmission procedure or a small data transmission procedure.

[0046] In some exemplary embodiments, the apparatus may further comprise means for remaining in a radio resource control idle state or a radio resource control inactive state if the predicted coverage window is determined to be accurate.

[0047] In some demonstrative embodiments, the apparatus may further comprise means for sending another request to the network equipment for an updated predicted coverage window upon at least one of observing a change in the position of the terminal equipment or determining that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate.

[0048] In a sixth aspect, an apparatus is disclosed, wherein the apparatus as a network device may comprise: means for determining, for a terminal device, a predicted coverage window and measurement information related to the predicted coverage window; and means for transmitting, to the terminal device, information regarding the predicted coverage window and the measurement information related to the predicted coverage window, the measurement information including one or more expected measurements for the terminal device to determine whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate.

[0049] In some demonstrative embodiments, the apparatus may further comprise means for receiving, from the terminal device, a request for a predicted coverage window, the request including at least one of: a number of at least one satellite serving the terminal device; a number of one or more satellites serving the terminal device before the predicted coverage window starts; a period covered by the predicted coverage window; a period when the predicted coverage window starts; a timing when the predicted coverage window starts; or a communication pattern of the terminal device.

[0050] In some exemplary embodiments, the predicted coverage window may be determined based on at least one of satellite movement information, satellite coverage information, current location information of the terminal equipment, information regarding the current serving cell of the terminal equipment, a mapped cell identifier of the current serving cell of the terminal equipment, a movement schedule of the terminal equipment, or information regarding the communication pattern of the terminal equipment.

[0051] In some demonstrative embodiments, the measurement information may further include at least one of: one or more timings for performing the corresponding one or more expected measurements; one or more indices corresponding to the one or more expected measurements; or at least one threshold for determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate.

[0052] In some exemplary embodiments, the one or more expected measurements may include at least one of: timing of a downlink signal; received power of a downlink signal; round trip time between the terminal equipment and a reference point; one-way delay between the terminal equipment and a reference point; start timing of a predicted coverage window; end timing of a predicted coverage window; or expected cell information.

[0053] In some demonstrative embodiments, the apparatus may further comprise means for determining an updated predicted coverage window for the terminal device when at least one of detecting that the terminal device performs a tracking area update or receiving an inaccuracy notification from the terminal device indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate.

[0054] In some exemplary embodiments, the inaccuracy notification may include at least one of: a flag indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate; a difference between a value of at least one measurement performed by the terminal device and a corresponding at least one expected measurement in the measurement information; a value of at least one measurement performed by the terminal device; a timing of at least one measurement performed by the terminal device; an index corresponding to at least one measurement performed by the terminal device; information of the serving cell of the terminal device; or current location information of the terminal device.

[0055] In a seventh aspect, a computer-readable medium is disclosed. The computer-readable medium may include program instructions that, when executed by a terminal device, can cause the terminal device to at least receive, from a network device, information regarding a predicted coverage window and measurement information related to the predicted coverage window, where the measurement information includes one or more expected measurements, perform at least one measurement according to the measurement information according to the predicted coverage window, and determine whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate based on a value of the performed at least one measurement and a corresponding at least one expected measurement from the one or more expected measurements.

[0056] In some demonstrative embodiments, the computer-readable medium may further include instructions that, when executed by the terminal equipment, may cause the terminal equipment to send a request for a predicted coverage window to the network equipment, the request including at least one of the number of at least one satellite serving the terminal equipment, the number of one or more satellites serving the terminal equipment before the predicted coverage window starts, the period covered by the predicted coverage window, the period when the predicted coverage window starts, the timing when the predicted coverage window starts, or a communication pattern of the terminal equipment.

[0057] In some exemplary embodiments, the computer-readable medium may further include instructions that, when executed by the terminal equipment, can cause the terminal equipment to further perform the following: transmitting, to the network equipment, positioning information of the terminal equipment, wherein the positioning information includes at least one of current location information of the terminal equipment, information about a current serving cell of the terminal equipment, a mapped cell identifier of the current serving cell of the terminal equipment, or a movement schedule of the terminal equipment.

[0058] In some demonstrative embodiments, the measurement information may further include at least one of one or more timings for performing the corresponding one or more expected measurements, one or more indices corresponding to the one or more expected measurements, or at least one threshold for determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate.

[0059] In some exemplary embodiments, the one or more expected measurements include at least one of: a timing of a downlink signal; a received power of a downlink signal; a round-trip time between the terminal equipment and a reference point; a one-way delay between the terminal equipment and a reference point; a start timing of a predicted coverage window; an end timing of a predicted coverage window; or information of an expected cell, and the predicted coverage window may be determined to be inaccurate if a difference between the value of the at least one performed measurement and the corresponding at least one expected measurement exceeds a corresponding threshold, or if the serving cell information from the at least one performed measurement differs from the information of an expected cell.

[0060] In some demonstrative embodiments, the computer-readable medium may further include instructions that, when executed by the terminal equipment, may cause the terminal equipment to, if the predicted coverage window is determined to be inaccurate, send an inaccuracy notification to the network equipment indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate.

[0061] In an exemplary embodiment, the inaccuracy notification may include at least one of a flag indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate, a difference between the value of the at least one measurement performed and the corresponding at least one expected measurement, the value of the at least one measurement performed, the timing of the at least one measurement performed, an index corresponding to the at least one measurement performed, information of the terminal device's serving cell, or current location information of the terminal device.

[0062] In some exemplary embodiments, the inaccuracy notification may be transmitted via an early data transmission procedure or a small data transmission procedure.

[0063] In some exemplary embodiments, the computer-readable medium may further include instructions that, when executed by the terminal device, cause the terminal device to remain in a radio resource control idle state or a radio resource control inactive state if the predicted coverage window is determined to be accurate.

[0064] In some demonstrative embodiments, the computer-readable medium may include instructions that, when executed by the terminal device, further cause the terminal device to send another request to the network equipment for an updated predicted coverage window when at least one of observing a change in the location of the terminal device or determining that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate.

[0065] In an eighth aspect, a computer-readable medium is disclosed, the computer-readable medium including program instructions that, when executed by a network device, cause the network device to at least determine, for a terminal device, a predicted coverage window and measurement information related to the predicted coverage window, and transmit information regarding the predicted coverage window and the measurement information related to the predicted coverage window to the terminal device, the measurement information including one or more expected measurements for the terminal device to determine whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate.

[0066] In some demonstrative embodiments, the computer-readable medium may further include instructions that, when executed by the network equipment, may cause the network equipment to receive a request from the terminal equipment for a predicted coverage window, the request including at least one of the number of at least one satellite serving the terminal equipment, the number of one or more satellites serving the terminal equipment before the predicted coverage window starts, the period covered by the predicted coverage window, the period when the predicted coverage window starts, the timing when the predicted coverage window starts, or the communication pattern of the terminal equipment.

[0067] In some exemplary embodiments, the predicted coverage window may be determined based on at least one of satellite movement information, satellite coverage information, current location information of the terminal equipment, information regarding the current serving cell of the terminal equipment, a mapped cell identifier of the current serving cell of the terminal equipment, a movement schedule of the terminal equipment, or information regarding the communication pattern of the terminal equipment.

[0068] In some demonstrative embodiments, the measurement information may further include at least one of: one or more timings for performing the corresponding one or more expected measurements; one or more indices corresponding to the one or more expected measurements; or at least one threshold for determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate.

[0069] In some exemplary embodiments, the one or more expected measurements may include at least one of: timing of a downlink signal; received power of a downlink signal; round trip time between the terminal equipment and a reference point; one-way delay between the terminal equipment and a reference point; start timing of a predicted coverage window; end timing of a predicted coverage window; or expected cell information.

[0070] In some demonstrative embodiments, the computer-readable medium may include instructions that, when executed by the network device, further cause the network device to determine an updated predicted coverage window for the terminal device when at least one of detecting that the terminal device performs a tracking area update or receiving an inaccuracy notification from the terminal device indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate.

[0071] In some exemplary embodiments, the inaccuracy notification may include at least one of: a flag indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate; a difference between a value of at least one measurement performed by the terminal device and a corresponding at least one expected measurement in the measurement information; a value of at least one measurement performed by the terminal device; a timing of at least one measurement performed by the terminal device; an index corresponding to at least one measurement performed by the terminal device; information of the serving cell of the terminal device; or current location information of the terminal device.

[0072] Other features and advantages of the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will become apparent from the following description of specific embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which illustrate, by way of example, the principles of exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0073] Some illustrative embodiments will now be described, by way of non-limiting examples, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: [Figure 1] FIG. 1 illustrates an example sequence diagram for coverage window prediction according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 illustrates an example flow for coverage window prediction from a UE perspective, in accordance with an example embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an example method 300 for coverage window prediction according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an example method 400 for coverage window prediction according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating an example device 500 for coverage window prediction according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating an example device 600 for coverage window prediction according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating an example device 700 for coverage window prediction according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 8] 8 is a block diagram illustrating an example device 800 for coverage window prediction according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure. Throughout the drawings, the same or similar reference numerals refer to the same or similar elements. Repetitive description of the same elements will be omitted. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0074] In the following, several exemplary embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The following description includes specific details for the purpose of providing a thorough understanding of various concepts. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that these concepts can be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well-known circuits, techniques, and components are shown in block diagram form to avoid obscuring the described concepts and features.

