Signaling of UTO-UCI for multiple configured grant configurations

Abstract

An apparatus of a user equipment (UE) comprising one or more processors, coupled to a memory, configured to: identify a plurality of configured grant (CG) configurations, group the plurality of CG configurations into at least two CG groups, determine unused transmission occasions for the UE in each of the at least two CG groups, and encode an indication of unused transmission occasions indicated by uplink control information (UTO-UCI) for each of the at least two CG groups.

Description

SIGNALING OF UTO-UCI FOR MULTIPLE CONFIGURED GRANT CONFIGURATIONSFIELD

[0001] Embodiments of the invention relate to wireless communications, including apparatuses, systems, and methods for allocating network resources for uplink (UL) transmissions in a wireless network environment.DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART

[0002] Wireless communication systems are rapidly growing in usage. In recent years, wireless devices such as smart phones and tablet computers have become increasingly sophisticated. In addition to supporting telephone calls, many mobile devices now provide access to the internet, email, text messaging, and navigation using the global positioning system (GPS) and are capable of operating sophisticated applications that utilize these functionalities.

[0003] Long Term Evolution (LTE) has been the technology of choice for the majority of wireless network operators worldwide, providing mobile broadband data and high-speed Internet access to their subscriber base. LTE was first proposed in 2004 and was first standardized in 2008. Since then, as usage of wireless communication systems has expanded exponentially, demand has risen for wireless network operators to support a higher capacity for a higher density of mobile broadband users. In 2015, a study of a new radio access technology began and, in 2017, a first release of Fifth Generation New Radio (5G NR) was standardized.

[0004] 5G-NR, also simply referred to as NR, provides, as compared to LTE, a higher capacity for a higher density of mobile broadband users, while also supporting device-to-device, ultra-reliable, and massive machine type communications with lower latency and / or lower battery consumption. Further, NR may allow for more flexible UE scheduling as compared to current LTE. Consequently, efforts are being made in ongoing developments of 5G-NR to takeadvantage of higher throughputs possible at higher frequencies.

[0005] Wireless communication systems provide mobility by enabling user equipment (UEs) to move between cells via a process referred to as handover. Handover occurs when a mobile UE switches from one cell to another neighboring cell. Mechanisms have been established to help ensure a smooth transition between cells. NR supports different types of handover that were not supported in the previous 4G LTE specification. The basic handover in NR has been based on LTE handover mechanisms in which the network controls UE mobility based on UE measurement reporting.SUMMARY

[0006] Embodiments relate to an apparatus of a user equipment (UE), the apparatus comprising: one or more processors, coupled to a memory, configured to: identify a plurality of configured grant (CG) configurations, each CG configuration defining pre-allocated transmission occasions for uplink (UL) transmissions from the UE; group the plurality of CG configurations into at least two CG groups; determine unused transmission occasions for the UE in each of the at least two CG groups; and encode, at the UE, an indication of unused transmission occasions indicated by uplink control information (UTO-UCI) for each of the at least two CG groups.

[0007] Embodiments relate to wireless communications, and more particularly to apparatuses, systems, and methods for an apparatus of a next generation Node B (gNB), the apparatus comprising one or more processors, coupled to a memory, configured to identify a plurality of configured grant (CG) configurations for a user equipment (UE), each CG configuration defining pre-allocated transmission occasions for uplink (UL) transmissions; group the plurality of CG configurations into at least two CG groups; and encode, at the gNB, CG configuration information for each of the plurality of CG configurations for transmission to the UE.

[0008] The techniques described herein may be implemented in and / or used with a number of different types of devices, including but not limited to unmannedaerial vehicles (UAVs), unmanned aerial controllers (UACs), base stations, access points, cellular phones, tablet computers, wearable computing devices, portable media players, and any of various other computing devices.

[0009] This Summary is intended to provide a brief overview of some of the subject matter described in this document. Accordingly, it will be appreciated that the above-described features are merely examples and should not be construed to narrow the scope or spirit of the subject matter described herein in any way. Other features, aspects, and advantages of the subject matter described herein will become apparent from the following Detailed Description, Figures, and Claims.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] A better understanding of the present subject matter can be obtained when the following detailed description of various embodiments is considered in conjunction with the following drawings, in which:

[0011] FIG. 1 A illustrates an example wireless communication system according to some embodiments.

[0012] FIG. 1 B illustrates an example of a base station and an access point in communication with a user equipment (UE) device, according to some embodiments.

[0013] FIG. 2 illustrates an example block diagram of a base station, according to some embodiments.

[0014] FIG. 3 illustrates an example block diagram of a server according to some embodiments.

[0015] FIG. 4 illustrates an example block diagram of a UE according to some embodiments.

[0016] FIG. 5 illustrates an example block diagram of cellular communication circuitry, according to some embodiments.

[0017] FIG. 6 illustrates an example of a baseband processor architecture for aUE, according to some embodiments.

[0018] FIG. 7 illustrates an example block diagram of an interface of baseband circuitry according to some embodiments.

[0019] FIG. 8 illustrates an example of a control plane protocol stack in accordance with some embodiments.

[0020] FIG. 9 illustrates an example of a user plane protocol stack in accordance with some embodiments.

[0021] FIG. 10 illustrates an example of a timing diagram showing Type 1 configured grant (CG) scheduling for uplink (UL) data transmissions between a gNB and a UE in accordance with some embodiments.

[0022] FIG. 11 illustrates an example of a timing diagram showing Type 2 configured grant (CG) scheduling for uplink (UL) data transmissions between a gNB and a UE in accordance with some embodiments.

[0023] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a timing diagram showing that each configured grant (CG) occasion comprises multiple PUSCHs in accordance with some embodiments.

[0024] FIG. 13 illustrates an example of a timing diagram shows that each “used” CG PUSCH includes UTO-UCI signaling in accordance with some embodiments.

[0025] FIG. 14 illustrates an example of a timing diagram shows the use of a single UTO-UCI for multiple CG configurations in accordance with some embodiments.

[0026] FIG. 15 illustrates an example of a timing diagram of five CGs that have been provided to a UE by a gNB in accordance with some embodiments.

[0027] FIG. 16 illustrates an example of an exemplary grouping of the CGs shown in FIG. 15 in accordance with some embodiments.

[0028] FIG. 17 illustrates an example of an exemplary grouping of the CGs shown in FIG. 15 where one of the CGs is not in a group in accordance with someembodiments.

[0029] FIG. 18 illustrates an example of an exemplary grouping of the CGs shown in FIG. 15 where one of the CGs is deactivated in accordance with some embodiments.

[0030] FIG. 19 illustrates an example of an exemplary bitmap for indicating CG grouping information in accordance with some embodiments.

[0031] FIG. 20 illustrates an example of an exemplary bitmap for indicating CG grouping information in accordance with some embodiments.

[0032] FIG. 21 illustrates an example of an exemplary bitmap for signaling unused transmission occasions in accordance with some embodiments.

[0033] FIG. 22 illustrates an example of a timing diagram for transmitting grouping configuration information between an gNB and a UE in accordance with some embodiments.

[0034] FIG. 23 illustrates an example of a timing diagram for transmitting UTO- UCI configuration information between an gNB and a UE in accordance with some embodiments.

[0035] FIG. 24 illustrates an example of a timing diagram for transmitting group control information between an gNB and a UE in accordance with some embodiments.

[0036] FIG. 25 illustrates an example of a timing diagram for transmitting CG preferences between a gNB and a UE in accordance with some embodiments.

[0037] FIG. 26 illustrates an example flow chart of a method of allocating resources for uplink (UL) transmissions from a user equipment (UE) in accordance with some embodiments.

[0038] FIG. 27 illustrates an example flow chart of a method of allocating resources for uplink (UL) transmissions from a user equipment (UE) to a next generation Node B (gNB) in accordance with some embodiments.

[0039] While the features described herein may be susceptible to variousmodifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof are shown by way of example in the drawings and are herein described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the drawings and detailed description thereto are not intended to be limiting to the particular form disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the subject matter as defined by the appended claims.DETAILED DESCRIPTIONTerms

[0040] The following is a glossary of terms used in this disclosure:

[0041] Memory Medium - Any of various types of non-transitory memory devices or storage devices. The term “memory medium” is intended to include an installation medium, e.g., a CD-ROM, floppy disks, or tape device; a computer system memory or random-access memory such as DRAM, DDR RAM, SRAM, EDO RAM, Rambus RAM, etc.; a non-volatile memory such as a Flash, magnetic media, e.g., a hard drive, or optical storage; registers, or other similar types of memory elements, etc. The memory medium may include other types of non- transitory memory as well or combinations thereof. In addition, the memory medium may be located in a first computer system in which the programs are executed, or may be located in a second different computer system which connects to the first computer system over a network, such as the Internet. In the latter instance, the second computer system may provide program instructions to the first computer for execution. The term “memory medium” may include two or more memory mediums which may reside in different locations, e.g., in different computer systems that are connected over a network. The memory medium may store program instructions (e.g., embodied as computer programs) that may be executed by one or more processors.

[0042] Carrier Medium - a memory medium as described above, as well as a physical transmission medium, such as a bus, network, and / or other physical transmission medium that conveys signals such as electrical, electromagnetic, ordigital signals.

[0043] Programmable Hardware Element includes various hardware devices comprising multiple programmable function blocks connected via a programmable interconnect. Examples include FPGAs (Field Programmable Gate Arrays), PLDs (Programmable Logic Devices), FPOAs (Field Programmable Object Arrays), and CPLDs (Complex PLDs). The programmable function blocks may range from fine grained (combinatorial logic or look up tables) to coarse grained (arithmetic logic units or processor cores). A programmable hardware element may also be referred to as "reconfigurable logic”.

[0044] Computer System (or Computer) - any of various types of computing or processing systems, including a personal computer system (PC), mainframe computer system, workstation, network appliance, Internet appliance, personal digital assistant (PDA), television system, grid computing system, or other device or combinations of devices. In general, the term "computer system" can be broadly defined to encompass any device (or combination of devices) having at least one processor that executes instructions from a memory medium.

[0045] User Equipment (UE) (or “UE Device”) - any of various types of computer systems devices which are mobile or portable and which performs wireless communications. Examples of UE devices include mobile telephones or smart phones (e.g., iPhone™, Android™-based phones), portable gaming devices (e.g., Nintendo DS™, PlayStation Portable™, Gameboy Advance™, iPhone™), laptops, wearable devices (e.g., smart watch, smart glasses), PDAs, portable Internet devices, music players, data storage devices, other handheld devices, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) (e.g., drones), UAV controllers (UACs), and so forth. In general, the term “UE” or “UE device” can be broadly defined to encompass any electronic, computing, and / or telecommunications device (or combination of devices) which is easily transported by a user and capable of wireless communication.

[0046] Base Station - The term "Base Station" has the full breadth of its ordinary meaning, and at least includes a wireless communication station installed at afixed location and used to communicate as part of a wireless telephone system or radio system.

[0047] Processing Element (or Processor) - refers to various elements or combinations of elements that are capable of performing a function in a device, such as a user equipment or a cellular network device. Processing elements may include, for example: processors and associated memory, portions or circuits of individual processor cores, entire processor cores, processor arrays, circuits such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), programmable hardware elements such as a field programmable gate array (FPGA), as well any of various combinations of the above.

[0048] Channel - a medium used to convey information from a sender (transmitter) to a receiver. It should be noted that since characteristics of the term “channel” may differ according to different wireless protocols, the term “channel” as used herein may be considered as being used in a manner that is consistent with the standard of the type of device with reference to which the term is used. In some standards, channel widths may be variable (e.g., depending on device capability, band conditions, etc.). For example, LTE may support scalable channel bandwidths from 1.4 MHz to 20MHz. 5G NR can support scalable channel bandwidths from 5 MHz to 100 MHz in Frequency Range 1 (FR1 ) and up to 400 MHz in FR2. In other radio access technologies, WLAN channels may be 22 MHz wide while Bluetooth channels may be 1 MHz wide. Other protocols and standards may include different definitions of channels. Furthermore, some standards may define and use multiple types of channels, e.g., different channels for uplink or downlink and / or different channels for different uses such as data, control information, etc.

[0049] Band - The term "band" has the full breadth of its ordinary meaning, and at least includes a section of spectrum (e.g., radio frequency spectrum) in which channels are used or set aside for the same purpose.

