Method and apparatus for communication and computation task distribution

Abstract

This invention describes an apparatus and method and system for efficient operation in a communication system comprising: connecting, by a device, to the communication system using a first communication transceiver through a first access device, indicating, by a device, its capabilities and / or preferences for efficient operation to the communication system, negotiating, by a device, a configuration a configuration of communication and computation resources for efficient operation, and communicating, by a device, based on the efficient operation configuration.

Description

[0001] 2024PF00673

[0002] 11.12.2025

[0003] METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR COMMUNICATION AND COMPUTATION TASK DISTRIBUTION

[0004] FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0005] This invention relates to a method, apparatus, and system for operating a wireless device such as a user equipment to efficiently allocate communication and computational resources enabling efficient communication in a wireless system such as a cellular system, a WiFi network or the like.

[0006] BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0007] In conventional cellular networks, a primary station serves a plurality of secondary stations located within a cell served by this primary station. Wireless communication from the primary station towards each secondary station is done on downlink channels. Conversely, wireless communication from each secondary towards the primary station is done on uplink channels. The wireless communication can include data traffic (sometimes referred to User Data), and control information (also referred sometimes as signaling). This control information typically comprises information to assist the primary station and / or the secondary station to exchange data traffic (e.g. resource allocation / requests, physical transmission parameters, information on the state of the respective stations).

[0008] In the context of cellular networks as standardized by 3GPP, the primary station is referred to a base station, or a gNodeB (or gNB) in 5G (NR) or an eNodeB (or eNB) in 4G (LTE). The eNB / gNB is part of the Radio Access Network RAN, which interfaces to functions in the Core Network (CN). In the same context, the secondary station corresponds to a mobile station, or a User Equipment (or a UE) in 4G / 5G, which is a wireless client device or a specific role played by such device. The term “node” is also used to denote either a UE or a gNB / eNB.

[0009] Additionally, for example, in the case of PC5 interface or Sidelink communication, it is possible to have Direct communication between secondary stations, here UEs. It is then also possible for UEs to operate as Relays to allow for example out of coverage UEs to get an inter-mediate (or indirect) connection to the eNB or gNB. To be able to work as a relay, a UE may use discovery messages to establish new connections with other UEs.

[0010] Current cellular systems are evolving to increase the coverage and capacity while reducing latency. In addition, cellular systems are evolving to offer computational resources, not only in the form of edge computing, but also enabling the use of spare computational resources in cellular core networks or base stations, or other service hosting environment. To enable this evolution, it is challenging to determine how computing and computational tasks are divided when performing a communication operation. 2024PF00673

[0011] 11.12.2025

[0012] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0013] It is an aim of this invention to address this problem.

[0014] It is another aim of the invention to propose techniques to allow efficient operation in a wireless system, for example in a cellular network. These techniques are applicable, for instance, in new non-terrestrial communication scenarios in which the long distance between secondary stations and primary stations implies higher costs in terms of energy or latency. These techniques may be applicable in the context of new semantic communication primitives or when communication and computation procedures are triggered by new Al techniques such as generative Al.

[0015] Thus, in accordance with an aspect of the invention, it is proposed an apparatus, a method and a computer program as defined in the appended set of claims.

[0016] It shall be understood that a preferred embodiment of the invention can also be any combination of the dependent claims or above embodiments with the respective independent claim.

[0017] These and other aspects of the invention will be apparent from and elucidated with reference to the embodiments described hereinafter.

[0018] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019] In the following drawings:

[0020] Fig. 1 schematically represents the overall cellular system including UEs, RAN, and core network;

[0021] Fig. 2 provides a schematic representation of a UE and its components; and Fig. 3 schematically represents different entities involved in a non-terrestrial network; Fig. 4 schematically represents a random-access procedure in a wireless network;

[0022] Fig. 5 schematically represents a signalling procedure by an access device; and Fig. 6 schematically represents the periodic transmission of SSB bursts; and Fig. 7 schematically represents examples of wireless devices according to some embodiments;

[0023] Fig. 8 schematically represents a communication procedure according to an embodiment of the invention;

[0024] Fig. 9 and Fig. 10 schematically represents two procedures for compressing and speech reconstruction according to an embodiment of the invention;

[0025] Fig. 11 and Fig. 12 schematically illustrates procedures for speech compression and decompression / reconstruction according to embodiments of the invention;

[0026] Fig. 13 is a workflow representing a method in accordance with an embodiment of the invention;

[0027] Fig. 14 schematically illustrates a mobility procedure according to embodiments of the invention; and 2024PF00673

[0028] 3 11.12.2025

[0029] Fig. 15 schematically illustrates a procedure to orchestrate computing and communication operations according to embodiments of the invention.

[0030] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

[0031] Embodiments of the present invention are now described based on a cellular communication network environment, such as 5G or 6G. However, the present invention may also be used in connection with other wireless technologies.

[0032] Throughout the present disclosure, the abbreviation “gNB” (5G terminology) or “BS” (base station) or the term “access device” is intended to mean a wireless access device such as a cellular base station or a WiFi access point or a ultrawide band (UWB) personal area network (PAN) coordinator. The gNB may consist of a centralized control plane unit (gNB-CU-CP), multiple centralized user plane units (gNB-CU-UPs) and / or multiple distributed units (gNB-DUs). The gNB is part of a radio access network (RAN), which provides an interface to functions in the core network (CN). The RAN is part of a wireless communication network. It implements a radio access technology (RAT). Conceptually, it resides between a communication device such as a mobile phone, a computer, or any remotely controlled machine and provides connection with its CN. The CN is the communication network’s core part, which offers numerous services to customers who are interconnected via the RAN. More specifically, it directs communication streams over the communication network and possibly other networks.

[0033] Furthermore, the terms “base station” (BS) and “network” may be used as synonyms in this disclosure. This means for example that when it is written that the “network” performs a certain operation it may be performed by a CN function of a wireless communication network, or by one or more base stations that are part of such a wireless communication network, and vice versa. It can also mean that part of the functionality is performed by a CN function of the wireless communication network and part of the functionality by the base station.

[0034] It is further noted that throughout the present disclosure only those blocks, components and / or devices that are relevant are shown in the accompanying drawings. Other blocks have been omitted for reasons of brevity. Furthermore, blocks designated by same reference numbers are intended to have the same or at least a similar function, so that their function is not described again later.

[0035] A cellular system is a wireless communication system that consists of three main components: user equipment (UE), radio access network (RAN), and core network (CN). These components work together to provide voice and data services to mobile users over a large geographic area.

[0036] In conventional cellular networks, a primary station serves a plurality of secondary stations located within a cell served by this primary station. Wireless communication from the primary station towards each secondary station is done on downlink channels. Conversely, wireless communication from each secondary towards the primary station is done on uplink channels. The wireless communication can include data traffic (sometimes referred to User Data), and control information (also 2024PF00673

[0037] 4 11.12.2025

[0038] referred sometimes as signalling). This control information typically comprises information to assist the primary station and / or the secondary station to exchange data traffic (e.g. resource allocation / requests, physical transmission parameters, information on the state of the respective stations). In the context of cellular networks as standardized by 3GPP, the primary station is referred to a base station, or a gNodeB (or gNB) in 5G (NR) or an eNodeB (or eNB) in 4G (LTE). The eNB / gNB is part of the Radio Access Network RAN, which interfaces to functions in the Core Network (CN). In the same context, the secondary station corresponds to a mobile station, or a User Equipment (or a UE) in 4G / 5G, which is a wireless client device or a specific role played by such device. The term “node” is also used to denote either a UE or a gNB / eNB.

[0039] Additionally, for example, in the case of PC5 interface or Sidelink communication, it is possible to have Direct communication between secondary stations, here UEs. It is then also possible for UEs to operate as Relays to allow for example out of coverage UEs to get an inter-mediate (or indirect) connection to the eNB or gNB. To be able to work as a relay, a UE may use discovery messages to establish new connections with other UEs. Certain UEs may communicate with each other by using device-to-device communication, also known as sidelink communication using the PC5 interface that may rely on physical sidelink (PS) broadcast channel, PS shared channel, PS control, etc. Furthermore, the role of a relay node has been introduced in 3GPP. This relay node is a wireless communication station that includes functionalities for relaying communication between a primary station, e.g. a gNB and a secondary station, e.g. a UE. This relay function for example allows to extend the coverage of a cell to an out-of-coverage (OoC) secondary station. This relay node may be a mobile station or could be a different type of device. In the specifications for 4G, the Proximity Services (ProSe) functions are defined inter alia in TS 23.303, and TS 24.334 to enable - amongst others -connectivity for the cellular User Equipment (UE) that is temporarily not in coverage of the cellular network base station (eNB) serving the cell. This particular function is called ProSe UE-to-network relay, or Relay UE for short. The Relay UE relays application and network traffic in two directions between the OoC UE and the eNB. The local communication between the Relay UE and the OoC UE is called device-to-device (D2D) communication or Sidelink (also known as PC5) communication in TS 23.303 and TS 24.334. Once the relaying relation is established, the OoC-UE is, e.g., IP -connected via the Relay UE and acts in a role of “Remote UE”. This situation means the Remote UE has an indirect network connection to selected functions of the Core Network as opposed to a direct network connection to all Core Network functions that is the normal case. Furthermore, it has been introduced the role of a UE-to-UE relay node, i.e., a relay node re-laying the communication between two UE devices. The relay node relays the communications between UE devices. UEs may connect to the core network through a base station when in-coverage. In such relay scenarios, the relay devices may receive and store some information for some time before forwarding it towards the target device. This information that may be stored and forwarded may be discovery messages received from a source UE whereby the relay UE may release them at some point of time later. This information that may be stored and forwarded may be a SIB that may contain a timestamp. 2024PF00673

[0040] 5 11.12.2025

[0041] User equipment (UE) is the device that a user uses to access the cellular system, such as a smartphone, a tablet, a laptop, loT device, or a wearable device. A UE typically may contain the following components:

[0042] - A universal integrated circuit card (UICC), which stores the user's identification and authentication information, such as the subscription permanent identifier (SUPI) or credentials.

[0043] - A transceiver, which converts the digital signals from the processor into analog signals for transmission and reception over the air interface. The transceiver also performs modulation, demodulation, coding, decoding, and other signal processing functions.

[0044] - A processor, which controls the operation of the UE and executes the applications and services that the user requests. The processor also communicates with the RAN and the CN using various protocols.

[0045] - A display, which shows the user the information and feedback from the UE, such as the signal strength, the battery level, the call status, the messages, the contacts, the menu, etc.

[0046] - A microphone and a speaker, which enable the user to make and receive voice calls, as well as use other audio features, such as voice mail, voice recognition, etc.

[0047] - A keyboard and / or a touch screen, which allow the user to enter and select commands, text, numbers, etc.

[0048] - A camera and / or a video recorder, which enable the user to capture and send images and videos, as well as use other multimedia features, such as video calling, video streaming, etc.

[0049] - A memory, which stores the data and programs that the user needs, such as the phone book, the messages, the photos, the videos, the applications, etc as well as a computer program to perform the operations of the RAN and CN protocols.

[0050] - A battery, which provides the power supply for the UE.

[0051] Fig. 2 provides a schematic representation of a UE and its components, e.g., UICC (201), processor (202), transceiver (203), memory (204), input devices (205) such as camera, microphone, etc and output devices (206) such as display, speaker, etc. Fig. 7 schematically represents wireless devices that may include the capabilities of a UE and / or a STA. Fig. 7a) represents AR / VR glasses; Fig. 7b) represents a connected vehicle; and Fig. 7c) represents a mobile phone. In these devices, a reflective intelligent surface (RIS) may be embedded, e.g., by covering and / or under the whole a part of the UE surface. This may be used, e.g., to better deal with interferences or improve wireless sensing.

[0052] A UE access the cellular network via the radio access network, as described below. Certain UEs may communicate with each other by using device-to-device communication, also known as sidelink communication using the PC5 interface that may rely on physical sidelink (PS) broadcast channel, PS shared channel, PS control, etc.

[0053] A UE may receive a configuration by means of different procedures:

[0054] Downlink control information (DCI) is a type of control information that is sent from the BS to the UE on the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH). DCI contains various parameters that 2024PF00673

[0055] 6 11.12.2025

[0056] instruct the UE how / when to decode and transmit data on the physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) and the physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH), such as the resource allocation, the modulation and coding scheme. The UE needs to monitor the PDCCH in each subframe to detect and decode the DCI that is addressed to it.

[0057] Uplink control information (UCI) is a type of control information that is sent from the UE to the BS on the physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) or the physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH). UCI contains various feedback signals that inform the BS about the status and quality of the downlink transmission, such as the HARQ acknowledgments (ACKs), the channel state information (CSI), and the scheduling requests (SRs). The UE needs to encode and transmit the UCI according to the configuration and timing indicated by the BS.

[0058] Sidelink control information (SCI) is a type of control information that is sent from the UE to another UE on the physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) in device-to-device (D2D) communication scenarios. The main functions of SCI include resource allocation, synchronization, channel quality reporting.

[0059] Medium access control (MAC) control element (MAC CE) is a type of control information that is sent from the BS to the UE or vice versa on the MAC layer. MAC CE contains various commands or indications that regulate the MAC layer functions, such as the buffer status report (BSR), the timing advance command (TAC), the discontinuous reception (DRX) command, etc. The UE needs to process the MAC CE according to the MAC protocol and the configuration provided by the BS.

[0060] Radio resource control (RRC) command is a type of control information that is exchanged between the BS and the UE on the RRC layer. RRC Command contains various messages that modify / configure RRC parameters and / or initiate, modify, or release the RRC connection or the radio bearers between the UE and the BS, such as the RRC connection setup, the RRC connection reconfiguration, the RRC connection release, the security mode command, the mobility from E-UTRA command, the handover from E-UTRA preparation request, etc. The UE needs to respond to the RRC Command according to the RRC protocol and the configuration provided by the BS.

[0061] Non-access stratum (NAS) messages are used for signalling between UE and core network (CN) on the non-access stratum (NAS) layer. NAS messages enable functionality such as registration, session establishment, security, and mobility management. The UE needs to respond to the NAS Command according to the NAS protocol and the configuration provided by the CN.

[0062] UE parameter update (UPU) is a procedure between the UE and the home network that enables the home network to update configuration parameters in mobile phones and / or USIM using tthe UDM control plane procedure (TS 23.502). The UE can receive Parameters Update Data from the UDM after the UE has registered in the 5G network.

[0063] Steering of Roaming (SoR) enables the home network to guide the user equipment (UE) when registering on a visited network. For detailed information about the interfaces and registration in the 5G System, refer to 3GPP TS.23.501 (Release 15)

[0017] and 3GPP TS 24.501 (Release 15)

[0018] , The 5G 2024PF00673

[0064] 7 11.12.2025

[0065] CP-SOR is activated during or after registration to update the UE's " Operator Controlled PLMN Selector with Access Technology" list via secure NAS messages, as directed by the home PLMN based on specific operator policies such as preferred networks or UE location.

[0066] UE configuration update (UCU) is used to update configuration parameters as per TS 23.502 that may include Access and Mobility Management related parameters decided and provided by the AMF, UE Policy provided by the PCF. When AMF wants to change the UE configuration for access and mobility management related parameters the AMF initiates the procedure defined in clause 4.2.4.2. When the PCF wants to change or provide new UE Policies in the UE, the PCF initiates the procedure defined in clause 4.2.4.3. If the UE Configuration Update procedure requires the UE to initiate a Registration procedure, the AMF indicates this to the UE explicitly. The procedure in clause 4.2.4.2 may be triggered also when the AAA Server that performed Network Slice-Specific Authentication and Authorization for an S-NSSAI revokes the authorization.

[0067] Radio access network (RAN) is the part of the cellular system that connects the UEs to the CN via the air interface. The RAN consists of base stations (BSs). A base station (BS) is a fixed or mobile transceiver that covers a certain geographic area, called a cell. In 5G, a BS is also called a gNB (next generation node B). A BS can serve multiple UEs simultaneously within its cell, by using different frequencies, time slots, codes, or beams. A BS also performs functions such as power control, handover control, channel allocation, interference management, etc. A base station can be divided into two units: a central unit (CU) and a distributed unit (DU). The CU performs the higher layer functions, such as RLC, PDCP, RRC, etc. The DU performs the lower layer functions, such as PHY and MAC. The CU and the DU can be co-located or separated, depending on the network architecture and deployment. In cellular systems, a base station may be denoted, based on context, as a cell, or gNB.

[0068] The cell may also refer to the coverage area of a base station. A BS may have different coverage areas such as a macro cell (e.g. several kilometres wide), a pico cell (e.g., for a given location such as a stadium) or a femto cell for a small location (e.g., a home or part of it).

[0069] A base station may communicate with the core network. Since there can be base stations for different cellular systems, different interfaces are required. For instance, a base station, eNB, in a 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) system (also known as Evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications Systems (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN)) may interface with the 4G CN known as EPC through the corresponding interface. For instance, a base station, gNB, in a 5G system (i.e., 5G New Radio or Next Generation RAN) may communicate with the 5GC through a different interface. 4G and 5G base stations may communicate with each other directly or through their corresponding core networks.

[0070] The main protocols used between the UEs and the RAN are:

[0071] - The physical layer (PHY), which defines the characteristics of the air interface, such as the frequency bands, the modulation schemes, the coding rates, the frame structure, the synchronization, etc. 2024PF00673

[0072] 8 11.12.2025

[0073] - The medium access control (MAC) layer, which regulates the access of the UEs to the shared radio channel, by using techniques such as orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA), time division duplex (TDD), frequency division duplex (FDD), etc.

[0074] - The radio link control (RLC) layer, which provides reliable data transmission over the radio channel, by using techniques such as segmentation, reassembly, error detection, error correction, retransmission, etc.

[0075] - The packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, which compresses and decompresses the headers of the data packets, encrypts and decrypts the data, and performs data integrity protection.

[0076] - The radio resource control (RRC) layer, which establishes, maintains, and releases the radio bearers between the UEs and the RAN, as well as exchanges the signaling messages for functions such as connection setup, handover, measurement reporting, security activation, etc.

[0077] A transmission / reception communication unit or transceiver may be used by BS and UE to transmit / receive data. Control data may be required for a physical broadcast channel, physical downlink control channel, etc. Data may be for the physical downlink shared channel.

[0078] Data may be encoded by the UE and / or BS to obtain data symbols and / or control symbols that may be exchanged over the wireless interface. The conversion from digital data into analog symbols may be done by the transmission / reception communication unit.

[0079] A medium access control control-element (MAC-CE) is a MAC layer communication element that is used to control the communication between wireless devices. A MAC-CE may be exchanged in a shared channel, e.g., the physical downlink / uplink / sidelink shared channel.

[0080] The communication between a UE and a base station or the communication between UEs (when sidelink is used) may involve the exchange of reference signals. Reference signals may include primary synchronization signal (PSS), a secondary synchronization signal (SSS), a physical broadcast channel demodulation reference signal (DMRS), a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS). Core network (CN) is the part of the cellular system that connects the RAN to other networks, such as the Internet, or other cellular systems. The CN consists of two main (control / user) domains. The control domain is responsible for providing signalling and control functions for the UEs, such as authentication, authorization, mobility management, session management, etc. The control plane consists of several network functions (NFs), such as the access and mobility management function (AMF), the session management function (SMF), the unified data management (UDM), the policy control function (PCF), the network exposure function (NEF), and the authentication server function (AUSF). The access and mobility management function (AMF) is a NF that handles the registration, deregistration, connection management, and mobility management for the UEs. The session management function (SMF) is a NF that handles the establishment, modification, and release of the sessions for the UEs. The SMF also communicates with the user plane devices to perform functions such as IP address allocation, tunneling, QoS, etc. The unified data management (UDM) is a NF that stores and manages the user data, such as the 2024PF00673

[0081] 9 11.12.2025

[0082] SUPI, the service profile, the subscription status, etc. The policy control function (PCF) is a NF that provides the policy rules and charging information for the UEs, such as the access type, the service level, the data rate, the quota, etc. The network exposure function (NEF) is a NF that exposes the network capabilities and services to external applications and devices, such as the IMS, the Internet of Things (loT), etc. The authentication server function (AUSF) is a NF that performs the primary authentication with the by using credentials and the SUPI. The user domain is responsible for providing data and multimedia services to the UEs, by using packets and IP addresses. The user plane consists of two main functions: the user plane function (UPF) and the data network (DN). The user plane function (UPF) is a device that forwards the data packets between the UEs and the DNs, as well as performs functions such as tunneling, firewall, QoS, charging, etc. The data network (DN) is a network that provides access to the services and applications that the UEs request, such as the Internet, the IMS, etc.

[0083] A residential gateway (RG) is a device that connects a home network to an external network, such as the Internet or a cellular system. An RG typically provides functions such as routing, switching, firewall, NAT, DHCP, DNS, VPN, etc. An RG can also support various types of interfaces, such as Ethernet, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, USB, etc. A cellular-capable RG is an RG that has a cellular interface, such as a UICC slot, a cellular modem, or an antenna, that enables it to access the cellular system as a backup or an alternative to the wired or wireless broadband connection. A cellular-capable RG can provide benefits such as: (1) Enhanced;, by switching to the cellular connection in case of a failure or a degradation of the broadband connection; (2) Increased bandwidth, by aggregating the cellular connection and the broadband connection to achieve higher data rates or QoS.

[0084] A multi-SIM subscription is a subscription that allows a user to have multiple SIMs (or eSIMs) that are linked to the same account and service profile. A user can use the multi-SIM subscription to access the cellular system from different devices, such as a smartphone, a tablet, a laptop, or a wearable device, without having to switch the SIM card or the device.

[0085] Overall system: Fig. 1 provides an overall description of a wireless system wherein devices 100, 102, and 128 can play the role of UEs. Device 102 is part of a cellular-capable RG providing connectivity to a home network 129 e.g., by means of a local area network and / or wireless local area network. Device 102 is served by base station 104.

[0086] The RAN 127 comprises base station 103 and serves UE 128. UE 128 may also be a UE to Network relay given access to remote UE 136 that is out of coverage of base station 103. UEs 134 and 136 also communicate with each other via a UE-to-UE relay 135. UE to UE communication via relays is enabled by means of side link communication / PC5 interface.

[0087] Within the RAN, the range of base station 103 is extended via smart repeater 137 and reflective intelligent surface (RIS) 138. Smart repeater 137 and RIS 138 give access to UE 142.

[0088] The RAN 143 includes base station 104 tand serves as wireless access infrastructure for the home network. Base station 104 also serves a mobile access device and / or UE as a UAV 139. UAV 139 may provide connectivity to remote UE 136. 2024PF00673

[0089] 10 11.12.2025

[0090] Furthermore, a satellite gateway 141 is shown that connects to satellite 140 and may provide connectivity services to remote UE 136 or UE 100.

[0091] In Fig. 1, the 5G core network 133 may include one or more an AMF 121, SMF 123, UPF 122, AUSF 124, UDM 125, PCF 131, NEF 132 and allows the connection to a data network 130.

