Temporary reference signal for rapid secondary cell activation

Abstract

A method, system, and device for wireless communications are described. A user equipment (UE) may receive a secondary cell activation message from a base station indicating that a secondary cell is activated in addition to a primary cell at the UE. The UE may identify a slot location of a first portion of an aperiodic reference signal for cell activation measurements based at least in part on the secondary cell activation message and a slot offset between the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal and a second portion of the aperiodic reference signal, the slot offset comprising non-consecutive slots for the slot location. The UE may measure one or more characteristics of the secondary cell based at least in part on the aperiodic reference signal.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] cross reference This patent application claims the interests of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63 / 143662, filed on 29 January 2021 and titled "Temporary Reference Signal for Fast Secondary Cell Activation," filed by Takeda et al., and U.S. Patent Application No. 17 / 586574, filed on 27 January 2022 and titled "Temporary Reference Signal for Fast Secondary Cell Activation," both of which have been assigned to the assignees of this application.

[0002] The following concerns wireless communication including a temporary reference signal for rapid secondary cell activation. [Background technology]

[0003] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication content, including voice, video, packet data, messaging, and broadcasting. These systems may support communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources (e.g., time, frequency, and power). Examples of such multiple access systems include fourth-generation (4G) systems such as Long-Term Evolution (LTE) systems, LTE-A systems, or LTE-A Pro systems, and fifth-generation (5G) systems, sometimes referred to as New Radio (NR) systems. These systems may employ technologies such as Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA), or Discrete Fourier Transform Spread Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (DFT-S-OFDM). A wireless multiple access communication system may, in some cases, include one or more base stations or one or more network access nodes, each simultaneously supporting communication for multiple communication devices, which may sometimes be known as user equipment (UEs). [Overview of the project] [Means for solving the problem]

[0004] The techniques described relate to improved methods, systems, devices, and apparatus for supporting transient reference signals for rapid secondary cell (SCell) activation. Generally, the techniques described enable faster and more efficient activation of SCells for user equipment (UEs). For example, a UE may receive a SCell activation message indicating that a SCell is to be activated. The SCell activation message may be received from a primary cell (PCell) which may be associated with the same base station as the SCell being activated and / or a different base station. The UE may, for example, identify the non-contiguous slot arrangement of the aperiodic reference signal (e.g., the slot position of slot n and the position of slot n+k based on the slot offset between slot n and slot n+k) based on the SCell activation message and / or other configuration. That is, the UE uses the activation message to identify the slot position of slot n, as well as the slot offset, of the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal, and to identify the slot n+k from which the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal is transmitted by the SCell being activated. In this case, the UE may measure the aperiodic reference signal from the SCell using, for example, the associated resource of the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal for slot n, and a slot offset that identifies slot n+k, which has a second portion of the aperiodic reference signal that constitutes a non-contiguous slot. This may allow the UE to synchronize with the SCell for faster and more efficient wireless communication.

[0005] A method for wireless communication in a UE is described. This method may include receiving a SCell activation message from a base station indicating that a SCell is to be activated in addition to a PCell in the UE; identifying, based on the SCell activation message, the slot position of a first portion of an aperiodic reference signal for cell activation measurement, and the slot offset between the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal and a second portion of the aperiodic reference signal, wherein the slot offset includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot position; and measuring one or more characteristics of the SCell based on the aperiodic reference signal. In some examples, the slot position may be for a first plurality of slots carrying the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal, and the slot offset may be between the first plurality of slots and a second plurality of slots carrying the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal, as shown in Figure 3. In some examples, the timing region pattern (e.g., symbols) used for the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal carried in the first plurality of slots may be reused (e.g., the same) for the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal carried in the second plurality of slots.

[0006] The present invention describes an apparatus for wireless communication in a UE. The apparatus may include a processor, a memory coupled to the processor, and instructions stored in the memory. The instructions may be executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to receive a SCell activation message from a base station indicating that a SCell is to be activated in addition to a PCell in the UE; to identify, based on the SCell activation message, the slot position of a first portion of a non-periodic reference signal for cell activation measurement, and the slot offset between the first portion of the non-periodic reference signal and a second portion of the non-periodic reference signal, wherein the slot offset includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot position; and to measure one or more characteristics of the SCell based on the non-periodic reference signal.

[0007] Another device for wireless communication in a UE is described. This device may include means for receiving a SCell activation message from a base station indicating that a SCell is activated in addition to a PCell in the UE; means for identifying, based on the SCell activation message, the slot position of a first portion of a non-periodic reference signal for cell activation measurement, and the slot offset between the first portion of the non-periodic reference signal and the second portion of the non-periodic reference signal, wherein the slot offset includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot position; and means for measuring one or more characteristics of a SCell based on the non-periodic reference signal.

[0008] A non-temporary computer-readable medium for storing code for wireless communication in a UE is described. This code may include instructions executable by a processor to receive a SCell activation message from a base station indicating that a SCell is to be activated in addition to a PCell in the UE; to identify, based on the SCell activation message, the slot position of a first portion of a non-periodic reference signal for cell activation measurement, and the slot offset between the first portion of the non-periodic reference signal and a second portion of the non-periodic reference signal, wherein the slot offset includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot position; and to measure one or more characteristics of the SCell based on the non-periodic reference signal.

[0009] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-temporary computer-readable media described herein, a slot position includes a first slot containing resources for a first portion of a non-periodic reference signal, and a slot offset identifies a second slot containing resources for a second portion of a non-periodic reference signal, the second slot including a slot that is not contiguous with respect to the first slot.

[0010] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-temporary computer-readable media described herein, the resources for the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal between the first slots use a different time-domain pattern than the resources for the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal between the second slots.

[0011] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-temporary computer-readable media described herein, a slot location includes a first set of multiple slots, each slot in the first set of multiple slots includes a resource for a first instance of a non-periodic reference signal; a slot offset identifies a second set of multiple slots, each slot in the second set of multiple slots includes a resource for a second instance of a non-periodic reference signal; and the second set of multiple slots includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the first set of multiple slots.

[0012] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-temporary computer-readable media described herein, the resources for a first instance of a periodic reference signal between a first set of multiple slots use a different time-domain pattern than the resources for a second instance of a periodic reference signal between a second set of multiple slots.

[0013] Some examples of methods, apparatus, and non-temporary computer-readable media described herein may further include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying slot offsets based on one or more of the frequency range of SCell, frequency bands of SCell, frequency band combinations of SCell, subcarrier spacing (SCS) of SCell, bandwidth portion (BWP) configuration of SCell, time-domain duplication (RDD) configuration of SCell, or combinations thereof.

[0014] Some examples of methods, apparatus, and non-temporary computer-readable media described herein may further include operations, functions, means, or instructions for receiving configuration signals indicating slot offsets.

[0015] In some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non - transient computer - readable media described herein, the configuration signal includes downlink control information (DCI) that includes a field indicating a slot offset, a slot position, or both.

[0016] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non - transient computer - readable media described herein may further include operations, features, means, or instructions for transmitting a UE capability message indicating a minimum slot offset value of the UE, and the slot offset may be based on the UE capability message.

[0017] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non - transient computer - readable media described herein may further include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying a minimum slot offset value of the UE for at least one of a frequency range, a frequency band, a frequency - band combination, a sub - carrier spacing (SCS), a bandwidth part (BWP) configuration, or a time - division duplex (TDD) configuration.

[0018] A method for wireless communication in a primary cell (PCell) is described. The method includes identifying, for a user equipment (UE), a slot position of a first part of an aperiodic reference signal for secondary cell (SCell) cell - activation measurement and a slot offset between the first part of the aperiodic reference signal and a second part of the aperiodic reference signal, the slot offset including slots that are not consecutive with respect to the slot position; transmitting to the UE a SCell activation message indicating that the SCell is activated in addition to the PCell in the UE; and triggering transmission of the aperiodic reference signal in the SCell according to the slot position and the slot offset.

[0019] A device for wireless communication in a PCell is described. The device may include a processor, memory coupled to the processor, and instructions stored in the memory. The instructions may be executable by the processor to cause the device to identify for the UE the slot position of a first portion of an aperiodic reference signal for measuring the cell activation of the SCell, and the slot offset between the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal and a second portion of the aperiodic reference signal, wherein the slot offset includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot position, and to indicate that the SCell, in addition to the PCell, is to be activated at the UE, and to send a SCell activation message to the UE that triggers the transmission of an aperiodic reference signal in the SCell according to the slot position and slot offset.

[0020] Another apparatus for wireless communication in a PCell is described. The apparatus may include means for a UE to identify the slot position of a first portion of a non-periodic reference signal for measuring the cell activation of an SCell, and the slot offset between the first portion of the non-periodic reference signal and the second portion of the non-periodic reference signal, wherein the slot offset includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot position; and means for sending an SCell activation message to the UE indicating that an SCell is activated in addition to a PCell, and triggering the transmission of a non-periodic reference signal in the SCell according to the slot position and slot offset.

[0021] This describes a non-temporary computer-readable medium for storing code for wireless communication in a PCell. The code may include instructions executable by a processor to identify for the UE the slot position of a first portion of an aperiodic reference signal for cell activation measurement of a SCell, and the slot offset between the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal and a second portion of the aperiodic reference signal, wherein the slot offset includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot position; to indicate that a SCell, in addition to a PCell, is to be activated at the UE; and to send a SCell activation message to the UE that triggers the transmission of an aperiodic reference signal in the SCell according to the slot position and slot offset.

[0022] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-temporary computer-readable media described herein, a slot position includes a first slot containing resources for a first portion of a non-periodic reference signal, and a slot offset identifies a second slot containing resources for a second portion of a non-periodic reference signal, the second slot including a slot that is not contiguous with respect to the first slot.

[0023] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-temporary computer-readable media described herein, the resources for the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal between the first slots use a different time-domain pattern than the resources for the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal between the second slots.

[0024] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-temporary computer-readable media described herein, a slot location includes a first set of multiple slots, each slot in the first set of multiple slots includes a resource for a first instance of a non-periodic reference signal; a slot offset identifies a second set of multiple slots, each slot in the second set of multiple slots includes a resource for a second instance of a non-periodic reference signal; and the second set of multiple slots includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the first set of multiple slots.

[0025] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-temporary computer-readable media described herein, the resources for a first instance of a periodic reference signal between a first set of multiple slots use a different time-domain pattern than the resources for a second instance of a periodic reference signal between a second set of multiple slots.

[0026] Some examples of methods, apparatus, and non-temporary computer-readable media described herein may further include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying slot offsets based on one or more of the frequency range of SCell, frequency bands of SCell, frequency band combinations of SCell, SCS of SCell, BWP configuration of SCell, TDD configuration of SCell, or combinations thereof.

[0027] Some examples of methods, apparatus, and non-temporary computer-readable media described herein may further include operations, functions, means, or instructions for transmitting configuration signals indicating slot offsets.

[0028] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-temporary computer-readable media described herein, the configuration signal includes a DCI that includes fields indicating slot offset, slot position, or both.

[0029] Some examples of methods, apparatus, and non-temporary computer-readable media described herein may further include operations, features, means, or instructions for receiving a UE capability message indicating a minimum slot offset value of a UE, the slot offset of which may be based on the UE capability message.

[0030] Some examples of methods, apparatus, and non-temporary computer-readable media described herein may further include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying the minimum slot offset value of a UE for at least one of a frequency range, frequency band, frequency band combination, SCS, BWP configuration, or TDD configuration. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0031] [Figure 1] This figure shows an example of a wireless communication system that supports a temporary reference signal for rapid secondary cell (SCell) activation according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 2] This figure shows an example of a wireless communication system that supports a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 3] This figure shows an example of a non-periodic reference signal configuration that supports a transient reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of this disclosure. [Figure 4] This figure shows an example of a non-periodic reference signal configuration that supports a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of this disclosure. [Figure 5] This figure shows an example of a non-periodic reference signal configuration that supports a transient reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of this disclosure. [Figure 6] This is a block diagram of a device supporting a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 7] This is a block diagram of a device supporting a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 8] This is a block diagram of a communications manager supporting a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation, according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 9] This is a diagram of a system including a device that supports a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation, according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 10] This is a block diagram of a device supporting a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 11] This is a block diagram of a device supporting a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 12] This is a block diagram of a communications manager supporting a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation, according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 13] This is a diagram of a system including a device that supports a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation, according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 14] This flowchart shows a method for supporting a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 15] This flowchart shows a method for supporting a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 16] This flowchart shows a method for supporting a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 17] This flowchart shows a method for supporting a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Figure 18] This flowchart shows a method for supporting a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of the present disclosure. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0032] Activating a secondary cell (SCell) generally takes a considerable amount of time because the user equipment (UE) must perform channel state measurements of the SCell, which is activated based on periodic synchronous signal block (SSB) transmissions. For example, SSB transmissions in new radio (NR) wireless communication systems may occur much less frequently than cell-specific reference signal (CRS) transmissions in long-term evolution (LTE) wireless communication systems, and therefore SCell activation in NR may take significantly longer than the CRS cycle. Some wireless communications may support transient reference signals (e.g., aperiodic reference signals) that can be transmitted on the SCell to enable SCell activation without having to wait for SSB transmissions. Transient reference signals may include tracking reference signals (TRS), channel state information (CSI-RS), beam reference signals (BRS), phase tracking reference signals (PTRS), and / or newly designed reference signals. However, while such wireless communication systems are configured so that a transient reference signal can be triggered by a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) or downlink control information (DCI), they do not provide a mechanism for how such configuration signaling is used to construct the transient reference signal, or how the configuration of the transient reference signal is indicated to the UE.

[0033] Furthermore, some activated SCells may be associated with SSB periods greater than a threshold (e.g., SSB period > 160 ms). In this situation, two SSBs are used: the first SSB for automatic gain control (AGC) and the second SSB for channel tracking (e.g., for channel performance measurement). Adopting this approach to the transient reference signal technique described above can be problematic because the wireless communication system only allows transient reference signal resources in one slot or two consecutive slots. This can result in situations where the UE is unable to perform AGC and channel tracking using the TRS.

[0034] The aspects of this disclosure will first be described in the context of a wireless communication system. In general, the techniques described enable faster and more efficient activation of SCells for a UE. For example, a UE may receive a SCell activation message indicating that a SCell is to be activated. The SCell activation message may be received from a primary cell (PCell) which may be associated with the same base station as the SCell being activated and / or a different base station. Based on the SCell activation message and / or other configuration, the UE may identify a non-contiguous slot arrangement of a non-periodic reference signal (for example, the slot position of slot n and the position of slot n+k based on the slot offset between slot n and slot n+k). In this example, both n and k are positive integers.

[0035] In other words, the UE uses the activation message to identify the slot position of slot n of the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal, as well as the slot offset, and to identify the slot n+k from which the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal is transmitted by the activated SCell. The UE may then measure the aperiodic reference signal from the SCell, for example, using the associated resource of the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal in slot n, and the slot offset that identifies the slot n+k where the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal resides, constituting a non-contiguous slot. This may allow the UE to synchronize with the SCell for faster and more efficient wireless communication.

