Method and apparatus for monitoring and processing component carriers - Patents.com

Abstract

To solve the problem that receiving and transmitting on multiple carriers significantly increases power consumption of a wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU) and activating and deactivating additional component carriers on demand and quickly is critical to saving WTRU resources and proving savings of power consumption.SOLUTION: A method and apparatus are described which perform bandwidth aggregation by simultaneously monitoring and processing a number of simultaneous and non-contiguous or contiguous component carriers in the downlink. The WTRU can be configured by an evolved Node-B (eNodeB) to support additional component carriers. A pre-configured additional component carrier may be used. Various methods for activating and deactivating the additional component carrier are also described.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] This application relates to wireless communications. [Background technology]

[0002] A key feature of LTE-A (Long Term Evolution Advanced) is higher data rates, which are supported by allowing a wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU) to transmit and receive data on multiple LTE component carriers simultaneously on both the uplink and downlink, a process known as carrier aggregation.

[0003] Transmitting and receiving on multiple carriers significantly increases the power consumption of a WTRU. It is known that the power consumption of the analog front end (which accounts for a significant percentage of the total power consumption of the WTRU) is linearly proportional to the bandwidth or the number of aggregated basic frequency blocks (i.e., component carriers). On-demand and rapid enabling and disabling of additional component carriers is crucial for conserving WTRU resources (e.g., Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) processing (including Channel Quality Indicator (CQI) and Sounding Reference Signal (SRS) reporting), buffer occupancy and buffer management (e.g., Buffer Status Report (BSR) reporting), and scheduling processing) and providing power consumption savings. Summary of the Invention

[0004] A method and apparatus are described for performing bandwidth aggregation by simultaneously monitoring and processing a number of non-adjacent or adjacent component carriers in the downlink. A WTRU can be configured by an eNodeB to support additional component carriers. Pre-configured additional component carriers can be used. Various methods for enabling or disabling the additional component carriers are also described. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0005] A more detailed understanding may be had from the following description, given by way of example in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: [Figure 1] FIG. 1 illustrates a wireless communication system including an eNodeB and a WTRU. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the eNodeB of FIG. 1. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the WTRU of FIG. 1; [Figure 4] FIG. 1 illustrates a procedure for monitoring and processing component carriers. [Figure 5] FIG. 1 illustrates a procedure for monitoring and processing component carriers. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0006] Hereinafter, the term "WTRU" includes, but is not limited to, a UE (User Equipment), mobile station, fixed or mobile subscriber unit, pager, mobile phone, PDA (Personal Digital Assistant), computer, or any other type of user device capable of operating in a wireless environment.

[0007] When referred to hereafter, the term "eNodeB" includes, but is not limited to, a base station, site controller, AP (Access Point), or any other type of interfacing device capable of operating in a wireless environment.

[0008] 1 shows a wireless communication system 100 including an eNodeB 105 and a WTRU 110. The eNodeB 105 is configured to send a Radio Resource Control (RRC) connection reconfiguration message 115 to the WTRU 110.

[0009] Various methods and apparatus are described for enabling or disabling transmission and reception on different carriers in an LTE-A system employing carrier aggregation.

[0010] [Transition to connected mode] In idle mode, the WTRU 110 monitors and processes only a single component carrier. Idle mode procedures such as System Information (SI) acquisition and Paging Indication (PI) monitoring are transparent to the WTRU's 110 multi-carrier capabilities. Schemes such as cell selection and cell reselection can be the same with or without carrier aggregation (hereafter referred to as bandwidth aggregation) capabilities, or can take into account the infrastructure's (eNodeB 105) bandwidth aggregation capabilities as input to system selection. However, when the WTRU 110 transitions to RRC connected mode (typically via an RRC connection request), the WTRU 110 informs the network about its bandwidth aggregation capabilities.

[0011] The WTRU bandwidth aggregation capability can be defined as the number of simultaneous non-adjacent component carriers that can be simultaneously monitored and processed in the downlink for each band. An alternative metric can be the number of RF (Radio Frequency) receivers (different receivers handling non-adjacent carriers) and the maximum bandwidth of each receiver. Consider an example with five component carriers: carriers 1 and 2 are adjacent to each other but not to carriers 3, 4, and 5, and carriers 3, 4, and 5 are adjacent.

[0012] It is also possible to define the WTRU bandwidth aggregation capability as the number of simultaneous adjacent carriers that can be simultaneously monitored and processed in the downlink for each band.

