Method and apparatus for a power-efficient paging procedure for multiple subscriber identification module WTRUs.

Abstract

Methods and configurations relating to a wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU) in the form of a multiple subscriber identity module (MUSIM) are discussed. Paging information for the WTRU may be optimized with respect to power consumption. The paging information may be modified to provide one or more of a maximum deep sleep duration requirement, a minimum number of power state transitions, and a minimum power penalty associated with the power state transitions. The modified paging information may set a paging occasion offset window and a time direction indication associated therewith.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] (Cross - Reference to Related Applications) This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63 / 229,337, filed on August 4, 2021, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

[0002] (Field of the Invention) This disclosure relates to methods and apparatuses for wireless transmit and / or receive units (WTRUs) in a wireless communication system.

Background Art

[0003] This disclosure relates to any of paging procedures in a fifth - generation (5G) and / or new radio (NR) system, power consumption improvement of 5G NR idle / inactive WTRUs, and multi - SIM operation and multi - SIM paging.

Summary of the Invention

[0004] According to embodiments, a WTRU may be configured or a method may be performed for operation as a multi-subscriber identity module (MUSIM) device. Messages relating to the operation of the WTRU as a MUSIM device may be provided to a first network, and information indicating an initial paging occasion associated with the first network may be received from the first network. The WTRU may transmit paging assistance information to the first network. The paging assistance information may include, among other things, a first offset, a second offset, and a direction indicator. According to embodiments, the first offset may indicate the minimum offset relative to the initial paging occasion associated with the first network, the second offset may indicate the maximum offset relative to the initial paging occasion associated with the first network, and the direction indicator may indicate whether the first and second offsets should be applied before or after the initial paging occasion associated with the first network. The network may provide information indicating updated paging occasions, which may be signaled as a new WTRU-ID, paging group ID, paging pattern ID, paging cycle, and / or other information.

[0005] In embodiments, the first and second offsets of the first network may be determined by the WTRU based on the paging occasions associated with the second network. Furthermore, the first and second offsets of the first network may be optimized for the power consumption of the WTRU. In embodiments, the first and second offsets of the first network may be optimized for one or more of the longest possible deep sleep duration between paging occasions, the minimum number of state transitions, and the minimum power penalty associated with power state transitions. In embodiments, the first and second offsets for the first network may be determined based on a minimum and maximum offset threshold for a set of paging occasions for both the first and second networks.

[0006] In embodiments, the WTRU may select a first network and a second network from a pool of active and available networks (e.g., multiple networks) such that, for example, the first and second offsets of the first network have unidirectional indications. An updated paging occasion associated with the first network may occur between the minimum and maximum offsets relative to the initial paging occasion associated with the first network. One or more other elements may be combined and incorporated into the configuration and operation method. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0007] A more detailed understanding can be obtained from the following detailed description, which is given as an example in conjunction with the drawings attached to this specification. The figures in such drawings, as well as the detailed description, are illustrative. Therefore, the figures and detailed description should not be considered limiting, and other similarly effective examples are possible and likely. Furthermore, similar reference numbers ("ref") within the figures ("FIG") indicate similar elements. [Figure 1A]This is a system diagram illustrating an exemplary communication system in which one or more disclosed embodiments may be implemented. [Figure 1B] This is a system diagram illustrating an exemplary wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU) that may be used in the communication system illustrated in Figure 1A, according to one embodiment. [Figure 1C] This is a system diagram illustrating an exemplary radio access network (RAN) and an exemplary core network (CN) that may be used in the communication system illustrated in Figure 1A according to one embodiment. [Figure 1D] This is a system diagram illustrating a further exemplary RAN and a further exemplary CN that may be used in the communication system illustrated in Figure 1A according to one embodiment. [Figure 2] This figure illustrates an example of WTRU-assisted MUSIM paging optimization according to an embodiment. [Figure 3] This figure illustrates an example of WTRU-assisted paging optimization according to an embodiment. [Figure 4] This figure illustrates an example of a WTRU action / procedure for power-efficient MUSIM paging according to an embodiment. [Figure 5] This figure illustrates a further example of a WTRU action / procedure for power-efficient MUSIM paging using primary network and anchor network determination according to the embodiment. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0008] Introduction The following detailed description includes numerous specific details to provide a complete understanding of the embodiments and / or examples disclosed herein. However, it will be understood that such embodiments and examples may be practiced without some or all of the specific details described herein. In other examples, well-known methods, procedures, components and circuits are not described in detail so as not to obscure the following description. Furthermore, embodiments and examples not specifically described herein may be practiced in place of, or in combination with, the embodiments and other examples explicitly, implicitly, and / or essentially (collectively "provided") herein, disclosed, or otherwise provided.

[0009] Exemplary network for implementation of the embodiment Figure 1A illustrates an exemplary communication system 100 in which one or more disclosed embodiments may be implemented. The communication system 100 may be a multiple access system that provides content such as voice, data, video, message transmission, and broadcast to multiple wireless users. The communication system 100 may enable multiple wireless users to access such content through the sharing of system resources, including wireless bandwidth. For example, the communication system 100 may use one or more channel access methods, such as code division multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), quadrature FDMA (OFDMA), single-carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA), zero-tail unique word DFT-Spread OFDM (ZT UW DTS-s OFDM), unique word OFDM (UW-OFDM), resource block filtering OFDM, and filter bank multicarrier (FBMC).

[0010] As shown in Figure 1A, the communication system 100 may include radio transmit / receive units (WTRUs) 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, RAN 104 / 113, CN 106 / 115, public switched telephone network (PSTN) 108, the Internet 110, and other networks 112, but it will be understood that the disclosed embodiments intend any number of WTRUs, base stations, networks, and / or network elements. Each of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d may be any type of device configured to operate and / or communicate in a radio environment. For example, WTRU102a, 102b, 102c, and 102d, any of which may be referred to as “station” and / or “STA”, may be configured to transmit and / or receive radio signals and may include user equipment (UE), mobile stations, fixed or mobile subscriber units, subscriber-based units, pagers, mobile phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), smartphones, laptops, netbooks, personal computers, radio sensors, hotspots or Mi-Fi devices, Internet of Things (IoT) devices, watches or other wearable devices, head-mounted displays (HMDs), vehicles, drones, medical devices and applications (e.g., for remote surgery), industrial devices and applications (e.g., robots and / or other radio devices operating in an industrial and / or automated processing chain context), consumer electronics devices, devices operating in commercial and / or industrial radio networks, etc. Any of WTRU102a, 102b, 102c, and 102d may interchangeably be referred to as UE.

[0011] The communication system 100 may also include base stations 114a and / or base stations 114b. Each of the base stations 114a and 114b may be any type of device configured to wirelessly interface with at least one of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, and 102d to facilitate access to one or more communication networks, such as CN 106 / 115, the Internet 110, and / or other networks 112. As an example, base stations 114a and 114b may be base station transceivers (BTS), node B, enode B, home node B, home enode B, gNB, NR node B, site controller, access point (AP), wireless router, etc. Although base stations 114a and 114b are each depicted as single elements, it will be understood that base stations 114a and 114b may include any number of interconnected base stations and / or network elements.

[0012] Base station 114a may be part of RAN 104 / 113, which may also include other base stations and / or network elements (not shown), such as a base station controller (BSC), a radio network controller (RNC), and relay nodes. Base station 114a and / or base station 114b may be configured to transmit and / or receive radio signals on one or more carrier frequencies, which may be referred to as cells (not shown). These frequencies may be licensed spectra, unlicensed spectra, or combinations of licensed and unlicensed spectra. Cells may provide coverage of radio services to a particular geographic area, which may be relatively fixed or change over time. Cells may be further divided into cell sectors. For example, a cell associated with base station 114a may be divided into three sectors. Thus, in one embodiment, base station 114a may include three transceivers, i.e., one transceiver per sector of the cell. In one embodiment, base station 114a may use multiple input multiple output (MIMO) technology and may utilize multiple transceivers per sector of the cell. For example, beamforming can be used to transmit and / or receive signals in a desired spatial direction.

[0013] Base stations 114a and 114b may communicate with one or more WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, and 102d via an air interface 116, which may be any suitable radio communication link (e.g., radio frequency (RF), microwave, centimeter wave, micrometer wave, infrared (IR), ultraviolet (UV), visible light, etc.). The air interface 116 may be established using any suitable radio access technology (RAT).

[0014] More specifically, as described above, the communication system 100 may be a multiple access system and may employ one or more channel access schemes such as CDMA, TDMA, FDMA, OFDMA, SC-FDMA, etc. For example, base stations 114a and WTRUs 102a, 102b, and 102c within RAN 104 / 113 may implement radio technologies such as Universal Mobile Communications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), which may use broadband CDMA (WCDMA) to establish air interfaces 115 / 116 / 117. WCDMA may include communication protocols such as High Speed ​​Packet Access (HSPA) and / or Advanced HSPA (HSPA+). HSPA may include High Speed ​​Downlink (DL) Packet Access (HSDPA) and / or High Speed ​​Uplink Packet Access (HSUPA).

[0015] In one embodiment, base stations 114a and WTRUs 102a, 102b, and 102c may implement radio technologies such as Advanced UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA), which may establish an air interface 116 using Long-Term Evolution (LTE) and / or LTE Advanced (LTE-A) and / or LTE Advanced Pro (LTE-A Pro).

[0016] In one embodiment, base stations 114a and WTRUs 102a, 102b, and 102c may implement radio technologies such as NR radio access, which may establish an air interface 116 using New Radio (NR).

[0017] In one embodiment, base station 114a and WTRU 102a, 102b, 102c may implement multiple radio access technologies. For example, base station 114a and WTRU 102a, 102b, 102c may implement LTE radio access and NR radio access together, for example, using the Dual Connectivity (DC) principle. Thus, the air interface utilized by WTRU 102a, 102b, 102c may be characterized by multiple types of radio access technologies and / or transmissions transmitted to and from multiple types of base stations (e.g., eNB and gNB).

[0018] In other embodiments, base stations 114a and WTRUs 102a, 102b, and 102c may implement wireless technologies such as IEEE 802.11 (i.e., Wireless Fidelity (WiFi)), IEEE 802.16 (i.e., WiMAX), CDMA2000, CDMA2000 1X, CDMA2000 EV-DO, Provisional Standard 2000 (IS-2000), Provisional Standard 95 (IS-95), Provisional Standard 856 (IS-856), Pan-European Digital Mobile Telephone System (GSM), GSM Evolutionary High-Speed ​​Data Rate (EDGE), and GSM EDGE (GERAN).

