QoS Management by ProSe Remote and Relay Entities

Abstract

A user device (UE) for a wireless communication network is configured to operate as a relay entity to provide functionality supporting a connection between one or more remote UEs and a destination in the wireless communication network, the connection between the remote UE and the destination including one or more sidelinks, each sidelink being associated with a predefined or negotiated Quality of Service (QoS). The UE is connected to one or more of the remote UEs, the destination, and one or more other relay UEs via the sidelink. The UE determines the status of the sidelink with respect to the predefined or negotiated QoS and transmits the status of the sidelink to a network entity of the wireless communication network, such as a base station.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of wireless communication systems or networks, and more specifically, to the field of relay devices such as sidelink relay devices used to provide a function for supporting a connection between a transmitting entity and a receiving entity. Embodiments of the present invention relate to Quality of Service (QoS) management of proximity-based service (ProSe) remote and relay entities.

Background Art

[0002] As shown in FIG. 1(a), FIG. 1 schematically shows an example of a terrestrial wireless network 100 including a core network 102 and one or more radio access networks RAN1, RAN2,... RAN N and. FIG. 1(b) shows a radio access network RAN that can include one or more base stations gNB1 to gNB5 nFIG. 1(a) schematically shows an example of a base station surrounded by specific regions each served by a respective cell 1061 to 1065. The base station provides services to users within the cell. One or more base stations may provide services to users in licensed bands and / or unlicensed bands. The term base station BS means a gNB in a 5G network, an eNB in UMTS / LTE / LTE-A / LTE-A Pro, or just a BS in other mobile communication standards. A user may be a fixed device or a mobile device. Also, the wireless communication system may be accessed by mobile or fixed IoT devices connected to the base station or the user. A mobile device or an IoT device may include a physical device, a ground-based vehicle such as a robot or an automobile, an aircraft such as a manned or unmanned aerial vehicle UAV, also called a drone, a building, and other items or devices with electronic devices, software, sensors, actuators, etc. embedded therein, and a network connection that enables these devices to collect and exchange data across an existing network infrastructure. FIG. 1(b) shows an exemplary diagram of five cells, but the RAN n may include more or fewer such cells, and the RAN nIt may also include only one base station. FIG. 1(b) shows two user UEs, UE1 and UE2, also called user equipment UE, which are in cell 1062 and are served by base station gNB2. Another user UE3 is shown in cell 1064 which is served by base station gNB4. Arrows 1081, 1082, 1083 schematically represent uplink / downlink connections for transmitting data from user UEs UE1, UE2, UE3 to base stations gNB2, gNB4 or for transmitting data from base stations gNB2, gNB4 to user UEs UE1, UE2, UE3. This may be realized in a licensed band or in an unlicensed band. Further, FIG. 1(b) shows two IoT devices 1101, 1102 in cell 1064, which may be fixed devices or mobile devices. IoT device 1101 accesses the wireless communication system via base station gNB4 and receives and transmits data as schematically represented by arrow 1121. IoT device 1102 accesses the wireless communication system via user UE3 as schematically represented by arrow 1122. Each of the base stations gNB1 to gNB5 may be connected to the core network 102 via its respective backhaul link 1141 to 1145, for example via the S1 interface, and is schematically represented by an arrow pointing to "core" in FIG. 1(b). The core network 102 may be connected to one or more external networks. The external network can be the Internet, or a private network such as an intranet, or another type of campus network, such as a private WiFi or 4G or 5G mobile communication system. Further, some or all of each of the base stations gNB1 to gNB5 may be connected to each other via their respective backhaul links 1161 to 1165, for example via the S1 or X2 interface or XN interface in NR, and is schematically represented by an arrow pointing to "gNB" in FIG. 1(b). The sidelink channel, also called device-to-device (D2D) communication, enables direct communication between UEs.In 3GPP, the sidelink interface is named PC5.

[0003] For data transmission, a physical resource grid may be used. The physical resource grid may comprise a set of resource elements to which various physical channels and physical signals are mapped. For example, the physical channels may include the physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH), the physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH), and the physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) that carry user-specific data also called downlink payload data, uplink payload data, and sidelink payload data, the physical broadcast channel (PBCH) that carries, for example, the master information block (MIB) and one or more system information blocks (SIB), and the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), the physical uplink control channel (PUCCH), and the physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) that carry, for example, downlink control information (DCI), uplink control information (UCI), and sidelink control information (SCI). Note that the sidelink interface may support two-stage SCI. This refers to a first control region that includes a part of the SCI and, optionally, a second control region that includes a second part of the control information.

[0004] In the uplink case, the physical channel may further include a physical random access channel (PRACH or RACH) that the UE uses to access the network after the UE synchronizes to obtain the MIB and SIB. The physical signal may include a reference signal or a symbol (RS) synchronization signal, etc. The resource grid may include a frame or a radio frame having a specific duration in the time domain and a given bandwidth in the frequency domain. The frame may have a specific number of subframes of a predefined length, for example, 1 ms. Each subframe may include one or more slots of 12 or 14 OFDM symbols depending on the cyclic prefix (CP) length. The frame may consist of a smaller number of OFDM symbols, for example, when using a shortened transmission time interval (sTTI), or when using a mini-slot / non-slot-based frame structure with several OFDM symbols.

[0005] The wireless communication system may be an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) system, an orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) system, or any other single-tone or multi-carrier system that uses frequency division multiplexing, such as any other IFFT-based signal with or without a CP, such as DFT-s-OFDM. Other waveforms for non-orthogonal waveforms for multiple access, such as filter bank multi-carrier (FBMC), generalized frequency division multiplexing (GFDM), or universal filter multi-carrier (UFMC), may be used. The wireless communication system may operate according to, for example, the LTE-Advanced pro standard, or the 5G or NR (New Radio) standard, or the NR-U (New Radio unlicensed) standard.

[0006] The wireless network or communication system shown in FIG. 1 may be a heterogeneous network having different overlay networks, for example, a network of macro cells each having a macro base station such as base stations gNB1 to gNB5, and a network of small cell base stations such as femto or pico base stations (not shown in FIG. 1). In addition to the above-mentioned terrestrial wireless network, there is also a non-terrestrial wireless communication network (NTN) including spaceborne transceivers such as satellites and / or airborne transceivers such as unmanned aerial vehicle systems. The non-terrestrial wireless communication network or system can operate in a similar manner to the terrestrial system described above with reference to FIG. 1, for example, according to the LTE-Advanced Pro standard or the 5G or NR (new radio) standard.

[0007] In a mobile communication network, for example, in a network such as the LTE or 5G / NR network described above with reference to FIG. 1, there may be UEs that communicate directly with each other through one or more sidelink (SL) channels, for example, using the PC5 / PC3 interface or direct Wifi. UEs that communicate directly with each other through the sidelink may include vehicles that communicate directly with other vehicles (V2V communication), vehicles that communicate with other entities in the wireless communication network (V2X communication), roadside units (RSUs) such as traffic lights, traffic signs, or pedestrians, and roadside entities. Depending on the specific network configuration, the RSU can have the functions of a BS or a UE. Other UEs may not be vehicle-related UEs and may include any of the devices described above. Such devices can also communicate directly with each other (D2D communication) using the SL channel.

[0008] It should be noted that the information in the above section is only for enhancing the understanding of the background of the invention, and thus may include information that does not form prior art already known to those skilled in the art. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Starting from the above, an improvement or enhancement of relay transmission in a wireless communication system or network is required.

[0010] Embodiments of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Brief Description of the Drawings

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Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0012] With reference to the accompanying drawings in which the same or similar elements are denoted by the same reference numerals, embodiments of the present invention will be described in more detail.

[0013] In a wireless communication system or network as described above with reference to FIG. 1, in order to solve performance problems such as a decrease in data rate, a weak signal, and high interference that may be encountered at the edge of the radio coverage of a cell of a base station, a relay device or a relay node may be employed. The relay node can simply repeat and transfer the received signal or transmission. In other examples, the relay node can extract data from the received signal or transmission, apply noise correction, and transmit a new signal or a new transmission by itself. Also, not only can the signal be repeated, but the quality of the signal can also be improved.

[0014] For example, when considering the relay function of the Proximity Service (ProSe) defined by 3GPP, a user device, also referred to as a remote user device (UE), is outside the coverage (OOC), that is, outside the coverage of any access network such as the RAN in FIG. 1, and is a so-called relay entity (also referred to as a relay UE or a relay node), which is within the coverage of an access network and can request the service of another UE and obtain the service of the access network to which the relay UE is connected. The connection between the remote UE and the relay UE may be, for example, a sidelink connection using PC5 sidelink resources. The remote UE does not necessarily have to be outside the coverage. For example, in order to avoid possible performance degradation that may occur at the edge of the radio coverage of the cell of the access point of an access network such as a base station, the service of the relay UE can also be utilized even when it is within the coverage. In addition, the remote UE may be connected to the access network via two or more relay UEs, which is also called a multi-hop scenario and uses multiple relay UEs from a chain to connect the remote UE to its destination, and may be other user devices or network entities (such as RAN entities such as base stations or gNBs). In a multi-hop scenario, when connecting the remote UE to the access network, only the relay UE that directly connects to the access network needs to be within the coverage of the access point of the access network.

[0015] In 3GPP, as a relay function, two solutions, namely the so-called Layer 2 (L2) relay and Layer 3 (L3) relay, are provided. Figure 2 shows the respective protocol stacks. Figure 2(a) shows the protocol stack of the L2 relay, and Figure 2(b) is a diagram showing the protocol stack of the L3 relay. In Figure 2, a scenario between the UE and the network is illustrated, and the destination is a network entity. As shown, the remote UE is connected to the L2 or L3 relay via the PC5 interface and, in turn, is connected to the network, for example, a radio access network via the Uu interface. The radio access network is connected to the core network via the N3 network in turn. In the L2 relay, referring to Figure 2(a), the upper layer of the remote UE ends at the radio access network (RAN) and the core network (CN), thereby providing a structure for the end-to-end management of the system. In the L3 relay, referring to Figure 2(b), all layers of the remote UE end at the relay UE at each hop, thereby providing a structure for the hop-by-hop management of the system.

[0016] In any of the scenarios described above with reference to Figure 2, whether it is a single-hop relay scenario or a multi-hop relay scenario, it is necessary to manage or maintain the quality of service (QoS) for the remote UE. In addition to the manner of QoS negotiation executed during connection establishment, there is a problem that QoS management and / or maintenance (QoS-MM) is executed while the connection is active. This application addresses the manner of QoS-MM in a single-hop relay scenario or a multi-hop relay scenario. In a non-relay scenario, when QoS parameters are not met at a specific time within a network entity and / or the UE, the QoS-MM procedure may include QoS renegotiation and can trigger relay reselection or a change to another access network. For example, QoS-MM may include a QoS notification control (QNC) mechanism for a guaranteed bit rate (GBR) flow defined, for example, in 3GPP TS 23.501 or 3GPP TS 23.502.