[0075] The exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure provide a solution for providing a common understanding of coverage windows between the UE side and the network side in an NTN. According to the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, the network can perform coverage window prediction and share the predicted coverage window with the UE. Furthermore, if the coverage window predicted by the network is inaccurate, the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure provide a mechanism to handle this scenario.

[0076] 1 shows an example sequence diagram for coverage window prediction according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure. Referring to FIG. 1, UE 110 may represent any terminal equipment, such as an NB-IoT device or an eMTC device. Network equipment 150 may represent a mobility management function in an NTN, such as an Access and Mobility Function (AMF) and / or a Mobility Management Entity (MME) in a CN.

[0077] Either UE 110 or network equipment 150 may initiate a coverage window prediction procedure for UE 110. Optionally, referring to FIG. 1 , UE 110 may send a predicted coverage window request 112 to network equipment 150. In response to request 112, in operation 152, network equipment 150 may determine a predicted coverage window 158 for UE 110 and measurement information 160 related to the predicted coverage window 158.

[0078] In one embodiment, the request 112 may include at least one of the number of at least one satellite serving the UE 110, the number of one or more satellites serving the UE 110 before the predicted coverage window begins, the period covered by the predicted coverage window, the period when the predicted coverage window begins, the timing when the predicted coverage window begins, or the communication pattern of the UE 110.

[0079] The number of at least one satellite serving UE 110 may indicate that UE 110 suggests a next certain number, e.g., M, of satellites to be covered by predicted coverage window 158. For example, assuming SIB32 provides information for four satellites, M may be 8 if UE 110 suggests that predicted coverage window 158 covers the period of receiving the next two SIB32s.

[0080] The number of satellites or satellites serving UE 110 before the predicted coverage window begins may indicate to UE 110 that predicted coverage window 158 may cover a period after the next number, e.g., N, of satellites. For example, assuming SIB32 provides information for four satellites, N may be 12 if UE 110 needs to be paged after the period in which it receives the next three SIB32s.

[0081] Alternatively, request 112 may indicate that UE 110 proposes a certain number, e.g., M, of satellites after a certain number, e.g., N, of satellites covered by predicted coverage window 158. For example, if UE 110 suggests that predicted coverage window 158 covers four satellites after the next eight satellites, M may be four and N may be eight.

[0082] The period covered by the predicted coverage window may indicate that UE 110 indicates the next particular period, e.g., P hours, to be covered by predicted coverage window 158. For example, if UE 110 indicates that predicted coverage window 158 covers the next four hours, period P may be four.

[0083] The period at which the predicted coverage window starts may indicate to UE 110 that predicted coverage window 158 covers a period of time in the next, e.g., Q hours. For example, if UE 110 needs to be paged in 12 hours, then period Q may be 12.

[0084] The timing at which the predicted coverage window begins may indicate to UE 110 that the predicted coverage window 158 is likely to cover a particular time, e.g., a period from 9:30 Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) onward. For example, if UE 110 needs to be paged from 9:30 onward, the time may be 9:30 UTC.

[0085] Alternatively, request 112 may indicate that UE 110 proposes a period that starts after the period covered by predicted coverage window 158. For example, if UE 110 suggests that predicted coverage window 158 may cover a four-hour future period starting eight hours from now, period P may be four and period Q may be eight.

[0086] Alternatively, the request 112 may indicate that the UE 110 is proposing a period starting from a timing to be covered by the predicted coverage window 158. For example, if the UE 110 is proposing that the predicted coverage window 158 may cover a future duration of four hours starting from a timing of 9:30, the duration P may be 4 and the timing may be 9:30.

[0087] Alternatively, request 112 may indicate a communication pattern for UE 110 that suggests when and / or for how long UE 110 will request coverage. For example, if UE 110 indicates a communication pattern of transmitting and receiving between 15:00 and 16:00, then predicted coverage window 158 need only cover the time period between 15:00 and 16:00. It should be appreciated that the above alternatives may be combined to indicate a future coverage window.

[0088] Upon receiving the request 112, in operation 152, the network device 150 may take the request 112 into account when determining a predicted coverage window 158 for the UE 110. Alternatively, in one embodiment, the network device 150 may perform operation 152 without the request 112 and / or without taking the request 112 into account.

[0089] In one embodiment, in operation 152, the network device 150 may determine a predicted coverage window 158 and / or measurement information 160 based on the positioning information 114 of the UE 110. In one embodiment, the UE 110 may transmit its positioning information 114 to the network device 150.

[0090] In one embodiment, the positioning information 114 may include current positioning information of the UE 110, such as current location information of the UE 110, information about the UE 110's current serving cell, and / or a mapped cell identifier (ID) of the UE 110's current serving cell. The current location information may be a relatively precise location of the UE 110, such as a relatively precise longitude, latitude, etc. The information about the UE 110's current serving cell may be, for example, an ID of the current serving cell (e.g., an ID of a satellite Uu cell), from which the network equipment 150 can obtain an approximate location of the UE 110. From the mapped cell ID of the UE 110's current serving cell, the network equipment 150 can obtain an approximate location of the UE 110 that is less accurate than the approximate location obtained from the current serving cell ID when the geographical area corresponding to the mapped cell ID is larger than the satellite beam coverage (or the satellite Uu cell). In other examples where the geographical area corresponding to the mapped cell ID is smaller than the satellite beam coverage (or satellite Uu cell), the network equipment 150 can obtain a better location of the UE 110 that is more accurate than the approximate location obtained from the current serving cell ID.

[0091] Alternatively or additionally, the positioning information 114 may include a travel itinerary of the UE 110, which is future positioning information of the UE 110. For example, the travel itinerary may include a future location of the UE 110 and a corresponding timing when the UE 110 will be at the future location, and the travel itinerary may be in the form of a matrix, a table, or the like.

[0092] The positioning information 114 described above may be provided by the UE 110, or alternatively or additionally, in one embodiment, the network device 150 may perform positioning for the UE 110 and itself obtain the positioning information 114. Alternatively or additionally, in an exemplary embodiment, the network device 150 may obtain the positioning information 114 from another network function in the NTN, for example, a Location Management Function (LMF).

[0093] Alternatively or additionally, in one embodiment, in operation 152, the network device 150 may determine the predicted coverage window 158 and / or the measurement information 160 based on satellite movement information and / or satellite coverage information.

[0094] Alternatively or additionally, in one embodiment, in operation 152, network equipment 150 may determine predicted coverage window 158 and / or measurement information 160 based on information regarding a communication pattern of UE 110. The information regarding the communication pattern may be, for example, behavior of UE 110 observed by network equipment 150. Alternatively or additionally, the information regarding the communication pattern may be, for example, pre-provided expected UE operation parameters of UE 110, such as expected UE operation parameters described in 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP®) Technical Specification (TS) 23.502, including parameters such as cycle time, planned communication time, etc.

[0095] After operation 152, network equipment 150 may transmit information 156 regarding predicted coverage window 158 and measurement information 160 related to predicted coverage window 158 to UE 110. Information 156 may include, for example, a period covered by predicted coverage window 158, a starting period when predicted coverage window 158 begins, satellite(s) serving UE 110 covered by predicted coverage window 158, and / or satellite(s) serving UE 110 before predicted coverage window 158 begins, etc. The predicted coverage window 158 is described as an example, and network equipment 150 may determine multiple non-contiguous predicted coverage windows for UE 110 and transmit information of the multiple non-contiguous predicted coverage windows and corresponding measurement information to UE 110. In this case, predicted coverage window 158 may represent any of the multiple non-contiguous predicted coverage windows.

[0096] The measurement information 160 may include one or more expected measurement values ​​for the terminal equipment to determine whether the predicted coverage window 158 is accurate or inaccurate. Upon receiving the information 156 regarding the predicted coverage window 158 and the measurement information 160 related to the predicted coverage window 158 from the network equipment 150, the UE 110 may perform at least one measurement according to the predicted coverage window 158 and the measurement information 160 in operation 116. It should be noted that because physical entities related to the UE 110 and / or the network equipment 150 may be moving, the physical entities of the network equipment 150 at the time the UE 110 performs the at least one measurement may likely be different from the physical entities of the network equipment 150 at the time the UE 110 receives the information 156 on the predicted coverage window 158 and the measurement information 160. The network equipment 150 may be understood as a logical network equipment serving the UE 110 for coverage window prediction. The at least one measurement may be performed shortly before, shortly after, or during the predicted coverage window 158.

[0097] In one embodiment, the measurement information 160 may further include at least one of one or more timings for performing the corresponding one or more expected measurements, one or more indexes corresponding to the one or more expected measurements, or at least one threshold for determining whether the predicted coverage window 158 is accurate or inaccurate.

