COMMUNICATION DEVICE, SCHEDULING NODE, COMMUNICATION METHOD AND INTEGRATED CIRCUIT

Abstract

To save the power of user equipment (UE) by shifting to sleep during most of a discontinuous reception (DRX) off period.SOLUTION: In a communication system, UE includes a transceiver that, during operation, monitors a power saving signal (PoSS) and receives the setting of a PoSS time window preceding a DRX on period for monitoring a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH). The PoSS indicates whether the UE is allowed to skip monitoring the PDCCH in the DRX on period. The UE also includes a circuit that, during operation, determines the PoSS time window based on the setting and controls the transceiver to monitor the PoSS within the PoSS time window.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to transmitting and receiving signals in a communication system, and more particularly to methods and apparatus for such transmission and reception. [Background technology]

[0002] The 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) is working on technical specifications for next-generation cellular technology, also known as the fifth generation, including the New Radio (NR) radio access technology (RAT) operating in the frequency range up to 100 GHz. NR is the successor to the technologies represented by LTE (Long Term Evolution) and LTE-Advanced (LTE-A).

[0003] For systems such as LTE, LTE-A, and NR, further improvements and options may be made to facilitate efficient operation of the communication system as well as particular devices associated with the system. Summary of the Invention

[0004] One non-limiting and exemplary embodiment allows user equipment to save power by going to sleep for a majority of the DRX OFF period, while facilitating flexible allocation of Power Saving Signals (PoSS) suitable for various scenarios, including multi-beam operation and PoSS repetition.

[0005] In an embodiment, the technology disclosed herein features a user equipment (UE) comprising: a transceiver configured to monitor a Power Saving Signal (PoSS) during operation and to receive a configuration of a PoSS time window preceding a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) ON period for monitoring a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH), the PoSS indicating whether the UE is allowed to skip monitoring the PDCCH during the DRX ON period; and circuitry configured to determine the PoSS time window based on the configuration during operation and to control the transceiver to perform monitoring of the PoSS within the PoSS time window.

[0006] It should be noted that the entire or specific embodiments may be realized as a system, a method, an integrated circuit, a computer program, a storage medium, or any combination thereof.

[0007] Further benefits and advantages of the disclosed embodiments will become apparent from the specification and drawings. Benefits and / or advantages may be obtained individually from various embodiments and features of the specification and drawings, which need not all be provided to obtain one or more of such benefits and / or advantages. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] In the following, exemplary embodiments are explained in more detail with reference to the attached drawings. [Figure 1] 1 illustrates an example architecture of a 3GPP NR system. [Figure 2] 1 is a schematic diagram showing the division of functions between NG-RAN and 5GC. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a sequence diagram for an RRC connection setup / reconfiguration procedure. [Figure 4]FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating usage scenarios of eMBB (enhanced Mobile Broadband), mMTC (massive Machine Type Communications) and URLLC (Ultra Reliable and Low Latency Communications). [Figure 5] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example 5G system architecture for a non-roaming scenario. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of a search space for a PDCCH. [Figure 7] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a user equipment (UE) and a scheduling node. [Figure 8] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a PoSS (Power Saving Signal) processing circuit of a UE. [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a block diagram of a PoSS decision circuit of a scheduling node. [Figure 10] 10 is a flowchart of communication method steps performed by the scheduling node and the UE; [Figure 11] 1 is a flowchart of a communication method for a UE. [Figure 12] FIG. 1 illustrates a PoSS time window. [Figure 13] FIG. 1 illustrates a PoSS time window. [Figure 14] FIG. 1 illustrates a PoSS time window. [Figure 15] FIG. 1 illustrates a PoSS time window. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] 5G NR system architecture and protocol stack 3GPP has been working on the next release of fifth-generation cellular technology, simply called 5G, including the development of New Radio Access Technology (NR), which will operate in frequencies up to the 100 GHz range. The first version of the 5G standard was completed at the end of 2017, allowing for the advancement of trials and commercialization of smartphones compliant with the 5G NR standard.

[0010] In particular, the overall system architecture assumes a Next Generation-Radio Access Network (NG-RAN) including gNodeBs (gNBs), which provide NG radio access user plane (SDAP / PDCP / RLC / MAC / PHY) and control plane (Radio Resource Control, RRC) protocol termination for UEs. The gNBs are interconnected with each other by an Xn interface. The gNBs are also connected to a Next Generation Core (NGC) by a Next Generation (NG) interface, more specifically to an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) (e.g., a specific core entity that runs the AMF) by an NG-C interface, and to a User Plane Function (UPF) (e.g., a specific core entity that runs the UPF) by an NG-U interface. The NG-RAN architecture is shown in Figure 1 (see, e.g., 3GPP TS 38.300 v15.6.0, section 4).

[0011] The user plane protocol stack for NR (see, for example, 3GPP TS 38.300, section 4.4.1) includes the Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP, see section 6.4 of TS 38.300), Radio Link Control (RLC, see section 6.3 of TS 38.300), and Medium Access Control (MAC, see section 6.2 of TS 38.300) sublayers, which are terminated at the gNB on the network side. Furthermore, a new Access Stratum (AS) sublayer (Service Data Adaptation Protocol, SDAP) is introduced on top of PDCP (see, for example, sub-clause 6.5 of 3GPP TS 38.300). A control plane protocol stack is also defined for NR (see, for example, TS 38.300, section 4.4.2). An overview of Layer 2 functions is given in sub-clause 6 of TS 38.300. The functions of the PDCP, RLC and MAC sublayers are listed in sections 6.4, 6.3 and 6.2 of TS 38.300, respectively. The functions of the RRC layer are listed in sub-clause 7 of TS 38.300.

[0012] For example, the MAC layer handles logical channel multiplexing and scheduling and scheduling-related functions, including handling different numerologies.

[0013] The physical layer (PHY) is responsible for, for example, coding, PHY HARQ processing, modulation, multi-antenna processing, and mapping of signals to appropriate physical time-frequency resources. It also handles mapping of transport channels to physical channels. The physical layer provides services to the MAC layer in the form of transport channels. A physical channel corresponds to a set of time-frequency resources used for the transmission of a specific transport channel, and each transport channel is mapped to a corresponding physical channel. For example, physical channels are the Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH), the Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH), and the Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) for the uplink, and the Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH), the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH), and the Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH) for the downlink.

[0014] Use cases / deployment scenarios for NR may include enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB), Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communications (URLLC), and massive Machine Type Communication (mMTC), which have diverse requirements regarding data rates, latency, and coverage. For example, eMBB is expected to support peak data rates (20 Gbps in the downlink and 10 Gbps in the uplink) and user-experienced data rates on the order of three times those offered by IMT-Advanced. On the other hand, in the case of URLLC, tighter requirements are placed on ultra-low latency (0.5 ms for user plane latency on UL and DL, respectively) and high reliability (1-10 ms latency within 1 ms). -5 Finally, mMTC is preferably imposed on high connection densities (over 1,000,000 devices / km in urban environments). 2), large coverage in harsh environments, and extremely long battery life (15 years) for low-cost devices.