[0019] The base station 114b in FIG. 1A can be, for example, a wireless router, a Home Node B, a Home eNode B, or an access point, and can utilize any suitable RAT to facilitate wireless connectivity in a local area such as an office, a home, a vehicle, a campus, an industrial facility, an aerial corridor (e.g., for use by drones), a road, etc. In one embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d can implement a wireless technology such as IEEE 802.11 to establish a wireless local area network (WLAN). In one embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d can implement a wireless technology such as IEEE 802.15 to establish a wireless personal area network (WPAN). In yet another embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d can utilize a cellular-based RAT (e.g., WCDMA, CDMA2000, GSM, LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, NR, etc.) to establish a pico cell or a femto cell. As shown in FIG. 1A, the base station 114b can have a direct connection to the Internet 110. Thus, the base station 114b may not need to access the Internet 110 via the CN 106 / 115.

[0020] RAN104 / 113 can communicate with CN106 / 115, which may be any type of network configured to provide voice, data, applications, and / or Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services to one or more of WTRU102a, 102b, 102c, and 102d. The data may have various Quality of Service (QoS) requirements, such as different throughput requirements, latency requirements, error tolerance requirements, reliability requirements, data throughput requirements, and mobility requirements. CN106 / 115 may provide call control, billing services, mobile location-based services, prepaid calls, internet connectivity, video distribution, and / or perform high-level security functions such as user authentication. Although not shown in Figure 1A, it will be understood that RAN104 / 113 and / or CN106 / 115 may communicate directly or indirectly with other RANs employing the same RAT as RAN104 / 113 or different RATs. For example, in addition to being connected to RAN104 / 113 which can utilize NR radio technology, CN106 / 115 can also communicate with another RAN (not shown) using GSM, UMTS, CDMA2000, WiMAX, E-UTRA, or WiFi radio technology.

[0021] CN106 / 115 may also function as a gateway for WTRU102a, 102b, 102c, 102d to access the PSTN108, the Internet 110, and / or other networks 112. The PSTN108 may include a circuit-switched telephone network that provides a legacy telephone service (POTS). The Internet 110 may include a global system of interconnected computer networks and devices, where these networks and devices use a common communication protocol such as Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), User Datagram Protocol (UDP), and / or Internet Protocol (IP) of the TCP / IP Internet protocol suite. The network 112 may include wired and / or wireless communication networks that are owned and / or operated by other service providers. For example, the network 112 may include another CN connected to one or more RANs that may employ the same RAT or a different RAT as the RAN104 / 113.

[0022] Some or all of the WTRU102a, 102b, 102c, 102d in the communication system 100 may include multimode capabilities (e.g., the WTRU102a, 102b, 102c, 102d may include multiple transceivers for communicating with different wireless networks via different wireless links). For example, the WTRU102c shown in Figure 1A may be configured to communicate with a base station 114a that may use a cellular-based wireless technology and a base station 114b that may use IEEE802 wireless technology.

[0023] Figure 1B is a system diagram illustrating an exemplary WTRU 102. As shown in Figure 1B, the WTRU 102 may include, among other things, a processor 118, a transceiver 120, a transmission / reception element 122, a speaker / microphone 124, a keypad 126, a display / touchpad 128, non-removable memory 130, removable memory 132, a power supply 134, a Global Positioning System (GPS) chipset 136, and / or other peripherals 138. It will be understood that the WTRU 102 may include any partial combination of the aforementioned elements while maintaining consistency with one embodiment.

[0024] The processor 118 may be a general-purpose processor, a dedicated processor, a conventional processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors associated with a DSP core, a controller, a microcontroller, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) circuit, any other type of integrated circuit (IC), a state machine, etc. The processor 118 may perform signal coding, data processing, power control, input / output processing, and / or any other functions that enable the WTRU 102 to operate in a wireless environment. The processor 118 may be coupled to a transceiver 120 which may be coupled to a transmission / reception element 122. Figure 1B depicts the processor 118 and the transceiver 120 as separate components, but it will be understood that the processor 118 and the transceiver 120 may be integrated together in an electronic package or chip.

[0025] The transmitting / receiving element 122 may be configured to transmit signals to or receive signals from a base station (e.g., base station 114a) via the air interface 116. For example, in one embodiment, the transmitting / receiving element 122 may be an antenna configured to transmit and / or receive RF signals. In one embodiment, the transmitting / receiving element 122 may be an emitter / detector configured to transmit and / or receive, for example, IR, UV, or visible light signals. In yet another embodiment, the transmitting / receiving element 122 may be configured to transmit and / or receive both RF signals and optical signals. It will be understood that the transmitting / receiving element 122 may be configured to transmit and / or receive any combination of radio signals.

[0026] Although the transmit / receive element 122 is shown as a single element in Figure 1B, the WTRU 102 may include any number of transmit / receive elements 122. More specifically, the WTRU 102 may utilize MIMO technology. Thus, in one embodiment, the WTRU 102 may include two or more transmit / receive elements 122 (e.g., multiple antennas) for transmitting and receiving radio signals via the air interface 116.

[0027] The transceiver 120 may be configured to modulate the signal transmitted by the transmit / receive element 122 and demodulate the signal received by the transmit / receive element 122. As described above, the WTRU 102 may have multimode capability. Therefore, the transceiver 120 may include multiple transceivers to enable the WTRU 102 to communicate via multiple RATs, such as NR and IEEE 802.11.

[0028] The processor 118 of the WTRU102 may be coupled to a speaker / microphone 124, a keypad 126, and / or a display / touchpad 128 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD) display unit or an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display unit) and may receive user input data from them. The processor 118 may also output user data to the speaker / microphone 124, the keypad 126, and / or the display / touchpad 128. In addition, the processor 118 may access information from any type of suitable memory, such as non-removable memory 130 and / or removable memory 132, and may store data in such memory. Non-removable memory 130 may include random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), a hard disk, or any other type of memory storage device. Removable memory 132 may include a subscriber identification module (SIM) card, a memory stick, a secure digital (SD) memory card, and the like. In other embodiments, the processor 118 may access information from memory not physically located on the WTRU 102, such as on a server or home computer (not shown), and store data in such memory.

[0029] The processor 118 may receive power from the power supply 134 and be configured to distribute and / or control power to other components within the WTRU 102. The power supply 134 may be any suitable device for supplying power to the WTRU 102. For example, the power supply 134 may include one or more dry cell batteries (e.g., nickel-cadmium (NiCd), nickel-zinc (NiZn), nickel metal hydride (NiMH), lithium-ion (Li-ion), etc.), a solar cell, a fuel cell, etc.

[0030] The processor 118 may also be coupled to a GPS chipset 136, which may be configured to provide location information (e.g., longitude and latitude) about the current location of the WTRU 102. In addition to or instead of the information from the GPS chipset 136, the WTRU 102 may determine its location based on receiving location information from base stations (e.g., base stations 114a, 114b) via the air interface 116 and / or based on the timing of signals received from two or more nearby base stations. It will be understood that the WTRU 102 may acquire location information by any preferred location determination method while maintaining consistency with one embodiment.

[0031] The processor 118 may be further coupled to other peripherals 138, which may include one or more software and / or hardware modules that provide additional features, functions, and / or wired or wireless connectivity. For example, peripherals 138 may include an accelerometer, an electronic compass, a satellite transceiver, a digital camera (for photos and / or videos), a Universal Serial Bus (USB) port, a vibration device, a TV transceiver, a hands-free headset, a Bluetooth® module, a frequency modulation (FM) radio unit, a digital music player, a media player, a video game player module, an internet browser, a virtual reality and / or augmented reality (VR / AR) device, an activity tracker, and the like. Peripherals 138 may include one or more sensors, which may be one or more of a gyroscope, an accelerometer, a Hall effect sensor, a magnetometer, a compass sensor, a proximity sensor, a temperature sensor, a time sensor, a geolocation sensor, an altimeter, a light sensor, a touch sensor, a barometer, a gesture sensor, a biometric sensor, and / or a humidity sensor.

[0032] WTRU102 may include a full-duplex radio in which the transmission and reception of some or all of the signals (e.g., associated with specific subframes for both UL (e.g., transmission) and downlink (e.g., reception)) may be parallel and / or simultaneous. The full-duplex radio may include an interference management unit 139 for reducing and / or substantially eliminating self-interference via either hardware (e.g., chokes) or signal processing via a processor (e.g., via a separate processor (not shown) or processor 118). In one embodiment, WTRU102 may include a half-duplex radio for the transmission and reception of any of the signals (e.g., associated with specific subframes for either UL (e.g., transmission) or downlink (e.g., reception)).

[0033] Figure 1C is a system diagram illustrating RAN104 and CN106 according to one embodiment. As described above, RAN104 can communicate with WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c via the air interface 116 using E-UTRA wireless technology. RAN104 can also communicate with CN106.

[0034] RAN104 may include eNode-B160a, 160b, and 160c, but it will be understood that RAN104 may include any number of eNode-B while maintaining consistency with one embodiment. Each of eNode-B160a, 160b, and 160c may include one or more transceivers for communicating with WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c via the air interface 116. In one embodiment, eNode-B160a, 160b, and 160c may implement MIMO technology. Thus, eNode-B160a may, for example, use multiple antennas to transmit radio signals to and / or receive radio signals from WTRU102a.

[0035] Each of the eNode-B160a, 160b, and 160c may be associated with a specific cell (not shown) and may be configured to handle wireless resource management decisions, handover decisions, user scheduling, etc., in UL and / or DL. As shown in Figure 1C, the eNode-B160a, 160b, and 160c may communicate with each other via the X2 interface.

[0036] The CN106 shown in Figure 1C may include a Mobility Management Entity (MME) 162, a Serving Gateway (SGW) 164, and a Packet Data Network (PDN) Gateway (or PGW) 166. Although each of the aforementioned elements is depicted as part of CN106, it will be understood that any of these elements may be owned and / or operated by an entity other than the CN operator.

[0037] The MME162 can be connected to each of the eNode-B162a, 162b, and 162c in RAN104 via the S1 interface and can function as a control node. For example, the MME162 may perform roles such as authenticating users of WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c, activating / deactivating bearers, and selecting gateways for specific services during the initial attachment of WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c. The MME162 may provide control plane functionality for switching between RAN104 and other RANs (not shown) employing other radio technologies such as GSM and / or WCDMA.

[0038] The SGW164 can be connected to each of the eNode-B160a, 160b, and 160c within RAN104 via the S1 interface. The SGW164 can generally route and forward user data packets to and from WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c. The SGW164 can perform other functions, such as anchoring the user plane during inter-eNode B handovers, triggering paging when DL data is available to WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c, and managing and remembering the context of WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c.

[0039] SGW164 may be connected to PGW166, which may provide WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c with access to a packet-switched network such as the Internet 110 to facilitate communication between WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c and IP-enabled devices.

