Sending a communication, and exchanging a communication with a wireless communication device

Abstract

According to an example, a method performed by a first wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a second wireless communication device is provided The method comprises sending, to the second wireless communication device, a configuration, or receiving, from the second wireless communication device, the configuration, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled. The method also comprises exchanging a communication with the second wireless communication device, and if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled, exchanging feedback with the second wireless communication device, wherein the feedback is for the communication.

Description

[0001] SENDING A COMMUNICATION, AND EXCHANGING

[0002] A COMMUNICATION WITH A WIRELESS COMMUNICATION DEVICE

[0003] Technical Field

[0004] Examples of this disclosure relate to exchanging a communication between wireless communication devices.

[0005]

[0006] Wireless Internet of Things (loT) devices are often battery powered and both the need to change battery and the battery lifetime may be concerns for many potential applications such as asset tracking or environmental / industrial sensors. For this reason, the wireless communications industry has been interested in so-called zero-energy (ZE) devices. ZE devices refer to wireless loT devices that do not require battery replacement, and which can harvest energy from the environment. These ZE-loT devices can in addition be of very small form factor and could even be printable, and they target ultra-low power consumption to enable operation based on either energy-harvesting from an ambient sources or back-scattering communication (cf. RFID). That is, instead of relying on active transmission and reception for communication being powered by a battery, energy is instead harvested from an ambient source, such as vibrations, solar power, RF, etc. and for back-scattering communication a charge carrier wave is provided to the device from the network which is modulated and reflected back to the network (to the “reader”). This enables energy autonomous operation during the lifetime of the devices without need for either manual replacement or charging of the batteries. Compared to existing radio access technologies this puts new requirements on the radio interface and the protocols.

[0007] 3GPP Ambient-loT

[0008] In 3GPP, ZE-loT started to be studied in Release 18, there referred to as ‘Ambient loT’ (RP-222685). The resulting study item technical report can be found in Technical Report (TR) 38.848. In Release 19 the work continued with a study in RAN working groups (RP-240826) for which the outcome can be found in TR 38.769. It was agreed to continue in the last part of Release 19 with normative work (RP-243326) to specify a limited solution:

[0009] • Indoor inventory, indoor command only

[0010] • Backscattering Device Type 1 only

[0011] D1T1-B (micro BS indoor; device indoor) only

[0012] • CW outside topology• R2D in DL spectrum; D2R and CW in UL spectrum

[0013] That is, the only services supported in Release 19 ‘inventory’ (reporting of device identified to the network) and ‘command’ (transmitting a small payload to the device). Further the deployment scenario supported are indoor devices which receives carrier wave (CW) transmissions for network nodes and the reflected signals are received by indoor micro base stations (in FDD uplink spectrum). For downlink direct transmission from the indoor micro base station to the device is supported (in FDD downlink spectrum).

[0014] Figure 1 illustrates an example of a communication system that includes a carrier wave transmitter, passive tag, and reader (e.g. gNodeB, gNB).

[0015] Functional and protocol simplifications for Ambient loT

[0016] For Ambient loT (A-loT), 3GPPwill targetan loT segment well below the existing cellular loT technologies (e.g. NB-loT), with significantly lower energy consumption and device complexity / cost. This requires simplifications in physical layer design, and the higher layer (L2 / L3) design will also be much more lightweight with a minimal set of functionalities. For Random Access and multiple access devices the Release 19 scope is limited to the following:

[0017]

[0018] Figure 2 illustrates examples of features of Random Access (RA) types, including 2-step Contention Based Random Access (CBRA), 3-step CBRA, and Contention Free Random Access (CFRA).

[0019] Figure 3 is a signalling diagram illustrating an example of 2-step contention-based Random Access (CBRA) during inventory only use case. Figure 4 is signalling diagram illustrating an example of 3-step and 4-step contention-based Random Access (CBRA) during inventory only use case.There currently exist certain challenge(s). For example, in 3GPP meeting RAN2#129, concerning random access, 3GPP has made the following agreements on signaling alternatives sent by the reader to devices for triggering re-access.

[0020]

[0021] Based on the above agreements, there will be further discussions in 3GPP on the FFS, when the reader sends feedback. 3GPP will study conditions when the reader needs send feedback in AS to devices. The below issues are expected to be addressed

[0022] Issue 1 - conditions under which the reader doesn’t need to send feedback message in AS to devices.