[0098] In one embodiment, the one or more expected measurements may include at least one of the following: timing of a downlink signal, received power of a downlink signal (or signal strength of a downlink signal), round trip time (RTT) between the UE 110 and a reference point, one-way delay between the UE 110 and a reference point, start timing of a predicted coverage window 158, end timing of a predicted coverage window 158, or information of a predicted cell. The reference point may be a predicted satellite, a base station (BS), or a point defined in a 3GPP specification.

[0099] Assuming that predicted coverage window 158 is a future duration from 10:00 AM to 10:10 AM, measurement information 160 may include, for example, 10:02 for performing RTT measurements and corresponding expected measurements, 10:04 for performing received power measurements of downlink signals and corresponding expected measurements, and 10:06 for performing coverage window estimation, where the corresponding expected measurements are a start timing of 10:00 and an end timing of 10:10 for predicted coverage window 158. UE 110 may perform coverage window estimation based on satellite assistance information including, for example, ephemeris, start times of Earth-fixed cells, etc., and / or coverage information from, for example, SIB31 and / or SIB32.

[0100] The at least one threshold may be used to compare a difference between a value of the at least one actually performed measurement and a corresponding expected measurement. Alternatively or additionally, the at least one threshold or a portion of the at least one threshold may be determined by the UE 110. The expected cell information may be, for example, a cell ID of 1001 for the satellite at 10:08.

[0101] One or more expected measurements in measurement information 160 may further have one or more indexes associated with them, for example, an expected measurement at 10:02 has index 1, an expected measurement at 10:04 has index 2, and so on.

[0102] Next, in operation 118, UE 110 may determine whether predicted coverage window 158 is accurate or inaccurate based on the value of the performed at least one measurement and the corresponding at least one expected measurement from the one or more expected measurements. Optionally, UE 110 may refrain from performing some measurements expected in measurement information 160. For example, the RTT measurement at 10:02 and / or the serving cell information measurement at 10:08 may be omitted.

[0103] In operation 118, the UE 110 can determine that the predicted coverage window 158 is inaccurate if at least one of the following occurs: a difference between the value of the at least one performed measurement and the corresponding at least one expected measurement exceeds a corresponding threshold; or the information of the serving cell from the at least one performed measurement differs from the information of the expected cell.

[0104] For example, if the predicted end time of predicted coverage window 158 is 10:10 and the actual measurement indicates that the coverage window end time is 10:09, and the corresponding threshold is 20 seconds, UE 110 may determine that predicted coverage window 158 is inaccurate. Note that the 20 seconds threshold may be a value from measurement information 160, a value determined by UE 110, or a fixed value defined, for example, in 3GPP specifications.

[0105] Alternatively or additionally, for example, if the serving cell ID at 10:08 from the actually performed measurements is 1002, which differs from the expected cell ID 1001 at 10:08, the UE 110 can determine that the predicted coverage window 158 is inaccurate.

[0106] If the UE 110 determines in operation 118 that the predicted coverage window 158 is accurate ("Yes" in operation 118), then the UE 110 may remain in a radio resource control (RRC) idle state or an RRC inactive state in operation 120. The UE 110 may remain in the RRC idle state or an inactive state until the UE 110 needs to communicate with the network side and / or an updated coverage window prediction is required. Optionally, the UE 110 may notify the network equipment 150 that the predicted coverage window 158 is accurate.

[0107] If, at operation 118, UE 110 determines that predicted coverage window 158 is inaccurate ("No" at operation 118), UE 110 may send an inaccuracy notification 122 to network device 150 indicating that predicted coverage window 158 is inaccurate. Note that network device 150 may be understood as a logical network device that serves UE 110 for coverage window prediction. The physical entity of network device 150 at the time of receiving inaccuracy notification 122 may likely be different from the physical entity of network device 150 at the time of transmitting information 156 of predicted coverage window 158 and measurement information 160.

[0108] In one embodiment, the inaccuracy notification 122 may include at least one of the following: a flag indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate; a difference between a value of at least one performed measurement and a corresponding at least one expected measurement; a value of the at least one performed measurement; a timing of the at least one performed measurement; an index corresponding to the at least one performed measurement; information about the serving cell of the UE 110; or current location information of the UE 110. If the inaccuracy notification 122 includes an index of the performed measurement, e.g., index 2, the corresponding timing of the performed measurement, e.g., 10:04, may be omitted from the inaccuracy notification 122, and vice versa. Alternatively or additionally, if the inaccuracy notification 122 includes a value of the at least one performed measurement, the difference from the corresponding expected measurement may be omitted from the inaccuracy notification 122, and vice versa. Alternatively or additionally, if the UE 110 has not moved since receiving information 160 in the predicted coverage window 158, the current location information of the UE 110 may be omitted from the inaccuracy notification 122. Alternatively or additionally, if the serving cell is the expected cell, information of the serving cell of UE 110 may be omitted from inaccuracy notification 122. Alternatively, inaccuracy notification 122 may simply include a flag indicating that predicted coverage window 158 is inaccurate.

[0109] In one embodiment, the UE 110 may transmit the inaccuracy notification 122 via an early data transmission (EDT) procedure or a small data transmission (SDT) procedure, etc., so that the UE 110 can be released to an RRC idle state after transmitting the inaccuracy notification 122.

[0110] In one embodiment, UE 110 may send another request 124 for an updated predicted coverage window to network device 150 if it observes a change in UE 110's location. For example, if UE 110 observes that its location has changed, UE 110 may request an updated predicted coverage window from network device 150 and refrain from determining whether predicted coverage window 158 is accurate or inaccurate. Optionally, UE 110 may provide its latest location to network device 150 to improve coverage window prediction accuracy. In response to another request 124, network device 150 may determine an updated predicted coverage window for UE 110 in operation 162.

[0111] Alternatively or additionally, the UE 110 may send another request 124 for an updated predicted coverage window to the network equipment 150 if the predicted coverage window 158 is determined to be inaccurate in operation 118.

[0112] Alternatively or additionally, network device 150 may determine an updated predicted coverage window for UE 110 in operation 162 if it detects that UE 110 performs a tracking area update (TAU) and / or if it receives inaccuracy notification 122. For example, if inaccuracy notification 122 indicates that UE 110 accesses an unexpected cell, network device 150 may perform an updated coverage window prediction in operation 162.

[0113] 2 illustrates an example flow for coverage window prediction from the perspective of a UE, according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure. UE 110 may represent a UE, and network equipment 150 may function as a network according to the example flow. Details that have been described with respect to FIG. 1 will be briefly explained or omitted.

[0114] In operation 210, UE 110 may optionally request network device 150 to perform coverage window prediction. Alternatively or additionally, optionally, if UE 110 is aware of its movement schedule and / or communication pattern, UE 110 may provide its movement schedule and / or communication pattern to network device 150.

[0115] At operation 215, UE 110 may receive coverage window prediction information from network equipment 150, which may include, for example, information regarding the predicted coverage window and measurement information related to the predicted coverage window.

[0116] Next, in operation 220, UE 110 may monitor paging according to the predicted coverage window, for example, shortly before, shortly after, or during the predicted coverage window, and in operation 225, UE 110 may measure an accuracy metric for the coverage window, which may be at least one measurement value indicated by the measurement information received in operation 215.

[0117] For example, the predicted coverage window may be from 10:00 to 12:00, and the measurement information may include a coverage window accuracy metric related to the timing of the downlink signal. For example, the network equipment 150 may predict that the propagation delay of the downlink signal toward the UE 110 at a future timing T is X μs. For example, the expected measurements may indicate that at timing T1, e.g., 10:00, the propagation delay of the downlink signal is predicted to be 3000 μs, at timing T2, e.g., 11:00, the propagation delay of the downlink signal is predicted to be 3050 μs, and at timing T3, e.g., 12:00, the propagation delay of the downlink signal is predicted to be 3200 μs.

[0118] The downlink signal may be, for example, a synchronization signal block (SSB), which is a primary synchronization signal (PSS) and / or a secondary synchronization signal (SSS) for IoT, a signal information block (SIB) having UTC, a master information block (MIB) carrying a system frame number (SFN) or a dedicated time reference signal, or the like. The UE 110 can measure the propagation delay of the downlink signal. Propagation delay = receive timing - transmit timing. Taking an SSB as an example of a downlink signal, the UE 110 can obtain the transmit timing based on the SFN of the SSB and the receive timing based on a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) and / or other reference clock, e.g., a modem clock. Thus, at time T, the UE 110 can measure the actual propagation delay Y μs of the downlink signal and obtain the timing difference at time T by calculating the difference between the value Y μs of the performed measurement and the corresponding expected measurement X μs.

[0119] Next, in operation 230, UE 110 may determine whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate by comparing the difference between the value of the performed measurement and the corresponding expected measurement with a corresponding threshold, and if the difference exceeds the threshold, may determine that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate, which may be at least part of operation 118.