[0013] It is also possible to define the WTRU bandwidth aggregation capability as the maximum supported bandwidth of the aggregated adjacent carriers, not just the number of carriers but also the bandwidth.

[0014] It is also possible to define the WTRU bandwidth aggregation capability as the maximum total bandwidth of the aggregated carriers (adjacent or not).

[0015] It is also possible to define the WTRU bandwidth aggregation capability as the maximum bandwidth supported per single carrier (according to current WTRU capabilities in LTE).

[0016] [Component Carrier RRC Configuration] After the WTRU informs the network about its bandwidth capabilities in the RRC connection procedure, an eNodeB that supports bandwidth aggregation can configure the WTRU to support additional component carriers (i.e., pre-configured additional component carriers). This can be done by an RRC connection reconfiguration message that conveys information that enables the WTRU to set up (authorize and allocate) monitoring of one or more additional downlink and / or uplink carriers. The information included in the RRC connection reconfiguration message can include cell identification, carrier center frequency, carrier bandwidth, carrier direction (uplink or downlink), and other information needed to timely set up activation and synchronization of the pre-configured additional component carriers.

[0017] One RRC Connection Reconfiguration message is sufficient to set up more than one component carrier by storing the previously described information for all pre-configured additional component carriers.

[0018] Receipt of an RRC connection reconfiguration message alone may not enable monitoring and processing of the additional component carrier, either immediately or after a delay. In this case, only an explicit or implicit enable command, as described below, may enable the WTRU to start monitoring and processing of the additional carrier. Alternatively, the RRC connection reconfiguration message may include a field indicating whether monitoring and processing should begin after the reconfiguration procedure has successfully completed. This may be useful at setup to ensure that the pre-configured additional component carrier is operational. Alternatively, receipt of an RRC connection reconfiguration message may enable monitoring and processing of the additional component carrier, either immediately or after a delay.

[0019] The RRC connection reconfiguration message may contain additional information, such as timing advance and other synchronization related information, that allows the WTRU to set up additional component carriers controlled by another eNodeB.

[0020] The RRC Connection Reconfiguration message may provide one specific Cell Radio Network Temporary Identifier (C-RNTI) for each additional component carrier.

[0021] For efficiency, the RRC Connection Reconfiguration message allocates a bit combination to each pre-configured additional component carrier up to the maximum number of simultaneous additional component carriers supported, and uses this allocated bit combination to refer to the activation or deactivation of individual component carriers.

[0022] [Mechanism for enabling or disabling pre-configured additional component carriers]

[0023] [MAC Control Element] Activation or deactivation of pre-configured additional carriers or a pre-defined subset of pre-configured additional carriers can occur upon receipt of a Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (CE). This activation or deactivation can be performed after a pre-defined (fixed or configurable through higher layer signaling) delay after receipt of the MAC CE, or immediately. This will be performed by a new type of MAC CE called a MAC_CE_Activation control element.

[0024] The MAC_CE_enablement control element may include a field of bit combinations to indicate which pre-configured carriers are enabled or disabled. Alternatively, the enabled or disabled carriers may be indicated by the C-RNTI value used for transmitting the MAC PDU containing the MAC control element. A MAC_CE_enablement control element may enable or disable multiple carriers simultaneously by aggregating bit combinations or transmitting multiple MAC PDUs using different C-RNTIs.

[0025] The indication of whether a command corresponds to enable or disable can be performed by setting a bit or can be implied based on the current enable or disable state of the carrier. Alternatively, it can be based on the carrier on which the MAC PDU is received. For example, if a MAC CE is included in a MAC PDU received on a given carrier (e.g., an "anchor carrier" or "serving cell"), the command is understood to be for enablement of the carrier represented in that MAC CE. If a MAC CE is included in a MAC PDU received on a carrier (there may be no explicit indication of the carrier in the MAC CE itself), the command is understood to be for disablement for the carrier on which the MAC PDU was received, or alternatively, for a predefined set of carriers.

[0026] In another alternative, all MAC_CE_enablements are always received on a specific carrier (e.g., the carrier corresponding to the serving cell).