[0036] Aspects of this disclosure will be further illustrated and described with reference to device diagrams, system diagrams, and flowcharts relating to temporary reference signals for rapid SCell activation.

[0037] Figure 1 shows an example of a wireless communication system 100 supporting a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of the present disclosure. The wireless communication system 100 may include one or more base stations 105, one or more UEs 115, and a core network 130. In some examples, the wireless communication system 100 may be an LTE network, an LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) network, an LTE-A Pro network, or an NR network. In some examples, the wireless communication system 100 may support extended broadband communication, ultra-high reliability (e.g., mission-critical) communication, low-latency communication, communication with low-cost and low-complexity devices, or any combination thereof.

[0038] The base stations 105 may be distributed across a geographical area to form a wireless communication system 100 and may be devices of different forms or with different capabilities. The base stations 105 and UEs 115 may communicate wirelessly via one or more communication links 125. Each base station 105 may provide a coverage area 110 on which the UEs 115 and base station 105 can establish one or more communication links 125. The coverage area 110 may be an example of a geographical area on which the base stations 105 and UEs 115 can support the communication of signals by one or more radio access technologies.

[0039] The UE115 may be distributed across the entire coverage area 110 of the wireless communication system 100, and each UE115 may be stationary, mobile, or both at different times. The UE115 may be devices of different forms or with different capabilities. Several exemplary UE115 are shown in Figure 1. The UE115 described herein may be capable of communicating with various types of devices, such as other UE115, base stations 105, or network equipment (e.g., core network nodes, relay devices, integrated access and backhaul (IAB) nodes, or other network equipment), as shown in Figure 1.

[0040] Base station 105 may communicate with the core network 130, communicate with each other, or both. For example, base station 105 may interface with the core network 130 through one or more backhaul links 120 (e.g., via S1, N2, N3, or other interfaces). Base station 105 may communicate with each other through the backhaul links 120 (e.g., via X2, Xn, or other interfaces) directly (e.g., directly between base station 105s), indirectly (e.g., via the core network 130), or both. In some examples, the backhaul links 120 may be one or more wireless links, or may include one or more wireless links.

[0041] One or more of the base stations 105 described herein may include, or be referred to as, a base transceiver station, a radio base station, an access point, a radio transceiver, a node B, an e-node B (eNB), a next-generation node B or giga-node B (either of which may be called a gNB), a home node B, a home e-node B, or other preferred terms.

[0042] UE115 may include, or may be referred to as, a mobile device, wireless device, remote device, handheld device, or subscriber device, or several other preferred terms, where “device” may also be referred to as a unit, station, terminal, or client, in the examples. UE115 may also include, or may be referred to as, personal electronic devices such as cellular phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), tablet computers, laptop computers, or personal computers. In some examples, UE115 may include, or may be referred to as, a wireless local loop (WLL) station, an Internet of Things (IoT) device, any Internet of Things (IoE) device, or a machine-type communications (MTC) device, in the examples, which may be implemented in various items such as appliances, vehicles, meters, etc.

[0043] The UE115 described herein may be capable of communicating with other UE115s, which may sometimes act as repeaters, as well as with various types of devices, such as base stations 105 and network equipment, including, among other examples, macro eNBs or gNBs, small cell eNBs or gNBs, or relay base stations, as shown in Figure 1.

[0044] UE115 and base station 105 may wirelessly communicate with each other via one or more communication links 125 over one or more carriers. The term “carrier” may refer to a set of radio frequency spectrum resources having a defined physical layer structure for supporting communication links 125. For example, a carrier used for communication link 125 may include a portion of the radio frequency spectrum band (e.g., a bandwidth portion (BWP)) operating according to one or more physical layer channels for a given radio access technology (e.g., LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, NR). Each physical layer channel may carry collected signaling (e.g., synchronization signals, system information), control signaling to coordinate operations with the carrier, user data, or other signaling. The wireless communication system 100 may support communication with UE115 using carrier aggregation or multi-carrier operation. UE115 may be configured with multiple downlink component carriers and one or more uplink component carriers according to a carrier aggregation configuration. Carrier aggregation can be used with both frequency-division duplex (FDD) component carriers and time-division duplex (TDD) component carriers.

[0045] In some examples (for instance, in carrier aggregation configurations), a carrier may also have collection or control signaling to coordinate its operation with other carriers. A carrier may be associated with a frequency channel (e.g., an Advanced Universal Mobile Telecommunications System Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA) Absolute Radio Frequency Channel Number (EARFCN)) and may be arranged according to a channel raster for discovery by the UE115. A carrier may operate in standalone mode, where initial collection and connection may be performed via the carrier by the UE115, or it may operate in non-standalone mode, where connection is anchored using different carriers (e.g., the same or different radio access technologies).

[0046] A communication link 125 shown in the wireless communication system 100 may include uplink transmissions from the UE 115 to the base station 105, or downlink transmissions from the base station 105 to the UE 115. The carrier may carry downlink communications or uplink communications (for example, in FDD mode), or may be configured to carry downlink communications and uplink communications (for example, in TDD mode).

[0047] A carrier may be associated with a specific bandwidth in the radio frequency spectrum, and in some examples, the carrier bandwidth may be referred to as the carrier or the “system bandwidth” of the wireless communication system 100. For example, the carrier bandwidth may be one of several predetermined bandwidths for the carrier of a particular radio access technology (e.g., 1.4, 3, 5, 10, 15, 20, 40, or 80 megahertz (MHz)). Devices of the wireless communication system 100 (e.g., base station 105, UE 115, or both) may have a hardware configuration that supports communication on a specific carrier bandwidth, or may be configurable to support communication on one of a set of carrier bandwidths. In some examples, the wireless communication system 100 may include base station 105 or UE 115 that support simultaneous communication over carriers associated with multiple carrier bandwidths. In some examples, each UE 115 being served may be configured to operate on a portion of the carrier bandwidth (e.g., a subband, BWP), or all of it.

[0048] The signal waveform transmitted on a carrier can consist of multiple subcarriers (for example, using multicarrier modulation (MCM) techniques such as orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) or discrete Fourier transform spread OFDM (DFT-S-OFDM). In systems employing MCM techniques, a resource element may consist of one symbol period (e.g., duration of one modulation symbol) and one subcarrier, where the symbol period and subcarrier interval are inversely related. The number of bits carried by each resource element may depend on the modulation scheme (e.g., modulation order, modulation coding rate, or both). Therefore, the more resource elements the UE115 receives, and the higher the modulation order, the higher the data rate of the UE115 can be. Wireless communication resources may refer to a combination of radio frequency spectral resources, temporal resources, and spatial resources (e.g., spatial layers or beams), and the use of multiple spatial layers may further increase the data rate or data integrity for communication with the UE115.

[0049] One or more numerologies may be supported for a carrier, where the numerology may include a subcarrier spacing (Δf) and a cyclic prefix. A carrier may be divided into one or more BWPs having the same or different numerologies. In some examples, UE115 may consist of multiple BWPs. In some examples, a single BWP for a carrier may be active at a given time, and communication for UE115 may be limited to one or more active BWPs.

[0050] The time interval for base station 105 or UE115 is, for example, T s = 1 / (Δf max ·N f It can refer to a sampling period of ) seconds, and can be expressed in multiples of the basic time unit, however, Δf max This can be said to represent the maximum supported subcarrier interval, N fThis may represent the maximum supported Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) size. The time interval of the communication resources may be organized according to radio frames, each having a specified duration (e.g., 10 milliseconds (ms)). Each radio frame may be identified by a system frame number (SFN) (e.g., ranging from 0 to 1023).

[0051] Each frame may contain multiple sequentially numbered subframes or slots, each subframe or slot having the same duration. In some examples, a frame may be divided into subframes (e.g., in the time domain), and each subframe may be further divided into several slots. Alternatively, each frame may contain a variable number of slots, the number of slots may depend on the subcarrier interval. Each slot may contain several symbol periods (e.g., depending on the length of the cyclic prefix prepared for each symbol period). In some wireless communication systems 100, a slot may be further divided into several minislots containing one or more symbols. Except for the cyclic prefix, each symbol period may contain one or more (e.g., N) symbols. f It may include a sampling period of (1) units. The duration of the symbol period may depend on the subcarrier interval or the frequency band of operation.

[0052] A subframe, slot, minislot, or symbol may be the smallest scheduling unit (e.g., in the time domain) of the wireless communication system 100 and may be called a transmit time interval (TTI). In some examples, the TTI duration (e.g., the number of symbol periods in the TTI) may be variable. Additionally or alternatively, the smallest scheduling unit of the wireless communication system 100 may be dynamically selected (e.g., within a burst of shortened TTIs (sTTIs)).

[0053] Physical channels may be multiplexed on the carrier according to various techniques. Physical control channels and physical data channels may be multiplexed on the downlink carrier using one or more of the following techniques: time-division multiplexing (TDM), frequency-division multiplexing (FDM), or hybrid TDM-FDM. A control region (e.g., a control resource set (CORESET)) for a physical control channel may be defined by the number of symbol periods and may extend across the system bandwidth or a subset of the system bandwidth of the carrier. One or more control regions (e.g., CORESETs) may be configured for a set of UE115s. For example, one or more of the UE115s may monitor or search for control regions for control information according to one or more search space sets, each search space set may contain one or more control channel candidates at one or more aggregation levels located in a cascaded manner. The aggregation level for control channel candidates may refer to the number of control channel resources (e.g., control channel elements (CCEs)) associated with encoded information for a control information format having a given payload size. The search space set may include a common search space set configured to send control information to multiple UE115s, and a UE-specific search space set for sending control information to a specific UE115.

[0054] Each base station 105 may provide communication coverage through one or more cells, such as macrocells, small cells, hotspots, or other types of cells, or any combination thereof. The term “cell” may refer to a logical communication entity used for communication with base station 105 (for example, on a carrier) and may be associated with an identifier for distinguishing neighboring cells (for example, a physical cell identifier (PCID), a virtual cell identifier (VCID), or other). In some examples, a cell may also refer to a geographical coverage area 110 or a portion of geographical coverage area 110 (for example, a sector) on which the logical communication entity operates. Such cells may range from smaller areas (for example, structures, subsets of structures) to larger areas, depending on various factors such as the capabilities of base station 105. For example, a cell may be, in the example, a building, a subset of a building, or external space between or overlapping with geographical coverage area 110.

[0055] Macrocells typically cover relatively large geographical areas (e.g., a radius of several kilometers) and can enable unrestricted access by UE115s subscribed to the services of a network provider that supports macrocells. Small cells may be associated with lower-power base stations 105 compared to macrocells, and small cells may operate in the same or different frequency bands as macrocells (e.g., licensed, unlicensed). Small cells may provide unrestricted access to UE115s subscribed to the services of a network provider, or they may provide restricted access to UE115s associated with small cells (e.g., UE115s in a limited subscriber group (CSG), UE115s associated with users in a home or office). Base station 105 may support one or more cells and may also support communication on one or more cells using one or more component carriers.

[0056] In some cases, a carrier may support multiple cells, and different cells may be configured according to different protocol types (e.g., MTC, Narrowband IoT (NB-IoT), Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB)) that can provide access to different types of devices.

[0057] In some examples, base station 105 may be mobile and therefore capable of providing communication coverage to a moving geographical coverage area 110. In some examples, different geographical coverage areas 110 associated with different technologies may overlap, but these different geographical coverage areas 110 may be supported by the same base station 105. In other examples, overlapping geographical coverage areas 110 associated with different technologies may be supported by different base stations 105. The wireless communication system 100 may include, for example, a heterogeneous network in which different types of base stations 105 provide coverage to various geographical coverage areas 110 using the same or different radio access technologies.

[0058] The wireless communication system 100 may support synchronous or asynchronous operation. In synchronous operation, base stations 105 may have similar frame timings, and transmissions from different base stations 105 may be approximately time-coordinated. In asynchronous operation, base stations 105 may have different frame timings, and transmissions from different base stations 105 may, in some cases, not be time-coordinated. The techniques described herein can be used for either synchronous or asynchronous operation.

[0059] Some UE115s, such as MTC devices or IoT devices, may be low-cost or low-complexity devices that can provide automated communication between machines (for example, via machine-to-machine (M2M) communication). M2M communication or MTC may refer to data communication technology that enables devices to communicate with each other or with base stations 105 without human intervention. In some examples, M2M communication or MTC may include communication from devices that incorporate sensors or meters to measure or capture information and relay that information to a central server or application program that utilizes such information or presents it to a human interacting with the application program. Some UE115s may be designed to collect information or enable automated behavior of machines or other devices. Examples of applications for MTC devices include smart metering, inventory monitoring, water level monitoring, equipment monitoring, healthcare monitoring, wildlife monitoring, weather and geological event monitoring, fleet management and tracking, remote security detection, physical access control, and transaction-based business billing.

[0060] Some UE115s may be configured to use power-saving operating modes, such as half-duplex communication (e.g., modes that support one-way communication via transmit or receive, but not simultaneous transmit and receive). In some examples, half-duplex communication may be performed at a reduced peak rate. Other power-saving techniques for the UE115 include entering a power-saving deep sleep mode when not engaged in active communication, operating over a limited bandwidth (e.g., according to narrowband communication), or a combination of these techniques. For example, some UE115s may be configured for operation using narrowband protocol types associated with a defined portion or range within the carrier, within the carrier's guard band, or outside the carrier (e.g., a set of subcarriers or resource blocks (RBs)).

[0061] The wireless communication system 100 may be configured to support ultra-high reliability communication, low latency communication, or various combinations thereof. For example, the wireless communication system 100 may be configured to support ultra-high reliability low latency communication (URLLC) or mission-critical communication. The UE 115 may be designed to support ultra-high reliability, low latency, or critical functions (e.g., mission-critical functions). Ultra-high reliability communication may include private or group communication and may be supported by one or more mission-critical services such as mission-critical push-to-talk (MCPTT), mission-critical video (MCVideo), or mission-critical data (MCData). Support for mission-critical functions may include service prioritization, and mission-critical services may be used for public safety or general commercial purposes. The terms ultra-high reliability, low latency, mission-critical, and ultra-high reliability low latency may be used interchangeably herein.

[0062] In some examples, UE115 may also be able to communicate directly with other UE115 via a device-to-device (D2D) communication link 135 (for example, using a peer-to-peer (P2P) protocol or a D2D protocol). One or more UE115s utilizing D2D communication may be within the geographical coverage area 110 of base station 105. Other UE115s in such a group may be outside the geographical coverage area 110 of base station 105, or in some cases may not be able to receive transmissions from base station 105. In some examples, a group of UE115s communicating via D2D communication may utilize a one-to-many (1:M) system where each UE115 communicates with any other UE115 in the group. In some examples, base station 105 facilitates the scheduling of resources for D2D communication. In other cases, D2D communication occurs between UE115s without the involvement of base station 105.