[0092] In Fig. 1, a second core network 142, e.g., a legacy core network as a 4G core network, is also shown that may interface with the 5G core network 133, interface with base stations denoted eNB in 4G, and provide a connection to the data network 130. The legacy 4G core network is denoted EPC and may include one or more mobility management entities (MME), a serving gateway, a multimedia broadcast multicast service gateway, a broadcast multicast service center, a packet data network gateway, etc. The mobility management entity may handle the signalling between UE and the 4G CN and may interact with the home subscriber server (HSS) in charge of the storage and management of subscriber data and secrets. The MME may provide connection management, similar to the AMF in 5G. The serving gateway may be used to exchange user internet protocol messages whereby the serving gateway may interact with the packet data network gateway that is connected to IP services. Multiple protocols in 4G and 5G have similar features. For example, the 5G network registration and 4G attach registration message are initially sent by the UE to establish a connection between the UE and the CN, which involves sending an initial request from the UE with its identity and capabilities, receiving an authentication request from the CN with a challenge, sending an authentication response from the UE with a response, receiving an authentication result from the CN with an indication of success or failure, and sending a security mode command from the CN with the selected security algorithms. As a result of this connection establishment procedure, NAS and AS keys are derived from the K_AMF (5G) and K_ASME (4G) where K_AMF is managed by the AMF and K_ASME is managed by the MME. A UE may connect to a serving network or serving Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN). A UE may have a subscription with a home PLMN, and during the registration procedure, the (AMF of the) serving PLMN may forward the registration request to the (AUSF of the) home PLMN that may perform an initial authentication procedure between home PLMN and UE. If the authentication procedure is successful, keys are derived and the home PLMN may share derived credentials with the serving PLMN, including K_SEAF, that may be used to derive K_AMF, from which NAS keys and AS keys are derived. The registration request sent by the UE includes an identifier that can be used by the home PLMN to identify the UE. To prevent privacy vulnerabilities, the long-term subscriber’s identifier known as Subscriber Permanent Identifier (SUPI) may not be exchanged in the clear, but instead, either a Subscription Concealed Identifier (SUCI) or a pseudonym known as GUTI are exchanged with the AMF of the serving PLMN. The AMF of the PLMN may then forward the SUCI to the home PLMN so that the home PLMN decrypts / verifies it.

[0093] Satellite access: Fig. 1 depicts satellite 140 providing access to one or more UEs.

[0094] Satellite access can be performed by means of non-terrestrial devices at different altitudes such as Low Earth Orbit (LEO), Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) or Geosynchronous Equatorial Orbit (GEO) satellites. Other types of non-terrestrial devices may include high-altitude platform station (HAPS) or unmanned 2024PF00673

[0095] 11 11.12.2025

[0096] aerial vehicle (UAVs) that may comprise a base station. Fig. 3 illustrates different elements including a GEO satellite 302, a MEO satellite 303, a LEO satellites 304 and 304’, a UAV 305, all of them potential non-terrestrial mobile access devices giving coverage to wireless device (e.g., a UE) 301. GEO satellite 302 remains static over a given earth position while MEO and LEO satellites move. MEO satellites 303 have a slower moving vector 306 in relation to the earth compared with LEO satellites 304 / 304’ that have a faster moving vector 307 / 307’. A non-terrestrial gateway 308 is included that provides connectivity to the mobile access device via a feeder link 310. A mobile access device provides service to the wireless device via a service link 311. Two mobile access devices in the same orbit may communicate with each other via an intra-orbit-satellite link 312 while two mobile access devices in different orbits may communicate with each other via an inter-orbit-satellite link 313. Fig. 3 finally also includes a terrestrial access device 309 that may also provide connectivity to wireless device 301. The terrestrial access device 309, the wireless device 301, and non-terrestrial gateway are on the earth surface 314.

[0097] Non-terrestrial devices such as satellites distribute system information in specific SIBs, in particular, SIB31 in 4G and SIB19 in 5G. S19 information element as defined in TS 38.331 18.2.0.

[0098] — ASN1START

[0099] — TAG-SIB19-START

[0100] SIB19-r17 ::= SEQUENCE {

[0101] ntn-Config-r17 NTN-Config-r17 OPTIONAL, -- Need R

[0102] t-Service-r17 INTEGER (0..549755813887) OPTIONAL, -- Need R

[0103] referenceLocation-r17 ReferenceLocation-r17 OPTIONAL, -- Need R

[0104] distanceThresh-r17 INTEGER (0..65525) OPTIONAL, -- Need R

[0105] ntn-NeighCellConfigList-r17 NTN-NeighCellConfigList-r17

[0106] OPTIONAL, — Need R

[0107] lateNonCriticalExtension OCTET STRING OPTIONAL,

[0108] [ [

[0109] ntn-NeighCellConfigListExt-v1720 NTN-NeighCellConfigList-r17 OPTIONAL -- Need R

[0110] ] ],

[0111] [ [

[0112] movingReferenceLocation-r18 ReferenceLocation-r17

[0113] OPTIONAL, — Need R

[0114] ntnCovEnh-r18 NTN-CovEnh-r18 OPTIONAL, -- Need R

[0115] satSwitchWithReSync-r18 SatSwitchWithReSync-r18

[0116] OPTIONAL — Need R 2024PF00673

[0117] 11.12.2025

[0118] NTN-NeighCellConfigList-r17 ::= SEQUENCE (SIZE(1..maxCellNTN-r17)) OF NTN-NeighCellConfig-r17

[0119] NTN-NeighCellConfig-r17 ::= SEQUENCE {

[0120] ntn-Config-r17 NTN-Config-r17 OPTIONAL, -- Need R

[0121] carrierFreq-r17 ARFCN-ValueNR OPTIONAL, -- Need R

[0122] physCellId-r17 PhysCellId OPTIONAL -- Need R

[0123] }

[0124] NTN-CovEnh-r18 ::= SEQUENCE {

[0125] numberOfMsg4HARQ-ACK-Repetitions-rl8 BIT STRING ( SIZE ( 4 ) ),

[0126] rsrp-ThresholdMsg4HARQ-ACK-r18 RSRP-Range OPTIONAL -- Need R

[0127] }

[0128] SatSwitchWithReSync-r18 ::= SEQUENCE {

[0129] ntn-Config-r18 NTN-Config-r17,

[0130] t-ServiceStart-r18 INTEGER (0..549755813887)

[0131] OPTIONAL, — Need R

[0132] ssb-TimeOffset-r18 INTEGER (0..159) OPTIONAL -- Need R

[0133] }

[0134] — TAG-SIB19-STOP

[0135] — ASN1STOP

[0136] SIB 19 field descriptions

[0137] distanceThresh

[0138] Distance from the serving cell reference location and is used in location-based measurement initiation in RRC IDLE and RRC INACTIVE, as defined in TS 38.304

[0020] , Each step represents 50m. This field is only present in an NTN cell.

[0139] movingReferenceLocation

[0140] Reference location of the serving cell of an NTN Earth-moving cell at a time reference. It is used in the evaluation of eventD2 and condEventD2 criteria for the serving cell in RRC_CONNECTED, and location-based measurement initiation in RRC IDLE and RRC INACTIVE when

[0141]

[0142] 2024PF00673

[0143] 13 11.12.2025

[0144] distanceThresh is also configured, as defined in TS 38.304

[0020] , The time reference of this field is indicated by epochTime in ntn-Config of the serving cell. This field is excluded when determining changes in system information, i.e., changes to movingReferenceLocation should neither result in system information change notifications nor in a modification of valueTag in SIB1. This field is only present in an NTN cell.

[0145] ntn-Config

[0146] Provides parameters needed for the UE to access NR via NTN access such as Ephemeris data, common TA parameters, k offset, validity duration for UL sync information and epoch. In a TN cell, this field is only present in ntn-NeighCellConfigList and ntn-NeighCellConfigListExt. ntn-NeighCellConfigList, ntn-NeighCellConfigListExt

[0147] Provides a list of NTN neighbour cells including their ntn-Config, carrier frequency and PhysCellld. This set includes all elements of ntn-NeighCellConfigList and all elements of ntn- NeighCellConfigListExt. If ntn-Config is absent for an entry in ntn-NeighCellConfigListExt, the ntn-Config provided in the entry at the same position in ntn-NeighCellConfigList applies. Network provides ntn-Config for the first entry of ntn-NeighCellConfigList. If the ntn-Config is absent for any other entry in ntn-NeighCellConfigList, the ntn-Config provided in the previous entry in ntn- NeighCellConfigList applies.

[0148] referenceLocation

[0149] Reference location of the serving cell provided via NTN (quasi)-Earth fixed cell and is used in location-based measurement initiation in RRC IDLE and RRC INACTIVE, as defined in TS 38.304

[0020] , This field is only present in an NTN cell.

[0150] satSwitchWithRe Sync

[0151] Provides parameters for the target satellite required to perform satellite switch with

[0152] re synchronization. This field is only present in an NTN cell and its presence indicates that satellite switch without PCI change is supported in the cell.

[0153] t-Service

[0154] Indicates the time information on when a cell provided via NTN is going to stop serving the area it is currently covering. This field applies for both service link switches in NTN quasi-Earth fixed cell and feeder link switches for both NTN quasi-Earth fixed and Earth-moving cell. The field indicates a time in multiples of 10 ms after 00:00:00 on Gregorian calendar date 1 January, 1900 (midnight between Sunday, December 31, 1899 and Monday, January 1, 1900). The exact stop time is between the time indicated by the value of this field minus 1 and the time indicated by the value of this field. The reference point for t-Service is the uplink time synchronization reference point of the cell. This field is only present in an NTN cell.

[0155]

[0156] 2024PF00673

[0157] 14 11.12.2025

[0158] NTN-CovEnh field descriptions

[0159] numberOfMsg4HARQ-ACK-Repetitions

[0160] The number of repetition slots for PUCCH transmission with HARQ-ACK information for Msg4, see clause 9.2.6 in TS 38.213

[0013] , The first / leftmost bit corresponds to the repetition factor 1, the second bit corresponds to repetition factor 2, the third bit corresponds to the repetition factor 4, and the last / rightmost bit corresponds to the repetition factor 8. The repetition factor 1 shall be indicated together with at least one other repetition factor.

[0161] rsrp-ThresholdMsg4HARQ-ACK

[0162] This threshold is used by the UE for determining the configuration of the MAC entity for PUCCH repetition for Msg4 HARQ-ACK, as specified in clause 6.2.1 in TS 38.321 [3],

[0163]

[0164] SatSwitchWithReSync field descriptions

[0165] ssb-TimeOffset

[0166] Indicates the time offset between the SSB from source and target satellite at the uplink time synchronization reference point. It is given in number of subframes.

[0167] t-ServiceStart

[0168] Indicates the time information on when the target satellite is going to start serving the area currently covered by the serving satellite. The field indicates a time in multiples of 10 ms after 00:00:00 on Gregorian calendar date 1stJanuary 1900 (midnight between Sunday, December 31, 1899, and Monday, January 1, 1900). The exact start time is between the time indicated by the value of this field minus 1 and the time indicated by the value of this field. The reference point for t-ServiceStart is the uplink time synchronization reference point of the serving satellite.

[0169]

[0170] A UE in a cellular system performs an initial random-access procedure to connect an access device. The 5G random access procedure is illustrated by means of Fig. 4 wherein 401 represents a user equipment and 402 represents an access device. The access device distributes signals 402. Signals 402 can be distributed periodically or on demand. Signals 402 may comprise the Master Information Block (MIB) transmitted together with / in the physical broadcast channel (PBCH) and the synchronization signals. The MIB comprises:

[0171] MIB SEQUENCE {

[0172] systemFrameNumber BIT STRING ( SIZE ( 6) ), subCarrier SpacingCommon ENUMERATED { scsl5or60, scs30orl20 }, ssb-Sub carrieroffset INTEGER ( 0.. 15 ),

[0173] dmrs-TypeA- Position ENUMERATED {pos2, pos3 }, pdcch-Conf igSIBl INTEGER ( 0..255 ),

[0174] cellBarred ENUMERATED {barred, notBarred}, intraFreqReselection ENUMERATED { allowed, notAllowed}, 2024PF00673

[0175] 15 11.12.2025

[0176] spare BIT STRING ( SIZE ( 1 ) )

[0177] }

[0178] MIB and PBCH are transmited as part of a Synchronization Signal Block, and the access device may transmit multiple SSBs through different beams, allowing the user equipment to determine the preferred beam, and once the preferred beam is obtained, retrieve the MIB, and use the information in the MIB to attempt to retrieve System Information Block 1 (SIB1) that may also be distributed periodically. The UE can the use the information in SIB1 to perform the random-access procedure selecting a preamble to indicate its intention to access the cell by means of message 404, e.g., preamble transmission. This message may use a random-access radio network temporary identifier (RA-RNTI). Upon reception of message 404, access device 402 replies with message 405, e.g., a random access response. This message may include a time advance field to adapt the transmission timing, a value matching the preamble used by wireless device 401, and a grant (communication resources) for the wireless device. The access device also assigns a temporary cell radio network temporary identifier (TC-RNTI). Prior to this message 405, the access device may send a PDCCH DCI message assigning resources (a communication grant). This message may be addressed using the RA-RNTI. Upon reception of message 405, wireless device uses the initial grant received in the previous message and the RA-RNTI to transmit a subsequent message 406, e.g, an RRCSetupRequest or PHY layer. This message may include a Contention Resolution Identifier (CRI). This message may be sent in the PUSCH. As a response, access device replies with message 407, e.g., RRCSetup, that includes / repeats the received CRI confirming that the access device has identified the access device. This message includes a Cell RNTI (C-RNTI). Next, wireless device replies with message 408, e.g., an RRCSetupComplete that includes the RegistrationRequest message, and UE capabilities.

[0179] MIB and PBCH are transmited as part of a Synchronization Signal Block, and the access device may transmit multiple SSBs through different beams. Multiple SSBs transmited through multiple beams form an SSB burst. The multiple SSBs in an SSB burst are transmited sequentially in the first part of a frame. SSB bursts are transmited periodically, typically every 20 ms, or more.

[0180] Fig. 5 schematically illustrates an access device 500 transmiting four beams, each of them transmiting an SSB, namely 501, 502, 503, and 504. A wireless device 505 can measure the signal strength, i.e., RSRP (Reference Signal Received Power), of the beams. This is illustrated by means of the graph in Fig. 5 where 501’, 502’, 503’, and 504’ represent the RSRP of beams 501, 502, 503, and 504, respectively, as measured by wireless device 505. Wireless device 505 can use this information to determine which one of the beams is the preferred beam for further communication, e.g., to perform the random access procedure.

[0181] Fig. 6 further schematically illustrates SSB bursts transmited periodically. In this case, each SSB burst comprises four SSBs transmited in the first part / half of every second frame. In this figure, frames are denoted as f, f+1, f+2, f+3,... A frame has a typical duration of 10 ms. 2024PF00673

[0182] 16 11.12.2025

[0183] Resource grid: in a cellular network, such as a 5G network, the resource grid is a structured framework used to allocate and manage communication resources efficiently. It is characterized by a time-frequency matrix where each element, known as a resource element, is defined by its position in both time and frequency domains. The vertical axis represents frequency, segmented into subcarriers, which are spaced at intervals. The subcarrier spacing can vary depending on the deployment scenario, with common spacings being 15 kHz, 30 kHz, 60 kHz, 120 kHz, 240 kHz, and 480 kHz (corresponding to mu equal to 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, respectively). The horizontal axis of the grid represents time and is divided into frames, subframes, and slots, each frame has a duration of 10 ms and each subframe has a duration of 1 millisecond. Within these subframes, the time is further divided into slots. For mu, there are 2^mu symbols per subframe. Each slot typically spans 14 OFDM symbols. Each resource element in the grid, defined by the inter of a time symbol and a frequency subcarrier, can carry a small portion of data, control information, or reference signals. These resource elements are grouped into larger units called Resource Blocks (RBs), which span 12 subcarriers in frequency and one slot in time. The allocation of these RBs is dynamically managed.

[0184] Reflective intelligent surfaces (RIS): may be used as part of the wireless infrastructure or as part of the wireless devices. RIS, often referred to as metasurfaces, are advanced materials engineered with sub-wavelength structures that can manipulate electromagnetic waves in a controlled manner. These surfaces consist of an array of unit cells, each capable of adjusting its electromagnetic response through electronic control, thus enabling dynamic alteration of the wavefront of the incident signal. The wireless device can utilize the RIS to fine-tune the reflection properties of the wireless sensing signal, such as phase, amplitude, and polarization. By dynamically adjusting these parameters, the RIS can enhance signal strength, directivity, and overall signal quality. For instance, the RIS can focus the reflected signal towards the transmitter, significantly improving signal reception. This capability is particularly advantageous in urban environments where obstacles and interference are prevalent.

[0185] Technical details of the RIS involve the implementation of tunable elements, such as varactor diodes or microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), in each unit cell. These elements allow real-time reconfiguration of the surface's electromagnetic properties in response to control signals from the wireless device. The control signals can be generated based on real-time analysis of the received signal's quality and contextual parameters, ensuring optimal reflection under varying conditions. The RIS can operate in various frequency bands, including sub-6 GHz and millimeter-wave (mmWave) frequencies, making it versatile for different wireless applications. Additionally, the RIS can incorporate sensing capabilities to monitor the environment and further refine the reflection parameters. For example, integrated sensors can detect changes in temperature, humidity, or the presence of obstacles, and adjust the reflection properties accordingly to maintain high signal quality. 2024PF00673

[0186] 11.12.2025

[0187] Quality of Service: a wireless system may be used to transport data belonging to different types of applications such as Machine Type Communication (MTC), Critical Machine Type Communication (CMTC), Enhanced Mobile Broadband (EMB), or Fixed Wireless Access (FWA). MTC (e.g., smart meters, tracking,...) requires low bandwidth and non-latency critical, CMTC (e.g., industrial applications) has strict throughput, latency, and availability needs, EMB (VR / AR, 4K UDH,...) and FWA (e.g., in the home) require high data rate, with low latency, and low end-to-end response time. In wireless network such as 5G the Quality of Service has to accommodate different applications such as EMB, MTC, ultra-reliable low latency communications. QoS is influenced by the entities involved in the communication, UE, RAN, UPF, and DN. Data exchanges between UE and DN are mapped to QoS flows, and each QoS flow is mapped to a 5G QoS Identifier (5QI) in TS 23.501 (Table 5.7.4-1) that describes resource types, priority, packet delay budget, packet error rate, maximum data burst volume. Network is configured to configure RAN and core network interfaces to achieve the requirements of a 5QI. QoS is applied to a data stream from the wireless physical layer to the core network. Between RAN and UPF, QoS is applied in terms of a QoS flow. QoS in the RAN is managed by means of Data Radio Bearers (DRB). A QoS flow on core network side is created by means of a PDU session establishment accept. The mapping between a QoS flow and a DRM is done by means of SDAP configuration in an RRC message (RRCSetup or RRCReconfiguration) The indication or identifier that connects the whole QoS pipe is called QoS flow identifier. Downlink traffic requires mapping IP messages and the QoS pipe, and this is done by the UPF. For each IP message or packet, the UPF checks (by means of a packet QoS assignment / detection rule) the packet information (source / destination / protocol / type of service / ...) and directs the IP packet to a QoS flow. The packet QoS assignment / detection rule is provided by SMF interacting with PCF. In the uplink, the UE performs a similar task by applying QoS rules provided in NAS messages (e.g., PDU session establishment) by the SMF or are pre-configured / derived by the UE.

[0188] Discontinuous reception (DRX) in cellular networks such as 5G is in two types, Idle mode DRX and Connected mode DRX. In Idle mode DRX, the UE wakes up to monitor for paging messages. If no paging message is detected, it sleeps further. In Connected DRX mode, the UE enters in sleep mode periodically and during the sleep period the UE is not required to monitor the Physical Download Control Channel. The access device configures the UE device with C-DRX parameters.

[0189] Connected DRX approach reduces energy consumption of the device because it does not require monitoring the PDCCH periodically and it also reduces the transmissions of CSI or SRS signals, that also has a positive effect in the network / access devices load. There are two types of DRX cycles, long and short. A long DRX cycle consists of an on period and an off period. The on duration is in terms of milliseconds. The long DRC cycle may be configured or the long DRX cycle and short DRX cycles may be configured. The access device can configure the time (drx-onDurationTimer) during which the UE is awake and goes back to sleep if there is no PDCCH received. The access device can also configure a given drx-LongCycleStartOffiset to start to awake period at a subframe boundary and / or drx-SlotOffset 2024PF00673

[0190] 18 11.12.2025

[0191] relative to the subframe boundary. If there is activity in an awake period, the UE may remain awake some more time determined by the drx-InactivityTimer. Furthermore, the access device can configure long DRX cycle together with additional DRX cycle which is shorter than long DRX cycle. Configurable parameters include the drx-ShortCycle (duration of the short cycle) and drx-ShortCycleTImer that determines how many short cycles before the device should apply.

[0192] Data scheduling in a cellular network such as a 5G cellular network may be performed by means of a scheduler wherein the scheduler takes as input information such as measurements of UE / network, buffer status report, QoS requirements, associated radio bearers, or a scheduling request. In the downlink, data scheduling may be performed by means of dynamic scheduling and semi persistent scheduling (SPS). In dynamic scheduling, every data exchange in the Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) is scheduled by means of a downlink control information (DCI) message in the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH). In SPS, the scheduling is done by means of an RRC message. In the uplink, scheduling can be performed by means of dynamic scheduling and configured scheduling (CS). In dynamic scheduling each Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) is scheduled over DCI. In CS, the PUSCH transmission is scheduled via RRC message. Furthermore, a Scheduling Request message may be sent over the PUCCH (Physical Uplink Control Channel) or in an Uplink Control Information (UCI) in the PUSCH (Physical Uplink Shared Channel). An SR may be sent by a UE device when it has data to transmit. Upon reception, the access device can allocate resources (Uplink Grant by means of the Physical Downlink Control Channel. Upon resource allocation, the UE device can transmit data in the Physical Uplink Shared Channel.

[0193] Wireless sensing and integrated wireless sensing and communication: wireless systems are evolving to include wireless sensing capabilities. These wireless sensing capabilities may be implemented e.g. by a radar functionality in wireless communication involving one or more access devices (e.g., base stations (BS)) and / or one or more terminal devices (e.g., UEs). As an example, Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave (FMCW) mmWave radar systems can measure range, velocity, and angle of arrival (if two receivers are available) of objects in the scene which reflect radio waves. Such radar systems emit a chirp signal, e.g., a sine wave that increases in frequency over time. The chirp signal (e.g., a continuous wave pulse) has a bandwidth and a frequency increase rate. Generally, a continuous series of such chirps are emitted. The transmitted and received analogue chirp signals are mixed to generate an intermediate frequency (IF) signal which corresponds to the difference in frequencies of the two signals (outbound and inbound) and whose output phase corresponds to the difference in the phases of the two signals. Each surface of a scene or environment will therefore produce a constant frequency IF signal whose frequency relates to the distance to the surface (i.e., a first distance from the transmitter of the chirp signal to the surface plus a second distance from the surface to the receiver of the chirp signal). To resolve two surfaces at different distances, the two IF signals can be frequency resolved. A longer time window of the IF signal results in greater resolution. As the chirp time is related to its bandwidth (with 2024PF00673

[0194] 19 11.12.2025

[0195] constant chirp frequency change) the resolution of the radar is related to the chirp bandwidth. The IF signal may then be band pass filtered (to remove signals below some minimal range and frequencies above the maximum frequency for a subsequent analogue-to-digital converter (ADC)) and digitized prior to further processing. The upper frequency sensing range of the bandpass filter and ADC sets the maximum range that can be detected (i.e., IF frequencies increase with range). To detect vibrations, the phase of the IF signal is important, since the phase (i.e., the difference in phases of the transmitted and received chirp signals) is a sensitive measure of small changes in the distance of a surface. Small distance changes can be detected in the phase signal but may be indiscernible in the frequency signal. Moreover, phase difference measures between two consecutive chirp signals can be used to determine the velocity of the surface. As an example, a fast Fourier transform (FFT) processing can be performed across multiple chirp signals to enable separation of objects with the same range but moving at different velocities. A Fourier transform converts a signal from a space or time domain into the frequency domain. In the frequency domain the signal is represented by a weighted sum of sine and cosine waves. A discrete digital signal with N samples can be represented exactly by a sum of N waves. FFT provides a faster way of computing a discrete Fourier transform by using the symmetry and repetition of waves to combine samples and reuse partial results. This method can save a huge amount of processing time, especially with real -world signals that can have many thousands or even millions of samples. As a further example, angle estimation can be performed by using the phase difference between the received chirp signal at two separated receivers.