[0040] CN106 can facilitate communication with other networks. For example, CN106 can provide WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c with access to a circuit-switched network such as PSTN108 to facilitate communication between WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c and conventional terrestrial line communication devices. For example, CN106 may include or communicate with an IP gateway (e.g., an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) server) that acts as an interface between CN106 and PSTN108. In addition, CN106 may provide WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c with access to another network 112, which may include other wired and / or wireless networks owned and / or operated by other service providers.

[0041] Although the WTRU is shown as a wireless terminal in Figures 1A to 1D, in certain representative embodiments, such a terminal is intended to be able to use a wired communication interface with a communication network (e.g., temporarily or permanently).

[0042] In a typical embodiment, the other network 112 may be a WLAN.

[0043] A WLAN in Infrastructure Basic Service Set (BSS) mode may have access points (APs) of the BSS and one or more stations (STAs) associated with the APs. APs may have access to or interfaces with another type of wired / wireless network carrying traffic into and / or out of the Distribution System (DS) or BSS. Traffic originating outside the BSS and destined for the STAs may reach and be delivered to the STAs via the APs. Traffic originating from the STAs and destined outside the BSS may be sent to the APs and then delivered to their respective destinations. Traffic between STAs within the BSS may be transmitted, for example, via APs; a source STA may send traffic to the AP, and the AP may deliver the traffic to the destination STA. Traffic between STAs within the BSS may be considered and / or referred to as peer-to-peer traffic. Inter-layer traffic may be transmitted between a source STA and a destination STA (for example, directly between them) via a Direct Link Setup (DLS). In certain representative embodiments, the DLS may use 802.11e DLS or 802.11z tunneled DLS (TDLS). A WLAN using Independent BSS (IBSS) mode may not have APs, and STAs within or using IBSS (e.g., all STAs) may communicate directly with each other. The IBSS mode of communication may be referred to herein as “ad hoc” communication mode.

[0044] When using the 802.11ac infrastructure operating mode or a similar operating mode, an AP may transmit beacons on a fixed channel, such as the primary channel. The primary channel may be of a fixed width (e.g., a 20 MHz bandwidth) or a width dynamically set via signaling. The primary channel may be the operating channel of the BSS and may be used by the STA to establish a connection with the AP. In certain typical embodiments, for example, in an 802.11 system, carrier-sensing multiple access (CSMA / CA) with collision avoidance may be implemented. In the case of CSMA / CA, the STA, including the AP (e.g., all STAs), may sense the primary channel. If the primary channel is sensed / detected and / or determined to be busy by a particular STA, that STA may be backed off. A single STA (e.g., only one station) may transmit at any given time in a given BSS.

[0045] A high-throughput (HT) STA may, for communication purposes, use a 40 MHz wide channel by combining, for example, a primary 20 MHz channel with adjacent or non-adjacent 20 MHz channels to form a 40 MHz wide channel.

[0046] Very high-throughput (VHT) STAs may support channels with widths of 20 MHz, 40 MHz, 80 MHz, and / or 160 MHz. The 40 MHz and / or 80 MHz channels mentioned above may be formed by combining multiple consecutive 20 MHz channels. A 160 MHz channel may be formed by combining eight consecutive 20 MHz channels, or by combining two non-contiguous 80 MHz channels, which may be referred to as an 80+80 configuration. In the 80+80 configuration, after channel coding, the data may pass through a segment parser that can split the data into two streams. Inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) processing and time-domain processing may be performed separately for each stream. The streams may be mapped to two 80 MHz channels, and the data may be transmitted by a transmission STA. At the receiver of a receiving STA, the operation described above for the 80+80 configuration may be reversed, and the combined data may be transmitted to a media access control (MAC).

[0047] Sub-1 GHz operating modes are supported by 802.11af and 802.11ah. Channel operating bandwidth and carrier are reduced in 802.11af and 802.11ah compared to those used in 802.11n and 802.11ac. 802.11af supports 5 MHz, 10 MHz, and 20 MHz bandwidths in the TV white space (TVWS) spectrum, while 802.11ah supports 1 MHz, 2 MHz, 4 MHz, 8 MHz, and 16 MHz bandwidths using the non-TVWS spectrum. According to a typical embodiment, 802.11ah may support meter-type control / machine-type communications, such as MTC devices in a macro coverage area. MTC devices may have specific features, including support for specific and / or limited bandwidths (e.g., support only for that). MTC devices may include batteries with battery life exceeding a threshold (e.g., to maintain very long battery life).

[0048] WLAN systems that can support multiple channels and channel bandwidths, such as 802.11n, 802.11ac, 802.11af, and 802.11ah, include a channel that can be designated as the primary channel. The primary channel may have a bandwidth equal to the maximum common operating bandwidth supported by all STAs in the BSS. The bandwidth of the primary channel may be set and / or limited by an STA from among all STAs operating in a BSS that support the minimum bandwidth operating mode. In the 802.11ah example, the primary channel may be 1 MHz wide for an STA (e.g., an MTC type device) that supports (e.g., only) the 1 MHz mode, even if other STAs in the AP and BSS support 2 MHz, 4 MHz, 8 MHz, 16 MHz, and / or other channel bandwidth operating modes. Carrier sensing and / or network allocation vector (NAV) settings may depend on the state of the primary channel. For example, if the primary channel is busy due to an STA (which only supports 1MHz operating mode) transmitting to the AP, a large portion of the frequency band may remain idle and could be considered busy, even if it were available.

[0049] In the United States, the available frequency band that can be used by 802.11ah is 902MHz to 928MHz. In South Korea, the available frequency band is 917.5MHz to 923.5MHz. In Japan, the available frequency band is 916.5MHz to 927.5MHz. The total bandwidth available for 802.11ah is 6MHz to 26MHz, depending on the country code.

[0050] Figure 1D is a system diagram illustrating RAN113 and CN115 according to one embodiment. As described above, RAN113 can communicate with WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c via air interface 116 using NR radio technology. RAN113 can also communicate with CN115.

[0051] RAN113 may include gNB180a, 180b, and 180c, but it will be understood that RAN113 may include any number of gNBs while maintaining consistency with one embodiment. Each of gNB180a, 180b, and 180c may include one or more transceivers for communicating with WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c via the air interface 116. In one embodiment, gNB180a, 180b, and 180c may implement MIMO technology. For example, gNB180a and 180b may transmit and / or receive signals to and from gNB180a, 180b, and 180c using beamforming. Thus, gNB180a may, for example, use multiple antennas to transmit radio signals to and / or receive radio signals from WTRU102a. In one embodiment, gNB180a, 180b, and 180c may implement carrier aggregation technology. For example, gNB180a may transmit multiple component carriers to WTRU102a (not shown). A subset of these component carriers may be on the unauthorized spectrum, and the remaining component carriers may be on the authorized spectrum. In one embodiment, gNB180a, 180b, and 180c may implement coordinated multipoint (CoMP) technology. For example, WTRU102a may receive coordinated transmissions from gNB180a and gNB180b (and / or gNB180c).

[0052] WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c may communicate with gNB180a, 180b, and 180c using transmissions associated with scalable numerology. For example, OFDM symbol intervals and / or OFDM subcarrier intervals may vary for different transmissions, different cells, and / or different portions of the radio transmission spectrum. WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c may communicate with gNB180a, 180b, and 180c using subframes or transmit time intervals (TTIs) of varying or scalable lengths (e.g., containing varying numbers of OFDM symbols and / or having varying absolute time durations).

[0053] gNB180a, 180b, and 180c can be configured to communicate with WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c in standalone and / or non-standalone configurations. In a standalone configuration, WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c can communicate with gNB180a, 180b, and 180c without accessing other RANs (e.g., e-node-B160a, 160b, and 160c). In a standalone configuration, WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c can utilize one or more of gNB180a, 180b, and 180c as mobility anchor points. In a standalone configuration, WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c can communicate with gNB180a, 180b, and 180c using signals in unlicensed bands. In a non-standalone configuration, WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c can communicate with and connect to gNB180a, 180b, and 180c, while also communicating with and connecting to other RANs such as eNode-B160a, 160b, and 160c. For example, WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c can implement DC principles for substantially simultaneous communication with one or more gNB180a, 180b, and 180c and one or more eNode-B160a, 160b, and 160c. In a non-standalone configuration, eNode-B160a, 160b, and 160c can function as mobility anchors for WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c, while gNB180a, 180b, and 180c can provide additional coverage and / or throughput to service WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c.

[0054] Each of the gNB180a, 180b, and 180c may be associated with a specific cell (not shown) and may be configured to handle radio resource management decisions, handover decisions, user scheduling in UL and / or DL, support for network slicing, dual connectivity, interworking between NR and E-UTRA, routing of user plane data to user plane functions (UPF) 184a and 184b, routing of control plane information to access and mobility management functions (AMF) 182a and 182b, etc. As shown in Figure 1D, the gNB180a, 180b, and 180c may communicate with each other via the Xn interface.

[0055] The CN115 shown in Figure 1D may include at least one AMF182a, 182b, at least one UPF184a, 184b, at least one Session Management Function (SMF)183a, 183b, and in some examples, a Data Network (DN)185a, 185b. Although each of the aforementioned elements is depicted as part of the CN115, it will be understood that any of these elements may be owned and / or operated by entities other than the CN operator.

[0056] AMF182a and 182b can be connected to one or more gNB180a, 180b, and 180c within RAN113 via the N2 interface and can function as control nodes. For example, AMF182a and 182b may perform roles such as authenticating users of WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c, supporting network slices (e.g., handling different PDU sessions with different requirements), selecting specific SMF183a and 183b, managing registration areas, terminating non-accessible layer (NAS) signaling, and mobility management. Network slices can be used by AMF182a and 182b to customize CN support for WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c based on the type of service utilizing WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c. For example, different network slices may be established for different use cases, such as services relying on high-reliability, low-latency (URLLC) access, services relying on high-speed, high-capacity (eMBB) access, and services for machine-type communication (MTC) access. The AMF162 may provide control plane functionality for switching between RAN113 and other RANs (not shown) employing other radio technologies such as LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, and / or WiFi, which are non-3GPP access technologies.

[0057] SMF183a and 183b may be connected to AMF182a and 182b in CN115 via the N11 interface. SMF183a and 183b may also be connected to UPF184a and 184b in CN115 via the N4 interface. SMF183a and 183b may select and control UPF184a and 184b and configure the routing of traffic through UPF184a and 184b. SMF183a and 183b may perform other functions such as managing and assigning UE IP addresses, managing PDU sessions, controlling policy enforcement and QoS, and providing downlink data notifications. PDU session types may be IP-based, non-IP-based, Ethernet-based, etc.

[0058] UPF184a and 184b may be connected via the N3 interface to one or more of gNB180a, 180b, and 180c in RAN113, which may provide WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c with access to a packet-switched network such as the Internet 110 to facilitate communication between WTRU102a, 102b, and 102c and IP-enabled devices. UPF184 and 184b may perform other functions such as routing and forwarding packets, enforcing user plane policies, supporting multi-homed PDU sessions, handling user plane QoS, buffering downlink packets, and providing mobility anchoring.

