Radio network node, user equipment, and methods performed therein

Abstract

According to embodiments herein a method is performed by a UE (10) for handling communication in a wireless communications network (1). The UE (10) obtains a first set of radio resources (Set 1) and a second set of radio resources (Set 2) for carrying control information to the UE. The UE (10) determines that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources. The UE (10) performs an action associated with handling the control information taking the determination that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources into account.

Description

[0001] RADIO NETWORK NODE, USER EQUIPMENT, AND METHODS PERFORMED THEREIN

[0002] TECHNICAL FIELD

[0003] Embodiments herein relate to a radio network node, a user equipment (UE) and methods performed therein regarding wireless communication. Furthermore, a computer program product and a computer-readable storage medium are also provided herein. In particular, embodiments herein relate to handling communication, such as handling control signaling, in a wireless communications network.

[0004] BACKGROUND

[0005] In a typical wireless communications network, UEs, also known as wireless communication devices, mobile stations, stations (STA) and / or wireless devices, communicate via a Radio Access Network (RAN) with one or more core networks (CN). The RAN covers a geographical area which is divided into service areas or cells, with each service area or cell being served by a radio network node such as an access node, e.g., a Wi-Fi access point or a Radio Base Station (RBS), which in some networks may also be called, for example, a NodeB, a gNodeB, or an eNodeB. The service area or cell is a geographical area where radio coverage is provided by the radio network node. The radio network node operates on radio frequencies to communicate over an air interface with the UEs within range of the radio network node. The radio network node communicates over a downlink (DL) to the UE and the UE communicates over an uplink (UL) to the radio network node.

[0006] A Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) is a third generation (3G) telecommunication network, which evolved from the second generation (2G) Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM). The UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network (UTRAN) is essentially a RAN using Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) and / or High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA) for communication with user equipment. In a forum known as the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), telecommunications suppliers propose and agree upon standards for present and future generation networks and investigate, e.g., enhanced data rate and radio capacity. In some RANs, e.g. as in UMTS, several radio network nodes may be connected, e.g., by landlines or microwave, to a controller node, such as a Radio Network Controller (RNC) or a Base StationController (BSC), which supervises and coordinates various activities of the plural radio network nodes connected thereto. The RNCs are typically connected to one or more core networks.

[0007] Specifications for the Evolved Packet System (EPS) have been completed within the 3GPP and coming 3GPP releases, such as New Radio (NR), are worked on. The EPS comprises the Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN), also known as the Long-Term Evolution (LTE) radio access network, and the Evolved Packet Core (EPC), also known as System Architecture Evolution (SAE) core network. E-UTRAN / LTE is a 3GPP radio access technology wherein the radio network nodes are directly connected to the EPC core network. As such, the RAN of an EPS has an essentially “flat” architecture comprising radio network nodes connected directly to one or more core networks.

[0008] With the emerging 5thGeneration (5G) technologies such as NR, the use of very many transmit- and receive-antenna elements may be of great interest as it makes it possible to utilise beamforming, such as transmit-side and receive-side beamforming. Transmit-side beamforming means that the transmitter can amplify the transmitted signals in a selected direction or directions, while suppressing the transmitted signals in other directions. Similarly, on the receive-side, a receiver can amplify signals from a selected direction or directions, while suppressing unwanted signals from other directions.

[0009] In NR, downlink control information (DCI) is one of the main control messages transmitted from the gNB to the UE. For example, DCI can carry DL scheduling assignments, UL scheduling grant, or some special control information. There exist different DCI formats used for different purposes. The DCI is transmitted in a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH). PDCCH is transmitted within a control resource set (CORESET). CORESET is a time-frequency resource in which the UE tries to blindly decode PDCCH candidates using one or more search spaces. There can be multiple CORESETs configured to a UE, some of which can be overlapped.

[0010] There exists a special CORESET, namely CORESET with index 0 (CORESET 0) which is the first control resource set that a UE searches for after synchronizing with the synchronization signal / physical broadcast channel (SS / PBCH) block, also referred to as SSB. CORESET 0 is used for PDCCH transmission during initial access, e.g., PDCCH scheduling system information, such as system information block one (SIB 1) and other SIBs. CORESET 0 is provided by the master information block (MIB) as part of the configuration associated with an initial DL bandwidth part. CORESET 0 as configured by ControlResourceSetZero information element (IE) uses both predefined parameters andconfigured parameters. The frequency domain position of CORESET 0 is determined based on the SS / PBCH block position and other parameters like Offset, in resource blocks (RB), provided by the MIB. An interleaved mapping type is used for CORESET 0 with control channel element (CCE)-to-resource element group (REG) bundle size L equal to 6 and interleaver size R equal to 2. Note: CCE and REG are explained in the following sections. Here, the mapping type, bundle size and interleaver size are predefined. After a connection setup, the UE can be configured with one or more CORESETs other than CORESET 0 through radio resource control (RRC) configuration.

[0011] The size and location of a CORESET in time and frequency domains are semi-statically configured. In NR, a CORESET can be 1-3 orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols in time domain. In terms of frequency domain resources, an NR CORESET can be configured with 6 RB granularity and does not necessarily span the whole carrier bandwidth (BW).

[0012] In the following, the structure within the NR CORESET is described. NR CORESET consists of multiple REGs, where one REG corresponds to one RB in one OFDM symbol. REGs of a CORESET are indexed in a time first and frequency second manner, starting from the first OFDM symbol and lowest indexed RB of the CORESET, see Fig. 1 (a) and (b) as examples. REG index starts from REG #0 at the first OFDM symbol and lowest indexed RB of the CORESET and then the next REG (REG#1) is in the next OFDM symbol and lowest indexed RB of the CORESET if any, and so on. Once all OFDM symbols are occupied, the next REG index is at the first OFDM symbol and the second lowest indexed RB of the CORESET, and so on. Examples of REG indexing within CORESETs of 1 OFDM symbol and two OFDM symbols are shown in Fig. 1 (a) and (b), respectively. The mapping of PDCCH candidates onto a CORESET according to a search space is based on a resource unit called CCE. In NR, one CCE consists of 6 REGs. PDCCH in NR can be transmitted using 1 , 2, 4, 8, or 16 CCEs, also known as aggregation level 1, 2, 4, 8, or 16. For each CORESET, there is a CCE-to-REG mapping which defines how CCEs are mapped onto the CORESET. The mapping can be interleaved or non-interleaved and is applied per REG bundle where the REG bundle is a set of consecutive REGs across which the UE can assume that the precoding is constant. Thus, Fig.1 illustrates a CORESET structure consisting of 48 REGs. (a) CORESET with one OFDM symbol, (b) CORESET with two OFDM symbols.

[0013] Fig. 2 shows an illustration of a one-symbol CORESET structure consisting of 8 CCEs with REG bundle of size 6. (a) non-interleaved CCE-to-REG mapping, (b) interleaved CCE-to-REG mapping with interleave size =2.When receiving PDCCH, the UE tries to blindly decode PDCCH candidates using one or more search spaces. Each search space is associated with one CORESET and there can be multiple search spaces using the same CORESET. A search space essentially tells the UE how to monitor for PDCCH candidates, e.g., on which OFDM symbols to monitor for PDCCH, how many PDCCH candidates per AL and which DCI formats to perform a blind decoding for. A search space can be common for a group of UEs or UE-specific. With the CCE structure within a CORESET, the number of blind decoding attempts at the UE is reduced compared to the exhaustive search for all possible candidates. In addition, with the number of PDCCH candidates per aggregation level (AL) configured in a search space, the blind decoding complexity at the UE can be further controlled. In NR, there exist UE PDCCH monitoring limits defined in terms of the maximum number of blind decoding attempts per slot and the maximum number of nonoverlapped CCEs for channel estimation per slot. The UE counts the number of blind decodes and non-overlapped CCEs of PDCCH candidates in a common search space (CSS) first and UE-specific search space (USS) later. If any of the limits is exceeded, the UE stops monitoring for all PDCCH candidates in a search space at which the limit is exceeded. The UE does not expect to drop any PDCCH candidate monitoring in a common search space, i.e., the UE does not stop monitoring for PDCCH candidates of the common search space.

[0014] Each PDCCH transmission occupies some CCEs. In NR the Aggregation Level and number of Candidates per aggregation level to be used for PDCCH in a CORESET is provided by higher layer signaling, where Aggregation Level of value {1,2,4,8,16} is the number of CCEs used for one PDCCH and number of Candidates per aggregation level of value {0,1 ,2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8} is the number of candidates the UE tries to do blind detection for the corresponding aggregation level.

[0015] Below shows the configuration of nrofCandidates and aggregationLevels in NR that is defined per search space and CORESET.

[0016] nrofCandidates SEQUENCE {

[0017] aggregationLevell ENUMERATED {n0, n1, n2, n3, n4, n5, n6, n8}, aggregationLevel2 ENUMERATED {n0, n1, n2, n3, n4, n5, n6, n8}, aggregationLevel4 ENUMERATED {n0, n1, n2, n3, n4, n5, n6, n8}, aggregationLevel8 ENUMERATED {n0, n1, n2, n3, n4, n5, n6, n8}, aggregationLevell 6 ENUMERATED {n0, n1, n2, n3, n4, n5, n6, n8}

[0018] }When it comes to transmitting PDCCHs to multiple UEs in a cell using overlapping CORESETs or the same CORESET at the same time, the CCEs which are already occupied or partly occupied by other PDCCH transmissions cannot be used. PDCCH which cannot be transmitted due to lack of CCEs for a PDCCH candidate is considered being blocked.

[0019] SUMMARY

[0020] As part of developing embodiments herein one or more issues have been identified:

[0021] - Sets of radio resources such as CORESETs other than CORESET 0 may be configured to overlap with CORESET 0 in time and frequency to optimize for spectral efficiency. That is, it can be more efficient to configure overlapping resources for CORESET 0 and CORESETs other than CORESET 0 compared to using orthogonal resources, e.g., time division multiplexing (TDM) and / or frequency division multiplexing (FDM), for these CORESETs since PDCCH in CORESETO may not always be transmitted.

[0022] - Configuration of CORESET other than CORESET 0 is generally flexible. In terms of CORESET size, it may be preferred to configure CORESET other than CORESET 0 with the largest size possible within the DL bandwidth part (BWP) to maximize PDCCH capacity. On the other hand, configuration of CORESET 0 is more limited, in terms of size and location, as it is indicated in MIB during an initial access. Therefore, it is not always possible to position CORESET 0 to align with other CORESETs while maximizing the spectral usage for the other CORESETs. - Due to above reasons, this can lead to a scenario where borders of CCEs within CORESETO are not aligned with those of other CORESETs, which can result in high level of PDCCH blocking / poorer PDCCH capacity, see Fig. 3. Fig. 3 illustrates an overlap between CORESET 0 and a CORESET other than CORESET 0 where the CCEs of CORESET 0 are not aligned with the overlapping ones in the other CORESET. In this case, if an AL4 PDCCH candidate in CORESET 0 occupies CCE number 0, 1, 2, and 3 is used, then it will block CCE number 0, 1, 2, 4, 5, and 6 of the other CORESET.

[0023] - When 6thGeneration (6G) is deployed in the same spectrum as 5G NR, the same time and frequency domain resources may be (partially) used for a NR CORESET and a 6G CORESET. To enable efficient 5G NR and 6G spectrum sharing, so called multi-RAT spectrum sharing (MRSS), solutions are required to handle suchresource overlapping scenarios, wherein sets of radio resources carrying control information may overlap.

[0024] An object herein is to provide a mechanism to handle control signaling in an efficient manner in the wireless communications network.

[0025] According to an aspect the object is achieved, according to embodiments herein, by providing a method performed by a UE for handling communication, e.g., control signaling, in a wireless communications network. The UE obtains a first set of radio resources and a second set of radio resources for carrying control information to the UE, and determines that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources. The UE performs an action associated with handling the control information taking the determination that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources into account.

[0026] According to another aspect the object is achieved, according to embodiments herein, by providing a method performed by a radio network node for handling communication of a UE in a wireless communications network. The radio network node determines that a first set of radio resources for carrying control information to the UE is at least partly overlapping a second set of radio resources for carrying control information to the UE. The radio network node performs an action associated with handling the control information taking the determination that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources into account.

[0027] According to still another aspect the object is achieved, according to embodiments herein, by providing a radio network node, and a UE configured to perform the methods herein, respectively.

[0028] Thus, the object is achieved by providing a UE for handling communication, e.g., control signaling, in a wireless communications network. The UE is configured to obtain a first set of radio resources and a second set of radio resources for carrying control information to the UE, and to determine that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources. The UE is further configured to perform an action associated with handling the control information taking the determination that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources into account.

[0029] According to another aspect the object is achieved, according to embodiments herein, by providing a radio network node for handling communication of a UE in a wireless communications network. The radio network node is configured to determine that a first set of radio resources for carrying control information to the UE is at least partlyoverlapping a second set of radio resources for carrying control information to the UE. The radio network node is further configured to perform an action associated with handling the control information taking the determination that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources into account.

[0030] It is furthermore provided herein a computer program product comprising instructions, which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the methods herein, as performed by the radio network node, and the UE, respectively. It is additionally provided herein a computer-readable storage medium, having stored thereon a computer program product comprising instructions which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the methods herein, as performed by the radio network node, and the UE, respectively.

[0031] Embodiments herein allow the first set of radio resources to be configured in a flexible way while taking into account the existence of any overlapping second set of radio resources when performing the action associated with handling the control information. For example, in an MRSS scenario, it could, e.g., aid a part of the 6G CORESET to be align with an overlapping 5G CORESET, allowing efficient coexistence of both CORESETs with minimal impact on PDCCH capacity. Thus, embodiments herein provide a mechanism to handle control signaling in an efficient manner in the wireless communications network.

[0032] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0033] Embodiments will now be described in more detail in relation to the enclosed drawings, in which:

[0034] Fig. 1 shows illustration of a CORESET structure consisting of 48 REGs. (a) CORESET with one OFDM symbol, (b) CORESET with two OFDM symbols;

[0035] Fig. 2 shows an illustration of a one-symbol CORESET structure consisting of 8 CCEs with REG bundle of size 6. (a) non-interleaved CCE-to-REG mapping, (b) interleaved CCE-to-REG mapping with interleave size =2;

[0036] Fig. 3 shows an illustration of overlap between CORESET 0 and a CORESET other than CORESET 0 where the CCEs of CORESET 0 are not aligned with the overlapping ones in the other CORESET. In this case, if an AL4 PDCCH candidate in CORESET 0 occupying CCE number 0, 1, 2, and 3 is used, then it will block CCE number 0, 1, 2, 4, 5, and 6 of the other CORESET;

[0037] Fig. 4 is a schematic overview depicting a wireless communications network according to embodiments herein;Fig. 5 is a combined signaling scheme and flowchart according to embodiments herein;

[0038] Figs. 6a-6b show illustrations of overlapping 5G CORESET and 6G CORESETs in time and in frequency domains according to some embodiments herein;

[0039] Fig. 7 shows an illustration of overlapping CORESETs according to some embodiments herein;

[0040] Figs. 8a-f show illustrations of indexing REGs within a first CORESET which is overlapping with a second CORESET according to some embodiments herein;

[0041] Figs. 8g-h show illustrations of CCE-to-REG mapping of CORESETs other than CORESET 0 when it is overlapping CORESET 0;

[0042] Fig. 8i shows an illustration of indexing REGs of a first CORESET which is overlapping with two reference resource sets according to some embodiments herein;

[0043] Fig. 9 is a flowchart depicting a method performed by a user equipment according to embodiments herein;

[0044] Fig. 10 is a flowchart depicting a method performed by a radio network node according to embodiments herein;

[0045] Fig. 11a shows an illustration for PDCCH candidate mapping within the first CORESET which excludes REGs that overlap with the second set of RBs;

[0046] Fig. 11 b shows an illustration for PDCCH candidate mapping within the first CORESET where CCEs that overlap with the second set of RBs are considered as invalid for a PDCCH candidate;

[0047] Fig. 11c shows an illustration for PDCCH candidate mapping within the first CORESET where CCEs that overlap with the second set of RBs are considered as punctured CCEs;

[0048] Fig. 12a is a flowchart depicting a method performed by a user equipment according to some embodiments herein;

[0049] Fig. 12b is a flowchart depicting a method performed by a radio network node according to some embodiments herein;

[0050] Fig. 13 is a block diagram depicting a user equipment according to embodiments herein;

[0051] Fig. 14 is a block diagram depicting a radio network node according to embodiments herein;

[0052] Fig. 15 shows an example of a communication system 15100 in accordance with some embodiments;

[0053] Fig. 16 shows a communication system 15200 in accordance with some embodiments;

[0054] Fig. 17 shows a UE 15300 in accordance with some embodiments;

[0055] Fig. 18 is a block diagram of a network node 15400 in accordance with various aspects described herein; and

[0056] Fig. 19 is a block diagram illustrating a virtualization environment 15500 in which functions implemented by some embodiments may be virtualized.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0057] Embodiments herein relate to wireless communications networks in general. Fig. 4 is a schematic overview depicting a wireless communications network 1. The wireless communications network 1 comprises one or more RANs and one or more CNs. The wireless communications network 1 may use one or a number of different technologies. Embodiments herein relate to recent technology trends that are of particular interest in a NR and / or 6G context, however, embodiments are also applicable in existing wireless communications systems such as e.g. LTE or WCDMA, and upcoming releases.

