Excluded cells and NES-capable cells for cell re-selection

Abstract

Disclosed aspects include receiving, by a user equipment (UE), one or more first identifier(s) that identify one or more excluded cell(s) of a network for cell re-selection; receiving, by the UE, at least one wake-up signal configuration that includes one or more second identifier(s) that identify one or more cell(s) operating in network-energy-savings (NES)-mode; determining, by the UE, any identifiers which are in the first identifier(s) but are not in the second identifier(s), as one or more excluded identifiers for cell re-selection; determining any identifiers which are in the first identifier(s) and are in the second identifier(s), as one or more identifier(s) for cell re-selection; selecting, by the UE based on the identifier(s) for cell re-selection, a cell for cell re-selection, where the selected cell has a cell identifier that is not any of the excluded identifier(s) for cell re-selection; and performing cell re-selection towards the selected cell.

Description

EXCLUDED CELLS AND NES-CAPABLE CELLS FOR CELL RE-SELECTIONFIELD

[0001] Various example embodiments relate generally to wireless networks and, more particularly, to excluded cells and network energy savings (NES)-capable cells for cell reselection.BACKGROUND

[0002] Wireless networking provides significant advantages for user mobility. A user’s ability to remain connected while on the move provides advantages not only for the user, but also provides greater efficiency and productivity for society as a whole. As expectations for connection reliability, data speed, and power consumption, become more demanding, technology for wireless networking must also keep pace with such expectations. Accordingly, there is continuing interest in improving wireless networking technology.SUMMARY

[0003] In an aspect of the present disclosure, a method includes: receiving, by a user equipment (UE), at least one list of one or more first identifiers that identify one or more excluded cells of a network for cell re-selection; receiving, by the UE, at least one wake-up signal configuration that includes one or more second identifiers that identify one or more cells operating in network- energy- savings (NES)-mode; determining, by the UE, any identifiers which are in the one or more first identifiers but are not in the one or more second identifiers, as one or more excluded identifiers for cell re-selection; determining any identifiers which are in the one or more first identifiers and are in the one or more second identifiers, as one or more identifiers for cell reselection; selecting, by the UE based on the one or more identifiers for cell re-selection, a cell for cell re-selection, where the selected cell has a cell identifier that is not any of the one or more excluded identifiers for cell re-selection; and performing cell re-selection towards the selected cell.

[0004] In an aspect of the method, the method further includes: in a case the selected cell is a cell operating in NES mode, transmitting an on-demand system information block 1 (OD-SIB1) request related to the selected cell.

[0005] In an aspect of the method, the UE is a UE supporting on-demand system information block 1 (SIB1) functionality.

[0006] In an aspect of the method, the at least one list is specified in a system information block.

[0007] In an aspect of the method, the at least one list is specified in at least one of: an interFreqExcludedCellList information element, or an intraFreqExcludedCellList information element.

[0008] In an aspect of the method, the one or more second identifiers identify at least one NES- capable cell.

[0009] In an aspect of the method, the at least one NES-capable cell is identified in the one or more second identifiers but not identified in the one or more first identifiers.

[0010] In an aspect of the method, the method further includes: storing, by the UE, the one or more identifiers for cell re-selection; storing, by the UE, the one or more excluded identifiers; receiving, by the UE, at least one second list of one or more third identifiers that identify one or more excluded cells of a network for cell re-selection, wherein the at least one second list is received after the at least one list; and updating, by the UE, the one or more excluded identifiers based on the one or more identifiers for cell re-selection and the one or more third identifiers.

[0011] In an aspect of the method, the updating the one or more excluded identifiers includes replacing, by the UE, the one or more excluded identifiers with any identifiers which are in the one or more third identifiers but are not in the one or more identifiers for cell re-selection.

[0012] In an aspect of the method, the method further includes: storing, by the UE, the one or more identifiers for cell-reselection; storing, by the UE, the one or more excluded identifiers; receiving, by the UE, at least one second wake-up signal configuration including one or more fourth identifiers that identify one or more network-energy-savings (NES)-capable cells, where the at least one second wake-up signal configuration is received after the at least one wake-up signal configuration; and updating, by the UE, the one or more excluded identifiers based on the one or more fourth identifiers.

[0013] In an aspect of the present disclosure, an apparatus includes at least one processor and at least one memory storing instructions which, when executed by the at least one processor, causes the apparatus at least to perform any one of the preceding methods.

[0014] In an aspect of the present disclosure, a processor-readable medium storing instructions which, when executed by at least one processor of an apparatus, cause the apparatus at least to perform any one of the preceding methods.

[0015] According to some aspects, there is provided the subject matter of the independent claims. Some further aspects are defined in the dependent claims.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] Some example embodiments will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0017] FIG. 1 is a diagram of an example embodiment of wireless networking between a network system and a user equipment (UE), according to one illustrated aspect of the disclosure;

[0018] FIG. 2 is a diagram of example components of a network system, according to one illustrated aspect of the disclosure;

[0019] FIG. 3 is a diagram of an example embodiment of signals and operations relating to cell re-selection by a UE that does not have on-demand SIB1 functionality, according to one illustrated aspect of the disclosure;

[0020] FIG. 4 is a diagram of an example embodiment of signals and operations relating to cell re-selection by a UE that has on-demand SIB1 functionality, according to one illustrated aspect of the disclosure; and

[0021] FIG. 5 is a diagram of an example block diagram of components of an apparatus, according to one illustrated aspect of the present disclosure.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0022] In the following description, certain specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of disclosed aspects. However, one skilled in the relevant art will recognize that aspects may be practiced without one or more of these specific details or with other methods, components, materials, etc. In other instances, well-known structures associated with transmitters, receivers, or transceivers have not been shown or described in detail to avoid unnecessarily obscuring descriptions of the aspects.

