Area-based uplink wake up signal configuration
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- WO · WO
- Patent Type
- Applications
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2025-02-05
- Publication Date
- 2026-08-13
Smart Images
Figure CN2025075847_13082026_PF_FP_ABST
Abstract
Description
AREA-BASED UPLINK WAKE UP SIGNAL CONFIGURATIONTECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present disclosure generally relates to wireless communication, and in particular, to area-based uplink wake up signal configuration.BACKGROUND
[0002] Wireless mobile communication technology uses various standards and protocols to transmit data between a base station and a wireless communication device. Wireless communication system standards and protocols may include, for example, 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Long Term Evolution (LTE) (e.g., 4G) , 3GPP New Radio (NR) (e.g., 5G) , and Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standard for Wireless Local Area Networks (WLAN) (commonly known to industry groups as ) .
[0003] An NR network may support devices that use network energy savings ( “NES” ) features. These types of features provide cost and / or complexity reduction benefits. However, the NES systems may still provide positioning and / or location services that may be impacted because of the network energy saving capabilities of the devices. For example, there are multiple mechanisms to reduce power consumption. Such mechanisms may enhance the user experience by not exhausting a battery of a user equipment (UE) at an inappropriate rate.
[0004] There have been efforts in the relevant standards bodies to support on-demand System Information Block 1 (SIB1) for UE in idle / inactive mode or power-saving mode. These efforts typically involve a triggering method by an uplink (UL) wake-up signal (WUS) using an existing signal / channel. The WUS configuration provisioning is provided to the UE and there may be information exchanged between network nodes (e.g., gNBs) for the configuration of the WUS. As part of NES techniques, the UE may request or demand SIB1 information.
[0005] Improved methods and techniques for on-demand acquisition of the SIB1 information for UEs in idle or inactive mode are desirable. In particular, methods and techniques for more quickly acquiring the on-demand SIB1 information without using too many resources or power might be beneficial.SUMMARY
[0006] Some example embodiments are related to an apparatus having processing circuitry configured toprocess, based on signaling received from a source cell, a System Information Block (SIB) comprising area-based wake-up signal (WUS) configuration information and validity information, process, based on signaling received from a target cell, a Master Information Block (MIB) comprising validation information of a WUS configuration of the target cell, determine, while in an idle or inactive state, to camp on the target cell, generate, for transmission to the target cell, a request for on-demand SIB1 (OD-SIB1) information for the target cell, process, based on signaling received from a target cell, the OD-SIB1 information from the target cellandenter into an RRC_CONNECTED state.
[0007] Other example embodiments are related to an apparatus having processing circuitry configured togenerate, for transmission, a System Information Block (SIB) comprising area-based wake-up signal (WUS) configuration information and validity information andexchange area-based WUS configuration information and validation information with another apparatus, the area-based WUS configuration information including a WUS configuration, an area identifier (Area ID) for the WUS configuration, and a value tag for the WUS configuration.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0008] Fig. 1 illustrates an example network arrangement according to various example embodiments.
[0009] Fig. 2 illustrates an example user equipment (UE) according to various example embodiments.
[0010] Fig. 3 illustrates an example base station according to various example embodiments.
[0011] Fig. 4 illustrates an example wireless communication system for on-demand SIB1 (OD-SIB1) for UEs in idle / inactive mode according to various example embodiments.
[0012] Fig. 5 illustrates an example wireless communication system 500 for area specific SIB for UEs according to various example embodiments.
[0013] Fig. 6 shows an example flow diagram corresponding to communications between a UE and an NES cell for area-based UL WUS configuration and UE behavior according to various example embodiments.Detailed Description
[0014] The example embodiments may be further understood with reference to the following description and the related appended drawings, wherein like elements are provided with the same reference numerals. The example embodiments relate to systems, devices, methods and techniques for area-based uplink (UL) Wake Up Signal (WUS) configuration and UE behavior in on-demand SIB1 (OD-SIB1) acquisition by UEs. Each of these example embodiments will be described in greater detail below.
[0015] The example embodiments are described with regard to a UE. However, reference to a UE is merely provided for illustrative purposes. The example embodiments may be utilized with any electronic component that may establish a connection to an accessory device and is configured with the hardware, software, and / or firmware to exchange information and data with accessory devices. Therefore, the UE as described herein is used to represent any electronic component.
[0016] The example embodiments are also described with reference to a 5G New Radio (NR) network. However, the example embodiments may also be implemented in other types of networks, including but not limited to LTE networks, future evolutions of the cellular protocol (e.g., 5G-advanced networks, 6G networks, etc. ) , or any other type of network.
[0017] Fig. 1 shows an example network arrangement 100 according to various example embodiments. The example network arrangement 100 includes a UE 110. The UE 110 may be any type of electronic component that is configured to communicate via a network, e.g., mobile phones, tablet computers, desktop computers, smartphones, embedded devices, wearables, Internet of Things (IoT) devices, etc. An actual network arrangement may include any number of UEs being used by any number of users. Thus, the example of one UE 110 is merely provided for illustrative purposes.
[0018] The UE 110 may be configured to communicate with one or more networks. In the example of the network arrangement 100, the network with which the UE 110 may wirelessly communicate is a 5G NR radio access network (RAN) 120. However, the UE 110 may also communicate with other types of networks (e.g., 5G cloud RAN, a next generation RAN (NG-RAN) , a legacy cellular network, etc. ) and the UE 110 may also communicate with networks over a wired connection. With regard to the example embodiments, the UE 110 may establish a connection with the 5G NR RAN 120. Therefore, the UE 110 may have a 5G NR chipset to communicate with the NR RAN 120.
[0019] The 5G NR RAN 120 may be portions of a cellular network that may be deployed by a network carrier (e.g., Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, etc. ) . The RAN 120 may include cells or base stations that are configured to send and receive traffic from UEs that are equipped with the appropriate cellular chip set. In this example, the 5G NR RAN 120 includes the gNB 120A. However, reference to a gNB is merely provided for illustrative purposes, any appropriate base station or cell may be deployed (e.g., Node Bs, eNodeBs, HeNBs, eNBs, gNBs, gNodeBs, macrocells, microcells, small cells, femtocells, etc. ) .