[0027] [Activation by request] Reception of a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) on a specific carrier (e.g., an "anchor carrier") via a new Downlink Control Information (DCI) format (or modified DCI format for LTE-A) can inform the WTRU that transmission and reception to and from a preconfigured additional uplink (PUSCH) or downlink (PDSCH) carrier (or a preconfigured additional uplink carrier or a predefined subset of downlink carriers) will occur in X subframes. (Several subframes of lead time are required to start monitoring the PDCCH on the new carrier.) This delay allows the WTRU's analog front end to adapt to the new carrier and includes settling time and frequency synchronization for the phase-locked loop (PLL) and automatic gain control (AGC). The new DCI format includes a field that maps preconfigured carriers to enablement, as described above. This allows the WTRU to only monitor the PDCCH from a single carrier (e.g., a specific carrier called the "anchor carrier," or the carrier corresponding to the serving cell), thereby saving battery. The indication from the anchor carrier may be for a single grant or allocation on an additional component carrier. In this case, the HARQ feedback corresponding to the grant or allocation may also be delayed (with respect to PDCCH transmission) compared to existing systems. Alternatively, the indication from the anchor carrier may inform the WTRU that it should start monitoring the PDCCH on the additional component carrier or a subset of component carriers until this carrier (or these carriers) is disabled.

[0028] The PDCCH received on a carrier (e.g., an "anchor carrier") with a new DCI format (or a modified DCI format for LTE-A) can provide a time-delayed allocation (PRBs (Physical Resource Blocks), MCSs (Modulation and Coding Sets), and the like) on the pre-configured additional component carriers. The delay is based on the WTRU's ability to tune and synchronize to the pre-configured component carriers. This delay can be fixed or variable based on the WTRU capabilities. Time-delayed allocation is already used for uplink allocations—i.e., a four-subframe delay. However, this method allows the WTRU to know more in advance about the possibility of the next uplink transmission compared to existing systems. Such advance knowledge can be beneficial for uplink scheduling decisions. The same approach can be used for pre-configured additional component carriers. This has the advantage that by allocating resources in advance, the pre-configured additional component carriers can be activated on demand.

[0029] [Implicit Activation] If the amount of traffic received on the downlink (measured at the PHY (Physical), MAC, RLC (Radio Link Control), or PDCP (Packet Data Convergence Protocol) layers) exceeds a predetermined or configured threshold within a predetermined or configured time period, implicit enabling of one or several carriers can occur. There are several defined thresholds, each corresponding to enabling a specific carrier. For example, if the amount of traffic exceeds Vl, carrier C1 can be enabled, and if the amount of traffic exceeds V2, carrier C2 can be enabled, etc.

[0030] Additionally, implicit activation of one or several carriers may occur when the WTRU starts transmission (either on the Random Access Channel (RACH), Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH), or Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH)) on an uplink carrier associated with the enabled downlink carrier. This association may be predefined or provided to the WTRU through RRC signaling (system information or dedicated signaling).

[0031] When a downlink carrier is enabled, the WTRU begins receiving on the PDCCH configured for this carrier (if a PDCCH is defined per carrier) and transmission on the PUCCH is configured to send feedback information for this carrier.

[0032] [Implied invalidation] Implicit deactivation can be performed based on a deactivation timer specific to the availability of the additional component carrier. For example, during a web browsing session, only the anchor carrier is available. When a download begins, the network starts allocating PRBs on the pre-configured additional component carrier for this WTRU. When the download is complete, the network stops allocating resources on the pre-configured additional component carrier for this WTRU. After a deactivation timer (specific to the pre-configured carrier) expires, the WTRU stops monitoring the PDCCH (i.e., the dedicated PDCCH per carrier) and deactivates the front-end radio resources allocated to this carrier. Alternatively, the WTRU can stop monitoring the PDCCH of a carrier after expiration of a timing alignment timer (or other timer) specifically defined for this carrier. Such a timing alignment timer can be restarted based on receipt of a timing alignment MAC control element from a MAC PDU received on that carrier.

[0033] In the case of requested activation and a shared control channel on the anchor carrier, the WTRU may deactivate the front-end resources allocated to the pre-configured additional component carriers as soon as a time-delayed allocation to this carrier is not received. The WTRU may determine if it is more appropriate to wait several consecutive subframes without allocations to the pre-configured additional component carriers before deactivating the front-end resources associated with these carriers.

[0034] Implicit deactivation can also be based on radio conditions. For example, if the channel conditions of a carrier are below a minimum threshold for a certain period of time, front-end radio resources can be deallocated.

