Method, apparatus and computer program

Abstract

There is provided a method, apparatus and computer program for causing an apparatus to perform obtaining a configuration for operating in a downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, in which a downlink PCell and a downlink SCell are provided over aggregated non-contiguous carriers, wherein when the apparatus is in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, the apparatus is configured to receive over the downlink PCell while alternating between receiving and not receiving over the downlink SCell in accordance with a first pattern; receiving a trigger from the network access node, wherein the trigger indicates that the apparatus is to enter the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state; and adjusting a frequency width of a receive filter of the apparatus in accordance with the first pattern based on receiving the trigger.

Description

METHOD, APPARATUS AND COMPUTER PROGRAMFIELD

[0001] The present application relates to a method, apparatus, and computer program for operating in a downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state.BACKGROUND

[0002] A communication system can be seen as a facility that enables communication sessions between two or more entities such as user terminals, base stations and / or other nodes by providing carriers between the various entities involved in the communications session. A communication system can be provided for example by means of a communication network and one or more compatible communication devices. The communication sessions may comprise, for example, communication of data for carrying communications such as voice, video, electronic mail (email), text message, multimedia and / or content data and so on. Non-limiting examples of services provided comprise two-way or multi-way calls, data communication or multimedia services and access to a data network system, such as the Internet.

[0003] The communication system and associated devices typically operate in accordance with a given standard or specification which sets out what the various entities associated with the system are permitted to do and how that should be achieved. Communication protocols and / or parameters which shall be used for the connection are also typically defined. One example of a communications system is UTRAN (Universal Mobile Telecommunications Service terrestrial radio access network (e.g., 3G radio)). Other examples of communication systems are the longterm evolution (LTE) of the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) radio-access technology and so-called 5G or New Radio (NR) networks. NR is being standardized by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP).SUMMARY

[0004] According to a first aspect, there is provided an apparatus comprising means for performing: obtaining a configuration for operating in a downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state in which a downlink PCell and a downlink SCell are provided over aggregated non-contiguous carriers, wherein when the apparatus is in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, the apparatus is configured to receive over the downlink PCell while alternating between receiving and not receiving over the downlinkSCell in accordance with a first pattern; receiving a trigger from the network access node, wherein the trigger indicates that the apparatus is to enter the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state; and adjusting a frequency width of a receive filter of the apparatus in accordance with the first pattern based on receiving the trigger.

[0005] According to a second aspect, there is provided an apparatus comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory comprising code that, when executed by the at least one processor, causes the apparatus to perform: obtaining a configuration for operating in a downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state in which a downlink PCell and a downlink SCell are provided over aggregated non-contiguous carriers, wherein when the apparatus is in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, the apparatus is configured to receive over the downlink PCell while alternating between receiving and not receiving over the downlink SCell in accordance with a first pattern; receiving a trigger from the network access node, wherein the trigger indicates that the apparatus is to enter the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state; and adjusting a frequency width of a receive filter of the apparatus in accordance with the first pattern based on receiving the trigger.

[0006] According to a third aspect, there is provided a method for an apparatus, the method comprising: obtaining a configuration for operating in a downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state in which a downlink PCell and a downlink SCell are provided over aggregated non-contiguous carriers, wherein when the apparatus is in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, the apparatus is configured to receive over the downlink PCell while alternating between receiving and not receiving over the downlink SCell in accordance with a first pattern; receiving a trigger from the network access node, wherein the trigger indicates that the apparatus is to enter the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state; and adjusting a frequency width of a receive filter of the apparatus in accordance with the first pattern based on receiving the trigger.

[0007] According to a fourth aspect, there is provided an apparatus comprising: obtaining circuitry for obtaining a configuration for operating in a downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state in which a downlink PCell and a downlink SCell are provided over aggregated non-contiguous carriers, wherein when the apparatus is in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, the apparatus is configured to receive over the downlink PCell while alternating between receiving and not receiving over thedownlink SCell in accordance with a first pattern; receiving circuitry for receiving a trigger from the network access node, wherein the trigger indicates that the apparatus is to enter the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state; and adjusting circuitry for adjusting a frequency width of a receive filter of the apparatus in accordance with the first pattern based on receiving the trigger.

[0008] The following may apply in respect of any (e.g., one or more, including all) of the above first to fourth aspects.

[0009] The adjusting the frequency width of the receive filter may comprise: applying a first receive filter when the first pattern indicates that transmissions over the downlink SCell are being provided, wherein the first receive filter is wide enough to receive from both the downlink PCell and the downlink SCell; and applying a second receive filter when the first pattern indicates that transmissions over the downlink SCell are not being provided, wherein the second receive filter is narrower than the first receive filter.

[0010] The second receive filter may be centred around a central frequency of the downlink PCell and is excludes frequencies of the downlink SCell.

[0011] The apparatus further may be further caused to perform: applying a first modulation code scheme for demodulating received transmissions on the downlink PCell when the first receive filter is applied, and applying a second modulation and coding scheme for demodulating received transmissions on the downlink PCell when the second receive filter is applied.

[0012] The apparatus further may be further caused to perform: receiving the first pattern from network access node before receiving the trigger.

[0013] The apparatus further may be further caused to perform: receiving a plurality of different patterns, each of the different patterns corresponding to a respective pattern defining how transmissions over the downlink SCell will alternate between being provided and not being provided when that respective pattern is selected for use during the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state.

[0014] The apparatus further may be further caused to perform: selecting the first pattern from the plurality of different patterns based on information comprised in the trigger.

[0015] When each pattern of the plurality of different patterns is associated with a respective set of criteria for selecting that pattern, the apparatus further may be further caused to perform: selecting the first pattern from the plurality of different patterns based on determining that the set of criteria associated with the first pattern is fulfilledwhile the sets of criteria associated with the other patterns of the plurality of different patterns are not fulfilled.

[0016] The apparatus further may be further caused to perform: transmitting uplink over an uplink PCell while receiving over the downlink PCell.

[0017] Transmissions over the downlink PCell and transmissions over the downlink SCell may be received on a same receive chain of the apparatus when transmissions over the downlink SCell are provided when the apparatus is operating in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state.

[0018] The apparatus further may be further caused to perform: providing, to the network access node, an indication of one or more capabilities of the apparatus, wherein the one of more capabilities comprises a capability of the apparatus to operate in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state.

[0019] The obtaining of the configuration may comprise receiving the configuration from the network access node in at least one of a radio resource control configuration message, a radio resource control reconfiguration message, downlink control information, or a medium access control element.

[0020] According to a fifth aspect, there is provided an apparatus comprising means for performing: providing, to a user equipment, a configuration for causing the user equipment to operate in a downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state in which a downlink PCell and a downlink SCell are provided over aggregated non-contiguous carriers, wherein when the user equipment is in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, the apparatus is configured to transmit over the downlink PCell while alternating between transmitting and not transmitting over the downlink SCell in accordance with a first pattern; providing a trigger to the user equipment, wherein the trigger indicates that the user equipment is to enter the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state; and based on the trigger, providing transmissions over the downlink PCell while alternating between providing transmissions on the downlink SCell and not providing transmissions on the downlink SCell in accordance with the first pattern.

[0021] According to a sixth aspect, there is provided an apparatus comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory comprising code that, when executed by the at least one processor, causes the apparatus to perform: providing, to a user equipment, a configuration for causing the user equipment to operate in a downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state in which a downlink PCell and a downlink SCell are provided over aggregated non-contiguous carriers, wherein when the userequipment is in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, the apparatus is configured to transmit over the downlink PCell while alternating between providing transmitting and not transmitting over the downlink SCell in accordance with a first pattern; providing a trigger to the user equipment, wherein the trigger indicates that the user equipment is to enter the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state; and based on the trigger, providing transmissions over the downlink PCell while alternating between providing transmissions on the downlink SCell and not providing transmissions on the downlink SCell in accordance with the first pattern.

