Cell Selection Based on User Capability

Abstract

To provide a cellular communication system in which a base station makes use of a cell which has an auxiliary uplink part (for example, at different frequencies and / or using different techniques).SOLUTION: In a cellular communication system, a base station broadcasts an offset of UE (user equipment)in its coverage area so as to support UE which performs cell selection. The UE determines whether a cell of the base station is a proper candidate of the cell selection based upon the capability of UE which communicates using a measurement, an offset and an auxiliary uplink part of the cell, and then the UE performs cell (re)selection based upon the offset of the UE when being capable of communicating using the auxiliary uplink part, or ignores an offset of the cell (re)selection when being incapable of communicating using the auxiliary uplink part.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a communication system. In particular, the present invention relates to, but is not limited to, a wireless communication system and its devices operating according to 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) standards, or equivalent or derivative standards thereof. In particular, the present invention relates to, but is not limited to, a mechanism for supporting UL (UpLink) sharing and the provision and use of SUL (Supplementary UpLink) carrier frequencies among so-called NR (New Radio) / NG (Next Generation) / 5G type communication devices equipped with LTE (Long Term Evolution) type communication devices.

Background Art

[0002] The latest trend of 3GPP standards is called LTE (Long Term Evolution) of the EPC (Evolved Packet Core) network and E-UTRAN (Evolved UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network), and is generally also called 4G. Furthermore, the terms 5G and NR (New Radio) refer to developing communication technologies expected to support various applications and services. Various details of the 5G network are described, for example, in the NGMN (Next Generation Mobile Networks) Alliance's NGMN 5G White Paper V1.0, which is available from https: / / www.ngmn.org / 5g-white-paper.html. 3GPP intends to support 5G with so-called 3GPP NextGen (Next Generation) RAN (Radio Access Network) and 3GPP NGC (NextGen Core) networks.

[0003] In the 3GPP specifications, a NodeB (or "eNB" in LTE, "gNB" in 5G, etc.) is a base station for a communication device (user equipment or "UE") to connect to the core network and communicate with other communication devices or remote servers. Examples of communication devices include mobile communication devices such as mobile phones, smartphones, user equipment, personal digital assistants, laptop / tablet computers, web browsers, and e-book readers. Such mobile (or generally fixed) devices are usually operated by users (although it is also possible to connect so-called "things on the network" devices and similar machine-type communication devices to the network). For the sake of simplicity of explanation, in this application, the term base station refers to any such base station, and the term mobile device or UE refers to any such communication device. The core network (e.g., EPC in the case of LTE, NGC in the case of NR / 5G) aggregates functions such as subscriber management, mobility management, billing, security, and call session management (etc.), and connects communication devices to an external network such as the Internet.

[0004] 3GPP TR (Technical Report) 23.799 V14.0.0 describes the possible architectures and general procedures in the NextGen (5G) system being considered for Release 14 of the 3GPP specifications. 3GPP is also investigating the possibility of using frequency bands up to 100 GHz for the new (5G) radio access network (using NR radio technology) with a maximum channel bandwidth of 400 MHz per Rel-15 NR carrier. To overcome the severe channel attenuation characteristics associated with certain high-frequency bands (e.g., mmWave bands), directional beamforming and massive antenna technology may be used. The term "massive antenna" refers to an antenna with a large number (e.g., 100 or more) of antenna elements arranged in an array. Such massive antennas are effective when communicating with multiple users simultaneously, thereby facilitating MU-MIMO (Multi-User Multiple-Input and Multiple-Output) transmission. In the case of MU-MIMO, the base station may be called a TRP (Transmission and Reception Point).

[0005] There has been a proposal that a UE may be configured with multiple UL (UpLink) carriers of different frequencies, which include at least one LTE carrier of a first frequency and at least one NR carrier of a second different carrier frequency. In one supported example, the UE may be restricted to operate only on one of the UL carriers of a given pair of carriers composed of an LTE carrier and an NR carrier (at a given time). However, it is also supported that the UE operates simultaneously on two UL carriers (or more UL carriers).

[0006] Furthermore, in order to support cases where only downlink resources of a carrier exist from the perspective of NR (e.g., near the edge of an NR cell), or cases where it is not optimal to use the NR frequency (e.g., when the UE cannot use the entire NR bandwidth or does not need to), it has been proposed to provide a SUL (Supplementary UpLink) frequency (e.g., across LTE frequencies).

[0007] In 3GPP, it has been considered to support the coexistence of LTE UL and NR UL (and the coexistence of LTE DL and NR DL) within the bandwidth of an LTE component carrier. Therefore, there is a possibility that the frequency shared between LTE and NR (at least when the NR spectrum is less than 6 GHz) can be used as the SUL frequency.

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0008] An object of the present invention is to provide a method for efficiently and effectively supporting or improving one or more of the above proposals / agreements and an apparatus related thereto.

[0009] Specifically, based on current assumptions, the inventors have come to recognize that there is a high possibility of asymmetry / imbalance occurring between the coverages of the NR downlink and the NR uplink respectively. In other words, depending on how the downlink and uplink operate in NR, in the downlink, it is possible to serve a significantly larger area than the uplink (when all corresponding parameters are approximately the same). As a result, some UEs can receive DL communication from a specific base station, but cannot normally transmit UL communication to the base station. Furthermore, even when a UE can transmit to a base station using NR UL resources, in some cases (at least for UEs that cannot use the entire NR bandwidth), the utilization efficiency of the UL resources remains relatively low.

[0010] Such asymmetry / imbalance is seen, for example, when using TDD (Time Division Duplex) in the 3.5 GHz NR band, and the following assumptions apply: - Large-scale MIMO (with 128 / 256 antenna elements and a typical configuration of 64T64R) is used; - By beam sweeping and other techniques (such as power boosting), it is expected that all NR physical common and control channels in the DL will match or exceed the coverage within the maximum beamforming range of the NR-PDSCH (NR Physical Downlink Shared Channel); - The UL / DL traffic asymmetry is expected to be highly skewed towards the DL (e.g., from 1:3 to 1:10); - To support such traffic asymmetry, the UL / DL transmission time is also highly asymmetric (e.g., at least 1:3); - The UE power is significantly lower and fixed compared to the DL power, while the DL power can also be scaled according to the bandwidth used by the base station.

[0011] In view of the above, it is considered that the coverage of the assumed UL (e.g., the NR physical uplink shared channel, also called "NR-PUSCH") is 10 to 15 dB lower than that of the DL (in TDD, a UL / DL frame configuration for the downlink of 1:3, and a PUSCH / PDSCH data rate asymmetry of 1:10).