[0020] Any association procedure may be performed for the UE 110 to connect to the 5G NR RAN 120. For example, as discussed above, the 5G NR RAN 120 may be associated with a particular network carrier where the UE 110 and / or the user thereof has a contract and credential information (e.g., stored on a SIM card) . Upon detecting the presence of the 5G NR RAN 120, the UE 110 may transmit the corresponding credential information to associate with the 5G NR RAN 120. More specifically, the UE 110 may associate with a specific cell (e.g., gNB 120A) .
[0021] The network arrangement 100 also includes a cellular core network 130, the Internet 140, an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) 150, and a network services backbone 160. The cellular core network 130 manages the traffic that flows between the cellular network and the Internet 140. The IMS 150 may be generally described as an architecture for delivering multimedia services to the UE 110 using the IP protocol. The IMS 150 may communicate with the cellular core network 130 and the Internet 140 to provide the multimedia services to the UE 110. The network services backbone 160 is in communication either directly or indirectly with the Internet 140 and the cellular core network 130. The network services backbone 160 may be generally described as a set of components (e.g., servers, network storage arrangements, etc. ) that implement a suite of services that may be used to extend the functionalities of the UE 110 in communication with the various networks.
[0022] Fig. 2 shows an example UE 110 according to various example embodiments. The UE 110 will be described with regard to the network arrangement 100 of Fig. 1. The UE 110 may represent any electronic device and may include a processor 205, a memory arrangement 210, a display device 215, an input / output (I / O) device 220, a transceiver 225, and other components 230. The other components 230 may include, for example, an audio input device, an audio output device, a battery that provides a limited power supply, a data acquisition device, ports to electrically connect the UE 110 to other electronic devices, sensors to detect conditions of the UE 110, etc.
[0023] The processor 205 may be configured to execute a plurality of engines for the UE 110. For example, the engines may include an On-demand SIB 1 Acquisition Engine 240 and may also include an Additional Condition Engine 235 for performing operations related to on-demand SIB1 acquisition. The engines 235 and 240 for example may perform the operations necessary to decide when to request SIB1 information and from where. For example, the On-demand SIB1 Acquisition Engine 240 may include logic and / or circuitry that selects and transmits a random access preamble to a base station to request specific SIB information. The On-demand SIB1 Acquisition Engine 240 may include logic and / or circuitry that establishes a monitoring window and offset for an on-demand SIB1 procedure, and that monitors the cell defined Synchronization Signal Block (SSB) for the SIB1. The On-demand SIB 1 Acquisition Engine 240 may also include logic and / or circuitry that requests RRC setup. The Additional Condition Engine 240 may include logic and / or circuitry that monitors conditions that may trigger the UE to initiate an on-demand SIB1 procedure. Each of these example operations will be described in more detail below. The above referenced engines 235 and 240 may separately or collectively perform the operations relating to area-based WUS configuration and on-demand SIB1 acquisition described herein.
[0024] The above referenced engines 235 and 240 being applications (e.g., programs) executed by the processor 205 is only an example. The functionality associated with the engines may also be represented as a separate incorporated component of the UE 110 or may be a modular component coupled to the UE 110, e.g., an integrated circuit with or without firmware. For example, the integrated circuit may include input circuitry to receive signals and processing circuitry to process the signals and other information. The engines may also be embodied as one application or separate applications. In addition, in some UEs, the functionality described for the processor 205 is split among two or more processors such as a baseband processor and an applications processor. The example embodiments may be implemented in any of these or other configurations of a UE.
[0025] The memory arrangement 210 may be a hardware component configured to store data related to operations performed by the UE 110. The display device 215 may be a hardware component configured to show data to a user while the I / O device 220 may be a hardware component that enables the user to enter inputs. The display device 215 and the I / O device 220 may be separate components or integrated together such as a touchscreen.
[0026] The transceiver 225 may be a hardware component configured to establish a connection with the 5G NR-RAN 120, an LTE-RAN (not pictured) , a legacy RAN (not pictured) , a WLAN (not pictured) , etc. Accordingly, the transceiver 225 may operate on a variety of different frequencies or channels (e.g., set of consecutive frequencies) . The transceiver 225 includes circuitry configured to transmit and / or receive signals (e.g., control signals, data signals) . Such signals may be encoded with information implementing any one of the methods described herein. The processor 205 may be operably coupled to the transceiver 225 and configured to receive from and / or transmit signals to the transceiver 225. The processor 205 may be configured to encode, decode and / or process signals (e.g., signaling from a base station of a network) for implementing any one of the methods described herein.
[0027] Fig. 3 shows an example base station 300 according to various example embodiments. The base station 300 may represent the gNB 120Aor any other access node through which the UE 110 may establish a connection and manage network operations.
[0028] The base station 300 may include a processor 305, a memory arrangement 310, an input / output (I / O) device 315, a transceiver 320, and other components 325. The other components 325 may include, for example, an audio input device, an audio output device, a battery, a data acquisition device, ports to electrically connect the base station 300 to other electronic devices and / or power sources, etc.
[0029] The processor 305 may be configured to execute a plurality of engines for the UE 110. For example, the engines may include anOn-Demand SIB Configuration Engine 335 for performing operations related to on-demand SIB1 acquisition. For example, the On-Demand SIB Configuration Engine 335 may include logic and / or circuitry that creates and transmits new configurations as part of an uplink wake-up signal (UL WUS) configuration. For example, the UL WUS configuration may include an offset, monitoring window length, and OD-SIB1 retransmission threshold related to on-demand SIB1 acquisition. In addition, the On-Demand SIB Configuration Engine 335 may include logic and / or circuitry that sends a “stop” indication to a UE if the base station does not want to wake up (e.g., because it is a power savings mode or has a low battery) to send SIB1 information. Each of these example operations will be described in further detail below. The Additional Condition Engine 330 may include logic and / or circuitry that monitors conditions and sends information regarding the conditions to a UE that may trigger the UE to initiate an on-demand SIB1 procedure. Each of these example operations will be described in more detail below. Though engines 330 and 335 are shown as separate engines, in some embodiments, engines 330 and 335 may be combined into a single engine. The above referenced engines 330 and 335 may separately or collectively perform the operations relating to area-based WUS configuration and on-demand SIB1 acquisition described herein.