[0050] Automatically - refers to an action or operation performed by a computer system (e.g., software executed by the computer system) or device (e.g.,circuitry, programmable hardware elements, ASICs, etc.), without user input directly specifying or performing the action or operation. Thus, the term "automatically" is in contrast to an operation being manually performed or specified by the user, where the user provides input to directly perform the operation. An automatic procedure may be initiated by input provided by the user, but the subsequent actions that are performed "automatically” are not specified by the user, i.e., are not performed “manually”, where the user specifies each action to perform. For example, a user filling out an electronic form by selecting each field and providing input specifying information (e.g., by typing information, selecting check boxes, radio selections, etc.) is filling out the form manually, even though the computer system will update the form in response to the user actions. The form may be automatically filled out by the computer system where the computer system (e.g., software executing on the computer system) analyzes the fields of the form and fills in the form without any user input specifying the answers to the fields. As indicated above, the user may invoke the automatic filling of the form, but is not involved in the actual filling of the form (e.g., the user is not manually specifying answers to fields but rather they are being automatically completed). The present specification provides various examples of operations being automatically performed in response to actions the user has taken.

[0051] Approximately - refers to a value that is almost correct or exact. For example, approximately may refer to a value that is within 1 to 10 percent of the exact (or desired) value. It should be noted, however, that the actual threshold value (or tolerance) may be application dependent. For example, in some embodiments, “approximately” may mean within 0.1 % of some specified or desired value, while in various other embodiments, the threshold may be, for example, 2%, 3%, 5%, and so forth, as desired or as set by the particular application.

[0052] Concurrent - refers to parallel execution or performance, where tasks, processes, or programs are performed in an at least partially overlapping manner. For example, concurrency may be implemented using “strong” or strict parallelism, where tasks are performed (at least partially) in parallel on respective computational elements, or using “weak parallelism”, where the tasks areperformed in an interleaved manner, e.g., by time multiplexing of execution threads.

[0053] Configured Grant or CG - refers to a mechanism for scheduling uplink (UL) transmissions that eliminates the need to dynamically request and assign resources for packet transmissions by pre-allocating UL resources to UEs.

[0054] Extended Reality or XR - refers to all real-and-virtual combined environments and human-machine interactions generated by computer technology and wearables. XR is an umbrella term for different types of realities: Virtual reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), and Mixed Reality (MR).

[0055] Physical Uplink Shared Channel or PUSCH - refers to the main uplink (UL) channel between UEs and gNBs. The channel carries both signaling and user data, in addition to uplink control information (UCI).

[0056] Unused Transmission Occasions UCI or UTO-UCI - refers to indications of unused transmission occasions.

[0057] Serving Cell - refers to the primary cell with which a UE is currently communicating.

[0058] Band Width Part or BWP - refers to a contiguous portion of the overall system bandwidth allocated for communication. In 5G, the available spectrum is divided into different bandwidth parts, and each Bandwidth Part can be configured with specific parameters such as carrier frequency, subcarrier spacing, and duration. The introduction of Bandwidth Parts in 5G allows for more flexibility and efficient use of the spectrum. It enables the dynamic allocation of resources to meet varying service requirements and to support different types of devices and applications with diverse bandwidth needs.

[0059] Various components may be described as “configured to” perform a task or tasks. In such contexts, “configured to” is a broad recitation generally meaning “having structure that” performs the task or tasks during operation. As such, the component can be configured to perform the task even when the component is not currently performing that task (e.g., a set of electrical conductors may be configured to electrically connect a module to another module, even when the two modules arenot connected). In some contexts, “configured to” may be a broad recitation of structure generally meaning “having circuitry that” performs the task or tasks during operation. As such, the component can be configured to perform the task even when the component is not currently on. In general, the circuitry that forms the structure corresponding to “configured to” may include hardware circuits.

[0060] Various components may be described as performing a task or tasks, for convenience in the description. Such descriptions should be interpreted as including the phrase “configured to.” Reciting a component that is configured to perform one or more tasks is expressly intended not to invoke 35 U.S.C. § 112(f) interpretation for that component.

[0061] The example embodiments may be further understood with reference to the following description and the related appended drawings, wherein like elements are provided with the same reference numerals. The example embodiments relate to UEs signaling of UTO-UCI for multiple CG configurations.

[0062] The example embodiments are described with regard to communication between a next generation Node B (gNB) and a user equipment (UE). However, reference to a gNB or a UE is merely provided for illustrative purposes. The example embodiments may be utilized with any electronic component that may establish a connection to a network and is configured with the hardware, software, and / or firmware to support gapless RRM measurements. Therefore, the gNB or UE as described herein is used to represent any appropriate type of electronic component.

[0063] The example embodiments are also described with regard to a fifth generation (5G) New Radio (NR) network that may configure a UE to signal UTO- UCI for multiple CG configurations. However, reference to a 5G NR network is merely provided for illustrative purposes. The example embodiments may be utilized with any appropriate type of network.

[0064] Throughout this description various information elements (lEs) are referred to by specific names. It should be understood that these names are only examples and the lEs carrying the information referred to throughout this description may be referred to by other names by various entities.Figures 1 A and 1 B: Communication Systems

[0065] FIG. 1 A illustrates a simplified example wireless communication system, according to some embodiments. It is noted that the system of FIG. 1 A is merely one example of a possible system, and that features of this disclosure may be implemented in any of various systems, as desired.

[0066] As shown, the example wireless communication system includes a base station 102A which communicates over a transmission medium with one or more user devices 106A, 106B, etc., through 106N. Each of the user devices may be referred to herein as a “user equipment” (UE). Thus, the user devices 106 are referred to as UEs or UE devices.

[0067] The base station (BS) 102A may be a base transceiver station (BTS) or cell site (a “cellular base station”) and may include hardware that enables wireless communication with the UEs 106A through 106N.

[0068] The communication area (or coverage area) of the base station may be referred to as a “cell.” The base station 102A and the UEs 106 may be configured to communicate over the transmission medium using any of various radio access technologies (RATs), also referred to as wireless communication technologies, or telecommunication standards, such as GSM, UMTS (associated with, for example, WCDMA or TD-SCDMA air interfaces), LTE, LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), 5G new radio (5G NR), HSPA, 3GPP2 CDMA2000 (e.g., 1 xRTT, 1 xEV-DO, HRPD, eHRPD), etc. Note that if the base station 102A is implemented in the context of LTE, also referred to as the Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN, it may alternately be referred to as an 'eNodeB' or ‘eNB’. Note that if the base station 102A is implemented in the context of 5G NR, it may alternately be referred to as ‘gNodeB’ or ‘gNB’.

[0069] As shown, the base station 102A may also be equipped to communicate with a network 100 (e.g., a core network of a cellular service provider, a telecommunication network such as a public switched telephone network (PSTN), and / or the Internet, among various possibilities). Thus, the base station 102A may facilitate communication between the user devices and / or between the user devices and the network 100. In particular, the cellular base station 102A may provide UEs 106 with various telecommunication capabilities, such as voice, SMS and / or data services.

[0070] Base station 102A and other similar base stations (such as base stations 102B...102N) operating according to the same or a different cellular communication standard may thus be provided as a network of cells, which may provide continuous or nearly continuous overlapping service to UEs 106A-N and similar devices over a geographic area via one or more cellular communication standards.

[0071] Thus, while base station 102A may act as a “serving cell” for UEs 106A- N as illustrated in FIG. 1A, each UE 106 may also be capable of receiving signals from (and possibly within communication range of) one or more other cells (which might be provided by base stations 102B-N and / or any other base stations), which may be referred to as “neighboring cells”. Such cells may also be capable of facilitating communication between user devices and / or between user devices and the network 100. Such cells may include “macro” cells, “micro” cells, “pico” cells, and / or cells which provide any of various other granularities of service area size. For example, base stations 102A-B illustrated in FIG. 1 A might be macro cells, while base station 102N might be a micro cell. Other configurations are also possible.

[0072] In some embodiments, base station 102A may be a next generation base station, e.g., a 5G New Radio (5G NR) base station, or “gNB”. In some embodiments, a gNB may be connected to a legacy evolved packet core (EPC) network and / or to a NR core (NRC) network. In addition, a gNB cell may include one or more transition and reception points (TRPs). In addition, a UE capable of operating according to 5G NR may be connected to one or more TRPs within oneor more gNBs.

[0073] Note that a UE 106 may be capable of communicating using multiple wireless communication standards. For example, the UE 106 may be configured to communicate using a wireless networking (e.g., Wi-Fi) and / or peer-to-peer wireless communication protocol (e.g., Bluetooth, Wi-Fi peer-to-peer, etc.) in addition to at least one cellular communication protocol (e.g., GSM, UMTS (associated with, for example, WCDMA or TD-SCDMA air interfaces), LTE, LTE-A, 5G NR, HSPA, 3GPP2 CDMA2000 (e.g., 1 xRTT, 1xEV-DO, HRPD, eHRPD), etc.). The UE 106 may also or alternatively be configured to communicate using one or more global navigational satellite systems (GNSS, e.g., GPS or GLONASS), one or more mobile television broadcasting standards (e.g., ATSC-M / H or DVB-H), and / or any other wireless communication protocol, if desired. Other combinations of wireless communication standards (including more than two wireless communication standards) are also possible.

[0074] FIG. 1 B illustrates user equipment 106 (e.g., one of the devices 106A through 106N) in communication with a base station 102 and an access point 112, according to some embodiments. The UE 106 may be a device with both cellular communication capability and non-cellular communication capability (e.g., Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and so forth) such as a mobile phone, a hand-held device, a computer or a tablet, or virtually any type of wireless device.

[0075] The UE 106 may include a processor that is configured to execute program instructions stored in memory. The UE 106 may perform any of the method embodiments described herein by executing such stored instructions. Alternatively, or in addition, the UE 106 may include a programmable hardware element such as an FPGA (field-programmable gate array) that is configured to perform any of the method embodiments described herein, or any portion of any of the method embodiments described herein.

[0076] The UE 106 may include one or more antennas for communicating using one or more wireless communication protocols or technologies. In some embodiments, the UE 106 may be configured to communicate using, for example,CDMA2000 (1 xRTT 1 1 xEV-DO I HRPD I eHRPD), LTE / LTE- Advanced, or 5G NR using a single shared radio and / or GSM, LTE, LTE-Advanced, or 5G NR using the single shared radio. The shared radio may couple to a single antenna, or may couple to multiple antennas (e.g., for MIMO) for performing wireless communications. In general, a radio may include any combination of a baseband processor, analog RF signal processing circuitry (e.g., including filters, mixers, oscillators, amplifiers, etc.), ordigital processing circuitry (e.g., for digital modulation as well as other digital processing). Similarly, the radio may implement one or more receive and transmit chains using the aforementioned hardware. For example, the UE 106 may share one or more parts of a receive and / or transmit chain between multiple wireless communication technologies, such as those discussed above.

[0077] In some embodiments, the UE 106 may include separate transmit and / or receive chains (e.g., including separate antennas and other radio components) for each wireless communication protocol with which it is configured to communicate. As a further possibility, the UE 106 may include one or more radios which are shared between multiple wireless communication protocols, and one or more radios which are used exclusively by a single wireless communication protocol. For example, the UE 106 might include a shared radio for communicating using either of LTE or 5G NR (or LTE or IxRTTor LTE or GSM), and separate radios for communicating using each of Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Other configurations are also possible.FIG. 2: Block Diagram of a Base Station (gNB)

[0078] FIG. 2 illustrates an example block diagram of a base station 102, according to some embodiments. It is noted that the base station of FIG. 2 is merely one example of a possible base station. As shown, the base station 102 may include processor(s) 204 which may execute program instructions for the base station 102. The processor(s) 204 may also be coupled to memory management unit (MMU) 240, which may be configured to receive addresses from the processor(s) 204 and translate those addresses to locations in memory (e.g., memory 260 andread only memory (ROM) 250) or to other circuits or devices.

[0079] The base station 102 may include at least one network port 270. The network port 270 may be configured to couple to a telephone network and provide a plurality of devices, such as UE devices 106, access to the telephone network as described above in Figures 1 and 2.

[0080] The network port 270 (or an additional network port) may also or alternatively be configured to couple to a cellular network, e.g., a core network of a cellular service provider. The core network may provide mobility related services and / or other services to a plurality of devices, such as UE devices 106. In some cases, the network port 270 may couple to a telephone network via the core network, and / or the core network may provide a telephone network (e.g., among other UE devices serviced by the cellular service provider).

[0081] In some embodiments, base station 102 may be a next generation base station, e.g., a 5G New Radio (5G NR) base station, or “gNB”. In such embodiments, base station 102 may be connected to a legacy evolved packet core (EPC) network and / or to a NR core (NRC) network. In addition, base station 102 may be considered a 5G NR cell and may include one or more transition and reception points (TRPs). In addition, a UE capable of operating according to 5G NR may be connected to one or more TRPs within one or more gNBs.