[0023] Reference throughout this specification to “one aspect” or “an aspect” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the aspect is included in at least one aspect. Thus, the appearances of the phrases “in one aspect” or “in an aspect” in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same aspect.Furthermore, the particular features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more aspects.

[0024] The present disclosure addresses aspects of signals and operations relating to cell reselection by UEs that are not capable of on-demand system information block 1 (OD-SIB1) functionality and signals and operations relating to cell re-selection by UEs which are capable of OD-SIB1 functionality. Such aspects will be described in more detail later herein.

[0025] Embodiments described in the present disclosure may be implemented in wireless networking apparatuses, such as, without limitation, apparatuses utilizing Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX), Global System for Mobile communications (GSM, 2G), GSM EDGE radio access Network (GERAN), General Packet Radio Service (GRPS), Universal Mobile Telecommunication System (UMTS, 3G) based on basic wideband-code division multiple access (W-CDMA), high-speed packet access (HSPA), Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE- Advanced, enhanced LTE (eLTE), 5G New Radio (5G NR), 5G Advance, 6G (and beyond) and 802.1 lax (Wi-Fi 6), among other wireless networking systems. The term ‘eLTE’ here denotes the LTE evolution that connects to a 5G core. LTE is also known as evolved UMTS terrestrial radio access (EUTRA) or as evolved UMTS terrestrial radio access network (EUTRAN).

[0026] The present disclosure may use the term “serving network device” to refer to a network node or network device (or a portion thereof) that services a UE. As used herein, the terms “transmit toward,” “receive from,” and “cooperate with,” (and their variations) include communications that may or may not involve communications through one or more intermediate devices or nodes. The term “acquire” (and its variations) includes acquiring in the first instance or reacquiring after the first instance. The term “connection” may mean a physical connection or a logical connection.

[0027] The present disclosure may use 5G NR as an example of a wireless network and may use smartphones and / or extended reality headsets as an example of UEs. It is intended and shall be understood that such examples are merely illustrative, and the present disclosure is applicable to other wireless networks and user equipment.

[0028] As described in more detail below, the present disclosure addresses aspects of signals and operations relating to inter- working of dual connectivity and conditional Layer- 1 / Layer-2 triggered mobility.

[0029] FIG. 1 is a diagram depicting an example of wireless networking between a network system 100 and a user equipment (UE) 150. The network system 100 may include one or more network nodes 120, one or more servers 110, and / or one or more network equipment 130 (e.g., test equipment). The network nodes 120 will be described in more detail below. As used herein, the term “network apparatus” may refer to any component of the network system 100, such as the server 110, the network node 120, the network equipment 130, any component(s) of the foregoing, and / or any other component(s) of the network system 100. Examples of network apparatuses include, without limitation, apparatuses implementing aspects of 5G NR, among others. The present disclosure describes embodiments related to 5GNR and embodiments that involve aspects defined by 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). However, it is contemplated that embodiments relating to other wireless networking technologies are encompassed within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0030] The following description provides further details of examples of network nodes. In a 5G NR network, a gNodeB (also known as gNB) may include, e.g., a node that provides new radio (NR) user plane and control plane protocol terminations towards the UE and that is connected via a NG interface to the 5G core (5GC), e.g., according to 3GPP TS 38.300 V16.6.0 (2021-06) section 3.2, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein.

[0031] A gNB supports various protocol layers, e.g., Layer 1 (LI) - physical layer, Layer 2 (L2), and Layer 3 (L3).

[0032] The layer 2 (L2) of NR is split into the following sublayers: Medium Access Control (MAC), Radio Link Control (RLC), Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) and Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP), where, e.g.: o The physical layer offers to the MAC sublayer transport channels; o The MAC sublayer offers to the RLC sublayer logical channels; o The RLC sublayer offers to the PDCP sublayer RLC channels; o The PDCP sublayer offers to the SDAP sublayer radio bearers; o The SDAP sublayer offers to 5GC quality of service (QoS) flows; o Control channels include broadcast control channel (BCCH) and physical control channel (PCCH).

[0033] Layer 3 (L3) includes, e.g., radio resource control (RRC), e.g., according to 3GPP TS 38.300 V16.6.0 (2021-06) section 6, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein.

[0034] A gNB central unit (gNB-CU) includes, e.g., a logical node hosting, e.g., radio resource control (RRC), service data adaptation protocol (SDAP), and packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) protocols of the gNB or RRC and PDCP protocols of the en-gNB, that controls the operation of one or more gNB distributed units (gNB-DUs). The gNB-CU terminates the Fl interface connected with the gNB-DU. A gNB-CU may also be referred to herein as a CU, a central unit, a centralized unit, or a control unit.

