Method for setting polarization mode in non-terrestrial networks (NTN)

Abstract

Embodiments include methods for operating a network node in a non-terrestrial network (NTN) that utilizes one or more polarization modes to serve one or more cells. Such methods include transmitting, to one or more user equipments (UEs), an indication of at least one polarization mode configured for use in a first cell of the first NTN. The at least one polarization mode may be indicated in various manners, both explicitly and implicitly. Such methods also include transmitting and / or receiving one or more signals or channels in the first cell in accordance with the one or more configured polarization modes, including the at least one indicated polarization mode. Other embodiments include complementary methods for operating a UE, as well as a network node and a UE configured to implement such methods.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present application relates generally to the field of wireless communication networks, and more particularly to improved communications between User Equipment (UE) adapted to non-terrestrial network (NTN) scenarios and Long Term Evolution (LTE) or New Radio (NR) Radio Access Networks (RANs). [Background technology]

[0002] Currently, the fifth generation of cellular systems ("5G"), also called New Radio (NR), is being standardized within the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). NR is being developed for maximum flexibility to support many different use cases. These include mobile broadband, machine-type communications (MTC), very low latency critical communications (URLCC), sidelink device-to-device (D2D), and several other use cases. This disclosure generally relates to NR, however, the following description of previous generation technologies is provided for context since previous generation technologies share many features with NR.

[0003] Long Term Evolution (LTE), also known as Enhanced UTRAN (E-UTRAN), is an umbrella term for the so-called fourth-generation (4G) radio access technologies developed within the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) and initially standardized in Release 8 (Rel-8) and Release 9 (Rel-9). LTE targets various licensed frequency bands and is accompanied by improvements to non-radio aspects, commonly referred to as System Architecture Evolution (SAE), including the Evolved Packet Core (EPC) network. LTE continues to evolve through subsequent releases developed according to a standards-setting process involving 3GPP and its WGs and sub-working groups (e.g., RAN1, RAN2, etc.), including the Radio Access Network (RAN) Working Group (WG).

[0004] An overall example architecture of a network with LTE and SAE is shown in Figure 1. E-UTRAN 100 includes one or more evolved node Bs (eNBs), such as eNBs 105, 110, and 115, and one or more user equipments (UEs), such as UE 120. "User equipment" or "UE" as used within 3GPP standards means any wireless communication device (e.g., a smartphone or computing device) capable of communicating with 3GPP standards-compliant network equipment, including E-UTRAN as well as UTRAN and / or GERAN, as third generation ("3G") and second generation ("2G") 3GPP RANs are commonly known.

[0005] As specified by 3GPP, E-UTRAN 100 is responsible for all radio-related functions in the network, including radio bearer control, radio admission control, radio mobility control, scheduling, and dynamic allocation of resources to UEs (e.g., UE 120) in the uplink and downlink, as well as security of communications with the UEs. These functions reside in eNBs, such as eNBs 105, 110, and 115. Each of the eNBs can serve a geographic coverage area that includes one more cell, including cells 106, 111, and 116 served by eNBs 105, 110, and 115, respectively.

[0006] The eNBs in the E-UTRAN communicate with each other via an X2 interface, as shown in FIG. 1. The eNBs also serve as the E-UTRAN interface to the EPC 130, and in particular the S1 interface to the Mobility Management Entity (MME) and Serving Gateway (SGW), collectively shown in FIG. 1 as MME / S-GW 134 and 138. In general, the MME / S-GW handles both the overall control of the UE and the data flow between the UE and the rest of the EPC. More specifically, the MME handles the signaling (e.g., control plane) protocols between the UE and the EPC, known as the Non-Access Stratum (NAS) protocols. The SGW handles all Internet Protocol (IP) data packets (e.g., data or user plane) between the UE and the EPC, and serves as a local mobility anchor for data bearers when the UE 120 moves between eNBs, such as eNBs 105, 110, and 115.

[0007] The EPC 130 may also include a Home Subscriber Server (HSS) 131, which manages user-related and subscriber-related information. The HSS 131 may also provide support functions in mobility management, call and session setup, user authentication, and access authorization. The functionality of the HSS 131 may relate to legacy Home Location Register (HLR) functions and Authentication Center (AuC) functions or operations. The HSS 131 may also communicate with the MME / S-GWs 134 and 138 via their respective S6a interfaces.

[0008] In some embodiments, the HSS 131 can communicate with a User Data Repository (UDR), labeled EPC-UDR 135 in FIG. 1, via a Ud interface. The EPC-UDR 135 can store user credentials after they are encrypted by AuC algorithms. These algorithms are not standardized (i.e., vendor-specific), and therefore the encrypted credentials stored in the EPC-UDR 135 are not accessible by other vendors than the vendor of the HSS 131.

[0009] Figure 2A shows a high-level block diagram of an exemplary LTE architecture with respect to its component entities, namely UE, E-UTRAN, and EPC, and a high-level functional division into an Access Stratum (AS) and a Non-Access Stratum (NAS). Figure 2A also shows two specific interface points, namely Uu (UE / E-UTRAN radio interface) and S1 (E-UTRAN / EPC interface), each of which uses a specific set of protocols, namely radio protocols and S1 protocols.

[0010] FIG. 2B shows a block diagram of an exemplary control (C) plane protocol stack between a UE, an eNB, and an MME. The exemplary protocol stack includes a physical (PHY) layer, a medium access control (MAC) layer, a radio link control (RLC) layer, a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, and a radio resource control (RRC) layer between the UE and the eNB. The PHY layer is concerned with how and what characteristics are used to transfer data on transport channels on the LTE air interface. The MAC layer provides data transfer services on logical channels, maps logical channels to PHY transport channels, and reallocates PHY resources to support these services. The RLC layer provides error detection and / or correction, concatenation, segmentation, reassembly, and reordering of data transferred to or from higher layers. The PDCP layer provides encryption / decryption and integrity protection for both the U-plane and the C-plane, as well as other functions such as header compression for the U-plane. The exemplary protocol stack also includes Non-Access Stratum (NAS) signaling between the UE and the MME.

[0011] The RRC layer controls the communication between the UE and the eNB in ​​the air interface as well as the mobility of the UE between cells in the E-UTRAN. After the UE is powered on, the UE will be in the RRC_IDLE state until an RRC connection with the network is established, at which time the UE will transition to the RRC_CONNECTED state (e.g., where data transfer may occur). The UE returns to RRC_IDLE after the connection with the network is released. In the RRC_IDLE state, the UE's radio is active on a discontinuous reception (DRX) schedule set by higher layers. During the DRX active period (also called "DRX on duration"), the RRC_IDLE UE receives system information (SI) broadcasted by the serving cell, performs measurements of neighbor cells to support cell reselection, and monitors the paging channel on the PDCCH for pages from the EPC via the eNB. A UE in RRC_IDLE state is known in the EPC and has an allocated IP address, but is unknown to the serving eNB (e.g., has no stored context).

[0012] The multiple access scheme for the LTE PHY is based on Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) with Cyclic Prefix (CP) in the downlink and Single Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) with Cyclic Prefix in the uplink. To support transmission in paired and unpaired spectrum, the LTE PHY supports both Frequency Division Duplexing (FDD) (including both full-duplex and half-duplex operation) and Time Division Duplexing (TDD). Figure 3 shows an exemplary radio frame structure ("Type 1") used for LTE FDD downlink (DL) operation. The DL radio frame has a fixed duration of 10 ms and consists of 20 slots, labeled 0 through 19, each with a fixed duration of 0.5 ms. A 1 ms subframe comprises two consecutive slots, where subframe i consists of slot 2i and slot 2i+1. Each exemplary FDD DL slot has NDL symb It consists of N OFDM symbols. DL symb Each of the OFDM symbols is sc It has N OFDM subcarriers. DL symb An example value of N may be 7 (for normal CP) or 6 (for extended length CP) for a subcarrier spacing (SCS) of 15 kHz. sc The value of is configurable based on the available channel bandwidth.

[0013] As shown in Figure 3, a particular combination of subcarriers in a particular symbol is known as a Resource Element (RE). Each RE is used to transmit a particular number of bits depending on the type of modulation and / or bit mapping constellation used for that RE. Radio resources in LTE PHY are also defined in terms of Physical Resource Blocks (PRBs). Each PRB is divided into 100 bits for the duration of a slot (i.e., N DL symb or N DL symb symbols) over N RB sc number of subcarriers, where N RB sc is typically either 12 or 24. DL symb symbols) with the same N RB sc A PRB that spans 168 subcarriers is known as a PRB pair. For normal CP and 15KHz SCS, a PRB pair contains 168 REs.

[0014] An exemplary LTE FDD UL radio frame may be configured in a manner similar to the exemplary FDD DL radio frame shown in Figure 3. Using terminology following the DL description above, each UL slot may be configured with N UL symb It consists of N OFDM symbols. UL symbEach of the OFDM symbols is sc It has OFDM subcarriers.

[0015] In general, an LTE physical channel corresponds to a set of REs that carry information originating from higher layers. Downlink (i.e., from eNB to UE) physical channels provided by the LTE PHY include a Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH), a Physical Multicast Channel (PMCH), a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH), a Relay Physical Downlink Control Channel (R-PDCCH), a Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH), a Physical Control Format Indicator Channel (PCFICH), and a Physical Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request Indicator Channel (PHICH). In addition, the LTE PHY downlink includes various reference signals (e.g., Channel State Information Reference Signals (CSI-RS)), synchronization signals, and discovery signals.

[0016] The uplink (i.e., from the UE to the eNB) physical channels provided by the LTE PHY include the Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH), the Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH), and the Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH). In addition, the LTE PHY uplink includes various reference signals, including Demodulation Reference Signals (DM-RS) transmitted to aid the eNB in ​​receiving the associated PUCCH or PUSCH, and Sounding Reference Signals (SRS) that are not associated with an uplink channel.

[0017] 5th generation NR technology shares many features with 4th generation LTE. For example, NR uses cyclic prefix orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) in the DL and both CP-OFDM and DFT-spread OFDM (DFT-S-OFDM) in the UL. As another example, in the time domain, NR DL and NR UL physical resources are organized into equal-sized, 1 ms subframes. The subframes are further divided into multiple slots of equal duration, each slot containing multiple OFDM-based symbols. As another example, the NR RRC layer includes the RRC_IDLE and RRC_CONNECTED states, but adds an additional state known as RRC_INACTIVE, which has some properties similar to the "suspended" condition for LTE. Furthermore, NR targets to support deployment in ultra-high frequency spectrum (called "millimeter wave" or "mmW") in addition to lower frequency spectrum (e.g., similar to LTE).

[0018] In addition to providing coverage via cells, as in LTE, NR networks also provide coverage via "beams." Generally, a DL "beam" is a coverage area of ​​the network's transmitted RS that can be measured or monitored by a UE. In NR, for example, such RS can include any of the following, alone or in combination: SS / PBCH Blocks (SSBs), CSI-RS, tertiary reference signals (or any other synchronization signals), positioning RSs (PRSs), DMRSs, phase tracking reference signals (PTRSs), etc. Generally, SSBs are available to all UEs regardless of the RRC state, while other RSs (e.g., CSI-RS, DM-RS, PTRS) are associated with a particular UE that has a network connection, i.e., is in the RRC_CONNECTED state.

[0019] In Rel-15, 3GPP also started to prepare NR for operation in non-terrestrial networks (NTN). Work was carried out within the study item "NR for supporting non-terrestrial networks" and resulted in the publication of 3GPP TR 38.811 (v15.1.0). Work to prepare NR for NTN operation continued in Rel-16 under the study item "Solutions for NR for supporting non-terrestrial networks". There is also increasing interest in adapting LTE to NTN operation. Therefore, 3GPP is considering introducing NTN support for both LTE and NR in Rel-17.

[0020] Even so, current LTE and NR technologies were developed for terrestrial cellular networks, and adapting those technologies to NTNs may introduce various issues, problems and / or drawbacks for network and UE operation. Summary of the Invention

[0021] Example embodiments disclosed herein address various issues, problems and / or shortcomings of existing solutions by providing a flexible, yet efficient, approach for informing a user equipment (UE) of the polarization modes used to serve various cells in a NTN, such as a 3GPP NTN utilizing LTE or NR radio access technology (RAT).

[0022] Embodiments include methods (e.g., procedures) for operating a network node in a first non-terrestrial network (NTN) that utilizes one or more polarization modes to serve one or more cells. These example methods may be performed by a network node (e.g., a satellite, a gateway, a base station, etc.).

[0023] The example methods may include transmitting, to one or more UEs, an indication of at least one configured polarization mode for use in a first cell of the first NTN. The example methods may also include transmitting and / or receiving one or more signals or channels in the first cell in accordance with the one or more configured polarization modes, including the at least one indicated polarization mode.

[0024] In some embodiments, the at least one polarization mode indicated may include any of linear polarization, horizontal polarization, vertical polarization, circular polarization, right-hand circular polarization, and left-hand circular polarization.

[0025] In some embodiments, the indication of the at least one polarization mode may include one or more of an identifier of the first cell, an identifier of a network node serving the first cell, and an identifier of a bandwidth portion (BWP) used in the first cell.

[0026] In various embodiments, the indication of the at least one polarization mode may be transmitted in one of a dedicated Radio Resource Control (RRC) message, a Broadcast System Information (SI, e.g., a Master Information Block (MIB) and / or a System Information Block (SIB)), a Medium Access Control (MAC) control element, and a Physical Layer (PHY) Downlink Control Indication (DCI).

[0027] In some embodiments, the one or more configured polarization modes may include a first set of polarization modes used to transmit a downlink signal or channel in the first cell and a second set of polarization modes used to receive an uplink signal or channel in the first cell.

[0028] In some embodiments, the one or more configured polarization modes can include a first polarization mode used to transmit or receive a first signal or channel in the first cell and a second polarization mode used to transmit or receive a second signal or channel in the first cell. In some of these embodiments, the first polarization mode can be implicitly indicated by one or more of an explicit indication of the second polarization mode and transmitting the second signal or channel in the first cell according to the second polarization mode. In some cases, the first polarization mode can be the same as the second polarization mode.

[0029] For example, the first polarization mode may be associated with a downlink (DL) physical channel or signal, and the second polarization mode may be associated with a DL reference signal. The DL reference signal may be quasi co-located (QCL) with the DL physical channel or signal, such that they have substantially similar transmission properties (e.g., including polarization). As a more specific example, the indication of the first polarization mode may be a transmission configuration indicator (TCI) for the DL physical signal or channel, and the TCI state is also associated with the DL RS.

[0030] In some embodiments, the example methods may also include transmitting to the one or more UEs a further indication of at least one further polarization mode configured for use in a second cell of the first NTN. The one or more further polarization modes may be orthogonal to one or more of the polarization modes configured for use in the first cell.

[0031] In some embodiments, the first NTN may be configured with one or more default polarization modes used to transmit signals used for initial access by the UE in multiple cells.

[0032] Other embodiments include methods (e.g., procedures) for operating a user equipment (UE) in a first non-terrestrial network (NTN) utilizing one or more polarization modes to serve one or more cells. These example methods may be performed by a UE (e.g., a wireless device).

[0033] These example methods can include receiving an indication of at least one polarization mode configured for use in a first cell of the first NTN. These example methods can also include determining, based on the indication, one or more polarization modes configured for use in the first cell, including the at least one indicated polarization mode. These example methods can also include transmitting and / or receiving one or more signals or channels in the first cell in accordance with the determined polarization mode.

