Method and apparatus for supporting prediction of measurement result in wireless communication system

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a 5G or 6G communication system for supporting higher data transmission rates. A method performed by a user equipment (UE) in a wireless communication system, according to embodiments of the present disclosure, may comprise the steps of: receiving, from a base station, configuration information for predicting a beam measurement result; predicting the beam measurement result for at least one cell on the basis of the configuration information; and transmitting, to the base station, a measurement report including the prediction of the beam measurement result.

Description

Method and apparatus for supporting measurement result prediction in a wireless communication system

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a method and apparatus for supporting the prediction of measurement results in a wireless communication system.

[0002] 5G mobile communication technology defines a wide frequency band to enable fast transmission speeds and new services, and can be implemented not only in frequency bands below 6 GHz ('Sub 6 GHz'), such as 3.5 gigahertz (3.5 GHz), but also in ultra-high frequency bands called millimeter waves (mmWave), such as 28 GHz and 39 GHz ('Above 6 GHz'). In addition, for 6G mobile communication technology, which is referred to as a system beyond 5G, implementation in the terahertz (THX) band (e.g., the 3 terahertz band at 95 GHz) is being considered to achieve transmission speeds 50 times faster and ultra-low latency reduced to one-tenth compared to 5G mobile communication technology.

[0003] In the early stages of 5G mobile communication technology, aiming to satisfy service support and performance requirements for enhanced Mobile BroadBand (eMBB), Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communications (URLLC), and massive Machine-Type Communications (mMTC), technologies such as beamforming and Massive MIMO to mitigate path loss and increase transmission distance in ultra-high frequency bands, support for various numerologies (such as the operation of multiple subcarrier spacings) and dynamic operation of slot formats for the efficient utilization of ultra-high frequency resources, initial access techniques to support multi-beam transmission and broadband, definition and operation of Band-Width Parts (BWP), Low Density Parity Check (LDPC) codes for high-volume data transmission, new channel coding methods such as Polar Codes for the reliable transmission of control information, and L2 pre-processing (L2 Standardization has been carried out for pre-processing, network slicing which provides a dedicated network specialized for specific services, and other methods.

[0004] Currently, discussions are underway to improve and enhance the performance of the initial 5G mobile communication technology, taking into account the services that the 5G mobile communication technology was intended to support. Additionally, standardization of the physical layer is in progress for technologies such as V2X (Vehicle-to-Everything), which helps autonomous vehicles make driving decisions and enhance user convenience based on their own location and status information transmitted by the vehicle; NR-U (New Radio Unlicensed), which aims for system operation in unlicensed bands to comply with various regulatory requirements; NR terminal low power consumption technology (UE Power Saving); Non-Terrestrial Network (NTN), which is direct terminal-satellite communication for securing coverage in areas where communication with the terrestrial network is impossible; and positioning.

[0005] In addition, standardization is underway in the field of wireless interface architecture / protocols for technologies such as the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) to support new services through linkage and convergence with other industries, Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB) which provides nodes to expand network service areas by integrating wireless backhaul links and access links, Mobility Enhancement including Conditional Handover and Dual Active Protocol Stack (DAPS) Handover, and 2-step Random Access (2-step RACH for NR) which simplifies random access procedures. Standardization is also underway in the field of system architecture / services for 5G baseline architectures (e.g., Service based Architecture, Service based Interface) to incorporate Network Functions Virtualization (NFV) and Software-Defined Networking (SDN) technologies, and Mobile Edge Computing (MEC), which provides services based on the location of the terminal.

[0006] When such 5G mobile communication systems are commercialized, connected devices, which are increasing explosively, will be connected to communication networks. Accordingly, it is expected that there will be a need to enhance the functionality and performance of 5G mobile communication systems and to integrate the operation of connected devices. To this end, new research is planned to be conducted on 5G performance improvement and complexity reduction, support for AI services, support for metaverse services, and drone communication using eXtended Reality (XR), Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Machine Learning (ML) to efficiently support Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual Reality (VR), and Mixed Reality (MR).

[0007] Furthermore, the advancement of these 5G mobile communication systems encompasses multi-antenna transmission technologies such as new waveforms to guarantee coverage in the terahertz band of 6G mobile communication technology, Full Dimensional MIMO (FD-MIMO), array antennas, and large-scale antennas; metamaterial-based lenses and antennas to improve terahertz band signal coverage; high-dimensional spatial multiplexing technology using OAM (Orbital Angular Momentum); and Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface (RIS) technology; as well as Full Duplex technology for enhancing frequency efficiency and system networks in 6G mobile communication technology; AI-based communication technologies that realize system optimization by utilizing satellites and AI from the design stage and internalizing end-to-end AI support functions; and the realization of services of complexity exceeding the limits of terminal computing capabilities by utilizing ultra-high-performance communication and computing resources. It could serve as a foundation for the development of next-generation distributed computing technologies.

[0008] Based on the discussion described above, the present disclosure provides an apparatus and method capable of effectively providing services in a next-generation wireless communication system.

[0009] A method performed by user equipment (UE) of a wireless communication system according to embodiments of the present disclosure may include receiving setting information for predicting a beam measurement result from a base station, performing a beam measurement result prediction for at least one cell based on the setting information, and transmitting a measurement report including the beam measurement result prediction to the base station.

[0010] A method performed by a base station of a wireless communication system according to embodiments of the present disclosure may include receiving capability information for predicting a beam measurement result from a UE (user equipment), transmitting setting information for predicting the beam measurement result to the UE, and receiving a measurement report including the beam measurement result prediction from the UE.

[0011] The present disclosure provides an apparatus and method capable of effectively providing services in a next-generation wireless communication system.

[0012] FIG. 1 is a drawing illustrating the structure of an NR system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0013] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a wireless protocol structure in an LTE and NR system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0014] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a use case utilizing an AI / ML model for predicting cell / beam measurement results in a next-generation mobile communication system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0015] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a method of utilizing predicted beam measurement results in a handover setting in a next-generation mobile communication system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0016] FIG. 5 is a flowchart of a process in which a base station utilizes predicted cell / beam measurement results reported by a terminal for handover setup according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0017] FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a method for a terminal to collect training data for learning a cell / beam measurement result prediction model according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0018] FIG. 7 is a flowchart of a process according to one embodiment of the present disclosure in which a base station instructs a terminal to collect training data for learning a cell / beam measurement result prediction model and the terminal provides the collected training data to the base station.

[0019] FIG. 8 is a drawing illustrating a terminal device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0020] FIG. 9 is a drawing illustrating a base station device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0021] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Furthermore, in describing the present disclosure, if it is determined that a detailed description of related known functions or configurations may unnecessarily obscure the essence of the present invention, such detailed description will be omitted. Additionally, the terms described below are defined considering their functions in the present disclosure, and these may vary depending on the intentions or conventions of the user or operator. Therefore, their definitions should be based on the content throughout this specification.

[0022] The advantages and features of the present disclosure and the methods for achieving them will become clear by referring to the embodiments described below in detail together with the accompanying drawings. However, the present disclosure is not limited to the embodiments disclosed below but may be implemented in various different forms. The embodiments provided are merely to ensure that the disclosure is complete and to fully inform those skilled in the art of the scope of the invention, and the present disclosure is defined only by the scope of the claims. Throughout the specification, the same reference numerals refer to the same components.

[0023] At this point, it will be understood that each block of the process flow diagrams and combinations of the flow diagrams can be executed by computer program instructions. Since these computer program instructions can be loaded into the processor of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, or other programmable data processing equipment, the instructions executed through the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing equipment create means to perform the functions described in the flow diagram block(s). Since these computer program instructions can also be stored in computer-available or computer-readable memory that can be directed toward the computer or other programmable data processing equipment to implement the function in a specific way, the instructions stored in computer-available or computer-readable memory can also produce a manufactured item containing instruction means to perform the function described in the flow diagram block(s). Since computer program instructions can be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing equipment, instructions that perform a series of operation steps on the computer or other programmable data processing equipment to create a process executed by the computer can also provide steps for executing the functions described in the flowchart block(s).

[0024] Additionally, each block may represent a module, segment, or part of code containing one or more executable instructions for executing a specific logical function(s). It should also be noted that in some alternative execution examples, the functions mentioned in the blocks may occur out of order. For example, two blocks described in succession may actually be executed substantially simultaneously, or the blocks may sometimes be executed in reverse order according to their corresponding functions.

[0025] In this embodiment, the term "part" refers to a software or hardware component such as an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) or an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), and the "part" performs certain roles. However, the meaning of "part" is not limited to software or hardware. The "part" may be configured to reside in an addressable storage medium or configured to run one or more processors. Thus, as an example, the "part" includes components such as software components, object-oriented software components, class components, and task components, as well as processes, functions, attributes, procedures, subroutines, segments of program code, drivers, firmware, microcode, circuits, data, databases, data structures, tables, arrays, and variables. The functions provided within the components and "parts" may be combined into a smaller number of components and "parts" or further separated into additional components and "parts." In addition, the components and 'parts' may be implemented to utilize one or more CPUs within the device or secure multimedia card. Also, in the embodiments, 'parts' may include one or more processors.

[0026] In describing the present disclosure below, specific descriptions of related known functions or configurations will be omitted if it is determined that such detailed descriptions would unnecessarily obscure the essence of the present disclosure. Embodiments of the present disclosure will be described below with reference to the attached drawings.

[0027] Terms used in the following description to identify connection nodes, terms referring to network entities, terms referring to messages, terms referring to interfaces between network entities, terms referring to various identification information, etc., are examples provided for the convenience of explanation. Accordingly, the present disclosure is not limited to the terms described below, and other terms referring to objects having equivalent technical meanings may be used.

[0028] In the following description, the terms "physical channel" and "signal" may be used interchangeably with "data" or "control signal." For example, PDSCH (physical downlink shared channel) is a term referring to a physical channel through which data is transmitted, but PDSCH may also be used to refer to data. That is, in this disclosure, the expression "transmits a physical channel" may be interpreted as equivalent to the expression "transmits data or a signal through a physical channel."

[0029] In the present disclosure, upper signaling refers to a signal transmission method transmitted from a base station to a terminal using a physical layer downlink data channel, or from a terminal to a base station using a physical layer uplink data channel. Upper signaling may be understood as radio resource control (RRC) signaling or a media access control (MAC) control element (CE).

[0030] For convenience of explanation, the present disclosure uses terms and names defined in the 3GPP NR (3rd Generation Partnership Project NR (New Radio)) or 3GPP LTE (3rd Generation Partnership Project Long Term Evolution) standards. However, the present disclosure is not limited by these terms and names and may be applied equally to systems conforming to other standards. In the present disclosure, gNB may be used interchangeably with eNB for convenience of explanation. That is, a base station described as an eNB may represent a gNB. Additionally, the term terminal may refer to mobile phones, MTC devices, NB-IoT devices, sensors, as well as other wireless communication devices.

[0031] Hereinafter, the base station is an entity that performs resource allocation for terminals and may be at least one of a gNodeB (gNB), eNode B (eNB), NodeB, BS (Base Station), radio access unit, base station controller, or a node on a network. The terminal may include a UE (User Equipment), MS (Mobile Station), cellular phone, smartphone, computer, or a multimedia system capable of performing communication functions. Of course, it is not limited to examples.