[0017] Figure 3 shows a conventional QNC mechanism implemented between a radio access network and a core network of a wireless communication system or network. Figure 3(a) shows the initialization of the QNC mechanism, Figure 3(b) shows the operation of the QNC mechanism during a session, and Figure 3(c) shows the messages for communication during the session of Figure 3(b). As shown in Figure 3(a), the QNC mechanism is implemented between a radio access network (RAN) and a core network. During the establishment of a session, a session management function (SMF) interacts with a policy control function (PCF) to define the QoS to be met for communication between a remote UE and a destination, for example, as part of policy control and charging control (PCC) rules. Based on these rules, the SMF determines a QoS profile that defines the QoS requirements to be met for the session. The QoS profile is signaled to the RAN, and notification control may be signaled to the RAN as part of the QoS profile.

[0018] Once initialized, as shown in Figure 3(b), during the session, the QNC mechanism becomes active, and the RAN monitors the guaranteed flow bit rate (GFBR), which is one of the parameters provided by the QoS profile. The RAN may send a notification to the SMF when the GFBR is no longer guaranteed or is guaranteed again by the RAN. The SMF may forward the notification to the PCF if the PCF agrees to the notification.

[0019] As shown in FIG. 3(c), the signaling from the RAN to the SMF may be via the Access and Mobility Function (AMF) using a message on the N2 interface that includes the PDU session ID and N2 Session Management (SM) information. The AMF conveys the information to the SMF, and the SMF forwards the notification to the PCF in turn if the PCF agrees thereto. The QNC of each QoS flow of the PDU session may be held in the SM context within the SMF. The QNC indicates whether to request notification from the RAN when the GFBR for the QoS flow is no longer guaranteed or is guaranteed again during the continuation of the QoS flow. When the notification control is set for a GBR QoS flow, if an access node such as the RAN determines that the QoS target of the QoS flow is no longer met or is met again, the access node such as the RAN sends an N2 message to the SMF. The UE is directly connected to the network via the Uu interface, and the SMF can provide the following combination of parameters to the RAN based on the negotiated QoS requirements of the UE such as GBR or non-GBR. ● Guaranteed Flow Bit Rate (GFBR), ● Maximum Flow Bit Rate (MFBR) ● Maximum Packet Loss, ● Packet Delay Budget (PDP), ● Packet Error Rate (PER), ● Aggregate Maximum Bit Rate (AMBR) per UE and / or session.

[0020] When the notification is effective, i.e., when the application server accepts the notification control, the RAN measures various parameters of the QoS-MM and triggers the notification as necessary. The calculation of these parameters depends only on the Uu interface between the UE and the RAN.

[0021] Another conventional concept of QoS-MM is the so-called reflective QoS (R-QoS), which indicates that some traffic signaled by the core network to the RAN and transmitted in QoS non-GBR flows is subject to reflective QoS. The RAN uses reflective mapping to assist the UE on the uplink in performing QoS mapping between QoS non-GBR flows and data radio bearers. When reflective QoS is set for a given QoS flow and activated for a particular packet, reflective QoS utilizes the information transmitted as part of the downlink session information within a particular bearer, thereby reducing the signaling overhead. The UE can use the same QoS mapping on the uplink without the need to receive additional control information, thereby avoiding the signaling required when using explicit signaling to provide the UE with a specific QoS flow for the mapping rule of the data bearer to be used.

[0022] Yet another conventional concept of QoS-MM is the so-called early buffer status report (early BSR). Fig. 4 shows the concept of a normal BSR as shown in Fig. 4(a) and an early BSR as shown in Fig. 4(b). In a normal BSR, a source such as a remote UE can transmit packets 1 to 4 to a relay, and when transmissions 1 to 4 are received at the relay, the BSR is transmitted to the destination to request resources for transmitting transmissions 1 to 4. When implementing the concept of an early buffer status report, the relay recognizes that in addition to transmissions 3 and 4 already received, additional transmissions 1 and 2 are about to be transmitted by the source, and based on this knowledge, the relay triggers an early BSR that requests resources not only for transmissions 3 and 4 but also for the expected transmissions 1 and 2. Conventionally, in the context of integrated access backhaul (IAB), an early BSR report has been standardized to reduce latency when requesting resources for a relay node from the next hop or a destination such as a base station, and the early BSR is triggered based on the expected amount of data that the relay assumes it will receive from the source even before the data arrives at the relay from the source.

[0023] However, the conventional approach described above solves the QoS problem only based on transmission via the Uu interface. When considering a relay scenario where a relay UE is connected to an access network and provides a relay function to one or more remote UEs, there is no solution for UE-specific QoS processing or QoS-MM. The link between the access network and the relay UE is a single link used for the connection between each remote UE and the destination, and is also called a cumulative link. FIG. 5 shows a transmission scenario for downlink (DL) transmission to one or more remote UEs, as illustrated in FIG. 5(a), or uplink (UL) transmission to the network, as illustrated in FIG. 5(b). FIG. 5 shows an access network (RAN) connected to a core network including an AMF, an SMF, and a user plane function (UPF) via N1 and N3 interfaces. The relay UE is connected to the RAN via the Uu interface and, in the scenario shown, provides connectivity to three remote UEs to the network, and each remote UE is connected to the relay UE via an individual link or sidelink such as a PC5 link. Each of the remote UEs implements one or more sessions with the core network associated with each of the different possible QoS flows. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 5(a), when transmitting from the network to each remote UE, the link between the network and the relay UE is a cumulative link, and similarly, when transmitting from the remote UE towards the network, again, the connection from the relay UE to the network is a cumulative link, that is, the link lacks any UE-level accuracy, and it is not easy to provide QoS-MM in terms of UE-level accuracy for the connection between the remote UE and the network via the relay UE.

[0024] In Reference [1], SA WG2 Meeting #139E, S2-2003786, Elbonia, 01 - 12 June 2020, “KI#3, New Sol: QoS handling for Remote UE ”, regarding the degradation of the PC5 sidelink It is described to send a Remote UE Report message to the SMF to directly notify the SMF, and to send a QNC notification from the RAN to notify the SMF of the degradation on the Uu interface between the repeater and the core network. However, this approach requires new direct communication between the repeater and the core network (CN).

[0025] Reference [2], SA WG2 Meeting #139E (e-meeting), S2-2004289, Elbonia, June 1-12, 2020, “KI#3, New solution to support end-to-end QoS for Layer-3 UE-to-Net work Relay” describes an end-to-end connection from a remote UE including two radio links, namely Uu and PC5, to the core network. To meet the packet delay budget (PDB) of a specific service, the PDB utilized by the NG-RAN is reduced to provide some budget for the PC5 link. In other words, when considering the PC5 link and the Uu link, to achieve the overall PDB, the PDB of the Uu link is reduced and the PDB of the PC5 link is prioritized. Thus, the QoS profile of each of the two links is defined such that the necessity of the PC5 link is considered when setting the QoS profile of the Uu link.

[0026] The present invention solves the above problems. Embodiments of the present invention implement a QoS-MM mechanism and enable QoS-MM in a single-hop relay scenario or a multi-hop relay scenario.

[0027] First aspect ​The first aspect of the present invention supports a QoS-MM mechanism for a single-hop relay scenario or a multi-hop relay scenario that avoids the need to perform a new direct communication between the relay entity and the CN in addition to reference [1]. Rather, according to an embodiment, the QoS state such as a remote UE report is transmitted from the repeater to the RAN in order to trigger a QNC notification at the RAN indicating that QoS is not satisfied by the sidelink. Also, if necessary, information regarding the state of the Uu interface may be transmitted using the QNC notification.

[0028] Second aspect The second aspect of the present invention further improves the concept of reference [2]. Instead of adhering to each QoS profile for the link, tolerance values of QoS parameters are introduced, which can be signaled as additional information also called QoS assistance information (QoS_AI). When a QoS profile of a link exists, measurements are performed on the link to determine or calculate the values of the QoS parameters that can actually be achieved. In a certain link, the value of one or more parameters may exceed the value actually required for QoS, and the remainder or surplus is signaled as the tolerance value of the parameters on one or more sidelinks. The tolerance value may be used to allow the sidelink to exceed a specific parameter by only the tolerance value while achieving the overall QoS of the connection between the remote UE and the destination.

[0029] Third aspect The third aspect of the present invention implements the concept of reflective QoS in the relay.

[0030] Fourth aspect The fourth aspect of the present invention implements early BSR at the relay entity.

[0031] Embodiments of the present invention can be implemented in a wireless communication system as shown in FIG. 1, including a base station and users such as mobile terminals or IoT devices. FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a wireless communication system including a transmitter 300 such as a base station or gNB, one or more user devices (UEs) 302, 304, and one or more relay entities 306, 308, 310 such as relay UEs for implementing embodiments of the present invention. The transmitter 300 and the receivers 302, 304 can communicate via their respective relay entities 306, 308, 310 using their respective wireless communication links or channels 310a, 310b, 312a, 312b, 314a, 314b such as their respective wireless links. The transmitter 300 may include an antenna array having one or more antennas ANT T or a plurality of antenna elements, a signal processor 300a, and a transceiver 300b. The receivers 302, 304 include one or more antennas ANT coupled to each other UEIt includes an antenna array having one or more antennas, signal processors 302a and 304a, and transceivers 302b and 304b. Each of the relay entities 306, 308, and 310 includes an antenna array having one or more antennas ANT or a plurality of antennas coupled to each other, a signal processor, and a transceiver T. The base station 300 and the UE 302 use a wireless communication link 314b such as a radio link using the Uu interface or other 3GPP or non-3GPP interfaces between the base station 300 and the relay entity 310, and use a wireless communication link 314a such as a radio link using the PC5 / sidelink (SL) interface between the UE 302 and the relay entity 310 to communicate via the relay entity 310. Similarly, the base station 300 and the UE 304 use a wireless communication link 312b such as a radio link using the Uu interface between the base station 300 and the relay entity 308, and use a wireless communication link 312a such as a radio link using the SL interface between the UE 304 and the relay entity 308 to communicate via the relay entity 308. The UEs 302 and 304 can communicate with each other via the relay entity 306 using a wireless communication link 310a such as a radio link using the SL interface between the UE 302 and the relay entity 306 and a wireless communication link 310b such as a radio link using the SL interface between the UE 304 and the relay entity 310. Any one of a system or network, one or more UEs 302 and 304, one or more relay entities 306 to 310, and / or the base station 300 as shown in FIG. 6 can operate according to the inventive teachings described herein. In the following description, the relay entity is referred to as a relay UE.

[0032] Relay UE providing sidelink QoS status The present invention provides a user device (UE) for a wireless communication network, The UE is configured to operate as a relay entity and provide a function to support a connection between one or more remote UEs and a destination in the wireless communication network. The connection between the remote UE and the destination includes one or more sidelinks, and each sidelink is associated with a pre-defined or negotiated quality of service (QoS). The UE is ● connected via a sidelink to one or more of the remote UEs among the remote UEs, ● the destination, ● one or more other relay UEs, and is configured to determine the state of the sidelink with respect to the pre-defined or negotiated QoS. The UE is configured to determine the state of the sidelink with respect to the pre-defined or negotiated QoS. The UE is configured to transmit the state of the sidelink to a network entity of the wireless communication network, such as a base station.

[0033] According to an embodiment, the UE is ● connected to one or more of the remote UEs among the remote UEs and / or one or more other relay UEs by a first sidelink, and when the destination is another UE, connected to the destination by a second sidelink, or ● connected to one or more of the remote UEs among the remote UEs and / or one or more other relay UEs by a first sidelink and connected to one or more other relay UEs by a second sidelink, or ● connected to one or more of the remote UEs among the remote UEs and / or one or more other relay UEs by a sidelink and connected to the destination by a network link.

