UE indication to avoid NTZ transmissions

Abstract

A method for a UE in a wireless communication system and related aspects are disclosed. The method comprises in response to the user equipment approaching or being located within a limited capability zone, transmitting a first message to a network node. The method further comprises in response to receiving a second message comprising a first configuration for the user equipment from the network node, configuring the user equipment in accordance with the first configuration.

Description

[0001] P112000W001

[0002] 1

[0003] UE INDICATION TO AVOID NTZ TRANSMISSIONS

[0004] TECHNICAL FIELD

[0005] The herein disclosed technology relates generally to the field of wireless communication networks. In particular, embodiments disclosed herein relate to methods performed by a user equipment (UE) in a wireless communication network and corresponding UEs. More specifically, but not exclusively, embodiments of the herein disclosed technology relate to methods for avoiding non-compliant UL transmissions within non-transmit zones (NTZs).

[0006] BACKGROUND

[0007] Wireless communication networks have undergone significant advancements in recent years, driven by the increasing demand for faster data transmission, lower latency, and enhanced connectivity. Standards such as those developed by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), including LTE, LTE- Advanced, 5G NR, and anticipated 6G systems play a critical role in shaping modern wireless communication systems. These standards facilitate the efficient deployment of networks capable of supporting diverse applications, ranging from voice and video communication to loT (Internet of Things) devices and industrial automation.

[0008] Wireless communication systems increasingly operate in spectrum shared with sensitive incumbent users, prompting regulators to designate limited capability zones (LCZs), such as non-transmit zones (NTZs), where emissions from cellular base stations, user equipment, or aerial platforms must be reduced or silenced altogether. An LCZ can be permanent, such as around radio-astronomy sites, or dynamic, for example when public-safety authorities reserve bandwidth during emergencies. Contemporary networks rely on dense deployments, adaptive beamforming, carrier aggregation, and rapidly shifting resource allocations. These features complicate compliance because the interference footprint of even a single device can change in milliseconds as beams steer or frequencies hop.

[0009] Moreover, LCZ restriction(s) may only be applicable above a certain height, i.e. the UE would be allowed to transmit in the LCZ if the UE is on the ground but not if the UE is flying, e.g. in a drone / unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). Moreover, the LCZ restriction(s) may only apply to certain frequencies. For example, frequency 1 may be forbidden to transmit on, but frequency 2 is allowed to be transmitted on.

[0010] There currently exist certain challenges related to the management of radio-frequency restrictions applied within LCZs. For example, a UE in a UAV (also referred to as "UAV UE") may, based on current 3GPP network deployments / standards, be required to perform transmissions in LCZs, which is forbidden. P112000W001

[0011] 2

[0012] While some solutions to this issue may exist, they may not necessarily be deployed in actual networks. Hence, the UE may still be forced (e.g., be scheduled by the NW) to perform transmissions in LCZs. Moreover, the UE could avoid such transmissions by doing things which are not allowed by the specifications, but that may cause degraded network performance, poor user experience, and / or interrupted communication for the end user. Moreover, some solutions may treat an LCZ as if the restrictions associated thereto apply to all frequencies. For example, the network may be aware that the UE is in or close to an LCZ and then assume that the UE cannot transmit at all (on any frequency). However, such solutions may lead to similar drawbacks as above, i.e., degraded network performance, poor user experience, and / or interrupted communication for the end user.

[0013] SUMMARY

[0014] It is therefore an object of the technology disclosed herein to provide a method for a UE in a wireless communication network, a computer program, a computer-readable storage medium, and a UE, which seek to mitigate, alleviate, or eliminate one or more of the deficiencies in the art and disadvantages singly or in any combination.

[0015] Some embodiments advantageously provide methods performed by UE and UEs for mitigating the risk of UEs violating LCZ restrictions, such as UL transmissions within the LCZ.

[0016] An aspect of the present disclosure comprises a method performed by a user equipment in a wireless communication network. The method comprises in response to the user equipment approaching or being located within a limited capability zone, transmitting a first message to a network node. The method further comprises in response to receiving a second message comprising a first configuration for the user equipment from the network node, configuring the user equipment in accordance with the first configuration.

[0017] In accordance with some embodiments, the first message has a different application purpose than indicating to the network node that the user equipment is approaching or being located within a limited capability zone (LCZ). The limited capability zone may for example be a no-transmit zone (NTZ). Moreover, in some embodiments, the first message is a UE Assistance Information (UAI) message. For example, the first message may be an in-device coexistence (IDC) assistance information message, an overheating mitigation message, a power saving message, or a multi-sim indication message.

[0018] Accordingly, the UE may be adapted / configured to send an indication such as in-device coexistence (IDC) indication or an indication related to overheating / power consumption / multi-SIM to address an LCZ- issue. The network may then address the (wrongfully) assumed IDC / overheating / etc. issues by P112000W001

[0019] 3 configuring the UE so to avoid transmission at the LCZ-impacted frequencies, and / or refraining from making the UE start transmitting in the LCZ.

[0020] Moreover, in some embodiments, the first message has an application purpose to indicate to the network node that the user equipment is approaching or being located within a limited capability zone. Moreover, the first message may comprise frequency information. Thus, the first message may be a new message or new version of a message that is specified for the intended use of managing NTZ-related issues. This new message or new version of a message may include a frequency indication and / or a frequency combination indication.

[0021] In some embodiments, new values may be added to the existing information elements (lEs) in the Radio Resource Control (RRC) specification to cater for the LCZ needs. For example, longer DRX cycles, longer DRX Inactive time duration, or larger values in the AutonomousDenialParameters may be introduced to allow the UE to refrain from UL transmissions in longer time periods (e.g., in order to allow the UE to pass through an NTZ without violating any transmission restrictions).

[0022] In some embodiments, an additional bit in the UAI message is used by the UE to indicate LCZ-related restrictions or issues to the network. In other words, the first message may comprise a UAI message including a dedicated bit / indication to indicate a limited capability zone or a (frequency) restriction of a limited capability zone. For example, an additional bit (additional indication) may be added in the IDC message and used by the UE to indicate LCZ-related restrictions or issues. Thereby, even though the message sent from the UE to the network node is intended for something else (e.g., IDC), the dedicated bit / indication is used to indicate by the UE that the reason for sending the message is due to LCZ-related restrictions or issues.

[0023] Another aspect of the present disclosure comprises a user equipment for communication with radio nodes in a wireless communication network. The user equipment comprises processing circuitry configured to execute the method performed by a user equipment according to any one of the embodiments disclosed herein. With this aspect of the disclosure, similar advantages and preferred features are present as in the previously discussed aspect of the disclosure.

[0024] According to some embodiments, there is provided a computer program product comprising instructions which, when the computer program is executed by one or more processors of a user equipment, causes the user equipment to carry out the method performed by a user equipment according to any one of the embodiments disclosed herein.

[0025] According to some embodiments, there is provided a (non-transitory) computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions which, when executed by one or more processors of a user equipment, P112000W001

[0026] 4 causes the user equipment to carry out the method performed by a user equipment according to any one of the embodiments disclosed herein.

[0027] The term "non-transitory," as used herein, is intended to describe a computer-readable storage medium (or "memory") excluding propagating electromagnetic signals, but are not intended to otherwise limit the type of physical computer-readable storage device that is encompassed by the phrase computer- readable medium or memory. For instance, the terms "non-transitory computer readable medium" or "tangible memory" are intended to encompass types of storage devices that do not necessarily store information permanently, including for example, random access memory (RAM). Program instructions and data stored on a tangible computer-accessible storage medium in non-transitory form may further be transmitted by transmission media or signals such as electrical, electromagnetic, or digital signals, which may be conveyed via a communication medium such as a network and / or a wireless link. Thus, the term "non-transitory", as used herein, is a limitation of the medium itself (i.e., tangible, not a signal) as opposed to a limitation on data storage persistency (e.g., RAM vs. ROM).

[0028] The disclosed aspects and embodiments may be suitably combined with each other in any manner apparent to anyone of ordinary skill in the art, such that one or more features or embodiments disclosed in relation to one aspect may also be considered to be disclosed in relation to another aspect or embodiment of another aspect.

[0029] Further embodiments of the disclosure are defined in the dependent claims. It should be emphasized that the term "comprises / comprising" when used in this specification is taken to specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, or components. It does not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, components, or groups thereof. As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

[0030] An advantage of some embodiments is that the UE can address potential NTZ-issues (e.g., UL transmission frequency restrictions) even in cases where no standardized solution is available, or in cases where the network does not support any standardized solution for addressing these potential NTZ- issues.

[0031] An advantage of some embodiments is that the UE is provided with a capability to indicate frequencies or combinations of frequencies that are impacted by the NTZ (or the NTZ restrictions) that allows the network to serve the UE on frequencies that are not impacted by the NTZ (or the NTZ restrictions).

[0032] These and other features and advantages of the disclosed technology will in the following be further clarified with reference to the embodiments described hereinafter. P112000W001

[0033] 5

[0034] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0035] The foregoing will be apparent from the following more particular description of the example embodiments, as illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which like reference characters refer to the same parts throughout the different views. The drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon illustrating the example embodiments.

[0036] Fig. 1 is a schematic flowchart representation of a method performed by a user equipment in accordance with some embodiments.

[0037] Fig. 2 is a schematic flowchart representation of a method performed by a network node in accordance with some embodiments.

[0038] Fig. 3 is a schematic sequence / handshake diagram illustrating a method in accordance with some embodiments.

[0039] Fig. 4 is a schematic sequence / handshake diagram illustrating a method in accordance with some embodiments.

[0040] Fig. 5 is a schematic sequence / handshake diagram illustrating a method in accordance with some embodiments.

[0041] Fig. 6 is a schematic illustration of a communication system in accordance with some embodiments.

[0042] Fig. 7 is a schematic block diagram representation of a user equipment in accordance with some embodiments.

[0043] Fig. 8 is a schematic block diagram representation of a network node in accordance with some embodiments.

[0044] Fig. 9 is a schematic block diagram representation of a virtualization environment in accordance with some embodiments.

[0045] DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0046] The present disclosure is described below with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which certain aspects of the present disclosure are shown. The present disclosure may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments and aspects set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided by way of example so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the present disclosure to those skilled in the art. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout the description. P112000W001

[0047] 6

[0048] It is to be understood that the present disclosure is not limited to the embodiments described herein and illustrated in the drawings; rather, those skilled in the art will recognize that many changes and modifications may be made within the scope of the appended claims

[0049] The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular aspects of the disclosure and is not necessarily intended to limit the scope. As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The terminology "at least one of A and B" should in the present context be read as A and / or B, where A and B can be any arbitrary items or elements in a set. Similarly, the phrase "A, B, or C" encompass both the conjunctive and disjunctive forms, meaning that the phrase encompasses variants such as only A, only B, only C, A and B but not C, A and C but not B, B and C but not A, as well as A and B and C - where A, B and C can be any arbitrary items or elements in a set.