[0022] According to a seventh aspect, there is provided a method for an apparatus, the method comprising: providing, to a user equipment, a configuration for causing the user equipment to operate in a downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state in which a downlink PCell and a downlink SCell are provided over aggregated non-contiguous carriers, wherein when the user equipment is in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, the apparatus is configured to transmit over the downlink PCell while alternating between transmitting and not transmitting over the downlink SCell in accordance with a first pattern; providing a trigger to the user equipment, wherein the trigger indicates that the user equipment is to enter the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state; and based on the trigger, providing transmissions over the downlink PCell while alternating between providing transmissions on the downlink SCell and not providing transmissions on the downlink SCell in accordance with the first pattern.

[0023] According to an eighth aspect, there is provided an apparatus comprising: providing circuitry for providing, to a user equipment, a configuration for causing the user equipment to operate in a downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state in which a downlink PCell and a downlink SCell are provided over aggregated non-contiguous carriers, wherein when the user equipment is in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, the apparatus is configured to transmit over the downlink PCell while alternating between transmitting and not transmitting over the downlink SCell in accordance with a first pattern; providing circuitry for providing a trigger to the user equipment, wherein the trigger indicates that the user equipment is to enter the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state; and providing circuitry for, based on the trigger, providing transmissions over the downlink PCell while alternating between providing transmissions on the downlink SCell and not providing transmissions on the downlink SCell in accordance with the first pattern.

[0024] The following may apply in respect of any (e.g., one or more, including all) of the above fifth to eighth aspects.

[0025] The providing the configuration may comprise transmitting the configuration from the apparatus in at least one of a radio resource control configuration message, a radio resource control reconfiguration message, downlink control information, or a medium access control control element.

[0026] The apparatus further may be further caused to perform: receiving, from the user equipment, an indication of one or more capabilities of the user equipment, wherein the one of more capabilities comprises a capability of the user equipment to operate in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, and wherein at least one of the configuration or the trigger is provided based on the capability of the user equipment to operate in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state.

[0027] The apparatus further may be further caused to perform: configuring the first pattern at the user equipment before providing the trigger.

[0028] The apparatus further may be further caused to perform: providing, to the user equipment, a plurality of different patterns, each of the different patterns corresponding to a respective pattern defining how transmissions over the downlink SCell will alternate between being provided and not being provided when that respective pattern is selected for use during the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state.

[0029] When each pattern of the plurality of different patterns is associated with a respective set of criteria for selecting that pattern, The apparatus further may be further caused to perform: selecting the first pattern from the plurality of different patterns based on determining that the set of criteria associated with the first pattern is fulfilled while the sets of criteria associated with the other patterns of the plurality of different patterns are not are fulfilled.

[0030] The apparatus further may be further caused to perform: applying a first modulation code scheme for modulating transmissions on the downlink PCell when transmissions over the SCell are provided, and applying a second modulation and coding scheme for modulating transmissions on the downlink PCell when transmissions over the SCell are not provided.

[0031] The following may apply in respect of any (e.g., one or more, including all) of the above first to eighth aspects.

[0032] The trigger may comprise an SCell activation command.

[0033] The trigger may comprise information indicating a degree of interference experienced by transmissions of the network access node.

[0034] According to an aspect, there is provided a non-transitory computer readable medium comprising program instructions that, when executed by an apparatus, cause the apparatus to perform at least the method according to any of the preceding aspects.

[0035] In the above, many different embodiments have been described. It should be appreciated that further embodiments may be provided by the combination of any two or more of the embodiments described above.DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES

[0036] Embodiments will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying Figures in which:

[0037] Figure 1 shows a representation of a network system according to some example embodiments;

[0038] Figure 2 shows a representation of a control apparatus according to some example embodiments;

[0039] Figure 3 shows a representation of an apparatus according to some example embodiments;

[0040] Figure 4 illustrates a fragmented spectrum for carrier aggregation;

[0041] Figures 5 and 6 illustrates example filters for at least one filter in relation to uplink transmissions and downlink reception;

[0042] Figures 7 and 8 illustrate example receive filter adjustments that may be performed;

[0043] Figure 9 illustrates example methods that may be performed by apparatus described herein;

[0044] Figure 10 illustrates example on-off patterns for a SCell; and

[0045] Figures 11 and 12 illustrate example methods that may be performed by apparatus described herein.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0046] In general, the following relates to fragmented carrier aggregation (fragmented CA), and, more particularly, to downlink fragmented CA. As discussed later,fragmented carrier aggregation comprises a carrier aggregation that is configured using aggregated non-contiguous carriers.

[0047] In more detail, when a user equipment (UE) is configured to operate in a downlink fragmented CA state, that UE is normally configured to transmit on an uplink primary cell (PCell) while receiving downlink transmissions on a downlink PCell and a downlink secondary cell (SCell). However, the frequency of the uplink PCell transmissions may be within a so-called duplex distance of the downlink SCell transmissions, which may increase the level of self-interference on downlink SCell reception. This may be detrimental to the radio link as a whole, since control plane data for the radio link is provided over the downlink PCell, and so increased interference on the downlink as a whole may lead to control plane data being lost and the radio link failing as the user equipment is in fragmented CA state.

[0048] It would be advantageous to still be able to deploy downlink fragmented CA techniques while reducing the likelihood of downlink self-interference.

[0049] To address at least one of the issues described further herein, a network access node may be configured to alternate between stopping and starting downlink SCell transmissions in accordance with an on-off pattern that is selected based on the expected interference arising from transmissions on at least one of the uplink PCell, downlink SCell and / or downlink PCell. The UE may be further configured to optimize its reception of the downlink PCell when the downlink SCell transmissions are currently stopped by applying a narrow receive filter centered on the downlink PCell carrier that excludes downlink SCell frequencies. This is illustrated further below.

[0050] Before examples of the presently described methods are further illustrated, an overview of an example communication environment in which the presently described methods may be deployed is illustrated with respect to Figures 1 to 3.

[0051] Figure 1 shows an example communication environment 100 in which example embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented.

[0052] In the communication environment 100, a plurality of communication devices, comprising user devices 110 and 115 (also referred to herein as a “terminal” or “terminal device”) and a network device 120 (also referred to herein as a “network access node”), can communicate with each other. The network device 120 may serve a coverage area, called a cell 125. The user device 110 may have access to a communication network via the cell 125. In some example embodiments, both the userdevice 110 and the network device 120 may be configured to implement a beamforming technique and communicate with each other via a plurality of beams.

[0053] The term “terminal device” refers to any end device that may be capable of wireless communication. By way of example rather than limitation, a terminal device may also be referred to as a communication device, user equipment (UE), a Subscriber Station (SS), a Portable Subscriber Station, a mobile device, a Mobile Station (MS), or an Access Terminal (AT). The terminal device may include, but not limited to, a mobile phone, a cellular phone, a smart phone, voice over IP (VoIP) phones, wireless local loop phones, a tablet, a wearable terminal device, a personal digital assistant (PDA), portable computers, desktop computer, image capture terminal devices such as digital cameras, gaming terminal devices, music storage and playback appliances, vehicle-mounted wireless terminal devices, wireless endpoints, mobile stations, laptop-embedded equipment (LEE), laptop-mounted equipment (LME), USB dongles, smart devices, wireless customer-premises equipment (CPE), a machine-type communications (MTC) device, an Internet of Things (loT) device, a watch or other wearable, a head-mounted display (HMD), a vehicle, a drone, a medical device and applications (e.g., remote surgery), an industrial device and applications (e.g., a robot and / or other wireless devices operating in an industrial and / or an automated processing chain contexts), a consumer electronics device, a device operating on commercial and / or industrial wireless networks, and the like. The terminal device may also correspond to a Mobile Termination (MT) part of an IAB node (e.g., a relay node). In the following description, the terms “terminal device”, “communication device”, “terminal”, “user device”, “user equipment” and “UE” may be used interchangeably.