[0012] Through beamforming, the coverage of the PDSCH at 3.5 GHz will be very similar to the UL coverage of a low FDD (Frequency Division Duplex) band (e.g., an LTE band operating below 2000 MHz) according to the relative data rate targeted.

[0013] Such asymmetry / imbalance can be addressed by appropriately pairing the 3.5 GHz carrier with the low FDD band (or SUL band). However, when SUL is deployed, cell measurement and cell selection of the cell may still be problematic.

Means for Solving the Problem

[0014] In one aspect, the present invention is a method executed by a UE (User Equipment) in a cellular communication system, including receiving cell selection information used for cell selection of a cell operated by a base station configured to receive UL (UpLink) communication either by a first carrier for UL and DL communication or by an auxiliary carrier for UL communication from the base station, measuring a signal transmitted by the first carrier, and determining whether the cell of the base station is a suitable candidate in cell (re) selection based on the measurement of the first carrier, the received cell selection information, and the capability of the UE to communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication. The cell selection information includes first cell selection information used to determine whether the cell of the base station is a suitable candidate in cell (re) selection based on the measurement of the first carrier when the UE cannot communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication, and second cell selection information used to determine whether the cell of the base station is a suitable candidate in cell (re) selection based on the measurement of the first carrier when the UE can communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication.

[0015] In another aspect, the present invention is a method performed by a UE (User Equipment) in a cellular communication system, the method comprising: receiving, from a RAN (Radio Access Network), a measurement configuration for use in measuring a cell operated by a base station of the RAN, the measurement configuration being configured to receive UL (UpLink) communication on either a first carrier for UL and DL communication or an auxiliary carrier for UL communication; performing measurements on signals transmitted on the first carrier based on the received measurement configuration; and determining whether to report the results of the measurements to the RAN based on the measurements of the first carrier and the capabilities of the UE to communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication, wherein the measurement configuration includes a first measurement configuration used to determine whether to report the results of the measurements to the RAN based on the measurements of the first carrier when the UE is unable to communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication, and a second measurement configuration used to determine whether to report the results of the measurements to the RAN based on the measurements of the first carrier when the UE is able to communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication.

[0016] In one aspect, the present invention is a method performed by a base station in a cellular communication system, including transmitting cell selection information to a UE (User Equipment) for use in selecting a cell operated by the base station configured to receive UL (UpLink) communication on either a first carrier for UL and DL communication or an auxiliary carrier for UL communication, the cell selection information including first cell selection information used to determine whether the base station's cell is a suitable candidate in cell (re)selection based on measurements of the first carrier when the UE cannot communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication, and second cell selection information used to determine whether the base station's cell is a suitable candidate in cell (re)selection based on measurements of the first carrier when the UE can communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication.

[0017] In yet another aspect, the present invention is a method performed by a RAN (Radio Access Network) device in a cellular communication system, including transmitting to a UE (User Equipment) measurement settings for use in measuring a cell operated by a base station of the RAN configured to receive UL (UpLink) communication on either a first carrier for UL and DL communication or an auxiliary carrier for UL communication, and receiving measurement results corresponding to the measurement settings, the measurement settings including first measurement settings used to determine whether to report the results of the measurement to the RAN device based on measurements of the first carrier when the UE cannot communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication, and second measurement settings used to determine whether to report the results of the measurement to the RAN device based on measurements of the first carrier when the UE can communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication.

[0018] Exemplary aspects of the present invention extend to corresponding apparatuses, systems, computer program products such as computer-readable storage media storing instructions operable to program a programmable processor to implement the methods described in the above-described exemplary aspects and the possibilities described in the claims, and to program a suitably adapted computer to provide the apparatus described in any claim.

[0019] Each feature disclosed and / or illustrated in this specification (including the claims) may be incorporated into the present invention independently of (or in combination with) other disclosed and / or illustrated features. In particular, the features of the claims dependent on a particular independent claim can be introduced into that independent claim in any combination or individually, but not exclusively.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0020] Here, examples of exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5a

Figure 5b

Modes for Carrying Out the Invention

[0021] (Overview) Figure 1 schematically shows a communication network 1, where a UE (User Equipment) 3 (mobile phone and / or other communication device) can communicate with each other using an appropriate RAT (Radio Access Technology) via a RAN (Radio Access Network) device 5 including an LTE base station or "eNB" 5-1 and an NR / 5G base station or "gNB" 5-2 in the illustrated example. In this example, the UE 3 can communicate as an LTE UE 3-1 that supports at least LTE radio access technology via the eNB 5 part of the RAN 5. The UE 3 can also communicate as an NR / 5G UE 3-2 that supports one or more 5G radio access technologies via the gNB 5-2 part of the RAN 5. However, it is assumed that the UE 3 does not necessarily have LTE capabilities and may support only 5G capabilities. The UE 3 may be capable of performing CA (Carrier Aggregation) that bundles resources of multiple cells (including resources of LTE cells and NR cells) to perform simultaneous communication via an aggregated cell (or "component carrier" in CA). CA may be used to increase the bandwidth allocable to a given UE 3, and in this case, CA may be used to provide SUL (Supplementary UpLink) resources via a cell different from the cell used for the downlink.

[0022] As will be understood by those skilled in the art, although Figure 1 shows one mobile device 3 and one base station 5 (having three valid UE configurations) for illustrative purposes, other base stations and mobile devices are also included in a normal system implementation. For example, LTE and NR cells may be appropriately provided via different base stations, respectively.

[0023] In this example, the RAN's eNB 5-1 and gNB 5-2 are co-located with each base station operating one or more associated cells. The UE 3 can establish a radio resource control (RRC) connection with the appropriate base stations 5-1 and 5-2 operating the cell to connect to the appropriate cell (depending on location or other factors as appropriate, such as signal status, subscription data, capabilities, etc.).

[0024] The RAN 5 is connected to the core network 7 via an appropriate interface. The core network 7 has the NR / 5G functions necessary to support the communication of the UE 3 via the gNB 5-2. The core network 7 has functions for performing, for example, control plane management, user plane management, mobility management, etc. The core network 7 partially or fully has the EPC functions for supporting the communication of the UE 3 via the eNB 5-1.