[0196] As another option, a channel state information (CSI) can be used, which is a measure of the phases and amplitudes of many frequencies detected at a receiver, thereby forming a complex ‘map’ of the radio environment, including effects of objects within that environment. CSI characterizes how wireless signals propagate from the transmitter to the receiver at certain carrier frequencies. CSI amplitude and phase are impacted by multi-path effects including amplitude attenuation and phase shift, e.g., by the displacements and movements of the transmitter, receiver, and surrounding objects and humans. In other words, CSI captures the wireless characteristics of the nearby environment. These characteristics, assisted by mathematical modeling or machine learning algorithms, can be used for different sensing applications. A radio channel may be divided into multiple subcarriers, as is done e.g. in 5G communication systems (using e.g. orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM)). To measure CSI, the transmitter may send long training symbols (LTFs), which contain pre-defined symbols for each subcarrier, e.g., in a packet preamble. When those LTFs are received, the receiver can estimate a CSI matrix using the received signals and the original LTFs. For each subcarrier, the channel can be modeled by y = Hx + n, where y is the received signal, x is the transmitted signal, H is the CSI matrix, and n is the noise vector. The receiver estimates the CSI matrix H using a pre-defined signal x and the received signal y after signal processing such as removing cyclic prefix, de-mapping and demodulation. The estimated CSI is then a three-dimensional matrix of complex values and this matrix represents an ‘image’ of the radio environment at that time. By processing a time series of such ‘images’ information 2024PF00673

[0197] 20 11.12.2025

[0198] on movements, locations and vibrations of objects can be extracted. Such a processing of a CSI matrix can be used for vital signs monitoring, presence detection, and human movement recognition. As an example, neural network like recognition techniques can be used to process the CSI matrix to perform such kinds of recognition.

[0199] It is noted that systems using channel state information (CSI) are somehow related to systems with FMCW mmWave radar. In a CSI-based system, the input signal X may be defined and the receiver may use the received signal Y to obtain H, i.e., as H = (Y - N) / X. In a FMCW mmWave radar, the transmitted signal Chirp X may also be predefined, and the receiver may uses the received signal Y to obtain a transfer function as H = Y / X. This last step is in fact somehow related to multiplying the locally computed chirp signal and the received chirp signal and applying a bandpass filter. According to various embodiments in this invention, the above-described wireless sensing techniques are implemented in a mobile communication system (e.g. 5G or 6G or other cellular or WiFi communication systems), while the functional coexistence of radar and communication operating in the same frequency bands is configured to avoid interference bandwidths. Thereby, radio sensing can be integrated into large-scale mobile networks to create perceptive mobile networks.

[0200] As another example, the sensing signal may consist of a number of pulses sent, e.g., at specific frequencies and timing (sensing signal parameter information) by a sensing transmitter. The sensing receiver may include a number of bandpass filters that allow identifying the sensing signal parameter information, e.g, timing and frequency of the received pulses. In particular, if the transmitter determines a given pseudo-random sequence of frequency / timing pulses and beams it, e.g., by means of beamforming, in a specific direction, and if the transmitter communicates to the receiver the timing / frequency, in general, the sensing signal parameter information, of the transmitted sensing signal, the receiver can use its bandpass filters to identify the reception of the same transmitted pulses, i.e., sensing signal, based on the received sensing signal parameter information.

[0201] The wireless sensing signal may be part of the synchronization signal block. For instance, the wireless sensing signal may be a reference signal included in the primary synchronization signal or in the secondary synchronization signal. It may consist of a number of reference signals and / or it may be a wide band signal. This wireless sensing signal can allow the access devices to determine the presence of a wireless device. The wireless device may also use this wireless sensing signal to determine the access device that is more suitable to (re-)select.

[0202] Wireless local area network technologies such as Wi-Fi allow devices to connect to the Internet or to each other without using cables. Wi-Fi is based on radio waves that are transmitted and received by a device called a wireless access point (AP). The AP acts as a hub that connects Wi-Fi enabled devices, such as laptops, smartphones, tablets, smart TVs, etc., to a wired network, such as a local area network (LAN) or the Internet. 2024PF00673

[0203] 21 11.12.2025

[0204] The term Wi-Fi is a trademark of the Wi-Fi Alliance, an industry association that certifies products that comply with the IEEE 802.11 standards for wireless local area networks (WLANs). These standards define the physical and data link layers of the communication protocol, such as the frequency bands, modulation schemes, encryption methods, authentication mechanisms, and data rates used by WiFi devices. The most common Wi-Fi standards are 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n, 802.11ac, and 802.11ax, which operate in different frequency bands (2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, or both) and offer different levels of performance and compatibility.

[0205] To use Wi-Fi, a device needs to have a wireless network interface card (NIC) that can send and receive radio signals. The NIC scans the available wireless channels and detects the presence of nearby APs. The device then selects an AP to connect to, based on factors such as signal strength, security settings, and network name (SSID). The device and the AP exchange information, such as the MAC address, IP address, encryption key, and password, to establish a connection. This process is called association. After the connection is established, the device can communicate with the AP and other devices on the same network, or access the Internet through the AP.

[0206] IEEE 802.11n (Wi-Fi 4) provided new features such as MIMO and frame aggregation to increase throughput. IEEE 802.11ac (Wi-Fi 5) introduced wider bandwidth and MU-MIMO. IEEE 802.11ax (WIFI-6) included OFDMA and BSS color or spatial reuse to use spectrum resources more efficiently. IEEE 802.11 ah introduced target wake time (TWT) to support low power loT applications by allowing STAs to go into sleep when not in a wake period after negotiation with AP. IEEE 802.11be (Wi-Fi 7) aims at improving throughput and latency operating in unlicensed bands between 1GHz and 7.125 GHz. Wi-Fi 7. Increases bandwidths up to 320 MHz, 4096 QAM modulation, and supporting up to 16 spatial streams in MU-MIMO with an improved sounding procedure. Wi-FI 7 also enables multiple resource units to be assigned to a single device. Furthermore, it includes an enhanced preamble with a universal SIG filed indicating the PHY version. It also extends the negotiated ack buffer size to 1024 bits.It also enables multilink operation (MLO) enabling multiple links between a station and an access point, for instance an AP can have two radios 2.4 and 5 GHz and use both of them for simultaneous transmission and / or reception with a multi-link capable device (MLD) capable station. Wi-Fi 7 also includes a restricted TWT providing predictable latency by assigning STAs to different rTWT types and making sure that other STAs do not transmit if they do not belong to a given rTWT type. Wi-Fi 7 also include multi-AP coordination performing, e.g., coordinated transmission, beamforming, or joint transmission.

[0207] For instance, in references to Fig. 1, devices 100, 101 and 102 can be Wi-FI access points and device 106 can be a wireless station. Station 106 and access point 101 are MLD and communicate with two links 126. Device 102 is a cellular capable residential gateway.

[0208] Section: Energy efficient allocation of communication and computing resources

[0209] An embodiment of this invention is illustrated in the context of the efficient operation, e.g., energy-efficient operation and / or time-efficient operation, in a communication system such as 6G. 2024PF00673

[0210] 22 11.12.2025

[0211] Energy cost in communication systems, e.g., involving wireless networks, is a multifaceted issue that hinges on two primary factors: the cost of communication and the cost of computational tasks. The energy expenditure for communication is determined by the type of transceiver used, the signal strength, and the distance between the communicating devices. On the other hand, computational tasks, which include data processing, encryption, and application execution, have their own energy demands. These costs can vary significantly depending on the device's hardware capabilities and the complexity of the tasks being performed. Different devices exhibit unique energy profiles based on their design and intended usage patterns. For instance, a smartphone running a high-intensity gaming application or a virtual reality experience will consume more energy due to both high communication demands and intensive computational requirements. Conversely, an loT sensor might prioritize low power consumption, transmitting small packets of data infrequently, and performing minimal on-device processing. Moreover, the usage patterns also influence the overall energy cost. Devices in constant use, such as those engaged in continuous video streaming or real-time communication, will have higher energy costs than those used intermittently, like a smart thermostat that only occasionally sends data. Furthermore, to achieve timeefficient operation, it is crucial to align computation and communication tasks effectively. In today's systems, these tasks may not always be synchronized or aligned, leading to additional time inefficiencies. For example, a device might have to wait for a communication task to finish before starting a computational task, resulting in idle periods that waste time. By integrating advanced scheduling algorithms and predictive models, systems can better coordinate these tasks, minimizing idle times and enhancing overall efficiency. This can involve techniques such as parallel processing, where computation and communication tasks are performed simultaneously, or dynamic task allocation, where tasks are assigned based on real-time conditions to optimize performance. Furthermore, leveraging machine learning algorithms to predict and adapt to usage patterns can help systems preemptively manage resources, ensuring that computation and communication tasks are aligned for maximum efficiency.

[0212] In recent years, generative models — such as large language models (LLMs) and other machine learning architectures — have enabled automated generation of content including text, figures, audio, and video from input prompts. These models can be trained on vast datasets to learn intricate patterns and relationships, allowing them to generate contextually relevant and creative outputs based on user-provided instructions or data. The timing of data generation or computation using generative models is typically dependent on the complexity of the requested content, the computational resources available, and the efficiency of the model architecture. In real-time applications or interactive scenarios, the models may be required to produce outputs within strict latency constraints to ensure a seamless user experience. Conversely, for more complex generative tasks, such as creating high-resolution images or long-form text, the computation may be performed asynchronously or in batch mode, with results delivered once processing is complete. Integrating generative Al capabilities into wireless communication systems or edge devices may involve careful consideration of resource allocation, latency requirements, and energy 2024PF00673

[0213] 23 11.12.2025

[0214] efficiency, particularly when such systems are expected to operate under constrained power or bandwidth conditions.

[0215] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, a wireless device may be designed for and / or operate to enable energy-efficient operation in a communication system wherein the wireless device may comprise

[0216] one or more communication transceivers,

[0217] one or more processors, and

[0218] one or more energy supply sources,

[0219] and the wireless device may perform one or more steps illustrated by means of Fig. 13, including

[0220] connecting to the communication system using a first communication transceiver through a first access device (step 1300),

[0221] furthermore, the wireless device may indicate its capabilities and / or preferences for (energy-)efficient operation to the communication system (step 1301),

[0222] furthermore, the wireless device may determine and / or negotiate a configuration for (energy-)efficient operation (e.g. with the communication system) (step 1302), and

[0223] furthermore, the wireless device may communicate (e.g. with the communication system) based on the (negotiated and / or determined) (energy-)efficient operation configuration (step 1303).

[0224] The wireless device may negotiate the configuration with another wireless device (e.g., another UE) or with an access device (e.g., base station) and / or with a network function in the core network.

[0225] The wireless device may determine the configuration by itself, e.g., based on the context (e.g., its location, time, connection state, etc), the wireless device may select a specific configuration (out of a plurality of potential configurations).

[0226] In an example, the one or more transceivers of the wireless device may be one of a 4G transceiver; a 5G transceiver; a cellular transceiver of a cellular generation beyond 5G (e.g., a 6G transceiver); a Wi-Fi transceiver or a transceiver capable of another wireless communication protocol such as UWB; an ethernet transceiver; a USB transceiver; and a Li-Fi transceiver. Each of these transceivers may operate on different frequency bands and utilize distinct modulation schemes to ensure reliable and efficient communication. The 4G and 5G transceivers are designed to handle high-speed mobile data, supporting various applications from simple web browsing to high-definition video streaming. The 5G transceiver, in particular, offers ultra-low latency and higher bandwidth capabilities. Cellular transceivers of generations beyond 5G, often referred to as 6G, are expected to provide even greater speeds and more robust connectivity. They aim to integrate multiple networks to offer seamless global coverage, enabling innovative services like holographic communication and enhanced augmented reality experiences. Wi-Fi transceivers facilitate high-speed data transfer over short distances and are 2024PF00673

[0227] 24 11.12.2025

[0228] commonly used in home and office networks. Modern Wi-Fi standards, such as Wi-Fi 6. offer improved performance in dense environments and support higher data rates, reduced latency, and better energy efficiency. Ethernet and USB transceivers provide wired connectivity options that offer stable and highspeed data transfer. These transceivers are crucial in scenarios where wireless communication is either infeasible or undesirable due to security concerns or interference issues. Li-Fi transceivers utilize light waves to transmit data, offering an alternative to traditional radio frequency communication. Li-Fi is especially advantageous in environments where RF interference is a concern, such as in hospitals or on airplanes. It also provides enhanced security, as light cannot penetrate walls, thus limiting unauthorized access. Some of the communication transceivers may be considered communication technologies allowing for 3GPP access, either trusted or untrusted. For instance, in the case of USB, Ethernet frames could be transported over USB, and an IP address may be assigned. This may allow performing a protocol, e.g., for registration, performing emergency access, or deregistration, PDU session establishment, via (un)trusted non-3GPP access, e.g., similar to Clause 4.12 in TS 23.502. These transceivers are typically connected to one or more processors to process the incoming and outgoing communication frames that are received / transmitted through these transceivers.

[0229] In an example, the one or more processors available in the wireless device can include a variety of types, each with distinct roles in enhancing the device's performance. For instance:

[0230] • Central Processing Units (CPUs): The CPU is the main processor of the device, responsible for executing general-purpose tasks. Modern smartphones often utilize multi-core CPUs, allowing them to handle multiple applications and tasks simultaneously with greater efficiency. This enhances the overall responsiveness and speed of the device, particularly for everyday applications like browsing, messaging, and running basic applications.

[0231] • Graphics Processing Units (GPUs): The GPU is specialized for rendering graphics and processing complex visual data. In smartphones, GPUs are critical for tasks such as gaming, video playback, and running graphic-intensive applications. They offload these tasks from the CPU, providing a smoother and more visually rich user experience. High-performance GPUs can significantly improve the frame rates and visual quality of games and applications that rely heavily on graphical content. • Digital Signal Processors (DSPs): DSPs are designed for handling real-time signal processing tasks. In smartphones, they are often used for audio processing, video encoding / decoding, and image processing. By managing these specialized tasks, DSPs help to reduce the load on the CPU and enhance the performance and efficiency of multimedia functions and communication features.

[0232] • Neural Processing Units (NPUs): NPUs are dedicated processors for handling artificial intelligence (Al) and machine learning (ML) tasks. In smartphones, NPUs 2024PF00673

[0233] 25 11.12.2025

[0234] enable features such as facial recognition, voice assistants, and real-time photo enhancements. By accelerating Al computations, NPUs provide faster and more efficient processing for these advanced functionalities, improving the user experience and enabling new capabilities that were previously not feasible.

[0235] • Image Signal Processors (ISPs): ISPs are specialized processors designed to enhance the quality of images and videos captured by the smartphone's camera. They handle tasks such as noise reduction, color correction, and image stabilization. By processing these tasks efficiently, ISPs contribute to producing high-quality photos and videos, enhancing the smartphone's camera performance.

[0236] In addition to the diverse processing capabilities, the wireless device can be powered by various types of energy supply sources such as electrical sockets, solar panels, batteries, or wireless power. Electrical Socket may be the most common and reliable source, providing a continuous power supply. Solar panels are an eco-friendly alternative that harnesses sunlight to generate power. Solar panels are beneficial in remote or outdoor locations with abundant sunlight. Battery Power is integral to the mobility of wireless devices, batteries offer the advantage of portability and convenience. Modern batteries, such as lithium-ion, provide high energy density and long life. A power bank is an external battery pack that provides additional power on the go, extending the usage time of the device. Wireless charging eliminates the need for physical connectors, using electromagnetic fields to transfer energy. Wireless charging pads are easy to use and reduce wear on charging ports. However, they are typically slower than wired charging, generate additional heat, and require the device to remain in contact with the charging pad.

[0237] The availability of one or more of the above mentioned processors in the device can serve as local computational resources for performing calculations not only for communication purposes, but also other purposes, such as A / V rendering, Al model training and inferencing, search algorithms, etc. Modern communication systems increasingly offer computational resources, not only in the form of edge and / or cloud computing, but also enabling the use of spare computational resources e.g. in cellular core networks or base stations, or other service hosting environment. These computational resources offered by the communication system may be used by wireless devices to offload certain computations / computational task to the computational resources made available by the communication system. Offloading of computations / computational tasks may help the device conserve energy by reducing its processing load, but on the other hand it may increase the energy used for communication, so overall energy-efficiency of the wireless device needs to be considered.

[0238] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the capabilities for energy-efficient operation of the wireless device may comprise one or more of the following: 2024PF00673

[0239] 26 11.12.2025

[0240] 1. the available computational resources: This may refer to the processing power and / or memory available in the wireless device. It includes the number of active CPU cores, the clock speed of the processors, the amount of RAM, and the presence of specialized processors such as GPUs, DSPs, NPUs, and ISPs. It may also include the current processor load and / or RAM used.

[0241] Efficient management of these resources ensures that high-priority tasks are executed swiftly while minimizing energy consumption for lower-priority tasks.

[0242] 2. The available energy: This pertains to the current battery level or the power being supplied to the device. It takes into account the battery's health, the rate of energy consumption, and the efficiency of power management systems. It also encompasses the availability of external power sources such as electrical sockets, solar panels, power banks, and wireless charging pads. The device adapts its energy usage based on the available energy to ensure prolonged operation and reliability.

[0243] 3. The estimated energy cost to communicate via at least one communication technology: This involves the calculation of energy required to transmit and receive data using different communication interfaces like 4G, 5G, 6G, Wi-Fi, Ethernet, USB, and Li-Fi. Each technology has distinct energy profiles based on factors such as signal strength, data rate, modulation schemes, and network conditions. By estimating the energy cost, the device can select the most efficient communication method for varying scenarios, thereby optimizing its energy expenditure. The energy cost may be estimated / calculated based on the amount of data to be transmitted and / or received, and / or communication patterns (e.g. taking into account sleeping periods (e.g. based on eDRX) between communication bursts) and / or communication quality of service (e.g. expected data rate, latency, retransmissions) and / or security related overhead (e.g. due to data encryption, integrity protection) and / or overhead to set up a connection (e.g. initial registration messages, authentication messages) in case no connection available yet. This may also include the cost of performing wireless sensing, in particular, when wireless sensing is enabled in a communication standard such as 6G.

[0244] 4. The estimated energy cost to perform one or more computational operations: This includes assessing the energy consumption for various computational tasks such as data processing, graphics rendering, signal processing, Al computations, and image enhancement. Different processors have unique energy profiles, and the cost estimation helps in determining the most energy-efficient processor for each task. It also considers the complexity and duration of the operations, ensuring that the overall energy consumption is minimized without compromising performance.

[0245] It is to be noted that some capabilities may change over time. For instance, the communication cost (e.g., J / bit) over different communication transceivers may depend on the maximum 2024PF00673

[0246] 27 11.12.2025

[0247] available data rate, distance between wireless device and access device, cable length (in the case of USB), battery status, etc.

[0248] Thus, in an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, all or part of capabilities may be exchanged (also measured, in general, determined) regularly or on demand, i.e., to perform a re-negotiation of the configuration of communication and computation resources for efficient operation. This may allow determining, e.g., which communication technology to use. The capabilities may be reported via a message, e.g., RRC message or NAS protected message to an access device or core network function. The capabilities may include which communication technologies are available even if they are not active (yet). The wireless device may receive a configuration or command to start the connection to a selected communication technology (e.g., non-3GPP RAT) or start using certain capabilities.

[0249] In addition to the capabilities of the wireless device, the wireless device may operate and / or report via a message (e.g. RRC message or NAS protected message to an access device and / or core network function), possibly combined in the same message as the reported capabilities, a set of preferences for energy-efficient operation (e.g. based on user input and / or current processing or communication load and / or time or location based conditions, etc.).

[0250] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the preferences for energy-efficient operation may comprise at least one of:

[0251] 1. a preference to apply one or more energy-efficient settings at the wireless device, which may include optimizing the device's internal processors to operate at lower power levels, adjusting the screen brightness based on ambient light conditions, or disabling non-essential functions when the battery is low;

[0252] 2. a preference to apply one or more energy-efficient settings at a remote communication party, which may involve coordinating with other devices or servers to ensure that data transmission occurs during times of lower network congestion or utilizing low-power communication protocols when possible;

[0253] 3. a preference to apply one or more energy-efficient settings to the communication infrastructure, which may include utilizing energy-efficient network technologies, enabling sleep modes for network equipment during periods of inactivity, and prioritizing the use of renewable energy sources for powering network operations;

[0254] 4. a preference to minimize the overall energy consumption, which may involve strategies such as balancing the load across multiple processors, optimizing software algorithms to reduce computational complexity, optimizing communication load, and dynamically scaling resources based on real-time workloads;

[0255] 5. a preference comprising conditions triggering one or more energy-efficient settings, which may include predefined time windows, specific geographic locations, or certain network conditions that prompt the activation of energy-saving measures; 2024PF00673

[0256] 28 11.12.2025

[0257] 6. a preference comprising the definition of energy-efficient settings including one or more of (1) a setting to minimize energy consumption, which may involve reducing the power usage of individual components and / or reducing the communication load, e.g. by reducing the number of communication tasks, reducing the bitrate or using a more efficient network protocol, and (2) a setting to minimize peak power consumption, which may involve smoothing out power demand by scheduling intensive tasks during off-peak periods.

[0258] A preference may be identifiable through an energy preference profile that may include an identifier and / or a set of parameters and / or default values.

[0259] Similarly, in an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, a configuration for energy-efficient operation of the wireless device may comprise at least one of:

[0260] 1. One or more preferences or preference profiles.

[0261] 2. One or more energy-efficient settings at the wireless device, which may include optimizing the device's internal processors to operate at lower power levels, adjusting the screen brightness based on ambient light conditions, or disabling non-essential functions when the battery is low; 3. One or more energy-efficient settings to be applied at a remote communication party, which may involve coordinating with other devices or servers to ensure that data transmission occurs during times of lower network congestion or utilizing low-power communication protocols when possible;

[0262] 4. One or more energy-efficient settings to be applied to the communication infrastructure, which may include utilizing energy-efficient network technologies, enabling sleep modes for network equipment during periods of inactivity, and prioritizing the use of renewable energy sources for powering network operations;

[0263] 5. One or more strategies to apply for energy saving such as balancing the load across multiple processors, optimizing software algorithms to reduce computational complexity, optimizing communication load, and dynamically scaling resources based on real-time workloads;

[0264] 6. Conditions triggering one or more energy-efficient settings, which may include predefined time windows, specific geographic locations, or certain network conditions that prompt the activation of energy-saving measures;

[0265] 7. Definition of energy-efficient settings including one or more of (1) a setting to minimize energy consumption, which may involve reducing the power usage of individual components and / or reducing the communication load, e.g. by reducing the number of communication tasks, reducing the bitrate or using a more efficient network protocol, and (2) a setting to minimize peak power consumption, which may involve smoothing out power demand by scheduling intensive tasks during off-peak periods. 2024PF00673

[0266] 29 11.12.2025

[0267] A configuration for energy-efficient operation may be identifiable through an identifier and / or a set of parameters and / or default values.

