Enhanced wake-up signal for network energy saving

Abstract

Example embodiments of the present disclosure are directed to enhanced wake-up signal (WUS) for network energy saving (NES) A method comprises receiving, from a second apparatus, a WUS configuration for requesting an OD-SIB1 without random access channel resources activated; transmitting, to a third apparatus managing a NES cell based on the WUS configuration, an OD-SIB1 request without the random access channel resources activated; and receiving, from the third apparatus, an SIB1 without an activated random access occasion.

Description

ENHANCED WAKE-UP SIGNAL FOR NETWORK ENERGY SAVINGFIELD

[0001] Various example embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to the field of telecommunication and in particular, to methods, devices, apparatuses and computer readable storage medium for enhanced wake-up signal (WUS) for network energy saving (NES).BACKGROUND

[0002] The study of low power wake-up signal (LP-WUS) and low power wake-up receiver (LP-WUR) in 5G new radio (NR) may enable more power efficient operation on user equipment (UE) and more optimal resource allocation for network.SUMMARY

[0003] In a first aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a first apparatus. The first apparatus comprises at least one processor; and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the first apparatus at least to: receive, from a second apparatus, a wake-up signal (WUS) configuration for requesting an on-demand system information block 1 (OD-SIB1) without random access channel resources activated; transmit, to a third apparatus managing a network energy saving (NES) cell based on the WUS configuration, an OD-SIB1 request without the random access channel resources activated; and receive, from the third apparatus, an SIB1 without an activated random access occasion.

[0004] In a second aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a second apparatus. The second apparatus comprises at least one processor; and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the second apparatus at least to: generate a WUS configuration for requesting an OD-SIB1 from a NES cell without random access channel resources activated; and transmit the WUS configuration to the first apparatus.

[0005] In a third aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a third apparatus. The third apparatus comprises at least one processor; and at least one memory storinginstructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the third apparatus at least to: receive, from a first apparatus, an OD-SIB1 request without the random access channel resources activated; and transmit, to the first apparatus, a SIB1 without an activated random access occasion.

[0006] In a fourth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a first apparatus. The first apparatus comprises at least one processor; and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the first apparatus at least to: receive, from a second apparatus, a flag indicating random access channel resources are deactivated for a NES cell managed by a third apparatus in a WUS configuration for requesting an OD-SIB1 without the random access channel resources activated; in accordance with a determination that a further flag, indicating the random access channel resources are activated for the NES cell, is received, transmit, to the third apparatus managing the NES cell, an OD-SIB1 request with the random access channel resources activated regardless of whether an initial access is expected by the first apparatus; and receive, from the third apparatus, an SIB1 with an activated random access occasion.

[0007] In a fifth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a second apparatus. The second apparatus comprises at least one processor; and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the second apparatus at least to: transmit, to a first apparatus, a flag indicating random access channel resources are deactivated for a NES cell managed by a third apparatus in a WUS configuration for requesting an OD-SIB1 without the random access channel resources activated; in accordance with a determination that the random access channel resources are activated for the NES cell, transmit, to the first apparatus, a further flag indicating the random access channel resources are activated for the NES cell; and determine that the random access channel resources are deactivated for the NES cell based on an expiry of random access channel resources activation timer.

[0008] In a sixth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a third apparatus. The third apparatus comprises at least one processor; and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the third apparatus at least to: in accordance with a determination that an OD-SIB1 request with the random access channel resources activated is received, activate the random access channel resources for a NES cell managing by the third apparatus; transmit, to a second apparatus,an indication that the random access channel resources is activated for the NES cell while starting a random access channel resources activation timer; and deactivate the random access channel resources for the NES cell after an expiry of the random access channel resources activation timer.

[0009] In a seventh aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method. The method comprises: receiving, from a second apparatus, a WUS configuration for requesting an OD-SIB1 without random access channel resources activated; transmitting, to a third apparatus managing a NES cell based on the WUS configuration, an OD-SIB1 request without the random access channel resources activated; and receiving, from the third apparatus, an SIB1 without an activated random access occasion.

[0010] In an eighth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method. The method comprises: generating a WUS configuration for requesting an OD-SIB1 from a NES cell without random access channel resources activated; and transmitting the WUS configuration to the first apparatus.

[0011] In a ninth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method. The method comprises: receiving, from a first apparatus, an OD-SIB1 request without the random access channel resources activated; and transmitting, to the first apparatus, an SIB1 without an activated random access occasion.

[0012] In a tenth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method. The method comprises: receiving, from a second apparatus, a flag indicating random access channel resources are deactivated for a NES cell managed by a third apparatus in a WUS configuration for requesting an OD-SIB1 without the random access channel resources activated; in accordance with a determination that a further flag, indicating the random access channel resources are activated for the NES cell, is received, transmit, to the third apparatus managing the NES cell, an OD-SIB1 request with the random access channel resources activated regardless of whether an initial access is expected by the first apparatus; and receiving, from the third apparatus, an SIB1 with an activated random access occasion.

[0013] In an eleventh aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method. The method comprises: transmitting, to a first apparatus, a flag indicating random access channel resources are deactivated for a NES cell managed by a third apparatus in a WUS configuration for requesting an OD-SIB1 without the random access channel resourcesactivated; in accordance with a determination that the random access channel resources are activated for the NES cell, transmitting to the first apparatus, a further flag indicating the random access channel resources are activated for the NES cell; and determining that the random access channel resources are deactivated for the NES cell based on an expiry of random access channel resources activation timer.

[0014] In a twelfth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method. The method comprises: in accordance with a determination that an OD-SIB1 request with the random access channel resources activated is received, activating the random access channel resources for a NES cell managing by the third apparatus; transmitting, to a second apparatus, an indication that the random access channel resources is activated for the NES cell while starting a random access channel resources activation timer; and deactivating the random access channel resources for the NES cell after an expiry of the random access channel resources activation timer.

[0015] In a thirteenth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a first apparatus. The first apparatus comprises means for receiving, from a second apparatus, a WUS configuration for requesting an OD-SIB1 without random access channel resources activated; means for transmitting, to a third apparatus managing a NES cell based on the WUS configuration, an OD-SIB1 request without the random access channel resources activated; and means for receiving, from the third apparatus, an SIB 1 without an activated random access occasion.

[0016] In a fourteenth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a second apparatus. The second apparatus comprises means for generating a WUS configuration for requesting an OD-SIB1 from a NES cell without random access channel resources activated; and means for transmitting the WUS configuration to the first apparatus.

[0017] In a fifteenth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a third apparatus. The third apparatus comprises means for receiving, from a first apparatus, an OD-SIB1 request without the random access channel resources activated; and means for transmitting, to the first apparatus, an SIB1 without an activated random access occasion.

[0018] In a sixteenth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a first apparatus. The first apparatus comprises means for receiving, from a second apparatus, a flag indicating random access channel resources are deactivated for a NES cell managed by a third apparatus in a WUS configuration for requesting an OD-SIB1 without the randomaccess channel resources activated; means for in accordance with a determination that a further flag, indicating the random access channel resources are activated for the NES cell, is received, transmit, to the third apparatus managing the NES cell, an OD-SIB1 request with the random access channel resources activated regardless of whether an initial access is expected by the first apparatus; and means for receiving, from the third apparatus, an SIB1 with an activated random access occasion.