[0050] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the steps, services and functions explained herein may be implemented using individual hardware circuitry, using software functioning in conjunction with a programmed microprocessor or general-purpose computer, using one or more Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs) and / or using one or more Digital Signal Processors (DSPs). It will also be appreciated that when the present disclosure is described in terms of a method, it may also be embodied in one or more processors and one or more memories coupled to the one or more processors, wherein the one or more memories store one or more programs that perform the steps, services and functions disclosed herein when executed by the one or more processors.

[0051] Generally, all terms used herein are to be interpreted according to their ordinary meaning in the relevant technical field, unless a different meaning is clearly given and / or is implied from the context in which it is used. All references to a / an / the element, apparatus, component, means, step, etc. are to be interpreted openly as referring to at least one instance of the element, apparatus, component, means, step, etc., unless explicitly stated otherwise. The steps of any methods disclosed herein do not have to be performed in the exact order disclosed, unless a step is explicitly described as following or preceding another step and / or where it is implicit that a step must follow or precede another step. Any feature of any of the embodiments disclosed herein may be applied to any other embodiment, wherever appropriate. Likewise, any advantage of any of the embodiments may apply to any other embodiments, and vice versa. Other objectives, features and advantages of the appended embodiments will be apparent from the following description.

[0052] As used herein, relational terms, such as "first" and "second," "top" and "bottom," and the like, may be used solely to distinguish one entity or element from another entity or element without necessarily requiring or implying any physical or logical relationship or order between such entities or elements. The P112000W001

[0053] 7 terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular example embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the concepts described herein. As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms "comprises," "comprising," "includes" and / or "including" when used herein, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and / or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and / or groups thereof.

[0054] In embodiments described herein, the joining term, "in communication with" and the like, may be used to indicate electrical or data communication, which may be accomplished by physical contact, induction, electromagnetic radiation, radio signaling, infrared signaling or optical signaling, for example. One having ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that multiple components may interoperate, and modifications and variations are possible of achieving the electrical and data communication.

[0055] In some embodiments described herein, the term "coupled," "connected," and the like, may be used herein to indicate a connection, although not necessarily directly, and may include wired and / or wireless connections.

[0056] Overview

[0057] National regulators increasingly rely on NTZs, to safeguard incumbent services, limit electromagnetic- field (EMF) exposure and avoid cross-border interference. Within Europe, CEPT Electronic Communications Committee Decision (22)07 defines NTZs for aerial user equipment operating in licensed mobile bands where an NTZ may be defined at national level and understood as a geographical area where aerial UE are not allowed to transmit for spectrum compatibility purposes in a given harmonised Mobile / Fixed Communications Network (MFCN) band or part of it. For example, in the CEPT (22)07 decision, aerial UEs operating in 703-733 MHz should not transmit when less than 30 meters above ground level to avoid interference to Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) receivers and it is contemplated that nationally determined NTZs are required around Radio Astronomy Service (RAS) for aerial UEs operating in the 703-718 MHz frequency band, the 832-837 MHz frequency band, the 2500- 2570 MHz frequency band, or the 2570-2620 MHz frequency band depending on the operating frequency band of the particular RAS site. Similarly, and it is contemplated that nationally determined NTZs are required around radars operating in the 2700-2900 MHz frequency band for aerial UEs operating in the 2500-2570 MHz or the 2570-2620 MHz frequency band.

[0058] Moreover, 3GPP has specified a message called UE assistance information ("UAI" or "UEAssistancelnformation"). This message can carry different types of indications, such as for example P112000W001

[0059] 8 in-device coexistence indications, overheating indications, power consumption issue indications, or multi-SIM indications. The in-device coexistence indications may be used by the User Equipment (UE) to indicate to the network that the UE experiences issues when it is doing both 3GPP communication and other communication, e.g. Wi-Fi communication, or that two frequencies used for 3GPP communication are problematic together. Overheating indication may be used to indicate that the temperature of the device is high and may result in damage of the device or other issues. Power consumption issue indications may be used to indicate that the UE has power related issues (e.g. low power) and therefore prefers to reduce its power consumption. Multi-SIM indications may be used to indicate that the UE is using more than one SIM-card and simultaneous communication by the two logical UEs (one per SIM card) is problematic.

[0060] When the network (NW) receives such indications, the network is expected to address those issues, e.g. reducing the number of frequencies used by the UE, or changing which frequencies the UE uses, etc.

[0061] Various embodiments described herein provide operations to be performed by a UE or a network node to limit capabilities of the UE based on the UE being within a limited capability zone, such as a no-transmit zone (NTZ). In some examples, the UE is adapted to, upon detecting that there is a risk of unallowed Uplink (UL) or Sidelink (SL) transmissions when it enters or is about to enter a limited capability zone (e.g., NTZ), send a message to a network node. The sent message may have a different application purpose than NTZ issues, such as e.g., a UAI message (see ref. 3001 in Fig. 3). The network node will then act in response to receiving the message based on the indications included in the message and transmit a configuration message to the UE so that the UE can avoid violating the rules / restrictions of the limited capability zone.

[0062] Thus, the network does not necessarily need to be aware of the NTZ issues but simply acts on the information provided in the "unrelated" message from the UE. However, since the "unrelated" message effectively provides the same end-effect that the UE needs in order to comply with the NTZ rules, the problems associated thereto are effectively mitigated without requiring a standardized solution for dealing with NTZ issues. In other words, in some embodiments, the UE is adapted to re-purpose or "piggy-back" on other standardized messages (e.g., UAI messages) to handle NTZ compliance. However, in some embodiments, these messages sent from the UE may directly indicate that the message is sent due to NTZ compliance issues. For example, the UAI message may include an indication that the UAI message is sent for NTZ-related issues (see e.g., ref. 3003 in Fig. 4). However, in some embodiments, the message sent from the UE may be a new message or a new version of a currently standardized message that is intended to be used for NTZ issues (see e.g., ref. 3004 in Fig. 5). P112000W001

[0063] 9

[0064] Note that although terminology from one particular wireless system, such as, for example, 3GPP LTE and / or New Radio (NR), may be used in this disclosure, this should not be seen as limiting the scope of the disclosure to only the aforementioned system. Other wireless systems, including without limitation Wide Band Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX), Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), and anticipated 6G systems, may also benefit from exploiting the ideas covered within this disclosure.

[0065] Definitions

[0066] The term "network node" used herein can be any kind of network node comprised in a radio network which may further comprise any of base station (BS), radio base station, base transceiver station (BTS), base station controller (BSC), radio network controller (RNC), g Node B (gNB), evolved Node B (eNB or eNodeB), Node B, multi-standard radio (MSR) radio node such as MSR BS, multi-cell / multicast coordination entity (MCE), integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node, relay node, integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node, donor node controlling relay, radio access point (AP), transmission points, transmission nodes, Remote Radio Unit (RRU) Remote Radio Head (RRH), a core network node (e.g., mobile management entity (MME), self-organizing network (SON) node, a coordinating node, positioning node, MDT node, etc.), an external node (e.g., 3rd party node, a node external to the current network), nodes in distributed antenna system (DAS), a spectrum access system (SAS) node, an element management system (EMS), etc. The network node may also comprise test equipment. The term "radio node" used herein may be used to also denote a user equipment (UE) such as a wireless device (WD) or a radio network node. Moreover, a network node may also be in the form of a sub-entity of a BTS, such as e.g. a Centralized Unit (CU) or a Distributed Unit (DU).

[0067] In some embodiments, the non-limiting terms user equipment (UE) or wireless device (WD) are used interchangeably. The UE herein can be any type of user equipment capable of communicating with a network node or another UE over radio signals. The UE may be a user device. In some embodiments, the UE is included in an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) or "drone", this may also be referred to as a "UAV UE". The term drone may be used for a UE that is associated, e.g. attached to, a drone. The term UE, drone, and wireless device may therefore be used interchangeably in this disclosure. Thus, in some cases, the term UE should be interpreted as the 3GPP chipset of the UE, while in some other cases it may comprise the whole device, e.g. a whole UAV.

[0068] It should be noted that the term user equipment (UE) may not necessarily have a user in the sense of a human user who owns and / or operates the relevant device. Instead, a UE may represent a device that is intended for sale to, or operation by, a human user but which may not, or which may not initially, be associated with a specific human user. P112000W001

[0069] 10

[0070] The expression "limited capability zone" (LCZ) denotes a geographically bounded area for which the network advertises special operating constraints that a user equipment (UE) must respect while it remains inside the zone. The constraints can curb any combination of radio capabilities, such as maximum transmit power, permitted frequency ranges or sub-frame patterns, antenna configurations, service types or even the right to initiate transmissions at all, so that the UE does not jeopardize spectrum sharing, electromagnetic-exposure limits or public-safety rules laid down by regulators or the network operator. To enforce an LCZ, the network may determine the zone's coordinates (e.g., geographical area) and associated restrictions (e.g., frequency bands), signals this information to affected UEs (for example in dedicated or broadcast RRC messages) and instructs them to apply the reduced capabilities until they have left the area. Alternatively, or additionally, UEs may be configured with information about the zone's coordinates and associated restrictions. The information may for example be stored in a memory of the UE.

[0071] A "non-transmit zone" (NTZ) may be understood as an example of an LCZ. In an NTZ the mandated capability reduction reaches its limit as the UE must refrain from transmitting altogether in the specified band (or set of bands) while it is located inside the zone. As mentioned, European regulators have already codified this idea; for instance, CEPT's ECC Decision (22)07 defines an NTZ as a geographical area where aerial UEs are not allowed to transmit for spectrum-compatibility purposes in harmonized mobile- network spectrum. Thus, an LCZ may be construed as an umbrella construct for location-based operational constraints, and an NTZ represents an LCZ whose required capability level is "zero transmission".

[0072] Example Embodiments

[0073] Fig. 1 is a schematic flowchart representation of a method S100 performed by a UE (e.g., 112A or 112B in Fig. 6) in a wireless communication network. In some embodiments, the method S100 performed by the UE is suitable for mitigating limited capability zone related issues, or for ensuring limited capability zone compliance by the UE. The method S100 is preferably a computer-implemented method S100, performed by processing circuitry of the UE. The processing circuitry may for example comprise one or more processors and one or more memories coupled to the one or more processors, wherein the one or more memories store one or more programs that perform the steps, services and functions of the method S100 disclosed herein when executed by the one or more processors. In the following, reference may also be made to the sequence / handshake diagrams depicted in Figs. 3-5.