[0025] UE3 and RAN5 are configured to perform UL (UpLink) communication from UE3 to RAN5 and DL (DownLink) communication from RAN5 to UE3 using a plurality of carriers (or "component carriers"). These UL and DL carriers operate on a plurality of different carrier frequencies. In this example, the UL carriers include a SUL (Supplementary UpLink) frequency (F1 in the illustrated example), an upper SUL carrier, and, if possible, at least one other frequency (e.g., an NR UL carrier on a corresponding UL frequency different from that of the SUL carrier (F2, and if both DL and UL communications are configured on F3, F3 is also possible)). In this example, since the SUL carrier is on a frequency within the range used by LTE, it can be shared as appropriate between LTE and NR (e.g., when LTE UL and NR UL share the UL subframe of the LTE frequency). However, the SUL carrier may be an individual NR UL carrier and operate in a frequency range not normally used by LTE, or the SUL carrier may be an LTE band / carrier dedicated to NR UL use. The UL carriers may include other UL carriers (e.g., a UL carrier dedicated to LTE of another frequency). The DL carriers include, in this example, at least one carrier for performing NR DL transmission at a frequency (F3) different from the UL (UpLink) frequency and at least one carrier for performing LTE DL transmission at a frequency (Fn) different from the NR DL frequency.

[0026] Figure 2 shows an example of an NR cell that has a DL and a UL part in the NR band / high frequency (left) and an SUL in the LTE band / low frequency (right). In this example, the SUL operates in the LTE band (e.g., carrier F1) while operating according to NR technology. As shown in this figure, when looking at the entire cell (both UL and DL), the cell with SUL has a larger coverage than the cell without SUL (i.e., when only looking at the left figure), because the NR coverage can be fully utilized only in the area (the small dotted area on the left) that has both DL coverage and UL coverage. The NR carrier and the SUL are shown separately in Figure 2 for illustrative purposes, but it is assumed that they are usually operated by the same base station device (e.g., gNB5-2).

[0027] More specifically, the coverage of the NR-PDSCH is about 10 to 15 dB higher than that of the NR-PUSCH (under the same or similar conditions). This means that in a deployed system, the UE3 may be able to receive the NR-PDSCH that is farther from the base station 5 than the maximum distance at which normal uplink transmission from the UE3 to the base station 5 via the NR-PUSCH is guaranteed in the same cell. This is due to the asymmetry / imbalance of the coverage of the NR downlink and the NR uplink described above (e.g., due to beamforming on the downlink and / or power scaling by the base station 5).

[0028] However, in this example, the SUL is provided via a different frequency (carrier), which is preferably a frequency that can further improve the UL coverage of the UE3 compared to the NR-PDSCH frequency (carrier). Specifically, a lower frequency band (e.g., the LTE carrier F1) may be used to provide an SUL that has a coverage comparable to that of the NR-PDSCH (e.g., they may be substantially the same). Therefore, as shown on the right, the UE3 can use the SUL to transmit signals via the (NR-)PUSCH and the (NR-)PUCCH.

[0029] Note that FIG. 2 also illustrates a so-called SRS (Sounding Reference Signal), which is a reference signal transmitted in the uplink direction by UE3. In this example, the SRS is transmitted via the SUL, but it may also be transmitted in the NR band. The SRS is used for the base station 5 to estimate the uplink channel quality over a wider bandwidth, and may also be used to estimate the uplink timing as part of the timing adjustment procedure of UE3 (for example, when there is no PUSCH / PUCCH transmission in the uplink).

[0030] In fact, the base station 5 configures UE3 to use the downlink carrier (for example, NR) and the SUL carrier (for example, LTE) as component / supplementary carriers and communicate with the base station 5 using both of these carriers. Therefore, in this example, UEs that support the SUL can obtain a relatively larger and more useful (combining UL and DL) cell coverage benefit than UEs that do not support the SUL. Providing an SUL component in the NR cell is considered to be similar to performing carrier aggregation (CA) with the NR cell carrier and the SUL band as the component carrier.

[0031] Such an SUL may be provided as a stand-alone SUL used only in the NR radio access technology (in this case, the uplink resources of the SUL are not shared with LTE UEs). However, the SUL may also be provided as a shared SUL used by both NR UEs and LTE UEs. When using a shared SUL, there are two options: - Do not configure both the SUL and LTE UL for UE3; and - Configure both LTE and the SUL for UE3 (in this case, the SUL and LTE UL may share the same spectrum via TDM / FDM).

[0032] Referring again to FIG. 1, the base station 5 is configured to facilitate the initial cell access of the UE such that the UE within its coverage area can obtain the advantage of using SUL (and / or the potentially resulting larger coverage area).

[0033] In a 3GPP system, based on whether the base station 5 can evaluate which specific cell (e.g., when the UE3 operates in RRC idle mode or inactive mode) the UE3 selects to camp on, appropriate information (e.g., parameters to be used and / or UE measurements) for calculating the cell selection criterion "S" associated with the base station 5 is broadcast, thereby facilitating cell selection and initial cell access. Similarly, such a cell selection criterion S may be used when selecting an appropriate handover cell (e.g., an adjacent cell). The cell selection criterion S includes a series of sub-criteria, which are composed of, for example, "Srxlev", a sub-criterion specifying the cell selection received (RX) level value (dB), and "Squal", a sub-criterion specifying the cell selection quality value (dB). For a given cell, when Srxlev > 0 and Squal > 0 are satisfied, the cell selection criterion S for the cell is met.

[0034] Advantageously, in this system, the UE3 (assuming SUL is possible) can select an appropriate (NR) cell having an SUL component even when the cell selection criterion S for the cell is not met, so that it can obtain the advantage of relatively larger uplink coverage (compared to the case via only the cell) that can be obtained via SUL.

[0035] More specifically, the base station 5 is configured to transmit (broadcast) a cell selection criterion S suitable for facilitating the initial access of the UE 3 to the cells of the base stations of adjacent cells. The cell selection criterion S in this case includes an SUL-related offset and SUL information (e.g., band, channel number, etc.) within the system information broadcast by the base station 5. Therefore, in effect, the UE 3 may be configured to select a cell that does not satisfy the original minimum cell selection criterion (based only on the cell selection criterion S without considering the offset) by relaxing the cell selection criterion S (by the amount indicated by the offset). In the example shown in FIG. 2, instead of the dotted-line area shown in the left figure (representing the coverage of the gNB 5-2 that can provide both UL and DL via its NR carrier (e.g., F2 / F3)), the UE 3 can take advantage of the fact that it can select a cell within the large dotted-line area shown in the right figure (representing the coverage of the SUL (e.g., F1)), and bundle carriers (in this example, F1 + F3) (e.g., by carrier aggregation) to perform both UL communication and DL communication.