[0030] The memory arrangement 310may be a hardware component configured to store data related to operations performed by the base station 300. The I / O device 315 may be a hardware component or ports that enable a user to interact with the base station 300.
[0031] The transceiver 320 may be a hardware component configured to exchange data with the UE 110 and any other UE in the network arrangement 100. The transceiver 320 may operate on a variety of different frequencies or channels (e.g., set of consecutive frequencies) . The transceiver 320 includes circuitry configured to transmit and / or receive signals (e.g., control signals, data signals) . Such signals may be encoded with information implementing any one of the methods described herein. The processor 305 may be operably coupled to the transceiver 320 and configured to receive from and / or transmit signals to the transceiver 320. The processor 305 may be configured to encode, decode and / or process signals (e.g., signaling from a UE) for implementing any one of the methods described herein.
[0032] With respect to various wireless communication systems, mechanisms for system information (SI) management in the context of network energy saving (NES) may be determined. These may include a mechanism for a wake-up signal (WUS) sent from a UE to a base station. In such cases, the UE may send an uplink WUS to request that a cell transition from no transmissions or reduced transmissions and / or reception activity level to an active transmission and / or reception activity level (e.g., corresponding to a channel and / or a signal) . The technique may be applied to UEs in various radio resource control (RRC) states, e.g., Idle, Inactive, Connected, etc.
[0033] Another contemplated mechanism for SI management in the context of NES includes on-demand system information block 1 (SIB1) transmission. In a broader context, various useable on-demand mechanisms may also include on-demand synchronization signal block (SSB) transmission and / or on-demand SIB1 transmission.
[0034] Within this context, some example embodiments may contemplate the use of on-demand SIB1 and / or SSB transmission for idle UEs. Additionally or alternatively, some example embodiments may contemplate the use of on-demand SSBs (and possibly other downlink (DL) signals) for secondary cell (s) (SCell (s) ) for connected UEs.
[0035] Within such contexts, various triggering methods for the on-demand signaling are possible. In some cases, the triggering method may be based on a UE uplink WUS (e.g., in a non-carrier aggregation (CA) case) . In such cases, such a WUS may be based on an existing signal (e.g., as a starting point, if possible) , or the WUS may be a new signal.
[0036] In some cases, the triggering method may be based on a cell on / off indication that arrives at the applicable base station via a backhaul of the wireless communication system.
[0037] In some cases, the triggering method may be based on SCell activation and / or deactivation signaling.
[0038] Fig. 4 illustrates an example wireless communication system 400 for on-demand SIB1 (OD-SIB1) for UEs in idle / inactive mode according to various example embodiments. The wireless communication system 400 includes an anchor cell (Cell A) 402, the UE 404, and the (non-anchor) NES cell 406. Cell A 402 may be a cell that is periodically transmitting at least its own SIB1. NES Cell 406 may be a cell that may transmit a SIB1 transmission in response to receiving a UL WUS from theUE 404. The system 400 may provide support for on-demand SIB1 for UEs in idle / inactive mode. In one example case, the UE 404 may obtain a UL WUS configuration from Cell A 402 (410) , the UE 404 transmits the UL WUS (which may be done via a Random Access Channel (RACH) ) to NES Cell 406 (420) , and the UE 404 receives on-demand SIB from NES Cell 406 (430) . The triggering method may be by UL WUS using a PRACH (physical random access channel) in one example embodiment. The inter NG-RAN node signalingmay be specified for at leastthe configuration of the UL WUS. In one example embodiment, the UE 404 is enabled to perform a RACH procedure with the non-anchor NES cell 406 (and thereby connect to the NES cell 406) by receiving and subsequently using System Information (SI) of a SIB1 of the NES cell 406 that is received from the anchor cell 402. In some example embodiments, paging is transmitted / handled by the anchor cell 402.
[0039] RAN2-related agreements provide details related to the WUS configuration and the OD-SIB1. With respect to the WUS configuration, it may use the Physical Cell Identity (PCI) and frequency of a NES Cell to associate the UL WUS configuration with a NES Cell. For Message 1 based on-demand SIB1 requests, the on-demand SI request configuration that is currently included in SIB1 may be used as the design baseline. With respect to the OD-SIB1, a NES cell may include a WUS configuration of a neighboring NES cell and / or the WUS configuration of the NES cell in a new SIB. In some example embodiments, the UE may determine the WUS configuration valid only in cases where the cell reselection is from a cell where the UE acquired the WUS configuration.
[0040] An area specific SIB was introduced in NR Rel-15 to reduce UE efforts for SIB acquisition. New information elements (IE) were introducedsuch as areaScope, valueTag and systemInformationAreaID in SIB1 for the UE to determine whether the associated stored version of that SIB has changed or not. This is discussedin detail in 3GPP Technical Specification (TS) 38.331Section 5.2.2.2.1.
[0041] Fig. 5 illustrates an example wireless communication system 500 for an area specific SIB for UEs according to various example embodiments. As seen in Fig. 5, the same common SI configuration may be used except for SIn. According to TS 38.331Section 5.2.2.2.1, the UE will delete any stored version of a SIB after a certain time period (e.g., three hours) from the time it was successfully confirmed as valid. In addition, the UE will, for each stored version of a SIB, determine the stored SIB as valid for the cell if the areaScope is associated and its value for the stored version of the SIB is the same as the value received in the si-SchedulingInfo for that SIB from the serving cell, and if the UE is Non-Public Networks (NPN) capable and the cell is an NPN-only cell, and if the first NPN identity included in the NPN-IdentityInfoList, the systeminformationAreaID, and the valueTag that are included in the s-SchedulingInfo for the SIB received from the serving cell are identical to the NPN identity, the systeminformationAreaID, and the valueTag associated with stored value of that SIB. Otherwise (i.e. if the UE is notNPN capable or the cell is not an NPN cell) , the UE will determine the stored SIB as valid for the cell if the first PLMN-identity included in thePLMN-IdentityInfoList, the systemInformationAreaID, and the valueTag that are included in the si-SchedulingInfo for the SIB received from the serving cell are identical to the PLMN-Identity, the systemInformationAreaID, and the valueTag associated with the stored version of that SIB.