[0074] In some embodiments, the method S100 comprises determining S101 that the user equipment is approaching or that it is located within a limited capability zone. In other words, the UE may be adapted to determine / detect / identify S101 that there is a risk of unallowed transmissions when the UE enters, is P112000W001

[0075] 11 about to enter, or finds that a likelihood that the UE will enter a limited capability zone is above a likelihood value / threshold. For example, the UE may be moving in a specific direction and based on that, derive that there is a certain likelihood or probability that it may enter the limited capability zone. Thus, the method S100 may comprise determining S101 that the user equipment is approaching or that it is located within a limited capability zone based on geographical information of the limited capability zone and UE location data (e.g., a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) location of the UE), and optionally based on movement data (e.g., a movement direction and speed).

[0076] In some embodiments, the limited capability zone as used herein may be a geographical area with specific limitations as to whether it is allowed or not allowed to transmit radio signals in the geographical area. The limited capability zone may include a geometrical shape which may be defined by certain coordinates. It may include one, two, or three spatial dimensions. For example, above / below a certain height, or inside / outside a 2D-shape, or within / outside a certain 3D-shape.

[0077] In some embodiments, the method S100 comprises obtaining information associated with the limited capability zone. Moreover, in some embodiments, the obtaining determining information associated with the limited capability zone comprises obtaining a geographical area and restrictions associated with transmissions by communication devices within the geographical area.

[0078] If it is not allowed to transmit radio signals in a limited capability zone, it may be limited to certain radio resources, for example to certain frequency bands, etc. Or it may be limited to certain signals. Or it may be limited to transmissions of certain characteristics, e.g. transmissions are allowed given that the power of the transmission is below a certain limit, or that the duty cycle of the transmissions is below a certain limit, etc. In this sense the "limited capability zone" may be considered to be a "no-transmission zone" ("NTZ") and may be referred to as such. Note that such an NTZ may be implemented as a "nocommunication zone" where instead of it being defined so that transmissions are not allowed in particular, it is more generally defined so that radio communication within the zone is not allowed (which may be referred to as "no-communication zone"), i.e. also comprising radio receptions. The NTZ may include a time component indicating when, for example, the no-transmission property applies. This may mean that the UE may be allowed to transmit within the zone during certain times, but not at other times (or using opposite logic: it is not allowed to transmit within the zone during certain times, but it is allowed at other times).

[0079] In some embodiments, a limited capability zone may be a frequency-sensitive zone. The term frequencysensitive zone as used herein may be a geographical area with specific properties that make it advantageous to limit frequencies used by the UE for transmission. In some examples, a hospital, airplane, or another area with frequency-sensitive equipment may be considered a frequency-sensitive P112000W001

[0080] 12 zone. In additional or alternative embodiments, a limited capability zone may be a no-transmission zone. In some examples, high security areas may be no-transmission zones.

[0081] In some embodiments, the determination / detection / identification S101 whether the UE is approaching or that it is located within a limited capability zone may comprise determining / detecting / identifying whether the UE is in proximity to the limited capability zone by comparing its current location (e.g. geographical coordinates) with a set of geographical coordinates defining the restricted zone. For example, if the magnitude of the distance between the current UE location and the boundary of the restricted zone is less than certain margin / threshold then the UE is considered to be in proximity to the restricted zone; otherwise, the UE is NOT considered to be in proximity to the restricted zone. Then, depending on the proximity of the UE to the limited capability zone and optionally further dependent on the UEs movement data, one may conclude whether UE is approaching a limited capability zone. In some embodiments, characteristics of all the limited capability zones within a certain area (the granularity can be a city, a region, or the entire country) are pre-configured in the UE subscription and thus the UE will know them "a priori".

[0082] Moreover, in some embodiments, the determination / detection / identification S101 whether the UE is approaching or that it is located within a limited capability zone may be based on one or more of the following principles. One principle includes periodically determining S101 whether the UE is in proximity to the limited capability zone. In more detail, the method S100 may comprise determining S101 once every LI seconds, one every L2 number of time resource (e.g., once every L2 number of frames), once every L3 number of Discontinuous Reception (DRX) cycles, or once every L4 number of extended DRX (eDRX) cycles. Another principle includes determining / detecting / identifying S101 that the UE is approaching or that it is located within a limited capability zone upon receiving an explicit indication or request from a network node. For example, upon receiving a message receiving a message from the network node requesting the UE to determine whether the UE is in proximity to the limited capability zone.

[0083] Another principle includes triggering the UE to above-mentioned determinations of a proximity to a limited capability zone in response to one or more conditions or criteria being met. An example of a condition or criterion to trigger the determination includes when a received signal level measured by the UE on signals of a cell changes by a certain margin (Ml), e.g., magnitude of the change in the signal level is larger than Ml. Examples of the UE's received signal level include received signal strength (RSS) and received signal quality (RSQ). Examples of RSS include reference signal received power (RSRP) and path loss. Examples of RSQ. include reference signal received quality (RSRQ), signal to noise ratio (SNR), and signal to interference plus noise ratio (SINR). Another example of a condition or criterion to trigger the P112000W001

[0084] 13 determination includes when the UE's received signal level becomes larger than a certain threshold (Hl). Another example of a condition or criterion to trigger the determination includes when the UE's received signal level becomes smaller than a certain threshold (H2). Another example of a condition or criterion to trigger the determination includes when the UE's received signal level differs with respect to a reference UE received signal level by certain threshold (H3). Examples of the reference UE received signal are UE received signal measured on a cell other than a first cell e.g. on a second cell. In one example, the second cell is a neighbor cell, in another example the second cell is a secondary cell. Another example of a condition or criterion to trigger the determination includes when the UE location changes by certain margin (M2) e.g. magnitude of the change in the location is larger than M2. The UE determines its location and changes in its location based on one or more positioning methods e.g. GNSS, enhanced cell ID, or observed time difference of arrival (OTDOA). Another example of a condition or criterion to trigger the determination includes when the UE location changes by certain margin (M3) within certain time period (Tl) e.g. a magnitude of the change in the location is larger than M3 during Tl. Another example of a condition or criterion to trigger the determination includes when UE has previously determined that it is in proximity to the limited capability zone or has moved inside or outside the limited capability zone. In this case the purpose may be to determine whether the UE remains in the limited capability zone or has left the limited capability zone or is leaving or about to leave the limited capability zone. The parameters LI, L2, L3, L4, Ml, M2, M3, Hl, H2 and Tl can be pre-defined and / or configured by a network node.

[0085] The method S100 may comprise checking or otherwise determining S102 whether a current or expected operating frequency (e.g., UL or SL frequency) of the UE is restricted or prohibited in the limited capability zone. Thus, in some embodiments, the determining S101 that the user equipment is approaching or that it is located within a limited capability zone comprises determining that the UE operates on a frequency corresponding to a frequency restriction associated with the limited capability zone.

[0086] In some embodiments, the determining S101 that the user equipment is approaching or that it is located within a limited capability zone comprises determining that the UE will operate on the frequency corresponding to the frequency restriction associated with the limited capability zone during at least a portion of a time period that the user equipment expects to be within the limited capability zone. In some embodiments, the determining S101 that the user equipment is approaching or that it is located within a limited capability zone comprises determining that the user equipment may need to operate on the frequency corresponding to the frequency restriction associated with the limited capability zone during at least a portion of a time period that the user equipment expects to be within the limited capability zone. In some embodiments, the determining S101 that the user equipment is approaching or P112000W001

[0087] 14 that it is located within a limited capability zone comprises determining that a likelihood of the user equipment operating on the frequency corresponding to the frequency restriction associated with the limited capability zone during at least a portion of a time period that the user equipment expects to be within the limited capability zone is above a likelihood value.

[0088] Accordingly, if the current or expected operating frequency of the UE is not restricted, then the UE need not do anything further. However, if the current or expected operating frequency of the UE is restricted, the UE may execute the process (or parts thereof) as outlined below.

[0089] Accordingly, the method S100 comprises in response to the UE approaching or being located within a limited capability zone, transmitting S103 a first message to a network node. As mentioned, the method S100 may comprise in response to the UE approaching or being located within a limited capability zone and in response to the UE having a current or expected operating frequency (e.g., UL or SL frequency) that is restricted or prohibited within the limited capability zone, transmitting S103 a first message to a network node.

[0090] It should be noted that the UE may be served on other frequencies than the frequency / frequencies that are prohibited within the limited capability zone. However, in such a scenario, the UE may still determine that there a risk of prohibited or non-compliant transmissions since there may be a risk that the UE may get reconfigured (e.g. handed over) to perform transmissions on frequency / frequencies that are prohibited within the limited capability zone. The term "frequency" or "frequencies" as used in reference to the UE and the restrictions of the limited capability zone may be construed as frequency band or frequency bands.

[0091] As used herein, the term "in response to" may be construed to mean "when" or "upon" or "if" depending on the context. Similarly, the phrase "in response to X being Y" may be construed to mean "in response to determining that X is Y" or "when it is determined that X is Y" or "in an instance of X being Y", "upon determining that X is Y" or "if its determined that X is Y" or "upon detecting and identifying an occurrence of X being Y" or "in response to detecting an occurrence of X being Y" depending on the context.

[0092] In some embodiments, the first message has a different application purpose than indicating to the network node that the user equipment is approaching or being located within a limited capability zone. In other words, the network is not necessarily made aware of the fact that the UE is approaching or within a limited capability zone based on the contents in the first message. Moreover, in some embodiments, the first message is a Radio Resource Control (RRC) message. In some embodiments, the first message is a UE Assistance Information (UAI) message (3001 in Fig. 3). Accordingly, the method S100 may comprise, in response to the UE approaching or being located within a limited capability zone, P112000W001

[0093] 15 transmitting S104 a UAI message to the network node. The UAI message may for example be an in-device coexistence (IDC) assistance information message, an overheating mitigation message, a power saving message, a multi-sim indication message, or a preferred RRC state message.

[0094] Thus, the method S100 may comprise, in response to the UE approaching or being located within a limited capability zone, transmitting S105 an IDC assistance information message. In some embodiments, the method S100 comprises, in response to the UE approaching or being located within a limited capability zone, transmitting S106 an overheating mitigation message. The overheating mitigation message may comprise overheating assistance information. The method S100 may comprise, in response to the UE approaching or being located within a limited capability zone, transmitting S107 a power saving message. The power saving message may comprise DRX parameters, maximum aggregated bandwidth, maximum number of secondary component carriers, maximum number of MIMO layers, and / or minimum scheduling offset for cross-slot scheduling.