[0058] In the wireless communications network 1, a UE 10, exemplified herein as a wireless device such as a mobile station, a non-access point (non-AP) station (ST A), a STA and / or a wireless terminal, is comprised communicating via, e.g., one or more Access Networks (AN), e.g., RAN, to one or more CN. It should be understood by the skilled in the art that “UE” is a non-limiting term which means any terminal, wireless communications terminal, user equipment, NarrowBand Internet of Things (NB-loT) device, Machine Type Communication (MTC) device, Device to Device (D2D) terminal, or node e.g. smart phone, laptop, mobile phone, sensor, relay, mobile tablets or even a small base station capable of communicating using radio communication with a radio network node within an area served by the radio network node.

[0059] The wireless communications network 1 comprises a radio network node 12 providing radio coverage over a geographical area, a first service area 11 or first cell, of a first Radio Access Technology (RAT), such as 6G, NR, LTE, or similar. The radio network node 12 may be a transmission and reception point such as an access node, an access controller, a base station, e.g. a radio base station such as a gNodeB (gNB), an evolved Node B (eNB, eNode B), a NodeB, a base transceiver station, a radio remote unit, an Access Point Base Station, a base station router, a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) access point or an Access Point Station (AP STA), a transmission arrangement of a radio base station, a stand-alone access point or any other network unit or node capable of communicating with a wireless device within the area served by the radio network node depending e.g. on the first radio access technology and terminology used. The radio network node may be referred to as a serving radio network node wherein the service area may be referred to as a serving cell such as a primary cell (PCell) and / or a primary secondary cell (PSCell), and the serving network node communicates with the UE in form of DL transmissions to the UE and UL transmissions from the UE.It should be noted that a service area may be denoted as cell, beam, beam group or similar to define an area of radio coverage.

[0060] According to embodiments herein the UE 10 obtains a first set of radio resources and a second set of radio resources for carrying control information to the UE 10, and determines that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources. The UE 10 performs an action associated with handling the control information taking the determination that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources into account. The first set of radio resources may be referred to as the first resource set and the second set of radio resources may be referred to as the second resource set. Radio resources may comprise any resources, e.g., symbols, slots, time and / or frequency resources such as RBs, REGs, and / or CCEs. The control information may comprise PDCCH information such as DCI or similar. The UE 10 may monitor for a control channel candidate in the first set of radio resources based on the performed action. It should also be understood that the radio network node 12 may also, as the UE 10, perform an action associated with handling the control information taking determination whether the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources into account. The radio network node 12 may transmit control information for the UE 10 in the control channel candidate in the first set of radio resources based on the performed action.

[0061] As an example, the UE 10 and / or the radio network node 12 may adjust the mapping of the first set of radio resources, e.g., REGs and / or CCEs of a CORESET, taking into account one or more overlapping second sets of radio resources, such as a reference resource set. It is herein exemplified a PDCCH candidate mapping within a first CORESET when overlapping a second CORESET. As an example, the second set of radio resources may be CORESET 0 and the first set of radio resources set may be a CORESET other than CORESET 0.

[0062] That the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources herein means that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources in time and / or frequency domains.

[0063] Embodiments herein are applicable to a dynamic spectrum sharing scenario, such as a 5G / 6G sharing in the same frequency band where the resource mapping of the first set of radio resources, e.g., 6G CORESET, may be adjusted taking into account the overlapping second set of radio resources, such as 5G CORESET including CORESET 0.

[0064] The second set of radio resources may be a reference radio resource set such as CORESET 0, which has a different CCE mapping from the first set of radio resources andoverlaps a part or parts of the first set of radio resources. Embodiments herein allow a CCE mapping of the first set of radio resources to be aligned with a CCE mapping of the overlapping second set of radio resources and avoid excessive PDCCH blocking in the first set of radio resources, for example, for higher Aggregation Levels (AL).

[0065] Fig. 5 shows a combined flowchart and signaling scheme according to embodiments herein for a method performed by a UE for handling communication, e.g., control signaling, in a wireless communications network.

[0066] Action 501. The UE 10 obtains the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources for carrying control information to the UE 10. The UE 10 may receive a configuration, from the radio network node 12 or another radio network node, for configuring the UE to perform the method herein. The configuration may, additionally, or alternatively, comprise the sets of radio resources. Alternatively, the UE may be preconfigured with the sets of radio resources.

[0067] Action 502. The UE 10 determines that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources.

[0068] Action 503. Upon a part or parts of the first set of radio resources is overlapping the second set of radio resources, the UE 10 performs an action associated with handling the control information. For example, the UE 10 may align one or more CCE, and / or REGs of the first set of radio resources with overlapping one or more CCEs and / or REGs in the second set of radio resources. Thus, the UE 10 performs the action associated with handling the control information taking the determination that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources into account.

[0069] It is herein described a number of actions that are based on whether or not the sets of radio resources overlap. For example, a mapping of the first set of radio resources set may be adjusted by taking into account the existence of the overlapping second set of radio resources. The mapping may be a mapping of REGs and CCEs within the first set of radio resources set that may take into account the overlapping RBs of the second set of radio resources set. Additionally, or alternatively, a finer grid may be supported such that the resource grid of the CORESETs may be aligned by allowing finer resource allocation granularity than, for example, the 6 RBs of a CCE being defined in NR. Embodiments herein further cover configuration of partially interleaved and partially non-interleaved CCE to RBG mapping for PDCCH detection.

[0070] Thus, embodiments herein are described to address a coexistence between the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources which are overlapped in time and / or frequency domains. The overlap in time and / or frequency domain can beeither a partial or full overlap. In general, the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources may be associated with a downlink control channel such as the PDCCH.

[0071] Thus, a resource mapping of the downlink control channel transmitted on the first set of radio resources takes into account the existence of the second set of radio resources. As an example, when the first set of radio resources overlaps with the second set of radio resources, the first set of radio resources may be split into two portions where the first portion comprises radio resources which overlap with the second set of radio resources and the second portion comprises remaining radio resources. The resource mapping of the downlink control channel transmitted on the first set of radio resources may then start from the first portion of the first resource set, followed by the second portion, or vice versa. For the DL control signaling, the radio network node 12 and UE 10 respectively transmits and receives the DL control channel in the first set of radio resources according to the resource mapping of the first set of radio resources.

[0072] In one example, the first and second sets of radio resources correspond to a 6G CORESET and 5G NR CORESET, respectively. In this example, the mapping mentioned herein may correspond to radio resource mapping such as to REG, CCE, and / or CCE-to-REG mapping of the CORESET.

[0073] Embodiments herein may cover MRSS scenarios where there exist overlapping sets of radio resources for control signaling, such as 5G and 6G CORESETs or CORESETs of one RAT. Scenarios described below are where the CORESETs are partially or fully overlapping in time domain, and partially or fully overlapping in frequency domain. The first set of radio resources is marked with a dotted pattern in Figures herein and the second set of radio resources is not marked with a pattern but marked as white marked radio resources.

[0074] Figs. 6a and 6b illustrate examples wherein the first set of radio resources Set 1 may correspond to a 6G CORESET and the second set of radio resources Set 2 may correspond to a 5G CORESET, such as 5G CORESET 0. In the example in Fig. 6a, the 5G CORESET is a subset of the 6G CORESET while in the other example in Fig. 6b, the 5G CORESET is partially overlapping with the 6G CORESET.

[0075] In another example, within one RAT, the first set of radio resources Set 1 refers to a CORESET other than CORESET 0 and the second set of radio resources Set 2 refers to CORESET 0. An example is shown in Fig. 7. Generally, the second set of radio resources Set 2 can correspond to any CORESET. For example, the second set of radio resources Set 2 may be configured to be a CORESET or CORESETs with certain indexor indices or CORESET associated with a common search space set. In another example, when there are overlapping CORESETs, a CORESET with a lower index may be considered as the second set of radio resources Set 2 of the other overlapping CORESET or CORESETs.

[0076] According to some embodiments, the first set of radio resources, for example, a first CORESET, which is overlapping with the second set of radio resources, such as a second CORESET, is split into two portions where a first portion P1 comprises resource blocks which overlaps with resource blocks of the second set of radio resources and a second portion P2 comprises the remaining resource blocks. The mapping of REGs within the first set of radio resources starts from the first portion P1 , followed by the second portion P2. That is, REGs of the first set of radio resources are indexed in an ascending order, starting from those belonging to the first portion P1 and followed by the second portion P2. This is shown in Fig. 8a. In Fig. 8a the REG mapping starts with REG index 0 from a lowest resource block of the first portion P1 , such as a REG associated with the first set of radio resources, until the RBs of the first portion P1 are fully mapped, then followed by a lowest resource block of the second portion P2. Thus, the first set of radio resources may comprise the first portion P1 which overlaps the second set of resources; and the second portion P2 which does not overlap the second set of resources, wherein the second portion P2 includes radio resources P2” at higher frequencies than the first portion P1 and radio resources P2’ at lower frequency than the first portion P1. The UE 10 may perform the action comprising using indexing of the first set of radio resources such that the indexing consecutively indexes radio resources in the first portion P1; and the indexing consecutively indexes radio resources in the second portion P2 such that a radio resource P2” in the second portion P2 at higher frequency than the first portion P1 has an index (exemplified in Fig. 8a by REG index 27) directly following an index (exemplified in Fig. 8a by REG index 26) of a radio resource P2’ in the second portion P2 at a lower frequency than the first portion P1.

[0077] It should be noted that REGs within each portion may be indexed according to the time-first and frequency-second manner. That is, the REGs are indexed by first moving in the time direction (time-first) until the end of that frequency is reached, and then the frequency is changed and time direction is again applied. This is disclosed in Fig. 8b. Fig.

[0078] 8b shows that the first set of radio resources spans two OFDM symbols and is split into two portions, the first portion P1 comprises RBs which overlap with those of the second set of radio resources and the second portion P2 comprises remaining RBs. The REG mapping starts with REG index 0 from the lowest RB of the first symbol of the first portionP1 until the RBs of the first portion P1 are fully mapped, then followed by the lowest RB of the second portion P2.

[0079] In another embodiment, REGs of the first set of radio resources are indexed in an ascending order, starting from those belonging to the second portion P2 and followed by the first portion P1. This is shown in Fig. 8c. In Fig. 8c the REG mapping starts with REG index 0 from the lowest resource block of the second portion P2 until the resource blocks of the second portion P2 are fully mapped, then followed by the lowest resource block of the first portion P1.

[0080] Referring to Fig. 6b, both sets of radio resources may be split into the two portions where the first portion P1 comprises the overlapping resource blocks and the second portion P2 comprises the remaining resource blocks. Similarly, the mappings of the REGs of both sets of radio resources start from the first portion P1 , followed by the second portion P2.

[0081] According to some embodiments, indexing of REGs may be done per portion. The REGs of the first set of radio resources may be indexed in an ascending order, starting from a portion which comprises REGs located at the lowest RB of the first set of radio resources. For example, see Fig. 8c, the second portion P2 of the first set of radio resources comprises a REG located at the lowest resource block or bottom of the sets of radio resources. Thus, in this case, REGs of the first set of radio resources would be indexed starting from the second portion P2 followed by the REGs of the first set of radio resources of the first portion P1.

[0082] It should be noted that REGs within each portion may be indexed according to the time-first and frequency-second manner. That is, the REGs are indexed by first moving in the time direction (time-first) until the end of that frequency is reached, and then the frequency is changed and time direction is again applied. This is disclosed in Fig. 8d.

[0083] Each portion of the first set of radio resources and / or the second set of radio resources may be an integer of the number of REGs per CCE, e.g., an integer multiple of 6 REGs according to the 5G NR parameters, such as 0, 6, 12 REGs. In this way, it is ensured that there is a complete CCE below / above the second set of radio resources. This may be configured by the radio network node 12.

[0084] The action 503 performed by the UE 10 upon overlap between the first and second sets of radio resources, as described above with reference to Figure 5, may comprise using indexing of the first set of radio resources such that the indexing of the first set of radio resources excludes one or more radio resources of the second portion P2 such that remaining radio resources in the second portion P2 at lower frequences than thefirst portion P1 (such as radio resources P2’) and at higher frequencies than the first portion P1 (such as radio resources P2’) form a respective integer number of resource sets of a certain set size, such as sets of REGs making up entire CCEs, for example, multiple of 6 REGs.

[0085] Thus, each portion of the first set of radio resources outside the second set of radio resources, may comprise a number of REGs that configured, by the radio network node 12, to be an integer of the number of REGs per CCE, e.g., an integer multiple of 6 REGs according to the 5G NR parameters, such as 0, 6, 12 REGs. In this way, it is ensured that there is one or more complete CCEs outside the overlapping radio resources. The first set of radio resources may be configured to be aligned with the second set of radio resources either from the top or bottom of resource blocks, depending on the position of the second set of radio resources in the bandwidth part (BWP), to ensure that the CCE indexing are aligned.

[0086] It should be noted, that if the number of REGs in each portion of the first set of radio resources outside the second set of radio resources is not an integer multiple of the number of REGs per CCE, the first set of radio resources used for CCE-to-REG mapping may first be adjusted to exclude some REG(s) such that the remaining REGs in each portion, such as radio resources P2’ and P2”, of the first set of radio resources outside the second set of radio resources is an integer multiple of the number of REGs per CCE. An option is to exclude minimum amount of REGs in each portion of the first set of radio resources outside the second set of radio resources such that the remaining REGs in each portion of the first set of radio resources outside the second set of radio resources are contiguous and are an integer multiple of the number of REGs per CCE. In this way, it is ensured that there is one or more complete CCEs outside the overlapping radio resources. This is shown in Fig. 8e. Fig. 8e shows that the first set of radio resources is first adjusted to exclude some REG(s) such that the remaining REGs in each portion of the first set of radio resources outside the second set of radio resources, such as radio resources P2’ and P2”, is an integer multiple of REGs per CCE, in this NR example assuming 6 REGs per CCE example. Then the first set of radio resources may be split into two portions as described in earlier embodiments. Alternatively, as shown in Fig. 8f, the REG indexing can be done based on the adjusted first set of radio resources without considering the first and second portions separately. Hence, the indexing of the first set of radio resources, as shown in Fig. 8f, is made consecutively throughout what remains of the first set of radio resources, i.e., consecutively over the non-overlapping portion and the overlapping portion, after the exclusion of the REGs.Thus, the UE 10 may exclude the REGs by not considering them as part of the first set of radio resources to be used for PDCCH candidates despite that they have been configured, by the network, as part of the first set of radio resources. The UE 10 may thus determine a new virtual first set of radio resources or CORESET by excluding these REGs and the subsequent mapping may be done based on the new virtual first set of radio resource. Thus, when the first set of radio resources comprises the first portion P1 which overlaps the second set of resources; and the second portion P2 which does not overlap the second set of resources, wherein the second portion P1 includes radio resources P2” at higher frequencies than the first portion P1 and radio resources P2’ at lower frequency than the first portion P1 , the UE 10 may perform the action comprising using indexing of the first set of radio resources such that the indexing of the first set of radio resources excludes one or more radio resources of the second portion P2 such that remaining radio resources in the second portion P2 at lower frequences than the first portion P1 and at higher frequencies than the first portion P1 form a respective integer number of resource sets of a certain set size, such as sets of REGs making up entire CCEs, for example, multiple of 6 REGs.