[0032] FIG. 1 is a drawing illustrating the structure of an NR system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0033] Referring to FIG. 1, a wireless communication system may be composed of multiple base stations (e.g., gNB (105), ng-eNB (110), ng-eNB (115), gNB (120)), an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) (125), and a User Plane Function (UPF) (130). A user terminal (User Equipment, hereinafter UE or terminal) (135) can connect to an external network through the base stations (e.g., gNB (105), ng-eNB (110), ng-eNB (115), gNB (120)) and the UPF (130).

[0034] In FIG. 1, base stations (e.g., gNB (105), ng-eNB (110), ng-eNB (115), gNB (120)) can provide wireless access to terminals connected to the network as access nodes of the cellular network. That is, base stations (e.g., gNB (105), ng-eNB (110), ng-eNB (115), gNB (120)) can support the connection between terminals and the core network (CN, Core network; specifically, the CN of NR is referred to as 5GC) by collecting state information such as the buffer state, available transmission power state, and channel state of terminals to service the traffic of users and scheduling. Meanwhile, in communication, the User Plane (UP), which is related to the transmission of actual user data, and the Control Plane (CP), which is related to connection management, can be configured separately. In this drawing, gNB (105) and gNB (120) use the UP and CP technologies defined in NR technology, and ng-eNB (110) and ng-eNB (115), although connected to 5GC, can use the UP and CP technologies defined in LTE technology.

[0035] The AMF (125) is a device that is responsible for various control functions as well as mobility management functions for the terminal and is connected to multiple base stations, and the UPF (130) may refer to a type of gateway device that provides data transmission. Although not shown in FIG. 1, the NR wireless communication system may include a Session Management Function (SMF). The SMF can manage packet data network connections, such as protocol data unit (PDU) sessions provided to the terminal.

[0036] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a wireless protocol structure in an LTE and NR system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0037] Referring to FIG. 2, the wireless protocol of the LTE system may consist of a Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) (205)(240), Radio Link Control (RLC) (210)(235), and Medium Access Control (MAC) (215)(230) at the terminal and eNB, respectively. The Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) (205)(240) is responsible for operations such as IP header compression / recovery, and the Radio Link Control (hereinafter referred to as RLC) (210)(235) reconstructs the PDCP Protocol Data Unit (PDU) into an appropriate size. The MAC (215)(230) is connected to multiple RLC layer devices configured in a terminal and performs the operation of multiplexing RLC PDUs into MAC PDUs and demultiplexing RLC PDUs from MAC PDUs. The physical (PHY) layer (220) (225) performs the operation of channel coding and modulating upper layer data, creating OFDM symbols to transmit to the wireless channel, or demodulating OFDM symbols received through the wireless channel and channel decoding to transmit to the upper layer. In addition, the physical layer also uses HARQ (Hybrid ARQ) for additional error correction, and the receiving end transmits a 1-bit indicating whether the packet transmitted from the transmitting end has been received. This is called HARQ ACK / NACK information. Downlink HARQ ACK / NACK information for uplink data transmission is transmitted through the PHICH (Physical Hybrid-ARQ Indicator Channel) physical channel in the case of LTE, and in the case of NR, it can determine whether retransmission is necessary or if a new transmission should be performed through the scheduling information of the terminal in the PDCCH (Physical Dedicated Control Channel), which is a channel where downlink / uplink resource allocation is transmitted. This is because NR applies asynchronous HARQ.Uplink HARQ ACK / NACK information for downlink data transmission can be transmitted via the physical channels of PUCCH (Physical Uplink Control Channel) or PUSCH (Physical Uplink Shared Channel). PUCCH is generally transmitted on the uplink of the PCell described below, but if the base station supports it, it may additionally transmit it to the SCell described below to the terminal, which is referred to as PUCCH SCell.

[0038] Although not shown in this drawing, an RRC (Radio Resource Control) layer exists above the PDCP layer of the terminal and the base station, respectively, and the RRC layer can transmit and receive connection and measurement-related setting control messages for radio resource control.

[0039] Meanwhile, the PHY layer can consist of one or more frequencies / carriers, and the technology of setting and using multiple frequencies simultaneously is called carrier aggregation (hereinafter referred to as CA). CA technology allows for a significant increase in transmission capacity by the number of secondary carriers by using one or more secondary carriers in addition to the primary carrier, whereas previously only one carrier was used for communication between a terminal (or User Equipment, UE) and a base station (E-UTRAN NodeB, eNB). Meanwhile, in LTE, a cell within a base station that uses the primary carrier is called a primary cell or PCell (Primary Cell), and a cell within a base station that uses a secondary carrier is called a secondary cell or SCell (Secondary Cell).

[0040] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a use case utilizing an AI / ML model for predicting cell / beam measurement results in a wireless communication system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0041] Referring to Fig. 3, an AI / ML model can be used to predict cell / beam measurement results in the time domain. For reference, the cell / beam measurement results may include RSRP / RSRQ / SINR values ​​measured by the terminal for each cell or for each beam operated by each cell. Additionally, the RSRP / RSRQ / SINR values ​​may represent one of the following values.

[0042] - RSRP and / or RSRQ and / or SINR measured at Layer 1

[0043] - RSRP and / or RSRQ and / or SINR measured / acquired at Layer 3

[0044] - Values ​​obtained by filtering RSRP and / or RSRQ and / or SINR measured at Layer 1 (e.g., (weighted) average values ​​using measurements over a specified period)

[0045] - Values ​​obtained by filtering RSRP and / or RSRQ and / or SINR measured / acquired at Layer 3 (e.g., (weighted) average values ​​using measurements over a specified period)

[0046] The meaning (or definition) of the cell measurement results can be applied equally to all the embodiments of FIGS. 4, FIGS. 5, FIGS. 6, and FIGS. 7 below.

[0047] When predicting cell / beam measurement results in the time domain, the AI / ML model can be trained such that when past cell / beam measurement results (305) (e.g., Mt cell measurement results measured during time t_k-Mt ~ t_k) are input to the AI / ML model (300), the output of the model is a prediction result of future cell / beam measurement results (310) (e.g., Pt cell measurement results predicted during time t_k+1 ~ t_k+Pt).

[0048] According to an embodiment of the present invention, an AI / ML model for predicting cell / beam measurement results in the aforementioned time domain may be used at a terminal or base station. When the AI / ML model for predicting cell / beam measurement results is used (or inferred) at a base station, the base station may instruct the terminal to report past cell / beam measurement results (305) required as input to the AI / ML model (300) for predicting cell / beam measurement results. Subsequently, the base station may perform a model inference operation using the input data and obtain future predicted cell / beam measurement results (310) as output to the model. Conversely, when the AI / ML model for predicting cell / beam measurement results is used (or inferred) at a terminal, the terminal may obtain past cell / beam measurement results (305) required as input to the AI / ML model (300) for predicting cell / beam measurement results on its own. Subsequently, the terminal can perform a model inference operation using the input data and obtain a predicted future cell / beam measurement result (310) as the output of the model. The base station can set or instruct the terminal to perform a cell / beam measurement result prediction operation and report the result value.

[0049] Predicted future cell measurement results in the time domain can be used to improve the handover performance of a terminal. Based on these predicted future cell measurement results, a base station can predict the optimal cell for a rapidly moving terminal in advance and hand over the terminal to the optimal cell at an appropriate time. More specifically, the base station can receive cell measurement results by periodically receiving measurement reports from the terminal and hand over the terminal to the optimal cell based on these results. However, due to changes in the actual channel environment caused by the cell measurement result reporting cycle (measurement report transmission cycle), a delay may occur between the time the optimal cell changes and the time the base station actually receives the measurement report from the terminal and identifies this change. Furthermore, when the terminal is moving rapidly, this delay in the change of cell measurement results can cause the terminal to fail to hand over. For example, due to the delay between the base station receiving the measurement report from the terminal, deciding to hand over the terminal, requesting a handover from the adjacent base station corresponding to the target handover cell, and receiving approval, the terminal may not be handed over in a timely manner, and the terminal may fall into a Radio Link Failure (RLF) state. To improve these problems, the base station can prevent handover failures by predicting the optimal cell change of the terminal in advance based on predicted cell measurement results in the time domain and handing over the terminal at an appropriate time.

[0050] In one embodiment, when the operation of predicting cell measurement results in the time domain using the aforementioned AI / ML is performed at the terminal, the terminal can (re)use the predicted future cell / beam measurement result values ​​to predict future events (e.g., RRM measurement event Ax, Radio Link Failure, Handover Failure, etc.). For example, in the case of an RRM measurement event, the terminal can predict at what point in time the conditions for transmitting a Measurement Report due to the event will be satisfied based on the predicted future cell measurement result values. More specifically, in the case of Event A3, the terminal can predict at what point in time the RSRP value of a neighboring cell becomes higher than the RSRP value of the serving cell by a certain offset or more, satisfying the A3 event entering condition, and this state persists for a certain time (Time To Trigger, TTT), thereby initiating the transmission of a Measurement Report by the A3 Event, based on the predicted future cell measurement result values. By reporting the specific RRM measurement event predicted in this way to the base station, the terminal can assist the base station in determining and preparing for a handover.

[0051] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a method of utilizing predicted beam measurement results in a handover setting in a next-generation mobile communication system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0052] Referring to FIG. 4, the terminal (400) can predict cell / beam measurement results for cells operated by neighboring base stations in accordance with instructions from the serving base station (405, Serving gNB). Subsequently, the terminal can transmit a Measurement report (or Prediction report) (410) message to the serving base station periodically or in an EventTrigerred manner, depending on the base station settings. At this time, the terminal may include cell / beam measurement results for the serving cell and neighboring cells within the message. Additionally, the terminal may include predicted cell / beam measurement results for the serving and neighboring cells within the message, depending on the base station settings.

[0053] If the serving base station determines that a handover is necessary based on the (predicted) cell / beam measurement results within the Measurement report (or Prediction report) message transmitted by the terminal, it may determine the target cell for the handover and initiate the handover preparation procedure. To this end, the serving base station may transmit a Handover Request (413) message to the target base station (408, target gNB) operating the determined target cell for the handover. At this time, the serving base station may include the (predicted) cell / beam measurement results reported by the terminal through the Measurement report message in the Handover Request message and transmit them to the target base station.

[0054] Subsequently, the target base station that receives the handover request message can determine the handover configuration information necessary to instruct the terminal to perform a handover. At this time, the handover target base station can determine the handover configuration by referring to the (predicted) cell / beam measurement results reported by the terminal included in the handover request message. More specifically, the handover target base station can utilize the (predicted) cell / beam measurement results to determine the dedicated RA resource (e.g., a random access preamble that only the terminal can use) to be used when the terminal performs a random access (hereinafter referred to as RA for ease of explanation) procedure to the handover target cell during the handover process. For reference, when a terminal allocated a dedicated RA resource performs RA during the subsequent handover process, it can perform contention-free random access (hereinafter referred to as CFRA) by using the dedicated RA resource that other terminals cannot use together. In practice, the dedicated RA resource can be configured on a per-beam unit operated by the handover target cell. Therefore, in order to use RA resources efficiently, the target base station for handover may allocate dedicated RA resources only to beams that are suitable for performing RA at the time the terminal performs the handover. To this end, the target base station may identify beams that are suitable for performing RA from the terminal's perspective at the time of future handover based on predicted beam measurement results reported by the terminal, and set dedicated RA resources only for those beams. This method of allocating dedicated RA resources based on predicted beam measurement results has an advantage in that it can efficiently utilize limited RA resources compared to the method of allocating dedicated RA resources to all beams.Afterward, the handover target base station may respond to the serving base station by including the dedicated RA resource settings and other handover settings determined as above in the handover request acknowledgment message (415, Handover request acknowledge).