[0095] In other words, the UE may trigger a sending of a message, e.g., a UAI message. The message may indicate that the UE has one or more standardized issues, other than an NTZ issue, or it may indicate the UE's preferred connection status or configuration. Examples of such messages include that the UE has an in-device coexistence issue, that the UE has an overheating issue, that the UE has a power consumption issue and would like to save power, that the UE has a multi-SIM issue, the UE's preferred DRX configuration, and / or the UE's preferred RRC state.

[0096] If the UE has multiple candidate messages which the UE is capable of sending to the network for this purpose, the UE may decide which candidate messages to send based on which messages are configured by the network and / or based on the estimated time that the UE will be in the limited capability zone. For example, the UE may in one situation be configured with an overheating message and may therefore use that message, but in another situation the UE may be configured to be allowed to send in-device coexistence messages and would then use that message to address limited capability zone issues. If the UE is configured with more than one candidate messages, the UE may use the message which is most suitable, for example the message which the UE thinks there is highest chance that the network will do something about if the UE sends it. For example, the network may consider in-device coexistence issues more severe than UE power consumption issues and hence may be more likely to do something about the in-device coexistence issue. As another example, the UE may send more than one messages or a single message indicating more than one issues.

[0097] It may be noted that in the aforementioned cases, the network will not know that the reason the UE is sending the message is due to limited capability zone issues. Instead, the network would assume that the message is sent based on what the message is normally used for, i.e., what the message is specified P112000W001

[0098] 16 for. Moreover, the UE may indicate frequencies or combinations of frequencies in the message. For example, if the limited capability zone restrictions impact a first frequency but not any other frequencies that the UE can operate on, the UE indicates the first frequency in the message. A potential advantage of this is that the UE could still be served by the non-impacted frequencies within the limited capability zone.

[0099] With regards to frequency combinations, it should be noted that even though the UE may not directly be configured to transmit on a first frequency, which is an unallowed or prohibited frequency within the limited capability zone, the UE may be configured to a second frequency or a third frequency, both of which are different from the first frequency. It may be so that, depending on the relation between three frequencies that simultaneous transmissions on second and third frequencies result in unwanted transmissions on the first frequency, e.g. due to so-called intermodulation products. Therefore, the UE may in the message indicate combinations of frequencies. The UE may in this example here indicate that the combination of the second and third frequency is problematic. The network may address such problems by transmitting a configuration message that allows the UE to be configured so to stop the UE from transmissions either on second frequency or the third frequency. In some embodiments, the transmitted S103 first message is indicating the UEs preferred RRC state as RRCJDLE, RRCJNACTIVE, or Out-of-connected state. In some embodiments, the transmitted S103 first message indicates the UE's preferred DRX configuration whose Inactive duration is long enough to cover the expected time the UE will spend in the limited capability zone. The UE can estimate this expected time in NTZ based on the information UE has on the limited capability zone (e.g., geographical information), the flight path information of the aerial vehicle carrying the UE, and the UE's velocity.

[0100] Furthermore, in some embodiments, the first message comprises an application purpose to indicate to the network node that the user equipment is approaching or being located within a limited capability zone. The method S100 may accordingly comprise, in response to the UE approaching or being located within a limited capability zone, transmitting S109 a message indicating a limited capability zone restriction (e.g., NTZ restriction).

[0101] Thus, in contrast to some of the examples above, the network is made aware of that the UE needs assistance with limited capability zone restrictions. In some embodiments, an indication (e.g., a bit) is included in a message, like the ones described above (e.g., UAI messages). See for example ref. 3003 in Fig. 4. The indication may indicate that, even though the message is intended for something else (e.g. indevice coexistence), the reason for sending the message is due to limited capability zone restrictions. Accordingly, in some embodiments, the first message is a message that is intended to be used (at least) P112000W001

[0102] 17 for limited capability zone issues. The message may for example include a frequency indication or a frequency combination indication.

[0103] Further, the method S100 may comprise receiving S110 a second message (ref. 3002 in Figs. 3-5) comprising a first configuration for the UE from the network node (NN). Then, in response to receiving S110 the second message comprising the first configuration for the user equipment from the network node, the method S100 comprises configuring S112 the user equipment in accordance with the first configuration. The first configuration may for example comprise an RRC state configuration, a transmission frequency configuration (UL and / or SL transmission), or a DRX configuration.

[0104] In other words, in response to the network node receiving the first message, the network is expected to take actions that ensure that the UE would not need to transmit while it is within the limited capability zone. As mentioned before, this may be done without the network even being aware of the limited capability zone. The actions taken by the network may for example include sending a reconfiguration message to the UE so that the UE would no longer need to perform transmissions in the limited capability zone. For example, if the UE was served on a first frequency which is impacted by the limited capability zone restrictions, and the UE indicated in the first message that it has an issue on the first frequency, then the network may hand over the UE to another frequency which is not impacted by the limited capability zone restrictions, and / or de-configure secondary cells on the frequency / frequencies impacted by the limited capability zone restrictions.

[0105] Moreover, in some embodiments, the UE may have indicated in the first message that the UE's preferred RRC state to be RRCJDLE or RRCJNACTIVE, the network node sends an RRC Release message to the UE to move the UE to RRCJDLE or RRCJNACTIVE state. Similarly, in some embodiments, the UE may have indicated in the first message a preferred DRX configuration, the network may then configure the UE with a DRX configuration which has the Inactive duration at least as long as the one indicated by the UE (in the first message). However, in some embodiments, the action(s) taken by the network may comprise that the network refrains from making the UE start transmitting in the impacted frequencies. For example, the network may refrain from handing over the UE to a frequency impacted by the limited capability zone restrictions or avoid configuring secondary cells on the impacted frequencies.

[0106] Further, in some embodiments, the UE may apply a backup solution in case the solution discussed in the foregoing does not solve the limited capability zone issues. Some reasons why the solutions above may not work could be that the UE is not able to send any messages to the network node, the UE has sent a message but not received any response message from the network within a time duration after sending the first message, the limited capability zone impacts all frequencies available to the UE, or that none of the solutions can guarantee that the UE will not be scheduled to transmit in the UL or SL while the UE is P112000W001

[0107] 18 still within the limited capability zone. In accordance with some embodiments, the backup solution may include suppressing transmissions on the impacted frequencies, disconnecting from the network, changing state (e.g. RRC state), selecting another frequency (not impacted by the limited capability zone), moving the UE or UAV UE out of the limited capability zone, or avoiding entry into the limited capability zone. In some embodiments, if the UE did transmit S103 the first message (e.g., overheating message), but the network response did not solve the limited capability zone issue, the UE may send a different message (e.g., IDC-message) instead.

[0108] Thus, in some embodiments, the method S100 comprises, in response to not receiving the second message from the network node within a set time period, performing S113 one or more actions. The set time period may be a dynamically set time period, and it may for example be dependent on a distance from the UE to the limited capability zone or dependent on a calculation of an Estimated Time of Arrival (ETA) of the UE to the limited capability zone.

[0109] In some embodiments, the one or more actions to be performed S113 by the UE comprises limiting an operation of the user equipment based on restrictions associated with the limited capability zone, disconnecting the user equipment from the wireless communication network, changing a state (e.g., RRC state) of the user equipment, selecting a frequency different from a currently configured frequency for transmission from the user equipment, moving the user equipment from the limited capability zone, avoiding entrance into the limited capability zone, or transmitting a third message to the network node different from the transmitted first message. Moreover, in some embodiments, the limiting of the operation of the user equipment comprises suppressing transmission from the user equipment on one or more frequencies in accordance with the restrictions associated with the limited capability zone.

[0110] Further, in some embodiments, the method S100 comprises determining S114 that the UE has exited the limited capability zone. Then, in in response to the user equipment having exited the limited capability zone, the method S100 may comprise transmitting S114 a fourth message to the network node. The fourth message may be of the same type as the first message or be used for an analogous purpose as the first message. For example, if the first message was an IDC assistance information message with a frequency indication, then the fourth message may also be an IDC assistance information message with the purpose of undoing the configuration warranted by the limited capability zone restrictions. Similarly, if the first message was an RRC connection release request (e.g., a UAI message with a preferred RRC state as RRCJDLE), then the fourth message may be an RRC setup request message. Thus, while RRC connection release request and RRC setup request may not be the "same" message, they are considered to be of the same "type" or at least "used for analogous purposes". This is P112000W001

[0111] 19 schematically illustrated in Figs. 3-5, and in particular with respect to references 3001-3001', 3003-3003', and 3004-3004'.

[0112] The method S100 may comprise, in response to receiving a fifth message (3006 in Figs. 3-5) comprising a second configuration from the network node, configuring S117 the user equipment in accordance with the second configuration. Accordingly, the method S100 may further comprise, receiving S116 a fifth message comprising a second configuration from the network node, and configuring S117 the user equipment in accordance with the second configuration.

[0113] Thus, when the UE no longer faces any limited capability zone issues, the UE may send S115 a message / indication to the network to indicate that there are no longer any issues. As mentioned above, if the UE sent S103 an IDC indication to the network initially, the UE may send S115 another IDC indication to the network to indicate that the (suggested) IDC issues are no longer present. If the UE instead used a different message / indication type (e.g. overheating) the UE would send another message / indication of that type. Also, if the UE has been transferred to an RRCJDLE or RRCJNACTIVE state, the UE may try to move to RRC_CONNECTED state when the UE is outside of the limited capability zone, e.g., by sending S115 an RRC Setup Request message or RRC Resume Request message to the network (NW). Similarly, the UE can also indicate a new preferred DRX configuration to the network in the fourth message. Particularly, if the UE indicated a preferred DRX configuration to the network in the first message.

[0114] Moreover, in some embodiments, the UE may apply the above disclosed methods depending on which state / mode the UE is in. For example, the UE may for example only apply these methods if the UE is in a connected-state (e.g. RRC CONNECTED), while if the UE is in non-connected-state (e.g. RRC IDLE or RRC INACTIVE) the UE does not apply these methods. Instead, the UE may take other actions in those other states.