[0023] Issue 2 - how devices know whether AS feedback message will be present or absent during an access procedure initiated by the reader

[0024] Issue 3 - in case AS feedback is absent for a data transmission initiated by a device, how the device to handle data transmission failures.

[0025] It is therefore necessary to study the above issues and develop corresponding solutions.

[0026] Summary

[0027] Certain aspects of the disclosure and their embodiments may provide solutions to these or other challenges. For example, mechanisms to handle data transmission failure for a device during a contention based access round / procedure are disclosed. Mechanisms to handle READ / WRITE / Device ID related data transmission failure for a device during a contention based access round / procedure is developed based on AS feedback configuration or upper layer feedback are disclosed.

[0028] Certain embodiments may provide one or more of the following technical advantage(s). For example, Methods include re-access or retransmission increase data transmission success for an identified device.Using CFRA based re-transmission on dedicated resources reduce resource wastage compare to CBRA procedure (collisions and contention resolution increase resource consumption)

[0029] - CBRA based re-access is employed if a device runs into coverage issue. It is better to offload device to new reader instead trying with same reader as it result wastage of resource without any transmission success.

[0030] A first example aspect of this disclosure provides method performed by a first wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a second wireless communication device. The method comprises sending, to the second wireless communication device, a configuration, or receiving, from the second wireless communication device, the configuration, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled. The method also comprises exchanging a communication with the second wireless communication device, and if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled, exchanging feedback with the second wireless communication device, wherein the feedback is for the communication.

[0031] A further example aspect of this disclosure provides a method performed by a first wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a second wireless communication device. The method comprises performing a first random access (RA) procedure with the second wireless communication device for the second wireless communication device to obtain a first access occasion (AO), and determining that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the second wireless communication device in the first AO. The method also comprises sending a paging message to the second wireless communication device, wherein the paging message identifies a period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device, performing a second RA procedure with the second wireless communication device in the period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device, and exchanging the communication with the second wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure.

[0032] A still further example aspect of this disclosure provides a method performed by a second wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a first wireless communication device. The method comprises performing a first random access (RA) procedure with the first wireless communication device to obtain a first access occasion (AO), and determining that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the first wireless communication device in the first AO. The method also comprises receiving apaging message from the first wireless communication device, wherein the paging message identifies a period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device, performing a second RA procedure with the first wireless communication device in the period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device; and exchanging the communication with the first wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure.

[0033] Another example aspect of this disclosure provides a method performed by a network node for sending a communication. The method comprises determining that a communication has not been successfully sent by a first wireless communication device to a second wireless communication device, or a response to the communication has not been successfully sent by the second wireless communication device to the first wireless communication device. The method also comprises sending the communication to a third wireless communication device for the third wireless communication device to send the communication to the second wireless communication device.

[0034] An additional example aspect of this disclosure provides tangible, non-transient computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry, cause the processing circuitry to perform operations in a first wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a second wireless communication device. The operations comprise sending, to the second wireless communication device, a configuration, or receiving, from the second wireless communication device, the configuration, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled. The operations also comprise exchanging a communication with the second wireless communication device, and if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled, exchanging feedback with the second wireless communication device, wherein the feedback is for the communication.

[0035] A further example aspect of this disclosure provides a tangible, non-transient computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry, cause the processing circuitry to perform operations in a first wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a second wireless communication device. The operations comprise performing a first random access (RA) procedure with the second wireless communication device for the second wireless communication device to obtain a first access occasion (AO), and determining that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the second wireless communication device in the first AO. The operations also comprise sending a paging message to the second wireless communication device, wherein the paging message identifies a period for contention-free random access for the secondwireless communication device, performing a second RA procedure with the second wireless communication device in the period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device, and exchanging the communication with the second wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure.

[0036] Another example aspect of this disclosure provides a tangible, non-transient computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry, cause the processing circuitry to perform operations in a second wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a first wireless communication device. The operations comprise performing a first random access (RA) procedure with the first wireless communication device to obtain a first access occasion (AO), and determining that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the first wireless communication device in the first AO. The operations also comprise receiving a paging message from the first wireless communication device, wherein the paging message identifies a period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device, performing a second RA procedure with the first wireless communication device in the period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device, and exchanging the communication with the first wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure.