[0035] [Order of explicit deactivation on PDCCH] Explicit deactivation can be performed by sending a deactivation order specific to a component carrier so that the WTRU no longer needs to monitor a PDCCH (a dedicated PDCCH per carrier). The order can be sent using the PDCCH with a new DCI format on the anchor carrier for the dedicated channel. Alternatively, the deactivation order using the PDCCH can be sent only for pre-configured additional component carriers.

[0036] [Enabling or Disabling in DRX Connected Mode] The MAC DRX configuration remains the same for carrier aggregation: the on-duration and DRX cycle apply to the configured carrier (e.g., "anchor carrier" or serving cell) as well as to any enabled pre-configured additional component carriers ("resource carriers").

[0037] When a PDCCH is received via a pre-configured additional component carrier that is enabled for new transmissions, a DRX inactivity timer (DRX_Inactivity_timer) running in the WTRU may be started or restarted.

[0038] The DRX disable timer may also be started or restarted when a scheduled grant for an enabled pre-configured additional component carrier is received for a new transmission.

[0039] Alternatively, the MAC DRX configuration may have a specific DRX disable timer for each additional pre-configured component carrier. When a PDCCH allocation is received on this carrier, the DRX disable timer associated with the carrier will be started or restarted. This would allow the WTRU to effectively disable these pre-configured carriers until the next reception period cycle while the anchor carrier is in valid time.

[0040] The logic previously described for the DRX disable timer can also be applied to other DRX timers, such as the receive duration timer (ON_Duration_Timer) and the DRX retransmission timer (DRX_Retransmission_Timer).

[0041] Figure 2 is a block diagram of the eNodeB 105 of Figure 1. The eNodeB 105 includes an antenna 205, a receiver 210, a processing unit 215, and a transmitter 220. The receiver 210 is configured to receive a signal indicative of the bandwidth aggregation capability of the WTRU 110. The transmitter 220 is configured to transmit an RRC connection reconfiguration message to the WTRU 110.

[0042] Figure 3 is a block diagram of the WTRU 110 of Figure 1. The WTRU 110 includes an antenna 305, a receiver 310, a processing unit 315, a transmitter 320, and a discontinuous reception (DRX) disablement timer 325.

[0043] The WTRU 110 monitors and processes the component carriers. The receiver 310 of the WTRU 110 is configured to monitor and process a single component carrier. The transmitter 320 of the WTRU 110 is configured to transmit a signal indicative of the bandwidth aggregation capability of the WTRU 110. The receiver 310 is further configured to receive an RRC connection reconfiguration message. The processor 315 of the WTRU 110 is configured to set up for monitoring and processing at least one additional pre-configured component carrier.

[0044] The receiver 310 may be further configured to receive a MAC CE, and the processing unit 315 may be configured to enable or disable pre-configured additional component carriers.

[0045] A pre-configured additional component carrier may be enabled or disabled immediately or after a pre-defined delay in response to receiving a MAC CE. A pre-configured additional component carrier may be an uplink carrier or a downlink carrier.

[0046] While in standby mode, the WTRU 110 may monitor and process a single component carrier.

[0047] In one example, bandwidth aggregation capability can represent a certain number of simultaneous non-contiguous component carriers that can be simultaneously monitored and processed in the downlink for each band.

[0048] In another example, the bandwidth aggregation capability may represent a number of RF receivers and the maximum bandwidth of each receiver.

[0049] In yet another example, bandwidth aggregation capability can represent a certain number of simultaneous adjacent carriers that can be simultaneously monitored and processed in the downlink for each band.

[0050] In yet another example, the bandwidth aggregation capability may represent the maximum supported bandwidth of the aggregated adjacent carriers.

[0051] In yet another example, the bandwidth aggregation capability may represent the maximum total bandwidth of the aggregated carriers.

[0052] In yet another example, the bandwidth aggregation capability may represent the maximum bandwidth supported per single carrier.

[0053] The bandwidth aggregation capability may represent more than one of the examples described above.

[0054] In another scenario, the receiver 310 can be configured to receive a PDCCH on a particular carrier in a DCI format that indicates that transmission / reception to / from a preconfigured additional uplink or downlink carrier will occur in a certain number of subframes, and the processor 315 can be configured to set up to monitor and process the preconfigured carrier.