[0115] Fig. 2 is a schematic flowchart representation of a method S200 performed by a network node (e.g., 110A or HOB in Fig. 6) in a wireless communication system. In some embodiments, the method S200 performed by the network node is suitable for mitigating limited capability zone related issues, or for ensuring limited capability zone compliance by the UE. The method S200 is preferably a computer- implemented method S200, performed by processing circuitry of the network node. The processing circuitry may for example comprise one or more processors and one or more memories coupled to the one or more processors, wherein the one or more memories store one or more programs that perform the steps, services and functions of the method S200 disclosed herein when executed by the one or more processors. P112000W001

[0116] 20

[0117] The method S200 comprises receiving S201 a first message from a user equipment, wherein the first message comprises an application purpose to indicate to the network node that the user equipment is approaching or being located within a limited capability zone (e.g., NTZ). Thus, the method S200 may be construed as more directed towards the embodiments depicted in Figs. 4 and 5, where the message (3003 and 3004 in Figs. 4 and 5) sent from the UE has an explicit indication for limited capability zone related issues. Thus, in some embodiments, the first message comprises a UAI message including an indication that the message is for limited capability zone related reasons.

[0118] In some embodiments, the first message comprises frequency information. The frequency information may for example indicate a specific frequency / frequency band or a combination of frequencies / frequency bands, for the purpose of the UE avoiding prohibited or unallowed transmissions within the limited capability zone. In other words, the frequency information may comprise a frequency or combination of frequencies indicating a frequency restriction associated with the limited capability zone.

[0119] The method S200 further comprises, transmitting S202 a second message (3002 in Figs. 4 and 5) to the user equipment, the second message comprising a first configuration for the user equipment. In some embodiments, the first configuration comprises an RRC state configuration for the user equipment, a transmission frequency configuration for the user equipment, or a DRX configuration for the user equipment.

[0120] Moreover, in some embodiments, the method S200 comprises handing S203 over the user equipment to a different frequency that does not correspond to a frequency indicated in the frequency restriction associated with the limited capability zone.

[0121] Executable instructions for performing these functions are, optionally, included in a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium or other computer program product configured for execution by one or more processors.

[0122] Fig. 6 shows an example of a communication system 100 in accordance with some embodiments. In the example, the communication system 100 includes a telecommunication network 102 that includes an access network 104, such as a radio access network (RAN), and a core network 106, which includes one or more core network nodes 108. The access network 104 includes one or more access network nodes, such as network nodes 110a and 110b (one or more of which may be generally referred to as network nodes 110), or any other similar 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) access nodes or non-3GPP access points. Moreover, as will be appreciated by those of skill in the art, a network node is not necessarily limited to an implementation in which a radio portion and a baseband portion are supplied P112000W001

[0123] 21 and integrated by a single vendor. Thus, it will be understood that network nodes include disaggregated implementations or portions thereof. For example, in some embodiments, the telecommunication network 102 includes one or more Open-RAN (ORAN) network nodes. An ORAN network node is a node in the telecommunication network 102 that supports an ORAN specification (e.g., a specification published by the O-RAN Alliance, or any similar organization) and may operate alone or together with other nodes to implement one or more functionalities of any node in the telecommunication network 102, including one or more network nodes 110 and / or core network nodes 108.

[0124] Examples of an ORAN network node include an open radio unit (O-RU), an open distributed unit (O-DU), an open central unit (O-CU), including an O-CU control plane (O-CU-CP) or an O-CU user plane (O-CU- UP), a RAN intelligent controller (near-real time or non-real time) hosting software or software plug-ins, such as a near-real time control application (e.g., xApp) or a non-real time control application (e.g., rApp), or any combination thereof (the adjective "open" designating support of an ORAN specification). The network node may support a specification by, for example, supporting an interface defined by the ORAN specification, such as an Al, Fl, Wl, El, E2, X2, Xn interface, an open fronthaul user plane interface, or an open fronthaul management plane interface. Moreover, an ORAN access node may be a logical node in a physical node. Furthermore, an ORAN network node may be implemented in a virtualization environment (described further below) in which one or more network functions are virtualized. For example, the virtualization environment may include an O-Cloud computing platform orchestrated by a Service Management and Orchestration Framework via an O-2 interface defined by the O-RAN Alliance or comparable technologies. The network nodes 110 facilitate direct or indirect connection of user equipment (UE), such as by connecting UEs 112a, 112b, 112c, and 112d (one or more of which may be generally referred to as UEs 112) to the core network 106 over one or more wireless connections.

[0125] Example wireless communications over a wireless connection include transmitting and / or receiving wireless signals using electromagnetic waves, radio waves, infrared waves, and / or other types of signals suitable for conveying information without the use of wires, cables, or other material conductors. Moreover, in different embodiments, the communication system 100 may include any number of wired or wireless networks, network nodes, UEs, and / or any other components or systems that may facilitate or participate in the communication of data and / or signals whether via wired or wireless connections. The communication system 100 may include and / or interface with any type of communication, telecommunication, data, cellular, radio network, and / or other similar type of system.

[0126] The UEs 112 may be any of a wide variety of communication devices, including wireless devices arranged, configured, and / or operable to communicate wirelessly with the network nodes 110 and other communication devices. Similarly, the network nodes 110 are arranged, capable, configured, and / or P112000W001

[0127] 22 operable to communicate directly or indirectly with the UEs 112 and / or with other network nodes or equipment in the telecommunication network 102 to enable and / or provide network access, such as wireless network access, and / or to perform other functions, such as administration in the telecommunication network 102.

[0128] In the depicted example, the core network 106 connects the network nodes 110 to one or more host computing systems, such as host 116. These connections may be direct or indirect via one or more intermediary networks or devices. In other examples, network nodes may be directly coupled to hosts. The core network 106 includes one more core network nodes (e.g., core network node 108) that are structured with hardware and software components. Features of these components may be substantially similar to those described with respect to the UEs, network nodes, and / or hosts, such that the descriptions thereof are generally applicable to the corresponding components of the core network node 108. Example core network nodes include functions of one or more of a Mobile Switching Center (MSC), Mobility Management Entity (MME), Home Subscriber Server (HSS), Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), Session Management Function (SMF), Authentication Server Function (AUSF), Subscription Identifier De-concealing function (SIDF), Unified Data Management (UDM), Security Edge Protection Proxy (SEPP), Network Exposure Function (NEF), and / or a User Plane Function (UPF).

[0129] The host 116 may be under the ownership or control of a service provider other than an operator or provider of the access network 104 and / or the telecommunication network 102. The host 116 may host a variety of applications to provide one or more service. Examples of such applications include live and pre-recorded audio / video content, data collection services such as retrieving and compiling data on various ambient conditions detected by a plurality of UEs, analytics functionality, social media, functions for controlling or otherwise interacting with remote devices, functions for an alarm and surveillance center, or any other such function performed by a server.

[0130] As a whole, the communication system 100 of Figure 6 enables connectivity between the UEs, network nodes, and hosts. In that sense, the communication system may be configured to operate according to predefined rules or procedures, such as specific standards that include, but are not limited to: Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM); Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS); Long Term Evolution (LTE), and / or other suitable 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G standards, or any applicable future generation standard (e.g., 6G); wireless local area network (WLAN) standards, such as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standards (WiFi); and / or any other appropriate wireless communication standard, such as the Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax), Bluetooth, Z-Wave, Near Field Communication (NFC) ZigBee, LiFi, and / or any low-power wide-area network (LPWAN) standards such as LoRa and Sigfox. P112000W001

[0131] 23

[0132] In some examples, the telecommunication network 102 is a cellular network that implements 3GPP standardized features. Accordingly, the telecommunications network 102 may support network slicing to provide different logical networks to different devices that are connected to the telecommunication network 102. For example, the telecommunications network 102 may provide Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communication (URLLC) services to some UEs, while providing Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) services to other UEs, and / or Massive Machine Type Communication (mMTC) / Massive loT services to yet further UEs.

[0133] In some examples, the UEs 112 are configured to transmit and / or receive information without direct human interaction. For instance, a UE may be designed to transmit information to the access network 104 on a predetermined schedule, when triggered by an internal or external event, or in response to requests from the access network 104. Additionally, a UE may be configured for operating in single- or multi-RAT or multi-standard mode. For example, a UE may operate with any one or combination of WiFi, NR (New Radio) and LTE, i.e. being configured for multi-radio dual connectivity (MR-DC), such as E- UTRAN (Evolved-UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network) New Radio - Dual Connectivity (EN-DC).

[0134] In the example, the hub 114 communicates with the access network 104 to facilitate indirect communication between one or more UEs (e.g., UE 112c and / or 112d) and network nodes (e.g., network node 110b). In some examples, the hub 114 may be a controller, router, content source and analytics, or any of the other communication devices described herein regarding UEs. For example, the hub 114 may be a broadband router enabling access to the core network 106 for the UEs. As another example, the hub 114 may be a controller that sends commands or instructions to one or more actuators in the UEs. Commands or instructions may be received from the UEs, network nodes 110, or by executable code, script, process, or other instructions in the hub 114. As another example, the hub 114 may be a data collector that acts as temporary storage for UE data and, in some embodiments, may perform analysis or other processing of the data. As another example, the hub 114 may be a content source. For example, for a UE that is a VR device, display, loudspeaker, or other media delivery device, the hub 114 may retrieve VR assets, video, audio, or other media or data related to sensory information via a network node, which the hub 114 then provides to the UE either directly, after performing local processing, and / or after adding additional local content. In still another example, the hub 114 acts as a proxy server or orchestrator for the UEs, in particular if one or more of the UEs are low energy loT devices.

[0135] The hub 114 may have a constant / persistent or intermittent connection to the network node 110b. The hub 114 may also allow for a different communication scheme and / or schedule between the hub 114 and UEs (e.g., UE 112c and / or 112d), and between the hub 114 and the core network 106. In other examples, the hub 114 is connected to the core network 106 and / or one or more UEs via a wired P112000W001

[0136] 24 connection. Moreover, the hub 114 may be configured to connect to an M2M service provider over the access network 104 and / or to another UE over a direct connection. In some scenarios, UEs may establish a wireless connection with the network nodes 110 while still connected via the hub 114 via a wired or wireless connection. In some embodiments, the hub 114 may be a dedicated hub - that is, a hub whose primary function is to route communications to / from the UEs from / to the network node 110b. In other embodiments, the hub 114 may be a non-dedicated hub - that is, a device which is capable of operating to route communications between the UEs and network node 110b, but which is additionally capable of operating as a communication start and / or end point for certain data channels.