[0037] A further example aspect of this disclosure provides a tangible, non-transient computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry, cause the processing circuitry to perform operations in a network node for sending a communication. The operations comprise determining that a communication has not been successfully sent by a first wireless communication device to a second wireless communication device, or a response to the communication has not been successfully sent by the second wireless communication device to the first wireless communication device. The operations also comprise sending the communication to a third wireless communication device for the third wireless communication device to send the communication to the second wireless communication device.

[0038] An additional example aspect of this disclosure provides apparatus in a first wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a second wireless communication device, the apparatus comprising processing circuitry and a memory. The apparatus is configured to send, to the second wireless communication device, a configuration, or receiving, from the second wireless communication device, the configuration, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled. Theapparatus is also configured to exchange a communication with the second wireless communication device, and if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled, exchange feedback with the second wireless communication device, wherein the feedback is for the communication.

[0039] Another example aspect of this disclosure provides apparatus in a first wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a second wireless communication device, the apparatus comprising processing circuitry and a memory. The apparatus is configured to perform a first random access (RA) procedure with the second wireless communication device for the second wireless communication device to obtain a first access occasion (AO), and determine that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the second wireless communication device in the first AO. The apparatus is also configured to send a paging message to the second wireless communication device, wherein the paging message identifies a period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device, perform a second RA procedure with the second wireless communication device in the period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device, and exchange the communication with the second wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure.

[0040] A still further example aspect of this disclosure provides apparatus in a second wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a first wireless communication device, the apparatus comprising processing circuitry and a memory. The apparatus is configured to perform a first random access (RA) procedure with the first wireless communication device to obtain a first access occasion (AO), and determine that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the first wireless communication device in the first AO. The apparatus is also configured to receive a paging message from the first wireless communication device, wherein the paging message identifies a period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device, perform a second RA procedure with the first wireless communication device in the period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device, and exchange the communication with the first wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure.

[0041] Another example aspect of this disclosure provides apparatus in a network node for sending a communication, the apparatus comprising processing circuitry and a memory. The apparatus is configured to determine that a communication has not been successfully sent by a first wireless communication device to a second wireless communication device, or aresponse to the communication has not been successfully sent by the second wireless communication device to the first wireless communication device. The apparatus is also configured to send the communication to a third wireless communication device for the third wireless communication device to send the communication to the second wireless communication device.

[0042] Brief Description of the Drawings

[0043] For a better understanding of the embodiments of the present disclosure, and to show how it may be put into effect, reference will now be made, by way of example only, to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0044] Figure 1 illustrates an example of a communication system;

[0045] Figure 2 illustrates examples of features of Random Access (RA) types;

[0046] Figure 3 is a signalling diagram illustrating an example of 2-step contention-based Random Access (CBRA) during inventory only use case;

[0047] Figure 4 is signalling diagram illustrating an example of 3-step and 4-step contentionbased Random Access (CBRA) during inventory only use case;

[0048] Figure 5 is a flow chart illustrating a method in accordance with some embodiments; Figure 6 is a flow chart illustrating another method in accordance with some embodiments;

[0049] Figure 7 is a flow chart illustrating another method in accordance with some embodiments;

[0050] Figure 8 is a flow chart illustrating another method in accordance with some embodiments;

[0051] Figure 9 illustrates an example of a signaling diagram according to examples of this disclosure;

[0052] Figure 10 illustrates another example of a signaling diagram according to examples of this disclosure;

[0053] Figure 11 shows an example of a communication system in accordance with some embodiments;

[0054] Figure 12 shows an example of another communication system in accordance with some embodiments;

[0055] Figure 13 shows a wireless device in accordance with some embodiments;

[0056] Figure 14 shows a network node in accordance with some embodiments; and Figure 15 is a block diagram illustrating a virtualization environment in which functions implemented by some embodiments may be virtualized.ADDITIONAL EXPLANATION

[0057] Some of the embodiments contemplated herein will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. Embodiments are provided by way of example to convey the scope of the subject matter to those skilled in the art.

[0058] Examples of this disclosure include the following proposals:

[0059] • Proposal 1 indicates utilization of Access Stratum (AS) feedback configuration, for example for inventory only use case. The reader employs AS feedback based on AS feedback configuration indicated in paging to indicates success or failure of inventory reporting. The failure triggers re-access.