[0019] In a seventeenth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a second apparatus. The second apparatus comprises means for transmitting, to a first apparatus, a flag indicating random access channel resources are deactivated for a NES cell managed by a third apparatus in a WUS configuration for requesting an OD-SIB1 without the random access channel resources activated; means for in accordance with a determination that the random access channel resources are activated for the NES cell, transmitting to the first apparatus, a further flag indicating the random access channel resources are activated for the NES cell; and means for determining that the random access channel resources are deactivated for the NES cell based on an expiry of random access channel resources activation timer.

[0020] In an eighteenth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a third apparatus. The third apparatus comprises means for in accordance with a determination that an OD-SIB1 request with the random access channel resources activated is received, activating the random access channel resources for a NES cell managing by the third apparatus; means for transmitting, to a second apparatus, an indication that the random access channel resources is activated for the NES cell while starting a random access channel resources activation timer; and means for deactivating the random access channel resources for the NES cell after an expiry of the random access channel resources activation timer.

[0021] In a nineteenth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a computer readable medium. The computer readable medium comprises instructions stored thereon for causing an apparatus to perform at least the method according to the seventh aspect, the eighth aspect, the ninth aspect, the tenth aspect, the eleventh aspect or the twelfth aspect.

[0022] It is to be understood that the Summary section is not intended to identify key or essential features of embodiments of the present disclosure, nor is it intended to be usedto limit the scope of the present disclosure. Other features of the present disclosure will become easily comprehensible through the following description.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0023] Some example embodiments will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, where:

[0024] FIG. 1 illustrates an example communication environment in which example embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented;

[0025] FIGS 2A-2B illustrate diagrams showing examples of the random access procedure;

[0026] FIGS 3A-3B illustrate diagrams showing examples of cell wake up by UE;

[0027] FIG. 4 illustrates a signaling chart associated with Random Occasion (RO) in Discontinuous reception (DRX) OFF mode;

[0028] FIG. 5 illustrates a signaling chart for a communication in accordance with some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0029] FIG. 6 illustrates a signaling chart for a communication in accordance with some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0030] FIG. 7 illustrates a flowchart of a method implemented at a first apparatus in accordance with some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0031] FIG. 8 illustrates a flowchart of a method implemented at a second apparatus in accordance with some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0032] FIG. 9 illustrates a flowchart of a method implemented at a third apparatus in accordance with some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0033] FIG. 10 illustrates a flowchart of a method implemented at a first apparatus in accordance with some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0034] FIG. 11 illustrates a flowchart of a method implemented at a second apparatus in accordance with some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0035] FIG. 12 illustrates a flowchart of a method implemented at a third apparatus inaccordance with some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0036] FIG. 13 illustrates a simplified block diagram of a device that is suitable for implementing example embodiments of the present disclosure; and

[0037] FIG. 14 illustrates a block diagram of an example computer readable medium in accordance with some example embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0038] Throughout the drawings, the same or similar reference numerals represent the same or similar element.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0039] Principle of the present disclosure will now be described with reference to some example embodiments. It is to be understood that these embodiments are described only for the purpose of illustration and help those skilled in the art to understand and implement the present disclosure, without suggesting any limitation as to the scope of the disclosure. Embodiments described herein can be implemented in various manners other than the ones described below.

[0040] In the following description and claims, unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skills in the art to which this disclosure belongs.

[0041] References in the present disclosure to “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” “an example embodiment,” and the like indicate that the embodiment described may include a particular feature, structure, or characteristic, but it is not necessary that every embodiment includes the particular feature, structure, or characteristic. Moreover, such phrases are not necessarily referring to the same embodiment. Further, when a particular feature, structure, or characteristic is described in connection with an embodiment, it is submitted that it is within the knowledge of one skilled in the art to affect such feature, structure, or characteristic in connection with other embodiments whether or not explicitly described.

[0042] It shall be understood that although the terms “first,” “second,”..., etc. in front of noun(s) and the like may be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one elementfrom another and they do not limit the order of the noun(s). For example, a first element could be termed a second element, and similarly, a second element could be termed a first element, without departing from the scope of example embodiments. As used herein, the term “and / or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the listed terms.

[0043] As used herein, “at least one of the following: ” and “at least one of ” and similar wording, where the list of two or more elements are joined by “and” or “or”, mean at least any one of the elements, or at least any two or more of the elements, or at least all the elements.

[0044] As used herein, unless stated explicitly, performing a step “in response to A” does not indicate that the step is performed immediately after “A” occurs and one or more intervening steps may be included.

[0045] The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of example embodiments. 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”, “has”, “having”, “includes” and / or “including”, when used herein, specify the presence of stated features, elements, and / or components etc., but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, elements, components and / or combinations thereof.

[0046] As used in this application, the term “circuitry” may refer to one or more or all of the following:(a) hardware-only circuit implementations (such as implementations in only analog and / or digital circuitry) and(b) combinations of hardware circuits and software, such as (as applicable):(i) a combination of analog and / or digital hardware circuit(s) with software / firmware and(ii) any portions of hardware processor(s) with software (including digital signal processor(s)), software, and memory(ies) that work together to cause a first apparatus, such as a mobile phone or server, to perform various functions) and(c) hardware circuit(s) and or processor(s), such as a microprocessor(s) or a portion of a microprocessor(s), that requires software (e.g., firmware) for operation, but the software may not be present when it is not needed for operation.

[0047] This definition of circuitry applies to all uses of this term in this application, including in any claims. As a further example, as used in this application, the term circuitry also covers an implementation of merely a hardware circuit or processor (or multiple processors) or portion of a hardware circuit or processor and its (or their) accompanying software and / or firmware. The term circuitry also covers, for example and if applicable to the particular claim element, a baseband integrated circuit or processor integrated circuit for a mobile device or a similar integrated circuit in server, a cellular network device, or other computing or network device.

[0048] As used herein, the term “communication network” refers to a network following any suitable communication standards, such as New Radio (NR), Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA), Narrow Band Internet of Things (NB-IoT) and so on. Furthermore, the communications between a terminal device and a network device in the communication network may be performed according to any suitable generation communication protocols, including, but not limited to, the first generation (1G), the second generation (2G), 2.5G, 2.75G, the third generation (3G), the fourth generation (4G), 4.5G, the fifth generation (5G), 5.5G, the sixth generation (6G) communication protocols, and / or any other protocols either currently known or to be developed in the future. Embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied in various communication systems. Given the rapid development in communications, there will of course also be future type communication technologies and systems with which the present disclosure may be embodied. It should not be seen as limiting the scope of the present disclosure to only the aforementioned system.

[0049] As used herein, the term “network device” refers to a node in a communication network via which a terminal device accesses the network and receives services therefrom. The network device may refer to a base station (BS) or an access point (AP), for example, a node B (NodeB or NB), an evolved NodeB (eNodeB or eNB), an NR NB (also referred to as a gNB), a Remote Radio Unit (RRU), a radio header (RH), a remote radio head (RRH), a relay, an Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB) node, a low power node suchas a femto, a pico, a non-terrestrial network (NTN) or non-ground network device such as a satellite network device, a low earth orbit (LEO) satellite and a geosynchronous earth orbit (GEO) satellite, an aircraft network device, and so forth, depending on the applied terminology and technology. In some example embodiments, radio access network (RAN) split architecture comprises a Centralized Unit (CU) and a Distributed Unit (DU) at an IAB donor node. An IAB node comprises a Mobile Terminal (IAB-MT) part that behaves like a UE toward the parent node, and a DU part of an IAB node behaves like a base station toward the next-hop IAB node.