[0054] As used herein, the term “network device” is used interchangeably with “network access node”, and refers to a node in a communication network via which a terminal device accesses the network and receives services therefrom. The network device may refer to a base station (BS) or an access point (AP), for example, a node B (NodeB or NB), an evolved NodeB (eNodeB or eNB), an NR NB (also referred to as a gNB), a Remote Radio Unit (RRU), a radio header (RH), a remote radio head (RRH), a relay, an Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB) node, a low power node such as a femto, a pico, a non-terrestrial network (NTN) or non-ground network device such as a satellite network device, a low earth orbit (LEO) satellite and a geosynchronous earth orbit (GEO) satellite, an aircraft network device, and so forth, depending on the appliedterminology and technology. In some example embodiments, radio access network (RAN) split architecture comprises a Centralized Unit (CU) and a Distributed Unit (DU) at an IAB donor node. An IAB node comprises a Mobile Terminal (IAB-MT) part that behaves like a UE toward the parent node, and a DU part of an IAB node behaves like a base station toward the next-hop IAB node.

[0055] In some example embodiments, a link from the network device 120 to the user device 110 or 115 is referred to as a DL, while a link from the user device 110 or 115 to the network device 120 is referred to as a UL. Links are also referred to herein as “channels”. In DL, the network device 120 is a Tx device (or a transmitter), and the user device 110 or 115 is a Rx device (or a receiver). In UL, the user device 110 or 115 is a Tx device (or a transmitter), and the network device 120 is a Rx device (or a receiver). A link between the user device 110 and another user device (not shown) is referred to as a sidelink (SL). In SL, one of the user devices is a Tx device (or a transmitter), and the other of the user devices is a Rx device (or a receiver).

[0056] Communications in the communication environment 100 may be implemented according to any proper communication protocol(s), comprising, but not limited to, cellular communication protocols of the first generation (1G), the second generation (2G), the third generation (3G), the fourth generation (4G), the fifth generation (5G), the sixth generation (6G), and the like, wireless local network communication protocols such as Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 and the like, and / or any other protocols currently known or to be developed in the future. Moreover, the communication may utilize any proper wireless communication technology, comprising but not limited to: Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Duplex (FDD), Time Division Duplex (TDD), Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple (OFDM), Discrete Fourier Transform spread OFDM (DFT-s-OFDM) and / or any other technologies currently known or to be developed in the future.

[0057] The network device 120 may be configured to communicate with one or more of the user devices 100, 115 using carrier aggregation. Carrier aggregation is a method of combining one or more frequency blocks (e.g., one or more carriers). Each frequency block, known as a carrier, has specific characteristics in terms of coverage (the range around the antenna where signals (e.g., transmissions) can still be received) and capacity (bandwidth, data rates, throughput). Each aggregated carrieris referred to as a component carrier, CC. For simplicity throughout the following, the term “carrier” will be used synonymously with “aggregated carrier” and “component carrier”.

[0058] Carrier aggregation is often performed using contiguous component carriers within the same operating frequency band, which is known as intra-band contiguous, as this is the simplest configuration to manage. However, contiguous component carriers may not always be available (e.g., due to operator frequency allocation scenarios). In such a case, carrier aggregation may be performed using noncontiguous component carriers.

[0059] The non-contiguous component carrier configuration may further be classified as being either an intra-band configuration, or an inter-band configuration.

[0060] For intra-band configurations, the component carriers belong to the same operating frequency band, but have at least one gap in between the component carriers. For inter-band configurations, the component carriers belong to different operating frequency bands.

[0061] The different component carriers used in carrier aggregation may be further classified into different types. For example, one of the component carriers may be labelled as a primary component carrier that serves a primary cell (PCell) and another of the component carriers may be labelled as a secondary component carrier that serves a secondary cell (SCell). For clarity and brevity, the terms “PCell” and primary component carrier will be used interchangeably throughout. Further, the terms “SCell” and secondary component carrier will be used interchangeably.

[0062] The PCell may be configured to provide both control plane and user plane signalling to a UE, while the SCell may be configured to provide user plane (and not control plane) signalling to the UE. It is understood herein that the term “signalling” may be used interchangeably with the term “transmitting”.

[0063] For example, the PCell may be used as part of an initial access between a UE and an access network node configured to provide the PCell and SCell, and may be configured to provide radio resource control (RRC) connection signalling between the network access node and the UE. The SCell may be configured to provide user plane signalling with the UE (e.g., to allow data streams to be transmitted to and / or from the UE).

[0064] Figure 2 illustrates an example of a control apparatus 200 for causing a network device 120 (such as the network device described in Figure 1) to perform itsoperations. The control apparatus may comprise at least one random access memory (RAM) 211a, at least on read only memory (ROM) 211b, at least one processor 212, 213 and an input / output interface 214. The at least one processor 212, 213 may be coupled to the RAM 211a and the ROM 211b. The at least one processor 212, 213 may be configured to execute an appropriate software code 215. The software code 215 may for example allow to perform one or more steps to perform one or more of the present aspects. The software code 215 may be stored in the ROM 211b. The control apparatus 200 may be interconnected with another control apparatus 200 controlling another function of the network device. In some embodiments, each function of the network device comprises a control apparatus 200. In some exemplary embodiments, the apparatus 200 may be implemented at the network device 120 or may be the network device 120.

[0065] Figure 3 illustrates an example of a terminal 300, such as the user device 110, 115 illustrated on Figure 1. The terminal 300 may be provided by any device capable of sending and receiving radio signals, such as the user device described herein. The terminal 300 may provide, for example, communication of data for carrying communications. The communications may be one or more of voice, electronic mail (email), text message, multimedia, data, machine data and so on.

[0066] The terminal 300 may receive signals (e.g., the terminal 300 may receive) over an air or radio interface 307 via appropriate apparatus for receiving and may transmit signals (e.g., may transmit) via appropriate apparatus for transmitting radio signals. In Figure 3 transceiver apparatus is designated schematically by block 306. The transceiver apparatus 306 may be provided for example by means of a radio part and associated antenna arrangement. The antenna arrangement may be arranged internally or externally to the mobile device.

[0067] The terminal 300 may be provided with at least one processor 301 , at least one memory ROM 302a, at least one RAM 302b and other possible components 303 for use in software and hardware aided execution of tasks it is designed to perform, including control of access to and communications with access systems (such as a network access system provided by the network device described above in relation to Figures 1 and 2) and other communication devices. The at least one processor 301 is coupled to the RAM 302b and the ROM 302a. The at least one processor 301 may be configured to execute an appropriate software code 308. The software code 308 mayfor example allow to perform one or more of the present aspects. The software code 308 may be stored in the ROM 302a.

[0068] The processor, storage and other relevant control apparatus can be provided on an appropriate circuit board and / or in chipsets. This feature is denoted by reference 304. The device may optionally have a user interface such as key pad 305, touch sensitive screen or pad, combinations thereof or the like. Optionally one or more of a display, a speaker and a microphone may be provided depending on the type of the device.

[0069] In some exemplary embodiments, the terminal 300 may be an apparatus comprising at least one processor and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause a user device 110, 115 to perform examples or embodiments described in this document.

[0070] In order to increase the amount data that can be signalled in a cell, recent communication systems have considered the use of fragmented carrier aggregation, which relates to performing carrier aggregation using non-contiguous carriers, as discussed above.