[0035] A gNB Distributed Unit (gNB-DU) includes, e.g., a logical node hosting, e.g., radio link control (RLC), media access control (MAC), and physical (PHY) layers of the gNB or en- gNB, and its operation is partly controlled by the gNB-CU. One gNB-DU supports one or multiple cells. One cell is supported by only one gNB-DU. The gNB-DU terminates the Fl interface connected with the gNB-CU. A gNB-DU may also be referred to herein as DU or a distributed unit.

[0036] As used herein, the term “network node” may refer to any of a gNB, a gNB-CU, or a gNB-DU, or any combination of them. A RAN (radio access network) node or network node such as, e.g., a gNB, gNB-CU, or gNB-DU, or parts thereof, may be implemented using, e.g., an apparatus with at least one processor and / or at least one memory with processor-readable instructions (“program”) configured to support and / or provision and / or process CU and / or DU related functionality and / or features, and / or at least one protocol (sub-)layer of a RAN (radio access network), e.g., layer 2 and / or layer 3. Different functional splits between the central and distributed unit are possible. An example of such an apparatus and components will be described in connection with FIG. 5 below.

[0037] The gNB-CU and gNB-DU parts may, e.g., be co-located or physically separated. The gNB-DU may even be split further, e.g., into two parts, e.g., one including processing equipment and one including an antenna. A central unit (CU) may also be called baseband unit / radio equipment controller / cloud-RAN / virtual-RAN (BBU / REC / C-RAN / V-RAN), open-RAN (O- RAN), or part thereof. A distributed unit (DU) may also be called remote radio head / remote radio unit / radio equipment / radio unit (RRH / RRU / RE / RU), or part thereof. Hereinafter, in various example embodiments of the present disclosure, a network node, which supports at least one of central unit functionality or a layer 3 protocol of a radio access network, may be, e.g., a gNB-CU. Similarly, a network node, which supports at least one of distributed unit functionality or a layer 2 protocol of the radio access network, may be, e.g., a gNB-DU.

[0038] A gNB-CU may support one or multiple gNB-DUs. A gNB-DU may support one or multiple cells and, thus, could support a serving cell for a user equipment (UE) or support a candidate cell for handover, dual connectivity, and / or carrier aggregation, among other procedures.

[0039] The user equipment (UE) 150 may be or include a wireless or mobile device, an apparatus with a radio interface to interact with a RAN (radio access network), a smartphone, an in-vehicle apparatus, an loT device, or a M2M device, among other types of user equipment. Such UE 150 may include: at least one processor; and at least one memory including program code; where the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus at least to perform certain operations, such as, e.g., RRC connection to the RAN. An example of components of a UE will be described in connection with FIG. 6. In embodiments, the UE 150 may be configured to generate a message (e.g., including a cell ID) to be transmitted via radio towards a RAN (e.g., to reach and communicate with a serving cell). In embodiments, the UE 150 may generate and transmit and receive RRC messages containing one or more RRC PDUs (packet data units). Persons skilled in the art will understand RRC protocol as well as other procedures a UE may perform.

[0040] With continuing reference to FIG. 1, in the example of a 5G NR network, the network system 100 provides one or more cells, which define a coverage area of the network system 100. As described above, the network system 100 may include a gNB of a 5G NR network or may include any other apparatus configured to control radio communication and manage radio resources within a cell. As used herein, the term “resource” may refer to radio resources, such as a resource block (RB), a physical resource block (PRB), a radio frame, a subframe, a time slot, a sub-band, a frequency region, a sub-carrier, a beam, etc. In embodiments, the network node 120 may be called a base station.

[0041] FIG. 1 provides an example and is merely illustrative of a network system 100 and a UE 150. Persons skilled in the art will understand that the network system 100 includes components not illustrated in FIG. 1 and will understand that other user equipment may be in communication with the network system 100.

[0042] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of example components of the network system 100 of FIG. 1. A 5G NR network may be described as an example of the network system 100, and it is intended that aspects of the following description shall be applicable to other types of network systems, as well. The network system may operate in accordance with the signals and connections shown inFIG. 1 such that the UE 150 is in communication with the network system 100 through the radio access network 225. Additionally, the network system may be divided into user plane components and functions and control plane components and functions, as shown and described herein. Unless indicated otherwise, the terms “component”, “function”, and “service” may be used interchangeably herein, and they may refer to and be implemented by instructions executed by one or more processors.

[0043] Example functions of the components are described below. The example functions are merely illustrative, and it shall be understood that additional operations and functions may be performed by the components described herein. Additionally, the connections between components may be virtual connections over service-based interfaces such that any component may communicate with any other component. In this manner, any component may act as a service “producer,” for any other component that is a service “consumer,” to provide services for network functions.

[0044] For example, a core network 210 is described in the control plane of the network system. The core network 210 may include an authentication server function (AUSF) 211, an access and mobility function (AMF) 212, and a session management function (SMF) 213. The core network 210 may also include a network slice selection function (NSSF) 214, a network exposure function (NEF) 215, a network repository function (NRF) 216, and a unified data management function (UDM) 217, which may include a uniform data repository (UDR) 224.

[0045] Additional components and functions of the core network 210 may include an application function 218, policy control function (PCF) 219, network data analytics function (NWDAF) 220, analytics data repository function (ADRF) 221, management data analytics function (MDAF) 222, and operations and management function (0AM) 223.