[0055] 4 shows a procedure 400 for monitoring and processing component carriers. In step 405, the WTRU monitors and processes a single component carrier. In step 410, the WTRU transmits a signal indicating the WTRU's bandwidth aggregation capability. In step 415, the WTRU receives an RRC connection reconfiguration message. In step 420, the WTRU sets up for monitoring and processing at least one pre-configured additional component carrier. In step 425, the WTRU enables or disables the pre-configured additional component carrier in response to receiving the MAC CE.

[0056] 5 shows a procedure 500 for monitoring and processing component carriers. In step 505, the WTRU monitors and processes a single component carrier. In step 510, the WTRU receives a PDCCH in a DCI format on a particular carrier indicating that transmission / reception to / from a preconfigured additional uplink or downlink carrier will occur in a certain number of subframes. In step 515, the WTRU sets up to monitor and process the preconfigured carrier.

[0057] [Embodiment] 1. A method for monitoring and processing component carriers, performed by a WTRU, comprising: Monitoring and processing a single component carrier; transmitting a signal indicative of a bandwidth aggregation capability of the WTRU; receiving a Radio Resource Control (RRC) connection reconfiguration message; setting up at least one pre-configured additional component carrier for monitoring and processing; A method comprising:

[0058] 2. The method of embodiment 1, further comprising receiving a Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (CE) and enabling or disabling the preconfigured additional component carrier.

[0059] 3. The method of embodiment 2, wherein the preconfigured additional component carrier is immediately enabled or disabled in response to receiving the MAC CE.

[0060] 4. The method of embodiment 2, wherein the preconfigured additional component carrier is enabled or disabled after a predefined delay.

[0061] 5. The method of any one of embodiments 1 to 4, wherein the preconfigured additional component carrier is an uplink carrier.

[0062] 6. The method of any one of embodiments 1 to 4, wherein the preconfigured additional component carrier is a downlink carrier.

[0063] 7. The method of any one of embodiments 1-6, wherein the WTRU monitors and processes the single component carrier while in an idle mode.

[0064] 8. A method according to any one of embodiments 1 to 7, wherein the bandwidth aggregation capability represents a certain number of simultaneous non-adjacent component carriers that can be simultaneously monitored and processed in the downlink for each band.

[0065] 9. The method of any one of embodiments 1 to 7, wherein the bandwidth aggregation capability represents a number of RF receivers and the largest bandwidth of each receiver.

[0066] 10. A method according to any one of embodiments 1 to 7, wherein the bandwidth aggregation capability represents a certain number of simultaneous adjacent carriers that can be simultaneously monitored and processed in the downlink for each band.

[0067] 11. The method of any one of embodiments 1 to 7, wherein the bandwidth aggregation capability represents the maximum supported bandwidth of the aggregated adjacent carriers.

[0068] 12. The method according to any one of embodiments 1 to 7, wherein the bandwidth aggregation capability represents the maximum total bandwidth of the aggregated carriers.

[0069] 13. The method of any one of embodiments 1 to 7, wherein the bandwidth aggregation capability represents the maximum bandwidth supported per single carrier.

[0070] 14. A method for monitoring and processing component carriers, performed by a WTRU, comprising: Monitoring and processing a single component carrier; receiving a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) in a Downlink Control Information (DCI) format on a specific carrier, the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) indicating that transmission / reception to / from a preconfigured additional uplink or downlink carrier will occur in a certain number of subframes; setting up to monitor and process said pre-configured carriers; The method according to claim 1, characterized in that

[0071] 15. A WTRU for monitoring and processing a component carrier, comprising: a receiver configured to monitor and process a single component carrier; a transmitter configured to transmit a signal indicative of a bandwidth aggregation capability of the WTRU; the receiver further configured to receive a Radio Resource Control (RRC) connection reconfiguration message; a processing unit configured to set up to monitor and process at least one pre-configured additional component carrier; WTRU comprising:

[0072] 16. The WTRU of embodiment 15, wherein the receiver is further configured to receive a Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (CE), and the processing unit is configured to enable or disable the preconfigured additional component carrier.

[0073] 17. The WTRU of embodiment 16, wherein the pre-configured additional component carrier is immediately enabled or disabled in response to receiving the MAC CE.

[0074] 18. The WTRU of embodiment 16, wherein the preconfigured additional component carrier is enabled or disabled after a predefined delay.

[0075] 19. The WTRU of any one of embodiments 15-18, wherein the pre-configured additional component carrier is an uplink carrier.