[0050] The term “terminal device” refers to any end device that may be capable of wireless communication. By way of example rather than limitation, a terminal device may also be referred to as a communication device, user equipment (UE), a Subscriber Station (SS), a Portable Subscriber Station, a Mobile Station (MS), or an Access Terminal (AT). The terminal device may include, but not limited to, a mobile phone, a cellular phone, a smart phone, voice over IP (VoIP) phones, wireless local loop phones, a tablet, a wearable terminal device, a personal digital assistant (PDA), portable computers, desktop computer, image capture terminal devices such as digital cameras, gaming terminal devices, music storage and playback appliances, vehicle-mounted wireless terminal devices, wireless endpoints, mobile stations, laptop-embedded equipment (LEE), laptop-mounted equipment (LME), USB dongles, smart devices, wireless customer-premises equipment (CPE), an Internet of Things (loT) device, a watch or other wearable, a head-mounted display (HMD), a vehicle, a drone, a medical device and applications (e.g., remote surgery), an industrial device and applications (e.g., a robot and / or other wireless devices operating in an industrial and / or an automated processing chain contexts), a consumer electronics device, a device operating on commercial and / or industrial wireless networks, and the like. The terminal device may also correspond to a Mobile Termination (MT) part of an IAB node (e.g., a relay node). In the following description, the terms “terminal device”, “communication device”, “terminal”, “user equipment” and “UE” may be used interchangeably.

[0051] As used herein, the term “resource,” “transmission resource,” “resource block,” “physical resource block” (PRB), “uplink resource,” or “downlink resource” may refer to any resource for performing a communication, for example, a communication between a terminal device and a network device, such as a resource in time domain, a resource in frequency domain, a resource in space domain, a resource in code domain, or any othercombination of the time, frequency, space and / or code domain resource enabling a communication, and the like. In the following, unless explicitly stated, a resource in both frequency domain and time domain will be used as an example of a transmission resource for describing some example embodiments of the present disclosure. It is noted that example embodiments of the present disclosure are equally applicable to other resources in other domains.

[0052] FIG. 1 illustrates an example communication environment 100 in which example embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented. As shown in FIG. 1, the communication network 100 may comprise a first apparatus 110 which may be, for example, a terminal device. In some example embodiments, the terminal device may also be discussed as a UE.

[0053] The communication network 100 may further comprise a second apparatus 120, which may be, for example, a network device. In some example embodiments, the network device may be discussed as a BS, a gNB, or an eNB.

[0054] A serving area provided by the second apparatus 120 is called a cell 102. The first apparatus 110 may communicate with the f second apparatus 120 within the cell 102. The cell currently serving the first apparatus 110 may be considered as a serving cell.

[0055] The communication network 100 may further comprise a third apparatus 130, which may be, for example, a network device. In some example embodiments, the network device may be discussed as a BS, a gNB, or an eNB.

[0056] A serving area provided by the third apparatus 130 is called a cell 104. The third apparatus 130 may communicate with the first apparatus 110 within the cell 104.

[0057] In some example scenarios, the cell 104 provided by the third apparatus 13 may be referred to as a network energy saving (NES) cell. A NES cell may operate in the ‘on- demand (OD) SIB1 mode’ (i.e., it does not broadcast SIB1 periodically, instead its SIB1 transmission is triggered by a request from the UE). The NES cell may also be referred to as a capacity cell.

[0058] In some example scenarios, an anchor cell, e.g., the cell 102, may be required to support the on-demand SIB1 operation of the NES cell, e.g., the cell 104. The cell 102 (e.g., as an anchor cell) may have an overlapping coverage area with the cell 104 (e.g., as an NES cell), and the cell 102 may act towards the UE as ‘anchor’ providing some of thecell 102’s control plane. In other words, the single NES cell might not operate (or cannot operate) in the OD-SIB1 mode in 5G, and the NES cell may require a two-carrier scenario involving the cell 104 and the cell 102 (i.e., the anchor cell).

[0059] In some example embodiments, if the first apparatus 110 is a terminal device and second apparatus 120 is a network device, a link from the second apparatus 120 to first apparatus 110 is referred to as a downlink (DL), while a link from the first apparatus 110 to second apparatus 120 is referred to as an uplink (UL). In DL, the second apparatus 120 is a transmitting (TX) apparatus (or a transmitter) and the first apparatus 110 is a receiving (RX) apparatus (or a receiver). In UL, the first apparatus 110 is a TX apparatus (or a transmitter) and the second apparatus 120 is a RX apparatus (or a receiver).

[0060] It is to be understood that the number of network devices and terminal devices shown in FIG. 1 is given for the purpose of illustration without suggesting any limitations. The communication environment 100 may include any suitable number of network devices and terminal devices.

[0061] Communications in the communication environment 100 may be implemented according to any proper communication protocol(s), comprising, but not limited to, cellular communication protocols of the first generation (1G), the second generation (2G), the third generation (3G), the fourth generation (4G), the fifth generation (5G), the sixth generation (6G), and the like, wireless local network communication protocols such as Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 and the like, and / or any other protocols currently known or to be developed in the future. Moreover, the communication may utilize any proper wireless communication technology, comprising but not limited to: Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Duplex (FDD), Time Division Duplex (TDD), Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple (OFDM), Discrete Fourier Transform spread OFDM (DFT-s-OFDM) and / or any other technologies currently known or to be developed in the future.

[0062] A UE may obtain the necessary SIB1 and physical random access channel (PRACH) resources (which may also be termed herein as RACH Occasion (RO)) by means of an OD-SIB1 triggered via UE initiated WUS during a WUS occasion (WO).

[0063] One of the purposes of initial access / RACH procedure is used for establishinguplink synchronization between a UE and network. To do so, UE transmits the random access preambles, i.e., a message 1 (MSG1) belonging to random access procedure. Two types of random access procedure are supported, namely 4-step RA type with MSG1 and 2-step RA type with MSGA. Both types of RA procedure support contention-based random access (CBRA) and contention-free random access (CFRA). FIGS 2A-2B illustrate diagrams showing examples of the random access procedure.

[0064] The MSG1 of the 4-step RA type consists of a preamble on PRACH. After MSG1 (i.e., random access preambles) transmission, the UE 210 monitors for a response from the gNB 220 within a configured window. For CFRA, as shown in FIG. 2B, a dedicated preamble for MSG1 transmission is assigned by the gNB 220 to the UE 210 and upon receiving random access response from the gNB 220, the UE 210 ends the random access procedure. For CBRA, as shown in FIG. 2A, upon reception of the random access response from the gNB 220, the UE 210 sends MSG3 using the UL grant scheduled in the response and monitors contention resolution. If contention resolution is not successful after MSG3 (re)transmission(s), the UE 210 goes back to MSG1 transmission.

[0065] Before the UE can start the CBRA procedure, it needs to know about the available PRACH preambles and RACH occasions. This information is provided by the NW using a parameter structure called RACH-ConfigCommon. The NW may share this information through either System Information Block 1 (SIB 1) or dedicated signaling.

[0066] UE is required to identify the preamble format and time domain position of the PRACH occasion belonging to SSB beam.

[0067] Some NES techniques are defined in Release 18. For example, more energy efficient cell transmissions and receptions are introduced during BTS active periods of low-to-medium load; faster and reliable offloading is enabled during cell shutdown via enhanced Conditional HO (CHO); paging transmissions is limited to recommended beam(s) and inter-gNB node signaling for beam activation is enabled.

[0068] FIGS 3A-3B illustrate diagrams showing examples of cell wake up by UE. As shown in FIG. 3 A, regarding WUS occasions after a Discovery reference signal (DRS), two-symbol DRS 301, 302 may be transmitted instead of SSBs and there is no SIB1 transmission. WUS monitoring may take place after DRS transmission instead of RO monitoring. Upon WUS signal 310 reception, 1 SSB+1 SIB1 320 are transmitted, followed by UL data reception. Then the cell is regress to DRS transmission and WUSmonitoring until next event of WUS signal reception.