[0042] According to a coarse calculation on overhead of a per-cell UL WUS configuration, as shown in Table 1 below, the total payload size may be 369bits times the number of NES Cells (e.g., if the UL WUS configuration of eight (8) NES Cells are included, then 2952 bits would be required) .
[0043] Thus, an area-based UL WUS configuration (e.g., where multiple cells share the same UL WUS configuration) may be needed. However, since SIB1 is not always periodically broadcast in a NES cell, there is a need for the UE to determine how area-based configuration would work best.
[0044] The example embodiments provide solutions to handle area-based UL WUS configuration and UE behavior. A first proposed example solution relies on the existing systemInformationAreaID of the new SIB, but an issue is that all UL WUS configurations may only follow the same area scope, and systemInformationAreaID cannot be included in the MIB (Master Information Block) . A second proposed examplesolution is to introduce area scope per WUS configuration. Details of area-based UL WUS configuration may be included in a new SIB of the Cell A and / or NES cell. One issue that may be addressed is determining what area validation information is included in the MIB of the NES cell. In addition, UE behavior during cell selection / reselection should be determined, such as determining when the UE is to acquire a new SIB for area-based UL WUS configuration (s) and store necessary information, deciding how the UE determines that it is a NES cell, and after that, how the UE determines handling of SIB1 in the target cell.
[0045] Fig. 6 shows an example flow diagram for area-based UL WUS configuration and UE behavior according to various example embodiments. In process 600, a UE may be in communication with an anchor or source cell (Cell A) and a non-anchor NES cell or target cell. In 610, Cell A and the NES Cell may participate in inter-mode messaging to exchange configuration and other information. In 620, Cell A may transmit a new SIB to the UE. In one exampleembodiment, this SIB may include the new proposed IEs on area-based WUS configuration and validity information. In 625, the UE may be in an IDLE / INACTIVE state and moving. The UE may receive a MIB from the NES cell which may include new information on the validity of its WUS configuration (630) . Based in part on the new SIB and / or the MIB, the UE may decide to camp on the NES cell and may determine to request a SIB1 (635) . If the UE determines to request a SIB1, a request for the SIB1 of the target cell may be transmitted from the UE to the NES target cell (640) . In one exampleembodiment, this request may be transmitted via a RACH. In 650, in response to the request, the NES target cell may send the full SIB1 and any other necessary SIB (s) to the UE. In 660, Unified Access Control (UAC) and initial access may be negotiated. At this point (665) , the UE may enter an RRC_CONNECTED state. Data may then be transmitted between the UE and the NES cell (670) .
[0046] In the first proposed examplesolution that relies on the existing systemInformationAreaID of the new SIB, the existing area-based SIB (e.g., via systemInformationAreaID) may be reused for an area scope common to all UL WUS configurations. Either Cell A and / or the NES cell may configure the new SIB areaScope = “true” , and may configure the systemInformationAreaID for the new SIB. The UE may store the systemInformationAreaID and the new SIB. When the stored new SIB exceeds a preset time period (e.g., > 3 hour) from the acquired time, the UE may delete the new SIB andacquire a new version of the new SIB, when used. When the UE intends to camp on a new cell, if the target cell is a NES cell, the NES cell may include validity information in its MIB, where the area ID and value tag are common to all UL WUS configurations in the same new SIB. The systemInformationAreaID is included in the MIB. This approach may be limited to working in certain situations, as discussed later. The UE behavior will also be discussed later.
[0047] In the second proposed examplesolution, where area scope per WUS configuration is introduced, more than one NES cell may share the same UL WUS configuration that is included in the new SIB of Cell A and / or the NES cell. There are several alternatives for the detailed format of the UL WUS configuration. (e.g., a list of UL WUS config information where each include a list of cell identifiers and one associated UL WUS config) . One cell identifier may be PCI + frequency or cell global identity (CGI) + frequency. In addition, a special case of cell specific UL WUS configuration may be used, e.g., there is only one cell identifier for one UL WUS configuration. An example of the configuration is illustrated as follows:
[0048] In a second alternative, there is an Area ID, e.g., a list of UL WUS config information where each includes an area ID and one associated UL WUS config. For example, there may be a five (5) bit ID to identify the cells thatmay apply this configuration. This second alternative may also be used with the first proposal relying on the existing systemInformationAreaID of the new SIB that is included in the MIB. In a third alternative, the UL WUS configuration may include a RAN area notification code (RANAC) , e.g., a list of UL WUS config information where each include a list of RANAC and one associated UL WUS config. This alternative may be applied to RRC_INACTIVE UEs. In a fourth alternative, a Tracking Area Identifier (TAI) may be included in the UL WUS configuration, e.g., a list of UL WUS config information where each includes a list of TAI and one associated UL WUS config. This alternative may be applied to RRC_IDLE UEs.
[0049] The value tag may be associated with each area-based UL WUS configuration and, in one example embodiment, may be three (3) bits but other sizes may be used.
[0050] Some example embodiments introduce and include area validation information in the MIB of the NES Cell. UEs may determine whether the stored UL WUS configuration is applied to the target cell if the configuration is area specific (e.g., via determining whether the target cell is within or outside of the areainformation of the stored UL WUS configuration) .