[0076] 20. The WTRU of any one of embodiments 15-18, wherein the pre-configured additional component carrier is a downlink carrier.

[0077] 21. The WTRU of any one of embodiments 15-20, wherein the WTRU monitors and processes the single component carrier while in an idle mode.

[0078] 22. The WTRU of any one of embodiments 15-21, wherein the bandwidth aggregation capability represents a number of simultaneous non-contiguous component carriers that can be simultaneously monitored and processed in the downlink for each band.

[0079] 23. The WTRU of any one of embodiments 15-21, wherein the bandwidth aggregation capability represents a number of RF receivers and a maximum bandwidth among each receiver.

[0080] 24. The WTRU of any one of embodiments 15-21, wherein the bandwidth aggregation capability represents a number of simultaneous adjacent carriers that can be simultaneously monitored and processed in the downlink for each band.

[0081] 25. The WTRU of any one of embodiments 15-21, wherein the bandwidth aggregation capability represents a maximum supported bandwidth among aggregated adjacent carriers.

[0082] 26. The WTRU of any one of embodiments 15-21, wherein the bandwidth aggregation capability represents a maximum total bandwidth of aggregated carriers.

[0083] 27. The WTRU of any one of embodiments 15-21, wherein the bandwidth aggregation capability represents a maximum bandwidth supported per single carrier.

[0084] 28. A WTRU for monitoring and processing a component carrier, comprising: a receiver configured to monitor and process a single component carrier; The receiver is configured to receive a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) on a specific carrier in a Downlink Control Information (DCI) format, the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) indicating that transmission / reception to / from a preconfigured additional uplink or downlink carrier will occur in a certain number of subframes; a processing unit configured to set up to monitor and process the preconfigured carrier; WTRU comprising:

[0085] Although features and elements are described above in particular combinations, each feature or element can be used alone without the other features and elements, or in various combinations with or without the other features and elements. The methods or flow diagrams provided herein can be implemented in a computer program, software, or firmware embodied in a computer-readable storage medium for execution by a general-purpose computer or processing device. Examples of computer-readable storage media include read-only memory (ROM), random-access memory (RAM), registers, cache memory, semiconductor memory devices, magnetic media such as internal hard disks and removable disks, magneto-optical media, and optical media such as CD-ROM disks and digital versatile disks (DVDs).

[0086] Examples of suitable processors include a general purpose processor, a special purpose processor, a conventional processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors associated with a DSP core, a controller, a microcontroller, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), an application specific standard product (ASSP), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) circuit, any other type of integrated circuit (IC), and / or a state machine.

[0087] The processing unit associated with software may be used to implement a radio frequency transceiver for use in a WTRU, UE, terminal, base station, Mobility Management Entity (MME) or Evolved Packet Core (EPC), or any host computer. The WTRU may be used in conjunction with modules implemented in hardware and / or software, including components such as a Software Defined Radio (SDR), a camera, a video camera module, a video phone, a speakerphone, a vibration device, a speaker, a microphone, a television transceiver, a hands-free handset, a keyboard, a Bluetooth module, a Frequency Modulated (FM) radio unit, a Near Field Communication (NFC) module, a Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) display unit, an Organic Light-Emitting Diode (OLED) display unit, a digital music player, a media player, a video game player module, an Internet browser, and / or any Wireless Local Access Network (WLAN) module or Ultra Wide Band (UWB) module.

Claims

1. 1. A method implemented by a wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU), comprising: receiving a radio resource control (RRC) message over a first component carrier, the RRC message including configuration information for a second component carrier, the configuration information for the second component carrier indicating information about monitoring one or more grants or allocations over the second component carrier; receiving a Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (CE) over the first component carrier, the MAC CE indicating enablement of the second component carrier for the WTRU according to the configuration information for the second component carrier; receiving a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) transmission over one or more of the first component carrier or the second component carrier, wherein the WTRU monitors the PDCCH transmission on the first component carrier according to a first discontinuous reception (DRX) configuration and the WTRU monitors the PDCCH transmission on the second component carrier according to a second DRX configuration and the configuration information for the second component carrier; A method comprising:

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first DRX configuration is associated with a first DRX disablement timer and the second DRX configuration is associated with a second DRX disablement timer.

3. 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first DRX disablement timer is started or restarted upon receipt of the PDCCH transmission over the first component carrier, and the second DRX disablement timer is started or restarted upon receipt of the PDCCH transmission over the second component carrier.