[0069] As shown in FIG. 3B, the WUS is transmitted to from the UE 330 to the gNB 340 and the gNB 340 may transmit on-demand SSB / SIB1 to the UE 330.

[0070] In RO in DRX OFF mode, a capacity cell (i.e., a NES cell) may monitor for SSB / SIB1 / RO. The coverage cell (e.g., an anchor cell) may provide (1) SSB for the capacity cell with no additional resources, (2) supplementary SIB1 for the capacity cell with supplementary resources in time / frequency domain. A UE camped in the capacity cell may acquire synchronisation from the coverage cell.

[0071] FIG. 4 illustrates a signaling chart associated with Random Occasion (RO) in Discontinuous reception (DRX) OFF mode. As shown in FIG. 4, the OD-SIB1 mode is activated (440) at the NES cell 430. When the WUS configuration for the OD-SIB1 request is transmitted (445) from the cell A (e.g., anchor cell) to the UE 410, the UE 410 may store (450) the WUS configuration. After transmitting (455) a PRACH preamble / OD-SIBl request to the NES cell 430, the UE 410 may receive (460) the OD- SIB1 from the NES cell 430.

[0072] As described above, PRACH resources may always be assigned and simultaneously activated along with OD-SIB1 which may not be energy efficient for the gNB. This is because the gNB may have to keep the power amplifier (PA) and the receiver turned on in its RO un-necessarily, even if the UE is not actually using the RO. For the specific scenario, where the ROs are not shared between anchor cell and NES cell, there may be situations where the UE may only require OD-SIB1 without the need for an associated RO for the NES cell.

[0073] In accordance with some example embodiments of the present disclosure, there is provided a solution of WUS enhancement for NES. In this solution, a wake-up signal (WUS) configuration for requesting an on-demand system information block 1 (OD-SIB1) without random access channel resources activated is transmitted from the second apparatus 120 to the first apparatus 110. The first apparatus 110 transmits, to a third apparatus managing a NES cell based on the WUS configuration, an OD-SIB1 request without the random access channel resources activated and receive an SIB1 without an activated random access occasion from the third apparatus.

[0074] In this way, an OD-SIB1 procedure that enables the UE to only request SIB1without the PRACH resources is introduced and therefore the network energy saving can be further enhanced.

[0075] Example embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0076] Reference is now made to FIG. 5, which shows a signaling chart 500 for communication according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 5, the signaling chart 500 involves a first apparatus 110, a second apparatus 120 and a third apparatus 130. For the purpose of discussion, reference is made to FIG. 1 to describe the signaling chart 500.

[0077] FIG. 5 refers to a scenario where there are two collocated cells, namely an anchor cell 102 (i.e., a coverage) managed by the second apparatus 120 and a NES cell 104 (i.e., a capacity cell) managed by the third apparatus 130. The first apparatus 110 is in NSA mode and RRC INACTIVE / RRC IDLE state.

[0078] In this case, the second apparatus 120 may schedule few WUS monitoring occasions (along with its associated DRS transmissions) within the DRX so that the first apparatus may send emergency request for initial access, or just camp on to the cell.

[0079] The third apparatus 130 managing the NES cell may share (502) the information and configuration with the second apparatus 120 managing the anchor cell. The first apparatus 110 may be in RRC INACTIVE / RRC IDLE state (504).

[0080] Considering that the OD-SIB1 without RACH mode is activated (506) for the NES cell, the second apparatus 120 may send (508), to the first apparatus 110, a WUS configuration for requesting an OD-SIB1 without RACH resources activated from a NES cell, e.g., the NES cell managed by the third apparatus 130. For example, the second apparatus 120 may broadcast the WUS configuration with a SIB1. That is, the WUS configuration may be included in SIB1.

[0081] The WUS configuration may include a flag related to a status of the random access channel resources of the NES cell. In this case, the WUS configuration may include a new flag of OD SIBl RACH act flag which is set to false. This flag may indicate that the PRACH resources are deactivated for the NES cell

[0082] Then the first apparatus 110 may store (510) this new WUS configuration.

[0083] Based on the new WUS configuration, the first apparatus 110 may send (512) a new OD-SIB1 Request without PRACH resources activated to the third apparatus 130. This new OD-SIB1 request may be sent, based on the new WUS configuration, using different resource of time-domain, frequency-domain, or preamble than an OD-SIB1 request with PRACH resources activated.

[0084] Thereafter, the third apparatus 130 may transmit (514) OD-SIB1 without activating the RO to the first apparatus 110. In some embodiments, the SIB1 may include allocated RACH resources but without the RACH resources activated. Then the first apparatus 110 may monitor the OD-SIB1 within the search space.

[0085] As described, in the scenario shown in FIG. 5, the second apparatus 120 may send (broadcast) a new WUS configuration for requesting SIB1 without PRACH resources activated to the first apparatus 110. For example, the new WUS configuration may be sent in a SIB1 message. The second apparatus 120 may broadcast a new flag of OD SIBl RACH act flag related to the status of PRACH resources, which is set to false.

[0086] This may enable the first apparatus 110 to only request SIB 1 without the PRACH resources activated using the new WUS configuration, for scenarios like the first apparatus 110 wanting only the system information. A first apparatus 110 requesting activation of PRACH resources may still send the OD-SIB1 request with PRACH resources activated.

[0087] The first apparatus 110 may send a new OD-SIB1 request without PRACH resources activated to the NES cell using the new WUS configuration. Thereafter, the NES cell may transmit SIB1 without the RO activated to the first apparatus 110. The OD- SIB1 may contain the PRACH resource allocation, but without the resource activated.

[0088] By this way, the NW does not need to un-necessarily keep resources for RO occasions even when the UE doesn’t require it. It can turn off its PA early when RO is not required by the UE.

[0089] Reference is now made to FIG. 6, which shows a signaling chart 600 for communication according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 6, the signaling chart 600 involves a first apparatus 110, a second apparatus 120, a third apparatus 130 and a fourth apparatus 140 which is operating as a terminal device. For the purpose of discussion, reference is made to FIG. 1 to describe the signalingchart 600.

[0090] FIG. 6 refers to a scenario where there are two collocated cells, namely an anchor cell 102 (i.e., a coverage) managed by the second apparatus 120 and a NES cell 104 (i.e., a capacity cell) managed by the third apparatus 130. The first apparatus 110 is in NSA mode and RRC INACTIVE / RRC IDLE state.

[0091] In the process shown in FIG. 6, upon UEs requesting OD-SIB1 with PRACH resources, the NW will activate and subsequently deactivate the PRACH resources as explained next.

[0092] The third apparatus 130 managing the NES cell may share (602) the information and configuration with the second apparatus 120 managing the anchor cell. As an option, the third apparatus 130 may share information about the RACH resources activation timer with the second apparatus 120. That is, the OD SIBl RACH activation timer details may be shared between the NES cell and the anchor cell.

[0093] The first apparatus 110 may be in RRC INACTIVE / RRC IDLE state (606) and the fourth apparatus 140 may be in RRC INACTIVE / RRC IDLE state (604).

[0094] Considering that the OD-SIB1 without RACH activation mode is enabled (608) for the NES cell managed by the third apparatus 130, the second apparatus 120 may send (612), to the first apparatus 110, a flag indicating RACH resources are deactivated for a the NES cell managed by a third apparatus 130, which may be in a WUS configuration for requesting an OD-SIB1 without RACH resources activated from the NES cell. For example, the second apparatus 120 may broadcast a new OD SIBl RACH act flag which is set to false, which means that the PRACH resources are deactivated for the NES cell.