[0087] When the mapping of REGs within the first set of radio resources is adjusted as described above, it allows CCEs of the first set of radio resources which are overlapping with a second set of radio resources to be aligned, in terms of CCE boundary, with those of the second set of radio resources. The first set of radio resources may be configured to be aligned with the second set of radio resources either from the top or bottom of resource blocks, depending on the position of the second set of radio resources in the BWP, to ensure that the CCE indexing are aligned.

[0088] The CCE-to-REG mapping for the first portion P1 of the first set of radio resources which is overlapping with the second set of radio resources may follow the CCE-to-REG mapping of the second set of radio resources. That is, the CCEs within the first set of radio resources which are overlapping with the second set of radio resources are aligned with those of the second set of radio resources.

[0089] For the remaining CCEs, the configured CCE-to-REG mapping of the first set of radio resources may be applied onto the remaining REGs which are not overlapping with the second set of radio resources.

[0090] If an interleaved CCE-to-REG mapping is applied for the first set of radio resources on the REG bundles with the interleaver defined by

[0091] f x) = (rC + c + nshift) mod (A °ESET / £)

[0092] x = cR + rr = 0,1, ... , R - 1

[0093] c = 0,1, ... , C - 1

[0094] C = WRCE°GRESET / (LR),

[0095] the parameter VR°GESETmay be adjusted to be the number of remaining REGs which are not overlapping with the second set of radio resources. Also, the indices of REG bundles to consider in the mapping of remaining CCEs may be offset by the number of REG bundles in the second set of radio resources.

[0096] Fig. 8g and 8h illustrate examples where the first set of radio resources corresponds to a CORESET other than CORESET 0 and the second set of radio resources corresponds to CORESET 0.

[0097] Fig. 8g shows that the CCE-to-REG mapping for the first portion P1 of the first set of radio resources, which is overlapping with the second set of radio resources, follows that of the second set of radio resources, i.e., interleaved mapping. For the remaining CCEs, the configured non-interleaved CCE-to-REG mapping of the first set of radio resources may be applied onto the remaining REGs, that is, the second portion P2, which are not overlapping with the second set of radio resources. In this example, the first set of radio resources is configured with non-interleaved CCE-to-REG mapping with REG bundle size L=6. The second set of radio resource is configured with interleaved CCE-to-REG mapping with REG bundle size L=6 and interleaver size R=2. Thus, the UE 10 may use a CCE-to-REG mapping for a portion, such as the first portion P1 , of the first set of radio resources that overlaps the second set of radio resources, wherein the CCE-to-REG mapping is the same as that of the second set of radio resources.

[0098] Fig. 8h shows that the CCE-to-REG mapping for the first portion P1 of the first set of radio resources which is overlapping with second set of radio resources follows that of the second set of radio resources, i.e., interleaved mapping. For the remaining CCEs, the configured interleaved CCE-to-REG mapping of the first set of radio resources is applied onto the remaining REGs, that is, the second portion P2, which are not overlapping with the second set of radio resources. In this example, the first set of radio resources is configured with interleaved CCE-to-REG mapping with REG bundle size L=6 and interleaver size R=2. The second set of radio resources is configured with interleaved CCE-to-REG mapping with REG bundle size L=6 and interleaver size R=2. Thus, the UE 10 may use a CCE-to-REG mapping for a portion, such as the first portion P1 , of the first set of radio resources that overlaps the second set of radio resources, wherein the CCE-to-REG mapping is the same as that of the second set of radio resources.Alternatively, or additionally, the CCE-to-REG mapping type, e.g., interleaved or non-interleaved mapping, for the first set of radio resources which is overlapping with the second set of radio resources follows that of the second set of radio resources, regardless of the first set of radio resources configuration parameter. That is, the CCEs within the first set of radio resources which are overlapping with the second set of radio resources are aligned with those of the second set of radio resources. In addition, the remaining CCEs may also follow the CCE-to-REG mapping type of the second set of radio resources regardless of the configured CCE-to-REG mapping type of the first set of radio resources. Thus, the CCE-to-REG mapping type, such as interleaved or non-interleaved mapping, of the second set of radio resources may be reused. This has an advantage that for implication when mapping PDCCH candidates on to the first set of radio resources the same mapping type may be used throughout the first set of radio resources. Thus, the UE 10 may use a CCE-to-REG mapping for a portion, such as the first portion P1 , of the first set of radio resources that overlaps the second set of radio resources, wherein the CCE-to-REG mapping, such as CCE-to-REG mapping type, is the same as that of the second set of radio resources.

[0099] Furthermore, if the first set of radio resources is configured with the same CCE-to-REG mapping type as that of the second set of radio resources, other parameters of the first set of radio resources such as REG bundle size, interleaver size, etc. may still follow those of the first set of radio resources configuration. This is to ensure that the mapping on the non-overlapping part of the first set of radio resources still would work. On the other hand, if the first set of radio resources is configured with a different CCE-to-REG mapping type than that of the second set of radio resources, other parameters of the first set of radio resources may also follow those of the second set of radio resources. This may be for the case when the first set of radio resources was configured with a noninterleaved mapping but needs to be adjusted according to the embodiment above to the interleaved mapping due to overlapping with the second set of radio resources configured with interleaved mapping, the mapping for the non-overlapping part still works, and there are parameters to use.

[0100] Additionally, or alternatively, a REG bundling size may be configured for a noninterleaved mapping type to have finer granularity than the minimum resource unit for configuring the frequency resource allocation for control resource set or resources used per CCE. For NR the bundling size L is 6 for non-interleaved mapping type, which is the same granularity as the bit representation of the bitmap used for indicating the frequency resource allocation and same as resources used for a CCE. This makes it impossible tomake use of fragmented resources that are smaller than a CCE or minimum configurable resource unit. For the example illustrated in fig. 8g, bundling size L = 3 can be configured for the second portion P2, which means those 3 RBs below the second set of radio resources can be counted as one REG bundling to be used for CCE indexing, also one CCE can be represented by multiple REG bundlings that are non-consecutive physical resources in REG bundle level. But within a REG bundling the resources may be expected to be consecutive in frequency domain in order for UE to assume same precoder within a REG bundling to do channel estimation. Thus, if the sets of radio resources overlap as in Figs. 8a and 8c, then the three REGs below the overlap may not be allowed to be in the same REG bundle as the three REGs just above the overlap since a REG bundle must consist of consecutive REGs.

[0101] As stated in actions 900, 901, 1000 and 1001 below, the radio network node 12 may configure the UE 10, e.g., through some higher layer parameter, whether the mapping of REGs and CCEs within the first set of radio resources is adjusted taking into account any overlapping with the second set of radio resources. If it is not configured or configured but there is no overlapping with the second set of radio resources, the mapping of the REGs and CCEs within the first set of radio resources follows the configured mapping. The UE 10 may obtain (for example receive from the network node 12) a first sequence of sets of radio resources for carrying control information to the UE 10, such as a first CORESET with an associated search space, and a second sequence of sets of radio resources for carrying control information to the UE, such as a second CORESET with an associated search space. The first sequence may include the first set of radio resources and the second sequence may include the second set of radio resources. For each of the sets in the first sequence of sets of radio resources, the UE 10 determines whether that set from the first sequence is at least partly overlapping a set from the second sequence of sets of radio resources; and performs the action associated with handling the control information taking the determination whether the set from the first sequence is at least partly overlapping a set from the second sequence into account. Additionally, at least one of the sets in the first sequence may not at least partly overlap a set from the second sequence. The UE 10 then performs as in a legacy manner such as monitoring for one or more candidate position in a search space without performing the action mentioned herein. As an example, the UE 10 may be configured with multiple search spaces each with an associated CORESET. A search space describes, for example, how often, i.e., periodicity, and where, for example, in which symbol of a slot, the UE 10 monitors PDCCH candidates in the associated CORESET. Periodicity, andwhich symbol together form a monitoring occasion. There can be time instances where one or more PDCCH monitoring occasions of the multiple search spaces and their associated CORESET in which UE 10 may monitor overlapping PDCCH candidates. The UE 10 may be indicated or configured to take the overlap into account when monitoring PDCCH candidates in one of the search spaces with the associated CORESET. This may include adjusting the REG indexing and / or the CCE mapping and PDCCH candidate monitoring in the CORESET, etc. If such indication / configuration is not provided to the UE 10, the UE 10 may perform PDCCH monitoring as usual without taking the overlap into account even if there are overlapped monitoring occasions with the overlapped associated CORESETs. The UE 10 also performs usual PDCCH candidate monitoring in a monitoring occasion which does not overlap with any other monitoring occasions The configuration provided to the UE 10 may comprise parameters or combination of the parameters indicating the first set of radio resources and / or the CCE-to-REG mapping, where the parameters may comprise one or multiple of:

[0102] • Frequency and / or time domain resource allocation for the first and / or the second portion of the first set of radio resources

[0103] o E.g. Starting offset from RB start of the portion of the first set of radio resources

[0104] • Interleaved or non-interleaved mapping type for the first and the second portion • Include or exclude a second portion configuration in the mapping indexing

[0105] • Mapping order: start from first portion or start from the second portion

[0106] • Bundling size of REGs for non-interleaved mapping

[0107] • Bundling size first set of radio resources for the first and the second portions • Interleaver configuration for the first and the second portions

[0108] • Linking of the second portion to a second coreset configuration, e.g., a CORESET ID, configured in RRC.

[0109] • A bit map with a granularity for frequency resource allocation: each bit may represent consecutive number of RBs using one of the values from {1 ,2,3,4} • A flag indicating if the CORESET#0 configuration, i.e., the second set of radio resources, needs to be considered in the CCE-to-REG mapping

[0110] The second set of radio resources may be linked in the configuration of the first set of radio resources, and then search space configuration of the two sets of radio resources are expected to be the same, e.g. same periodicity, same slot from frame offset, same starting symbols in a slot. The search space type, e.g. common search space or UEspecific search space, may be different. The symbol duration of the sets of radio resources is may be the same.

[0111] Alternatively, when the second set of radio resources is linked in the configuration of the first set of radio resources, search space configuration of the two sets of radio resources may be configured differently, e.g. with different periodicities. The mapping of the first set of radio resources may take into account the presence of the second set of radio resources only when overlapping occurs, that the search space of the first and the second set of radio resources collides on the same symbols.

[0112] The radio network node 12 may configure the UE 10, e.g., through some higher layer parameter, with the second set of radio resources, such as a reference resource set, to be considered and / or taken into account in the mapping of the first set of radio resources, e.g., REGs and CCEs within the second set of radio resources. For example, the second set of radio resources may be configured to be CORESET 0 or some specific reference resource set.

[0113] In the context of MRSS, a specific reference resource set, being an example of the second set of radio resources, may correspond to CORESET 0 or other CORESETs of a 5G NR system. In such a context, the mapping of 6G PDCCH in the first CORESET overlapping with the 5G NR CORESET O / CORESET will take into account the 5G NR CORESET O / CORESET. If the specific reference resource set is configured, the specific reference resource may be described by an index of the starting RB together with a length of the specific reference resource set, for example, in RBs. Alternatively, the specific reference resource may be configured by indicating one or more indices of the separately configured specific reference resource set. In addition, time components such as periodicity of the specific reference resource set to be considered / taken into account in the mapping of the first set of radio resources may be configured.

[0114] More than one specific reference resource set may be configured and / or indicated to be considered and / or taken into account in the mapping of REGs and CCEs within the first set of radio resources which is overlapping with the specific reference resource sets.

[0115] In one example, a union of the RBs belonging to the configured specific reference resource sets is considered / taken into account in the mapping of REGs and CCEs within the first set of radio resources. In another example, the first set of radio resources which is overlapping with multiple specific reference resource sets may be split into multiple parts where a first part P11, also referred to as first part of first portion, comprises resource blocks which overlaps with resource blocks of the first indexed specific reference resource set, a second part P12, also referred to as second part of first portion, comprisesresource blocks which overlaps with resource blocks of the second indexed specific reference resource set which is not in the first indexed specific reference resource set, and so on, and the last part consists of any remaining resource blocks. This is shown in Fig. 8i. The mapping of REGs and CCEs within the first set of radio resources then starts from the first part, followed by second part, and so on. In Fig. 8i, the first set of radio resources is split into three parts, the first part P11 comprises RBs which overlap with the first reference resource set, the second part P12 comprises RBs which overlap with the second reference resource set, and a third part P3, also referred to as second portion P2, that comprises remaining RBs. Here REG mapping starts with REG index 0 from the lowest RB of the first part P11 until the RBs of the first part P11 are fully mapped, then followed by the lowest indexed RB of the second part P12 and the third part P3, respectively.

[0116] The method actions performed by the UE 10 for handling communication in the wireless communications network 1 according to embodiments will now be described with reference to a flowchart depicted in Fig. 9. The actions do not have to be taken in the order stated below but may be taken in any suitable order. Dashed boxes indicate optional features.

[0117] Action 900. The UE 10 may receive an indication from the radio network node 12 for the UE 10 to determine that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources and / or for the UE 10 to perform an action associated with handling the control information taking the determination that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources into account. Thus, the UE 10 may receive the indication of performing the method herein. The indication may trigger the action when overlapping has occurred or the indication may initiate the method as such. The indication may be received in RRC signaling and / or the UE 10 may receive the indication dynamically, for example, using a DCI signaling. If the UE 10 does not receive the indication, the UE 10 may use legacy NR behavior, for example, as described in the background section.

[0118] Action 901. The UE 10 obtains the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources for carrying control information to the UE. The second set may be one or more reference sets of radio resources. As an example, the UE 10 may obtain the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources by receiving a configuration from the radio network node 12 indicating the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources. The configuration may comprise the indication from action 900.The first set of radio resources may comprise a first CORESET (for example a CORESET 0), and the second set of radio resources may comprise a second CORESET. Additionally, or alternatively, the first set of radio resources may be radio resources for a first RAT, and the second set of radio resources may be radio resources for a second RAT.

[0119] Action 902. The UE 10 determines that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources.

[0120] Action 903. The UE 10 performs the action associated with handling the control information taking the determination that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources into account.

[0121] The first set of radio resources may comprise a first portion, exemplified by P1 in Figs. 8a-8f, which overlaps the second set of resources and a second portion, exemplified by P2 in Figs. 8a-8f, which does not overlap the second set of resources, wherein the second portion P2 includes radio resources P2” at higher frequencies than the first portion P1 and radio resources P2’ at lower frequency than the first portion P1. The UE 10 may perform the action comprising using indexing of the first set of radio resources such that:

[0122] the indexing consecutively indexes radio resources in the first portion P1; and

[0123] the indexing consecutively indexes radio resources in the second portion P2 such that a radio resource in the second portion P2 at higher frequency than the first portion P1 has an index directly following an index of a radio resource in the second portion P2 at a lower frequency than the first portion P1 or a radio resource in the second portion P2 at lower frequency than the first portion P1 has an index directly following an index of a radio resource in the second portion at a higher frequency than the first portion P2.

[0124] Thus, the first portion P1 overlapping the second set of radio resources and the second portion P2 not overlapping the second set of radio resources are indexed in such a way that unnecessary blocking of resources is avoided. The indexing of the second portion not overlapping the second set of radio resources may be made upwards or downwards in the frequency domain, as long as it is made consecutively so that the radio resources closest to the overlapping portion P1 have consecutive indices.

[0125] Additionally, or alternatively, when the first set of radio resources comprises the first portion P1 which overlaps the second set of resources; and the second portion P2 which does not overlap the second set of resources, wherein the second portion P” includes radio resources P2” at higher frequencies than the first portion P1 and radioresources P2’ at lower frequency than the first portion P1 , the UE 10 may perform the action comprising using indexing of the first set of radio resources such that:

[0126] the indexing of the first set of radio resources excludes one or more radio resources, as exemplified in Figs. 8e and 8f, of the second portion P2 such that remaining radio resources in the second portion at lower frequences than the first portion P1 and at higher frequencies than the first portion form a respective integer number of resource sets of a certain set size, such as sets of REGs making up entire CCEs, for example, a multiple of 6 REGs. Thus, the radio resources may be REGs.