[0034] According to an embodiment, the sidelink includes a 3GPP access link such as a PC5 connection, or a non-3GPP access link such as a Bluetooth (registered trademark) or Wifi connection.

[0035] According to an embodiment, When the UE is connected to the network entity such as a base station via, for example, the Uu interface, the UE is configured to transmit the state of the sidelink to the network entity, or, When the UE is not connected to a network entity such as a base station, the UE transmits the state to the network entity via another relay UE connected to the network entity, and the UE is connected to the another relay UE directly or via one or more other relay UEs.

[0036] According to an embodiment, the UE is configured to include a QoS profile of the sidelink for providing a pre-defined or negotiated quality of service (QoS) between the remote UE and the destination via the UE, and the QoS profile enables or activates the UE to determine and signal the state of the sidelink.

[0037] According to an embodiment, in order to determine the state of the sidelink, the UE is configured to measure one or more QoS parameters associated with a pre-defined or negotiated QoS on the sidelink.

[0038] According to an embodiment, the UE is configured to signal the state using radio resource control (RRC) signaling or using a media access control (MAC) control element (CE).

[0039] According to an embodiment, the state is ● indicating that the sidelink no longer meets or meets again the pre-defined or negotiated QoS on the sidelink and / or the pre-defined or negotiated QoS between the remote UE and the destination, for example, by transmitting a QoS failure report (QoS_FR), or, ● For example, by transmitting a QoS measurement report (QoS_MR), indicating the measurement results of the one or more QoS parameters associated with the pre - defined or negotiated QoS on the sidelink, or, ● For example, by transmitting a QoS update report (QoS_UP), indicating that the sidelink can support a QoS higher than the pre - defined or negotiated QoS.

[0040] According to an embodiment, when the UE operates as a relay entity for a plurality of remote UEs, the QoS_FR indicates which of the sidelinks connecting the remote UEs to the UE do not meet or satisfy the pre - defined or negotiated QoS.

[0041] According to an embodiment, the UE is adapted to predict a QoS impairment using one or more pre - defined parameters on the sidelink and transmit an early QoS_FR in response to the prediction of the QoS impairment, where the one or more pre - defined parameters are ● Reference signal received power (RSRP) measured over a pre - defined time window, ● Channel state information (CSI) obtained over the pre - defined time window, ● Beam measurement and / or beam impairment, ● Hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback over the pre - defined time window, e.g., negative acknowledgments (NACK) during a predetermined number or ratio of the pre - defined time window, ● Transmission power limitation at the UE, ● Battery power limitation at the UE, ● Computational power limitation at the UE, ● Congestion of the link to the remote UE such as the sidelink, indicated by, for example, channel busy ratio (CBR) or channel occupancy ratio (CR), ● One or more of the bit error rate (BER), packet error rate (PER), packet loss, or packet delay over the pre - defined time window including one or more of them.

[0042] According to an embodiment, before transmitting the QoS_FR of the sidelink, the UE is configured to attempt transmission on the sidelink using other resources, and if the transmission using the other resources meets the pre - defined or negotiated QoS, the UE is configured not to transmit the QoS_FR.

[0043] According to an embodiment, the UE ● Periodically and / or ● In response to a request and / or ● In response to a failure and / or ● In response to one or more events is configured to transmit.

[0044] According to an embodiment, the one or more events include ● When the QoS_MR significantly changes with respect to one or more measurement items compared to the previous QoS_MR, for example, when the change in one or more measurement items of the QoS_MR is higher than a set or pre - set threshold ● When one or more of the QoS parameters of the sidelink reach a set or pre - set threshold ● In one or more of the cases of radio link failure, beam recovery procedure or beam failure, synchronization failure, or high interference state ● When one or more of the QoS parameters of the sidelink are different from the set QoS parameters by more than a set or pre - set threshold ● When a set or pre - set counter indicating the number of HARQ failures or re - transmissions of the sidelink reaches a certain value may include one or more of them.

[0045] According to an embodiment, the UE ● When the measured QoS parameter is improved such that a QoS higher than the predefined or negotiated QoS is satisfied, or ● When QoS_FR is transmitted in advance and the measured QoS parameter is improved such that the predefined or negotiated QoS is satisfied again, or ● After transmitting QoS_FR, when a set or pre-set time window has ended, or ● In response to a query, is adapted to transmit the QoS_UP.

[0046] Relay UE using Reflective QoS The present invention provides a user device (UE) in a wireless communication network, wherein the UE operates as a relay entity to provide a function of supporting a connection between one or more remote UEs and a destination in the wireless communication network, the connection between the remote UE and the destination includes one or more sidelinks, each sidelink is associated with a predefined or negotiated quality of service (QoS), and the UE ● One or more remote UEs among the remote UEs, ● The destination, ● One or more other relay UEs, is connected via a sidelink to one or more of them, When receiving a first transmission such as a packet associated with a Reflective Quality of Service (QoS) Indicator (RQI) and / or Relay QoS Packet Processing Information (RPPQI) from the destination or the remote UE or another relay entity, the UE is adapted to process a second transmission to the destination, the remote UE or the other repeater according to the QoS associated with the first transmission.

[0047] According to an embodiment, the UE is adapted to apply a QoS flow to a data radio bearer (DRB) mapping based on the RQI or the RPPQI provided for the first transmission to the second transmission.

[0048] According to an embodiment, the RPPQI includes ● an instruction on how to handle the transmission for communication from the UE to the destination or the remote UE or the other relay entity, ● information on scheduling requirements for the communication between the UE and the destination or the remote UE or the other relay entity, ● information on DRB mapping requirements for the communication between the UE and the destination or the remote UE or the other relay entity, and includes one or more of the above.

[0049] According to an embodiment, the UE is adapted to receive, together with a transmission for relaying to the remote UE scheduling information for transmitting a response from the UE to the destination or the remote UE or the other relay entity, such as the RPPQI, from the destination or the remote UE or the other relay entity.

[0050] According to an embodiment, the scheduling information includes ● a set of dedicated resources for the communication from the UE to the destination or the remote UE or the other relay entity, ● a set of semi-static or semi-permanent resources for the communication from the UE to the destination or the other relay entity, and includes one or more of the above.

[0051] Relay UE Using Early BSR The present invention provides a user device (UE) in a wireless communication network, The UE is adapted to operate as a relay entity to provide a function for supporting a connection between one or more remote UEs and a destination of the wireless communication network, and the connection between the remote UE and the destination via the UE is associated with a pre-defined or negotiated quality of service (QoS). Also, The UE is ● connected to one or more of the remote UEs among the remote UEs, ● the destination, ● one or more other relay UEs, via sidelink, and in response to one or more criteria, the UE is to trigger an early buffer status report (BSR).

[0052] According to an embodiment, the one or more criteria are ● the queuing ability or capacity of the UE for data received or to be transmitted, ● the UE's prediction that the pre-defined or negotiated QoS between the remote UE and the destination can no longer be satisfied, ● the UE's receipt of a BSR report from the one or more remote UEs, ● a change in the QoS requested by the remote UE, ● a pre-defined number of consecutive NACKs as a HARQ feedback response, ● a pre-defined or configured ratio of HARQ NACKs within the pre-configured or configured time window, including one or more of the above.

[0053] According to an embodiment, to predict the QoS between the remote UE and the destination, the UE is to measure one or more QoS parameters associated with the pre-defined or negotiated QoS on the sidelink.

[0054] According to an embodiment, during the period of a packet data unit (PDU) session with a remote UE, the UE is configured to trigger an early buffer status report (BSR).

[0055] According to an embodiment, the UE is configured to use, for example, quality of service assistance information (QoS_AI) from a QoS manager of the wireless communication network, and the QoS_AI includes tolerance values for the one or more QoS parameters on the sidelink.

[0056] According to an embodiment, the UE is connected to the QoS manager including the QoS manager located in the remote UE or another relay UE or the destination or network entity of the wireless communication network.

[0057] According to an embodiment, the tolerance value is determined by the QoS manager based on the number of hops between the remote UE and the destination and / or using measured values of the QoS parameters associated with the predefined or negotiated QoS in one or more or all of the links between the remote UE and the destination.

[0058] According to an embodiment, ● when the QoS manager is located in a network entity of the wireless communication network, and ● when the connection between the one or more remote UEs and the destination includes the UE and one or more other UEs operate as relay entities, the UE is configured to operate as an anchor relay UE, and the anchor relay UE is the only UE that operates as a repeater communicating with the QoS manager.

[0059] According to an embodiment, the UE is configured to receive signaling from the remote UE, the destination, or the network entity to notify the UE to operate as the anchor relay UE.

[0060] According to an embodiment, the tolerance value ● is the total tolerance value for the one or more sidelinks between some or all of the plurality of remote UEs and the UE, or ● is the tolerance value specific to one or more remote UEs for the sidelink between a specific remote UE and the UE. It includes.

[0061] According to an embodiment, the total tolerance value is associated with non-GBR traffic, the tolerance value specific to the UE is associated with GBR traffic, and when one or more of the QoS parameters are not satisfied, the relay UE triggers a re-selection for load balancing by signaling to any remote UE participating in or processing non-GBR traffic or any other relay UE.

[0062] According to an embodiment, the re-selection for load balancing ● is signaled as one or more of ● an RRC message, ● an RLC message, ● a MAC CE, ● a physical layer signal on a physical layer feedback or control channel such as a PSFCH or PSCCH, ● a signal of a higher layer such as an application layer.

[0063] According to an embodiment, the destination includes other UEs of the wireless communication network, entities of the core network of the wireless communication network, or entities of the access network of the wireless communication network.

[0064] According to an embodiment, the user device is a mobile terminal, or a stationary terminal, or a cellular IoT-UE, or a vehicle UE, or a leader (GL) UE, or an IoT or narrowband IoT (NB-IoT) device, or a wearable device such as a smartwatch, or a fitness tracker, or smart glasses, or a ground vehicle, or an aerial vehicle, or a drone, or a mobile base station, or a roadside unit (RSU), or a building, or a sensor or an actuator, etc., any other item or device having network connectivity enabling communication using the wireless communication network, or a sensor or an actuator, etc., any other item or device having network connectivity enabling communication using the sidelink of the wireless communication network, or any sidelink-capable network entity.

[0065] A base station that receives the QoS state of the sidelink The present invention provides a network entity such as a base station for a wireless communication network, The network entity is adapted to communicate with one or more relay entities, the relay entity provides a function of supporting a connection between one or more remote UEs and a destination of the wireless communication network, the connection between the remote UE and the destination includes one or more sidelinks, each sidelink is associated with a predefined or negotiated quality of service (QoS), and the relay UE is ● One or more of the remote UEs among the remote UEs, ● The destination, ● One or more other relay UEs, Connected via a sidelink to one or more of them, The network entity is adapted to receive from the relay entity the state of the sidelink regarding the predefined or negotiated QoS.

[0066] According to an embodiment, the sidelink includes a 3GPP access link such as a PC5 connection, or a non-3GPP access link such as a Bluetooth (registered trademark) or WiFi connection.