[0063] In some systems, the D2D communication link 135 may be an example of a communication channel between vehicles (e.g., UE 115), such as a side-link communication channel. In some examples, vehicles may communicate using vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication, or any combination thereof. Vehicles may signal information related to traffic conditions, signal scheduling, weather, safety, emergencies, or any other information related to the V2X system. In some examples, vehicles in a V2X system may communicate with roadside infrastructure such as roadside units, or with the network via one or more network nodes (e.g., base station 105) using vehicle-to-network (V2N) communication, or both.

[0064] The core network 130 may provide user authentication, access authorization, tracking, Internet Protocol (IP) connectivity, and other access, routing, or mobility functions. The core network 130 may be an advanced packet core (EPC) or a 5G core (5GC), which may include at least one control plane entity that manages access and mobility (e.g., a mobility management entity (MME), an access and mobility management function (AMF)), and at least one user plane entity that routes packets or interconnects to external networks (e.g., a serving gateway (S-GW), a packet data network (PDN) gateway (P-GW), or a user plane function (UPF)). The control plane entity may manage non-access layer (NAS) functions, such as mobility, authentication, and bearer management for UE 115 serviced by base station 105 associated with the core network 130. User IP packets may be forwarded through user plane entities that may provide IP address allocation and other functions. A user plane entity may be connected to one or more network operators' IP services 150. These IP services may include access to the Internet, an intranet, an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS), or a packet-switched streaming service.

[0065] Some of the network devices, such as the base station 105, may include sub-components such as an access network entity 140, which may be an example of an access node controller (ANC). Each access network entity 140 may communicate with the UE 115 through one or more other access network transmit entities 145, which may be called radio heads, smart radio heads, or transmit / receive points (TRPs). Each access network transmit entity 145 may include one or more antenna panels. In some configurations, the various functions of each access network entity 140 or base station 105 may be distributed across various network devices (e.g., radio heads and ANCs) or integrated into a single network device (e.g., base station 105).

[0066] The wireless communication system 100 may typically operate using one or more frequency bands in the range of 300 megahertz (MHz) to 300 gigahertz (GHz). Generally, the region from 300 MHz to 3 GHz is called the ultra-high frequency (UHF) region or decimeter band, as the wavelengths range from approximately 1 decimeter to 1 meter. While UHF waves may be blocked or redirected by building and environmental characteristics, their waves can penetrate structures well enough for a macrocell to service an indoor UE 115. Transmitting UHF waves may involve smaller antennas and shorter distances (e.g., less than 100 kilometers) compared to transmitting using lower frequencies and longer waves in the shortwave (HF) or very high frequency (VHF) portions of the spectrum below 300 MHz.

[0067] The wireless communication system 100 may also operate in the super high frequency (SHF) region, using a frequency band from 3 GHz to 30 GHz, also known as the centimeter band, or in the extremely high frequency (EHF) region of the spectrum, also known as the millimeter band (for example, from 30 GHz to 300 GHz). In some examples, the wireless communication system 100 may support millimeter-wave (mmW) communication between the UE 115 and the base station 105, and the EHF antennas of each device may be smaller and more densely spaced than UHF antennas. In some examples, this may facilitate the use of antenna arrays within the device. However, the propagation of EHF transmissions may be subject to greater atmospheric attenuation than SHF or UHF transmissions and may have shorter distances. The techniques disclosed herein may be employed across transmissions using one or more different frequency domains, and the specified use of bands across these frequency domains may vary by country or regulatory body.

[0068] The wireless communication system 100 may utilize both licensed and unlicensed radio frequency spectrum bands. For example, the wireless communication system 100 may employ license-assisted access (LAA), LTE-unlicensed (LTE-U) radio access technology, or NR technology in unlicensed bands such as the 5 GHz Industrial Scientific Medical (ISM) band. When operating in the unlicensed radio frequency spectrum band, devices such as the base station 105 and UE 115 may employ carrier sensing for collision detection and collision avoidance. In some examples, operation in the unlicensed band may be based on a carrier aggregation configuration in conjunction with component carriers operating in the licensed band (e.g., LAA). Operation in the unlicensed spectrum may include, among other examples, downlink transmission, uplink transmission, P2P transmission, or D2D transmission.

[0069] Base station 105 or UE115 may be equipped with multiple antennas that can be used to employ techniques such as transmit diversity, receive diversity, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication, or beamforming. The antennas of base station 105 or UE115 may be located in one or more antenna arrays or antenna panels that can support MIMO operation or transmit beamforming or receive beamforming. For example, one or more base station antennas or antenna arrays may be juxtaposed in an antenna assembly such as an antenna tower. In some examples, the antennas or antenna arrays associated with base station 105 may be located in diverse geographical locations. Base station 105 may have an antenna array having several rows and columns of antenna ports that base station 105 can use to support beamforming for communication with UE115. Similarly, UE115 may have one or more antenna arrays that can support various MIMO or beamforming operations. As an addition or alternative, an antenna panel may support radio frequency beamforming for signals transmitted through antenna ports.

[0070] A base station 105 or UE115 may use MIMO communication to enhance spectral efficiency by leveraging multipath signal propagation by transmitting or receiving multiple signals through different spatial layers. Such techniques are sometimes called spatial multiplexing. Multiple signals may be transmitted by a transmitting device through different antennas or different combinations of antennas. Similarly, multiple signals may be received by a receiving device through different antennas or different combinations of antennas. Each of the multiple signals may be called a separate spatial stream and may carry bits associated with the same data stream (e.g., the same codeword) or different data streams (e.g., different codewords). Different spatial layers may be associated with different antenna ports used for channel measurement and reporting. MIMO techniques include single-user MIMO (SU-MIMO), where multiple spatial layers are transmitted to the same receiving device, and multi-user MIMO (MU-MIMO), where multiple spatial layers are transmitted to multiple devices.

[0071] Beamforming, sometimes called spatial filtering, directional transmission, or directional reception, is a signal processing technique that can be used in a transmitting or receiving device (e.g., base station 105, UE115) to shape or steer an antenna beam (e.g., a transmit beam, a receive beam) along a spatial path between the transmitting and receiving devices. Beamforming can be achieved by combining signals communicated through the antenna elements of an antenna array such that several signals propagating in a particular direction relative to the antenna array undergo constructive interference, while other signals undergo destructive interference. The coordination of signals communicated through antenna elements may include the transmitting or receiving device applying amplitude offset, phase offset, or both to the signals carried through the antenna elements associated with the device. The coordination associated with each antenna element may be defined by a beamforming weight set associated with a particular direction (e.g., relative to the antenna array of the transmitting or receiving device, or to some other direction).

[0072] The base station 105 or UE 115 may use beam sweeping techniques as part of its beamforming operation. For example, the base station 105 may use multiple antennas or antenna arrays (e.g., antenna panels) to perform beamforming operations for directional communication with the UE 115. Several signals (e.g., synchronization signals, reference signals, beam selection signals, or other control signals) may be transmitted multiple times by the base station 105 in different directions. For example, the base station 105 may transmit signals according to different beamforming weight sets associated with different transmission directions. Transmissions in different beam directions may be used to identify beam directions for later transmission or reception by the base station 105 (e.g., by a transmitting device such as the base station 105, or by a receiving device such as the UE 115).

[0073] Some signals, such as data signals associated with a specific receiving device, may be transmitted by the base station 105 in a single beam direction (for example, a direction associated with a receiving device such as UE115). In some examples, the beam direction associated with transmission along a single beam direction may be determined based on signals transmitted in one or more beam directions. For example, UE115 may receive one or more signals transmitted by the base station 105 in different directions, and UE115 may report to the base station 105 an indication of the signal received with the highest signal quality or, in some cases, an acceptable signal quality.

[0074] In some examples, transmission by a device (e.g., by base station 105 or UE115) may be performed using multiple beam directions, and the device may use a combination of digital precoding or radio frequency beamforming to generate a combined beam for transmission (e.g., from base station 105 to UE115). UE115 may report feedback indicating precoding weights for one or more beam directions, and the feedback may correspond to a configured number of beams across the system bandwidth or one or more subbands. Base station 105 may transmit reference signals that may or may not be precoded (e.g., cell-specific reference signals (CRS), channel-state information reference signals (CSI-RS)). UE115 may provide feedback for beam selection, which may be a precoding matrix indicator (PMI) or codebook-based feedback (e.g., a multi-panel type codebook, a linear combination type codebook, a port selection type codebook). These techniques will be described with reference to signals transmitted by the base station 105 in one or more directions, but the UE 115 may employ similar techniques to transmit signals multiple times in different directions (for example, to identify beam directions for subsequent transmission or reception by the UE 115) or to transmit signals in a single direction (for example, to transmit data to a receiving device).

[0075] When a receiving device (e.g., UE115) receives various signals from a base station 105, such as synchronization signals, reference signals, beam selection signals, or other control signals, it may attempt multiple receiving configurations (e.g., directional listening). For example, the receiving device may attempt multiple receiving directions by receiving through different antenna subarrays, by processing the received signal according to different antenna subarrays, by receiving according to different sets of receive beamforming weights (e.g., different directional listening weights) applied to the received signal at multiple antenna elements of an antenna array, or by processing the received signal according to different sets of receive beamforming weights applied to the received signal at multiple antenna elements of an antenna array, any of which may be referred to as “listening” by different receiving configurations or receiving directions. In some examples, the receiving device may use a single receiving configuration to receive along a single beam direction (e.g., when receiving a data signal). A single receiving configuration may be matched to a beam direction determined based on listening by different receiving configuration directions (e.g., the beam direction determined to have the highest signal strength, the highest signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), or possibly acceptable signal quality, based on listening by multiple beam directions).

[0076] The wireless communication system 100 may be a packet-based network operating according to a layered protocol stack. In the user plane, communication at the bearer or Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer may be IP-based. The Radio Link Control (RLC) layer may perform packet segmentation and reassembly for communication on logical channels. The Medium Access Control (MAC) layer may perform priority processing and multiplexing logical channels to transport channels. The MAC layer may also use error detection techniques, error correction techniques, or both to improve link efficiency by supporting retransmission at the MAC layer. In the control plane, the Radio Resource Control (RRC) protocol layer may establish, configure, and maintain RRC connections between the UE 115 and the base station 105 or core network 130, supporting radio bearers for user plane data. At the physical layer, transport channels may be mapped to physical channels.

[0077] UE115 and base station 105 may support data retransmission to increase the likelihood of successful data reception. Hybrid Automatic Retransmission Request (ARQ) feedback is one technique to increase the likelihood of data being correctly received on communication link 125. HARQ may include a combination of error detection (e.g., using cyclic redundancy check (CRC)), forward error correction (FEC), and retransmission (e.g., Automatic Retransmission Request (ARQ)). HARQ can improve throughput at the MAC layer under poor radio conditions (e.g., low signal-to-noise conditions). In some examples, devices may support same-slot HARQ feedback, where the device may provide HARQ feedback in a slot for data received in a previous symbol within a particular slot. In other cases, the device may provide HARQ feedback in subsequent slots or according to some other time interval.

[0078] UE115 may receive a SCell activation message from base station 105 indicating that an SCell is activated in addition to the primary cell at UE115. Based at least partially on the SCell activation message, UE115 may identify the slot position of a first portion of a periodic reference signal for cell activation measurement, and the slot offset between the first portion of the periodic reference signal and the second portion of the periodic reference signal, the slot offset including non-contiguous slots with respect to the slot position. Based at least partially on the periodic reference signal, UE115 may measure one or more characteristics of the SCell.

[0079] The base station 105 (for example, when configured as a PCell for UE 115) may identify for UE 115 the slot position of a first portion of a periodic reference signal for measuring the cell activation of the SCell, and the slot offset between the first portion of the periodic reference signal and the second portion of the periodic reference signal, the slot offset including slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot position. The base station 105 may send an SCell activation message to UE 115 indicating that the SCell is to be activated in addition to the primary cell in UE 115, and triggering the transmission of a periodic reference signal in the SCell according to the slot position and slot offset.

[0080] Figure 2 shows an example of a wireless communication system 200 that supports a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of this disclosure. The wireless communication system 200 may implement an aspect of the wireless communication system 100. The wireless communication system 200 may include base stations 205, 210, and / or UE 215, which may be examples of corresponding devices described herein.

[0081] That is, in some embodiments, base station 205 may be configured as a PCell for UE215, and base station 210 may be an activated SCell for UE215 (e.g., an activated SCell). However, it should be understood that the PCell and SCell activated for UE215 may be associated with the same base station, and / or with different base stations. In examples where the PCell and SCell are associated with different base stations, such base stations may coordinate the manner of communication with UE215 wirelessly and / or via wired connections (e.g., via backhaul connections).

[0082] Some wireless communication systems may improve efficiency by supporting a temporary reference signal, which is supported to facilitate the activation process during SCell activation in certain situations. The temporary reference signal may be supported for SCell activation, for example, in frequency range 1 (FR1) or frequency range 2 (FR2). More broadly, the temporary reference signal may support functions related to AGC setting, time, and / or frequency tracking / tuning during SCell activation.

[0083] In some embodiments, the transient reference signal may also be called the aperiodic reference signal 220, and may be examples such as a TRS, aperiodic CSI-RS, persistent CSI-RS, semi-persistent CSI-RS, sounding reference signal (SRS), or reference signal based on PSS / SSS. Other examples of the type of reference signal that can be configured as the aperiodic reference signal 220 include, but are not limited to, a phase-tracking reference signal and a beam-tracking / management reference signal. Thus, terms such as TRS, aperiodic reference signal, and transient reference signal may be used interchangeably herein.

[0084] Therefore, in some examples, the TRS can be selected as a temporary reference signal (e.g., the aperiodic reference signal 220) for SCell activation. In some examples, the temporary reference signal may be triggered by DCI, MAC CE, etc. The UE 215 may measure the triggered temporary reference signal during the SCell activation procedure after a configured time threshold (e.g., after slot m).

[0085] Conventionally, upon receiving an SCell activation command in a slot, the UE 215 supports transmitting a valid CSI report and applying actions related to the SCell activation command to the SCell to be activated by the end of the slot. T

[0086] [Number]

[0087] may refer to the timing (in ms) between downlink data transmission and the acknowledgement response of downlink data transmission (e.g., HARQ-ACK feedback). T HARQ may refer to the SCell activation delay in ms. If the SCell to be activated is known and belongs to FR1, T activation_time may be T activation_time + 5 ms when the SCell measurement cycle is 160 ms or less (e.g., to support fine tracking), or may be T FirstSSB + T FirstSSB_Max + 5 ms when the SCell measurement cycle is greater than 160 ms (e.g., to support AGC plus fine tracking). If the SCell is unknown and belongs to FR1, and if some conditions are met, T rs may be T activation_time + T FirstSSB_Max + 2 * T SMTC_Max + 5 ms (e.g., to support AGC, fine tracking, and SSB detection). T rs rs ​This generally refers to the SSB-based Measurement and Timing Setting (SMTC) period of the SCell that is activated if the UE provides the SMTC setting for the SCell in the SCell append message. Otherwise, T rs This may refer to an SMTC set with a measObjectNR having the same SSB frequency and subcarrier spacing. If UE215 is not given an SMTC setting or measObjectNR at this frequency, T rs The requirement, including T, is equal to 5ms, assuming the SSB transmission period is 5ms. rs It can be applied to T FirstSSB is a slot

[0088]

number

[0089] This may refer to the time until the end of the first complete SSB burst as indicated by SMTC after T. FirstSSB_Max is a slot

[0090]

number

[0091] This may refer to the time until the end of the first complete SSB burst as indicated by SMTC after [the specified time]. This may satisfy the requirement that, in the case of in-band SCell activation in FR1, all active serving cells and SCells being activated or released are transmitting an SSB burst in the same slot. In the case of cross-band SCell activation, this may refer to the first time that the SCell being activated is transmitting an SSB burst. In FR2, this may refer to the time when all active serving cells and SCells being activated or released are transmitting an SSB burst in the same slot.