[0268] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the configuration for energy-efficient operation of the wireless device may further comprise one or more of the following elements:

[0269] 1. A communication session identifier: This identifier may specify which communication session the energy-efficient configuration applies to or vice versa. It may include session-specific information such as the (PDU) session ID, the type of data being transmitted, the type of data, and the priority level of the session. This ensures that the energy-efficient settings are tailored to the specific needs and characteristics of each communication session, optimizing energy consumption accordingly.

[0270] 2. Conditions under which the energy-efficient configuration applies: These conditions may include one or more of the following: (a) time window: The configuration may be activated during predefined time periods, such as off-peak hours, to take advantage of lower network congestion and reduced energy consumption; (b) location range: The settings may be applied when the wireless device is within certain geographic areas where energy-efficient operations are more feasible or necessary; (c) communication conditions of a communication interface (e.g. transceiver): Factors such as signal strength, data rate, and network conditions may trigger the application of energy-efficient settings. For example, the device may switch to a lower power communication protocol when signal strength is weak or network load is high.

[0271] 3. A communication operation to which the configuration applies: This may include specifying particular operations during which the energy-efficient settings should be applied. Examples of such operations may be data uploads, downloads, streaming, or real-time communications.

[0272] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the wireless device negotiates a configuration for energy-efficient operation by sending or receiving one or more messages with a wireless access device. In an example, the wireless device sends one or more capabilities for energy-efficient operation, one or more preferences or preference profiles for energy-efficient operation and / or one or more configurations for energy-efficient operation to a wireless access device and / or via the wireless access device to a core network, and / or receives one or more capabilities for energy-efficient operation, one or more preferences or preference profiles for energy-efficient operation and / or one or more configurations for energy-efficient operation from the wireless access device and / or via the wireless access device from a core network. Which configuration(s) the wireless device will receive from the network may depend on the subscription of the wireless device, e.g. whether the wireless device is subscribed to the one or more specific features for energy-efficient operation. For example, the subscription information may include different fields / parameters to distinguish between support for energy efficient operation for communication and for 2024PF00673

[0273] 11.12.2025

[0274] energy efficient operation for computation, and / or fields / parameters for applying energy-efficient operation during certain time periods, certain areas and / or fields / parameters indicating certain thresholds, such as minimum data rate to maintain, maximum sleep time interval or maximum delays for receiving communication / computational responses, or more generally a certain minimum or maximum Quality of Experience level. This negotiation process can optimize several aspects of communication with the access device or base station, including but not limited to:

[0275] 1. signal strength management: The wireless device can adjust its transmission power based on the signal strength received from the base station, reducing power consumption when signal strength is strong and increasing it only when necessary.

[0276] 2. data rate adaptation: By dynamically adjusting the data rate according to network conditions and the requirements of the current communication session, the device can save energy. Lower data rates may be used during periods of low activity or when high data rates are unnecessary.

[0277] 3. idle Mode Optimization: The device can enter low-power idle modes when there is no active data transmission, periodically waking up to check for incoming messages or data. This reduces energy consumption during periods of inactivity.

[0278] 4. scheduling of Transmission Times: The negotiation can include scheduling data transmission during off-peak hours or when network congestion is lower, optimizing energy usage and improving overall network efficiency.

[0279] 5. use of energy-efficient protocols and / or communication technologies / transceivers: The device and access device can agree on using communication protocols / technologies that are designed to minimize energy consumption, such as low-power wide-area network (LPWAN) standards, e.g., perform a handover (or mobility procedure) from a first access device to a second access device, wherein the first access device and second access device may be of the same (e.g., both 6G) or different radio access technologies (e.g., 6G to Wi-Fi).

[0280] The negotiation of a configuration for efficient operation may include: (a) selection of the most efficient communication technology / transceiver (e.g. operating a radio access technology such as 4G, 5G or 6G RAT and / or Wi-Fi or other non-3GPP RAT, terrestrial or non-terrestrial), whereby configuration / policies (e.g. WLAN Selection Policies) may be provided by an access device or network function to the device that may be extended to include energy related conditions, settings and / or preferences, and / or (b) selection of connection type (e.g. sidelink relay or direct Uu interface), and / or (c)configuring the device to divide traffic amongst one or more transceivers (e.g. based on principle such as Access Traffic Steering, Switching, Splitting (ATSSS) e.g. as specified in 3GPP TS 23.501), whereby configuration / policies (e.g. ATSSS rules, URSP rules) may be provided by an access device or network function to the device that may be extended to include energy related conditions, settings and / or preferences.

[0281] Example of such conditions / setting / preference may include a condition that indicates: 2024PF00673

[0282] 31 11.12.2025

[0283] - an absolute energy expenditure (for the current communication traffic over certain RAT(s) / transceivers and / or computational load, e.g. as measured or predicted) exceeding or being below a threshold, then e.g. certain applications / services may be adapted to steer their traffic to a different RAT / transceiver or the device may be adapted to switch to a different RAT / transceiver. - a relative energy expenditure (for the current communication traffic over certain RAT(s) / transceivers and / or computational load) compared to another RAT / transceiver (e.g. as measured or predicted) exceeding or being below a threshold, then e.g. certain applications / services may be adapted to steer their traffic to a different RAT / transceiver or the device may be adapted to switch to a different RAT / transceiver

[0284] 6. Load balancing: The device can coordinate with multiple access devices or base stations to balance the communication load, switching connections to optimize energy efficiency based on real-time network conditions.

[0285] These optimizations ensure that the energy-efficient settings are tailored to the specific needs and characteristics of each communication session, ultimately enhancing the overall efficiency and sustainability of the network.

[0286] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the wireless device negotiates a configuration for energy-efficient operation by sending or receiving one or more messages with one or more network functions. This negotiation process involves several steps and interactions with key network functions, including the Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), Session Management Function (SMF), and Policy Control Function (PCF) (or equivalent functions in, e.g., a 6G system). The wireless device may gather real-time data on its operational parameters, such as signal strength, battery level, and current computational load. It then may send a request to the Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) to determine the optimal connection points based on its mobility patterns and the available network infrastructure. The AMF may suggest switching to a different base station or access point that offers better energy efficiency. The wireless device may interact with the Session Management Function (SMF) to dynamically adjust its communication parameters. The SMF handles session establishment, maintenance, and release, ensuring that the device's data transmission is optimized for energy efficiency. For instance, the SMF may lower the data rate during periods of low activity or schedule data transmission during off-peak hours to reduce congestion and save energy. The Policy Control Function (PCF) plays a crucial role in enforcing policies related to energy-efficient operations. The PCF evaluates the device's request against predefined policies and rules, and it may grant or deny permissions based on the current network conditions and the device's energy-saving requirements. This function ensures that the device's operations align with the overall network efficiency goals. The AMF / PCF / SMF and other NFs may check the subscription of the wireless device, e.g. whether the wireless device is subscribed to the one or more specific features for energyefficient operation, and take the respective subscription information into account to determine the policies for the wireless device and its operation. 2024PF00673

[0287] 32 11.12.2025

[0288] As mentioned earlier, not only communication overhead is important to enable energy efficient operation. Also energy used for performing computations is a significant factor to be taken into account. Communication systems increasingly offer computational and storage resources, not only in the form of edge and / or cloud computing, but also enabling the use of spare computational resources e.g. in cellular core networks or base stations, or other service hosting environment.

[0289] Therefore, in an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the wireless device may negotiate for computation resources by requesting (specific) computational tasks to be offloaded to the computational resources offered by the network (e.g. the network's edge or cloud servers). This offloading process may help the device conserve energy by reducing its processing load, on the other hand may increase the energy used for communication. The request may be evaluated based on the computational capabilities of the network and the current load on the servers and / or the wireless device, and / or the expected / calculated energy expenditure for performing a set of computations. It may involve specifying the timing of the computational tasks, such as when they should start and the deadlines by which they must be completed. This information may be added as part of the request. Other information that may be added to the request may include: number of processors or virtual machines requested, type of processors / processing requested (e.g. CPU or GPU), expected number of compute cycles, amount of data expected as input and / or as output, amount of memory that may be needed, type of computational process (real-time / continuous processing (e.g. of input / output data), batch processing or one-off calculation), type of algorithm (e.g. deterministic / non-deterministic, data processing related algorithms, data mining algorithms, machine-learning / inferencing, batch processing), description of computational task (e.g. sorting, searching, encoding / compressing, decoding / decompressing), type of compute service (e.g. dedicated compute service for Al interference offloading, for AV / XR rendering offload, or other dedicated service for specific applications, which may support compute service specific protocols or interfaces). The wireless device and / or network may prioritize certain computational tasks based on the available processors, selecting those that are better suited for the tasks at hand to ensure optimal performance and energy efficiency. Evaluating the request may include checking if the wireless device is subscribed to the service of offloading its computational tasks, and / or may include checking if the wireless device is subject to a request from a third party (e.g. received through NEF) for computation offloading.

[0290] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the request and / or the response from the network as part of the negotiation for computational tasks to be offloaded may include or may be associated with a computation session identifier or a combined communication and computation session identifier. Such session identifier can be used to preserve the context (e.g. computational state or which compute resources were assigned / reserved for the respective computational tasks or which Al model was selected for offloading Al inferencing tasks, etc.) of the communication and used for scheduling computational resources for a specific computation session or combined communication and computation session. 2024PF00673

[0291] 33 11.12.2025

[0292] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the wireless device negotiates a configuration for energy-efficient operation by sending or receiving one or more messages with an application. This application may refer to various use cases, such as augmented reality (AR) / virtual reality (VR), video streaming services, real-time communication applications, or Al-based applications.

[0293] For instance, in the context of an AR / VR application, a user wearing AR glasses may require efficient rendering services to provide a smooth and immersive experience. The wireless device can negotiate to offload rendering tasks to computational resources offered by the network (e.g. edge servers), optimizing energy consumption by reducing the computational load on the device itself. This negotiation ensures that high-quality visuals are maintained without draining the device's battery, assuming that the energy consumption of the computation / computational task is higher than the additional communication overhead incurred by transmitting and / or receiving related data to the network to perform the computation / computational task. If during the negotiation between the wireless device and the network it is determined that the energy consumption saved by offloading the computation / computational task to the network is less or equal to the additional overhead for communication, the network and / or wireless device may determine to not offload the computation / computational task and / or may inform the other device that the computation / computational task will not be offloaded.

[0294] Video streaming services, another example, demand significant data bandwidth and power. The wireless device can dynamically adjust the video quality based on network conditions and the device's battery level. During periods of low activity or network congestion, the device may request a lower resolution, saving energy while still providing an acceptable user experience. In real-time communication applications, such as IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystem) based systems, the wireless device can negotiate parameters to ensure seamless communication. This includes adjusting the codec and bit rate based on the current signal strength and network load, thereby optimizing both energy efficiency and communication quality.

[0295] For Al-based applications, a wireless device may opt between performing some AI-generative tasks locally or remotely. For instance, answering a question or creating a picture. The decision between a local or remote Al-generative task may depend on the required quality of the generated data, the size of the generated data, and the CPU effort.

[0296] Finally, for Al-based applications, such as the operation of an Al-agent, the wireless device can offload intensive computational tasks to computational resources offered by the network (e.g. cloud servers). This not only conserves the device's battery but also leverages the potentially superior processing power of the computational resources offered by the network to perform complex Al operations. The device can prioritize tasks and schedule offloading based on the urgency and importance of each task, ensuring optimal performance and energy efficiency.

[0297] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, negotiating a configuration for energy-efficient operation involves a detailed and 2024PF00673

[0298] 34 11.12.2025

[0299] dynamic process. This process may include determining the optimal communication parameters and computation parameters that fulfill the device's preferences in terms of communication and computation efficiency. The wireless device may collect real-time data on its operational state, such as signal strength, battery level, and computational load. This data is crucial for making informed decisions during the negotiation process. The device may engage in a series of interactions with key network functions, including one or more of the following steps: (1) sending a request to the AMF (or in general, an equivalent function in such as access and mobility management) to evaluate the optimal connection points based on its mobility patterns and the available network infrastructure. The AMF may suggest switching to a different base station or access point that offers better energy efficiency. For example, if the device is moving away from its current access point, the AMF could recommend a closer one with better signal strength to reduce power consumption; (2) the device may interact with the SMF to dynamically adjust its communication parameters, such as data rate and transmission times. For instance, the SMF could lower the data rate during periods of low activity or schedule data transmission during off-peak hours to reduce congestion and save energy. Additionally, if the wireless device is far from the access device, the network might recommend using a very powerful but energy-consuming compression algorithm (with high energy cost) to ensure data integrity while balancing energy use; (3) the PCF may enforce policies related to energy-efficient operations. It evaluates the device's requests against predefined policies and rules, granting or denying permissions based on current network conditions and the device's energy-saving requirements. This function ensures that the device's operations align with the network's overall efficiency goals, maintaining a harmonious balance between individual device performance and collective network sustainability; (4) additionally, the negotiation process may involve the selection of specific communication protocols and technologies that are inherently designed to minimize energy consumption, such as low-power wide-area network (LPWAN) standards or wired communication interfaces. The device and the network can agree on using these protocols to ensure energy-efficient communication; (5) the wireless device may also negotiate for computation resources by requesting to offload specific computational tasks to computational resources offered by the network (e.g. the network's edge or cloud servers). This offloading process may help the device conserve energy by reducing its processing load. The request is evaluated based on the computational capabilities of the network and the current load on the servers, including specifying the timing of the computational tasks and their deadlines. For example, if a device anticipates a heavy computational task, it might request offloading this task to a more powerful server to save battery life. By prioritizing certain computational tasks based on the available processors, the device can select those better suited to the tasks at hand, ensuring optimal performance and energy efficiency. Throughout this negotiation process, the device and the network may continuously adapt to changing conditions, striving to achieve the best possible balance between performance and energy consumption.

[0300] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the wireless device is adapted to use local computing resources. For instance, local 2024PF00673

[0301] 35 11.12.2025

[0302] computing resources may be located in the wireless device itself or a computing device in the home network or in the close vicinity of the wireless device. For instance, the device may be a Wi-Fi router or a cellular-based Wi-Fi router (e.g., fixed wireless access device or customer premises equipment (CPE)) or an access device that may have multiple processors as in other embodiments and may be used for offloading certain computationally heavy operations. A wireless device, e.g., one of several wireless devices in the home network, may be able to reserve and / or offload certain computational operations to such computing device.

[0303] Similarly, in an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, a wireless device may be adapted to use computing resources (e.g. edge or cloud compute resources) offered by a larger communication system (e.g. cellular network) that the device connects to. Access to such computing resources and / or requesting resources from a computing device (e.g. edge server / cloud server) and / or receiving scheduling information related to compute resources may be offered as part of a subscription by mobile operators since the computing device may be useful to reduce communication traffic and keep it local to the home environment. Such subscription may be linked to one or more wireless devices, e.g. as part of the subscription information for each specific wireless device, whereby the subscription may distinguish between different types of computational resources (e.g. generic CPU, GPU, Al, split A / V / XR rendering), and / or one or more AI / ME models (e.g. Al agents) that may be accessible / used, and / or whereby the subscription may contain information about an amount of computational resources (e.g. a maximum number of compute cycles, maximum amount of storage, maximum computational load, maximum amount of tokens, maximum amount of frames generated, etc) that may be available during a certain time period and / or an area in which the computational resources may be provided, and / or a maximum delay for receiving computational responses, or more generally a certain minimum or maximum Quality of Experience level. Additionally or alternatively, a third party (e.g. AF) may request the network (e.g. through NEF) for offloading computational tasks and / or to be provided with and / or access certain type(s) or amount of computational resources. Such request may include information about a set of UEs for which the offloading / request for resources applies, a desired time period of the day (e.g. at night), an area in which its devices are deployed, and / or a desired QoS or QoE.

[0304] The request and / or preferences for offloading computational resources (e.g. which type of computational resources, or requested amount) may be provided by the wireless device to the network as part of registration request or PDU session request. The network in turn may verify the subscription of the wireless device and / or associated third party and based on the outcome of that verification configure the wireless device accordingly (e.g. by providing a set of policies, network addresses of computational resources, credentials to access computational resources etc.).

[0305] The computing device may expose its capabilities to local devices such as the wireless device, e.g., by announcing its capabilities via a local communication interface, e.g., Uu interface (e.g., in a SIB or RRC message), e.g., Sidelink / PC5, local communication interface, or at a higher communication 2024PF00673

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[0307] layer. The computing device may not only schedule communication occasions, e.g., time / frequency communication slots, but also computing slots, i.e., amount of CPU cycles / GPU cycles / tokens available to a wireless device to perform an operation.

[0308] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, a wireless device may send a scheduling request to the computing device requesting communication and / or computation resources.

[0309] The scheduling request may be on demand or for a periodic operation.

[0310] The scheduling request may be transmitted by means of a control message, e.g., radio resource control message (RRC message), or a dedicated computing resource control message (CRC message), or by extending an existing Scheduling Request or Buffer Status Report message (e.g. add new computing related parameters / IEs to a BSR MAC Control Element as specified e.g. in 3GPP TS 38.321). The scheduling request may be associated with a computation session or a combined communication and computation session, whereby the scheduling request may include a computation session identifier or a combined communication and computation session identifier.

[0311] The device managing the computing resources, e.g. an access device such as a gNB may schedule (e.g. based on the requested resources) a set of computing resources for the wireless device. The scheduled resources may be provided / transmitted by means of a control message, e.g., a computing resource control message, e.g., radio resource control message (RRC message which may include a semi-persistent schedule for computing resources that may include time duration and / or a repetition time, and / or information about the type of computing resources, and / or computation session identifier or a combined communication and computation session identifier ), or a dedicated computing resource control message (CRC message), or by extending an existing DCI message (e.g. with additional fields with a set of computing parameters that may include timing information such as start time and / or duration, and / or information about the type of computing resource and / or computation session identifier or a combined communication and computation session identifier) or through a new DCI message / configuration.

[0312] The wireless device may receive these scheduling details from the device managing the computing resources and use this to determine which computations and / or computational tasks can be offloaded and / or which computing resources to use for offloading computations and / or computational tasks.

[0313] The messages for scheduling communication (e.g. a scheduling message) and for scheduling computational resources (e.g. a computing resource control message) advantageously can be combined as described in the following embodiments.

[0314] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the wireless device may communicate based on the efficient operation configuration, i.e., scheduled computing and communication resources, and the communication may comprise receiving, in the scheduled communication resources, data after being processed by the computing device according to the scheduled computing resources and / or 2024PF00673

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[0316] transmitting, in the scheduled communication resource, data to be processed by the computing device according to the scheduled computing resources.

[0317] In a related embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the scheduling message implicitly indicates the computing resource control message.

[0318] In a related embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the computing resource control message implicitly indicates the scheduling message.

[0319] In a related embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the computing resource control message and the scheduling message are linked by a common identifier (e.g. combined communication and computation session identifier as described in other embodiments).

[0320] In a related embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the computing resource control message is identified by a computing resource identifier.

[0321] In a related embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the computing resource control message is transmitted on demand via a layer 1 or layer 2 signaling.

[0322] In a related embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the computing resource control message is transmitted to schedule periodic computing resources via a radio resource control message or a NAS protected message.

[0323] In a related embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the wireless device may receive a computing resource control message to schedule computing resources and a scheduling message to schedule radio resources to transfer the computed data. This may be applicable, e.g., when a wireless device gets an indication about resources that are available at a computing service (e.g., in the core network or wireless access device). This may be an indication that the wireless device can share data and / or a computing request with the computing service, e.g., a request to execute a generative AI / ML model. The scheduling request to schedule radio resources may refer to the communication resources to perform a data exchange related to the computing load.

[0324] In an example, the wireless device may transmit, in the scheduled communication resources, data after being computed by the wireless device according to the scheduled computing resources.

[0325] In an example, the wireless device may receive, in the scheduled communication resources, data to be processed by the wireless device and / or data processed by the computing device according to the scheduled computing resources.

[0326] This approach allows harmonizing communication / computing load.

[0327] Section: combined scheduling for batch-based token-based communication 2024PF00673

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[0329] In some embodiments of the invention, a wireless device may negotiate a configuration for efficient operation that may comprise the apparatus sending a computing resource control message to schedule computing resources at a computing device and a (corresponding) scheduling message to schedule radio resources to transfer data to be computed.

[0330] This transmission may be considered as a combined message to schedule both the communication and computation cost.

[0331] This procedure may be applied for example in AI / ML generative models in which a user may enter a request, e.g., by means of a prompt to obtain an answer, generate a picture, generate a solution, or a video. This request message may be sent to a server, with computing capabilities, and the computing capabilities may need to be scheduled to process the request message. The request message may already include semantic information about the expected answer.

[0332] This may be applicable in the IMS system, if the user uses his wireless device to, e.g., generate or obtain some avatars, because the user will send a request and obtain an answer.

[0333] For instance, the user may request (as IMS avatar) a sketch of a cat, and given the requested generative model, and the computational load, the network may expect the need to transfer three sketches of a cat within the next T seconds, each with a time interval T_i. This may allow the wireless device and network to schedule the communication resources and communication resources jointly.

[0334] This is illustrated by means of Fig. 15 wherein entities 1500, 1501, and 1502 may correspond to, e.g., a wireless device, an access device, and a computing device. The access device may also be collocated with certain network functions of the core network. The computing device may be part of the access device, or the core network, or an external entity. The procedure described by means of Fig.

[0335] 15 may include one or more of the following steps. Some steps may be repeated, or performed in a different order, or skipped. Some steps as per embodiments in the invention may not be included for clarity purposes.

[0336] In step 1504-1, wireless device sends a request message (e.g., as above to obtain three pictures of a cat). The request message arrives at the access device that forwards it as step 1504-2 to the computing device.

[0337] In step 1505-2, computing device may inform access device of the current computing load and timing to deliver the requested data. Based on the information, access device may perform resource scheduling towards wireless device as step 1505-1.

[0338] In steps 1506-2, 1507-2, and 1508-2, computing device generates / produces / returns the requested data, that is then transmitted back towards wireless device in steps 1506-1, 1507-1, and 1508-1.

[0339] In step 1505-1, the scheduling process may involve the following key elements:

[0340] Resource Allocation Information: The scheduling message may include details about the allocated resources for the communication. This encompasses the type and amount of resources, such as 2024PF00673

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[0342] bandwidth, time slots, and frequency channels. It is to be noted that this may be a rough resource allocation due to the variability of the generated data.

[0343] Timing Information: The scheduling message also provides information about when the allocated resources are expected to be available. This includes the start time and duration of the resource allocation, allowing the wireless device to synchronize its communication activities.

[0344] Expected Data Size: The scheduling message includes the expected size of the data to be transmitted. This helps the wireless device to plan its buffer and memory usage, ensuring that it can handle the incoming or outgoing data efficiently.

[0345] After the rough resource allocation, the wireless device may transmit one or more messages (e.g., UCI / DCI messages) to confirm the actual transmission time. This message serves as a final confirmation and ensures that the allocated resources are utilized at the right moment. This step is crucial for maintaining synchronization and avoiding resource wastage.