[0137] Figure 7 shows a UE 200 in accordance with some embodiments. The UE 200 presents additional details of some embodiments of the UE 112 of Figure 6. As used herein, a UE refers to a device capable, configured, arranged and / or operable to communicate wirelessly with network nodes and / or other UEs. Examples of a UE include, but are not limited to, a smart phone, mobile phone, cell phone, voice over IP (VoIP) phone, wireless local loop phone, desktop computer, personal digital assistant (PDA), wireless cameras, gaming console or device, music storage / playback device, wearable terminal device, wireless endpoint, mobile station, tablet, laptop, laptop-embedded equipment (LEE), laptop-mounted equipment (LME), an Augmented Reality (AR) or Virtual Reality (VR) device, wireless customer-premise equipment (CPE), vehicle, vehicle-mounted or vehicle embedded / integrated wireless device, etc. Other examples include any UE identified by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), including a narrow band internet of things (NB-loT) UE, a machine type communication (MTC) UE, and / or an enhanced MTC (eMTC) UE.

[0138] A UE may support device-to-device (D2D) communication, for example by implementing a 3GPP standard for sidelink communication, Dedicated Short-Range Communication (DSRC), vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V), vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I), or vehicle-to-everything (V2X). In other examples, a UE may not necessarily have a user in the sense of a human user who owns and / or operates the relevant device. Instead, a UE may represent a device that is intended for sale to, or operation by, a human user but which may not, or which may not initially, be associated with a specific human user (e.g., a smart sprinkler controller). Alternatively, a UE may represent a device that is not intended for sale to, or operation by, an end user but which may be associated with or operated for the benefit of a user (e.g., a smart power meter).

[0139] The UE 200 includes processing circuitry 202 that is operatively coupled via a bus 204 to an input / output interface 206, a power source 208, a memory 210, a communication interface 212, and / or any other component, or any combination thereof. Certain UEs may utilize all or a subset of the components shown in Figure 7. The level of integration between the components may vary from one UE to another UE. P112000W001

[0140] 25

[0141] Further, certain UEs may contain multiple instances of a component, such as multiple processors, memories, transceivers, transmitters, receivers, etc.

[0142] The processing circuitry 202 is configured to process instructions and data and may be configured to implement any sequential state machine operative to execute instructions stored as machine-readable computer programs in the memory 210. The processing circuitry 202 may be implemented as one or more hardware-implemented state machines (e.g., in discrete logic, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), etc.); programmable logic together with appropriate firmware; one or more stored computer programs, general-purpose processors, such as a microprocessor or digital signal processor (DSP), together with appropriate software; or any combination of the above. For example, the processing circuitry 202 may include multiple central processing units (CPUs).

[0143] In the example, the input / output interface 206 may be configured to provide an interface or interfaces to an input device, output device, or one or more input and / or output devices. Examples of an output device include a speaker, a sound card, a video card, a display, a monitor, a printer, an actuator, an emitter, a smartcard, another output device, or any combination thereof. An input device may allow a user to capture information into the UE 200. Examples of an input device include a touch-sensitive or presence-sensitive display, a camera (e.g., a digital camera, a digital video camera, a web camera, etc.), a microphone, a sensor, a mouse, a trackball, a directional pad, a trackpad, a scroll wheel, a smartcard, and the like. The presence-sensitive display may include a capacitive or resistive touch sensor to sense input from a user. A sensor may be, for instance, an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a tilt sensor, a force sensor, a magnetometer, an optical sensor, a proximity sensor, a biometric sensor, etc., or any combination thereof. An output device may use the same type of interface port as an input device. For example, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) port may be used to provide an input device and an output device.

[0144] In some embodiments, the power source 208 is structured as a battery or battery pack. Other types of power sources, such as an external power source (e.g., an electricity outlet), photovoltaic device, or power cell, may be used. The power source 208 may further include power circuitry for delivering power from the power source 208 itself, and / or an external power source, to the various parts of the UE 200 via input circuitry or an interface such as an electrical power cable. Delivering power may be, for example, for charging of the power source 208. Power circuitry may perform any formatting, converting, or other modification to the power from the power source 208 to make the power suitable for the respective components of the UE 200 to which power is supplied.

[0145] The memory 210 may be or be configured to include memory such as random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasable programmable read-only P112000W001

[0146] 26 memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), magnetic disks, optical disks, hard disks, removable cartridges, flash drives, and so forth. In one example, the memory 210 includes one or more application programs 214, such as an operating system, web browser application, a widget, gadget engine, or other application, and corresponding data 216. The memory 210 may store, for use by the UE 200, any of a variety of various operating systems or combinations of operating systems.

[0147] The memory 210 may be configured to include a number of physical drive units, such as redundant array of independent disks (RAID), flash memory, USB flash drive, external hard disk drive, thumb drive, pen drive, key drive, high-density digital versatile disc (HD-DVD) optical disc drive, internal hard disk drive, Blu-Ray optical disc drive, holographic digital data storage (HDDS) optical disc drive, external mini-dual in-line memory module (DIMM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), external micro-DIMM SDRAM, smartcard memory such as tamper resistant module in the form of a universal integrated circuit card (UICC) including one or more subscriber identity modules (SIMs), such as a USIM and / or ISIM, other memory, or any combination thereof. The UICC may for example be an embedded UICC (eUlCC), integrated UICC (iUICC) or a removable UICC commonly known as 'SIM card.' The memory 210 may allow the UE 200 to access instructions, application programs and the like, stored on transitory or non-transitory memory media, to off-load data, or to upload data. An article of manufacture, such as one utilizing a communication system may be tangibly embodied as or in the memory 210, which may be or comprise a device-readable storage medium.

[0148] The processing circuitry 202 may be configured to communicate with an access network or other network using the communication interface 212. The communication interface 212 may comprise one or more communication subsystems and may include or be communicatively coupled to an antenna 222. The communication interface 212 may include one or more transceivers used to communicate, such as by communicating with one or more remote transceivers of another device capable of wireless communication (e.g., another UE or a network node in an access network). Each transceiver may include a transmitter 218 and / or a receiver 220 appropriate to provide network communications (e.g., optical, electrical, frequency allocations, and so forth). Moreover, the transmitter 218 and receiver 220 may be coupled to one or more antennas (e.g., antenna 222) and may share circuit components, software or firmware, or alternatively be implemented separately.

[0149] In the illustrated embodiment, communication functions of the communication interface 212 may include cellular communication, Wi-Fi communication, LPWAN communication, data communication, voice communication, multimedia communication, short-range communications such as Bluetooth, near-field communication, location-based communication such as the use of the global positioning P112000W001

[0150] 27 system (GPS) to determine a location, another like communication function, or any combination thereof. Communications may be implemented in according to one or more communication protocols and / or standards, such as IEEE 802.11, Code Division Multiplexing Access (CDMA), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), GSM, LTE, New Radio (NR), UMTS, WiMax, Ethernet, transmission control protocol / internet protocol (TCP / IP), synchronous optical networking (SONET), Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM), Q.UIC, Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), and so forth.

[0151] Regardless of the type of sensor, a UE may provide an output of data captured by its sensors, through its communication interface 212, via a wireless connection to a network node. Data captured by sensors of a UE can be communicated through a wireless connection to a network node via another UE. The output may be periodic (e.g., once every 15 minutes if it reports the sensed temperature), random (e.g., to even out the load from reporting from several sensors), in response to a triggering event (e.g., when moisture is detected an alert is sent), in response to a request (e.g., a user initiated request), or a continuous stream (e.g., a live video feed of a patient).

[0152] As another example, a UE comprises an actuator, a motor, or a switch, related to a communication interface configured to receive wireless input from a network node via a wireless connection. In response to the received wireless input the states of the actuator, the motor, or the switch may change. For example, the UE may comprise a motor that adjusts the control surfaces or rotors of a drone in flight according to the received input or to a robotic arm performing a medical procedure according to the received input.

[0153] A UE, when in the form of an Internet of Things (loT) device, may be a device for use in one or more application domains, these domains comprising, but not limited to, city wearable technology, extended industrial application and healthcare. Non-limiting examples of such an loT device are a device which is or which is embedded in: a connected refrigerator or freezer, a TV, a connected lighting device, an electricity meter, a robot vacuum cleaner, a voice controlled smart speaker, a home security camera, a motion detector, a thermostat, a smoke detector, a door / window sensor, a flood / moisture sensor, an electrical door lock, a connected doorbell, an air conditioning system like a heat pump, an autonomous vehicle, a surveillance system, a weather monitoring device, a vehicle parking monitoring device, an electric vehicle charging station, a smart watch, a fitness tracker, a wearable for tactile augmentation or sensory enhancement, a water sprinkler, an animal- or item-tracking device, a sensor for monitoring a plant or animal, an industrial robot, an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), and any kind of medical device, like a heart rate monitor or a remote controlled surgical robot. A UE in the form of an loT device comprises circuitry and / or software in dependence of the intended application of the loT device in addition to other components as described in relation to the UE 200 shown in Figure 7. P112000W001

[0154] 28

[0155] As yet another specific example, in an loT scenario, a UE may represent a machine or other device that performs monitoring and / or measurements and transmits the results of such monitoring and / or measurements to another UE and / or a network node. The UE may in this case be an M2M device, which may in a 3GPP context be referred to as an MTC device. As one particular example, the UE may implement the 3GPP NB-loT standard. In other scenarios, a UE may represent a vehicle, such as a car, a bus, a truck, a ship and an airplane, or other equipment that is capable of monitoring and / or reporting on its operational status or other functions associated with its operation.

[0156] In practice, any number of UEs may be used together with respect to a single use case. For example, a first UE might be or be integrated in a drone and provide the drone's speed information (obtained through a speed sensor) to a second UE that is a remote controller operating the drone. When the user makes changes from the remote controller, the first UE may adjust the throttle on the drone (e.g. by controlling an actuator) to increase or decrease the drone's speed. The first and / or the second UE can also include more than one of the functions described above. For example, a UE might comprise the sensor and the actuator, and handle communication of data for both the speed sensor and the actuators.

[0157] Figure 8 shows a network node 300 in accordance with some embodiments. As used herein, network node refers to equipment capable, configured, arranged and / or operable to communicate directly or indirectly with a UE and / or with other network nodes or equipment, in a telecommunication network. Examples of network nodes include, but are not limited to, access points (APs) (e.g., radio access points), base stations (BSs) (e.g., radio base stations, Node Bs, evolved Node Bs (eNBs) and NR NodeBs (gNBs)), O-RAN nodes or components of an O-RAN node (e.g., O-RU, O-DU, O-CU).

[0158] Base stations may be categorized based on the amount of coverage they provide (or, stated differently, their transmit power level) and so, depending on the provided amount of coverage, may be referred to as femto base stations, pico base stations, micro base stations, or macro base stations. A base station may be a relay node or a relay donor node controlling a relay. A network node may also include one or more (or all) parts of a distributed radio base station such as centralized digital units, distributed units (e.g., in an O-RAN access node) and / or remote radio units (RRUs), sometimes referred to as Remote Radio Heads (RRHs). Such remote radio units may or may not be integrated with an antenna as an antenna integrated radio. Parts of a distributed radio base station may also be referred to as nodes in a distributed antenna system (DAS).