[0082] The base station 102 may include at least one antenna 234, and possibly multiple antennas. The at least one antenna 234 may be configured to operate as a wireless transceiver and may be further configured to communicate with UE devices 106 via radio 230. The antenna 234 communicates with the radio 230 via communication chain 232. Communication chain 232 may be a receive chain, a transmit chain or both. The radio 230 may be configured to communicate via various wireless communication standards, including, but not limited to, 5G NR, LTE, LTE-A, GSM, UMTS, CDMA2000, Wi-Fi, etc.

[0083] The base station 102 may be configured to communicate wirelessly using multiple wireless communication standards. In some instances, the base station 102 may include multiple radios, which may enable the base station 102 tocommunicate according to multiple wireless communication technologies. For example, as one possibility, the base station 102 may include an LTE radio for performing communication according to LTE as well as a 5G NR radio for performing communication according to 5G NR. In such a case, the base station 102 may be capable of operating as both an LTE base station and a 5G NR base station. As another possibility, the base station 102 may include a multi-mode radio which is capable of performing communications according to any of multiple wireless communication technologies (e.g., 5G NR and Wi-Fi, LTE and Wi-Fi, LTE and UMTS, LTE and CDMA2000, UMTS and GSM, etc.).

[0084] As described further subsequently herein, the BS 102 may include hardware and software components for implementing or supporting implementation of features described herein. The processor 204 of the base station 102 may be configured to implement or support implementation of part or all of the methods described herein, e.g., by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable memory medium). Alternatively, the processor 204 may be configured as a programmable hardware element, such as an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), or as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), or a combination thereof.Alternatively (or in addition) the processor 204 of the BS 102, in conjunction with one or more of the other components 230, 232, 234, 240, 250, 260, 270 may be configured to implement or support implementation of part or all of the features described herein.

[0085] In addition, as described herein, processor(s) 204 may be comprised of one or more processing elements. In other words, one or more processing elements may be included in processor(s) 204. Thus, processor(s) 204 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) that are configured to perform the functions of processor(s) 204. In addition, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., first circuitry, second circuitry, etc.) configured to perform the functions of processor(s) 204.

[0086] Further, as described herein, radio 230 may be comprised of one or more processing elements. In other words, one or more processing elements maybe included in radio 230. Thus, radio 230 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) that are configured to perform the functions of radio 230. In addition, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., first circuitry, second circuitry, etc.) configured to perform the functions of radio 230.

[0087] In some embodiments, the base station or gNB 102, and / or processors 204 thereof, can be capable of and configured to determine, for a user equipment, multiple CGs; determine, for a user equipment (UE), active and deactivated CGs; receive, from user equipment (UE), UTO-UCI that indicate unused PUSCH opportunities for multiple CGs on a group-by-group basis.FIG. 3: Block Diagram of a Server

[0088] FIG. 3 illustrates an example block diagram of a server 104, according to some embodiments. It is noted that the server of FIG. 3 is merely one example of a possible server. As shown, the server 104 may include processor(s) 344 which may execute program instructions for the server 104. The processor(s) 344 may also be coupled to memory management unit (MMU) 374, which may be configured to receive addresses from the processor(s) 344 and translate those addresses to locations in memory (e.g., memory 364 and read only memory (ROM) 354) or to other circuits or devices.

[0089] The server 104 may be configured to provide a plurality of devices, such as base station 102, and UE devices 106 access to network functions, e.g., as further described herein.

[0090] In some embodiments, the server 104 may be part of a radio access network, such as a 5G New Radio (5G NR) radio access network. In some embodiments, the server 104 may be connected to a legacy evolved packet core (EPC) network and / or to a NR core (NRC) network.

[0091] As described herein, the server 104 may include hardware and software components for implementing or supporting implementation of features described herein. The processor 344 of the server 104 may be configured to implement or support implementation of part or all of the methods described herein, e.g., byexecuting program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable memory medium). Alternatively, the processor 344 may be configured as a programmable hardware element, such as an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), or as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), or a combination thereof. Alternatively (or in addition) the processor 344 of the server 104, in conjunction with one or more of the other components 354, 364, and / or 374 may be configured to implement or support implementation of part or all of the features described herein.

[0092] In addition, as described herein, processor(s) 344 may be comprised of one or more processing elements. In other words, one or more processing elements may be included in processor(s) 344. Thus, processor(s) 344 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) that are configured to perform the functions of processor(s) 344. In addition, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., first circuitry, second circuitry, etc.) configured to perform the functions of processor(s) 344.FIG. 4: Block Diagram of a User Equipment (UE)

[0093] FIG. 4 illustrates an example simplified block diagram of a communication device 106, according to some embodiments. It is noted that the block diagram of the communication device of FIG. 4 is only one example of a possible communication device. According to embodiments, communication device 106 may be a user equipment (UE) device, a mobile device or mobile station, a wireless device or wireless station, a desktop computer or computing device, a mobile computing device (e.g., a laptop, notebook, or portable computing device), a tablet, an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), a UAV controller (UAC) and / or a combination of devices, among other devices. As shown, the communication device 106 may include a set of components 400 configured to perform core functions. For example, this set of components may be implemented as a system on chip (SOC), which may include portions for various purposes. Alternatively, this set of components 400 may be implemented as separate components or groups ofcomponents for the various purposes. The set of components 400 may be coupled (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) to various other circuits of the communication device 106.

[0094] For example, the communication device 106 may include various types of memory (e.g., including NAND flash 410), an input / output interface such as connector l / F 420 (e.g., for connecting to a computer system; dock; charging station; input devices, such as a microphone, camera, keyboard; output devices, such as speakers; etc.), the display 460, which may be integrated with or external to the communication device 106, and cellular communication circuitry 430 such as for 5G NR, LTE, GSM, etc., and short to medium range wireless communication circuitry 429 (e.g., Bluetooth™ and WLAN circuitry). In some embodiments, communication device 106 may include wired communication circuitry (not shown), such as a network interface card, e.g., for Ethernet.

[0095] The cellular communication circuitry 430 may couple (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) to one or more antennas, such as antennas 435 and 436 as shown. The short to medium range wireless communication circuitry 429 may also couple (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) to one or more antennas, such as antennas 437 and 438 as shown. Alternatively, the short to medium range wireless communication circuitry 429 may couple (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) to the antennas 435 and 436 in addition to, or instead of, coupling (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) to the antennas 437 and 438. The short to medium range wireless communication circuitry 429 and / or cellular communication circuitry 430 may include multiple receive chains and / or multiple transmit chains for receiving and / or transmitting multiple spatial streams, such as in a multiple-input multiple output (MIMO) configuration.

[0096] In some embodiments, as further described below, cellular communication circuitry 430 may include dedicated receive chains (including and / or coupled to, e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly, dedicated processors and / or radios) for multiple RATs (e.g., a first receive chain for LTE and a second receive chain for 5G NR). In addition, in some embodiments, cellular communication circuitry 430 may include a single transmit chain that may beswitched between radios dedicated to specific RATs. For example, a first radio may be dedicated to a first RAT, e.g., LTE, and may be in communication with a dedicated receive chain and a transmit chain shared with an additional radio, e.g., a second radio that may be dedicated to a second RAT, e.g., 5G NR, and may be in communication with a dedicated receive chain and the shared transmit chain.

[0097] The communication device 106 may also include and / or be configured for use with one or more user interface elements. The user interface elements may include any of various elements, such as display 460 (which may be a touchscreen display), a keyboard (which may be a discrete keyboard or may be implemented as part of a touchscreen display), a mouse, a microphone and / or speakers, one or more cameras, one or more buttons, and / or any of various other elements capable of providing information to a user and / or receiving or interpreting user input.

[0098] The communication device 106 may further include one or more smart cards 445 that include SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) functionality, such as one or more UICC(s) (Universal Integrated Circuit Card(s)) cards 445. Note that the term “SIM” or “SIM entity” is intended to include any of various types of SIM implementations or SIM functionality, such as the one or more UICC(s) cards 445, one or more eUlCCs, one or more eSIMs, either removable or embedded, etc. In some embodiments, the UE 106 may include at least two SIMs. Each SIM may execute one or more SIM applications and / or otherwise implement SIM functionality. Thus, each SIM may be a single smart card that may be embedded, e.g., may be soldered onto a circuit board in the UE 106, or each SIM 410 may be implemented as a removable smart card. Thus, the SIM(s) may be one or more removable smart cards (such as UICC cards, which are sometimes referred to as “SIM cards”), and / or the SIMs 410 may be one or more embedded cards (such as embedded UICCs (eUlCCs), which are sometimes referred to as “eSIMs” or “eSIM cards”). In some embodiments (such as when the SIM(s) include an eUlCC), one or more of the SIM(s) may implement embedded SIM (eSIM) functionality; in such an embodiment, a single one of the SIM(s) may execute multiple SIM applications. Each of the SIMs may include components such as a processor and / or a memory; instructions for performing SIM / eSIM functionality may be stored in the memory andexecuted by the processor. In some embodiments, the UE 106 may include a combination of removable smart cards and fixed / non-removable smart cards (such as one or more elllCC cards that implement eSIM functionality), as desired. For example, the UE 106 may comprise two embedded SIMs, two removable SIMs, or a combination of one embedded SIMs and one removable SIMs. Various other SIM configurations are also contemplated.

[0099] As noted above, in some embodiments, the UE 106 may include two or more SIMs. The inclusion of two or more SIMs in the UE 106 may allow the UE 106 to support two different telephone numbers and may allow the UE 106 to communicate on corresponding two or more respective networks. For example, a first SIM may support a first RAT such as LTE, and a second SIM 410 support a second RAT such as 5G NR. Other implementations and RATs are of course possible. In some embodiments, when the UE 106 comprises two SIMs, the UE 106 may support Dual SIM Dual Active (DSDA) functionality. The DSDA functionality may allow the UE 106 to be simultaneously connected to two networks (and use two different RATs) at the same time, or to simultaneously maintain two connections supported by two different SIMs using the same or different RATs on the same or different networks. The DSDA functionality may also allow the UE 106 to simultaneously receive voice calls or data traffic on either phone number. In certain embodiments the voice call may be a packet switched communication. In other words, the voice call may be received using voice over LTE (VoLTE) technology and / or voice over NR (VoNR) technology. In some embodiments, the UE 106 may support Dual SIM Dual Standby (DSDS) functionality. The DSDS functionality may allow either of the two SIMs in the UE 106 to be on standby waiting for a voice call and / or data connection. In DSDS, when a call / data is established on one SIM, the other SIM is no longer active. In some embodiments, DSDx functionality (either DSDA or DSDS functionality) may be implemented with a single SIM (e.g., a eUlCC) that executes multiple SIM applications for different carriers and / or RATs.

[0100] As shown, the SOC 400 may include processor(s) 402, which may execute program instructions for the communication device 106 and displaycircuitry 404, which may perform graphics processing and provide display signals to the display 460. The processor(s) 402 may also be coupled to memory management unit (MMU) 440, which may be configured to receive addresses from the processor(s) 402 and translate those addresses to locations in memory (e.g., memory 406, read only memory (ROM) 450, NAND flash memory 410) and / or to other circuits or devices, such as the display circuitry 404, short to medium range wireless communication circuitry 429, cellular communication circuitry 430, connector l / F 420, and / or display 460. The MMU 440 may be configured to perform memory protection and page table translation or set up. In some embodiments, the MMU 440 may be included as a portion of the processor(s) 402.

[0101] As described herein, the communication device 106 may include hardware and software components for implementing the above features for a communication device 106 to communicate a scheduling profile for power savings to a network. The processor 402 of the communication device 106 may be configured to implement part or all of the features described herein, e.g., by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable memory medium). Alternatively (or in addition), processor 402 may be configured as a programmable hardware element, such as an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), or as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit). Alternatively (or in addition) the processor 402 of the communication device 106, in conjunction with one or more of the other components 400, 404, 406, 410, 420, 429, 430, 440, 445, 450, 460 may be configured to implement part or all of the features described herein.

[0102] In addition, as described herein, processor 402 may include one or more processing elements. Thus, processor 402 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) that are configured to perform the functions of processor 402. In addition, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., first circuitry, second circuitry, etc.) configured to perform the functions of processor(s) 402.

[0103] Further, as described herein, cellular communication circuitry 430 and short to medium range wireless communication circuitry 429 may each include one or more processing elements. In other words, one or more processing elementsmay be included in cellular communication circuitry 430 and, similarly, one or more processing elements may be included in short to medium range wireless communication circuitry 429. Thus, cellular communication circuitry 430 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) that are configured to perform the functions of cellular communication circuitry 430. In addition, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., first circuitry, second circuitry, etc.) configured to perform the functions of cellular communication circuitry 430. Similarly, the short to medium range wireless communication circuitry 429 may include one or more ICs that are configured to perform the functions of short to medium range wireless communication circuitry 429. In addition, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., first circuitry, second circuitry, etc.) configured to perform the functions of short to medium range wireless communication circuitry 429.