[0071] In more detail, fragmented carrier aggregation (“Fragmented CA”) relates to the reception of non-contiguous intra-band carriers to be received using a single radio receiver chain by the UE. A receiver (e.g., a UE) of the fragmented carriers is understood to have a hardware configuration that enables reception of at least two fragmented intra-band carriers with a single receiver radio frequency chain. Fragmented carrier aggregation is illustrated with respect to Figure 4.

[0072] Figure 4 illustrates a downlink frequency band 400 that comprises first frequency ranges 401 for providing downlink signalling from a first operator, second frequency ranges 402 for providing downlink signalling from a second operator, a third frequency range 403 for providing downlink signalling from a third operator, and unused frequency ranges 404 that are not used for downlink transmissions. The first and second frequency ranges may be considered to form respective fragmented carrier aggregation configurations as the carriers (e.g., frequency ranges) available to those operators for downlink transmissions are non-contiguous.

[0073] However, using a single receiver radio frequency chain can lead to interference issues in receiving downlink signalling at the UE. For example, not only may there be adjacent channel interference arising between the two fragmented carriers, but there may also be uplink leakage from transmissions made on an uplink component carrierthat exacerbates downlink self-interference on the downlink primary and secondary component carriers. This may be particularly problematic when at least one of the downlink carriers is a PCell, as the PCell carries control plane signalling for the primary and secondary component carriers, and so incorrect reception of network PCell transmissions may make it more likely that the radio link will drop.

[0074] This is illustrated with respect to Figure 5.

[0075] Figure 5 illustrates operations with respect to an uplink frequency range 501 and a downlink frequency range 511.

[0076] The uplink frequency range is configured such that an uplink primary component carrier 502 provided on the uplink frequency range is located at least a so-called “duplex distance” away from a downlink primary component carrier 512 provided on the downlink frequency range 511. The duplex distance may be calculated (or otherwise determined) such that there is expected to be less than a threshold amount of interference arising from transmissions made on the uplink primary component carrier 502 and the downlink component carrier 512.

[0077] The downlink frequency range 511 is further configured to provide a secondary component carrier 513. This secondary component carrier 513 is located closer to the uplink primary component carrier 502 than the downlink primary component carrier 512. It is expected that transmissions made on the uplink may cause interference for reception of the downlink. In particular, the uplink transmission may cause interference on the downlink carrier closest to the uplink carrier (e.g., the downlink secondary component carrier in the present exam), and (in more severe cases) on downlink carriers within the duplex distance of the uplink component carriers. . Also illustrated on Figure 5 are example shapes of an uplink transmission filter 504 and a downlink reception filter 514.

[0078] The following aims to address at least one of the above-mentioned issues.

[0079] In particular, the following aims to provide at least one method in which network transmissions made on a downlink secondary cell are alternately suspended and not-suspended in accordance with a preconfigured pattern. The preconfigured pattern may, for example, define when downlink secondary cells are “on” (e.g., network transmissions are performed over the downlink secondary cell resources) and when downlink secondary cells are “off” (e.g. network transmissions are not performed over the downlink secondary cell resources). It is understood in the following that the expression “downlink secondary cell” may refer to at least one component carrier usedfor downlink transmissions over a secondary cell. It is further understood in the following that the expression “downlink primary cell” may refer to at least one component carrier used for downlink transmissions over a primary cell.

[0080] Further, a receiving UE is configured to use the preconfigured pattern to modify one or more parameters used at the UE for reception of downlink transmissions.

[0081] For example, when the preconfigured pattern for the fragmented carriers indicates that the downlink secondary cell is “off”, the UE may use a different width for the receive filter for reception of the downlink PCell compared to the width of the receive frequency used for reception of the downlink PCell when the preconfigured pattern indicates that the downlink secondary cell is “on”. In an example, the receive filter used for reception of the downlink PCell may be narrower when the preconfigured pattern for the fragmented carriers indicates that the downlink secondary cell is “off” compared to when the preconfigured pattern for the fragmented carriers indicates that the downlink secondary cell is “on”.

[0082] The preconfigured pattern may be defined so that the downlink SCell network transmissions are stopped (e.g., not performed) when it is expected that important data is to be provided over the downlink PCell. For example, the preconfigured pattern may be defined so that the downlink SCell network transmissions are stopped when it is expected that control data will be transmitted by the network over the downlink PCell. For example, the preconfigured pattern may be defined so that the downlink SCell network transmissions are stopped for those time-frequency resources when the downlink PCell is scheduled to provide at least one synchronisation signal block. As another example, the downlink SCell may be configured to not be provided when a communication to be provided over the downlink PCell is associated with a priority value that is greater than a predetermined threshold value.

[0083] The location of the centre point of the receive filter may change in addition to its width in order to centre the receive filter around the downlink primary cell when the secondary cell is indicated as being “off” by the preconfigured pattern. In contrast, when the preconfigured pattern indicates that the downlink secondary cell is indicated as being “on” the centre of the receive filter may be located such that both the primary and secondary cell frequency ranges are included in the receive filter.

[0084] As another example, when the preconfigured pattern indicates that the downlink secondary cell is “off”, the UE may use a different modulation and coding scheme for reception of the downlink PCell compared to the modulation and coding scheme usedfor reception of the downlink PCell when the preconfigured pattern indicates that the downlink secondary cell is “on”.

[0085] By using a preconfigured pattern as described herein, the fragmented carrier aggregation may be considered to operate in a switched fashion, in which fragmented carrier aggregation operation effectively switches on and off.

[0086] This may be seen with respect to Figure 5. For example, in a first mode of operation, no transmissions are made by the network access node on the downlink secondary cell 513, while transmissions are made by the network access node on the downlink primary cell 512 and transmissions are made by the UE on the uplink primary cell 502. In the first mode, fragmented CA may be considered as being switched off.

[0087] In contrast, in a second mode of operation, transmissions are made by the network access node on the downlink secondary cell 513 and on the downlink primary cell 512, and transmissions are made by the UE on the uplink primary cell 502. In the second mode, fragmented CA may be considered as being switched on.

[0088] When the switching is performed quickly enough, the UE may still maintain synchronization with the secondary cell, which may lead to resources being used even more efficiently.

[0089] A timeline version the example of Figure 5 is illustrated in Figure 6, which reuses the same labelling as Figure 5, where appropriate. In the example of Figure 6, the secondary component carrier 513 alternates between an on-state 601 and an off-state 602, which respectively correspond to the on and off states of the fragmented carrier aggregation.

[0090] Figures 7 and 8 illustrate how the above-mentioned receive filter may change based on whether the fragmented carrier aggregation is in an on-state or an off-state.

[0091] Figure 7 illustrates a receive filter 700 that may be applied in respect of an on-state for fragmented carrier aggregation in which transmissions are made over both the secondary cell carrier 701 and the primary cell carrier 702. Also illustrated in Figure 7 is an in-gap interferer 703, which represents network noise. As can be seen from Figure 7, the receive filter 700 is wide enough that, and is located such that, it includes the frequencies of both the primary and secondary cells 701 , 702.

[0092] In contrast, Figure 8 illustrates a receive filter 800 that may be applied in respect of an on-state for fragmented carrier aggregation in which network transmissions are made over the primary cell carrier 802, but not the secondary cell carrier 801. Also illustrated in Figure 8 is an in-gap interferer 803, which represents interference frompotentially other networks. As can be seen from Figure 8, the receive filter 800 is wide enough that, and is located such that, it includes the frequencies of the primary cell 802, but does not include the frequencies of the secondary cell 801 or the in-gap interference. Stated differently, the receive filter of the example of Figure 8 may be considered to be a single carrier filter, while the receive filter of the example of Figure 7 may be considered to be a multi-carrier filter.

[0093] The presently described techniques are further illustrated with respect to the examples of Figures 9 to 12.