[0046] The user plane includes the UE 150, a radio access network (RAN) 225, a user plane function (UPF) 226, and a data network (DN) 227. The RAN 225 may include one or more components described in connection with FIG. 1, such as one or more network nodes. However, the RAN 225 may not be limited to such components. The UPF 226 provides connection for data being transmitted over the RAN 225. The DN 226 identifies services from service providers, Internet access, and third party services, for example.

[0047] The AMF 212 processes connection and mobility tasks. The AUSF 211 receives authentication requests from the AMF 212 and interacts with UDM 217 to authenticate andvalidate network responses for determination of successful authentication. The SMF 213 conducts packet data unit (PDU) session management, as well as manages session context with the UPF 226.

[0048] The NSSF 214 may select a network slicing instance (NSI) and determine the allowed network slice selection assistance information (NSSAI). This selection and determination is utilized to set the AMF 212 to provide service to the UE 150. The NEF 215 secures access to network services for third parties to create specialized network services. The NRF 216 acts as a repository to store network functions to allow the functions to register with and discover each other.

[0049] The UDM 217 generates authentication vectors for use by the AUSF 211 and ADM 212 and provides user identification handling. The UDM 217 may be connected to the UDR 224 which stores data associated with authentication, applications, or the like. The AF 218 provides application services to a user (e.g., streaming services, etc.). The PCF 219 provides policy control functionality. For example, the PCF 219 may assist in network slicing and mobility management, as well as provide quality of service (QoS) and charging functionality.

[0050] The NWDAF 220 collects data (e.g., from the UE 150 and the network system) to perform network analytics and provide insight to functions that utilize the analytics in the providing of services. The ADRF 221 allows the storage, retrieval, and removal of data and analytics by consumers. The MDAF 222 provides additional data analytics services for network functions. The 0AM 223 provides provisioning and management processing functions to manage elements in or connected to the network (e.g., UE 150, network nodes, etc.).

[0051] FIG. 2 is merely an example of components of a network system, and variations are contemplated to be within the scope of the present disclosure. In embodiments, the network system may include other components not illustrated in FIG. 2. In embodiments, the network system may not include every component illustrated in FIG. 2. In embodiments, the components and connections may be implemented with different connections than those illustrated in FIG. 2. Such and other embodiments are contemplated to be within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0052] The present disclosure addresses aspects of signals and operations relating to cell reselection by UEs that are not capable of on-demand system information block 1 (OD-SIB1) functionality and signals and operations relating to cell re-selection by UEs which are capable of OD-SIB1 functionality. On-demand SIB1 functionality refers to functionality for a UE to request,on-demand, a SIB1 block from a cell that does not broadcast SIB1. A cell that does not broadcast SIB1 may realize energy savings by transmitting SIB1 only when requested to do so. Such a cell may be referred to herein as a NES-capable cell, a NES cell, or a cell operating in NES-mode, and such terms may be used interchangeably herein.

[0053] Networks may include NES cells, non-NES cells, UEs which are capable of OD-SIB1 functionality, and UEs which are not capable of OD-SIB1 functionality. Complications may occur in such networks. For example, UEs that do not support OD-SIB1 cannot camp on a cell that provides SIB1 on-demand (i.e., a cell that does not broadcast SIB1). Thus, for cell re-selection, UEs that do not have OD-SIB1 functionality need to exclude NES cells. At the same time, such functionality needs to cooperate with other mechanisms for excluding cells for cell re-selection. An example of such other mechanisms is system information block 3 (SIB3), which includes information elements that identify cells which are to be excluded for cell re-selection.

[0054] As described in more detail later herein, aspects of the present disclosure provide the same information in SIB3 to UEs for indicating excluding cells for cell re-selection. However, that same information in SIB3 is processed differently by cells that have OD-SIB1 functionality and by cells that do not have OD-SIB1 functionality. Such different processing of SIB3 information allows UEs that do have OD-SIB1 functionality to camp on NES cells and prevents UEs that do not have OD-SIB1 functionality from camping on NES cells.

[0055] The following description refers to the term “Cell A.” As used herein, Cell A refers to and means a cell that periodically transmits at least its own SIB1.

[0056] FIG. 3 is a flow diagram of signals and operations relating to cell re-selection by a UE that does not have on-demand SIB1 functionality. In various embodiments, the components depicted in FIG. 3 may correspond to similar components described above in FIGS. 1 and 2. It will be understood that a described signal may have associated operations and a described operation may have associated signals.

[0057] The signals and operations of FIG. 3 involve a UE that does not have on-demand SIB1 functionality, a first cell that is capable of network-energy-savings and OD-SIB1 functionality (NES cell), and a second cell that is a Cell A that periodically transmits at least its own SIB1.

[0058] At operation 310, the first cell (NES cell) and the second cell (Cell A) exchange information indicating that the first cell is a NES cell and including information of the first cell, such as, for example, physical cell identity (PCI) and absolute radio frequency channel number(ARFCN) of the first cell. The second cell receives such information of the first cell.

[0059] At operation 320, the UE, which does not have OD-SIB1 functionality, camps on the second cell (Cell A). As mentioned above, Cell A periodically transmits at least its own SIB1.

[0060] At operation 330, the second cell (Cell A) transmits a wake-up signal (WUS) configuration to the first cell (NES cell), and the first cell (NES cell) receives the WUS configuration from the second cell (Cell A). The WUS configuration includes information of NES cells (such as PCI and ARFCN of NES cells) and includes information that enables a UE having OD-SIB1 functionality to transmit a WUS to such a NES cell. The WUS configuration can be carried by system information of Cell A and / or a RRC release message, and the WUS configuration can be updated by Cell A and NES cells. Because the UE of FIG. 3 does not have OD-SIB1 functionality, the WUS configuration may not be meaningful to the UE.

