RACH-less LTM cell switch

Abstract

There is provided a method performed by a wireless device for a Random Access Channel- less, RACH-less, L1 / L2-Triggered Mobility, LTM, Cell Switch procedure, the method includes receiving a configuration comprising one or more LTM candidate cell configurations. The method further includes receiving a LTM cell switch command from a serving cell, to switch cell from the serving cell to a target LTM candidate cell. In response to one condition related to LTM cell switch being fulfilled, the method includes transmitting, to the target LTM candidate cell, a scheduling request, SR, to request an uplink grant. The condition is based on the SR occasions configured in the target LTM candidate cell configuration. Furthermore, the method includes monitoring a Physical Downlink Control Channel, PDCCH, from the target LTM candidate cell. Finally, the method includes receiving the PDCCH comprising the UL grant for MSG 3 transmission from the target LTM candidate cell. There is also provided a related wireless device.

Description

RACH-LESS LTM CELL SWITCHTECHNICAL FIELDThe present disclosure is related to wireless communication systems and more particularly to Random Access Channel-less, RACH-less, Ll / L2-Triggered Mobility, LTM, Cell Switch procedure.BACKGROUNDLayer 1 (LI) / Layer 2 (L2) - Triggered Mobility (LTM) Release 18

[0001] LTM is a procedure in which a NR base station (gNB) receives LI measurement report(s) from a user equipment (UE) (which may also be called LTM lower layer measurements or LTM report), and on their basis the gNB changes UE’s serving cell by a cell switch command signalled via a Medium Access Control (MAC) CE. The cell switch command indicates an LTM candidate cell configuration that the gNB previously prepared and provided to the UE through Radio Resource Control (RRC) signalling. Then the UE switches to the target cell according to the cell switch command.

[0002] When configured by the network, it is possible to activate Transmission Configuration Indication (TCI) states of one or multiple cells that are different from the current serving cell. This is sometimes called pre-activation of a candidate TCI state, since this is preactivating a TCI state of an LTM candidate cell happens before the UE receives the LTM cell switch command i.e. before the LTM cell switch procedure. For instance, the TCI states of the LTM candidate cells can be activated in advance before any of those cells become the serving cell. This allows the UE to be downlink (DL) synchronized with those cells (or DL pre-sync), thereby facilitating a faster cell switch to one of those cells when cell switch is triggered. Cell switch command is conveyed in a MAC CE, which contains the necessary information to perform the LTM cell switch.

[0003] The overall procedure for LTM is disclosed e.g. in TS 38.321 vl8.0.0 as shown in Figure 1:1. The UE sends a MeasurementReport message to the gNB. The gNB decides to configure LTM and initiates LTM preparation.2. The gNB transmits an RRCReconfiguration message to the UE including the LTM candidate configurations.3. The UE stores the LTM candidate configurations and transmits an RRCReconfigurationComplete message to the gNB.4a. The UE performs DL synchronization with the candidate cell(s) before receiving thecell switch command. This is triggered upon reception by the UE of a “Candidate Cell TCI States Activation / Deactivation MAC CE” for LTM candidate cell(s) configured in CandidateTCI-State and CandidateTCI-UL-State. Upon reception, in the UE’s MAC entity, the UE’s MAC entity receives a Candidate Cell TCI States Activation / Deactivation MAC CE on a Serving Cell, the UE indicate to lower layers the information regarding the Candidate Cell TCI States Activation / Deactivation MAC CE.4b. The UE may also perform UL pre-synchronization with the LTM candidate cell(s) if it receives the PDCCH order for early timing advance (TA) acquisition for those candidate cells.5. The UE performs LI measurements on the configured candidate cell(s) and transmits LI measurement reports to the gNB. LI measurement should be performed as long as RRC reconfiguration (step 2) is applicable.6. The gNB decides to execute cell switch to a target cell and transmits a MAC CE triggering cell switch by including the candidate configuration index of the target cell. The UE switches to the target cell and applies the configuration indicated by candidate configuration index.7. The UE performs the random-access procedure towards the target cell, if UE does not have valid TA of the target cell. Otherwise if the UE receives a valid TA value in LTM cell switch command using early TA acquisition method in step 4b, the UE is not required to perform random-access.8. The UE completes the LTM cell switch procedure by sending RRCReconfigurationComplete message to target cell. If the UE has performed a RA procedure in step 7, the UE considers that LTM cell switch execution is successfully completed when the random-access procedure is successfully completed. For RACH-less LTM, the UE considers that LTM cell switch execution is successfully completed when the UE determines that the network has successfully received its first uplink (UL) data.RACH-less handover in LTE

[0004] RACH-less handover and RACH-less Secondary Cell Group (SCG) change have been specified for LTE, as part of 3rdGeneration Partnership Project (3 GPP) Release 14, to decrease the interruption time at handover and SCG change, respectively. The RACH-less handover procedure means that no Msgl transmission, i.e. RACH preamble transmission by the UE, or Msg2 transmission, i.e. network responding with Random Access Response message, are performed when accessing the target cell during the handover.

[0005] Through Msg2 the network provides the UE with an UL grant (Physical Uplink Shared Channel, PUSCH, resource) for transmission of more information to the network, in a so called Msg3. Msgl is, among others, used by the network to determine a so- called Timing Advance (TA) value that the UE should use in its uplink transmissions in order for them to reach the network at the right point in time, i.e. a point in time related to when the UE receives downlink transmissions from the cell. This TA value is mainly dependent on the distance from the UE and the base station / antenna, and the initial value to use is signaled to the UE in Msg2.

[0006] At a RACH-less handover / SCG change, the UE is instead provided with a TA value prior to accessing the target cell. In order for the Msg3 message to reach the target node at the right point in time, the correct TA value to use for the UE in the target cell thus needs to be known in advance. The use of RACH-less handover / SCG change is thus restricted to cases where:The target cell is known to have the same TA value as another cell where the UE already has a connection and thus a known TA value (such as a Primary Cell PCell, Primary Secondary Cell (in LTE) or Primary SCG Cell (in NR) PSCell or Secondary Cell SCell) when the handover is initiated; or the target cell is known to have a TA value=0, i.e. it is a small cell.The UL grant for Msg3 transmission in the target cell is, at a RACH-less handover / SCG change, can be provided to the UE in two different ways:The UL grants are pre-allocated to the UE in the handover (HO) Command message, i.e. within the RRCConnectionReconfiguration message instructing the UE to perform the handover or SCG change.The target cell schedules the UE with UL grants (PUSCH resources) using the PDCCH. The UE is then scheduled through the PDCCH using the Cell Radio Network Temporary Identifier (C-RNTI) that the UE has been configured with in the target cell.

[0007] In the alternative to pre-allocate the UL grants the target node needs to configure UL grants (PUSCH resources) to the UE in advance, meaning that those resources cannot be allocated to any other UE. The alternative to schedule the UE in the target cell gives more flexibility for the target node in its resource allocation, but it requires an additional PDCCH resource in the target cell for each UL grant, and it imposes an additional delay compared to the pre-allocation alternative. The additional delay is due to that there is a delay between the reception of the PDCCH scheduling in the target cell until the presence of the scheduled UL grant (PUSCH resource).

[0008] The alternative to pre-allocate UL grants to the UE instead means that the UE can access the target cell at the first UL grant that is available (pre-allocated) for it when it is ready for transmission in the target cell, i.e. after e.g. downlink synchronization and tuning towards the target cell. The typical delay until the first available UL grant then depends on the frequency of the pre-allocated UL grants. Three different periodicities have been specified for the preallocated UL grants, either every 2nd, every 5th or every 10th subframe, where a subframe corresponds to 1 millisecond.

[0009] There currently exist certain challenge(s). In case a RACH-less LTM cell switch is initiated by the UE (e.g. upon reception of an LTM Cell Switch command), if the LTM candidate cell configuration that the UE needs to apply does not include a configured grant, the UE needs to rely on the network to provide a dynamic grant in order to perform the first UL transmission. In this case, the UE has basically two possible options to pursue:1. The UE when switching to the indicated LTM candidate cell starts to monitor the PDCCH right away (or anyway as soon as possible) and wait for the network to deliver a grant for UL transmissions e.g. of the RRC Reconfiguration Complete;2. The UE when switching to the indicated LTM candidate cell sends an Scheduling Request (SR) (e.g. over Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH)) as soon as possible to request the network to send a grant for UL transmissions e.g. of the RRC Reconfiguration Complete and only at this point in time starts to monitor the PDCCH.

[0010] There has been a discussion in 3GPP to clarify what the UE should do in such a situation, but the outcome was that, whether the UE start to monitor right away the PDCCH or only after an SR is sent is up to the UE implementation. However, leaving this to UE implementation may bring challenges.

[0011] A first problem is that UE does not know if the network is expecting a SR from the UE before sending a grant, and the same happens for the network. The network is not aware whether it could start to send dynamic grant(s) to the UE because if UE is not monitoring PDCCH all such resources will be basically wasted.

[0012] A second problem is that a UE waiting for a grant which never arrives will delay the LTM cell switch procedure. The network will send the grant only after receiving the SR from the UE. This will create a handover delay and connectivity interruption, which is the most relevant performance indication for LTM.SUMMARY

[0013] Certain aspects of the disclosure and their embodiments may provide solutions to these or other challenges.

[0014] In order to address the above challenges, the embodiments introduce a method for a User Equipment (UE) for determining whether to start to monitor the PDCCH immediately after initiating an LTM or conditional LTM (CLTM) cell switch procedure and wait for a UL grant to be sent by the network, i.e., before any UL transmissions, or whether the UE should start to monitor the PDCCH only after the UE sends an SR to the network for requesting an UL grant, based on one or more conditions.