[0015] Therefore, OFDM numerology (e.g., subcarrier spacing, OFDM symbol duration, cyclic prefix (CP) duration, number of symbols per scheduling interval, etc.) suitable for one use case may not work well for another use case. For example, low-latency services may preferably require a shorter symbol duration (and larger subcarrier spacing) and / or fewer symbols per scheduling interval (a.k.a., TTI) than mMTC services. Furthermore, deployment scenarios with large channel delay spreads may preferably require a longer CP duration than scenarios with short delay spreads. Subcarrier spacing should be optimized accordingly to maintain similar CP overhead. NR may support multiple values ​​of subcarrier spacing. Correspondingly, subcarrier spacings of 15 kHz, 30 kHz, 60 kHz, etc. are currently being considered. The symbol duration Tu and subcarrier spacing Δf are directly related through the equation Δf = 1 / Tu. Similar to LTE systems, the term "resource element" can be used to denote the smallest resource unit consisting of one subcarrier for the length of one OFDM / SC-FDMA symbol.

[0016] In the new radio system 5G-NR for each numerology and carrier, a resource grid of subcarriers and OFDM symbols is defined for each uplink and downlink. Each element in the resource grid is called a resource element and is identified based on a frequency index in the frequency domain and a symbol position in the time domain (see 3GPP TS 38.211 v15.6.0).

[0017] 5G NR function split between NG-RAN and 5GC

[0018] Figure 2 shows the functional division between NG-RAN and 5GC. The NG-RAN logical node is the gNB or ng-eNB. The 5GC has logical nodes AMF, UPF, and SMF.

[0019] In particular, the gNB and ng-eNB provide the following key functions: Radio resource management functions, such as radio bearer control, radio admission control, connection mobility control, and dynamic resource allocation (scheduling) to UEs in both uplink and downlink. -IP header compression, encryption and integrity protection of data - AMF selection at UE attachment when routing to AMF cannot be determined from information provided by the UE - Routing of user plane data to UPF -Routing of control plane information to AMF -Connection setup and release - Scheduling and sending paging messages Scheduling and transmission of system broadcast information (originating from AMF or OAM) - Measurement and measurement report configuration for mobility and scheduling -Transport level packet marking in the uplink -Session management -Network slicing support -QoS flow management and mapping to data radio bearers Support for UEs in RRC_INACTIVE state -NAS message delivery function -Radio Access Network Sharing -Dual Connectivity - Close cooperation between NR and E-UTRA

[0020] AMF (Access and Mobility Management Function) provides the following main functions: - NAS (Non-Access Stratum) signaling termination -NAS signaling security -AS (Access Stratum) security control - Core Network (CN) inter-node signaling for mobility between 3GPP access networks Idle mode UE reachability (including control and execution of paging retransmissions) -Registration area management - Support for intra-system and inter-system mobility -Access Authentication -Access Authorization, including roaming rights checks -Mobility management controls (subscriptions and policies) -Network slicing support -SMF (Session Management Function) selection Furthermore, the UPF (User Plane Function) provides the following main functions: -Anchor points for intra-RAT / inter-RAT mobility (when applicable) -External PDU session points for interconnection with data networks -Packet routing and forwarding -User plane part of packet inspection and policy rule enforcement -Traffic usage reports - an uplink classifier to support routing of traffic flows to the data network; - Branching points to support multi-homed PDU sessions - User plane QoS handling, including packet filtering, gating, and UL / DL rate enforcement -Uplink traffic validation (SDF to QoS flow mapping) -Downlink packet buffering and downlink data notification triggering Finally, the SMF (Session Management Function) provides the following main functions: -Session management -UE IP address allocation and management -UP function selection and control - Traffic steering configuration in the UPF (User Plane Function) to route traffic to the correct destination -Policy enforcement and QoS control parts -Downlink data notification

[0021] RRC connection establishment and re-establishment procedures

[0022] Figure 3 shows some interactions between the UE, gNB and AMF (5GC entities) in the context of the UE's transition from RRC_IDLE to RRC_CONNECTED for the NAS part (see TS 38.300 v15.6.0).

[0023] RRC is a higher layer signaling (protocol) used to configure the UE and the gNB. In particular, this transition involves the AMF preparing UE context data (including, for example, PDU session context, security keys, UE radio capabilities, UE security capabilities, etc.) and sending it to the gNB via an INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST. Next, the gNB activates AS security with the UE, which is performed by the gNB sending a SecurityModeCommand message to the UE, and the UE responding with a SecurityModeComplete message to the gNB. The gNB then performs reconfiguration to set up signaling radio bearer 2 (SRB2) and data radio bearer (DRB) by sending an RRCReconfiguration message to the UE, and the gNB receiving an RRCReconfigurationComplete from the UE in response. For a signaling-only connection, steps related to RRCReconfiguration are omitted because SRB2 and DRB are not configured. Finally, the gNB notifies the AMF by an INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP RESPONSE that the configuration procedure is complete.

[0024] Thus, the present disclosure provides a 5th Generation Core (5GC) entity (e.g., AMF, SMF, etc.) that includes: a control circuit that, during operation, establishes a Next Generation (NG) connection with a gNodeB; and a transmitter that, during operation, transmits an initial context setup message to the gNodeB over the NG connection, causing a signaling radio bearer configuration between the gNodeB and a user equipment (UE). In particular, the gNodeB transmits Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling, including a resource allocation configuration information element, to the UE over the signaling radio bearer. The UE then performs uplink transmission or downlink reception based on the resource allocation configuration.

[0025] IMT usage scenarios from 2020 onwards

[0026] Figure 4 shows some use cases for 5G NR. 3GPP NR (3rd Generation Partnership Project New Radio) is considering three use cases that are expected to support a wide range of services and applications with IMT-2020. The Phase 1 specifications for eMBB have been finalized. In addition to further extending support for eMBB, current and future work involves standardizing URLLC and mMTC. Figure 4 shows some concrete examples of envisioned ideal scenarios for IMT beyond 2020 (see, for example, Fig. 2 of ITU-R M.2083).

[0027] URLLC use cases have stringent requirements for capabilities such as throughput, latency, and availability, and are envisioned as one of the enablers for future vertical applications, such as wireless control of industrial manufacturing and production processes, remote medical surgery, power distribution automation in smart grids, and transportation safety. URLLC's ultra-high reliability is supported by identifying technologies to meet the requirements set by TR 38.913. Key requirements for NR URLLC in Release 15 include target user-plane delays of 0.5 ms for the uplink (UL) and 0.5 ms for the downlink (DL). The overall URLLC requirement for a single packet transmission is a block error rate (BLER) of 1E-5 for a 32-byte packet size with a 1-ms user-plane delay.

[0028] From a physical layer perspective, reliability can be improved in several possible ways. Current scope for improving reliability relates to defining a separate CQI table for URLLC, a more compact Downlink Control Information (DCI) format, PDCCH repetition, etc. However, this scope can be expanded to achieve ultra-reliability as NR becomes more stable and developed (a key requirement for NR URLLC). Specific use cases for NR URLLC in Rel. 15 include Augmented Reality / Virtual Reality (AR / VR), e-health, e-safety, and mission-critical applications.