[0051] In someexample embodiments, the NES cell sets itssynchronization signal block (SSB) with a special k_SSB value (e.g., k_SSB=30 for FR1, or k_SSB=14 for FR2) , and the 8bit IE PDCCH-ConfigSIB1 may be repurposed to indicate validation information area-based UL WUS configuration. In one example embodiment, where there is the 5bit area ID, the 5 bit area ID is similar to the existing systemInformationAreaID, but it is associated with one UL WUS configuration rather than one SIB. In another example embodiment, where there is the 3bit value tag of the UL WUS configuration, the UE may validate a stored UL WUS configuration as previously discussed to determine whether to discard the stored UL WUS configuration or use it to trigger OD-SIB1 acquisition. In some example embodiments, one special value may be defined to indicate “no need to check version tag” (e.g. 000) . This solution may also work with the first proposal relying on the existing systemInformationAreaID of the new SIB that is included in the MIB.
[0052] In another example solution, the NES cell may set its SSB with a k_SSB value within the normal range and there is no need to repurpose the 8bit IE PDCCH-ConfigSIB1. In this case, if the SIB1 is transmitted, k_SSB is less than 24 for FR1 and less than 12 for FR2. If the SIB1 is not transmitted, then k_SSB is equal to or greater than 24 for FR1 and equal to or greater than 12 for FR2.
[0053] UE behavior will now be discussed for the proposed schemes disclosed herein. After decoding the new SIB of Cell A and / or the NES cell, the UE may store the list of WUS configurations and their associated area ID (e.g., named as WUSAreaID) . If configured, the UE may also store the value tag for each UL WUS configuration. The UE may decode the new SIB of Cell A / NES cell for the UL WUS configuration in each of the following cases: (1) upon initially camping on the cell, including upon cell selection, cell-reselection, and return from out of coverage; (2) upon a system information update triggered by the network (e.g., upon reception of a paging short message on SI update) ; (3) upon the stored new SIB not being valid (e.g., stored more than 3 hours) ; and (4) upon cell reselection criteria towards the NES cell being met. The UE may store the above configuration after entering IDLE / INACTIVE state and CONNECTED state (when T311 is running) unless any of three (3) discarding conditions is met, as will be discussed in more detail below.
[0054] During cell selection / reselection, the UE determineswhether the cell is a NES cell. For example, the target cell may set k_SSB=30 for FR1, or k_SSB=14 for FR2. If one suitable NES cell with an on-demand SIB1 has the same frequency priority as another suitable normal cell (e.g., non-NES cell) , the UE may prioritize to reselect to the suitable normal cell. Alternatively, the target cell may be configured as a NES cell in the UL WUS configuration of the last camped cell.
[0055] After that, the UE may determine whetherto acquire an OD-SIB1 as follows. When the target cell is periodically broadcasting its SIB1 with k_SSB < 24 for FR1 and k_SSB < 12 for FR2, the UE may acquire the SIB1 of the target cellas a legacy SIB1. When the target cell is identified by the UE as an NES cell, the UE may first determine whether or not the SIB1 is broadcast and then determine whether the stored UL WUS configuration is valid in the target cell. The UE may determine whether the SIB1 is broadcast or not using at least two options. In a first option, if the UE cannot obtain the OD-SIB1 after monitoring the PDCCH for a time duration T_1 or after N_1 monitoring occasions, where T_1 or N_1 may be configured in the UL WUS configuration, then the UE determines that the SIB1 has not been broadcast. The monitoring duration may start from the first OD-SIB1 monitoring windowor alternatively, from the first OD-SIB1 monitoring occasion (e.g., CORESET#0 and SS#0) . In a second option, the UE maydetermine the SIB1 to not be broadcast if the UE cannot obtain the OD-SIB1 after monitoring the first upcoming OD-SIB1 monitoring window.
[0056] The UE may also have multiple options for determining whether the stored UL WUS configuration is valid in the target cell. In a first option, the UE checks whether PCI information included in the PBCH ofSSB of the target cell is within the stored NES cell list of the UL WUS configuration from the previous cell. In this option, the list of cell identifiers being associated with one UL WUS configuration that was previously discussedmay be used, as well as situations where the area validation information is included in the MIB of the NES cell. In this case, the k_SSB value of target cell should be less than 31 and greater than or equal to 24 (31>k_SSB>=24) for FR1, or less than 15 and greater than or equal to 12 (15>k_SSB>=12) for FR2.
[0057] The UE may check to determine whether the PCI information included in the PBCH of SSB of the target cell is within any one of the stored NES cell list of the UL WUS configuration from the previous cell. If so, the UE may determine the stored UL WUS configuration with the identical PCI is valid and triggers an OD-SIB1 acquisition procedure. Otherwise (e.g., no identical UL WUS configuration is stored by the UE) , the UE may determine none of the stored WUS configurations to be valid, and the UE may bar the cell for a predetermined time period (e.g., up to 300 seconds) , and then may trigger cell reselection.
[0058] In a second option for determining whether or not the stored UL WUS configuration is valid, the UE may determine whether the stored UL WUS configuration is valid via information included in the 8bit IE PDCCH-ConfigSIB1, if the target cell is a NES cell with k_SSB=30 for FR1, or k_SSB=14 for FR2. This option may be used with the solution discussed earlier with the special k_SSB value. In addition, this solution may be used with the situation using area-based UL WUS configurations where more than one NES cell shares the same UL WUS configuration which is included in the new SIB of Cell A or the NES cell, regardless of whether the UL WUS configuration includes a list of cell IDs associated with one UL WUS configuration, an area ID, an RAN area notification code, or a Tracking Area Identifier.
[0059] In the second option, if the value tag (e.g., 3bits) is not configured, and if the area ID in PDCCH-ConfigSIB1 is the same as any one of the stored area ID associated with the stored UL WUS configurations, then the UE may determine the stored UL WUS configuration with the identical area ID to be valid and triggers an OD-SIB1 acquisition procedure. Otherwise, the UE may determine none of the stored WUS configurations to be valid. If the value tag is configured, and if the area ID in PDCCH-ConfigSIB1 is the same as any one of the stored area IDs associated with the stored UL WUS configuration, and if the value tag in PDCCH-ConfigSIB1 is the same as the one associated with the UL WUS configuration of the same area ID stored by the UE, then the UE may determine the stored UL WUS configuration with the identical area ID to be valid, and triggers OD-SIB1 acquisition procedure. Otherwise, the UE determines none of the stored WUS configurations to be valid. If the UE determines none of stored WUS configurations to be valid, the UE may bar the cell for a predetermined amount of time (e.g., up to 300 seconds) , and triggers cell reselection.