[0036] In another case, the offset is useful for helping the UE 3 select a cell that, although meeting the minimum cell selection criterion, would not be selected as the best cell without considering the SUL-related offset (i.e., the offset may be used to increase the likelihood of a particular cell being selected by the UE 3).

[0037] Advantageously, the offset may be applied to either or both of two sub-criteria (Srxlev and Squal) of S by the UE 3, and the respective offset values may be different.

[0038] Therefore, the UE3 can select an appropriate cell (e.g., for camping) considering the effect of the SUL provided with the selected cell. On the other hand, when SUL is not provided for a cell (or when the UE3 cannot use the combination of its SUL cells), the UE3 can apply the cell selection criterion S in the normal way, thereby preventing the UE3 from selecting an NR cell while it is outside the PUSCH of that cell (regardless of whether it is within the coverage of the PDSCH). To assist the UE3 in making an appropriate cell selection considering whether SUL is provided for a specific cell, the base stations of this system are configured to share with each other the frequency settings applicable to the cells of the base station, including any associated SUL information and applicable SUL offsets. Such information (peripheral SUL information) may be broadcast by each base station 5 to assist the UE3 in (re)selecting an idle mode cell. Further, when the base station 5 configures the UE3 for cell measurement (e.g., as part of the connection mode mobility procedure), the base station 5 can also include (or apply) any such peripheral SUL information (e.g., offset) in the measurement configuration.

[0039] (SUL) offsets may include frequency-specific offsets (e.g., when all NR cells on that frequency are paired with the same / similar SUL), or cell-specific offsets (such as in other cases).

[0040] The UE3 may be configured to apply SUL offsets / information during its cell selection, for example, only when the UE3 has SUL capabilities and supports a specific combination of carriers, and / or under conditions such as when the UE3 mainly has downlink (or uplink) data, and / or according to the priority associated with the UE3 and / or the service used by the UE3.

[0041] (User Equipment) FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the main components of the UE3 shown in FIG. 1 (e.g., a mobile phone, other user equipment, etc.). As shown, the UE3 has a transceiver circuit 31 operable to transmit and receive signals with the base station 5-1 and 5-2 functions of the RAN5 via one or more antennas 33. The mobile device 3 has a controller 37 that controls the operation of the mobile device 3. The controller 37 is associated with a memory 39 and is connected to the transceiver circuit 31. It is obvious that the UE3 may have all the standard functions (such as the user interface 35) of a conventional mobile phone, although not necessarily required for operation, and such functions may be appropriately provided by any one of hardware, software, and firmware or any combination thereof. The software may be pre-installed in the memory 39 and / or downloaded, for example, via a communication network or from an RMD (Removable Data Storage Device).

[0042] In this example, the controller 37 is configured to control the operation of the entire UE3 by program instructions or software instructions stored in the memory 39. As shown, these software instructions particularly include an operating system 41, a communication control module 43 having a plurality of radio access technology modules (such as an LTE module 44 and an NR / 5G module 45) for accessing a compatible radio access network, an auxiliary uplink module 46, and a mobility management module 47.

[0043] The communication control module 43 is capable of controlling the communication between the UE 3 and the base stations 5-1 and 5-2 (and the communication between the UE 3 and any other communication devices connected to the base stations 5-1 and 5-2, such as mobile devices and network nodes). The LTE module 44 is responsible for operating the UE as an LTE UE 3-1, and in particular, manages the communication with an eNB 5-1 (e.g., a 3G / 4G base station) operating according to the current LTE standard and other nodes / devices connected to such base stations. The NR / 5G module 45 is responsible for operating the UE as an NR / 5G UE 3-2, and in particular, manages the communication with a gNB 5-2 operating according to the NextGen (5G) standard and other nodes / devices connected to such NextGen base stations.

[0044] The supplementary uplink module 46 is capable of controlling the UE 3 to configure and communicate via an appropriate SUL. Such communication may include, for example, the generation, transmission, and reception of messages using PUSCH and / or PUCCH (including NR-PUSCH / NR-PUCCH). As described in detail elsewhere, the UE 3 can use its supplementary uplink module 46 to obtain the parameters required for SUL (e.g., from the system information / cell selection criteria S broadcast by the base station 5), including the offsets associated with a specific cell for which SUL is enabled.

[0045] The mobility management module 47 is capable of controlling the procedures (including measurements and reports) related to the mobility of the UE 3 (such as cell selection). The mobility management module 47 is operable to take into account any SUL-specific parameters (offsets from the supplementary uplink module 46 and / or other SUL information) when considering whether a specific cell can be selected.

[0046] (RAN device (base station)) FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the main components of the RAN device (base station 5) shown in FIG. 1. As shown in the figure, the RAN device 5 includes one or more antennas 53, at least one base station interface 55 for transmitting and receiving signals with adjacent base stations, and at least one core network interface 56 for transmitting and receiving signals with the core network 7, and has a transceiver circuit 51 for transmitting and receiving signals with a communication device (such as UE3).

[0047] The RAN device 5 has a controller 57 for controlling the operation of the RAN device 5. The controller 57 is associated with a memory 59. Although not necessarily shown in FIG. 4, it is clear that the RAN device 5 has all the standard functions of a cellular telephone network base station, and the functions may be appropriately provided by any one of hardware, software, and firmware or any combination thereof. The software may be pre-installed in the memory 59 or may be downloaded, for example, via the communication network 1 or from a removable data storage device (RMD). In this example, the controller 57 is configured to control the overall operation of the RAN device 5 by program instructions or software instructions stored in the memory 59. As shown in the figure, these software instructions particularly include an operating system 61, a communication control module 63 including a plurality of base station modules (such as an eNB module 65, a gNB module 67, etc.) for providing the functions of the corresponding base station, and an auxiliary uplink management module 68.

[0048] The communication control module 63 is capable of controlling the communication between the RAN device 5 and the UE 3 (and the communication between the RAN device 5 and other network entities connected thereto). The eNB module 65 plays the role of operating the RAN device 5 as the eNB 5-1, and in particular, manages the communication when the UE 3 (and / or one or more LTE dedicated UEs) operates according to the current LTE standard. The gNB module 67 plays the role of operating the RAN device 5 as the gNB 5-2, and in particular, manages the communication when the UE 3 (and / or one or more NR dedicated UEs) operates as an NR UE according to the NextGen (5G) standard.