[0104] In some embodiments, the user equipment (UE) can be configured to and / or capable of signaling UTO-UCI for multiple CG configurations to gNBs / base stations.FIG. 5: Block Diagram of Cellular Communication Circuitry

[0105] FIG. 5 illustrates an example simplified block diagram of cellular communication circuitry, according to some embodiments. It is noted that the block diagram of the cellular communication circuitry of FIG. 5 is only one example of a possible cellular communication circuit. According to embodiments, cellular communication circuitry 530, which may be cellular communication circuitry 430, may be included in a communication device, such as communication device 106 described above. As noted above, communication device 106 may be a user equipment (UE) device, a mobile device or mobile station, a wireless device or wireless station, a desktop computer or computing device, a mobile computing device (e.g., a laptop, notebook, or portable computing device), a tablet and / or a combination of devices, among other devices.

[0106] The cellular communication circuitry 530 may couple (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) to one or more antennas, such as antennas435a-b and 436 as shown (in FIG. 4). In some embodiments, cellular communication circuitry 530 may include dedicated receive chains (including and / or coupled to, e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly, dedicated processors and / or radios) for multiple RATs (e.g., a first receive chain for LTE and a second receive chain for 5G NR). For example, as shown in FIG. 5, cellular communication circuitry 530 may include a modem 510 and a modem 520. Modem 510 may be configured for communications according to a first RAT, e.g., such as LTE or LTE-A, and modem 520 may be configured for communications according to a second RAT, e.g., such as 5G NR.

[0107] As shown, modem 510 may include one or more processors 512 and a memory 516 in communication with processors 512. Modem 510 may be in communication with a radio frequency (RF) front end 535. RF front end 535 may include circuitry for transmitting and receiving radio signals. For example, RF front end 535 may include receive circuitry (RX) 532 and transmit circuitry (TX) 534. In some embodiments, receive circuitry 532 may be in communication with downlink (DL) front end 550, which may include circuitry for receiving radio signals via antenna 335a.

[0108] Similarly, modem 520 may include one or more processors 522 and a memory 526 in communication with processors 522. Modem 520 may be in communication with an RF front end 540. RF front end 540 may include circuitry for transmitting and receiving radio signals. For example, RF front end 540 may include receive circuitry 542 and transmit circuitry 544. In some embodiments, receive circuitry 542 may be in communication with DL front end 560, which may include circuitry for receiving radio signals via antenna 335b.

[0109] In some embodiments, a switch 570 may couple transmit circuitry 534 to uplink (UL) front end 572. In addition, switch 570 may couple transmit circuitry 544 to UL front end 572. UL front end 572 may include circuitry for transmitting radio signals via antenna 336. Thus, when cellular communication circuitry 530 receives instructions to transmit according to the first RAT (e.g., as supported via modem 510), switch 570 may be switched to a first state that allows modem 510 to transmit signals according to the first RAT (e.g., via a transmit chain that includes transmitcircuitry 534 and UL front end 572). Similarly, when cellular communication circuitry 530 receives instructions to transmit according to the second RAT (e.g., as supported via modem 520), switch 570 may be switched to a second state that allows modem 520 to transmit signals according to the second RAT (e.g., via a transmit chain that includes transmit circuitry 544 and UL front end 572).

[0110] As described herein, the modem 510 may include hardware and software components for implementing the above features or for time division multiplexing UL data for NSA NR operations, as well as the various other techniques described herein. The processors 512 may be configured to implement part or all of the features described herein, e.g., by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable memory medium). Alternatively (or in addition), processor 512 may be configured as a programmable hardware element, such as an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), or as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit). Alternatively (or in addition) the processor 512, in conjunction with one or more of the other components 530, 532, 534, 535, 550, 570, 572, 335a, 335b, and 336 may be configured to implement part or all of the features described herein.

[0111] In addition, as described herein, processors 512 may include one or more processing elements. Thus, processors 512 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) that are configured to perform the functions of processors 512. In addition, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., first circuitry, second circuitry, etc.) configured to perform the functions of processors 512.

[0112] The processors 522 may be configured to implement part or all of the features described herein, e.g., by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable memory medium). Alternatively (or in addition), processor 522 may be configured as a programmable hardware element, such as an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), or as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit). Alternatively (or in addition) the processor 522, in conjunction with one or more of the other components 540, 542, 544, 550, 570, 572, 335a, 335b, and 336 may be configured to implement part or all of the features described herein.

[0113] In addition, as described herein, processors 522 may include one or more processing elements. Thus, processors 522 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) that are configured to perform the functions of processors 522. In addition, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., first circuitry, second circuitry, etc.) configured to perform the functions of processors 522.FIG. 6: Block Diagram of a Baseband Processor Architecture for a UE

[0114] FIG. 6 illustrates example components of a device 600 in accordance with some embodiments. It is noted that the device of FIG. 6 is merely one example of a possible system, and that features of this disclosure may be implemented in any of various UEs, as desired.

[0115] In some embodiments, the device 600 may include application circuitry 602, baseband circuitry 604, Radio Frequency (RF) circuitry 606, front-end module (FEM) circuitry 608, one or more antennas 610, and power management circuitry (PMC) 612 coupled together at least as shown. The components of the illustrated device 600 may be included in a UE 106 or a RAN node 102A. In some embodiments, the device 600 may include less elements (e.g., a RAN node may not utilize application circuitry 602, and instead include a processor / controller to process IP data received from an EPC). In some embodiments, the device 600 may include additional elements such as, for example, memory / storage, display, camera, sensor, or input / output (I / O) interface. In other embodiments, the components described below may be included in more than one device (e.g., said circuitries may be separately included in more than one device for Cloud-RAN (C- RAN) implementations).

[0116] The application circuitry 602 may include one or more application processors. For example, the application circuitry 602 may include circuitry such as, but not limited to, one or more single-core or multi-core processors. The processor(s) may include any combination of general-purpose processors and dedicated processors (e.g., graphics processors, application processors, etc.). The processors may be coupled with or may include memory / storage and may beconfigured to execute instructions stored in the memory / storage to enable various applications or operating systems to run on the device 600. In some embodiments, processors of application circuitry 602 may process IP data packets received from an EPC.

[0117] The baseband circuitry 604 may include circuitry such as, but not limited to, one or more single-core or multi-core processors. The baseband circuitry 604 may include one or more baseband processors or control logic to process baseband signals received from a receive signal path of the RF circuitry 606 and to generate baseband signals for a transmit signal path of the RF circuitry 606. Baseband processing circuity 604 may interface with the application circuitry 602 for generation and processing of the baseband signals and for controlling operations of the RF circuitry 606. For example, in some embodiments, the baseband circuitry 604 may include a third generation (3G) baseband processor 604A, a fourth generation (4G) baseband processor 604B, a fifth generation (5G) baseband processor 604C, or other baseband processor(s) 604D for other existing generations, generations in development or to be developed in the future (e.g., second generation (2G), sixth generation (6G), etc.). The baseband circuitry 604 (e.g., one or more of baseband processors 604A-D) may handle various radio control functions that enable communication with one or more radio networks via the RF circuitry 606. In other embodiments, some or all of the functionality of baseband processors 604A-D may be included in modules stored in the memory 604G and executed via a Central Processing Unit (CPU) 604E. The radio control functions may include, but are not limited to, signal modulation / demodulation, encoding / decoding, radio frequency shifting, etc. In some embodiments, modulation / demodulation circuitry of the baseband circuitry 604 may include Fast- Fourier Transform (FFT), precoding, or constellation mapping / demapping functionality. In some embodiments, encoding / decoding circuitry of the baseband circuitry 604 may include convolution, tail-biting convolution, turbo, Viterbi, or Low Density Parity Check (LDPC) encoder / decoder functionality. Embodiments of modulation / demodulation and encoder / decoder functionality are not limited to these examples and may include other suitable functionality in other embodiments.

[0118] In some embodiments, the baseband circuitry 604 may include one or more audio digital signal processor(s) (DSP) 604F. The audio DSP(s) 604F may be include elements for compression / decompression and echo cancellation and may include other suitable processing elements in other embodiments. Components of the baseband circuitry may be suitably combined in a single chip, a single chipset, or disposed on a same circuit board in some embodiments. In some embodiments, some or all of the constituent components of the baseband circuitry 604 and the application circuitry 602 may be implemented together such as, for example, on a system on a chip (SOC).

[0119] In some embodiments, the baseband circuitry 604 may provide for communication compatible with one or more radio technologies. For example, in some embodiments, the baseband circuitry 604 may support communication with an evolved universal terrestrial radio access network (EUTRAN) or other wireless metropolitan area networks (WMAN), a wireless local area network (WLAN), a wireless personal area network (WPAN). Embodiments in which the baseband circuitry 604 is configured to support radio communications of more than one wireless protocol may be referred to as multi-mode baseband circuitry.

[0120] RF circuitry 606 may enable communication with wireless networks using modulated electromagnetic radiation through a non-solid medium. In various embodiments, the RF circuitry 606 may include switches, filters, amplifiers, etc. to facilitate the communication with the wireless network. RF circuitry 606 may include a receive signal path which may include circuitry to down-convert RF signals received from the FEM circuitry 608 and provide baseband signals to the baseband circuitry 604. RF circuitry 606 may also include a transmit signal path which may include circuitry to up-convert baseband signals provided by the baseband circuitry 604 and provide RF output signals to the FEM circuitry 608 for transmission.

[0121] In some embodiments, the receive signal path of the RF circuitry 606 may include mixer circuitry 606a, amplifier circuitry 606b and filter circuitry 606c. In some embodiments, the transmit signal path of the RF circuitry 606 may include filter circuitry 606c and mixer circuitry 606a. RF circuitry 606 may also includesynthesizer circuitry 606d for synthesizing a frequency for use by the mixer circuitry 606a of the receive signal path and the transmit signal path. In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry 606a of the receive signal path may be configured to down-convert RF signals received from the FEM circuitry 608 based on the synthesized frequency provided by synthesizer circuitry 606d. The amplifier circuitry 606b may be configured to amplify the down-converted signals and the filter circuitry 606c may be a low-pass filter (LPF) or band-pass filter (BPF) configured to remove unwanted signals from the down-converted signals to generate output baseband signals. Output baseband signals may be provided to the baseband circuitry 604 for further processing. In some embodiments, the output baseband signals may be zero-frequency baseband signals, although this is not a necessity. In some embodiments, mixer circuitry 606a of the receive signal path may comprise passive mixers, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect.

[0122] In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry 606a of the transmit signal path may be configured to up-convert input baseband signals based on the synthesized frequency provided by the synthesizer circuitry 606d to generate RF output signals for the FEM circuitry 608. The baseband signals may be provided by the baseband circuitry 604 and may be filtered by filter circuitry 606c.

[0123] In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry 606a of the receive signal path and the mixer circuitry 606a of the transmit signal path may include two or more mixers and may be arranged for quadrature downconversion and upconversion, respectively. In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry 606a of the receive signal path and the mixer circuitry 606a of the transmit signal path may include two or more mixers and may be arranged for image rejection (e.g., Hartley image rejection). In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry 606a of the receive signal path and the mixer circuitry 606a may be arranged for direct downconversion and direct upconversion, respectively. In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry 606a of the receive signal path and the mixer circuitry 606a of the transmit signal path may be configured for super-heterodyne operation.

[0124] In some embodiments, the output baseband signals and the inputbaseband signals may be analog baseband signals, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect. In some alternate embodiments, the output baseband signals and the input baseband signals may be digital baseband signals. In these alternate embodiments, the RF circuitry 606 may include analog- to-digital converter (ADC) and digital-to-analog converter (DAC) circuitry and the baseband circuitry 604 may include a digital baseband interface to communicate with the RF circuitry 606.

[0125] In some dual-mode embodiments, a separate radio IC circuitry may be provided for processing signals for each spectrum, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect.

[0126] In some embodiments, the synthesizer circuitry 606d may be a fractional-N synthesizer or a fractional N / N+1 synthesizer, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect as other types of frequency synthesizers may be suitable. For example, synthesizer circuitry 606d may be a delta-sigma synthesizer, a frequency multiplier, or a synthesizer comprising a phase-locked loop with a frequency divider.

[0127] The synthesizer circuitry 606d may be configured to synthesize an output frequency for use by the mixer circuitry 606a of the RF circuitry 606 based on a frequency input and a divider control input. In some embodiments, the synthesizer circuitry 606d may be a fractional N / N+1 synthesizer.