[0055] Subsequently, the serving base station can transmit the dedicated RA resource settings and other handover settings included in the handover request response message to the terminal via the RRCReconfiguration message (417). Upon receiving the RRCReconfiguration message from the serving base station, the terminal can initiate the handover procedure and the RA procedure to the handover target cell. At this time, if dedicated RA resources are set for specific beams of the handover target cell through the handover settings in the RRCReconfiguration message, the terminal can perform CFRA (contention-free random access) using those RA resources. By performing CFRA, the terminal can increase the handover success rate and reduce latency. Through the RA procedure, the terminal can match the uplink transmission timing with the target cell and be allocated uplink transmission resources. Subsequently, the terminal can successfully complete the handover procedure by using the uplink transmission resources to transmit the RRCReconfigurationComplete message to the handover target base station.

[0056] The specific signaling procedures and terminal / base station operations required to perform the described procedures are as described in Figure 5 below.

[0057] FIG. 5 illustrates a process in which a base station utilizes predicted cell / beam measurement results reported by a terminal for handover setup according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0058] Referring to FIG. 5, in step 510, the terminal (500, UE) and the serving base station (505, source gNB) can exchange terminal capability information related to cell / beam measurement result prediction operations. Subsequently, through steps 512 and 514, the serving base station sets the cell / beam measurement result prediction operation for the terminal, and the terminal can respond regarding whether it can perform measurement result prediction for a specific cell and beam (e.g., whether it has a model for performing cell / beam measurement result prediction). In step 522, if the conditions for transmitting a Measurement report (hereinafter referred to as MR for ease of explanation) are satisfied, the terminal can transmit the MR and report to the serving base station including the measurement / prediction results (in other words, actual measurement results and predicted measurement results at the cell / beam level). In step 524, the serving base station that receives the measurement / prediction result report can select a handover target cell and transmit a handover request message to the target base station (507, target gNB) operating the cell. At this time, the beam measurement / prediction results reported by the terminal may be included in the handover request message. Upon receiving the handover request message, the target base station may determine the optimal beam to perform RA on the target cell during the handover based on the predicted beam measurement results for the handover target cell, and decide to allocate dedicated RACH resources corresponding to those beams to the terminal. In step 526, the target base station may transmit handover configuration information necessary for the terminal to perform the handover to the serving base station through a handover request response message. At this time, the handover configuration information may include dedicated RA resources for the handover target cell. In step 528, the serving base station may transmit the handover configuration information to the terminal through the RRCReconfiguration procedure.In step 530, the terminal can successfully complete the handover procedure by using the dedicated RA resources within the handover configuration information received from the serving base station to perform RA to the target cell and transmitting the RRCReconfigurationComplete message to the target cell. The specific signaling procedures and terminal / base station operations for performing these operations are described below.

[0059] In step 510, the base station (505) may request the terminal (500) to report terminal capability information related to the cell / beam measurement result prediction operation. To this end, an indicator for requesting the reporting of terminal capability information related to the cell / beam measurement result prediction operation may be included in the UECapabilityEnquiry message transmitted by the base station to the terminal. This is intended to prevent the terminal from unnecessarily reporting terminal capability information related to the cell / beam measurement result prediction operation to a base station / network that does not support such function, considering that networks / base stations capable of setting / supporting the operation for the terminal to perform cell / beam measurement results based on artificial intelligence are limited. Subsequently, the terminal may report terminal capability information related to the cell / beam measurement result prediction operation in accordance with the base station's request. To this end, the terminal may include at least one of the following information related to the cell / beam measurement result prediction operation in the UECapabilityInformation message transmitted by the terminal to the base station.

[0060] An indicator indicating whether the terminal supports the operation of predicting cell measurement results (cell-specific L3 RSRP / SINR / RSRQ): If the terminal supports the operation of predicting cell measurement results, it may include an indicator within the message, and the indicator may be set to 'True' or 'Supported'.

[0061] An indicator indicating whether the terminal supports the operation of predicting beam measurement results (beam-specific L3 RSRP / SINR / RSRQ): If the terminal supports the operation of predicting beam measurement results, it may include an indicator within the message, and the indicator may be set to 'True' or 'Supported'. Since the terminal's capability required to predict cell measurement results may differ from the terminal's capability required to predict beam measurement results, separate terminal capability information may be defined for the operation of predicting cell measurement results and the operation of predicting beam measurement results. Otherwise, the terminal may be constrained to always support both operations together.

[0062] Indicator indicating the type of predictable measurement result (RSRP / SINR / RSRQ): If the terminal supports one or more of the cell measurement result prediction operation and the beam measurement result prediction operation, it may report one or more supported types of measurement results through the indicator. Additionally, the terminal may indicate the type of predictable measurement result separately for the cell measurement result prediction operation and the beam measurement result prediction operation, respectively. To this end, an indicator may be defined separately for the cell measurement result prediction operation and the beam measurement result prediction operation, respectively.

[0063] Indicator indicating the maximum number of cells / beams capable of performing cell / beam measurement result prediction operation: If the terminal supports one or more of the cell measurement result prediction operation and cell measurement result prediction operation, it can report the maximum number of predictable cells / beams, respectively, through the indicator.

[0064] Indicator indicating whether an event occurrence prediction operation can be performed: As described in Step 512 below, the terminal can predict when the entry condition of a specific event (e.g., Event A3) defined in the RRC specification is first satisfied based on the predicted cell measurement results, and when that state is maintained for a specific time (timeToTrigger) to start MR transmission. (Hereafter, for ease of explanation, the described operation is referred to as the event prediction operation.) If the terminal supports the event prediction operation, it may include an indicator in the message or set it to 'True' or 'Supported'.

[0065] In step 512, the serving base station (505) may provide the terminal (500) with configuration information necessary for predicting and reporting cell / beam measurement results through a predetermined RRC message (e.g., RRCReconfiguration). The configuration information necessary for predicting and reporting cell / beam measurement results may include the following information.

[0066] Cell Measurement Result Prediction and Reporting Indicator: The base station may instruct the terminal to perform cell measurement result prediction and reporting operations at the MO (Measurement Object), ReportConfig (Report Configuration), or cell level. For reference, the MO contains configuration information that specifies the target frequency and time resource information that the terminal must measure. Additionally, the ReportConfig contains configuration information that specifies how the terminal reports the measurement / prediction results to the base station via MR transmission while performing cell / beam measurement / prediction according to the configuration information within the connected MO. When the prediction operation is instructed at the MO or ReportConfig level, a 1-bit indicator instructing the cell measurement result prediction operation may be included within the MO or ReportConfig. If the indicator is included / configured, the terminal can predict cell measurement results for cells detected within the frequency and time resources indicated by the corresponding MO (the MO containing the 1-bit indicator or the MO connected via MeasID to the ReportConfig containing the 1-bit indicator). Alternatively, when the prediction operation is instructed at the cell level, an indicator (e.g., a list of target cells for prediction) to indicate the cell(s) for which the cell measurement result prediction operation must be performed may be included within the MO or ReportConfig. In this case, the terminal can predict cell measurement results for the cells indicated by the indicator. By instructing the prediction operation on a cell-by-cell basis in this way, unnecessary prediction operations for cells that are unlikely to become handover target cells can be prevented. Subsequently, the terminal [requires] a Measurement report (or a prediction report, which may be separately defined; for ease of explanation below, it will be referred to as MR) by the MeasID connected to the MO and ReportConfig that contain / configure the indicator instructing the cell measurement result prediction operation.When transmission begins, predicted measurement results can be reported along with actual measurement results for the cells included in the MR.

[0067] Event Prediction Indicator: The base station can configure whether the terminal transmits MR in a periodic manner or in an event-triggered manner through configuration information within ReportConfig. If the base station is configured to transmit MR in a periodic manner, the terminal can start transmitting MR at a specific interval. On the other hand, if the base station is configured to transmit MR in an event-triggered manner, the terminal can start transmitting MR if the measurement result for a specific cell satisfies the entry condition of a specific event defined in the RRC standard and that condition is satisfied for a certain period of time (e.g., TimeToTrigger). When the base station is configured to transmit MR in an event-triggered manner, it can indicate one of the events defined in the RRC standard and set variables related to the entry condition of that event, TimeToTrigger time values, etc.

[0068] In one embodiment, the base station may be configured to transmit MR in the described event occurrence method (EventTrigerred) and may include an indicator (hereinafter referred to as the "event prediction indicator") that instructs the terminal to predict the occurrence of an event based on predicted cell measurement results and transmit MR. When the indicator is configured / included, the terminal can predict cell measurement results for cells detected in the frequency and time resources indicated by the MO connected to the corresponding ReportConfig and MeasID, and predict that a specific event will occur based on these results. In other words, the terminal may start transmitting MR if the predicted measurement results for a specific cell satisfy the entry condition of a specific event defined in the RRC standard and it is predicted that this condition will be satisfied for a certain period of time (e.g., TimeToTrigger). When MR transmission is started due to such predicted events, the terminal may include the predicted time of event occurrence, the predicted probability value of event occurrence (or whether the event occurred), and the measurement and predicted values ​​for the cells that generated the event in the MR. At this time, whether the terminal can report up to the predicted time of event occurrence may depend on the terminal's capabilities. Accordingly, when a terminal performs event prediction and an event is predicted, a separate terminal capability information (UE Capability parameter) may be defined to indicate whether it can report up to the predicted time of the event. In this case, the terminal may report whether it supports event prediction behavior through the UECapabilityInformation message in step 510, and simultaneously report whether it supports reporting up to the predicted time of the event through a separate indicator. At this time, the specification may specify a limitation that if the terminal reports that it supports reporting up to the predicted time of the event, it must also report that it supports event prediction behavior.Alternatively, without defining separate new terminal capability information, it may be indicated that the terminal can support reporting the event prediction time by including or setting both the indicator indicating whether the terminal supports cell measurement result prediction and the indicator indicating whether it can perform event occurrence prediction to 'True / supported'. This is because if the terminal can predict cell measurement results, it can also predict the timing of specific event occurrences.

[0069] In one embodiment, the base station may instruct the terminal to predict cell measurement results and perform event prediction operations up to a future point in time. To this end, the base station may include an indicator (e.g., predictionWindow) in the RRC message to indicate the time interval during which the terminal should perform the prediction. This prevents the terminal from unnecessarily performing cell measurement result prediction and event prediction operations up to a distant future point in time.