[0059] CN115 can facilitate communication with other networks. For example, CN115 may include, or communicate with, an IP gateway (e.g., an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) server) that functions as an interface between CN115 and PSTN108. In addition, CN115 may provide WTRU102a, 102b, 102c with access to other networks 112, which may include other wired and / or wireless networks owned and / or operated by other service providers. In one embodiment, WTRU102a, 102b, 102c may be connected to local data networks (DN) 185a, 185b via UPF184a, 184b through an N3 interface to UPF184a, 184b, and an N6 interface between UPF184a, 184b and DN185a, 185b.

[0060] With regard to Figures 1A to 1D and their corresponding descriptions, one or more of the functions described herein may be performed by one or more emulation devices (not shown) with respect to one or more of the WTRU102a to d, base stations 114a to b, eNode-B160a to c, MME162, SGW164, PGW166, gNB180a to c, AMF182a to b, UPF184a to b, SMF183a to b, DN185a to b, and / or any other devices described herein. An emulation device may be one or more devices configured to emulate one or more of the functions described herein. For example, an emulation device may be used to test other devices and / or simulate network and / or WTRU functions.

[0061] Emulation devices may be designed to implement testing of one or more other devices in a laboratory and / or operator network environment. For example, one or more emulation devices may perform one or more or all functions while fully or partially implemented and / or deployed as part of a wired and / or wireless network to test other devices in a communications network. One or more emulation devices may perform one or more or all functions while temporarily implemented / deployed as part of a wired and / or wireless network. Emulation devices may be directly coupled to another device for testing purposes and / or may perform testing using terrestrial radio communication.

[0062] One or more emulation devices may perform one or more functions, including all of the above, while not implemented / deployed as part of a wired and / or wireless communication network. For example, an emulation device may be used in a test laboratory test scenario, and / or in a wired and / or wireless communication network that is not deployed (e.g., for testing purposes), to implement testing of one or more components. One or more emulation devices may be test equipment. Direct RF coupling and / or wireless communication via RF circuitry (e.g., which may include one or more antennas) may be used by the emulation device to transmit and / or receive data.

[0063] Paging procedure for 5G / NR systems WTRUs in idle and / or inactive mode can be in deep sleep (e.g., should be, ideally could be, etc.) by, for example, shutting down those transceiver ends when there is no incoming traffic to those ends.

[0064] In such deep sleep, the network configures idle and / or inactive WTRUs to have a set of occasions (e.g., periodic) in which idle and / or inactive WTRUs can periodically wake up, perform monitoring, and determine (e.g., should) whether there is a paging instruction, for example, within a set of frames (e.g., a specific set). That is, in RRC idle and / or inactive mode, WTRUs continuously wake up according to a configured paging cycle to check, for example, whether one or more WTRUs are being paged in the current paging occasion. Thus, before a WTRU transitions to an RRC connected state to be paged, for example, it follows the following three steps:

[0065] As a first step in transitioning to an RRC connection state for paging, for example, if a WTRU may not be synchronized with the radio interface due to a long (e.g., deep) sleep period, the WTRU may attempt to resynchronize with the NR radio interface (first, for example) by detecting a synchronization signal block (SSB) (at least one, for example). In such a case, different WTRUs with different implementations (e.g., from different WTRU vendors) may require different numbers of SSBs (e.g., radio sequences) before a different WTRU is fully synchronized with the network. For example, a WTRU in a good signal-to-interference-noise ratio (SINR) state may be able to resynchronize with the radio network by detecting a single SSB (e.g., sequence signal, radio sequence, for example). However, in such a case of the first step, a WTRU in an insufficient (e.g., poor) SINR state may require additional SSB instances.

[0066] As a second step to transition to an RRC connection state in order to be paged, for example, if the WTRU is fully synchronized with the network (e.g., RAN), the WTRU will attempt to blindly decode the paging downlink control information (DCI) transmitted over a possible physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) occasion (e.g., a channel resource pre-configured by a higher layer). The paging DCI indicates to an idle / inactive WTRU that there is at least one WTRU with incoming traffic in the downlink direction (e.g., providing). If no paging DCI is detected on the PDCCH resource, the idle / inactive WTRU assumes there is no paging for the current paging opportunity and therefore continues to sleep until the next paging occasion.

[0067] As a third step to transitioning to an RRC connected state for paged access, for example, if an idle / inactive WTRU detects the presence of a paged DCI, in the paging occasion, the idle / inactive WTRU may decode a (e.g., subsequent) physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) data resource to read the paging record. The paging record is an indication of the ID or multiple IDs of the idle / inactive WTRU being paged. With respect to a WTRU, if the paging record contains the WTRU's temporary ID, the WTRU then triggers a random access procedure to switch to an RRC connected state, for example.

[0068] For paging procedures (e.g., conventional, prior art) for 5G / NR systems, there are several trade-offs (e.g., typically) to achieve adequate paging performance. For example, in the case of paging occasions and the frequency of paging DCIs (e.g., transmitted), more frequent paging occasions and paging DCIs can lead to less packet buffering delay. However, with such more frequent paging occasions, the following problems / limitations may arise: (1) more frequent WTRU wake-ups affect battery consumption / performance; and (2) consumption of PDCCH control channel capacity. That is, having more frequent paging DCIs suggests a larger PDCCH coreset, and therefore less remaining PDCCH resources for other control and scheduling information, as well as less bandwidth portion data resources for data transmission over the PDCCH overall.

[0069] Taking into account the three steps discussed above and / or the problems / limitations discussed above, according to the embodiment, a more flexible procedure for delivering paging information is required, for example, which may be essential to achieve appropriate paging performance and power saving gains in WTRU while avoiding overloading / consuming network resources with downlink control information.

[0070] Improved power saving for 5G / NR idle / inactive WTRU For 5G / NR systems and future wireless and / or cellular networks, it is necessary to improve the performance of idle / inactive WTRUs (e.g., reducing battery consumption used for / by paging), or in other words, to improve WTRU power saving capabilities. Regarding such power saving improvements, there are two areas of research (e.g., focus, refinement, research, etc.): (1) Early Paging Instruction (EPI), and (2) Supporting Paging Intrinsic Reference Signals.

[0071] As discussed above, there may be a conventional case of an idle and / or inactive (e.g., mode) WTRU that wakes up during a paging occasion (e.g., always) to detect the paging DCI (e.g., by blindly decoding possible PDCCH opportunities). In such a case, and if there is no paging DCI (i.e., no paging instruction), the WTRU sleeps (e.g., again) until the next paging occasion. Such (e.g., repeated) blind decoding draws a considerable amount of power from the WTRU's battery and is unnecessary if the WTRU is not actually being paged. In the above conventional case of an idle and / or inactive WTRU, EPI downlink control information (DCI) is required. EPI DCI can precede a paging occasion and can indicate whether or not a paging DCI is present on the PDCCH. In the case of a false EPI (for example, if the EPI DCI does not exist within the PDCCH), the WTRU may (e.g., assume, should assume, etc.) assume that its paging group will not be paged (for example, at least) and that the WTRU can remain in deep sleep until the next paging occasion.

[0072] According to the embodiment, for example, there may be dynamic EPI, e.g., dynamic EPI activation procedures, to maintain (e.g., provide an increase) the battery performance / power saving gain of the WTRU and / or group (e.g., WTRU-specific and / or WTRU group-specific) while avoiding overloading the system with unnecessary control information, i.e., EPI DCI. That is, dynamic EPI is necessary in the case of the conventional EPI DCI described above.

[0073] Regarding the support paging-specific reference signal, idle / inactive WTRUs wake earlier before each paging occasion to fully synchronize with the network. Without full synchronization with the RAN, idle / inactive WTRUs cannot detect the EPI DCI, paging DCI, and paging records. Different WTRUs (e.g., from different vendors and / or under different SINR conditions, etc.) will detect (e.g., required to detect) a varying number of synchronization signal blocks (SSBs) before each paging occasion. However, SSB transmissions typically have a fixed, large periodicity, such as a minimum of 20 milliseconds (ms). As a result, idle / inactive WTRUs wake up for the duration of multiple SSBs before each paging occasion, which is a significant limitation on power saving by the WTRU (e.g., stress, demand, problems, etc.). In the case of such assistive paging-specific reference signals, the network transmits an assistive paging-specific reference signal that is temporally close to each paging occasion, and idle / inactive WTRUs only wake up a short time before such occasions. Given the above limitations, improvements are needed to the paging-specific reference signals and associated procedures.

[0074] According to the embodiment, there may be any of the following flexible semi-static, dynamic, and hybrid procedures for paging-specific reference signals for future wireless networks.

[0075] Multi-SIM (MUSIM) operation and paging Given that WTRU handset manufacturing increasingly includes multiple subscriber identification module (MUSIM, MU-SIM, etc.) WTRUs, MUSIM operation is a critical (e.g., essential) part of future wireless communications, such as wireless communications described (e.g., specified) by 3GPP Release-17 (R17). That is, an optimized paging procedure for MUSIM WTRUs needs to be achieved (e.g., as targeted by 3GPP R17). Conventionally (e.g., in the relevant technology), a MUSIM WTRU with different SIMs from different operators and / or from the same operator must monitor (e.g., must monitor, should monitor, etc.) all paging occasions and resources for each of the active SIM chips. Furthermore (e.g., in addition to the significant power consumption of MUSIM WTRUs), configured paging occasions may be partially and / or fully synchronized across various SIMs that may be from different network operators. In such cases, a conventional (e.g., standard) MUSIM WTRU having a single RF chain (e.g., solely for that purpose) may only be able to detect and decode one of the configured paging occasions of one of the active SIM chips.

[0076] In the case of MUSIM WTRUs with multiple RF chains, multiple paging occasions can be detected and decoded simultaneously. However, in such cases, inconsistencies in WTRU behavior may exist when detecting paging occasions, which may relate, for example, to the specifications of the WTRU manufacturer implementation. That is, some MUSIM WTRUs may detect a certain paging occasion for a certain operator, while other MUSIM WTRUs may randomly detect and decode other paging occasions from other operators without regularization. In such cases, monitoring and optimizing network paging key performance indicators (KPIs) can be a difficult task. Furthermore, in other cases or the above cases, frequent paging failures may occur due to, for example, the inability of MUSIM WTRUs to detect multiple paging occasions simultaneously, resulting in (1) frequent paging escalation that significantly reduces the power consumption of other idle / inactive WTRUs (e.g., for affected operators) due to frequent unnecessary paging monitoring and decoding, and (2) significant network resource overhead in the paging bandwidth portion. In the case of conventional (e.g., prior art) MUSIM WTRUs, paging improvements for MUSIM WTRUs may be made, for example, as discussed by 3GPP partners for R-17. In particular, the introduction of paging justifications as part of paging signaling would be transmitted and processed by MUSIM WTRUs (e.g., as proposed). That is, paging justifications would indicate (e.g., high-level) paging reasons for MUSIM WTRUs, such as voice calls, data sessions, and / or system information updates. In this way, the behavior of MUSIM WTRUs would be controlled to minimize network paging failures due to MUSIM WTRU intrusions. Such discussions by 3GPP partners, and / or other similar research, development, and / or standards efforts regarding MUSIM WTRUs, will continue into future 3GPP releases. However, the power efficiency of MUSIM WTRUs has not yet been addressed.