[0067] According to an embodiment, the state is ● indicating that the sidelink no longer meets or meets again the pre-defined or negotiated QoS on the sidelink and / or the pre-defined or negotiated QoS between the remote UE and the destination, for example, in the form of a QoS failure report (QoS_FR), or ● indicating the measurement results of one or more QoS parameters associated with the pre-defined or negotiated QoS on the sidelink, for example, in the form of a QoS measurement report (QoS_MR), or ● indicating that the sidelink can support a QoS higher than the pre-defined or negotiated QoS, for example, in the form of a QoS update report (QoS_UP).

[0068] According to an embodiment, upon receiving the state, the network entity ● is configured to generate a QoS notification and send it to a core network entity of the wireless communication network, or ● when one or more other relay entities are connected to the network entity, is configured to modify the connection to the remote UE, for example, by triggering a relay reselection process.

[0069] According to an embodiment, when the QoS on the sidelink falls below a pre-defined threshold, the network entity is configured to respond by modifying the connection to the remote UE or triggering a relay reselection process.

[0070] According to an embodiment, it is any transmission / reception point (TRP) that enables a macro cell base station, or a small cell base station, or a central unit of a base station, or a distributed unit of a base station, an IAB node, or a roadside unit (RSU), or an AMF, or an MME, or an SMF, or a core network entity, or a mobile edge computing (MEC) entity, or a network slice such as in an NR or 5G core context, or an item or device to communicate using the wireless communication network, wherein the item or device is provided with network connectivity for communicating using the wireless communication network, including one or more of the above-mentioned transmission / reception points (TRP).

[0071] QoS Manager The present invention provides an apparatus for a wireless communication network, the wireless communication network including one or more relay entities that provide a function of supporting a connection between one or more remote UEs and a destination, the connection between the remote UE and the destination including one or more sidelinks, each sidelink being associated with a predefined or negotiated quality of service (QoS), and the relay UE is ● one or more of the remote UEs among the remote UEs, ● the destination, ● one or more other relay UEs, connected via a sidelink to one or more of the above, and using measurements of the QoS parameters associated with the predefined or negotiated QoS in one or more or all of the links between the remote UE and the destination, the apparatus determines or calculates, and / or signals to a relay entity, tolerance values of the QoS parameters associated with the predefined or negotiated QoS parameters on the sidelink, for example as QoS assistance information (QoS_AI), and the apparatus is arranged in the remote UE, the relay entity, the destination, or a network entity of the wireless communication network.

[0072] According to an embodiment, the apparatus is configured to determine or calculate an allowable value of the QoS parameter based on the number of hops between the remote UE and the destination and / or a measurement value of an individual link between the remote UE and the destination.

[0073] According to an embodiment, the QoS_AI is the QoS parameter ● Guaranteed Flow Bit Rate (GFBR), ● Maximum Flow Bit Rate (MFBR), ● Maximum packet loss, ● Packet Delay Budget (PDB), ● Packet Error Rate (PER), ● Aggregate Maximum Bit Rate (AMBR) per remote UE or session, ● Queuing load or capacity or capability per remote UE or session, ● Sidelink congestion, e.g., Channel Busy Ratio (CBR) or Channel Occupancy Ratio (CR CBR or CR), and includes allowable values for one or more of them.

[0074] According to an embodiment, the apparatus is configured to provide an update of one or more of the allowable values and / or a second QoS_AI indicating allowable values for one or more additional QoS parameters after transmitting a first QoS_AI, e.g., an initial QoS_AI.

[0075] According to an embodiment, the apparatus is configured to provide the second QoS_AI in response to receiving measurement results of one or more of the QoS parameters associated with the predefined or negotiated QoS on the sidelink from one or more of the relay entities, e.g., by receiving a QoS Measurement Report (QoS_MR).

[0076] According to an embodiment, the QoS_AI is ● The total tolerance value for the sidelink between some or all of the plurality of the remote UEs and / or another relay UE and the UE, or ● One or more tolerance values specific to a remote UE or specific to another relay UE for the sidelink between a specific remote UE and the UE, is included.

[0077] According to an embodiment, the total tolerance value is associated with non-GBR traffic, the UE-specific tolerance value is associated with GBR traffic, and the QoS_AI includes an instruction permitting the relay UE to trigger a load distribution reselection signal to any remote UE or any other relay UE participating in or processing non-GBR traffic when one or more of the QoS parameters are not satisfied.

[0078] According to an embodiment, the apparatus is adapted to signal the QoS_AI using RRC signaling, for example as part of an RRC reconfiguration message or an RRC setup message.

[0079] Network The present invention provides a wireless communication network, one or more remote user devices (remote UEs), one or more user devices and relay entities of the present invention that provide a function of supporting a connection between one or more remote UEs and a destination, is included.

[0080] According to an embodiment, it further includes one or more network entities of the present invention and / or one or more QoS managers of the present invention.

[0081] According to an embodiment, ● One or more single-hop connections between a remote UE and a destination, and / or ● One or more multi-hop connections between the remote UE and the destination, are included.

[0082] According to an embodiment, the destination includes another UE of the wireless communication network, or an entity of the core network or the access network of the wireless communication network.

[0083] According to an embodiment, the entity of the core network or the access network is a macro cell base station, or a small cell base station, or a central unit of a base station, or a distributed unit of a base station, or a roadside unit (RSU), or an AMF, or an MME, or an SMF, or a core network entity, or a mobile edge computing (MEC) entity, or a network slice in an NR or 5G core context, or any transmission / reception point (TRP) that enables an item or device to communicate using the wireless communication network, and the item or device is provided with network connectivity for communicating using the wireless communication network, including one or more of any transmission / reception point (TRP).

[0084] Method The present invention provides a method for operating a user device (UE) for a wireless communication network, the UE operates as a relay entity to provide a function of supporting a connection between one or more remote UEs and a destination of the wireless communication network, the connection between the remote UE and the destination includes one or more sidelinks, each sidelink is associated with the predefined or negotiated quality of service (QoS), and the UE, ● One or more remote UEs among the remote UEs, ● The destination, ● One or more other relay UEs, are connected via sidelinks to one or more of them, The method is, Determining the state of the sidelink with respect to the pre - defined or negotiated QoS; Transmitting the state of the sidelink to a network entity of the wireless communication network, such as a base station; and including.

[0085] The present invention provides a method for operating a user device (UE) for a wireless communication network, wherein the UE operates as a relay entity to provide a function of supporting a connection between one or more remote UEs and a destination of the wireless communication network, the connection between the remote UE and the destination includes one or more sidelinks, each sidelink is associated with a pre - defined or negotiated quality of service (QoS), and the UE is ● one or more of the remote UEs among the remote UEs, ● the destination, ● one or more other relay UEs, connected via one or more sidelinks to one or more of them, The method includes when receiving a first transmission, such as a packet, associated with a Reflective Quality of Service (QoS) Indicator (RQI) and / or Relay QoS Packet Processing Information (RPPQI) from the destination or the remote UE or another relay entity, processing a second transmission to the destination, the remote UE or another repeater according to the QoS associated with the first transmission.

[0086] The present invention is a method for operating a user device (UE) for a wireless communication network, wherein the UE operates as a relay entity to provide a function of supporting a connection between one or more remote UEs and a destination of the wireless communication network, the connection between the remote UE and the destination via the UE is associated with a pre - defined or negotiated quality of service (QoS), and the UE is ● one or more of the remote UEs among the remote UEs, ● the destination, ● One or more other relay UEs, are connected via sidelink to one or more of them, The method includes triggering an early buffer status report (BSR) in response to one or more criteria.

[0087] The present invention provides a method for operating a network entity for a wireless communication network, such as a base station, the network entity being adapted to communicate with one or more relay entities, the relay entity providing a function of supporting a connection between one or more remote UEs and a destination of the wireless communication network, the connection between the remote UE and the destination including one or more sidelinks, each sidelink being associated with a predefined or negotiated quality of service (QoS), the relay UE ● One or more of the remote UEs among the remote UEs, ● The destination, ● One or more other relay UEs, are connected via sidelink to one or more of them, The method includes receiving, from the relay entity, a status of the sidelink in relation to the predefined or negotiated QoS.

[0088] The present invention is a method for operating an apparatus for a wireless communication network, the wireless communication network including one or more relay entities providing a function of supporting a connection between the one or more remote UEs and a destination, the connection between the remote UE and the destination comprising one or more sidelinks, each sidelink being associated with a predefined or negotiated quality of service (QoS), the apparatus being located in the remote UE, the relay entity, the destination, or a network entity of the wireless communication network, the relay UE ● One or more of the remote UEs among the remote UEs, ● The destination, ● One or more other relay UEs, connected via sidelink to one or more of them, The method uses measurements of QoS parameters associated with the pre - defined or negotiated QoS for one or more or all of the links between the remote UE and the destination to determine or calculate, and / or signal to a relay entity, an acceptable value of the QoS parameters associated with the pre - defined or negotiated QoS parameters on the sidelink, for example as QoS assistance information (QoS_AI).

[0089] Computer program product An embodiment of the first aspect of the present invention includes a non - transitory computer program product including a computer - readable medium storing instructions that, when executed on a computer, execute one or more of the methods according to the present invention.

[0090] TIFF0007708125000001.tif154170

[0091] Thus, according to an embodiment, a relay UE ● may be connected via a first sidelink to one or more remote UEs of the remote UEs and / or one or more other relay UEs, and when the destination is another UE, via a second sidelink to the destination, or ● may be connected via a first sidelink to one or more remote UEs of the remote UEs and / or one or more other relay UEs, and via a second sidelink to one or more other relay UEs, or ● may be connected via a first sidelink to one or more remote UEs of the remote UEs and / or one or more other relay UEs, and via a network link to the destination.

[0092] As shown at 410, the relay UE 400 determines the state of one or more sidelinks used by the UE to connect to the first and second entities 402, 404 with respect to pre-defined or negotiated QoS associated with each sidelink, and as shown at 412, transmits the state of the sidelink towards a network entity such as a base station of the wireless communication network. When the relay UE 400 is connected to a network entity such as a base station, the relay UE 400 directly transmits the state of the sidelink to the network entity. When the relay UE 400 is not connected to a network entity such as a base station, the relay UE 400 transmits the state to the network entity via another relay UE connected to the network entity. Another relay UE connected to the network entity may sometimes be called an anchor relay.

[0093] According to an embodiment, the relay UE may receive a QoS profile of the sidelink for providing negotiated or overall QoS between the remote UE 402 and the destination 404, and the QoS profile can enable or activate the determination and / or signaling of the QoS state of the sidelink in the relay UE 400. By determining the QoS state of the sidelink 406, according to an embodiment, when the negotiated QoS between the remote UE 402 and the destination 404 can no longer be satisfied on the sidelink, the relay UE can send a notification. When such a situation occurs and is resolved, that is, when the QoS can be satisfied again, the relay UE can send a corresponding notification.

[0094] Figure 7(b) shows a network entity 413 such as a base station according to an embodiment of the first aspect of the present invention. The network entity 409 may be a destination or may be connected to the relay UE 400 even if it is not a destination. When the second entity is a sidelink, the network entity receives, directly or indirectly from the relay UE 400, a notification 414 regarding the QoS state of the sidelink that connects the relay UE 400 to the first entity and the second entity. According to an embodiment, in the network entity 413, a QoS notification control (QNC) mechanism is implemented or activated, and in response to the reception of the state 414, the network entity 413 generates and transmits a QoS notification to a core network entity of the wireless communication network as indicated by 416. According to other embodiments, in response to the reception of the state, the network entity 413 modifies the connection to the remote UE, for example, by triggering a relay reselection process when a plurality of relay UEs are connected to the gNB, as indicated by 418.