[0015] There is provided a method performed by a wireless device for a Random Access Channel-less, RACH-less, Ll / L2-Triggered Mobility, LTM, Cell Switch procedure, the method includes receiving a configuration comprising one or more LTM candidate cell configurations. The method further includes receiving a RACH-less LTM cell switch command from a serving cell, to switch cell from the serving cell to a target LTM candidate cell. In response to at least one condition related to RACH-less LTM cell switch being fulfilled, the method includes transmitting, to the target LTM candidate cell, a scheduling request, SR, to request an uplink, UL, grant. The at least one condition is based on the SR occasions configured in the target LTM candidate cell configuration. Furthermore, the method includes monitoring a Physical Downlink Control Channel, PDCCH, from the target LTM candidate cell. Finally, the method includes receiving the PDCCH comprising the UL grant for MSG 3 transmission from the target LTM candidate cell.

[0016] In some embodiments, the at least one condition is based on at least one or more of -the expiry of a time during which the wireless device monitors the PDCCH,-whether early synchronization of the target LTM candidate cell has been performed, -whether the wireless device has a valid timing advance, TA, value for the target LTM candidate cell,-whether the wireless device has performed the early ASN.l (Abstract Syntax Notation One) decoding and compliant check for the LTM candidate cell configuration,-whether a special SR configuration is part of the target LTM candidate cell configuration, -whether a previous LTM cell switch has been performed to the target LTM candidate cell and the wireless device either monitored PDCCH or first sent a SR and then started to monitor PDCCH, and- a random number generated by a function at the wireless device, the random number indicates whether the wireless device should first be one sending an SR to the network and then start monitoring PDCCH or whether the wireless device should monitor the PDCCH right away when the LTM cell switch is initiated.

[0017] There is also provided a wireless device for a Random Access Channel-less, RACH-less, Ll / L2-Triggered Mobility, LTM, Cell Switch procedure. The wireless device includes a processing circuitry configured to perform any of the operations of any of the method steps mentioned above that are performed by the wireless device. The wireless device further includes a power source configured to supply power to the processing circuitry.

[0018] In some embodiments, the UE, in response on determining to initiate a RACH-less LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure towards an LTM or CLTM candidate cell, the UE switch to the determined LTM or CLTM candidate cell and perform the first UL transmission, wherein in performing the first UL transmission the UE selectively determines whether to start to monitor the PDCCH and wait to receive an UL grant from the network (before an UL transmission) or send an SR to request an UL grant from the network and start to monitor PDCCH (once the SR is sent) according to one or more rules.

[0019] In some embodiments, the UE selectively determines whether to start to monitor the PDCCH and wait to receive a grant from the network or send an SR to request a grant from the network and start to monitor PDCCH (once the SR is sent) according to one or more rules which comprise that the UE determines whether to start to monitor the PDCCH and wait to receive a grant from the network or send an SR to request a grant from the network and start to monitor PDCCH (once the SR is sent) if a RACH-less LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure need to be performed and the LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration to be applied does not include a configured grant.

[0020] In some embodiments, a set of methods steps which can be combined with the previous methods steps, when RACH-less LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure need to be performed and the LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration to be applied does not include a configured grant the UE selectively determines whether to start to monitor the PDCCH and wait to receive a grant from the network or send an SR to request a grant from the network and start to monitor PDCCH (once the SR is sent) according to one or more rules, which may comprise one or a combination of the following rules:1) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH or to send a SR and then monitor PDCCH according to whether the periodicity of the SR occasions as configured in the indicated LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration is below a threshold.2) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH or to send a SR and then monitor PDCCH according to whether the periodicity of the SR occasion asconfigured in the indicated LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration is above a threshold.3) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH for the duration of a timer T and when the timer T expires the UE sends an SR to the network to request a grant (by continuing to monitor PDCCH).4) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH for a maximum number of slots, or subframes, or frames and when the maximum number of slots, or subframes, or frames is reached the UE sends an SR to the network to request a grant (by continuing to monitor PDCCH).5) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH or to send a SR and then monitor PDCCH according to whether an early synchronization procedure has been performed for the indicated LTM or CLTM candidate cell for which the LTM or CLTM cell switch needs to be executed.6) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH or to send a SR and then monitor PDCCH according to whether the UE has a valid TA for the LTM or CLTM candidate cell for which the LTM or CLTM cell switch needs to be executed. 7) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH or to send a SR and then monitor PDCCH according to whether for the LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration for which the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure need to be executed the UE has performed the early ASN.1 decoding and compliant check.8) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH or to send a SR and then monitor PDCCH according to whether a special SR configuration is part of the LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration for which the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure need to be executed.9) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH or to send a SR and then monitor PDCCH according to whether for the indicated LTM or CLTM candidate cell a previous LTM or CLTM cell switch has been performed and the UE has either monitored PDCCH or has sent first an SR and then started to monitor PDCCH. 10) The UE selectively determines to always monitor PDCCH right away when an LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure is initiated.11) The UE selectively determines to always send a SR and then monitor PDCCH when an LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure is initiated12) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH or to send a SR and then monitor PDCCH according to whether a certain feature is configured within theLTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration for which the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure need to be executed.13) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH or to send a SR and then monitor PDCCH according to a function at the UE which generates a random number, one for monitoring the PDCCH right away when the LTM or CLTM cell switch is initiated and one for first sending an SR to the network and then start monitoring PDCCH.14) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH of the LTM candidate cell before an UL transmission based on an RRC configuration e.g. a field and / or parameter and / or information element.15) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH of the LTM candidate cell before an UL transmission based on an indication in the LTM Cell Switch Command e.g. a field and / or parameter and / or information element in a MAC Control Element, or a light RRC message.

[0021] Certain embodiments may provide one or more of the following technical advantage(s). The embodiments presents a method for a User Equipment (UE), which determines whether to start to monitor the PDCCH immediately after the LTM or conditional LTM (CLTM) cell switch procedure and wait for a UL grant to be sent by the network, i.e., before any UL transmissions, or whether the UE should start to monitor the PDCCH only after the UE sends an SR to the network for requesting an UL grant, based on one or more conditions. This is determined by the one or more criteria or rules. The solutions in the embodiments

[0022] Whether to start to monitor the PDCCH immediately after the LTM or conditional LTM (CLTM) cell switch procedure and wait for a UL grant to be sent by the network, i.e., before any UL transmissions, or whether the UE should start to monitor the PDCCH only after the UE sends an SR to the network for requesting an UL grant, based on one or more conditions. With the one or more rules proposed, thanks to the fact that UE avoid delaying the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure, we avoid a waste of radio resources and a longer handover delay and connectivity interruption.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0023] The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the disclosure and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this application, illustrate certain non-limiting embodiments of inventive concepts. In the drawings:

[0024] FIGURE l is a flow chart illustrating an LTM operations performed by a wireless device and a network node in accordance with some embodiments;

[0025] FIGURE 2 is a flow chart illustrating an initial access procedure performed by a wireless device and a network node in accordance with some embodiments;

[0026] FIGURE 3 is a flow chart illustrating an example of operations performed by a wireless device in accordance with some embodiments;

[0027] FIGURE 4 is a block diagram of a communication system in accordance with some embodiments;

[0028] FIGURE 5 is block diagram of a communication system in according with some embodiments;

[0029] FIGURE 6 is a block diagram of a user equipment in accordance with some embodiments;

[0030] FIGURE 7 is a block diagram of a network node in accordance with some embodiments; and

[0031] FIGURE 8 is a block diagram of a virtualization environment in accordance with some embodiments.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0032] Some of the embodiments contemplated herein will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. Embodiments are provided by way of example to convey the scope of the subject matter to those skilled in the art.

[0033] The term “L1 / L2 based inter-cell mobility” as used in the Work Item Description in 3GPP, though it interchangeably also uses the terms L1 / L2 mobility, Ll-mobility, LI based mobility, Ll / L2-centric inter-cell mobility, L1 / L2 inter-cell mobility Ll / L2-Triggered Mobility, Lower-layer triggered Mobility or LTM. The basic principle is that the UE receives a lower layer signaling from the network indicating to the UE a change (or switch or activation) of its serving cell (e.g. change of PCell, from a source to a target PCell), wherein a lower layer signaling is a message / signaling of a lower layer protocol, which may be referred as a L1 / L2 inter-cell mobility execution command or LTM cell switch command. The change of serving cell (e.g. change of PCell) may also lead to a change in Scell(s) for the same cell group e.g. in case the command triggers the UE to change to another cell group configuration of the same type (e.g. another MCG configuration). Before the UE receives the LTM cell switch command, the UE is configured by the network with one or more LTM candidate cell configurations (e.g. reception of an RRC Reconfiguration message, with at least one LTM candidate cell configuration) A LTM candidate cell configuration may include parameters in the Information Element (IE) CellGroupConfig per candidate cell and / or an embedded RRC Reconfiguration per LTM candidate cell. In one alternative, the lower layer command may also correspond to alight version of an RRC message, such as an RRC message with a limited number of fields or parameters which indicates to the UE to apply a stored RRC configuration associated to an LTM candidate cell. Throughout the embodiments wireless device and user equipment (UE) are interchangeably used.

[0034] The term LTM cell switch procedure refers to the process of a UE switching (or changing) its cell from a source cell to a target cell (which may be called here an LTM candidate cell or a neighbour cell), using L1 / L2 -triggered mobility (LTM). In the context of L1 / L2-triggered mobility (LTM), an LTM cell switch procedure may sometimes also be known as L1 / L2 based inter-cell mobility execution, LTM execution, dynamic switch, LTM switch, (LTM) cell switch, (LTM) serving cell change or (LTM) cell change. In the context of the invention, switching to the LTM candidate cell configuration comprises the UE considering that an LTM candidate cell becomes its new special cell (Special Cell, the primary cell of a master or secondary cell group (SpCell)) e.g. PCell in case of LTM being configured for a Master Cell Group (MCG) and / or PSCell in case of LTM being configured for a Secondary Cell Group (SCG); or, changing its SpCell from the current Pcell to an LTM candidate cell.