[0095] In some embodiments, this new WUS configuration may be broadcasted with a SIB1. That is, the WUS configuration may be included in SIB1.

[0096] Similarly, the fourth apparatus 140 may also receive (610) the new WUS configuration broadcasted by the second apparatus 120. That is, the flag indicating RACH resources are deactivated for the NES cell may also be obtained by the fourth apparatus 140.

[0097] Then the first apparatus 110 may store (616) the WUS configuration and the fourth apparatus 140 may also store (614) this new WUS configuration.

[0098] Then the RACH resources may be activated for the NES cell. For example, if the fourth apparatus 140 intends to perform an initial access, the fourth apparatus 140 may send (618) the OD-SIB1 to request OD-SIB1 and PRACH resources activated to the NES cell.

[0099] In this situation, the OD SIB 1 with PRACH activated mode may be enabled (620) for the NES cell for a certain duration of time (e.g., based on expiry of the OD SIBl RACH activation timer as mentioned above). That is, the PRACH resource may be deactivated by the NES cell after the expiry of the OD SIBl RACH activation timer. Because the information of the OD SIBl RACH activation timer has been shared with the second apparatus 120, the second apparatus 120 may be aware of the duration of the OD SIBl RACH activation timer.

[0100] Then the third apparatus 130 may send (622), to the fourth apparatus 140, an ODSIBl with the RACH resources activated. After that, the fourth apparatus 140 may perform the initial access to the NES cell by using the RACH resources activated.

[0101] When the third apparatus 130 activates the OD SIBl with PRACH resources activated for the fourth apparatus 140, the third apparatus 130 may also indicate the activation of the PRACH resources to the second apparatus 120 (i.e., the anchor cell).

[0102] After receiving the indication of the activation of the PRACH resources of the NES cell from the third apparatus 130, the second apparatus 120 may broadcast (626, 628) the new OD SIBl RACH act flag which is set to true. That is, the new flag indicates the random access channel resources are activated for the NES cell.

[0103] As an option, the third apparatus 130 managing the NES cell may further share (630) the information and configuration with the second apparatus 120 about the updated OD SIBl RACH activation timer details.

[0104] In this case, i.e., after receiving the new flag indicating the random access channel resources are activated for the NES cell, the first apparatus 110 may send (632), to the third apparatus 130, an OD-SIB1 request requesting the NES cell for the OD SIBl with the RACH resources activated even if the first apparatus 110 doesn’t require the PRACH resources. As an example, the first apparatus 110 may also send a new OD-SIB1 request or a new indication to indicate that the PRACH resources activated are not required.

[0105] Then the third apparatus 130 may provide (634) the OD SIBl with the RACHresources activated for the first apparatus 110.

[0106] After the OD SIBl RACH activation timer expires (636), the third apparatus 130 may deactivate the RACH resources. Because the information of the OD SIBl RACH activation timer has been shared with the second apparatus 120, the second apparatus 120 may be aware of the expiration of the OD SIBl RACH activation timer.

[0107] As another option, the third apparatus 130 may now indicate (638) the deactivation of the PRACH resources to the second apparatus 120.

[0108] The second apparatus 120, upon determining the deactivation of the RACH resources at the third apparatus 130, i.e., either based on the expiry of the timer or the indication from the third apparatus 130, the second apparatus 120 may broadcast (640, 642) the new OD SIBl RACH act flag which is set to false. Then both first and fourth apparatuses may be aware of the deactivation of the RACH resources of the NES cell.

[0109] Based on the solution of the present disclosure, an OD-SIB1 procedure that enables the UE to only request SIB1 without the PRACH resources is introduced and therefore the network energy saving can be further enhanced.

[0110] FIG. 7 shows a flowchart of an example method 700 implemented at a first apparatus in accordance with some example embodiments of the present disclosure. For the purpose of discussion, the method 700 will be described from the perspective of the first apparatus 110 in FIG. 1.[OHl] At block 710, the first apparatus 110 receives, from a second apparatus, a WUS configuration for requesting an OD-SIB1 without random access channel resources activated.

[0112] At block 720, the first apparatus 110 transmits, to a third apparatus managing a NES cell based on the WUS configuration, an OD-SIB 1 request without the random access channel resources activated.

[0113] At block 730, the first apparatus 110 receives, from the third apparatus, an SIB1 without an activated random access occasion.

[0114] In some example embodiments, the method 700 further comprises: obtaining, from the WUS configuration, a flag related to a status of the random access channel resources of the NES cell; and in accordance with a determination that the flag indicatesthe random access channel resources are deactivated for the NES cell, using the WUS configuration for requesting the OD-SIB1 without random access channel resources activated.

[0115] In some example embodiments, the method 700 further comprises: receiving the WUS configuration for requesting the OD-SIB1 without the random access channel resources activated via a broadcasting message.

[0116] In some example embodiments, the method 700 further comprises: determining, based on the WUS configuration, information for transmitting the OD-SIB1 request without the random access channel resources activated comprises, different from second resources, or a second preamble allocation, or a second sequence used for transmitting a further OD-SIB1 request with the random access channel resources activated, at least one of the following: first resources in time-domain and / or frequency-domain, a first preamble allocation, or a first sequence.

[0117] In some example embodiments, the method 700 further comprises: receiving, from the third apparatus, the SIB1 including allocated random access channel resources but without the random access channel resources activated.

[0118] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus comprises a terminal device and the second apparatus comprises a network node, and the third apparatus comprises a further network node.

[0119] FIG. 8 shows a flowchart of an example method 800 implemented at a second apparatus in accordance with some example embodiments of the present disclosure. For the purpose of discussion, the method 800 will be described from the perspective of the second apparatus 120 in FIG. 1.

[0120] At block 810, the second apparatus generates a WUS configuration for requesting an OD-SIB1 from a NES cell without random access channel resources activated.

[0121] At block 820, the second apparatus transmits the WUS configuration to the first apparatus.

[0122] In some example embodiments, the method 800 further comprises: generating a flag related to a status of the random access channel resources of the NES cell indicating indicates the random access channel resources are deactivated for the NES cell; and generating the WUS configuration based on the flag.

[0123] In some example embodiments, the method 800 further comprises: transmitting the WUS configuration via a broadcasting message.

[0124] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus comprises a terminal device and the second apparatus comprises a network node.

[0125] FIG. 9 shows a flowchart of an example method 900 implemented at a third apparatus in accordance with some example embodiments of the present disclosure. For the purpose of discussion, the method 900 will be described from the perspective of the third apparatus 130 in FIG. 1.

[0126] At block 910, the third apparatus receives, from a first apparatus, an OD-SIB1 request without the random access channel resources activated.

[0127] At block 920, the third apparatus transmits, to the first apparatus, an SIB 1 without an activated random access occasion.

[0128] In some example embodiments, the method 900 further comprises: transmitting, to the first apparatus, the SIB1 including allocated random access channel resources but without the random access channel resources activated.

[0129] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus comprises a terminal device and the third apparatus comprises a network node managing a NES cell.

[0130] FIG. 10 shows a flowchart of an example method 1000 implemented at a first apparatus in accordance with some example embodiments of the present disclosure. For the purpose of discussion, the method 1000 will be described from the perspective of the first apparatus 110 in FIG. 1.