[0094] Figure 9 illustrates at least one method that may be performed by apparatus as described herein.

[0095] In particular, Figure 9 illustrates at least one method that may be performed by a UE 901 , a primary cell (PCell) 902, and a secondary cell (SCell) 903.

[0096] During 9001, the UE 901 provides the PCell with an indication of the UEs’ capabilities. This may be performed, for example, as part of a registration procedure that registers the UE with the PCell for receiving access to a network through the PCell. However, it is understood that this information may be provided at another time and / or during another signalling process.

[0097] The indication of the UEs’ capabilities may indicate that the UE is able to perform fragmented carrier aggregation in accordance with a switched operation. Stated differently, the indication of the UE’s capabilities may indicate that the UE is able to alternate between receiving and not-receiving downlink SCell transmissions in accordance with at least one preconfigured pattern.

[0098] An example preconfigured pattern is illustrated with respect to Figure 10.

[0099] As shown in Figure 10, there is provided a PCell carrier 1001 and a downlink SCell carrier 1002. Transmissions on the downlink SCell carrier are configured to be suppressed (e.g., not performed) during certain time durations in order that network transmissions on the downlink PCell may be prioritized for reception at the UE. The UE may prioritise the downlink PCell for reception by applying the narrower-band receive filter described herein. Stated differently, the UE may prioritise the downlink PCell for reception by applying a receive filter that covers the receive frequencies corresponding to the downlink PCell and that does not cover frequencies corresponding to the downlink SCell.

[0100] The on-off pattern that indicates when the downlink SCell carrier transmissions will be performed and when they won’t be performed is referred to herein as apreconfigured pattern. The downlink SCell on-off pattern may be represented by a bitmap (e.g., 00111001110011100111 in the present example) The downlink SCell carrier transmissions may be suspended when an important downlink PCell transmission is to be made. The network may be configured to designate at least one type of transmission to be made over the downlink PCell as being important for this purpose. For example, when SSB transmissions are designated as being important (e.g., having a priority associated therewith that is at or above a threshold value, or that is otherwise designated as being a type of communication that is considered important enough to suspend network transmissions on the SCell), the downlink SCell network transmissions may be suspended for the periods of time in which those SSB transmissions are to be made.

[0101] The preconfigured pattern may be defined so that the downlink SCell network transmissions are stopped (e.g., not performed) when it is expected that important data is to be provided over the downlink PCell. For example, the preconfigured pattern may be defined so that the downlink Scell network transmissions are stopped when it is expected that control data will be transmitted over the downlink PCell. For example, the preconfigured pattern may be defined so that the downlink SCell network transmissions are stopped for those time-frequency resources when the downlink PCell is scheduled to provide at least one synchronisation signal block.

[0102] Further, the preconfigured pattern may be defined to fulfil requirements for maintaining connectivity on the downlink SCell. For example, under some 3GPP specifications, a UE should receive a downlink SCell reference signal every 320ms in order to maintain connectivity with the downlink SCell. As another example, the downlink SCell may be configured to not be provided when a communication to be provided over the downlink PCell is associated with a priority value that is greater than a predetermined threshold value.

[0103] During 9002, the PCell 902 is activated, and the UE 901 and the PCell 902 are configured to communicate such that the UE is configured to receive communications from the PCell 902. Although not shown during 9002, after the PCell is activated, the UE may be further configured to provide uplink transmissions to the PCell.

[0104] During 9003, the PCell 902 transmits, to the UE 901, information indicating that fragmented carrier aggregation will be applied when an Scell 903 activates. The information of 9003 may further indicate information for determining how fragmented carrier aggregation is to be performed.

[0105] For example, during 9003, the PCell may further transmit, to the UE, an indication of at least one preconfigured pattern to the UE 901. The at least one preconfigured pattern may be as described above in relation to 9001. This indication may comprise the at least one preconfigured pattern, and / or a value that may be used by the UE 901 for determining the at least one preconfigured pattern. For example, for this latter case, the value may comprise at least one index that identifies a respective preconfigured pattern already stored at the UE. This may be useful when the at least one preconfigured pattern are defined by a communication specification (e.g., a 3GPP specification) or the like, and may be pre-stored at the UE 901.

[0106] The transmissions of 9003 may comprise further information for providing information on the at least one preconfigured pattern. For example, the transmissions may comprise, for at least one of said at least one preconfigured pattern, respective information associating one or more criterion that are to be fulfilled in order for that particular preconfigured pattern to be applied for reception of downlink transmissions. For example, the one or more criterion may comprise one or more thresholds and / or ranges of a signal quality metric that indicate when that particular preconfigured pattern may be applied for reception of downlink transmissions.

[0107] The signalling of 9003 may be performed using, for example, a radio resource control (RRC) message, such as an RRC reconfiguration message. However, it is understood that this is not the only type of signalling by way of which the pattern information may be provided. For example, the signalling of 9003 may be performed using, for example, downlink control information and / or a medium access control control element. These latter two examples may be more useful when the preconfigured pattern is reconfigured during operation (e.g., when the preconfigured pattern is dynamically updated). In contrast, the RRC signalling may be more useful for semi-static and / or advance configuration of the at least one preconfigured pattern.

[0108] It is further understood that although the present example illustrates that the information for determining how fragmented CA is to be performed is transmitted during 9003, this information may be transmitted at some other time. For example, this information may be transmitted during 9004.

[0109] During 9004, the PCell 902 transmits to the UE 901. This transmission may indicate, to the UE, that the SCell 903 is being activated. This transmission may further indicate to the UE 901 whether switched fragmented CA will be applied for communications received from the downlink SCell 903.

[0110] During 9005, the UE 901 selects a preconfigured pattern out of the at least one preconfigured patterns for determining when network transmissions from the SCell 903 are likely to be received. This selection may be performed based on information received from the PCell (e.g., during 9003 and / or 9004). When only one preconfigured pattern is indicated during at least one of 9003 or 9004, this one preconfigured pattern is selected by the UE during 9005. When a plurality of preconfigured patterns is indicated during at least one of 9003 or 9004, the UE may be configured to determine which of said preconfigured patterns is associated with fulfilled criteria. For example, each of the plurality of preconfigured patterns may be associated with a respective signal quality metric. The UE may be configured to determine a current signal quality metric (e.g., based on transmissions received from the PCell during 9004) and select one or the plurality of preconfigured patterns based on which of the respective signal quality metrics is consistent with the determined current signal quality metric. The signal quality metric may comprise, for example, a power of a received transmitted signal, a signal-to-interference-and-noise ratio, etc.

[0111] 9006 to 9007 illustrate transmissions being made in accordance with the selected preconfigured pattern of 9005.

[0112] Further, during 9006, the fragmented CA is switched off (e.g., downlink transmissions are made over the PCell 902 but not over the SCell 903, and uplink transmissions are made over the uplink PCell). The UE may use a receive filter as described above in connection with Figure 8.

[0113] In more detail, during 9007, the fragmented CA is switched on (e.g., downlink transmissions are made over each of the PCell 902 and the SCell 903, and uplink transmissions are made over the uplink PCell). The UE may use a receive filter as described in connection with Figure 7

[0114] It is understood that the UE and network may maintain separate channel performance states for the selected preconfigured pattern using the PCell DL. Stated differently, the UE and PCell may be configured to apply different modulation and coding schemes (MCS) when the filter of Figure 7 is applied relative to when the filter of Figure 8 is applied by the UE.

[0115] As the switching on the downlink will generate interruptions, the network may be configured to adapt the switching pattern to minimize the impact of interruptions. Stated differently, when a first preconfigured pattern is initially used for determining when to alternate between switching the downlink SCell network transmissions on andoff, the apparatus described herein may be configured to select a second, different, preconfigured pattern for determining when to alternate between switching the downlink Scell network transmissions on and off.