[0035] The target cell may, in LTM switching procedures, also be referred to as the target LTM candidate cell, where the target LTM candidate cell is the target cell. The target LTM candidate cell is selected among the LTM candidate cells and will serve the UE as the serving cell after the cell switch.

[0036] The term change of cell may comprise a change of a whole cell group configuration, which includes a change in the SpCell (e.g. change of PCell, or change of PSCell) and a change in SCells of the cell group (e.g. addition, modification and / or release of one or more SCells).

[0037] An LTM cell switch procedure may be triggered in the UE by reception of a LTM cell switch command, or alternatively, triggered by some other event, such as a condition, e,g, a triggering condition used for conditional configuration, such as conditional handover, being fulfilled, as a result of recovery from radio link failure or handover failure.

[0038] The term LTM candidate cell may refer to a cell the UE is configured with when configured for L1 / L2 -triggered mobility. The LTM candidate cell is a cell that the UE can move to, in an LTM cell switch procedure, upon reception of a nLTM cell switch command. These cells may also be called candidate cell(s), candidates, mobility candidates, non-serving cells, additional cells, target candidate cell, target candidate, etc. A LTM candidate cell is a cell the UE perform measurements on (e.g. Channel State Information (CSI) measurements) so that the UE reports these measurements and network may take educated decision on which beam(e.g. TCI state) and / or cell the UE is to be switched to. An LTM candidate cell may be a candidate to be a target PCell or PSCell, or an SCell of a cell group (e.g. MCG Scell).

[0039] The term Conditional LTM (CLTM) may refer to a conditional reconfiguration. In CLTM, the UE is configured with at least one LTM candidate cell (denoted as a CLTM candidate cell), by receiving an LTM candidate cell configuration, as in legacy LTM, and called herein a Conditional LTM candidate cell configuration, and an associated execution condition, denoted as CLTM execution condition. The evaluation of CLTM execution condition associated to a CLTM candidate cell is performed by the assessment of lower layer measurements, such as Layer 1 reference signal received power (Ll-RSRP) and / or Synchronization Signal reference signal received power (SS-RSRP), derived from Synchronization Signal Blocks (SSBs) and / or CSLRSs of either the source cell and / or an LTM candidate cell. Lower layer measurements, in this context, are measurements reported to support lower layer procedures like beam management, candidate cell TCI state activation / deactivation, early timing advance (TA) acquisition, and link adaptation, and they aren't filtered based on Layer 3 (L3) parameters, though there may or may not be some filtering of these measurements based on the other lower layer parameters. The reception of CLTM execution condition may also involve receiving an indication of the condition and / or configuring it with parameters such as event identifier(s), offset(s), threshold(s), reference signal (RS) type, trigger quantity such as RSRP, reference signal received quality (RSRQ) or signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR), time-to-trigger (TTT), and so forth.

[0040] In the context of CLTM, the UE relies on evaluating one or two condition(s), referred to as CLTM execution condition(s), LTM execution condition(s), or triggering condition(s), or a combination thereof. And, when the condition(s) for a CLTM candidate cell is fulfilled, the UE performs a cell switch, which may be seen as a kind of LTM execution which is not triggered by the reception of an LTM cell switch command; this may also be considered as a kind of LTM cell switch, or LTM cell switch execution, or Conditional LTM cell switch, or Conditional LTM execution, or CLTM execution, or simply cell switch. According to the methods outlined in the invention, upon satisfaction of the execution condition(s), the UE initiates an LTM cell switch. The term LTM cell switch refers to the process of a UE changing its cell from a source cell to a target cell, using L1 / L2 triggered mobility (LTM). In the context of Conditional LTM execution, the text may refer to the serving cell before the LTM cell switch as source cell, old source cell, or previous source cell.

[0041] The term “conditional LTM” or “conditional LTM candidate configuration” is used to identify a configuration for which the UE is provided with certain criteria which the UEneeds to evaluate by itself. Upon fulfilling of one or more of the criteria the UE executes autonomously a conditional LTM cell switch procedure and applies the provided conditional LTM candidate configuration without the network indicating to do so. The text also uses the term “normal LTM” or “normal LTM candidate configuration” which is used to identify a LTM candidate configuration which the UE applies only upon an indication from the network to trigger an LTM cell switch execution.

[0042] The embodiments also disclose LTM candidate cells within the context of Conditional LTM. The candidate cell may be referred to as a CLTM candidate cell, CLTM cell, simply candidate cell, candidate target cell, simply target cell, LTM candidate cell, LTM cell, or L1 / L2 inter-cell mobility candidate cell, depending on the context or terminology used in the invention. Essentially, it denotes a cell to which the UE is directed or switches to in the event of executing a conditional L1 / L2 inter-cell mobility procedure after meeting the associated execution condition(s) and may also be termed as new source cell or next source cell after the LTM cell switch. These cells may also be termed as candidate cells, mobility candidates, non-serving cells, additional cells, candidate target cell, simply target cell or deactivated cells. An LTM candidate cell might also pertain to a candidate cell in a 5G Radio Access Technology like NR or a future 6G Radio Access Technology.

[0043] A random access (RA) procedure is a key function in a cellular system. In Long-Term Evolution (LTE), a user equipment (UE) that would like to access the network initiates the random access procedure by transmitting a preamble (Msgl) in the uplink on the Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH). A gNB (next generation Node B or Transmission and Reception Point (TRP), e.g., a base station or access node) receiving the preamble and detecting the random-access attempt will respond in the downlink by transmitting a random access response (RAR, Msg2). The RAR carries an uplink scheduling grant for the UE to continue the procedure by transmitting a following subsequent message in the uplink (Msg3) for terminal identification. A similar procedure is available for NR (New Radio). Figure 2 illustrates an example 4-step initial access procedure performed by a UE10 and a gNB 20 of an NR system.

[0044] Msg3 is transmitted by using a Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) channel. Besides Msg3 payload, Demodulation Reference Signal (DMRS) is also transmitted to assist the data decoding at the eNB / gNB. In both LTE and NR, for a 4-step random access procedure, the initial transmission of Msg3 is scheduled by the UL grant contained in RAR. The retransmission of Msg3 is scheduled by UL grant over Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH).

[0045] The scheduling request (SR) is signal or message sent by the UE to gNB to ask for an Uplink (UL) grant to send the Uplink data over PUSCH. The UL grant is sent to UE by gNB over PDCCH transmission in for example Downlink Control Information (DCI) Format 0 0 or Format 0 1.

[0046] Since this is a UE implementation method, the system overview is not part of the core aspects of the invention. For simplicity, we can refer to the “network” as a network entity or network node from which the UE receives one or more configurations and / or parameters, such as LTM candidate(s), and CLTM candidate(s).Embodiments:

[0047] Embodiment 1 : A method for a UE, the method comprising:-receiving a configuration including one or more LTM candidate cell configuration(s) -determine to perform an RACH-less LTM Cell Switch procedure to an LTM candidate cell associated to one of the one or more LTM candidate cell configuration(s)-in response to initiate a RACH-less LTM cell switch procedure to the LTM candidate cell, when the LTM candidate cell configuration of the LTM candidate cell does not include a pre-configured UL grant, selectively performing one of the following:i) monitoring a downlink control channel of the LTM candidate cell (e.g. Physical Downlink Control Channel - PDCCH) of the LTM candidate cell before sending an Uplink transmission (e.g. Scheduling Request (SR)) to the LTM candidate cell; or ii) sending an SR to the LTM candidate cell before monitoring a downlink control channel of the LTM candidate cell and, after sending the SR monitoring a downlink control channel - PDCCH of the LTM candidate cell and receiving an UL grant in the downlink control channel of the LTM candidate cell and in response using the UL grant to transmit an UL message to the LTM candidate cell.

[0048] Embodiment 2: The method of Embodiment 1, wherein the LTM candidate cell configuration is either: i) for an LTM procedure, for which an LTM Cell Switch is triggered upon reception of a command from the network, or ii) for a Conditional LTM (CLTM) procedure, for which an LTM Cell Switch is triggered upon fulfillment of an execution condition.

[0049] Embodiment 3: The method of Embodiments 1 or 2, wherein in response to monitoring the downlink control channel of the LTM candidate cell (e.g. Physical Downlink Control Channel - PDCCH) of the LTM candidate cell before sending the Scheduling Request (SR) (e.g. over PUCCH or PUSCH) to the LTM candidate cell, receiving an UL grant in thedownlink control channel of the LTM candidate cell and in response using the UL grant to transmit an UL message to the LTM candidate cell.

[0050] Embodiment 4: The method of Embodiments 1-3, wherein in response to monitoring the downlink control channel of the LTM candidate cell (e.g. Physical Downlink Control Channel - PDCCH) of the LTM candidate cell before sending the Scheduling Request (SR) (e.g. over PUCCH or PUSCH) to the LTM candidate cell, monitoring the control channel for a number of time units and, after the number of timer units, when the UE does not receive an UL grant in the DL control channel, sending an SR to the LTM candidate cell.

[0051] Embodiment 5: The method of Embodiments 1-4, wherein in response to monitoring the downlink control channel of the LTM candidate cell (e.g. Physical Downlink Control Channel - PDCCH) of the LTM candidate cell before sending the Scheduling Request (SR) (e.g. over PUCCH or PUSCH) to the LTM candidate cell, starting a timer and while the timer is running monitoring the control channel and the UE does not receive an UL grant in the DL control channel, and the timer expires, sending an SR to the LTM candidate cell.