[0034] In some embodiments, the at least one polarization mode indicated may include any of linear polarization, horizontal polarization, vertical polarization, circular polarization, right-hand circular polarization, and left-hand circular polarization.

[0035] In some embodiments, the indication of the at least one polarization mode may include one or more of an identifier of the first cell, an identifier of a network node serving the first cell, and an identifier of a bandwidth portion (BWP) used in the first cell. In such embodiments, the determining operation may include performing a respective modulo operation on the one or more identifiers.

[0036] In some embodiments, the UE receive operation may include retrieving locally stored information about the first NTN, for example, the locally stored information may include one or more default polarization modes configured for use in the first NTN.

[0037] Further, in such an embodiment, the determining operation may include selecting at least one default polarization mode supported by a receiver of the UE. Similarly, the transmitting and / or receiving operation may include configuring a receiver of the UE to detect a signal transmitted by the first NTN according to the selected at least one default polarization mode.

[0038] In some of these embodiments, the locally stored information may be associated with multiple NTNs, including the first NTN. In such embodiments, these example methods may also include selecting a first NTN for initial access based on the retrieved information and determining one or more parameters associated with the first NTN. In some embodiments, the selection operation may include determining whether the UE is authorized to access the first NTN based on the retrieved information associated with the first NTN, and selecting the first NTN for initial access only when the UE is authorized to access the first NTN.

[0039] In some embodiments, the retrieved locally stored information for each NTN may also include one or more of an orbit type or distance, one or more frequency ranges of NTN operation, ephemeris data associated with the NTN satellite, and one or more antenna pointing angles associated with the NTN satellite. In such embodiments, determining the one or more parameters may include: determining one or more antenna pointing angles for searching for signals transmitted by the first NTN based on a current location of the UE and ephemeris data related to satellites of the first NTN; determining a frequency band for searching for signals transmitted by the first NTN based on a current location of the UE and one or more frequency ranges of the first NTN; may include one or more of:

[0040] In other embodiments, the indication of the at least one polarization mode may be received from a network node of the first NTN in one of a dedicated radio resource control (RRC) message, a broadcast system information (SI, e.g., MIB and / or SIB), a medium access control (MAC) control element, and a physical layer (PHY) downlink control indication.

[0041] In some embodiments, the one or more determined polarization modes can include a first set of polarization modes used to transmit a downlink signal or channel in the first cell and a second set of polarization modes used to receive an uplink signal or channel in the first cell. Each of the first and second sets can include one or more polarization modes.

[0042] In some embodiments, the one or more determined polarization modes can include a first polarization mode used to transmit or receive a first signal or channel in the first cell and a second polarization mode used to transmit or receive a second signal or channel in the first cell. In some of these embodiments, the determining operation includes determining the first polarization mode based on the second polarization mode; receiving an explicit indication of a second polarization mode; or receiving a second signal or channel in the first cell according to a second polarization mode; and determining the second polarization mode based on one of:

[0043] For example, the first polarization mode may be associated with a downlink (DL) physical channel or signal, and the second polarization mode may be associated with a DL reference signal. The DL reference signal may be quasi-colocated (QCL) with the DL physical channel or signal, such that they have substantially similar transmission properties (e.g., including polarization). As a more specific example, the indication of the first polarization mode may be a transmission configuration indicator (TCI) for the DL physical signal or channel, and the TCI state is also associated with the DL RS.

[0044] In some embodiments, these example methods may also include receiving, from the network node, a further indication of at least one further polarization mode configured for use in a second cell of the first NTN. The one or more further polarization modes may be orthogonal to one or more of the polarization modes configured for use in the first cell.

[0045] Other embodiments include network nodes (e.g., satellites, gateways, base stations, or components thereof) and user equipment (UE, e.g., wireless devices) configured to perform operations corresponding to any of the example methods described herein. Other embodiments include non-transitory computer-readable media storing program instructions that, when executed by a processing circuit, configure such network nodes or UEs to perform operations corresponding to any of the example methods described herein.

[0046] These and other objects, features and advantages of the present disclosure will become apparent from a reading of the following detailed description in light of the drawings briefly described below. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0047] [Figure 1]FIG. 1 is a high-level block diagram of an example architecture of a Long-Term Evolution (LTE) Enhanced UTRAN (E-UTRAN) and Evolved Packet Core (EPC) network as standardized by 3GPP. [Figure 2A] FIG. 1 is a high-level block diagram of an example E-UTRAN architecture with respect to its component components, protocols, and interfaces. [Figure 2B] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of example protocol layers of the control plane portion of the radio (Uu) interface between a user equipment (UE) and an E-UTRAN. [Diagram 3] 1 is a block diagram of an example downlink (DL) LTE radio frame structure used for frequency division duplex (FDD) operation. [Figure 4A] FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary frequency polarization configuration of a satellite radio access network (RAN), also referred to as a non-terrestrial network (NTN). [Figure 4B] FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary frequency polarization configuration of a satellite radio access network (RAN), also referred to as a non-terrestrial network (NTN). [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 illustrates an example mapping between antenna ports, antenna connectors, and antennas. [Figure 6] A diagram showing an example method (e.g., procedure) for a network node (e.g., satellite, gateway, base station, etc.) in an NTN, in accordance with various example embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 7] A diagram showing an example method (e.g., procedure) for a user equipment (UE, e.g., a wireless device), in accordance with various example embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 8] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example wireless network configurable in accordance with various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 9] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example user equipment (UE) configurable in accordance with various example embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 10] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a virtualization environment that can facilitate virtualization of various functions implemented in accordance with various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 11] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example communication system configurable in accordance with various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 12] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example communication system configurable in accordance with various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 13] 1 is a flow chart illustrating an example method (eg, procedure) for a communication system, in accordance with various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 14] 1 is a flow chart illustrating an example method (eg, procedure) for a communication system, in accordance with various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 15] 1 is a flow chart illustrating an example method (eg, procedure) for a communication system, in accordance with various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 16] 1 is a flow chart illustrating an example method (eg, procedure) for a communication system, in accordance with various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0048] Some of the embodiments contemplated herein will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: However, other embodiments are included within the scope of the subject matter disclosed herein, and the disclosed subject matter should not be construed as being limited to only the embodiments described herein, but rather, these embodiments are provided as examples to convey the scope of the subject matter to those skilled in the art.

[0049] Generally, all terms used herein should be interpreted according to the ordinary meaning of those terms in the relevant technical field, unless a different meaning is expressly given and / or implied from the context in which the term is used. All references to a / an / the element, apparatus, component, means, step, etc. should be openly interpreted as referring to at least one instance of that element, apparatus, component, means, step, etc., unless expressly stated otherwise. The steps of any method disclosed herein need not be performed in the exact order disclosed, unless a step is expressly described as following or preceding another step, and / or it is implicit that a step must follow or precede another step. Any feature of any of the embodiments disclosed herein may be applied to any other embodiment, wherever appropriate. Similarly, any advantage of any of the embodiments may be applied to any other embodiment, and vice versa. Other objects, features, and advantages of the enclosed embodiments will become apparent from the following description.

[0050] Additionally, the following terminology is used throughout the description provided below: Wireless Node: As used herein, a "wireless node" may be either a "wireless access node" or a "wireless device." Radio Access Node: As used herein, a "radio access node" (or equivalently, a "radio network node", "radio access network node", or "RAN node") may be any node in a radio access network (RAN) of a cellular communications network that operates to transmit and / or receive signals wirelessly. Some examples of radio access nodes include, but are not limited to, a base station (e.g., a new radio (NR) base station (gNB) in a 3GPP fifth generation (5G) NR network, or an enhanced or evolved Node B (eNB) in a 3GPP LTE network), a base station distributed element (e.g., CU and DU), a high power or macro base station, a low power base station (e.g., a micro base station, a pico base station, a femto base station, or a home base station), an integrated radio access backhaul (IAB) node, a transmission point, a remote radio unit (RRU or RRH), a relay node, or a non-terrestrial access node (e.g., a satellite or a gateway). Core Network Node: As used herein, a "core network node" is any type of node in a core network. Some examples of core network nodes include, for example, a Mobility Management Entity (MME), a Serving Gateway (SGW), a Packet Data Network Gateway (P-GW), an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), a Session Management Function (AMF), a User Plane Function (UPF), a Service Capability Exposure Function (SCEF), etc. Wireless Device: As used herein, a "wireless device" (or "WD" for short) is any type of device that has access to (i.e., is served by) a cellular communications network by wirelessly communicating with network nodes and / or other wireless devices. Wirelessly communicating can involve transmitting and / or receiving wireless signals using electromagnetic, radio, infrared, and / or other types of signals suitable for conveying information over the air. Some examples of wireless devices include, but are not limited to, smartphones, mobile phones, cell phones, voice-over-IP (VoIP) phones, wireless local loop phones, desktop computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), wireless cameras, gaming consoles or devices, music storage devices, playback appliances, wearable devices, wireless endpoints, mobile stations, tablets, laptop computers, laptop embedded equipment (LEE), laptop mounted equipment (LME), smart devices, wireless customer premises equipment (CPE), mobile telecommunications (MTC) devices, Internet of Things (IoT) devices, vehicle-mounted wireless terminal devices, satellite terminals, and the like. Unless otherwise noted, the terms "wireless device" and "user equipment" (or "UE" for short) are used interchangeably herein. Network Node: As used herein, a "network node" is any node that is part of either a radio access network (e.g., radio access node or equivalent designation as described above) or a core network (e.g., core network node as described above) of a cellular communications network. Functionally, a network node is equipment that is capable, set up, configured, and / or operative to communicate, directly or indirectly, with wireless devices and / or with other network nodes or equipment in the cellular communications network to enable and / or provide wireless access to wireless devices and / or to perform other functions (e.g., administration) in the cellular communications network.

[0051] It should be noted that the description herein focuses on 3GPP cellular communication systems, and thus 3GPP terminology or terminology similar to 3GPP terminology is often used. However, the concepts disclosed herein are not limited to 3GPP systems. Furthermore, although the term "cell" is used herein, it should be understood that a beam may be used instead of a cell (particularly with respect to 5G NR), and thus the concepts described herein apply equally to both cells and beams. Furthermore, although embodiments of the present disclosure are described with respect to a non-terrestrial network (NTN), such embodiments are equally applicable to any wireless network governed by line-of-sight conditions, including terrestrial networks.

[0052] As briefly mentioned above, current LTE and NR technologies were developed for terrestrial cellular networks, and adapting them to non-terrestrial networks (NTNs) may result in various issues, problems, and / or drawbacks for network and UE operation. For example, LTE and NR technologies are not prepared to support NTN cell planning and inter-cell interference mitigation, which is based on associating cells with specific polarization configurations. These issues are described in more detail below.

[0053] Figure 4A shows a high-level diagram of an exemplary satellite radio access network (RAN), also referred to as a non-terrestrial network (NTN) 400. The exemplary satellite RAN shown in Figure 4A includes a satellite 430 and a space-based platform, such as an Earth gateway 450, which connects the satellite to a base station 460. The wireless link between the gateway and the satellite is referred to as the "feeder link" (440), and the wireless link between the satellite and a particular device (e.g., UE 410) is referred to as the "access link" (420).

[0054] Depending on the orbital altitude, satellites may be categorized as low Earth orbit (LEO), medium Earth orbit (MEO), or geostationary orbit (GEO). LEO satellites typically have an orbital altitude of 250-1,500 km (e.g., above sea level of the Earth) and an orbital period of 90-120 minutes. MEO satellites typically have an orbital altitude of 5,000-25,000 km and an orbital period of 3-15 hours. GEO satellites have an orbital altitude of about 35,786 km and an orbital period of about 24 hours. Generally, the orbital period increases with orbital altitude.

[0055] Due to these significant orbital heights, satellite systems generally have significantly higher path losses than terrestrial networks. To overcome the high path losses, the access links and feeder links may need to operate in line-of-sight (LOS) conditions. Thus, the NTN radio channels for the access links and feeder links may therefore be dominated by LOS components with a small number of reflected (or non-LOS) components. One consequence is that the signals received on Earth will generally have the same polarization as the signals transmitted by the satellite, which is generally circularly polarized. Thus, it is possible to achieve orthogonality between the two signals transmitted by the satellites by choosing orthogonal polarizations, e.g., right-hand circular polarization (RHCP) and left-hand circular polarization (LHCP). This is generally not possible in terrestrial networks, where non-LOS components with different polarizations (e.g., due to various reflections) dominate the received signals.

[0056] A communication satellite typically generates several beams to cover a given area. The footprint of the beams (also called "spot beams") is usually elliptical in shape, which has traditionally been considered a cell. The spot beams may move across the Earth's surface with the satellite moving, or may be Earth-fixed with some beam-pointing mechanism used by the satellite to compensate for its movement. The size of the spot beam depends on the system design and can range from tens of kilometers to thousands of kilometers.

[0057] Relative to beams observed in terrestrial network (NTN) beams, NTN beams (e.g., spot beams 1-4 in FIG. 4A) can be quite wide and extend beyond the area defined by the served cell. Thus, beams covering adjacent cells can overlap and cause significant levels of inter-cell interference. To overcome this interference, different cells (e.g., different spot beams) can be configured with different carrier frequencies and polarization modes. FIG. 4B shows an example polarization configuration for the spot beams shown in FIG. 4A.

[0058] In LTE and NR, the UE reference point for the transmission of physical signals and channels is called an "antenna port." This is an abstract concept specified by 3GPP that is intended in part to relate the radio channel on which a first signal is transmitted to the radio channel on which a second signal is transmitted. The 3GPP specifications do not disclose how the signals defined at an antenna port are mapped to the physical antenna connectors that are the input to the radiating antenna elements.

[0059] FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary mapping between antenna ports, antenna connectors, and antennas. Physical channels are transmitted from two antenna ports numbered as P0 and P1. In the exemplary configuration illustrated in FIG. 5, the antenna ports are mapped to two antenna connectors, each connected to a cross-polarized patch antenna. In general, both the antenna configuration and the mapping between antenna ports and antennas are implementation specific. However, with a suitable mapping, the UE can support one or more polarization modes with different elements at a given time. More specifically, with a suitable mapping, the UE can configure its antenna elements to form one or more "panels," each capable of transmitting and / or receiving signals with a particular polarization.

[0060] In NR and LTE, when a UE is powered on, it performs an initial search over the UE's supported frequency bands for a PLMN and, e.g., in RRC_IDLE mode, cells in the PLMN to camp on. In terrestrial cellular networks, this "initial acquisition" procedure is relatively well limited in time due to the fixed locations and relatively small sizes of the cells.

[0061] Meanwhile, during initial collection in NTN, the UE may need to search for satellites across the entire sky from horizon to horizon. Moreover, satellites at lower elevation angles (e.g., LEO and MEO) are moving relative to the surface of the Earth, causing various Doppler shifts in the satellite signals received by the UE on Earth. Furthermore, the satellite signals experience significant path loss before reaching the UE on Earth. Therefore, the UE may need to use a highly directional antenna beam (e.g., with a very narrow beamwidth, i.e., maximum gain at the "main lobe") for initial collection of satellite signals.

[0062] Because such beamwidths correspond to only a portion of the overall sky (e.g., azimuth and elevation ranges), the UE will typically need to perform successive searches for the satellites, with each search covering the azimuth and elevation ranges corresponding to the UE's beamwidth. Also, the high speed movement of LEO and MEO satellites can complicate this initial search for the satellites. Additionally, properties of the antennas used by the satellites and the UE can affect the initial acquisition.