[0120] For example, the UE 110 may compare the difference between the value Yμs of the performed measurement and the corresponding expected measurement Xμs with a corresponding threshold, and if the difference exceeds the threshold, may determine that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate, which may be at least part of operation 118.

[0121] If the difference between the value of at least one performed measurement and the corresponding at least one expected measurement exceeds a corresponding threshold, this may include at least one of the following scenarios:

[0122] For example, scenarios could include comparing the timing difference between Y μs at time T1 and X μs at time T1 with a corresponding threshold, comparing the timing difference between Y μs at time T2 and X μs at time T2 with a corresponding threshold, and comparing the timing difference between Y μs at time T3 and X μs at time T3 with a corresponding threshold; if any of the timing differences exceed the corresponding threshold, the predicted coverage window can be considered inaccurate.

[0123] As a scenario, for example, the sum of the timing difference between Y μs at timing T1 and X μs at timing T1, the timing difference between Y μs at timing T2 and X μs at timing T2, and the timing difference between Y μs at timing T3 and X μs at timing T3 may be compared with corresponding thresholds, and if the sum of the timing differences exceeds the corresponding thresholds, the predicted coverage window may be deemed inaccurate.

[0124] In one scenario, for example, the average value of the timing difference between Y μs at timing T1 and X μs at timing T1, the timing difference between Y μs at timing T2 and X μs at timing T2, and the timing difference between Y μs at timing T3 and X μs at timing T3 is compared with a corresponding threshold, and if the average value of the timing difference exceeds the corresponding threshold, the predicted coverage window is considered to be inaccurate.

[0125] It should be understood that the comparison of the difference between the value of the at least one performed measurement, the corresponding at least one expected measurement, and the corresponding threshold value may be performed in other ways. For example, the expected measurement value may be an expected received power at a specific timing, and the UE 110 may compare the difference between the value of the at least one performed measurement of the received power at the specific timing and the corresponding threshold value.

[0126] If the coverage window accuracy metric does not exceed the threshold ("Yes" in operation 230), i.e., if the predicted coverage window is accurate, UE 110 may perform operation 220 to monitor for paging according to the predicted coverage window.

[0127] If the coverage window accuracy metric exceeds the threshold ("No" in operation 230), this means that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate, and in operation 235, UE 110 may report the predicted coverage window to network equipment 150 by, for example, sending an inaccuracy notification 122. UE 110 may then receive an updated predicted coverage window in operation 215.

[0128] According to exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, a UE can monitor paging for a specific satellite and / or duration without having to provide a coverage prediction to the network, potentially improving UE battery life. When the coverage window interval is shorter than the UE's communication interval, the UE's power budget can be optimized because the UE does not need to provide a new or updated coverage window every time a new satellite becomes available to provide coverage. Furthermore, compared to IoT UEs, the CN's network equipment has access to ephemeris information for many satellites, better algorithms / models, and more processing power to perform more accurate coverage window predictions. Furthermore, according to exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, the UE can detect coverage window prediction errors and help the network restore prediction accuracy, so the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure also provide a mechanism to address cases of coverage window prediction errors in the CN. Furthermore, according to exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, the UE can obtain UE-specific coverage window information, allowing the cell to reduce the amount of information broadcast in SIB32.

[0129] 3 is a flowchart illustrating an example method 300 for coverage window prediction according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure. The example method 300 may be performed by a terminal device, such as a UE 110, for example.

[0130] Referring to FIG. 3, an example method 300 may include an operation of receiving 310 information from a network device regarding a predicted coverage window and measurement information related to the predicted coverage window, where the measurement information includes one or more expected measurements; an operation of performing 320 at least one measurement according to the measurement information according to the predicted coverage window; and an operation of determining 330 whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate based on a value of the performed at least one measurement and a corresponding at least one expected measurement from the one or more expected measurements.

[0131] Details of operation 310 are as set forth above with respect to at least information 156, predicted coverage window 158, measurement information 160, and operation 215, and will not be repeated here.

[0132] Details of operation 320 are as described above with respect to at least operations 116 and 225, and will not be repeated here.

[0133] Details of operation 330 are as described above with respect to at least operations 118 and 230, and will not be repeated here.

[0134] In an exemplary embodiment, method 300 may further include an operation of transmitting a request for a predicted coverage window to network equipment, the request including at least one of the number of at least one satellite serving the terminal device, the number of one or more satellites serving the terminal device before the predicted coverage window begins, the period covered by the predicted coverage window, the period after the predicted coverage window begins, the timing after the predicted coverage window begins, or the communication pattern of the terminal device. A more detailed description is provided above with respect to at least request 112, and will not be repeated here.

[0135] In an exemplary embodiment, method 300 may further include transmitting, to the network equipment, positioning information of the terminal equipment, where the positioning information includes at least one of current location information of the terminal equipment, information about a current serving cell of the terminal equipment, a mapped cell identifier of the current serving cell of the terminal equipment, or a movement schedule of the terminal equipment. More detailed content has been described above with respect to at least positioning information 114, and therefore will not be repeated here.

[0136] In one embodiment, the measurement information may further include at least one of: one or more timings for performing the corresponding one or more expected measurements; one or more indexes corresponding to the one or more expected measurements; or at least one threshold for determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate. More details are provided above with respect to at least the measurement information 160, and will not be repeated here.

[0137] In one embodiment, the one or more expected measurements may include at least one of the following: a timing of a downlink signal, a received power of the downlink signal, a RRT between the terminal equipment and the reference point, a one-way delay between the terminal equipment and the reference point, a start timing of a predicted coverage window, an end timing of the predicted coverage window, or information of an expected cell. The predicted coverage window may be determined to be inaccurate if a difference between the value of the at least one performed measurement and the corresponding at least one expected measurement exceeds a corresponding threshold, or if the information of the serving cell from the at least one performed measurement differs from the information of an expected cell. More details are described above with respect to at least measurement information 160, operations 116 and 118, and operations 225 and 230, and will not be repeated here.

[0138] In an example embodiment, method 300 may further include, if the predicted coverage window is determined to be inaccurate, sending an inaccuracy notification to the network device indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate. At least inaccuracy notification 122 and operation 235 have been described in more detail above, and therefore will not be repeated here.

[0139] In one embodiment, the inaccuracy notification may include at least one of the following: a flag indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate, a difference between the value of the at least one performed measurement and the corresponding at least one expected measurement, the value of the at least one performed measurement, the timing of the at least one performed measurement, an index corresponding to the at least one performed measurement, information about the serving cell of the terminal device, or information about the current location of the terminal device, more details of which are described above with respect to at least the inaccuracy notification 122 and will not be repeated here.

[0140] In one embodiment, the inaccuracy notification may be sent via an early data transmission procedure or a small data transmission procedure.

[0141] In an example embodiment, method 300 may further include an operation of remaining in an RRC idle state or an RRC inactive state if the predicted coverage window is determined to be accurate, as described in more detail above with respect to at least operation 120 and will not be repeated here.

[0142] In an exemplary embodiment, method 300 may further include sending a further request for an updated predicted coverage window to the network device upon observing a change in the terminal device's location or upon determining that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate, as described in greater detail above with respect to at least the further request 124 and will not be repeated here.

[0143] 4 is a flowchart illustrating an example method 400 for coverage window prediction according to an example embodiment of the present disclosure. The example method 400 may be performed by a network device, such as network device 150, for example.

[0144] Referring to FIG. 4, an example method 400 may include an operation 410 of determining a predicted coverage window and measurement information related to the predicted coverage window for a terminal device, and an operation 420 of transmitting information regarding the predicted coverage window and the measurement information related to the predicted coverage window to the terminal device, the measurement information including one or more expected measurements for the terminal device to determine whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate.

[0145] Details of operation 410 are at least as described above with respect to operation 152 and will not be repeated here.

[0146] Details of operation 420 are described above with respect to at least information 156, predicted coverage window 158, and measurement information 160, and will not be repeated here.

[0147] In an exemplary embodiment, method 400 may further include receiving a request for a predicted coverage window from the terminal device, the request including at least one of the number of at least one satellite serving the terminal device, the number of one or more satellites serving the terminal device before the predicted coverage window begins, the time period covered by the predicted coverage window, the time period at which the predicted coverage window begins, the timing at which the predicted coverage window begins, or a communication pattern of the terminal device. A more detailed description is provided above with respect to at least request 112, and will not be repeated here.

[0148] In one embodiment, the predicted coverage window may be determined based on at least one of satellite movement information, satellite coverage information, current location information of the terminal device, information about the current serving cell of the terminal device, a mapped cell identifier of the current serving cell of the terminal device, a movement schedule of the terminal device, or information about the communication pattern of the terminal device. More details are described above with respect to at least operation 152, and will not be repeated here.

[0149] In one embodiment, the measurement information may further include at least one of: one or more timings for performing the corresponding one or more expected measurements; one or more indexes corresponding to the one or more expected measurements; or at least one threshold for determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate. More details are provided above with respect to at least the measurement information 160, and will not be repeated here.