[0052] Embodiment 6: The method of Embodiments 1-5, wherein the timer has a timer value (expiry value) received from the network in a configuration.

[0053] Embodiment 7: The method of Embodiments 1-6, wherein the downlink control channel comprises a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH).

[0054] Embodiment 8: The method of Embodiments 1-7, wherein sending the SR comprises sending an indication and / or message over a physical uplink channel, wherein the uplink control channel is either a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) for transmitting control information and / or a Physical Uplink Shared channel (PUSCH) for transmitting control information.

[0055] Embodiment 9. The method according to Embodiment 1, wherein determining that a RACH-less LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure needs to be performed comprises one or more of:-receiving a command from the network which comprises an LTM candidate cell configuration ID, and a TA value,-receiving a command from the network which comprises an LTM candidate cell configuration ID for which the UE has already a valid TA, and, -determining that one or more execution condition for a CLTM candidate cell for which the UE has a valid TA are fulfilled.

[0056] Embodiment 10: A method according to Embodiments 1-9 , wherein determining whether to start to monitor the PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate when the LTM or CLTM cell switch is initiated (and wait to receive a grant from the network) or send an SR to request a grant from the network and start to monitor PDCCH (once the SR is sent) is according to one or more rules.

[0057] Embodiment 11. A method according to Embodiments 1-10, wherein the UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate according to whether the periodicity of the SR occasions as configured in the indicated LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration is below a threshold

[0058] Embodiment 12. A method according to Embodiments 1-11, wherein he UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate according to whether the periodicity of the SR occasion as configured in the indicated LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration is above a threshold.

[0059] Embodiment 13. A method according to Embodiments 1-12, wherein the UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate for the duration of a timer T and when the timer T expires the UE sends an SR to the network to request a grant (by continuing to monitor PDCCH).

[0060] Embodiment 14. A method according to Embodiments 1-13, wherein the UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate for a maximum number of slots, or subframes, or frames and when the maximum number of slots, or subframes, or frames is reached the UE sends an SR to the network to request a grant (by continuing to monitor PDCCH).

[0061] Embodiment 15. A method according to Embodiments 1-14, wherein the UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate and then monitor PDCCH according to whether an early synchronization procedure has been performed for the indicated LTM or CLTM candidate cell for which the LTM or CLTM cell switch needs to be executed.

[0062] Embodiment 16. A method according to Embodiments 1-15, wherein the UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate and then monitor PDCCH according to whether the UE has a valid TA for the LTM or CLTM candidate cell for which the LTM or CLTM cell switch needs to be executed.

[0063] Embodiment 17. A method according to Embodiments 1-16, wherein the UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate and then monitor PDCCH according to whether for the LTM or CLTM candidatecell configuration for which the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure need to be executed the UE has performed the early ASN.1 decoding and compliant check.

[0064] Embodiment 18. A method according to Embodiments 1-17, wherein the UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate and then monitor PDCCH according to whether a special SR configuration is part of the LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration for which the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure need to be executed.

[0065] Embodiment 19. A method according to Embodiments 1-18, wherein the UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate and then monitor PDCCH according to whether for the indicated LTM or CLTM candidate cell a previous LTM or CLTM cell switch has been performed and the UE has either monitored PDCCH or has send first an SR and then started to monitor PDCCH.

[0066] Embodiment 20. A method according to Embodiments 1-19, wherein the UE selectively determines to always monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate right away when an LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure is initiated.

[0067] Embodiment 21. A method according to Embodiments 1-20, wherein the UE selectively determines to always send a SR before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate and then monitor PDCCH when an LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure is initiated.

[0068] Embodiment 22. A method according to Embodiments 1-21, wherein the UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate and then monitor PDCCH according to whether a certain feature is configured within the LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration for which the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure need to be executed.

[0069] Embodiment 23. A method according to Embodiments 1-22, wherein the UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate and then monitor PDCCH according to a function at the UE which generate a random number, one for monitoring the PDCCH right away when the LTM or CLTM cell switch is initiated and one for first sending an SR to the network and then start to monitoring PDCCH.

[0070] Embodiment 24. A method according to Embodiments 1-23, wherein the UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH of the LTM candidate cell before an UL transmission based on an RRC configuration e.g. a field and / or parameter and / or information element.

[0071] Embodiment 25. A method according to Embodiments 1-24, wherein the UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH of the LTM candidate cell before an ULtransmission based on an indication in the LTM Cell Switch Command e.g. a field and / or parameter and / or information element in a MAC Control Element, or a light RRC message.

[0072] Embodiment 26. A method according to Embodiments 1-25, wherein the UE may use a combination of two or more of the rules for the selection of a suitable cell. For example, it may determine to start monitoring PDCCH right away when the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure is initiated on a first rule X and a second rule Y, or based on a first rule X, a second rule Y and a third rule Z, and so on.Detailed description of the methods

[0073] 1) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate and then monitor PDCCH according to whether the periodicity of the SR occasions as configured in the selected LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration is below a threshold.In one embodiment, the SR configuration with is part of the LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration (of the candidate cell which the UE selects to perform the LTM execution) may include one or more SR periodicity to be used by the UE, depending on what SR configuration is used or selected by the UE. If the SR configuration which is used or selected by the UE has a SR occasion periodicity which is below a threshold i.e. SR occasions happen quite often, this means that the UE may send the SR in a faster way when performing the LTM or CLTM cell switch. According to this embodiment, the UE starts to monitor the PDCCH as soon as the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure is initiated, before sending an SR. After a number of PDCCH occasions with the network not scheduling any grant, the UE can react timely and send an SR (for asking the network for a grant) - without further increasing the mobility delay and the handover interruption.- To measure this, in a test lab environment we may perform multiple simulations whether we provide the UE one LTM or CLTM candidate configuration with a different SR occasion periodicity in each simulation. We would notice that when the periodicity is above a threshold the UE would select only the same option and this would be observed even if multiple simulations are performed with the same periodicity value.

[0074] 2) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate according to whether the periodicity of the SR occasion as configured in the indicated LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration is above a threshold.- In one embodiment, the SR configuration with is part of the indicated LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration may include one or more SR periodicity to be used by the UE, depending on what SR configuration is used or selected by the UE. If the SR configuration which is used or selected by the UE has a SR occasion periodicity which is above a threshold, this means that the occasions in which the UE can send an SR are not very frequency and thus it may take a considerable time for the UE to request a grant from the network. According to this, the UE may prefer to send an SR as soon as it can when initiating an LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure because monitoring first the PDCCH and send the SR in a subsequent moment may delay the mobility procedure considerably, thus increasing the mobility procedure delay and connectivity interruption. - To measure this, in a test lab environment we may perform multiple simulations whether we provide the UE one LTM or CLTM candidate configuration with a different SR occasion periodicity in each simulation. We would notice that when the periodicity is above a threshold the UE would select only the same option, and this would be observed even if multiple simulations are performed with the same periodicity value.

[0075] 3) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate for the duration of a timer T and when the timer T expires the UE sends an SR to the network to request a grant (by continuing to monitor PDCCH).- In one embodiment, the UE may decide to start to monitor the PDCCH as soon as the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure is initiated, before an UL transmission, as this would be the fastest way to get a grant. However, a network implementation may decide to send a grant to the UE only after an SR is received. Because of this, according to this embodiment, the UE decides to start to monitor the PDCCH only for a certain duration of a timer T; this may be interpreted as a delay tolerance the UE can sustain before asking explicitly a grant to the network via the SR. Therefore, when the timer T expires the UE will send the SR to the UE.a. In one sub-option the expiry value for timer T received by the UE in an RRC configuration from the network.b. In one sub-option the UE stops the timer T when it receives an UL grant in the PDCCH of the selected LTM or CLTM candidate cell.c. In one sub-option the UE stops the timer T when it performs the first UL transmission to the selected LTM or CLTM candidate cell i.e. after it receives the UL grant in response to monitoring the PDCCH of the selected LTM or CLTM candidate cell.- To measure this, in a test lab environment we may trigger the UE to perform multiple LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure and for each cell switch procedure perform we would measure the time e.g., from the sending of the LTM cell switch command, to the time on which the SR is received. If for every LTM cell switch procedure the time measured is about the same, this means that the UE is implemented to use a timer before sending the SR to the network. To understand whether the UE is also monitoring the PDCCH right away when the LTM cell switch procedure is initiated, we could send a grant to the UE (before receiving the SR) and observe if the UE sends an RRCReconfigurationComplete message to complete the cell switch procedure.

[0076] 4) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate for a maximum number of slots, or subframes, or frames and when the maximum number of slots, or subframes, or frames is reached without the UE having received an UL grant the UE sends an SR to the network to request a grant (by continuing to monitor PDCCH).- In one embodiment, the UE may decide to start to monitor the PDCCH as soon as the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure is initiated, as this would be the fastest way to get a grant. However, a network implementation may decide to send a grant to the UE only after an SR is received. Because of this, the UE may decide to start to monitor the PDCCH only for a certain duration which can be characterized in a maximum number of slots, subframes, or frames, which are somehow the delay tolerance the UE can sustain before asking explicitly a grant to the network via the SR. Therefore, when the maximum number of slots, subframes, frames is reached, the UE will send the SR to the UE.- To measure this, in a test lab environment we may trigger the UE to perform multiple LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure and for each cell switch procedure perform we would measure number of slots, subframes, frames from the sending of the LTM cell switch command to when the SR is received. If for every LTM cell switch procedure, the number of slots, subframes, frames is about the same, this means that the UE is implemented to use a maximumnumber of slots, subframes, frames before sending the SR to the network. To understand whether the UE is also monitoring the PDCCH right away when the LTM cell switch procedure is initiated, we could send a grant to the UE (before receiving the SR) and observe if the UE sends an RRCReconfigurationComplete message to complete the cell switch procedure.