[0077] According to the embodiments, for example, as discussed below in this specification, an energy-efficient MUSIM WTRU may exist to address the problems of conventional paging and / or conventional MUSIM WTRUs discussed above.

[0078] Given the conventional MUSIM WTRUs discussed above, and their conventional operation, paging, and operation-saving characteristics discussed above, two challenges may exist to be addressed: (1) MUSIM WTRUs may deep and / or light sleep for much shorter durations, or may not sleep at all during idle / inactive mode operation; (2) Conventional WTRUs (see, e.g., 3GPP Release-16) perform power ramp-up and ramp-down transition periods for each transition from one sleep state to another, which imposes either additional power consumption or latency burden. That is, in the case of MUSIM WTRUs, multiple paging cycles and paging occasions within one or more paging frames should always be monitored by the MUSIM WTRU to identify, for example, whether they were paged by one or more of multiple connected networks. Such operation by conventional MUSIM WTRUs would involve multiple paging EPIs, multiple periodic blind decoding of paging DCIs, and reception of corresponding paging records, respectively. In such cases (for example, as a result), there is a (for example, clear) degradation in power consumption performance, which highlights, for example, the two aforementioned challenges that need to be addressed.

[0079] The aforementioned issues regarding MUSIM WTRUs performing deep and / or light sleep for much shorter durations (compared to, for example, a single SIM WTRU), or not sleeping at all, may be a result of multiple subsequent paging occasions. That is, multiple subsequent paging occasions for multiple networks may be suboptimally positioned in the time domain, for example, to prevent the MUSIM WTRU from entering deep or light sleep when, for example, the minimum expected sleep duration should be maintained for the WTRU to enter a deep / light sleep state. That is, for example, if the minimum expected sleep duration is not met due to (for example, primarily) a MUSIM paging occasion, the WTRU shall not enter a deep / light sleep state in idle mode, which imposes significant power consumption on the MUSIM WTRU. The suboptimal time location of MUSIM paging occasions is beyond the control of the WTRU and depends (for example, primarily) on the WTRU ID (e.g., RNTI, TMSI, etc., provided by the RAN interface of each network operator) and network-specific cell-specific paging parameters such as the paging cycle. For example, the above case, which has a suboptimal time location for MUSIM paging occasions, may include not assuming close coordination between various co-located RAN operators, which is a reasonable assumption to avoid challenges related to government regulations, inter-operator policy regularization, and compatibility of various network vendor equipment for different operators.

[0080] The aforementioned challenges with power ramp-up and ramp-down, i.e., WTRU power models (as defined, for example, in R-16 3GPP TR 38.840), are that a WTRU requires ramp-up and ramp-down transition periods between each transition from one sleep state to another, thereby imposing additional power consumption and latency burdens. For example, to transition from deep sleep to an active state for paging monitoring, a WTRU requires an average latency of 20 ms and consumes 450 power units. Conventional WTRUs (e.g., 3GPP R-16 WTRU) are assumed not to trigger a sleep state if the expected sleep time is comparable to the overhead delay required to transition from the sleep state. Such power and latency overhead is typically compensated for by the long sleep duration of the WTRU RF chain. However, in the case of MUSIM WTRU, sleep time can be frequently interrupted due to multi-SIM paging occasions, and therefore, by adding ramp-up and ramp-down overhead, it becomes difficult for MUSIM WTRU to achieve deep / light sleep for longer durations without interruption.

[0081] Furthermore, frequent transitions between various power states, which incur frequent ramp-up and ramp-down power overhead, are recognized as a significant problem for MUSIM WTRUs. Specifically, as discussed above, it is (e.g., very) difficult for a MUSIM WTRU to enter deep / light sleep for longer durations (e.g.) during idle / inactive mode due to MUSIM paging occasions that the MUSIM WTRU cannot control. Moreover, frequent transitions between various sleep states of the MUSIM WTRU, resulting from multiple MUSIM paging occasions, impose significant power saving limitations while incurring power ramp-up and ramp-down overhead.

[0082] According to the embodiment, for example, in the case of a MUSIM WTRU in idle / inactive mode, power savings (e.g., appropriate) by such a WTRU may be possible, for example, by using WTRU assistance to enable power-efficient optimization of MUSIM paging. According to the embodiment, enabling power-efficient optimization of MUSIM paging using WTRU assistance may include any of the embodiments discussed below. According to the embodiment, a MUSIM WTRU may maintain an idle mode power-optimized state for a longer duration. For example, according to the embodiment, multiple (e.g., different and / or repeated) SIM paging occasions may be time-scheduled (e.g., arranged, configured, etc.) such that the expected sleep time is sufficient for the MUSIM WTRU to trigger a power-optimized power state, e.g., deep sleep.

[0083] According to embodiments, in the case of a power-efficient MUSIM paging procedure, frequent sleep state transitions should be avoided, for example, to reduce power consumption and / or latency overhead of ramp-up and ramp-down operations. According to embodiments, there may be a WTRU-specific paging time offset window (e.g., temporally backward or forward). According to embodiments, there may be (e.g., a new) WTRU-assisted scheme that includes signaling to one or more of the connected RAN networks indicating a MUSIM WTRU and / or (e.g., information transmission) that indicates a WTRU-specific paging time offset window (e.g., temporally backward or forward). According to embodiments, there may be multiple methods / schemes for such signaling, for example, as discussed below herein. According to embodiments, a WTRU-specific paging time offset window (sometimes referred to herein as an offset window) may allow each MUSIM WTRU to optimize its MUSIM paging settings to maintain a power-friendly state over (longer) durations, for example. According to the embodiment, upon receiving a MUSIM paging offset window request, the network (e.g., a RAN node) may: (1) change its temporary WTRU ID so that its own set of paging occasions is offset according to the requested / signaled window; or (2) change the paging cycle (e.g., periodicity) to improve the power efficiency performance of the MUSIM WTRU.

[0084] Optimization of WTRU-assisted dynamic MUSIM paging power Figure 2 illustrates an example of WTRU-assisted MUSIM paging optimization according to an embodiment.

[0085] According to the embodiment, there may be a WTRU-assisted scheme for power-efficient MUSIM paging operation. Referring to Figure 2, parts (A) and (B) show cases where MUSIM WTRU assistance is not provided. As shown in part (A) of Figure 2, there may be cases of poorly timed MUSIM paging occasions (e.g., the timing of the MUSIM paging occasions is insufficient for deep sleep), in which case the MUSIM WTRU may be unable to trigger a deep sleep state because, for example, the expected sleep duration is interrupted by the paging occasion of the second network. In such cases, the MUSIM WTRU may trigger a less power-efficient light sleep state until the paging occasion of the second network. As shown in part (B) of Figure 2, there may be cases where both MUSIM paging occasions are time-separated enough for the MUSIM WTRU to trigger a deep sleep state. In such cases (for example, however), such sufficient time separation can lead to frequent power state transitions, and therefore to power penalties and latency overhead for the receiver to ramp up and ramp down.

[0086] Referring to Figure 2, parts (C) and (D) show how WTRU support may be incorporated by indicating one or more of the connected RAN networks by the required paging offset window, according to the embodiment. That is, as shown in parts (C) and (D) of Figure 2, the MUSIM WTRU can notify (e.g., send signaling) any number of networks (e.g., connected, wireless, cellular, available, etc.) with respect to the required paging offset window. As shown in part (C) of Figure 2, according to the embodiment, for example, based on the indicated WTRU paging offset window, a node in the second RAN network can change the configured paging occasion for the MUSIM WTRU (e.g., each of them) to be temporally closer to the paging occasion of network 1. According to the embodiment, in such a case, the MUSIM WTRU may trigger the light sleep state until the next paging occasion of the second RAN network, while incurring less overhead (e.g., in terms of latency and power consumption) due to the transition from the light sleep state to the active state (compared to, for example, the overhead of the transition from the deep state to the active state).

[0087] As shown in part (D) of Figure 2, according to the embodiment, a case of (e.g., more) power optimization may be shown based on (e.g., the new) WTRU support mentioned above. According to the embodiment, in such a case, it can be assumed that, based on the proposed paging offset window from the MUSIM WTRU, the second RAN network may configure (e.g., more) closely spaced paging occasions compared to, for example, the paging occasions of the first RAN network. According to the embodiment, in such a case, the MUSIM WTRU may trigger a sleep state (e.g., quick, micro, short, etc.) until the MUSIM WTRU monitors the paging occasions of both networks, and, for example, may trigger a long and / or uninterrupted deep sleep state accordingly. In such a case, the MUSIM WTRU may incur minimal overhead and power penalty, for example, avoiding the frequent overhead for power ramp-up and ramp-down while remaining in a power-friendly state for longer periods and achieving (e.g., more appropriate) power saving gains.

[0088] According to the embodiment, in the first case, a MUSIM WTRU can signal one or more of the RAN networks (e.g., serving MUSIM WTRUs sometimes called MUSIM RAN) using (e.g., accordingly) any number of required paging offset windows as thresholds, offsets, values, etc. According to the embodiment, the paging offset window signaling may include: (1) a recommended WTRU-specific maximum time offset, for example, with respect to time (e.g., ms), slots, and / or OFDM symbols; and (2) a single-bit indication of whether the recommended paging offset is forward or backward compared to the current paging setting.

[0089] According to the embodiment (for example, as an alternative to a single offset value in the first case), there may be a second case in which the MUSIM WTRU signals one or more of the MUSIM networks using at least two offset thresholds, including at least: (1) a minimum offset threshold, (2) a maximum offset threshold, (3) a set of paging occasions for other RAN networks (e.g., with respect to slots, system frame numbers (SFNs), etc.), and (4) a single-bit indication of whether the recommended paging offset is forward or backward compared to the current paging setting. According to the embodiment, in the second case (for example, unlike the first case), the RAN side may have (e.g., more) flexibility, for example, not to place the updated set of paging occasions too close to the paging occasions of other RAN networks. In such a case, the WTRU processing delay of the previous paging occasion may be taken into consideration. For example, in the case of two directly consecutive paging occasions in different RAN networks, the MUSIM WTRU may be unable to monitor the second (e.g., later, subsequent, etc.) paging occasion due to the MUSIM WTRU's inherent processing delay in the former paging occasion. According to the embodiment, in such a case, for example, a minimum offset threshold may indicate the RAN node having the minimum offset desired by the MUSIM WTRU, taking into account the MUSIM WTRU's (e.g., its own) processing delay when monitoring consecutive MUSIM paging occasions.