[0150] In one embodiment, the one or more expected measurements may include at least one of: timing of a downlink signal, received power of a downlink signal, RRT between the terminal equipment and the reference point, one-way delay between the terminal equipment and the reference point, start timing of a predicted coverage window, end timing of a predicted coverage window, or expected cell information. A more detailed description has been provided above with respect to at least measurement information 160, operations 116 and 118, and operations 225 and 230, and therefore will not be repeated here.

[0151] In an example embodiment, method 400 may further include an operation of determining an updated predicted coverage window for the terminal device when the terminal device detects that the terminal device performs a tracking area update or when the method receives an inaccuracy notification from the terminal device indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate. A more detailed description of this is provided above with respect to at least operation 162, and therefore will not be repeated here.

[0152] In one embodiment, the inaccuracy notification may include at least one of the following: a flag indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate, a difference between a value of at least one measurement performed by the terminal device and a corresponding at least one expected measurement in the measurement information, a value of at least one measurement performed by the terminal device, a timing of at least one measurement performed by the terminal device, an index corresponding to at least one measurement performed by the terminal device, information of the serving cell of the terminal device, or current location information of the terminal device. More details are described above with respect to at least the inaccuracy notification 122, and will not be repeated here.

[0153] 5 is a block diagram illustrating an example device 500 for coverage window prediction in an example embodiment of the present disclosure. The device may be, for example, at least a part of a terminal device such as the UE 110 in this example.

[0154] 5, the example device 500 may include at least one processor 510 and at least one memory 520 that may store instructions 530. The instructions 530, when executed by the at least one processor 510, may cause the device 500 to perform at least the example method 300 described above.

[0155] In various exemplary embodiments, the at least one processor 510 in the exemplary device 500 may include, but is not limited to, at least one microprocessor, such as a central processing unit (CPU), at least one portion of a hardware processor, and any other suitable dedicated processor, such as those developed based on field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) and application specific integrated circuits (ASICs). Additionally, the at least one processor 510 may also include at least one other circuit or element not shown in FIG. 5.

[0156] In various exemplary embodiments, the at least one memory 520 in the exemplary device 500 may include at least one storage medium of various forms, such as transient and / or non-transitory memory. Transitory memory may include, for example, but is not limited to, random access memory (RAM), cache, etc. Non-transitory memory may include, for example, but is not limited to, read-only memory (ROM), hard disk, flash memory, etc. As used herein, the term "non-transitory" refers to the medium itself (i.e., tangible, not a signal), as opposed to the persistence of data storage (e.g., RAM versus ROM). Furthermore, at least memory 520 may include, but is not limited to, an electrical, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or any combination thereof.

[0157] Additionally, in various exemplary embodiments, exemplary device 500 may also include at least one other circuit, element, and interface, such as at least one I / O interface, at least one antenna element, and the like.

[0158] In various exemplary embodiments, the circuits, components, elements, and interfaces in exemplary device 500, including at least one processor 510 and at least one memory 520, may be connected in any suitable manner, such as electrically, magnetically, optically, electromagnetically, etc., via any suitable connection, including, but not limited to, a bus, a crossbar, wires, and / or wireless links.

[0159] It should be understood that the structure of the device on the UE 110 side is not limited to the example of device 500 above.

[0160] 6 is a block diagram illustrating an example device 600 for coverage window prediction in an example embodiment of the present disclosure. The device may be, for example, at least a part of a network device such as network device 150 in this example.

[0161] 6, the example device 600 may include at least one processor 610 and at least one memory 620 that may store instructions 630. The instructions 630, when executed by the at least one processor 610, may cause the device 600 to perform at least the example method 400 described above.

[0162] In various exemplary embodiments, the at least one processor 610 in the exemplary device 600 may include, but is not limited to, at least one microprocessor, such as a central processing unit (CPU), at least one portion of a hardware processor, and any other suitable dedicated processor, such as those developed based on field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) and application specific integrated circuits (ASICs). Additionally, the at least one processor 610 may also include at least one other circuit or element not shown in FIG.

[0163] In various exemplary embodiments, the at least one memory 620 in the exemplary device 600 may include at least one storage medium of various forms, such as transient memory and / or non-transitory memory. Transitory memory may include, for example, but is not limited to, random access memory (RAM), cache, etc. Non-transitory memory may include, for example, but is not limited to, read-only memory (ROM), hard disk, flash memory, etc. As used herein, the term "non-transitory" refers to the medium itself (i.e., tangible, not a signal), as opposed to the persistence of data storage (e.g., RAM versus ROM). Furthermore, at least memory 620 may include, but is not limited to, an electrical, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or any combination thereof.

[0164] Additionally, in various exemplary embodiments, exemplary device 600 may also include at least one other circuit, element, and interface, such as at least one I / O interface, at least one antenna element, and the like.

[0165] In various exemplary embodiments, the circuits, components, elements, and interfaces in exemplary device 600, including at least one processor 610 and at least one memory 620, may be coupled in any suitable manner, such as electrically, magnetically, optically, electromagnetically, etc., via any suitable connections, including, but not limited to, buses, crossbars, wires, and / or wireless links.

[0166] It should be understood that the structure of the network appliance 150 side device is not limited to the example of the device 600 described above.

[0167] 7 is a block diagram illustrating an example device 700 for coverage window prediction in an example embodiment of the present disclosure. The device may be at least a part of a terminal device, such as the UE 110 in this example.

[0168] 7, exemplary device 700 may include means 710 for performing operation 310 of exemplary method 300, means 720 for performing operation 320 of exemplary method 300, and means 730 for performing operation 330 of exemplary method 300. In one or more other exemplary embodiments, exemplary device 700 may also include at least one I / O interface, at least one antenna element, and the like.

[0169] In an exemplary embodiment, device 700 may further include means for transmitting a request for a predicted coverage window to the network equipment, the request including at least one of the number of at least one satellite serving the terminal equipment, the number of one or more satellites serving the terminal equipment before the predicted coverage window begins, the period covered by the predicted coverage window, the period after the predicted coverage window begins, the timing after the predicted coverage window begins, or the communication pattern of the terminal equipment.

[0170] In an exemplary embodiment, device 700 may further include means for transmitting positioning information of the terminal equipment to the network equipment, the positioning information including at least one of current location information of the terminal equipment, information on a current serving cell of the terminal equipment, a mapped cell identifier of the current serving cell of the terminal equipment, or a movement schedule of the terminal equipment.

[0171] In one embodiment, the measurement information may further include at least one of one or more timings for performing the corresponding one or more expected measurements, one or more indices corresponding to the one or more expected measurements, or at least one threshold for determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate.

[0172] In one embodiment, the one or more expected measurements may include at least one of the following: a timing of a downlink signal, a received power of a downlink signal, an RRT between the terminal equipment and the reference point, a one-way delay between the terminal equipment and the reference point, a start timing of a predicted coverage window, an end timing of a predicted coverage window, or information of an expected cell; and the predicted coverage window may be determined to be inaccurate in at least one of the following cases: a difference between the value of the at least one performed measurement and the corresponding at least one expected measurement exceeds a corresponding threshold; or the information of the serving cell from the at least one performed measurement differs from the information of an expected cell.

[0173] In an exemplary embodiment, device 700 may further include means for, if the predicted coverage window is determined to be inaccurate, sending an inaccuracy notification to the network equipment indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate.

[0174] In one embodiment, the inaccuracy notification may include at least one of a flag indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate, a difference between the value of the at least one measurement performed and the corresponding at least one expected measurement, the value of the at least one measurement performed, the timing of the at least one measurement performed, an index corresponding to the at least one measurement performed, information of the terminal equipment's serving cell, or current location information of the terminal equipment.

[0175] In one embodiment, the inaccuracy notification may be sent via an early data transmission procedure or a small data transmission procedure.

[0176] In an example embodiment, the device 700 may further include means for remaining in an RRC idle state or an RRC inactive state if the predicted coverage window is determined to be accurate.

[0177] In an exemplary embodiment, device 700 may further include means for sending another request for an updated predicted coverage window to the network equipment upon at least one of observing a change in the location of the terminal equipment or determining that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate.

[0178] In some exemplary embodiments, examples of the means in exemplary device 700 may include circuits. For example, an example of means 710 may include a circuit configured to perform operation 310 of exemplary method 300, an example of means 720 may include a circuit configured to perform operation 320 of exemplary method 300, and an example of means 730 may include a circuit configured to perform operation 330 of exemplary method 300.

[0179] The exemplary device 700 may further include means including circuitry configured to perform the exemplary method 300. In some exemplary embodiments, examples of means may also include software modules and any other suitable functional entities.

[0180] 8 is a block diagram illustrating an example device 800 for coverage window prediction in an example embodiment of the present disclosure. The device may be at least a part of a network device, such as, for example, network device 150 in this example.

[0181] 8, exemplary device 800 may include means 810 for performing operations 410 of exemplary method 400 and means 820 for performing operations 420 of exemplary method 400. In one or more other exemplary embodiments, exemplary device 800 may also include at least one I / O interface, at least one antenna element, etc.