[0127] The first set of radio resources may comprise the first portion P1 which overlaps the second set of radio resources. The action, performed by the UE 10 in action 903, may then comprise aligning a boundary of a resource group in the first portion P1 with a boundary of a resource group in the second set of radio resources. The UE 10 may, for example, align one or more CCEs and / or REGs of the first set of radio resources with overlapping one or more CCEs and / or REGs in the second set of radio resources.

[0128] The action, performed by the UE 10 in action 903, may comprise using a CCE-to-REG mapping for a portion, such as the first portion P1 , of the first set of radio resources that overlaps the second set of radio resources. The CCE-to-REG mapping may be the same as that of the second set of radio resources.

[0129] The action, performed by the UE 10 in action 903, may comprise monitoring one or more candidate positions among the first set of radio resources for one or more occurrences of control information. The one or more candidate positions may be selected based on the determination. The UE 10 may monitor the one or more candidate positions by excluding monitoring of one or more radio resources when the one or more radio resources overlaps one or more radio resources of the second set of radio resources. Examples are described further below with reference to Figs. 11a- 11c.

[0130] The action, performed by the UE 10 in action 903, may further comprise using a granularity of grouping the first set of radio resources. The granularity may be based on the determination. The radio resources may for example be PRBs or REGs and the granularity of grouping the first set of radio resources may for example be a granularity by which PRBs or REGs in the first set of radio resources are grouped. It should here be noted that in NR the CORESET position in frequency domain is indicated by a bitmap where each bit map entry corresponds to 6 physical resource blocks (PRBs) starting with the first PRB of the bandwidth part. If, for example, a 6G CORESET uses a different definition of this starting point, NR and 6G starting points may not be aligned, and noteven be on a common 6 PRB grid. In this case the 6G CORESET may be indicated with a finer granularity than 6 PRBs, e.g., a bitmap where each entry corresponds to less than 6 PRBs, or the 6 PRB granularity is reused, but the frequency domain resources can be shifted, e.g., by 0 to 5 PRBs if PRBs are aligned or even by a finer granularity if NR and 6G PRBs are not aligned. The action, performed by the UE 10 in action 903, may comprise offsetting a starting point of the first set of radio resources to be aligned with a starting point of the second set of radio resources for the part or parts that are overlapping the second set of radio resources. The starting point may be a CCE boundary, or a REG boundary. As an example, the action, performed by the UE 10 in action 903, may comprise aligning one or more CCE, and / or REGs of the first set of radio resources with overlapping one or more CCEs and / or REGs in the second set of radio resources. The first set of radio resources may comprise a first CORESET, and the second set of radio resources may comprise a second CORESET, such as CORESET 0.

[0131] The action, performed by the UE 10 in action 903, may comprise performing a CCE-to-REG mapping for the part or parts of the first set of radio resources that are overlapping the second set of radio resources, wherein the CCE-to-REG mapping is the same as that of the second set of radio resources. A CCE-to-REG mapping may comprise a mapping type, i.e., interleaved or non-interleaved mapping, and one or more related parameters such as a REG bundle size and / or an interleaver size, if it is an interleaved mapping. As an example, the CCE-to-REG mapping of the second CORESET, both type and parameters therein, is used for the part or parts of the first CORESET that are overlapping the second CORESET.

[0132] The action, performed by the UE 10 in action 903, may comprise using a mapping of the first set of radio resources, wherein the mapping is adjusted compared to when no overlapping occurs between the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources by taking into account the second set of radio resources that are overlapping a portion of the first set of radio resources. Thus, the mapping may be adjusted compared to the mapping that would have been used if there was no overlap between the sets of radio resources. Thus, the first set of radio resources that is overlapping the reference set of radio resources may follow a REG mapping of the second set, a CCE-to-REG mapping of the second set, and / or a CCE mapping of the second set.

[0133] Action 904. The UE 10 may monitor for a control channel candidate in the first set of radio resources based on the performed action in action 903. The UE 10 may monitor for the control channel candidate in the first set of radio resources, wherein the first set of radio resources is adjusted, compared to radio resources, such as REGs and / or CCEs,that would have been used if there was no overlap between the sets of radio resources, to be aligned with a REG and / or a CCE of the second set that is overlapping the first resource set.

[0134] It should be noted that the UE 10 may obtain, for example via configuration from the radio network node 12, a first sequence of sets of radio resources for carrying control information to the UE 10, such as a first CORESET with an associated search space, and a second sequence of sets of radio resources for carrying control information to the UE, such as a second CORESET with an associated search space. The first sequence may include the first set of radio resources and the second sequence may include the second set of radio resources. For each of the sets in the first sequence of sets of radio resources, the UE 10 determines whether that set from the first sequence is at least partly overlapping a set from the second sequence of sets of radio resources; and performs an action associated with handling the control information taking the determination whether the set from the first sequence is at least partly overlapping a set from the second sequence into account. Additionally, at least one of the sets in the first sequence may not at least partly overlap a set from the second sequence. The UE 10 may then perform as in a legacy manner such as monitoring for one or more candidate position in a search space without performing the action mentioned herein (such as the action 903).

[0135] The method actions performed by the radio network node 12 for handling communication of the UE 10 in the wireless communications network 1 according to embodiments will now be described with reference to a flowchart depicted in Fig. 10. The actions do not have to be taken in the order stated below but may be taken in any suitable order. Dashed boxes indicate optional features.

[0136] Action 1000. The radio network node 12 may transmit the indication to the UE 10 for the UE to determine that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources and / or for the UE 10 to perform an action associated with handling the control information taking the determination that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources into account. Thus, the radio network node 12 may transmit the indication for the UE 10 to perform the method according to Fig. 9.

[0137] Action 1001. The radio network node 12 may provide to the UE 10, the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources for carrying control information for the UE 10. As an example, the radio network node 12 may provide the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources by transmitting the configuration to the UE 10 indicating the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources.The indication in action 1000 may be comprised in the configuration in action 1001. The second set may be one or more reference sets of radio resources.

[0138] The first set of radio resources may comprise the first CORESET, and the second set of radio resources may comprise the second CORESET. Additionally, or alternatively, the first set of radio resources may be radio resources for the first RAT, and the second set of radio resources may be radio resources for the second RAT.

[0139] Action 1002. The radio network node 12 determines that the first set of radio resources for carrying control information to the UE 10 is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources for carrying control information to the UE 10.

[0140] Action 1003. The radio network node 12 performs an action associated with handling the control information taking the determination that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources into account. The first set of radio resources may comprise the first portion which overlaps the second set of resources; and the second portion which does not overlap the second set of resources, wherein the second portion includes radio resources at higher frequencies than the first portion and radio resources at lower frequency than the first portion. The radio network node 12 may perform the action comprising using indexing of the first set of radio resources such that:

[0141] the indexing consecutively indexes radio resources in the first portion; and the indexing consecutively indexes radio resources in the second portion such that a radio resource in the second portion at higher frequency than the first portion has an index directly following an index of a radio resource in the second portion at a lower frequency than the first portion or a radio resource in the second portion at lower frequency than the first portion has an index directly following an index of a radio resource in the second portion P2 at a higher frequency than the first portion P1.

[0142] Additionally, or alternatively, when the first set of radio resources comprises the first portion P1 which overlaps the second set of resources; and the second portion P2 which does not overlap the second set of resources, wherein the second portion includes radio resources P2” at higher frequencies than the first portion P1 and radio resources P2’at lower frequency than the first portion P1, the radio network node 12 may perform the action comprising using indexing of the first set of radio resources such that:

[0143] the indexing of the first set of radio resources excludes one or more radio resources of the second portion P2 such that remaining radio resources in the second portion P2 at lower frequences than the first portion P1 and at higherfrequencies than the first portion P1 form a respective integer number of resource sets of a certain set size, such as sets of REGs making up entire CCEs, for example, multiple of 6 REGs.

[0144] It should be noted that the radio resources may be REGs.

[0145] The first set of radio resources may comprise the first portion P1 which overlaps the second set of radio resources. The action, performed by the radio network node 12 in action 1003, may then comprise aligning a boundary of a resource group in the first portion P! with a boundary of a resource group in the second set of radio resources. The radio network node 12 may, for example, align one or more CCEs and / or REGs of the first set of radio resources with overlapping one or more CCEs and / or REGs in the second set of radio resources.

[0146] The action, performed by the radio network node 12 in action 1003, may comprise using a CCE-to-REG mapping for a portion, such as the first portion P1 , of the first set of radio resources that overlaps the second set of radio resources. The CCE-to-REG mapping may be the same as that of the second set of radio resources.

[0147] The action, performed by the radio network node 12 in action 1003, may comprise transmitting control information at one or more candidate positions among the first set of radio resources. The one or more candidate positions may be selected based on the determination. The radio network node 12 may omit transmission of control information at one or more candidate positions of one or more radio resources when the one or more radio resources overlaps one or more radio resources of the second set of radio resources.

[0148] The action, performed by the radio network node 12 in action 1003, may further comprise using a granularity of grouping the first set of radio resources. The granularity may be based on the determination. It should here be noted that in NR the CORESET position in frequency domain is indicated by a bitmap where each bit map entry corresponds to 6 PRBs starting with the first PRB of the bandwidth part. If, for example, a 6G CORESET uses a different definition of this starting point, NR and 6G starting points may not be aligned, and not even be on a common 6 PRB grid. In this case the 6G CORESET may be indicated with a finer granularity than 6 PRBs, e.g., a bitmap where each entry corresponds to less than 6 PRBs, or the 6 PRB granularity is reused, but the frequency domain resources can be shifted or offset, e.g., by 0 to 5 PRBs if PRBs are aligned or even by a finer granularity if NR and 6G PRBs are not aligned. The action, performed by the radio network node 12 in action 1003, may comprise offsetting a starting point of the first set of radio resources to be aligned with a starting point of the second setof radio resources for the part or parts that are overlapping the second set of radio resources. The starting point may be a CCE boundary, or a REG boundary. As an example, the action may comprise aligning one or more CCE, and / or REGs of the first set of radio resources with overlapping one or more CCEs and / or REGs in the second set of radio resources. The first set of radio resources may comprise a first CORESET, and the second set of radio resources may comprise a second CORESET, such as CORESETO.

[0149] The action, performed by the radio network node 12 in action 1003, may comprise using a CCE-to-REG mapping for the part or parts of the first set of radio resources that are overlapping the second set of radio resources, wherein the CCE-to-REG mapping is the same as that of the second set of radio resources. A CCE-to-REG mapping may comprise a mapping type, i.e., interleaved or non-interleaved mapping, and one or more related parameters such as a REG bundle size and / or an interleaver size, if it is an interleaved mapping. As an example, the CCE-to-REG mapping of the second CORESET, both type and parameters therein, is used for the part or parts of the first CORESET that are overlapping the second CORESET.

[0150] The action, performed by the radio network node 12 in action 1003, may comprise using a mapping of the first set of radio resources, wherein the mapping is adjusted compared to when no overlapping occurs between the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources by taking into account the second set of radio resources that are overlapping a portion of the first set of radio resources. Thus, the mapping may be adjusted compared to the mapping that would have been used if there was not overlap between the sets of radio resources. Thus, the first set of radio resources that is overlapping the reference set of radio resources may follow a REG mapping of the second set, a CCE-to-REG mapping of the second set, and / or a CCE mapping of the second set.

[0151] Action 1004. The radio network node 12 may transmit control information for the UE 10 in a control channel candidate in the first set of radio resources based on the performed action in action 1003. The radio network node 12 may transmit control information for the UE 10 in a control channel candidate in the first set of radio resources, wherein the first set of radio resources is adjusted, compared to radio resources, such as REGs and / or CCEs, that would have been used if there was no overlap between the sets of radio resources, to be aligned with a REG and / or a CCE of the second set that is overlapping the first resource set.Embodiments herein further disclose CCE-to-PDCCH candidate mapping when the CORESET contains one or more RBs which overlaps with another CORESET. The PDCCH candidate mapping takes into account the overlapped RBs. Different mappings can be enabled by the use of multiple search space sets linked to the CORESET.

[0152] The UE 10 may monitor multiple PDCCH candidates to detect a PDCCH with a DCI format. The PDCCH candidates are monitored based on signaling indicating a set of frequency domain resource blocks or RBs, such as a first set of RBs being an example of the first set of radio resources, in which the PDCCH can be present. The signaling can be part of a CORESET configuration also referred to as first CORESET configuration. The UE 10 also receives signaling indicating another set of frequency domain RBs, such as a second set of RBs being an example of the second set of radio resources. The UE 10 may determine control channel elements (CCEs) corresponding to a PDCCH candidate, such as a first PDCCH candidate, of the multiple PDCCH candidates based on both the first and second set of RBs. The UE 10 may determine CCEs corresponding to another PDCCH candidate, such as a second PDCCH candidate, of the multiple PDCCH candidates based on the first set of RBs without considering the second set of RBs.

[0153] Determining the CCEs corresponding the first PDCCH candidate can comprise one or more of the following approaches:

[0154] • In one approach, referred to as Approach 5-1, the UE 10 may determine available CCEs in the first CORESET by excluding RBs from the first set of RBs that overlap with the second set of RBs, and determine the CCEs corresponding to the first PDCCH candidate by selecting one or more CCEs from the available CCEs. Thus, the UE 10 may perform an action, when the first set of radio resources comprises the first set of RBs and the second set of radio resources comprises the second set of RBs, comprising excluding one or more RBs, or REGs associated with one or more RBs, from the first set of RBs that overlap with the second set of RBs when performing a CCE-REG mapping.

[0155] o For example, to determine REGs of the first CORESET the UE 10 may only consider those RBs of the first set of RBs that do not overlap with the second set of RBs, and use those REGs, or REG bundles comprising those REGs, for CCE to REG mapping.

[0156] o In another example, to determine the REGs of the first CORESET the UE 10 may consider all RBs of the first set of RBs but only use REGs that do not overlap with the second set of RBs for CCE to REG mapping.Fig. 11a illustrates an example for this approach. Fig. 11a shows a case where the first CORESET spans 48RBs, such as RB0-RB47, in frequency domain and two OFDM symbols, such as sO and s1, in time domain. The second set of RBs comprises RB12-RB35. Here, for determining the REGs of the first CORESET, such as REG0-REG47, only those RBs, i.e., RB0- RB11 and RB36-RB47, that do not overlap with the second set of RBs are considered and the REGs are numbered in increasing order in a time-first manner, starting with 0 for the first OFDM symbol (sO) and the lowest- numbered resource block (RBO). Then the UE considers CCE0-CCE7 as the available CCEs in the first CORESET with each CCE consisting multiple REGs, i.e., 6 REGs shown in the figure, from the REGs REG0- REG47. The UE 10 may select one or more CCEs from CCE0-CCE7 to determine the CCEs corresponding the first PDCCH candidate. For example, for a PDCCH search space with aggregation level (L) L=4, the UE 10 may determine CCE0-CCE3 (or CCE4-CCE7) as the CCEs corresponding the first PDCCH candidate.

[0157] • In another approach, referred to as Approach 5-2, the UE 10 may determine available CCEs in the first CORESET based on the first set of RBs, and may determine the CCEs corresponding to the first PDCCH candidate by selecting one or more CCEs from the available CCEs. The selected one or more CCEs are considered valid CCEs corresponding to the first PDCCH candidate only if they do not overlap with any RB of the second set of RBs. Thus, the UE 10 may perform an action, when the first set of radio resources comprises the first set of RBs and the second set of radio resources comprises the second set of RBs, comprising considering only CCEs as valid CCEs corresponding to a first PDCCH candidate when the CCEs are associated with RBs that do not overlap with any RB of the second set of RBs.