[0029] Furthermore, technology enhancements targeted by NR URLLC target latency improvement and reliability enhancement. Technology enhancements for latency improvement include configurable numerology, non-slot-based scheduling with flexible mapping, grant-free (configured grant) uplink, slot-level repetition of data channels, and downlink preemption. Preemption means that a transmission for which resources have already been allocated is aborted and the already allocated resources are used for another transmission requested later but with lower latency / higher priority requirements. Thus, an already granted transmission is preempted by a subsequent transmission. Preemption is applicable regardless of the specific service type. For example, a transmission of service type A (URLLC) may be preempted by a transmission of service type B (e.g., eMBB). Technology enhancements for reliability improvement include dedicated CQI / MCS (Channel Quality Information / Modulation and Coding Scheme) tables for a target BLER of 1E-5.

[0030] The mMTC use case is characterized by a very large number of connected devices transmitting relatively small amounts of data, which are typically latency sensitive. The devices are required to be low cost and have extremely long battery life. From an NR perspective, utilizing very narrow bandwidth portions is one possible solution to have power savings from the UE perspective and enable long battery life.

[0031] As mentioned above, it is expected that the reliability range in NR will be wider. One key requirement for all cases, especially for URLLC and mMTC, is high or ultra-high reliability. Several mechanisms can be considered to improve reliability from a radio perspective and a network perspective. In general, there are several key areas that may help improve reliability. Among these areas are compact control channel information, data channel / control channel repetition, and diversity in terms of frequency, time, and / or space domains. These areas are generally applicable to reliability, regardless of the specific communication scenario.

[0032] For NR URLLC, further use cases with more stringent requirements have been identified, such as factory automation, transportation industry, and power distribution. The more stringent requirements are driven by higher reliability (10 -6 level), higher availability, packet sizes up to 256 bytes, and time synchronization down to the order of a few microseconds, which can be on the order of 1 or a few microseconds depending on the frequency range and low latency, on the order of 0.5-1 ms, with a target user plane latency of 0.5 ms depending on the use case in particular.

[0033] Furthermore, several technology enhancements from the physical layer perspective are specified for NR URLLC. Among these are PDCCH (Physical Downlink Control Channel) enhancements related to compact DCI, PDCCH repetition, and increased PDCCH monitoring. Also, UCI (Uplink Control Information) enhancements are related to enhanced Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) and CSI feedback enhancements. Also, PUSCH enhancements related to minislot-level hopping and retransmission / repetition enhancements are specified. The term "minislot" refers to a transmission time interval (TTI) containing fewer symbols than a slot (a slot consisting of 14 symbols).

[0034] In slot-based scheduling or allocation, a slot corresponds to the timing granularity (TTI: Transmission Time Interval) for the scheduling assignment. Generally, the TTI determines the timing granularity for the scheduling assignment. One TTI is the time interval in which a given signal is mapped to the physical layer. For example, conventionally, the TTI length varies from 14 symbols (slot-based scheduling) to 2 symbols (non-slot-based scheduling). Downlink (DL) and uplink (UL) transmissions are specified to be organized into frames (10 ms duration) consisting of 10 subframes (1 ms duration). In slot-based transmission, the subframes are further divided into slots, the number of slots being determined by the numerology / subcarrier spacing. Specified values ​​range between 10 slots per frame (1 slot per subframe) for a subcarrier spacing of 15 kHz and 80 slots per frame (8 slots per subframe) for a subcarrier spacing of 120 kHz. The number of OFDM symbols per slot is 14 for the normal cyclic prefix and 12 for the extended cyclic prefix (see sections 4.1 (general frame structure), 4.2 (Numerologies), 4.3.1 (frames and subframes), and 4.3.2 (slots) of 3GPP TS 38.211 V15.3.0, Physical channels and modulation, 2018-09). However, the allocation of time resources for transmission may also be non-slot-based. In particular, the TTI in non-slot-based allocation may correspond to a minislot instead of a slot. That is, one or more minislots may be allocated to a requested transmission of data / control signaling. In non-slot-based allocation, the minimum length of a TTI may be, for example, one or two OFDM symbols.

[0035] QoS Control The 5G Quality of Service (QoS) model is based on QoS flows and supports both QoS flows that require a guaranteed flow bit rate (GBR QoS flows) and QoS flows that do not require a guaranteed flow bit rate (non-GBR QoS flows). Therefore, at the NAS level, QoS flows are the finest granularity of QoS differentiation in a PDU session. QoS flows are identified within a PDU session by a QoS Flow ID (QFI) carried in the encapsulation header over the NG-U interface.

[0036] For each UE, the 5GC establishes one or more PDU sessions. For each UE, the NG-RAN establishes at least one Data Radio Bearer (DRB) along with the PDU session, and additional DRBs for the QoS flows of that PDU session can be configured later (when this is up to the NG-RAN), e.g., as described above with reference to Figure 3. The NG-RAN maps packets belonging to different PDU sessions to different DRBs. NAS-level packet filters in the UE and the 5GC associate UL and DL packets with QoS flows, and AS-level mapping rules in the UE and the NG-RAN associate UL and DL QoS flows with DRBs.

[0037] FIG. 5 illustrates the 5G NR non-roaming reference architecture (see TS 23.501 v16.1.1, section 4.23). Application functions (AFs), such as external application servers providing 5G services exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 4, interact with the 3GPP core network to provide services, e.g., to support application influence on traffic routing, access to a Network Exposure Function (NEF), or interaction with a policy framework for policy control such as QoS control (see Policy Control Function (PCF)). Based on the operator's deployment, application functions deemed trusted by the operator may be allowed to interact directly with the relevant network functions. Application functions not permitted by the operator to directly access network functions utilize an external exposure framework via the NEF to interact with the relevant network functions.

[0038] 5 further illustrates the functional units of the 5G architecture, namely, Network Slice Selection Function (NSSF), Network Repository Function (NRF), Unified Data Management (UDM), Authentication Server Function (AUSF), Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), Session Management Function (SMF), and Data Network (DN), such as operator services, internet access, or third-party services. All or part of the core network functions and application services may be deployed and executed in a cloud computing environment.

[0039] Therefore, the present disclosure provides an application server (e.g., AF in a 5G architecture) that includes: a transmitter that, during operation, sends a request including a QoS request for at least one of URLLC, eMMB, and mMTC services to at least one of 5GC functions (e.g., NEF, AMF, SMF, PCF, UPF, etc.) and establishes a PDU session including a radio bearer between a gNodeB and a UE according to the QoS request; and a control circuit that, during operation, performs a service using the established PDU session.

[0040] In wireless communication systems such as LTE and NR, power utilization efficiency is increased by applying discontinuous reception (DRX). DRX is a method of shortening the active period in RRC_CONNECTED mode without a scheduling grant. In particular, a timer that may be configured by the eNB or gNB allows a UE to operate in an active mode (or DRX ON state) in which it monitors the PDCCH, and a DRX OFF state or mode in which reception is switched off.