4. The method of claim 2 , wherein the first DRX configuration is associated with a first DRX receive period timer and the second DRX configuration is associated with a second DRX receive period timer.

5. 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the PDCCH transmission is received over the first component carrier, the first DRX disablement timer is started or restarted based on the PDCCH transmission being received over the first component carrier, and the second DRX disablement timer is not started or restarted based on the PDCCH transmission being received over the first component carrier.

6. 6. The method of claim 5, wherein based on starting or restarting the first DRX disablement timer, the WTRU is within a valid time on the first component carrier and the WTRU is no longer within a valid time on the second component carrier.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the WTRU is not within a valid time on the second component carrier until a next receiver-delay time on the second component carrier.

8. 10. The method of claim 1, wherein reception of the RRC message including configuration information for the second component carrier does not enable the second component carrier for use by the WTRU.

9. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the configuration information for the second component carrier includes an identifier for the second component carrier, and the MAC CE has a field indicating that the second component carrier is enabled based on the identifier.

10. 1. A wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU) comprising a processor and a memory, the processor and the memory comprising: receiving a radio resource control (RRC) message over a first component carrier, the RRC message including configuration information for a second component carrier, the configuration information for the second component carrier indicating information about monitoring one or more grants or allocations over the second component carrier; receiving a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) over the first component carrier, the MAC CE indicating enablement of the second component carrier for the WTRU according to the configuration information for the second component carrier; a WTRU configured to receive a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) transmission over one or more of the first component carrier or the second component carrier, wherein the WTRU is configured to monitor the PDCCH transmission on the first component carrier according to a first discontinuous reception (DRX) configuration, and the WTRU is configured to monitor the PDCCH transmission on the second component carrier according to a second DRX configuration and the configuration information for the second component carrier; WTRU.

11. The WTRU of claim 10 , wherein the first DRX configuration is associated with a first DRX disablement timer and the second DRX configuration is associated with a second DRX disablement timer.

12. 12. The WTRU of claim 11, wherein the WTRU is configured to start or restart the first DRX disablement timer when the PDCCH transmission is received over the first component carrier, and to start or restart the second DRX disablement timer when the PDCCH transmission is received over the second component carrier.

13. The WTRU of claim 11 , wherein the first DRX configuration is associated with a first DRX receive period timer, and the second DRX configuration is associated with a second DRX receive period timer.

14. 12. The WTRU of claim 11, wherein the PDCCH transmission is received over the first component carrier, the first DRX disablement timer is started or restarted based on the PDCCH transmission being received over the first component carrier, and the second DRX disablement timer is not started or restarted based on the PDCCH transmission being received over the first component carrier.

15. 15. The WTRU of claim 14, wherein the WTRU is configured to be within a valid time on the first component carrier and the WTRU is configured to no longer be within a valid time on the second component carrier based on starting or restarting the first DRX disablement timer.

16. The WTRU of claim 15, wherein the WTRU is configured not to be within a valid time on the second component carrier until a next receiver-delay period on the second component carrier.

17. The WTRU of claim 10 , wherein receipt of the RRC message including configuration information for the second component carrier does not enable the second component carrier for use by the WTRU.

18. 11. The WTRU of claim 10, wherein the configuration information for the second component carrier includes an identifier for the second component carrier, and the MAC CE has a field indicating that the second component carrier is enabled based on the identifier.

19. 1. An evolved Node B (eNodeB) comprising a processor and a memory, the processor and memory comprising: sending a radio resource control (RRC) message over a first component carrier to a wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU), the RRC message including configuration information for a second component carrier, the configuration information for the second component carrier indicating information about monitoring one or more grants or allocations over the second component carrier; sending a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) to the WTRU over the first component carrier, the MAC CE indicating enablement of the second component carrier for the WTRU according to the configuration information for the second component carrier; sending a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) transmission to the WTRU over one or more of the first component carrier or the second component carrier; wherein the eNodeB is configured to configure the WTRU to monitor the PDCCH transmission on the first component carrier according to a first discontinuous reception (DRX) configuration, and to monitor the PDCCH transmission on the second component carrier according to a second DRX configuration and the configuration information for the second component carrier. eNodeB.

20. 20. The eNodeB of claim 19, wherein the first DRX configuration is associated with a first DRX disable timer and a first DRX receive period timer, and the second DRX configuration is associated with a second DRX disable timer and a second DRX receive period timer.

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