[0095] Therefore, the embodiments of the present invention do not need to implement direct signaling to the core network and also use a conventional notification control mechanism for the sidelink between the relay and the remote UE. Rather, a conventional QoS notification activated at the gNB may be triggered by the relay by transmitting the QoS state on the sidelink. According to an embodiment, the state can indicate one or more of the following, but it should be noted that the following list is not final or exhaustive and the list can include other notifications. ● The GFBR can no longer be guaranteed, ● The GFBR can be guaranteed again, ● The MFBR can no longer be guaranteed, ● The MFBR can be guaranteed again, ● The PER can no longer be maintained, ● The PER can be maintained again, ● The PDB is no longer satisfied, ●The PDB can be satisfied again, ●The queuing load of the relay UE exceeds the reference queuing load.

[0096] According to an embodiment, the QoS state is, ●For example, by sending a QoS fault report (QoS_FR), it indicates that the sidelink 406 no longer satisfies or satisfies again the pre-defined or negotiated QoS between the remote UE 402 and the destination 404. ●For example, by sending a QoS measurement report (QoS_MR), it indicates the measurement results of one or more QoS parameters associated with the pre-defined or negotiated QoS on the sidelink 406, or, ●For example, by sending a QoS update report (QoS_UP), it indicates that the sidelink 406 can support a QoS higher than the pre-defined or negotiated QoS.

[0097] For example, the relay UE 400 measures one or more QoS parameters associated with the pre-defined or negotiated QoS for the sidelink 406 between the remote UE 402 and the relay UE 400. When the measurement results indicate that one or more of the QoS parameters are no longer satisfiable, that is, the UE no longer has the ability to support the pre-defined or negotiated QoS, the relay UE can send a QoS_FR. On the other hand, the UE can provide the measurement results to the QoS_MR at a specific timing, independent of whether the negotiated QoS requirements can be met. When the measurement results of the QoS parameters indicate that the UE can support a QoS higher than the pre-defined or negotiated QoS, this may be signaled using the QoS_UP.

[0098] Fault indication by relay UE - QoS fault report - QoS_FR Figure 8 shows a QoS_FR trigger signaling flow according to an embodiment of the present invention when one or more measured QoS parameters on the sidelink 406 do not meet the associated reference parameters. For example, one or more of the above-described rates may be measured, and if the measured rate is less than the reference rate as defined in the QoS profile, QoS_FR may be transmitted. Also, if the queuing load of the relay UE exceeds the reference queuing load as defined in the QoS profile, QoS_FR may be transmitted. In the embodiment shown in Figure 8, the repeater 400 is a UE-network intermediate relay for providing connectivity between the remote UE 402 and the destination 404 including the RAN 404a and the CN 404b. The CN includes, in order, the AMF, the SMF, and the ProSe AF. First, the remote UE 402 registers with the CN 404b and performs QoS negotiation as shown at 420. In response to such QoS negotiation, the SMF provides one or more QoS parameters associated with the negotiated QoS to the relay UE. According to an embodiment of the second aspect of the present invention, which will be described in more detail below, in addition to the one or more QoS parameters defined in the QoS profile, so-called QoS assistance information (QoS_AI) may be provided to the relay UE 400 by the SMF, as shown, for example, at 422. The QoS_AI defines the allowable values of the QoS parameters on the sidelink 406. Using the QoS parameters from the QoS profile, optionally in combination with the QoS_AI, the relay UE 400 can perform a quantitative calculation 424 and evaluate the quality of the sidelink 406 for QoS satisfaction. If the calculation 424 indicates that the QoS requirements are not met for a given set of sidelink resources that the relay UE 400 attempts, the relay UE 400 may trigger the QoS_FR to be transmitted to the RAN 404a as shown at 426 and may send a QoS notification to the SMF as shown at 428. The notification 428 indicates to the SMF that the QoS requirements are not met on the sidelink 406.When multiple remote UEs are using the relay UE 400, the relay UE 400 can also indicate which of the remote UEs does not meet the QoS requirements. In other words, it may be presented which QoS flow has become unsupported by the access network.

[0099] According to an embodiment, before actually transmitting the QoS_FR, the relay UE may attempt transmission using different resources. For example, if the relay UE 400 is using a dedicated resource pool intended for relaying and the measurement indicates that this resource pool is congested or overloaded, the relay UE 400 may attempt transmission using resources from another resource pool that permits relaying transmission, or the relay UE may fallback to resources of the normal resource pool to execute transmission when it is determined by the measurement regarding each resource that such resources can meet the QoS parameters. In other words, according to an embodiment, QoS_FR is a kind of last resort by the relay UE when all other possibilities for performing transmission according to the required QoS flow have failed.

[0100] FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a trigger for QoS_FR according to an embodiment of the present invention. First, as described with reference to FIG. 8, the relay UE 400 is set using QoS parameters as shown at 430. The relay UE 400 executes the calculation of the QoS parameters as shown at 432, and at 434, determines whether the remote link 406 meets the QoS parameters defined by a QoS profile, also called a reference QoS parameter, or the tolerance values defined by QoS_AI. If the calculated QoS parameters meet the reference parameters, the process returns to step 432. If the calculated QoS parameters no longer meet the reference parameters, as shown at 436, QoS_FR is triggered and signaled to the network.

[0101] According to an embodiment, the signaling of QoS_FR may use RRC signaling or a MAC control element (CE).

[0102] According to another embodiment, in addition to the above parameters, in order to predict QoS for triggering QoS_FR, for example, to predict early QoS_FR when it is predicted that QoS is likely not to be maintained in the future, the following information may be used. For example, the prediction may be based on threshold-based detection, rule-based detection, or detection may be performed for each parameter of QoS. For example, the additional information may include one or more of the following. ● Reference signal received power (RSRP) measured over a predefined time window, ● Channel state information (CSI) obtained over a predefined time window, such as radio signal strength (RSSI), reference signal received power (RSRP), reference signal received quality (RSRQ), or precoding matrix index (PMI), ● Beam measurement and / or beam obstruction, ● Hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback over a predefined time window, for example, negative acknowledgments (NACK) during a predefined number or ratio of predefined time windows, ● Transmission power limitation in the UE, ● Battery power limitation in the UE, ● Computational power limitation in the UE, ● Congestion of a link to a remote UE such as a sidelink, indicated by, for example, channel busy ratio (CBR) or channel occupancy ratio (CR), ● One or more of bit error rate (BER), packet error rate (PER), packet loss, and packet delay over a predefined time window.

[0103] According to an embodiment, the sidelink congestion may be determined based on the Channel Busy Ratio (CBR) or the Channel Occupancy Ratio (CR). As described above, the relay UE may attempt transmission on other resources before actually transmitting the QoS_FR, and in response to the CBR or CR associated with a specific resource pool intended for transmission indicating congestion, if the relay UE uses these additional or different resources to meet the QoS requirements, it may use resources from another resource pool and refrain from attempting transmission to send the QoS_FR.

[0104] Measurement report from relay UE - QoS_MR According to another embodiment of the present invention, apart from triggering the QoS_FR when the QoS reference parameters are not satisfied, the relay UE may use a QoS measurement report (QoS_MR) to report to the network the status of the calculation of QoS parameters. The QoS_MR may be ● Periodically, ● Aperiodically, ● In response to a request, or ● In response to a failure, reported.

[0105] FIG. 10 shows QoS_MR signaling based on a request from the RAN. FIG. 10 shows the relay UE 400 between the UE and the network, the QoS negotiation, and the provision of QoS_AI to the relay UE 400 as described above with reference to FIG. 8. The relay UE 400 measures the QoS parameters, and in response to a request 440 transmitted from the RAN 404a to the relay UE 400, the relay UE 400 transmits a QoS_MR 442 to the RAN 404a.

[0106] According to another embodiment, the relay UE may provide the QoS_MR at a specific timing, for example, periodically, if set accordingly, that is, in such a scenario, with each set periodicity, the QoS_MR 442 in FIG. 10 is transmitted by the relay UE 400 to the RAN 404a without a preceding request 440.

[0107] According to other embodiments, QoS_MR may be provided aperiodically by relay UE 404, for example, in response to a specific event. Such an event may include one or more of the following. ● When QoS_MR changes significantly with respect to one or more measurement items compared to the previous QoS_MR, for example, when the change in one or more measurement items of QoS_MR is higher than a set or pre-set threshold. ● In the case of one or more of radio link failure, beam recovery procedure or beam failure, synchronization failure or high interference state. ● When a threshold for one or more values of QoS_MR is reached - when a threshold for one or more values of QoS parameters is reached, or when QoS_MR is different from the QoS parameters set above a set or pre-set threshold, transmitting QoS_MR can, in this case, prevent QoS enforcement 444 from using an improper remote UE in response to the reception of a QoS_MR-based notification. QoS_MR conveys an explicit indication of this condition and is advantageous when it can distinguish QoS_MR from other conditions. ● When a counter for failure and / or retransmission according to a feedback mechanism such as HARQ reaches a certain value or there is a change in QoS.

[0108] According to yet another embodiment, if the QoS requirements are not met, QoS_MR may also be triggered and sent instead of QoS_FR. FIG. 11 shows that, in response to the calculated QoS parameters exceeding the reference parameters, what is sent to the RAN is QoS_MR442 instead of QoS_FR, similar to FIG. 8 except that, in response to the calculated parameters exceeding the reference parameters, QoS_MR is triggered. The RAN issues a notification such as to the SMF to the network in response to QoS_MR442 indicating that the parameters exceed the reference parameters, and in turn, as indicated by 444, QoS can be enforced for the remote UE. To enforce QoS, a network such as the SMF may initiate an enforcement signal sent to the remote UE as a NAS message, and the NAS message may be referred to as a NAS transmission exception (TE).

[0109] FIG. 12 shows a flowchart for triggering QoS_MR according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 12 shows steps 430 to 434 already described above with reference to FIG. 9. According to an embodiment for triggering QoS_MR, in response to the remote UE link exceeding the reference QoS parameters or tolerance values at 434, the relay UE triggers QoS_MR at 446 and, in turn, signals to the network and triggers an enforcement signal as shown at 448.

[0110] According to the above-described embodiments regarding QoS_FR and QoS_MR, the signaling of QoS_FR or QoS_MR may use RRC signaling or a MAC control element (CE). When the network receives QoS_FR or QoS_MR as an RRC signal or MAC CE, the RRC layer or MAC layer may notify the upper layer of the RAN and trigger a notification control mechanism such as QNC described above with reference to FIG. 3.

[0111] According to an embodiment, the MAC control element may include measurements or fault reports of a plurality of destination IDs as shown in FIG. 13(a), or may include aggregated measurements and / or fault reports as shown in FIG. 13(b), or may include a combination thereof as shown in FIG. 13(c). For example, the MAC CE indicates which remote UE cannot meet the tolerance value.