[0060] The UE may also perform a discarding function for both of the options discussed above. The UE discards the stored UL WUS configuration (s) and associated area info when any of below occurs: (1) the UE selects / reselect s to one NES cell which provides the UL WUS configuration in its new SIB, and the UE acquires the new UL WUS configuration; (2) the UE selects / reselects to one normal cell (e.g., non-NES cell) that does not provide the UL WUS configuration; or (3) after a predetermined period of time (e.g., 3 hours) from the moment the new SIB including the UL WUS configuration was successfully confirmed as valid.
[0061] To support the proposed schemes disclosed herein, new inter-node signaling may be used to transmit area-based UL WUS configuration and their validity information between different cells. The exchanged information may include the WUS configuration, the area ID of the WUS configuration, and the value tag of the UL WUS configuration. Either node may trigger the information exchange and either node may generate the information. For example, in one example embodiment, the source cell may proactively request the target cell to provide the information (source cell initiated) . In another example embodiment, the target cell may first solicit the source cell to exchange the information (target cell initiated) . Likewise, in one example embodiment (target cell generated) , the target cell generates its information and shares it with the source cell, while in a further example embodiment (source cell generated) , the target cell shares its full SIB1 with source cell, and the source cell generates the information based on the shared SIB1.
[0062] With respect to specific inter-node signaling, if it is between different control units (CUs) , then the signalingmay be included as a new IE in an existing XnAP message, e.g., setup request / response message, or a NG-RAN node Configuration Update request / acknowledge message. If it is within the same CU (e.g., between CU and DU) , then the signalingmay be included as a new IE in an existing F1AP message (e.g., GNB-CU CONFIGURATION UPDATE) .Examples
[0063] In a first example, a method, comprising processing, based on signaling received from a source cell, a System Information Block (SIB) comprising area-based wake-up signal (WUS) configuration information and validity information, processing, based on signaling received from a target cell, a Master Information Block (MIB) comprising validation information of a WUS configuration of the target cell, determining, while in an idle or inactive state, to camp on the target cell, generating, for transmission to the target cell, a request for on-demand SIB1 (OD-SIB1) information for the target cell, processing, based on signaling received from a target cell, the OD-SIB1 information from the target cell andentering into an RRC_CONNECTED state.
[0064] In a second example, the method of the first example, wherein the SIB is an existing area-based SIB including a systemInformationAreaID information element, and wherein the existing area-based SIB is reused for an area scope common to all WUS configurations.
[0065] In a third example, the method of the second example, wherein the area-based SIB includes an areaScope information element set to true and systemInformationAreaID is configured for a new SIB.
[0066] In a fourth example, the method of the third example, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to store the systemInformationAreaID and the new SIB.
[0067] In a fifth example, the method of the fourth example, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to delete the stored new SIB after a predetermined amount of time after the stored new SIB was acquired.
[0068] In a sixth example, the method of the first example, wherein systemInformationAreaID is included in the MIB.
[0069] In a seventh example, the method of the first example, wherein the SIB is a new SIB including the area-based WUS configuration and the area-based WUS configuration is shared by more than one target cell.
[0070] In an eighth example, the method of the seventh example, wherein the WUS configuration comprises a list of cell identifiers associated with one WUS configuration.
[0071] In a ninth example, the method of the eighth example, wherein one cell identifier is a Physical Cell Identity (PCI) plus a frequency or cell global identity (CGI) plus a frequency.
[0072] In a tenth example, the method of the seventh example, wherein there is only one cell identifier for one WUS configuration.
[0073] In an eleventh example, the method of the seventh example, wherein the WUS configuration comprises an area identifier (area ID) to identify the cells that apply the WUS configuration.
[0074] In a twelfth example, the method of the seventh example, wherein the WUS configuration comprises a radio access network notification code (RANAC) .
[0075] In a thirteenth example, the method of the seventh example, wherein the WUS configuration comprises a tracking area identifier (TAI) .
[0076] In a fourteenth example, the method of the seventh example, wherein the SIB includes a value tag information element associated with each area-based WUS configuration.
[0077] In a fifteenth example, the method of the seventh example, further comprising storing the area-based WUS configuration anddetermining, using the validation information, whether the stored area-based WUS configuration is applied to the target cell by determining whether the target cell is within an area indicated by the area information of the stored area-based WUS configuration.
[0078] In a sixteenth example, the method of the fifteenth example, wherein the MIB includes a synchronization signal block (SSB) with a k_SSB value and a PDCCH-ConfigSIB1 information element that indicates validation information for the area-based WUS configuration.
[0079] In a seventeenth example, the method of the sixteenth example, wherein the k_SSB value comprises k_SSB=30 for Frequency Range 1 (FR1) or k_SSB=14 for Frequency Range 2 (FR2) .
[0080] In an eighteenth example, the method of the sixteenth example, wherein the validation information is eight bits, with five bits for an area ID that is associated with one WUS configuration and three bits for a value tag.
[0081] In a nineteenth example, the method of the fifteenth example, wherein the MIB includes a synchronization signal block (SSB) with a k_SSB value in the normal range and a PDCCH-ConfigSIB1 information element, and wherein, when the SIB1 is transmitted, k_SSB is less than 24 for Frequency Range 1 (FR1) and k_SSB is less than 12 for Frequency Range 2 (FR2) and, when the SIB1 is not transmitted, k_SSB is equal to or greater than 24 for FR1 and k_SSB is equal to or greater than 12 for FR2.
[0082] In a twentieth example, the method of the third example, wherein the storing comprises storing a list of WUS configurations included in the new SIB, associated area information for each WUS configuration and a value tag for each WUS configuration.
[0083] In a twenty first example, the method of the twentieth example, further comprising decoding the new SIB for each WUS configuration uponinitially camping in the cell, including upon cell selection, cell-reselection, and return from out of coverage, a system information update triggered by a network, the stored new SIB not being valid orcell reselection criteria towards the target cell being met.