[0049] The supplementary uplink management module 68 is capable of controlling the UE 3 within the coverage area of the base station 5 to communicate via an appropriate SUL (including cell selection and associated measurement settings). For example, the supplementary uplink management module 68 can generate, transmit, and receive messages using the PUSCH and / or PUCCH (including NR-PUSCH / NR-PUCCH). If applicable, the supplementary uplink management module 68 may provide the UE with SUL-related offsets and / or other information (for the local station and optionally for neighboring cells) via the broadcast system information.

[0050] In the above description, for ease of understanding, the UE 3 and the base station 5 have been described as being equipped with a plurality of individual modules (such as the communication control module and the SUL / SUL management module). These modules can be provided in the above-described manner for specific applications that modify an existing system to implement the present invention. However, for other applications, such as a system designed from the beginning with the features of the invention in mind, these modules may be incorporated into the operating system or the entire code. In this case, these modules may not need to be recognized as individual entities.

[0051] (Operation: Provision of SUL (Supplementary UpLink)) Figure 5a shows an exemplary scenario of providing SUL together with an NR carrier (at least in the case of DL) to user equipment within the coverage area of a base station. Specifically, in this example, an 80 MHz DL (or DL / UL) carrier is provided via a suitable NR cell (TDD is used in this case, but FDD may be used in other systems). For example, some UEs located within the NR-PUSCH coverage of base station 5 (the small dotted circle in Figure 2), shown as "UE1" in this example, may be configured to use the NR carrier for both downlink and uplink communications.

[0052] However, some UEs, shown as "UE2" in this example, may be configured to use the NR carrier for downlink communication (or both downlink and uplink communications) and an appropriate SUL carrier for uplink communication. In this example, SUL is provided via an additional 10 MHz carrier (using an appropriate FDD bandwidth), and compatible UEs may be configured to bundle or (using CA) aggregate the SUL and the NR carrier when communicating with base station 5.

[0053] By beamforming (and / or other techniques available at gNB5-2), the coverage of NR-PDSCH at 3.5 GHz may resemble the UL coverage of a low FDD (such as LTE) band (depending on relative data rates, etc.). Therefore, advantageously, pairing such a 3.5 GHz carrier with a low FDD band (SUL band) may improve the overall coverage of base station 5.

[0054] Figure 5b shows (by dotted lines) several possible ways in which an NR carrier can be combined with an LTE carrier (or another NR carrier that may be in a lower band) to provide an appropriate SUL for UE3. As one option (denoted as "Scenario 1"), there is a stand-alone SUL that is used only in NR. In another option, denoted as "Scenario 2" in Figure 5b, the SUL may be shared across multiple radio access technologies (e.g., NR and LTE, using either TDM or FDM). This scenario may be referred to as a shared or "non-stand-alone" SUL. However, assume that any of the combinations shown in Figure 5b are possible within the same base station / RAN (for different UEs or groups of UEs).

[0055] (Operation: (Re)selection of cells when SUL is deployed) In the example of the system shown in Figure 1, when using a stand-alone SUL, base station 5 may be advantageously configured to transmit (broadcast) an appropriate cell selection criterion S that can facilitate the initial access of UE3 to the cell of the base station. Specifically, the cell selection criterion S in this case includes an SUL-related offset and SUL information (such as band, ARFCN (Absolute Radio Frequency Channel Number), etc.) within the system information broadcast by base station 5. Thus, in effect, UE3 may be configured to select (using its mobility management module 47) cells that do not meet the minimum cell selection criterion originally (based only on the cell selection criterion S without considering the offset) by relaxing the cell selection criterion S (by the amount indicated by the offset).

[0056] Advantageously, the offset may be applied to either or both of two secondary criteria (Srxlev and Squal) of S by UE3, and the respective offset numerical values may be different.

[0057] When the UE3 performs cell selection as part of the mobility procedure upon receiving the system information broadcast by the base station 5, the UE3 is configured to execute one or more of the following actions (using its SUL module 46): - Apply an offset (e.g., when the UE3 has SUL capabilities and supports a specific combination of carriers); - Apply an offset / relaxed S when the UE3 has mainly downlink data only; and - Apply an offset / relaxed S when the priority of the UE3 is high, the priority of the service used / requested by the UE3 is high, or the UE3 uses a specific service.

[0058] Thereby, the UE3 can select a cell suitable for camping (using its mobility management module 47) taking into account the effect of SUL provided with the selected cell. On the other hand, when SUL is not provided for a cell (or when the UE3 cannot use the combination of its SUL cells), the UE3 can apply the cell selection criterion S in the normal way, thereby preventing the UE3 from selecting an NR cell while it is outside the PUSCH of that cell (regardless of whether it is within the coverage of the PDSCH).

[0059] In the case of idle mode mobility (standalone SUL scenario), the UE3 and the base station 5 are configured to execute the following actions as part of the cell selection / reselection procedure by the UE: - The base station 5 obtains (using its SUL management module 68) the frequency settings used in adjacent (cells / base stations) including any associated SUL information and the offsets applicable to SUL (this may be done, for example, via OAM (Operation And Maintenance) or neighbor information exchange procedures); - The base station 5 broadcasts (in the system information using its communication control module 63) information regarding (multiple) NR adjacent frequencies and (multiple) cells, including any offset of SUL and / or SUL frequency information; - When SUL exists in a candidate cell (and the UE3 has the capability of SUL / can use the specific SUL), the UE3 (for example, after obtaining the necessary system information using the communication control module 43) applies the offset (using the SUL module 46); and - The UE3 also needs to read the system information of the measured (adjacent) cells to obtain the SUL information applicable to its cell.

[0060] Assume that there are mainly three options for the SUL configuration of the cells of a specific (adjacent) base station. Case 1: All cells operating on a specific NR frequency (such as F3) do not have an associated SUL (or at least some UEs disable SUL); Case 2: All cells have SUL on the same frequency (for example, F1) (in this case, the offset regarding SUL may be frequency-specific); and Case 3: Some cells operate with SUL and some cells operate without SUL (in this case, the offset regarding SUL may be cell-specific).

[0061] In the case of connection mode mobility, there are at least two options (applicable to both the stand-alone and shared SUL scenarios).

[0062] Similar to the above case of idle mode mobility, in the first option, the base station 5 obtains the frequency settings used in the vicinity, any associated SUL information, and the offset applicable to SUL (where cases 1 to 3 above apply).

[0063] In the case of the UE3 in the RRC connection, the base station 5 is configured to transmit an appropriate measurement setting together with one or more measurement objects for a candidate NR frequency (for example, F3 when SUL is provided by F1). For example, using a measurement object of type "B2", measurements suitable for an additional gNB can be set (the measurement object B2 is defined in 3GPP as "when the PCell deteriorates more than threshold 1 and the inter-RAT adjacent cell becomes better than threshold 2"). However, any appropriate measurement object may be used.