[0061] At operation 340, when the UE is capable of processing the WUS configuration received at operation 330, the UE obtains the cell identity of NES cells. The cell identity of NES cells may be, for example, the PCI in the WUS configuration received at operation 330.

[0062] At operation 350, the second cell (Cell A) transmits a system information block 3 (SIB3), which contains the information elements IntraFreqExcludedCellList and InterFreqExcludedCellList relating to cell re-selection. The IntraFreqExcludedCellList and InterFreqExcludedCellList information elements contain lists of cell identifiers that are to be excluded from cell re-selection such that they cannot be selected by the UE for cell re-selection. As mentioned above, such information is processed differently by UEs that have OD-SIB1 functionality and by UEs that do not have OD-SIB1 functionality.

[0063] In accordance with aspects of the present disclosure, at operation 350, the information in the SIB3 information elements may include identifiers of non-NES cells that are to be excluded from cell re-selection, identifiers for NES cells that are to be excluded from cell re-selection by both UEs that have OD-SIB1 functionality and UEs that do not have OD-SIB1 functionality, and / or identifiers for NES cells that are to be excluded from cell re-selection only by UEs that do not have OD-SIB1 functionality. A UE that does not have OD-SIB1 functionality makes no distinction among these different categories of cells. That is, a UE that does not have OD-SIB1 functionality will exclude any cell identified in the SIB3 list of cells to be excluded from cell reselection.

[0064] At operation 360, the UE (which does not have OD-SIB1 functionality) excludes thecells listed in the SIB3 information element IntraFreqExcludedCellList or in the SIB3 information element InterFreqExcludedCellList when selecting a cell for cell re-selection.

[0065] At operation 370, the UE (which does not have OD-SIB1 functionality) selects a non- NES cell for cell re-selection. In embodiments, such cells may be indicated in, for example, the InterFreqNeighCellList and / or the IntraFreqNeighCellList information elements of SIB3. In embodiments, a UE in RRC IDLE state or RRC INACTIVE state may perform cell re-selection. Cell re-selection between NR RRC IDLE and E-UTRA RRC IDLE may be supported, and cell re-selection from NR RRC INACTIVE to E-UTRA RRC IDLE may be supported. Candidate cells to re-select to may be non-NES cells. For UEs supporting an on-demand SIB1 functionality, a candidate cell to select to may be a NES cell. Some of the criteria and procedures for cell reselection are specified in 3GPP TS 38.300 vl8.2.0 (2024-06), section 9.2.1.2 (entitled Cell Reselection) and in section 5.7.8.1b (entitled Measurement configuration (reselection measurements)). Such technical specifications are hereby incorporated by reference herein in their entirety.

[0066] The operations of FIG. 3 are merely illustrative, and variations are contemplated to be within the scope of the present disclosure. In embodiments, the operations may include other operations not illustrated in FIG. 3. In embodiments, the operations may not include every operation illustrated in FIG. 3. In embodiments, the operations may be implemented in a different order than that illustrated in FIG. 3. In embodiments, the names of various signals and values may be different from what is described above. Such and other embodiments are contemplated to be within the scope of the present disclosure. Persons of skill in the art will appreciate that, although various example components are described as performing various functions, other components may perform those functions described in FIG. 3.

[0067] FIG. 4 is a flow diagram of signals and operations relating to cell re-selection by a UE which has OD-SIB1 functionality. In various embodiments, the components depicted in FIG. 4 may correspond to similar components described above in FIGS. 1 and 2. It will be understood that a described signal may have associated operations and a described operation may have associated signals.

[0068] The signals and operations of FIG. 4 involve a UE that has on-demand SIB1 functionality, a first cell that is capable of network-energy-savings and OD-SIB1 functionality (NES cell), and a second cell that is a Cell A that periodically transmits at least its own SIB1.

[0069] At operation 410, the first cell (NES cell) and the second cell (Cell A) exchange information indicating that the first cell is a NES cell and including information of the first cell, such as, for example, physical cell identity (PCI) and absolute radio frequency channel number (ARFCN) of the first cell. The second cell receives such information of the first cell.

[0070] At operation 420, the UE, which has OD-SIB1 functionality, camps on the second cell (Cell A). As mentioned above, Cell A periodically transmits at least its own SIB1.

[0071] At operation 430, the second cell (Cell A) transmits a wake-up signal (WUS) configuration to the first cell (NES cell), and the first cell (NES cell) receives the WUS configuration from the second cell (Cell A). The WUS configuration includes information of NES cells (such as PCI and ARFCN of NES cells) and includes information that enables a UE having OD-SIB1 functionality to transmit a WUS to such a NES cell. The WUS configuration can be carried by system information of Cell A and / or a RRC release message, and the WUS configuration can be updated by Cell A and NES cells.

[0072] At operation 440, the UE obtains the cell identity of NES cells. The cell identity of NES cells may be, for example, the PCI in the WUS configuration received at operation 430.