[0092] Therefore, in FR1, under certain conditions (e.g., SCell measurement cycle <= 160 ms), when SCell activation is performed using a transient reference signal, the SCell activation delay is:

[0093]

number

[0094] It may also be equal to T. HARQ This generally refers to the timeline until a HARQ-ACK is sent. activation_time Generally, T FirstTempRS It points to +5ms, and here T FirstTempRS is n+T HARQ This is the time from the start or end of the temporary reference signal +3ms. CSI_Reporting This generally refers to the delay until the first available CSI report includes uncertainty about the CSI resources in the CSI report.

[0095] Therefore, in some examples, the transient reference signal may be a TRS (e.g., a non-zero power (NZP)-CSI-RS resource set) configured with the parameter trs-Info. Traditionally, this may include two NZP-CSI-RS resources configured in a slot (on two OFDM symbols), or four NZP-CSI-RS resources configured in two consecutive slots. The TRS may span the bandwidth of the downlink BWP, which becomes active when the SCell is activated (e.g., at least initially). The downlink BWP may correspond to a first active DL-BWP-id configured for the UE215.

[0096] The slot to which the temporary reference signal is sent, the NZP-CSI-RS resource set index, or a combination thereof may be indicated by the triggering signaling of the temporary reference signal. In one option, this may include being communicated by a MAC CE carried by a PDSCH. For example, the MAC CE that triggers the temporary reference signal may be carried by a PDSCH that also carries the MAC CE that activates the SCell. In another example, the MAC CE that triggers the temporary reference signal may be indicated by a different PDSCH than the one that carries the MAC CE that activates the SCell. Another option may include triggering signaling communicated by a DCI. For example, this may include a DCI that schedules a PDSCH that carries the MAC CE that activates the SCell. In yet another example, this may include a different DCI than the one that schedules the PDSCH that carries the MAC CE that activates the SCell.

[0097] According to such conventional techniques, the time-domain allocation of a temporary reference signal can generally consist of two CSI-RS resources configured within a slot, or four CSI-RS resources configured in consecutive slots (which may be the same across two consecutive slots). This can be defined by the higher-layer parameter CSI-RS-resourceMapping.

[0098] Therefore, rapid SCell activation can be improved by using a temporary reference signal configuration. In this context, the SCell activation delay is

[0099]

number

[0100] It can be addressed. HARQ In this case as well, this corresponds to the timeline until the ACK is sent. activation_time Generally, T temp RS It may point to +5ms, and here Ttemp RS is n+T HARQ This is the time to TRS after +3ms. In some embodiments, the activation time may correspond to the time while the UE215 sends a HARQ-ACK in response to the activation command, the time it takes the UE215 to measure the TRS, and the time the UE215 is ready to send the CSI-RS report.

[0101] This technique may be suitable for SCells activated with a SCell measurement cycle of <= 160ms, but other problems may arise for SCells activated with a SCell measurement cycle of > 160ms. For SCell measurement cycles > 160ms, two SSBs must be used. Since the two SSBs are separated by at least 5ms in the time domain, the UE215 has sufficient time to process AGC (e.g., using the first SSB) and to track continuously (e.g., using the second SSB for tracking / fine-tuning). However, the transient reference signal technique described above is generally limited to NZP-CSI-RS resources residing in either one slot or two consecutive slots. That is, since the NZP-CSI-RS resources are contained within a short duration (e.g., up to two slots), the UE215 may not have sufficient time to process AGC and perform precise tracking. In other words, the slot duration (e.g., NR slot length) may be 1ms, 0.5ms, 0.25ms, and 0.125ms for 15kHz, 30kHz, 60kHz, and 120kHz SCS, respectively. Limiting the configuration of the transient reference signal resource to a single slot or spanning two consecutive slots may not give the UE215 sufficient time to use the transient reference signal for AGC operation and subsequent fine-tuning.

[0102] Accordingly, the embodiments of the techniques described provide various mechanisms for SCell activation using a transient reference signal across non-contiguous slots. For example, base station 205 (which may be operating as a PCell for UE215) may decide that base station 210 (for example, the SCell in this example) is to be activated for UE215. Based on the activation of the SCell for UE215, base station 205 may identify the slot location of a first portion of a periodic reference signal 220 for cell activation measurement, and the slot offset between the first portion of the periodic reference signal 220 and a second portion of the periodic reference signal 220. That is, the slot location of the first portion of the periodic reference signal may point to a first slot (and / or a first number of slots) to which resources for the periodic reference signal 220 are allocated. The second portion of the periodic reference signal may point to a second slot (and / or a second number of slots) to which resources for the periodic reference signal 220 are also allocated. The slot offset can correspond to the number of slots (e.g., time-domain separation) between the first and second portions of the aperiodic reference signal 220. As shown in Figure 2, the slot offset generally spans slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot positions.

[0103] The base station 205 may then send a SCell activation message to the UE 215 indicating that the base station 210 (e.g., SCell) is being activated in addition to the PCell (e.g., base station 205 in this example). In some embodiments, the SCell activation message may also trigger the transmission of a periodic reference signal 220 on the SCell according to the slot position and slot offset. For example, the SCell activation message may be transmitted or, optionally, communicated in a DCI and / or MAC CE (e.g., a DCI and / or a different DCI that schedules a MAC CE indicating SCell activation). If the PCell and SCell are controlled or implemented by the same base station 205, the base station may use the SCell activation message as a time trigger or other criterion on which the timing of the a periodic reference signal 220 is based. Alternatively, if the PCell and SCell are controlled or implemented by different base stations 205, the base station 205 implementing the PCell may coordinate with the base station implementing the SCell such that the SCell activation message is a signal or trigger to the base station implementing the SCell in order to transmit a periodic reference signal 220 on the SCell.

[0104] UE215 may identify the slot position of the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal 220 for cell activation measurement, and the slot offset between the first and second portions of the aperiodic reference signal 220. For example, UE215 may identify the slot position and slot offset based on the SCell activation message transmitted from base station 205. Thus, UE215 may use the aperiodic reference signal 220 to measure or optionally determine various characteristics of the SCell. For example, UE215 may use the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal 220 transmitted from base station 210 in the slot corresponding to the slot position to measure or optionally perform an AGC action. UE215 may use the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal 220 transmitted from base station 210 in the slot corresponding to the slot offset related to the slot position (for example, between the second portion) to measure or optionally perform a fine-tuning (e.g., tracking). Therefore, UE215 may send a CSI report showing the measurement results to base station 210 in order to activate base station 210 as SCell for UE215.

[0105] Therefore, in the wireless communication system 200, the transient reference signal is divided into two parts, with the first part (e.g., the first part) located in slot n and the second part (e.g., the second part) located in slot n+k, where k>=0. This may include NZP-CSI-RS resources on the same set of OFDM symbols, which are composed of different slots that are not contiguous with respect to each other. That is, the slot position may correspond to a first slot containing resources for the first part of the aperiodic reference signal 220, and the slot offset may identify a second slot containing resources for the second part of the aperiodic reference signal 220. In this case as well, the first and second slots may be slots that are not contiguous with respect to each other (e.g., there may be at least one slot between slot n containing the first part and slot n+k containing the second part). In some examples, a transient reference signal (e.g., an aperiodic reference signal 220) may consist of multiple NZP-CSI-RS resources, with some resources configured in slot n and others in slot n+k, where k>=0. That is, the time-domain patterns of the NZP-CSI-RS resources in slot n and those in slot n+k are not necessarily identical. Therefore, in this example, the resources for the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal 220 between the first slots may use a different time-domain pattern than the resources for the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal 220 between the second slots.

[0106] In another example (described in more detail with reference to Figure 3), constructing a transient reference signal may involve repeating two TRSs, where the first TRS starts at (or ends at) slot n, and the second TRS starts at slot n+k, where k>=0. That is, in this example, the slot positions may include a first set of slots, each of which contains resources for a first instance of the aperiodic reference signal 220. In this example, the slot offset may identify a second set of slots, each of which contains resources for a second instance of the aperiodic reference signal 220. Again, the time-domain separation between the first set of slots and the second set of slots may span non-contiguous slots.

[0107] In some examples, slot n may be determined by a configured upper layer as an offset from the slot where the triggering PDCCH is detected. Multiple values ​​may be configured. For example, a DCI field (e.g., a CSI request) may be configured to implicitly and / or explicitly indicate at least one of the slot location and / or slot offset values.

[0108] In some embodiments, the required time gap (e.g., slot offset) between the first and second parts of the transient reference signal may depend on how much time is needed for the UE215 to perform AGC setting. Thus, embodiments of the technique described may be based on the UE215 reporting its ability to the network to a minimum configurable value of k (e.g., slot offset). Thus, this may include the UE215 sending a UE capability message that identifies, or possibly indicates, the UE215's minimum slot offset value. In one example, the UE215 may report its minimum configurable value of k (e.g., its minimum slot offset value) based on various parameters. Examples of parameters, but not limited to, include the FR, frequency band, frequency band combination, or SCS of the SCell to be activated, either individually or in any combination. Thus, when reporting its capability, the UE215 may, in one option, report the minimum configurable value of k for each FR, each frequency band, each frequency band combination, each SCS, etc. This could mean that the UE215 reports multiple minimum configurable values ​​for k, and each reported value is specific to a particular case (e.g., a parameter).

[0109] In another example, UE215 may report a minimum configurable value of k common to several FRs, frequency bands, frequency band combinations, or SCSs (e.g., its minimum slot offset value). Thus, UE215 may report a minimum configurable value of k that may be interpreted differently for different cases (e.g., for different parameters). In one limited example, if UE215 reports a minimum configurable value of k=2 in its UE capability message, this may be interpreted as two slots for a particular SCS (e.g., for SCS=30kHz, two slots may correspond to 1ms). 1ms may be interpreted as the required time gap for another SCS. Since UE215 reports k=2 for a reference SCS=30kHz, for example, for SCS=60kHz, the minimum configurable value of k may be considered to be 4. Base station 205 receives the UE capability message and may identify, or possibly select, a slot offset configuration for a temporary reference signal based on the UE capability message.

[0110] In some scenarios, UE215 may be configured as an SMTC for the SCell being activated (for example, for base station 210), and may have at least one serving cell in the same frequency band as the SCell being activated. In this situation, UE215 may not be required to, or expected to, monitor the TRS triggering DCI.

[0111] Figure 3 shows an example of an aperiodic reference signal configuration 300 supporting a transient reference signal for rapid SCell activation, according to an aspect of this disclosure. The aperiodic reference signal configuration 300 may implement aspects of wireless communication systems 100 and / or 200. Aspects of the aperiodic reference signal configuration 300 may be implemented in or by UEs and / or base stations, which may be examples of corresponding devices herein.

[0112] As described above, the aspects of the technique described enable a base station (e.g., PCell) to trigger the transmission of a transient reference signal (e.g., aperiodic reference signal 305) from an SCell to be activated for a UE, the aperiodic reference signal 305 being in non-contiguous slots. That is, the PCell may transmit an SCell activation message indicating that an SCell is to be activated in addition to the PCell at the UE. The SCell activation message may indicate and / or trigger the identification of the slot position of a first portion of the aperiodic reference signal 305 for cell activation measurements (e.g., AGC), as well as the slot offset between the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal 305 and a second portion of the aperiodic reference signal 305, which is also used for cell activation measurements (e.g., fine-tuning / tracking). The slot offset may correspond to the number of slots between the first and second portions of the aperiodic reference signal 305. As shown in Figure 3, the slot locations may correspond to slots that hold resources for the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal 305, and the aperiodic reference signal 305 is a slot that is not contiguous with respect to the slot that holds resources for the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal 305. SCell activation messages may be implicitly and / or explicitly carried, or optionally communicated, by DCI and / or MAC CE.

[0113] Therefore, the aspects of the techniques described may involve the base station and / or UE determining the position of k (e.g., slot offset) for slot n+k (e.g., the second part of the aperiodic reference signal 305). That is, the slot offset may be referred to as k, where slot n corresponds to the first part of the aperiodic reference signal 305, and slot n+k corresponds to the second part of the aperiodic reference signal 305. Various techniques may be used to identify and / or communicate the value of k. As described above, in some examples, the value of k may be determined by the FR, frequency band, frequency band combination, SCS, BWP configuration, TDD UL-DL configuration, etc. of the SCell being activated. Therefore, in some examples, the value of k may be based on UE capability signaling.

[0114] The first option may involve an implicit technique for identifying and / or indicating the value of k (e.g., slot offset). Generally, this may involve a base station (e.g., PCell) and / or UE identifying the slot offset based on the SCell's FR, SCell's frequency band, SCell's frequency band combination, SCell's SCS, SCell's BWP configuration, SCell's TDD configuration, etc. For example, a PCell and / or UE may determine the value of k based on the FR, frequency band, frequency band combination, or SCS, BWP configuration, TDD configuration, etc., for the SCell being activated.

[0115] As one non-restrictive example, if the activated SCell is configured for the FR1 frequency band, k may be set to 2, and if the activated SCell is configured for the FR2 frequency band, k may be set to 3. As another non-restrictive example, if the activated SCell uses a 15 / 30kHz SCS, k may be set to 2, and if the activated SCell uses a 60 / 120kHz SCS, k may be set to 3.

[0116] A second option may involve explicit methods in which the values ​​of n and / or k are explicitly signaled. For example, higher-layer parameters may be used to identify slot n+k. In the case of TRS-based SCell activation (e.g., SCell activation using aperiodic reference signal 305), the UE may receive a DCI format with a CSI request field, which indicates to the UE that an aperiodic TRS will be triggered on the SCell being activated, and where the aperiodic TRS will begin (e.g., slot n is indicated with k). That is, combinations of {n,k} values ​​may be identified by the CSI request field. In a non-restrictive example, the CSI request field values ​​may include a field value of "00" indicating {4,2} (e.g., n=4, k=2), a field value of "01" indicating {5,2}, a field value of "10" indicating {4,3}, and a field value of "11" indicating {5,3}. Therefore, the PCell may transmit a configuration signal to the UE indicating the slot offset, and the configuration signal includes a DCI having fields indicating the slot offset and / or slot position.