[0060] • Proposal 2, for example for inventory plus command use case, uses non-AS feedback behavior to determine retransmissions, whereby means of device command related data transmissions or response to command related data transmissions, the reader can decide to provided retransmission or not using CFRA procedure. Here reader does not employ AS feedback.

[0061] • In proposal 3, for example for case with inventory plus command, if device suffers from coverage issue as an example, the Core Network (CN) provides re-access to device via new reader, unlike in proposal 2, where retransmission is triggered via same reader.

[0062] Figure 5 depicts a method 500 in accordance with particular embodiments, such as for example a method performed by a first wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a second wireless communication device. The method 500 may be performed by a wireless device (e.g. UE QQ112, station QQ212 or wireless device QQ300 as described later with reference to Figures 11, 12 and 13 respectively).

[0063] The method 500 begins at step 502, with sending, to the second wireless communication device, a configuration, or receiving, from the second wireless communication device, the configuration, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled. Step 504 comprises exchanging a communication with the second wireless communication device. Step 506 comprises, if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled, exchanging feedback with the second wireless communication device, wherein the feedback is for the communication.

[0064] Figure 6 depicts a method in accordance with particular embodiments, such as for example a method performed by a first wireless communication device for exchanging acommunication with a second wireless communication device. The method 600 may be performed by a wireless device (e.g. UE QQ112, station QQ212 or wireless device QQ300 as described later with reference to Figures 11, 12 and 13 respectively).

[0065] The method begins at step 602, comprising performing a first random access (RA) procedure with the second wireless communication device for the second wireless communication device to obtain a first access occasion (AO). Step 604 comprises determining that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the second wireless communication device in the first AO. Step 606 comprises sending a paging message to the second wireless communication device, wherein the paging message identifies a period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device. Step 608 comprises performing a second RA procedure with the second wireless communication device in the period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device. Step 610 comprises exchanging the communication with the second wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure.

[0066] Figure 7 depicts a method 700 in accordance with particular embodiments, such as for example a method performed by a second wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a first wireless communication device. The method 700 may be performed by a wireless device (e.g. UE QQ112, station QQ212 or wireless device QQ300 as described later with reference to Figures 11, 12 and 13 respectively).

[0067] The method 700 begins at step 702, comprising performing a first random access (RA) procedure with the first wireless communication device to obtain a first access occasion (AO). Step 704 comprises determining that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the first wireless communication device in the first AO. Step 706 comprises receiving a paging message from the first wireless communication device, wherein the paging message identifies a period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device. Step 708 comprises performing a second RA procedure with the first wireless communication device in the period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device. Step 710 comprises exchanging the communication with the first wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure.

[0068] Figure 8 depicts a method 800 in accordance with particular embodiments, such as for example a method in a network node for sending a communication. The method 800 may be performed by a wireless device (e.g. UE QQ112, station QQ212 or wireless device QQ300 as described later with reference to Figures 11, 12 and 13 respectively).The method 800 begins at step 802, comprising determining that a communication has not been successfully sent by a first wireless communication device to a second wireless communication device, or a response to the communication has not been successfully sent by the second wireless communication device to the first wireless communication device. Step 804 comprises sending the communication to a third wireless communication device for the third wireless communication device to send the communication to the second wireless communication device.

[0069] Particular example embodiments are now described for illustrative purposes.

[0070] In the below described embodiments, we have considered or assumed use cases with ultralow power devices, zero-energy or A-loT devices.

[0071] The term RAN node is used which can be a network node or a user equipment (UE).

[0072] Examples of network nodes are NodeB, base station (BS), multi-standard radio (MSR) radio node such as MSR BS, eNodeB, gNodeB, MeNB, SeNB, location measurement unit (LMU), integrated access backhaul (IAB) node, network controller, radio network controller (RNC), base station controller (BSC), relay, IAB, repeater, donor node controlling relay, base transceiver station (BTS), Central Unit (e.g. in a gNB), Distributed Unit (e.g. in a gNB), Baseband Unit, Centralized Baseband, C-RAN, access point (AP), transmission points, transmission nodes, transmission reception point (TRP), RRU, RRH, nodes in distributed antenna system (DAS), core network node (e.g. MCS, MME etc), O&M, OSS, SON, positioning node (e.g. E-SMLC), etc. In particular, in some examples, in Ambient loT scenario the RAN nodes comprise intermediate node / UE (e.g., relay UE, IAB, repeater etc.) and assisting node / UE (e.g., relay UE, IAB, repeater etc.).