[0128] In some embodiments, frequency input may be provided by a voltage controlled oscillator (VCO), although that is not a necessity. Divider control input may be provided by either the baseband circuitry 604 or the applications processor 602 depending on the desired output frequency. In some embodiments, a divider control input (e.g., N) may be determined from a look-up table based on a channel indicated by the applications processor 602.

[0129] Synthesizer circuitry 606d of the RF circuitry 606 may include a divider, a delay-locked loop (DLL), a multiplexer and a phase accumulator. In some embodiments, the divider may be a dual modulus divider (DMD) and the phase accumulator may be a digital phase accumulator (DPA). In some embodiments,the DMD may be configured to divide the input signal by either N or N+1 (e.g., based on a carry out) to provide a fractional division ratio. In some example embodiments, the DLL may include a set of cascaded, tunable, delay elements, a phase detector, a charge pump and a D-type flip-flop. In these embodiments, the delay elements may be configured to break a VCO period up into Nd equal packets of phase, where Nd is the number of delay elements in the delay line. In this way, the DLL provides negative feedback to help ensure that the total delay through the delay line is one VCO cycle.

[0130] In some embodiments, synthesizer circuitry 606d may be configured to generate a carrier frequency as the output frequency, while in other embodiments, the output frequency may be a multiple of the carrier frequency (e.g., twice the carrier frequency, four times the carrier frequency) and used in conjunction with quadrature generator and divider circuitry to generate multiple signals at the carrier frequency with multiple different phases with respect to each other. In some embodiments, the output frequency may be a LO frequency (fLO). In some embodiments, the RF circuitry 606 may include an IQ / polar converter.

[0131] FEM circuitry 608 may include a receive signal path which may include circuitry configured to operate on RF signals received from one or more antennas 610, amplify the received signals and provide the amplified versions of the received signals to the RF circuitry 606 for further processing. FEM circuitry 608 may also include a transmit signal path which may include circuitry configured to amplify signals for transmission provided by the RF circuitry 606 for transmission by one or more of the one or more antennas 610. In various embodiments, the amplification through the transmit or receive signal paths may be done solely in the RF circuitry 606, solely in the FEM 608, or in both the RF circuitry 606 and the FEM 608.

[0132] In some embodiments, the FEM circuitry 608 may include a TX / RX switch to switch between transmit mode and receive mode operation. The FEM circuitry may include a receive signal path and a transmit signal path. The receive signal path of the FEM circuitry may include an LNA to amplify received RF signals and provide the amplified received RF signals as an output (e.g., to the RF circuitry606). The transmit signal path of the FEM circuitry 608 may include a power amplifier (PA) to amplify input RF signals (e.g., provided by RF circuitry 606), and one or more filters to generate RF signals for subsequent transmission (e.g., by one or more of the one or more antennas 610).

[0133] In some embodiments, the PMC 612 may manage power provided to the baseband circuitry 604. In particular, the PMC 612 may control power-source selection, voltage scaling, battery charging, or DC-to-DC conversion. The PMC 612 may often be included when the device 600 is capable of being powered by a battery, for example, when the device is included in a UE. The PMC 612 may increase the power conversion efficiency while providing desirable implementation size and heat dissipation characteristics.

[0134] While FIG. 6 shows the PMC 612 coupled only with the baseband circuitry 604, in other embodiments the PMC 612 may be additionally or alternatively coupled with, and perform similar power management operations for, other components such as, but not limited to, application circuitry 602, RF circuitry 606, or FEM 608.

[0135] In some embodiments, the PMC 612 may control, or otherwise be part of, various power saving mechanisms of the device 600. For example, if the device 600 is in a radio resource control_Connected (RRC_Connected) state, where it is still connected to the RAN node as it expects to receive traffic shortly, then it may enter a state known as Discontinuous Reception Mode (DRX) after a period of inactivity. During this state, the device 600 may power down for brief intervals of time and thus save power.

[0136] If there is no data traffic activity for an extended period of time, then the device 600 may transition off to an RRCJdle state, where it disconnects from the network and does not perform operations such as channel quality feedback, handover, etc. The device 600 goes into a very low power state and it performs paging where again it periodically wakes up to listen to the network and then powers down again. The device 600 may not receive data in this state, in order to receive data, it will transition back to RRC_Connected state.

[0137] An additional power saving mode may allow a device to be unavailable to the network for periods longer than a paging interval (ranging from seconds to a few hours). During this time, the device is totally unreachable to the network and may power down completely. Any data sent during this time incurs a large delay and it is assumed the delay is acceptable.

[0138] Processors of the application circuitry 602 and processors of the baseband circuitry 604 may be used to execute elements of one or more instances of a protocol stack. For example, processors of the baseband circuitry 604, alone or in combination, may be used execute Layer 3, Layer 2, or Layer 1 functionality, while processors of the application circuitry 604 may utilize data (e.g., packet data) received from these layers and further execute Layer 4 functionality (e.g., transmission communication protocol (TCP) and user datagram protocol (UDP) layers). As referred to herein, Layer 3 (L3) may comprise a radio resource control (RRC) layer, described in further detail below. As referred to herein, Layer 2 (L2) may comprise a medium access control (MAC) layer, a radio link control (RLC) layer, and a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, described in further detail below. As referred to herein, Layer 1 (L1 ) may comprise a physical (PHY) layer of a UE / RAN node, described in further detail below. Accordingly, the baseband circuitry 604 can be used to encode a message for transmission between a UE and a gNB, or decode a message received between a UE and a gNB.FIG. 7: Block Diagram of an Interface of Baseband Circuitry

[0139] FIG. 7 illustrates example interfaces of baseband circuitry in accordance with some embodiments. It is noted that the baseband circuitry of FIG. 7 is merely one example of a possible circuitry, and that features of this disclosure may be implemented in any of various systems, as desired.

[0140] As discussed above, the baseband circuitry 604 of FIG. 6 may comprise processors 604A-604E and a memory 604G utilized by said processors. Each of the processors 604A-604E may include a memory interface, 704A-704E,respectively, to send / receive data to / from the memory 604G.

[0141] The baseband circuitry 604 may further include one or more interfaces to communicatively couple to other circuitries / devices, such as a memory interface 712 (e.g., an interface to send / receive data to / from memory external to the baseband circuitry 604), an application circuitry interface 714 (e.g., an interface to send / receive data to / from the application circuitry 602 of FIG. 6), an RF circuitry interface 716 (e.g., an interface to send / receive data to / from RF circuitry 606 of FIG. 6), a wireless hardware connectivity interface 718 (e.g., an interface to send / receive data to / from Near Field Communication (NFC) components, Bluetooth® components (e.g., Bluetooth® Low Energy), Wi-Fi® components, and other communication components), and a power management interface 720 (e.g., an interface to send / receive power or control signals to / from the PMC 612.FIG. 8: Control Plane Protocol Stack

[0142] FIG. 8 is an illustration of a control plane protocol stack in accordance with some embodiments. In this embodiment, a control plane 800 is shown as a communications protocol stack between the UE 106a (or alternatively, the UE 106b), the RAN node 102A (or alternatively, the RAN node 102B), and the mobility management entity (MME) 621 .

[0143] The PHY layer 801 may transmit or receive information used by the MAC layer 802 over one or more air interfaces. The PHY layer 801 may further perform link adaptation or adaptive modulation and coding (AMC), power control, cell search (e.g., for initial synchronization and handover purposes), and other measurements used by higher layers, such as the RRC layer 805. The PHY layer 801 may still further perform error detection on the transport channels, forward error correction (FEC) coding / decoding of the transport channels, modulation / demodulation of physical channels, interleaving, rate matching, mapping onto physical channels, and Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) antenna processing.

[0144] The MAC layer 802 may perform mapping between logical channels andtransport channels, multiplexing of MAC service data units (SDUs) from one or more logical channels onto transport blocks (TB) to be delivered to PHY via transport channels, de-multiplexing MAC SDUs to one or more logical channels from transport blocks (TB) delivered from the PHY via transport channels, multiplexing MAC SDUs onto TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction through hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ), and logical channel prioritization.

[0145] The RLC layer 803 may operate in a plurality of modes of operation, including: Transparent Mode (TM), Unacknowledged Mode (UM), and Acknowledged Mode (AM). The RLC layer 803 may execute transfer of upper layer protocol data units (PDUs), error correction through automatic repeat request (ARQ) for AM data transfers, and concatenation, segmentation and reassembly of RLC SDUs for UM and AM data transfers. The RLC layer 803 may also execute re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs for AM data transfers, reorder RLC data PDUs for UM and AM data transfers, detect duplicate data for UM and AM data transfers, discard RLC SDUs for UM and AM data transfers, detect protocol errors for AM data transfers, and perform RLC re-establishment.

[0146] The PDCP layer 804 may execute header compression and decompression of IP data, maintain PDCP Sequence Numbers (SNs), perform insequence delivery of upper layer PDUs at re-establishment of lower layers, eliminate duplicates of lower layer SDUs at re-establishment of lower layers for radio bearers mapped on RLC AM, cipher and decipher control plane data, perform integrity protection and integrity verification of control plane data, control timerbased discard of data, and perform security operations (e.g., ciphering, deciphering, integrity protection, integrity verification, etc.).

[0147] The main services and functions of the RRC layer 805 may include broadcast of system information (e.g., included in Master Information Blocks (MIBs) or System Information Blocks (SIBs) related to the non-access stratum (NAS)), broadcast of system information related to the access stratum (AS), paging, establishment, maintenance and release of an RRC connection between the UE and E-UTRAN (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connectionestablishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), establishment, configuration, maintenance and release of point to point Radio Bearers, security functions including key management, inter radio access technology (RAT) mobility, and measurement configuration for UE measurement reporting. Said MIBs and SIBs may comprise one or more information elements (lEs), which may each comprise individual data fields or data structures.

[0148] The UE 106 and the RAN node 102A may utilize a Uu interface (e.g., an LTE-Uu interface) to exchange control plane data via a protocol stack comprising the PHY layer 801 , the MAC layer 802, the RLC layer 803, the PDCP layer 804, and the RRC layer 805.

[0149] The non-access stratum (NAS) protocols 806 form the highest stratum of the control plane between the UE 106 and the MME 621. The NAS protocols 806 support the mobility of the UE 106 and the session management procedures to establish and maintain IP connectivity between the UE 106 and the P-GW 623.

[0150] The S1 Application Protocol (S1 -AP) layer 815 may support the functions of the S1 interface and comprise Elementary Procedures (EPs). An EP is a unit of interaction between the RAN node 102A and the core network. The S1 -AP layer services may comprise two groups: UE-associated services and non UE- associated services. These services perform functions including, but not limited to: E-UTRAN Radio Access Bearer (E-RAB) management, UE capability indication, mobility, NAS signaling transport, RAN Information Management (RIM), and configuration transfer.

[0151] The Stream Control Transmission Protocol (SCTP) layer (alternatively referred to as the SCTP / IP layer) 814 may ensure reliable delivery of signaling messages between the RAN node 102A and the MME 621 based, in part, on the IP protocol, supported by the IP layer 813. The L2 layer 812 and the L1 layer 81 1 may refer to communication links (e.g., wired or wireless) used by the RAN node and the MME to exchange information.

[0152] The RAN node 102A and the MME 621 may utilize an S1 -MME interface to exchange control plane data via a protocol stack comprising the L1 layer 81 1 ,the L2 layer 812, the IP layer 813, the SCTP layer 814, and the S1 -AP layer 815.FIG. 9: User Plane Protocol Stack

[0153] FIG. 9 is an illustration of an example of a user plane protocol stack in accordance with some embodiments. In this embodiment, a user plane 900 is shown as a communications protocol stack between the UE 106A (or alternatively, the UE 106B or 106N), the RAN node 102A (or alternatively, the RAN node 102B), the S-GW 622, and the P-GW 623. The user plane 900 may utilize at least some of the same protocol layers as the control plane 800. For example, the UE 106 and the RAN node 102A may utilize a Uu interface (e.g., an LTE-Uu interface) to exchange user plane data via a protocol stack comprising the PHY layer 801 , the MAC layer 802, the RLC layer 803, the PDCP layer 804.