[0064] Assuming that the base station 5 does not know whether the UE3 has the SUL capability, the base station 5 applies an appropriate offset associated with the SUL and SUL information to the measurement setting / measurement object.

[0065] The UE3 is configured to apply an SUL offset to the measurement result of the cell being measured (for example, when the UE3 can use a specified SUL while working on a specified measurement object (such as NR carrier F3 in this example)).

[0066] For example, in the second option, when the base station 5 knows whether the UE3 has the SUL capability, the base station 5 may apply an appropriate offset associated with the SUL and SUL information to the measurement setting / measurement object only when the UE3 supports the SUL (in other cases, the base station 5 may set the measurement without the SUL offset / information). In other words, the base station 5 may be configured to consider the coverage difference when configuring the measurement / reporting event of the UE3, that is, the SUL offset may be merged with other existing offsets. Therefore, in this case, the UE3 does not need to consider whether to apply the offset / SUL information at cell selection (because the offset / SUL information has already been applied by the base station 5).

[0067] (Modifications and alternatives) The above exemplary embodiments have been described in detail. As will be understood by those skilled in the art, there are a plurality of variations and alternatives for the above exemplary embodiments, and the advantages of the invention embodied in such a manner can be obtained. For the purpose of explanation, only some examples of these variations and alternatives will be described.

[0068] For example, as an exemplary system, a base station (RAN device) in which an eNB and a gNB are arranged at the same location and share a plurality of hardware and software modules will be described. However, the eNB and the gNB may be separate entities each having dedicated hardware and software. The RAN device may divide its functions into at least one DU (Distributed Unit: distributed (or "remote") unit) that communicates with the UE and a CU (Central Unit: central unit) located between the DU and the core network according to the known 5G development. For example, the functions of the upper layer may be provided by the CU, and the functions of the lower layer may be provided by the DU.

[0069] As used herein, the terms "component carrier" or "carrier" refer to an individual communication (or "transmission") bandwidth capable of scheduling individual time / frequency resources (e.g., PRB (Physical Resource Block)), and refer to UL carriers and DL carriers. The term "carrier" in this context is not synonymous with "subcarrier". The term "subcarrier" represents the minimum unit of frequency used in a cellular communication system as described above, and is usually allocated in units of groups (usually called PRBs) within a predetermined communication time interval (e.g., TTI (Transmission Time Interval), mini-slot, slot, subframe, etc.). Therefore, a component carrier represents a transmission bandwidth (UL, DL, or both) composed of a plurality (usually dozens) of PRBs, and each PRB contains a plurality (usually a large number such as 12) of subcarriers. In other words, the transmission bandwidth associated with each carrier is usually composed of hundreds of subcarriers.

[0070] In the above exemplary embodiments, SUL is provided across a low LTE band. However, SUL is in effect an NR carrier, and thus, NR radio access technology can be used (LTE radio access technology can also be used as appropriate). In a plurality of deployment examples, it is assumed that the frequency band used by SUL may be the same as the band used by an NR carrier.

[0071] In the above description regarding connection mode mobility, inter-RAT measurement targets were used as an example. However, depending on the radio access technology and frequency band used in different carriers, intra-RAT measurement targets or intra-frequency measurement targets may also be included as measurement targets.

[0072] SUL is in effect a complementary part of an (NR) cell. Usually, one cell is composed of a DL carrier and a UL carrier (in the case of FDD, DL and UL exist on different frequencies, while in the case of TDD, DL and UL are different subframe sets on the same frequency). A cell with SUL may further have an SUL part in addition to the normal DL and UL parts. That is, SUL does not necessarily have to be a stand-alone cell. SUL may be provided in a specific cell configuration, and in that case, it may be indicated (for example, in DL system information) that a specific cell has an SUL part by broadcasting system information.

[0073] The UE is configured to detect / measure the DL part of a cell and, based on the measurement, determine whether to select this cell or report this cell for potential HO determination. While the UE connects to a cell via SUL, it may use the SUL or the normal UL part (or both) for uplink transmission.

[0074] When SUL is configured for a cell, the UE performs cell selection / reselection / handover for the cell based on the measurement of the DL part, and may apply an SUL-specific offset (etc.) to the DL measurement.

[0075] In the above exemplary embodiments, a plurality of software modules have been described. As will be understood by those skilled in the art, the software modules may be provided in compiled or uncompiled form, or supplied to the target device (such as UE, RAN, eNB, gNB, etc.) as signals via a computer network or on a recording medium. Further, the functions executed by some or all of this software may be executed using one or more dedicated hardware circuits. However, software modules are recommended for use in order to speed up the update of the base station or mobile device.

[0076] Each controller forming part of the apparatus described herein may include any suitable form of processing circuitry, including, for example (without limitation): one or more hardware-implemented computer processors; microprocessors; CPUs (Central Processing Units); ALUs (Arithmetic Logic Units); IO (Input / Output) circuits; internal memory / cache (program and / or data); processing registers; communication buses (e.g., control, data, and / or address buses); DMA (Direct Memory Access) functions; and hardware- or software-implemented counters, pointers, timers, etc.

[0077] The UE may receive the above information (information used for the selection of the cell operated by the base station, where the base station is configured to receive UL communication on either a first carrier for UL and DL communication or an auxiliary carrier for UL communication) during system information broadcast.

[0078] The first cell selection information may include at least one cell selection parameter for comparison with the measurement of the first carrier when the UE cannot communicate using the secondary carrier for UL communication, and the second cell selection information may include at least one offset applied to the cell selection parameter for comparison with the measurement of the first carrier when the UE can communicate using the secondary carrier for UL communication.

[0079] The at least one offset may include a cell-specific offset (e.g., depending on the cell and / or the secondary carrier) and / or a frequency-specific offset.

[0080] The at least one cell selection parameter may include at least one of a received signal level value (e.g., "Srxlev") and a signal quality value (e.g., "Squal").

[0081] The method performed by the UE may further include performing at least one of camping on the cell, (re)selecting the cell, and adding the cell to the set of serving cells (e.g., carrier aggregation) based on the determination.

[0082] The cell may comprise an NR (New Radio) or a 5G carrier (e.g., having an associated communication bandwidth not shared with a 4G carrier). In this case, the secondary carrier may be a 4G or LTE (Long Term Evolution) carrier for aggregation with an NR (New Radio) or 5G carrier. The secondary carrier may be shared among a plurality of user equipments and / or a plurality of cells.