[0084] In a twenty second example, the method of the third example, wherein the MIB includes a synchronization signal block (SSB) with a k_SSB value=30 for Frequency Range 1 (FR1) or with a k_SSB value=14 for Frequency Range 1 (FR1) , and wherein the processing circuitry is configured to determine that the target cell is a network energy savings (NES) cell during selection or reselection by prioritizing to select or reselect a suitable normal cell when one suitable NES cell with on-demand SIB1 has a same frequency priority as the suitable normal cell.
[0085] In a twenty third example, the method of the third example, wherein the target cell is configured as a network energy saving (NES) cell in a WUS configuration of a last camped cell.
[0086] In a twenty fourth example, the method of the first example, wherein the SIB1 of the target cell is acquired as a legacy SIB1 when the target cell is periodically broadcasting its SIB1 with k_SSB less than 24 for Frequency Range 1 (FR1) and k_SSB less than 12 for Frequency Range 2 (FR2) .
[0087] In a twenty fifth example, the method of the fifteenth example, wherein, when the target cell is identified as a network energy savings (NES) cell, the processing circuitry is configured to determine whether or not the SIB1 is broadcast and then determine whether the stored area-based WUS configuration is valid in the target cell.
[0088] In a twenty sixth example, the method of the twenty fifth example, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to determine that the SIB1 has not been broadcast when the apparatus cannot obtain the OD-SIB1 after monitoring a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) from the target cell for a time duration T_1 or after N_1 monitoring occasions, where T_1 or N_1 is configured in the WUS configuration.
[0089] In a twenty seventh example, the method of the twenty sixth example, wherein time duration T_1 starts from a first OD-SIB1 monitoring window or from a first OD-SIB1 monitoring occasion.
[0090] In a twenty eighth example, the method of the twenty fifth example, wherein determining that the SIB1 has not been broadcast based on not obtaining the OD-SIB1 after monitoring a first upcoming OD-SIB1 monitoring window.
[0091] In a twenty ninth example, the method of the twenty fifth example, wherein determining whether the stored area-based WUS configuration is valid in the target cell by determining whether Physical Cell Identity (PCI) information included in a Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH) of a synchronization signal block (SSB) of the target cell is within a stored NES cell list of the stored area-based WUS configuration from a previous cell.
[0092] In a thirtieth example, the method of the twenty ninth example, further comprising determining the stored WUS configuration is valid when one PCI associated with the stored WUS configuration is identical to the PCI information andtriggering OD-SIB1 acquisition.
[0093] In a thirty first example, the method of the twenty ninth example, further comprising determining none of the stored WUS configurations valid when the none of the PCI (s) associated with the stored WUS configurations is identical to the PCI information, barring the target cell for a predetermined amount of time and triggering cell reselection.
[0094] In a thirty second example, the method of the twenty fifth example, wherein a value tag is not configured in the MIB, and wherein determining whether the stored area-based WUS configuration is valid in the target cell by determining when an area identifier (area ID) in an information element PDCCH-ConfigSIB1 is identical to one of stored area IDs associated with the stored WUS configuration.
[0095] In a thirty third example, the method of the thirty second example, further comprising determining the stored WUS configuration is valid when the area ID in the information element PDCCH-ConfigSIB1 is identical to one of the stored area IDs associated with the stored WUS configuration andtriggering OD-SIB1 acquisition.
[0096] In a thirty fourth example, the method of the thirty second example, further comprising determiningnone of the stored WUS configurations are valid when the area ID in the information element PDCCH-ConfigSIB1 is not identical to one of the stored area IDs associated with the stored WUS configuration, barring the target cell for a predetermined amount of time and triggering cell reselection.
[0097] In a thirty fifth example, the method of the twenty fifth example, wherein a value tag is configured in the MIB, and wherein, when an area identifier (area ID) in an information element PDCCH-ConfigSIB1 matches any one of stored area IDs associated with the stored WUS configuration, and, when the value tag in the information element PDCCH-ConfigSIB1 matches a value tag associated with the WUS configuration of the same stored area ID, thendetermining the stored WUS configuration with the identical area ID to be valid and to trigger OD-SIB1 acquisition.
[0098] In a thirty sixth example, the method of the fifteenth example, further comprising discarding the stored area-based WUS configuration and associated area information upon a trigger condition.
[0099] In a thirty seventh example, the method of the thirty sixth example, wherein the trigger condition is one or more of the apparatus selects / reselects to one Network Energy Savings (NES) cell which provides the area-based WUS configuration in its new SIB, and the apparatus acquires the new area-based WUS configuration, the apparatus selects / reselects to one non-NES cell which does not provide the area-based WUS configuration oran expiration of a predetermined period of time, the predetermined period of time starting when the new SIB including the area-based WUS configuration was successfully confirmed as valid.
[0100] In a thirty eighth example, the method of the first example, wherein the WUS configuration is stored without deletion when entering an RRC_CONNECTED state while a timer related to radio failure issue is running.
[0101] In a thirty ninth example, one or more processors configured to perform any of the methods of the first through thirty eighth examples.
[0102] In a fortieth example, a user equipment (UE) configured to perform any of the methods of the first through thirty eighth examples.
[0103] In a forty first example, a method, comprising generating, for transmission, a System Information Block (SIB) comprising area-based wake-up signal (WUS) configuration information and validity information andexchanging area-based WUS configuration information and validation information with another apparatus, the area-based WUS configuration information including a WUS configuration, an area identifier (Area ID) for the WUS configuration, and a value tag for the WUS configuration.
[0104] In a forty second example, the method of the forty first example, further comprising requesting the another apparatus to provide the area-based WUS configuration information and validation information.
[0105] In a forty third example, the method of the forty first example, further comprisingprocessing a solicitation from the another apparatus to provide the area-based WUS configuration information and validation information.
[0106] In a forty fourth example, the method of the forty first example, further comprising generating the area-based WUS configuration information and validation information andsharing the area-based WUS configuration information and validation information with the another apparatus.