[0073] In particular, in some examples, in A-loT scenario the RAN nodes comprise intermediate node / UE (e.g., relay UE, IAB, repeater etc.) and assisting node / UE (e.g., relay UE, IAB, repeater etc.).

[0074] In this disclosure, ‘polling’ ‘, ‘poll’ and ‘paging’, ‘page’, ‘inventory’, ‘query’, ‘interrogate’, is used to represent one or more than one signal transmitted by a network node broadcast wise or specially to a dedicated UE. The purpose of the signal is to facilitate / serve / manage / command one or more than one UE to synchronize to the network node (DL / UL synchronize to a reference time / frame / symbol, or synchronize to one or more than one signal which the UE receives from the network node, or synchronize based on a pre-defined rule), receive DL data, response and transmit UL data correctly in intended resources. The content of such signal may be a particular reference signal or a signalcarrying control information and / or data. Such signal may be transmitted periodically or a periodically configured by the network node.

[0075] In this disclosure, ‘A-loT UE’, ‘A-loT device’, ‘device’, or ‘UE’ are used interchangeably without losing the meaning.

[0076] In this disclosure, ‘intermediate node’, ‘intermediate UE’, ‘UE’ are applied interchangeably without losing the meaning.

[0077] During a contention based access procedure / round, an access occasion for a device starts from the time when the device receives a first DL (or reader to device (R2D)) signaling indicating the start of the access occasion until the time when the device receives a second DL (or R2D) signaling indicating the end of the access occasion or the start of the next access occasion.

[0078] Device performs re-access in case of contention resolution failure. Device performs reaccess or retransmission in case of data transmission failure. Re-access means that the device accesses and transmits in a different access occasion from the access occasion where the device has experienced failures. Retransmission means that device uses the same or different resources to retransmit the data on the same access occasion in time domain.

[0079] In the below embodiments, for any command use case (READ or WRITE or DISABLED), the inventory may or may proceed prior to command.

[0080] In this clause, various embodiments on how devices know whether AS feedback message is present or absent in an access procedure / round initiated by reader.

[0081] In some example embodiments, the reader includes AS feedback configuration for feedback if applied for the device accessing an occasion (CBRA or CFRA based) triggered by a paging.

[0082] The feedback configuration can include following non-limiting combination of following policies / information

[0083] • Indicator(s) indicating whether AS feedback in R2D direction is enabled or not (if applicable)

[0084] o If enabled, the feedback is

[0085] NACK based

[0086] ACK based■ Both NACK and ACK based

[0087] o If enabled, resources (in frequency and / or time) allocated for reception of the AS feedback if AS feedback is enabled

[0088] • Indicator(s) indicating whether AS feedback in D2R direction is enabled or not (if applicable)

[0089] o If enabled, the feedback is

[0090] ■ NACK based

[0091] ■ ACK based

[0092] ■ Both NACK and ACK based

[0093] • Indicator indicating AS feedback applied to inventory use case

[0094] • Indicator indicating AS feedback applied to command or inventory plus command use case

[0095] o AS feedback limited to READ command use case

[0096] o AS feedback limited to WRITE command use case

[0097] In other option, the feedback configuration can be indicated in other R2D messages, such as QueryRep like signaling (synch messages or indicator for CBRA’s Msg1 resources), Msg2 (i.e. , response to devices for contention resolution), etc.

[0098] As an additional embodiment, any one of the above indicators can be signalled via one or multiple of below signaling alternatives

[0099] • Included in a L2 (e.g., MAC) sub-header

[0100] • Included in a L2 (e.g., MAC) control element payload

[0101] • Included in a L2 (e.g., MAC) control PDU

[0102] • Included in a L2 signaling message (e.g., carried as a MAC PDU)

[0103] • Included in a L1 signaling message (e.g., L1 control information)

[0104] As an additional embodiment, upon reception of the signaling including AS feedback configuration, a device may perform one of the below actions.

[0105] Action 1 - If AS feedback is enabled, the device prepares for reception of AS feedback message after transmission / retransmission of a D2R data / message towards the reader. The device may only monitor potential AS feedback within a configured time period, in other words, the device may start a timer after the D2R transmission, while the timer is running, the device keeps monitoring AS feedback (with regards to the resources / region for AS feedback reception if configured). While the timer is expired, the device stops monitoring AS feedback.Action 2 - If AS feedback is disabled, the device will not monitor reception of AS feedback.