[0090] According to the embodiment, signaling of the MUSIM paging offset window (e.g., indicating, notifying, notifying, etc.) may be either part of or a trigger for a Radio Notice Area Update (RNAU) and / or for the establishment of a temporary RACH and / or RRC signaling. According to the embodiment, there may be information (e.g., newly proposed information element (IE)) and / or instructions (e.g., newly proposed, etc.) including information associated with the paging window offset and / or one of a plurality of minimum and maximum paging offset thresholds, which may be part of an RRC configuration request message. According to the embodiment, upon receiving such information and / or instructions, the RAN node may change (e.g., decide to change) a temporary WTRU ID and / or paging cycle (e.g., I-RNTI, S-TMSI). According to the embodiment, in such a case, the updated paging occasion set of the MUSIM WTRU may satisfy a power-efficient multiple paging occasion monitoring operation. According to one embodiment, the updated WTRU idle mode information may be transmitted, for example, as part of RRC reconfiguration signaling before the WTRU transitions to idle / inactive mode.

[0091] Figure 3 illustrates WTRU-assisted paging optimization according to an embodiment.

[0092] Referring to Figure 3, depending on the embodiment, there may be any of the following (e.g., novel, newly proposed, etc.) actions, procedures, timelines, signaling flows, features, signals, information, etc., for WTRU-assisted paging optimization, as discussed below. According to the embodiment, WTRU-assisted paging optimization may include any of the following: (1) an idle / inactive (e.g., mode) MUSIM WTRU transmits information to a (e.g., selected) RAN node indicating: (i) a paging offset window, (ii) the maximum time offset of the paging occasion set (e.g., in ms, slots, subframes, etc.), and (iii) an indication of the required window as a forward or backward offset compared to the currently configured paging occasion set; (2) the RAN node receives the required paging offset window and updates the paging WTRU ID and / or paging cycle; and (3) the idle / inactive (e.g., mode) MUSIM WTRU monitors, determines, and decodes the updated power-optimized multi-SIM paging occasions using the updated power ramp-up and power ramp-down cycles.

[0093] Figure 4 illustrates an example of WTRU actions / procedures for power-efficient MUSIM paging according to an embodiment, and Figure 5 illustrates an example of WTRU actions / procedures for power-efficient MUSIM paging using primary network and anchor network determination according to an embodiment.

[0094] According to the embodiment, for example, referring to Figure 4, an idle / inactive MUSIM WTRU may perform any of the following operations (e.g., actions, procedures, functions, steps, characteristics, etc.). According to the embodiment, as a first operation, the WTRU (e.g., MUSIM WTRU) may receive a configuration from a serving RAN / core node, for example, in the form of an instruction to enable the MUSIM WTRU-assisted paging optimization function. According to the embodiment, as a second operation, the WTRU may determine the most power-optimized set of paging occasions for the MUSIM RAN interface that satisfies one or more of the following: (1) the longest possible deep sleep duration, (2) the minimum number of state transitions that can result in minimum power overhead due to (e.g., reduced) frequency of power ramp-ups and downs, and (3) the minimum power penalty associated with power state transitions.

[0095] According to the embodiment, as a third operation, a WTRU (e.g., an idle / inactive MUSIM WTRU) may transmit a paging occasion offset / window and a single-bit time direction indication (e.g., indicating forward or backward) to one or more of the MUSIM RAN nodes. According to the embodiment, as a fourth operation, a WTRU may receive and update one or more (e.g., updated) paging occasions in the MUSIM RAN network using an indication for, for example, a newly updated WTRU ID (RNTI), a paging group ID, a paging pattern ID, and a paging cycle. According to the embodiment, as a fifth operation, a WTRU may monitor, detect, and decode the updated paging occasions in the MUSIM network, and as a result, perform a minimum number of state transitions.

[0096] According to the embodiment, for power-efficient MUSIM paging, the MUSIM WTRU may, for example, determine the primary network and (for example, the corresponding) anchor network from (for example, based on) a pool of active (for example, multiple) networks (for example, active SIM cards). According to the embodiment, in such a case, the primary network and anchor network are identified by the WTRU, for example, and the paging offset and / or window (for example, proposed by the WTRU) is always unidirectional (for example, forward or backward) depending on the higher-layer configuration from the RAN / core interface. For example, according to the embodiment, the RAN (for example, and / or core network) may configure a power-efficient paging-assisted WTRU using the forward offset / window direction (for example, by itself). According to the embodiment, in such a case, the WTRU may determine the configured paging occasions for a multi-network and (for example, thus / thus) select the primary network from (for example, multiple) connected networks. According to the embodiment, the configured paging occasions of the primary network may be references to / for other anchor networks (e.g., to play a role, to operate, etc.) such that the signaled paging window / offset is always forward in time. According to the embodiment, (e.g., after the selection of the primary network) the WTRU may determine (e.g., the actual) paging offset / window duration in an allowed time direction such that, for example, the longest possible deep sleep period is achieved with the minimum power state transitions, according to (e.g., depending on) the configured paging occasions of multiple / active networks.

[0097] Referring to Figure 5, according to the embodiment, there may be any of the following for power-efficient MUSIM paging using primary network and anchor network determination (e.g., new, newly proposed, etc.), such as the operations, procedures, timelines, signaling flows, features, signals, and information, as discussed below. According to the embodiment, as a first operation, a WTRU (e.g., idle / inactive MUSIM WTRU) may receive a configuration from a serving RAN node in the form of an instruction to enable the MUSIM WTRU-assisted paging optimization function and an instruction to whether a temporal forward or backward paging window is permitted. According to the embodiment, as a second operation, the WTRU may select a primary network (e.g., the paging occasion of the primary network is considered as a reference to the paging occasion of the anchor network) and an anchor network from a pool of active networks, such that the paging offset / window is unidirectional according to the configured paging window direction.

[0098] According to the embodiment, as a third operation, the WTRU may determine the most power-optimized set of paging occasions for an identified anchor network that satisfies (1) the longest possible deep sleep duration, (2) the minimum number of state transitions that can enable the minimum power overhead (e.g., for that purpose) resulting from power ramp-ups and ramp-downs (e.g., less frequently), and / or (3) the minimum power penalty associated with power state transitions. According to the embodiment, as a fourth operation, the WTRU may transmit a paging occasion offset / window to one or more of the anchor RAN nodes. According to the embodiment, as a fifth operation, the WTRU may receive and update one or more (e.g., updated) paging occasions in the anchor network using instructions for, for example, a newly updated WTRU ID (e.g., RNTI), a paging group ID, a paging pattern ID, and / or a paging cycle. According to the embodiment, as a sixth operation, the WTRU can monitor, detect, and decode the updated paging occasions in the MUSIM network and perform the minimum number of state transitions.

[0099] From the above and according to embodiments, a WTRU may be configured to transmit a message to at least a first network indicating that the WTRU is a multi-subscriber identification module (MUSIM) device, and then receive information from the first network indicating the initial paging occasion associated with the first network. The network may be a RAN, a RAN node, a CN, or a node or other element of another communication system. The WTRU may transmit paging assistance information to the first network. The paging assistance information may include, among other things, a first offset, a second offset, and a direction indicator. According to embodiments, the first offset may indicate the minimum offset relative to the initial paging occasion associated with the first network, the second offset may indicate the maximum offset relative to the initial paging occasion associated with the first network, and the direction indicator may indicate whether the first and second offsets should be applied before or after the initial paging occasion associated with the first network. The WTRU may then receive information (e.g., from the first network) indicating the updated paging occasion associated with the first network. An updated paging occasion associated with the first network may be signaled as a new WTRU-ID, paging group ID, paging pattern ID, paging cycle, and / or other information.

[0100] In embodiments, the first and second offsets of the first network may be determined by WTRU (or otherwise) based on the paging occasions associated with the second network. Furthermore, the first and second offsets of the first network may be optimized (preferably, for example) with respect to the power consumption of WTRU. In embodiments, the first and second offsets of the first network may be optimized for the longest possible deep sleep duration between paging occasions, the minimum number of state transitions, and / or the minimum power penalty associated with power state transitions. In embodiments, the first and second offsets for the first network may be determined (for example, in addition) based on minimum and maximum offset thresholds for a set of paging occasions for both the first and second networks.

[0101] In embodiments, the WTRU may select a first network and a second network from a pool of active and available networks (e.g., multiple networks) such that, for example, the first and second offsets of the first network have unidirectional indications. In embodiments, updated paging occasions associated with the first network occur between the minimum and maximum offsets relative to the initial paging occasion associated with the first network. In embodiments, one or more of the other elements considered herein in relation to the method of execution and the configuration of the networks and / or WTRU may be combined and incorporated into the configuration.

[0102] In embodiments, the operation method may be performed by the WTRU and / or network and includes, in particular, the steps of: sending a message to at least a first network indicating that the WTRU is a MUSIM device; receiving information indicating an initial paging occasion associated with the first network; and, in particular, transmitting paging assistance information including a first offset, a second offset, and a direction indicator. In embodiments, the first offset may indicate the minimum offset relative to the initial paging occasion associated with the first network, the second offset may indicate the maximum offset relative to the initial paging occasion associated with the first network, and the direction indicator may indicate whether the first and second offsets should be applied before or after the initial paging occasion associated with the network. The method may further include receiving information indicating that an updated paging occasion associated with the network has been defined.

[0103] In embodiments, the operation method may include sending a message to a second network indicating that the WTRU is a MUSIM device, and sending and / or receiving information about the second network indicating the initial paging occasion of the second network. In embodiments, the first and second offsets of the first network may be determined based on the second network paging occasion, optimized for the power consumption of the WTRU, and / or optimized for the longest possible deep sleep duration between paging occasions, the minimum number of state transitions, and / or the minimum power penalty associated with power state transitions. In embodiments, one or more of the other elements considered herein in relation to the method and network and / or the configuration of the WTRU may be included in or combined with the method.