[0182] In an exemplary embodiment, device 800 may further include means for receiving a request for a predicted coverage window from a terminal device, the request including at least one of the number of at least one satellite serving the terminal device, the number of one or more satellites serving the terminal device before the predicted coverage window starts, the period covered by the predicted coverage window, the period when the predicted coverage window starts, the timing when the predicted coverage window starts, or the communication pattern of the terminal device.

[0183] In one embodiment, the predicted coverage window may be determined based on at least one of satellite movement information, satellite coverage information, current location information of the terminal equipment, information on the current serving cell of the terminal equipment, a mapped cell identifier of the current serving cell of the terminal equipment, a movement schedule of the terminal equipment, or information on the communication pattern of the terminal equipment.

[0184] In one embodiment, the measurement information may further include at least one of: one or more timings for performing the corresponding one or more expected measurements; one or more indexes corresponding to the one or more expected measurements; or at least one threshold for determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate.

[0185] In one embodiment, the one or more expected measurements may include at least one of the following: timing of a downlink signal, received power of a downlink signal, RRT between the terminal equipment and the reference point, one-way delay between the terminal equipment and the reference point, start timing of a predicted coverage window, end timing of a predicted coverage window, or expected cell information.

[0186] In an exemplary embodiment, device 800 may further include means for determining an updated predicted coverage window for the terminal device when it detects that the terminal device performs a tracking area update or when it receives an inaccuracy notification from the terminal device indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate.

[0187] In one embodiment, the inaccuracy notification may include at least one of a flag indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate, a difference between the value of at least one measurement performed by the terminal equipment and the corresponding at least one expected measurement in the measurement information, the value of at least one measurement performed by the terminal equipment, the timing of at least one measurement performed by the terminal equipment, an index corresponding to at least one measurement performed by the terminal equipment, information of the serving cell of the terminal equipment, or current location information of the terminal equipment.

[0188] In some exemplary embodiments, examples of means in exemplary device 800 may include circuits. For example, an example of means 810 may include a circuit configured to perform operation 410 of exemplary method 400, and an example of means 820 may include a circuit configured to perform operation 420 of exemplary method 400.

[0189] The exemplary device 800 may further include means including circuitry configured to perform the exemplary method 400. In some exemplary embodiments, examples of means may also include software modules and any other suitable functional entities.

[0190] An exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure also provides a computer-readable medium including program instructions that, when executed by a terminal device such as UE 110 in this example, can cause the terminal device to at least receive from a network device a predicted coverage window and measurement information related to the predicted coverage window, where the measurement information includes one or more expected measurements; perform at least one measurement according to the measurement information according to the predicted coverage window; and determine whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate based on a value of the performed at least one measurement and a corresponding at least one expected measurement from the one or more expected measurements.

[0191] In one embodiment, the computer-readable medium may further include instructions that, when executed by the terminal equipment, may cause the terminal equipment to send a request for a predicted coverage window to the network equipment, the request including at least one of the number of at least one satellite serving the terminal equipment, the number of one or more satellites serving the terminal equipment before the predicted coverage window starts, the period covered by the predicted coverage window, the period when the predicted coverage window starts, the timing when the predicted coverage window starts, or the communication pattern of the terminal equipment.

[0192] In one embodiment, the computer-readable medium may include instructions that, when executed by the terminal equipment, may further cause the terminal equipment to transmit positioning information of the terminal equipment to the network equipment, the positioning information including at least one of current location information of the terminal equipment, information about a current serving cell of the terminal equipment, a mapped cell identifier of the current serving cell of the terminal equipment, or a movement schedule of the terminal equipment.

[0193] In one embodiment, the measurement information may further include at least one of: one or more timings for performing the corresponding one or more expected measurements; one or more indexes corresponding to the one or more expected measurements; or at least one threshold for determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate.

[0194] In one embodiment, the one or more expected measurements include at least one of the following: a timing of a downlink signal, a received power of the downlink signal, an RRT between the terminal equipment and the reference point, a one-way delay between the terminal equipment and the reference point, a start timing of a predicted coverage window, an end timing of a predicted coverage window, or information of an expected cell; and the predicted coverage window can be determined to be inaccurate when at least one of the following cases occurs: a difference between the value of the at least one performed measurement and the corresponding at least one expected measurement exceeds a corresponding threshold; or the information of the serving cell from the at least one performed measurement differs from the information of an expected cell.

[0195] In one embodiment, the computer-readable medium may include instructions that, when executed by the terminal device, further cause the terminal device to, if the predicted coverage window is determined to be inaccurate, send an inaccuracy notification to the network device indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate.

[0196] In one embodiment, the inaccuracy notification may include at least one of a flag indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate, a difference between the value of the at least one measurement performed and the corresponding at least one expected measurement, the value of the at least one measurement performed, the timing of the at least one measurement performed, an index corresponding to the at least one measurement performed, information of the terminal device's serving cell, or current location information of the terminal device.

[0197] In one embodiment, the inaccuracy notification may be sent via an early data transmission procedure or a small data transmission procedure.

[0198] In one embodiment, the computer-readable medium may further include instructions that, when executed by the terminal device, cause the terminal device to remain in an RRC idle state or an RRC inactive state if the predicted coverage window is determined to be accurate.

[0199] In one embodiment, the computer-readable medium may include instructions that, when executed by the terminal device, further cause the terminal device to send another request to the network device for an updated predicted coverage window if the terminal device observes a change in the location of the terminal device or if the terminal device determines that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate.

[0200] An exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure also provides a computer-readable medium including program instructions that, when executed by a network device such as network device 150 in this example above, can cause the network device to at least determine, for a terminal device, a predicted coverage window and measurement information related to the predicted coverage window, and transmit information regarding the predicted coverage window and the measurement information related to the predicted coverage window to the terminal device, the measurement information including one or more expected measurements for the terminal device to determine whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate.

[0201] In one embodiment, the computer-readable medium may further include instructions that, when executed by the network equipment, may cause the network equipment to receive a request from the terminal equipment for a predicted coverage window, the request including at least one of the number of at least one satellite serving the terminal equipment, the number of one or more satellites serving the terminal equipment before the predicted coverage window begins, the period covered by the predicted coverage window, the period when the predicted coverage window begins, the timing when the predicted coverage window begins, or the communication pattern of the terminal equipment.

[0202] In one embodiment, the predicted coverage window may be determined based on at least one of satellite movement information, satellite coverage information, current location information of the terminal equipment, information regarding the current serving cell of the terminal equipment, a mapped cell identifier of the current serving cell of the terminal equipment, a movement schedule of the terminal equipment, or information regarding the communication pattern of the terminal equipment.

[0203] In one embodiment, the measurement information may further include at least one of: one or more timings for performing the corresponding one or more expected measurements; one or more indexes corresponding to the one or more expected measurements; or at least one threshold for determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate.

[0204] In one embodiment, the one or more expected measurements may include at least one of the following: timing of a downlink signal, received power of a downlink signal, RRT between the terminal equipment and the reference point, one-way delay between the terminal equipment and the reference point, start timing of a predicted coverage window, end timing of a predicted coverage window, or expected cell information.

[0205] In one embodiment, the computer-readable medium may further include instructions that, when executed by the network device, cause the network device to determine an updated predicted coverage window for the terminal device when at least one of detecting that the terminal device performs a tracking area update or receiving an inaccuracy notification from the terminal device indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate.

[0206] In one embodiment, the inaccuracy notification may include at least one of a flag indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate, a difference between the value of at least one measurement performed by the terminal equipment and the corresponding at least one expected measurement in the measurement information, the value of at least one measurement performed by the terminal equipment, the timing of at least one measurement performed by the terminal equipment, an index corresponding to at least one measurement performed by the terminal equipment, information of the serving cell of the terminal equipment, or current location information of the terminal equipment.

[0207] As used herein, the terms "at least one of: ", "at least one of ", and similar expressions where a list of two or more elements is joined by "and" or "or" mean at least any one of the elements, or at least any two or more of the elements, or at least all of the elements.

[0208] The term "terminal equipment" refers to any end device capable of wireless communication. By way of example and not limitation, terminal equipment may also be referred to as communication equipment, user equipment (UE), subscriber station (SS), mobile subscriber station, mobile station (MS), or access terminal (AT). Terminal equipment includes, but is not limited to, mobile phones, cellular phones, smartphones, voice over IP (VoIP) phones, wireless local loop phones, tablets, wearable terminal equipment, personal digital assistants (PDAs), portable computers, desktop computers, image capture terminal equipment such as digital cameras, gaming terminal equipment, music storage and playback appliances, in-vehicle wireless terminal equipment, wireless endpoints, mobile stations, laptop embedded equipment (LEE), laptop mounted equipment (LME), USB dongles, smart devices, wireless customer premises equipment (CPE), Internet of Things (IoT) devices, wearables such as watches, head-mounted displays (HMD), vehicles, drones, medical devices and applications (e.g., remote surgery), industrial devices and applications (e.g., robots and / or other wireless devices operating in the context of industrial and / or automated processing chains), consumer electronics devices, devices operating in commercial and / or industrial wireless networks, etc. Terminal equipment may also correspond to the mobile termination (MT) portion of an IAB node (e.g., a relay node). In the above description, the terms "terminal equipment", "communication equipment", "terminal", "user equipment" and "UE" can be used interchangeably.