[0112] QoS Update from Relay UE - QoS_UP According to another embodiment, the relay UE can send a QoS update (QoS_UP) indication when an improvement regarding a supportable QoS flow is determined. In other words, if the measurements performed by the relay UE for a certain link indicate that higher QoS requirements are possible when compared to the currently used QoS requirements, signaling may be accordingly performed to enable higher QoS communication for the session between the remote UE and the destination.

[0113] QoS_UP may be sent based on a query by the network or in response to a previously sent QoS_FR. When QoS_UP is sent after QoS_FR, according to an embodiment, a specific time window is provided before QoS_UP is signaled to prevent the network from sending old reports. For example, this is done to avoid hysteresis and avoid toggling signals between multiple transmissions of QoS_FR and QoS_UP within a short time period. The time window can be set or pre-set based on a threshold.

[0114] Second Aspect Next, embodiments of the second aspect of the present invention will be described. FIG. 14 shows an embodiment of the second aspect of the present invention for an apparatus for a wireless communication network, hereinafter also referred to as a QoS manager, that provides one or more tolerance values of QoS parameters on a sidelink connecting a relay UE to a first / second entity to the relay UE.

[0115] Figure 14 shows a wireless communication network including a remote UE 402 connected to a destination 404 via a relay UE 400 by links 406, 408. Figure 14(a) shows UE-network relay, where link 406 is a sidelink, link 408 is a Uu link, and the destination 404 is a network. Figure 14(b) shows UE-UE relay, where both links 406, 408 are sidelinks and the destination 404 is another UE such as the final UE to which the remote UE 402 is connected or another relay UE. Further, a QoS manager 450 is illustrated and may be disposed at the destination as shown in Figure 14(a), or at the remote UE as shown in Figure 14(b), or at the relay UE, or at a network entity of the wireless communication network to which the relay UE is connected. The QoS manager 450 measures QoS parameters associated with a defined or negotiated QoS in one or more or all of the links 406, 408 between the remote UE 402 and the destination 404, and determines or calculates an allowable value of one or more QoS parameters associated with the defined or negotiated QoS parameters in the sidelink. According to an embodiment, the allowable value of the QoS parameter may be determined or calculated based on the number of hops between the remote UE and the destination and the measured values of the individual links between the remote UE and the destination. The QoS manager 450 signals the allowable value to the relay UE 400, for example, as so-called QoS assistance information (QoS_AI). In other words, if there is a QoS profile for links 406, 408, the QoS manager 450 can measure the links and determine or calculate values for the actually achievable QoS parameters. In a certain link, the values for one or more parameters may exceed the values actually required for the pre-defined or negotiated QoS, and the remainder or surplus is signaled as an allowable value for the QoS parameter on the sidelink. The allowable value may be used by the relay UE 400 to allow the sidelink to exceed a particular QoS parameter by the allowable value while achieving the overall pre-defined or negotiated QoS.

[0116] For example, when QoS is negotiated end-to-end, QoS_AI may be determined and signaled by the QoS manager. According to all other embodiments, QoS may be negotiated hop-by-hop, and the QoS manager may determine QoS_AI during QoS negotiation with an adjacent hop. In the case of a hop-by-hop scenario, the overall link information may be provided to the QoS manager, and in turn, specific QoS_AI for the hop-by-hop that can be explicitly signaled to the relay UE may be provided.

[0117] According to an embodiment, allowable values of one or more of the following parameters may be provided by QoS_AI, while the following list is not an exhaustive or comprehensive list and the list may include other parameters. ● Guaranteed Flow Bit Rate (GFBR), ● Maximum Flow Bit Rate (MFBR), ● Maximum Packet Loss, ● Packet Delay Budget (PDB), ● Packet Error Rate (PER), ● Aggregate Maximum Bit Rate (AMBR) per remote UE or session, ● Queuing load per remote UE or session, ● Sidelink congestion, e.g., Channel Busy Ratio (CBR) or Channel Occupancy Ratio (CR CBR or CR).

[0118] For example, in FIG. 14, it is assumed that the QoS manager 450 provides a QoS_AI including an allowable value for the PDB for the sidelink 406 through which the relay UE 400 is connected to the remote UE 402. The QoS manager 450 may determine that the link 408 allows a PDB that exceeds the PDB required for the overall QoS by, for example, 10%. This is signaled to the relay UE 400 that applies the allowable value when determining whether the PDB by the sidelink 406 within the allowable value is satisfied for the desired overall QoS because the degradation of the PDB by the sidelink 406 can be compensated by the higher PDB that the link 408 can provide. The allowable value as described above can apply any parameter of the QoS-related link as one or more of the following. ● Guaranteed Flow Bit Rate (GFBR), ● Maximum Flow Bit Rate (MFBR), ● Maximum Packet Loss, ● Packet Delay Budget (PDB), ● Packet Error Rate (PER), ● Aggregate Maximum Bit Rate (AMBR) per remote UE or session, ● Queuing load or capacity or capability per remote UE or session, ● Sidelink congestion, for example, Channel Busy Ratio (CBR) or Channel Occupancy Ratio (CR CBR or CR). For example, considering PER, if one link is bad and can only provide "x PER", this allowable value may be passed on to other links.

[0119] The QoS profile as described above may be negotiated during the establishment of sessions and flows. At this time, when the QoS manager is implemented, the tolerance values may also be determined via QoS_AI and signaled. According to an embodiment, the tolerance values may be centrally calculated by one QoS manager at the destination for the entire link between the remote UE including, for example, one or more hops and the destination. FIG. 15 shows an embodiment implementing centralized calculation at the destination 404 by the QoS manager 450. The remote UE 402 is connected to the destination 404 via n relay UEs 400, and the QoS manager 450 provides respective tolerance values of one or more QoS parameters applicable when determining whether one or more QoS parameters via the side links connecting the relay UE and the remote UE or another relay UE satisfy the desired overall QoS for each relay UE via the QoS_AI_1 to QoS_AI_n specific to the relay. The QoS manager 450 may calculate the tolerance values using specific link information such as the number of hops, link measurements, UE positions, etc. According to other embodiments, the QoS manager 450 may be arranged in the remote UE or in any one of the relay UEs or in a network entity of the wireless communication network to which the relay UE is connected.

[0120] According to other embodiments, the tolerance values may be calculated in a non - centralized or distributed manner, that is, the tolerance values may be calculated for some or each of the relays in a plurality of QoS managers provided along the connection between the remote UE and the destination. For example, the tolerance value for the first part of the multi - hop link may be provided by the first QoS manager, and other QoS managers calculate the tolerance values for other parts of the link. In FIG. 15, the relay UE_1 may include a QoS manager to calculate the tolerance value for the link 406 between the remote UE and the relay UE_1, and a second QoS manager may be implemented in one of the other relay UEs or at the destination to calculate the tolerance values for other side links.

[0121] In the case of UE-network relaying, as shown in FIG. 15, the QoS_AI for the entire link between the remote UE and the destination is calculated by the network and then may be signaled to one or more relay UEs along the connection between the remote UE and the destination. In the case of single-hop UE-network relaying, only the relay UE_1 connected to the remote UE and the destination exists. In the case of multi-hop UE-network relaying, there are n relay UEs between the remote UE and the destination, where n is 2 or more.

[0122] In the case of UE-UE relaying, the location where the tolerance value is centrally calculated depends on whether any of the relay UEs is within the network coverage. If none of the relay UEs is within the network coverage, the QoS manager may be included in the destination UE or the remote UE. If one of the relays along the path between the remote UE and the destination UE accesses the network, the network may include the QoS manager. If multiple relay UEs access the network, one of the relay UEs may be called an anchor relay UE that provides the function of receiving the QoS_AI from the network. FIG. 16 shows a wireless communication network implementing single-hop multi-hop-UE-UE relaying with reference to FIG. 16(a), and a wireless communication network implementing multi-hop-UE-UE relaying with reference to FIG. 16(b), including a relay UE_1 having access to a network where the QoS manager is part of the SMF. The relay UE_1 receives the tolerance value as the QoS_AI from the network and distributes the QoS_AI among multiple relay UEs between the remote UE and the destination remote UE. In the case of UE-UE relaying adopting distributed calculation of the tolerance value, for example, each QoS manager may be provided to calculate the tolerance value for each hop along the path between the remote UE and the destination remote UE.

[0123] According to the embodiments described so far, it has been shown that the relay UE is connected to a single remote UE. However, the relay UE may provide connectivity between a plurality of remote UEs and a destination, and in such a scenario, an aggregated set of QoS parameters or tolerance values that the relay UE can provide as QoS_AI, for example, a single set of parameters for all remote UEs receiving the service, may be provided. According to other embodiments, QoS parameters or tolerance values specific to a remote UE may be provided by QoS_AI. For example, when the relay UE provides services to three remote UEs, QoS_AI may indicate three different sets of QoS parameters or tolerance values. Signaling of QoS_AI may use RRC signaling as part of an RRC reconfiguration message or an RRC setup message. For example, the total tolerance value is associated with non-GBR traffic, the UE-specific tolerance value is associated with GBR traffic, and when one or more of the QoS parameters are not met, the relay UE may trigger load balancing reselection by signaling any remote UE participating in non-GBR traffic. The load balancing reselection may be signaled as one or more of the following. ● An RRC message, ● A MAC CE, ● Physical layer signals on, for example, physical layer feedback or control channels (e.g., PSFCH or PSCCH), ● Signals from upper layers, such as, for example, the application layer.

[0124] According to an embodiment, after transmitting a first QoS_AI, for example, an initial QoS_AI, the QoS manager may provide or transmit a second QoS_AI indicating an update to one or more tolerance values and / or tolerance values for one or more additional QoS parameters. For example, the QoS manager may provide a second QoS_AI in response to receiving measurement results of one or more QoS parameters associated with pre-defined or negotiated QoS on the sidelink from one or more relays, for example, by receiving a QoS measurement report (QoS_MR).

[0125] Third Aspect Next, an embodiment of the third aspect of the present invention will be described. The embodiment of the third aspect of the present invention implements a reflective QoS concept in the relay UE, and enables QoS management in the relay UE that uses, for example, relay QoS packet processing information (RPPQI).

[0126] As described above, conventionally, the RAN can assist the UE on the uplink by explicitly providing the mapping of the QoS flow and the data radio bearer to the UE, or by providing this mapping using reflective QoS. According to the embodiment of the third aspect of the present invention, this is also adopted in the relay scenario.

[0127] Figure 17 shows an embodiment that employs a relay UE RPPQI. The relay UE 400, which can be provided by the network 404 with QoS_AI regarding the tolerance values on the sidelink 406 between the remote UE 400 and the relay UE 400, further receives data and session information including a reflective QoS indicator from the RAN 404. When the relay UE 400 has severe resource constraints, the reflective QoS indicator may be used for greater control of QoS and remapping of QoS flows to data radio bearers towards the remote UE 402 as needed. RPPQI is invoked in packet units, and Figure 17 shows the case where the RQI is transmitted by the core network. Instead of relaying the RQI from the core network, the relay UE re-evaluates that the data bearer mapping for a certain packet is an appropriate QoS flow based on the RQI and the tolerance values in the QoS_AI provided to the relay UE. Using the QoS parameters or tolerance values given by the QoS_AI and the relay UE's assessment of the available resources from the remote UE, the relay UE may determine that bearer mapping will be applied from a particular different QoS flow and transmit the RPPQI to the remote UE. The RPPQI may include an indication of how data will be handled in the transmission from the remote UE to the relay UE, information regarding the scheduling requirements in both directions, and information regarding the DRB mapping requirements in both directions.