[0158] o For example, considering Fig. 11b, the UE 10 may determine available CCEs in the first CORESET as CCE0-CCE15. Among the available CCEs, CCE4-CCE11 overlap with second set of RBs, i.e., the CCEs consist of REGs that overlap with second set of RBs. Considering a PDCCH search space with aggregation level (L) L=4, CCE0-CCE3 or CCE4-CCE7 or CCE8-CCE11 or CCE12-CCE15 can potentially be CCEs corresponding to the first PDCCH candidate. However, the UE considers only CCE0-CCE3or CCE12-CCE15 as valid CCEs corresponding to the first PDCCH candidate since they do not overlap with any RB of the second set of RBs.

[0159] • In another approach, referred to as Approach 5-3, the UE 10 may determine available CCEs in the first CORESET based on the first set of RBs, and may determine the CCEs corresponding to the first PDCCH candidate by selecting one or more CCEs from the available CCEs. If a CCE of the one or more CCEs comprises REGs that overlap with the second set of RBs, the UE 10 may consider such a CCE as a punctured CCE. Thus, the UE 10 may perform an action, when the first set of radio resources comprises the first set of RBs and the second set of radio resources comprises the second set of RBs, comprising selecting one or more CCEs for monitoring for a first PDCCH candidate when the CCEs are associated with REGs related to RBs that do not overlap with any RB of the second set of RBs.

[0160] o The UE 10 may exclude any pilot or reference signals, such as PDCCH demodulation reference signal (DMRS) resource elements (RE), present in such punctured CCE when monitoring the first PDCCH candidate.

[0161] o The UE 10 may exclude any REs mapped to PDCCH in such punctured CCE when monitoring the first PDCCH candidate.

[0162] ■ For example, monitoring the first PDCCH candidate typically implies decoding the first PDCCH candidate to detect a DCI format. Then when decoding, the UE 10 may set the log-likelihood ratios (LLR) of the PDCCH REs of the punctured CCE to zero value.

[0163] Fig. 11c illustrates an example of this approach. Here the UE 10 determines available CCEs in the first CORESET as CCE0-CCE15.

[0164] Considering a PDCCH search space with aggregation level (L) L=16, CCE0-CCE15 are the CCEs corresponding to the first PDCCH candidate. Among these CCEs, the UE considers CCE4-CCE11 as punctured CCEs.

[0165] When determining the CCEs corresponding to the second PDCCH candidate, the UE 10 may consider all RBs of the first set of RBs for determining the REGs of the first CORESET. This is illustrated in Figure 11a, where REG0-REG95 are considered by the UE 10 as REGs of the first CORESET. Then the available CCEs in the first CORESET are determined based on REG0-REG95 which as shown in the Fig. 11a are CCE0-CCE15.The UE 10 may monitor the first and second PDCCH candidates in a set of OFDM symbols of a slot, e.g., first OFDM symbol of a slot or first two or three OFDM symbols of a slot.

[0166] The UE 10 may monitor the first PDCCH candidate in a first slot and the second PDCCH candidate in a second slot that is distinct from the first slot.

[0167] The second set of RBs can correspond to RBs configured for a second CORESET.

[0168] As stated above the first CORESET can be a CORESET used by UEs communicating with a radio network node using a first RAT, e.g., 6G RAT, and the second CORESET can be a CORESET used by UEs communicating with a radio network node using a second RAT, e.g., 5G RAT.

[0169] The first CORESET can be used by the UE 10 to monitor PDCCH for DCI formats that schedule system information (SI). The system information can for example be system information block 1 (SIB1). The first set of PRBs may be determined by the UE 10 from bits present in a master information block (MIB ). The first CORESET can be CORESET 0.

[0170] The UE 10 may monitor the first PDCCH candidate as part of a first search space and the second PDCCH candidate as part of a second search space. For example, the first search space can be used for slots / OFDM symbols with potential overlap between 5G and 6G PDCCHs while the second search space can be used for slots / OFDM symbols with no expected overlap between 5G and 6G PDCCHs. Thus, the UE 10 may perform an action comprising monitoring a first PDCCH candidate as part of a first search space and a second PDCCH candidate as part of a second search space. The first search space may comprise the first set of radio resource that may overlap, at least partially, the second set of radio resources, wherein the second search space may comprise a third set of radio resource not overlapping the second set of radio resources.

[0171] The above approaches enable efficient multiplexing of PDCCHs. For example, the radio network node 12 may configure the first CORESET for a 6G RAT in the first set of RBs (e.g., RB0-RB47) and second CORESET for a 5G RAT in the second set of RBs (e.g., RB12-RB35).

[0172] For example, considering Approach 5-1 and Fig. 11a, the UE 10 using 6G RAT can be configured to monitor 3 PDCCH candidates for CCE aggregation level L=8. One PDCCH candidate with CCE mapping like the first PDCCH candidate and two other PDCCH candidates with CCE mapping like the second PDCCH candidate. Then due to the different mapping of CCEs as discussed for Approach 5-1 , if RB12-RB35 areoccupied, e.g., by a overlapping PDCCH for a 5G RAT, the radio network node 12 may transmit a DCI format for the 6G RAT using a L=8 PDCCH occupying RB0-RB11 +RB36-RB47, i.e., CCEO to CCE7 using the mapping for the first PDCCH candidate shown in Fig.

[0173] 11a. If RB12-RB35 are not occupied, the radio network node 12 has flexibility to transmit the DCI format for the 6G RAT using a L=8 PDCCH occupying either RB0-RB23 or RB24-RB47, i.e., CCE0-CCE7 orCCE8-CCE15 using the mapping for the second PDCCH candidate shown in Fig. 11a.

[0174] In some cases, for a given CCE aggregation level, e.g., L = 4,8, or 16, the UE 10 may be configured to monitor:

[0175] • In a first set of slots,

[0176] o N1 PDCCH candidates with CCE mapping like the first PDCCH candidate discussed above

[0177] o N2 PDCCH candidates with CCE mapping like the second PDCCH candidate discussed above

[0178] • In a second set of slots,

[0179] o N3 PDCCH candidates with CCE mapping like the second PDCCH candidate discussed above

[0180] where N1+N2 is smaller than or equal to N3. N3 can for example be the total number of blind decodes that the UE 10 can perform for the given CCE aggregation level in any slot. The first set of slots may be slots with potential overlap between 5G and 6G PDCCHs. The second set of slots can be slots with no expected overlap between 5G and 6G PDCCHs. For example, for aggregation level L=8, the values can be N1 =1 , N2=2 and N3=3.

[0181] According to some of the embodiments herein methods are herein disclosed for handling candidate monitoring in an efficient manner.

[0182] Fig. 12a shows a method performed by the UE 10 according to some embodiments herein.

[0183] Action 121. The UE 10 may receive configuration of at least two CORESETs from the radio network node 12, wherein one CORESET, i.e., the second set of radio resources, may be a reference CORESET.

[0184] Action 122. The UE 10 may be configured to perform adaptation of a CORESET mapping in case of overlapping in frequency with the reference CORESET.

[0185] Action 123. The UE 10 may determine whether, for a time occasion, the first CORESET overlaps, at least partially, in frequency the reference CORESET.Action 124. The UE 10 may, if the first CORESET overlaps, at least partially, the reference CORESET, adapt use of resources and mapping in the CORESET compared to if there was no overlap.

[0186] Action 125. The UE 10 may monitor for PDCCH using the radio resources and mapping according to the configuration from the radio network node 12 and, if there is an overlap between the CORESETs, as adapted in the preceding action 124.

[0187] Fig. 12b shows a method performed by the radio network node 12 according to some embodiments herein,

[0188] Action 126. The radio network node 12 may transmit configuration of at least two CORESETs to the UE 10, wherein one CORESET, i.e., the second set of radio resources, may be a reference CORESET.

[0189] Action 127. The radio network node 12 may configure the UE 10 to perform adaptation of the CORESET mapping in case of overlapping in frequency with the reference CORESET.

[0190] Action 128. The radio network node 12 may determine whether, for a time occasion, the first CORESET overlaps, at least partially, in frequency the reference CORESET.

[0191] Action 129. The radio network node 12 may, if the first CORESET overlaps, at least partially, the reference CORESET, adapt use of resources and mapping in the CORESET compared to if there was no overlap.

[0192] Action 130. The radio network node 12 may transmit PDCCH to the UE 10 using the radio resources and mapping according to the configuration sent to the UE 10 and, if there is an overlap between the CORESETs, as adapted in the preceding action 129.

[0193] Fig. 13 is a block diagram depicting embodiments of the UE 10 for handling communication of the UE 10 in the wireless communications network 1 according to embodiments herein.

[0194] The UE 10 may comprise processing circuitry 1301, e.g., one or more processors, configured to perform the methods herein.

[0195] The UE 10 and / or the processing circuitry 1301 is configured to obtain the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources for carrying control information to the UE 10.

[0196] The UE 10 and / or the processing circuitry 1301 is configured to determine that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources;The UE 10 and / or the processing circuitry 1301 is configured to perform the action associated with handling the control information taking the determination that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources into account.

[0197] The first set of radio resources may comprise the first portion which overlaps the second set of resources; and the second portion which does not overlap the second set of resources. The second portion may include radio resources at higher frequencies than the first portion and radio resources at lower frequency than the first portion. The action performed may comprise using indexing of the first set of radio resources such that the indexing consecutively indexes radio resources in the first portion; and the indexing consecutively indexes radio resources in the second portion such that a radio resource in the second portion at higher frequency than the first portion has an index directly following an index of a radio resource in the second portion at a lower frequency than the first portion or a radio resource in the second portion at lower frequency than the first portion has an index directly following an index of a radio resource in the second portion at a higher frequency than the first portion.

[0198] The first set of radio resources may comprise the first portion which overlaps the second set of resources; and the second portion which does not overlap the second set of resources, wherein the second portion includes radio resources at higher frequencies than the first portion and radio resources at lower frequency than the first portion. The action performed may comprise using indexing of the first set of radio resources such that the indexing of the first set of radio resources excludes one or more radio resources of the second portion such that remaining radio resources in the second portion at lower frequences than the first portion and at higher frequencies than the first portion form a respective integer number of resource sets of a certain set size.

[0199] The radio resources may be REGs.

[0200] The first set of radio resources may comprise the first portion which overlaps the second set of radio resources, and the UE 10 and / or the processing circuitry 1301 may be configured to perform the action, which action comprises aligning the boundary of a resource group in the first portion with the boundary of a resource group in the second set of radio resources.

[0201] The UE 10 and / or the processing circuitry 1301 may be configured to perform the action comprising monitoring one or more candidate positions among the first set of radio resources for one or more occurrences of control information, wherein the one or more candidate positions are selected based on the determination. The UE 10 and / or theprocessing circuitry 1301 may be configured to monitor the one or more candidate positions by excluding monitoring of one or more radio resources when the one or more radio resources overlaps one or more radio resources of the second set of radio resources.

[0202] The UE 10 and / or the processing circuitry 1301 may be configured to perform the action by using the granularity of grouping the first set of radio resources, which granularity is based on the determination.

[0203] The first set of radio resources may comprise the first CORESET, and the second set of radio resources may comprise a second CORESET.

[0204] The first set of radio resources may be for a set of control resources of the first RAT and the second set of radio resources may for a set of control resources for the second RAT.

[0205] The UE 10 and / or the processing circuitry 1301 may be configured to perform the action by aligning one or more CCEs and / or REGs of the first set of radio resources with overlapping one or more CCEs and / or REGs in the second set of radio resources.

[0206] The UE 10 and / or the processing circuitry 1301 may be configured to perform the action by using the CCE-to-REG mapping for the portion of the first set of radio resources that overlaps the second set of radio resources, wherein the CCE-to-REG mapping may be the same as that of the second set of radio resources.

[0207] The UE 10 and / or the processing circuitry 1301 may be configured to perform the action by using a mapping of the first set of radio resources, wherein the mapping is adjusted compared to when no overlapping occurs between the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources by taking into account the second set of radio resources that are overlapping a portion of the first set of radio resources.

[0208] The UE 10 and / or the processing circuitry 1301 may be configured to obtain the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources by receiving the configuration from the radio network node 12 indicating the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources.

[0209] The UE 10 and / or the processing circuitry 1301 may be configured to receive the indication from the radio network node 12 for the UE 10 to determine that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources and / or for the UE 10 to perform the action associated with handling the control information taking the determination that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources into account.The UE 10 and / or the processing circuitry 1301 may be configured to monitor for the control channel candidate in the first set of radio resources based on the performed action.

[0210] The UE 10 and / or the processing circuitry 1301 may be configured to obtain the first sequence of sets of radio resources for carrying control information to the UE 10 and the second sequence of sets of radio resources for carrying control information to the UE 10, wherein the first sequence includes the first set of radio resources and the second sequence includes the second set of radio resources. The UE 10 and / or the processing circuitry 1301 may be configured to, for each of the sets in the first sequence, determine whether that set from the first sequence is at least partly overlapping a set from the second sequence; and perform the action associated with handling the control information taking the determination whether the set from the first sequence is at least partly overlapping a set from the second sequence into account. At least one of the sets in the first sequence may be not at least partly overlapping a set from the second sequence.

[0211] The UE 10 may comprise a memory 1306. The memory 1306 comprises one or more units to be used to store data on, such as mapping CCE-REG-, CCEs, REGs, mappings, indices, events, events and applications to perform the methods disclosed herein when being executed, and similar. Furthermore, the UE 10 may comprise a communication interface 1307 comprising such as a transmitter, a receiver, a transceiver and / or one or more antennas.

[0212] The methods according to the embodiments described herein for the UE 10 are respectively implemented by means of e.g., a computer program product 1308 or a computer program, comprising instructions, i.e., software code portions, which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the actions described herein, as performed by the UE 10. The computer program product 1308 may be stored on a computer-readable storage medium 1309, e.g., a disc, a universal serial bus (USB) stick or similar. The computer-readable storage medium 1309, having stored thereon the computer program product, may comprise the instructions which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the actions described herein, as performed by the UE 10. In some embodiments, the computer-readable storage medium may be a transitory or a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. Thus, embodiments herein may disclose a UE for handling communication in a wireless communications network, wherein the UE comprises processing circuitry and a memory, said memory comprising instructions executable bysaid processing circuitry whereby said UE is operative to perform any of the methods herein.

[0213] Fig. 14 is a block diagram depicting embodiments of the radio network node 12, such as an eNB or a gNB, for handling communication of the UE 10 in the wireless communications network 1 according to embodiments herein.

[0214] The radio network node 12 may comprise processing circuitry 1401, e.g., one or more processors, configured to perform the methods herein.

[0215] The radio network node 12 and / or the processing circuitry 1402 is configured to determine that the first set of radio resources for carrying control information to the UE 10 is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources for carrying control information to the UE 10.

[0216] The radio network node 12 and / or the processing circuitry 1402 is configured to perform the action associated with handling the control information taking the determination that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources into account.

[0217] The radio network node 12 and / or the processing circuitry 1402 may be configured to transmit the control information for the UE 10 in the control channel candidate in the first set of radio resources based on the performed action.

[0218] The radio network node 12 and / or the processing circuitry 1402 may be configured to provide, to the UE 10, the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources for carrying control information for the UE 10. The radio network node 12 and / or the processing circuitry 1402 may be configured to provide the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources by transmitting the configuration to the UE 10 indicating the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources.

[0219] The radio network node 12 and / or the processing circuitry 1402 may be configured to transmit the indication to the UE 10 for the UE 10 to determine that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources and / or for the UE 10 to perform the action associated with handling the control information taking the determination that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources into account.

[0220] The radio network node 12 may comprise a memory 1406. The memory 1406 comprises one or more units to be used to store data on, such as CCEs, REGs, mappings, indices, events and applications to perform the methods disclosed herein when being executed, and similar. Furthermore, the radio network node 12 may comprise acommunication interface 1407 comprising such as a transmitter, a receiver, a transceiver and / or one or more antennas.

[0221] The methods according to the embodiments described herein for the radio network node 12 are respectively implemented by means of e.g., a computer program product 1408 or a computer program, comprising instructions, i.e., software code portions, which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the actions described herein, as performed by the radio network node 12. The computer program product 1408 may be stored on a computer-readable storage medium 1409, e.g., a disc, a universal serial bus (USB) stick or similar. The computer-readable storage medium 1409, having stored thereon the computer program product, may comprise the instructions which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the actions described herein, as performed by the radio network node 12. In some embodiments, the computer-readable storage medium may be a transitory or a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. Thus, embodiments herein may disclose a radio network node 12 for handling communication in a wireless communications network, wherein the radio network node 12 comprises processing circuitry and a memory, said memory comprising instructions executable by said processing circuitry whereby said radio network node is operative to perform any of the methods herein.