[0131] At block 1010, the first apparatus receives, from a second apparatus, a flag indicating random access channel resources are deactivated for a NES cell managed by a third apparatus in a WUS configuration for requesting an OD-SIB1 without the random access channel resources activated.

[0132] At block 1020, in accordance with a determination that a further flag, indicating the random access channel resources are activated for the NES cell, is received, at block 1030, the first apparatus transmits, to the third apparatus managing the NES cell, an OD- SIB1 request with the random access channel resources activated regardless of whether an initial access is expected by the first apparatus.

[0133] At block 1040, the first apparatus receives, from the third apparatus, an SIB1 with an activated random access occasion.

[0134] In some example embodiments, the method 1000 further comprises: receiving the further flag via a broadcasting message.

[0135] In some example embodiments, the method 1000 further comprises: in accordance with a determination that the flag indicating the random access channel resources are deactivated for the NES cell is obtained from the WUS configuration, transmitting to the third apparatus managing the NES cell, a further OD-SIB1 request without the random access channel resources activated.

[0136] In some example embodiments, the method 1000 further comprises: receiving, from the third apparatus, a further SIB1 without an activated random access occasion.

[0137] In some example embodiments, the method 1000 further comprises: receiving, from the third apparatus, the further SIB1 including allocated random access channel resources but without the random access channel resources activated.

[0138] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus comprises a terminal device and the second apparatus comprises a network node, and the third apparatus comprises a further network node.

[0139] FIG. 11 shows a flowchart of an example method 1100 implemented at a second apparatus in accordance with some example embodiments of the present disclosure. For the purpose of discussion, the method 1100 will be described from the perspective of the second apparatus 120 in FIG. 1.

[0140] At block 1110, the second apparatus transmits, to a first apparatus, a flag indicating random access channel resources are deactivated for a NES cell managed by a third apparatus in a WUS configuration for requesting an OD-SIB1 without the random access channel resources activated.

[0141] At block 1120, in accordance with a determination that the random access channel resources are activated for the NES cell, at block 1130, the second apparatus transmits to the first apparatus, a further flag indicating the random access channel resources are activated for the NES cell.

[0142] At block 1140, the second apparatus determines that the random access channelresources are deactivated for the NES cell based on an expiry of random access channel resources activation timer.

[0143] In some example embodiments, the method 1100 further comprises: sharing information about the random access channel resources activation timer with the third apparatus; in accordance with a determination that an indication that the random access channel resources is activated for the NES cell is received from the third apparatus, transmitting to the first apparatus, the further flag indicating the random access channel resources are activated for the NES cell; and in accordance with a determination of an expiry of the random access channel resources activation timer based on the shared information, transmitting to the first apparatus, an another flag indicating the random access channel resources are deactivated for the NES cell.

[0144] In some example embodiments, the method 1100 further comprises: in accordance with a determination that an indication that the random access channel resources is activated for the NES cell is received from the third apparatus, transmitting to the first apparatus, the further flag indicating the random access channel resources are activated for the NES cell; and in accordance with a determination that a further indication that the random access channel resources is deactivated for the NES cell is received from the third apparatus, transmitting to the first apparatus, an another flag indicating the random access channel resources are deactivated for the NES cell.

[0145] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus comprises a terminal device and the second apparatus comprises a network node, and the third apparatus comprises a further network node.

[0146] FIG. 12 shows a flowchart of an example method 1200 implemented at a third apparatus in accordance with some example embodiments of the present disclosure. For the purpose of discussion, the method 1200 will be described from the perspective of the third apparatus 130 in FIG. 1.

[0147] At block 1210, in accordance with a determination that an OD-SIB1 request with the random access channel resources activated is received, at block 1220, the third apparatus activates the random access channel resources for a NES cell managing by the third apparatus.

[0148] At block 1230, the third apparatus transmits, to a second apparatus, an indicationthat the random access channel resources is activated for the NES cell while starting a random access channel resources activation timer.

[0149] At block 1240, the third apparatus deactivates the random access channel resources for the NES cell after an expiry of the random access channel resources activation timer.

[0150] In some example embodiments, the method 1200 further comprises: sharing information about the random access channel resources activation timer with the second apparatus.

[0151] In some example embodiments, the method 1200 further comprises: transmitting, to the second apparatus, a further indication that the random access channel resources is deactivated for the NES cell after the expiry of the random access channel resources activation timer.

[0152] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus comprises a terminal device and the second apparatus comprises a network node, and the third apparatus comprises a further network node.

[0153] In some example embodiments, a first apparatus capable of performing any of the method 700 (for example, the first apparatus 110 in FIG. 1) may comprise means for performing the respective operations of the method 700. The means may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the means may be implemented in a circuitry or software module. The first apparatus may be implemented as or included in the first apparatus 110 in FIG. 1.

[0154] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus comprises means for receiving, from a second apparatus, a WUS configuration for requesting an OD-SIB1 without random access channel resources activated; means for transmitting, to a third apparatus managing a NES cell based on the WUS configuration, an OD-SIB1 request without the random access channel resources activated; and means for receiving, from the third apparatus, an SIB1 without an activated random access occasion.

[0155] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus further comprises: means for obtaining, from the WUS configuration, a flag related to a status of the random access channel resources of the NES cell; and means for in accordance with a determination that the flag indicates the random access channel resources are deactivated for the NES cell,using the WUS configuration for requesting the OD-SIB1 without random access channel resources activated.

[0156] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus further comprises: means for receiving the WUS configuration for requesting the OD-SIB1 without the random access channel resources activated via a broadcasting message.

[0157] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus further comprises: means for determining, based on the WUS configuration, information for transmitting the OD-SIB1 request without the random access channel resources activated comprises, different from second resources, or a second preamble allocation, or a second sequence used for transmitting a further OD-SIB1 request with the random access channel resources activated, at least one of the following: means for first resources in time-domain and / or frequency-domain, means for a first preamble allocation, or means for a first sequence.

[0158] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus further comprises: means for receiving, from the third apparatus, the SIB1 including allocated random access channel resources but without the random access channel resources activated.

[0159] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus comprises a terminal device and the second apparatus comprises a network node, and the third apparatus comprises a further network node.

[0160] In some example embodiments, a second apparatus capable of performing any of the method 800 (for example, the second apparatus 120 in FIG. 1) may comprise means for performing the respective operations of the method 800. The means may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the means may be implemented in a circuitry or software module. The second apparatus may be implemented as or included in the second apparatus 120 in FIG. 1.

[0161] In some example embodiments, the second apparatus comprises means for generating a WUS configuration for requesting an OD-SIB1 from a NES cell without random access channel resources activated; and means for transmitting the WUS configuration to the first apparatus.

[0162] In some example embodiments, the second apparatus further comprises: means for generating a flag related to a status of the random access channel resources of the NES cell indicating indicates the random access channel resources are deactivated for the NEScell; and means for generating the WUS configuration based on the flag.

[0163] In some example embodiments, the second apparatus further comprises: means for transmitting the WUS configuration via a broadcasting message.

[0164] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus comprises a terminal device and the second apparatus comprises a network node.

[0165] In some example embodiments, a third apparatus capable of performing any of the method 900 (for example, the third apparatus 130 in FIG. 1) may comprise means for performing the respective operations of the method 900. The means may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the means may be implemented in a circuitry or software module. The third apparatus may be implemented as or included in the third apparatus 130 in FIG. 1.

[0166] In some example embodiments, the third apparatus comprises means for receiving, from a first apparatus, an OD-SIB1 request without the random access channel resources activated; and means for transmitting, to the first apparatus, an SIB1 without an activated random access occasion.