[0117] The aperiodic reference signal configuration 300 includes an example in which a first set of slots (two slots are shown as an example) whose slot positions relate to a first portion of the aperiodic reference signal 305 (for example, each slot in the first set of slots may contain resources for a first instance of the aperiodic reference signal). In the non-limiting example shown in Figure 3, the first set of slots spans two slots, and each slot contains resources for a first instance of the aperiodic reference signal 305 (two instances per slot are shown as an example). The slot offsets in this example may identify a second set of slots (two slots are shown as an example) related to a second portion of the aperiodic reference signal 305 (for example, each slot in the second set of slots may contain resources for a second instance of the aperiodic reference signal 305). In the non-restrictive example shown in Figure 3, the second set of slots spans two slots, with each slot containing resources for a second instance of the aperiodic reference signal 305 (two instances per slot are shown simply as an example). Thus, the aperiodic reference signal configuration 300 illustrates an example in which the transient reference signal repeats two TRS starting at (or ending at) slot n, and a second TRS starting at slot n+k, where k>=0.

[0118] Figure 4 shows an example of an aperiodic reference signal configuration 400 supporting a transient reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of this disclosure. The aperiodic reference signal configuration 400 may implement a wireless communication system 100 and / or 200, and / or an aspect of the aperiodic reference signal configuration 300. An aspect of the aperiodic reference signal configuration 400 may be implemented in or implemented by a UE and / or base station, which may be examples of corresponding devices herein.

[0119] As described above, the aspects of the technique described enable a base station (e.g., PCell) to trigger the transmission of a transient reference signal (e.g., aperiodic reference signal 405) from an SCell to be activated for a UE, the aperiodic reference signal 405 being in non-contiguous slots. That is, the PCell may transmit an SCell activation message indicating that an SCell is to be activated in addition to the PCell at the UE. The SCell activation message may indicate and / or trigger the identification of the slot position of a first portion of the aperiodic reference signal 405 for cell activation measurements (e.g., AGC), as well as the slot offset between the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal 405 and a second portion of the aperiodic reference signal 405, which is also used for cell activation measurements (e.g., fine-tuning / tracking). The slot offset may correspond to the number of slots between the first and second portions of the aperiodic reference signal 405. As shown in Figure 4, the slot locations may correspond to slots that hold resources for the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal 405, and the aperiodic reference signal 405 is a slot that is not contiguous with respect to the slot that holds resources for the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal 405. SCell activation messages may be implicitly and / or explicitly carried, or optionally communicated, by DCI and / or MAC CE.

[0120] As described above, in some embodiments, the value of k may be based on the FR, frequency band, frequency band combination, SCS, BWP configuration, TDD UL-DL configuration, etc., of the SCell to be activated. The aperiodic reference signal configuration 400 shows an unrestricted example in which the value of k is at least partially based on the TDD configuration of the SCell to be activated.

[0121] For example, the SCell to be activated may be configured using a TDD configuration in which several slots are designated as downlink slots (D), uplink slots (U), and / or flexible slots (F). The aperiodic reference signal configuration 400 is such that slot n corresponding to the first part of the aperiodic reference signal 405 is a downlink slot or special slot on which an NZP-CSI-RS resource for the aperiodic reference signal 405 can be mapped, and slot n+k corresponding to the second part of the aperiodic reference signal 405 is initially configured as an uplink slot on which an NZP-CSI-RS resource for the aperiodic reference signal 405 cannot be mapped, then the NZP-CSI-RS resource for slot n+k can be deferred to the next slot on which an NZP-CSI-RS resource can be mapped. Thus, in this example, the value of k may be selected and / or updated based on the TDD UL-DL configuration of the SCell to be activated. As described above, the values ​​of n and / or k may be implicitly and / or explicitly indicated to the UE.

[0122] Figure 5 shows an example of an aperiodic reference signal configuration 500 supporting a transient reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of this disclosure. The aperiodic reference signal configuration 500 may implement aspects of wireless communication systems 100 and / or 200, and / or aspects of the aperiodic reference signal configurations 300 and / or 400. Aspects of the aperiodic reference signal configuration 500 may be implemented in or implemented by UEs and / or base stations, which may be examples of corresponding devices herein.

[0123] As described above, the aspects of the technique described enable a base station (e.g., PCell) to trigger the transmission of a transient reference signal (e.g., aperiodic reference signal 505) from an SCell to be activated for a UE, the aperiodic reference signal 505 being in non-contiguous slots. That is, the PCell may transmit an SCell activation message indicating that an SCell, in addition to the PCell, is to be activated at the UE. The SCell activation message may indicate and / or trigger the identification of the slot position of a first portion of the aperiodic reference signal 505 for cell activation measurements (e.g., AGC), as well as the slot offset between the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal 505 and a second portion of the aperiodic reference signal 505, which is also used for cell activation measurements (e.g., fine-tuning / tracking). The slot offset may correspond to the number of slots between the first and second portions of the aperiodic reference signal 505. As shown in Figure 5, the slot locations may correspond to slots that hold resources for the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal 405, and the aperiodic reference signal 405 is a slot that is not contiguous with respect to the slot that holds resources for the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal 405. The SCell activation message may be implicitly and / or explicitly carried, or possibly communicated, by the DCI and / or MAC CE, such as the triggering DCI 510.

[0124] As described above, in some embodiments, the value of k may be based on the FR, frequency band, frequency band combination, SCS, BWP configuration, TDD UL-DL configuration, etc., of the SCell to be activated. The aperiodic reference signal configuration 500 shows a non-limiting example in which the values ​​of n and k are explicitly indicated. That is, a configuration signal may be used to indicate the slot position and / or slot offset.

[0125] For example, a base station (e.g., PCell) may transmit a triggering DCI 510 indicating the values ​​of k and n to the UE. The triggering DCI 510 may be the same DCI that activates SCells for the UE in addition to PCells, or it may be a different DCI. The triggering DCI 510 may carry, or possibly convey, the indication of k and n using one or more fields. For example, a CSI request field may be used to indicate the values ​​of n and k. That is, a combination of {n,k} values ​​may be identified by the CSI request field. In a non-limiting example, the CSI request field values ​​may include a field value of "00" indicating {4,2} (e.g., n=4, k=2), a field value of "01" indicating {5,2}, a field value of "10" indicating {4,3}, and a field value of "11" indicating {5,3}. In a non-limiting example shown in Figure 5, the triggering DCI 510 may indicate {4,3} for the SCell to be activated. Therefore, the PCell may transmit a configuration signal to the UE indicating the slot offset, the configuration signal including a DCI having fields indicating the slot offset and / or slot position. The UE may measure aperiodic reference signals 505 of the first and second parts (e.g., non-contiguous slots) for cell acquisition to the SCell.

[0126] Figure 6 shows a block diagram 600 of device 605 supporting a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of this disclosure. Device 605 may be an example of an aspect of UE115 as described herein. Device 605 may include a receiver 610, a transmitter 615, and a communications manager 620. Device 605 may also include a processor. Each of these components may communicate with one another (for example, via one or more buses).

[0127] Receiver 610 may provide means for receiving information such as packets associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, information channels related to temporary reference signals for rapid SCell activation), user data, control information, or any combination thereof. The information may be passed to other components of device 605. Receiver 610 may utilize a single antenna or a set of multiple antennas.

[0128] The transmitter 615 may provide means for transmitting signals generated by other components of device 605. For example, the transmitter 615 may transmit information such as packets associated with various information channels (e.g., a control channel, a data channel, an information channel related to a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation), user data, control information, or any combination thereof. In some examples, the transmitter 615 may be placed alongside the receiver 610 in the transceiver module. The transmitter 615 may utilize a single antenna or a set of multiple antennas.

[0129] The communication manager 620, receiver 610, transmitter 615, or various combinations thereof or various components thereof may be examples of means for performing various forms of temporary reference signals for rapid SCell activation as described herein. For example, the communication manager 620, receiver 610, transmitter 615, or various combinations thereof or components thereof may support methods for performing one or more of the functions described herein.

[0130] In some examples, the communications manager 620, the receiver 610, the transmitter 615, or various combinations or components thereof may be implemented in hardware (for example, in communications management circuits). The hardware may include a processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof configured as a means for performing, or potentially supporting, the functions described herein. In some examples, a processor and memory coupled to the processor may be configured to perform one or more of the functions described herein (for example, by the processor executing instructions stored in memory).

[0131] As an addition or alternative, in some examples, the communications manager 620, receiver 610, transmitter 615, or various combinations or components thereof may be implemented in code executed by a processor (for example, as communications management software). When implemented in code executed by a processor, the functions of the communications manager 620, receiver 610, transmitter 615, or various combinations or components thereof may be performed by a general-purpose processor, DSP, central processing unit (CPU), graphics processing unit (GPU), ASIC, FPGA, or any combination of these or other programmable logic devices (for example, configured as a means for performing, or potentially supporting, the functions described herein).

[0132] In some examples, the communications manager 620 may be configured to perform various operations (e.g., receiving, monitoring, transmitting) using, or possibly in cooperation with, the receiver 610, the transmitter 615, or both. For example, the communications manager 620 may be integrated with the receiver 610, the transmitter 615, or both to receive information from the receiver 610, send information to the transmitter 615, or receive information, transmit information, or perform various other operations as described herein.

[0133] The communication manager 620 may support wireless communication in the UE according to examples disclosed herein. For example, the communication manager 620 may be configured, or optionally support, means for receiving a SCell activation message from a base station indicating that a SCell is activated in addition to the primary cell in the UE. The communication manager 620 may be configured, or optionally support, means for identifying, based on the SCell activation message, the slot position of a first portion of an aperiodic reference signal for cell activation measurement, and the slot offset between the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal and the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal, wherein the slot offset includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot position. The communication manager 620 may be configured, or optionally support, means for measuring one or more characteristics of the SCell based on the aperiodic reference signal. In some examples, the slot position may be with respect to a first plurality of slots carrying the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal, and the slot offset may be between the first plurality of slots and a second plurality of slots carrying the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal, as shown in Figure 3. In some examples, a timing region pattern (e.g., symbols) used for a first portion of a periodic reference signal carried by a first set of slots may be reused (e.g., the same) for a second portion of a periodic reference signal carried by a second set of slots.

[0134] By including or configuring a communications manager 620 in accordance with the examples described herein, device 605 (e.g., a processor controlling or potentially coupled to a receiver 610, transmitter 615, communications manager 620, or a combination thereof) may support techniques for improving the SCell activation procedure by scheduling non-contiguous slots with aperiodic reference signals to support AGC functionality, frequency / phase tracking / adjustment, etc.

[0135] Figure 7 shows a block diagram 700 of device 705 supporting a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of this disclosure. Device 705 may be an example of an aspect of device 605 or UE115 as described herein. Device 705 may include a receiver 710, a transmitter 715, and a communications manager 720. Device 705 may also include a processor. Each of these components may communicate with one another (for example, via one or more buses).

[0136] The receiver 710 may provide means for receiving information such as packets associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, information channels related to temporary reference signals for rapid SCell activation), user data, control information, or any combination thereof. The information may be passed to other components of device 705. The receiver 710 may utilize a single antenna or a set of multiple antennas.

[0137] The transmitter 715 may provide means for transmitting signals generated by other components of device 705. For example, the transmitter 715 may transmit information such as packets associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, information channels related to temporary reference signals for rapid SCell activation), user data, control information, or any combination thereof. In some examples, the transmitter 715 may be placed alongside the receiver 710 in the transceiver module. The transmitter 715 may utilize a single antenna or a set of multiple antennas.

[0138] Device 705, or various components thereof, may be an example of means for performing various forms of temporary reference signals for rapid SCell activation as described herein. For example, the communications manager 720 may include the SCell activation manager 725, the TRS configuration manager 730, the channel performance manager 735, or any combination thereof. The communications manager 720 may be an example of an embodiment of the communications manager 620 as described herein. In some examples, the communications manager 720, or various components thereof, may be configured to perform various operations (e.g., receiving, monitoring, transmitting) using, or possibly in cooperation with, the receiver 710, the transmitter 715, or both. For example, the communications manager 720 may be integrated with the receiver 710, the transmitter 715, or both thereof to receive information from the receiver 710, send information to the transmitter 715, or receive information, transmit information, or perform various other operations as described herein.

[0139] The communications manager 720 may support wireless communications in the UE according to the examples disclosed herein. The SCell activation manager 725 is configured, or may optionally support, means for receiving SCell activation messages from a base station indicating that SCells are activated in addition to primary cells in the UE. The TRS configuration manager 730 is configured, or may optionally support, means for identifying, based on the SCell activation messages, the slot positions of a first portion of a periodic reference signal for cell activation measurements, and the slot offset between the first portion of the periodic reference signal and a second portion of the periodic reference signal, the slot offset including slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot positions. The channel performance manager 735 is configured, or may optionally support, means for measuring one or more characteristics of the SCell based on the periodic reference signal. In some examples, the slot positions may be for a first plurality of slots carrying a first portion of the periodic reference signal, and the slot offset may be between the first plurality of slots and a second plurality of slots carrying a second portion of the periodic reference signal, as shown in Figure 3. In some examples, a timing region pattern (e.g., symbols) used for a first portion of a periodic reference signal carried by a first set of slots may be reused (e.g., the same) for a second portion of a periodic reference signal carried by a second set of slots.

[0140] Figure 8 shows a block diagram 800 of a communications manager 820 supporting a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of this disclosure. The communications manager 820 may be an example of an aspect of communications manager 620, communications manager 720, or both thereof as described herein. The communications manager 820, or various components thereof, may be an example of means for performing various aspects of the temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation as described herein. For example, the communications manager 820 may include a SCell activation manager 825, a TRS configuration manager 830, a channel performance manager 835, a slot offset manager 840, a configuration manager 845, a UE capability manager 850, or any combination thereof. Each of these components may communicate with one another directly or indirectly (for example, via one or more buses).

[0141] The communications manager 820 may support wireless communications in the UE in accordance with the examples disclosed herein. The SCell activation manager 825 is configured, or may optionally support, means for receiving SCell activation messages from a base station indicating that SCells are activated in addition to primary cells in the UE. The TRS configuration manager 830 is configured, or may optionally support, means for identifying, based on the SCell activation messages, the slot positions of a first portion of a periodic reference signal for cell activation measurements, and the slot offset between the first portion of the periodic reference signal and a second portion of the periodic reference signal, the slot offset including non-contiguous slots with respect to the slot positions. The channel performance manager 835 is configured, or may optionally support, means for measuring one or more characteristics of the SCell based on the periodic reference signal.

[0142] In some examples, the slot position includes a first slot containing resources for a first portion of the aperiodic reference signal, and the slot offset identifies a second slot containing resources for a second portion of the aperiodic reference signal, the second slot including a slot that is not contiguous with respect to the first slot.