[0041] Thus, the DRX mechanism provides an ON duration (when the PDCCH is monitored) and an OFF duration (when the PDCCH is not monitored). The start time and duration of the ON time (and therefore also the OFF time) are configured by RRC, which means that they are not dynamic but mostly semi-static. Dynamic change means change with the scheduling frequency, for example, via a scheduling grant. Semi-static can still mean change during the communication connection, for example, via RRC, but the RRC configuration is less frequent than the scheduling grant. In DRX, the PDCCH generally cannot be monitored during the OFF duration, which increases service latency and is not effective for certain latency-sensitive services. That is, in OFF mode, the UE does not monitor the PDCCH, so if traffic arrives, the UE cannot be scheduled until the next ON duration. Therefore, low latency requirements may not be guaranteed for some services. However, it should be noted that even when DRX is applied, the UE may still monitor certain types of signals or PDCCHs, such as common PDCCHs or paging, during the DRX OFF period, but UE-specific PDCCHs do not need to be monitored during the DRX OFF period.

[0042] If the DRX ON duration period is set to a short value, power consumption will increase due to increased monitoring of the PDCCH. Even in the case where there is no traffic, the UE still needs to be turned on to monitor the PDCCH, which wastes power. On the other hand, DRX incurs long waiting times when traffic arrives and unnecessary power consumption when no traffic arrives.

[0043] To improve power saving capabilities, a Power Saving Signal (PoSS) may be utilized in addition to and together with DRX. For example, PoSS may be based on DCI and may be included in a special DCI in which monitoring is performed during the DRX OFF period. In particular, if a UE receives a PoSS before the start of a DRX On period, the PoSS may inform the UE whether it needs to perform monitoring during the next PDCCH or whether it can remain in the OFF state (or "sleep") during the next DRX On period.

[0044] For example, the PoSS is monitored outside the active time (or DRX ON period) with an offset before DRX ON. The intent of such a configuration includes that the PoSS does not need to be monitored during DRX ON. Furthermore, in this example, a single monitoring occasions (e.g., the PoSS is monitored in only a single slot) is assumed.

[0045] However, support for multiple monitoring occasions may be supported to provide better PoSS reception reliability, support for beamforming / sweeping operations and multiple monitoring occasions may be supported with the operational assumption that multiple monitoring occasions can be set within one or more slots before DRX ON.

[0046] The following two alternatives may be used to specify PoSS monitoring opportunities: Alternative 1: A dedicated configuration with an offset relative to the start of DRX ON is provided, which corresponds to a single position for the monitoring occasion with a configured offset relative to the start of DRX ON. Alternative 2: Offset is based on search space configuration This alternative proposes to utilize the association of a generic search space configuration with DRX, and does not propose new signaling otherwise.

[0047] In the NR specification for generic search space configuration, PDCCH monitoring occasions are controlled by parameters from the information elements (IEs) SearchSpace and ControlResourceSet in RRC signaling, as shown in Figure 6. Basically, the monitoringSlotPeriodicityAndOffset and duration in SearchSpace determine the position on the slot where the PDCCH is monitored. And the bitmap monitoringSymbolWithinSlot in SearchSpace and duration in ControlResourceSet determine the PDCCH monitoring pattern (e.g., start symbol and number of symbols) of the search space within the slot.

[0048] Generally, a monitoring occasion corresponds to a set time and frequency domain resource in a number of consecutive symbols within a slot. Monitoring occasions are specified in TS 38.213 V15.6.0, Section 10.1.

[0049] The UE determines the PDCCH monitoring occasions on the active DL BWP from the PDCCH monitoring period, PDCCH monitoring offset, and PDCCH monitoring pattern in the slot. For a search space set S, the UE determines whether the PDCCH monitoring occasions are:

number

[0050] This definition of monitoring occasions is applicable to monitoring PDCCH for DCI, and is particularly applicable to PoSS monitoring occasions for monitoring DCI-based PoSS included in a specific DCI and monitored outside the DRX ON period.

[0051] As mentioned above, the PoSS monitoring occasion is set before the DRX ON period. The DRX setting also utilizes the period and offset formulas shown in FIG.

[0052] However, when looking at the RRC configuration of drx-LongCycleStartOffset shown below, the periodicity and offset options supported do not align with those of monitoringSlotPeriodicityAndOffset in SearchSpace shown further below.

number

[0053] Therefore, when following the above search space configuration, if the PoSS search space is directly associated with the DRX configuration, the misaligned period of the above configuration may cause PoSS monitoring opportunities to be widely spread during the DRX OFF period. This may make it more difficult for the UE to save power by going to sleep during most of the DRX OFF period and start monitoring PoSS a few slots before DRX ON. This may be an obstacle to directly reusing the above Search Space IE by the PoSS search space configuration and associating it with the DRX configuration.

[0054] Furthermore, the DRX configuration is more UE-specific when considering UE traffic patterns, base station scheduling policies, and time-domain load spreading due to the lack of control / data physical resources. PoSS monitoring occasions are also configured specifically for UEs, but group-based operation is supported for wake-up triggering. Therefore, one monitoring occasion with a fixed offset value before DRX ON is limited for wake-up triggering.

[0055] Furthermore, the above specifications may not be sufficient to support enhancements by setting multiple monitoring occasions for repetition or beamforming operations.

[0056] The present disclosure provides techniques for power-saving signal monitoring. In particular, to specify accurate, well-spaced, and sufficient monitoring opportunities for DCI-based PoSS and clear UE operation in the standard, it is proposed to set a monitoring window or duration and define corresponding UE operation for monitoring PoSS.

[0057] In this disclosure, scheduling nodes such as UEs and base stations and corresponding methods are described for new radio access technologies envisioned for 5G mobile communication systems such as 3GPP NR, but which may also be utilized in LTE mobile communication systems.

[0058] Thus, a communication device (or user equipment or communication terminal) is referred to as UE (User Equipment), and a scheduling node such as a base station may correspond to a gNodeB (gNB).

[0059] Furthermore, some of the terms used below, such as procedures, entities, and layers, are closely related to the terms used in the current 3GPP 5G standards or LTE / LTE-A systems, even though the specific terms used in the context of the upcoming 3GPP 5G communication system's New Radio (NR) access technology have not yet been fully determined or may eventually change. Therefore, the terms may change in the future without affecting the functionality of the embodiments. As a result, those skilled in the art will recognize that the embodiments and their scope of protection should not be limited to the specific terms used herein for illustrative purposes due to the lack of newer or finally agreed-upon terms.

[0060] A communication apparatus or device, such as a UE, and a scheduling node may include a transceiver and circuits, such as a processing circuit. The transceiver may then include and / or function as a receiver and a transmitter. The processing circuit may be one or more hardware components, such as one or more processors or any large-scale integration (LSI). Between the transceiver and the processing circuit, there are input / output points (or nodes) at which the processing circuit can control the transceiver during operation, i.e., control the receiver and / or transmitter, and exchange receive / transmit data. The transceiver may include an RF (Radio Frequency) front, including one or more antennas, amplifiers, RF modulators / demodulators, etc., as a transmitter and receiver. The processing circuit may perform control tasks, such as transmitting user data and control data provided by the processing circuit and / or controlling the transceiver to receive user data and control data that are further processed by the processing circuit. The processing circuit may also be responsible for performing other processes, such as judgments, decisions, calculations, measurements, etc. The transmitter may be responsible for performing transmission processes and other processes related thereto. The receiver may be responsible for performing reception processing and other processing related thereto, such as channel monitoring.