[0070] Beam measurement result prediction and reporting indicators (e.g., includeBeamPredictions): The base station may instruct the terminal to perform beam measurement result prediction operations at the MO (Measurement Object), ReportConfig (Report Configuration), or cell level. When the prediction operation is instructed at the MO or ReportConfig level, a 1-bit indicator instructing the beam measurement result prediction operation may be included within the MO or ReportConfig. If the indicator is included or configured, the terminal can predict beam measurement results for cells detected within the frequency and time resources indicated by the corresponding MO (the MO containing the 1-bit indicator or the MO connected via MeasID to the ReportConfig containing the 1-bit indicator). Alternatively, when the base station instructs the prediction operation at the cell level, an indicator to specify the cell(s) for which the beam measurement result prediction operation must be performed may be included within the MO or ReportConfig. In this case, the terminal can predict beam measurement results for the cells indicated by the indicator. By instructing the prediction operation at the cell level in this way, the base station can prevent unnecessary beam prediction operations for cells that are unlikely to become handover target cells. Subsequently, when the transmission of a Measurement report (or a prediction report may be defined separately; referred to as MR below for ease of explanation) is initiated by a MeasID connected to an MO and ReportConfig that includes / configures an indicator directing the beam measurement result prediction operation, the terminal may report the predicted beam measurement results along with the actual beam measurement results for the cells included in the MR. As described in FIG. 4, the beam measurement result prediction operation is necessary to allocate dedicated RA resources required to perform the RA operation to the target cell during handover.Therefore, the beam measurement result prediction operation may be subject to a constraint that it can only be set together when the event type configured to start MR transmission in the ReportConfig event generation method (EventTrigerred) is an event that can cause a handover to a neighboring cell (e.g., Event A3, A4, A5, A6).

[0071] In one embodiment, instead of explicitly directing the beam measurement result prediction and reporting operation using an indicator, the base station may direct the beam measurement result prediction and reporting operation by including / setting at least one combination of parameters used when reporting the predicted beam measurement results described in step 522 below (e.g., an indicator indicating one of RSRP / RSRQ / SINR as the measurement result type to be used for optimal beam selection and measurement result reporting, a separate indicator to indicate reporting the predicted beam measurement result values ​​together, an indicator indicating the value of 'K' to predict K optimal beams, etc.). For example, if the base station sets the reportQuantityBeamPredict indicator and the maxNrofRS-IndexesToPredictionReport indicator described in step 522 below together, the terminal may understand that it has been instructed to perform the beam measurement result prediction and reporting operation and perform the operation.

[0072] For each of the operations set by the base station (505) (cell measurement result prediction operation, beam measurement result prediction operation, event prediction operation), the terminal has an AI model necessary for the operation, and if the terminal can perform inference through the AI ​​model and derive the result value (in other words, if there are no internal terminal issues such as memory shortage or overheating), the terminal can determine that the applicability of the operation is applicable as 'Applicable / True / Available'. In this case, the terminal can immediately start performing the operation and report the applicability of the operation to the base station via the RRCReconfigurationComplete message in step 514 below. If the terminal determines that the applicability of each operation is not applicable as 'not Applicable / False / Unavailable', it can not start the operation and report the applicability of the operation to the base station via the RRCReconfigurationComplete message in step 514 below.

[0073] In step 514, the terminal (500) may report whether the corresponding operation (hereinafter referred to as applicability) can actually be applied / used for each of the cell measurement result prediction operation, beam measurement result prediction operation, and event prediction operation set by the base station (505) in step 512, through a predetermined RRC message (RRCReconfigurationComplete or UEAssistanceInformation). To this end, an indicator indicating the applicability of each operation may be defined separately. In addition, since the cell measurement result prediction operation must be able to be performed in order to perform the event prediction operation, if the applicability for the event prediction operation is indicated as applicable, such as 'Applicable / Ture / Available', a constraint may be applied that the applicability for the cell measurement result prediction operation must also be indicated as applicable, such as 'Applicable / Ture / Available'. Similarly, since it is necessary to be able to perform a cell measurement result prediction operation in order to perform a beam measurement result prediction operation, if the applicability for the beam measurement result prediction operation is indicated as 'Applicable / Ture / Available', a constraint may be applied that the applicability for the cell measurement result prediction operation must also be indicated as 'Applicable / Ture / Available'.

[0074] For reference, if the terminal reports applicability information for each operation immediately after receiving base station settings in step 512, the applicability information may be included in the RRCReconfigurationComplete message transmitted as a response to the RRCReconfiguration message in step 512. On the other hand, if the applicability for a specific operation changes due to internal conditions (such as memory shortage or overheating issues) regardless of the network settings in step 512, the terminal may include the applicability information in the UEAssistanceInformation message and transmit it to the base station. To this end, the base station settings information in step 512 may include an indicator to instruct the terminal to report the applicability for cell measurement result prediction, beam measurement result prediction, and event prediction operations, respectively, via the UEAssistanceInformation (UAI) message. In this case, to prevent the terminal from reporting applicability via the UAI message too frequently, the base station may set a Prohibit timer value for each operation. In this case, whenever the terminal reports applicability for each action via a UAI message, it starts a timer with the prohibit timer value set for that action, and cannot report applicability for the same action until the timer expires.

[0075] In step 518, the terminal (500) can perform necessary cell / beam measurement operations and cell / beam measurement result prediction operations according to the base station (505) settings in step 512. Additionally, if MR transmission is triggered according to the base station (505) settings in step 512, the terminal can transmit MR in step 522 below. More specifically, if the base station is set to transmit MR in a periodic type in step 512, the terminal can start transmitting MR at each period set by the base station. On the other hand, if the base station is set to transmit MR in an event-triggered manner in step 512, the terminal can check the conditions for MR transmission by event based on actual cell measurement results as described in step 522 and start transmitting MR. Alternatively, if the base station is configured to transmit MR in the event occurrence method (EventTrigerred) at step 512 and simultaneously to predict the occurrence of an event, the terminal can predict that an event will occur based on the predicted cell measurement results as described in step 512 and start transmitting MR.

[0076] Additionally, if the base station is configured to have the terminal transmit MR in the EventTrigered manner at step 512, the terminal may not continue to perform the described event prediction operation, but may perform the event prediction operation only when the entry condition of a specific event is first satisfied according to the cell measurement result. Through this, the terminal can avoid unnecessarily performing the event prediction operation in a section where an actual event is not predicted.

[0077] In step 522, the terminal (500) can transmit MR to the serving base station (505). At this time, the measurement results for the serving cell and neighboring cell (i.e., the most recently measured RSRP / RSRQ / SINR values ​​for each cell) can be reported together through the MR. More specifically, if the MR is transmitted according to the periodic type setting, cell / beam measurement result values ​​for applicable cells with new measurement results may be included. On the other hand, if the MR is transmitted according to the event occurrence type setting, cell / beam measurement result values ​​for the serving cell and the cell that triggered the event (cell included in cellsTriggeredList) may be included. When the measurement results for the serving cell are included in the MR, the measurement results for the serving cell may be included on a per-serving-cell basis through measResultServingMOList within the MR. In addition, as described, when measurement results for neighboring cells are included in MR, the measurement results for neighboring cells can be included on a per-neighboring-cell basis through measResultNeighCells within MR.

[0078] Additionally, the terminal may report predicted cell / beam measurement results together for cells for which measurement results are reported via MR according to the settings in step 512. At this time, at least one combination of the following methods may be used to determine which cells should have predicted cell / beam measurement results reported together.

[0079] - Method 1 (includes all cells containing measurement results within MR): If cell / beam measurement prediction and reporting are instructed in step 512, the terminal may report predicted cell / beam measurement results for both serving cells (serving cells containing measurement results in measResultServingMOList) and neighboring cells (neighboring cells containing measurement results in measResultNeighCells) included within MR as described.

[0080] - Method 2 (includes all neighboring cells containing measurement results within the MR): If cell / beam measurement prediction and reporting are instructed in step 512, the terminal may report predicted cell / beam measurement results for all neighboring cells included within the MR (cells containing measurement results within measResultNeighCells) as described. As described in FIG. 4, the reason the terminal reports cell / beam measurement results may be to assist the base station in selecting the optimal target cell and determining the optimal beam of the optimal target cell during the handover process. Considering this motivation, Method 2 can reduce the signaling load compared to Method 1 while still maintaining the effect of assisting in handover through cell / beam prediction.

[0081] Method 3 (inclusion for the best neighbor cell containing the measurement result within the MR): When cell / beam measurement prediction and reporting are instructed in step 112, the terminal may report the predicted cell / beam measurement result for the best neighbor cell among the neighbor cells included within the MR (neighbor cells containing the measurement result within measResultNeighCells) as described. As described in FIG. 4, the reason the terminal reports the cell / beam measurement result may be to help the base station select the best target cell and determine the best beam of the best target cell during the handover process. Considering this motivation, Method 3 can reduce the signaling load compared to Methods 1 and 2 while still maintaining the effect of assisting in the handover through cell / beam prediction.

[0082] - Additionally, one of the following two options can be used to select the optimal neighbor cell.

[0083] * Option 1 (Selection based on actual measurement results): The terminal can select the optimal neighbor cell based on the actual measurement results (RSRP / RSRQ / SINR) for each cell. In this case, the type of measurement result to be used for selecting the optimal neighbor cell may be indicated by the base station at step 512 by an indicator (e.g., reportQuantityCell) indicating one of RSRP / RSRQ / SINR. The terminal can select the neighbor cell having the best (highest) measurement result for the indicated measurement result type as the optimal neighbor cell.

[0084] * Option 2 (Selection based on predicted measurement results): The terminal may select the optimal neighbor cell based on the predicted measurement results (RSRP / RSRQ / SINR) for each cell. In this case, the type of measurement result to be used for selecting the optimal neighbor cell may be indicated by the base station at step 512 by an indicator (e.g., reportQuantityCellPredict) that indicates one of RSRP / RSRQ / SINR. The terminal may select the predicted neighbor cell that has the best (highest) measurement result for the indicated measurement result type as the optimal neighbor cell. Additionally, when selecting the optimal neighbor cell based on predicted cell measurement results, there may be multiple predicted values ​​for multiple future points in time. In this case, the determination of which point in time to select the optimal cell (in other words, the reference point for optimal cell selection) may become ambiguous. To resolve this ambiguity, the reference point in time (e.g., based on the Nth predicted result after the time of transmitting the MR, based on the N frame / slot / symbol, etc.) may be specified in the standard. Alternatively, the base station may set an indicator for the terminal to indicate the value of 'N' in step 512 (for example, an indicator indicating the Nth prediction result after the time of transmitting the MR, N frame / slot / symbol, etc.).

[0085] - Method 3 (includes the best K neighbor cells containing measurement results within the MR): If the terminal is instructed to predict and report cell / beam measurements in step 512, the terminal may report the predicted cell / beam measurement results for the best K neighbor cells among the neighbor cells included within the MR (neighbor cells containing measurement results within measResultNeighCells) as described. To this end, in step 512, the base station may set the terminal to include an indicator to indicate the value of 'K'. As described in FIG. 4, the reason the terminal reports cell / beam measurement results may be to help the base station select the optimal target cell and determine the optimal beam of the optimal target cell during the handover process. Considering this motivation, Method 4 may provide the effect of offering the base station more options for selecting the optimal cell / beam during the handover process, although it slightly increases the signaling load compared to Methods 1 and 2.

[0086] Additionally, one of the following two options can be used to select the optimal neighbor cell.

[0087] * Option 1 (Selection based on actual measurement results): The terminal can select the optimal K neighbor cells based on the actual measurement results (RSRP / RSRQ / SINR) for each cell. In this case, the type of measurement result to be used for selecting the optimal neighbor cells may be indicated by the base station at step 512 by an indicator (e.g., reportQuantityCell) indicating one of RSRP / RSRQ / SINR. The terminal can select the K neighbor cells that have the best (highest) measurement results for the indicated measurement result type.