[0346] Additionally or alternatively, before step 1504-1, the wireless device may initiate a joint communication and computation session (or separately a communication session and a computation session) with the network as described in other embodiments. During or as part of setting up the communication and computation session, the wireless device may indicate to the network the type of computational task (e.g. Al) and / or context details (e.g. type of Al model or Al model identifier) and / or may provide some high level goals and / or conditions e.g. through an intent message (e.g. based on a semantic language) possibly with certain performance requirements or related condition, and / or may upload an Al model to the computing device. The high-level goal may indicate the need for generating a number of images based on a prompt. The compute device together with the access device (and / or an associated core network functions) may schedule some compute resources and related communication resources to accommodate the request. The compute device (and / or associated core network function) may transmit information about the compute resource schedule and / or communication schedule via the access device to the wireless device, preferably as a combined communication and computation schedule message, and / or may transmit information about the compute resource schedule and / or communication schedule to the access device, which may use this information, possibly jointly with step 1505-1, to transmit schedule messages and computing resource control messages, preferably as combined messages) to the wireless device. The wireless device may use the received communication and computation schedule information to send the request in step 1504-1, and to receive the responses from the network in steps 1506-1, 1507-1, and 1508-1.

[0347] Section: IMS voice calls using GEO satellite access

[0348] In the following, communication procedures are described in the context of voice over satellites, in which communication / computational optimizations and trade-offs are analyzed in order to optimize and / or reduce different metrics, such as latency and / or energy consumption. 2024PF00673

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[0350] In the following, multiple communication / computational optimizations are described to optimize performance, e.g., the usage of different compression / decompression / coder / decoder algorithms.

[0351] In Release 19, it is aimed to enable UE to UE IMS-based communication over satellite. This involves the architecture, procedures, etc defined in Annex AE in TS 23.228, e.g., mobility procedures for UE-Satellite-UE communication in IMS - continuation of optimized media routing as described in TS 23.228. Similarly, the setup of the IMS communication relies on the initial setup of a user plane connection / PDU session as described in Clause 4.3.2 in TS 23.502.

[0352] IMS-based communication over satellite may be performed over lower altitude access devices, e.g., LEO satellites, e.g., because the latency may be lower due to the lower altitude.

[0353] Furthermore, the available link capacity may be higher. When the low altitude access devices move, a change of access device may be required, and a mobility procedure for UE-Satellite-UE communication in IMS may be required. This may involve a handover of wireless device to a different access device (e.g., handover of the user / control plane). This may also involve reserving / configuring IMS AGW in the target satellite. R19 has described procedures for mobility between satellites, and procedures for fallback. Procedures for fallback to an access device at a higher altitude (e.g., GEO satellite) are required, e.g., when terrestrial access devices are not available in certain conditions or at a certain location (e.g., sea, energy savings, catastrophe situation) and lower altitude access devices are not available.

[0354] Furthermore, in some scenarios, it is desired to enable voice over a GEO satellite, in particular, IMS-based voice. This may be desirable because a GEO satellite remains at a fixed (or relatively fixed) position over an area on the earth. Thus, wireless devices do not require changing the satellite frequently. However, the setup of the connection and / or the execution of the connection may require specific techniques to handle the relatively low bandwidth communication links and / or the high latency of the communication link. To address these challenges, several embodiments of this invention may be applied:

[0355] In an embodiment that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, it may be required to authorize the (the usage of the) resources required for the wireless device(s) (UE(s)) for the communication over a GEO / GSO satellite (e.g., a first (e.g., higher) altitude access device) because these resources may be scarce. These resources would be required to carry the communication flow. The PCF may authorize the required resources viaNpcf_PolicyAuthorization_Update service operation.

[0356] In an embodiment that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the wireless device(s) may be required to perform a handover from a second (e.g., lower) altitude access device to a first (e.g., higher) altitude access device. For instance, if two wireless devices are performing a UE-Satellite-UE communication over one or more second altitude (e.g., lower altitude) access devices, if a second (lower) altitude access device is not available, or is moving out of coverage for at least one of the wireless devices (UEs), both wireless devices (both UEs) may be required to move (perform 2024PF00673

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[0358] handover) to the first (higher) altitude access device. This may be beneficial to optimize the communication between the wireless devices. It is worth noting that the handover to the first (higher) altitude access device may concern mainly UP data / traffic, and may be scheduled (e.g., through a configuration signaled to the wireless device) such that the routing through the first (higher) altitude access device is performed to cover a time window during which the wireless device is expected to experience lower altitude access device(s) coverage gap i.e., time window between the (first) second (lower) altitude access device moving out of coverage (e.g., dropping the service link) and a (second) second (lower) altitude access device moving into coverage (e.g., establishing the service link), thereby ensuring service continuity. Additionally, or alternatively, both UP and CP may be handled by the first (higher) altitude access device following a successful handover.

[0359] According to Annex AE.2.1.1, for the IMS PDU Session, the IP address allocated to a wireless device (UE) corresponds to a PSA UPF located on the ground, so that the IP address of the UE is not changed when the serving satellite changes.

[0360] In an embodiment (in the context of previous embodiment) that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the allocation of such an IP address may be done when the wireless device is still connected to a second altitude access device (e.g., a terrestrial access device). In some cases, the usage of a fixed IP address may also allow using / applying header compression, e.g. based on RFC 2507 and / or RFC 6282 and / or RFC 3095 and / or an extension of them. In some cases, IP header compression may be applicable to the case in which a single satellite enables the UE-satellite-communication, e.g., IMS-based voice communication as described in other embodiments of the invention. In some cases, IP header may be removed. This mode of operation may be called “non-IP” mechanism. Removal may be dependent, e.g., on whether the wireless devices connect through a first (e.g., higher) altitude access device or a second (e.g., lower) altitude access device. Removal and / or compression and / or the corresponding routing may be activated on the wireless access devices / satellite when the bandwidth capabilities drop below a given threshold (e.g., when the wireless device connects through a first (e.g., higher) altitude access device. Advantageously, the wireless devices may have a fixed IP address and fixed radio access network identifier (e.g., handled by a same access device) and functionalities such as retransmission, reassembling, etc may be taken care of by upper or lower layers. The wireless device may get a command indicating that the IP header should be compressed and / or removed. The wireless device may use a header compression functionality in the PDCP layer (e.g., extension of ROHC) to fully remove the IP header and / or compress it as required. The wireless device may still keep its IP address so that it can be reinserted as required. In some cases, the IP address may be mapped to a specific identifier (a wireless device identifier) of the wireless device, e.g., a radio access identifier (RNTI) so that the usage of the specific (wireless device) identifier, e.g., RNTI, by a wireless devices indicates a given IP address (and allows the later IP header reinsertion or reassembly).

[0361] In a related embodiment that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, routing in the access device (e.g., satellite) may be performed based on wireless device 2024PF00673

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[0363] identifiers, e.g., the radio network identifiers (RNTIs), instead of the IP addresses. This means that the PDCP layer of the access device may get an indication of the wireless device identifier, e.g., RNTI, used to receive a certain message. The PDCP layer may then have a routing table based on the RNTI (and / or a mapping between RNTIs and IP addresses) so that the message may be rerouted to the peer wireless device, e.g., in a UE-satellite-UE communication link.

[0364] An intermediate device such as, e.g., the GEO satellite, a NF of the cellular network in the satellite, or a function in the IMS system may have mapping between IP address and wireless device identifier, RNTI, and may route the packets based on the RNTI instead of the IP address. This allows saving bandwidth.

[0365] In an embodiment that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, a wireless device may be required to connect to a first (e.g., higher) altitude access device after receiving a first message from a second (e.g., lower) altitude access device. For instance, the second (e.g., lower) altitude access device may have indicated that it is working on store and forward mode and / or in transparent mode and / or it is going to move out of the area where the wireless device is located so that it does / will not support IMS-based communication for UE-satellite-UE. The first message may indicate the identity of and / or other information / parameters about a first access device capable of providing this service, e.g., a higher altitude access device.

[0366] In an embodiment that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, it may be required to reduce the number of round trips required to establish the communication over the second (e.g., higher) access device, e.g., compared with the procedure in AE.5.2 of TS 23.228 (vI9.3.0) (IMS AGW relocation and media routing path change due to change of satellites). In an example, the 5GC may be executed in the second altitude satellite so that some messages e.g., 2-6, illustrated in figure AE.5.2.1-1 may run locally.

[0367] In an embodiment that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, step 3 in figure AE.5.2.1-1 of TS 23.228 (vI9.0.3) (determining whether UE-Satellite-UE communication continues to be possible) may require checking the capabilities of the wireless device and checking whether it is authorized to communicate with a first (higher) altitude access device. If it is not capable, or authorized, the communication may be dropped, and / or rejected, or re-routed to a first altitude access device, if any, which the wireless device is capable and authorized to communicate through.

[0368] In an embodiment that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, step 3 may require setting up a connection to the second altitude access device to determine whether UE-Satellite-UE communication is feasible. This may require performing a soft satellite switch and / or actual handover from the second (e.g., lower) altitude access device to the first(e.g., higher) altitude access device. Due to the high-altitude difference, the received SSBs from the first altitude access device may be received with a much weaker signal strength and with a higher latency. Thus, the second altitude access device may indicate in a first message specific parameters for the switch to the first altitude access device, e.g., expected signal strength / transmitted signal strength, and / or specific parameters to access the first 2024PF00673

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[0370] altitude access device, e.g., number of repetitions when transmitting an initial message (e.g., PRACH, or an random access message) as required to reach the second altitude access device, timing advance (e.g., between the first and second altitude access device), which may be used by the second altitude access device to estimate the TA between the wireless device and the first altitude access device. The cell switch and / or handover may be triggered / controlled by the second altitude access device and / or may be based on a conditional handover wherein the conditional handover may be triggered by conditions configured by the second altitude access device, e.g., conditions related to the execution of an IMS call over satellite, e.g., when the wireless device is performing a voice call and the second altitude access device loses its capability to provide the service, the wireless device may be required to move to the first altitude access device. Additionally, while performing the cell (soft) switch and / or handover, the second altitude access device may provide the wireless device with specific parameters to access through the first altitude access device, comprising e.g., required signal strength, number of repetitions when transmitting the initial message (e.g., PRACH), Timing Advance, etc.

[0371] In steps 2 and 8 of figure AE.5.2.1-1 of TS 23.228 (vl9.3.0), P-CSCF receives the early and late notification of the satellite user plane management events associated with UE-Satellite-UE communication media traffic from PCF, respectively, as defined in TS 23.502. In an embodiment that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, these early and late indication(s) and / or any step(s) in between may include information about the actual capacity / achievable QoS (e.g., max data rate) that may be provided by the communication link (to be) established with the first altitude access device, because due to the wide area coverage of the first altitude access device, the distance / communication may be variable. This information about the actual capacity / achievable QoS (e.g., max data rate, latency, etc) may be used by the IMS system to select suitable parameters and / or schemes to encode the communication traffic.

[0372] In an embodiment that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the first (e.g., higher) altitude access device may execute the entities in the originating and terminating networks as a means to optimize performance, e.g., P-CSCP, IMS-AS, IMS AGW, etc. Thus, one or more of messages 8, 9, 10, 11 as per figure AE.5.2.1-1 of TS 23.228 (vl9.3.0) may run locally reducing signaling overhead.

[0373] In an embodiment that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the wireless devices (UEs) may be requested to move to the first altitude access device and / or the wireless devices (UEs) may be adapted to confirm / reject moving to the first altitude access device.

[0374] In step 1 of Annex AE.5.2.1, the traffic from the originating network to the terminating network runs via IMS AGW on source satellite (ULCL / L-PSA on source satellite) to IMS AGW on the satellite in the terminating network. The same happens for the traffic from the terminating network to the originating network. In step 12, the traffic from the terminating network to the originating network is updated to run from the IMS AGW on the satellite of the terminating network to the IMS AGW on the target satellite of the originating network. In step 18, the traffic from the originating network to the 2024PF00673

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[0376] terminating network is updated to run from the IMS AGW on the target satellite of the originating network to the IMS AGW on the satellite of the terminating network. When communication over two satellites is moved to a single first altitude access device, performance may be optimized, hence in an embodiment that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, in step 12, the traffic from the terminating network to the originating network may be updated to run through the IMS AGW(s) on the target (first altitude access device) satellite. If two IMS AGW (for terminating and originating networks) are available, they may be co-located on the same target satellite. Additionally, or alternatively, in step 18, the traffic from the originating network to the terminating network may be updated to run through the IMS AGW(s) on the target (first altitude access device) satellite. If two IMS AGW (for terminating and originating networks) are available, the two may be co-located on the same target satellite. This adaptation may allow reducing signaling and speeding up the IMS AGW relocation / media routing path change procedure.

[0377] In an embodiment that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, in steps 10, 13, 17 in figure AE.5.2.1-1, the target satellite ID and / or SDP offer (IMS AGW on target satellite (that may contain the corresponding IP address) is provided in the SIP re-invite message. This message may be enhanced to include IP addresses of both IMS AGW of both originating and terminating networks so that signaling can be reduced. Furthermore, the SIP re-invite messages may be enhanced to include an indication of the usage of a second (e.g., higher, e.g., GEO) altitude access device and / or expected communication parameters / capabilities (e.g., data rate and / or latency).

[0378] Step 12 in Annex AE.5.2.1, may have the traffic through two communication paths of very different latency when applied to a second (e.g., higher) altitude access device as described in other embodiments. Thus, in an embodiment that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, latency of the communication flow, e.g., in Step 12, from the originating to the terminating network may be adapted, e.g., artificially increased, e.g., by buffering the traffic, to match the latency in the opposite direction. Latency compensation techniques may be applied as in other embodiments and / or using timing measurements that may have been performed by P-CSCF e.g., in steps 4 and / or 5, and provided to IMS AGW on the source satellite, to approximate matching the latency associated with traffic received by the UE via the target satellite.

[0379] Step 12 in Annex AE.5.2.1 comprises the change of the routing path that may require a different type of compression (e.g., encoder) algorithm (high compression (encoding) algorithm, e.g., speech to text) in the communication from the terminating to the originating network and / or UE. Thus, in an embodiment that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, this step may trigger the usage of a high compression algorithm.

[0380] When a media function (MF) is used and the media function performs network-centric rendering / speech synthesis, the media function based rendering / speech synthesis may be a feasible solution when the communication is performed through a second (e.g., lower) altitude access device, but 2024PF00673

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[0382] network based rendering / speech synthesis may not be feasible when the communication is performed through the first (higher) altitude access device.

[0383] The reason is that this may require the distribution of the rendered data / synthesized speech from MF to the wireless devices, and this may require much more bandwidth. The usage of the first (higher) altitude access device may in such case trigger a change from network-centric to device centric rendering. In this case, device-centric rendering means that the (both) receiving wireless devices (UEs) may be performing the rendering / transcoding / speech synthesis, since this may allow for lower bandwidth consumption. Device-centric rendering / transcoding / speech synthesis may require the configuration of the wireless devices with the corresponding / required information, e.g., encoders to perform the encoding of the information, e.g., speech, and / or decoders to perform the decoding of the information, e.g., text.

[0384] Section: low data bit rate compression algorithms (in voice over GEO)

[0385] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, negotiating a configuration for energy-efficient operation comprises selecting a compression algorithm that reduces the number of operations to achieve a given compression level. For instance, algorithms such as LZ77 and Huffman coding are known fortheir high compression rates but require significant computational resources. On the other hand, simpler algorithms like Run-Length Encoding (RLE) and Delta Encoding offer lower compression rates but consume fewer computational resources. LZ77, which forms the basis of the widely used DEFLATE algorithm (utilized in ZIP files), achieves high compression efficiency by exploiting repetition within data. However, it requires substantial memory and processing power to search for and encode repeated sequences. Huffman coding, another resource-intensive algorithm, creates variable-length codes for different characters based on their frequencies, thus minimizing overall data size but requiring considerable processing to build and traverse the Huffman tree. In contrast, Run-Length Encoding (RLE) is a much simpler algorithm that replaces consecutive repeated characters with a single character and a count. Although it is less efficient for data with minimal repetition, it is computationally lightweight and can be executed with minimal processing power. Similarly, Delta Encoding, which stores differences between successive data points rather than the points themselves, is less resource-intensive and suitable for scenarios where data changes incrementally. Al-based compression algorithms are also emerging as powerful tools, leveraging techniques such as diffusion models. These algorithms, often based on machine learning, can dynamically learn and adapt to the data being compressed, potentially offering superior compression rates compared to traditional methods. However, they typically require significant computational resources fortraining and inference. For example, diffusion-based compression algorithms can iteratively refine their predictions converting, e.g., text into an image, to achieve more accurate and efficient compression, making them suitable for applications where maximizing data reduction is critical, and computational overhead can be justified. For 2024PF00673

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[0387] instance, if an IMS voice call is performed via a terrestrial network (TN), the compression algorithm may be such that does not require a high compression rate (allowing for better quality), while if the IMS call is transferred to a satellite, e.g., GEO satellite, the compression algorithms is switched to reduce energy consumption in the communication link / reduce latency even at the cost of a higher computational cost.

[0388] In a related embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the switching of data compression algorithm (from low compression to high compression and vice versa) may need to be done before switching the network / access network / transceiver when moving from a low latency to a high latency network / access network / transceiver and vice versa. For instance, before or when moving from a lower altitude access device to a higher altitude access device. Furthermore, the switching of the data compression algorithm (from high compression to low compression) may need to be done after switching the network / access network / transceiver when moving from a high latency to a low latency network / access network / transceiver. This ensures that the quality of service is maintained while energy consumption is reduced. In general, when different access technologies with different characteristics are used, e.g., in terms of energy consumption, or latency, the usage / switch of technology needs to be notified (e.g., by sending a message to a controller (e.g., access device) or a network function orchestrating the switch) so that a switch in the compression algorithms (in general, computing resources) can be orchestrated early enough. For instance, sufficient computing resources can be allocated on the communication path of the newly selected network / access network / transceiver.

[0389] In a related embodiment that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the switch of data compression algorithms (e.g., from low compression to high compression, and vice versa) may first be applied on the downlink communication path by a first UE (e.g., the UE in the originating network side; see step 12 in AE.5.2.1-1), and uplink communication path by a second UE (e.g., the UE in the terminating network side; see step 12 in AE.5.2.1-1), while maintaining low compression on the uplink and downlink communication path(s) by the first and second UEs, respectively. Once the data stream becomes fully routed through the target satellite (e.g., the higher altitude access device), the higher compression may be applied on both the downlink and uplink transmissions by both the first and second UEs. Note that in such a scenario, UE(s) may, during the switch period, use (receive / transmit) simultaneously both a low and a high compression algorithm.

[0390] In an embodiment that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, in scenarios where at least two access devices at varying / different altitudes (e.g., LEO and GEO) are involved (e.g., only one lower altitude access device is substituted by a higher altitude access device), compression requirements and / or algorithms applicable to the first and second UEs may differ on both the uplink and downlink streams. For instance, the second UE (e.g., served by a lower altitude access device) may still use a low compression algorithm), while the first UE (e.g., served by a higher altitude access device) may switch to a high compression algorithm. Additionally, or alternatively, a hybrid (including UE and MF) rendering / speech synthesis / transcoding mode may apply in such scenario (e.g., involving 2024PF00673

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[0392] access devices at varying altitudes), where the lower altitude access device may, upon receiving the highly compressed data stream, decode the data and apply a higher compression algorithm (i.e., perform transcoding from lower to higher compression) before forwarding traffic to the first UE through the higher altitude access device, and vice versa when receiving the data from the first UE through the higher altitude access device. Note that the aggregated delay incurred by data transmissions between the first and second UEs, in case UP traffic is routed through at least two access devices at varying altitudes (e.g., LEO and GEO) may be similar, however, the delay incurred e.g., by the lower layer altitude access device to switch compression algorithms (i.e., perform transcoding) may need to be accounted for, as such, while negotiating the applicable codecs / compression algorithms between the originating and terminating networks, the estimated delay may be signaled to the first and second UEs accordingly. Additionally, or alternatively, in such scenarios, a higher compression algorithm may be negotiated to be applicable across the communication path, by both UEs and / or satellites (e.g., MF(s) therein).

[0393] As a matter of clarification in the previous embodiment, this architecture allows a legacy device that is not capable of high compression to communicate with another wireless device that is capable of high compression.

[0394] As a matter of clarification in the previous embodiment, the access device may run the MF (since this is a hybrid approach), and the MF may be performing transcoding between the lower compression algorithm and the higher compression algorithm.

[0395] As a matter of clarification in the previous embodiment and in reference to Fig. 8, the communication link between entity 800 and 801 may use a first compression algorithm and the link between 801 and 802 may use a second compression algorithm. Entities 800 and 802 may refer to two wireless devices performing an IMS-based voice call over (GEO-)satellite. Entity 801 may comprise one or more satellites and include also the corresponding IMS originating / terminating networks.

[0396] In a related embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, a first wireless device may be connected to a first access device at a first altitude (e.g., LEO satellite), that may be connected to a second access device at a second altitude (e.g., GEO satellite), that may be connected to a second wireless device. Even if the first wireless device is connected to a LEO satellite, the first wireless device may be informed about the features of the complete path (e.g., latency, data rate, etc) requiring a certain type of compression algorithms. This decision may also be based on a configuration that may determine a certain (compression) algorithm based on the path features so that the first / second wireless devices can take the decision by themselves. In some cases, the configuration may determine timings, e.g., timings (duration) during which two compression algorithms are executed in parallel, e.g., when a communication path switch is executed.

[0397] In a related embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the switch of compression algorithms may also imply a change in the place where (location) or the device on which the computing is carried out. Similarly, the switch of compression algorithms may also imply a change in the required configuration. For instance, when a person is 2024PF00673

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[0399] communicating by means of the wireless device, a first algorithm may imply the streaming of the person voice as data, where the data may be the audio encoded by means of lossless algorithm in a frequency range between 0 and 8 kHz. For example, when a person is communicating via the wireless device, a second algorithm may imply the streaming of the message expressed by the person voice, e.g., as the semantic meaning of the voice and summarized as text (speech to text). In this second case, the transmitter may need to extract the semantics out of the person’s voice and the receiver may need to be able to regenerate the voice audio by means of a text to speech encoder, e.g., an AI / ML generative model. In the case of the second algorithm, this may imply the configuration of a suitable model to extract the semantic information or regenerate the audio. Switching to the second algorithm may only be feasible if, e.g., the receiving wireless device has a suitable model to regenerate the voice / audio / data and / or the transmitting device has a suitable model to extract the voice text, i.e., the semantics out of the message. In an example, a wireless device may encode / compress the data with both the first algorithm and the second algorithm (e.g., a high compression and a low compression algorithm) so that the data is ready to be transmitted in the right format (with the right compression algorithm) as soon as the change in the network / access network / transceiver is performed. In an example, a wireless device may need to provide a confirmation that it supports a suitable algorithm and / or computational resources and / or configuration before changing / transferring a communication session / performing handover to a different network / access network / transceiver. This may be done, e.g., in Step 3 of the procedure in Annex AE 5.2.1.