[0073] At operation 450, the second cell (Cell A) transmits a system information block 3 (SIB3), which contains the information elements IntraFreqExcludedCellList and InterFreqExcludedCellList relating to cell re-selection. The IntraFreqExcludedCellList and InterFreqExcludedCellList information elements contain lists of cell identifiers that are to be excluded from cell re-selection such that they cannot be selected by the UE for cell re-selection. As mentioned above, such information is processed differently by UEs that have OD-SIB1 functionality and by UEs that do not have OD-SIB1 functionality.

[0074] In accordance with aspects of the present disclosure, at operation 450, the information in the SIB3 information elements may include identifiers of non-NES cells that are to be excluded from cell re-selection, identifiers for NES cells that are to be excluded from cell re-selection by both UEs that have OD-SIB1 functionality and UEs that do not have OD-SIB1 functionality, and / or identifiers for NES cells that are to be excluded from cell re-selection only by UEs that do not have OD-SIB1 functionality. As described below, a UE that has OD-SIB1 functionality will be able to identify NES cells that are to be excluded from cell re-selection only by UEs that do not have OD-SIB1 functionality, as such NES cells are not to be excluded from cell re-selection by UEs that do have OD-SIB functionality. Rather, a UE that has OD-SIB1 functionality will includesuch cells as cells available for cell re-selection.

[0075] At operation 460, the UE (which has OD-SIB1 functionality) identifies and removes the NES cells that can be used for cell re-selection from the SIB3 information elements, such that the remaining cell identifiers are used to build a list of identifiers of excluded cells for cell reselection.

[0076] In accordance with aspects of the present disclosure, at operation 460, the UE (which has OD-SIB1 functionality) can identify the NES cells that can be used for cell re-selection comparing the SIB3 IntraFreqExcludedCellList information element and the SIB3 InterFreqExcludedCellList information element (which were received in operation 450) with the cell identity of NES cells obtained in operation 440. For any cell identifiers that are in the identifiers in the SIB3 list of excluded cells obtained in operation 450 but are not in the cell identity of NES cells obtained in operation 440, such cells may not be selected by the UE for cell reselection, and the UE may indicate such cells in a new list of excluded cells for re-selection. For any cell identifiers that are in the identifiers in the SIB3 list of excluded cells obtained in operation 450 and are in the cell identity of NES cells obtained in operation 440, such NES cells may be selected by the UE for cell re-selection, and the UE may maintain such NES cells in a list of NES cells available for cell re-selection.

[0077] At operation 470, the UE performs cell re-selection and re-selects an NES cell. In embodiments, the UE may select an NES cell based on the list of NES cells available for cell reselection determined at operation 460.

[0078] At operation 480, the UE transmits a OD-SIB1 request towards the first cell (NES cell), and the first cell receives the OD-SIB1 request.

[0079] At operation 482, the first cell transmits a feedback signal, such as an acknowledgment signal, for the OD-SIB1 request, to the UE, and the UE receives the feedback signal.

[0080] At operation 484, the first cell (NES cell) transmits the SIB1 to the UE, and the UE receives the SIB1.

[0081] The operations of FIG. 4 are merely illustrative, and variations are contemplated to be within the scope of the present disclosure. In embodiments, the operations may include other operations not illustrated in FIG. 4. In embodiments, the operations may not include every operation illustrated in FIG. 4. In embodiments, the operations may be implemented in a different order than that illustrated in FIG. 4. In embodiments, the names of various signals and values maybe different from what is described above. Such and other embodiments are contemplated to be within the scope of the present disclosure. Persons of skill in the art will appreciate that, although various example components are described as performing various functions, other components may perform those functions described in FIG. 4.

[0082] The operations of FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 have various benefits. For example, the same list of excluded cells may be included in SIB3 and may be transmitted to UEs that have OD-SIB1 functionality as well as UEs that do not have OD-SIB1 functionality, thereby reducing complexity and signaling at the network, which may result in network energy savings. The operations of FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 are merely examples, and other approaches are contemplated.

[0083] For example, a different approach is based on non-cell-defining signal synchronization signal blocks (NCD-SSB) for NES cells.

[0084] A UE may treat an NCD-SSB as barred for a time period (e.g., 300 seconds), and after such time period, the UE can remove the bar. Thus, barring NES cells using NCD-SSB is a temporary barring.

[0085] CD-SSBs are always on synchronization raster and are detected both by UEs that do not have OD-SIB1 functionality as well as by UE that have OD-SIB1 functionality. In contrast, NCD-SSB can be on synchronization raster or off synchronization raster. All SSBs on synchronization raster can be detected by UEs. However, NCD-SSB off synchronization raster cannot be detected by UEs unless the network indicates the off- synchronization raster to the UE. Thus, an approach is to identify NES cells with NCD-SSB not on synchronization raster. The NES cell NCD-SSB are not detected by UEs that do not have OD-SIB1 functionality. For UE that have OD-SIB1 functionality, the off- synchronization raster may be sent using WUS configuration from Cell A. This approach can prevent UEs that do not have OD-SIB1 functionality from selecting NES cells in cell selection, prevent UEs that do not have OD-SIB1 functionality from re-selecting NES cell in cell re-selection, prevent UEs that have OD-SIB1 functionality from selecting NES cell in cell selection, and allow UE that have OD-SIB1 functionality for re-selecting NES cells after camping on Cell A. Such an approach is contemplated to be within the scope of the present application.