[0061] A user equipment (UE) 760 and a scheduling node 710 are provided as shown in Figure 7. The UE 760 and the scheduling node, which may be a gNB in ​​3GPP NR, communicate over a radio channel in a wireless communication system.

[0062] The UE includes a transceiver 770 (or "UE transceiver") and circuitry 780 ("UE circuitry"), such as processing circuitry.

[0063] During operation, the transceiver receives the configuration of a Power Saving Signal (PoSS) time window. The PoSS time window is a time interval for monitoring the PoSS, which precedes the DRX ON interval for monitoring the PDCCH. The PoSS indicates whether the UE is allowed to skip monitoring the PDCCH during the DRX ON period.

[0064] During operation, the UE circuitry 780 determines the PoSS time window based on the received configuration and controls the transceiver to perform monitoring for the PoSS within the PoSS time window.

[0065] The UE transceiver 770 performs monitoring for the PoSS as controlled by the UE circuitry 770, and may be further controlled by the UE circuitry 780 to perform monitoring for the PDCCH in the next DRX ON period following the PoSS time window in accordance with instructions included in the PoSS.

[0066] For example, if the PoSS indicates that the UE 760 is permitted to skip (or omit) monitoring the PDCCH during the DRX ON period, the UE circuitry 780 controls the UE transceiver 770 to skip monitoring the PDCCH during the DRX ON period during operation. Thus, the UE does not monitor the PDCCH during the DRX ON period. On the other hand, if the PoSS indicates that the UE 760 is not permitted to skip monitoring the PDCCH during the DRX ON period, the UE circuitry 780 controls the UE transceiver 770 to monitor the PDCCH during the DRX ON period.

[0067] As can be seen from Figure 7, the UE circuitry 780 may include a PoSS processing circuitry 785 as shown in Figure 8. For example, the PoSS processing circuitry includes a PoSS time window determining circuitry 886 and a PoSS monitoring circuitry 887.

[0068] The scheduling node includes circuitry 730, ie, "scheduling node circuitry," and transceiver 720, ie, "scheduling node transceiver."

[0069] During operation, the scheduling node circuitry 730 determines the setting of a PoSS time window for the UE to monitor the PoSS, which precedes the DRX ON period for monitoring the PDCCH, and the PoSS indicates whether the UE is allowed to skip monitoring the PDCCH in DRX.

[0070] During operation, the scheduling node transceiver 720 transmits the configuration of the PoSS time window and transmits the PoSS within the time window.

[0071] For example, the scheduling node 710 performs PDCCH transmission in the DRX ON period according to the instruction by the PoSS. Thus, the scheduling node transceiver 720 transmits the PDCCH when the PoSS does not indicate skipping of monitoring during operation, and skips (or omits) the transmission of the PDCCH when the UE indicates that it may skip monitoring for it in the DRX ON period.

[0072] 7, the scheduling node circuitry 730 may include a PoSS determination circuitry 735. As further shown in FIG. 9, the PoSS determination circuitry 735 may include a PoSS time window setting circuitry 936 and a PoSS generation circuitry 937.

[0073] Corresponding to the above apparatus, the present application provides a communication method performed by the UE 760 and a communication method performed by the scheduling node 710. In Figure 10, steps of the communication method performed by the UE 760 and the scheduling node 710 are shown.

[0074] In step S1010, the scheduling node 1010 determines the configuration of a PoSS time window during which PoSS monitoring is performed by the UE 760. The PoSS time window precedes the DRX ON period, and the PoSS indicates whether PDCCH monitoring should be performed by the UE in the DRX ON period. In step S1020, the scheduling node 710 transmits the configuration of the PoSS time window to the UE 760, and the UE 760 receives the configuration from the scheduling node in step S1030. In step S1040, the UE 760 determines the PoSS time window based on the configuration. Furthermore, in step S1050, the scheduling node 710 transmits the PoSS to the UE 760, and in step S1060, the UE 760 monitors the PoSS time window within the configured time window.

[0075] Furthermore, in the DRX ON window, the scheduling node may perform PDCCH transmission according to the PoSS, for example, transmitting the PDCCH or skipping the PDCCH transmission, and the UE monitors the PDCCH or skips monitoring it accordingly.

[0076] For a UE, exemplary steps and decisions in PoSS monitoring are shown in FIG. 11. PoSS monitoring, which includes determining whether monitoring should be performed, starts in step S1110. In step S1120, the UE checks whether it is in a DRX OFF state or whether the current time point is within a DRX OFF period. If not (if no), similar to the DRX ON period, PoSS may not be monitored in S1150. If yes (if yes), the UE checks whether the current time point is within a configured PoSS monitoring window in S1130. If the current time point is not within the PoSS monitoring window, PoSS is not monitored (S1150). If the current time point is within the configured monitoring window, PoSS is monitored in S1140.

[0077] For example, the PoSS is located at a monitoring opportunity within a search space configured according to the above description of FIG. 6. Thus, the period and duration for slots and symbols within the slot may be determined by the search space configuration. However, according to the present disclosure, when a PoSS monitoring window is configured, only monitoring opportunities of the search space located within the window need to be monitored. Thus, the UE may sleep or does not need to perform PoSS monitoring outside the PoSS monitoring window.

[0078] There may be one or more configured search spaces. For example, a UE may be configured with one or more search spaces that include monitoring opportunities for monitoring the PoSS. For example, in multi-beam operation, each search space may be associated with one of multiple beams. The UE transceiver 770 is controlled by the UE circuitry 780 to monitor and perform PoSS monitoring at monitoring opportunities that fall within the PoSS time window.

[0079] Thus, a PoSS time window may be included in multiple PoSS time windows, each configured for a search space from multiple search spaces, each of which is associated with one of multiple beams. During operation, the scheduling node transceiver 720 transmits each of the multiple PoSSs including the PoSS via each of the multiple beams within each PoSS time window configured according to the associated search space.

[0080] In addition to beamforming operations, having a PoSS time window also allows for transmitting repetitions of a power saving signal. Monitoring and receiving the PoSS and its repetitions may provide power saving gains to the UE 660. Thus, in some embodiments, the scheduling node transceiver 720 transmits repetitions of the PoSS within the PoSS time window during operation.

[0081] In the configuration, the PoSS time window, such as the start, end or length of the time window, may be indicated in slots, for example as a number of slots.

[0082] On the other hand, the PoSS monitoring window may also be indicated as the number of monitoring opportunities, such as the number of monitoring opportunities included in the configured search space. For example, using a search space configuration such as that shown in Figure 6, the number of monitoring opportunities may correspond to the product of the number of monitoring slots included in the window, as indicated by the offset and period in the ControlResourceSet and the monitoringSlotPeriodicity, and the number of monitoring symbols (such as "1" bits in the bitmap monitoringSymbolsWithinSlot multiplied by the period in the symbol corresponding to the duration in the SearchSpace IE). Alternatively, with regard to the number of monitoring symbols, only "1" bits in monitoringSymbolsWithinSlot corresponding to the start symbol for monitoring may be counted without multiplying them by the period in the symbol.

[0083] The PoSS configuration may be transmitted and received by RRC signaling.

[0084] It should be understood that any embodiment of the present disclosure may be described and applied to each of the UE 760, scheduling node 710, and corresponding communication method.