[0167] In some example embodiments, the third apparatus further comprises: means for transmitting, to the first apparatus, the SIB1 including allocated random access channel resources but without the random access channel resources activated.

[0168] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus comprises a terminal device and the third apparatus comprises a network node managing a NES cell. WHAT IS CLAIMED IS: (FFP#2)

[0169] In some example embodiments, a first apparatus capable of performing any of the method 1000 (for example, the first apparatus 110 in FIG. 1) may comprise means for performing the respective operations of the method 1000. The means may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the means may be implemented in a circuitry or software module. The first apparatus may be implemented as or included in the first apparatus 110 in FIG. 1.

[0170] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus comprises means for receiving, from a second apparatus, a flag indicating random access channel resources are deactivated for a NES cell managed by a third apparatus in a WUS configuration for requesting an OD-SIB1 without the random access channel resources activated; means forin accordance with a determination that a further flag, indicating the random access channel resources are activated for the NES cell, is received, transmitting, to the third apparatus managing the NES cell, an OD-SIB1 request with the random access channel resources activated regardless of whether an initial access is expected by the first apparatus; and means for receiving, from the third apparatus, an SIB1 with an activated random access occasion.

[0171] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus further comprises: means for receiving the further flag via a broadcasting message.

[0172] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus further comprises: means for in accordance with a determination that the flag indicating the random access channel resources are deactivated for the NES cell is obtained from the WUS configuration, transmitting to the third apparatus managing the NES cell, a further OD-SIB1 request without the random access channel resources activated.

[0173] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus further comprises: means for receiving, from the third apparatus, a further SIB1 without an activated random access occasion.

[0174] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus further comprises: means for receiving, from the third apparatus, the further SIB1 including allocated random access channel resources but without the random access channel resources activated.

[0175] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus comprises a terminal device and the second apparatus comprises a network node, and the third apparatus comprises a further network node.

[0176] In some example embodiments, a second apparatus capable of performing any of the method 1100 (for example, the second apparatus 120 in FIG. 1) may comprise means for performing the respective operations of the method 1100. The means may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the means may be implemented in a circuitry or software module. The second apparatus may be implemented as or included in the second apparatus 120 in FIG. 1.

[0177] In some example embodiments, the second apparatus comprises means for transmitting, to a first apparatus, a flag indicating random access channel resources are deactivated for a NES cell managed by a third apparatus in a WUS configuration forrequesting an 0D-SIB1 without the random access channel resources activated; means for in accordance with a determination that the random access channel resources are activated for the NES cell, transmitting to the first apparatus, a further flag indicating the random access channel resources are activated for the NES cell; and means for determining that the random access channel resources are deactivated for the NES cell based on an expiry of random access channel resources activation timer.

[0178] In some example embodiments, the second apparatus further comprises: means for sharing information about the random access channel resources activation timer with the third apparatus; means for in accordance with a determination that an indication that the random access channel resources is activated for the NES cell is received from the third apparatus, transmitting to the first apparatus, the further flag indicating the random access channel resources are activated for the NES cell; and means for in accordance with a determination of an expiry of the random access channel resources activation timer based on the shared information, transmitting to the first apparatus, an another flag indicating the random access channel resources are deactivated for the NES cell.

[0179] In some example embodiments, the second apparatus further comprises: means for in accordance with a determination that an indication that the random access channel resources is activated for the NES cell is received from the third apparatus, transmitting to the first apparatus, the further flag indicating the random access channel resources are activated for the NES cell; and means for in accordance with a determination that a further indication that the random access channel resources is deactivated for the NES cell is received from the third apparatus, transmitting to the first apparatus, an another flag indicating the random access channel resources are deactivated for the NES cell.

[0180] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus comprises a terminal device and the second apparatus comprises a network node, and the third apparatus comprises a further network node.

[0181] In some example embodiments, a third apparatus capable of performing any of the method 1200 (for example, the third apparatus 130 in FIG. 1) may comprise means for performing the respective operations of the method 1200. The means may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the means may be implemented in a circuitry or software module. The third apparatus may be implemented as or included in the third apparatus 130 in FIG. 1.

[0182] In some example embodiments, the third apparatus comprises means for in accordance with a determination that an OD-SIB1 request with the random access channel resources activated is received, activating the random access channel resources for a NES cell managing by the third apparatus; means for transmitting, to a second apparatus, an indication that the random access channel resources is activated for the NES cell while starting a random access channel resources activation timer; and means for deactivating the random access channel resources for the NES cell after an expiry of the random access channel resources activation timer.

[0183] In some example embodiments, the third apparatus further comprises: means for sharing information about the random access channel resources activation timer with the second apparatus.

[0184] In some example embodiments, the third apparatus further comprises: means for transmitting, to the second apparatus, a further indication that the random access channel resources is deactivated for the NES cell after the expiry of the random access channel resources activation timer.

[0185] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus comprises a terminal device and the second apparatus comprises a network node, and the third apparatus comprises a further network node.

[0186] FIG. 13 is a simplified block diagram of a device 1300 that is suitable for implementing example embodiments of the present disclosure. The device 1300 may be provided to implement a communication device, for example, the first apparatus 110 or the second apparatus 120 or the third apparatus 130 as shown in FIG. 1. As shown, the device 1300 includes one or more processors 1310, one or more memories 1320 coupled to the processor 1310, and one or more communication modules 1340 coupled to the processor 1310.

[0187] The communication module 1340 is for bidirectional communications. The communication module 1340 has one or more communication interfaces to facilitate communication with one or more other modules or devices. The communication interfaces may represent any interface that is necessary for communication with other network elements. In some example embodiments, the communication module 1340 may include at least one antenna.

[0188] The processor 1310 may be of any type suitable to the local technical network and may include one or more of the following: general purpose computers, special purpose computers, microprocessors, digital signal processors (DSPs) and processors based on multicore processor architecture, as non-limiting examples. The device 1300 may have multiple processors, such as an application specific integrated circuit chip that is slaved in time to a clock which synchronizes the main processor.

[0189] The memory 1320 may include one or more non-volatile memories and one or more volatile memories. Examples of the non-volatile memories include, but are not limited to, a Read Only Memory (ROM) 1324, an electrically programmable read only memory (EPROM), a flash memory, a hard disk, a compact disc (CD), a digital video disk (DVD), an optical disk, a laser disk, and other magnetic storage and / or optical storage. Examples of the volatile memories include, but are not limited to, a random-access memory (RAM) 1322 and other volatile memories that will not last in the power-down duration.

[0190] A computer program 1330 includes computer executable instructions that are executed by the associated processor 1310. The instructions of the program 1330 may include instructions for performing operations / acts of some example embodiments of the present disclosure. The program 1330 may be stored in the memory, e.g., the ROM 1324. The processor 1310 may perform any suitable actions and processing by loading the program 1330 into the RAM 1322.

[0191] The example embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented by means of the program 1330 so that the device 1300 may perform any process of the disclosure as discussed with reference to FIG. 2 to FIG. 12. The example embodiments of the present disclosure may also be implemented by hardware or by a combination of software and hardware.

[0192] In some example embodiments, the program 1330 may be tangibly contained in a computer readable medium which may be included in the device 1300 (such as in the memory 1320) or other storage devices that are accessible by the device 1300. The device 1300 may load the program 1330 from the computer readable medium to the RAM 1322 for execution. In some example embodiments, the computer readable medium may include any types of non-transitory storage medium, such as ROM, EPROM, a flash memory, a hard disk, CD, DVD, and the like. The term “non-transitory,” as used herein, is a limitationof the medium itself (i.e., tangible, not a signal) as opposed to a limitation on data storage persistency (e.g., RAM vs. ROM).