[0088] * Option 2 (Selection based on predicted measurement results): The terminal may select K optimal neighbor cells based on the predicted measurement results (RSRP / RSRQ / SINR) for each cell. In this case, the type of measurement result to be used for selecting the optimal neighbor cells may be indicated by the base station at step 512 by an indicator (e.g., reportQuantityCellPredict) that indicates one of RSRP / RSRQ / SINR. The terminal may select K predicted optimal neighbor cells that have the best (highest) measurement result for the indicated measurement result type. Additionally, when selecting optimal neighbor cells based on predicted cell measurement results, there may be multiple predicted values ​​for multiple future points in time. In this case, the determination of which point in time to use as the basis for selecting the optimal cell (in other words, the reference point for optimal cell selection) may become ambiguous. To resolve this ambiguity, the reference point in time (e.g., based on the Nth predicted result after the time of transmitting the MR, based on the N frame / slot / symbol, etc.) may be specified in the standard. Alternatively, the base station may set an indicator for the terminal to indicate the value of 'N' in step 512 (for example, an indicator indicating the Nth prediction result after the time of transmitting the MR, N frame / slot / symbol, etc.).

[0089] Additionally, the terminal may report predicted beam measurement results for specific cells as described. In this case, at least one combination of the following methods may be used to determine what information should be reported as predicted beam results.

[0090] - Method 1 (best beam index): The terminal may include the best beam index predicted by the predicted beam measurement result. In this case, the type of measurement result to be used for the best beam selection may be indicated by the base station in step 512 by an indicator (e.g., reportQuantityBeamPredict) indicating one of RSRP / RSRQ / SINR.

[0091] As described in FIG. 4, the reason the terminal reports beam measurement results may be to select the optimal beam required to perform RA to the handover target cell during the handover process and to allocate a dedicated RACH resource for that beam. Considering this motivation, Method 1 can help set a dedicated RA resource for the optimal beam with minimal signaling load.

[0092] - Method 2 (Optimal Beam Index and Predicted Measurement Results for the Beam): The terminal may include the predicted optimal beam index and the predicted measurement result values ​​(RSRP / RSRQ / SINR) for the beam as predicted beam measurement results. In this case, the measurement result type to be used for optimal beam selection and measurement result reporting may be indicated by the base station in step 512 by an indicator (e.g., reportQuantityBeamPredict) that indicates one of RSRP / RSRQ / SINR. Thus, the terminal can predict one optimal beam in order of best (highest) predicted beam measurement results based on the indicated measurement result type. Additionally, in step 512, the base station may include a separate indicator (e.g., includeBeamPredictionMeasurement) to instruct the terminal to report the predicted beam measurement result values ​​together with the predicted optimal beam index as predicted beam measurement results. If the indicator is included, the terminal may report the predicted beam measurement result values ​​for the beam together with the predicted optimal beam index. If no indicator is included, the terminal may report only the predicted optimal beam index as in Method 1.

[0093] As described in FIG. 4, the reason the terminal reports beam measurement results may be to select the optimal beam required to perform RA to the handover target cell during the handover process and to allocate a dedicated RACH resource for that beam. Considering this motivation, Method 2, by additionally providing predicted measurement results for the optimal beam compared to Method 1, can help the base station determine the beam quality that the terminal will experience at a future time when the actual handover is performed, and to decide whether it is necessary to set a dedicated RA resource for that beam at that time.

[0094] Method 3 (K optimal beam indices and predicted measurement results for those beams): The terminal may include K optimal beam indices predicted as predicted beam measurement results and predicted measurement result values ​​(RSRP / RSRQ / SINR) for each of those beams. In this case, the measurement result type to be used for optimal beam selection and measurement result reporting may be indicated by the base station in step 512 by an indicator (e.g., reportQuantityBeamPredict) indicating one of RSRP / RSRQ / SINR. Thus, the terminal can predict K optimal beams in order of best (highest) predicted beam measurement results based on the indicated measurement result type. To this end, in step 512, the base station may instruct the terminal by including an indicator (e.g., maxNrofRS-IndexesToPredictionReport) to indicate the value of 'K'. Additionally, in step 512, the base station may include a separate indicator (e.g., includeBeamPredictionMeasurement) to instruct the terminal to report the predicted beam measurement results along with the predicted optimal beam indices. If the indicator is included, the terminal may report the predicted beam measurement results for the corresponding beams along with the K predicted optimal beam indices. If the indicator is not included, the terminal may report only the indices of the K predicted optimal beams.

[0095] As described in FIG. 4, the reason the terminal reports beam measurement results may be to select the optimal beam required to perform RA on the handover target cell during the handover process and to allocate a dedicated RACH resource for that beam. Considering this motivation, Method 3 provides predicted measurement results for K additional optimal beams compared to Methods 1 and 2, thereby helping the base station identify the beam quality the terminal will experience at a future time when the actual handover is performed and to determine which optimal beam will require the setting of a dedicated RA resource at that time.

[0096] Additionally, in Methods 2 and 3, if the terminal reports predicted measurement results (RSRP / RSRQ / SINR) together with the predicted beam measurement results, the base station may instruct the terminal in step 512 how many predicted measurement results (or up to the predicted values ​​for a certain point in time) to send. To this end, the number of predicted measurement results to include per cell within the MR (e.g., maxNrofRS-PredictionInstaces) or an indicator to indicate the time range of the predicted results (e.g., PredictionWindowLength) may be included in the base station settings of step 512.

[0097] Additionally, in Method 1, Method 2, and Method 3, when a terminal selects one optimal beam or K optimal beams based on the predicted beam measurement results, there may be multiple predicted values ​​for multiple future points in time for each beam. In this case, the determination of which point in time is used as the basis for selecting the optimal beam (in other words, the reference point for selecting the optimal beam) may become ambiguous. To resolve this ambiguity, a reference point in time (e.g., based on the Nth predicted result after the time of transmitting the MR, based on N frames / slots / symbols, etc.) may be specified in the standard. Alternatively, the base station may set an indicator for the terminal to indicate the value of 'N' in step 512 (e.g., an indicator indicating the Nth predicted result after the time of transmitting the MR, N frames / slots / symbols, etc.).

[0098] In step 524, the serving base station (505) can select a target cell for handover based on the cell / beam measurement results and predicted cell / beam measurement results reported by the terminal (500) in step 522. Subsequently, the serving base station can request the preparation and settings necessary for the terminal to hand over to the target cell by sending a Handover Request message to the target base station (507, target gNB) operating the selected target cell. At this time, the serving base station can include the cell / beam measurement result values ​​reported by the terminal in step 522 by including a HandoverPreparationInformation message defined in the RRC standard within the Handover Request message. More specifically, the HandoverPreparationInformation message can include measurement result information (i.e., MeasResultNR IE) reported by the terminal for each cell in step 522. When the terminal reports predicted measurement results for the cell / beam in step 522, the information can be standardized to be included in the MeasResultNR IE. In this case, the predicted measurement results for the cell / beam reported by the terminal can be included in the HandoverPreparationInformation message and transmitted to the target base station without changing the current specifications. On the other hand, when the terminal reports the predicted measurement results for the cell / beam in step 522, the information may be included in a new IE (e.g., PredictResultNR IE). In this case, the HandoverPreparationInformation message may include the new IE (e.g., PredictResultNR IE) to transmit the predicted measurement results for the cell / beam reported by the terminal to the target base station.To this end, a new field (e.g., PredictResultsList) may be included within the HandoverPreparationInformation message to include predictions of measurement results for the cell / beam.

[0099] In step 526, the target base station (507) can determine the configuration information required for the terminal (500) to hand over to the target cell based on the cell / beam measurement results and predicted cell / beam measurement results included in the Handover Request message received from the serving base station (505) in step 524. For example, the target base station can determine which beams to allocate dedicated RA resources to the terminal based on the index of the predicted optimal beam(s) and the predicted measurement result values ​​for the beam(s). Subsequently, the target base station can include the determined handover configuration information in the Handover Request Acknowledge message and transmit it to the serving base station (505).

[0100] In step 528, the serving base station (505) can instruct the terminal (500) to perform a handover based on the handover configuration information received from the target base station (508) in step 526. More specifically, the serving base station can instruct the terminal to perform a handover to the target cell via an RRCReconfiguration message and transmit the necessary configuration information. The configuration information may include one or more dedicated RA resources available for use when the terminal performs an RA operation to perform a handover to the target cell.

[0101] In step 530, the terminal can perform a handover operation to the target cell based on the handover configuration information received in step 528. At this time, by using the dedicated RA resources included in the handover configuration information to perform CFRA to the target cell, the probability of RA success can be increased and the latency reduced. Subsequently, the terminal can successfully complete the handover process by sending an RRCReconfigurationComplete message to the target base station using the uplink resources received from the target base station (507) during the RA execution process.

[0102] FIG. 6 illustrates a method for a terminal to collect training data for learning a cell / beam measurement result prediction model according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0103] Referring to FIG. 6, the terminal can collect training data for training a cell / beam measurement result prediction model before and after a specific event defined in the RRC standard (in particular, an event related to handover, such as Event A3). Here, 'collection' can be used to include the operation of logging the collected data. In this case, the training data may consist of L3 RSRP / RSRQ / SINR values ​​measured at multiple consecutive time points for a specific cell / beam.

[0104] As described in Fig. 3, the reason for predicting measurement results for a specific cell is to improve the handover performance of the terminal. For example, by predicting cell measurement results, the base station can identify in advance when a handover is required and prepare the handover process for the optimal target cell at that time, thereby enabling the terminal to be handed over without delay at the time when a handover is required. In addition, the RRC standard defines various events (e.g., Event A3, etc.) so that the terminal can report a Measurement Report (hereinafter referred to as MR) at the time when a handover is required. The base station can instruct the terminal to transmit an MR at the time when a handover is required by setting the terminal to transmit an MR in the event occurrence method (EventTrigered). For example, the base station can instruct the terminal to transmit an MR when Event A3 (an event where the signal of a neighboring cell becomes better than the signal of the serving cell) occurs. More specifically, if the entry condition of Event A3 (the signal of a neighboring cell must be higher than the signal of a serving cell) is first satisfied at time t1 (610) and that condition is maintained for a certain period of time (632, timeToTrigger), the terminal can start (trigger) MR transmission by Event A3 at time t2 (613).

[0105] Considering that the ultimate goal of predicting cell measurement results is to predict when a handover is required (in other words, when MR transmission begins due to a specific event), the most important / necessary training data for training a model for predicting cell measurement results may be cell / beam measurement results collected near the time when MR transmission begins by satisfying the entry condition for a handover-related event (e.g., Event Ax) defined in the RRC specification.

[0106] Specifically, as a method for collecting training data for training a cell / beam measurement result prediction model before and after a specific event defined in the RRC standard (in particular, an event related to handover such as Event A3) occurs, at least one combination of the methods described below may be used.

[0107] - Method 1 (Collection of training data around time t1 when the entry condition of a specific event is first satisfied, 620): The terminal can collect / store training data during a logging window (630, T) time centered around time t1 when the entry condition is first satisfied. In other words, the terminal can collect / store measurement results of cells from time t1-T / 2 to time t1+T / 2 as training data. Through this, by collecting cell measurement results around the time when the entry condition of a specific event is satisfied, training data useful for predicting cell measurement results up to when MR transmission begins due to the specific event can be collected. At this time, the specific event and the logging window (T) can be set by the base station.