[0107] In a forty fifth example, the method of the forty first example, further comprisingprocessing a full System Information Block 1 (SIB1) from the another apparatus andgenerating the area-based WUS configuration information and validation information based on the received SIB1.
[0108] In a forty sixth example, the method of the forty first example, wherein the exchange of area-based WUS configuration information and validation information with the another apparatus is via a new information element (IE) in either an existing XnAP message or an existing F1AP message.
[0109] In a forty seventh example, one or more processors configured to perform any of the methods of the forty first through forty sixth examples.
[0110] In a fortieth example, a base station configured to perform any of the methods of the forty fi rst through forty sixth examples.
[0111] Those skilled in the art will understand that the above-described example embodiments may be implemented in any suitable software or hardware configuration or combination thereof. An example hardware platform for implementing the example embodiments may include, for example, an Intel x86 based platform with compatible operating system, a Windows OS, a Mac platform and MAC OS, a mobile device having an operating system such as iOS, Android, etc. The example embodiments described above may be embodied as a program containing lines of code stored on a non-transitory computer readable storage medium that, when compiled, may be executed on a processor or microprocessor.
[0112] In some embodiments, a non-transitory computer-readable memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory memory element) may be configured so that it stores program instructions and / or data, where the program instructions, if executed by a computer system, cause the computer system to perform a method, e.g., any of a method embodiments described herein, or, any combination of the method embodiments described herein, or, any subset of any of the method embodiments described herein, or, any combination of such subsets.
[0113] In some embodiments, a device (e.g., a UE) may be configured to include a processor (or a set of processors) and a memory medium (or memory element) , where the memory medium stores program instructions, where the processor is configured to read and execute the program instructions from the memory medium, where the program instructions are executable to implement any of the various method embodiments described herein (or, any combination of the method embodiments described herein, or, any subset of any of the method embodiments described herein, or, any combination of such subsets) . The device may be realized in any of various forms.
[0114] Embodiments of the present invention may be realized in any of various forms. For example, in some embodiments, the present invention may be realized as a computer-implemented method, a computer-readable memory medium, or a computer system. In other embodiments, the present invention may be realized using one or more custom-designed hardware devices such as ASICs. In other embodiments, the present invention may be realized using on1e or more programmable hardware elements such as FPGAs.
[0115] Although this application described various embodiments each having different features in various combinations, those skilled in the art will understand that any of the features of one embodiment may be combined with the features of the other embodiment s in any manner not specifically disclaimed or which is not functionally or logically inconsistent with the operation of the device or the stated functions of the disclosed embodiments.
[0116] It is well understood that the use of personally identifiable information should follow privacy policies and practices that are generally recognized as meeting or exceeding industry or governmental requirements for maintaining the privacy of users. In particular, personally identifiable information data should be managed and handled so as to minimize risks of unintentional or unauthorized access or use, and the nature of authorized use should be clearly indicated to users.
[0117] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications may be made in the present disclosure, without departing from the spirit or the scope of the disclosure. Thus, it is intended that the present disclosure cover modifications and variations of this disclosure provided they come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalent.
Claims
1.An apparatus comprising processing circuitry configured to:process, based on signaling receivedfrom a source cell, a System Information Block (SIB) comprising area-based wake-up signal (WUS) configuration information and validity information;process, based on signaling received from a target cell, a Master Information Block (MIB) comprising validation information of a WUS configuration of the target cell;determine, while in an idle or inactive state, to camp on the target cell;generate, for transmission to the target cell, a request for on-demand SIB1 (OD-SIB1) information for the target cell;process, based on signaling received from a target cell, the OD-SIB1 information from the target cell; andenter into an RRC_CONNECTED state.2.The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the SIB is an existing area-based SIB including a systemInformationAreaID information element, and wherein the existing area-based SIB is reused for an area scope common to all WUS configurations.3.The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the area-based SIB includes an areaScope information element set to true and systemInformationAreaID is configured for a new SIB.4.The apparatus of claim 3, wherein theprocessing circuitry is further configured to store the systemInformationAreaID and the new SIB.5.The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to delete the stored new SIB after a predetermined amount of time after the stored new SIB was acquired.6.The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the SIB is a new SIB including the area-based WUS configuration and the area-based WUS configuration is shared by more than one target cell.7.The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the WUS configuration comprises a list of cell identifiers associated with one WUS configuration.8.The apparatus of claim 6, wherein there is only one cell identifier for one WUS configuration.9.The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the WUS configuration comprises an area identifier (area ID) to identify the cells that apply the WUS configuration.10.The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the WUS configuration comprises a radio access network notification code (RANAC) .11.The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the WUS configuration comprises a tracking area identifier (TAI) .12.The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the SIB includes a value tag information element associated with each area-based WUS configuration.13.The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:store the area-based WUS configuration; anddetermine, using the validation information, whether the stored area-based WUS configuration is applied to the target cell by determining whether the target cell is within an area indicated by the area information of the stored area-based WUS configuration.14.The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to store:a list of WUS configurations included in the new SIB;associated area information for each WUS configuration; anda value tag for each WUS configuration.15.The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to decode the new SIB for each WUS configuration upon:initially camping in the cell, including upon cell selection, cell-reselection, and return from out of coverage;a system information update triggered by a network;the stored new SIB not being valid; orcell reselection criteria towards the target cell being met.16.The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the target cell is configured as a network energy saving (NES) cell in a WUS configuration of alast camped cell.17.The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to acquire the SIB1 of the target cellas a legacy SIB1 when the target cell is periodically broadcasting its SIB1 with k_SSB less than 24 for Frequency Range 1 (FR1) and k_SSB less than 12 for Frequency Range 2 (FR2) .18.The apparatus of claim 1, wherein, when the target cell is identified as anetwork energy savings (NES) cell, the processing circuitry is configured to determine whether or not the SIB1 is broadcast and then determine whether the stored area-based WUS configuration is valid in the target cell.19.The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to discard the stored area-based WUS configuration and associated area information upon a trigger condition.20.The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the WUS configuration is stored without deletion when entering an RRC_CONNECTED state while a timer related to radio failure issue is running.