[0222] In some embodiments a more general term “network node” is used and it can correspond to any type of radio-network node or any network node, which communicates with a UE and / or with another network node.

[0223] In some embodiments the non-limiting term wireless device or user equipment (UE) is used and it refers to any type of wireless device communicating with a network node and / or with another wireless device in a cellular or mobile communication system. Examples of UE are target device, device to device (D2D) UE, proximity capable UE (aka ProSe UE), loT capable device, machine type UE or UE capable of machine to machine (M2M) communication, Tablet, mobile terminals, smart phone, laptop embedded equipped (LEE), laptop mounted equipment (LME), USB dongles etc.

[0224] Embodiments are applicable to any RAT or multi-RAT systems, where the wireless device receives and / or transmit signals (e.g. data) e.g. NR, Wi-Fi, LTE, LTE-Advanced, Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), Global System for Mobile communications / enhanced Data rate for GSM Evolution (GSM / EDGE), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax), or Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), just to mention a few possible implementations.As will be readily understood by those familiar with communications design, that functions means or circuits may be implemented using digital logic and / or one or more microcontrollers, microprocessors, or other digital hardware. In some embodiments, several or all of the various functions may be implemented together, such as in a single application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or in two or more separate devices with appropriate hardware and / or software interfaces between them. Several of the functions may be implemented on a processor shared with other functional components of a wireless device or network node, for example.

[0225] Alternatively, several of the functional elements of the processing means discussed may be provided through the use of dedicated hardware, while others are provided with hardware for executing software, in association with the appropriate software or firmware. Thus, the term “processor” or “controller” as used herein does not exclusively refer to hardware capable of executing software and may implicitly include, without limitation, digital signal processor (DSP) hardware and / or program or application data. Other hardware, conventional and / or custom, may also be included. Designers of communications devices will appreciate the cost, performance, and maintenance trade-offs inherent in these design choices.

[0226] Any appropriate steps, methods, features, functions, or benefits disclosed herein may be performed through one or more functional units or modules of one or more virtual apparatuses. Each virtual apparatus may comprise a number of these functional units. These functional units may be implemented via processing circuitry, which may include one or more microprocessor or microcontrollers, as well as other digital hardware, which may include digital signal processors (DSPs), special-purpose digital logic, and the like. The processing circuitry may be configured to execute program code stored in memory, which may include one or several types of memory such as read-only memory (ROM), random-access memory (RAM), cache memory, flash memory devices, optical storage devices, etc. Program code stored in memory includes program instructions for executing one or more telecommunications and / or data communications protocols as well as instructions for carrying out one or more of the techniques described herein. In some implementations, the processing circuitry may be used to cause the respective functional unit to perform corresponding functions according one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0227] Figure 15 shows an example of a communication system 15100 in accordance with some embodiments.In the example, the communication system 15100 includes a telecommunications network 15102 that includes an access network 15104, such as a radio access network (RAN), and a core network 15106, which includes one or more core network nodes 15108. The access network 15104 includes one or more access network nodes or base stations of various types, access network nodes 15110A and 15110B are depicted (which may be collectively referred to as network nodes 15110 or radio network node 12), or any other similar 3rdGeneration Partnership Project (3GPP) access nodes or non-3GPP access points (APs). Some embodiments of the access network 15104 may include more than one access network technology. The network nodes 15110 of access network 15104 facilitate direct or indirect connection of wireless devices, also referred to as user equipments (UEs), such as by connecting UEs 15112A, 15112B, 15112C, and 15112D (one or more of which may be generally referred to as UEs 15112 or UE 10) to the core network 15106 over one or more wireless connections.

[0228] Moreover, a network node is not necessarily limited to an implementation in which a radio portion and a baseband portion are supplied and integrated by a single vendor. Thus, it will be understood that network nodes include disaggregated implementations or portions thereof. For example, in some embodiments, the telecommunications network 15102 includes one or more Open-RAN (ORAN) network nodes. An ORAN network node is a network node in the telecommunications network 15102 that supports an ORAN specification (e.g., a specification published by the O-RAN Alliance, or any similar organization) and may operate alone or together with other network nodes to implement one or more functionalities of any network node in the telecommunications network 15102, including one or more access network nodes 15110 and / or core network nodes 15108.

[0229] Examples of an ORAN network node include an open radio unit (O-RU), an open distributed unit (O-DU), an open central unit (O-CU), including an O-CU control plane (O-CU-CP) or an O-CU user plane (O-CU-UP), a RAN intelligent controller (near-real time or non-real time) hosting software or software plug-ins, such as a near-real time control application (e.g., xApp) or a non-real time control application (e.g., rApp), or any combination thereof (the adjective “open” designating support of an ORAN specification). An ORAN network node may support a specification by, for example, supporting an interface defined by the ORAN specification, such as an A1 , F1 , W1 , E1 , E2, X2, Xn interface, an open fronthaul user plane interface, or an open fronthaul management plane interface. Moreover, an ORAN network node may be a logical node in a physical node. Furthermore, an ORAN network node may be implemented in a virtualization environment(described further below) in which one or more network functions are virtualized. For example, the virtualization environment may include an O-Cloud computing platform orchestrated by a Service Management and Orchestration Framework via an 0-2 interface defined by the O-RAN Alliance or comparable technologies.

[0230] The network nodes 15110 facilitate direct or indirect connection of one or more UEs 15112 to the core network 15106 over one or more wireless connections. Example wireless communications over a wireless connection include transmitting and / or receiving wireless signals using electromagnetic waves, radio waves, infrared waves, and / or other types of signals suitable for conveying information without the use of wires, cables, or other material conductors. Moreover, in different embodiments, the communication system 15100 may include any number of wired or wireless networks, network nodes, UEs, and / or any other components or systems that may facilitate or participate in the communication of data and / or signals whether via wired or wireless connections. The communication system 15100 may include and / or interface with any type of communication, telecommunication, data, cellular, radio network, and / or other similar type of system.

[0231] The UEs 15112 may be any of a wide variety of communication devices, including wireless devices arranged, configured, and / or operable to communicate wirelessly with the network nodes 15110 and other communication devices. Similarly, the network nodes 15108, 15110 are arranged, capable, configured, and / or operable to communicate directly or indirectly (e.g., via other devices of telecommunications network 15102) with the UEs 15112 and / or with other network nodes or equipment in the telecommunications network 15102 to enable and / or provide network access, such as wireless network access, and / or to perform other functions, such as administration in the telecommunications network 15102. More specifically, UEs 15112 may send messages, data, and / or other signals to network nodes 15108, 15110 or other elements of the telecommunications network 15102 by transmitting such signals to the relevant device directly without the signals passing through any intervening devices or by transmitting such signals to the relevant device indirectly through an intervening device (or multiple intervening devices) that then transmit the signal to the relevant device. Similarly, network nodes 15108, 15110 may send messages, data, and other signals to UEs 151122, other network nodes 15108, 15110, and other devices in telecommunications network 15102 directly or indirectly. As one specific example, a core network node 108 may transmit a particular message to a UE 15112 by transmitting the message to an access network node 15110 that will then transmit the message to the intended UE 15112. Similarly, a core network node 108 mayreceive a particular message from a UE 15112 by receiving the message from an access network node 15110 that itself received the message from the UE 15112.

[0232] In the depicted example, the core network 15106 connects elements of the access network 15104 (e.g., one or more of the network nodes 15110) to one or more host computing systems, such as host 15116. These connections may be direct or indirect via one or more intermediary networks or devices. In other examples, network nodes may be directly coupled to hosts. The core network 15106 includes one or more core network nodes (e.g., core network node 15108) of various types, one or more of which may be generally referred to as network nodes 15108. Network nodes 15108 are structured with hardware and software components. Features of these components may be substantially similar to those described with respect to the UEs, access network nodes, and / or hosts, such that the descriptions thereof are generally applicable to the corresponding components of the core network node 15108. Example core network nodes provide functions of one or more of a Mobile Switching Center (MSC), Mobility Management Entity (MME), Home Subscriber Server (HSS), Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), Session Management Function (SMF), Authentication Server Function (AUSF), Subscription Identifier De-concealing function (SIDF), Unified Data Management (UDM), Security Edge Protection Proxy (SEPP), Network Exposure Function (NEF), and / or a User Plane Function (UPF).

[0233] The host 15116 may be under the ownership or control of a service provider other than an operator or provider of the access network 15104 and / or the telecommunications network 15102. The host 15116 may be operated by the service provider or on behalf of the service provider. The host 15116 may host a variety of applications to provide one or more service. Examples of such applications include live and pre-recorded audio / video content, data collection services such as retrieving and compiling data on various ambient conditions detected by a plurality of UEs, analytics functionality, social media, functions for controlling or otherwise interacting with remote devices, functions for an alarm and surveillance center, or any other such function performed by a server.

[0234] As a whole, the communication system 15100 of Figure 15 enables connectivity between the UEs, network nodes, and hosts. In that sense, the communication system 15100 may be configured to operate according to predefined rules or procedures, such as specific standards that include, but are not limited to: Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM); Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS); Long Term Evolution (LTE), and / or other suitable 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G standards, or any applicable future generation standard (e.g., 6G); wireless local area network (WLAN) standards,such as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standards (WiFi); and / or any other appropriate wireless communication standard, such as the Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (Wi-Max), Bluetooth, Z-Wave, Near Field Communication (NFC) ZigBee, Li-Fi, and / or any low-power wide-area network (LPWAN) standards such as LoRa and Sigfox. Moreover, the communication system 15100 may be configured to support multiple different standards, protocols, or other rule sets, with individual components supporting all of the relevant rule sets or with different components or sub-systems within the communication system 15100 supporting different standards, protocols, or rule sets.

[0235] As one example, in certain embodiments, access network 15104 may contain some access network nodes 15110 that support 3GPP radio access technologies (RAT), such as LTE or NR, while other access network nodes 15110 support (or the same access network nodes 15110 additionally support) non-3GPP RATs, such as Wi-Fi or a proprietary RAT. As another example, telecommunications network 15102 may support multiple generations of related communication standards (e.g., 4G and 5G 3GPP communication standards) and, as a result, may include an access network 104 and / or a core network 106 that supports multiple different standard generations or may include multiple access networks 104 and / or multiple core networks 106 with individual networks 104, 106 supporting different standard generations.

[0236] Telecommunications network 15102 may support network slicing to provide different logical networks to different devices that are connected to the telecommunications network 15102. For example, the telecommunications network 15102 may provide Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communication (URLLC) services to some UEs, while providing Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) services to other UEs, and / or Massive Machine Type Communication (mMTC)ZMassive loT services to yet further UEs.

[0237] In some examples, one or more of the UEs 15112 are configured to transmit and / or receive information without direct human interaction. For instance, a UE may be designed to transmit information to the access network 15104 on a predetermined schedule, when triggered by an internal or external event, or in response to requests from the access network 15104. Additionally, a UE may be configured for operating in single-or multi-RAT or multi-standard mode. For example, a UE may operate with any one or combination of Wi-Fi, NR (New Radio) and LTE, i.e. being configured for multi-radio dual connectivity (MR-DC), such as E-UTRAN (Evolved-UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network) New Radio - Dual Connectivity (EN-DC).In the example, the hub 15114 communicates with the access network 15104 to facilitate indirect communication between one or more UEs (e.g., UE 15112C and / or 15112D) and network nodes (e.g., network node 15110B). In some examples, the hub 15114 may be a controller, router, content source and analytics, or any of the other communication devices described herein regarding UEs. For example, the hub 15114 may be a broadband router enabling access to the core network 15106 for the UEs. As another example, the hub 15114 may be a controller that sends commands or instructions to one or more actuators in the UEs. Commands or instructions may be received from the UEs, network nodes 15110, or by executable code, script, process, or other instructions in the hub 15114.

[0238] As another example, the hub 15114 may be a data collector that acts as temporary storage for UE data and, in some embodiments, may perform analysis or other processing of the data. As another example, the hub 15114 may be a content source. For example, for a UE that is a VR headset, display, loudspeaker or other media delivery device, the hub 15114 may retrieve VR assets, video, audio, or other media or data related to sensory information via a network node, which the hub 15114 then provides to the UE either directly, after performing local processing, and / or after adding additional local content. In still another example, the hub 15114 acts as a proxy server or orchestrator for the UEs, in particular if one or more of the UEs are low energy loT devices.

[0239] The hub 15114 may have a constant / persistent or intermittent connection to the network node 15110B. The hub 15114 may also allow for a different communication scheme and / or schedule between the hub 15114 and UEs (e.g., UE 15112C and / or 15112D), and between the hub 15114 and the core network 15106. In other examples, the hub 15114 is connected to the core network 15106 and / or one or more UEs via a wired connection. Moreover, the hub 15114 may be configured to connect to an M2M service provider over the access network 15104 and / or to another UE over a direct connection. In some scenarios, UEs may establish a wireless connection with the network nodes 15110 while still connected via the hub 15114 via a wired or wireless connection. In some embodiments, the hub 15114 may be a dedicated hub -that is, a hub whose primary function is to route communications to / from the UEs from / to the network node 15110B. In other embodiments, the hub 15114 may be a non-dedicated hub -that is, a device which is capable of operating to route communications between the UEs and network node 15110B, but which is additionally capable of operating as a communication start and / or end point for certain data channels.Figure 16 is another example of a communication system 15200 according to some embodiments. As used herein, the communication system 15200 includes multiple access points (APs) 15210 (with four exemplary APs 15210A, 15210B, 15210C, and 15210D being depicted) and multiple wireless devices, referred to in the context of communication system 15200 as stations (STAs) 15212 (referred to individually as STA 15212A, STA 15212B, STA 15212C, STA 15212D, and STA 15212E). STA 15212A is served by AP 15210A in a first basic service set (BSS) 15220A. STA 15210B and STA 15210C are served by AP 15210B in a second BSS, BSS 15220B. STA 15212D is served by AP 15210C in a third BSS, BSS 15220C. STA 15212E is served by AP 15210D in a fourth BSS, BSS 15220D. Stations 15212 may be non-AP STAs and correspond to various kinds of wireless devices, for example, user terminals, such as mobile or stationary computing devices like smartphones, laptop computers, desktop computers, tablet computers, gaming devices, head-mounted displays (HMDs) for Augmented Reality (AR) or Virtual Reality (VR), or the like. Further, stations 15212 could, for example, correspond to other kinds of equipment like smart home devices, printers, multimedia devices, data storage devices, or the like.

[0240] Each of STAs 15212 may connect through a radio link to one of APs 15210. For example, depending on location or channel conditions experienced by a given STA 15212, the STA may select an appropriate AP and BSS for establishing the radio link. The radio link may be based on one or more orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) carriers from a frequency spectrum that is shared on the basis of a contentionbased mechanism, e.g., an unlicensed or license exempt band like 2.4 GHz Industrial, Scientific, and Medical (ISM) band, the 5 GHz band, the 6 GHz band, or the 60 GHz band.

[0241] Each AP 15210 may provide data connectivity to STAs 15212 connected to a particular AP 15210. As illustrated, APs 15210 may be connected to a data network 15230. In this way, APs 15210 may also provide data connectivity between STAs 15212 and other entities, e.g., to one or more servers, service providers, data sources, data sinks, user terminals, or the like. Accordingly, the radio link established between a given STA 15212 and its serving AP 15210 may be used for providing various kinds of services to STA 15212, e.g., a voice service, a multimedia service, or other data service. Such services may be based on applications that are executed on STA 15212 and / or on a device linked to STA 15212. Byway of example, Figure 16 illustrates an application service platform 15232 provided in data network 15230. The application(s) executed on STA 15212 and / or on one or more other devices linked to STA 15212 may use the radio link for data communication with one or more other STA 15212 and / or the applicationservice platform 15232, thereby enabling utilization of the corresponding service(s) at STA 15212.