[0209] Throughout this disclosure, the term "circuitry" may refer to one or more or all of the following: (a) a hardware-only circuit implementation (such as an implementation in only analog and / or digital circuitry), (b) a combination of hardware circuitry and software, such as (where applicable): (i) a combination of analog and / or digital hardware circuitry(s) and software / firmware, (ii) any portion of hardware processor(s) and software (including digital signal processor(s)), software, and memory(s) that cooperate to cause a device such as a cell phone or server to perform various functions, and (c) a hardware circuit(s) and processor(s) (e.g., firmware) that require software, such as a microprocessor or portion of a microprocessor, but may not be present if software is not necessary for operation. This definition of circuitry applies to any or all uses of the term in this disclosure, including the claims. As a further example, as used in this disclosure, the term circuitry covers merely a hardware circuitry or processor (or processors) or portion of a hardware circuitry or processor and its (or their) accompanying software and / or firmware implementations. The term circuitry also covers, for example, and where applicable to claim elements, a baseband or processor integrated circuit for a mobile device, or a similar integrated circuit in a server, cellular network equipment, or other computing or network equipment.

[0210] Other exemplary embodiments may relate to computer program code or instructions that can cause an apparatus to perform at least each of the methods described above. Other exemplary embodiments may relate to a computer-readable medium having such computer program code or instructions stored thereon. In some embodiments, such a computer-readable medium may include at least one storage medium of various forms, such as volatile memory and / or non-volatile memory. Volatile memory may include, but is not limited to, RAM, cache, etc. Non-volatile memory may include, but is not limited to, ROM, hard disk, flash memory, etc. Additionally, non-volatile memory may include, but is not limited to, electrical, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor systems, apparatus, devices, or any combination thereof.

[0211] Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, throughout this specification and claims, words such as "comprise," "comprising," and the like, should be construed in an inclusive sense, as opposed to an exclusive or exhaustive sense. The term "connected," as generally used herein, refers to two or more elements that are either directly connected or connected via one or more intermediate elements. Similarly, the term "linked," as generally used herein, refers to two or more elements that are either directly connected or connected via one or more intermediate elements. Furthermore, the terms "herein," "above," "below," and similar words, when used in this application, refer to this specification as a whole and not to any particular portions of this application. Where the context permits, words using the singular or plural number herein can also include the plural or singular number, respectively. The word "or" in reference to a list of two or more items covers all interpretations of this word: any of the items in the list, all of the items in the list, and any combination of the items in the list.

[0212] Furthermore, conditional language used in the examples, particularly "can," "could," "might," "may," "e.g., "for example," "such as," and the like, is intended to generally convey that certain embodiments include certain features, elements, and / or conditions, and that other embodiments do not include certain features, elements, and / or conditions, unless otherwise specified or understood within the context in which it is used. Thus, such conditional language is not intended to generally imply that features, elements, and / or conditions are in any way required by one or more embodiments, or that one or more embodiments necessarily include logic for determining, with or without author input or prompting, whether these features, elements, and / or conditions are included in or implemented in any particular embodiment.

[0213] In this example, the term "determine / determining" (and grammatical variations thereof) can include at least calculating, computing, processing, deriving, measuring, investigating, examining (e.g., looking up in a table, database, or other data structure), ascertaining, etc. Also, "determining" can include receiving (e.g., receiving information), accessing (e.g., accessing data in memory), obtaining, etc. Also, "determining / determining" can include resolving, selecting, choosing, determining, etc.

[0214] Although several embodiments have been described, these embodiments are presented as exemplary embodiments and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. Indeed, the apparatus, methods, and systems described herein may be embodied in a variety of other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications to the forms of the methods and systems described herein may be made without departing from the spirit of the present disclosure. For example, while blocks are shown in a given arrangement, alternative embodiments may perform similar functions with different components and / or circuit topologies, and some blocks may be deleted, moved, added, subdivided, combined, and / or modified. At least one of these blocks may be implemented in a variety of different ways. The order of these blocks may also be changed. Any suitable combination of elements and operations of the various embodiments described above may be combined to provide further embodiments. The accompanying claims and their equivalents are intended to cover such forms or modifications as fall within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.

[0215] The definitions of abbreviations used in the specification and / or figures are as follows: 3GPP (registered trademark) 3rd Generation Partnership Project AMF Access & Mobility Features BS base station CN Core Network DL Downlink EDT Early Data Transmission eMTC Enhanced Machine Type Communication GNSS Global Navigation Satellite System ID Identifier IoT Internet of Things LMF location management function MIB Master Information Block MME Mobility Management Entity NB-IoT Narrowband Internet of Things NTN terrestrial network PSS primary synchronization signal RRC Radio Resource Control RTT Round Trip Time SDT Small Data Transmission SFN System Frame Number SIB System Information Block SSB sync signal block SSS secondary synchronization signal TAU Tracking Area Update TS Technical Specifications UE User Equipment UL Uplink UTC Coordinated Universal Time

Claims

1. A terminal device, at least one processor; When executed by the at least one processor, the method at least causes the terminal device to: receiving, from a network device, information regarding a predicted coverage window and measurement information related to the predicted coverage window, the measurement information including one or more expected measurements; performing at least one measurement according to the predicted coverage window and according to the measurement information; determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate based on a value of the at least one measurement performed and a corresponding at least one expected measurement value from the one or more expected measurements; at least one memory that stores instructions to be executed; A terminal device comprising:

2. The instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the terminal device to: sending a request for the predicted coverage window to the network device, the request comprising: the number of at least one satellite serving said terminal equipment; the number of satellites serving the terminal equipment before the predicted coverage window begins; the time period covered by the predicted coverage window; a period of time until the predicted coverage window begins; the timing at which the predicted coverage window begins; the communication pattern of the terminal device; transmitting, The terminal device according to claim 1 , wherein the terminal device executes the following steps:

3. The instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the terminal device to: The positioning information of the terminal device, current location information of the terminal device; Information about the terminal device's current serving cell; a mapped cell identifier of the terminal device's current serving cell, or the planned movement of said terminal equipment; Positioning information including at least one of: transmitting the information to the network device; The terminal device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the terminal device executes the following:

4. The measurement information is one or more timings for performing the corresponding one or more anticipated measurements; one or more indices corresponding to the one or more measurements expected; or at least one threshold for determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate; The terminal device according to claim 1 , further comprising at least one of:

5. The one or more expected measurements are: Downlink signal timing, the received power of the downlink signal, the round trip time between the terminal device and a reference point; the one-way delay between the terminal equipment and a reference point; the start timing of the predicted coverage window; the end timing of the predicted coverage window, or Expected cell information, and The predicted coverage window is if the difference between the value of the at least one performed measurement and the corresponding at least one expected measurement exceeds a corresponding threshold value; or if the serving cell information from the at least one performed measurement differs from the expected cell information, is determined to be incorrect in at least one of the following cases:

5. The terminal device according to claim 1.

6. The instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the terminal device to: if the predicted coverage window is determined to be inaccurate, sending an inaccuracy notification to the network device indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate; The terminal device according to claim 5, wherein the terminal device executes the following:

7. The inaccurate notice is: a flag indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate; a difference between the value of said at least one performed measurement and said corresponding at least one expected measurement; the value of the at least one measurement performed, the timing of the at least one measurement performed; the index corresponding to the at least one measurement performed; The information of the serving cell of the terminal device; current location information of the terminal device; The terminal device according to claim 6, comprising at least one of:

8. The terminal device according to claim 6 or 7, wherein the inaccuracy notification is transmitted via an early data transmission procedure or a small data transmission procedure.

9. The instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the terminal device to: if the predicted coverage window is determined to be accurate, remaining in a radio resource control idle state or a radio resource control inactive state; The terminal device according to claim 1 , wherein the terminal device executes the following:

10. The instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the terminal device to: The network device, When observing a change in the position of the terminal device, If the predicted coverage window is determined to be inaccurate, sending another request for the updated predicted coverage window in at least one of the cases: The terminal device according to any one of claims 1 to 9, which causes the terminal device to execute

11. A network device at least one processor; When executed by the at least one processor, the network device: determining, for a terminal device, a predicted coverage window and measurement information related to the predicted coverage window; transmitting information about the predicted coverage window and the measurement information related to the predicted coverage window to the terminal device, the measurement information including one or more expected measurements for the terminal device to determine whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate; at least one memory storing instructions for executing the A network device comprising:

12. The instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the network device to: receiving a request for the predicted coverage window from the terminal device; Execute The request is the number of at least one satellite serving said terminal equipment; the number of satellites serving the terminal equipment before the predicted coverage window begins; the time period covered by the predicted coverage window; a period of time until the predicted coverage window begins; the timing at which the predicted coverage window begins; the communication pattern of the terminal device; at least one of: The network device according to claim 11.