[0128] Based on the RPPQI, the relay UE can also perform pre-scheduling of data in the other direction. For example, when the network transmits data to the remote UE via UE-UE relaying, the response from the relay UE is pre-scheduled based on the RPPQI. This is sometimes referred to as calendar scheduling, which includes providing a dedicated set of resources and / or a semi-static or semi-permanent set of resources.

[0129] The fourth aspect Next, an embodiment of the fourth aspect of the present invention will be described. The embodiment of the fourth aspect of the present invention implements an early BSR in a relay UE. According to another embodiment, the above-described conventional early BSR may be used in a relay scenario.

[0130] Conventionally, an early BSR is triggered by a relay node before data from a source arrives at the relay. According to an embodiment of the present invention, an early BSR request may be triggered based on the result of QoS measurement performed at the relay UE, and the BSR may be provided as a mechanism to assist in meeting or satisfying QoS requirements.

[0131] FIG. 18 shows a flow of an early BSR compensation mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the same manner as described with reference to FIG. 9, the relay UE is configured using QoS_AI, performs respective measurements, and evaluates at 434 whether the reference QoS parameter or tolerance value is satisfied. If they are not satisfied, as indicated at 451, the relay UE triggers the early BSR compensation mechanism, and in response to the early BSR compensation mechanism, it may again determine at 452 whether the reference QoS parameter or tolerance value is satisfied. In the case of yes, the process returns to 432, and otherwise, QoS_FR or QoS_MR is signaled as indicated at 454 in the manner described above with reference to the embodiment of the first aspect of the present invention.

[0132] Therefore, the trigger for the early BSR may be based on the measurements performed by the relay UE 400. For example, when the relay UE calculates that the QoS parameters or tolerance values are not satisfied, the relay UE 400 may trigger an early BSR in order to compensate for, for example, the queuing load, latency, etc. For example, if it is determined that the calculated queuing load exceeds a value indicated by QoS_AI, the relay UE may use the early BSR mechanism to reduce the queuing load. For example, assuming that the relay entity has a queuing capacity or tolerance value of 8 packets for a specific remote UE, and receives a BSR from the remote UE claiming to transmit 10 packets, the early BSR can assist the scheduling entity in providing physical resources for accommodating an additional 2 packets from the remote UE, i.e., a request for additional resources.

[0133] According to an embodiment, the early BSR may be triggered in response to a measured or calculated value indicating that the QoS parameters are not satisfied. According to other embodiments, the early BSR may be triggered in the following cases. ● When the queuing ability or capacity of the UE for the received remote UE data or the transmitted remote UE data approaches or reaches a threshold value, or ● When it is predicted that the QoS parameters do not match the reference parameters or are not within the tolerance values, or ● When a BSR report is received from one or more remote UEs, where based on the BSR report received from the remote UE, the relay entity determines that it cannot support this size of the requested data - therefore, triggers an early BSR to request more resources from the scheduling entity, or ● When a change in QoS is requested from the remote UE, or ● As HARQ feedback, in the case of a certain number of consecutive NACKs.

[0134] The QoS between the remote UE and the destination can be predicted by measuring, via sidelink, one or more QoS parameters associated with the predefined or negotiated QoS.

[0135] As described above with reference to FIG. 18, if the relay UE still calculates or predicts that the QoS parameter does not meet the reference parameter after the early SR / BSR, the repeater may trigger QoS_FR or QoS_MR. According to other embodiments, in a multi-hop system, the delay may accumulate up to the number of hops, and in order to meet the strict latency requirements in such a system, instead of using a dynamic compensation mechanism, the remote UE may negotiate with one or more relay UEs to use the trigger of the early SR / BSR for the duration of the PDU session. For example, if the relay entity determines that it cannot meet the QoS requirements at the start, it will always adopt the early BSR mechanism to acquire resources. In contrast, if the relay entity determines that it cannot meet the QoS requirements at a specific time, it can adopt the early BSR mechanism when necessary to acquire additional resources.

[0136] General Although each aspect and embodiment of the approach of the present invention has been described separately, it should be noted that each aspect / embodiment may be implemented independently of the others, or some or all of the aspects / embodiments may be combined. Furthermore, the embodiments described later can be used for each of the aspects / embodiments described so far.

[0137] Multi-hop relay In the above-described embodiments, the end-to-end communication between the transmitting entity and the receiving entity is via a single relay that forwards feedback from the receiving entity and / or differentiates traffic as described above. However, the present invention is not limited to such embodiments. Rather, according to another embodiment, the end-to-end communication between the transmitting entity and the receiving entity may be via a set of relays or a plurality of relays also referred to as a chain of relays.

[0138] FIG. 19 shows an embodiment in which the communication between the transmitting entity 402 and the receiving entity 404 uses N relays 400 (N≧2). Each relay layer includes a plurality of relay devices 1 to m such as relay UEs. Each relay layer 4861 to 486 N may include the same number of relay UEs, or some or all of the relay layers 4861 to 486 N may include different numbers of relay UEs. The receiving entity 404 may be connected to the relay of the first relay layer 4861, and the transmitting entity 402 may be connected to the relay layer 486 NIt may be connected to the relay. FIG. 20 shows an embodiment that employs a relay layer with N = 2 for end-to-end communication between the transmitting entity 402 and the receiving entity 404. The first relay layer 4861 may include n UE relays 400. The transmitting entity 402 may be connectable to the second relay layer 4862, and the second relay layer 4862 may include m UE relays 400. According to an embodiment, each of the relay layers 4861, 4862 may have the same number of relays (n = m). According to other embodiments, the number of relays in each of the relay layers 4861, 4862 may be different, i.e., n ≠ m may be possible. Each of the relays in the different relay layers 4861, 4862 may be connected to each other as schematically shown at 566. Some or all of the relays in the first relay layer 4861 may be connected to some or all of the relays in the second relay layer 4862. Each relay of the layer transfers the feedback from the receiving entity 404 and / or distinguishes traffic as described in detail above with reference to the first and second aspects of the present invention.

[0139] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, each embodiment and aspect may be implemented individually or two or more embodiments and aspects may be combined and implemented. In other words, any of the embodiments of the first aspect described above regarding the provision of overall feedback from the receiving entity to the transmitting entity via one or more relays may be combined with any of the embodiments of the second aspect described above regarding the distinction of traffic in one or more relays.

[0140] General According to an embodiment, the wireless communication system may include a terrestrial network, or a non-terrestrial network, or a network or a network segment that uses an aircraft or a satellite or a combination thereof as a receiver.

[0141] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the user device includes one or more of the following: a power-limited UE, or a handheld UE such as a UE used by a pedestrian called a Vulnerable Road User (VRU), or a Pedestrian UE (P-UE), or an on-body or handheld UE used by public safety personnel and first responders called a Public Safety UE (PS-UE), or an IoT UE, for example, a sensor, an actuator, or a mobile terminal provided in a campus network to perform repetitive tasks and requiring periodic input from a gateway node, or a stationary terminal, or a UE providing a cellular IoT-UE, or a vehicle UE, or a Vehicle Group Leader (GL) UE, or a sidelink relay, or an IoT or NarrowBand IoT (NB-IoT) device, or a wearable device such as a smartwatch, or a fitness tracker, or smart glasses, or a ground-based vehicle, or an aerial vehicle, or a drone, or a mobile base station, or a Road Side Unit (RSU), or a building, or any other item or device with network connectivity enabling communication using a wireless communication network, or any other item or device with network connectivity enabling communication using the sidelink of a wireless communication network, such as a sensor or an actuator, or any sidelink-capable network entity.

[0142] According to an embodiment of the present invention, a network entity includes one or more of the following: a macro cell base station, or a small cell base station, or a base station, a central unit of an integrated access or backhaul (IAB) node, or a distributed unit of a base station, or a roadside unit (RSU), or a remote radio head, or an AMF, or an MME, or an SMF, or a core network entity, or a mobile edge computing (MEC) entity, or a network slice such as in an NR or 5G core context, or any transmit / receive point (TRP) that enables an item or device to communicate using a wireless communication network, where the item or device is provided with network connectivity for communicating using the wireless communication network.

[0143] Although some aspects of the described concepts have been described in the context of an apparatus, it is clear that these aspects also represent a description of a corresponding method where a block or device corresponds to a method step or a feature of a method step. Similarly, aspects described in the context of a method step also represent a description of a corresponding block or item or a feature of a corresponding apparatus.

[0144] The various elements and features of the present invention may be implemented in hardware using analog and / or digital circuitry, in software through the execution of instructions by one or more general-purpose or special-purpose processors, or as a combination of hardware and software. For example, embodiments of the present invention may be implemented in the environment of a computer system or other processing system. FIG. 21 shows an example of a computer system 500. Units or modules, and the steps of the methods performed by these units, may be executed on one or more computer systems 500. The computer system 500 includes one or more processors 502, such as a special-purpose or general-purpose digital signal processor. The processor 502 is connected to a communication infrastructure 504, such as a bus or network. The computer system 500 includes a main memory 506, such as random access memory (RAM), and a secondary memory 508, such as a hard disk drive and / or a removable storage drive. The secondary memory 508 may enable computer programs or other instructions to be loaded into the computer system 500. The computer system 500 may further include a communication interface 510 to enable the transfer of software and data between the computer system 500 and external devices. The communication may be by electronic, electromagnetic, optical, or other signals processed by the communication interface. The communication may use wires or cables, fiber optics, telephone lines, cellular phone links, RF links, and other communication channels 512.

[0145] The terms "computer program medium" and "computer readable medium" are generally used to refer to tangible storage media such as removable storage units or hard disks installed in hard disk drives. These computer program products are means for providing software to a computer system 500. A computer program, also called computer control logic, is stored in main memory 506 and / or secondary memory 508. Also, a computer program may be received via communication interface 510. When executed, the computer program enables the computer system 500 to implement the present invention. In particular, when executed, the computer program enables the processor 502 to implement the processes of the present invention, such as any of the methods described herein. Thus, such a computer program can represent a controller of the computer system 500. When the present disclosure is implemented using software, the software is stored in a computer program product and may be loaded into the computer system 500 using an interface such as a removable storage device, communication interface 510, etc.

[0146] Implementations in hardware or software can be carried out using a digital storage medium, such as a floppy (registered trademark) disk, DVD, Blue-Ray (registered trademark), CD, ROM, PROM, EPROM, EEPROM or FLASH memory, having electronically readable control signals thereon and cooperating or capable of cooperating with a programmable computer system so that respective methods are executed. Thus, the digital storage medium may be computer readable.

[0147] Some embodiments according to the present invention comprise a data carrier having electronically readable control signals and capable of cooperating with a programmable computer system so that one of the methods described herein is executed.

[0148] Generally, embodiments of the present invention can be implemented as a computer program product having program code, which is operable to perform one of the methods when the computer program product is executed on a computer. The program code may be stored, for example, on a machine-readable carrier.

[0149] Other embodiments include a computer program stored on a machine-readable carrier, the computer program being for performing one of the methods described herein. In other words, one embodiment of the method of the present invention is thus a computer program having program code for performing one of the methods described herein when the computer program is executed on a computer.