[0108] - Method 2 (Collection of training data around time t2 when MR transmission begins due to a specific event, 625): The terminal can collect / store training data during a logging window (630, T) time centered around time t2 when MR transmission begins due to a specific event. In other words, the terminal can collect / store measurement results of cells from time t2-T / 2 to time t2+T / 2 as training data. Through this, by collecting cell measurement results around the time when MR transmission begins due to a specific event, training data useful for predicting cell measurement results around the time when MR transmission begins due to a specific event can be collected. Note that Method 2 has the advantage of being able to collect training data that helps predict cell measurement results after the actual time MR is transmitted, compared to Method 1. This may be necessary to obtain training data required to predict the signal of the handover target cell at the time of handover after MR transmission. At this time, the specific event and the logging window (T) can be set by the base station.

[0109] - Method 3 (Collection of training data up to time t2, when MR transmission begins due to a specific event, 630): The terminal can collect / store training data from time t2, when MR transmission begins due to a specific event, up to time (630, T) of the logging window. In other words, the terminal can collect / store measurement results of cells from time t2-T to time t2 as training data. Through this, by collecting cell measurement results up to when MR transmission begins due to a specific event, training data useful for predicting cell measurement results up to when MR transmission begins due to a specific event can be collected. For reference, this may be similar to Method 1 in that training data can be collected over a similar time interval. However, it differs in that the reference time is t2 rather than t1. At this time, the specific event and the logging window (T) can be set by the base station.

[0110] FIG. 7 illustrates a process according to one embodiment of the present disclosure in which a base station instructs a terminal to collect training data for learning a cell / beam measurement result prediction model and the terminal provides the collected training data to the base station.

[0111] Referring to FIG. 7, the base station (705) may instruct the terminal (700) to collect and report training data necessary to learn a cell / beam measurement result prediction model. The terminal may collect training data necessary to learn a cell / beam measurement result prediction model according to the base station settings and report it to the base station (705). Additionally, the terminal may hand over to another cell while collecting / storing training data necessary to learn a cell / beam measurement result prediction model. In this case, the terminal or the base station (705, source gNB) may notify the target base station (707, target gNB) operating the handover target cell that there is training data collected / stored by the terminal. Subsequently, the target base station may receive training data from the terminal after the terminal has performed the handover. Specific signaling procedures and terminal / base station operations for these operations may be described as follows.

[0112] In step 710, the base station (705) may request that the terminal (700) report terminal capability information related to the operation of collecting and reporting data for the cell / beam measurement result prediction model training. To this end, an indicator for requesting the reporting of terminal capability information related to the operation of collecting and reporting data for the cell / beam measurement result prediction model training may be included in the UECapabilityEnquiry message transmitted by the base station to the terminal. This is intended to prevent the terminal from unnecessarily reporting terminal capability information related to the operation of collecting and reporting data for the cell / beam measurement result prediction model training to a base station / network that does not support such functions, considering that the network / base station intending to train a model that predicts cell / beam measurement results based on artificial intelligence is limited. Subsequently, the terminal may report terminal capability information related to the operation of collecting and reporting data for the cell / beam measurement result prediction model training in accordance with the base station's request. To this end, at least one of the following information related to the operation of collecting and reporting data for the cell / beam measurement result prediction model training may be included in the UECapabilityInformation message transmitted by the terminal to the base station.

[0113] An indicator indicating whether the terminal supports the operation of collecting / reporting cell measurement results (L3 RSRP / SINR / RSRQ): The terminal may include an indicator or set it to 'True' or 'Supported' if it supports the operation of collecting and reporting training data necessary to train a cell measurement result prediction model as described in FIG. 6.

[0114] An indicator indicating whether the terminal supports the operation of collecting / reporting beam measurement results (L3 RSRP / SINR / RSRQ): If the terminal supports the operation of collecting and reporting training data necessary to train a beam measurement result prediction model as described in FIG. 6, it may include the indicator or set it to 'True' or 'Supported'. Note that since the terminal's capability required to collect / report cell measurement results may differ from the terminal's capability required to collect / report beam measurement results, separate terminal capability information may be defined for the operation of collecting / reporting cell measurement results and the operation of collecting / reporting beam measurement results. Otherwise, the terminal may be subject to the constraint that it must always support both operations together.

[0115] Indicator indicating the type of measurement result that can be collected / reported (RSRP / SINR / RSRQ): If the terminal supports one or more of the cell measurement result collection / reporting operation and the beam measurement result collection / reporting operation, it may report one or more supported measurement result types through the indicator. Additionally, the terminal may individually indicate the type of measurement result that can be collected / reported for the cell measurement result collection / reporting operation and the beam measurement result collection / reporting operation, respectively. To this end, an indicator may be defined separately for the cell measurement result collection / reporting operation and the beam measurement result collection / reporting operation, respectively.

[0116] Indicator indicating the maximum number of cells / beams capable of performing cell / beam measurement result collection / reporting operations: If the terminal supports one or more of the cell measurement result collection / reporting operations and beam measurement result collection / reporting operations, it can report the maximum number of cells / beams capable of collecting / reporting, respectively, through the indicator.

[0117] Indicator indicating the maximum size / length / number of data to be stored in the cell / beam measurement result collection operation: If the terminal supports one or more of the cell measurement result collection / reporting operation and the beam measurement result collection / reporting operation, the terminal may include an indicator indicating the maximum memory size that can be used to store training data in the collection operation, the maximum number of training data (cell / beam measurement result values) that can be stored per cell / beam, and the maximum length of the time interval (e.g., logging window in FIG. 6) that can store training data.

[0118] In step 712, the serving base station (705) may instruct the terminal (700) to perform a training data collection / reporting operation for learning a cell / beam measurement result prediction model through an RRCReconfiguration message. To this end, at least one combination of the configuration information described below may be included in the RRCReconfiguration message.

[0119] Cell measurement result collection indicator (e.g., cellMeasurementLogging): The base station may instruct the terminal to collect cell measurement results at the MO (Measurement Object), ReportConfig (Report Configuration), or cell level. When instructing the cell measurement result collection operation at the MO or ReportConfig level, a 1-bit indicator instructing the cell measurement result collection operation may be included within the MO or ReportConfig. In this case, as described in FIG. 6, in order to collect training data near the time of an event occurrence defined in the RRC, there may be a constraint that the indicator can only be included within a ReportConfig where the reportType is set to 'eventTriggered'. In this case, a specific event that triggers MR transmission (e.g., Event A3) may be set together within the ReportConfig.

[0120] When an indicator is included / configured within a specific MO or ReportConfig, the terminal can collect training data within the logging window using one of the methods described in FIG. 6 when MR transmission is initiated by the MeasID connected to the said MO or ReportConfig. At this time, the cells targeted for training data collection can be determined by one of the following methods.

[0121] - Method 1 (Collection of training data for applicable cells): When an indicator is included / configured within a specific MO or ReportConfig, the terminal can collect training data for applicable cells determined according to RRC specifications based on configuration information within the said MO or ReportConfig.

[0122] - Method 2 (Collecting training data for cells that triggered the event): When an indicator is included / configured within a specific MO or ReportConfig and a specific event occurs due to a MeasID connected to that MO or ReportConfig, the terminal can collect training data for the cells that triggered the event (cells included in cellsTriggeredList).

[0123] - Method 3 (Collecting training data for cells configured by the base station): The base station can include / configure a specific MO or ReportConfig with the indicator, while simultaneously configuring a list of cells for which training data collection is required. In this case, the terminal can collect training data only for the cells configured by the base station.

[0124] In one embodiment, the base station may instruct the terminal to collect beam measurement results for the corresponding cells when the terminal collects cell-by-cell measurement results (L3 RSRP / RSRQ / SINR) for the training data target cells. To this end, the base station may include an indicator (e.g., beamMeasurementLogging) for instructing the collection of beam measurement results. If the indicator is not set, the terminal may collect only cell measurement results.

[0125] Logging window length indicator: The base station may instruct the terminal to collect training data in the manner described in FIG. 6, and may include an indicator to indicate the length of the logging window to be used in the RRCReconfiguration message.

[0126] In step 714, the terminal (700) can perform cell / beam measurement operations and learning data collection operations according to the base station (705) settings in step 712. More specifically, if the measurement results for a specific cell(s) satisfy the entry condition of a specific event for a certain time (timeToTrigger) or longer, MR transmission can be started. When MR transmission is started by a specific event as described above, the terminal can collect learning data within the logging window as described in FIG. 6. At this time, the cells to be targeted for learning data collection can be selected as described in step 712.

[0127] In step 716, the terminal (700) can transmit MR to the base station (705) when MR transmission begins as in step 714 according to the settings of step 712. At this time, the terminal may include training data collected in step 714 (in other words, L3 RSRP / RSRQ / SINR values ​​per cell or beam measured at multiple points in time within a specific time interval) within the MR. Alternatively, instead of including training data collected directly within the MR, the terminal may include an indicator (e.g., rrm-LogMeasureAvailable) indicating whether there is training data collected by the terminal for training a cell / beam measurement result prediction model. If the terminal (700) includes the indicator or sets it to 'true / available', the base station (705) can know that the terminal has collected the training data necessary for training a cell / beam measurement result prediction model. Considering that MR transmission must be performed reliably within a timely manner for a successful handover of a terminal, increasing the size of the MR message by including collected training data in the MR can interfere with the handover operation. In this regard, instead of directly including training data within the MR message, it may be better for stable handover operation to simply include information that the terminal has collected training data through a 1-bit indicator.

[0128] Ultimately, in step 712, if the operation to collect cell / beam measurement results (i.e., collect training data) is directed within the MO or ReportConfig connected to a specific measID and there is training data collected according to the setting connected to that measID, the terminal may include a marker (rrm-LogMeasureAvailable) indicating that there is training data collected in that MR or that collected training data exists when MR transmission is started for that measID.

[0129] The process of reporting the training data collected by the terminal (700) to the base stations (705, 707) can be explained by dividing it into two main cases as follows.

[0130] - Case 1 (Case where the terminal does not perform a handover, 720): Even if an MR is transmitted due to a specific event in step 716, the base station may not instruct the terminal to perform a handover depending on the type of event. For example, in the case of Event A2, which causes the MR transmission to start when the signal of the serving cell becomes smaller than a specific threshold, the base station may set it for the purpose of checking in advance when the terminal needs a handover, but may not instruct a handover immediately after the MR is uploaded. In this case, the terminal (700) continues to maintain a connection with the base station (705) that instructed the collection of training data in step 712, and may provide training data to the base station. The specific step-by-step operations for this are as follows.

[0131] In step 722, the terminal (700) may report to the base station (705) via a UE Assistance Information (UAI) message whether there is training data collected for training a cell / beam measurement result prediction model. To this end, the UAI message may include a 1-bit indicator (e.g., rrm-LogMeasureAvailable) indicating whether there is training data collected for training a cell / beam measurement result prediction model.

[0132] In reality, the terminal may have a single bundle of training data collected within a single logging window whenever MR transmission is triggered by a specific event, as described in steps 714 and 716. However, as described in step 716, the operation of reporting to the base station or transmitting the single bundle of training data to the base station whenever the terminal has such a bundle of training data may be inefficient in terms of signaling load. Therefore, the base station may instruct the terminal to report whether there is collected training data only when the amount of collected training data exceeds a certain size / number. To this end, in step 712, the base station may set threshold values ​​(e.g., a threshold for the capacity of training data, a threshold for the number of training data bundles, a threshold for the ratio of collected data to the memory space for training data collection, etc.) to determine whether a sufficient amount of training data has been collected. If the capacity and number of collected training data exceed the threshold values, the terminal may report an indicator indicating whether there is collected training data to the base station (705) via a UAI message. To this end, in step 712, the base station can be configured to allow the terminal to report, via a UAI message, whether there is training data collected for training a cell / beam measurement result prediction model.