[0400] In a related embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the switch to a specific compression algorithm at the wireless device may be triggered by at least one of:

[0401] a) the network / access device sending a Recommended Bitrate MAC Control Element (e.g. as specified in TS 38.321) extended for this purpose (e.g. by adding a field indicating a certain algorithm / algorithm identifier and / or energy-efficiency configuration or energy-efficiency preference profile). Additionally, or alternatively, the wireless device may have one or more thresholds, and determine, the triggering a certain algorithm / algorithm identifier and / or energyefficiency configuration or energy-efficiency preference profile,

[0402] b) the network / access device configuring a QoS flow using a QoS profile or set of QoS rules extended for this purpose (e.g. by adding a field indicating a certain algorithm / algorithm identifier and / or energy-efficiency configuration or energy-efficiency preference profile), c) the network / access device configuring a set of PCC / URSP rules or other policies (by adding a field indicating a certain algorithm / algorithm identifier and / or energy-efficiency configuration or energy-efficiency preference profile to these rules / policies to be applied).

[0403] d) The network and / or wireless devices informing the IMS system (IMS client and / or network) about the (future) usage of a low data rate connection and / or high latency connection. This may trigger signaling in the IMS system to change the compression algorithm. 2024PF00673

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[0405] In a related embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, in the case of a communication procedure, e.g., voice-based, e.g., an IMS call, between two (wireless) devices A and B over an intermediate device, e.g., a GEO satellite, the end-to-end communication link may be subject to 1) low bandwidth and b) high latency. Addressing the first issue may be done, as in other embodiments, by means of speech to text encoder that extracts the semantic data and encodes it, e.g., in text, e.g., or in an intermediate representation.

[0406] It is to be noted that in semantic communication, a semantic encoder is used to transform some source data (e.g., speech, an image, multi-modal sensory input) into a latent representation. The intermediate representation in this invention may also refer to this latent representation. The receiver may apply a semantic decoder to reconstruct the semantic content.

[0407] However, this may not address the latency issue. To address the latency issue, the intermediate device and / or the end devices themselves may play a predicting role by predicting the input / speech of a conversation between A and B.

[0408] For instance, once the communication / call is setup, the intermediate device may transmit an initial (predicted) message to both A and B, e.g., “Hello”. The reason is that the intermediate device will predict that both devices (or the users using the devices) will start talking by saying hello. The intermediate device may send a correcting message as soon as the actual input from the other party is received.

[0409] For instance, if B actually says: “Hello, how are you doing”, the intermediate device may further transmit “how are you doing?” so that A can receive the whole semantic message, and reproduce the speech / voice “Hello, how are you doing”?, e.g., by means of the text to speech decoder.

[0410] In such an embodiment, the devices may need to negotiate and agree on the usage of a predictive (compression) approach wherein the intermediate device plays the role of the predicting entity. By applying this embodiment, the devices (or the users using the devices) may experience a lower latency because the intermediate device and / or end-devices predict the expected message and / or the initial part of the message. This saves a round trip between one of the devices and the intermediate device. In the case that the intermediate device is a GEO satellite this means (2*35786) / 300000, i.e., around 0,24 seconds. In general, the initial predicted message transmitted by the intermediate device may be a predicted message without impact on the semantics of the dialog.

[0411] For instance, when A asks “How are you doing?” to B, the intermediate device — instead of providing as predicted answer just “well” or “bad” — it may provide as the predicted answer “I’m doing”. When such a “semantically neutral” predicted answer is provided to one of the devices, e.g., device A, device A can start receiving / playing the predicted answer and by doing so, removing, or reducing the high latency inherent to such a long distance communication link while the actual answer is received. As soon as the actual answer is received, the complete message can be reproduced ensuring that the semantics are correct. 2024PF00673

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[0413] In general, the above means that the “semantically neutral” message that is used to fill in the latency gap is tailored to the context, e.g., inferred from the ongoing conversation.

[0414] For instance, even if device B just answers “Bad”, device A would receive / hear “I’m doing bad” instead of just “Bad”. Both answers are semantically equivalent, and the initial (predicted) part of the answer is only played to remove, or fill the void which would have otherwise been incurred due to the communication link’s inherent latency / delay. In some cases, the prediction, e.g., “Fam doing” is not only sent to the device that is going to “play” the prediction, but to the device from which the actual answer is expected. In this way, the encoder at the device from which the actual answer is expected can use also the prediction to encode the semantic message; for instance, the encoder may skip retransmitting “I am doing”, and instead only encode the rest of the message, while indicating (e.g., with a feedback flag / bit-value) to the intermediate device whether the prediction was accurate and consequently halted the transmission of the part that matches the prediction (i.e., I am doing), or whether the prediction was too far off and may need to be overwritten.

[0415] For instance: if A(lice) asked: “How are you?”, the intermediate device predicts: “F am doing”, the intermediate device sends the prediction “I’m doing” to both A(lice) and B(ob). B(ob) can then respond to the message, with, e.g., “not doing well”. B(ob)’s encoder can use this answer “not doing well”, and the prediction: “i’m doing” to encode the full answer: “i’m doing bad” that fits the prediction of the intermediate device and the semantics expressed by B(ob). In an example, non-verbal speech patterns may be used to fill up the latency. Examples of non-verbal speech patterns are: “Ehhh...”, “Well”, etc.

[0416] In an example, the intermediate device (or the device computing the prediction) may provide a device, e.g., device A, with a set of possible answers wherein all the answers in the set may start in a common manner. The intermediate device may then provide device A with an identifier identifying the answer to use as soon as the intermediate device obtains feedback from device B, i.e., the intermediate device knows the actual answer from device B.

[0417] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, a pre-determined vocabulary or codebook may exist with common expressions, e.g., “How are you”. This codebook may be known to the devices / intermediate device. The devices may use identifiers to indicate the expression to use. In other to achieve this functionality, one or more of the following aspects need to be supported:

[0418] A wireless device performs a negotiation and agreement phase on the usage of a predictive approach (model) for latency removal;

[0419] A wireless device negotiates the entity that may perform the prediction, e.g., the intermediate device may perform the prediction or the end-devices may perform the prediction;

[0420] A device requests and allocates / gets allocated computational resources, e.g., to perform the predictive tasks; 2024PF00673

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[0422] A device determines (e.g., by executing a protocol, receiving a configuration, etc) the latency of the communication link (e.g., latency is different depending on whether the intermediate device is a GEO or MEO or LEO satellite) and adapt / require the adaptation of the prediction (how much voice) is predicted based on the communication link latency. For instance, for a GEO satellite the latency is high and constant, but for a LEO satellite shorter and variable depending on the satellite ephemeris and locations of the wireless devices.

[0423] A wireless device and / or intermediate device may monitor the semantics of the conversation, including metadata that may hint the mood / feelings of the other users using the devices, and the semantics / metadata may be used for improving the prediction.

[0424] Some embodiments of this invention may be schematically illustrated by means of Fig.

[0425] 10.

[0426] In Step 1000, the sending wireless device may use a (semantic) compression algorithm to transform speech / voice into an intermediate representation.

[0427] In Step 1001, the receiving wireless device may use a (semantic) de-compression algorithm / reconstruction model to reconstruct the speech / voice given the received intermediate representation.

[0428] IMS communication over GEO satellites faces significant challenges due to the inherently low data rate available in such networks. This limitation poses specific technical problems, including the inability to efficiently transmit high-quality voice data, which is critical for maintaining clear and reliable communication. The low data rate exacerbates issues such as latency, reduced audio fidelity, and potential communication dropouts, which negatively impact user experience and the overall reliability of the IMS network. Current solutions lack the capability to optimize voice transmission under these constraints, as they do not effectively compress or adapt voice data for low-bandwidth environments. Furthermore, existing methods do not address the need for personalized or generic voice reconstruction models that can be signaled, negotiated, or retrieved dynamically within the IMS network. These gaps highlight the necessity for an innovative approach.

[0429] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, it is proposed an Al-based speech-to-intermediate representation compression algorithm, (and intermediate representation-to-speech decompression approach) enabling efficient transmission of voice data at low data rates. By leveraging personalized or generic reconstruction models and / or incorporating biometric verification to prevent impersonation, this invention ensures high-quality voice communication over GEO satellite IMS networks, filling critical gaps in current technologies.

[0430] In some embodiments, the following definitions may be considered:

[0431] (Semantic) compression algorithm: An algorithm to compress the speech / audio into an intermediate representation (relates to Step 900 in Fig. 9). The intermediate representation may keep the semantics of the speech. The intermediate representation may be considered as a token-based communication. The intermediate representation may include metadata to support the later speech 2024PF00673

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[0433] reconstruction. The compression algorithm may also perform semantic compression to reduce the size of the data (relates to Step 901 in Fig. 9) and / or fragmentation.

[0434] Intermediate Representation: A compressed form of speech data, such as text (also text whose semantics are compressed) or embeddings, used in this invention to reduce data rates of the voice communication, e.g., over GEO satellite networks. This intermediate representation can also be considered a token-based communication in which, e.g., the speech is transformed into text fragments or tokens or semantic tokens.

[0435] (Semantic) decompression: fragments may be assembled and a model used to, e.g, perform semantic error correction and / or expand the semantics of the intermediate representation in the received message (relates to step 902 and 903 in Fig. 9) to, e.g., a given duration achieving a semantic message that should be reproduced at the receiving device.

[0436] Reconstruction algorithm / Model: A model used to recreate speech from the intermediate representation, which can be personalized (specific to an individual) or generic (e.g., based on demographic categories like age or gender). Metadata may be used to improve the reconstruction of the speech (in general, original data) given the semantic message (tokens). Refers to Step 904 in Fig. 9.

[0437] Biometric Verification: A security process that uses (metadata of) fragments of the original voice for identity verification, ensuring the authenticity of communication in this system.

[0438] This low bit data rate compression example in the context of Voice over Geo satellites illustrates the optimizations and trade-offs between computation and communication resources to optimize or reduce latency and / or energy consumption.

[0439] In the following, we consider an exemplary system for Al-based speech reconstruction in IMS communication (e.g., over GEO satellite). This system may comprise one or more of the following modules / elements:

[0440] 1. Sending Wireless Device: may encode speech into the intermediate representation (e.g., text, semantically-compressed text, embeddings) using an Al-based compression algorithm and transmits it to the receiving wireless device via the GEO satellite / IMS network.

[0441] 2. Receiving Wireless Device: may decompresses the received intermediate representation (e.g., expanding semantics, performing latency gap removal) and / or decodes the intermediate representation to reconstruct the speech using a reconstruction model, which may be personalized (specific to a user) or generic (e.g., based on demographic categories such as age or gender).

[0442] 3. Reconstruction Model Repository: may stores semantic compression / decompression algorithms and / or reconstruction models, e.g., within the IMS network, allowing retrieval and negotiation of models for use by the sending / receiving wireless device.

[0443] 4. IMS Network: communication network facilitating the transmission of intermediate representations, negotiation of (de) compression algorithms / reconstruction models, and optional biometric verification to prevent impersonation. 2024PF00673

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[0445] 5. Biometric Verification Module: Optionally transmits metadata (e.g., fragments of the original voice) from the sending wireless device to the IMS network or receiving wireless device for identity verification.

[0446] The components may interact as follows: The sending wireless device may process speech into a compressed intermediate representation using an Al-based algorithm and may transmit it through the GEO satellite / IMS network. The IMS network may facilitate the retrieval or negotiation of a suitable (semantic) compression / decompression and / or reconstruction model from the repository, which is then used by the receiving wireless device to (semantically) decompress the message and / or reconstruct the speech. To enhance security, the sending wireless device may transmit voice fragments (or metadata extracted from them) for biometric verification, ensuring the authenticity of the communication. This system enables efficient voice communication over GEO satellite links at low data rates while maintaining speech quality and security.

[0447] The method may comprise one or more of the following steps. It is to be noted that this method may be divided into specific methods for the sending wireless device and / or the receiving wireless device, and / or some of the entities hosted in the GEO satellite and / or IMS system.

[0448] 1. The sending wireless device may compress speech into an intermediate representation using an Al-based algorithm. This Al-based algorithm may be a speech to text algorithm. This intermediate representation may include formats such as text or embeddings. The text may also be compressed, e.g., by means of a dictionary or other text-based compression techniques. The compression process reduces the data rate required for transmission, addressing the low data rate challenge in IMS communication over GEO satellites. The compression algorithm may also perform semantic compression.

[0449] 2. The sending wireless device may transmit the intermediate representation to the receiving wireless device via a communication network, e.g., via the GEO satellite and / or cellular network and / or IMS network. This step ensures efficient communication over the constrained data rate channel.

[0450] 3. The receiving wireless device may decompress the receiving message including the intermediate representation and may extract the full semantic message, may perform latency gap equalization and may reconstruct the speech from the received intermediate representation (semantic message) using a reconstruction model. The reconstruction model may be personalized (specific to a given person) or generic (e.g., tailored for male or female voices of specific age groups). This step enables accurate reproduction of the original speech.

[0451] 4. The reconstruction model may be signaled or negotiated via the IMS network. This ensures that the appropriate model is selected for speech reconstruction.

[0452] 5. The (de)compression algorithms / models and / or reconstruction model may be retrieved from a repository, e.g., in the IMS network. This step ensures that the receiving wireless device has access to the required model for speech reconstruction. 2024PF00673

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[0454] 6. To prevent impersonation, the sending wireless device may transmit metadata (e.g., fragments of the original voice) along with the intermediate representation. These voice fragments are used for biometric verification by the IMS network and / or cellular system and / or the receiving wireless device, ensuring secure communication.

[0455] Some embodiments of this invention may be schematically illustrated by means of Fig.9. In step 900, the sending wireless device may use a compression algorithm / model to perform speech to intermediate representation (e.g., text). This algorithm may extract metadata (e.g., embeddings) describing the voice / context / feelings / ... of the person.

[0456] In Step 901, the sending wireless device may use a semantic compression algorithm to perform semantic compression and reduce the data size. The message may also be fragmented.

[0457] In some cases, step 901 may be performed prior to or simultaneously with Step 900. In Step 902, the receiving wireless device may use a (semantic) decompression algorithm to decompress the intermediate representation into a (more) fluid semantic representation (or semantic message). It may also perform fragment assembly and / or semantic error correction.

[0458] In Step 903, the receiving wireless device may perform the latency gap equalization (e.g., by filling in the latency gap with some semantic message that does not influence the semantics of the received message).

[0459] In step 904, the receiving wireless device may perform intermediate representation to speech reconstruction that may be personalized or generic. For instance, a text to speech reconstruction may be applied.

[0460] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the sending wireless device may comprise a first Al-based algorithm (also known as, (semantic) compression algorithm) to obtain the intermediate representation and the receiving wireless device may comprise second Al-based algorithms (also known as, decompression algorithm and / or reconstruction model / algorithm) to reconstruct the voice / speech. The first Al-based algorithm may be just a speech to text algorithm, but it may also have other features, e.g., semantic loss, translation capabilities, enhancement of the intermediate representation with metadata to facilitate the reconstruction, etc. The second Al-based algorithm may include a model for the semantic decompression and / or a model of the speech / voice of the sending wireless device / user so that it is possible to obtain back the user’s voice / speech.

[0461] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the second Al-based algorithm and / or the first Al-based algorithm may be stored in the IMS network, allowing for centralized access and management.

[0462] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the sending wireless device may indicate the reconstruction model to use and / or the receiving wireless device may indicate the first Al-based algorithm to use. 2024PF00673

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[0464] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the repository may be in the IMS network. In some cases, it may be outside of the IMS network. In some cases, a repository identifier may be included to retrieve the models for the correct repository.

[0465] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the receiving wireless device may cache personalized reconstruction models of (preferred) sending wireless devices / users so that it is not required to retrieve them always. In some cases, it may indicate the lack of a (personalized) reconstruction model. The sending wireless device may indicate the preferred features when using a generic reconstruction model. For instance, it the user of the sending wireless device is male, in the forties, and from Spain, this information may be indicated, so that the receiving wireless device selects a suitable (generic) reconstruction model and / or adapts the reconstruction model to reconstruct speech of the desired characteristics. The receiving wireless device may be allowed to cache / store a personalized reconstruction model according to a policy determining, e.g., allowed timing, allowed location, allowed usage, etc.

[0466] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the sending wireless device may extract metadata from the voice / speech and add said extracted metadata to the intermediate representation. This metadata or embeddings may indicate certain features such as mood, accent, voice level, tone, pitch, etc of the speech / voice to allow a proper reconstruction of the voice / speech at the receiving wireless device by means of the reconstruction model.

[0467] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, a communication system is provided wherein the sender-side device (sending wireless device) may capture user speech and may perform incremental, streaming speech-to-text conversion. Instead of waiting for full sentences, the system / sending wireless device may segment the transcription into short time-aligned text fragments, each representing a small portion of the spoken message (e.g., 2-4 words). This can be considered as a “token”. In some examples, a small portion of the spoken language may be placed (and / or configured to be placed) into a data packet (e.g., as the payload of a radio packet). In some examples, the fragment size may be configurable and / or adaptable to the speech (e.g., how long sentences are), and / or context (e.g., the speech speed), and / or communication link (e.g., dependent on the packet losses), etc. In some examples, each fragment may be immediately transmitted, e.g., over the geostationary satellite link, to the receiver (receiving wireless device) as soon as it becomes available. In an example, the transmission protocol may support fragment-level delivery, reducing buffering delays. At the receiver side, each incoming text fragment may be used to initiate streaming text-to-speech (TTS) synthesis (this is an example of the de-compression algorithm). This may allow audio output to begin before the full sentence is received. In a further example, the TTS engine may support smooth concatenation of partial outputs, ensuring intelligibility and flow. In an example, to further reduce latency, the transmitter may optionally attach prosodic metadata (e.g., speech rate, emotion, emphasis) and / or predicted continuations based on language modeling. This enables the receiver to pre-generate 2024PF00673

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[0469] audio segments, improving responsiveness during slow or high-latency satellite transmissions.

[0470] Additionally or alternatively, the system may employ a turn-based half-duplex communication protocol with user interface cues (e.g., “speaking” or “processing” indicators) to guide user interaction while masking total round-trip delay (-600 ms typical for GEO links). In an example, important or urgent message fragments (e.g., commands, emergency words) may be tagged and prioritized for transmission.

[0471] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, when one or more fragments (or the data packets carrying the fragments or tokens) may be lost (e.g., because of packet losses in the underlying communication protocol), semantic reconstruction / semantic error correction may be performed to improve the quality of experience. For instance, the sentence is: " Hello, how are you? what time do you come? and the fragments are: " Hello, how are"; "you? what"; "time do you come", and the second fragment is lost (e.g., because this fragment of the speech is transported in a data packet that is lost and / or not received properly in the communication link), then given the first and third fragments it may still be possible to recover "you? what". And thus, a retransmission of the second packet at a lower layer may not be required.

[0472] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, when a fragment is lost, a retransmission may only be requested (by the upper layer, e.g., IMS) if, e.g., semantic reconstruction (as per previous example) cannot be performed and / or, e.g., when the semantic reconstruction fails to achieve a given accuracy and / or minimum level. This reduces the amount of traffic and retransmissions and only requires them when they are really required (from a semantic point of view).

[0473] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, a wireless device may be adapted to perform retransmissions (usually) at a lower layer, e.g., MAC or RLC layers. However, when some compression / decompression algorithms (e.g., as in this invention) are used to enable the (voice) communication, retransmissions at such a lower layer may be disabled. This may reduce the communication overhead. Retransmissions are a lower layer may only be triggered by a higher layer e.g., the decompression algorithm, e.g., when the semantic reconstruction / semantic error correction fails.

[0474] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the compression algorithm may apply a summarizing algorithm that may summarize the semantic meaning of a message so that it can be transmitted in a more efficient manner.

[0475] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, a long semantic message may be summarized into SUMMARY 1, and both the long semantic message and SUMMARY1 may be transmitted by the transmitting wireless device. The receiving wireless device may first reconstruct the long semantic message, and then summarized it into SUMMARY2. SUMMARY 1 and SUMMARY2 may be compared to verify that the reconstructed semantic message keeps its semantics. For instance, consider as long semantic message the following: 2024PF00673

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[0477] After years of careful planning, the scientist finally released the formula that would cure the disease affecting millions.

[0478] But that the received message may be missing a fragment (or token): "would cure”-. After years of careful planning, the scientist finally released the formula that????????? the disease affecting millions.

[0479] It may be wrongly reconstructed as the following long semantic message:

[0480] After years of careful planning, the scientist finally released the formula that would cause the disease affecting millions.

[0481] To avoid this issue, the first long semantic message can include: “Healing” as SUMMARY 1. The summary of the second long semantic message may be: " Malice”. Since “Healing” and “Malice” are not synonyms, the receiving wireless device may determine that the semantic reconstruction has failed. Additionally or alternatively, SUMMARY 1 may be used to guide the semantic reconstruction of the received message, e.g., given the received message:

[0482] After years of careful planning, the scientist finally released the formula that????????? the disease affecting millions.

[0483] And “Healing”

[0484] It may be possible to obtain:

[0485] After years of careful planning, the scientist finally released the formula that would help to treat the disease affecting millions.

[0486] The semantic summary “SUMMARY” can be considered as a semantic checksum that is used to detect and / or correct errors in the semantic reconstruction.

[0487] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the received fragments (that may be a subset of the transmitted fragments) may be combined with the “SUMMARY” to guide the regeneration of the full semantic message, and avoid semantic errors.

[0488] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the system / receiver verifies the presence of a semantic checksum. If not semantic checksum is available, the system is more prone to semantic reconstruction errors. In this case, based on a policy, the receiver / decompressor may do request the retransmission of missing packets (at a lower layer) to obtain semantic checksum.

[0489] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the compression algorithm instead of summarizing may drop certain words / tokens. The reason is that some works or tokens are less important for a successful semantic reconstruction since they carry less semantic information. For instance, the compression algorithm may drop articles, prepositions, and / or certain verbs etc. For instance, if the message is: “I am going with my sister to the park and we will play football all the afternoon with my friends”, the intermediate representation of the message may be: “I am going park my sister and we play football afternoon my friends”. The de- 2024PF00673

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[0491] compression algorithm may be adapted to add back missing articles / prepositions / verbs. The transmitter / receiver may also be adapted to behave differently depending on the type of fragments / tokens that are generated or received. The transmitter may not transmit those fragments that are less important to further increase the compression rate. The receiver may have a configuration that may require, or not, the retransmission of lost fragments of lower importance.

[0492] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the intermediate representation may be fragmented (similar to other examples), but using a sliding window so that there may exist some overlap between fragments. For instance, in the previous example, a first fragment may be: ““I am going park my sister and”, a second fragment may be: “and we play football afternoon” and a third fragment may be: “football afternoon my friends”. The sliding window may determine a certain semantic overlap (e.g., in terms of words) that may be configurable. This provides better resilience against and semantic reconstruction during fragment lost.

[0493] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, when a semantic message is fragmented, the metadata of the semantic message may be included in all or a subset of the fragments. This provides better semantic reconstruction capabilities.

[0494] Fig. 11 schematically illustrates steps for transforming the speech / voice into an intermediate representation. Step 1100 represents voice / time in the time / frequency domain. Step 1100 represents the semantic message of the voice / speech as text. This may be transformed via, a speech to text algorithm such as, e.g., DeepSpeech relaying on RNNs / LSTM units. Other examples may include Whisper, Wav2Vec 2.0, etc. The semantic message may include metadata “[Alice' voice, soft, friendly, 3”]” indicating how the semantic message is to be reproduced. Alice’s voice may indicate that it is Alice speaking, voice soft may indicate the voice volume, friendly may indicate the emotions when speaking, and 3” may indicate how long it takes to play the voice. In Step 1002, some words (fragments or tokens) in the semantic message may be dropped. They may be dropped based on a configuration. Finally, in Step 1003, the compressed semantic message may be fragmented. In this example, the metadata may be included in each fragment. In this example, the content of the fragments may have a certain overlap. In subsequent steps (not shown in the figure), the content in each of the fragments may be further compressed (e.g., with a text based compression algorithm, a dictionary-based algorithm, etc). Then the content in each of the fragments may be placed as payload of a data packet (e.g., IP packet, e.g., radio packet) that is transmitted by the transmitting wireless device.