[0116] The selection of the second preconfigured pattern may be performed based on information received during 9003 and / or 9004 or may be performed based on information received at some later time, or may be performed based on some combination of these examples.

[0117] For example, the selection of the second preconfigured pattern may be performed when the signalling of 9003 indicates a plurality of preconfigured patterns and their respective criteria for selection. In such a case, the UE 901 and the PCell 902 may select the second preconfigured pattern from the plurality of preconfigured patterns based on evaluating which of the plurality of preconfigured patterns are associated with fulfilled criteria.

[0118] As another example, the selection of the second preconfigured pattern may be performed based on the PCell 902 providing the UE with information identifying the second preconfigured pattern after the PCell 902 has selected the second preconfigured pattern. This may be performed regardless of whether only the first preconfigured pattern was signalled during at least one of 9003 or 9004, or whether at least both the first preconfigured pattern was signalled during at least one of 9003 or 9004.

[0119] As discussed above, such signalling that provides information for selecting the second preconfigured pattern may be provided using at least one of an RRC message, DCI, or a medium access control (MAC) message.

[0120] Figures 11 and 12 illustrate one or more features of the above described principles and examples.

[0121] Figure 11 illustrates at least one method that may be implemented by an apparatus. The apparatus may comprise (and / or be comprised in) a user equipment. The apparatus may be as described in connection with Figure 3.

[0122] During 1101 , the apparatus obtains a configuration for operating in a downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state in which a downlink PCell and a downlink SCell are provided over aggregated non-contiguous carriers. It is understood that fragmented carrier aggregation may be understood as being a carrier aggregation method that comprises aggregated non-contiguous carriers.

[0123] When the apparatus is in the configured downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, the apparatus is configured to receive over the downlink PCell while alternating between receiving and not receiving over the downlink SCell in accordance with a first pattern.

[0124] During 1102, the apparatus receives a trigger from the network access node, wherein the trigger indicates that the apparatus is to enter the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state. The trigger may be as described below.

[0125] During 1103, the apparatus may receive on the downlink SCell based on the first pattern when the apparatus is in the fragmented downlink carrier aggregation state. For example, the apparatus may, during 1103, adjust a frequency width of a receive filter of the apparatus in accordance with the first pattern based on receiving the trigger.

[0126] The adjusting the frequency width of the receive filter may comprise: applying a first receive filter when the first pattern indicates that transmissions over the downlink SCell are being provided, wherein the first receive filter is wide enough to receive from both the downlink PCell and the downlink SCell; and applying a second receive filter when the first pattern indicates that transmissions over the downlink SCell are not being provided, wherein the second receive filter is narrower than the first receive filter. This may be as described above in relation to Figures 7 and 8 respectively.

[0127] The second receive filter may be centred around a central frequency of the downlink PCell and may exclude frequencies of the downlink SCell and adjacent channels. Stated differently, a local oscillator of the second receive filter may be centred around a central frequency of the downlink PCell and may exclude at least some of the frequencies of the downlink SCell (e.g., there is a single receive chain that is used for prioritising reception on the downlink PCell over reception on the downlink SCell).

[0128] The first receive filter may be centred around a mean frequency of the entire frequency range covered by the combination of the downlink PCell and the downlink SCell. Stated differently, a halfway point between a highest frequency of the highest located downlink carrier and the lowest frequency of the lowest located downlink carrier selected as a frequency of a local oscillator of the first receive filter, and the first receive filter may be configured to include the highest frequencies and the lowest frequencies of the fragmented carriers (e.g., there is a single receive chain that is used for receiving on both the PCell and the SCell).

[0129] The apparatus may apply a first modulation code scheme for demodulating transmissions received over the downlink PCell when the first receive filter is applied.

[0130] The apparatus may apply a second modulation and coding scheme for demodulating transmissions received over on the downlink PCell when the second receive filter is applied.

[0131] The first pattern may be defined so that the downlink SCell network transmissions are stopped (e.g., not performed) when it is expected that important data is to be provided over the downlink PCell. For example, the first pattern may be defined so that the downlink SCell network transmissions are stopped when it is expected that control data will be transmitted over the downlink PCell. For example, the first pattern may be defined so that the downlink Scell network transmissions are stopped for those time-frequency resources when the downlink PCell is scheduled to provide at least one synchronisation signal block. As another example, the downlink SCell may be configured to not be provided when a communication to be provided over the downlink PCell is associated with a priority value that is greater than a predetermined threshold value.

[0132] The apparatus may receive the first pattern from network access node before receiving the trigger.

[0133] The apparatus may receive a plurality of different patterns from the network access node, each of the different patterns corresponding to a respective pattern defining how transmissions over the downlink SCell will alternate between being provided and not being provided when that respective pattern is selected for use during the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state. Each of the different patterns may be different to each of the other different patterns. At least one of the differences between the different patterns may comprise, for example, at least one of a duration of an off duration for the SCell transmissions or a duration of an on-duration for the SCell transmissions.

[0134] The apparatus may be caused to select the first pattern from the plurality of different patterns based on information comprised in the trigger.

[0135] For example, when each pattern of the plurality of different patterns is associated with a respective set of criteria for selecting that pattern, the apparatus may select the first pattern from the plurality of different patterns based on determining that the set of criteria associated with the first pattern is fulfilled while the sets of criteria associated with the other patterns of the plurality of different patterns are not arefulfilled. This may be as described above. It is further understood that the set may comprise a single criterion, or may comprise at least two criteria. The respective set of criteria may be received from the network access node.

[0136] For example, the criteria may comprise at least one of: at least one threshold level of interference detected on the downlink PCell, or a categorisation of type of interference experienced on the downlink PCell (e.g. an origin of interference). For example, in the first scenario, the first pattern may be associated with a first range of interference metric values (e.g., a first range of signal to interference and noise ratios), while a second pattern of the plurality of different patterns is associated with a second range of interference metric values. The apparatus may select the first pattern based on the apparatus performing a determination that a current interference metric value falls within the first range of interference of metric values. Stated differently, the apparatus may select the first pattern based on the associated set of criteria that is associated with the first pattern being determined as being fulfilled.

[0137] The apparatus may be configured to transmit uplink over an uplink PCell while receiving over the downlink PCell.

[0138] Transmissions over the downlink PCell and transmissions over the downlink SCell may be received on a same receive chain of the apparatus when the transmissions over the downlink SCell are provided when the apparatus is operating in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state.

[0139] The apparatus may provide, to the network access node, an indication of one or more capabilities of the apparatus, wherein the one of more capabilities comprises a capability of the apparatus to operate in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state.

[0140] The obtaining the configuration may comprise receiving the configuration from the network access node in at least one of a radio resource control configuration message, a radio resource control reconfiguration message, downlink control information, or a medium access control control element.

[0141] Figure 12 illustrates at least one method that may be performed by an apparatus configured to interact with the apparatus of Figure 11. The apparatus of Figure 12 may comprise (or be comprised in) a network access node, such as a gNB. The apparatus of Figure 12 may be as described above in connection with Figure 2.

[0142] During 1201, the apparatus providing, to a user equipment, a configuration for causing the user equipment to operate in a downlink fragmented carrier aggregationstate in which a downlink PCell and a downlink SCell are provided over aggregated non-contiguous carriers, wherein when the user equipment is in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, the apparatus is configured to transmit over the downlink PCell while alternating between transmitting and not transmitting over the downlink SCell in accordance with a first pattern. The user equipment may be as described above in connection with Figure 11.

[0143] During 1202, the apparatus provides a trigger to the user equipment, wherein the trigger indicates that the user equipment is to enter the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state.