[0154] The General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) Tunneling Protocol for the user plane (GTP-U) layer 904 may be used for carrying user data within the GPRS core network and between the radio access network and the core network. The user data transported can be packets in any of IPv4, IPv6, or PPP formats, for example. The UDP and IP security (UDP / IP) layer 903 may provide checksums for data integrity, port numbers for addressing different functions at the source and destination, and encryption and authentication on the selected data flows. The RAN node 102A and the S-GW 622 may utilize an S1 -U interface to exchange user plane data via a protocol stack comprising the L1 layer 81 1 , the L2 layer 812, the UDP / IP layer 903, and the GTP-U layer 904. The S-GW 622 and the P-GW 623 may utilize an S5 / S8a interface to exchange user plane data via a protocol stack comprising the L1 layer 811 , the L2 layer 812, the UDP / IP layer 903, and the GTP- U layer 904. As discussed above with respect to FIG. 8, NAS protocols support the mobility of the UE 106 and the session management procedures to establish and maintain IP 813 connectivity between the UE 106 and the P-GW 623.FIGS. 10-15: Background of Configured Grants and UTO-UCI

[0155] 5G-NR provides an improved extended reality (XR) experience ascompared to previous generations. XR refers to all real-and-virtual combined environments and human-machine interactions generated by computer technology and wearables. XR is an umbrella term for different types of realities: Virtual reality (VR), which aims at giving the user the feeling of being physically and spatially there, Augmented Reality (AR), which provides a user with additional content overlaid upon their environment, and Mixed Reality (MR), which is an advanced form of AR where some virtual elements are inserted and can be interacted with. An acceptable XR experience for users uses frame rates of at least 60fps, while a truly immersive experience requires 90fps or even 120fps.

[0156] To reduce latency of dynamic scheduling of uplink (UL) transmissions, 5G NR recently introduced configured grants (CGs) for UL transmissions. A CG is a pre-configured, periodical UL radio resource that allows UEs to know in advance where (in the time-frequency resource grid) the resources that are available for UL without the need for dynamic signaling of resource allocation. CGs are particularly useful for extended reality (XR) services that require high bit rates and low latency. Due to the periodic nature of XR, 5G-NR defines a configured grant (CG) to allocate resources for uplink (UL) XR traffic from a UE. CGs can reduce the need for dynamic resource allocation.

[0157] With CG, radio resources are pre-assigned periodically to the UEs by gNBs. In this context, when a packet is generated by a UE, it can be transmitted immediately to the gNB using the pre-allocated resources. CGs reduce the need to exchange signaling messages to request / grant resources for each packet and therefore reduce the transmission latency of dynamic scheduling.

[0158] NR defines two types of CGs: Type 1 and Type 2. With Type 1 , the configured uplink grant, including the periodicity, is configured by Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling at the connection establishment. Fig. 10 illustrates a timing diagram 1000 showing Type 1 CG scheduling for UL data transmissions between a gNB 102 and a UE 106. The gNB 102 sends a CG configuration information element (IE), configuredGrantConfig, to the UE 106. The UE 106 can then encode packets for transmission to the gNB 102 in the UL according to the CG configuration and without the need for dynamic scheduling.

[0159] With Type 2, the periodicity of the configured UL grant is defined by RRC signaling at the session establishment. The configured UL grant is then activated or deactivated by a control signal for CG activation from the gNB 102. Fig. 1 1 illustrates a timing diagram 1 100 showing Type 2 CG scheduling for UL data transmissions between a gNB 102 and a UE 106. The gNB 102 sends a CG configuration IE, configuredGrantConfig, to the UE 106. The gNB 102 may send a control signal for CG activation to activate or deactivate the CG. The UE 106 can then encode UL packets for transmission according to the CG configuration if the CG remains active.

[0160] For UL, the packets may be periodical and their size may vary over time. For example, extended reality (XR) services typically use periodical packets. Video frame rates for XR could be 60, 90, or 120 frames per second. Ideally, a RAN can obtain certain assistance information relating to characteristics of XR traffic and utilize such information to perform appropriate resource allocation for XR services. Due to the periodical nature of XR services, CGs are expected to be key resource allocation methods for UL XR traffic.

[0161] To accommodate periodic traffic with varying packet sizes, Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Release 18 (Release 18) provides multiple CG Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) occasions in a CG period of a single CG PUSCH confirmation. For example, as shown in FIG. 12, a CG timing diagram 1200 shows that each CG occasion 1202 has multiple CG PUSCH occasions 1204.

[0162] In addition, Release 18 further provides dynamic indication of unused CG PUSCH occasion(s). That is, due to the varying packet size of periodic XR traffic, a UE does not necessarily need to use every single PUCSH within a CG cycle. In Release 18, the UE may send an indication to inform a gNB which PUSCHs are not to be used. Therefore, the gNB can allocate the resources to other UEs. This indication is called Unused Transmission Occasions UCI or UTO- UCI, which is a type of UCI that can be multiplexed into PUSCH.

[0163] Current proposals suggest that UTO-UCI should be included in every CG PUSCH of the corresponding CG configuration that is transmitted. Forexample, as shown in FIG. 13, a CG timing diagram 1300 shows that each “used” CG PUSCH includes UTO-UCI signaling. In general, the information to be conveyed by UTO-UCI should be generated / provided to the physical layer (PHY) for signaling by Medium Access Control (MAC) layer (because data buffer size is only visible to MAC).

[0164] 3GPP Release 18 provides that the UE multiplexes UTO-UCI are represented by a bitmap of bits in each CG PUSCH transmission for the CG- PUSCH configuration. The bits of UTO-UCI may have a one-to-one mapping to subsequent CG-PUSCH transmission occasions (TOs) in ascending order of start time. The UTO-UCI is encoded as a bitmap and consists of OA(UTO-UCI) bits (the value of OA(UTO-UCI) is between 3 and 8), corresponding to the subsequent OA(UTO-UCI) PUSCH CG occasions of the CG configuration. Each bit represents whether the UE is going to use the corresponding CG PUSCH TO.

[0165] In time division duplex (TDD), if the CG PUSCH collides with downlink (DL) symbols or an SS / PBCH block, then it is considered as “invalid.” The UE does not derive HARQ PIDs for the invalid CG PUSCHs. And the UE does not include invalid CG PUSCHs in the UTO-UCI. That is, the medium access control (MAC) layer does not deliver the CG PUSCHs that are considered as invalid, or indicated to be unused, to the HARQ entity for further processing.

[0166] In 3GPP Release 18, the UTO-UCI mechanism is restricted to a single CG configuration. The UTO-UCI multiplexed in one CG PUSCH only indicates the used / unused status of multiple subsequent CG PUSCHs pertaining to the same CG configuration.

[0167] Various options for the UTO-UCI mechanism include: (1) One UTO- UCI for each CG configuration, and the UTO-UCI only indicates the used / unused states of subsequent PUSCHs pertaining to the same CG Configuration. Some coordination among UTO-UCIs across different CG configurations may be needed. (2) One UTO-UCI is used for multiple CG configurations, where the UTO-UCI to be sent in a CG PUSCH indicates the used / unused status of multiple subsequent CG PUSCHs across different CG configurations.

[0168] For example, as shown in FIG. 14, a CG timing diagram 1400 shows the use of UTO-UCI for multiple CG configurations, CG Config #0 and CG Config #1 . The UE is configured to send UTO-UCI corresponding to N=6 subsequent CG PUSCHs, where the indicated CG PUSCHs may include resources of different CG configurations, CG Config #0 and CG Config #1 .

[0169] Regarding how the bitmaps are mapped to multiple CG PUSCHs, the following alternatives may be possible. Alternative #1 : For a transmitted CG PUSCH, the UTO-UCIs are concatenated with UTO-UCI for the associated CG configuration in the first location, followed by UTO-UCIs with other CG configurations. The ordering of UTO-UCIs with other CG configurations is according to CG configuration index, (the lowest first, the highest first, etc.). Alternative #2: The UTO-UCIs are concatenated with an ordering rule. The ordering of UTO-UCIs with CG configurations is according to CG configuration index, (the lowest first, the highest first, etc.).

[0170] The above described approaches for UTO-UCI signaling for multiple CG configurations is not suitable where the number of CG configurations is large. For example, as shown in FIG. 15, a CG timing diagram 1500 shows five CGs that have been provided to a UE by a gNB. These CGs include CG Config #0 to CG Config #4. Each block 1502 may comprise multiple CG PUSCH occasions. However, as mentioned, the above approaches for UTO-UCI signaling for multiple CG configurations are not efficient. Therefore, there exists a need for a mechanism for efficiently signaling of UTO-UCI for multiple CG configurations.FIGS. 16-20, 22-25: Grouping CG Configurations for UTO-UCI Signaling

[0171] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, multiple CG configurations configured for a UE, in the same bandwidth part (BWP) or in different serving cells, can be grouped into two or more groups for UTO-UCI signaling. These may include Type 1 and Type 2 CGs. The grouping scheme for the CG configurations may be based on various factors.

[0172] In an embodiment, the grouping scheme may be based on explicitindication from the network, communicated via a base station, such as a gNB. For example, a gNB may indicate a CG group ID in the configured grant configuration message, or the gNB may provide a list of CG indexes to be grouped for each group. For example, as shown in FIG. 22, the gNB 102 may transmit a grouping configuration message to the UE 106 that defines CG groups for multiple CGs, in the same BWP or in different serving cells and for Types 1 and 2 CGs.

[0173] In an embodiment, the grouping scheme may be based on an implicit indication associated with CGs. For example, a UE may group CG configurations based on their parameters, including an index or unique ID. For example, odd- indexed CGs may be grouped together into one group and even-indexed CGs may be grouped together in another group. In some embodiments, the grouping scheme may be based on the sets of logical channels (LCHs) that are allowed to be mapped to each of the CG configurations. In an embodiment, the grouping scheme may not be exclusive, it could be overlapping or non-overlapping.

[0174] For example, the CG configurations shown in FIG. 15 can be grouped into two groups according to the present disclosure, CG Group #1 and CG Group #2 as shown in FIG. 16. CG Group #1 includes CG Configurations #0, #1 , and #4. CG Group #2 includes CG Configurations #2 and #3. Of course, the CG configurations can be grouped into any number of groups using any grouping scheme in embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0175] In an embodiment, a gNB 102 may communicate the UTO-UCI signaling details for each CG group configured by the network 100. As shown in FIG. 23, the gNB 102 may encode, for transmission, a UTO-UCI configuration message to the UE 106. In an embodiment, in each CG group, one of the CG configurations can be used to signal UTO-UCI that indicates the used / unused state of CG resources pertaining to all other CG configurations in the same CG group.

[0176] Designation of the selected CG configuration for UTO-UCI signaling in each CG group can be based on various criteria, including explicit and implicit criteria. In an embodiment, a network, via a gNB, may explicitly indicate which CG configuration in each CG group should be used for UTO-UCI signaling for all otherCG configurations in the same CG group. In an embodiment, a parameter (e.g., a Boolean) in configuredGrantConfig may explicitly indicate which CG configuration should be used for UTO-UCI signaling in each group.

[0177] If CG grouping is configured based on a list of CG indexes to be grouped together, one of the CG configurations in the list may be autonomously selected as the CG configuration designated to perform UTO-UCI signaling. The gNB may further communicate switching such designation to another CG configuration dynamically, e.g., by a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) that includes the identification (ID) of the CG configuration designated to carry UTO-UCI.

[0178] In an embodiment, a UE may be configured to automatically select the CG configuration with the lowest / highest index in the CG group as the CG configuration for UTO-UCI signaling for that CG group. In addition to the CG index, the use of other CG parameters to designate the CG configuration for UTO-UCI signaling is not precluded. In an embodiment, the UE may choose the CG configuration for UTO-UCI signaling whose resource is earliest in a time domain in a UTO-UCI period. In other examples, the UE may choose the CG configuration that is allocated in the serving cell or BWP with the highest / lowest ID. In an embodiment, the gNB may provide signaling to configure the UTO-UCI signaling details per CG configuration.

[0179] In some embodiments, it is possible to have some CG configurations that do not belong to any CG group. For example, as shown in FIG. 17, CG Configuration #4 does not belong to any group. The UTO-UCI that indicates the used / unused states of the CG resources for such CG configurations is sent by the PUSCHs of these CG configurations themselves as shown in FIG. 17.

[0180] If a CG configuration in a CG group is deactivated, the UTO-UCI signaling for this CG group may not consider / include this deactivated CG configuration, until it is activated again. In an embodiment, the gNB may activate / deactivate the UTO-UCI for at least one CG configuration by a MAC CE. For example, as shown in FIG. 18, CG Configuration #4 has been deactivated. Asshown in FIG. 19, the gNB may indicate the CG group, and activate / deactivate the UTO-UCI for CG configurations within this CG group using a bitmap 1900 transmitted to a UE. As shown in FIG. 20, the gNB can indicate activate / deactivate for the UTO-UCI for CG configurations of the UE using a bitmap 2000.