[0104] The following are incorporated by reference: [1] R1-2101503, Paging Improvements for UE Power Saving, [2] R1-2101555, Design for Paging Improvements, [3] R1-2101622, Considerations on Paging Improvements, [4] R1-2101475, TRS CSI-RS for Idle Inactive UE Power Saving, [5] R1-2101623, Considerations on TRS CSI-RS Occasions for Idle / Inactive UEs, [6] YRLi, M. Chen, J. Xu, L. Tian and K. Huang, "Power Saving Techniques for 5G and Beyond", IEEE Access, vol. 8, pp. 108675-108690, 2020, [7] 3GPP TR 38.840 V16.0.0 (2019-06), [8] R1-2103389, "Analysis on power consumption for IDLE mode and RedCap”, Huawei., [9]R2-2105978, “Paging collision avoidance”, Ericsson., and

[10] R2-2106103, “Solution analysis for supporting Multi-SIM paging cause”, Intel.

[0105] While the features and elements are described above in specific combinations, those skilled in the art will understand that each feature or element can be used individually or in any combination with other features and elements. In addition, the methods described herein can be implemented in computer programs, software, or firmware embedded on computer-readable media for execution by a computer or processor. Examples of non-temporary computer-readable storage media include, but are not limited to, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), registers, cache memory, semiconductor memory devices, magnetic media such as internal hard disks and removable disks, magneto-optical media, and optical media such as CD-ROM disks and digital multi-purpose disks (DVDs). A processor associated with software can be used to implement a radio frequency transceiver for use in a WTRU102, WTRU, terminal, base station, RNC, or any host computer.

[0106] Furthermore, the embodiments described above include other devices, including processing platforms, computing systems, controllers, and processors. These devices may include at least one central processing unit ("CPU") and memory. According to the convention of those skilled in the art in the field of computer programming, references to operations and symbolic representations of arithmetic or instructions may be performed by various CPUs and memories. Such operations and arithmetic or instructions may be referred to as "executed," "executed by the computer," or "executed by the CPU."

[0107] Those skilled in the art will understand that operations and symbolically represented arithmetic or instructions involve the manipulation of electrical signals by the CPU. The electrical system represents data bits that can cause a resulting transformation or reduction of electrical signals, and maintains these data bits in memory locations of the memory system, thereby reconfiguring or otherwise altering the CPU's operations and processing of other signals. The memory locations where the data bits are maintained are physical locations having specific electrical, magnetic, optical, or organic properties that correspond to or represent the data bits. It should be understood that exemplary embodiments are not limited to the platforms or CPUs described above, and other platforms and CPUs may support the methods provided.

[0108] Data bits may also be maintained on computer-readable media, including magnetic disks, optical disks, and any other volatile (e.g., Random Access Memory ("RAM")) or non-volatile (e.g., Read-Only Memory ("ROM")) mass storage systems readable by the CPU. Computer-readable media may include cooperative or interconnected computer-readable media distributed across multiple interconnected processing systems, which may reside exclusively on a processing system or be local or remote to the processing system. Typical embodiments are not limited to the memory described above, and other platforms and memories may support the methods described.

[0109] In illustrative embodiments, any of the operations, processes, etc., described herein may be implemented as computer-readable instructions stored on a computer-readable medium. These computer-readable instructions may be executed by processors in mobile devices, network elements, and / or any other computing devices.

[0110] There is little distinction between hardware and software implementations of a system configuration. The use of hardware or software is generally (though not always, in certain situations the choice between hardware and software can be significant) a design choice involving a cost-effectiveness trade-off. Various vehicles (e.g., hardware, software, and / or firmware) may exist in which the processes and / or systems and / or other technologies described herein may be effective, and the preferred vehicle may vary depending on the context in which the processes and / or systems and / or other technologies are deployed. For example, if the implementer determines that speed and accuracy are paramount, the implementer may choose primarily hardware and / or firmware vehicles. If flexibility is paramount, the implementer may choose primarily software implementations. Alternatively, the implementer may choose any combination of hardware, software, and / or firmware.

[0111] The detailed description above illustrates various embodiments of devices and / or processes through the use of block diagrams, flowcharts, and / or examples. Those skilled in the art will understand that, insofar as such block diagrams, flowcharts, and / or examples include one or more functions and / or operations, each function and / or operation in such block diagrams, flowcharts, or examples may be implemented individually and / or collectively by a wide range of hardware, software, firmware, or substantially any combination thereof. Suitable processors include, by example, general-purpose processors, dedicated processors, conventional processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors associated with a DSP core, controllers, microcontrollers, application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), application-specific standard products (ASSPs), field-programmable gate array (FPGA) circuits, any other type of integrated circuit (IC), and / or state machines.

[0112] While features and elements are provided above in specific combinations, those skilled in the art will understand that each feature or element can be used individually or in any combination with other features and elements. This disclosure is not limited in terms of the specific embodiments described herein, which are intended to be illustrative of various aspects. As will be apparent to those skilled in the art, many modifications and variations can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Any elements, actions, or instructions used in the description of this application should not be construed as important or essential to the invention unless so expressly presented. In addition to those enumerated herein, functionally equivalent methods and apparatus within the scope of this disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the foregoing description. Such modifications and variations are intended to fall within the scope of the appended claims. This disclosure is limited only by the terms of the appended claims, and is limited in the same way as the full scope of the equivalents to which such claims are entitled. It should be understood that this disclosure is not limited to any particular method or system.

[0113] It should also be understood that the terms used herein are for the purpose of describing only specific embodiments and are not intended to limit them. Where used herein, and referred to herein, “Station” and its abbreviation “STA,” “User Equipment” and its abbreviation “UE” may mean (i) a radio transmit and / or receive unit (WTRU) such as the infrastructure described herein, (ii) any of several embodiments of a WTRU such as the infrastructure described herein, (iii) a radio-enabled and / or wired (e.g., tetherable) device configured to have some or all of the structure and functions of a WTRU such as the infrastructure described herein, (iii) a radio-enabled and / or wired device configured to have less than all of the structure and functions of a WTRU such as the infrastructure described herein, or (iv) other. Details of exemplary WTRUs that may represent any WTRU enumerated herein are provided below with respect to Figures 1A to 1E.

[0114] In certain representative embodiments, some parts of the subject matter described herein may be implemented via application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), digital signal processors (DSPs), and / or other integrated formats. However, it will be recognized by those skilled in the art that some aspects of the embodiments disclosed herein may be equivalently implemented in an integrated circuit as one or more computer programs running on one or more computers (e.g., as one or more programs running on one or more computer systems), as one or more programs running on one or more processors (e.g., as one or more programs running on one or more microprocessors), as firmware, or substantially any combination thereof, and that designing circuits and / or writing software and / or firmware code is within the scope of the art of those skilled in the art in light of this disclosure. In addition, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the mechanisms of the subject matter described herein may be distributed as various forms of program products, and that the exemplary embodiments of the subject matter described herein are applicable regardless of the particular type of signal-carrying medium used to actually carry out the distribution. Examples of signal-carrying media include, but are not limited to, recordable media such as floppy disks, hard disk drives, CDs, DVDs, digital tapes, and computer memory, as well as transmitting media such as digital and / or analog communication media (e.g., optical fiber cables, waveguides, wired communication links, wireless communication links, etc.).

[0115] The subject matter described herein may, in some examples, depict different components that are contained within or connected to other different components. It should be understood that such depicted architectures are merely examples, and in practice, many other architectures can be implemented to achieve the same function. Conceptually, any arrangement of components to achieve the same function is effectively “associated” in such a way that the desired function can be achieved. Thus, any two components combined herein to achieve a particular function, regardless of architecture or intermediate components, can be seen as “associated” with each other in such a way that the desired function can be achieved. Similarly, any two components thus associated can be considered “operably connected” or “operably coupled” with each other to achieve the desired function, and any two components that can be associated in such a way can be considered “operably coupled” with each other to achieve the desired function. Specific examples of operably coupled components include, but are not limited to, physically matable and / or physically interacting components, as well as / or wirelessly interactable and / or wirelessly interacting components, as well as / or logically interacting and / or logically interactable components.

[0116] With regard to the use of substantially any plural and / or singular terms herein, those skilled in the art can convert from plural to singular and / or singular to plural as appropriate to the context and / or use. For clarity purposes, various singular / plural rearrangements may be explicitly described herein.

[0117] In general, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the terms used herein, and in particular in the appended claims (e.g., in the body of the appended claims), are generally intended to be “open” terms (for example, the term “contains” should be interpreted as “contains but not limited to,” the term “has” should be interpreted as “has at least,” and the term “contains” should be interpreted as “contains but not limited to.”). Furthermore, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that if a particular number of claims introduced are intended to be described, such intent is explicitly stated in the claim, and if such statement is not present, such intent does not exist. For example, if only one item is intended, the term “single” or similar wording may be used. To aid understanding, the following appended claims and / or descriptions herein may include the use of the introductory phrases “at least one” and “one or more” to introduce the description of a claim. However, the use of such phrases should not be interpreted as meaning that the introduction of a claim description by the indefinite article "a" or "an" limits any particular claim containing such introduced description to embodiments containing only one such description, even if the same claim contains the introductory phrase "one or more" or "at least one" and an indefinite article such as "a" or "an" (for example, "a" and / or "an" should be interpreted as meaning "at least one" or "one or more"). The same applies to the use of definite articles used to introduce a claim description. In addition, it will be recognized by those skilled in the art that even if a particular number of descriptions in an introduced claim are explicitly stated, such description should be interpreted as meaning at least the number stated (for example, the simple statement "two descriptions" without other modifiers means at least two descriptions or two or more descriptions).Furthermore, when a notation similar to "at least one of A, B, and C" is used, such a structure is generally intended to mean what a person skilled in the art would understand (for example, "a system having at least one of A, B, and C" includes, but is not limited to, systems having only A, only B, only C, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and / or A, B, and C together). When a notation similar to "at least one of A, B, or C" is used, such a structure is generally intended to mean what a person skilled in the art would understand (for example, "a system having at least one of A, B, or C" includes, but is not limited to, systems having only A, only B, only C, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and / or A, B, and C together). It will be further understood by those skilled in the art that any substantially any disjunct word and / or phrase presenting two or more alternative terms in the specification, claims, or drawings should be understood as construing the possibility of including one of the terms, either of the terms, or both of the terms. For example, the phrase “A or B” should be understood as including the possibility of “A” or “B” or “A and B.” Furthermore, as used herein, the term “any of” followed by a list of items and / or a list of categories of items is intended to include “any of,” “any combination of,” “any number of,” and / or “any number of combinations of,” of items and / or categories of items, individually or in combination with other items and / or categories of items. Furthermore, as used herein, the term “set / group” is intended to include any number of items, including zero. In addition, as used herein, the term “number” is intended to include any number, including zero.

[0118] In addition, if any feature or aspect of the present disclosure is described from the perspective of the Markush group, a person skilled in the art will recognize that the present disclosure is also described from the perspective of any individual member or subgroup of a member of the Markush group.