[0077] 5) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate according to whether an early synchronization procedure has been performed for the indicated LTM or CLTM candidate cell for which the LTM or CLTM cell switch needs to be executed.- In one embodiment, if the UE has already performed an early synchronization procedure for an LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration, this is an indication that network (candidate network node in this case) is ready to accommodate the UE if an LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure will take place. According to this, a UE may determine to start to monitor the PDCCH right away when performing an LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure has the network may already send a grant without even waiting for the UE to send an SR.- To measure this, in a test lab environment we may trigger the UE to perform an early synchronization procedure or one or more LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration and later trigger also an LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure for the LTM or CLTM candidate cell for which an early synchronization procedure has been performed. According to the result we would observe whether for each cell switch procedure the UE sends an SR or not. For the LTM or CLTM candidate cells for which an early synchronization procedure has been performed, we would observe the UE not sending the SR, whereas for the LTM or CLTM candidate cells for which an early synchronization procedure has not been performed the UE would always send an SR.

[0078] 6) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate according to whether the UE has a valid TA for the LTM or CLTM candidate cell for which the LTM or CLTM cell switch needs to be executed.- In one embodiment, if the UE has already performed an UL early synchronization procedure for an LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration, this is an indication that network (candidate network node in this case) is ready to accommodate the UE if an LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure will take place, since the cell switch procedure will be RACH-less. According to this, aUE may determine to start to monitor the PDCCH right away when performing an LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure has the network may already send a grant without even waiting for the UE to send an SR.- To measure this, in a test lab environment we may trigger the UE to perform an UL early synchronization procedure or one or more LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration and later trigger also an LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure for the LTM or CLTM candidate cell for which the UE has a valid TA available. According to the result we would observe whether for each cell switch procedure the UE sends an SR or not. For the LTM or CLTM candidate cells for which the UE has a valid TA available, we would observe the UE not sending the SR, whereas for the LTM or CLTM candidate cells for which a UE has no valid TA, the UE would always send an SR.

[0079] 7) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate according to whether for the LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration for which the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure need to be executed the UE has performed the early ASN.1 decoding and compliant check.- In one embodiment, the UE reports to the network that is capable of performing early ASN.1 decoding and compliant check if certain conditions are fulfilled. In this case, the network configured the UE such that the conditions for performing early ASN.1 decoding and compliant check on one or more LTM candidate cell configurations are fulfilled. This is an indication for the UE that the network wants to perform the LTM or CLTM mobility procedure as fast as possible and this could be also an indication for the UE to determine that it could start monitoring the PDCCH right away when the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure is initiated (since this is the fastest way for the UE to get a grant). - To measure this, in a test lab environment we may configure a UE, which is capable of performing early ASN.1 decoding and compliant check, with one or more LTM candidate cell configuration so that the conditions for the UE to perform the early ASN.1 decoding and compliant check are fulfilled. According to this, if multiple LTM or CLTM cell switch procedures are triggered, we could observe that UE never sends an SR in case the one or more configured LTM or CLTM candidate cell configurations fulfill the conditions for the UE to perform the early ASN.l decoding and compliant check. Otherwise, if the configured one or more LTM or CLTM candidate cell configurations do not fulfill thecondition for performing the early ASN.1 decoding and compliant check, then the UE will always send an SR to the network when the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure is triggered.

[0080] 8) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate according to whether a special SR configuration is part of the LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration for which the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure needs to be executed.- In one embodiment, a special SR configuration which the UE should use only when an LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure can be part of one or more LTM or CLTM candidate cell configurations. In this case, if such special SR configuration is included in the LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration that the UE is applying during an LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure, the UE will send an SR to the network as soon as possible when the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure is initiated.- This special SR may be something that could be specified, and to be used primarily for LTM.

[0081] 9) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate according to whether for the selected LTM or CLTM candidate cell a previous LTM or CLTM cell switch has been performed and the UE has either monitored PDCCH or has sent first an SR and then started to monitor PDCCH.In one embodiment, the UE keeps track if for each LTM or CLTM candidate cell to which the UE has performed a LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure whether a grant has been received before sending the SR or before the SR occasions were coming. In this case, this is an indication that the network typically sends the grant without really needing to receive an SR from the UE. Therefore, for every LTM or CLTM cell switch performed toward that particular LTM or CLTM candidate cell, the UE determines to monitor the PDCCH right away when the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure is initiated as the network will provide a grant without the need to receive an SR.In other words, the UE determines to monitor a PDCCH occasion of the LTM candidate before an UL transmission a second time, when the UE has monitored a PDCCH occasion of the same LTM candidate (before an UL transmission) a first time and has received an UL grant before the first UL transmission.- To measure this, in a test lab environment we may trigger the UE to perform multiple LTM or CLTM cell switch procedures and for each cell switch procedure observe whether the UE sends an SR or not. If the UE is adopting this option, we would observe the UE sending the SR in the initial LTM or CLTM cell switch procedures and later on observing the UE not sending any SR anymore.

[0082] 10) The UE selectively determines to always monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate when an LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure is initiated.

[0083] 11) The UE selectively determines to always send a SR before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate and then monitor PDCCH when an LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure is initiated

[0084] 12) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate according to whether a certain feature is configured within the LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration for which the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure needs to be executed.- In one embodiment, the UE may determine what option to use whether a certain feature is configured for, or is part, of an LTM or CLTM candidate cell configuration. Possible example of features can be the early UL or DL synchronization configuration, or a special SR, or a configuration so that UE would be capable of performing an early ASN.1 decoding and compliant check. Such features can be an implicit indication for the UE that the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure should be executed as fast as possible and, for instance, according to this the UE will determine that it should monitor the PDCCH as soon as possible when the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure is initiated.

[0085] 13) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate before UL transmission according to a function at the UE which generate a random number, one for monitoring the PDCCH right away when the LTM or CLTM cell switch is initiated and one for first sending an SR to the network and then start monitoring PDCCH.

[0086] 14) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate and then monitor PDCCH according to whether the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure is executed at the MCG or SCG

[0087] 15) The UE selectively determines to monitor PDCCH before the first UL transmission to the LTM candidate and then monitor PDCCH according to whether the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure is executed at the SpCell (PCell or PSCell) or SCell.

[0088] In a dependent method, the UE may use a combination of two or more of the rules for the selection of a suitable cell. For example, it may determine to start monitoring PDCCH right away when the LTM or CLTM cell switch procedure is initiated on a first rule X and a second rule Y, or based on a first rule X, a second rule Y and a third rule Z, and so on.

[0089] Figure 3 is a flow chart illustrating an exemplary method for a RACH-less LTM Cell Switch procedure. Referring to Figure 3, in block 302, the method includes receiving a configuration comprising one or more LTM candidate cell configurations. In some embodiments, a UE is configured to receive the LTM configuration from the network node. In block 304, the method includes receiving a RACH-less LTM cell switch command from a serving cell, to switch cell from the serving cell to a target LTM candidate cell. In some embodiments, the UE is configured to receive the RACH-less LTM cell switch command from the network node. Optionally, the method includes, applying the target LTM candidate cell configuration, block 306. In block 308, the method includes, in response to at least one condition related to RACH-less LTM cell switch being fulfilled, transmitting, to the target LTM candidate cell, a scheduling request, SR, to request an uplink, UL, grant. The at least one condition is based on:-the SR occasions configured in the target LTM candidate cell configuration. -monitoring a Physical Downlink Control Channel, PDCCH, from the target LTM candidate cell. In some embodiments, the UE is configured to transmit the UL signal during the UL resource occasion in response to receiving the trigger. In some embodiments the at least one condition is based on one or more of:-the expiry of a time during which the wireless device monitors the PDCCH, -whether early synchronization of the target LTM candidate cell has been performed, and-whether the wireless device has a valid timing advance, TA, value for the target LTM candidate cell.

[0090] In block 310, the method includes, monitoring a Physical Downlink Control Channel, PDCCH, from the target LTM candidate cell. In block 312, the method includes, receiving the PDCCH comprising the UL grant for MSG 3 transmission from the target LTM candidate cell.

[0091] Optionally, the method includes, transmitting the Msg 3 on a Physical Uplink Shared Channel of the target LTM candidate cell, block 314.

[0092] Figure 4 shows an example of a communication system QQ100 in accordance with some embodiments.

[0093] In the example, the communication system QQ100 includes a telecommunications network QQ102 that includes an access network QQ104, such as a radio access network (RAN), and a core network QQ106, which includes one or more core network nodes QQ108. The access network QQ104 includes one or more access network nodes or base stations of various types, access network nodes QQ110A and QQ110B are depicted (which may be collectively referred to as network nodes QQ110), or any other similar 3rdGeneration Partnership Project (3GPP) access nodes or non-3GPP access points (APs). Some embodiments of the access network QQ104 may include more than one access network technology. The network nodes QQ110 of access network QQ104 facilitate direct or indirect connection of wireless devices, also referred to as user equipments (UEs), such as by connecting UEs QQ112A, QQ112B, QQ112C, and QQ112D (one or more of which may be generally referred to as UEs QQ112) to the core network QQ106 over one or more wireless connections.

[0094] 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 QQ102 includes one or more Open-RAN (ORAN) network nodes. An ORAN network node is a network node in the telecommunications network QQ102 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 QQ102, including one or more access network nodes QQ110 and / or core network nodes QQ108.