[0085] For example, the PoSS time window setting may include an offset indicating the start of the PoSS time window, the offset being an offset relative to the start of the DRX ON period.

[0086] For example, the offset may indicate the number of slots, the time distance in slots, the number of monitoring opportunities between the start of the PoSS monitoring window and the start of the DRX ON period, or the number of slots or monitoring opportunities set before the DRX ON period at which the PoSS monitoring window begins.

[0087] Regarding the end of the PoSS time window, in some embodiments, the PoSS time window ends at the start of the DRX ON period. Thus, the PoSS monitoring window or the last slot of the PoSS time window is the last slot before the start of the DRX ON period adjacent to the first slot in time included in the DRX ON period. Similarly, the last monitoring opportunity may be the last monitoring opportunity included in the search space before the start of the DRX ON period.

[0088] However, in some embodiments, the PoSS time window configuration may include a first offset (e.g., in slots or monitoring occasions) indicating the start of the PoSS time window and a second offset (e.g., in slots or monitoring occasions) indicating the end of the PoSS time window relative to (or with respect to) the start of the DRX ON period. Alternatively, the second offset may indicate the duration of the PoSS time window (in number of slots or monitoring occasions) starting from the start of the PoSS time window.

[0089] Thus, in accordance with the present disclosure, the monitoring opportunity for the PoSS is determined by a window or period. As will be further described, in some embodiments, the PoSS time window may be specific to a search space, for example. Thus, the PoSS time window or monitoring period may be determined by the search space configuration and one offset Xstart or two offsets, a first offset Xstart and a second offset Xend, configured for each search space.

[0090] However, in some embodiments, the setting of the PoSS time window is specific to the DRX configuration, and therefore the window or period for monitoring the PoSS may be determined by one offset Ystart or a first offset Ystart and a second offset Yend associated with the DRX configuration.

[0091] Search-space-specific PoSS time window settings In FIG. 12, an example of search-space-specific PoSS time window settings is shown for two search spaces, Search Space 1 and Search Space 2. A PoSS time window or PoSS monitoring window is defined for each search space by a respective parameter Xstart, which indicates the offset of the start of the PoSS time window. The parameter Xstart is set for each search space configured for PoSS monitoring. In FIG. 12, along with the subsequent FIGS. 13-15, an array of slots is shown, with search spaces shown as hatched slots. Additionally, an "X" marking indicates a slot in the search space that is within the PoSS monitoring window.

[0092] When the UE 760 is in the DRX OFF state, the UE monitors the PoSS at all configured or valid monitoring opportunities in the search space that fall within the PoSS time window that spans from each slot indicated by the Xstart parameter until the next nearest subsequent DRX ON period (period or duration) until the start of the DRX ON period. As described above, the parameter Xstart can be indicated in terms of the number of slots or the number of monitoring opportunities.

[0093] In some embodiments, monitoring opportunities for PoSSs that belong to the DRX ON period may be skipped by the UE when they do not fall within the PoSS monitoring window.

[0094] One or more parameters Xstart may be added to SearchSpace, which is an IE configured by a PS-RNTI (Power Saving Radio Network Temporary Identifier). For example, the PS-RNTI is an RNTI specific to a UE. Alternatively, each parameter Xstart (or Xoffset) can also be configured separately for each search space, and the search space is configured by multiple RNTIs, such as the RNTIs of each search space.

[0095] A variation of the search space specific PoSS time window setting is shown in Figure 13. In particular, instead of using one value, two values ​​may be set for each search space to define the monitoring window or period.

[0096] Thus, the setting of the PoSS time window for the search space can be the parameter pair {Xstart, Xend} or the parameter pair {Xstart, duration or Xduration}. For both parameter pair options, the two parameters may be expressed in terms of duration or units of number of slots or number of monitoring opportunities. As a further alternative, the parameter pair {Xend, duration} may be set.

[0097] Similar to FIG. 12, in the case of two parameters per search space, a monitoring occasion is also applied, and is monitored by the UEs 660 that fall within the monitoring window for the next consecutive DRX ON period.

[0098] Providing a second parameter, either a second offset Yend indicating the end of the PoSS window or an indicator of the window length or duration, allows providing a gap between the end of the PoSS time window and the DRX ON period. Providing a gap by Xend or a period between the PoSS time (monitoring) window and the DRX ON period may facilitate providing a time budget for the UE 660 to process the PoSS, decide whether to wake up or not, and ramp up to start monitoring the PDCCH from the start of DRX ON.

[0099] Similar to the single parameter case, parameter pairs can be added to the SearchSpace IE configured with the PS-RNTI, and each parameter pair for one of multiple search spaces may be configured separately using multiple RNTIs.

[0100] PoSS time window settings specific to DRX settings An example of a PoSS time window configuration specific to the DRX configuration is shown in Figure 14. The start of the PoSS monitoring window is defined as an offset configured by the RRC according to the DRX configuration, which may be called Ystart.

[0101] When the UE 660 is in the DRX OFF state, it monitors the PoSS in all monitoring configurations of all configured valid search spaces that belong to the PoSS time window that spans from the slot indicated by Ystart before the next DRX ON period until the start of the DRX ON period. As can be seen from Figure 14, the PoSS time window has the same number of slots for all search spaces.

[0102] The parameter / offset Xstart can be specified in terms of the number of slots or the number of monitoring opportunities. For example, if the offset is specified as the number of monitoring opportunities, the number of opportunities may be counted as the total number of monitoring opportunities counted over the configured search space.

[0103] Alternatively, it may be specified as a number of monitoring opportunities per search space, in which case the specified number of opportunities is counted in each search space, and the total number of opportunities is the product of the specified number and the number of search spaces.

[0104] As a variant, when configuring the PoSS time window specific to the DRX configuration, rather than using a single value, two values ​​can be configured to define the monitoring window, such as the start and end or its duration. An example of such a configuration is shown in Figure 15.

[0105] For example, the setting of the PoSS time window may include a parameter pair {Ystart, Yend} corresponding to a first and second offset with respect to the start of the DRX ON period, or a parameter pair {Ystart, duration or Yduration} corresponding to an offset and duration. As a further alternative, the parameter pair {Yend, duration} may be set. Similar to the above-mentioned embodiment, in this example also a monitoring occasion is applied and monitored by the UE 660 belonging to the monitoring window for the next consecutive DRX ON period.

[0106] With respect to the search space specific configuration shown in Figure 13, the effect of providing a gap by the duration or second parameter Yend between PoSS monitoring and the DRX ON period is to provide a time budget for the UE to process the PoSS, decide whether to wake up or not, and ramp up to start monitoring the PDCCH from the start of DRX ON.