[0143] In some examples, the resource for the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal during the first slot uses a different time-domain pattern than the resource for the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal during the second slot.

[0144] In some examples, a slot location includes a first set of multiple slots, each slot in the first set of multiple slots includes resources for a first instance of a periodic reference signal; a slot offset identifies a second set of multiple slots, each slot in the second set of multiple slots includes resources for a second instance of a periodic reference signal; and the second set of multiple slots includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the first set of multiple slots.

[0145] In some examples, the resources for the first instance of the aperiodic reference signal between a first set of multiple slots use a different time-domain pattern than the resources for the second instance of the aperiodic reference signal between a second set of multiple slots.

[0146] In some examples, the slot offset manager 840 may be configured, or possibly support, a means for identifying a slot offset based on one or more of the SCell frequency range, SCell frequency band, SCell frequency band combination, SCell subcarrier spacing, SCell bandwidth subsetting, SCell time-domain duplication configuration, or a combination thereof.

[0147] In some examples, the configuration manager 845 may be configured, or possibly support, for receiving configuration signals indicating slot offsets.

[0148] In some examples, the configuration signal includes downlink control information, which includes fields indicating slot offset, slot position, or both.

[0149] In some examples, the UE capability manager 850 may be configured, or possibly support, a means for sending UE capability messages indicating the minimum slot offset value of the UE, and the slot offset is based on the UE capability message.

[0150] In some examples, the UE capability manager 850 may be configured, or possibly support, a means for identifying, the minimum slot offset value of the UE for at least one of the following: frequency range, frequency band, frequency band combination, subcarrier spacing, bandwidth subconfiguration, or time-domain duplication configuration.

[0151] Figure 9 shows a diagram of system 900 including a device 905 that supports a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation, according to an aspect of this disclosure. Device 905 may be, or include, an example of a component of device 605, device 705, or UE 115 as described herein. Device 905 may communicate wirelessly with one or more base stations 105, UE 115, or any combination thereof. Device 905 may include components for bidirectional voice and data communication, including components for transmitting and receiving communications, such as a communications manager 920, an input / output (I / O) controller 910, a transceiver 915, an antenna 925, a memory 930, a code 935, and a processor 940. These components may communicate electronically via one or more buses (e.g., bus 945) or may be coupled in some cases (e.g., operably, communicatively, functionally, electronically, electrically).

[0152] The I / O controller 910 may manage input and output signals for device 905. The I / O controller 910 may also manage peripheral devices not integrated into device 905. In some cases, the I / O controller 910 may represent physical connections or ports to external peripheral devices. In some cases, the I / O controller 910 may utilize an operating system such as iOS®, ANDROID®, MS-DOS®, MS-WINDOWS®, OS / 2®, UNIX®, LINUX®, or another known operating system. Additionally or alternatively, the I / O controller 910 may represent, or interact with, a modem, keyboard, mouse, touchscreen, or similar device. In some cases, the I / O controller 910 may be implemented as part of a processor, such as processor 940. In some cases, a user may interact with device 905 via the I / O controller 910 or via hardware components controlled by the I / O controller 910.

[0153] In some cases, device 905 may include a single antenna 925. However, in some other cases, device 905 may have two or more antennas 925, and these antennas may be capable of transmitting or receiving multiple wireless transmissions simultaneously. Transceiver 915 may communicate bidirectionally via one or more antennas 925, a wired link, or a wireless link, as described herein. For example, transceiver 915 may represent a wireless transceiver and communicate bidirectionally with another wireless transceiver. Transceiver 915 may also include a modem for modulating packets, providing the modulated packets to one or more antennas 925 for transmission, and demodulating packets received from one or more antennas 925. Transceiver 915, or transceiver 915 and one or more antennas 925, may be examples of transmitters 615, transmitters 715, receivers 610, receivers 710, or any combination thereof or their components, as described herein.

[0154] Memory 930 may include random access memory (RAM) and read-only memory (ROM). Memory 930 may store computer-readable computer-executable code 935, which, when executed by the processor 940, includes instructions that cause device 905 to perform various functions described herein. The code 935 may be stored in a non-temporary computer-readable medium, such as system memory or another type of memory. In some cases, the code 935 may not be directly executable by the processor 940, but (for example, when compiled and executed) can cause the computer to perform the functions described herein. In some cases, memory 930 may include a basic I / O system (BIOS) that can control basic hardware or software operations, such as interaction with peripheral components or peripheral devices.

[0155] The processor 940 may include intelligent hardware devices, such as general-purpose processors, DSPs, CPUs, GPUs, microcontrollers, ASICs, FPGAs, programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic components, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof. In some cases, the processor 940 may be configured to operate a memory array using a memory controller. In some other cases, the memory controller may be integrated into the processor 940. The processor 940 may be configured to execute computer-readable instructions stored in memory (e.g., memory 930) to cause device 905 to perform various functions, such as a function or task that supports a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation. For example, device 905 or components of device 905 may include the processor 940 and memory 930 coupled to the processor 940, and the processor 940 and memory 930 may be configured to perform various functions described herein.

[0156] The communication manager 920 may support wireless communication in the UE in accordance with the examples disclosed herein. For example, the communication manager 920 may be configured, or optionally support, means for receiving a SCell activation message from a base station indicating that a SCell is activated in addition to the primary cell in the UE. The communication manager 920 may be configured, or optionally support, means for identifying, based on the SCell activation message, the slot position of a first portion of a periodic reference signal for cell activation measurement, and the slot offset between the first portion of the periodic reference signal and the second portion of the periodic reference signal, wherein the slot offset includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot position. The communication manager 920 may be configured, or optionally support, means for measuring one or more characteristics of the SCell based on the periodic reference signal.

[0157] By including or configuring a communications manager 920 in accordance with the examples described herein, device 905 may support techniques to improve the SCell activation procedure by scheduling non-contiguous slots with aperiodic reference signals to support AGC functionality, frequency / phase tracking / adjustment, and the like.

[0158] In some examples, the communications manager 920 may be configured to perform various operations (e.g., receiving, monitoring, transmitting) using, or possibly in cooperation with, the transceiver 915, one or more antennas 925, or a combination thereof. Although the communications manager 920 is shown as a separate component, in some examples, one or more functions described with respect to the communications manager 920 may be supported or performed by the processor 940, memory 930, code 935, or a combination thereof. For example, code 935 may include instructions that can be executed by the processor 940 to cause the device 905 to perform various forms of temporary reference signals for rapid SCell activation as described herein, or the processor 940 and memory 930 may be configured to perform or support such operations.

[0159] Figure 10 shows a block diagram 1000 of a device 1005 that supports a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of this disclosure. Device 1005 may be an example of an aspect of a base station 105 as described herein. Device 1005 may include a receiver 1010, a transmitter 1015, and a communications manager 1020. Device 1005 may also include a processor. Each of these components may communicate with one another (for example, via one or more buses).

[0160] Receiver 1010 may provide means for receiving information such as packets associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, information channels related to temporary reference signals for rapid SCell activation), user data, control information, or any combination thereof. The information may be passed to other components of device 1005. Receiver 1010 may utilize a single antenna or a set of multiple antennas.

[0161] The transmitter 1015 may provide means for transmitting signals generated by other components of device 1005. For example, the transmitter 1015 may transmit information such as packets associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, information channels related to temporary reference signals for rapid SCell activation), user data, control information, or any combination thereof. In some examples, the transmitter 1015 may be placed alongside the receiver 1010 in the transceiver module. The transmitter 1015 may utilize a single antenna or a set of multiple antennas.

[0162] The communication manager 1020, receiver 1010, transmitter 1015, or various combinations thereof or various components thereof may be examples of means for performing various forms of temporary reference signals for rapid SCell activation as described herein. For example, the communication manager 1020, receiver 1010, transmitter 1015, or various combinations thereof or components thereof may support methods for performing one or more of the functions described herein.

[0163] In some examples, the communications manager 1020, the receiver 1010, the transmitter 1015, or various combinations or components thereof may be implemented in hardware (for example, in a communications management circuit). The hardware may include a processor, a DSP, an ASIC, an FPGA or other programmable logic device, individual gates or transistor logic, individual hardware components, or any combination thereof configured as a means for performing, or possibly supporting, the functions described herein. In some examples, a processor and memory coupled to the processor may be configured to perform one or more of the functions described herein (for example, by the processor executing instructions stored in memory).

[0164] As an addition or alternative, in some examples, the communications manager 1020, receiver 1010, transmitter 1015, or various combinations or components thereof may be implemented in code executed by a processor (for example, as communications management software). When implemented in code executed by a processor, the functions of the communications manager 1020, receiver 1010, transmitter 1015, or various combinations or components thereof may be performed by a general-purpose processor, DSP, CPU, GPU, ASIC, FPGA, or any combination of these or other programmable logic devices (for example, configured as a means for performing, or potentially supporting, the functions described herein).

[0165] In some examples, the communications manager 1020 may be configured to perform various operations (e.g., receiving, monitoring, transmitting) using, or possibly in cooperation with, the receiver 1010, the transmitter 1015, or both. For example, the communications manager 1020 may be integrated with the receiver 1010, the transmitter 1015, or both to receive information from the receiver 1010, send information to the transmitter 1015, or receive information, transmit information, or perform various other operations as described herein.

[0166] The communication manager 1020 may support wireless communication in a primary cell according to examples disclosed herein. For example, the communication manager 1020 may be configured, or optionally support, means for identifying for the UE the slot position of a first portion of an aperiodic reference signal for cell activation measurement of the SCell, and the slot offset between the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal and the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal, wherein the slot offset includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot position. The communication manager 1020 may be configured, or optionally support, means for sending to the UE an SCell activation message indicating that the SCell is activated in addition to the primary cell, and triggering the transmission of an aperiodic reference signal in the SCell according to the slot position and slot offset. In some examples, the slot position may be with respect to a first plurality of slots carrying the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal, and the slot offset may be between the first plurality of slots and a second plurality of slots carrying the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal, as shown in Figure 3. In some examples, a timing region pattern (e.g., symbols) used for a first portion of a periodic reference signal carried by a first set of slots may be reused (e.g., the same) for a second portion of a periodic reference signal carried by a second set of slots.

[0167] By including or configuring the communications manager 1020 in accordance with the examples described herein, the device 1005 (for example, a processor controlling or optionally coupled to a receiver 1010, a transmitter 1015, the communications manager 1020, or a combination thereof) may support techniques for improving the SCell activation procedure by scheduling non-contiguous slots with aperiodic reference signals to support AGC functionality, frequency / phase tracking / adjustment, etc.

[0168] Figure 11 shows a block diagram 1100 of a device 1105 that supports a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of this disclosure. Device 1105 may be an example of an aspect of device 1005 or base station 105 as described herein. Device 1105 may include a receiver 1110, a transmitter 1115, and a communications manager 1120. Device 1105 may also include a processor. Each of these components may communicate with one another (for example, via one or more buses).

[0169] Receiver 1110 may provide means for receiving information such as packets associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, information channels related to temporary reference signals for rapid SCell activation), user data, control information, or any combination thereof. The information may be passed to other components of device 1105. Receiver 1110 may utilize a single antenna or a set of multiple antennas.

[0170] The transmitter 1115 may provide means for transmitting signals generated by other components of device 1105. For example, the transmitter 1115 may transmit information such as packets associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, information channels related to temporary reference signals for rapid SCell activation), user data, control information, or any combination thereof. In some examples, the transmitter 1115 may be placed alongside the receiver 1110 in the transceiver module. The transmitter 1115 may utilize a single antenna or a set of multiple antennas.

[0171] Device 1105, or various components thereof, may be an example of means for performing various forms of temporary reference signals for rapid SCell activation as described herein. For example, the communications manager 1120 may include the TRS configuration manager 1125, the SCell activation manager 1130, or any combination thereof. The communications manager 1120 may be an example of an embodiment of the communications manager 1020 as described herein. In some examples, the communications manager 1120, or various components thereof, may be configured to perform various operations (e.g., receiving, monitoring, transmitting) using, or possibly in cooperation with, the receiver 1110, the transmitter 1115, or both thereof. For example, the communications manager 1120 may be integrated with the receiver 1110, the transmitter 1115, or both thereof to receive information from the receiver 1110, send information to the transmitter 1115, or receive information, transmit information, or perform various other operations as described herein.

[0172] The communication manager 1120 may support wireless communication in the primary cell in accordance with the examples disclosed herein. The TRS configuration manager 1125 may be configured, or may optionally support, means for the UE to identify the slot position of a first portion of a periodic reference signal for cell activation measurement of the SCell, and the slot offset between the first portion of the periodic reference signal and the second portion of the periodic reference signal, the slot offset including slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot position. The SCell activation manager 1130 may be configured, or may optionally support, means for sending an SCell activation message to the UE indicating that the SCell is to be activated in addition to the primary cell, and triggering the transmission of a periodic reference signal in the SCell according to the slot position and slot offset.

[0173] Figure 12 shows a block diagram 1200 of a communications manager 1220 supporting a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of this disclosure. The communications manager 1220 may be an example of an aspect of communications manager 1020, communications manager 1120, or both thereof as described herein. The communications manager 1220, or various components thereof, may be an example of means for performing various aspects of the temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation as described herein. For example, the communications manager 1220 may include a TRS configuration manager 1225, a SCell activation manager 1230, a slot offset manager 1235, a configuration manager 1240, a UE capability manager 1245, or any combination thereof. Each of these components may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (for example, via one or more buses).

[0174] The communication manager 1220 may support wireless communication in the primary cell in accordance with the examples disclosed herein. The TRS configuration manager 1225 may be configured, or optionally support, for means of identifying for the UE the slot position of a first portion of a periodic reference signal for cell activation measurement of the SCell, and the slot offset between the first portion of the periodic reference signal and the second portion of the periodic reference signal, the slot offset including slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot position. The SCell activation manager 1230 may be configured, or optionally support, for sending to the UE an SCell activation message indicating that the SCell is to be activated in addition to the primary cell, and triggering the transmission of a periodic reference signal in the SCell according to the slot position and slot offset.

[0175] In some examples, the slot position includes a first slot containing resources for a first portion of the aperiodic reference signal, and the slot offset identifies a second slot containing resources for a second portion of the aperiodic reference signal, the second slot including a slot that is not contiguous with respect to the first slot.

[0176] In some examples, the resource for the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal during the first slot uses a different time-domain pattern than the resource for the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal during the second slot.

[0177] In some examples, a slot location includes a first set of multiple slots, each slot in the first set of multiple slots includes resources for a first instance of a periodic reference signal; a slot offset identifies a second set of multiple slots, each slot in the second set of multiple slots includes resources for a second instance of a periodic reference signal; and the second set of multiple slots includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the first set of multiple slots.

[0178] In some examples, the resources for the first instance of the aperiodic reference signal between a first set of multiple slots use a different time-domain pattern than the resources for the second instance of the aperiodic reference signal between a second set of multiple slots.