[0083] The first carrier may operate in a frequency band associated with a first radio access technology (e.g., NR (New Radio) or 5G radio access technology), and the secondary carrier may operate in a frequency band associated with a second radio access technology (e.g., LTE (Long Term Evolution) radio access technology). The first carrier and the second carrier may use the same radio access technology (regardless of the frequency band in which they operate).

[0084] The above-mentioned first measurement setting may include information for identifying at least one threshold for comparison with the measurement of the first carrier when the UE cannot communicate using the secondary carrier for UL communication, and the second measurement setting may include information for identifying at least one offset to be applied to at least one threshold for comparison with the measurement of the first carrier when the UE can communicate using the secondary carrier for UL communication. The method performed by the UE may further include receiving information for identifying the offset from the base station.

[0085] The measurement of the first carrier may include at least one of a measurement of a received signal level value and a measurement of a signal quality value. The UE may receive at least the first measurement setting by individual signaling (e.g., RRC (Radio Resource Control) signaling).

[0086] The measurement setting information may include at least one of a measurement target (e.g., "B2" measurement target) for measuring neighboring cells between radio access technologies (inter-RAT), a measurement target for measuring in-RAT neighboring cells, and a measurement target for measuring intra-frequency neighboring cells, and the secondary carrier includes neighboring cells.

[0087] The base station may obtain information regarding the second measurement setting from an adjacent base station and / or an OAM entity. The RAN device may include an NR or 5G base station (gNB) or an LTE base station (eNB).

[0088] Since various other modifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art, further detailed description is omitted here.

[0089] Some or all of the above-described embodiments may also be described as follows, but are not limited thereto.

[0090] (Appendix 1) A method executed by a UE (User Equipment) in a cellular communication system, receiving cell selection information used for the selection of a cell operated by a base station configured to receive UL (UpLink) communication on either a first carrier for UL and DL communications or an auxiliary carrier for UL communication from the base station, measuring a signal transmitted on the first carrier, and determining whether the cell of the base station is an appropriate candidate in cell (re)selection based on the measurement of the first carrier, the received cell selection information, and the capability of the UE to communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication, wherein the cell selection information includes first cell selection information used to determine whether the cell of the base station is an appropriate candidate in cell (re)selection based on the measurement of the first carrier when the UE cannot communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication, and second cell selection information used to determine whether the cell of the base station is an appropriate candidate in cell (re)selection based on the measurement of the first carrier when the UE can communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication.

[0091] (Appendix 2) The method according to Appendix 1, further comprising receiving the information during the broadcast of system information.

[0092] (Appendix 3) The above first cell selection information includes at least one cell selection parameter for comparison with the measurement of the first carrier when the UE cannot communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication, and the above second cell selection information includes at least one offset applied to the above cell selection parameter for comparison with the measurement of the first carrier when the UE can communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication, the method according to Appendix 1 or Appendix 2.

[0093] (Appendix 4) The above at least one offset includes a cell-specific (e.g., depending on the above cell and / or the above auxiliary carrier) offset and / or a frequency-specific offset, the method according to Appendix 3.

[0094] (Appendix 5) The above at least one cell selection parameter includes at least one of a received signal level value (e.g., "Srxlev") and a signal quality value (e.g., "Squal"), the method according to Appendix 3 or Appendix 4.

[0095] (Appendix 6) Based on the above determination, further including performing at least one of camping on the above cell, (re)selecting the above cell, and adding the above cell to the set of serving cells (e.g., carrier aggregation), the method according to any one of Appendices 1 to 5.

[0096] (Appendix 7) The above cell includes an NR (New Radio) or a 5G carrier (e.g., having an associated communication bandwidth not shared with a 4G carrier), the method according to any one of Appendices 1 to 6.

[0097] (Appendix 8) The above auxiliary carrier is a 4G or LTE (Long Term Evolution) carrier for aggregation with an NR (New Radio) or a 5G carrier, the method according to Appendix 7.

[0098] (Appendix 9) The above auxiliary carrier is the method according to any one of Appendices 1 to 8, which is shared among a plurality of user devices and / or a plurality of cells.

[0099] (Appendix 10) The above first carrier is operated in a frequency band associated with a first radio access technology (for example, NR (New Radio) or 5G radio access technology), and the above auxiliary carrier is operated in a frequency band associated with a second radio access technology (for example, LTE (Long Term Evolution) radio access technology). The method according to any one of Appendices 1 to 9.

[0100] (Appendix 11) A method executed by a UE (User Equipment) in a cellular communication system, Receiving, from a RAN (Radio Access Network), measurement settings used for measuring a cell operated by a base station of the RAN, which is configured to receive UL (UpLink) communication on either a first carrier for UL and DL communication or an auxiliary carrier for UL communication; Measuring a signal transmitted on the above first carrier based on the received measurement settings, and Determining whether to report the result of the measurement to the RAN based on the measurement of the above first carrier and the capability of the above UE to communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication, The above measurement settings include a first measurement setting used to determine whether to report the result of the measurement to the RAN based on the measurement of the above first carrier when the above UE cannot communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication, and A second measurement setting used to determine whether to report the result of the measurement to the RAN based on the measurement of the above first carrier when the above UE can communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication.

[0101] (Annex 12) The first measurement setting includes information for identifying at least one threshold value for comparison with the measurement of the first carrier when the UE cannot communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication, and the second measurement setting includes information for identifying at least one offset value to be applied to at least one threshold value for comparison with the measurement of the first carrier when the UE can communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication. The method according to Annex 11

[0102] (Annex 13) The method according to Annex 12, further including receiving the information for identifying the offset value from the base station

[0103] (Annex 14) The measurement of the first carrier includes at least one of the measurement of the received signal level value and the measurement of the signal quality value. The method according to any one of Annex 11 to Annex 13

[0104] (Annex 15) The method according to any one of Annex 11 to Annex 14, further including receiving at least the first measurement setting by individual signaling (for example, RRC (Radio Resource Control) signaling)

[0105] (Annex 16) The measurement setting information includes at least one of a measurement target for measuring an inter-RAT (Radio Access Technology) neighboring cell (for example, a "B2" measurement target), a measurement target for measuring an intra-RAT neighboring cell, and a measurement target for measuring an intra-frequency neighboring cell. The auxiliary carrier includes the neighboring cell. The method according to any one of Annex 11 to Annex 15

[0106] (Annex 17) A method executed by a base station in a cellular communication system, Transmitting cell selection information used for the selection of a cell operated by the base station configured to receive UL (UpLink) communication on either a first carrier for UL and DL communication or an auxiliary carrier for UL communication to a UE (User Equipment). The cell selection information includes first cell selection information used to determine whether a cell of the base station is a suitable candidate in cell (re)selection based on measurements of the first carrier when the UE cannot communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication, and second cell selection information used to determine whether a cell of the base station is a suitable candidate in cell (re)selection based on measurements of the first carrier when the UE can communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication, the method comprising.