[0495] Fig. 12. Schematically illustrates the steps for transforming the intermediate representation into speech. Step 1200 represents the reception of some fragments containing intermediate representation (and metadata). Fragments 1200-1 and 1200-3 are available, but fragment 1200-2 is missing. In Step 1201, semantic reconstruction is performed. Due to the overlap in the semantic information in consecutive fragments, and because of Al-based semantic reconstruction algorithms it is possible to fill in missing words (semantics), for instance, by predicting which words are more likely to follow several available / received words. In Step 1202, further semantic reconstruction / decompression is 2024PF00673

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[0497] performed, in this case, by filling in missing words (e.g., articles, or other types of words) that may have been removed during semantic compression and / or have been lost in the transmission but due to its lower semantic importance, it may not be required to be retransmitted. This allows obtaining a complete semantic message. Finally, in Step 1204, in this exemplary procedure, a text to speech (TTS) step is performed.

[0498] The Al techniques underlying TTS systems are diverse. Some systems rely on concatenative synthesis, which stitch together pre-recorded speech segments. This method offers high intelligibility but may lack flexibility and expressiveness. Parametric synthesis, using models like HMMs (Hidden Markov Models), allow for more dynamic speech generation but often sound robotic. The advent of deep learning enables end-to-end models that learn directly from data. Sequence-to-sequence models with attention mechanisms are the foundation for many neural TTS systems, allowing for alignment between text and speech. Transformer-based models offer improved scalability and performance. These models, inspired by architectures like BERT and GPT, can capture long-range dependencies and contextual nuances in text, leading to more coherent and expressive speech.

[0499] Transformer models in TTS typically operate in two stages, (1) Text-to-spectrogram: Converts input text into a mel-spectrogram (a visual representation of sound); and (2) Spectrogram-to-waveform: Uses a vocoder (e.g., HiFi-GAN, WaveGlow) to generate audio from the spectrogram.

[0500] Metadata information used to mimic a given voice can be injected at various points in this pipeline:

[0501] 1. Speaker Embeddings are used to make the model mimic a specific voice, each speaker is represented by a learned vector (embedding), during training, the model learns to associate these embeddings with vocal characteristics, at inference, it is possible to select or interpolate between embeddings to synthesize speech in a desired voice.

[0502] 2. Emotion or Style Embeddings represent mood or speaking style (e.g., happy, sad, excited, formal). These can be manually labeled or learned from data using unsupervised techniques.

[0503] 3. Prosody Control metadata can include pitch, duration, and energy contours. These features can be predicted or explicitly provided to control expressiveness.

[0504] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the metadata supporting the reconstruction algorithm may be indicated / negotiated prior to the start of the communication procedure, e.g., IMS voice call, e.g., conversation, and remain static for the rest of the communication procedure, e.g., IMS voice call, e.g., conversation.

[0505] In some examples, some parameters (e.g., speed, tone, volume) may be adapted per sentence (in general, semantic unit).

[0506] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, some parameters of the metadata may be adapted during the communication based on a configuration (e.g., some parameters may be allowed to be adapted and some may not be allowed to be adapted (e.g., speaker)). This may be provided in an initial configuration message, e.g., exchanged between transmitting / receiving wireless devices and / or with the network (e.g., IMS). 2024PF00673

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[0508] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the metadata used to prevent impersonation may be protected (e.g., integrity protected or encrypted) so that the receiving wireless device can undo the protection (e.g., to verify any tampering) and reproduce it (so that the user of the receiving wireless device can verify the data by himself). For instance, the metadata may be the original voice so that the (receiving) user can verify by himself. For instance, the metadata may be a speech signature (e.g., frequency decomposition of a voice fragment) the receiving wireless device may verify whether the speech signature fits the expected speech signature for the same semantic content, e.g., whether the frequency decomposition (weakest / strongest frequency components when saying, e.g., “Hello, how are you, i am Eve?” fit the weakest / strongest frequency components expected based on the reconstruction model. The verification may be based on a confidence level, e.g., based on how close / far the signatures are from each other.

[0509] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the reconstruction model (second Al-based algorithm) and / or first Al-based algorithm may be negotiated dynamically during the communication process, enabling flexibility in selecting the most suitable model for the given context.

[0510] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the IMS network may comprise and / or give access to a reconstruction model repository for storing reconstruction models, enabling their retrieval and negotiation during communication.

[0511] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the receiving wireless device uses a reconstruction model, which can be either personalized (specific to an individual) or generic (e.g., based on demographic categories like age or gender), to recreate the original speech from the intermediate representation.

[0512] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the sending wireless device may include alternative Al-based compression algorithms for converting speech into intermediate representations. For example, embeddings optimized for low-bandwidth transmission could be used instead of text-based representations. This variation may improve compression efficiency and reduce computational overhead.

[0513] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the receiving wireless device may incorporate different reconstruction models, such as models trained on specific accents or languages, to enhance speech reproduction accuracy for diverse user groups.

[0514] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the biometric verification module may use alternative voice fragment analysis techniques, such as spectral analysis or machine learning-based voiceprint recognition, to improve authentication accuracy. In some cases, the stored reconstruction model may include fragments of the original voice as input to the biometric verification module. 2024PF00673

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[0516] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, a reconstruction model may be dynamically updated during communication sessions based on real-time feedback from the receiving device, ensuring optimal speech reproduction.

[0517] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the reconstruction process may include post-processing steps, such as pitch correction or emotional tone adjustment, to enhance the naturalness of the reproduced speech.

[0518] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, voice fragments / metadata for biometric verification may be transmitted using secure channels or encrypted formats to prevent interception. Furthermore, verification algorithms may incorporate multi -factor authentication, e.g., using a username and password + the voice fragments. In some examples, the metadata size (e.g., length of the voice fragment) may be negotiable in order to adjust the level of authentication.

[0519] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the intermediate representation may allow for a variable semantic loss. For instance, in extremely constrained environments / communication links, the voice of the user using the sending wireless device may be: “Hi Bob, how are you doing? I have been hiking for 3 hours after i left the car at 8 am. I reached the top of the mountain 1 hour ago. After hiking 30 minutes, while going down, i broke my foot. I am fine but i need help.” The sending wireless device and / or an intermediate device (e.g., satellite) may detect a weak link, and may compress / encode the message as intermediate representation: “Hi, I'm fine but broke my foot 30’ ago. Need help.” This reduces the communication load (at the expenses of some additional computation).

[0520] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the sending wireless device and / or an intermediate device may indicate the semantic loss so that the receiving wireless device may perform the inverse operation (e.g., the extend the duration of the (voice) message and / or indicate to the user the semantic loss.

[0521] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the devices may signal the need for semantic loss due to performance reasons. For instance, the receiving wireless device may require the sending wireless device to perform semantic loss compression (e.g., as in above example) to reduce its energy consumption.

[0522] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, in disaster-stricken areas, the system may prioritize rapid deployment by using generic reconstruction models and / or biometric verification may be temporarily removed.

[0523] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the second Al-based algorithms may have a variable degree of complexity so that it is possible to recover the original voice (or rather a synthetic voice) of variable degrees of complexity / accuracy. In some cases, low accuracy may be desired (e.g., to the lower energy / computational requirements), while in some cases high accuracy may be preferrable. 2024PF00673

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[0525] Fig. 8 schematically describes an overall procedure for balancing the computational and communication cost in IMS over GEO satellite wherein entities 800 and 802 represent two wireless devices, such as two UEs. In this case, 800 may act as sending wireless device and 802 may act as the receiving wireless device, although the roles may also be reversed, e.g., during the communication. Entity 801 may represent an intermediate entity, e.g., GEO satellite and / or IMS network and / or 5G / 6G core network.

[0526] In Step 803, 800 and 802 may establish a communication channel, e.g., following the IMS architecture.

[0527] In Step 804, 800 and 802 may determine the need to establish a low data rate communication link, e.g., since 801 may be a GEO satellite. This may involve a negotiation phase. This may require determining specific (de)compression algorithms and / or reconstruction models. The algorithms / models may be locally stored, and / or may be requested and / or indicated and / or retrieved from a repository. This may involve determining whether semantic compression is required or not. This may involve determining the degree of semantic compression. This may involve determining the need of latency gap equalization. This may involve determining whether a personalized and / or generic reconstruction model is applied. This may also be triggered, e.g., during a mobility event, e.g., when the communication moves from being routed over a LEO satellite to a GEO satellite, as in other embodiments.

[0528] In Step 805, the sending wireless device may perform steps 900 and / or 901 (as per Fig.

[0529] 9).

[0530] In Step 806, the sending wireless device 800 may transmit the intermediate representation to the receiving wireless device 802 via 801.

[0531] In Step 807, the receiving wireless device 802 may perform steps 902 and / or 903 and / or 904 as per Fig. 9.

[0532] In general, it is proposed a method (Clause 1) for operating an apparatus in a communication system, wherein the method comprises: the apparatus connecting to the communication system through a first access device using a first communication transceiver, the apparatus indicating its capabilities and / or estimated capabilities and / or preferences for efficient operation to the communication system, the apparatus negotiating a configuration of communication and computational resources for efficient operation, and the apparatus communicating based on the negotiated configuration.

[0533] Furthermore, it is proposed as Clause S2, the method of clause 1, wherein the apparatus exchanges signaling messages with a network node such as a GEO satellite and / or an IMS function such as the Media Function (MF) in the IMS network to select and / or retrieve a (semantic) compression algorithm optimized for low-bandwidth transmission.

[0534] Furthermore, it is proposed as Clause S3, the method of any of the clauses 1 and S2, wherein the apparatus retrieves a compression algorithm capable of semantic losses based on signaling or an indication from the receiving wireless device and / or the network node. 2024PF00673

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[0536] Furthermore, it is proposed as Clause S4, the method of any of the clauses 1, S2, and S3, wherein the apparatus exchanges messages and / or metadata with the receiving wireless device to negotiate the reconstruction model, including signaling an indication of the reconstruction model, and / or the intermediate representation format and / or compression details and / or metadata to facilitate the voice reconstruction.

[0537] Furthermore, it is proposed as Clause S5, the method of any of the clauses 1, S2, S3, and S4, wherein the apparatus dynamically updates the (parameters / configuration of the) compression algorithm during the communication session based on real-time feedback from the receiving wireless device and / or network node.

[0538] Furthermore, it is proposed as Clause S6, the method of any of the clauses 1, S2, S3, S4, and S5, wherein the apparatus queries the repository, e.g.,, in the IMS network to identify and / or retrieve a compression algorithm / model compatible with the apparatus's compression algorithm and preferences indicated by the receiving wireless device and / or network.

[0539] Furthermore, it is proposed as Clause S7, the method of any of the clauses 1, S2, S3, S4, S5 and S6, wherein the apparatus exchanges signaling messages with the Media Function (MF) and / or receiving wireless device to determine the configuration of the compression algorithm based on latency, computational efficiency, and speech quality requirements provided by the receiving wireless device and / or network.

[0540] Furthermore, it is proposed as Clause S8, the method of any of the clauses 1, S2, S3, S4, S5, S6 and S7, wherein the apparatus exchanges (metadata of) voice fragments with the receiving wireless device to enable biometric authentication and ensure secure communication or facilitate reconstruction.

[0541] Furthermore, it is proposed as Clause S9: the method of any of the clauses 1, S2, S3, S4, S5, S6, S7 and S8, wherein the apparatus exchanges signaling messages with the receiving wireless device and / or network to adjust the semantic compression ratio of the intermediate representation based on the processing capabilities of the sending / receiving wireless device(s) and / or network conditions.

[0542] Furthermore, it is proposed as Clause R2: the method of clause 1, wherein the apparatus may request and / or retrieve a (semantic) decompression algorithm and / or a reconstruction model from a repository in a network node, e.g., within the IMS network, the repository being configured to store one or more algorithms and / or models, wherein the algorithms / models can be user specific and / or optimized for a user-specific preferences and / or demographic categories.

[0543] Furthermore, it is proposed as Clause R3: the method of any of clauses 1 and R2, wherein the apparatus queries the repository to identify and / or retrieve decompression algorithms and / or reconstruction models compatible with the compression algorithm of the transmitting wireless device and / or preferences indicated by the transmitting wireless device and / or the apparatus’ preferences and / or the network. 2024PF00673

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[0545] Furthermore, it is proposed as Clause R4: the method of any of clauses 1, R2 and R3, wherein the apparatus negotiates with a network node such as the Media Function (MF) and / or sending wireless device to pre-cache frequently used reconstruction models for faster retrieval and / or usage during communication sessions.

[0546] Furthermore, it is proposed as Clause R5: the method of any of clauses 1, R2, R3, and R4, wherein communicating based on the negotiated configuration comprises:

[0547] receiving one or more speech fragments encoded in an intermediate representation and / or semantic message;

[0548] determining that one or more fragments are lost; and

[0549] performing semantic reconstruction and / or semantic error correction to recover the whole semantic message.

[0550] Furthermore, it is proposed as Clause R6: the method of clause R5 wherein the apparatus requests a retransmission when the semantic error correction fails and / or when the semantic reconstruction fails to achieve a given accuracy of the semantic message.

[0551] Furthermore, it is proposed as Clause R7: the method of clause R4 or R5 wherein the apparatus disables automatic retransmissions at a lower layer or retransmissions at a lower layer are determined by the semantic error correction at a higher layer.

[0552] Furthermore, it is proposed as Clause Gl: the method of any previous clauses, wherein the apparatus negotiates with a network node, e.g., the GEO satellite and / or an IMS function such as the IMS network to dynamically update the (de)compression algorithm and / or reconstruction model during the communication session based on real-time feedback from the receiving wireless device and / or sending wireless device.

[0553] Furthermore, it is proposed as Clause G2: the method of any previous clauses, wherein the apparatus negotiates security parameters with the IMS network and / or receiving wireless device to enable protected transmission of the intermediate representation and metadata (e.g., voice fragments).

[0554] Furthermore, it is proposed as Clause G3: The method of any previous clauses, wherein the apparatus negotiates the parameters and / or usage of latency gap equalization.

[0555] Section: Computational offloading, e.g., for energy efficiency

[0556] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, negotiating a configuration for energy-efficient operation comprises selecting one or more conditions (determining how) to perform a communication operation based on the computational load and / or energy needs.

[0557] For instance, a device may only start a network-centric rendering procedure, e.g., in IMS Avatar-based communication, when it is expected that the network resources are available and / or that the quality of the communication connection between the device and the network is good (e.g. with sufficient 2024PF00673

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[0559] data rate, minimal frame loss, not much congestion on the radio, and not much retries are needed that would otherwise all cost additional energy (for the communication)).

[0560] Specifically, this procedure may not be triggered when the wireless device (e.g., one of the communication devices) has sufficient energy, while other devices might be low on battery, allowing for an optimal allocation of network resources.

[0561] In this situation, the device may prefer a UE-centric rendering approach. Additionally, if the wireless device experiences a rise in temperature due to high computational load, it may offload tasks to the network to prevent overheating and conserve energy.

[0562] Moreover, another condition could involve multiple users requesting the same data. In such a scenario, the network would perform the computational operations once, and then distribute the results to all requesting devices, thereby reducing the overall energy consumption and computational load on individual devices. These conditions ensure that the wireless device operates efficiently, balancing computational tasks between itself and the network based on current operational parameters and network conditions.

[0563] These conditions may be stored on the wireless device, or access device, or network, and may be evaluated, continuously, on demand, or periodically so that when they apply, a change in the communication / computation balance is triggered. Examples of these conditions may include one or more of:

[0564] 1) Condition indicating amount of energy and / or temperature exceeding a certain threshold or range.

[0565] 2) Condition indicating an (estimated or measured) amount of energy for computation on the device is above / below an (estimated or measured) amount of energy for computation on an access device or a computation device managed / accessible by the access device, whereby information about (estimated or measured) amount of energy for computation on an access device or a computation device managed / accessible by the access device or the difference with the estimated or measured) amount of energy for computation on the device may be calculated and / or provided by the network / access device to the wireless device (e.g. based on a message exchange)

[0566] 3) condition indicating that an amount of computing resources required (e.g. at the wireless device and / or access device or computation device managed / accessible by the access device) surpass the available computing resources (e.g. at the wireless device and / or access device or computation device managed / accessible by the access device), or the number of times such situation whereby the amount of compute resources required surpasses the available compute resources happens 4) computing load (e.g. average CPU load over a period of time) at the wireless device and / or access device or computation device managed / accessible by the access device exceeding a certain percentage

[0567] 5) #delayed or incomplete / missed computations exceeding a certain threshold at the device and / or access device or computation device managed / accessible by the access device, 2024PF00673

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[0569] 6) an indication that the required type of computation resources is or is not available at the wireless device and / or access device or computation device managed / accessible by the access device.

[0570] These conditions may be configured by the network (e.g., by a network node transmitting the conditions in the configuration by means of a configuration message) on the wireless device through a set of policies (e.g. compute policies or energy-efficient compute configuration, that may be provided as extension to the communication policies or energy efficient communication configurations), whereby these policies may include one or more conditions linked to a compute and / or communication configuration to be applied (e.g. a configuration to offload to another device possibly augmented with an identifier of that other device), based on which the wireless device can select a compute and / or communication configuration to apply.

[0571] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, negotiating a configuration for energy-efficient operation comprises determining a second access device capable of fulfilling the preferences in terms of communication and computation. This determination process may involve one or more of following steps:

[0572] 1. Distributing Load Information - access devices may broadcast / distribute their current communication and computation loads, e.g., through system information blocks (SIBs). These broadcasts provide real-time updates on the network usage and available resources of each access point and / or computation resources available on an edge node or compute node that is managed by and / or in close vicinity of such access point.

[0573] 2. Dynamic Load Distribution: An access device may not only communicate its own load but may also distribute the load information or capabilities of other nearby access devices. This collaborative approach ensures that the wireless device receives a comprehensive overview of the network's current state.

[0574] 3. Efficient Selection of access devices: Using the information obtained from the distributed information, the wireless device can intelligently select the most efficient access device. This selection is based on optimizing energy consumption and ensuring high performance. For instance, if an access device with lower load and better computational capabilities is available, the wireless device may choose to switch to it for improved efficiency.

[0575] 4. Adaptive Decision-Making: The wireless device continuously evaluates the received load information and adapts its connection strategy accordingly. This dynamic decision-making process ensures that the device remains connected to the most optimal access point as network conditions change.

[0576] By leveraging these advanced techniques, the wireless device can significantly enhance its energy efficiency and overall performance in mobility situations, e.g., when performing cell

[0577] (re-)selection in Idle or Inactive states or when performing handover in connected state.

[0578] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, negotiating a configuration for energy-efficient operation comprises determining a second communication transceiver capable of fulfilling the preferences in terms of communication and 2024PF00673

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[0580] computation. For instance, a wireless device supporting 6G wireless and 6G Li-Fi may move to an indoor environment, and the user may place the wireless device under a desk lamp. The wireless device may determine that the 6G Li-Fi download link is more suitable than the 6G wireless download connection due to the high-speed capabilities and low interference of 6G Li-Fi in a confined space. Consequently, it may select the 6G Li-Fi transceiver for communication to achieve better performance and energy efficiency.

[0581] Similarly, consider a wireless device supporting 5G and USB-C. When the device moves indoors and the user plugs it into a USB-C charger, which is powerline capable and communicates with the home router over powerline, the device can take advantage of this setup. The USB-C charger may act as a protocol translator between powerline and USB-C, enabling the device to communicate via the home router. The wireless device can then inform the core network of its switch from a cellular connection (3GPP access) to non-3GPP access via a WLAN connection via the USB-C data connection, optimizing both energy consumption and communication efficiency. This dynamic adaptation to available communication transceivers allows the wireless device to continuously evaluate and select the most efficient option based on current conditions, ensuring optimal performance and energy efficiency.

[0582] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the wireless device may trigger the enablement of the second access device. For instance, a 6G Li-Fi lamp may be disabled, but the wireless device may detect its presence through distributed signals or identifiers broadcasted by the Li-Fi lamp. Upon recognizing the presence of the 6G Li-Fi lamp, the wireless device can send a request to enable the 6G Li-Fi lamp for communication purposes. This activation can be facilitated through a low-power signal or a control channel, allowing the wireless device to switch to the more energy-efficient Li-Fi connection. This process ensures optimized performance by dynamically activating and utilizing the most suitable communication resources available in the environment, thereby enhancing both energy efficiency and operational effectiveness. Similar embodiments may be applicable to other types of access devices, e.g., a USB power supply with communication capabilities.

[0583] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the wireless device connects through the second communication transceiver and / or to the second access device based on the energy-efficient operation configuration. This involves the device intelligently choosing (e.g., by itself) or determining (e.g., based on an indication from the current access device or network) the most suitable transceiver, such as WiFi, Li-Fi, or USB-C, depending on the environment and current operational parameters. For instance, when the wireless device moves into an indoor space where a Li-Fi lamp is present, it may detect the lamp through distributed signals or broadcast identifiers. Upon recognition, the device can send a low-power control signal to activate the Li-Fi lamp, thereby switching to a more energy-efficient communication mode. This switch optimizes both performance and energy consumption by leveraging Li-Fi's high-speed capabilities and low interference. Similarly, in environments where the device is connected to a USB-C charger that supports powerline 2024PF00673

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[0585] communication, the device may transition from cellular to USB-C data connection. This configuration allows the device to communicate via the home router, enhancing both energy efficiency and data transfer rates. In some cases, the transition to LiFi or USB-C or other transceiver may only be for certain communication operations, e.g., exchange of certain type of data or for some time. The wireless device and / or network may perform a certain communication exchange, e.g., related to a certain communication session through the selected transceiver. Additionally, the wireless device may continuously evaluate the load information broadcasted by access devices. By dynamically adapting its connection strategy, the device ensures optimal performance by selecting access points with lower loads and better computational capabilities. This real-time decision-making process allows for efficient distribution of computational tasks, either retaining them on the device or offloading to the network as conditions dictate, thus maintaining a balance between energy consumption and operational efficiency.

[0586] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the wireless device receives a command to communicate through the second communication transceiver and / or to the second access device; or receives a policy to determine the conditions to connect or communicate through the second communication transceiver and / or to the second access device. This command or policy can be provided by a network controller, a centralized management entity, or an Al-powered decision-making system integrated within the network infrastructure. The network controller is responsible for overseeing the overall network operations, ensuring optimal connectivity and load balancing among devices. A centralized management entity can dynamically allocate resources and provide real-time instructions based on the network's current state and demand patterns. Additionally, an Al-powered decision-making system can continuously analyze network conditions, predict future trends, and intelligently adjust configurations to enhance performance and energy efficiency. This embodiment ensures that the wireless device operates with enhanced flexibility and efficiency by leveraging various communication transceivers such as WiFi, Li-Fi, and USB-C, depending on the specific requirements and environmental conditions. The device can dynamically switch between these transceivers to optimize both energy consumption and network performance.

[0587] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, selecting a different and / or additional access device or transceiver may take place when the wireless device is connected to the network or when the device is in idle / inactive. From this point of view, this type of mobility may be a handover operation or a cell (re-)selection procedure, etc. In some cases, when a non-3GPP access technology is used, the wireless device may connect to the 3GPP system over the non-3GPP access technology, and the selected communication sessions, e.g., PDU sessions, may be transferred from the 3GPP RAT to the non-3GPP access technology.