[0193] FIG. 14 shows an example of the computer readable medium 1400 which may be in form of CD, DVD or other optical storage disk. The computer readable medium 1400 has the program 1330 stored thereon.

[0194] Generally, various embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented in hardware or special purpose circuits, software, logic or any combination thereof. Some aspects may be implemented in hardware, and other aspects may be implemented in firmware or software which may be executed by a controller, microprocessor or other computing device. Although various aspects of embodiments of the present disclosure are illustrated and described as block diagrams, flowcharts, or using some other pictorial representations, it is to be understood that the block, apparatus, system, technique or method described herein may be implemented in, as non-limiting examples, hardware, software, firmware, special purpose circuits or logic, general purpose hardware or controller or other computing devices, or some combination thereof.

[0195] Some example embodiments of the present disclosure also provide at least one computer program product tangibly stored on a computer readable medium, such as a non- transitory computer readable medium. The computer program product includes computerexecutable instructions, such as those included in program modules, being executed in a device on a target physical or virtual processor, to carry out any of the methods as described above. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, libraries, objects, classes, components, data structures, or the like that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. The functionality of the program modules may be combined or split between program modules as desired in various embodiments. Machine-executable instructions for program modules may be executed within a local or distributed device. In a distributed device, program modules may be located in both local and remote storage media.

[0196] Program code for carrying out methods of the present disclosure may be written in any combination of one or more programming languages. The program code may be provided to a processor or controller of a general-purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus, such that the program code, when executed by the processor or controller, cause the functions / operations specified inthe flowcharts and / or block diagrams to be implemented. The program code may execute entirely on a machine, partly on the machine, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the machine and partly on a remote machine or entirely on the remote machine or server.

[0197] In the context of the present disclosure, the computer program code or related data may be carried by any suitable carrier to enable the device, apparatus or processor to perform various processes and operations as described above. Examples of the carrier include a signal, computer readable medium, and the like.

[0198] The computer readable medium may be a computer readable signal medium or a computer readable storage medium. A computer readable medium may include but not limited to an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. More specific examples of the computer readable storage medium would include an electrical connection having one or more wires, a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, a random-access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), an optical fiber, a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing.

[0199] Further, although operations are depicted in a particular order, this should not be understood as requiring that such operations be performed in the particular order shown or in sequential order, or that all illustrated operations be performed, to achieve desirable results. In certain circumstances, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Likewise, although several specific implementation details are contained in the above discussions, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the present disclosure, but rather as descriptions of features that may be specific to particular embodiments. Unless explicitly stated, certain features that are described in the context of separate embodiments may also be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, unless explicitly stated, various features that are described in the context of a single embodiment may also be implemented in a plurality of embodiments separately or in any suitable sub-combination.

[0200] Although the present disclosure has been described in languages specific to structural features and / or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the present disclosure defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific featuresor acts described above. Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims.

Claims

WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:

1. A first apparatus comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the first apparatus at least to: receive, from a second apparatus, a wake-up signal, WUS, configuration for requesting an on-demand system information block 1, OD-SIB1, without random access channel resources activated; transmit, to a third apparatus managing a network energy saving, NES, cell based on the WUS configuration, an OD-SIB1 request without the random access channel resources activated; and receive, from the third apparatus, an SIB1 without an activated random access occasion.

2. The first apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first apparatus is caused to: obtain, from the WUS configuration, a flag related to a status of the random access channel resources of the NES cell; and in accordance with a determination that the flag indicates the random access channel resources are deactivated for the NES cell, use the WUS configuration for requesting the OD-SIB1 without random access channel resources activated.

3. The first apparatus of claim 1 or 2, wherein the first apparatus is caused to: receive the WUS configuration for requesting the OD-SIB1 without the random access channel resources activated via a broadcasting message.

4. The first apparatus of any of claims 1-3, wherein the first apparatus is caused to: determine, based on the WUS configuration, information for transmitting the OD- SIB1 request without the random access channel resources activated comprises, different from second resources, or a second preamble allocation, or a second sequence used for transmitting a further OD-SIB1 request with the random access channel resources activated, at least one of the following:first resources in time-domain and / or frequency-domain, a first preamble allocation, or a first sequence.

5. The first apparatus of any of claims 1-4, wherein the first apparatus is caused to: receive, from the third apparatus, the SIB1 including allocated random access channel resources but without the random access channel resources activated.

6. The first apparatus of any of claims 1-5, wherein the first apparatus comprises a terminal device and the second apparatus comprises a network node, and the third apparatus comprises a further network node.

7. A second apparatus comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the second apparatus at least to: generate a wake-up signal, WUS, configuration for requesting an on-demand system information block 1, OD-SIB1, from a NES cell without random access channel resources activated; and transmit the WUS configuration to the first apparatus.

8. The second apparatus of claim 7, wherein the second apparatus is caused to: generate a flag related to a status of the random access channel resources of theNES cell indicating indicates the random access channel resources are deactivated for the NES cell; and generate the WUS configuration based on the flag.

9. The second apparatus of claim 7 or 8, wherein the second apparatus is caused to: transmit the WUS configuration via a broadcasting message.

10. The second apparatus of any of claims 7-9, wherein the first apparatus comprises a terminal device and the second apparatus comprises a network node.3511. A third apparatus comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the third apparatus at least to: receive, from a first apparatus, an OD-SIB1 request without the random access channel resources activated; and transmit, to the first apparatus, an SIB1 without an activated random access occasion.

12. The third apparatus of claim 11, wherein the third apparatus is caused to: transmit, to the first apparatus, the SIB1 including allocated random access channel resources but without the random access channel resources activated.

13. The second apparatus of claim 11 or 12, wherein the first apparatus comprises a terminal device and the third apparatus comprises a network node managing a NES cell.

14. A method comprising: receiving, from a second apparatus, a wake-up signal, WUS, configuration for requesting an on-demand system information block 1, OD-SIB1, without random access channel resources activated; transmitting, to a third apparatus managing a network energy saving, NES, cell based on the WUS configuration, an OD-SIB1 request without the random access channel resources activated; and receiving, from the third apparatus, an SIB1 without an activated random access occasion.

15. A method comprising: generating a wake-up signal, WUS, configuration for requesting an on-demand system information block 1, OD-SIB1, from a NES cell without random access channel resources activated; and transmitting the WUS configuration to the first apparatus.

16. A method comprising: receiving, from a first apparatus, an OD-SIB1 request without the random access channel resources activated; and transmitting, to the first apparatus, an SIB1 without an activated random access occasion.

17. A first apparatus comprising: means for receiving, from a second apparatus, a wake-up signal, WUS, configuration for requesting an on-demand system information block 1, OD-SIB1, without random access channel resources activated; means for transmitting, to a third apparatus managing a network energy saving, NES, cell based on the WUS configuration, an OD-SIB1 request without the random access channel resources activated; and means for receiving, from the third apparatus, an SIB1 without an activated random access occasion.

18. A second apparatus comprising: means for generating a wake-up signal, WUS, configuration for requesting an on- demand system information block 1, OD-SIB1, from a NES cell without random access channel resources activated; and means for transmitting the WUS configuration to the first apparatus.

19. A third apparatus comprising: means for receiving, from a first apparatus, an OD-SIB1 request without the random access channel resources activated; and means for transmitting, to the first apparatus, an SIB 1 without an activated random access occasion.

20. A computer readable medium comprising instructions stored thereon for causing an apparatus at least to perform the method of claim 14 or the method of claim 15 or the method of claim 16.

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