[0107] The present disclosure may be realized by software, hardware, or software interlocked with hardware. Each functional block described in the above embodiments may be partially or entirely realized by an LSI (Large Scale Integration) such as an integrated circuit, and each process described in each embodiment may be partially or entirely controlled by the same LSI or a combination of LSIs. The LSI may be formed as an individual chip, or a single chip may be formed to include some or all of the functional blocks. The LSI may also include data input / output devices coupled thereto. Here, LSI may be referred to as an IC, system LSI, super LSI, or ultra LSI depending on the degree of integration. However, the technology for realizing an integrated circuit is not limited to LSI, and may be realized using dedicated circuits, general-purpose processors, or application-specific processors. Furthermore, a field programmable gate array (FPGA), which allows reconfiguration of the connections and settings of circuit cells arranged within the LSI or a reconfigurable processor that can be programmed after fabrication, may also be used. The present disclosure may be realized as digital processing or analog processing. As a result of advances in semiconductor technology and other derivative technologies, if future integrated circuit technologies replace LSI, functional blocks can be integrated using future integrated circuit technologies. Biotechnology is also applicable.

[0108] The present disclosure may be implemented by any type of apparatus, device or system having communication capabilities, referred to as a communications apparatus.

[0109] A communication device may include a transceiver and processing / control circuitry. The transceiver may include a receiver and a transmitter and / or function as both a receiver and a transmitter. The transceiver as a transmitter and a receiver may include a radio frequency (RF) module including an amplifier, an RF modulator / demodulator, etc., and one or more antennas.

[0110] Some non-limiting examples of such communication devices include telephones (e.g., mobile (cell) phones, smartphones), tablets, personal computers (PCs) (e.g., laptops, desktops, netbooks), cameras (e.g., digital still / video cameras), digital players (digital audio / video players), wearable devices (e.g., wearable cameras, smart watches, tracking devices), game consoles, digital book readers, telehealth / telemedicine (remote health and remote medical) devices, and vehicles (e.g., automobiles, airplanes, ships) that provide communication capabilities, and various combinations thereof.

[0111] The communications apparatus is not limited to being portable or mobile, but may include any type of apparatus, device or system that is non-portable or fixed, such as smart home devices (e.g., appliances, lighting, smart meters, control panels), vending machines and any other "thing" in an "Internet of Things (IoT)" network.

[0112] Communications may include, for example, exchanging data via cellular systems, wireless LAN systems, satellite systems, and the like, as well as various combinations thereof.

[0113] A communications apparatus may include devices such as a controller or a sensor coupled to the communications device to perform the communications functions described in this disclosure. For example, a communications apparatus may include a controller or a sensor that generates control or data signals used by the communications device to perform the communications functions of the communications apparatus.

[0114] Communications apparatus may also include infrastructure facilities, such as base stations, access points, or any other apparatus, device, or system that communicates with or controls apparatus such as those in the above non-limiting examples.

[0115] The present disclosure provides a user equipment (UE) comprising: a transceiver configured to monitor a Power Saving Signal (PoSS) during operation and to receive a configuration of a PoSS time window preceding a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) ON period for monitoring a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH), the PoSS indicating whether the UE is allowed to skip monitoring the PDCCH during the DRX ON period; and circuitry configured to determine the PoSS time window based on the configuration during operation and to control the transceiver to perform monitoring of the PoSS within the PoSS time window.

[0116] For example, if the PoSS indicates that the UE is able to skip monitoring the PDCCH during the DRX ON period, the circuitry controls the transceiver to skip monitoring the PDCCH during the DRX ON period during operation.

[0117] For example, the PoSS time window setting includes an offset indicating the start of the PoSS time window relative to the start of the DRX ON period.

[0118] In some embodiments, the PoSS time window ends at the start of the DRX ON period.

[0119] In some embodiments, a first offset indicates the start of the PoSS time window and the setting of the PoSS time window includes a second offset indicating the end of the PoSS time window or the duration of the PoSS time window relative to the start of the DRX ON period.

[0120] In some embodiments, the setting of the PoSS time window is search space specific.

[0121] For example, the setting of the PoSS time window is search space specific.

[0122] For example, the UE is configured with one or more search spaces including monitoring opportunities for monitoring the PoSS, and the transceiver performs monitoring of the PoSS on the monitoring opportunities that fall within the PoSS time window during operation.

[0123] For example, the one or more search spaces may include the search spaces of the above-described embodiments in which the setting of the PoSS time window is specific to the search space.

[0124] In some embodiments, the PoSS time window setting is specific to the DRX setting.

[0125] In some embodiments, the PoSS time window is indicated as a number of slots.

[0126] In some embodiments, the PoSS time window is indicated as a number of monitoring occasions.

[0127] In some embodiments, the circuitry controls the transceiver to monitor for repetitions of the PoSS within the PoSS time window during operation.

[0128] For example, the PoSS time window is comprised of a plurality of PoSS time windows, each PoSS time window being configured for a search space from a plurality of search spaces, each search space being associated with one of a plurality of beams.

[0129] Further provided is a scheduling node comprising: circuitry for determining, during operation, a configuration of a PoSS (Power Saving Signal) for monitoring by a user equipment, the PoSS time window preceding a DRX (Discontinuous Reception) ON period for monitoring a PDCCH (Physical Downlink Control Channel), the PoSS indicating whether skipping of monitoring of the PDCCH during the DRX ON period is enabled or not; and a transceiver for transmitting, during operation, the configuration of the PoSS time window and for transmitting the PoSS within the PoSS time window.

[0130] For example, if the PoSS indicates that skipping the monitoring of the PDCCH in the DRX ON period is enabled, the transceiver skips transmitting the PDCCH in the DRX ON period during operation.

[0131] For example, the PoSS time window setting includes an offset indicating the start of the PoSS time window relative to the start of the DRX ON period.

[0132] In some embodiments, the PoSS time window ends at the start of the DRX ON period.

[0133] In some embodiments, a first offset indicates the start of the PoSS time window and the PoSS time window setting includes a second offset indicating the duration of the PoSS time window or the end of the PoSS time window relative to the start of the DRX ON period.

[0134] In some embodiments, the setting of the PoSS time window is specific to the search space.

[0135] For example, the setting of the PoSS time window is search space specific.

[0136] For example, the circuit determines and generates one or more search space configurations including monitoring opportunities for monitoring the PoSS during operation, and the transceiver transmits the PoSS during at least one of the monitoring opportunities that fall within the PoSS time window during operation.

[0137] For example, the one or more search spaces may include the search spaces of the above-described embodiments in which the setting of the PoSS time window is specific to the search space.

[0138] In some embodiments, the PoSS time window setting is specific to the DRX setting.

[0139] In some embodiments, the PoSS time window is indicated as a number of slots.

[0140] In some embodiments, the PoSS time window is indicated as a number of monitoring occasions.

[0141] For example, the transceiver transmits repetitions of the PoSS within the PoSS time window during operation.

[0142] In some embodiments, the PoSS time window is included in a plurality of PoSS time windows, each PoSS time window being set for a search space from a plurality of search spaces, each search space being associated with one of a plurality of beams, and the transceiver transmits each of a plurality of PoSSs including the PoSS on each beam of the plurality of beams within each PoSS time window set according to the associated search space during operation.

[0143] Also provided is a communication method for a user equipment (UE), comprising: receiving a configuration of a PoSS (Power Saving Signal) preceding a DRX (Discontinuous Reception) ON period for monitoring a PDCCH (Physical Downlink Control Channel), the PoSS indicating whether the UE is allowed to skip monitoring the PDCCH in the DRX ON period; determining the PoSS time window based on the configuration; and monitoring the PoSS within the PoSS time window.