[0588] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, selecting a different and / or additional access device or transceiver may take place when the wireless device is connected to the network or when the device is in idle / inactive. From this point of view, this type of mobility may be a (conditional) handover operation or a cell (re-)selection 2024PF00673

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[0590] procedure. For instance, before or when a handover is initiated, the wireless device may perform several key signaling steps to ensure seamless transition between or interaction with multiple access points / cells / transceivers. The process includes one or more of the following steps, as also illustrated by means of Fig. 14:

[0591] 1. Measurement Reports: The device may periodically send measurement reports (as in Step 1400) to the current serving access device (e.g. serving cell), providing information on signal quality from neighboring access devices / cells / transceivers and / or information about its available computation resources or its lack thereof (e.g. compute load (e.g. average CPU load over a period of time) or compute overload, e.g. #delayed or incomplete / missed computations or number of instances whereby amount of compute resources required surpass the available compute resources, or report indicating that the required type of computation resources is not available) and / or a Quality of Experience indication (e.g. calculated based on perceived end-to-end latency by the user not only of the rendering of a display output, but also general responsiveness (e.g. delay to receive a response from an Al model after asking a question), rendering quality (e.g. based on frame loss, resolution, 3D image improvement algorithms applied), hickups or other application specific quality of experience criteria). The computing load (or overload) may refer to the load of the wireless device itself and / or, a network node and / or, or an access device.

[0592] Additionally or alternatively, the measurement reports may also include measurements related to energy usage (e.g. Joules per time period and / or Joules per transferred / received bit) related to the communication and / or computations performed by the device, for example:

[0593] - per individual message, computation, computation task or time period, and / or

[0594] - per total amount of transmitted / received data and / or total amount of computations, and / or

[0595] - per type of messages, e.g. Control plane messages versus User plane messages, or messages used for transmitting computing related messages (e.g. input messages, instructions, compute code, scripts, Al models) and / or receiving computing related messages (e.g. output messages, results (e.g. text, image, video results), and / or

[0596] - per type of radio access technology (e.g. 4G, 5G, 6G, Wi-Fi, Li-Fi that may be operated through different transceivers of the device), whereby if a device (e.g. a cellular UE) that is capable to operate cellular communication (e.g. 4G, 5G, 6G) as well as Wi-Fi STA or AP may be configured / instructed by a cellular access device or network function through a measurement report configuration to measure the energy usage of one or more radio access technologies and transmit the resulting measurement reports to the cellular access device or network function. The measurement report configuration may include one or more of the following configuration parameters which may be configured differently per radio access technology:

[0597] o timing related information (e.g. time interval and / or periodicity of measurements and / or timing of sending reports) 2024PF00673

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[0599] o measurement connection related information (e.g. via which radio access technology and / or to which access device or network function the measurement reports may be transmitted) o data structure related information (e.g. reporting per individual message or time period, per total amount of transmitted / received data or per type of messages as per the previous bullet “per type of messages”)

[0600] o condition related information (e.g. condition when to start measuring and / or when to send a measurement report. Examples of such conditions may include:

[0601] availability of a radio access technology / transceiver and / or a specific network (e.g. a certain Wi-FI network has been discovered, or the device gets in range of a base station offering a specific generation of cellular communication, e.g. 6G)

[0602] a (measured or predicted) datarate and / or an absolute energy expenditure (for the current communication traffic over certain RAT(s) / transceivers) and / or computational load exceeding or being below a threshold

[0603] a relative energy expenditure (for the current communication traffic over certain RAT(s) / transceivers and / or computational load) compared to another RAT / transceiver (e.g. as measured or predicted) exceeding or being below a threshold

[0604] One or more of the above configuration parameters may also be pre-configured in the device.

[0605] In case the device is capable of operating as a Wi-Fi AP (e.g. as part of a Residential Gateway (RG) or Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) Consumer Premise Equipment (CPE)), the measurements may be reported as part of a backend interface between the AP, RG, FWA CPE and the cellular access device or network function, for example by using Wi-Fi Data Elements based communication that may be extended for this purpose.

[0606] 2. Handover / transfer Decision: Based on these reports, the network or wireless device may decide (in Step 1401) whether a handover (e.g. to a different access device and / or different radio access technology) is necessary. This decision considers factors such as signal strength, available transceivers and / or the transceiver capabilities (e.g. ability to operate a certain radio access technology), load balance, user mobility, (overall) energy expenditure (e.g. per different radio access technology or access device), and / or available or lack of computation resources available at the wireless device or the access device to which the wireless device is currently connected and / or its neighboring access devices. The handover may be triggered through conditional handover, whereby the determination of handover conditions may be configured at the wireless device by the access device / network through a set of handover conditions / policies. Examples of conditions to trigger handover may include:

[0607] • Condition indicating amount of energy or temperature exceeding a certain (e.g. preconfigured) threshold. 2024PF00673

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[0609] • Condition indicating an (estimated or measured) amount of energy for computation on the device is above / below an (estimated or measured) amount of energy for computation on an access device or a computation device managed / accessible by the access device (possibly including the amount of energy required for additional communication resources to perform a computation on that access device or the computation device), whereby information about (estimated or measured) amount of energy for computation on an access device or a computation device managed / accessible by the access device (possibly including the amount of energy required for additional communication resources to perform a computation on that access device or the computation device) or the difference with the estimated or measured) amount of energy for computation on the device may be calculated and / or provided by the network / access device to the wireless device (e.g. based on a message exchange)

[0610] • condition indicating an (estimated or measured) amount of energy for wireless communication by device, e.g. for current access device and / or current radio access technology) exceeds a certain (e.g. pre-configured) threshold.

[0611] • condition indicating that an amount of compute resources required (e.g. at the wireless device and / or access device or computation device managed / accessible by the access device) surpass the available compute resources (e.g. at the wireless device and / or access device or computation device managed / accessible by the access device), or the number of times such situation whereby the amount of compute resources required surpasses the available compute resources happens.

[0612] • compute load (e.g. average CPU load over a period of time) at the wireless device and / or access device or computation device managed / accessible by the access device exceeding a certain percentage

[0613] • #delayed or incomplete / missed computations exceeding a certain threshold at the device and / or access device or computation device managed / accessible by the access device,

[0614] • an indication that the required type of computation resources is or is not available at the wireless device and / or access device or computation device managed / accessible by the access device

[0615] • Quality of Experience indication (e.g. calculated based on perceived end-to-end latency by the user not only of the rendering of a display output, but also general responsiveness (e.g. delay to receive a response from an Al model after asking a question), rendering quality (e.g. based on frame loss, resolution, 3D image improvement algorithms applied), hickups or other application specific quality of experience criteria) being below a certain threshold.

[0616] 3. Handover / Transfer Command: If a handover / transfer is deemed beneficial (e.g. based on a set of conditions similar to the conditions mentioned above for conditional handover), the network may send a handover / transfer command to the device (in Step 1402), instructing it to switch to the 2024PF00673

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[0618] target access device / cell / transceiver and / or the switch its computation tasks to a computation resource managed / available to the target access device / cell / transceiver and / or to switch its computation tasks to the device itself or a computation resource managed / available to the device or to current serving cell. The handover / transfer may be for all communications and / or computations or only for part of the communication and / or computation sessions, e.g., those involving a higher energy consumption or not fulfilling QoS requirements. Additionally or alternatively, the wireless device may take the handover / transfer command decision by itself (e.g., based on a configuration), and it may share a command with the network.

[0619] 4. Resource Allocation: The target access device / cell / transceiver (in Step 1403) may allocate the necessary resources and send a handover / transfer request acknowledgment to the current serving access device / cell.

[0620] 5. Handover / transfer Execution: The device (in Step 1404) may synchronize with the target access device / cell / transceiver, reconfigure its radio / communication parameters / state and / or its computations / computation parameters / state, and establish a connection with the new access point / transceiver. It then may send a handover / transceiver complete message to the target access device / cell / transceiver to confirm the successful transition.

[0621] In idle or inactive states, the wireless device continuously monitors the signal quality of nearby access devices / cells to determine the optimal access device / cell for connection. The process may involve one or more of the following steps:

[0622] 1. Access device / Cell / transceiver Measurement: The device may measure the signal strength and quality of neighboring access devices / cells and / or transceivers at regular intervals.

[0623] 2. Access device / Cell / transceiver Evaluation: The device may evaluate these measurements based on predefined criteria such as signal strength thresholds and access device / cell / transceivers priorities.

[0624] 3. Access device / Cell / transceiver Selection: If a neighboring access device / cell / transceiver meets the criteria for better performance / lower energy, the device may select this access device / cell / transceiver for connection.

[0625] 4. System Information Acquisition: The device may read the system information from the selected access device / cell / transceiver to ensure compatibility and configuration.

[0626] 5. Access device / Cell / transceiver Registration: The wireless device may register with the new access device / cell / transceiver by sending a registration request message, completing the reselection process. In some cases, the wireless device may remain connected through two or more transceivers and / or over two access devices / cells.

[0627] Additionally or alternatively, the device may measure the signal strength and quality of neighboring access devices / cells and / or transceivers at regular intervals for multiple radio access technologies. 2024PF00673

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[0629] Additionally or alternatively, the device may monitor the computation loads received from the serving and / or neighboring access devices / cells, and / or energy usage information provided by the serving and / or neighboring access devices / cells in order to determine the optimal access device / cell for connection.

[0630] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, when a wireless device moves, changes the access device, or interacts with a new access device, the computational state may be transferred. For example, the computational state may refer to rendering data that may be available at a first access device (e.g., cellular based, e.g., a satellite) or a first computation / storage resource that is managed or accessible by the first access device, and may need to be made available at a second access device (e.g., WiFi based, e.g., another satellite) or a second computation / storage resource that is managed or accessible by the second access device. The transfer of the computational state may occur through various pathways:

[0631] 1. From the first access device to the second access device: and / or from the first computation / storage resource to the second computation / storage resource. This involves transmitting the necessary computational data directly from the cellular-based network to, e.g., the WiFi-based network, ensuring seamless continuity.

[0632] 2. From the apparatus to the first access device: In this scenario, the device itself sends the computational state (e.g. from a computation / storage resource managed / accessible by the device) to the cellular-based access point (or a computation / storage resource managed / accessible by the cellularbased access point), which can then relay it to the necessary network components, e.g., to perform network-based rendering.

[0633] 3. From the apparatus to the second access device: Here, the device transfers its computational state (e.g. from a computation / storage resource managed / accessible by the device) directly to the WiFi-based network (or a computation / storage resource managed / accessible by the Wi-Fi based access point), bypassing the cellular network entirely. For instance, when the wireless device is able to communicate via USB-C (or Li-Fi) or WiFi the wireless device may rely on the computing power of a home network device, e.g., a cellular-based router.

[0634] 4. From the first access device (or a computation / storage resource managed / accessible by the first access device) to the wireless device (or a computation / storage resource managed / accessible by the wireless device): This pathway involves the cellular-based access point sending the computational state back to the device, which may then transmit it to the WiFi-based network as needed.

[0635] This transfer process ensures minimal disruption to the user's experience by maintaining active sessions and ongoing processes without significant latency or data loss. The computational state may include various types of data such as current applications, ongoing processes, user preferences, and session-specific information.

[0636] In an embodiment of the invention that may be combined with other embodiments or used independently, the wireless device is adapted to communicate with a second access device via a 2024PF00673

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[0638] second communication transceiver, e.g., connect to the home Wi-Fi router via USB. For instance, a USB power adapter may include a USB to power line bridge, e.g., USB-C to power line. Thus, the USB power adapter may serve as bridge between the USB Physical layer and the power line layer. The USB power adapter may be able to communicate with the router via power line. The USB-C power adapter may be able to communicate with the wireless device via USB. The wireless device and router may be able to talk to each other via the USB power adapter. Communicating may involve exchanging data with the home Wi-Fi router and distributing data to a second wireless device via a local communication interface, e.g., Wi-Fi or sidelink / PC5, etc. For instance, if a user has a bad Wi-Fi connection with this laptop or a second wireless device, the user may plug his mobile phone (first wireless device) to a USB-C power adapter. The mobile phone may then serve as local Wi-Fi access point for the laptop and / or distribute data the second wireless device via PC5 / sidelink.

[0639] To summarize, it is proposed an apparatus and method and system for efficient operation in a communication system comprising

[0640] connecting, by a device, to the communication system using a first communication transceiver through a first access device,

[0641] indicating, by a device, its capabilities and / or preferences for efficient operation to the communication system,

[0642] negotiating, by a device, a configuration a configuration of communication and computation resources for efficient operation, and

[0643] communicating, by a device, based on the efficient operation configuration Furthermore, this invention can be applied to various types of UEs or terminal devices, such as mobile phone, vital signs monitoring / telemetry devices, smartwatches, detectors, vehicles (for vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication or more general vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication), V2X devices, Internet of Things (IoT) hubs, IoT devices, including low-power medical sensors for health monitoring, medical (emergency) diagnosis and treatment devices, for hospital use or first-responder use, virtual reality (VR) headsets, etc.

[0644] Other variations to the disclosed embodiments can be understood and effected by those skilled in the art in practicing the claimed invention, from a study of the drawings, the disclosure and the appended claims. In the claims, the word “comprising” does not exclude other elements or steps, and the indefinite article “a” or “an” does not exclude a plurality. A single processor or other unit may fulfil the functions of several items recited in the claims. The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage. The foregoing de-scription details certain embodiments of the invention. It will be appreciated, however, that no matter how detailed the foregoing appears in the text, the invention may be practiced in many ways, and is therefore not limited to the embodiments disclosed. It should be noted that the use of particular terminology when describing certain features or aspects of the invention should not be taken to imply that the terminology is being re-defined herein to be restricted to include any specific 2024PF00673

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[0646] characteristics of the features or aspects of the invention with which that terminology is associated. Additionally, the expression “at least one of A, B, and C” is to be understood as disjunctive, i.e., as “A and / or B and / or C” The same applies to the expressions “A or B” and “at least one of A or B”, i.e., they may indicate all possible combinations of the listed items.

[0647] A single unit or device may fulfil the functions of several items recited in the claims. The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage.

[0648] The described operations like those indicated in the above embodiments may be implemented as program code means of a computer program and / or as dedicated hardware of the related network device or function, respectively. The computer program may be stored and / or distributed on a suitable medium, such as an optical storage medium or a solid-state medium, supplied together with or as part of other hardware, but may also be distributed in other forms, such as via the Internet or other wired or wireless telecommunication systems.

Claims

2024PF0067311.12.2025CLAIMS:

1. A method for operating an apparatus in a communication system, wherein the method comprises:the apparatus connecting to the communication system through a first access device using a first communication transceiver,the apparatus indicating its capabilities and / or estimated capabilities and / or preferences for efficient operation to the communication system,the apparatus determining and / or negotiating a configuration of communication and computational resources for efficient operation, andthe apparatus communicating based on the determined and / or negotiated configuration.

2. The method of any of the previous claims, wherein the capabilities and / or estimated capabilities for efficient operation comprise at least one of:the available computational resources,the available communication transceivers,the capabilities of the communication transceivers,the available energy,the estimated energy cost to communicate via at least one communication technology, the estimated latency when communicating via at least one transceiver, the estimated data rate when communicating via at least one transceiver, the estimated energy cost to perform one or more computational operations,the estimated latency to perform one or more computational operations, the estimated amount of computational resources to perform one or more computational operations.

3. The method of any of the previous claims, wherein the preferences for efficient operation comprise at least one of:a preference to apply one or more resource consumption settings to the apparatus, a preference to apply one or more resource consumption settings to at least one remote communication party,a preference to apply one or more resource consumption settings to a communication infrastructure such as the first access device;a preference to minimize the overall resource consumption;2024PF0067377 11.12.2025a preference comprising conditions triggering one or more resource consumption setting; a preference comprising the definition of resource consumption settings including one or more of (1) a setting to minimize energy consumption, (2) a setting to minimize peak power consumption, (3) a setting for reducing average latency, (4) a setting for reducing peak latency, (5) a setting for reducing the computational load.

4. The method of any of the previous claims, wherein the configuration for efficient operation comprises one or more of:a communication session identifier to which an energy-efficient configuration applies; a communication session identifier to which a delay-efficient configuration applies; conditions under which the configuration applies wherein the conditions comprise one or more of a time window, a location range, communication conditions of a communication interface / transceiver, a wireless communication operation, and a wireless sensing procedure.

5. The method of any of the previous claims, wherein the apparatus negotiating a configuration for efficient operation comprises the apparatus sending or receiving one or more messages to / from one or more of:a. a wireless access device;b. one or more a network functions;c. an application.

6. The method of any of the previous claims, wherein the apparatus negotiating a configuration for efficient operation comprises the apparatus determining communication parameters and computational resources fulfilling the preferences in terms of communication and computation.

7. The method of any of the previous claims, wherein the apparatus negotiating a configuration for efficient operation comprises the apparatus sending a computing resource control message to schedule computing resources at a computing device and a scheduling message to schedule radio resources to transfer computed data.

8. The method of any of the previous claims, wherein the apparatus negotiating a configuration for efficient operation comprises:the apparatus receiving a computing resource control message to schedule computing resources at the apparatus or at a computing device, andthe apparatus receiving a scheduling message to schedule radio resources to transfer the computed data.2024PF0067378 11.12.20259. The method of claim 8, wherein the apparatus communicating based on the efficient operation configuration comprises:the apparatus receiving, in the scheduled communication resources, data after being processed by the computing device according to the scheduled computing resources, and / orthe apparatus transmitting, in the scheduled communication resources, data to be processed by the computing device according to the scheduled computing resources.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the apparatus communicating based on the efficient operation configuration comprises:the apparatus transmitting, in the scheduled communication resources, data after being computed by the apparatus according to the scheduled computing resources, and / orthe apparatus receiving, in the scheduled communication resources, data to be processed by the apparatus or data processed by the computing device according to the scheduled computing resources.

11. The method of claim 9 or 10, comprising one or more of the following steps:the apparatus inferring the computing resource control message from the scheduling message;the apparatus inferring the scheduling message from the computing resource control message;the apparatus indicating the computing resource control message and the scheduling message by means of a common identifier,the apparatus indicating computing resource control message by means of a computing resource identifier;the apparatus transmitting the computing resource control message on demand via a layer 1 or layer 2 signaling;the apparatus transmitting the computing resource control message to schedule periodic computing resources via a radio resource control message or a NAS protected message.

12. The method of any of the previous claims, wherein the apparatus determining and / or negotiating the configuration of communication and computational resources for efficient operation comprises- determining and / or negotiating a "non-IP" mechanism to transport an IMS voice message over a satellite communication, andwherein the apparatus communicating based on the determined and / or negotiated configuration comprises:2024PF0067379 11.12.2025the apparatus removing the IP header before transmitting the IMS voice message to a receiving wireless device.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the apparatus communicating based on the determined and / or negotiated configuration further comprises- maintaining a mapping between the IP address in the IMS voice message and an apparatus identifier.

14. The method of any of previous claims, wherein the apparatus determining and / or negotiating the configuration of communication and computational resources for efficient operation comprises- negotiating, by the apparatus, a hybrid transcoding approach, wherein the hybrid transcoding approach is characterized by an intermediate device performing transcoding between a first compression algorithm and a second compression algorithm, andwherein the apparatus communicating based on the determined and / or negotiated configuration comprises- using, by the apparatus, a first compression algorithm to compress voice in the IMS voice message transmitted to the receiving wireless device.

15. The method of any of the previous claims, wherein the apparatus negotiating a configuration for efficient operation comprises:the apparatus negotiating the usage of a predictive algorithm to reduce a perceived latency of the communication link, andwherein the apparatus communicating based on the determined and / or negotiated configuration comprises:using, by the apparatus, the predictive algorithm to generate a semantically neutral message to bridge in a latency gap in the communication link.

16. The method of any of the previous claims, wherein the apparatus negotiating a configuration for efficient operation comprises the apparatus negotiating the usage of one or more of:- a compression algorithm for compressing voice into an intermediate representation, - a decompression algorithm for retrieving the semantic message from the intermediate representation,- a reconstruction model for reconstructing voice from the semantic message and / or intermediate representation, and- a respective configuration.2024PF0067380 11.12.202517. The method of any of the previous claims, wherein the apparatus negotiating a configuration for efficient operation comprises the apparatus selecting a condition to perform a communication operation based on a computational load.

18. The method of any of the previous claims, wherein the apparatus negotiating a configuration for efficient operation comprises the apparatus determining a second access device capable of fulfilling the preferences in terms of communication and computation.

19. The method of any of the previous claims, wherein the apparatus negotiating a configuration for efficient operation comprises the apparatus determining a second communication transceiver capable of fulfilling the preferences in terms of communication and computation.

20. The method of claims 18 or 19, further comprising the apparatus triggering the enablement of the second access device and / or second communication transceiver.

21. The method of any of the claims 18 to 20, comprisingthe apparatus connecting through the second communication transceiver and / or to the second access device, andthe apparatus communicating based on the negotiated configuration.

22. The method of claim 21, comprising the apparatus:receiving a command to connect through the second communication transceiver and / or to the second access device; orreceiving a policy to determine the conditions to connect through the second communication transceiver and / or to the second access device.

23. The method of claim 22, comprising the apparatus performing a handover operation or cell (re-)selection or communication session transfer.

24. The method of any of the previous claims 18 to 23, wherein the second transceiver is one or a combination from:a 4G transceiver;a 5G transceiver;a cellular transceiver of a cellular generation beyond 5G;a transceiver for non-terrestrial communication;a Wi-Fi transceiver;an ethernet transceiver;2024PF0067381 11.12.2025a USB transceiver; ora Li-Fi transceiver.

25. The method of any of claims 22 to24, wherein an indication of a computational state and / or of the computational resources is transferred:from the first access device to the second access device; orfrom the apparatus to the first access device; orfrom the apparatus to the second access device; orfrom the first access device to the apparatus.

26. The method of any of the previous claims, comprising:the apparatus communicating with a second access device via a second communication transceiver, andthe apparatus distributing data to a second wireless device via a local communication interface.

27. The method of any of the previous claims, comprising the apparatus re-negotiating the configuration of communication and computational resources for efficient operation based on at least one of: a context change, a capability change, an expected capability change, a preference change.

28. An apparatus comprising:one or more communication transceivers to communicate with a communication system a processor anda memory coupled to the processor comprising instructions to perform any of the methods in Claims 1 to 27.

29. The apparatus of claim 28, wherein the one or more transceivers includes one or a combination from:a 4G transceiver;a 5G transceiver;a cellular transceiver of a cellular generation beyond 5G;a transceiver of non-terrestrial networka Wi-Fi transceiver;an ethernet transceiver;a USB transceiver; ora Li-Fi transceiver.2024PF0067382 11.12.202530. A method for operating a network node in a communication system, wherein the method comprisesthe network node handling a connection with a wireless device, the wireless device using a first communication transceiver,- the network node receiving from the wireless device the capabilities and / or estimated capabilities and / or preferences for efficient operation of the wireless device,the network node determining and / or negotiating a wireless device configuration of communication and computational resources for efficient operation, andthe network node communicating based on the determined and / or negotiated configuration with the wireless device.

31. A network node comprising:a processor anda memory coupled to the processor comprising instructions to perform the method of claim 30.

32. A computer program for efficient operation in a communication system, wherein the program comprises instructions implementing the method of any of the claims 1 to 27 and claim 30.

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