[0095] 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 Al, Fl, Wl, El, E2, X2, Xn interface, an open fronthauluser 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 0-RAN Alliance or comparable technologies.

[0096] The network nodes QQ110 facilitate direct or indirect connection of one or more UEs QQ112 to the core network QQ106 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 QQ100 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 QQ100 may include and / or interface with any type of communication, telecommunication, data, cellular, radio network, and / or other similar type of system.

[0097] The UEs QQ112 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 QQ110 and other communication devices. Similarly, the network nodes QQ108, QQ110 are arranged, capable, configured, and / or operable to communicate directly or indirectly (e.g., via other devices of telecommunications network QQ102) with the UEs QQ112 and / or with other network nodes or equipment in the telecommunications network QQ102 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 QQ102. More specifically, UEs QQ112 may send messages, data, and / or other signals to network nodes QQ108, QQ110 or other elements of the telecommunications network QQ102 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 QQ108, QQ110 may send messages, data, and other signals to UEs QQ1122, other network nodes QQ108, QQ110, and other devices in telecommunications network QQ102 directly or indirectly. As one specific example, a core network node 108 maytransmit a particular message to a UE QQ112 by transmitting the message to an access network node QQ110 that will then transmit the message to the intended UE QQ112. Similarly, a core network node 108 may receive a particular message from a UE QQ112 by receiving the message from an access network node QQ110 that itself received the message from the UE QQ112.

[0098] In the depicted example, the core network QQ106 connects elements of the access network QQ104 (e.g., one or more of the network nodes QQ110) to one or more host computing systems, such as host QQ116. 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 QQ106 includes one or more core network nodes (e.g., core network node QQ108) of various types, one or more of which may be generally referred to as network nodes QQ108. Network nodes QQ108 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 QQ108. 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).

[0099] The host QQ116 may be under the ownership or control of a service provider other than an operator or provider of the access network QQ104 and / or the telecommunications network QQ102. The host QQ116 may be operated by the service provider or on behalf of the service provider. The host QQ116 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.

[0100] As a whole, the communication system QQ100 of Figure 4 enables connectivity between the UEs, network nodes, and hosts. In that sense, the communication system QQ100 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 (Wi-Fi); 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 QQ100 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 QQ100 supporting different standards, protocols, or rule sets.

[0101] As one example, in certain embodiments, access network QQ104 may contain some access network nodes QQ110 that support 3 GPP radio access technologies (RAT), such as LTE or NR, while other access network nodes QQ110 support (or the same access network nodes QQ110 additionally support) non-3GPP RATs, such as Wi-Fi or a proprietary RAT. As another example, telecommunications network QQ102 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.

[0102] Telecommunications network QQ102 may support network slicing to provide different logical networks to different devices that are connected to the telecommunications network QQ102. For example, the telecommunications network QQ102 may provide Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communication (URLLC) services to some UEs, while providing Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) services to other UEs, and / or Massive Machine Type Communication (mMTC) / Massive loT services to yet further UEs.

[0103] In some examples, one or more of the UEs QQ112 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 QQ104 on a predetermined schedule, when triggered by an internal or external event, or in response to requests from the access network QQ104. Additionally, a UE may be configured for operating in single- or multi -RAT or multistandard 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), suchas E-UTRAN (Evolved-UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network) New Radio - Dual Connectivity (EN-DC).

[0104] In the example, the hub QQ114 communicates with the access network QQ104 to facilitate indirect communication between one or more UEs (e.g., UE QQ112C and / or QQ112D) and network nodes (e.g., network node QQ110B). In some examples, the hub QQ114 may be a controller, router, content source and analytics, or any of the other communication devices described herein regarding UEs. For example, the hub QQ114 may be a broadband router enabling access to the core network QQ106 for the UEs. As another example, the hub QQ114 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 QQ110, or by executable code, script, process, or other instructions in the hub QQ114.

[0105] As another example, the hub QQ114 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 QQ114 may be a content source. For example, for a UE that is a VR headset, display, loudspeaker or other media delivery device, the hub QQ114 may retrieve VR assets, video, audio, or other media or data related to sensory information via a network node, which the hub QQ114 then provides to the UE either directly, after performing local processing, and / or after adding additional local content. In still another example, the hub QQ114 acts as a proxy server or orchestrator for the UEs, in particular if one or more of the UEs are low energy loT devices.

[0106] The hub QQ114 may have a constant / persistent or intermittent connection to the network node QQ110B. The hub QQ114 may also allow for a different communication scheme and / or schedule between the hub QQ114 and UEs (e.g., UE QQ112C and / or QQ112D), and between the hub QQ114 and the core network QQ106. In other examples, the hub QQ114 is connected to the core network QQ106 and / or one or more UEs via a wired connection. Moreover, the hub QQ114 may be configured to connect to an M2M service provider over the access network QQ104 and / or to another UE over a direct connection. In some scenarios, UEs may establish a wireless connection with the network nodes QQ110 while still connected via the hub QQ114 via a wired or wireless connection. In some embodiments, the hub QQ114 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 QQ110B. In other embodiments, the hub QQ114 may be a non-dedicated hub - that is, a device which is capable of operating to route communications between the UEs and network node QQ110B, but which is additionally capable of operating as a communication start and / or end point for certain data channels.

[0107] Figure 5 is another example of a communication system QQ200 according to some embodiments. As used herein, the communication system QQ200 includes multiple access points (APs) QQ210 (with four exemplary APs QQ210A, QQ210B, QQ210C, and QQ210D being depicted) and multiple wireless devices, referred to in the context of communication system QQ200 as stations (STAs) QQ212 (referred to individually as STA QQ212A, STA QQ212B, STA QQ212C, STA QQ212D, and STA QQ212E). STA QQ212A is served by AP QQ210A in a first basic service set (BSS) QQ220A. STA QQ210B and STA QQ210C are served by AP QQ210B in a second BSS, BSS QQ220B. STA QQ212D is served by AP QQ210C in a third BSS, BSS QQ220C. STA QQ212E is served by AP QQ210D in a fourth BSS, BSS QQ220D. Stations QQ212 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 QQ212 could, for example, correspond to other kinds of equipment like smart home devices, printers, multimedia devices, data storage devices, or the like.

[0108] Each of STAs QQ212 may connect through a radio link to one of APs QQ210. For example, depending on location or channel conditions experienced by a given STA QQ212, 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 contention-based 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.

[0109] Each AP QQ210 may provide data connectivity to STAs QQ212 connected to a particular AP QQ210. As illustrated, APs QQ210 may be connected to a data network QQ230. In this way, APs QQ210 may also provide data connectivity between STAs QQ212 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 QQ212 and its serving AP QQ210 may be used for providing various kinds of services to STA QQ212, e.g., a voice service, a multimedia service, or other data service. Such services may be based on applications that are executed on STA QQ212 and / or on a device linked to STA QQ212. By way of example, Figure 5 illustrates an application service platform QQ232 provided in data network QQ230. The application(s) executed on STA QQ212 and / or on one or more other devices linked to STA QQ212 may use the radio link for data communication with one or more other STA QQ212and / or the application service platform QQ232, thereby enabling utilization of the corresponding service(s) at STA QQ212.

[0110] Figure 6 shows a wireless device QQ300, which may be configured to operate in communication system QQ100 of Figure 4 or in communication system QQ200 of Figure 5. The wireless device QQ300 may be alternatively referred to as a UE QQ300, like a UE QQ112 within the context of communication system QQ100, or as a station (STA) QQ300 or as a nonaccess-point station (non-AP STA) QQ300, like a STA QQ212 within the context of the communication system QQ200, 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 (3 GPP), including a narrow band internet of things (NB-IoT) UE, a machine type communication (MTC) UE, and / or an enhanced MTC (eMTC) UE.[OHl] A wireless device QQ300 may support device-to-device (D2D) communication, for example by implementing a 3 GPP 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 QQ300 may not necessarily have a user in the sense of a human user who owns and / or operates the relevant device. Instead, wireless device QQ300 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 QQ300 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).

[0112] In particular embodiments, wireless device QQ300 includes processing circuitry QQ302 that is operatively coupled via a bus QQ304 to an input / output interface QQ306, a power source QQ308, a memory QQ310, a communication interface QQ312, and / or any other component, or any combination thereof. Certain embodiments of wireless device QQ300 may include all or a subset of the components shown in Figure 6. The level of integration betweenthe components may vary from one embodiment of wireless device QQ300 to another. In general, in a particular embodiment of wireless device QQ300, processing circuitry QQ302, input / output interface QQ306, power source QQ308, memory QQ310, and communication interface QQ312 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 QQ300. Further, certain embodiments of wireless devices QQ300 may contain multiple instances of a component, such as multiple processors, memories, transceivers, transmitters, receivers, etc.

[0113] The processing circuitry QQ302 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 QQ310. The processing circuitry QQ302 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 QQ302 may include multiple central processing units (CPUs).

[0114] In the example, the input / output interface QQ306 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 QQ300. 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.

[0115] In some embodiments, the power source QQ308 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 tocharge an associated battery. The power source QQ308 may further include power circuitry for delivering power from the power source QQ308 itself, and / or an external power source, to the various parts of wireless device QQ300 via input circuitry or an interface such as an electrical power cable. Power source QQ308 may perform any formatting, converting, or other modification to make accessible power suitable for the respective components of the wireless device QQ300 to which power is supplied.

[0116] The memory QQ310 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 QQ310 includes one or more programs QQ314, such as an operating system, web browser application, a widget, gadget engine, or other application, and corresponding data QQ316. The memory QQ310 may store, for use by wireless device QQ300, any of a variety of various operating systems or combinations of operating systems.