[0086] Referring now to FIG. 5, there is shown a block diagram of example components of a user equipment apparatus or a network node apparatus. The apparatus includes an electronic storage 510, a processor 520, a network interface 530, and a memory 540. The various componentsmay be communicatively coupled with each other. The processor 520 may be and may include any type of processor, such as a single-core central processing unit (CPU), a multi-core CPU, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a System- on- Chip (SoC), or any other type of processor. The memory 540 may be a volatile type of memory, e.g., RAM, or a non-volatile type of memory, e.g., NAND flash memory. The memory 540 includes processor-readable instructions that are executable by the processor 520 to cause the apparatus to perform various operations, including the operations mentioned above herein.

[0087] The electronic storage 510 may be and include any type of electronic storage used for storing data, such as hard disk drive, solid state drive, and / or optical disc, among other types of electronic storage. The electronic storage 510 stores processor- readable instructions for causing the apparatus to perform its operations and stores data associated with such operations, such as storing data relating to 5G NR standards, among other data, such as any of the data described above herein. The network interface 530 may implement wireless networking technologies such as LTE, 5G NR, 5G Advance, Wi-Fi 6, and / or other wireless networking technologies.

[0088] The components shown in FIG. 5 are merely examples, and persons skilled in the art will understand that an apparatus includes other components not illustrated and may include multiples of any of the illustrated components. Such and other embodiments are contemplated to be within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0089] Further embodiments of the present disclosure include the following examples. In various examples, the disclosed “means” for performing or causing performance of an operation may include processor-readable instructions, at least one processor capable of executing the processor-readable instructions, and / or at least one memory capable of storing the processor- readable instructions, where the instructions, when executed, cause an apparatus to perform the operation.

[0090] Further embodiments of the present disclosure include the following examples.

[0091] Example 1.1. An apparatus, comprising: means for receiving, by a user equipment (UE), at least one list of one or more first identifiers that identify one or more excluded cells of a network for cell re-selection; means for receiving, by the UE, at least one wake-up signal configuration comprising one or more second identifiers that identify one or more cells operating in network-energy-savings (NES)-mode ;means for determining, by the UE, any identifiers which are in the one or more first identifiers but are not in the one or more second identifiers, as one or more excluded identifiers for cell re-selection; means for determining any identifiers which are in the one or more first identifiers and are in the one or more second identifiers, as one or more identifiers for cell re-selection; means for selecting, by the UE based on the one or more identifiers for cell re-selection, a cell for cell re-selection, the selected cell having a cell identifier that is not any of the one or more excluded identifiers for cell re-selection; and means for performing cell re-selection towards the selected cell.

[0092] Example 1.2. The apparatus of Example 1.1, wherein further comprising: means for, in a case the selected cell is a cell operating in NES mode, transmitting an on-demand system information block 1 (OD-SIB1) request related to the selected cell.

[0093] Example 1.3. The apparatus of Example 1.1 or Example 1.2, wherein the UE is a UE supporting on-demand system information block 1 (SIB1) functionality.

[0094] Example 1.4. The apparatus of Example 1.1, wherein the at least one list is specified in a system information block.

[0095] Example 1.5. The apparatus of any one of the preceding Examples, wherein the at least one list is specified in at least one of: an interFreqExcludedCellList information element, or an intraFreqExcludedCellList information element.

[0096] Example 1.6. The apparatus of any one of the preceding Examples, wherein the one or more second identifiers identify at least one NES-capable cell.

[0097] Example 1.7. The apparatus of Example 1.6, wherein the at least one NES-capable cell is identified in the one or more second identifiers but not identified in the one or more first identifiers.

[0098] Example 1.8. The apparatus of any one of the preceding Examples, further comprising: means for storing, by the UE, the one or more identifiers for cell re-selection ; means for storing, by the UE, the one or more excluded identifiers; means for receiving, by the UE, at least one second list of one or more third identifiers that identify one or more excluded cells of a network for cell re-selection, wherein the at least one second list is received after the at least one list; and means for updating, by the UE, the one or more excluded identifiers based on the oneor more identifiers for cell re-selection and the one or more third identifiers.

[0099] Example 1.9. The apparatus of Example 1.8, wherein the updating the one or more excluded identifiers comprises replacing, by the UE, the one or more excluded identifiers with any identifiers which are in the one or more third identifiers but are not in the one or more identifiers for cell re-selection.

[0100] Example 1.10. The apparatus of any one of the preceding Examples, further comprising: means for storing, by the UE, the one or more identifiers for cell-reselection; means for storing, by the UE, the one or more excluded identifiers; means for receiving, by the UE, at least one second wake-up signal configuration comprising one or more fourth identifiers that identify one or more network-energy-savings (NES)-capable cells, wherein the at least one second wake-up signal configuration is received after the at least one wake-up signal configuration; and means for updating, by the UE, the one or more excluded identifiers based on the one or more fourth identifiers.

[0101] Example 1.11. The apparatus of Example 1.10, wherein the updating the one or more excluded identifiers comprises removing, from the one or more excluded identifiers, any identifiers which are in the one or more fourth identifiers.

[0102] The embodiments and aspects disclosed herein are examples of the present disclosure and may be embodied in various forms. For instance, although certain embodiments herein are described as separate embodiments, each of the embodiments herein may be combined with one or more of the other embodiments herein. Specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the present disclosure in virtually any appropriately detailed structure. Like reference numerals may refer to similar or identical elements throughout the description of the figures.