[0063] For example, in an NTN, there may be UEs with different antenna types. Some UEs may be equipped with linearly polarized antennas, while some other UEs may be equipped with circularly polarized antennas. On the other hand, satellite transmitters generally use circular polarization. However, a UE (such as the device shown in FIG. 4A) that is not aware that a particular satellite (or cell / spot beam) is associated with a particular polarization mode will not adapt its receiver accordingly. If there is a mismatch in polarization between the UE's receiver and the satellite transmitter, the UE will experience downlink signal loss and performance degradation. For example, this may prevent the UE from acquiring a preferred cell in some cases.

[0064] Thus, the time required for an initial search to find an NTN and a cell in the NTN to camp on may be quite long and may consume a significant portion of the UE's stored energy (e.g., in a battery), which may be unacceptable to a user. Similarly, mismatch in polarization between the UE transmitter and the satellite receiver will degrade UL performance and cause unnecessary interference to neighboring cells.

[0065] Such mismatches will also prevent the network from efficiently managing mobility in the NTN. For example, for correct measurement of signal strength and / or quality in a cell, the UE should adapt its receiver polarization mode to the satellite transmitter polarization mode set in that cell. If a mismatch occurs, the UE may underestimate the signal strength or even be unable to detect the cell. This may lead to the UE camping and connecting to non-optimal and / or non-preferred cells.

[0066] Accordingly, some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure provide techniques for configuring and signaling configured transmit and receive polarization modes in a 3GPP NTN. Such embodiments provide various benefits and / or advantages. Generally, such embodiments provide a way to efficiently handle associations between cells and polarization modes in an NTN. As a more specific example, such embodiments facilitate spectrally efficient performance of downlinks and uplinks between satellites and UEs. As another example, such embodiments enable accurate measurement of signal strength and / or quality by the UE under prevailing LOS conditions, thereby facilitating correct and efficient management of UE mobility in both RRC_CONNECTED and RRC_IDLE states.

[0067] In some embodiments, a network node (e.g., satellite, gateway, base station) in the NTN may configure the transmitter and / or receiver of the network node to use a particular polarization mode when serving a particular cell. The configured polarization mode may be linear polarization (e.g., horizontal or vertical) or circular polarization (e.g., RHCP or LHCP). In various embodiments, the network node may configure the receiver of the network node serving a particular cell to use the same or a different polarization mode as the transmitter serving the particular cell.

[0068] In other embodiments, the network node may configure each of the transmitters and receivers serving a particular cell to one or more polarization modes. In some embodiments, the network node may choose not to associate a transmitter or receiver with a particular polarization mode. For example, a network node may serve multiple cells and / or beams, each of which may require a cell-specific polarization mode(s) and / or beam-specific polarization mode.

[0069] In various embodiments, a network node may provide to the UE an indication of one or more polarization modes to be used by a transmitter and / or receiver of the network node. The indicated polarization mode(s) may be associated with a cell, a beam, a frequency, etc. In various embodiments, the network node may provide the indication of the polarization mode(s) explicitly or implicitly. As an example of the latter case, the network node may implicitly indicate a particular transmit polarization mode by configuring a transmitter of the network node to use a particular polarization mode.

[0070] In various embodiments, the network can use broadcast and / or dedicated signaling to provide the explicit polarization mode information. The signaling can be sent on any of the relevant protocol layers, e.g., RRC, MAC, PHY. In the case of RRC signaling, the polarization mode information can be provided in a broadcast SI, e.g., in a Master Information Block (MIB) and / or System Information Block (SIB) message. In the case of MAC signaling, a control element (CE) can be used to provide the polarization mode information. Similarly, a downlink control information (DCI) message (e.g., on the PDCCH) or a random access response (RAR) message (e.g., on the PDSCH) can be used to provide the polarization mode information via the PHY layer.

[0071] In some embodiments, a network node may facilitate UE mobility to a second cell by providing the UE with explicit information that associates an identity of the second cell with a carrier frequency and a set of transmit and receive polarization modes used in the second cell. The network node may provide this information by broadcast (which may be used to support UE mobility in RRC_IDLE state) and / or by UE-dedicated signaling (which may be used to support UE mobility in RRC_CONNECTED state). In the case of broadcast signaling, the information may be provided by the network node serving the second cell or by the network node serving a first cell that is a neighbor of the second cell.

[0072] In other embodiments, the network node may implicitly indicate the polarization mode information via different identifiers associated with the cell. Exemplary identifiers that may be used for this purpose include node identifiers (e.g., gNB Global ID), cell identifiers (e.g., PCI, CGI), and frequency identifiers (e.g., Bandwidth Part (BWP) ID). For example, the result of a modulo 2 operation (e.g., mod(PCI,2)) on the cell ID may be used to distinguish between cells using RHCP (e.g., result of 0) and cells using LHCP (e.g., result of 1). Similar operations may be applied to BWP or frequency identifiers.

[0073] In some embodiments, a network node may configure different polarization modes for different physical channels and signals. The following examples illustrate these embodiments. For each DL reference signal (e.g. CSI-RS), each DL physical channel (e.g. PDCCH, PDSCH) or each synchronization signal block (SSB) (as signaled in the ssb-PositionsInBurst information element (IE) specified in 3GPP TS 38.331 v15.0.0) configured in the cell, the network node may configure the UE with a transmit polarization mode (used by the satellite transmitter) and / or a receive polarization mode (used by the UE receiver). For each UL reference signal (e.g. SRS) or each UL physical channel (e.g. PRACH, PUCCH, PUSCH) configured in the cell, the network node may configure the UE with a transmit polarization mode (used by the UE transmitter) and / or a receive polarization mode (used by the satellite receiver).

[0074] In one embodiment, a first polarization mode used in a first physical channel or reference signal may be implicitly dictated by a second polarization mode used in a second physical channel or reference signal, such that a UE can infer the first polarization mode from the second polarization mode. For example, if both the first physical channel or reference signal and the second physical channel or reference signal are DL (or UL) transmissions, they may be considered quasi-colocated (QCL).

[0075] Generally, when two signals A and B are QCL'd, they experience exactly the same channel conditions, including being transmitted from the same location and from the same antenna configuration (e.g., port) using the same spatial filter. In such a case, signals A and B reach the receiver through exactly the same channel, so if the receiver can detect and determine the channel properties signal A (or B), this information can be used to detect and / or receive signal B (or A).

[0076] As a more specific example, the UE can infer the first polarization mode based on the NR TCI (Transmission Configuration Indication) framework. Each TCI state includes information about a source reference signal (e.g., CSI-RS or SSB) and a transmit polarization used to transmit the source reference signal. By indicating a TCI state for DL ​​transmission (e.g., PDCCH, PDSCH), the network informs the UE that the DL transmission uses the same polarization as the source reference signal associated with the TCI state.

[0077] Other embodiments include UE-performed operations that may supplement the network node-performed operations described above. In some embodiments, a UE may receive an explicit network polarization mode indication when communicating with a network node utilizing the explicitly indicated polarization mode and / or when measuring signals transmitted by that network node, and may adapt its receive and transmit polarization modes accordingly.

[0078] In other embodiments, the UE may infer the polarization mode used by a network node (e.g., for transmission and / or reception) based on a transmission by the network node. In other words, the network node implicitly indicates the polarization mode based on its transmission. Based on inference from this implicit indication, the UE may adapt its receive and transmit polarization modes accordingly when communicating with a network node utilizing the inferred polarization mode and / or when measuring signals transmitted by that network node.

[0079] In some embodiments, a UE camped on a first cell may measure signal strength and / or quality in the first cell using a first receive polarization mode (e.g., as explicitly or implicitly indicated by a network node serving the first cell) and may use a different second receive polarization mode to measure signal strength and / or quality in a second cell. The second receive polarization mode may be explicitly or implicitly indicated by the network node serving the second cell. Alternatively, the second receive polarization mode of the second cell (e.g., a neighbor cell of the first cell) may be explicitly or implicitly indicated by the network node serving the first cell.

[0080] Other embodiments include techniques for pre-programming a UE with NTN-related information required to reduce the time required for initial acquisition of an NTN (e.g., a 3GPP PLMN utilizing LTE and / or NR radio access technologies) and cells within the NTN. Such embodiments provide various benefits and / or advantages including reducing UE energy consumption (or equivalently, increasing UE operation time on a single battery charge) and improving user access to 3GPP services provided by the NTN.

[0081] In some embodiments, the UE may be pre-programmed by including such NTN-related information in a local memory, such as the UE's uSIM (which may be provisioned by a network operator), or another non-volatile memory in the UE. In such an embodiment, upon initiating a search during initial acquisition (e.g., upon power-on), the UE fetches the pre-programmed information from the uSIM (or other local non-volatile memory) and uses the pre-programmed information to limit the spatial and / or frequency range of the search for one or more network nodes (e.g., satellites) and / or cells of the NTN.

[0082] In some embodiments, the UE may also be preprogrammed with information that defines the types of networks the UE is allowed to access. The permitted network access types may be categorized as one or both of "terrestrial networks" and "non-terrestrial networks." If NTN access is permitted, the NTN-related information may also include the type of NTN the UE is allowed to access, e.g., LEO, MEO, and / or GEO. In other embodiments, preprogrammed limitations on NTN types may be provided as maximum or minimum satellite altitude, signal flight time, and / or signal round trip time.

[0083] In some embodiments, the UE may be preprogrammed with NTN-related information including satellite constellations of one or more NTNs (e.g., providing 3GPP services over NR or LTE). For each constellation, the information may include ephemeris data (e.g., describing satellite location and / or movement), one or more frequency ranges, and / or one or more polarization modes. In some embodiments, the ephemeris may be provided in a Two-Line Element (TLE) format that encodes a list of orbital elements of an Earth orbital object in two 70-column rows.

[0084] Based on the ephemeris data and, optionally, other information such as the UE location, the UE may determine one or more antenna pointing angles for searching for signals from one or more satellites. The determined antenna pointing angles may cover a subset of azimuth angles from 0 to 360 degrees and / or elevation angles from 0 to 90 degrees. The number of antenna pointing angles may depend on the desired azimuth / elevation range and beamwidth of the antenna(s) that the UE will use for searching.

[0085] In some embodiments, the ephemeris data only describes the orbital planes of the constellations and their orientation in space (e.g., relative to the Earth's equator and prime meridian). In such embodiments, the UE can also determine its current location and, based on this location and the orbital planes, determine an arc (e.g., from a first azimuth / elevation angle to a second azimuth / elevation angle) along which satellite signals may be found. The UE can then perform initial acquisition by pointing a directional beam at successive locations along the determined arc.

[0086] In some embodiments, the ephemeris may also include information regarding the position of individual satellites of the NTN constellation (e.g., relative to Earth-centered Earth-fixed or ECEF coordinates). This may include fixed positions for GEO satellites, and position versus time for MEO and LEO satellites. In such embodiments, the UE may also determine its current location and, based on this location and the satellite position(s), determine azimuth / elevation angles at which satellite signals may be found (i.e., detected). The UE may then perform initial acquisition by pointing its directional beam at the determined azimuth / elevation angles.

[0087] In some embodiments with fixed location UEs, the UE may be pre-programmed with a subset of candidate antenna pointing angles (i.e., azimuth / elevation angles) based on the known fixed locations where NTN services are provided. The subset of candidate antenna pointing angles may be provided as fixed angles (e.g., for GEO NTNs) or as angles as a function of time (e.g., for LEO / MEO NTNs).

[0088] As mentioned above, the UE may be pre-programmed with one or more frequency ranges associated with the NTN. Generally, each NTN will have one or more operating frequency bands determined by the particular license(s) held by the operator. For LEO and MEO NTNs, some operators may have licenses for different frequency bands in different countries and / or regions, and therefore their satellites must adapt their frequency bands based on the country and / or region on which they are currently operating. In some embodiments, the UE may be pre-programmed with multiple frequency ranges used by the NTN along with location information associated with each frequency range (e.g., band X is used in area Y). In other embodiments, the UE may be pre-programmed with a single frequency range used by the NTN, for example, in all locations or in a single location, such as in the case of GEO operation.

[0089] As mentioned above, the UE may be pre-programmed with one or more polarization modes associated with the NTN. This may include one or more transmit polarization modes and one or more receive polarization modes that may be the same as or different from the transmit polarization modes. Exemplary polarization modes may include linear (e.g., horizontal, vertical) polarization and / or circular (e.g., RHCP, LHCP) polarization. During the initial search for a particular satellite, the UE may adapt its receiver polarization mode according to the pre-programmed transmit polarization mode associated with that particular satellite, thereby improving the UE's link budget and the likelihood of acquiring a particular satellite (e.g., a cell served by a particular satellite at the UE's current location).

[0090] In some embodiments, the UE may update some or all of the preprogrammed NTN-related information based on information from a network node. For example, this updated information may be provided by a base station (e.g., a gNB) associated with a satellite that serves a cell collected by the UE (e.g., using preprogrammed information).

[0091] The embodiments described above may be further described with reference to FIGS. 6-7, which illustrate example methods (e.g., procedures) for a network node and a UE, respectively. In other words, various features of the operations described below with reference to FIGS. 6-7 correspond to the various embodiments described above. The example methods illustrated in FIGS. 6-7 may also be used cooperatively to provide various benefits, advantages, and / or solutions described herein. Although FIGS. 6-7 show certain blocks in a particular order, the operations of the example methods may be performed in a different order than shown, and may be combined and / or divided into blocks having different functionality than shown. Optional blocks or operations are indicated by dashed lines.

[0092] More specifically, Figure 6 is a flow diagram illustrating an example method (e.g., procedure) for operating a network node in a first non-terrestrial network (NTN) utilizing one or more polarization modes to serve one or more cells, according to various example embodiments of the present disclosure. The example method illustrated in Figure 6 may be performed by a network node (e.g., a satellite, a gateway, a base station, etc.) in the NTN, as described with respect to other figures herein.

[0093] 6 may include operations of block 610, in which the network node may transmit to one or more UEs an indication of at least one configured polarization mode for use in a first cell of a first NTN. The example method may also include operations of block 620, in which the network node may transmit and / or receive one or more signals or channels in the first cell in accordance with the one or more configured polarization modes, including the at least one indicated polarization mode.

[0094] In some embodiments, the at least one polarization mode indicated may include any of linear polarization, horizontal polarization, vertical polarization, circular polarization, right-hand circular polarization, and left-hand circular polarization.

[0095] In some embodiments, the indication of the at least one polarization mode may include one or more of an identifier of the first cell, an identifier of a network node serving the first cell, and an identifier of a bandwidth portion (BWP) used in the first cell. For example, the polarization mode may be determined (e.g., by the UE) based on applying a respective operation (e.g., a modulo function) to any of these identifiers.

[0096] In various embodiments, the indication of the at least one polarization mode may be transmitted in one of a dedicated Radio Resource Control (RRC) message, a Broadcast System Information (SI, e.g., a Master Information Block (MIB) and / or a System Information Block (SIB)), a Medium Access Control (MAC) control element, and a Physical Layer (PHY) Downlink Control Indication (DCI).

[0097] In some embodiments, the one or more configured polarization modes can include a first set of polarization modes used to transmit downlink signals or channels in the first cell and a second set of polarization modes used to receive uplink signals or channels in the first cell. Each of the first and second sets can include one or more polarization modes.