[0159] Other examples of network nodes include multiple transmission point (multi-TRP) 5G access nodes, multi-standard radio (MSR) equipment such as MSR BSs, network controllers such as radio network controllers (RNCs) or base station controllers (BSCs), base transceiver stations (BTSs), transmission points, transmission nodes, multi-cell / multicast coordination entities (MCEs), Operation and P112000W001

[0160] 29

[0161] Maintenance (O&M) nodes, Operations Support System (OSS) nodes, Self-Organizing Network (SON) nodes, positioning nodes (e.g., Evolved Serving Mobile Location Centers (E-SMLCs)), and / or Minimization of Drive Tests (MDTs).

[0162] The network node 300 includes a processing circuitry 302, a memory 304, a communication interface 306, and a power source 308. The network node 300 may be composed of multiple physically separate components (e.g., a NodeB component and a RNC component, or a BTS component and a BSC component, etc.), which may each have their own respective components. In certain scenarios in which the network node 300 comprises multiple separate components (e.g., BTS and BSC components), one or more of the separate components may be shared among several network nodes. For example, a single RNC may control multiple NodeBs. In such a scenario, each unique NodeB and RNC pair may in some instances be considered a single separate network node. In some embodiments, the network node 300 may be configured to support multiple radio access technologies (RATs). In such embodiments, some components may be duplicated (e.g., separate memory 304 for different RATs) and some components may be reused (e.g., a same antenna 310 may be shared by different RATs). The network node 300 may also include multiple sets of the various illustrated components for different wireless technologies integrated into network node 300, for example GSM, WCDMA, LTE, NR, WiFi, Zigbee, Z-wave, LoRaWAN, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) or Bluetooth wireless technologies. These wireless technologies may be integrated into the same or different chips or set of chips and other components within network node 300.

[0163] The processing circuitry 302 may comprise a combination of one or more of a microprocessor, controller, microcontroller, central processing unit, digital signal processor, application-specific integrated circuit, field programmable gate array, or any other suitable computing device, resource, or combination of hardware, software and / or encoded logic operable to provide, either alone or in conjunction with other network node 300 components, such as the memory 304, to provide network node 300 functionality.

[0164] In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 302 includes a system on a chip (SOC). In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 302 includes one or more of radio frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry 312 and baseband processing circuitry 314. In some embodiments, the radio frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry 312 and the baseband processing circuitry 314 may be on separate chips (or sets of chips), boards, or units, such as radio units and digital units. In alternative embodiments, part or all of RF transceiver circuitry 312 and baseband processing circuitry 314 may be on the same chip or set of chips, boards, or units.

[0165] The memory 304 may comprise any form of volatile or non-volatile computer-readable memory including, without limitation, persistent storage, solid-state memory, remotely mounted memory, P112000W001

[0166] 30 magnetic media, optical media, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), mass storage media (for example, a hard disk), removable storage media (for example, a flash drive, a Compact Disk (CD) or a Digital Video Disk (DVD)), and / or any other volatile or non-volatile, non-transitory device- readable and / or computer-executable memory devices that store information, data, and / or instructions that may be used by the processing circuitry 302. The memory 304 may store any suitable instructions, data, or information, including a computer program, software, an application including one or more of logic, rules, code, tables, and / or other instructions capable of being executed by the processing circuitry 302 and utilized by the network node 300. The memory 304 may be used to store any calculations made by the processing circuitry 302 and / or any data received via the communication interface 306. In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 302 and memory 304 is integrated.

[0167] The communication interface 306 is used in wired or wireless communication of signaling and / or data between a network node, access network, and / or UE. As illustrated, the communication interface 306 comprises port(s) / terminal(s) 316 to send and receive data, for example to and from a network over a wired connection. The communication interface 306 also includes radio front-end circuitry 318 that may be coupled to, or in certain embodiments a part of, the antenna 310. Radio front-end circuitry 318 comprises filters 320 and amplifiers 322. The radio front-end circuitry 318 may be connected to an antenna 310 and processing circuitry 302. The radio front-end circuitry may be configured to condition signals communicated between antenna 310 and processing circuitry 302. The radio front-end circuitry 318 may receive digital data that is to be sent out to other network nodes or UEs via a wireless connection. The radio front-end circuitry 318 may convert the digital data into a radio signal having the appropriate channel and bandwidth parameters using a combination of filters 320 and / or amplifiers 322. The radio signal may then be transmitted via the antenna 310. Similarly, when receiving data, the antenna 310 may collect radio signals which are then converted into digital data by the radio front-end circuitry 318. The digital data may be passed to the processing circuitry 302. In other embodiments, the communication interface may comprise different components and / or different combinations of components.

[0168] In certain alternative embodiments, the network node 300 does not include separate radio front-end circuitry 318, instead, the processing circuitry 302 includes radio front-end circuitry and is connected to the antenna 310. Similarly, in some embodiments, all or some of the RF transceiver circuitry 312 is part of the communication interface 306. In still other embodiments, the communication interface 306 includes one or more ports or terminals 316, the radio front-end circuitry 318, and the RF transceiver circuitry 312, as part of a radio unit (not shown), and the communication interface 306 communicates with the baseband processing circuitry 314, which is part of a digital unit (not shown). P112000W001

[0169] 31

[0170] The antenna 310 may include one or more antennas, or antenna arrays, configured to send and / or receive wireless signals. The antenna 310 may be coupled to the radio front-end circuitry 318 and may be any type of antenna capable of transmitting and receiving data and / or signals wirelessly. In certain embodiments, the antenna 310 is separate from the network node 300 and connectable to the network node 300 through an interface or port.

[0171] The antenna 310, communication interface 306, and / or the processing circuitry 302 may be configured to perform any receiving operations and / or certain obtaining operations described herein as being performed by the network node. Any information, data and / or signals may be received from a UE, another network node and / or any other network equipment. Similarly, the antenna 310, the communication interface 306, and / or the processing circuitry 302 may be configured to perform any transmitting operations described herein as being performed by the network node. Any information, data and / or signals may be transmitted to a UE, another network node and / or any other network equipment.

[0172] The power source 308 provides power to the various components of network node 300 in a form suitable for the respective components (e.g., at a voltage and current level needed for each respective component). The power source 308 may further comprise, or be coupled to, power management circuitry to supply the components of the network node 300 with power for performing the functionality described herein. For example, the network node 300 may be connectable to an external power source (e.g., the power grid, an electricity outlet) via an input circuitry or interface such as an electrical cable, whereby the external power source supplies power to power circuitry of the power source 308. As a further example, the power source 308 may comprise a source of power in the form of a battery or battery pack which is connected to, or integrated in, power circuitry. The battery may provide backup power should the external power source fail.

[0173] Embodiments of the network node 300 may include additional components beyond those shown in Figure 8 for providing certain aspects of the network node's functionality, including any of the functionality described herein and / or any functionality necessary to support the subject matter described herein. For example, the network node 300 may include user interface equipment to allow input of information into the network node 300 and to allow output of information from the network node 300. This may allow a user to perform diagnostic, maintenance, repair, and other administrative functions for the network node 300. In some embodiments providing a core network node, such as core network node 108 of FIG. 6, some components, such as the radio front-end circuitry 318 and the RF transceiver circuitry 312 may be omitted. P112000W001

[0174] 32

[0175] Figure 9 is a block diagram illustrating a virtualization environment 400 in which functions implemented by some embodiments may be virtualized. In the present context, virtualizing means creating virtual versions of apparatuses or devices which may include virtualizing hardware platforms, storage devices and networking resources. As used herein, virtualization can be applied to any device described herein, or components thereof, and relates to an implementation in which at least a portion of the functionality is implemented as one or more virtual components. Some or all of the functions described herein may be implemented as virtual components executed by one or more virtual machines (VMs) implemented in one or more virtual environments 400 hosted by one or more hardware nodes, such as a hardware computing device that operates as a network node, UE, core network node, or host. Further, in embodiments in which the virtual node does not require radio connectivity (e.g., a core network node or host), then the node may be entirely virtualized. In some embodiments, the virtualization environment 400 includes components defined by the O-RAN Alliance, such as an O-Cloud environment orchestrated by a Service Management and Orchestration Framework via an O-2 interface. Virtualization may facilitate distributed implementations of a network node, UE, core network node, or host.

[0176] Applications 402 (which may alternatively be called software instances, virtual appliances, network functions, virtual nodes, virtual network functions, etc.) are run in the virtualization environment Q400 to implement some of the features, functions, and / or benefits of some of the embodiments disclosed herein.

[0177] Hardware 404 includes processing circuitry, memory that stores software and / or instructions executable by hardware processing circuitry, and / or other hardware devices as described herein, such as a network interface, input / output interface, and so forth. Software may be executed by the processing circuitry to instantiate one or more virtualization layers 406 (also referred to as hypervisors or virtual machine monitors (VMMs)), provide VMs 408a and 408b (one or more of which may be generally referred to as VMs 408), and / or perform any of the functions, features and / or benefits described in relation with some embodiments described herein. The virtualization layer 406 may present a virtual operating platform that appears like networking hardware to the VMs 408.

[0178] The VMs 408 comprise virtual processing, virtual memory, virtual networking or interface and virtual storage, and may be run by a corresponding virtualization layer 406. Different embodiments of the instance of a virtual appliance 402 may be implemented on one or more VMs 408, and the implementations may be made in different ways. Virtualization of the hardware is in some contexts referred to as network function virtualization (NFV). NFV may be used to consolidate many network equipment types onto industry standard high volume server hardware, physical switches, and physical storage, which can be located in data centers, and customer premise equipment. P112000W001

[0179] 33

[0180] In the context of NFV, a VM 408 may be a software implementation of a physical machine that runs programs as if they were executing on a physical, non-virtualized machine. Each of the VMs 408, and that part of hardware 404 that executes that VM, be it hardware dedicated to that VM and / or hardware shared by that VM with others of the VMs, forms separate virtual network elements. Still in the context of NFV, a virtual network function is responsible for handling specific network functions that run in one or more VMs 408 on top of the hardware 404 and corresponds to the application 402.