[0133] In step 724, the base station (705) may request the terminal (700) to report training data via a predetermined RRC message (e.g., a UEInformationRequest message). To this end, a 1-bit indicator (e.g., rrm-LogMeasReportReq) for requesting a report of training data for a cell / beam measurement result prediction model may be included in the RRC message. More specifically, if the terminal reports in step 716 or step 722 that there is training data collected for training a cell / beam measurement result prediction model, the base station may request the terminal to report training data based on this. Additionally, if training data collection is configured for multiple MOs or ReportConfigs in step 712, the base station may request training data collection for each MeasId associated with each MO or ReportConfig. To this end, a list containing multiple MeasIDs subject to the training data report request may be included together in the RRC message.

[0134] In step 726, the terminal (700) may report collected training data to the base station (705) via a predetermined RRC message (e.g., a UEInformationResponse message). As described in step 722, the terminal may have multiple bundles of training data collected within a single logging widow whenever an event occurs. Therefore, the terminal may include a list containing one or more bundles of training data within the RRC message. Additionally, as described in step 724, the terminal may be instructed to report training data corresponding to multiple MeasIDs. In this case, the terminal may include a list of training data bundles corresponding to each MeasID for which it was requested to report training data by the base station in step 724 within the RRC message.

[0135] - Case 2 (when the terminal performs a handover, 730): If an MR is transmitted due to a specific event in step 716, the base station may instruct the terminal to perform a handover depending on the type of event. For example, in the case of Event A3, which causes the MR transmission to begin when the signal of a neighboring cell becomes better than the signal of the serving cell, the base station may be configured to instruct the terminal to perform a handover immediately after receiving the MR. In this case, the serving base station (705) may decide to hand over the terminal to a specific cell (target cell) after receiving the MR from the terminal in step 716. In this case, the terminal may report the training data to the base station (707, target gNB) operating the cell after performing a handover to the target cell while maintaining (storing) the collected training data. The specific step-by-step process for this can be described as follows.

[0136] In step 731, the serving base station (705) can select a target cell for handover based on the cell / beam measurement results within the MR transmitted by the terminal (700) in step 716. Subsequently, the serving base station can request the preparation and settings necessary for the terminal to hand over to the target cell by sending a Handover Request message to the target base station (707, target gNB) operating the selected target cell. At this time, the serving base station may include within the Handover Request message the setting information included in step 712 to instruct the terminal to collect training data and the indicator (rrm-LogMeasureAvailable) included in step 716 to indicate whether the terminal has collected training data. To this end, fields may be newly defined to include the configuration information provided to the terminal to instruct the collection of training data in step 712 within the HandoverPreparationInformation message defined in the RRC specification, and an indicator (rrm-LogMeasureAvailable) included to indicate whether the terminal has collected training data. The HandoverPreparationInformation message may then be included in the Handover Request message and transmitted to the target base station (707).

[0137] In step 733, the target base station (707) can determine the configuration information required for the terminal (700) to hand over to the target cell based on the cell / beam measurement results and predicted cell / beam measurement results included in the Handover Request message received from the serving base station (705) in step 731. Subsequently, the target base station can include the determined handover configuration information in the Handover Request Acknowledge message and transmit it to the serving base station (705).

[0138] Additionally, the target base station (707) can identify which cell / beam measurement results the terminal (700) has collected as training data based on which training data collection setting information and information on whether collected training data exists, based on the training data collection setting information and information on whether collected training data exists, which training data collection setting the terminal (700) has collected.

[0139] In step 735, the serving base station (705) can instruct the terminal (700) to perform a handover based on the handover configuration information received from the target base station (707) in step 733. More specifically, the serving base station can instruct the terminal to perform a handover to the target cell via an RRCReconfiguration message and transmit the necessary configuration information at this time.

[0140] In step 736, the terminal can perform a handover operation to the target cell based on the handover configuration information received in step 735. Subsequently, the terminal can successfully complete the handover process by performing RA to the target base station (707) and using the received uplink resources to send an RRCReconfigurationComplete message to the target base station. During the handover process, the terminal can continue to maintain / store the training data collected according to the serving base station (705) configuration in step 712 without erasing it.

[0141] Additionally, instead of including an indicator (rrm-LogMeasureAvailable) in step 716 that indicates whether there is data collected for training a cell / beam measurement result prediction model within the MR, the terminal may include the indicator within the RRCReconfigurationComplete message. However, in this case, since the reason the terminal includes the indicator within the RRCReconfigurationComplete message is to report to the new base station whether there is training data collected after the handover is performed, a constraint may be introduced so that the indicator can be included only when the RRCReconfiguration message in step 735 includes a handover setting (i.e., reconfigurationWithSync IE).

[0142] In step 737, the target base station (707) may request the terminal (700) to report training data via a predetermined RRC message (e.g., a UEInformationRequest message). To this end, a 1-bit indicator (e.g., rrm-LogMeasReportReq) for requesting a report of training data for a cell / beam measurement result prediction model may be included in the RRC message. More specifically, the base station (707) may identify that the terminal possesses collected measurement data based on the information received from the serving base station (705) in step 731 or the information included by the terminal (700) in step 736. Based on this, the base station may request the terminal to report training data. Additionally, if training data collection is configured for multiple MOs or ReportConfigs in step 712, the base station may request training data collection for each MeasId associated with each MO or ReportConfig. To this end, a list containing multiple MeasIDs subject to the training data report request may be included together in the RRC message.

[0143] In step 738, the terminal (700) may report collected training data to the base station (707) via a predetermined RRC message (e.g., a UEInformationResponse message). As described in step 722, the terminal may have multiple bundles of training data collected within a single logging widow whenever an event occurs. Therefore, the terminal may include a list containing one or more bundles of training data within the RRC message. Additionally, as described in step 737, the terminal may be instructed to report training data corresponding to multiple MeasIDs. In this case, the terminal may include a list of training data bundles corresponding to each MeasID for which it was requested to report training data by the base station in step 737 within the RRC message.

[0144] FIG. 8 is a drawing illustrating a terminal device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0145] Referring to FIG. 8, the terminal may include an RF (Radio Frequency) processing unit (810), a baseband processing unit (820), a storage unit (830), and a control unit (840). The configuration of the terminal is not limited to the exemplary configuration shown in FIG. 8 and may include fewer or more configurations than the configuration shown in FIG. 8.

[0146] The RF processing unit (810) can perform functions for transmitting and receiving signals through a wireless channel, such as signal band conversion and amplification. For example, the RF processing unit (810) can up-convert a baseband signal provided by the baseband processing unit (820) into an RF band signal and then transmit it through an antenna, and can down-convert an RF band signal received through an antenna into a baseband signal. For example, the RF processing unit (810) may include a transmission filter, a reception filter, an amplifier, a mixer, an oscillator, a DAC (digital to analog converter), an ADC (analog to digital converter), etc., but is not limited to these examples. Although only one antenna is shown in FIG. 2, the terminal may be equipped with multiple antennas. Additionally, the RF processing unit (810) may include multiple RF chains. Furthermore, the RF processing unit (810) may perform beamforming. For beamforming, the RF processing unit (810) can adjust the phase and magnitude of each of the signals transmitted and received through multiple antennas or antenna elements. Additionally, the RF processing unit (810) can perform MIMO and can receive multiple layers when performing MIMO operation.

[0147] The baseband processing unit (820) can perform conversion functions between baseband signals and bit sequences according to the physical layer specifications of the system. For example, when transmitting data, the baseband processing unit (820) can generate complex symbols by encoding and modulating the transmitted bit sequence. Additionally, when receiving data, the baseband processing unit (820) can restore the received bit sequence by demodulating and decoding the baseband signal provided by the RF processing unit (810). For example, in the case of following the orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) method, when transmitting data, the baseband processing unit (820) can generate complex symbols by encoding and modulating the transmitted bit sequence, map the generated complex symbols to subcarriers, and then construct OFDM symbols through inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) operations and cyclic prefix (CP) insertion. Additionally, upon receiving data, the baseband processing unit (820) can divide the baseband signal provided by the RF processing unit (810) into OFDM symbol units, restore the signals mapped to subcarriers through a fast Fourier transform (FFT) operation, and then restore the received bit sequence through demodulation and decoding.

[0148] The baseband processing unit (820) and the RF processing unit (810) can transmit and receive signals as described above. Accordingly, the baseband processing unit (820) and the RF processing unit (810) may be referred to as a transmitting unit, a receiving unit, a transmitting and receiving unit, or a communication unit. Furthermore, at least one of the baseband processing unit (820) and the RF processing unit (810) may include a plurality of communication modules to support a plurality of different wireless access technologies. Additionally, at least one of the baseband processing unit (820) and the RF processing unit (810) may include different communication modules to process signals of different frequency bands. For example, different wireless access technologies may include wireless LAN (e.g., IEEE 802.11), cellular network (e.g., LTE), etc. In addition, different frequency bands may include super high frequency (SHF) bands (e.g., 2 NRHz, NRHz) and millimeter wave (e.g., 60 GHz) bands. The terminal can transmit and receive signals with the gNB using the baseband processing unit (820) and the RF processing unit (810), and the signals may include control information and data.

[0149] The storage unit (830) can store data such as basic programs, application programs, and setting information for the operation of the terminal. For example, the storage unit (830) can store data information such as basic programs, application programs, and setting information for the operation of the terminal. In addition, the storage unit (830) can provide the stored data upon a request from the control unit (840).

[0150] The storage unit (830) may be composed of a storage medium or a combination of storage media such as ROM, RAM, hard disk, CD-ROM, and DVD. Additionally, the storage unit (830) may be composed of a plurality of memories. According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the storage unit (830) may store a program for performing a handover method according to the present disclosure.

[0151] The control unit (840) can control the overall operations of the terminal. For example, the control unit (840) can transmit and receive signals through the baseband processing unit (820) and the RF processing unit (810).

[0152] Additionally, the control unit (840) can write and read data to the storage unit (830). To this end, the control unit (840) may include at least one processor. For example, the control unit (840) may include a communication processor (CP) that performs control for communication and an application processor (AP) that controls upper layers such as applications. Also, according to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the control unit (840) may include a multi-connection processing unit (842) configured to process a process operating in a multi-connection mode. Additionally, at least one component within the terminal may be implemented as a single chip.

[0153] FIG. 9 is a drawing illustrating a base station device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0154] The base station of Fig. 9 may be included in the aforementioned network.

[0155] As illustrated in FIG. 9, the base station may include an RF processing unit (910), a baseband processing unit (920), a backhaul communication unit (930), a storage unit (940), and a control unit (950). The configuration of the base station is not limited to the exemplary configuration illustrated in FIG. 9, and the base station may include fewer or more configurations than the configuration illustrated in FIG. 9. The RF processing unit (910) may perform functions for transmitting and receiving signals through a wireless channel, such as signal band conversion and amplification. For example, the RF processing unit (910) may up-convert a baseband signal provided by the baseband processing unit (920) into an RF band signal and then transmit it through an antenna, and may down-convert an RF band signal received through an antenna into a baseband signal. For example, the RF processing unit (910) may include a transmission filter, a reception filter, an amplifier, a mixer, an oscillator, a DAC, an ADC, etc. In FIG. 9, only one antenna is shown, but the RF processing unit (910) may be equipped with multiple antennas. Additionally, the RF processing unit (910) may include multiple RF chains. Furthermore, the RF processing unit (910) may perform beamforming. For beamforming, the RF processing unit (910) may adjust the phase and magnitude of each of the signals transmitted and received through multiple antennas or antenna elements. The RF processing unit (910) may perform down-to-down MIMO operation by transmitting one or more layers.