[0098] In some embodiments, the one or more configured polarization modes can include a first polarization mode used to transmit or receive a first signal or channel in the first cell and a second polarization mode used to transmit or receive a second signal or channel in the first cell. In some of these embodiments, the first polarization mode can be implicitly indicated by one or more of an explicit indication of the second polarization mode and transmitting the second signal or channel in the first cell according to the second polarization mode. In some cases, the first polarization mode can be the same as the second polarization mode, and thus the first polarization mode can be inferred directly and / or without additional information.

[0099] More generally, the first polarization mode may be implicitly indicated in various ways based on the second polarization mode. For example, the first polarization mode may be associated with a downlink (DL) physical channel or signal, and the second polarization mode may be associated with a DL reference signal. The DL reference signal may be quasi-colocated (QCL) with the DL physical channel or signal, so that they have substantially similar transmission properties (including, for example, polarization). As a more specific example, the indication of the first polarization mode may be a transmission configuration indicator (TCI) for the DL physical signal or channel, and the TCI state is also associated with the DL RS.

[0100] In some embodiments, the example method may also include the operation of block 630, in which the network may transmit to one or more UEs a further indication of at least one further polarization mode configured for use in the second cell of the first NTN. The one or more further polarization modes (e.g., LHCP) may be orthogonal to one or more of the polarization modes (e.g., RHCP) configured for use in the first cell.

[0101] In some embodiments, the first NTN may be configured with one or more default polarization modes used to transmit signals used for initial access by the UE in multiple cells. UE-related aspects of some of these embodiments are described below with reference to FIG.

[0102] 7 is a flow diagram illustrating an example method (e.g., procedure) for operating a user equipment (UE) in a first non-terrestrial network (NTN) utilizing one or more polarization modes to serve one or more cells, in accordance with various example embodiments of the present disclosure. The example method illustrated in FIG. 7 may be performed by a UE (e.g., a wireless device) as described with respect to other figures herein.

[0103] 7 may include operations of block 710, in which the UE may receive an indication of at least one polarization mode configured for use in a first cell of a first NTN. The example method may also include operations of block 730, in which the UE may determine, based on the indication, one or more polarization modes configured for use in the first cell, including the at least one indicated polarization mode. The example method may also include operations of block 740, in which the UE may transmit and / or receive one or more signals or channels in the first cell in accordance with the determined polarization mode.

[0104] In some embodiments, the at least one polarization mode indicated may include any of linear polarization, horizontal polarization, vertical polarization, circular polarization, right-hand circular polarization, and left-hand circular polarization.

[0105] In some embodiments, the indication of the at least one polarization mode may include one or more of an identifier of the first cell, an identifier of a network node serving the first cell, and an identifier of a bandwidth portion (BWP) used in the first cell. In such embodiments, the determining operation in block 730 may include operations of sub-block 731 in which the UE may perform respective modulo operations on the one or more identifiers, which may result in an identification(s) of the at least one polarization mode (e.g., LHCP or RHCP).

[0106] In some embodiments, the receiving operation of block 710 may include an operation of sub-block 711 in which the UE may retrieve locally stored information about the first NTN. For example, the locally stored information may be retrieved from a memory in the UE or from a uSIM. Additionally, the locally stored information may include one or more default polarization modes configured for use in the first NTN.

[0107] Further, in such an embodiment, the determining operation in block 730 may include operations of sub-block 732, in which the UE may select at least one default polarization mode supported by a receiver of the UE. Similarly, the transmitting and / or receiving operations of block 740 may include operations of sub-block 741, in which the UE may configure a receiver of the UE to detect signals transmitted by the first NTN according to the selected at least one default polarization mode.

[0108] In some of these embodiments, the locally stored information may be associated with multiple NTNs, including the first NTN. In such embodiments, the exemplary method may also include the operations of block 720, where the UE may select a first NTN for initial access based on the retrieved information and determine one or more parameters associated with the first NTN. In some embodiments, the selection operations of block 720 may include operations of sub-blocks 721-722. In sub-block 721, the UE may determine whether it is authorized to access the first NTN based on the retrieved information associated with the first NTN. In sub-block 722, the UE may select the first NTN for initial access only if the UE is authorized to access the first NTN.

[0109] In some embodiments, the locally stored information for each NTN (e.g., retrieved in subblock 711) is: Track type or distance, One or more frequency ranges of NTN operation; Ephemeris data related to NTN satellites; One or more UE antenna pointing angles relative to the NTN satellite; It may also include one or more of:

[0110] In such embodiments, determining one or more parameters in block 720 may include operations of subblock 723 and / or subblock 724. In subblock 732, the UE may determine one or more antenna pointing angles for searching for signals transmitted by the first NTN based on the UE's current location and ephemeris data associated with satellites of the first NTN. In subblock 724, the UE may determine frequency bands for searching for signals transmitted by the first NTN based on the UE's current location and one or more frequency ranges of the first NTN.

[0111] In other embodiments, an indication of at least one polarization mode may be received from a network node of the first NTN (e.g., at block 710) in one of a dedicated radio resource control (RRC) message, a broadcast system information (SI, e.g., MIB and / or SIB), a medium access control (MAC) control element, and a physical layer (PHY) downlink control indication (DCI).

[0112] In some embodiments, the one or more determined polarization modes (e.g., from block 730) may include a first set of polarization modes used to transmit downlink signals or channels in the first cell and a second set of polarization modes used to receive uplink signals or channels in the first cell. Each of the first and second sets may include one or more polarization modes.

[0113] In some embodiments, the one or more determined polarization modes (e.g., from block 730) may include a first polarization mode used to transmit or receive a first signal or channel in the first cell and a second polarization mode used to transmit or receive a second signal or channel in the first cell. In some of these embodiments, the determining operations in block 730 may include operations in sub-blocks 733-734. In sub-block 733, the UE: receiving an explicit indication of a second polarization mode; or receiving a second signal or channel in the first cell according to a second polarization mode; The second polarization mode can be determined based on one of the following:

[0114] In subblock 734, the UE may determine the first polarization mode based on the second polarization mode. In some cases, the first polarization mode may be the same as the second polarization mode, and thus the first polarization mode may be inferred directly and / or without additional information.

[0115] More generally, the first polarization mode may be determined in various manners based on the second polarization mode. For example, the first polarization mode may be associated with a downlink (DL) physical channel or signal, and the second polarization mode may be associated with a DL reference signal. The DL reference signal may be quasi-colocated (QCL) with the DL physical channel or signal, so that they have substantially similar transmission properties (including, for example, polarization). As a more specific example, the indication of the first polarization mode may be a transmission configuration indicator (TCI) for the DL physical signal or channel, and the TCI state is also associated with the DL RS.

[0116] In some embodiments, the example method may also include the operation of block 750, in which the UE may receive from the network node a further indication of at least one further polarization mode configured for use in the second cell of the first NTN. The one or more further polarization modes (e.g., LHCP) may be orthogonal to one or more of the polarization modes (e.g., RHCP) configured for use in the first cell.

[0117] Although the subject matter described herein may be implemented in any suitable type of system using any suitable components, the embodiments disclosed herein are described with respect to a wireless network, such as the exemplary wireless network shown in FIG. 8. For simplicity, the wireless network of FIG. 8 illustrates only network 806, network nodes 860 and 860b, and WDs 810, 810b, and 810c. In practice, the wireless network may further include any additional elements suitable for supporting communication between wireless devices, or between a wireless device and another communication device, such as a landline, a service provider, or any other network node or end device. Of the components shown, network node 860 and wireless device (WD) 810 are illustrated with additional details. The wireless network may provide communication and other types of services to one or more wireless devices to facilitate the wireless device's access to the wireless network and / or use of services provided by or via the wireless network.

[0118] The wireless network may include and / or interface with any type of communication, telecommunication, data, cellular, and / or radio network, or other similar type of system. In some embodiments, the wireless network may be configured to operate according to a particular standard or other type of predefined rules or procedures. Thus, particular embodiments of the wireless network may implement communication standards such as Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), Long Term Evolution (LTE), and / or other suitable 2G, 3G, 4G, or 5G standards, wireless local area network (WLAN) standards such as the IEEE 802.11 standard, and / or any other suitable wireless communication standards such as Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax), Bluetooth, Z-Wave, and / or ZigBee standards.

[0119] The network 806 may comprise one or more backhaul networks, core networks, IP networks, public switched telephone networks (PSTN), packet data networks, optical networks, wide area networks (WANs), local area networks (LANs), wireless local area networks (WLANs), wired networks, wireless networks, metropolitan area networks, and other networks to enable communication between devices.

[0120] The network node 860 and the WD 810 comprise various components, which are described in more detail below. These components cooperate to provide network node and / or wireless device functionality, such as providing wireless connectivity in a wireless network. In different embodiments, a wireless network can comprise any number of wired or wireless networks, network nodes, base stations, controllers, wireless devices, relay stations, and / or any other components or systems that can facilitate or participate in the communication of data and / or signals, whether via wired or wireless connections.

[0121] Examples of network nodes include, but are not limited to, access points (APs) (e.g., wireless access points), base stations (BSs) (e.g., radio base stations, Node Bs, evolved Node Bs (eNBs) and NR Node Bs (gNBs)). Base stations may be categorized based on the amount of coverage they provide (or, in other words, their transmit power level), and may then be referred to as femto, pico, micro, or macro base stations. A base station may be a relay node or a relay donor node, which controls a relay. A network node may also include one or more (or all) parts of a distributed radio base station, such as a centralized digital unit and / or a remote radio unit (RRU), which may be referred to as a remote radio head (RRH). Such remote radio units may or may not be integrated with an antenna as an antenna-integrated radio. Parts of a distributed radio base station may also be referred to as nodes in a distributed antenna system (DAS).

[0122] Further examples of network nodes include MSR equipment such as a multi-standard radio (MSR) BS, a network controller such as a radio network controller (RNC) or base station controller (BSC), a base transceiver station (BTS), a transmission point, a transmitting node, a multi-cell / multicast coordination entity (MCE), a core network node (e.g., MSC, MME), an O&M node, an OSS node, a SON node, a positioning node (e.g., E-SMLC), and / or an MDT. As another example, a network node may be a virtual network node, as described in more detail below. However, more generally, a network node may represent any suitable device (or group of devices) capable of, configured to, and / or operable to enable and / or provide wireless devices with access to a wireless network, or to provide some service to wireless devices that have accessed the wireless network.

[0123] In FIG. 8, network node 860 includes processing circuitry 870, device readable medium 880, interface 890, auxiliary equipment 884, power source 886, power circuitry 887, and antenna 862. Although network node 860 shown in the example wireless network of FIG. 8 may represent a device including the shown combination of hardware components, other embodiments may comprise network nodes with different combinations of components. It should be understood that a network node comprises any suitable combination of hardware and / or software required to perform the tasks, features, functions, and methods and / or procedures disclosed herein. Moreover, while the components of network node 860 are illustrated as a single box located within a larger box or nested within multiple boxes, in reality the network node may comprise multiple different physical components that make up a single shown component (e.g., device readable medium 880 may comprise multiple separate hard drives as well as multiple RAM modules).

[0124] Similarly, the network node 860 may be assembled from multiple physically separate components (e.g., a Node B component and an RNC component, or a BTS component and a BSC component, etc.), which may each have their own respective components. In some scenarios in which the network node 860 comprises multiple separate components (e.g., a BTS component and a BSC component), one or more of the separate components may be shared among several network nodes. For example, a single RNC may control several Node Bs. In such scenarios, each unique Node B and RNC pair may be considered as a single separate network node in some instances. In some embodiments, the network node 860 may be configured to support several radio access technologies (RATs). In such embodiments, some components may be duplicated (e.g., separate device-readable media 880 for different RATs) and some components may be reused (e.g., the same antenna 862 may be shared by the RATs). Network node 860 may also include multiple sets of the various shown components for different wireless technologies, such as, for example, GSM, WCDMA, LTE, NR, WiFi, or Bluetooth wireless technologies, integrated into network node 860. These wireless technologies may be integrated in the same or different chips or sets of chips and other components within network node 860.

[0125] The processing circuitry 870 may be configured to perform any of the decision, computation, or similar operations (e.g., some acquisition operations) described herein as being provided by a network node. These operations performed by the processing circuitry 870 may include processing information acquired by the processing circuitry 870, for example, by transforming the acquired information into other information, comparing the acquired or transformed information to information stored in the network node, and / or performing one or more operations based on the acquired or transformed information and as a result of said processing making a decision.

[0126] The processing circuitry 870 may comprise one or more combinations of a microprocessor, controller, microcontroller, central processing unit, digital signal processor, application specific integrated circuit, field programmable gate array, or any other suitable computing device, resources, or combination of hardware, software, and / or coded logic operable, either alone or in conjunction with other network node 860 components (e.g., device readable medium 880), to provide various functions of the network node 860. Such functions may include any of the various wireless features, functions, or benefits described herein.

[0127] For example, the processing circuit 870 may execute instructions stored on a device-readable medium 880 or instructions stored in a memory within the processing circuit 870. In some embodiments, the processing circuit 870 may include a system on a chip (SOC). As a more specific example, the instructions (also referred to as a computer program product) stored on the medium 880 may include instructions that, when executed by the processing circuit 870, can configure the network node 860 to perform operations corresponding to various example methods (e.g., procedures) described herein.

[0128] In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 870 may include one or more of a radio frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry 872 and a baseband processing circuitry 874. In some embodiments, the radio frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry 872 and the baseband processing circuitry 874 may be on separate chips (or sets of chips), boards, or units, such as a radio unit and a digital unit. In alternative embodiments, some or all of the RF transceiver circuitry 872 and the baseband processing circuitry 874 may be on the same chip or set of chips, board, or unit.

[0129] In some embodiments, some or all of the functionality described herein as being provided by a network node, base station, eNB, or other such network device may be performed by the processing circuitry 870 executing instructions stored in the device-readable medium 880, or in memory within the processing circuitry 870. In alternative embodiments, some or all of the functionality may be provided by the processing circuitry 870 without executing instructions stored in a separate or distinct device-readable medium, such as in a hardwired manner. In any of those embodiments, the processing circuitry 870 may be configured to perform the described functionality, whether or not it executes instructions stored in a device-readable storage medium. Benefits provided by such functionality are enjoyed by the processing circuitry 870 alone, or by other components of the network node 860, but by the network node 860 as a whole, and / or by end users and wireless networks generally.

[0130] The device readable medium 880 may comprise any form of volatile or non-volatile computer readable memory, including, but not limited to, persistent storage, solid state memory, remotely mounted memory, magnetic media, optical media, random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), mass storage media (e.g., hard disk), removable storage media (e.g., flash drive, compact disk (CD) or digital video disk (DVD)), and / or any other volatile or non-volatile, non-transitory device readable and / or computer executable memory device that stores information, data, and / or instructions that may be used by the processing circuit 870. The device readable medium 880 may store any suitable instructions, data or information, including applications including one or more of computer programs, software, logic, rules, codes, tables, etc., and / or other instructions that may be executed by the processing circuit 870 and utilized by the network node 860. The device readable medium 880 may be used to store calculations performed by the processing circuit 870 and / or data received via the interface 890. In some embodiments, the processing circuit 870 and the device-readable medium 880 may be considered to be integrated.