13. The predicted coverage window is satellite movement information, satellite coverage information, current location information of the terminal device; Information about the terminal device's current serving cell; a mapped cell identifier of the current serving cell of the terminal device; The planned movement of the terminal equipment, or information about the communication patterns of the terminal device; The network device according to claim 11 or 12, wherein the determination is based on at least one of the following:

14. The measurement information is one or more timings for performing the corresponding one or more anticipated measurements; one or more indices corresponding to the one or more expected measurements; or at least one threshold for determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate; The network device according to claim 11 , further comprising at least one of:

15. The one or more expected measurements are: Downlink signal timing, the received power of the downlink signal, the round trip time between the terminal device and a reference point; the one-way delay between the terminal equipment and a reference point; the start timing of the predicted coverage window; the end timing of the predicted coverage window, or Expected cell information, 15. The network device according to claim 11, comprising at least one of:

16. The instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the network device to: For the terminal device, When the terminal device detects that it is updating its tracking area, or receiving an inaccuracy notification from the terminal device indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate; determining an updated predicted coverage window in at least one of the cases: The network device according to claim 11 , wherein the network device executes the following:

17. The inaccurate notice is: a flag indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate; a difference between the value of at least one measurement performed by the terminal device and a corresponding at least one expected measurement value in the measurement information; the value of said at least one measurement performed by said terminal equipment, the timing of the at least one measurement performed by the terminal equipment; an index corresponding to the at least one measurement performed by the terminal device; Information on the serving cell of the terminal device; current location information of the terminal device; 17. The network device of claim 16, comprising at least one of:

18. 1. A method performed by a terminal device, comprising: receiving, from a network device, information regarding a predicted coverage window and measurement information related to the predicted coverage window, the measurement information including one or more predicted measurements; performing at least one measurement according to the measurement information according to the predicted coverage window; determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate based on a value of the at least one performed measurement and a corresponding at least one expected measurement from the one or more expected measurements; A method comprising:

19. sending a request for the predicted coverage window to the network device; The request is the number of at least one satellite serving said terminal equipment; the number of satellites serving the terminal equipment before the predicted coverage window begins; the time period covered by the predicted coverage window; a period of time until the predicted coverage window begins; the timing at which the predicted coverage window begins; the communication pattern of the terminal device; at least one of: Receiving and 20. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

20. transmitting positioning information of the terminal device to the network device, The positioning information is current location information of the terminal device; Information about the terminal device's current serving cell; a mapped cell identifier of the current serving cell of the terminal equipment, or the planned movement of said terminal equipment; at least one of: Sending and 20. The method of claim 18 or 19, further comprising:

21. The measurement information one or more timings for performing the corresponding one or more anticipated measurements; one or more indices corresponding to the one or more expected measurements; or at least one threshold for determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate; 21. The method of claim 18, further comprising at least one of:

22. The one or more expected measurements may be: Downlink signal timing, the received power of the downlink signal, the round trip time between the terminal device and a reference point; the one-way delay between the terminal equipment and a reference point; the start timing of the predicted coverage window; the end timing of said predicted coverage window; or Expected cell information, and The predicted coverage window is if the difference between the value of the at least one performed measurement and the corresponding at least one expected measurement exceeds a corresponding threshold value; or if the information of the serving cell from the at least one measurement performed differs from the information of the expected cell; is determined to be incorrect in at least one of the following cases:

22. The method of any one of claims 18 to 21.

23. if the predicted coverage window is determined to be inaccurate, sending an inaccuracy notification to the network device indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate; 23. The method of claim 22, further comprising:

24. Inaccuracy notices are a flag indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate; a difference between the value of the at least one performed measurement and the corresponding at least one expected measurement; the value of the at least one measurement performed, the timing of the at least one measurement performed; the index corresponding to the at least one measurement performed; The information of the serving cell of the terminal device; current location information of the terminal device; 24. The method of claim 23, comprising at least one of:

25. 25. The method of claim 23 or 24, wherein the inaccuracy notification is transmitted via an early data transmission procedure or a small data transmission procedure.

26. if the predicted coverage window is determined to be accurate, remaining in a radio resource control idle state or a radio resource control inactive state; 26. The method of any of claims 18 to 25, further comprising:

27. The network device, Observing changes in the position of the terminal device; or determining that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate; sending another request for an updated predicted coverage window in at least one of the following cases:

27. The method of any of claims 18 to 26, further comprising:

28. 1. A method performed by a network device, comprising: determining, for a terminal device, a predicted coverage window and measurement information related to the predicted coverage window; transmitting information about the predicted coverage window and the measurement information related to the predicted coverage window to the terminal device, the measurement information including one or more expected measurements for the terminal device to determine whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate; A method comprising:

29. receiving a request for the predicted coverage window from the terminal device, The request is the number of at least one satellite serving said terminal equipment; the number of satellites serving the terminal equipment before the predicted coverage window begins; the time period covered by the predicted coverage window; a period of time until the predicted coverage window begins; the timing at which the predicted coverage window begins; the communication pattern of the terminal device; at least one of: Receiving and 30. The method of claim 28, further comprising:

30. The predicted coverage window is satellite movement information, satellite coverage information, current location information of the terminal device; Information about the terminal device's current serving cell; a mapped cell identifier of the current serving cell of the terminal device; The planned changes to the terminal equipment, or information about the communication patterns of the terminal device; 30. The method of claim 28 or 29, wherein the determination is based on at least one of:

31. The measurement information is one or more timings for performing the corresponding one or more anticipated measurements; one or more indices corresponding to the one or more expected measurements; or at least one threshold for determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate; 31. The method of any of claims 28 to 30, further comprising at least one of:

32. The one or more expected measurements are: Downlink signal timing, the received power of the downlink signal, the round trip time between the terminal device and a reference point; the one-way delay between the terminal equipment and a reference point; the start timing of the predicted coverage window; the end timing of the predicted coverage window, or Expected cell information, 32. The method of any of claims 28 to 31, comprising at least one of:

33. For the terminal device, When the terminal device detects that it is updating its tracking area, or receiving an inaccuracy notification from the terminal device indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate; determining an updated predicted coverage window in at least one of the following cases:

33. The method of any of claims 28 to 32, further comprising:

34. The inaccurate notice is: a flag indicating that the predicted coverage window is inaccurate; a difference between the value of at least one measurement performed by the terminal device and a corresponding at least one expected measurement value in the measurement information; the value of said at least one measurement performed by said terminal equipment, the timing of the at least one measurement performed by the terminal equipment; an index corresponding to the at least one measurement performed by the terminal device; Information on the serving cell of the terminal device; current location information of the terminal device; 34. The method of claim 33, comprising at least one of:

35. A device as a terminal device, means for receiving, from a network device, information regarding a predicted coverage window and measurement information related to said predicted coverage window, said measurement information including one or more expected measurements; means for performing at least one measurement according to the measurement information according to the predicted coverage window; means for determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate based on a value of the at least one performed measurement and a corresponding at least one expected measurement from the one or more expected measurements; An apparatus comprising:

36. 36. Apparatus according to claim 35, further comprising means for carrying out the method according to any of claims 19 to 27.

37. A device as a network device, means for determining a predicted coverage window and measurement information related to said predicted coverage window for a terminal device; means for transmitting to the terminal device information relating to the predicted coverage window and measurement information relating to the predicted coverage window, the measurement information including one or more expected measurements for the terminal device to determine whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate; and An apparatus comprising:

38. 38. Apparatus according to claim 37, further comprising means for carrying out the method according to any of claims 29 to 34.

39. When executed by a terminal device, the terminal device is configured to: receiving, from a network device, information regarding a predicted coverage window and measurement information related to the predicted coverage window, the measurement information including one or more expected measurements; performing at least one measurement according to the measurement information according to the predicted coverage window; determining whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate based on a value of the at least one performed measurement and a corresponding at least one expected measurement from the one or more expected measurements; 1. A computer-readable medium containing program instructions for executing:

40. 40. The computer readable medium of claim 39, further comprising instructions that, when executed by the terminal device, cause the terminal device to perform the method of any of claims 19 to 27.

41. When executed by a network device, the network device is configured to: determining, for a terminal device, a predicted coverage window and measurement information related to the predicted coverage window; transmitting to the terminal device information regarding the predicted coverage window and the measurement information related to the predicted coverage window, the measurement information including one or more expected measurements for the terminal device to determine whether the predicted coverage window is accurate or inaccurate; 2. A computer-readable medium containing program instructions for causing a computer to execute:

42. 42. The computer readable medium of claim 41, further comprising instructions that, when executed by the network device, cause the network device to perform the method of any of claims 29 to 34.

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