[0107] (Appendix 18) A method executed by a RAN (Radio Access Network) device in a cellular communication system, the method comprising transmitting measurement settings used for the measurement of a cell operated by the base station of the RAN configured to receive UL communication on either a first carrier for UL and DL communication or an auxiliary carrier for UL communication to a UE (User Equipment), and receiving measurement results corresponding to the measurement settings, the measurement settings including first measurement settings used to determine whether to report the results of the measurement to the RAN device based on measurements of the first carrier when the UE cannot communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication, and second measurement settings used to determine whether to report the results of the measurement to the RAN device based on measurements of the first carrier when the UE can communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication, the method comprising.

[0108] (Appendix 19) The method according to appendix 18, comprising obtaining information regarding the second measurement setting from an adjacent base station and / or an OAM (Operations And Maintenance) entity.

[0109] (Appendix 20) The method according to any one of appendices 11 to 19, wherein the RAN device includes an NR (New Radio) or 5G base station (gNB).

[0110] (Appendix 21) The method according to any one of appendices 11 to 20, wherein the RAN device includes an LTE (Long Term Evolution) base station (eNB).

[0111] (Appendix 22) A UE (User Equipment) for a cellular communication system, wherein the UE comprises a transceiver and a controller, the transceiver is configured to receive cell selection information used for selecting a cell operated by a base station configured to receive UL communication on either a first carrier for UL (UpLink) and DL communication or an auxiliary carrier for UL communication from the base station, the controller is configured to measure a signal transmitted on the first carrier, and determine whether the cell of the base station is an appropriate candidate in cell (re)selection based on the measurement of the first carrier, the received cell selection information, and the capability of the UE to communicate using the auxiliary carrier for the UL communication, the cell selection information includes first cell selection information used to determine whether the cell of the base station is an appropriate candidate in cell (re)selection based on the measurement of the first carrier when the UE is unable to communicate using the auxiliary carrier for the UL communication, and A UE that includes second cell selection information used to determine whether a cell of the base station is a suitable candidate in cell (re)selection based on measurement of the first carrier when the UE can communicate using an auxiliary carrier for UL communication.

[0112] (Appendix 23) A UE (User Equipment) for a cellular communication system, wherein the UE includes a transceiver and a controller, the transceiver is configured to receive a measurement setting used for measurement of a cell operated by a base station of the RAN (Radio Access Network), the cell being configured to receive UL communication from the RAN using either a first carrier for UL and DL communication or an auxiliary carrier for UL communication, the controller is configured to perform measurement of a signal transmitted on the first carrier based on the received measurement setting, and to determine whether to report the result of the measurement to the RAN based on the measurement of the first carrier and the capability of the UE to communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication, the measurement setting includes a first measurement setting used to determine whether to report the result of the measurement to the RAN based on the measurement of the first carrier when the UE cannot communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication, and a second measurement setting used to determine whether to report the result of the measurement to the RAN based on the measurement of the first carrier when the UE can communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication.

[0113] (Appendix 24) A base station for a cellular communication system, wherein the base station includes a transceiver and a controller, The above controller is configured to transmit cell selection information used for selecting a cell operated by the above base station to a UE (User Equipment), and the above base station is configured to receive UL communication on either a first carrier for UL (UpLink) and DL communication or an auxiliary carrier for UL communication. The above cell selection information includes first cell selection information used to determine whether a cell of the above base station is an appropriate candidate in cell (re)selection based on measurement of the above first carrier when the above UE cannot communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication, and second cell selection information used to determine whether a cell of the above base station is an appropriate candidate in cell (re)selection based on measurement of the above first carrier when the above UE can communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication. A base station.

[0114] (Appendix 25) A RAN (Radio Access Network) device for a cellular communication system, The above RAN device includes a transceiver and a controller. The above transceiver transmits measurement settings used for measuring a cell operated by the above base station of the above RAN, which is configured to receive UL communication on either a first carrier for UL (UpLink) and DL communication or an auxiliary carrier for UL communication, to a UE (User Equipment), is configured to receive a measurement result corresponding to the above measurement settings, The above measurement settings include first measurement settings used to determine whether to report the result of the above measurement to the above RAN device based on measurement of the above first carrier when the above UE cannot communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication, and second measurement settings used to determine whether to report the result of the above measurement to the above RAN device based on measurement of the above first carrier when the UE can communicate using the auxiliary carrier for UL communication. A RAN device.

[0115] (Appendix 26) A cellular communication system comprising at least one base station as described in Appendix 24 or at least one device as described in Appendix 25, and at least one user equipment as described in Appendix 22 or Appendix 23.

[0116] (Appendix 27) A computer-executable program comprising computer-executable instructions for configuring a programmable device as a base station as described in Appendix 24 or a device as described in Appendix 25, or a user equipment as described in Appendix 22 or Appendix 23.

[0117] This application claims the benefit of priority based on UK Patent Application No. 1715921.1 filed on September 29, 2017, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

Claims

1. A receiver that receives first information indicating an offset value of a cell having a supplementary uplink (SUL) carrier from a network that provides the first carrier and the SUL carrier; a processor for determining that a cell selection criterion for the cell having the SUL carrier is satisfied when a value of a first parameter is greater than 0 and a value of a second parameter is greater than 0; The processing unit acquires the first parameter based on the first information if the communication device supports the SUL carrier. Communications equipment.

2. The communication device of claim 1 , wherein the first information is broadcast by the network.

3. The communication device according to claim 1 , wherein the first information is included in a system information block.

4. The first parameter indicates Srxlev, The communication device according to claim 1 , wherein the second parameter indicates Squal.

5. The communications device of claim 1 , wherein the first carrier comprises a New Radio (NR) carrier.

6. receiving first information indicating an offset value for a cell having a supplementary uplink (SUL) carrier from a network providing the first carrier and the SUL carrier; determining that a cell selection criterion for the cell having the SUL carrier is met if the value of the first parameter is greater than 0 and the value of the second parameter is greater than 0; If the communication device supports the SUL carrier, the first parameter is obtained based on the first information. Method of communication device.

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