[0131] The interface 890 is used in wired or wireless communication of signaling and / or data between the network node 860, the network 806, and / or the WD 810. As shown, the interface 890 comprises a port(s) / terminal(s) 894 for sending and receiving data to and from the network 806, for example over a wired connection. The interface 890 also includes a wireless front-end circuit 892 that is coupled to the antenna 862 or, in some embodiments, may be part of the antenna 862. The wireless front-end circuit 892 comprises a filter 898 and an amplifier 896. The wireless front-end circuit 892 may be connected to the antenna 862 and the processing circuit 870. The wireless front-end circuit may be configured to condition signals communicated between the antenna 862 and the processing circuit 870. The wireless front-end circuit 892 may receive digital data to be sent to other network nodes or WDs via a wireless connection. The radio front-end circuitry 892 can convert the digital data into a radio signal having appropriate channel and bandwidth parameters using a combination of filters 898 and / or amplifiers 896. The radio signal can then be transmitted via the antenna 862. Similarly, when receiving data, the antenna 862 can collect the radio signal, which is then converted into digital data by the radio front-end circuitry 892. The digital data can be passed to the processing circuitry 870. In other embodiments, the interface can comprise different components and / or different combinations of components.

[0132] In some alternative embodiments, the network node 860 may not include a separate radio front-end circuit 892, and instead the processing circuit 870 may comprise a radio front-end circuit and be connected to the antenna 862 without a separate radio front-end circuit 892. Similarly, in some embodiments, all or a portion of the RF transceiver circuit 872 may be considered part of the interface 890. In still other embodiments, the interface 890 may include one or more ports or terminals 894, the radio front-end circuit 892, and the RF transceiver circuit 872 as part of a radio unit (not shown), and the interface 890 may communicate with a baseband processing circuit 874 that is part of a digital unit (not shown).

[0133] The antenna 862 may include one or more antennas or antenna arrays configured to send and / or receive wireless signals. The antenna 862 may be coupled to the wireless front-end circuitry 890 and may be any type of antenna capable of wirelessly transmitting and receiving data and / or signals. In some embodiments, the antenna 862 may comprise one or more omni-directional, sector or panel antennas operable to transmit / receive wireless signals, for example, between 2 GHz and 66 GHz. An omni-directional antenna may be used to transmit / receive wireless signals in any direction, a sector antenna may be used to transmit / receive wireless signals from devices in a particular area, and a panel antenna may be a line-of-sight antenna used to transmit / receive wireless signals in a relatively straight line. In some instances, the use of more than one antenna may be referred to as MIMO. In some embodiments, the antenna 862 may be separate from the network node 860 and may be connectable to the network node 860 through an interface or port.

[0134] The antenna 862, the interface 890, and / or the processing circuitry 870 may be configured to perform any receiving operation and / or some obtaining operation described herein as being performed by a network node. Any information, data, and / or signal may be received from a wireless device, another network node, and / or any other network equipment. Similarly, the antenna 862, the interface 890, and / or the processing circuitry 870 may be configured to perform any transmitting operation described herein as being performed by a network node. Any information, data, and / or signal may be transmitted to a wireless device, another network node, and / or any other network equipment.

[0135] The power circuitry 887 may comprise or be coupled to a power management circuitry and may be configured to supply power to the components of the network node 860 for performing the functions described herein. The power circuitry 887 may receive power from a power source 886. The power source 886 and / or the power circuitry 887 may be configured to provide power to the various components of the network node 860 in a format suitable for the respective components (e.g., at voltage and current levels required for each respective component). The power source 886 may either be included in the power circuitry 887 and / or the network node 860 or may be external to the power circuitry 887 and / or the network node 860. For example, the network node 860 may be connectable to an external power source (e.g., an electrical outlet) via an input circuit or interface, such as an electrical cable, whereby the external power source provides power to the power circuitry 887. As a further example, the power source 886 may comprise a power source in the form of a battery or battery pack connected to or integrated in the power circuitry 887. Batteries can provide backup power if the external power source fails. Other types of power sources, such as photovoltaic devices, can also be used.

[0136] Alternative embodiments of network node 860 may include additional components other than those shown in FIG. 8 that may be responsible for providing some aspects of the network node's functionality, including any of the functionality described herein and / or functionality necessary to support the subject matter described herein. For example, network node 860 may include user interface devices to enable and / or facilitate input of information into network node 860, and to enable and / or facilitate output of information from network node 860. This may enable and / or facilitate a user to perform diagnostic, maintenance, repair, and other administrative functions for network node 860.

[0137] In some embodiments, a wireless device (WD, e.g., WD810) may be configured to transmit and / or receive information without direct human interaction. For example, a WD may be designed to transmit information to a network on a predefined schedule, when triggered by an internal or external event, or in response to a request from the network. Examples of WDs include, but are not limited to, smartphones, mobile phones, cell phones, voice-over-IP (VoIP) phones, wireless local loop phones, desktop computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), wireless cameras, gaming consoles or devices, music storage devices, playback appliances, wearable devices, wireless endpoints, mobile stations, tablets, laptop computers, laptop embedded equipment (LEE), laptop mounted equipment (LME), smart devices, wireless customer premises equipment (CPE), mobile telecommunications (MTC) devices, Internet of Things (IoT) devices, in-vehicle wireless terminal devices, and the like.

[0138] The WD may support device-to-device (D2D) communication, e.g., by implementing 3GPP standards for sidelink communication, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V), vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I), and vehicle-to-everything (V2X), in which case it may be referred to as a D2D communication device. As yet another specific example, in an Internet of Things (IoT) scenario, the WD may represent a machine or other device that performs monitoring and / or measurements and transmits results of such monitoring and / or measurements to another WD and / or a network node. The WD may in this case be a machine-to-machine (M2M) device, which may be referred to as an MTC device in a 3GPP context. As one specific example, the WD may be a UE that implements the 3GPP Narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) standard. Specific examples of such machines or devices are sensors, metering devices such as power meters, industrial machinery, or household or personal appliances (e.g., refrigerators, televisions, etc.), personal wearables (e.g., watches, fitness trackers, etc.). In other scenarios, the WD may represent a vehicle or other equipment capable of monitoring and / or reporting on its operational status or other functions related to its operation. The WD described above may represent an endpoint of a wireless connection, in which case the device may be referred to as a wireless terminal. Additionally, the WD described above may be mobile, in which case the device may be referred to as a mobile device or mobile terminal.

[0139] As shown, wireless device 810 includes antenna 811, interface 814, processing circuitry 820, device readable medium 830, user interface equipment 832, auxiliary equipment 834, power source 836, and power circuitry 837. WD810 may include multiple sets of one or more of the shown components for different wireless technologies supported by WD810, such as, for example, GSM, WCDMA, LTE, NR, WiFi, WiMAX, or Bluetooth wireless technologies, just to name a few. These wireless technologies may be integrated on the same or different chips or sets of chips as other components within WD810.

[0140] The antenna 811 may include one or more antennas or antenna arrays configured to send and / or receive wireless signals and is connected to the interface 814. In some alternative embodiments, the antenna 811 may be separate from the WD 810 and connectable to the WD 810 through an interface or port. The antenna 811, the interface 814, and / or the processing circuitry 820 may be configured to perform any receiving or transmitting operations described herein as being performed by a WD. Any information, data, and / or signals may be received from a network node and / or another WD. In some embodiments, the wireless front-end circuitry and / or the antenna 811 may be considered an interface.

[0141] As shown, the interface 814 comprises a radio front-end circuit 812 and an antenna 811. The radio front-end circuit 812 comprises one or more filters 818 and an amplifier 816. The radio front-end circuit 814 may be connected to the antenna 811 and the processing circuit 820 and configured to condition signals communicated between the antenna 811 and the processing circuit 820. The radio front-end circuit 812 may be coupled to the antenna 811 or may be part of the antenna 811. In some embodiments, the WD 810 may not include a separate radio front-end circuit 812, rather, the processing circuit 820 may comprise a radio front-end circuit and be connected to the antenna 811. Similarly, in some embodiments, some or all of the RF transceiver circuit 822 may be considered part of the interface 814. The radio front-end circuit 812 may receive digital data to be sent to other network nodes or WDs via a wireless connection. The radio front-end circuitry 812 can convert the digital data into a radio signal having appropriate channel and bandwidth parameters using a combination of filters 818 and / or amplifiers 816. The radio signal can then be transmitted via the antenna 811. Similarly, when receiving data, the antenna 811 can collect the radio signal, which is then converted into digital data by the radio front-end circuitry 812. The digital data can be passed to the processing circuitry 820. In other embodiments, the interface can comprise different components and / or different combinations of components.

[0142] The processing circuitry 820 may comprise one or more combinations of a microprocessor, controller, microcontroller, central processing unit, digital signal processor, application specific integrated circuit, field programmable gate array, or any other suitable computing device, resources, or combination of hardware, software, and / or coded logic operable to provide WD810 functionality, either alone or in combination with other WD810 components, such as device readable medium 830. Such functionality may include any of the various wireless features or benefits described herein.

[0143] For example, the processing circuit 820 may execute instructions stored on the device-readable medium 830 or in a memory within the processing circuit 820 to provide the functionality disclosed herein. More specifically, the instructions (also referred to as a computer program product) stored on the medium 830 may include instructions that, when executed by the processor 820, can configure the wireless device 810 to perform operations corresponding to various example methods (e.g., procedures) described herein.

[0144] As shown, the processing circuit 820 includes one or more of an RF transceiver circuit 822, a baseband processing circuit 824, and an application processing circuit 826. In other embodiments, the processing circuit may comprise different components and / or different combinations of components. In some embodiments, the processing circuit 820 of the WD 810 may comprise a SOC. In some embodiments, the RF transceiver circuit 822, the baseband processing circuit 824, and the application processing circuit 826 may be on separate chips or sets of chips. In alternative embodiments, some or all of the baseband processing circuit 824 and the application processing circuit 826 may be combined into one chip or set of chips, and the RF transceiver circuit 822 may be on a separate chip or set of chips. In yet alternative embodiments, some or all of the RF transceiver circuit 822 and the baseband processing circuit 824 may be on the same chip or set of chips, and the application processing circuit 826 may be on a separate chip or set of chips. In yet other alternative embodiments, some or all of the RF transceiver circuitry 822, the baseband processing circuitry 824, and the application processing circuitry 826 may be combined in the same chip or set of chips. In some embodiments, the RF transceiver circuitry 822 may be part of the interface 814. The RF transceiver circuitry 822 may condition RF signals for the processing circuitry 820.

[0145] In some embodiments, some or all of the functionality described herein as being performed by the WD may be provided by the processing circuitry 820 executing instructions stored on a device-readable medium 830, which in some embodiments may be a computer-readable storage medium. In alternative embodiments, some or all of the functionality may be provided by the processing circuitry 820 without executing instructions stored on a separate or distinct device-readable storage medium, such as in a hardwired manner. In any of those particular embodiments, the processing circuitry 820 may be configured to perform the described functionality, whether or not it executes instructions stored on a device-readable storage medium. Benefits provided by such functionality are enjoyed by the WD 810 as a whole, and / or by end users and wireless networks generally, but not limited to the processing circuitry 820 alone or other components of the WD 810.

[0146] The processing circuitry 820 may be configured to perform any of the decision, calculation, or similar operations (e.g., some of the acquisition operations) described herein as being performed by the WD. These operations as performed by the processing circuitry 820 may include processing information acquired by the processing circuitry 820, for example, by converting the acquired information to other information, comparing the acquired or converted information to information stored by the WD 810, and / or performing one or more operations based on the acquired or converted information and as a result of the processing making a decision.

[0147] The device-readable medium 830 may be operable to store applications including one or more of computer programs, software, logic, rules, codes, tables, etc., and / or other instructions that may be executed by the processing circuit 820. The device-readable medium 830 may include computer memory (e.g., random access memory (RAM) or read-only memory (ROM)), mass storage media (e.g., hard disk), removable storage media (e.g., compact disc (CD) or digital video disc (DVD)), and / or any other volatile or non-volatile, non-transitory device-readable and / or computer-executable memory device that stores information, data, and / or instructions that may be used by the processing circuit 820. In some embodiments, the processing circuit 820 and the device-readable medium 830 may be considered to be integrated.

[0148] The user interface equipment 832 may include components that enable and / or facilitate a human user to interact with the WD810. Such interaction may be of many forms, such as visual, auditory, tactile, etc. The user interface equipment 832 may be operable to produce output to the user as well as to enable and / or facilitate the user to provide input to the WD810. The type of interaction may vary depending on the type of user interface equipment 832 installed in the WD810. For example, if the WD810 is a smartphone, the interaction may be via a touch screen, and if the WD810 is a smart meter, the interaction may be through a screen that provides usage (e.g., number of gallons used) or a speaker that provides an audible alarm (e.g., if smoke is detected). The user interface equipment 832 may include input interfaces, devices and circuits, as well as output interfaces, devices and circuits. The user interface equipment 832 may be configured to enable and / or facilitate input of information to the WD810 and is connected to the processing circuitry 820 to enable and / or facilitate the processing circuitry 820 to process the input information. The user interface devices 832 may include, for example, a microphone, proximity or other sensors, keys / buttons, a touch display, one or more cameras, a USB port, or other input circuitry. The user interface devices 832 are also configured to enable and / or facilitate the output of information from the WD 810 and to enable and / or facilitate the processing circuitry 820 to output information from the WD 810. The user interface devices 832 may include, for example, a speaker, a display, vibration circuitry, a USB port, a headphone interface, or other output circuitry.Using one or more input and output interfaces, devices, and circuits of the user interface equipment 832, the WD810 can communicate with end users and / or wireless networks to enable and / or facilitate the end users and / or wireless networks to benefit from the functionality described herein.

[0149] The auxiliary device 834 is operable to provide more specific functionality that may not generally be implemented by a WD. It may include specialized sensors for taking measurements for various purposes, interfaces for additional types of communication such as wired communication, etc. The inclusion of components of the auxiliary device 834 and the types of components of the auxiliary device 834 may vary depending on the embodiment and / or scenario.

[0150] The power source 836 may be in the form of a battery or battery pack in some embodiments. Other types of power sources may also be used, such as an external power source (e.g., an electrical outlet), a photovoltaic device, or a battery. The WD810 may further comprise a power circuit 837 for delivering power from the power source 836 to various parts of the WD810 that require power from the power source 836 to perform any of the functions described or shown herein. The power circuit 837 may comprise a power management circuit in some embodiments. The power circuit 837 may additionally or alternatively be operable to receive power from an external power source, in which case the WD810 may be connectable to an external power source (such as an electrical outlet) via an input circuit or interface, such as a power cable. The power circuit 837 may also be operable in some embodiments to deliver power from the external power source to the power source 836. This may be for example for charging the power source 836. Power circuitry 837 may perform any conversion or other modification on the power from power source 836 to make it suitable for delivery to the respective components of WD810.

[0151] FIG. 9 illustrates an embodiment of a UE according to various aspects described herein. User equipment or UE as used herein does not necessarily have a user in the sense of a human user who owns and / or operates an associated device. Instead, a UE may represent a device (e.g., a smart sprinkler controller) that is intended for sale to or operation by a human user, but may not be associated with or may not be initially associated with a particular human user. Alternatively, a UE may represent a device (e.g., a smart power meter) that is not intended for sale to or operation by an end user, but may be associated with or operated for the benefit of a user. The UE 900 may be any UE identified by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), including an NB-IoT UE, a machine-type communication (MTC) UE, and / or an enhanced MTC (eMTC) UE. The UE 900 shown in Figure 9 is an example of a WD configured for communication according to one or more communications standards promulgated by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), such as the 3GPP GSM, UMTS, LTE, and / or 5G standards. As previously mentioned, the terms WD and UE may be used interchangeably. Thus, although Figure 9 is a UE, the components described herein are equally applicable to a WD and vice versa.