[0103] Although in various embodiments, protocols such as 5G protocols may be described, persons of skill in the art will understand that other protocols (e.g., 6G protocols) may be utilized for any of the operations and / or signaling described above along with their associated data, IES, messaging, or the like.

[0104] The phrases “in an aspect,” “in aspects,” “in various aspects,” “in some aspects,” or “in other aspects” may each refer to one or more of the same or different aspects in accordance with this present disclosure. The phrase “a plurality of’ may refer to two or more.

[0105] In various embodiments, the terms “first message” and “second message”, as well as any subsequent messages may refer to any messages that are transmitted or received in an order and are not necessarily limited to any particular message.

[0106] The phrases “in an embodiment,” “in embodiments,” “in various embodiments,” “in some embodiments,” or “in other embodiments” may each refer to one or more of the same or different embodiments in accordance with the present disclosure. A phrase in the form “A or B” means “(A), (B), or (A and B).” A phrase in the form “at least one of A, B, or C” means “(A); (B); (C); (A and B); (A and C); (B and C); or (A, B, and C) ”

[0107] Any of the herein described methods, programs, algorithms or codes may be converted to, or expressed in, a programming language or computer program. The terms “programming language” and “computer program,” as used herein, each include any language used to specify instructions to a computer, and include (but is not limited to) the following languages and their derivatives: Assembler, Basic, Batch files, BCPL, C, C+, C++, Delphi, Fortran, Java, JavaScript, machine code, operating system command languages, Pascal, Perl, PL1, Python, scripting languages, Visual Basic, metalanguages which themselves specify programs, and all first, second, third, fourth, fifth, or further generation computer languages. Also included are database and other data schemas, and any other meta- languages. No distinction is made between languages which are interpreted, compiled, or use both compiled and interpreted approaches. No distinction is made between compiled and source versions of a program. Thus, reference to a program, where the programming language could exist in more than one state (such as source, compiled, object, or linked) is a reference to any and all such states. Reference to a program may encompass the actual instructions and / or the intent of those instructions.

[0108] While aspects of the present disclosure have been shown in the drawings, it is not intended that the present disclosure be limited thereto, as it is intended that the present disclosure be as broad in scope as the art will allow and that the specification be read likewise. Therefore, the above description should not be construed as limiting, but merely as exemplifications of particular aspects. Those skilled in the art will envision other modifications within the scope and spirit of the claims appended hereto.

Claims

WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:

1. A method comprising: receiving, by a user equipment (UE), at least one list of one or more first identifiers that identify one or more excluded cells of a network for cell re-selection; receiving, by the UE, at least one wake-up signal configuration comprising one or more second identifiers that identify one or more cells operating in network-energy-savings (NES)- mode; determining, by the UE, any identifiers which are in the one or more first identifiers but are not in the one or more second identifiers, as one or more excluded identifiers for cell reselection; determining any identifiers which are in the one or more first identifiers and are in the one or more second identifiers, as one or more identifiers for cell re-selection; selecting, by the UE based on the one or more identifiers for cell re-selection, a cell for cell re-selection, the selected cell having a cell identifier that is not any of the one or more excluded identifiers for cell re-selection; and performing cell re-selection towards the selected cell.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising: in a case the selected cell is a cell operating in NES mode, transmitting an on-demand system information block 1 (OD-SIB1) request related to the selected cell.

3. The method of claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the UE is a UE supporting on-demand system information block 1 (SIB1) functionality.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one list is specified in a system information block.

5. The method of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the at least one list is specified in at least one of: an interFreqExcludedCellList information element, or an intraFreqExcludedCellList information element.

6. The method of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the one or more second identifiers identify at least one NES-capable cell.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the at least one NES-capable cell is identified in the one or more second identifiers but not identified in the one or more first identifiers.

8. The method of any one of the preceding claims, further comprising: storing, by the UE, the one or more identifiers for cell re-selection; storing, by the UE, the one or more excluded identifiers; receiving, by the UE, at least one second list of one or more third identifiers that identify one or more excluded cells of a network for cell re-selection, wherein the at least one second list is received after the at least one list; and updating, by the UE, the one or more excluded identifiers based on the one or more identifiers for cell re-selection and the one or more third identifiers.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the updating the one or more excluded identifiers comprises replacing, by the UE, the one or more excluded identifiers with any identifiers which are in the one or more third identifiers but are not in the one or more identifiers for cell reselection.

10. The method of any one of the preceding claims, further comprising: storing, by the UE, the one or more identifiers for cell-reselection; storing, by the UE, the one or more excluded identifiers; receiving, by the UE, at least one second wake-up signal configuration comprising one or more fourth identifiers that identify one or more network-energy-savings (NES)-capable cells, wherein the at least one second wake-up signal configuration is received after the at least one wake-up signal configuration; and updating, by the UE, the one or more excluded identifiers based on the one or more fourth identifiers.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the updating the one or more excluded identifiers comprises removing, from the one or more excluded identifiers, any identifiers which are in the one or more fourth identifiers.

12. An apparatus comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory storing instructions which, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the apparatus at least to perform a method as in any one of claims 1-11.

13. A non- transitory processor- readable medium storing instructions which, when executed by at least one processor of an apparatus, cause the apparatus at least to perform a method as in any one of claims 1-11. 1

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