[0117] The memory QQ310 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 (eUICC), integrated UICC (iUICC) or a removable UICC commonly known as ‘SIM card.’ The memory QQ310 may allow wireless device QQ300 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 QQ310, which may be or comprise a device-readable storage medium.

[0118] The processing circuitry QQ302 may be configured to communicate with an access network or other network via or using the communication interface QQ312. The communication interface QQ312 may comprise one or more communication subsystems and may include or be communicatively coupled to an antenna QQ322. The communicationinterface QQ312 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 QQ318 and / or a receiver QQ320 appropriate to provide network communications (e.g., optical, electrical, frequency allocations, and so forth). Moreover, the transmitter QQ318 and receiver QQ320 may be coupled to one or more antennas (e.g., antenna QQ322) and may share circuit components, software or firmware, or alternatively be implemented separately.

[0119] In the illustrated embodiment, communication functions of the communication interface QQ312 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. 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.

[0120] In particular embodiments, wireless device QQ300 may provide an output of data captured via a sensor, through its communication interface QQ312, via a wireless connection to a network node, and / or in any appropriate manner. Data captured by sensors of a wireless device QQ300 can be communicated through a wireless connection to a network node via another wireless device QQ300. 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).

[0121] As another example, wireless device QQ300 comprises an actuator, a motor, or a switch, related to a communication interface configured to receive wireless input from a network node via a wireless connection. In response to the received wireless input the states of the actuator, the motor, or the switch may change. For example, wireless device QQ300 may comprise a motor that adjusts the control surfaces or rotors of a drone in flight according to thereceived input or to a robotic arm performing a medical procedure according to the received input.

[0122] Wireless device QQ300, 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 QQ300 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 QQ300 shown in Figure 6.

[0123] As yet another specific example, in an loT scenario, wireless device QQ300 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 QQ300 may in this case be an M2M device, which may in a 3 GPP context be referred to as an MTC device. As one particular example, wireless device QQ300 may implement the 3GPP NB-IoT standard. In other scenarios, wireless device QQ300 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.

[0124] In practice, any number of wireless devices QQ300 may be used together with respect to a single use case. For example, a first wireless device QQ300 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 QQ300 that is a remote controller operating the drone. When a user makes changes from the remote controller, the first wireless device QQ300 may adjust the throttle on the drone (e.g. by controlling an actuator) to increase or decrease thedrone’s speed. The first and / or the second wireless device QQ300 can also include more than one of the functionalities described above. For example, wireless device QQ300 might comprise the sensor and the actuator, and handle communication of data for both the speed sensor and the actuators.

[0125] Figure 7 shows a network node QQ400 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 QQ400 may be configured to operate in communication system QQ100 of Figure 3, like network nodes QQ108 or QQ110, or in communication system QQ200 of Figure 5, like an AP QQ210 or a station QQ212. 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).

[0126] Network nodes QQ400 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 QQ400 may be a relay node or a relay donor node controlling a relay. Network nodes QQ400 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).

[0127] Other examples of network nodes QQ400 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).

[0128] In particular embodiments, network node QQ400 includes a processing circuitry QQ402, a memory QQ404, a communication interface QQ406, and a power source QQ408. Ingeneral, in a particular embodiment of network node QQ400, processing circuitry QQ402, memory QQ404, communication interface QQ406, and power source QQ408 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 QQ400.

[0129] The network node QQ400 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 QQ400 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 QQ400 may be configured to support multiple radio access technologies (RATs). In such embodiments, some components may be duplicated (e.g., separate memories QQ404 or portions of memory QQ404 for different RATs) and some components may be reused (e.g., a same antenna QQ410 may be shared by different RATs). The network node QQ400 may also include multiple sets of the various illustrated components for different wireless technologies integrated into network node QQ400, 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 QQ400.

[0130] The processing circuitry QQ402 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 QQ404, to provide network node QQ400 functionality.

[0131] In some embodiments, the processing circuitry QQ402 includes a system on a chip (SOC). In some embodiments, the processing circuitry QQ402 includes one or more of radio frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry QQ412 and baseband processing circuitry QQ414. In some embodiments, the RF transceiver circuitry QQ412 and the baseband processing circuitry QQ414 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 QQ412 and baseband processing circuitry QQ414 may be on the same chip or set of chips, boards, or units.

[0132] The memory QQ404 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 computerexecutable memory devices that store information, data, and / or instructions that may be used by the processing circuitry QQ402. The memory QQ404 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 QQ402 and utilized by the network node QQ400. The memory QQ404 may be used to store any calculations made by the processing circuitry QQ402 and / or any data received via the communication interface QQ406. In some embodiments, the processing circuitry QQ402 and memory QQ404 is integrated.

[0133] The communication interface QQ406 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 QQ406 comprises port(s) / terminal(s) QQ416 to send and receive data, for example to and from a network over a wired connection. In particular embodiments, network node QQ300 may be capable of wireless communication and communication interface QQ406 may also include radio front-end circuitry QQ418 that may be coupled to, or in certain embodiments a part of, an antenna QQ410. Particular embodiments of radio front-end circuitry QQ418 include filter(s) QQ420 and amplifier(s) QQ422. The radio front-end circuitry QQ418 may be connected to an antenna QQ410 and processing circuitry QQ402. The radio front-end circuitry may be configured to condition signals communicated between antenna QQ410 and processing circuitry QQ402. The radio front-end circuitry QQ418 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 QQ418 may convert the digital data into a radio signal(s) having the appropriate channel and bandwidth parameters using a combination of filters QQ420 and / or amplifiers QQ422. The radio signal(s) may then be transmitted via the antenna QQ410. Similarly, when receiving data, the antenna QQ410 may collect radio signals which are then converted into digital data by the radio front-end circuitry QQ418. The digital data may be passed to the processing circuitry QQ402. In other embodiments, the communication interface may comprise different components and / or different combinations of components.

[0134] In certain alternative embodiments, network node QQ400 may be capable of wireless communication but does not include separate radio front-end circuitry QQ418, instead, the processing circuitry QQ402 includes radio front-end circuitry and is connected to the antenna QQ410. Similarly, in some embodiments, all or some of the RF transceiver circuitry QQ412 is part of the communication interface QQ406. In still other embodiments, the communication interface QQ406 includes one or more ports or terminals QQ416, the radio front-end circuitry QQ418, and the RF transceiver circuitry QQ412, as part of a radio unit (not shown), and the communication interface QQ406 communicates with the baseband processing circuitry QQ414, which is part of a digital unit (not shown).

[0135] The antenna QQ410 may include one or more antennas, or antenna arrays, configured to send and / or receive wireless signals. The antenna QQ410 may be coupled to the radio front-end circuitry QQ418 and may be any type of antenna capable of transmitting and receiving data and / or signals wirelessly. In certain embodiments, the antenna QQ410 is separate from the network node QQ400 and connectable to the network node QQ400 through one or more interfaces or ports.

[0136] The antenna QQ410, communication interface QQ406, and / or the processing circuitry QQ402 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 QQ400. Any information, data and / or signals may be received from a UE, another network node and / or any other network equipment. Similarly, the antenna QQ410, the communication interface QQ406, and / or the processing circuitry QQ402 may be configured to perform some or all of the transmitting or sending operations described herein as being performed by the network node QQ400. Any information, data and / or signals may be transmitted to a UE, another network node and / or any other network equipment.

[0137] The power source QQ408 provides power to the various components of network node QQ400 in a form suitable for the respective components (e.g., at a voltage and current level needed for each respective component). The power source QQ408 may further comprise, or be coupled to, power management circuitry to supply the components of the network node QQ400 with power for performing the functionality described herein. For example, the network node QQ400 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 QQ408. As a further example, the power source QQ408 may comprise a source of power in the form of abattery or battery pack which is connected to, or integrated in, power circuitry. The battery may provide backup power should the external power source fail.

[0138] Embodiments of the network node QQ400 may include additional components beyond those shown in Figure 7 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 QQ400 may include user interface equipment to allow input of information into the network node QQ400 and to allow output of information from the network node QQ400. This may allow a user to perform diagnostic, maintenance, repair, and other administrative functions for the network node QQ400.

[0139] Figure 8 is a block diagram illustrating a virtualization environment QQ500 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 QQ500 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 QQ500 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.

[0140] Applications QQ502 (which may alternatively be called software instances, virtual appliances, network functions, virtual nodes, virtual network functions, etc.) are run in the virtualization environment Q400 to implement some of the features, functions, and / or benefits of some of the embodiments disclosed herein.

[0141] Hardware QQ504 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 QQ506 (also referred to as hypervisors or virtual machine monitors (VMMs)), provide VMQQ508A and VM QQ508B (which may be collectively referred to as VMs QQ508), and / or perform any of the functions, features and / or benefits described in relation with some embodiments described herein. The virtualization layer QQ506 may present a virtual operating platform that appears like networking hardware to one or more of the VMs QQ508.

[0142] The VMs QQ508 comprise virtual processing, virtual memory, virtual networking or interface and virtual storage, and may be run by virtualization layer QQ506. Different embodiments of the instance of a virtual appliance QQ502 may be implemented on one or more of VMs QQ508, and the implementations may be made in different ways. Virtualization of the hardware is in some contexts referred to as network function virtualization (NFV). NFV may be used to consolidate many network equipment types onto industry standard high volume server hardware, physical switches, and physical storage, which can be located in data centers, and customer premise equipment.

[0143] In the context of NFV, each of the VMs QQ508 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 QQ508, and that part of hardware QQ504 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 QQ508 on top of the hardware QQ504 and corresponds to an application QQ502.