[0152] In FIG. 9, UE 900 includes a processing circuit 901 operatively coupled to an input / output interface 905, a radio frequency (RF) interface 909, a network connection interface 911, memory 915 including random access memory (RAM) 917, read only memory (ROM) 919, storage medium 921, etc., a communication subsystem 931, a power source 933, and / or other components, or any combination thereof. Storage medium 921 includes an operating system 923, application programs 925, and data 927. In other embodiments, storage medium 921 may include other similar types of information. Some UEs may utilize all of the components shown in FIG. 9 or only a subset of those components. The level of integration between components may vary from UE to UE. Additionally, some UEs may include multiple instances of components, such as multiple processors, memories, transceivers, transmitters, receivers, etc.

[0153] In Fig. 9, the processing circuit 901 may be configured to process computer instructions and data. The processing circuit 901 may be configured to implement any sequential state machine operable to execute machine instructions stored in memory as a machine-readable computer program, such as one or more hardware-implemented state machines (e.g., in discrete logic, FPGA, ASIC, etc.), programmable logic with appropriate firmware, one or more pre-programmed, general-purpose processors, such as a microprocessor or digital signal processor (DSP) with appropriate software, or any combination of the above. For example, the processing circuit 901 may include two central processing units (CPUs). The data may be information in a format suitable for use by a computer.

[0154] In the illustrated embodiment, the input / output interface 905 may be configured to provide an input device, an output device, or a communication interface to an input / output device. The UE 900 may be configured to use an output device via the input / output interface 905. The output device may use the same type of interface port as the input device. For example, a USB port may be used to provide input to and output from the UE 900. The output device may be a speaker, a sound card, a video card, a display, a monitor, a printer, an actuator, an emitter, a smart card, another output device, or any combination thereof. The UE 900 may be configured to use an input device via the input / output interface 905 to enable and / or facilitate a user to capture information on the UE 900. The input device may include a touch-sensitive or presence-sensitive display, a camera (e.g., a digital camera, a digital video camera, a webcam, etc.), a microphone, a sensor, a mouse, a trackball, a directional pad, a trackpad, a scroll wheel, a smart card, etc. The presence-sensitive display may include a capacitive or resistive touch sensor to sense input from a user. The sensor may be, for example, an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a tilt sensor, a force sensor, a magnetometer, a light sensor, a proximity sensor, another like sensor, or any combination thereof. For example, the input device may be an accelerometer, a magnetometer, a digital camera, a microphone, and a light sensor.

[0155] In FIG. 9, the RF interface 909 may be configured to provide a communication interface to RF components, such as a transmitter, a receiver, and an antenna. The network connection interface 911 may be configured to provide a communication interface to a network 943a. The network 943a may encompass a wired and / or wireless network, such as a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN), a computer network, a wireless network, a communication network, another similar network, or any combination thereof. For example, the network 943a may comprise a Wi-Fi network. The network connection interface 911 may be configured to include a receiver and a transmitter interface used to communicate with one or more other devices over a communication network according to one or more communication protocols, such as Ethernet, TCP / IP, SONET, ATM, etc. The network connection interface 911 may implement receiver and transmitter functions suitable for a communication network link (e.g., optical, electrical, etc.). The transmitter and receiver functions may share circuit components, software, or firmware, or may alternatively be implemented separately.

[0156] The RAM 917 may be configured to interface to the processing circuit 901 via the bus 902 to provide storage or caching of data or computer instructions during execution of software programs, such as an operating system, application programs, and device drivers. The ROM 919 may be configured to provide computer instructions or data to the processing circuit 901. For example, the ROM 919 may be configured to store unchanging low-level system code or data for basic system functions, such as basic input / output (I / O), booting, or receiving keystrokes from a keyboard, stored in non-volatile memory. The storage medium 921 may be configured to include memory, such as RAM, ROM, programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), magnetic disk, optical disk, floppy disk, hard disk, removable cartridge, or flash drive.

[0157] In one example, the storage medium 921 may be configured to include an operating system 923, an application program 925, such as a web browser application, a widget or gadget engine, or another application, and data files 927. The storage medium 921 may store any of a variety of different operating systems or combinations of operating systems for use by the UE 900. For example, the application program 925 may include executable program instructions (also referred to as a computer program product) that, when executed by the processor 901, may configure the UE 900 to perform operations corresponding to various example methods (e.g., procedures) described herein.

[0158] The storage medium 921 may be configured to include several physical drive units, such as a redundant array of independent disks (RAID), a floppy disk drive, a flash memory, a USB flash drive, an external hard disk drive, a thumb drive, a pen drive, a key drive, a high density digital versatile disk (HD-DVD) optical disk drive, an internal hard disk drive, a Blu-Ray optical disk drive, a holographic digital data storage (HDDS) optical disk drive, an external mini dual in-line memory module (DIMM), a synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), an external micro-DIMM SDRAM, a smart card memory such as a subscriber identity module or a removable user identity (SIM / RUIM) module, other memory, or any combination thereof. The storage medium 921 may enable and / or facilitate the UE 900 to access computer executable instructions, application programs, etc., stored in a temporary or non-transitory memory medium, offload data, or upload data. An article of manufacture, such as an article of manufacture utilizing a communication system, may be tangibly embodied in the storage medium 921, and the storage medium 921 may comprise a device-readable medium.

[0159] In FIG. 9, the processing circuit 901 may be configured to communicate with the network 943b using the communication subsystem 931. The networks 943a and 943b may be the same network or networks or different networks or networks. The communication subsystem 931 may be configured to include one or more transceivers used to communicate with the network 943b. For example, the communication subsystem 931 may be configured to include one or more transceivers used to communicate with one or more remote transceivers of another device capable of wireless communication, such as another WD, UE, or base station of a radio access network (RAN), according to one or more communication protocols, such as IEEE 802.9, CDMA, WCDMA, GSM, LTE, UTRAN, WiMax, etc. Each transceiver may include a transmitter 933 and / or a receiver 935 for implementing transmitter or receiver functions, respectively, appropriate for the RAN link (e.g., frequency allocation, etc.). Additionally, the transmitter 933 and receiver 935 of each transceiver may share circuit components, software, or firmware, or may alternatively be implemented separately.

[0160] In the illustrated embodiment, the communication functions of the communication subsystem 931 may include data communication, voice communication, multimedia communication, short-range communication such as Bluetooth, near-field communication, location-based communication such as using a global positioning system (GPS) to determine location, another similar communication function, or any combination thereof. For example, the communication subsystem 931 may include cellular communication, Wi-Fi communication, Bluetooth communication, and GPS communication. The network 943b may encompass wired and / or wireless networks, such as a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN), a computer network, a wireless network, a communication network, another similar network, or any combination thereof. For example, the network 943b may be a cellular network, a Wi-Fi network, and / or a near-field network. The power source 913 may be configured to provide alternating current (AC) or direct current (DC) power to the components of the UE 900.

[0161] The features, benefits and / or functions described herein may be implemented in one of the components of the UE 900 or distributed across multiple components of the UE 900. Furthermore, the features, benefits and / or functions described herein may be implemented in any combination of hardware, software or firmware. In one example, the communication subsystem 931 may be configured to include any of the components described herein. Furthermore, the processing circuit 901 may be configured to communicate with any of such components over the bus 902. In another example, any of such components may be represented by program instructions stored in memory that, when executed by the processing circuit 901, perform the corresponding functions described herein. In another example, the functions of any of such components may be distributed between the processing circuit 901 and the communication subsystem 931. In another example, non-computationally intensive functions of any of such components may be implemented in software or firmware and computationally intensive functions may be implemented in hardware.

[0162] FIG. 10 is a schematic block diagram illustrating a virtualization environment 1000 in which functions implemented by some embodiments may be virtualized. In this context, virtualizing means creating a virtual version of an apparatus or device, which may include virtualizing a hardware platform, storage devices, and networking resources. Virtualization as used herein may be applied to a node (e.g., a virtualized base station or a virtualized radio access node) or to a device (e.g., a UE, a wireless device, or any other type of communication device) or to a component of that device, and relates to implementations in which at least a portion of the functionality is implemented as one or more virtual components (e.g., via one or more applications, components, functions, virtual machines, or containers running on one or more physical processing nodes in one or more networks).

[0163] In some embodiments, some or all of the functionality described herein may be implemented as virtual components executed by one or more virtual machines implemented in one or more virtual environments 1000 hosted by one or more of the hardware nodes 1030. Furthermore, in embodiments where the virtual nodes are not wireless access nodes or do not require wireless connectivity (e.g., core network nodes), the network nodes may be fully virtualized.

[0164] The functionality may be implemented by one or more applications 1020 (which may alternatively be referred to as software instances, virtual appliances, network functions, virtual nodes, virtual network functions, etc.) operable to implement some of the features, functions, and / or benefits of some of the embodiments disclosed herein. The applications 1020 are run in a virtualization environment 1000, which provides hardware 1030 comprising a processing circuit 1060 and a memory 1090. The memory 1090 includes instructions 1095 executable by the processing circuit 1060 such that the applications 1020 are operable to provide one or more of the features, functions, and / or benefits of the embodiments disclosed herein.

[0165] The virtualization environment 1000 may include general-purpose or dedicated network hardware devices (or nodes) 1030 with a set of one or more processors or processing circuitry 1060, which may be commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) processors, dedicated application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), or any other type of processing circuitry including digital or analog hardware components or dedicated processors. Each hardware device may include a memory 1090-1, which may be a non-persistent memory for temporarily storing instructions 1095 or software executed by the processing circuitry 1060. For example, the instructions 1095 may include program instructions (also referred to as computer program products) that, when executed by the processing circuitry 1060, may configure the hardware node 1020 to perform operations corresponding to various example methods (e.g., procedures) described herein. Such operations may in turn be due to the virtual node(s) 1020 hosted by the hardware node 1030.

[0166] Each hardware device may include one or more network interface controllers (NICs), also known as network interface cards, 1070 that include physical network interfaces 1080. Each hardware device may also include a non-transitory, persistent, machine-readable storage medium 1090-2 having stored thereon software 1095 and / or instructions executable by the processing circuitry 1060. The software 1095 may include any type of software, including software for instantiating one or more virtualization layers 1050 (also referred to as hypervisors), software for running virtual machines 1040, and software that enables it to perform the functions, features and / or benefits described in connection with some embodiments described herein.

[0167] The virtual machines 1040 may comprise virtual processing, virtual memory, virtual networking or interfaces, and virtual storage, and may be run by a corresponding virtualization layer 1050 or hypervisor. Different embodiments of the virtual appliance 1020 instances may be implemented on one or more of the virtual machines 1040, and the implementations may be done in different ways.

[0168] During operation, the processing circuitry 1060 executes software 1095 to instantiate a hypervisor or virtualization layer 1050, sometimes referred to as a virtual machine monitor (VMM), which can present to the virtual machine 1040 a virtual operating platform that looks like networking hardware.

[0169] As shown in Figure 10, the hardware 1030 may be a standalone network node with general or specific components. The hardware 1030 may include an antenna 10225 and may implement some functions via virtualization. Alternatively, the hardware 1030 may be part of a larger cluster of hardware (e.g., as in the case of a data center or customer premises equipment (CPE)) where many hardware nodes work together and are managed via a management and orchestration (MANO) 10100 that, among other things, oversees the lifecycle management of the application 1020.

[0170] Hardware virtualization is referred to in some contexts as network function virtualization (NFV). NFV can be used to consolidate many network equipment types onto industry-standard high-volume server hardware, physical switches, and physical storage that may be located in data centers and customer premises equipment.

[0171] In the context of NFV, virtual machines 1040 may be software implementations of physical machines that run programs as if they were running on a physical, non-virtualized machine. Each virtual machine 1040 and the portion of hardware 1030 on which it runs, whether hardware dedicated to that virtual machine and / or hardware shared by that virtual machine with other ones of virtual machines 1040, form a separate Virtual Network Element (VNE).

[0172] Further in the context of NFV, a Virtual Network Function (VNF) is responsible for handling a specific network function running in one or more virtual machines 1040 on top of the hardware networking infrastructure 1030 and corresponds to application 1020 in FIG. 10.

[0173] In some embodiments, one or more radio units 10200, each including one or more transmitters 10220 and one or more receivers 10210, may be coupled to one or more antennas 10225. The radio units 10200 may communicate directly with the hardware node 1030 via one or more suitable network interfaces, or may be used in combination with a virtualization component to provide a virtual node with wireless capabilities, such as a radio access node or base station. A node configured in this manner may also communicate with one or more UEs, as described elsewhere herein.

[0174] In some embodiments, some signaling may be performed via a control system 10230, which may alternatively be used for communication between the hardware nodes 1030 and the wireless unit 10200.

[0175] 11, according to one embodiment, a communication system includes a communication network 1110, such as a 3GPP type cellular network, comprising an access network 1111, such as a wireless access network, and a core network 1114. The access network 1111 comprises a number of base stations 1112a, 1112b, 1112c, such as NBs, eNBs, gNBs or other types of wireless access points, each defining a corresponding coverage area 1113a, 1113b, 1113c. Each base station 1112a, 1112b, 1112c is connectable to the core network 1114 over a wired or wireless connection 1115. A first UE 1191 located in the coverage area 1113c may be configured to wirelessly connect to or be paged by the corresponding base station 1112c. A second UE 1192 in the coverage area 1113a can wirelessly connect to the corresponding base station 1112a. Although multiple UEs 1191, 1192 are shown in this example, the disclosed embodiments are equally applicable to situations where only one UE is in the coverage area or connected to the corresponding base station 1112a.

[0176] The communication network 1110 is itself connected to a host computer 1130, which may be embodied in hardware and / or software of a standalone server, a cloud-implemented server, a distributed server, or as a processing resource in a server farm. The host computer 1130 may be owned or controlled by a service provider, or may be operated by or on behalf of the service provider. The connections 1121 and 1122 between the communication network 1110 and the host computer 1130 may extend directly from the core network 1114 to the host computer 1130, or may proceed through an optional intermediate network 1120. The intermediate network 1120 may be one of a public network, a private network, or a hosted network, or a combination of two or more of them, and the intermediate network 1120 may be a backbone network or the Internet, if any, and in particular the intermediate network 1120 may comprise two or more sub-networks (not shown).

[0177] The communication system of FIG. 11 as a whole enables connectivity between connected UEs 1191, 1192 and a host computer 1130. The connectivity may be described as an over-the-top (OTT) connection 1150. The host computer 1130 and connected UEs 1191, 1192 are configured to communicate data and / or signaling via the OTT connection 1150 using the access network 1111, the core network 1114, any intermediate networks 1120, and possible further infrastructure (not shown) as intermediaries. The OTT connection 1150 may be transparent in the sense that the participating communication devices through which the OTT connection 1150 passes are unaware of the routing of the uplink and downlink communications. For example, the base station 1112 may not be or need not be informed of the past routing of an incoming downlink communication involving data originating from the host computer 1130 to be forwarded (e.g., handed over) to the connected UE 1191. Similarly, the base station 1112 does not need to be aware of the future routing of outgoing uplink communications originating from the UE 1191 and destined for the host computer 1130 .