[0179] In some examples, the slot offset manager 1235 may be configured, or possibly support, a means for identifying a slot offset based on one or more of the SCell frequency range, SCell frequency band, SCell frequency band combination, SCell subcarrier spacing, SCell bandwidth subsetting, SCell time-domain duplication configuration, or a combination thereof.

[0180] In some examples, the configuration manager 1240 may be configured, or possibly support, for transmitting a configuration signal indicating a slot offset.

[0181] In some examples, the configuration signal includes a DCI that contains fields indicating the slot offset, slot position, or both.

[0182] In some examples, the UE capability manager 1245 may be configured, or possibly support, a means for receiving UE capability messages indicating the minimum slot offset value of the UE, and the slot offset is based on the UE capability message.

[0183] In some examples, the UE capability manager 1245 may be configured, or possibly support, a means for identifying, the minimum slot offset value of the UE for at least one of the following: frequency range, frequency band, frequency band combination, subcarrier spacing, bandwidth subsetting, or time-domain duplication configuration.

[0184] Figure 13 shows a diagram of system 1300 including a device 1305 that supports a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation, according to an aspect of this disclosure. Device 1305 may be, or include, an example of a component of device 1005, device 1105, or base station 105 as described herein. Device 1305 may communicate wirelessly with one or more base stations 105, UE 115, or any combination thereof. Device 1305 may include components for bidirectional voice and data communication, including components for transmitting and receiving communications, such as a communications manager 1320, a network communications manager 1310, a transceiver 1315, an antenna 1325, a memory 1330, a code 1335, a processor 1340, and an inter-station communications manager 1345. These components may communicate electronically or optionally coupled (e.g., operably, communicatively, functionally, electronically, electrically) over one or more buses (e.g., bus 1350).

[0185] The network communication manager 1310 may manage communication with the core network 130 (for example, via one or more wired backhaul links). For example, the network communication manager 1310 may manage the transfer of data communications for one or more client devices such as UE 115.

[0186] In some cases, device 1305 may include a single antenna 1325. However, in some other cases, device 1305 may have two or more antennas 1325, and these antennas may be capable of transmitting or receiving multiple wireless transmissions simultaneously. Transceiver 1315 may communicate bidirectionally via one or more antennas 1325, a wired link, or a wireless link, as described herein. For example, transceiver 1315 may represent a wireless transceiver and communicate bidirectionally with another wireless transceiver. Transceiver 1315 may also include a modem for modulating packets, providing the modulated packets to one or more antennas 1325 for transmission, and demodulating packets received from one or more antennas 1325. Transceiver 1315, or transceiver 1315 and one or more antennas 1325, may be examples of transmitters 1015, transmitters 1115, receivers 1010, receivers 1110, or any combination thereof or their components, as described herein.

[0187] Memory 1330 may include RAM and ROM. Memory 1330 may store computer-readable computer-executable code 1335, which, when executed by processor 1340, includes instructions that cause device 1305 to perform various functions described herein. Code 1335 may be stored in a non-temporary computer-readable medium, such as system memory or another type of memory. In some cases, code 1335 may not be directly executable by processor 1340, but (for example, when compiled and executed) can cause the computer to perform the functions described herein. In some cases, memory 1330 may include a BIOS that can control basic hardware or software operations, in particular, such as interaction with peripheral components or devices.

[0188] The processor 1340 may include intelligent hardware devices, such as general-purpose processors, DSPs, CPUs, GPUs, microcontrollers, ASICs, FPGAs, programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic components, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof. In some cases, the processor 1340 may be configured to operate a memory array using a memory controller. In some other cases, the memory controller may be integrated into the processor 1340. The processor 1340 may be configured to execute computer-readable instructions stored in memory (e.g., memory 1330) to cause device 1305 to perform various functions, such as a function or task that supports a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation. For example, device 1305 or components of device 1305 may include the processor 1340 and memory 1330 coupled to the processor 1340, and the processor 1340 and memory 1330 may be configured to perform various functions described herein.

[0189] The inter-station communication manager 1345 may manage communication with other base stations 105 and may include a controller or scheduler for coordinating with other base stations 105 to control communication with the UE 115. For example, the inter-station communication manager 1345 may coordinate scheduling for transmissions to the UE 115 for various interference mitigation techniques such as beamforming or joint transmission. In some examples, the inter-station communication manager 1345 may provide an X2 interface within the LTE / LTE-A wireless communication network technology for communication between base stations 105.

[0190] The communication manager 1320 may support wireless communication in the primary cell according to the examples disclosed herein. For example, the communication manager 1320 may be configured, or optionally support, means for the UE to identify the slot position of a first portion of an aperiodic reference signal for cell activation measurement of the SCell, and the slot offset between the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal and the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal, wherein the slot offset includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot position. The communication manager 1320 may be configured, or optionally support, means for sending an SCell activation message to the UE indicating that the SCell is activated in addition to the primary cell, and triggering the transmission of an aperiodic reference signal in the SCell according to the slot position and slot offset. In some examples, the slot position may be with respect to a first plurality of slots carrying the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal, and the slot offset may be between the first plurality of slots and a second plurality of slots carrying the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal, as shown in Figure 3. In some examples, a timing region pattern (e.g., symbols) used for a first portion of a periodic reference signal carried by a first set of slots may be reused (e.g., the same) for a second portion of a periodic reference signal carried by a second set of slots.

[0191] By including or configuring a communications manager 1320 according to the examples described herein, device 1305 may support techniques to improve the SCell activation procedure by scheduling non-contiguous slots with aperiodic reference signals to support AGC functionality, frequency / phase tracking / adjustment, etc.

[0192] In some examples, the communications manager 1320 may be configured to perform various operations (e.g., receiving, monitoring, transmitting) using, or possibly in cooperation with, the transceiver 1315, one or more antennas 1325, or a combination thereof. Although the communications manager 1320 is shown as a separate component, in some examples, one or more functions described with respect to the communications manager 1320 may be supported or performed by the processor 1340, memory 1330, code 1335, or a combination thereof. For example, code 1335 may include instructions that can be executed by the processor 1340 to cause the device 1305 to perform various forms of temporary reference signals for rapid SCell activation as described herein, or the processor 1340 and memory 1330 may be configured to perform or support such operations.

[0193] Figure 14 shows a flowchart illustrating method 1400 supporting a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of this disclosure. The operation of method 1400 may be implemented by a UE or its components as described herein. For example, the operation of method 1400 may be performed by UE 115 as described with reference to Figures 1 to 9. In some examples, the UE may execute a set of instructions to control a functional element of the UE to perform the function described. Additional or alternative, the UE may perform aspects of the function described using dedicated hardware.

[0194] In 1405, the method may include the step of receiving a SCell activation message from the base station indicating that an SCell is to be activated in addition to the primary cell at the UE. The operation of 1405 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein. In some examples, the operation of 1405 may be performed by a SCell activation manager 825, as described with reference to Figure 8.

[0195] In 1410, the method may include the step of identifying, based on a SCell activation message, the slot position of a first portion of a periodic reference signal for cell activation measurement, and a slot offset between the first portion of the periodic reference signal and a second portion of the periodic reference signal, wherein the slot offset includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot position. The operation of 1410 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein. In some examples, the mode of operation of 1410 may be performed by a TRS configuration manager 830, as described with reference to Figure 8. In some examples, the slot position may be for a first plurality of slots carrying the first portion of the periodic reference signal, and the slot offset may be between the first plurality of slots and a second plurality of slots carrying the second portion of the periodic reference signal, as shown in Figure 3. In some examples, a timing region pattern (e.g., symbols) used for the first portion of the periodic reference signal carried in the first plurality of slots may be reused (e.g., the same) for the second portion of the periodic reference signal carried in the second plurality of slots.

[0196] In 1415, the method may include the step of measuring one or more characteristics of the SCell based on a non-periodic reference signal. The operation of 1415 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein. In some examples, the operation of 1415 may be performed by a channel performance manager 835, as described with reference to Figure 8.

[0197] Figure 15 shows a flowchart illustrating method 1500 supporting a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of this disclosure. The operation of method 1500 may be implemented by a UE or its components as described herein. For example, the operation of method 1500 may be performed by UE 115 as described with reference to Figures 1 to 9. In some examples, the UE may execute a set of instructions to control a functional element of the UE to perform the function described. Additional or alternative, the UE may perform aspects of the function described using dedicated hardware.

[0198] In 1505, the method may include the step of receiving a SCell activation message from the base station indicating that an SCell is to be activated in addition to the primary cell at the UE. The operation of 1505 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein. In some examples, the operation of 1505 may be performed by a SCell activation manager 825, as described with reference to Figure 8.

[0199] In 1510, the method may include the step of identifying, based on the SCell activation message, the slot position of a first portion of a periodic reference signal for cell activation measurement, and the slot offset between the first portion of the periodic reference signal and the second portion of the periodic reference signal, wherein the slot offset includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot position. The operation of 1510 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein. In some examples, the operation of 1510 may be performed by a TRS configuration manager 830, as described with reference to Figure 8.

[0200] In 1515, the method may include the step of identifying a slot offset based on one or more of the frequency range of the SCell, the frequency band of the SCell, the frequency band combination of the SCell, the subcarrier spacing of the SCell, the bandwidth subconfiguration of the SCell, the time-domain duplication configuration of the SCell, or a combination thereof. The operation of 1515 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein. In some examples, the operation of 1515 may be performed by a slot offset manager 840, as described with reference to Figure 8.

[0201] In 1520, the method may include the step of measuring one or more characteristics of the SCell based on a non-periodic reference signal. The operation of 1520 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein. In some examples, the operation of 1520 may be performed by a channel performance manager 835, as described with reference to Figure 8.

[0202] Figure 16 shows a flowchart illustrating method 1600 supporting a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of this disclosure. The operation of method 1600 may be implemented by a UE or its components as described herein. For example, the operation of method 1600 may be performed by UE 115 as described with reference to Figures 1 to 9. In some examples, the UE may execute a set of instructions to control a functional element of the UE to perform the function described. Additional or alternative, the UE may perform aspects of the function described using dedicated hardware.

[0203] In 1605, the method may include the step of sending a UE capability message indicating the minimum slot offset value of the UE, the slot offset being based on the UE capability message. The operation of 1605 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein. In some examples, the operation of 1605 may be performed by a UE capability manager 850, as described with reference to Figure 8.

[0204] In 1610, the method may include the step of receiving a SCell activation message from the base station indicating that an SCell is to be activated in addition to the primary cell at the UE. The operation of 1610 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein. In some examples, the operation of 1610 may be performed by a SCell activation manager 825, as described with reference to Figure 8.

[0205] In 1615, the method may include the step of identifying, based on the SCell activation message, the slot position of a first portion of a periodic reference signal for cell activation measurement, and the slot offset between the first portion of the periodic reference signal and the second portion of the periodic reference signal, wherein the slot offset includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot position. The operation of 1615 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein. In some examples, the operation of 1615 may be performed by a TRS configuration manager 830, as described with reference to Figure 8.

[0206] In 1620, the method may include the step of measuring one or more characteristics of the SCell based on a non-periodic reference signal. The operation of 1620 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein. In some examples, the operation of 1620 may be performed by a channel performance manager 835, as described with reference to Figure 8.

[0207] Figure 17 shows a flowchart illustrating method 1700 supporting a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of this disclosure. The operation of method 1700 may be implemented by a base station or its components as described herein. For example, the operation of method 1700 may be performed by base station 105 as described with reference to Figures 1-5 and 10-13. In some examples, the base station may execute a set of instructions to control the functional elements of the base station to perform the functions described. In addition or alternatively, the base station may perform aspects of the functions described using dedicated hardware.

[0208] In 1705, the method may include the step of identifying for the UE the slot position of a first portion of a periodic reference signal for the cell activation measurement of SCell, and the slot offset between the first portion of the periodic reference signal and the second portion of the periodic reference signal, wherein the slot offset includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot position. The operation of 1705 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein. In some examples, the mode of operation of 1705 may be performed by a TRS configuration manager 1225, as described with reference to Figure 12. In some examples, the slot position may be for a first plurality of slots carrying the first portion of the periodic reference signal, and the slot offset may be between the first plurality of slots and a second plurality of slots carrying the second portion of the periodic reference signal, as shown in Figure 3. In some examples, the timing region pattern (e.g., symbols) used for the first portion of the periodic reference signal carried in the first plurality of slots may be reused (e.g., the same) for the second portion of the periodic reference signal carried in the second plurality of slots.

[0209] In 1710, the method may indicate that an SCell is activated in addition to the primary cell in the UE, and may send an SCell activation message to the UE that triggers the transmission of a periodic reference signal in the SCell according to the slot position and slot offset. The operation of 1710 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein. In some examples, the operation of 1710 may be performed by an SCell activation manager 1230, as described with reference to Figure 12.

[0210] Figure 18 shows a flowchart illustrating method 1800 supporting a temporary reference signal for rapid SCell activation according to an aspect of this disclosure. The operation of method 1800 may be implemented by a base station or its components as described herein. For example, the operation of method 1800 may be performed by base station 105 as described with reference to Figures 1-5 and 10-13. In some examples, the base station may execute a set of instructions to control the base station's functional elements to perform the functions described. In addition or alternatively, the base station may perform aspects of the functions described using dedicated hardware.

[0211] In 1805, the method may include the step of identifying for the UE the slot position of a first portion of a periodic reference signal for cell activation measurement of SCell, and the slot offset between the first portion of the periodic reference signal and the second portion of the periodic reference signal, wherein the slot offset includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot position. The operation of 1805 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein. In some examples, the operation of 1805 may be performed by a TRS configuration manager 1225, as described with reference to Figure 12.

[0212] In 1810, the method may include the step of transmitting a configuration signal indicating a slot offset. The operation of 1810 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein. In some examples, the operation of 1810 may be performed by a configuration manager 1240, as described with reference to Figure 12.

[0213] In 1815, the method may indicate that an SCell is activated in addition to the primary cell in the UE, and may send an SCell activation message to the UE that triggers the transmission of a periodic reference signal in the SCell according to the slot position and slot offset. The operation of 1815 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein. In some examples, the operation of 1815 may be performed by a SCell activation manager 1230, as described with reference to Figure 12.

[0214] The following provides an overview of the aspects of this disclosure.

[0215] Embodiment 1: A method for wireless communication in a UE, comprising the steps of: receiving a SCell activation message from a base station indicating that a SCell is to be activated in addition to a PCell in the UE; identifying, at least in part, the slot positions of a first plurality of slots carrying a first portion of an aperiodic reference signal for cell activation measurement, and the slot offsets between the first plurality of slots and a second plurality of slots carrying a second portion of an aperiodic reference signal, wherein the slot offsets include non-contiguous slots, and the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal of the second plurality of slots uses the same set of symbols as the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal of the first plurality of slots; and measuring one or more characteristics of a SCell, at least in part, based on the aperiodic reference signal.