[0242] Figure 17 shows a wireless device 15300, which may be configured to operate in communication system 15100 of Figure 15 or in communication system 15200 of Figure 16. The wireless device 15300 may be alternatively referred to as a UE 15300, like a UE 15112 within the context of communication system 15100, or as a station (STA) 15300 or as a non-access-point station (non-AP STA) 15300, like a STA 15212 within the context of the communication system 15200, in accordance with respective embodiments. As used herein, a wireless device refers to a device capable, configured, arranged and / or operable to communicate wirelessly with network nodes and / or other wireless devices. Examples of a wireless device include, but are not limited to, a smart phone, mobile phone, cell phone, voice over IP (VoIP) phone, wireless local loop phone, desktop computer, personal digital assistant (PDA), wireless cameras, gaming console or device, music storage device, playback appliance, wearable terminal device, wireless endpoint, mobile station, tablet, laptop, laptop-embedded equipment (LEE), laptop-mounted equipment (LME), smart device, wireless customer-premise equipment (CPE), vehicle, vehicle-mounted or vehicle embedded / integrated wireless device, and wireless terminal. Other examples include any type of UE identified by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), including a narrow band internet of things (NB-loT) UE, a machine type communication (MTC) UE, and / or an enhanced MTC (eMTC) UE.

[0243] A wireless device 15300 may support device-to-device (D2D) communication, for example by implementing a 3GPP standard for sidelink communication, Dedicated Short-Range Communication (DSRC), vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V), vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I), or vehicle-to-everything (V2X). In other examples, wireless device 15300 may not necessarily have a user in the sense of a human user who owns and / or operates the relevant device. Instead, wireless device 15300 may represent a device that is intended for sale to, or operation by, a human user but which may not, or which may not initially, be associated with a specific human user (e.g., a smart sprinkler controller). Alternatively, wireless device 15300 may represent a device that is not intended for sale to, or operation by, an end user but which may be associated with or operated for the benefit of a user (e.g., a smart power meter).

[0244] In particular embodiments, wireless device 15300 includes processing circuitry 15302 that is operatively coupled via a bus 15304 to an input / output interface 15306, a power source 15308, a memory 15310, a communication interface 15312, and / or any other component, or any combination thereof. Certain embodiments of wireless device15300 may include all or a subset of the components shown in Figure 17. The level of integration between the components may vary from one embodiment of wireless device 15300 to another. In general, in a particular embodiment of wireless device 15300, processing circuitry 15302, input / output interface 15306, power source 15308, memory 15310, and communication interface 15312 may, in whole or in part, represent or include physical components common to or shared by one or more of the other elements of wireless device 15300. Further, certain embodiments of wireless devices 15300 may contain multiple instances of a component, such as multiple processors, memories, transceivers, transmitters, receivers, etc.

[0245] The processing circuitry 15302 is configured to process instructions and data and may be configured to implement any sequential state machine operative to execute instructions stored as machine-readable computer programs in the memory 15310. The processing circuitry 15302 may be implemented as one or more hardware-implemented state machines (e.g., in discrete logic, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), etc.); programmable logic together with appropriate firmware; one or more stored computer programs, general-purpose processors, such as a microprocessor or digital signal processor (DSP), together with appropriate software; or any combination of the above. For example, the processing circuitry 15302 may include multiple central processing units (CPUs).

[0246] In the example, the input / output interface 15306 may be configured to provide an interface or interfaces to an input device, output device, or one or more input and / or output devices. Examples of an output device include a speaker, a sound card, a video card, a display, a monitor, a printer, an actuator, an emitter, a smartcard, another output device, or any combination thereof. An input device may allow a user to capture information into wireless device 15300. Examples of an input device include a touch-sensitive or presence-sensitive display, a camera (e.g., a digital camera, a digital video camera, a web camera, etc.), a microphone, a sensor, a mouse, a trackball, a directional pad, a trackpad, a scroll wheel, a smartcard, and the like. The presence-sensitive display may include a capacitive or resistive touch sensor to sense input from a user. A sensor may be, for instance, an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a tilt sensor, a force sensor, a magnetometer, an optical sensor, a proximity sensor, a biometric sensor, etc., or any combination thereof. An output device may use the same type of interface port as an input device. For example, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) port may be used to provide an input device and an output device.In some embodiments, the power source 15308 is structured as a battery or battery pack. Other types of power sources, such as an external power source (e.g., an electricity outlet), photovoltaic device, or power cell, may be used to supply power to circuitry or to charge an associated battery. The power source 15308 may further include power circuitry for delivering power from the power source 15308 itself, and / or an external power source, to the various parts of wireless device 15300 via input circuitry or an interface such as an electrical power cable. Power source 15308 may perform any formatting, converting, or other modification to make accessible power suitable for the respective components of the wireless device 15300 to which power is supplied.

[0247] The memory 15310 may be or be configured to include memory such as random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), magnetic disks, optical disks, hard disks, removable cartridges, flash drives, and so forth. In one example, the memory 15310 includes one or more programs 15314, such as an operating system, web browser application, a widget, gadget engine, or other application, and corresponding data 15316. The memory 15310 may store, for use by wireless device 15300, any of a variety of various operating systems or combinations of operating systems.

[0248] The memory 15310 may be configured to include a number of physical drive units, such as redundant array of independent disks (RAID), flash memory, USB flash drive, external hard disk drive, thumb drive, pen drive, key drive, high-density digital versatile disc (HD-DVD) optical disc drive, internal hard disk drive, Blu-Ray optical disc drive, holographic digital data storage (HDDS) optical disc drive, external mini-dual in-line memory module (DIMM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), external micro-DIMM SDRAM, smartcard memory such as tamper resistant module in the form of a universal integrated circuit card (UICC) including one or more subscriber identity modules (SIMs), such as a USIM and / or ISIM, other memory, or any combination thereof. The UICC may for example be an embedded UICC (eUlCC), integrated UICC (iUICC) or a removable UICC commonly known as ‘SIM card.’ The memory 15310 may allow wireless device 15300 to access instructions, programs and the like, stored on transitory or non-transitory memory media, to off-load data, or to upload data. An article of manufacture, such as one utilizing a communication system may be tangibly embodied as or in the memory 15310, which may be or comprise a device-readable storage medium.

[0249] The processing circuitry 15302 may be configured to communicate with an access network or other network via or using the communication interface 15312. Thecommunication interface 15312 may comprise one or more communication subsystems and may include or be communicatively coupled to an antenna 15322. The communication interface 15312 may include one or more transceivers used to communicate, such as by communicating with one or more remote transceivers of another device capable of wireless communication (e.g., another wireless device or a network node in an access network). Each transceiver may include a transmitter 15318 and / or a receiver 15320 appropriate to provide network communications (e.g., optical, electrical, frequency allocations, and so forth). Moreover, the transmitter 15318 and receiver 15320 may be coupled to one or more antennas (e.g., antenna 15322) and may share circuit components, software or firmware, or alternatively be implemented separately.

[0250] In the illustrated embodiment, communication functions of the communication interface 15312 may include cellular communication, Wi-Fi communication (e.g., according to an IEEE 802.11 family standard), LPWAN communication, data communication, voice communication, multimedia communication, short-range communications such as Bluetooth, near-field communication, location-based communication such as the use of the global positioning system (GPS) to determine a location, another like communication function, or any combination thereof.

[0251] Communications may be implemented according to one or more communication protocols and / or standards, such as IEEE 802.11 , Code Division Multiplexing Access (CDMA), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), GSM, LTE, New Radio (NR), UMTS, WiMax, Ethernet, transmission control protocol / internet protocol (TCP / IP), synchronous optical networking (SONET), Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM), QUIC, Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), and so forth.

[0252] In particular embodiments, wireless device 15300 may provide an output of data captured via a sensor, through its communication interface 15312, via a wireless connection to a network node, and / or in any appropriate manner. Data captured by sensors of a wireless device 15300 can be communicated through a wireless connection to a network node via another wireless device 15300. In particular embodiments, such output may be periodic (e.g., once every 15 minutes if it reports the sensed temperature), random (e.g., to even out the load from reporting from several sensors), in response to a triggering event (e.g., when moisture is detected an alert is sent), in response to a request (e.g., a user initiated request), or a continuous stream (e.g., a live video feed of a patient).

[0253] As another example, wireless device 15300 comprises an actuator, a motor, or a switch, related to a communication interface configured to receive wireless input from a network node via a wireless connection. In response to the received wireless input thestates of the actuator, the motor, or the switch may change. For example, wireless device 15300 may comprise a motor that adjusts the control surfaces or rotors of a drone in flight according to the received input or to a robotic arm performing a medical procedure according to the received input.

[0254] Wireless device 15300, when in the form of an Internet of Things (loT) device, may be a device for use in one or more application domains, these domains comprising, but not limited to, wearable technology, extended industrial application and healthcare. Nonlimiting examples of such an loT device are a device which is or which is embedded in: a connected refrigerator or freezer, a TV, a connected lighting device, an electricity meter, a robot vacuum cleaner, a voice controlled smart speaker, a home security camera, a motion detector, a thermostat, a smoke detector, a door / window sensor, a flood / moisture sensor, an electrical door lock, a connected doorbell, an air conditioning system like a heat pump, an autonomous vehicle, a surveillance system, a weather monitoring device, a vehicle parking monitoring device, an electric vehicle charging station, a smart watch, a fitness tracker, a wearable for tactile augmentation or sensory enhancement, a water sprinkler, an animal- or item-tracking device, a sensor for monitoring a plant or animal, an industrial robot, an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), and any kind of medical device, like a heart rate monitor or a remote controlled surgical robot. In particular embodiments, wireless device 15300 represents an loT device that comprises circuitry and / or software in dependence of the intended application of the loT device in addition to other components as described in relation to the example embodiment of wireless device 15300 shown in Figure 17.

[0255] As yet another specific example, in an loT scenario, wireless device 15300 may represent a machine or other device that performs monitoring and / or measurements, and transmits the results of such monitoring and / or measurements to another wireless device and / or a network node. Wireless device 15300 may in this case be an M2M device, which may in a 3GPP context be referred to as an MTC device. As one particular example, wireless device 15300 may implement the 3GPP NB-loT standard. In other scenarios, wireless device 15300 may represent a vehicle, such as a car, a bus, a truck, a ship and an airplane, or other equipment that is capable of monitoring and / or reporting on its operational status or other functions associated with its operation.

[0256] In practice, any number of wireless devices 15300 may be used together with respect to a single use case. For example, a first wireless device 15300 might be or be integrated in a drone and provide the drone’s speed information (obtained through a speed sensor) to a second wireless device 15300 that is a remote controller operating thedrone. When a user makes changes from the remote controller, the first wireless device 15300 may adjust the throttle on the drone (e.g. by controlling an actuator) to increase or decrease the drone’s speed. The first and / or the second wireless device 15300 can also include more than one of the functionalities described above. For example, wireless device 15300 might comprise the sensor and the actuator, and handle communication of data for both the speed sensor and the actuators.

[0257] Figure 18 shows a network node 15400 in accordance with some embodiments. As used herein, network node refers to equipment capable, configured, arranged and / or operable to communicate directly or indirectly with a UE and / or with other network nodes or equipment, in a telecommunications network. In accordance with respective embodiments, network node 15400 may be configured to operate in communication system 15100 of Figure 15, like network nodes 15108 or 15110, or in communication system 15200 of Figure 16, like an AP 15210 or a station 15212. Examples of network nodes include, but are not limited to, access points (APs) (e.g., radio access points), base stations (BSs) (e.g., radio base stations, Node Bs, evolved Node Bs (eNBs) and NR NodeBs (gNBs)), O-RAN nodes or components of an O-RAN node (e.g., O-RU, O-DU, O-CU).

[0258] Network nodes 15400 may be categorized based on the amount of coverage they provide (or, stated differently, their transmit power level) and so, depending on the provided amount of coverage, may be referred to as femto base stations, pico base stations, micro base stations, or macro base stations. Network node 15400 may be a relay node or a relay donor node controlling a relay. Network nodes 15400 may also include one or more (or all) parts of a distributed radio base station such as centralized digital units, distributed units (e.g., in an O-RAN access node) and / or remote radio units (RRUs), sometimes referred to as Remote Radio Heads (RRHs). Such remote radio units may or may not be integrated with an antenna as an antenna integrated radio. Parts of a distributed radio base station may also be referred to as nodes in a distributed antenna system (DAS).

[0259] Other examples of network nodes 15400 include multiple transmission point (multi-TRP) 5G access nodes, multi-standard radio (MSR) equipment such as MSR BSs, network controllers such as radio network controllers (RNCs) or base station controllers (BSCs), base transceiver stations (BTSs), transmission points, transmission nodes, multi-cell / multicast coordination entities (MCEs), Operation and Maintenance (O&M) nodes, Operations Support System (OSS) nodes, Self-Organizing Network (SON) nodes,positioning nodes (e.g., Evolved Serving Mobile Location Centers (E-SMLCs)), and / or Minimization of Drive Tests (MDTs).

[0260] In particular embodiments, network node 15400 includes a processing circuitry 15402, a memory 15404, a communication interface 15406, and a power source 15408. In general, in a particular embodiment of network node 15400, processing circuitry 15402, memory 15404, communication interface 15406, and power source 15408 may, in whole or in part, represent or include physical components common to or shared by one or more of the other elements of network node 15400.

[0261] The network node 15400 may be composed of multiple distinct network entities (e.g., a NodeB entity and a RNC entity, or a BTS entity and a BSC entity, etc.), which may each have or utilize their own respective physical components. In certain scenarios in which the network node 15400 comprises multiple such entities (e.g., BTS and BSC), one or more of the separate entities may be shared among several network nodes. For example, a single RNC may control multiple NodeBs. In such a scenario, each unique NodeB and RNC pair, may in some instances be considered a single separate network node. In some embodiments, the network node 15400 may be configured to support multiple radio access technologies (RATs). In such embodiments, some components may be duplicated (e.g., separate memories 15404 or portions of memory 15404 for different RATs) and some components may be reused (e.g., a same antenna 15410 may be shared by different RATs). The network node 15400 may also include multiple sets of the various illustrated components for different wireless technologies integrated into network node 15400, for example GSM, WCDMA, LTE, NR, Wi-Fi (e.g., according to an IEEE 802.11 family standard), Zigbee, Z-wave, LoRaWAN, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) or Bluetooth wireless technologies. These wireless technologies may be integrated into the same or different chip or set of chips and other components within network node 15400.

[0262] The processing circuitry 15402 may comprise a combination of one or more of a microprocessor, controller, microcontroller, central processing unit, digital signal processor, application-specific integrated circuit, field programmable gate array, or any other suitable computing device, resource, or combination of hardware, software and / or encoded logic operable to provide, either alone or in conjunction with other components, such as the memory 15404, to provide network node 15400 functionality.

[0263] In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 15402 includes a system on a chip (SOC). In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 15402 includes one or more of radio frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry 15412 and baseband processing circuitry15414. In some embodiments, the RF transceiver circuitry 15412 and the baseband processing circuitry 15414 may be on separate chips (or sets of chips), boards, or units, such as radio units and digital units. In alternative embodiments, part or all of RF transceiver circuitry 15412 and baseband processing circuitry 15414 may be on the same chip or set of chips, boards, or units.

[0264] The memory 15404 may comprise any form of volatile or non-volatile computer-readable memory including, without limitation, persistent storage, solid-state memory, remotely mounted memory, magnetic media, optical media, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), mass storage media (for example, a hard disk), removable storage media (for example, a flash drive, a Compact Disk (CD) or a Digital Video Disk (DVD)), and / or any other volatile or non-volatile, non-transitory device-readable and / or computer-executable memory devices that store information, data, and / or instructions that may be used by the processing circuitry 15402. The memory 15404 may store any suitable instructions, data, or information, including a computer program, software, an application including one or more of logic, rules, code, tables, and / or other instructions capable of being executed by the processing circuitry 15402 and utilized by the network node 15400. The memory 15404 may be used to store any calculations made by the processing circuitry 15402 and / or any data received via the communication interface 15406. In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 15402 and memory 15404 is integrated.