[0178] Next, an exemplary implementation of the UE, base station and host computer described in the previous paragraph according to an embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 12. In the communication system 1200, the host computer 1210 comprises hardware 1215 including a communication interface 1216 configured to set up and maintain wired or wireless connections with interfaces of different communication devices of the communication system 1200. The host computer 1210 further comprises a processing circuit 1218, which may have storage and / or processing capabilities. In particular, the processing circuit 1218 may comprise one or more programmable processors, application specific integrated circuits, field programmable gate arrays, or combinations thereof (not shown) adapted to execute instructions. The host computer 1210 further comprises software 1211, which is stored in or accessible by the host computer 1210 and is executable by the processing circuit 1218. The software 1211 includes a host application 1212. The host application 1212 may be operable to provide services to a remote user, such as the UE 1230 connecting via an OTT connection 1250 that terminates at the UE 1230 and the host computer 1210. In providing services to the remote user, the host application 1212 may provide user data that is transmitted using the OTT connection 1250.

[0179] The communication system 1200 may also include a base station 1220 provided in the communication system, the base station 1220 comprising hardware 1225 that enables the base station 1220 to communicate with the host computer 1210 and the UE 1230. The hardware 1225 may include a communication interface 1226 for setting up and maintaining wired or wireless connections with interfaces of different communication devices of the communication system 1200, as well as a wireless interface 1227 for setting up and maintaining at least a wireless connection 1270 with a UE 1230 located in a coverage area (not shown in FIG. 12) served by the base station 1220. The communication interface 1226 may be configured to facilitate a connection 1260 to the host computer 1210. The connection 1260 may be direct or the connection 1260 may pass through a core network (not shown in FIG. 12) of the communication system and / or one or more intermediate networks external to the communication system. In the illustrated embodiment, the hardware 1225 of the base station 1220 may also include processing circuitry 1228, which may comprise one or more programmable processors, application specific integrated circuits, field programmable gate arrays, or combinations thereof (not shown) adapted to execute instructions.

[0180] Base station 1220 also includes software 1221 stored internally or accessible via an external connection. For example, software 1221 may include program instructions (also referred to as a computer program product) that, when executed by processing circuitry 1228, can configure base station 1220 to perform operations corresponding to various example methods (e.g., procedures) described herein.

[0181] The communications system 1200 may also include the already mentioned UE 1230, whose hardware 1235 may include a wireless interface 1237 configured to set up and maintain a wireless connection 1270 with a base station serving a coverage area in which the UE 1230 is currently located. The hardware 1235 of the UE 1230 may also include processing circuitry 1238, which may comprise one or more programmable processors, application specific integrated circuits, field programmable gate arrays, or combinations thereof (not shown) adapted to execute instructions.

[0182] The UE 1230 also includes software 1231, which is stored in or accessible by the UE 1230 and executable by the processing circuitry 1238. The software 1231 includes a client application 1232. The client application 1232 may be operable to provide services to a human or non-human user via the UE 1230 with support from the host computer 1210. At the host computer 1210, an executing host application 1212 may communicate with an executing client application 1232 via an OTT connection 1250 that terminates at the UE 1230 and the host computer 1210. In providing services to the user, the client application 1232 may receive request data from the host application 1212 and provide user data in response to the request data. The OTT connection 1250 may transfer both the request data and the user data. The client application 1232 may interact with the user to generate the user data that the client application 1232 provides. The software 1231 may also include program instructions (also referred to as a computer program product) that, when executed by the processing circuitry 1238, can configure the UE 1230 to perform operations corresponding to various example methods (e.g., procedures) described herein.

[0183] As an example, the host computer 1210, base station 1220, and UE 1230 shown in Figure 12 may be similar or equivalent to the host computers or base stations described with respect to other figures herein. For example, the inner workings of these entities may be as shown in Figure 12, and separately, the surrounding network topology may be as shown in other figures herein.

[0184] 12, the OTT connection 1250 is depicted abstractly to show communication between the host computer 1210 and the UE 1230 via the base station 1220, without explicit reference to intermediary devices and the exact routing of messages through these devices. The network infrastructure may determine the routing, and the network infrastructure may be configured to hide the routing from the UE 1230 or from the service provider operating the host computer 1210, or both. The network infrastructure may also determine that the network infrastructure dynamically changes the routing (e.g., based on load balancing considerations or reconfiguration of the network) while the OTT connection 1250 is active.

[0185] The radio connection 1270 between the UE 1230 and the base station 1220 follows the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure. One or more of the various embodiments improve the performance of the OTT service provided to the UE 1230 using the OTT connection 1250 of which the radio connection 1270 forms the last segment. More precisely, the exemplary embodiments disclosed herein can improve the flexibility for the network to monitor the end-to-end quality of service (QoS) of a data flow, including the corresponding radio bearer of the data flow associated with a data session between the user equipment (UE) and another entity, such as an OTT data application or service, outside the 5G network. These and other advantages can facilitate more timely design, implementation, and deployment of 5G / NR solutions. Moreover, such embodiments can facilitate flexible and timely control of data session QoS, which can lead to improvements in capacity, throughput, latency, etc., envisioned by 5G / NR and critical for the growth of OTT services.

[0186] Measurement procedures may be provided for the purpose of monitoring data rates, latencies, and other network operation aspects that one or more embodiments improve upon. There may further be an optional network function for reconfiguring the OTT connection 1250 between the host computer 1210 and the UE 1230 in response to fluctuations in the measurement results. The measurement procedures and / or the network function for reconfiguring the OTT connection 1250 may be implemented in the software 1211 and hardware 1215 of the host computer 1210 or in the software 1231 and hardware 1235 of the UE 1230, or both. In an embodiment, sensors (not shown) may be deployed in or in association with the communication devices through which the OTT connection 1250 passes, and the sensors may participate in the measurement procedures by providing values ​​of the monitored quantities exemplified above, or other physical quantities from which the software 1211, 1231 can calculate or estimate the monitored quantities. The reconfiguration of the OTT connection 1250 may include message formats, retransmission settings, preferred routing, etc., and the reconfiguration need not affect the base station 1220, and the reconfiguration may be unknown or imperceptible to the base station 1220. Such procedures and functions may be known and practiced in the art. In some embodiments, the measurements may involve proprietary UE signaling that facilitates the host computer 1210 measurements of throughput, propagation time, latency, etc. The measurements may be implemented in the software 1211 and 1231 causing messages, particularly empty or "dummy" messages, to be sent using the OTT connection 1250 while the software 1211 and 1231 monitors propagation times, errors, etc.

[0187] FIG. 13 is a flow chart illustrating an example method (e.g., procedure) implemented in a communication system according to some embodiments. The communication system includes a host computer, a base station, and a UE, which may be as described with reference to other figures herein. For simplicity of the disclosure, only drawing references to FIG. 13 are included in this section. In operation 1310, the host computer provides user data. In sub-operation 1311 (which may be optional) of operation 1310, the host computer provides the user data by executing a host application. In operation 1320, the host computer initiates a transmission carrying the user data to the UE. In operation 1330 (which may be optional), the base station transmits the user data carried in the host computer initiated transmission to the UE, according to the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure. In operation 1340 (which may also be optional), the UE executes a client application associated with the host application executed by the host computer.

[0188] FIG. 14 is a flow chart illustrating an example method (e.g., procedure) implemented in a communication system, according to some embodiments. The communication system includes a host computer, a base station, and a UE, which may be as described with reference to other figures herein. For simplicity of the disclosure, only drawing references to FIG. 14 are included in this section. In method operation 1410, the host computer provides user data. In an optional sub-operation (not shown), the host computer provides the user data by executing a host application. In operation 1420, the host computer initiates a transmission carrying the user data to the UE. The transmission may go through a base station in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure. In operation 1430 (which may be optional), the UE receives the user data carried in the transmission.

[0189] FIG. 15 is a flow chart illustrating an example method (e.g., procedure) implemented in a communication system according to some embodiments. The communication system includes a host computer, a base station, and a UE, which may be as described with reference to other figures herein. For simplicity of the disclosure, only drawing references to FIG. 15 are included in this section. In operation 1510 (which may be optional), the UE receives input data provided by the host computer. Additionally or alternatively, in operation 1520, the UE provides user data. In sub-operation 1521 (which may be optional) of operation 1520, the UE provides the user data by executing a client application. In sub-operation 1511 (which may be optional) of operation 1510, the UE executes a client application that provides the user data in response to the received input data provided by the host computer. In providing the user data, the executed client application may further take into account user input received from a user. Regardless of how the user data was provided, the UE initiates transmission of the user data to the host computer in sub-operation 1530 (which may be optional). In method operation 1540, the host computer receives user data transmitted from the UE according to the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure.

[0190] FIG. 16 is a flow chart illustrating an example method (e.g., procedure) implemented in a communication system, according to some embodiments. The communication system includes a host computer, a base station, and a UE, which may be as described with reference to other figures herein. For simplicity of the disclosure, only drawing references to FIG. 16 are included in this section. In operation 1610 (which may be optional), the base station receives user data from the UE, according to the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure. In operation 1620 (which may be optional), the base station initiates a transmission of the received user data to the host computer. In operation 1630 (which may be optional), the host computer receives the user data carried in the transmission initiated by the base station.

[0191] Exemplary embodiments described herein provide techniques for configuring and signaling transmit and receive polarization modes supported by a UE for operation in a 3GPP non-terrestrial network (NTN). Such embodiments facilitate spectrally efficient performance of downlinks and uplinks between satellites and UEs, and enable accurate measurement of signal strength and / or quality by the UE under prevailing LOS conditions, thereby facilitating correct and efficient management of UE mobility. When used in a UE and / or network node as described herein, the exemplary embodiments described herein can provide various improvements, benefits, and / or advantages that enable UEs to have more consistent and uninterrupted access to network resources and OTT services. This improves the availability and / or performance of these services as experienced by OTT service providers and end users, including more consistent data and less delays throughout without excessive UE power consumption or other reductions in the user experience.

[0192] The above merely illustrates the principles of the present disclosure. In light of the teachings herein, various changes and modifications of the described embodiments will become apparent to those skilled in the art. It will thus be appreciated that those skilled in the art can devise numerous systems, configurations, and procedures that are not explicitly shown or described herein, but which embody the principles of the present disclosure and thus fall within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. As should be understood by those skilled in the art, the various exemplary embodiments can be used together and interchangeably with each other.

[0193] As described herein, the devices and / or apparatus may be represented by semiconductor chips, chipsets, or (hardware) modules comprising such chips or chipsets, but this does not exclude the possibility that the functionality of the device or apparatus may instead be implemented as a software module, such as a computer program or computer program product comprising executable software code portions for execution on or running on a processor. Furthermore, the functionality of the device or apparatus may be implemented by any combination of hardware and software. A device or apparatus may also be considered as an assembly of multiple devices and / or apparatus, whether functionally cooperating with each other or independent of each other. Moreover, devices and apparatus may be implemented distributed throughout a system, as long as the functionality of the device or apparatus is preserved. Such and similar principles are considered to be known to those skilled in the art.

[0194] Any suitable steps, methods, features, functions, or benefits disclosed herein may be implemented through one or more functional units or modules of one or more virtual devices. Each virtual device may comprise several of these functional units. These functional units may be implemented via processing circuitry, which may include one or more microprocessors or microcontrollers, as well as other digital hardware, which may include digital signal processors (DSPs), dedicated digital logic, and the like. The processing circuitry may be configured to execute program code stored in memory, which may include one or several types of memory, such as read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), cache memory, flash memory devices, optical storage devices, and the like. The program code stored in memory includes program instructions for implementing one or more communication and / or data communication protocols, as well as instructions for performing one or more of the techniques described herein. In some implementations, the processing circuitry may be used to cause each functional unit to perform a corresponding function according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0195] Furthermore, functionality described herein as being performed by a wireless device or network node may be distributed over multiple wireless devices and / or network nodes. In other words, it is contemplated that the functionality of the network nodes and wireless devices described herein is not limited to implementation by a single physical device, but may in fact be distributed among several physical devices.

[0196] Unless otherwise specified, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by those skilled in the art to which this disclosure belongs. It will be further understood that the terms used herein should be interpreted as having a meaning in accordance with the meaning of those terms in the context of this specification and related art, and are not to be interpreted in an ideal or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein.

[0197] Furthermore, some terms used in this disclosure, including its specification, drawings, and exemplary embodiments, may be used synonymously in some cases, including, but not limited to, for example, data and information. It should be understood that these and / or other words that may be synonymous with each other may be used synonymously herein, but there may be cases where such words are not intended to be used synonymously. Furthermore, unless prior art knowledge has been expressly incorporated herein by reference above, prior art knowledge is expressly incorporated herein in its entirety. All referenced publications are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

[0198] Unless otherwise specified, as used herein, the phrases "at least one of" and "one or more of" followed by a conjunctive list of enumerated items (e.g., "A and B", "A, B, and C") are intended to mean "at least one item, with each item selected from a list consisting of" the enumerated items. For example, "at least one of A and B" is intended to mean either A, B, or A and B. Similarly, "one or more of A, B, and C" is intended to mean either A, B, C, A and B, B and C, A and C, or A, B, and C.

[0199] Unless otherwise specified, as used herein, the phrase "a plurality of" followed by a conjunctive list of enumerated items (e.g., "A and B," "A, B, and C") is intended to mean "a plurality of items, each item being selected from a list consisting of" the enumerated items. For example, "a plurality of A and B" is intended to mean either two or more A, two or more B, or at least one A and at least one B.