[0181] The UE behavior for UTO-UCI signaling when a CG configuration is deactivated (which is possible for Type-2 CG), may vary in some embodiment of the present disclosure. In an embodiment, when deriving the UTO-UCI, the UE may skip the resources of the CG configuration(s) that have been deactivated or whose UTO-UCI has been deactivated. In an embodiment, when deriving the UTO- UCI, the UE does not skip the resources of the CG configuration(s) that has been deactivated or whose UTO-UCI has been deactivated. That is, the UE may always indicate the resources of the CG configuration(s) that has been deactivated or whose UTO-UCI has been deactivated as “unused” in the UTO-UCI.

[0182] If the CG configuration that is deactivated (which is possible for Type- 2 CG) is the CG configuration that has been designated as to perform UTO-UCI signaling for a CG group, then embodiments of the present disclosure provide various options. In an embodiment, the network, gNB or UE may switch the designation of the CG configuration for UTO-UCI signaling to another CG configuration in the same CG group. In an embodiment, the gNB or UE may autonomously fallback to the default CG configuration for UTO-UCI signaling, e.g. the CG configuration with the highest / lowest index among the CG configurations that are still active in the CG group. In an embodiment, the gNB or UE may preconfigure some ranking or ordering among the CG configurations. The gNB or UE may autonomously switch to another CG configuration for UTO-UCI signaling based on the pre-configured ordering or ranking. In an embodiment, the gNB or UE may autonomously fallback to ungrouped behavior, where each CG configuration in the CG group carries UTO-UCI for its own UL resources. In an embodiment, if all CG configurations in a CG group are deactivated (or the UTO- UCI for which are all deactivated), the UE autonomously disables UTO-UCI signaling for this CG group, and / or releases the UTO-UCI configuration for this CG group.

[0183] In an embodiment, a gNB may provide signaling to activate / deactivate the UTO-UCI signaling for each CG group (e.g. dynamically). For example, as shown in FIG. 24, the gNB 102 may send a group control message to activate / deactivate the UTO-UCI signaling for an entire CG group to the UE 106.

[0184] In an embodiment, the UE may send a request to the gNB to deactivate the UTO-UCI for a CG group or a CG configuration. In an embodiment, the UE may deactivate the UTO-UCI for a CG group or a CG configuration autonomously, and may send a notification to the gNB. In an embodiment, the UE may send UE Assistance Information (UAI) to express its preference or recommendation about UTO-UCI for any CG configuration or any CG group. For example, as shown in FIG. 25, the UE 106 may send a message with request / notification / preference information for UTO-UCI signaling to the gNB 102.

[0185] If a CG group includes CG configurations in different serving cells or BWPs, the options vary. In an embodiment, the UTO-UCI bitmap may further include IDs of multiple Serving Cells or BWPs. In an embodiment, the UTO-UCI bitmap may order the bits based on the IDs of Serving Cells or BWPs. For example, the CG resources in the serving cell or BWP with the lowest index are indicated first. In an embodiment, the UTO-UCI bitmap starts from the CG resources in the serving cell or BWP of the CG configuration is designated to perform UTO-UCI signaling, before indicating the used / unused state of CG resources in other Serving Cells or BWPs. In an embodiment, only the CG configuration(s) in the PCell is allowed to carry UTO-UCI for a CG group including CG configurations in other serving cells.FIG. 21 : Alternative Signaling Methods of UTO Information

[0186] Since the UTO information may need to cover a much larger number of CG occasions from multiple CG configurations, the UTO-UCI defined in 3GPP Release 18 may no longer be a viable approach due to signaling overhead. In an embodiment, the UTO information for multiple CG configurations may be signaled on a new type of UCI that is to be conveyed by physical uplink control channel(PUCCH). In an embodiment, as shown in FIG. 21 , the UTO information for multiple CG configurations may be signaled on a new type of MAC CE, which may comprise: (1 ) one or more fields that allows the gNB to know the list of CG configurations that the information of this MAC CE is relating to (e.g. a Bitmap that indicates which CG configuration is applicable); and / or (2) UTO information for a series of CG occasions pertaining to each of the CG configuration.FIG. 26: Flow Chart for a Method of Allocating Uplink Resources

[0187] FIG. 26 illustrates a flow chart of an example of a method 2600 for allocating resources for uplink (UL) transmissions from a user equipment (UE). At step 2602, the method identifies, at the UE, a plurality of configured grant (CG) configurations, each CG configuration allocating transmission occasions for the UL transmissions. At step 2604, the method groups, at the UE, the plurality of CG configurations into at least two CG groups. At step 2606, the method determines, at the UE, unused transmission occasions in each of the at least two CG groups. At step 2608, the method encodes, at the UE, an indication of unused transmission occasions indicated by uplink control information for each of the at least two CG groups.FIG. 27: Flow Chart for a Method of Allocating Uplink Resources

[0188] FIG. 27 illustrates a flow chart of an example of a method 2700 of allocating resources for uplink (UL) transmissions from a user equipment (UE) to a next generation Node B (gNB). At step 2702, the method selects, at the gNB, a plurality of configured grant (CG) configurations, each CG configuration allocating transmission occasions for the UL transmissions. At step 2704, the method groups, at the gNB, the plurality of CG configurations into at least two CG groups. At step 2706, the method encodes, at the gNB, CG configuration information for each of the plurality of CG configurations for transmission to the UE. At step 2708, the method decodes, at the gNB, an indication of unused transmission occasions indicated by uplink control information for each of the at least two CG groups.Examples of Systems, Apparatuses, and Methods

[0189] The following examples pertain to specific technology embodiments and point out specific features, elements, or actions that can be used or otherwise combined in achieving such embodiments.

[0190] Example 1 includes an apparatus of a user equipment (UE) comprising: one or more processors, coupled to a memory, configured to: identify a plurality of configured grant (CG) configurations, each CG configuration defining pre-allocated transmission occasions for uplink (UL) transmissions from the UE; group the plurality of CG configurations into at least two CG groups; determine unused transmission occasions for the UE in each of the at least two CG groups; and encode, at the UE, for transmission to a next generation node B (gNB), an indication of unused transmission occasions indicated by uplink control information (UTO-UCI) for each of the at least two CG groups.

[0191] Example 2 includes the apparatus of Example 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to: identify a CG configuration in each of the at least two CG groups to be used for UTO-UCI signaling; and encode, at the UE, for transmission to the gNB, the UTO-UCI in the identified CG configuration for each of the at least two CG groups.

[0192] Example 3 includes the apparatus of Example 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to: identify a CG configuration in each of the at least two CG groups to be used for UTO-UCI signaling based on explicit identification information; and encode, at the UE, for transmission to the gNB, the UTO-UCI in the identified CG configuration for each of the at least two CG groups.

[0193] Example 4 includes the apparatus of Example 1 , wherein the explicit identification information comprises a parameter to explicitly indicate the CG configuration to be used for UTO-UCI signaling.

[0194] Example 5 includes the apparatus of Example 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to: identify a CG configuration in each of the at least two CG groups to be used for UTO-UCI signaling based on implicitidentification information; and encode, at the UE, for transmission to the gNB, the UTO-UCI in the identified CG configuration for each of the at least two CG groups.

[0195] Example 6 includes the apparatus of Example 1 , wherein the implicit identification information comprises one of an index ordering, a time-domain ordering, and a serving cell or BWP ordering.

[0196] Example 7 includes the apparatus of Example 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to activate or deactivate one of the at least two CG groups for UTO-UCI signaling.

[0197] Example 8 includes the apparatus of Example 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to activate or deactivate one of the CG configurations in one of the at least two CG groups for UTO-UCI signaling.

[0198] Example 9 includes the apparatus of Example 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to encode, at the UE, for transmission to the gNB, a request to a next generation Node B (gNB) to activate or deactivate one of the at least two CG groups.

[0199] Example 10 includes the apparatus of Example 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to encode, at the UE, for transmission to the gNB, a request to a next generation Node B (gNB) to activate or deactivate one of the plurality of CG configurations.

[0200] Example 1 1 includes the apparatus of Example 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to encode, at the UE, for transmission to the gNB, a recommendation to a next generation Node B (gNB) to activate or deactivate one of the at least two CG groups.

[0201] Example 12 includes the apparatus of Example 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to encode, at the UE, for transmission to the gNB, a recommendation to a next generation Node B (gNB) to activate or deactivate one of the plurality of CG configurations.

[0202] Example 13 includes the apparatus of Example 1 , wherein one of the at least two CG groups includes CG configurations in different serving cells.

[0203] Example 14 includes the apparatus of Example 1 , wherein one of the at least two CG groups includes CG configurations in different band width parts.

[0204] Example 15 includes the apparatus of Example 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to group the plurality of CG configurations based on explicit grouping configuration information.

[0205] Example 16 includes the apparatus of Example 15, wherein the explicit grouping information comprises a CG group ID associated with each of the plurality of CG configurations.

[0206] Example 17 includes the apparatus of Example 15, wherein the explicit grouping information comprises a list of CG indexes to be grouped together.

[0207] Example 18 includes the apparatus of Example 15, wherein the explicit grouping information is received from a next generation Node B (gNB).

[0208] Example 19 includes the apparatus of Example 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to group the plurality of CG configurations based on implicit grouping configuration information.

[0209] Example 20 includes the apparatus of Example 19, wherein the implicit grouping configuration information is an index associated with each of the CG configurations.

[0210] Example 21 includes the apparatus of Example 19, wherein the implicit grouping configuration information comprises sets of LCH mapping information.

[0211] Example 22 includes the apparatus of Example 19, wherein the implicit grouping information is received from a next generation Node B (gNB).

[0212] Example 23 includes the apparatus of Example 1 ,, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to identify at least one CG configuration that is not grouped with another CG configuration.

[0213] Example 24 includes the apparatus of Example 1 , wherein the at least two CG groups are each one of exclusive and non-exclusive.

[0214] Example 25 includes the apparatus of Example 1 , wherein each of theat least two CG groups comprises more than one CG.

[0215] Example 26 includes an apparatus of a next generation Node B (gNB) comprising: one or more processors, coupled to a memory, configured to: identify a plurality of configured grant (CG) configurations for a user equipment (UE), each CG configuration defining pre-allocated transmission occasions for uplink (UL) transmissions; group the plurality of CG configurations into at least two CG groups; and encode, at the gNB, for transmission to the UE, CG configuration information for each of the plurality of CG configurations for the UE.

[0216] Example 27 includes the apparatus of Example 26, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to decode, at the gNB, an indication of unused transmission occasions indicated by uplink control information (UTO-UCI) received from the UE for each of the at least two CG groups.

[0217] Example 28 includes the apparatus of Example 26, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to identify a CG configuration in each of the at least two CG groups to be used for unused transmission occasions indicated by uplink control information (UTO-UCI).

[0218] Example 29 includes the apparatus of Example 26, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to encode a request, for transmission to the UE, to activate or deactivate one of the at least two CG groups.

[0219] Example 30 includes the apparatus of Example 26, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to encode a request, for transmission to the UE, to activate or deactivate one of the CG configurations in one of the at least two CG groups.

[0220] Example 31 includes the apparatus of Example 26, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to decode a request from the UE to activate or deactivate one of the at least two CG groups.

[0221] Example 32 includes the apparatus of Example 26, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to decode a request received from the UE to activate or deactivate one of the CG configurations in one of the at least two CG groups.

[0222] Example 33 includes the apparatus of Example 26, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to encode, for transmission to a user equipment (UE), grouping configuration information for the plurality of CG configurations.

[0223] Example 34 includes the apparatus of Example 33, wherein the grouping configuration information comprises a CG group identifier associated with each of the plurality of CG configurations.

[0224] Example 35 includes the apparatus of Example 33, wherein the grouping configuration information comprises a list of CG indexes to be grouped together.

[0225] Example 36 includes the apparatus of Example 26, wherein one of the at least two CG groups includes CG configurations in different serving cells or BWPs.

[0226] Example 37 includes the apparatus of Example 26, wherein one of the at least two CG groups is one of exclusive and non-exclusive.

[0227] Example 38 includes the apparatus of Example 26, wherein each of the at least two CG groups comprises more than one CG configuration.

[0228] Example 39 includes a method of allocating resources for uplink (UL) transmissions from a user equipment (UE), comprising: identifying, at the UE, a plurality of configured grant (CG) configurations, each CG configuration allocating transmission occasions for the UL transmissions; grouping, at the UE, the plurality of CG configurations into at least two CG groups; determining, at the UE, unused transmission occasions in each of the at least two CG groups; and encoding, at the UE, for transmission to a next generation node B (gNB), an indication of unused transmission occasions indicated by uplink control information (UTO-UCI) for each of the at least two CG groups.

[0229] Example 40 includes the method of Example 39, further comprising identifying a CG configuration in each of the at least two CG groups to be used for UTO-UCI signaling.