[0144] Hardware QQ504 may be implemented in a standalone network node with generic or specific components. Hardware QQ504 may implement some functions via virtualization. Alternatively, hardware QQ504 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 QQ510, which, among others, oversees lifecycle management of applications QQ502. In some embodiments, hardware QQ504 is coupled to one or more radio units that each include one or more transmitters and one or more receivers that may be coupled to one or more antennas. Radio units may communicate directly with other hardware nodes via one or more appropriate network interfaces and may be used in combination with the virtual components to provide a virtual node with radio capabilities, such as a radio access node or a base station. In some embodiments, some signaling can be provided with the use of a control system QQ512 which may alternatively be used for communication between hardware nodes and radio units.

[0145] Although the computing devices described herein (e.g., UEs, network nodes, hosts) may include the illustrated combination of hardware components, other embodiments maycomprise 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.

[0146] In certain embodiments, some or all of the functionality described herein may be provided by processing circuitry executing instructions stored on in memory, which in certain embodiments may be a computer program product in the form of a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. In alternative embodiments, some or all of the functionality may be provided by the processing circuitry without executing instructions stored on a separate or discrete device-readable storage medium, such as in a hard-wired manner. In any of those particular embodiments, whether executing instructions stored on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium or not, the processing circuitry can be configured to perform the described functionality. The benefits provided by such functionality are not limited to the processing circuitry alone or to other components of the computing device, but are enjoyed by the computing device as a whole, and / or by end users and a wireless network generally.EMBODIMENTS:Group A Embodiments1. A method performed by a wireless device for a Random Access Channel-less, RACH-less, Ll / L2-Triggered Mobility, LTM, Cell Switch procedure, the method comprising:-receiving (302) a configuration comprising one or more LTM candidate cellconfigurations;-receiving (304) a RACH-less LTM cell switch command from a serving cell, to switch cell from the serving cell to a target LTM candidate cell;in response to at least one condition related to RACH-less LTM cell switch being fulfilled,-transmitting (308), to the target LTM candidate cell, a scheduling request, SR, to request an uplink, UL, grant, wherein the at least one condition is based on one or more of-the SR occasions configured in the target LTM candidate cell configuration, -the expiry of a time during which the wireless device monitors the PDCCH, -whether early synchronization of the target LTM candidate cell has been performed, and-whether the wireless device has a valid timing advance, TA, value for the target LTM candidate cell;-monitoring (310) a Physical Downlink Control Channel, PDCCH, from the target LTM candidate cell ;-receiving (312) the PDCCH comprising the UL grant for MSG 3 transmission from the target LTM candidate cell.2. The method of embodiment 1, wherein the at least one condition is based on at least one or more of-whether the wireless device has performed the early ASN.1 decoding and compliant check for the LTM candidate cell configuration,-whether a special SR configuration is part of the target LTM candidate cell configuration,- whether a previous LTM cell switch has been performed to the target LTM candidate cell and the wireless device either monitored PDCCH or first sent a SR and then started to monitor PDCCH, and- a random number generated by a function at the wireless device, the random number indicates whether the wireless device should first be one sending an SR to the network and then start to monitoring PDCCH or whether the wireless device should monitoring the PDCCH right away when the LTM cell switch is initiated.3. The method of embodiments 1 or 2, further comprising one or more of- receiving a command from the network which comprises an LTM candidate cellconfiguration ID, and a TA value;- receiving a command from the network which comprises an LTM candidate cell configuration ID for which the UE has already a valid TA; and- determining that one or more execution condition for a conditional LTM candidate cell for which the wireless device has a valid TA are fulfilled.4. The method of embodiments 1-3, further comprising:-applying (306) the target LTM candidate cell configuration.5. The method of embodiments 1-4, further comprising:-transmitting (314) the Msg 3 on a Physical Uplink Shared Channel of the target LTM candidate cell.6. The method of embodiments 1-5, wherein the target LTM candidate cell is a LTM candidate cell or a conditional LTM candidate cell.7. The method of embodiment 1-6, wherein the target LTM candidate cell configuration does not include does not include a configured grant.8. The method of embodiment 1-7, wherein the target LTM candidate cell configuration comprises a configuration of the periodicity of the SR occasions.9. The method of embodiment 1-8, wherein one condition related to RACH-less LTM cell switch if fulfilled if the periodicity of the SR occasions is above a threshold.10. The method of embodiment 1-9, wherein one condition related to RACH-less LTM cell switch if fulfilled if the periodicity of the SR occasions is below a threshold.11. The method of embodiment 1-10, wherein one condition related to RACH-less LTM cell switch if fulfilled if a timer T has expired.12. The method of embodiment 1-11, wherein one condition related to RACH-less LTM cell switch if fulfilled if a predetermined number of slots, or subframes, or frames has been reached.13. The method of any of the previous embodiments, further comprising:providing user data; andforwarding the user data to a host via the transmission to the network node.Group C Embodiments14. A wireless device for a Random Access Channel-less, RACH-less, Ll / L2-Triggered Mobility, LTM, Cell Switch procedure, comprising:processing circuitry configured to perform any of the operations of any of the Group A embodiments; anda power source configured to supply power to the processing circuitry.15. A wireless device for Random Access Channel-less, RACH-less, Ll / L2-Triggered Mobility, LTM, Cell Switch procedure, the wireless device comprising:one or more antennas;communication interface connected to the one or more antennas and to processing circuitry;the processing circuitry being configured to perform any of the operations of any of the Group A embodiments;an input interface connected to the processing circuitry and configured to allow input of information into the UE to be processed by the processing circuitry;an output interface connected to the processing circuitry and configured to output information from the UE that has been processed by the processing circuitry; anda power source connected to the processing circuitry and configured to supply power to the UE.

Claims

Claims1. A method performed by a wireless device for a Random Access Channel-less, RACH-less, Ll / L2-Triggered Mobility, LTM, Cell Switch procedure, the method comprising:-receiving (302) a configuration comprising one or more LTM candidate cell configurations;-receiving (304) a RACH-less LTM cell switch command from a serving cell, to switch cell from the serving cell to a target LTM candidate cell;in response to at least one condition related to RACH-less LTM cell switch being fulfilled,-transmitting (308), to the target LTM candidate cell, a scheduling request, SR, to request an uplink, UL, grant, wherein the at least one condition is based on:-the SR occasions configured in the target LTM candidate cell configuration; -monitoring (310) a Physical Downlink Control Channel, PDCCH, from the target LTM candidate cell ;-receiving (312) the PDCCH comprising the UL grant for MSG 3 transmission from the target LTM candidate cell.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one condition is based on at least one or more of:-the expiry of a time during which the wireless device monitors the PDCCH, -whether early synchronization of the target LTM candidate cell has been performed, -whether the wireless device has a valid timing advance, TA, value for the target LTM candidate cell,-whether the wireless device has performed the early ASN.1 decoding and compliant check for the LTM candidate cell configuration,-whether a special SR configuration is part of the target LTM candidate cell configuration,- whether a previous LTM cell switch has been performed to the target LTM candidate cell and the wireless device either monitored PDCCH or first sent a SR and then started to monitor PDCCH, and- a random number generated by a function at the wireless device, the random number indicates whether the wireless device should first be one sending an SR to the network and then start monitoring PDCCH or whether the wireless device should monitor the PDCCH right away when the LTM cell switch is initiated.

463. The method of claim 1 or 2, further comprising one or more of:- receiving a command from the network which comprises an LTM candidate cell configuration ID, and a TA value;- receiving a command from the network which comprises an LTM candidate cell configuration ID for which the UE has already a valid TA; and- determining that one or more execution condition for a conditional LTM candidate cell for which the wireless device has a valid TA are fulfilled.

4. The method of any of claims 1-3, further comprising:-applying (306) the target LTM candidate cell configuration.

5. The method of any of claims 1-4, further comprising:-transmitting (314) the Msg 3 on a Physical Uplink Shared Channel of the target LTM candidate cell.

6. The method of any of claims 1-5, wherein the target LTM candidate cell is a LTM candidate cell or a conditional LTM candidate cell.

7. The method of any of claims 1-6, wherein the target LTM candidate cell configuration does not include does not include a configured grant.

8. The method of any of claims 1-7, wherein the target LTM candidate cell configuration comprises a configuration of the periodicity of the SR occasions.

9. The method of any of claims 1-8, wherein one condition related to RACH-less LTM cell switch if fulfilled if the periodicity of the SR occasions is above a threshold.

10. The method of any of claims 1-9, wherein one condition related to RACH-less LTM cell switch if fulfilled if the periodicity of the SR occasions is below a threshold.

11. The method of any of claims 1-10, wherein one condition related to RACH-less LTM cell switch if fulfilled if a timer T has expired.4712. The method of any of claims 1-11, wherein one condition related to RACH-less LTM cell switch if fulfilled if a predetermined number of slots, or subframes, or frames has been reached.

13. The method of any of any of claims 1-12, further comprising:providing user data; andforwarding the user data to a host via the transmission to the network node.

14. A wireless device for a Random Access Channel-less, RACH-less, Ll / L2-Triggered Mobility, LTM, Cell Switch procedure, comprising:processing circuitry configured to perform any of the operations of any of claims 1-13; anda power source configured to supply power to the processing circuitry.

15. A wireless device for Random Access Channel-less, RACH-less, Ll / L2-Triggered Mobility, LTM, Cell Switch procedure, the wireless device comprising:one or more antennas;communication interface connected to the one or more antennas and to processing circuitry;the processing circuitry being configured to perform any of the operations of any of claims 1-13;an input interface connected to the processing circuitry and configured to allow input of information into the UE to be processed by the processing circuitry;an output interface connected to the processing circuitry and configured to output information from the UE that has been processed by the processing circuitry; anda power source connected to the processing circuitry and configured to supply power to the UE.48

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