[0265] The communication interface 15406 is used in wired or wireless communication of signaling and / or data with UEs, other network nodes, and / or any other network equipment. In the illustrated embodiment, communication interface 15406 comprises port(s) / terminal(s) 15416 to send and receive data, for example to and from a network over a wired connection. In particular embodiments, network node 15300 may be capable of wireless communication and communication interface 15406 may also include radio front-end circuitry 15418 that may be coupled to, or in certain embodiments a part of, an antenna 15410. Particular embodiments of radio front-end circuitry 15418 include filter(s) 15420 and amplifier(s) 15422. The radio front-end circuitry 15418 may be connected to an antenna 15410 and processing circuitry 15402. The radio front-end circuitry may be configured to condition signals communicated between antenna 15410 and processing circuitry 15402. The radio front-end circuitry 15418 may receive digital data that is to be sent out to other network nodes or UEs via a wireless connection. The radio front-end circuitry 15418 may convert the digital data into a radio signal(s) having the appropriate channel and bandwidth parameters using a combination of filters 15420 and / or amplifiers15422. The radio signal(s) may then be transmitted via the antenna 15410. Similarly, when receiving data, the antenna 15410 may collect radio signals which are then converted into digital data by the radio front-end circuitry 15418. The digital data may be passed to the processing circuitry 15402. In other embodiments, the communication interface may comprise different components and / or different combinations of components.

[0266] In certain alternative embodiments, network node 15400 may be capable of wireless communication but does not include separate radio front-end circuitry 15418, instead, the processing circuitry 15402 includes radio front-end circuitry and is connected to the antenna 15410. Similarly, in some embodiments, all or some of the RF transceiver circuitry 15412 is part of the communication interface 15406. In still other embodiments, the communication interface 15406 includes one or more ports or terminals 15416, the radio front-end circuitry 15418, and the RF transceiver circuitry 15412, as part of a radio unit (not shown), and the communication interface 15406 communicates with the baseband processing circuitry 15414, which is part of a digital unit (not shown).

[0267] The antenna 15410 may include one or more antennas, or antenna arrays, configured to send and / or receive wireless signals. The antenna 15410 may be coupled to the radio front-end circuitry 15418 and may be any type of antenna capable of transmitting and receiving data and / or signals wirelessly. In certain embodiments, the antenna 15410 is separate from the network node 15400 and connectable to the network node 15400 through one or more interfaces or ports.

[0268] The antenna 15410, communication interface 15406, and / or the processing circuitry 15402 may be configured to perform some or all of the receiving operations and / or obtaining operations described herein as being performed by the network node 15400. Any information, data and / or signals may be received from a UE, another network node and / or any other network equipment. Similarly, the antenna 15410, the communication interface 15406, and / or the processing circuitry 15402 may be configured to perform some or all of the transmitting or sending operations described herein as being performed by the network node 15400. Any information, data and / or signals may be transmitted to a UE, another network node and / or any other network equipment.

[0269] The power source 15408 provides power to the various components of network node 15400 in a form suitable for the respective components (e.g., at a voltage and current level needed for each respective component). The power source 15408 may further comprise, or be coupled to, power management circuitry to supply the components of the network node 15400 with power for performing the functionality described herein.For example, the network node 15400 may be connectable to an external power source (e.g., the power grid, an electricity outlet) via an input circuitry or interface such as an electrical cable, whereby the external power source supplies power to power circuitry of the power source 15408. As a further example, the power source 15408 may comprise a source of power in the form of a battery or battery pack which is connected to, or integrated in, power circuitry. The battery may provide backup power should the external power source fail.

[0270] Embodiments of the network node 15400 may include additional components beyond those shown in Figure 18 for providing certain aspects of the network node’s functionality, including any of the functionality described herein and / or any functionality necessary to support the subject matter described herein. For example, the network node 15400 may include user interface equipment to allow input of information into the network node 15400 and to allow output of information from the network node 15400. This may allow a user to perform diagnostic, maintenance, repair, and other administrative functions for the network node 15400.

[0271] Figure 19 is a block diagram illustrating a virtualization environment 15500 in which functions implemented by some embodiments may be virtualized. In the present context, virtualizing means creating virtual versions of apparatuses or devices which may include virtualizing hardware platforms, storage devices and networking resources. As used herein, virtualization can be applied to any device described herein, or components thereof, and relates to an implementation in which at least a portion of the functionality is implemented as one or more virtual components. Some or all of the functions described herein may be implemented as virtual components executed by one or more virtual machines (VMs) implemented in one or more virtual environments 15500 hosted by one or more of hardware nodes, such as a hardware computing device that operates as an access network node, UE, core network node, or host. Further, in embodiments in which a virtual node does not require radio connectivity (e.g., a core network node or host), then the node may be entirely virtualized. In some embodiments, the virtualization environment 15500 includes components defined by the O-RAN Alliance, such as an O-Cloud environment orchestrated by a Service Management and Orchestration Framework via an 0-2 interface.

[0272] Applications 15502 (which may alternatively be called software instances, virtual appliances, network functions, virtual nodes, virtual network functions, etc.) are run in the virtualization environment 15500 to implement some of the features, functions, and / or benefits of some of the embodiments disclosed herein.Hardware 15504 includes processing circuitry, memory that stores software and / or instructions executable by hardware processing circuitry, and / or other hardware devices as described herein, such as a network interface, input / output interface, and so forth. Software may be executed by the processing circuitry to instantiate one or more virtualization layers 15506 (also referred to as hypervisors or virtual machine monitors (VMMs)), provide VM 15508A and VM 15508B (which may be collectively referred to as VMs 15508), and / or perform any of the functions, features and / or benefits described in relation with some embodiments described herein. The virtualization layer 15506 may present a virtual operating platform that appears like networking hardware to one or more of the VMs 15508.

[0273] The VMs 15508 comprise virtual processing, virtual memory, virtual networking or interface and virtual storage, and may be run by virtualization layer 15506. Different embodiments of the instance of a virtual appliance 15502 may be implemented on one or more of VMs 15508, and the implementations may be made in different ways.

[0274] Virtualization of the hardware is in some contexts referred to as network function virtualization (NFV). NFV may be used to consolidate many network equipment types onto industry standard high volume server hardware, physical switches, and physical storage, which can be located in data centers, and customer premise equipment.

[0275] In the context of NFV, each of the VMs 15508 may be a software implementation of a physical machine that runs programs as if they were executing on a physical, nonvirtualized machine. Each of the VMs 15508, and that part of hardware 15504 that executes that VM, be it hardware dedicated to that VM and / or hardware shared by that VM with others of the VMs, forms separate virtual network elements. Still in the context of NFV, a virtual network function is responsible for handling specific network functions that run in one or more of the VMs 15508 on top of the hardware 15504 and corresponds to an application 15502.

[0276] Hardware 15504 may be implemented in a standalone network node with generic or specific components. Hardware 15504 may implement some functions via virtualization. Alternatively, hardware 15504 may be part of a larger cluster of hardware (e.g. such as in a data center or CPE) where many hardware nodes work together and are managed via management and orchestration 15510, which, among others, oversees lifecycle management of applications 15502. In some embodiments, hardware 15504 is coupled to one or more radio units that each include one or more transmitters and one or more receivers that may be coupled to one or more antennas. Radio units may communicate directly with other hardware nodes via one or more appropriate networkinterfaces and may be used in combination with the virtual components to provide a virtual node with radio capabilities, such as a radio access node or a base station. In some embodiments, some signaling can be provided with the use of a control system 15512 which may alternatively be used for communication between hardware nodes and radio units.

[0277] Although the computing devices described herein (e.g., UEs, network nodes, hosts) may include the illustrated combination of hardware components, other embodiments may comprise computing devices with different combinations of components. It is to be understood that these computing devices may comprise any suitable combination of hardware and / or software needed to perform the tasks, features, functions and methods disclosed herein. Determining, calculating, obtaining or similar operations described herein may be performed by processing circuitry, which may process information by, for example, converting the obtained information into other information, comparing the obtained information or converted information to information stored in the network node, and / or performing one or more operations based on the obtained information or converted information, and as a result of said processing making a determination. Moreover, while components are depicted as single boxes located within a larger box, or nested within multiple boxes, in practice, computing devices may comprise multiple different physical components that make up a single illustrated component, and functionality may be partitioned between separate components. For example, a communication interface may be configured to include any of the components described herein, and / or the functionality of the components may be partitioned between the processing circuitry and the communication interface. In another example, non-computationally intensive functions of any of such components may be implemented in software or firmware and computationally intensive functions may be implemented in hardware.

[0278] In certain embodiments, some or all of the functionality described herein may be provided by processing circuitry executing instructions stored on in memory, which in certain embodiments may be a computer program product in the form of a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. In alternative embodiments, some or all of the functionality may be provided by the processing circuitry without executing instructions stored on a separate or discrete device-readable storage medium, such as in a hard-wired manner. In any of those particular embodiments, whether executing instructions stored on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium or not, the processing circuitry can be configured to perform the described functionality. The benefits provided by such functionality are not limited to the processing circuitry alone or to other components of thecomputing device, but are enjoyed by the computing device as a whole, and / or by end users and a wireless network generally.

[0279] It will be appreciated that the foregoing description and the accompanying drawings represent non-limiting examples of the methods and apparatus taught herein. As such, the apparatus and techniques taught herein are not limited by the foregoing description and accompanying drawings. Instead, the embodiments herein are limited only by the following claims and their legal equivalents.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A method performed by a user equipment, UE, (10) for handling communication in a wireless communications network (1), the method comprising:- obtaining (901) a first set of radio resources (Set 1) and a second set of radio resources (Set 2) for carrying control information to the UE;- determining (902) that the first set of radio resources (Set 1) is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources (Set 2); and- performing (903) an action associated with handling the control information taking the determination that the first set of radio resources (Set 1) is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources (Set 2) into account.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first set of radio resources comprises: a first portion (P1) which overlaps the second set of resources; and a second portion (P2) which does not overlap the second set of resources, wherein the second portion (P2) includes radio resources (P2”) at higher frequencies than the first portion (P1) and radio resources (P2’) at lower frequency than the first portion (P1),wherein the action comprises using indexing of the first set of radio resources such that:the indexing consecutively indexes radio resources in the first portion (P1); andthe indexing consecutively indexes radio resources in the second portion (P2) such that a radio resource in the second portion (P2) at higher frequency than the first portion (P1) has an index directly following an index of a radio resource in the second portion (P2) at a lower frequency than the first portion (P1) or a radio resource in the second portion (P2) at lower frequency than the first portion (P1) has an index directly following an index of a radio resource in the second portion (P2) at a higher frequency than the first portion (P1).

3. The method of any of the claims 1 -2, wherein the first set of radio resources comprises:a first portion (P1) which overlaps the second set of resources; anda second portion (P2) which does not overlap the second set of resources, wherein the second portion (P2) includes radio resources at higher frequencies than the first portion (P1) and radio resources at lower frequency than the first portion (P1),wherein the action comprises using indexing of the first set of radio resources such that:the indexing of the first set of radio resources excludes one or more radio resources of the second portion (P2) such that remaining radio resources in the second portion (P2) at lower frequences than the first portion (P1) and at higher frequencies than the first portion (P1) form a respective integer number of resource sets of a certain set size.

4. The method of any of the claims 2-3, wherein the radio resources are resource element groups, REGs.

5. The method according to any of the claims 1-4, wherein the first set of radio resources comprises a first portion (P1) which overlaps the second set of radio resources, and wherein the action comprises aligning a boundary of a resource group in the first portion (P1) with a boundary of a resource group in the second set of radio resources.

6. The method according to any of the claims 1-5, wherein the action comprises monitoring one or more candidate positions among the first set of radio resources for one or more occurrences of control information, wherein the one or more candidate positions are selected based on the determination.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein monitoring the one or more candidate positions comprises excluding monitoring of one or more radio resources when the one or more radio resources overlaps one or more radio resources of the second set of radio resources.

8. The method according to any of the claims 1-7, wherein the action comprises using a granularity of grouping the first set of radio resources, which granularity is based on the determination.

9. The method according to any of the claims 1-8, wherein the first set of radio resources comprises a first control resource set, CORESET, and the second set of radio resources comprises a second CORESET.

10. The method according to any of the claims 1-9, wherein the first set of radio resources are radio resources for a first radio access technology, RAT, and the second set of radio resources are radio resources for a second RAT.

11. The method according to any of the claims 1-10, wherein the action comprises aligning one or more control channel elements, CCE, and / or resource element groups, REG, of the first set of radio resources with overlapping one or more CCEs and / or REGs in the second set of radio resources.

12. The method according to any of the claims 1-11, wherein the action comprises using a CCE-to-REG mapping for a portion of the first set of radio resources that overlaps the second set of radio resources, wherein the CCE-to-REG mapping is the same as that of the second set of radio resources.

13. The method according to any of the claims 1-12, wherein the action comprises using a mapping of the first set of radio resources, wherein the mapping is adjusted compared to when no overlapping occurs between the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources by taking into account the second set of radio resources that are overlapping a portion of the first set of radio resources.

14. The method according to any of the claims 1-13, wherein obtaining (901) the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources comprises receiving a configuration from a radio network node indicating the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources.

15. The method according to any of the claims 1-14, further comprising: receiving (900) an indication from a radio network node for the UE to determine that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources and / or for the UE to perform an action associated with handling the control information taking the determination that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources into account.

16. The method according to any of the claims 1-15, further comprising- monitoring (904) for a control channel candidate in the first set of radio resources based on the performed action.

17. The method of any of the claims 1-16, wherein the UE (10) obtains a first sequence of sets of radio resources for carrying control information to the UE (10) and a second sequence of sets of radio resources for carrying control information to the UE (10), wherein the first sequence includes the first set of radio resources and the second sequence includes the second set of radio resources, wherein the method comprises, for each of the sets in the first sequence:determining whether that set from the first sequence is at least partly overlapping a set from the second sequence; andperforming an action associated with handling the control information taking the determination whether the set from the first sequence is at least partly overlapping a set from the second sequence into account.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein at least one of the sets in the first sequence is not at least partly overlapping a set from the second sequence.

19. A method performed by a radio network node (12) for handling communication of a user equipment, UE, (10) in a wireless communications network (1), the method comprising:- determining (1002) that a first set of radio resources (Set 1) for carrying control information to the UE (10) is at least partly overlapping a second set of radio resources (Set 2) for carrying control information to the UE (10); and- performing (1003) an action associated with handling the control information taking the determination that the first set of radio resources (Set 1) is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources (Set 2) into account.

20. The method according to claim 19, comprisingtransmitting (1004) control information for the UE (10) in a control channel candidate in the first set of radio resources based on the performed action.

21. The method according to any of the claims 19-20, further comprising- providing (1001) to the UE (10), the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources for carrying control information for the UE (10).

22. The method according to claim 21 , wherein providing the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources comprises transmitting a configuration to the UE (10) indicating the first set of radio resources and the second set of radio resources.

23. The method according to any of the claims 19-22, further comprising:- transmitting (1000) an indication to the UE (10) for the UE to determine that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources and / or for the UE 10 to perform an action associated with handling the control information taking the determination that the first set of radio resources is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources into account.

24. A User Equipment, UE, (10) for handling communication in a wireless communications network (1), wherein the UE (10) is configured to:obtain a first set of radio resources (Set 1) and a second set of radio resources (Set 2) for carrying control information to the UE (10);determine that the first set of radio resources (Set 1) is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources (Set 2); andperform an action associated with handling the control information taking the determination that the first set of radio resources (Set 1) is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources (Set 2) into account.

25. The UE (10) according to claim 24, wherein the UE is configured to perform the method according to any of the claims 2-18.

26. A radio network node (12) for handling communication of a user equipment, UE, (10) in a wireless communications network (1), wherein the radio network node (12) is configured to:determine that a first set of radio resources (Set 1) for carrying control information to the UE (10) is at least partly overlapping a second set of radio resources (Set 2) for carrying control information to the UE (10); and perform an action associated with handling the control information taking the determination that the first set of radio resources (Set 1) is at least partly overlapping the second set of radio resources (Set 2) into account.

27. The radio network node (12) according to claim 26, wherein the radio network node (12) is configured to perform the method according to any of the claims 20-23.

28. A computer program product comprising instructions, which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the method according to any of the claims 1-23, as performed by the radio network node and the UE, respectively.

29. A computer-readable storage medium, having stored thereon a computer program product comprising instructions which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the method according to any of the claims 1-23, as performed by the radio network node and the UE, respectively.

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