[0181] Hardware 404 may be implemented in a standalone network node with generic or specific components. Hardware 404 may implement some functions via virtualization. Alternatively, hardware 404 may be part of a larger cluster of hardware (e.g. such as in a data center or CPE) where many hardware nodes work together and are managed via management and orchestration 410, which, among others, oversees lifecycle management of applications 402. In some embodiments, hardware 404 is coupled to one or more radio units that each include one or more transmitters and one or more receivers that may be coupled to one or more antennas. Radio units may communicate directly with other hardware nodes via one or more appropriate network interfaces and may be used in combination with the virtual components to provide a virtual node with radio capabilities, such as a radio access node or a base station. In some embodiments, some signaling can be provided with the use of a control system 412 which may alternatively be used for communication between hardware nodes and radio units.

[0182] Although the computing devices described herein (e.g., UEs, network nodes) may include the illustrated combination of hardware components, other embodiments may comprise computing devices with different combinations of components. It is to be understood that these computing devices may comprise any suitable combination of hardware and / or software needed to perform the tasks, features, functions and methods disclosed herein. Determining, calculating, obtaining or similar operations described herein may be performed by processing circuitry, which may process information by, for example, converting the obtained information into other information, comparing the obtained information or converted information to information stored in the network node, and / or performing one or more operations based on the obtained information or converted information, and as a result of said processing, making a determination. Moreover, while components are depicted as single boxes located within a larger box, or nested within multiple boxes, in practice, computing devices may comprise multiple different physical components that make up a single illustrated component, and functionality may be partitioned between separate components. For example, a communication interface may be configured to include any of the components described herein, and / or the functionality of the components may be partitioned between the processing circuitry and the communication interface. In another example, non-computationally intensive functions of any of such components may P112000W001

[0183] 34 be implemented in software or firmware and computationally intensive functions may be implemented in hardware.

[0184] In certain embodiments, some or all of the functionality described herein may be provided by processing circuitry executing instructions stored on in memory, which in certain embodiments may be a computer program product in the form of a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. In alternative embodiments, some or all of the functionality may be provided by the processing circuitry without executing instructions stored on a separate or discrete device-readable storage medium, such as in a hard-wired manner. In any of those particular embodiments, whether executing instructions stored on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium or not, the processing circuitry can be configured to perform the described functionality. The benefits provided by such functionality are not limited to the processing circuitry alone or to other components of the computing device, but are enjoyed by the computing device as a whole, and / or by end users and a wireless network generally.

Claims

P112000W00135CLAIMS1. A method (S100) performed by a user equipment, UE, (112, 200) in a wireless communication network, the method comprising: in response to the UE (112, 200) approaching or being located within a limited capability zone, transmitting (S103) a first message (3001, 3003, 3004) to a network node (110, 300); in response to receiving (S110) a second message (3002) comprising a first configuration for the user equipment from the network node, configuring (S112) the UE in accordance with the first configuration.

2. The method (S100) according to claim 1, further comprising: determining (S101) that the UE is approaching or that it is located within the limited capability zone.

3. The method (S100) according to claim 2, wherein determining (S101) that the UE is approaching or that it is located within the limited capability zone comprises determining (S101) that the UE is approaching or that it is located within the limited capability zone based on geographical information of the limited capability zone and UE location data.

4. The method (S100) according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the determining (S101) that the UE is approaching or that it is located within a limited capability zone comprises determining that: the UE (112, 200) operates on a frequency corresponding to a frequency restriction associated with the limited capability zone, the UE (112, 200) will operate on the frequency corresponding to the frequency restriction associated with the limited capability zone during at least a portion of a time period that the UE expects to be within the limited capability zone, the UE (112, 200) may need to operate on the frequency corresponding to the frequency restriction associated with the limited capability zone during at least a portion of a time period that the UE expects to be within the limited capability zone, or a likelihood of the UE (112, 200) operating on the frequency corresponding to the frequency restriction associated with the limited capability zone during at least a portion of a time period that the UE expects to be within the limited capability zone is above a likelihood value.P112000W001365. The method (S100) according to any one of claims 1-4, wherein the first message has a different application purpose than indicating to the network node (110, 300) that the UE (112, 200) is approaching or is located within a limited capability zone6. The method (S100) according to any one of claims 1-5, wherein the limited capability zone is a no-transmit zone, NTZ.

7. The method (S100) according to any one of claims 1-6, wherein the first message is a Radio Resource Control, RRC, message.

8. The method (S100) according to any one of claims 1-7, wherein the first message is a UE Assistance Information, UAI, message.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the first message is an in-device coexistence, IDC, assistance information message, an overheating mitigation message, a power saving message, a multi-sim indication message, or a preferred RRC state message.

10. The method (S100) according to any one of claims 1-4, wherein the first message comprises an application purpose to indicate to the network node that the UE is approaching or is located within a limited capability zone.

11. The method (S100) according to any one of claims 1-10, wherein the first message comprises frequency information.

12. The method (S100) according to any one of claims 1-11, further comprising: in response to not receiving the second message (3002) from the network node within a set time period, performing one or more actions.

13. The method (S100) according to claim 12, wherein the one or more actions comprises: limiting an operation of the UE (112, 200) based on restrictions associated with the limited capability zone, disconnecting the UE (112, 200) from the wireless communication network, changing a state of the UE (112, 200), selecting a frequency different from a currently configured frequency for transmission from the UE (112, 200), moving the UE (112, 200) from the limited capability zone,P112000W00137 avoiding entrance into the limited capability zone, or transmitting a third message to the network node different from the transmitted first message.

14. The method (S100) according to claim 13, wherein limiting the operation of the UE comprises suppressing transmission from the UE (112, 200) on one or more frequencies in accordance with the restrictions associated with the limited capability zone.

15. The method (S100) according to any one of claims 1-14, wherein the first configuration comprises an RRC state configuration, a transmission frequency configuration, or a DRX configuration.

16. The method (S100) according to any one of claims 1-15, further comprising: in response to the UE having exited the limited capability zone, transmitting (S115) a fourth message (3001', 3003'. 3004') to the network node (110, 300), wherein the fourth message is of the same type as the first message; receiving (S116) a fifth message (3006) comprising a second configuration from the network node; and configuring (S117) the UE in accordance with the second configuration.

17. The method (S100) according to any one of claims 1-16, further comprising: obtaining information associated with the limited capability zone.

18. The method (S100) according to claim 17, wherein obtaining information associated with the limited capability zone comprises obtaining a geographical area and restrictions associated with transmissions by communication devices within the geographical area.

19. A computer program, comprising instructions which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the method (S100) according to any one of the claims 1 to 18.

20. A user equipment, UE, (112, 200) comprising processing circuitry (202) and a memory (210), the processing circuitry (202) being configured to: in response to the UE (112, 200) approaching or being located within a limited capability zone, transmit a first message (3001, 3003, 3004) to a network node (110, 300);P112000W00138 in response to receiving a second message (3002) comprising a first configuration for the user equipment from the network node, configure the UE (112, 200) in accordance with the first configuration.

21. The UE (112, 200) according to claim 20, wherein the processing circuitry (202) is further configured to: determine that the UE (112, 200) is approaching or that it is located within the limited capability zone.

22. The UE (112, 200) according to claim 21, wherein the processing circuitry (202) is further configured to: determine that the UE (112, 200) is approaching or that it is located within the limited capability zone based on geographical information of the limited capability zone and UE location data.

23. The UE (112, 200) according to claim 21 or 22, wherein the determining that the UE is approaching or that it is located within a limited capability zone comprises determining that: the UE (112, 200) operates on a frequency corresponding to a frequency restriction associated with the limited capability zone, the UE (112, 200) will operate on the frequency corresponding to the frequency restriction associated with the limited capability zone during at least a portion of a time period that the UE (112, 200) expects to be within the limited capability zone, the UE (112, 200) may need to operate on the frequency corresponding to the frequency restriction associated with the limited capability zone during at least a portion of a time period that the UE (112, 200) expects to be within the limited capability zone, or a likelihood of the UE (112, 200) operating on the frequency corresponding to the frequency restriction associated with the limited capability zone during at least a portion of a time period that the UE (112, 200) expects to be within the limited capability zone is above a likelihood value.

24. The UE (112, 200) according to any one of claims 20-23, wherein the first message has a different application purpose than indicating to the network node that the UE (112, 200) is approaching or is located within a limited capability zone.

25. The UE (112, 200) according to any one of claims 20-24, wherein the limited capability zone is a no-transmit zone, NTZ.P112000W0013926. The UE (112, 200) according to any one of claims 20-25, wherein the first message is a Radio Resource Control, RRC, message.

27. The UE (112, 200) according to any one of claims 20-26, wherein the first message is a UE Assistance Information, UAI, message.

28. The UE (112, 200) according to claim 27, wherein the first message is an in-device coexistence, IDC, assistance information message, an overheating mitigation message, a power saving message, a multi-sim indication message, or a preferred RRC state message.

29. The UE (112, 200) according to any one of claims 20-23, wherein the first message comprises an application purpose to indicate to the network node that the UE is approaching or is located within a limited capability zone.

30. The UE (112, 200) according to any one of claims 20-29, wherein the first message comprises frequency information.

31. The UE (112, 200) according to any one of claims 20-30, wherein the processing circuitry (202) is further configured to: in response to not receiving the second message from the network node within a set time period, perform one or more actions.

32. The UE according to claim 31, wherein the one or more actions comprises: limiting an operation of the UE (112, 200) based on restrictions associated with the limited capability zone, disconnecting the UE (112, 200) from the wireless communication network, changing a state of the UE (112, 200), selecting a frequency different from a currently configured frequency for transmission from the UE, moving the UE (112, 200) from the limited capability zone, avoiding entrance into the limited capability zone, or transmitting a third message to the network node different from the transmitted first message.

33. The UE (112, 200) according to claim 32, wherein limiting the operation of the UE comprises suppressing transmission from the UE (112, 200) on one or more frequencies in accordance with the restrictions associated with the limited capability zone.P112000W0014034. The UE (112, 200) according to any one of claims 20-33, wherein the first configuration comprises an RRC state configuration, a transmission frequency configuration, or a DRX configuration.

35. The UE (112, 200) according to any one of claims 20-34, wherein the processing circuitry (202) is further configured to: in response to the UE (112, 200) having exited the limited capability zone, transmit a fourth message (3001', 3003', 3004') to the network node (110, 300), wherein the fourth message is of the same type as the first message; receive a fifth message (3006) comprising a second configuration from the network node (110, 300); and configure the UE (112, 200) in accordance with the second configuration.

36. The UE (112, 200) according to any one of claims 20-35, wherein the processing circuitry (202) is further configured to: obtain information associated with the limited capability zone.

37. The UE (112, 200) according to claim 36, wherein obtaining information associated with the limited capability zone comprises obtaining a geographical area and restrictions associated with transmissions by communication devices within the geographical area.

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