[0156] The baseband processing unit (920) can perform conversion functions between baseband signals and bit sequences according to physical layer specifications. For example, when transmitting data, the baseband processing unit (920) can generate complex symbols by encoding and modulating the transmitted bit sequence. Additionally, when receiving data, the baseband processing unit (920) can restore the received bit sequence by demodulating and decoding the baseband signal provided by the RF processing unit (910). For example, in the case of an OFDM method, when transmitting data, the baseband processing unit (920) can generate complex symbols by encoding and modulating the transmitted bit sequence, map the generated complex symbols to subcarriers, and then construct OFDM symbols through IFFT operations and CP insertion. Additionally, upon receiving data, the baseband processing unit (920) can divide the baseband signal provided by the RF processing unit (910) into OFDM symbol units, restore the signals mapped to subcarriers through FFT operations, and then restore the received bit sequence through demodulation and decoding. The baseband processing unit (920) and the RF processing unit (910) can transmit and receive signals as described above. Accordingly, the baseband processing unit (920) and the RF processing unit (910) may be referred to as a transmitting unit, a receiving unit, a transmitting and receiving unit, a communication unit, or a wireless communication unit. A base station can transmit and receive signals with a terminal using the baseband processing unit (920) and the RF processing unit (910), and the signal may include control information and data.

[0157] The backhaul communication unit (930) can provide an interface for communicating with other nodes within the network. For example, the backhaul communication unit (930) can convert a bit sequence transmitted from the main base station to another node, e.g., an auxiliary base station, a core network, etc., into a physical signal, and convert a physical signal received from another node into a bit sequence.

[0158] The storage unit (940) can store data such as basic programs, application programs, and configuration information for the operation of the main station. For example, the storage unit (940) can store information about a bearer assigned to a connected terminal, measurement results reported from the connected terminal, etc. Additionally, the storage unit (940) can store information that serves as a criterion for determining whether to provide or discontinue multiple connections to the terminal. Furthermore, the storage unit (940) can provide the stored data upon a request from the control unit (950). The storage unit (940) may be composed of a storage medium or a combination of storage media such as ROM, RAM, hard disk, CD-ROM, and DVD. Additionally, the storage unit (940) may be composed of multiple memories. According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the storage unit (940) may store a program for performing a handover according to the present disclosure.

[0159] The control unit (950) can control the overall operations of the main station. For example, the control unit (950) can transmit and receive signals through the baseband processing unit (920) and the RF processing unit (910) or through the backhaul communication unit (930). Additionally, the control unit (950) can write and read data to and from the storage unit (940). To this end, the control unit (950) may include at least one processor. Also, according to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the control unit (950) may include a multi-connection processing unit (952) configured to process a process operating in a multi-connection mode.

[0160] Methods according to the embodiments described in the claims or specification of the present disclosure may be implemented in the form of hardware, software, or a combination of hardware and software.

[0161] When implemented in software, a computer-readable storage medium may be provided for storing one or more programs (software modules). One or more programs stored in the computer-readable storage medium are configured for execution by one or more processors within an electronic device. One or more programs include instructions that cause the electronic device to execute methods according to the embodiments described in the claims or specification of this disclosure.

[0162] Such programs (software modules, software) may be stored in random access memory, non-volatile memory including flash memory, ROM (Read Only Memory), Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory (EEPROM), magnetic disc storage devices, Compact Disc-ROM (CD-ROM), Digital Versatile Discs (DVDs), or other forms of optical storage devices, magnetic cassettes. Alternatively, they may be stored in memory composed of some or all of these. Additionally, each constituent memory may include multiple units.

[0163] Additionally, the program may be stored on an attachable storage device accessible via a communication network such as the Internet, Intranet, Local Area Network (LAN), Wide LAN (WLAN), or Storage Area Network (SAN), or a combination thereof. Such a storage device may be connected to the device performing the embodiment of the present disclosure through an external port. Additionally, a separate storage device on the communication network may be connected to the device performing the embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0164] In the present disclosure, the terms “computer program product” or “computer readable medium” are used to collectively refer to media such as memory, a hard disk installed in a hard disk drive, and signals. These “computer program product” or “computer readable medium” are configurations provided in a method for reporting terminal capability in a wireless communication system according to the present disclosure.

[0165] A device-readable storage medium may be provided in the form of a non-transitory storage medium. Here, 'non-transitory storage medium' simply means that it is a tangible device and does not contain a signal (e.g., electromagnetic waves), and the term does not distinguish between cases where data is stored semi-permanently and cases where it is stored temporarily. For example, a 'non-transitory storage medium' may include a buffer in which data is stored temporarily.

[0166] According to one embodiment, the method according to the various embodiments disclosed herein may be provided by being included in a computer program product. The computer program product may be traded between a seller and a buyer as a product. The computer program product may be distributed in the form of a device-readable storage medium (e.g., compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM)), or distributed online (e.g., download or upload) through an application store (e.g., Play Store™) or directly between two user devices (e.g., smartphones). In the case of online distribution, at least a portion of the computer program product (e.g., downloadable app) may be temporarily stored or temporarily created on a device-readable storage medium, such as the memory of a manufacturer's server, an application store's server, or a relay server.

[0167] In the specific embodiments of the present disclosure described above, the components included in the invention are expressed in a singular or plural form according to the specific embodiments presented. However, the singular or plural expression is selected to suit the situation presented for convenience of explanation, and the present disclosure is not limited to singular or plural components; even if a component is expressed in the plural, it may be composed of a singular form, and even if a component is expressed in the singular form, it may be composed of a plural form.

[0168] Meanwhile, the embodiments of the present disclosure disclosed in this specification and drawings are merely specific examples provided to facilitate the explanation of the technical content of the present disclosure and to aid in understanding the present disclosure, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. That is, it is obvious to those skilled in the art that other variations based on the technical concept of the present disclosure are possible. Furthermore, each embodiment may be combined and operated with one another as needed. For example, parts of one embodiment of the present disclosure and another embodiment may be combined to operate a base station and a terminal. In addition, the embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable to other communication systems, and other variations based on the technical concept of the embodiments may also be possible. For example, the embodiments may be applied to LTE systems, 5G, NR systems, or 6G systems, etc. Therefore, the scope of the present disclosure should not be limited to the described embodiments, but should be defined by the claims set forth below as well as equivalents thereof.

Claims

1. A method performed by a UE (user equipment) of a wireless communication system, A step of receiving setting information for predicting beam measurement results from a base station; Based on the above setting information, a step of performing a beam measurement result prediction for at least one cell; and A method comprising the step of transmitting to the base station a measurement report including a prediction of the beam measurement result.

2. In Paragraph 1, The prediction of the beam measurement results included in the above measurement report is, A method comprising predictions for all cells containing measurement results in the measurement report, predictions for all neighboring cells containing measurement results in the measurement report, or predictions for N selected neighboring cells among the neighboring cells containing measurement results in the measurement report.

3. In Paragraph 2, The above setting information includes information indicating the above N value, and The above N neighboring cells are selected as the optimal N based on actual measurement results or prediction results, and The prediction of the beam measurement results included in the above measurement report is, A method comprising at least one beam index for the N neighboring cells and at least one prediction result corresponding to the at least one beam index.

4. In Paragraph 1, The prediction of the beam measurement results included in the above measurement report is, A method based on at least one of RSRP (reference signal received power), RSRQ (reference signal received quality), or SINR (signal to interference plus noise ratio).

5. A method performed by a base station of a wireless communication system, A step of receiving capability information for beam measurement result prediction from UE (user equipment); A step of transmitting setting information for predicting the beam measurement result to the above UE; and A method comprising the step of receiving a measurement report including a prediction of the beam measurement result from the above UE.

6. In Paragraph 5, The prediction of the beam measurement results included in the above measurement report is, A method comprising predictions for all cells containing measurement results in the measurement report, predictions for all neighboring cells containing measurement results in the measurement report, or predictions for N selected neighboring cells among the neighboring cells containing measurement results in the measurement report.

7. In Paragraph 6, The above setting information includes information indicating the above N value, and The above N neighboring cells are selected as the optimal N based on actual measurement results or prediction results, and The prediction of the beam measurement results included in the above measurement report is, A method comprising at least one beam index for the N neighboring cells and at least one prediction result corresponding to the at least one beam index.

8. In Paragraph 5, The prediction of the beam measurement results included in the above measurement report is, A method based on at least one of RSRP (reference signal received power), RSRQ (reference signal received quality), or SINR (signal to interference plus noise ratio).

9. Regarding UE (user equipment): At least one transceiver; At least one processor communicatively coupled to the above at least one transceiver; and It includes at least one memory that is communicationally coupled to the above at least one processor and stores instructions, and The above instructions are executed individually or in any combination by the above at least one processor, so that the UE: Receive configuration information for predicting beam measurement results from the base station, and Based on the above setting information, a beam measurement result prediction is performed for at least one cell, and A UE that transmits a measurement report including a prediction of the beam measurement result to the base station.

10. In Paragraph 9, The prediction of the beam measurement results included in the above measurement report is, UE comprising predictions for all cells containing measurement results in the above measurement report, predictions for all neighboring cells containing measurement results in the above measurement report, or predictions for N selected neighboring cells among the neighboring cells containing measurement results in the above measurement report.

11. In Paragraph 10, The above setting information includes information indicating the above N value, and The above N neighboring cells are selected as the optimal N based on actual measurement results or prediction results, and The prediction of the beam measurement results included in the above measurement report is, A UE comprising at least one beam index for the above N neighboring cells and at least one prediction result corresponding to the above at least one beam index.

12. In Paragraph 9, The prediction of the beam measurement results included in the above measurement report is, A UE based on at least one of RSRP (reference signal received power), RSRQ (reference signal received quality), or SINR (signal to interference plus noise ratio).

13. Regarding base stations: At least one transceiver; At least one processor communicatively coupled to the above at least one transceiver; and It includes at least one memory that is communicationally coupled to the above at least one processor and stores instructions, and The above instructions are executed individually or in any combination by the above at least one processor, so that the base station: Receive capability information regarding beam measurement result prediction from UE (user equipment), and Transmitting setting information for predicting beam measurement results to the above UE, and A base station that receives a measurement report including a beam measurement result prediction from the above UE.

14. In Paragraph 13, The prediction of the beam measurement results included in the above measurement report is, A base station comprising predictions for all cells included in the measurement report, predictions for all neighboring cells included in the measurement report, or predictions for N selected neighboring cells among the neighboring cells included in the measurement report.

15. In Paragraph 13, The above setting information includes information indicating the above N value, and The above N neighbor cells are selected as the optimal N based on actual measurement results or prediction results, and The prediction of the beam measurement results included in the above measurement report is, A base station comprising at least one beam index for the above N neighboring cells and at least one prediction result corresponding to the above at least one beam index.

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