[0216] Embodiment 2: The method of Embodiment 1, wherein the SCell activation message is received in MAC CE, DCI message, or both.

[0217] Embodiment 3: The method of Embodiment 1 or 2, further comprising the step of identifying a slot offset based at least partially on one or more of the frequency range of the SCell, the frequency band of the SCell, the frequency band combination of the SCell, the subcarrier spacing of the SCell, the bandwidth subconfiguration of the SCell, the time-domain duplication configuration of the SCell, or a combination thereof.

[0218] Embodiment 4: The method according to any one of Embodiments 1 to 3, further comprising the step of receiving a configuration signal indicating a slot offset.

[0219] Embodiment 5: The method of Embodiment 4, wherein the configuration signal includes downlink control information including a field indicating a slot offset, a slot position, or both.

[0220] Embodiment 6: A method of any embodiment 1 to 5, further comprising the step of sending a UE capability message indicating the minimum slot offset value of the UE, wherein the slot offset is at least partially based on the UE capability message.

[0221] Embodiment 7: The method of Embodiment 6, further comprising the step of identifying a minimum slot offset value of the UE for at least one of a frequency range, frequency band, frequency band combination, subcarrier spacing, bandwidth subconfiguration, or time-domain duplication configuration.

[0222] Embodiment 8: A method for wireless communication in a PCell, the method comprising: identifying, for a UE, the slot positions of a first plurality of slots carrying a first portion of an aperiodic reference signal for cell activation measurement of a SCell, and the slot offsets between the first plurality of slots and a second plurality of slots carrying a second portion of an aperiodic reference signal, wherein the slot offsets include non-contiguous slots, and the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal in the second plurality of slots uses the same set of symbols as the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal in the first plurality of slots; and transmitting a SCell activation message to the UE indicating that a SCell is to be activated in addition to a PCell, and triggering the transmission of an aperiodic reference signal in the SCell according to the slot positions and slot offsets.

[0223] Embodiment 9: The method of Embodiment 8, wherein the SCell activation message is sent in a MAC CE, a DCI message, or both.

[0224] Embodiment 10: The method of Embodiment 8 or 9, further comprising the step of identifying a slot offset based at least partially on one or more of the frequency range of the SCell, the frequency band of the SCell, the frequency band combination of the SCell, the subcarrier spacing of the SCell, the bandwidth subconfiguration of the SCell, the time-domain duplication configuration of the SCell, or a combination thereof.

[0225] Embodiment 11: Any method of Embodiments 8 to 10, further comprising the step of transmitting a configuration signal indicating a slot offset.

[0226] Embodiment 12: The method of Embodiment 11, wherein the configuration signal includes downlink control information including a field indicating a slot offset, a slot position, or both.

[0227] Embodiment 13: A method of any of Embodiments 8 to 12, further comprising the step of receiving a UE capability message indicating a minimum slot offset value of the UE, wherein the slot offset is at least partially based on the UE capability message.

[0228] Embodiment 14: The method of Embodiment 13, further comprising the step of identifying a minimum slot offset value of the UE for at least one of a frequency range, frequency band, frequency band combination, subcarrier spacing, bandwidth subconfiguration, or time-domain duplication configuration.

[0229] Embodiment 15: A device for wireless communication in a UE, comprising a processor, a memory coupled to the processor, and instructions stored in the memory that can be executed by the processor to cause the device to perform any of Embodiments 1 to 7.

[0230] Embodiment 16: An apparatus for wireless communication in a UE, comprising at least one means for carrying out any of the methods of Embodiments 1 to 7.

[0231] Embodiment 17: A non-temporary computer-readable medium for storing code for wireless communication in a UE, wherein the code includes instructions that can be executed by a processor to perform any of Embodiments 1 to 7.

[0232] Embodiment 18: A device for wireless communication in a PCell, comprising a processor, a memory coupled to the processor, and instructions stored in the memory that can be executed by the processor to cause the device to perform any of the methods in Embodiments 8 to 14.

[0233] Embodiment 19: An apparatus for wireless communication in a PCell, comprising at least one means for carrying out any of the methods of Embodiments 8 to 14.

[0234] Embodiment 20: A non-temporary computer-readable medium for storing code for wireless communication in a PCell, wherein the code includes instructions that can be executed by a processor to perform any of the methods in Embodiments 8 to 14.

[0235] It should be noted that the methods described herein describe possible implementations, that the operations and steps may be reconfigured or otherwise modified, and that other implementations are possible. Furthermore, two or more embodiments of these methods may be combined.

[0236] While embodiments of LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, or NR systems may be described as examples, and the terms LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, or NR may be used extensively in the description, the techniques described herein are applicable to networks other than LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, or NR. For example, the techniques described may be applicable to various other wireless communication systems such as Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20, Flash-OFDM, and other systems and wireless technologies not expressly mentioned herein.

[0237] The information and signals described herein can be represented using a wide variety of technologies and techniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be mentioned throughout this description may be represented by voltage, electric current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, light fields or optical particles, or any combination thereof.

[0238] The various exemplary blocks and components described in this disclosure may be implemented or run using general-purpose processors, DSPs, ASICs, CPUs, GPUs, FPGAs or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but alternatively, a processor may be any processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices (e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors working with a DSP core, or any other such configuration).

[0239] The functions described herein may be implemented in hardware, software executed by a processor, or any combination thereof. Software is broadly interpreted to mean instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subprograms, software modules, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable files, execution threads, procedures, or functions, whether called software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or otherwise. When implemented in software executed by a processor, the functions may be stored on or transmitted via computer-readable media as one or more instructions or code. Other examples and implementations are within the scope of this disclosure and the accompanying claims. For example, due to the nature of the software, the functions described herein may be implemented using software executed by a processor, hardware, hardwiring, or any combination thereof. Features that implement the functions may also be physically located in various locations, including the distribution of parts of the functions so that they are implemented in various physical locations.

[0240] Computer-readable media include both non-temporary computer storage media and communication media, including any media that enables the transfer of computer programs from one location to another. Non-temporary storage media can be any available media that can be accessed by a general-purpose or dedicated computer. By example, and not by limitation, non-temporary computer-readable media may include RAM, ROM, electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), flash memory, compact disk (CD) ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other non-temporary media that can be used to carry or store desired program code means in the form of instructions or data structures, and can be accessed by a general-purpose or dedicated computer or general-purpose or dedicated processor. Any connection is also appropriately called computer-readable media. For example, if software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave, then coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of computer-readable media. As used herein, the terms "disk" and "disc" include CDs, laserdiscs, optical discs, digital multipurpose discs (DVDs), floppy disks, and Blu-ray® discs, where a disk typically reproduces data magnetically and a disc reproduces data optically using a laser. Combinations of these terms are also included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0241] When used herein, including within the claims, “or” as used in an enumeration of items (for example, an enumeration of items beginning with a phrase such as “at least one of” or “one or more of”) indicates an inclusive enumeration, such as the enumeration “at least one of A, B, or C” meaning A or B or C or AB or AC or BC or ABC (i.e., A and B and C). Furthermore, the phrase “based on” as used herein should not be construed as a reference to a closed set of conditions. For example, an exemplary step described as “based on condition A” may be based on both condition A and condition B without departing from the scope of this disclosure. In other words, the phrase “based on” as used herein should be construed in the same way as the phrase “at least partially based on.”

[0242] In the attached diagrams, similar components or features may have the same reference label. Furthermore, various components of the same type may be distinguished by following the reference label with a dash and a second label that distinguishes similar components. Where only the first reference label is used herein, the description is applicable to any of the similar components having the same first reference label, regardless of the second reference label or any other subsequent reference labels.

[0243] The descriptions provided herein with respect to the accompanying drawings describe exemplary configurations and do not necessarily represent all examples that may be implemented or that fall within the scope of the claims. The term “exemplary” as used herein means “acting as an example, case, or illustration,” and does not mean “preferred” or “advantageous over other examples.” Detailed descriptions include specific details to facilitate understanding of the described techniques. However, these techniques may be practiced without these specific details. In some cases, known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form to avoid obscuring the concepts of the examples described.

[0244] The descriptions herein are provided to enable those skilled in the art to create or use this disclosure. Various modifications of this disclosure will become apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other variations without departing from the scope of this disclosure. Accordingly, this disclosure should be given the broadest scope that is consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein, and is not limited to the examples and designs described herein. [Explanation of symbols]

[0245] 100 Wireless Communication Systems 105 Base station 110 coverage area 115 UE 120 backhaul links 125 Communication Link 130 Core Network 135 Device-to-Device (D2D) Communication Links 140 Access Network Entities 145 Access Network Transmitting Entities 150 IP services 200 Wireless Communication Systems 205 Base Station 210 base station 215 UE 220 Aperiodic reference signal 300 Aperiodic reference signal configuration 305 Aperiodic reference signal 400 Aperiodic reference signal configuration 405 Aperiodic reference signal 500 Aperiodic Reference Signal Configuration 505 Aperiodic reference signal 510 Triggering DCI 605 devices 610 Receiver 615 Transmitter 620 Communications Manager 705 devices 710 Receiver 715 Transmitter 720 Communications Manager 725 SCell Activation Manager 730 TRS Configuration Manager 820 Communication Manager 825 SCell Activation Manager 830 TRS Configuration Manager 835 Channel Performance Manager 840 Slot Offset Manager 845 Configuration Manager 850 UE Capability Manager 905 Device 910 Input / Output (I / O) Controller 915 Transceiver 920 Communication Manager 925 Antenna 930 Memory 935 Code 940 Processor 945 Bus 1005 Device 1010 Receiver 1015 Transmitter 1020 Communication Manager 1105 Device 1110 Receiver 1115 Transmitter 1120 Communication Manager Trs Configuration Manager 1130 SCell Activation Manager 1220 Communication Manager 1225 TRS Configuration Manager 1230 SCell Activation Manager 1235 Slot Offset Manager 1240 Configuration Manager 1245 UE Capability Manager 1305 Device 1310 Network Communication Manager 1315 Transceiver 1320 Communication Manager 1325 Antenna 1330 memory 1335 Code 1340 processor 1345 Inter-station communications manager 1400 methods 1500 ways 1600 methods 1700 methods 1800 methods

Claims

1. A method for wireless communication in user equipment (UE), The steps include: receiving a secondary cell activation message from the base station indicating that the secondary cell will be activated in addition to the primary cell in the aforementioned UE; Steps to identify, based on the secondary cell activation message, the slot positions of a first plurality of slots that carry a first portion of a periodic reference signal for cell activation measurement, and the slot offset between the first plurality of slots and a second plurality of slots that carry a second portion of the periodic reference signal, wherein the slot offset includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot positions, and the second portion of the periodic reference signal of the second plurality of slots uses the same set of symbols as the first portion of the periodic reference signal of the first plurality of slots; A step of measuring one or more characteristics of the secondary cell based on the non-periodic reference signal. Methods that include...

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the secondary cell activation message is received in a media access control (MAC) control element (CE), a downlink control information (DCI) message, or both.

3. Steps to identify the slot offset based on one or more of the frequency range of the secondary cell, the frequency band of the secondary cell, the frequency band combination of the secondary cell, the subcarrier spacing of the secondary cell, the bandwidth subconfiguration of the secondary cell, the time-domain duplication configuration of the secondary cell, or a combination thereof. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

4. The step further includes receiving a configuration signal indicating the slot offset. The method according to claim 1.

5. The configuration signal includes downlink control information that includes fields indicating the slot offset, the slot position, or both. The method according to claim 4.

6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of transmitting a UE capability message indicating the minimum slot offset value of the UE, wherein the slot offset is based on the UE capability message.

7. Steps to identify the minimum slot offset value of the UE for at least one of a frequency range, frequency band, frequency band combination, subcarrier spacing, bandwidth subconfiguration, or time-domain duplication configuration. The method according to claim 6, further comprising:

8. A method performed by a base station for wireless communication in a primary cell, For a user device (UE), the steps of identifying the slot positions of a first plurality of slots that carry a first portion of an aperiodic reference signal for cell activation measurement of a secondary cell, and the slot offset between the first plurality of slots and a second plurality of slots that carry a second portion of the aperiodic reference signal, wherein the slot offset includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot positions, and the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal of the second plurality of slots uses the same set of symbols as the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal of the first plurality of slots. The steps include: indicating that the secondary cell is activated in addition to the primary cell in the UE, and sending a secondary cell activation message to the UE that triggers the transmission of the aperiodic reference signal in the secondary cell according to the slot position and the slot offset; Methods that include...

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the secondary cell activation message is transmitted in a media access control (MAC) control element (CE), a downlink control information (DCI) message, or both.

10. Steps to identify the slot offset based on one or more of the frequency range of the secondary cell, the frequency band of the secondary cell, the frequency band combination of the secondary cell, the subcarrier spacing of the secondary cell, the bandwidth subconfiguration of the secondary cell, the time-domain duplication configuration of the secondary cell, or a combination thereof. The method according to claim 8, further comprising:

11. The method according to claim 8, further comprising the step of transmitting a configuration signal indicating the slot offset.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the configuration signal includes downlink control information including a field indicating the slot offset, the slot position, or both.

13. The method of claim 8, further comprising the step of receiving a UE capability message indicating the minimum slot offset value of the UE, wherein the slot offset is based on the UE capability message.

14. Steps to identify the minimum slot offset value of the UE for at least one of a frequency range, frequency band, frequency band combination, subcarrier spacing, bandwidth subconfiguration, or time-domain duplication configuration. The method according to claim 13, further comprising:

15. A device for wireless communication in user equipment (UE), A means for receiving a secondary cell activation message from a base station indicating that a secondary cell is activated in addition to the primary cell in the aforementioned UE, Means for identifying, based on the secondary cell activation message, the slot positions of a first plurality of slots that carry a first portion of a periodic reference signal for cell activation measurement, and the slot offset between the first plurality of slots and a second plurality of slots that carry a second portion of the periodic reference signal, wherein the slot offset includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot positions, and the second portion of the periodic reference signal of the second plurality of slots uses the same set of symbols as the first portion of the periodic reference signal of the first plurality of slots. means for measuring one or more characteristics of the secondary cell based on the aperiodic reference signal, A device equipped with the following features.

16. A device for wireless communication in a primary cell, Means for identifying, for a user device (UE), the slot positions of a first plurality of slots carrying a first portion of an aperiodic reference signal for cell activation measurement of a secondary cell, and the slot offset between the first plurality of slots and a second plurality of slots carrying a second portion of the aperiodic reference signal, wherein the slot offset includes slots that are not contiguous with respect to the slot positions, and the second portion of the aperiodic reference signal of the second plurality of slots uses the same set of symbols as the first portion of the aperiodic reference signal of the first plurality of slots; Means for sending a secondary cell activation message to the UE, indicating that the secondary cell is activated in addition to the primary cell, and triggering the transmission of the aperiodic reference signal in the secondary cell according to the slot position and the slot offset, A device equipped with the following features.

17. A computer program, when executed on a computer, includes instructions for performing the method described in any one of claims 1 to 14.

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