[0144] During 1203, based on the trigger, the apparatus provides transmissions over the downlink PCell while alternating between providing transmissions on the downlink SCell and not providing transmissions on the downlink SCell in accordance with the first pattern.

[0145] The providing the configuration comprises may comprise transmitting the configuration from the apparatus in at least one of a radio resource control configuration message, a radio resource control reconfiguration message, downlink control information, or a medium access control control element.

[0146] The apparatus may receive, from the user equipment, an indication of one or more capabilities of the user equipment, wherein the one of more capabilities comprises a capability of the user equipment to operate in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, and wherein at least one of the configuration or the trigger is provided based on the capability of the user equipment to operate in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state.

[0147] The apparatus may categorise the first pattern at the user equipment before providing the trigger.

[0148] The apparatus may provide, to the user equipment, a plurality of different patterns, each of the different patterns corresponding to a respective pattern defining how transmissions over the downlink SCell will alternate between being provided and not being provided when that respective pattern is selected for use during the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state.

[0149] Each pattern of the plurality of patterns may be associated with a respective set of criteria for selecting that pattern, and the apparatus may further select the first pattern from the plurality of patterns based on determining that the set of criteria associated with the first pattern is fulfilled while the sets of criteria associated with theother patterns of the plurality of patterns are not are fulfilled. This may be performed as described above in relation to the apparatus of Figure 11.

[0150] The apparatus may apply a first modulation code scheme for modulating transmissions over the downlink PCell when transmissions over the SCell are provided, and may apply a second modulation and coding scheme for modulating transmissions over the downlink PCell when transmissions on the SCell are not provided.

[0151] In the examples of Figures 11 and 12, the trigger may comprise an SCell activation command. An SCell activation command may be considered to be a signal that triggers the UE to start receiving from the downlink SCell.

[0152] In the examples of Figures of 11 and 12, the trigger may comprise information indicating a degree of interference experienced by downlink transmissions of the network access node. This may be used in combination with the above mentioned sets of criteria.

[0153] The presently described method(s) may be considered to have a plurality of advantages associated therewith.

[0154] First, the described method is applicable to a wider variety of apparatus, and does not need to be configured to perform measurements to determine an in-gap interference introduced as a result of using a fragmented CA. For example, when a UE does not support a switched fragmented CA scheme, the UE may still obtain a benefit from the switched operation by receiving having a reduced interference level. Greater benefit may be obtained when the UE is configured to adapt at least one reception parameter (as described above) in order to prioritise reception of the downlink PCell over reception of the downlink SCell (e.g., by adjusting a receive filter and / or adjusting MCS used for reception). Switched DL CA scheme solves PCell interference of in-gap interference in fragmented CA.

[0155] It should be understood that the apparatuses may comprise or be coupled to other units or modules etc., such as radio parts or radio heads, used in or for transmission and / or reception. Although the apparatuses have been described as one entity, different modules and memory may be implemented in one or more physical or logical entities.

[0156] It is noted that whilst some embodiments have been described in relation to 5G networks, similar principles can be applied in relation to other networks and communication systems. Therefore, although certain embodiments were describedabove by way of example with reference to certain example architectures for wireless networks, technologies and standards, embodiments may be applied to any other suitable forms of communication systems than those illustrated and described herein.

[0157] It is also noted herein that while the above describes example embodiments, there are several variations and modifications which may be made to the disclosed solution without departing from the scope of the present invention.

[0158] As used herein, “at least one of the following: ” and “at least one of ” and similar wording, where the list of two or more elements are joined by “and” or “or”, mean at least any one of the elements, or at least any two or more of the elements, or at least all the elements.

[0159] In general, the various embodiments may be implemented in hardware or special purpose circuitry, software, logic or any combination thereof. Some aspects of the disclosure may be implemented in hardware, while other aspects may be implemented in firmware or software which may be executed by a controller, microprocessor or other computing device, although the disclosure is not limited thereto. While various aspects of the disclosure may be illustrated and described as block diagrams, flow charts, or using some other pictorial representation, it is well understood that these blocks, apparatus, systems, techniques or methods described herein may be implemented in, as non-limiting examples, hardware, software, firmware, special purpose circuits or logic, general purpose hardware or controller or other computing devices, or some combination thereof.

[0160] As used herein, the term “circuitry” may refer to one or more or all of the following:(a) hardware-only circuit implementations (such as implementations in only analog and / or digital circuitry) and(b) combinations of hardware circuits and software, such as (as applicable):(i) a combination of analog and / or digital hardware circuit(s) with software / firmware and(ii) any portions of hardware processor(s) with software (including digital signal processor(s)), software, and memory(ies) that work together to cause an apparatus, such as a mobile phone or server, to perform various functions) and(c) hardware circuit(s) and or processor(s), such as a microprocessor(s) or a portion of a microprocessor(s), that requires software (e.g., firmware) for operation, but the software may not be present when it is not needed for operation.”

[0161] This definition of circuitry applies to all uses of this term herein, including in any claims. As a further example, as used herein, the term circuitry also covers an implementation of merely a hardware circuit or processor (or multiple processors) or portion of a hardware circuit or processor and its (or their) accompanying software and / or firmware. The term circuitry also covers, for example and if applicable to the particular claim element, a baseband integrated circuit or processor integrated circuit for a mobile device or a similar integrated circuit in server, a cellular network device, or other computing or network device.

[0162] The embodiments of this disclosure may be implemented by computer software executable by a data processor of the mobile device, such as in the processor entity, or by hardware, or by a combination of software and hardware. Computer software or program, also called program product, including software routines, applets and / or macros, may be stored in any apparatus-readable data storage medium and they comprise program instructions to perform particular tasks. A computer program product may comprise one or more computer-executable components which, when the program is run, are configured to carry out embodiments. The one or more computer-executable components may be at least one software code or portions of it.

[0163] Further in this regard it should be noted that any blocks of the logic flow as in the Figures may represent program steps, or interconnected logic circuits, blocks and functions, or a combination of program steps and logic circuits, blocks and functions. The software may be stored on such physical media as memory chips, or memory blocks implemented within the processor, magnetic media such as hard disk or floppy disks, and optical media such as for example DVD and the data variants thereof, CD. The physical media is a non-transitory media.

[0164] The term “non-transitory,” as used herein, is a limitation of the medium itself (i.e. , tangible, not a signal) as opposed to a limitation on data storage persistency (e.g., RAM vs. ROM).

[0165] The memory may be of any type suitable to the local technical environment and may be implemented using any suitable data storage technology, such as semiconductor-based memory devices, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory and removable memory. The data processors may be of any type suitable to the local technical environment, and may comprise one or more of general-purpose computers, special purpose computers, microprocessors, digital signal processors (DSPs), application specific integratedcircuits (ASIC), FPGA, gate level circuits and processors based on multi core processor architecture, as non-limiting examples.

[0166] Various example embodiments of the disclosure may be practiced in various components such as integrated circuit modules. The design of integrated circuits is by and large a highly automated process. Complex and powerful software tools are available for converting a logic level design into a semiconductor circuit design ready to be etched and formed on a semiconductor substrate.

[0167] The scope of protection sought for various example embodiments of the disclosure is set out by the independent claims. The example embodiments and features thereof, if any, described in this disclosure that do not fall under the scope of the independent claims are to be interpreted as examples useful for understanding various example embodiments of the disclosure.

[0168] The foregoing description has provided, by way of non-limiting and illustrative examples, a full and informative description of the various example embodiments of this disclosure. However, various modifications and adaptations may become apparent to those skilled in the relevant arts in view of the foregoing description, when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the claims. However, all such and similar modifications of the teachings will still fall within the various example embodiments of the disclosure as set forth in the claims. By way of non-limiting and illustrative example, there is a further example embodiment comprising a combination of one or more example embodiments with any of the other example embodiments previously discussed.