[0144] In some embodiments, the method includes skipping monitoring of the PDCCH in the DRX ON period if the PoSS indicates that the UE is enabled to skip monitoring of the PDCCH in the DRX ON period.

[0145] For example, the PoSS time window setting includes an offset indicating the start of the PoSS time window relative to the start of the DRX ON period.

[0146] For example, the PoSS time window ends at the start of the DRX ON period.

[0147] For example, a first offset indicates the start of the PoSS time window, and the PoSS time window configuration includes a second offset indicating the duration of the PoSS time window or the end of the PoSS time window relative to the start of the DRX ON period.

[0148] In some embodiments, the setting of the PoSS time window is specific to the search space.

[0149] For example, the setting of the PoSS time window is search space specific.

[0150] In some embodiments of a UE in which one or more search spaces are configured that include monitoring occasions for monitoring the PoSS, the method includes monitoring the PoSS on the monitoring occasions that fall within the PoSS time window.

[0151] For example, the one or more search spaces may include the search spaces of the above-described embodiments in which the setting of the PoSS time window is specific to the search space.

[0152] For example, the PoSS time window setting is specific to the DRX setting.

[0153] In some embodiments, the PoSS time window is indicated as a number of slots.

[0154] In some embodiments, the PoSS time window is indicated as a number of monitoring occasions.

[0155] For example, the method includes monitoring the repetition of the PoSS within the PoSS time window.

[0156] For example, the PoSS time window may be comprised of a plurality of PoSS time windows, each PoSS time window being set to a search space from a plurality of search spaces, each search space being associated with one of a plurality of beams.

[0157] Further provided is a communication method for a scheduling node for monitoring of a Power Saving Signal (PoSS) by a user equipment, comprising: determining a configuration of a PoSS time window preceding a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) ON period for monitoring a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH), the PoSS indicating whether monitoring of the PDCCH in the DRX ON period is enabled or not; transmitting the configuration of the PoSS time window; and transmitting the PoSS within the PoSS time window.

[0158] For example, the method includes skipping transmission of the PDCCH in the DRX ON period if the PoSS indicates that the UE is allowed to skip monitoring the PDCCH in the DRX ON period.

[0159] For example, the PoSS time window setting includes an offset indicating the start of the PoSS time window relative to the start of the DRX ON period.

[0160] In some embodiments, the PoSS time window ends at the start of the DRX ON period.

[0161] In some embodiments, a first offset indicates the start of the PoSS time window and the PoSS time window setting includes a second offset indicating the duration of the PoSS time window or the end of the PoSS time window relative to the start of the DRX ON period.

[0162] In some embodiments, the setting of the PoSS time window is specific to the search space.

[0163] For example, the setting of the PoSS time window is search space specific.

[0164] For example, the method includes setting one or more search spaces including monitoring occasions for monitoring the PoSS, and transmitting the PoSS in at least one of the monitoring occasions that falls within the PoSS time window.

[0165] For example, the one or more search spaces may include the search spaces of the above-described embodiments in which the setting of the PoSS time window is specific to the search space.

[0166] In some embodiments, the PoSS time window setting is specific to the DRX setting.

[0167] For example, the PoSS time window may be specified as a number of slots.

[0168] For example, the PoSS time window may be specified as a number of monitoring occasions.

[0169] In some embodiments, the method includes transmitting a repetition of the PoSS within the PoSS time window.

[0170] For example, the PoSS time window is included in a plurality of PoSS time windows, each PoSS time window being set to a search space from a plurality of search spaces, each search space being associated with one of a plurality of beams, and the method includes transmitting each of a plurality of PoSSs including the PoSS on each of a plurality of beams within each PoSS time window set according to the associated search space.

[0171] In summary, there are provided a user equipment (UE), a scheduling node, and a communication method between a UE and a scheduling node, wherein the UE includes: a transceiver configured to monitor a Power Saving Signal (PoSS) during operation and to receive a configuration of a PoSS time window preceding a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) ON period for monitoring a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH), the PoSS indicating whether the UE is allowed to skip monitoring the PDCCH in the DRX ON period; and circuitry configured to determine the PoSS time window based on the configuration during operation and to control the transceiver to perform monitoring of the PoSS within the PoSS time window.

Claims

1. A communication device, a circuit for determining a time window for monitoring a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) for Downlink Control Information (DCI), the DCI indicating whether to start a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) ON period; a transceiver that monitors the PDCCH within the time window; and the time window precedes the DRX ON period; The length of the time window is dictated based on the number of search spaces.

2. 2. The communications device of claim 1, wherein if the DCI indicates that the communications device will not start the DRX ON period, the circuitry controls the transceiver not to start monitoring other PDCCHs in the DRX ON period.

3. The communication device of claim 1 , wherein the time window includes a first offset indicating a start of the time window relative to a start of the DRX ON period.

4. The communication device of claim 3 , wherein the time window ends at the start of the DRX ON period.

5. The communications device of claim 3 , wherein a second offset indicates a gap between an end of the time window and the DRX ON period.

6. The communications device of claim 1 , wherein the transceiver performs monitoring of the PDCCH on monitoring occasions within the time window.

7. The communications device of claim 1 , wherein the duration for monitoring the PDCCH in the search space is indicated as a number of slots.

8. The communications device of claim 1 , wherein the search space includes monitoring opportunities, the number of monitoring opportunities corresponding to a product of a number of monitoring slots and a number of monitoring symbols.

9. a scheduling node, a circuit for determining a time window for monitoring a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) for Downlink Control Information (DCI) by a user equipment, the DCI indicating whether a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) ON period is started; a transceiver for transmitting the PDCCH within the time window; and The length of the time window is dictated based on the number of search spaces.

10. 1. A communication method for a communication device, comprising: determining a time window for monitoring a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) for Downlink Control Information (DCI), the DCI indicating whether the communication device should start a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) ON period; monitoring the PDCCH within the time window; and the time window precedes the DRX ON period; A method of communication, wherein the length of the time window is dictated based on the number of search spaces.

11. A communication method for a scheduling node, comprising: determining a time window for monitoring a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) for Downlink Control Information (DCI) by a user equipment, the DCI indicating whether a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) ON period is started; transmitting the PDCCH within the time window; and the time window precedes the DRX ON period; A method of communication, wherein the length of the time window is dictated based on the number of search spaces.

12. The communications device of claim 6 , wherein the single location for the monitoring occasion is set relative to a beginning of the DRX ON period.

13. The communication device of claim 1 , wherein the DCI configuration is received by RRC signaling.

14. The communications device of claim 1 , wherein the PDCCH is monitored outside an active time.

15. An integrated circuit for controlling processing of a communication device, the processing comprising: determining a time window for monitoring a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) for Downlink Control Information (DCI), the DCI indicating whether the communication device should start a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) ON period; monitoring the PDCCH within the time window; and the time window precedes the DRX ON period; The length of the time window is dictated based on the number of search spaces.

16. An integrated circuit for controlling a process of a scheduling node, the process comprising: determining a time window for monitoring a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) for Downlink Control Information (DCI) by a user equipment, the DCI indicating whether a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) ON period is started; transmitting the PDCCH within the time window; and the time window precedes the DRX ON period; The length of the time window is dictated based on the number of search spaces.

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