[0230] Example 41 includes the method of Example 39, further comprisingidentifying a CG configuration in each of the at least two CG groups to be used for UTO-UCI signaling based on explicit information.

[0231] Example 42 includes the method of Example 41 , wherein the explicit information comprises a parameter to explicitly indicate the CG configuration to be used for UTO-UCI signaling.

[0232] Example 43 includes the method of Example 39, further comprising identifying a CG configuration in each of the at least two CG groups to be used for UTO-UCI signaling based on implicit information.

[0233] Example 44 includes the method of Example 43, wherein the implicit information comprises one of an index ordering, a time-domain ordering, and a serving cell or BWP ordering.

[0234] Example 45 includes the method of Example 39, further comprising activating or deactivating one of the at least two CG groups at the UE.

[0235] Example 46 includes the method of Example 39, further comprising activating or deactivating one of the CG configurations in one of the at least two CG groups at the UE.

[0236] Example 47 includes the method of Example 39, wherein one of the at least two CG groups includes CG configurations in different serving cells or BWPs.

[0237] Example 48 includes the method of Example 39, wherein each of the at least two CG groups comprises more than one CG configuration.

[0238] Example 49 includes a method of a method of allocating resources for uplink (UL) transmissions from a user equipment (UE) to a next generation Node B (gNB), the method comprising: selecting, at the gNB, a plurality of configured grant (CG) configurations, each CG configuration allocating transmission occasions for the UL transmissions; grouping, at the gNB, the plurality of CG configurations into at least two CG groups; and encoding, at the gNB, for transmission to the UE, CG configuration information for each of the plurality of CG configurations for transmission to the UE.

[0239] Example 50 includes the method of Example 49, further comprisingdecoding, at the gNB, an indication of unused transmission occasions indicated by uplink control information (UTO-UCI) received from the UE for each of the at least two CG groups.

[0240] Example 51 includes the method of Example 49, further comprising identifying a CG configuration in each of the at least two CG groups to be used for unused transmission occasions indicated by uplink control information (UTO-UCI).

[0241] Example 52 includes the method of Example 49, further comprising encoding a request, for transmission to the UE, to activate or deactivate one of the at least two CG groups.

[0242] Example 53 includes the method of Example 49, further comprising encoding a request, for the UE, to activate or deactivate one of the CG configurations in one of the at least two CG groups.

[0243] Example 54 includes the method of Example 49, wherein each of the at least two CG groups comprises more than one CG configuration.

[0244] Example 55 includes an apparatus configured to cause a user equipment (UE) to perform any of the methods of Examples 39-48.

[0245] Example 56 includes an apparatus configured to cause a next generation Node B (gNB) to perform any of the methods of Examples 49-54.

[0246] Example 57 includes a user equipment (UE) configured to perform any of the operations described herein.

[0247] Example 58 includes a next generation node B (gNB) configured to perform any of the operations described herein.

[0248] Example 59 includes a computer program product, comprising computer instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, perform any of the operations described herein.

[0249] Embodiments of the present disclosure may be realized in any of various forms. For example, some embodiments may be realized as a computer- implemented method, a computer readable memory medium, or a computer system. Other embodiments may be realized using one or more custom-designedhardware devices such as ASICs. Still other embodiments may be realized using one or more programmable hardware elements such as FPGAs.

[0250] In some embodiments, a non-transitory computer-readable memory medium may be configured so that it stores program instructions and / or data, where the program instructions, if executed by a computer system, cause the computer system to perform a method, e.g., any of the method embodiments described herein, or, any combination of the method embodiments described herein, or, any subset of any of the method embodiments described herein, or, any combination of such subsets.

[0251] In some embodiments, a device (e.g., a UE 106) may be configured to include a processor (or a set of processors) and a memory medium, where the memory medium stores program instructions, where the processor is configured to read and execute the program instructions from the memory medium, where the program instructions are executable to implement any of the various method embodiments described herein (or, any combination of the method embodiments described herein, or, any subset of any of the method embodiments described herein, or, any combination of such subsets). The device may be realized in any of various forms.

[0252] Any of the methods described herein for operating a user equipment (UE) may be the basis of a corresponding method for operating a base station, by interpreting each message / signal X received by the UE in the downlink as message / signal X transmitted by the base station, and each message / signal Y transmitted in the uplink by the UE as a message / signal Y received by the base station.

[0253] Although the embodiments above have been described in considerable detail, numerous variations and modifications will become apparent to those skilled in the art once the above disclosure is fully appreciated. It is intended that the following claims be interpreted to embrace all such variations and modifications.

Claims

CLAIMSWhat is claimed is:1 . An apparatus of a user equipment (UE) comprising: one or more processors, coupled to a memory, configured to: identify a plurality of configured grant (CG) configurations, each CG configuration defining pre-allocated transmission occasions for uplink (UL) transmissions from the UE; group the plurality of CG configurations into at least two CG groups; determine unused transmission occasions for the UE in each of the at least two CG groups; and encode, at the UE, for transmission to a next generation node B (gNB), an indication of unused transmission occasions indicated by uplink control information (UTO-UCI) for each of the at least two CG groups.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to: identify a CG configuration in each of the at least two CG groups to be used for UTO-UCI signaling; and encode, at the UE, for transmission to the gNB, the UTO- UCI in the identified CG configuration for each of the at least two CG groups.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to: identify a CG configuration in each of the at least two CG groups to be used for UTO-UCI signaling based on explicit identification information; and encode, at the UE, for transmission to the gNB, the UTO-UCI in the identified CG configuration for each of the at least two CG groups.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the explicit identification information comprises a parameter to explicitly indicate the CG configuration to be used for UTO-UCI signaling.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to: identify a CG configuration in each of the at least two CG groups to be used for UTO-UCI signaling based on implicit identification information; and encode, at the UE, for transmission to the gNB, the UTO- UCI in the identified CG configuration for each of the at least two CG groups.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the implicit identification information comprises one of an index ordering, a time-domain ordering, and a serving cell or BWP ordering.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to activate or deactivate one of the at least two CG groups for UTO-UCI signaling.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to activate or deactivate one of the CG configurations in one of the at least two CG groups for UTO-UCI signaling.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to encode, at the UE, for transmission to the gNB, a request to a next generation Node B (gNB) to activate ordeactivate one of the at least two CG groups.

10. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to encode, at the UE, for transmission to the gNB, a request to a next generation Node B (gNB) to activate or deactivate one of the plurality of CG configurations.1 1 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to encode, at the UE, for transmission to the gNB, a recommendation to a next generation Node B (gNB) to activate or deactivate one of the at least two CG groups.

12. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to encode, at the UE, for transmission to the gNB, a recommendation to a next generation Node B (gNB) to activate or deactivate one of the plurality of CG configurations.

13. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein one of the at least two CG groups includes CG configurations in different serving cells.

14. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein one of the at least two CG groups includes CG configurations in different band width parts.

15. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to group the plurality of CG configurations based on explicit grouping configuration information.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the explicit grouping information comprises a CG group ID associated with each of the plurality of CG configurations.

17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the explicit groupinginformation comprises a list of CG indexes to be grouped together.

18. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the explicit grouping information is received from the gNB.

19. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to group the plurality of CG configurations based on implicit grouping configuration information.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the implicit grouping configuration information is an index associated with each of the CG configurations.

21. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the implicit grouping configuration information comprises sets of LCH mapping information.

22. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the implicit grouping information is received from the gNB.

23. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to identify at least one CG configuration that is not grouped with another CG configuration.

24. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the at least two CG groups are each one of exclusive or non-exclusive.

25. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein each of the at least two CG groups comprises more than one CG.

26. An apparatus of a next generation Node B (gNB) comprising: one or more processors, coupled to a memory, configured to:identify a plurality of configured grant (CG) configurations for a user equipment (UE), each CG configuration defining pre-allocated transmission occasions for uplink (UL) transmissions; group the plurality of CG configurations into at least two CG groups; and encode, at the gNB, for transmission to the UE, CG configuration information for each of the plurality of CG configurations for the UE.

27. The apparatus of claim 26, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to decode, at the gNB, an indication of unused transmission occasions indicated by uplink control information (UTO-UCI) received from the UE for each of the at least two CG groups.

28. The apparatus of claim 26, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to identify a CG configuration in each of the at least two CG groups to be used for unused transmission occasions indicated by uplink control information (UTO-UCI).

29. The apparatus of claim 26, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to encode a request, for transmission to the UE, to activate or deactivate one of the at least two CG groups.

30. The apparatus of claim 26, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to encode a request, for transmission to the UE, to activate or deactivate one of the CG configurations in one of the at least two CG groups.31 . The apparatus of claim 26, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to decode a request received from the UE toactivate or deactivate one of the at least two CG groups.

32. The apparatus of claim 26, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to decode a request received from the UE to activate or deactivate one of the CG configurations in one of the at least two CG groups.

33. The apparatus of claim 26, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to encode, for transmission to the UE, grouping configuration information for the plurality of CG configurations.

34. The apparatus of claim 33, wherein the grouping configuration information comprises a CG group identifier associated with each of the plurality of CG configurations.

35. The apparatus of claim 33, wherein the grouping configuration information comprises a list of CG indexes to be grouped together.

36. The apparatus of claim 26, wherein one of the at least two CG groups includes CG configurations in different serving cells or BWPs.

37. The apparatus of claim 26, wherein one of the at least two CG groups is one of exclusive and non-exclusive.

38. The apparatus of claim 26, wherein each of the at least two CG groups comprises more than one CG configuration.

39. A method of allocating resources for uplink (UL) transmissions from a user equipment (UE), comprising: identifying, at the UE, a plurality of configured grant (CG) configurations, each CG configuration allocating transmissionoccasions for the UL transmissions; grouping, at the UE, the plurality of CG configurations into at least two CG groups; determining, at the UE, unused transmission occasions in each of the at least two CG groups; and encoding, at the UE, for transmission to a next generation node B (gNB), an indication of unused transmission occasions indicated by uplink control information (UTO-UCI) for each of the at least two CG groups.

40. The method of claim 39, further comprising identifying a CG configuration in each of the at least two CG groups to be used for UTO-UCI signaling.41 . The method of claim 39, further comprising identifying a CG configuration in each of the at least two CG groups to be used for UTO-UCI signaling based on explicit information.

42. The method of claim 41 , wherein the explicit information comprises a parameter to explicitly indicate the CG configuration to be used for UTO-UCI signaling.

43. The method of claim 39, further comprising identifying a CG configuration in each of the at least two CG groups to be used for UTO-UCI signaling based on implicit information.

44. The method of claim 43, wherein the implicit information comprises one of an index ordering, a time-domain ordering, and a serving cell or BWP ordering.

45. The method of claim 39, further comprising activating or deactivating one of the at least two CG groups at the UE.

46. The method of claim 39, further comprising activating or deactivating one of the CG configurations in one of the at least two CG groups at the UE.

47. The method of claim 39, wherein one of the at least two CG groups includes CG configurations in different serving cells or BWPs.

48. The method of claim 39, wherein each of the at least two CG groups comprises more than one CG configuration.

49. A method of allocating resources for uplink (UL) transmissions from a user equipment (UE) to a next generation Node B (gNB), the method comprising: selecting, at the gNB, a plurality of configured grant (CG) configurations, each CG configuration allocating transmission occasions for the UL transmissions; grouping, at the gNB, the plurality of CG configurations into at least two CG groups; and encoding, at the gNB, for transmission to the UE, CG configuration information for each of the plurality of CG configurations for transmission to the UE.

50. The method of claim 49, further comprising decoding, at the gNB, an indication of unused transmission occasions indicated by uplink control information (UTO-UCI) received from the UE for each of the at least two CG groups.

51. The method of claim 49, further comprising identifying a CG configuration in each of the at least two CG groups to be used for unused transmission occasions indicated by uplink controlinformation (UTO-UCI).

52. The method of claim 49, further comprising encoding a request, for transmission to the UE, to activate or deactivate one of the at least two CG groups.

53. The method of claim 49, further comprising encoding a request, for transmission to the UE, to activate or deactivate one of the CG configurations in one of the at least two CG groups.

54. The method of claim 49, wherein each of the at least two CG groups comprises more than one CG configuration.

55. An apparatus configured to cause a user equipment (UE) to perform any of the methods of claims 39-48.

56. An apparatus configured to cause a next generation Node B (gNB) to perform any of the methods of claims 49-54.

57. A user equipment (UE) configured to perform any of the operations described herein.

58. A next generation node B (gNB) configured to perform any of the operations described herein.

59. A computer program product, comprising computer instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, perform any of the operations described herein.

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