[0119] For all purposes, including providing written explanations, as will be understood by those skilled in the art, all scopes disclosed herein also encompass all possible subscopes and combinations thereof. Any enumerated scope can be readily recognized as making it readily explainable and possible that the same scope can be broken down into at least equal 1 / 2, 1 / 3, 1 / 4, 1 / 5, 1 / 10, etc. As a non-limiting example, each scope considered herein can readily be broken down into a lower third, a middle third, an upper third, etc. Also, as will be understood by those skilled in the art, all words such as “up to,” “at least,” “greater than,” and “less than” include the number mentioned and mean a scope that can be broken down into further subscopes as considered above. Finally, as will be understood by those skilled in the art, a scope includes each individual element. Thus, for example, a group having 1 to 3 cells refers to a group having 1, 2, or 3 cells. Similarly, a group having 1 to 5 cells refers to a group having 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 cells, and so on.

[0120] Furthermore, unless otherwise specifically stated, the claims should not be read as being limited to the order or elements provided. In addition, in any claim, the use of the term “means for” is intended to appeal to Section 112, paragraph 6 of the U.S. Patent Act, or the means-plus-function claim format, and no claim without the term “means for” is intended to appeal in that way.

[0121] While the present invention is illustrated and described herein with reference to specific embodiments, it is not intended to be limited to the details shown. Rather, various modifications can be made in detail within the scope of the claims and their equivalents, without departing from the present invention.

[0122] Through this disclosure, those skilled in the art will understand that certain representative embodiments may be used as alternatives or in combination with other representative embodiments.

[0123] While the features and elements are described above in specific combinations, those skilled in the art will understand that each feature or element can be used individually or in any combination with other features and elements. In addition, the methods described herein can be implemented in computer programs, software, or firmware embedded on computer-readable media for execution by a computer or processor. Examples of non-temporary computer-readable storage media include, but are not limited to, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), registers, cache memory, semiconductor memory devices, magnetic media such as internal hard disks and removable disks, magneto-optical media, and optical media such as CD-ROM disks and digital multi-purpose disks (DVDs). A processor associated with software can be used to implement a radio frequency transceiver for use in a UE, WTRU, terminal, base station, RNC, or any host computer.

[0124] Furthermore, the embodiments described above include other devices, including processing platforms, computing systems, controllers, and processors. These devices may include at least one central processing unit ("CPU") and memory. According to the convention of those skilled in the art in the field of computer programming, references to operations and symbolic representations of arithmetic or instructions may be performed by various CPUs and memories. Such operations and arithmetic or instructions may be referred to as "executed," "executed by the computer," or "executed by the CPU."

[0125] Those skilled in the art will understand that operations and symbolically represented arithmetic or instructions involve the manipulation of electrical signals by the CPU. The electrical system represents data bits that can cause a resulting transformation or reduction of electrical signals, and maintains these data bits in memory locations of the memory system, thereby reconfiguring or otherwise altering the CPU's operations and processing of other signals. The memory locations where the data bits are maintained are physical locations having specific electrical, magnetic, optical, or organic properties that correspond to or represent the data bits.

[0126] Data bits may also be maintained on computer-readable media, including magnetic disks, optical disks, and any other volatile (e.g., Random Access Memory ("RAM")) or non-volatile (e.g., Read-Only Memory ("ROM")) mass storage systems readable by the CPU. Computer-readable media may include cooperative or interconnected computer-readable media distributed among multiple interconnected processing systems, which may reside exclusively on a processing system or be local or remote to the processing system. Typical embodiments are not limited to the memory described above, and other platforms and memories may support the methods described.

[0127] Any element, action, or instruction used in the description of this application should not be construed as important or essential to the invention unless expressly stated otherwise. In addition, as used herein, the article "a" is intended to include one or more items. If only one item is intended, the term "one" or similar word may be used. Also, as used herein, the term "any of" followed by a list of multiple items and / or a list of categories of multiple items is intended to include "any of", "any combination of", "any number of", and / or "any number of combinations of", either individually or in combination with other items and / or categories of other items. Also, as used herein, the term "set" is intended to include any number of items, including zero. Also, as used herein, the term "number" is intended to include any number, including zero.

[0128] Furthermore, claims should not be read as being limited to the order in which they are described or the elements provided, unless otherwise specifically stated. In addition, the use of the term “means” in any claim is intended to appeal under Section 112, paragraph 6 of the U.S. Patent Act, and no claim that does not contain the word “means” is intended to appeal under that purpose.

[0129] Suitable processors include, for example, general-purpose processors, dedicated processors, conventional processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors associated with a DSP core, controllers, microcontrollers, application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), application-specific standard products (ASSPs), field-programmable gate array (FPGA) circuits, any other type of integrated circuit (IC), and / or state machines.

[0130] A radio frequency transceiver can be implemented using a software-associated processor for use in a radio transmit / receive unit (WTRU), user equipment (UE), terminal, base station, mobility management entity (MME), or evolved packet core (EPC), or any host computer. The WTRU may be used in conjunction with hardware and / or software-implemented modules such as software-defined radio (SDR), and may also be implemented in other components such as cameras, video camera modules, video phones, speakerphones, vibration devices, speakers, microphones, television transceivers, hands-free headsets, keyboards, Bluetooth® modules, frequency modulation (FM) radio units, near-field communication (NFC) modules, LCD display units, organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display units, digital music players, media players, video game player modules, internet browsers, and / or wireless local area network (WLAN) or ultra-wideband (UWB) modules.

[0131] Although the present invention has been described in relation to a communication system, it is intended that the system may be implemented in software on a microprocessor / general-purpose computer (not shown). In certain embodiments, one or more functions of various components may be implemented in software that controls the general-purpose computer.

[0132] In addition, although the present invention is illustrated and described herein with reference to specific embodiments, it is not intended to be limited to the details shown. Rather, various modifications can be made in detail within the scope of the claims and their equivalents, without departing from the present invention.

Claims

1. A wireless transceiver unit (WTRU), A message indicating that the WTRU is a Multi-Subscriber Identification Module (MUSIM) device is sent to the first network. Information indicating the initial paging occasion associated with the first network is received, Paging support information is transmitted to the first network, the paging support information includes a first offset, a second offset, and a time direction indicator, wherein the first offset indicates the minimum offset for the initial paging occasion associated with the first network, the second offset indicates the maximum offset for the initial paging occasion associated with the first network, and the time direction indicator indicates whether the first and second offsets should be applied before or after the initial paging occasion associated with the first network. Information indicating updated paging occasions associated with the first network is received. WTRU is configured in this way.

2. The WTRU according to claim 1, wherein the first and second offsets of the first network are determined based on the paging occasions associated with the second network.

3. The first offset and the second offset are (a) Related to the power consumption of the WTRU, (b) The longest possible deep sleep duration between paging occasions, (c) The minimum number of state transitions, or (c) Minimum power penalty associated with power state transitions, The WTRU according to claim 2, which is optimized based on one or more of the following.

4. The WTRU according to claim 2, wherein the first and second offsets are determined based on a minimum and maximum offset threshold for a set of paging occasions for both the first and second networks.

5. The WTRU according to claim 2, further configured to select the first network and the second network such that the first and second offsets have unidirectional indications.

6. The WTRU according to claim 1, wherein the updated paging occasion associated with the first network occurs between the minimum and maximum offsets with respect to the initial paging occasion associated with the first network.

7. The WTRU according to claim 1, wherein the information indicating the updated paging occasion associated with the first network is signaled as at least one of a new WTRU-ID, a paging group ID, a paging pattern ID, or a paging cycle.

8. A method performed by a wireless transceiver unit (WTRU), The steps include sending a message to the first network indicating that the WTRU is a multi-subscriber identification module (MUSIM) device, The steps include receiving information from the first network indicating the initial paging occasion associated with the first network, A step of transmitting paging support information to the first network, wherein the paging support information includes a first offset, a second offset, and a time direction indicator, wherein the first offset indicates the minimum offset relating to the initial paging occasion associated with the first network, the second offset indicates the maximum offset relating to the initial paging occasion associated with the first network, and the time direction indicator indicates whether the first and second offsets should be applied before or after the initial paging occasion associated with the first network. The steps include receiving information indicating updated paging occasions associated with the first network, Methods that include...

9. The steps include sending a message to a second network indicating that the WTRU is a MUSIM device, The steps include receiving information from the second network indicating a second network initial paging occasion, Includes, The method according to claim 8, wherein the first and second offsets of the first network are determined based on the initial paging occasion of the second network.

10. The first offset and the second offset of the first network are (a) Related to the power consumption of the WTRU, (b) The longest possible deep sleep duration between paging occasions, (c) The minimum number of state transitions, or (c) Minimum power penalty associated with power state transitions, The method according to claim 9, further comprising the step of optimizing for one or more of the following.

11. The step of determining the first and second offsets based on the minimum and maximum offset thresholds for the set of paging occasions for both the first and second networks. The method according to claim 9, further comprising:

12. Steps to select the first network and the second network such that the first and second offsets of the first network have unidirectional indications. The method according to claim 9, further comprising:

13. The method according to claim 8, wherein the updated paging occasion associated with the first network occurs between the minimum offset and the maximum offset with respect to the initial paging occasion associated with the first network.

14. The method according to claim 8, wherein the information indicating the updated paging occasion associated with the first network includes at least one of a new WTRU-ID, a paging group ID, a paging pattern ID, or a paging cycle.

15. A wireless transceiver unit (WTRU), A message indicating that the WTRU is a Multi-Subscriber Identification Module (MUSIM) device is sent to the first network. Information indicating the initial paging occasion associated with the first network is received, Receive information indicating paging occasions associated with the second network, Paging support information is determined, including a first offset, a second offset, and a time direction indicator, wherein the first offset indicates the minimum offset with respect to the initial paging occasion associated with the first network and the paging occasion associated with the second network, the second offset indicates the maximum offset with respect to the initial paging occasion associated with the first network, and the time direction indicator indicates whether the first and second offsets should be applied before or after the initial paging occasion associated with the first network. The determined paging support information is transmitted to the first network. The system receives information indicating the updated paging occasion based on the aforementioned paging support information. WTRU is configured in this way.

16. The WTRU according to claim 15, wherein the first and second offsets are determined based on a minimum and maximum offset threshold for a set of paging occasions for both the first and second networks.

17. The WTRU according to claim 15, wherein the updated paging occasion associated with the first network occurs between the minimum offset and the maximum offset with respect to the initial paging occasion associated with the first network.

18. The first offset and the second offset are (a) Related to the power consumption of the WTRU, (b) The longest possible deep sleep duration between paging occasions, (c) The minimum number of state transitions, or (c) Minimum power penalty associated with power state transitions, The WTRU according to claim 15, which is optimized based on one or more of the following.

19. The WTRU according to claim 15, wherein the information indicating the updated paging occasion associated with the first network is signaled as at least one of a new WTRU-ID, a paging group ID, a paging pattern ID, or a paging cycle.

Images