[0200] Exemplary embodiments of the methods, apparatus, and computer-readable media described herein include, but are not limited to, the following enumerated examples. E1. A method for operating a non-terrestrial network (NTN) using one or more polarization modes to serve multiple cells, the method comprising: configuring a transmitter and / or receiver in the NTN to use one or more polarization modes to serve a first cell of the NTN; transmitting, to one or more UEs, an indication of one or more polarization modes to be used to serve the first cell; Transmitting and / or receiving one or more signals or channels in the first cell according to the set polarization mode; A method comprising: E2. The indication includes the following identifiers from which at least one of the polarization modes may be derived: an identifier of the first cell; an identifier of a network node serving the first cell; an identifier of a bandwidth portion (BWP) used in the first cell; The method of embodiment E1, comprising one or more of: E3. The method of embodiment E1, in which the indication of at least one of the polarization modes is implicit based on transmitting one or more signals or channels in the first cell in accordance with the configured polarization mode. E4. One or more polarization modes are a first set of polarization modes used to transmit downlink signals or channels in a first cell; a second set of polarization modes used to receive an uplink signal or channel in the first cell; The method of any one of embodiments E1 to E3, comprising: E5. One or more polarization modes are a first polarization mode used to transmit or receive a first signal or channel in a first cell; a second polarization mode used to transmit or receive a second signal or channel in the first cell; The method of any one of embodiments E1 to E3, comprising: E6. The method of embodiment E5, wherein the first polarization mode and the second polarization mode are different. E7. The first polarization mode and the second polarization mode are the same; the indication of the first polarization mode is implicit from the indication of the second polarization mode; The method of embodiment E5. E8. The first polarization mode is associated with a downlink physical channel or signal; a second polarization mode associated with the downlink reference signal; The downlink reference signal is quasi-colocated (QCL) with a downlink physical channel or signal; The method of embodiment E7. E9. The method of any one of embodiments E1 to E8, further comprising sending to one or more UEs a further indication of one or more further polarization modes to be used to serve a second cell in the NTN, at least one of the further polarization modes being orthogonal to one of the polarization modes used to serve the first cell. E10. Instructions are, A dedicated Radio Resource Control (RRC) message; and Broadcast Master Information Block (MIB) and / or System Information Block (SIB) messages; a medium access control (MAC) control element; Physical Layer (PHY) Downlink Control Instructions and The method of embodiment E1, wherein the first and second packets are transmitted in one or more of the following ways: E11. A method for operating a user equipment (UE) in a non-terrestrial network (NTN) utilizing one or more polarization modes for serving multiple cells, the method comprising: receiving, from a network node, an indication of one or more polarization modes to be used to serve a first cell in the NTN; determining one or more polarization modes based on the instructions; transmitting and / or receiving one or more signals or channels in the first cell according to the determined polarization mode; A method comprising: E12. The instruction is based on the following identifiers: an identifier of the first cell; an identifier of a network node serving the first cell; an identifier of a bandwidth portion (BWP) used in the first cell; one or more of determining at least one of the polarization modes based on the one or more identifiers included; The method of embodiment E11. E13. The method of embodiment E12, wherein determining the one or more polarization modes includes performing a modulo operation on the included one or more identifiers. E14. The method of embodiment E11, wherein determining at least one of the polarization modes is based on receiving one or more of the signals or channels. E15. One or more polarization modes are a first set of polarization modes used to transmit and receive downlink signals or channels in a first cell; a second set of polarization modes used to transmit and receive uplink signals or channels in the first cell; The method of any one of embodiments E11 to E14, comprising: E16. One or more polarization modes are a first polarization mode used to transmit or receive a first signal or channel in a first cell; a second polarization mode used to transmit or receive a second signal or channel in the first cell; The method of any one of embodiments E11 to E14, comprising: E17. The method of embodiment E16, wherein the first polarization mode and the second polarization mode are different. E18. The first polarization mode and the second polarization mode are the same; the method further including determining the first polarization mode based on the indication of the second polarization mode; The method of embodiment E16. E19. A first polarization mode is associated with a downlink physical channel or signal; a second polarization mode associated with the downlink reference signal; The downlink reference signal is quasi-colocated (QCL) with a downlink physical channel or signal; The method of embodiment E18. E20. The method of any one of embodiments E11 to E19, further comprising receiving from the network node a further indication of one or more further polarization modes to be used to serve a second cell in the NTN, wherein at least one of the further polarization modes is orthogonal to at least one of the polarization modes used to serve the first cell. E21. Instructions, A dedicated Radio Resource Control (RRC) message; and Broadcast Master Information Block (MIB) and / or System Information Block (SIB) messages; a medium access control (MAC) control element; Physical Layer (PHY) Downlink Control Instructions and The method of embodiment E11, wherein the method is received in one or more of: E22. A network node configured to serve a cell in a non-terrestrial network (NTN) utilizing one or more polarization modes for serving multiple cells, the network node comprising: a radio interface circuit configured to communicate with the UE via the cell; a processing circuit operably coupled to the wireless interface circuit, whereby the processing circuit and the wireless interface circuit are configured to perform operations corresponding to any of the methods described in embodiments E1 to E10; A network node comprising: E23. A network node configured to serve a cell in a non-terrestrial network (NTN) utilizing one or more polarization modes for serving multiple cells, the network node being further configured to perform operations corresponding to any of the methods described in embodiments E1 to E10. E24. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processing circuit of a network node in a non-terrestrial network (NTN), configure the network node to perform operations corresponding to any of the methods described in embodiments E1 to E10. E25. A computer program product comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry of a network node in a non-terrestrial network (NTN), configure the network node to perform operations corresponding to any of the methods described in embodiments E1 to E10. E26. A user equipment (UE) configured to operate in a non-terrestrial network (NTN) utilizing one or more polarization modes to serve multiple cells, the UE comprising: a radio interface circuit configured to communicate with a network node via a cell; a processing circuit operably coupled to the wireless interface circuit, whereby the processing circuit and the wireless interface circuit are configured to perform operations corresponding to any of the methods described in embodiments E11 to E21; and A user equipment (UE) comprising: E27. A user equipment (UE) configured to operate in a non-terrestrial network (NTN) utilizing one or more polarization modes for serving multiple cells, the UE further configured to perform operations corresponding to any of the methods described in embodiments E11 to E21. E28. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry of a user equipment (UE), configure the UE to perform operations corresponding to any of the methods described in embodiments E11 to E21. E29. A computer program product comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry of a user equipment (UE), configure the UE to perform operations corresponding to any of the methods described in embodiments E11 to E21. E30. A method implemented by a user equipment (UE) for initial access to a non-terrestrial network (NTN), the method comprising: Retrieving locally stored information associated with one or more NTNs; and determining a candidate NTN for initial access based on the retrieved information, and one or more parameters associated with the candidate node in the NTN and / or a candidate cell served by the candidate node; performing an initial access to the candidate cell based on one or more parameters; A method comprising: E31. The method of embodiment E30, in which retrieving the locally stored information is performed upon power-on of the UE. E32. After the initial access to the candidate cell, the following actions are performed: receiving further information related to the candidate NTN; updating the locally stored information with further information; The method of embodiment E30 or E31, further comprising performing: E33. Locally stored information for each NTN is Orbit type or distance; One or more frequency ranges of NTN operation; one or more transmit and / or receive polarization modes used by the NTN satellite; Ephemeris data related to NTN satellites, one or more UE antenna pointing angles relative to the NTN satellite; The method of any one of embodiments E30 to E32, including one or more of: E34. Determining candidate NTNs for initial collection based on retrieved information determining whether the UE is authorized to access the first NTN based on the retrieved information related to the first NTN; determining that the first NTN is a candidate NTN for initial collection only if the UE is permitted to access the first NTN; The method of any one of embodiments E30 to E33, further comprising: E35. The method of embodiment E34, wherein determining whether the UE is authorized to access the first NTN is based on an orbit type or distance of a satellite comprising the NTN. E36. The method of any one of embodiments E30 to E35, wherein determining one or more parameters based on the retrieved information further includes determining a current location of the UE. E37. The method of embodiment E36, wherein determining one or more parameters based on the retrieved information further includes determining one or more antenna pointing angles for searching for signals from one or more satellites of the candidate NTN based on a current location of the UE and ephemeris data associated with one or more satellites of the candidate NTN. E38. The ephemeris data includes one or more orbital planes; the one or more antenna pointing angles include a plurality of antenna pointing angles spanning a range of azimuth angles and a range of elevation angles; The method of embodiment E37. E39. Ephemeris data includes satellite position, the one or more antenna pointing angles include, for each satellite, a single antenna pointing angle at a particular azimuth angle and a particular elevation angle; The method of embodiment E37. E40. The method of any one of embodiments E37 to E39, wherein determining one or more parameters based on the retrieved information further includes determining a frequency band for searching for signals from one or more satellites of the candidate NTN based on a current location of the UE and one or more frequency ranges of operation of the candidate NTN. E41. The method of any one of embodiments E37 to E40, wherein determining one or more parameters based on the retrieved information further includes determining a receive polarization mode to be used for receiving a signal from one of the candidate NTNs or satellites based on one or more transmit polarization modes used by a satellite of the candidate NTN. E42. Performing initial access to a candidate cell using a radio receiver, the following determined parameters: one or more frequency bands; One or more antenna pointing angles and One or more receive polarization modes and The method of any one of embodiments E30 to E41, further comprising searching for signals from one or more satellites of the candidate NTN based on any one of the above. E43. A method implemented by a network node for facilitating initial access by a user equipment (UE) to a non-terrestrial network (NTN), the method comprising: receiving, from the UE, one or more transmissions relating to initial access to a cell served by the network node, the one or more transmissions being based on locally stored information of the UE relating to an NTN; thereafter, transmitting to the UE further information related to the NTN, the further information including an update to at least a portion of the information stored locally at the UE; A method comprising: E44. Further information related to NTN can be found at Orbit type or distance; One or more frequency ranges of NTN operation; one or more transmit and / or receive polarization modes used by the NTN satellite; Ephemeris data related to NTN satellites, one or more UE antenna pointing angles relative to the NTN satellite; The method of embodiment E43, comprising one or more of: E45. A user equipment (UE) configured to operate in a non-terrestrial network (NTN), comprising: a radio interface circuit configured to communicate with a network node via at least one cell; a processing circuit operably coupled to the wireless interface circuit, whereby the processing circuit and the wireless interface circuit are configured to perform operations corresponding to any of the methods described in embodiments E30 to E42; A user equipment (UE) comprising: E46. A user equipment (UE) configured to operate in a non-terrestrial network (NTN), the UE further configured to perform operations corresponding to any of the methods described in embodiments E30 to E42. E47. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processing circuit of a user equipment (UE), configure the UE to perform operations corresponding to any of the methods described in embodiments E30 to E42. E48. A computer program product comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry of a user equipment (UE), configure the UE to perform operations corresponding to any of the methods described in embodiments E30 to E42. E49. A network node configured to serve at least one cell in a non-terrestrial network (NTN), comprising: an air interface circuit configured to communicate with a user equipment (UE) via at least one cell; a processing circuit operably coupled to the wireless interface circuit, whereby the processing circuit and the wireless interface circuit are configured to perform operations corresponding to any of the methods described in embodiment E43 or E44; A network node comprising: E50. A network node configured to serve at least one cell in a non-terrestrial network (NTN), the network node being further configured to perform operations corresponding to any of the methods described in embodiments E43 or E44. E51. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processing circuit of a network node in a non-terrestrial network (NTN), configure the network node to perform operations corresponding to any of the methods described in embodiments E43 or E44. E52. A computer program product comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processing circuit of a network node in a non-terrestrial network (NTN), configure the network node to perform operations corresponding to any of the methods described in embodiment E43 or E44.

Claims

1. 1. A method for operating a network node in a first non-terrestrial network (NTN) utilizing one or more polarization modes for serving one or more cells, the method comprising: transmitting (610) to one or more user equipments (UEs) an indication of at least one polarization mode configured for use in a first cell of the first NTN; Transmitting and / or receiving one or more signals or channels in the first cell according to one or more configured polarization modes, including the at least one indicated polarization mode (620); sending (630) to the one or more UEs a further indication of at least one further polarization mode configured for use in a second cell of the first NTN, the second cell being a neighbor cell of the first cell and being a cell served by a second network node; Including, one or more of the further polarization modes are orthogonal to one or more of the polarization modes configured for use in the first cell; The method, wherein the at least one indicated polarization mode includes one of right-hand circular polarization and left-hand circular polarization.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the at least one indicated polarization mode further comprises one of: linear polarization, horizontal polarization, and vertical polarization.

3. The indication of the at least one polarization mode further comprises: an identifier of the first cell; and an identifier of a network node serving the first cell; and an identifier of a bandwidth portion (BWP) used in the first cell; The method of claim 1 or 2, comprising one or more of:

4. The indication of the at least one polarization mode further comprises: a dedicated Radio Resource Control (RRC) message; Broadcast system information; a medium access control (MAC) control element; Physical layer (PHY) downlink control indication; The method according to claim 1 , wherein the method is transmitted in one of the following modes:

5. the one or more configured polarization modes being: a first polarization mode used to transmit or receive a first signal or channel in the first cell; a second polarization mode used to transmit or receive a second signal or channel in the first cell; and The method of any one of claims 1 to 4, comprising:

6. The first polarization mode is an explicit indication of the second polarization mode; and transmitting the second signal or channel in the first cell according to the second polarization mode; The method of claim 5 , wherein the method is implicitly indicated by one or more of:

7. 1. A method for operating a user equipment (UE) in a first non-terrestrial network (NTN) utilizing one or more polarization modes for serving one or more cells, the method comprising: receiving (710) from a first network node serving a first cell of the first NTN an indication of at least one polarization mode configured for use in the first cell; determining (730) one or more polarization modes configured for use in the first cell based on the indication, the polarization modes including the at least one indicated polarization mode; Transmitting and / or receiving one or more signals or channels in the first cell according to the determined polarization mode (740); receiving (750) from the first network node a further indication of at least one further polarization mode configured for use in a second cell of the first NTN, the second cell being a neighboring cell of the first cell and being a cell served by a second network node; Including, one or more of the further polarization modes are orthogonal to one or more of the polarization modes configured for use in the first cell; The method, wherein the at least one indicated polarization mode includes one of right-hand circular polarization and left-hand circular polarization.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the at least one indicated polarization mode further comprises one of: linear polarization, horizontal polarization, and vertical polarization.

9. The indication of the at least one polarization mode may be one of the following identifiers: an identifier of the first cell; and an identifier of the first network node serving the first cell; and an identifier of a bandwidth portion (BWP) used in the first cell; The method of claim 7 or 8, comprising one or more of:

10. The indication of the at least one polarization mode further comprises: a dedicated Radio Resource Control (RRC) message; Broadcast system information; a medium access control (MAC) control element; Physical layer (PHY) downlink control indication; 10. The method of claim 7, wherein the first network node is connected to the first network node via a first link.

11. the one or more determined polarization modes being: a first polarization mode used to transmit or receive a first signal or channel in the first cell; a second polarization mode used to transmit or receive a second signal or channel in the first cell; and The method of claim 10, comprising:

12. Determining (730) the one or more polarization modes configured for use in the first cell, receiving an explicit indication of the second polarization mode; or receiving the second signal or channel in the first cell according to the second polarization mode; determining (733) the second polarization mode based on one of determining (734) the first polarization mode based on the second polarization mode; The method of claim 11 , comprising:

13. A network node (430, 450, 460, 860, 1030, 1220) configured to operate in a non-terrestrial network (NTN) (400) utilizing one or more polarization modes for serving one or more cells, said network node comprising: a communication interface circuit (890, 1070, 10200, 1226, 1227) configured to communicate with a user equipment (UE) (120, 410, 810, 900, 1230) via said one or more cells; a processing circuit (870, 1060, 1228) operably coupled to said communication interface circuit, whereby said processing circuit and said communication interface circuit transmitting to one or more user equipments (UEs) an indication of at least one polarization mode configured for use in a first cell of the NTN, the indicated at least one polarization mode comprising one of right-hand circular polarization and left-hand circular polarization; transmitting and / or receiving one or more signals or channels in the first cell according to one or more set polarization modes including the at least one indicated polarization mode; sending to the one or more UEs a further indication of at least one further polarization mode configured for use in a second cell of the NTN, the second cell being a neighbouring cell of the first cell and being served by a second network node, the one or more of the further polarization modes being orthogonal to the one or more of the polarization modes configured for use in the first cell; A processing circuit (870, 1060, 1228) configured to execute A network node (430, 450, 460, 860, 1030, 1220).

14. A user equipment (UE) (120, 410, 810, 900, 1230) configured to operate in a non-terrestrial network (NTN) (400) utilizing one or more polarization modes for serving one or more cells, the UE comprising: a radio interface circuit (814, 909, 931, 1237) configured to communicate with a network node (430, 450, 460) of said NTN via at least one cell; A processing circuit (820, 901, 1238) operably coupled to said wireless interface circuit, whereby said processing circuit and said wireless interface circuit: receiving (710) an indication of at least one polarization mode configured for use in a first cell of the NTN from a first network node serving the first cell, the indicated at least one polarization mode comprising one of right-hand circular polarization and left-hand circular polarization; determining (730) one or more polarization modes configured for use in the first cell based on the indication, the polarization modes including the at least one indicated polarization mode; Transmitting and / or receiving one or more signals or channels in the first cell according to the determined polarization mode (740); receiving from the first network node a further indication of at least one further polarization mode configured for use in a second cell of the NTN, the second cell being a neighbour of the first cell and being served by a second network node, the one or more of the further polarization modes being orthogonal to the one or more of the polarization modes configured for use in the first cell; A processing circuit (820, 901, 1238) configured to execute A user equipment (UE) (120, 410, 810, 900, 1230).

Images