Claims

CLAIMS1) An apparatus comprising means for performing:obtaining a configuration for operating in a downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state in which a downlink PCell and a downlink SCell are provided over aggregated non-contiguous carriers, wherein when the apparatus is in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, the apparatus is configured to receive over the downlink PCell while alternating between receiving and not receiving over the downlink SCell in accordance with a first pattern;receiving a trigger from the network access node, wherein the trigger indicates that the apparatus is to enter the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state; andadjusting a frequency width of a receive filter of the apparatus in accordance with the first pattern based on receiving the trigger.2) An apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the means for adjusting the frequency width of the receive filter comprises means for performing:applying a first receive filter when the first pattern indicates that transmissions over the downlink SCell are being provided, wherein the first receive filter is wide enough to receive from both the downlink PCell and the downlink SCell; andapplying a second receive filter when the first pattern indicates that transmissions over the downlink SCell are not being provided, wherein the second receive filter is narrower than the first receive filter.3) An apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein the second receive filter is centred around a central frequency of the downlink PCell and is excludes frequencies of the downlink SCell.4) An apparatus as claimed in any of claims 2 to 3, further comprising means for applying a first modulation code scheme for demodulating transmissions received on the downlink PCell when the first receive filter is applied, and applying a second modulation and coding scheme for demodulatingtransmissions received on the downlink PCell when the second receive filter is applied.5) An apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, further comprising means for receiving the first pattern from network access node before receiving the trigger.6) An apparatus as claimed in claim 5 further comprising means for receiving a plurality of different patterns, each of the different patterns corresponding to a respective pattern defining how transmissions received from the downlink SCell will alternate between being provided and not being provided when that respective pattern is selected for use during the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state.7) An apparatus as claimed in claim 6, further comprising means for selecting the first pattern from the plurality of different patterns based on information comprised in the trigger.8) An apparatus as claimed in any of claims 6 to 7, wherein each pattern of the plurality of different patterns is associated with a respective set of criteria for selecting that pattern, and the apparatus further comprises means for selecting the first pattern from the plurality of different patterns based on determining that the set of criteria associated with the first pattern is fulfilled while the sets of criteria associated with the other patterns of the plurality of different patterns are not are fulfilled.9) An apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the apparatus is configured to transmit uplink over an uplink PCell while receiving over the downlink PCell.10)An apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein transmissions over the downlink PCell and transmissions over the downlink SCell are received on a same receive chain of the apparatus when the transmissions over the downlink SCell are provided when the apparatus is operating in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state.)An apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, further comprising means for providing, to the network access node, an indication of one or more capabilities of the apparatus, wherein the one of more capabilities comprises a capability of the apparatus to operate in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state.)An apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the means for obtaining the configuration comprises means for receiving the configuration from the network access node in at least one of a radio resource control configuration message, a radio resource control reconfiguration message, downlink control information, or a medium access control control element.)An apparatus comprising means for performing:providing, to a user equipment, a configuration for causing the user equipment to operate in a downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state in which a downlink PCell and a downlink SCell are provided over aggregated non-contiguous carriers, wherein when the user equipment is in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, the apparatus is configured to transmit over the downlink PCell while alternating between transmitting and not transmitting over the downlink SCell in accordance with a first pattern;providing a trigger to the user equipment, wherein the trigger indicates that the user equipment is to enter the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state; andbased on the trigger, providing transmissions over the downlink PCell while alternating between providing transmissions on the downlink SCell and not providing transmissions on the downlink SCell in accordance with the first pattern.)An apparatus as claimed in claim 13, wherein the means for providing the configuration comprises means for transmitting the configuration from the apparatus in at least one of a radio resource control configuration message, a radio resource control reconfiguration message, downlink control information, or a medium access control control element.)An apparatus as claimed in any of claims 13 to 14, wherein the apparatus further comprises means for receiving, from the user equipment, an indication of one or more capabilities of the user equipment, wherein the one of more capabilities comprises a capability of the user equipment to operate in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, and wherein at least one of the configuration or the trigger is provided based on the capability of the user equipment to operate in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state.)An apparatus as claimed in any of claims 13 to 15, further comprising means for configuring the first pattern at the user equipment before providing the trigger.)An apparatus as claimed in claim 16, further comprising means for providing, to the user equipment, a plurality of different patterns, each of the different patterns corresponding to a respective pattern defining how transmissions over the downlink SCell will alternate between being provided and not being provided when that respective pattern is selected for use during the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state.)An apparatus as claimed in claim 17, wherein each pattern of the plurality of different patterns is associated with a respective set of criteria for selecting that pattern, and the apparatus further comprising means for selecting the first pattern from the plurality of different patterns based on determining that the set of criteria associated with the first pattern is fulfilled while the sets of criteria associated with the other patterns of the plurality of different patterns are not are fulfilled.)An apparatus as claimed in any of claims 13 to 18, further comprising means for applying a first modulation code scheme for modulating transmissions made over the downlink PCell when transmissions made over the SCell is provided, and applying a second modulation and coding scheme for modulating signalling on the downlink PCell when transmissions over the SCell are not provided.)An apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the trigger comprises an SCell activation command.)An apparatus as claimed in any of claims 1 to 19, wherein the trigger comprises information indicating a degree of interference experienced by transmissions of the network access node.)A method for an apparatus, the method comprising:obtaining a configuration for operating in a downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, in which a downlink PCell and a downlink SCell are provided over aggregated non-contiguous carriers, wherein when the apparatus is in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, the apparatus is configured to receive over the downlink PCell while alternating between receiving and not receiving over the downlink SCell in accordance with a first pattern;receiving a trigger from the network access node, wherein the trigger indicates that the apparatus is to enter the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state; andadjusting a frequency width of a receive filter of the apparatus in accordance with the first pattern based on receiving the trigger.)A method for an apparatus, the method comprising:providing, to a user equipment, a configuration for causing the user equipment to operate in a downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state in which a downlink PCell and a downlink SCell are provided over aggregated non-contiguous carriers, wherein when the user equipment is in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, the apparatus is configured to transmit over the downlink PCell while alternating between transmitting and not transmitting over the downlink SCell in accordance with a first pattern;providing a trigger to the user equipment, wherein the trigger indicates that the user equipment is to enter the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state; andbased on the trigger, providing transmissions over the downlink PCell while alternating between providing transmissions on the downlink SCell andnot providing transmissions on the downlink SCell in accordance with the first pattern.)A computer program comprising instructions which, when the program is executed by a computer of an apparatus, cause the apparatus to carry out: obtaining a configuration for operating in a downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, in which a downlink PCell and a downlink SCell are provided over aggregated non-contiguous carriers, wherein when the apparatus is in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, the apparatus is configured to receive over the downlink PCell while alternating between receiving and not receiving over the downlink SCell in accordance with a first pattern;receiving a trigger from the network access node, wherein the trigger indicates that the apparatus is to enter the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state; andadjusting a frequency width of a receive filter of the apparatus in accordance with the first pattern based on receiving the trigger.)A computer program comprising instructions which, when the program is executed by a computer of an apparatus, cause the apparatus to carry out: providing, to a user equipment, a configuration for causing the user equipment to operate in a downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state in which a downlink PCell and a downlink SCell are provided over aggregated non-contiguous carriers, wherein when the user equipment is in the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state, the apparatus is configured to transmit over the downlink PCell while alternating between transmitting and not transmitting over the downlink SCell in accordance with a first pattern;providing a trigger to the user equipment, wherein the trigger indicates that the user equipment is to enter the downlink fragmented carrier aggregation state; andbased on the trigger, providing transmissions over the downlink PCell while alternating between providing transmissions on the downlink SCell and not providing transmissions on the downlink SCell in accordance with the first pattern.

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