[0150] Accordingly, another embodiment of the method of the present invention is a data carrier or digital recording medium, or a computer-readable medium, including a computer program recorded thereon for performing one of the methods described herein. Another embodiment of the method of the present invention is a data stream or sequence of signals representing a computer program for performing one of the methods described herein. The data stream or sequence of signals may be configured to be transferred, for example, via a data communication connection, such as the Internet. Another embodiment includes processing means, such as a computer or a programmable logic device, configured or adapted to perform one of the methods described herein. Another embodiment includes a computer having installed thereon a computer program for performing one of the methods described herein.

[0151] In some embodiments, a programmable logic device, such as a field programmable gate array, may be used to perform some or all of the functionality of the methods described herein. In some embodiments, the field programmable gate array may cooperate with a microprocessor to perform one of the methods described herein. Generally, the methods are preferably performed by any hardware device.

[0152] The above-described embodiments are merely illustrative of the principles of the present invention. It is understood that modifications and variations of the arrangements and details described herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, it is intended to be limited only by the scope of the impending claims and not by the specific details presented in the description and explanation of the embodiments herein.

Claims

1. A user device (UE) for a wireless communication network, wherein the UE is configured to operate as a relay entity to provide a function of supporting a connection between one or more remote UEs and a destination of the wireless communication network, the connection between the remote UE and the destination includes one or more sidelinks, and each sidelink is associated with a predefined or negotiated quality of service (QoS), the UE is ● connected via a sidelink to one or more of the remote UEs among the remote UEs, ● the destination, ● one or more other relay UEs, and is configured to determine the state of the sidelink with respect to the predefined or negotiated QoS, the UE is configured to transmit the state of the sidelink to a network entity of the wireless communication network, wherein the state indicates that the sidelink can support a QoS higher than the predefined or negotiated QoS by transmitting a QoS update report (QoS_UP), a user device (UE).

2. The UE is ● connected to one or more of the remote UEs among the remote UEs and / or one or more other relay UEs by a first sidelink, and when the destination is another UE, connected to the destination by a second sidelink, or ● connected to one or more of the remote UEs among the remote UEs and / or one or more other relay UEs by a first sidelink and connected to one or more other relay UEs by a second sidelink, or ● connected to one or more of the remote UEs among the remote UEs and / or one or more other relay UEs by a sidelink and connected to the destination by a network link, The user device (UE) according to claim 1.

3. The sidelink is a PC5 connection, or a Bluetooth (registered trademark) or Wifi connection, the user device (UE) according to claim 1 or 2.

4. When the UE is connected to a base station which is the network entity via a Uu interface, the UE is configured to transmit the state of the sidelink to the base station, or ​ When the UE is not connected to the network entity, the UE transmits the state to the network entity via another relay UE connected to the network entity, and the UE is connected to the other relay UE directly or via one or more other relay UEs. The user equipment (UE) according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

5. The UE is configured to include a QoS profile of the sidelink for providing a pre-defined or negotiated quality of service (QoS) between the remote UE and the destination via the UE, and the QoS profile enables or activates the UE to determine and signal the state of the sidelink. The user equipment (UE) according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

6. To determine the state of the sidelink, the UE is adapted to measure one or more QoS parameters associated with a pre-defined or negotiated QoS on the sidelink. The user equipment (UE) according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

7. The UE is adapted to signal the state using radio resource control (RRC) signaling or using media access control (MAC) control element (CE). The user equipment (UE) according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. The UE is adapted to predict a QoS impairment using one or more pre-defined parameters on the sidelink and transmit early QoS_FR in response to the prediction of the QoS impairment, where the one or more pre-defined parameters are ● Reference signal received power (RSRP) measured over a pre-defined time window ● Channel state information (CSI) obtained over the pre-defined time window ● Beam measurement and / or beam impairment ● Hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback over the pre-defined time window ● Transmission power limitation at the UE ● Battery power limitation at the UE ● Computational capacity limitation at the UE ● Congestion of the link to the remote UE indicated by channel busy ratio (CBR) or channel occupancy ratio (CR) ● One or more of the bit error rate (BER), packet error rate (PER), packet loss, or packet delay over the pre - defined time window including one or more of The user equipment (UE) according to claim 1

9. The UE ● Responds to the measured QoS parameters being improved such that a QoS higher than the pre - defined or negotiated QoS is satisfied, and transmits the QoS_UP The user equipment (UE) according to any one of claims 1 to 8

10. The UE is adapted to trigger an early buffer status report (BSR) during a packet data unit (PDU) session with a remote UE The user equipment (UE) according to any one of claims 1 to 9

11. The UE is adapted to use QoS assistance information (QoS_AI) from a QoS manager of the wireless communication network, and the QoS_AI includes tolerance values for the one or more QoS parameters on the sidelink The user equipment (UE) according to any one of claims 1 to 10

12. The UE includes the QoS manager or is connected to the QoS manager located in the remote UE, or the another relay UE, or the destination, or the network entity of the wireless communication network The user equipment (UE) according to claim 11

13. The tolerance values are determined by the QoS manager based on the number of hops between the remote UE and the destination and / or using measured values of QoS parameters associated with the pre - defined or negotiated QoS in one or more or all of the links between the remote UE and the destination The user equipment (UE) according to claim 11 or 12

14. ● When the QoS manager is located in a network entity of the wireless communication network, and ● When the connection between the one or more remote UEs and the destination includes the UE and one or more other UEs operate as relay entities The UE is configured to operate as an anchor relay UE, and the anchor relay UE is the only UE that operates as a relay communicating with the QoS manager. The user device (UE) according to any one of claims 11 to 13.

15. The UE is configured to receive signaling from the remote UE, the destination, or the network entity, notifying the UE to operate as the anchor relay UE. The user device (UE) according to claim 14.

16. The tolerance value is ● the total tolerance value for one or more sidelinks between some or all of the plurality of remote UEs and the UE, or ● one or more remote UE-specific tolerance values for the sidelink between a specific remote UE and the UE, including. The user device (UE) according to any one of claims 11 to 15.

17. The total tolerance value is associated with non-GBR traffic, and the UE-specific tolerance value is associated with GBR traffic. Also, when one or more of the QoS parameters are not satisfied, the relay UE triggers a reselection for load distribution by signaling any remote UE or any other relay UE participating in or handling non-GBR traffic. The user device (UE) according to claim 16.

18. The reselection for load distribution is ● an RRC message, ● an RLC message, ● a MAC CE, ● a physical layer signal on a physical layer feedback or control channel, ● an application layer signal signaled as one or more of. The user device (UE) according to claim 17.

19. The destination includes other UEs of the wireless communication network, entities of the core network of the wireless communication network, or entities of the access network of the wireless communication network. The user device (UE) according to any one of claims 1 to 18.

20. The user device is a mobile terminal, or a stationary terminal, or a cellular IoT-UE, or a vehicle UE, or a leader (GL) UE, or an IoT or narrowband IoT (NB-IoT) device, or a wearable device, or a fitness tracker, or smart glasses, or a ground vehicle, or an aerial vehicle, or a drone, or a mobile base station, or a roadside unit (RSU), or a building, or any other device with network connectivity enabling it to communicate using the wireless communication network, or any other device with network connectivity enabling it to communicate using the sidelink of the wireless communication network, or any sidelink-capable network entity, including The user device (UE) according to any one of claims 1 to 19.

21. A network entity for a wireless communication network, wherein the network entity is adapted to communicate with one or more relay entities, and the relay entity provides a function of supporting a connection between one or more remote UEs and a destination of the wireless communication network, and the connection between the remote UE and the destination includes one or more sidelinks, and each sidelink is associated with a predefined or negotiated quality of service (QoS), and the relay UE is ● one or more of the remote UEs among the remote UEs, ● the destination, ● one or more other relay UEs, connected via a sidelink to one or more of them, the network entity is adapted to receive from the relay entity the state of the sidelink regarding the predefined or negotiated QoS, the state indicating, in the form of a QoS update report (QoS_UP), that the sidelink can support a QoS higher than the predefined or negotiated QoS, a network entity.

22. The sidelink includes a PC5 connection, or a Bluetooth (registered trademark) or WiFi connection. The network entity according to claim 21.

23. A macro cell base station, or a small cell base station, or a central unit of a base station, or a distributed unit of a base station, an IAB node, or a roadside unit (RSU), or an AMF, or an MME, or an SMF, or a core network entity, or a mobile edge computing (MEC) entity, or a network slice such as in an NR or 5G core context, or any transmit / receive point (TRP) that enables a device to communicate using the wireless communication network, wherein the device is provided with network connectivity for communicating using the wireless communication network, one or more of any transmit / receive point (TRP). The network entity according to claim 21 or 22.

24. One or more remote user devices (remote UEs), A relay entity that is one or more user devices according to any one of claims 1 to 20, which provides a function of supporting a connection between one or more remote UEs and a destination, Including A wireless communication network.

25. Further including one or more network entities according to any one of claims 21 to 23, The wireless communication network according to claim 24.

26. ● One or more single-hop connections between the remote UE and the destination, and / or ● One or more multi-hop connections between the remote UE and the destination, Including The wireless communication network according to claim 24 or 25.

27. The destination includes another UE of the wireless communication network, or an entity of the core network or access network of the wireless communication network. The wireless communication network according to any one of claims 24 to 26.

28. The entity of the core network or the access network is a macro cell base station, or a small cell base station, or a central unit of a base station, or a distributed unit of a base station, or a roadside unit (RSU), or an AMF, or an MME, or an SMF, or a core network entity, or a mobile edge computing (MEC) entity, or a network slice in an NR or 5G core context, or any transmission / reception point (TRP) that enables a device to communicate using the wireless communication network, wherein the device is provided with network connectivity for communicating using the wireless communication network, including one or more of any transmission / reception point (TRP). The wireless communication network according to claim 27.

29. A method for operating a user device (UE) for a wireless communication network, wherein the UE operates as a relay entity to provide a function of supporting a connection between one or more remote UEs and a destination of the wireless communication network, the connection between the remote UE and the destination includes one or more sidelinks, each sidelink is associated with the predefined or negotiated quality of service (QoS), and the UE is ● one or more of the remote UEs among the remote UEs, ● the destination, ● one or more other relay UEs, connected via a sidelink to one or more of them, The method is determining a state of the sidelink with respect to the predefined or negotiated QoS; transmitting the state of the sidelink to a network entity of the wireless communication network; including wherein the state indicates that the sidelink can support a QoS higher than the predefined or negotiated QoS by transmitting a QoS update report (QoS_UP). A method for operating a network entity for a wireless communication network, the network entity being adapted to communicate with one or more relay entities, the relay entity providing a function for supporting a connection between one or more remote UEs and a destination of the wireless communication network, the connection between the remote UE and the destination including one or more sidelinks, each sidelink being associated with a predefined or negotiated quality of service (QoS), the relay UE being ● connected via a sidelink to one or more of the one or more remote UEs among the remote UEs, ● the destination, ● one or more other relay UEs, The method includes: receiving, from the relay entity, a state of the sidelink in relation to the predefined or negotiated QoS, wherein the state indicates, in the form of a QoS update report (QoS_UP), that the sidelink can support a QoS higher than the predefined or negotiated QoS.

31. A computer program which, when executed on a computer, causes the computer to execute the method according to claim 29. ​

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