[0106] Alternatively, the device may monitor any R2D transmission addressed to the device (which may be applied by the device as an implicit ACK to the D2R transmission).

[0107] Alternatively, the device may stop monitoring any R2D transmission (e.g., for a while).

[0108] In some example embodiments, if the command or inventory plus command use case is being executed reader (over resources triggered by paging), and if a device in some CBRA occasion has successful contention access (i.e. , Msg1 with random ID (e.g., RN16) and Msg2 with echo of random ID and possibly allocation of AS ID) and also has successful Msg3 transmission (containing device ID) but subsequently has failed command related data transmission, the reader can provide retransmission resources / opportunities to the device over CFRA occasion triggered by separate paging by addressing the device based on device credentials or IDs included in message exchanges during previously access CBRA occasion.

[0109] For example, in case of inventory plus READ command use case, if reader does not get device READ memory content, e.g., Msg5, it triggers retransmission via CFRA or in same CBRA occasion. Figure 9 illustrates an example of a signaling diagram according to examples of this disclosure, whereby a reader initiates retransmission in case READ transmission or Msg5 fails. Retransmission can occur in same CBRA occasion as shown here or via CFRA. If retransmission occurs via CFRA, the reader first sends paging indicating device ID / credentials and dedicated resource allocation, where in first message (CFRA Msg1), device sends device ID plus optionally READ data, or device sends device ID in CFRA Msg1, then in CFRA Msg2, device receives a response, and then in CFRA Msg3, device transmits READ data.

[0110] Next, in case of inventory plus WRITE command use case, if reader fails to WRITE data in device memory, e.g., Msg4 fails, then device cannot send subsequent D2R message (Msg5) containing upper layer response or acknowledgement. If reader does not receive this D2R, it triggers retransmission of WRITE data or Msg4 via CFRA or in same CBRA occasion.

[0111] Figure 10 illustrates an example of a signaling diagram according to examples of this disclosure, whereby a reader initiates retransmission in case WRITE transmission or Msg4 fails. Retransmission can occur in same CBRA occasion as shown here or via CFRA. If retransmission occurs via CFRA, the reader first sends paging indicating device ID / credentials and dedicated resource allocation, where in first message (CFRA Msg1),device transmits device ID, then in CFRA Msg2, reader transmits WRITE data to device, and then in CFRA Msg3, device transmits upper layer response.

[0112] In further examples, the device address or ID can be based on ID:

[0113] • Which device has included in Msg3 during CBRA access, e.g., device’s CN ID, temp ID, etc.

[0114] • Which reader has used / assigned in previously access CBRA occasion, i.e. , AS ID, e.g., based on random ID which device had used in Msg1 in previous accessed CBRA occasion or reader has assigned a new or transformed ID in Msg2 which may or may not depend on MsgTs random ID.

[0115] As an additional example, the reader may wait for a time period before sending retransmission resources / opportunities to the device. The time period may be set / configured to the reader by the CN. Alternatively, the time period may be set by the reader’s implementation.

[0116] In an example, the mechanism comprises below steps:

[0117] Step 0 - the reader signals devices on whether AS feedback will be disabled by the reader for each D2R transmission during the access round / procedure. The reader triggers the access round / procedure.

[0118] Step 1 - a device obtains an access occasion in a contention based manner. The device transmits its contention resolution ID (e.g., a random ID) towards the reader on the access occasion.

[0119] Step 2 - the reader replies with the device’s contention resolution ID in a R2D message

[0120] Step 3 - the device transmits its device ID to the reader.

[0121] Step 4 - the reader replied with a subsequent R2D message to the device. Upon reception of this R2D message, the device interprets that its D2R transmission on step 3 was successful.

[0122] Step 5 - the device transmits a D2R transmission (containing response for the R2D transmission received in Step 4) to the reader.Step 6 and beyond - the device performs one or multiple times of retransmissions for the D2R transmission (conducted on Step 5) to the reader, using resources allocated by the reader.

[0123] Step X (as a further step): the device receives a R2D message indicating the current access occasion is completed and a new occasion starts. In this case, the device stops reception in the current access round. The device stores the D2R transmission in its memory.

[0124] Step X+1 : after a while, the contention based access round is terminated / completed. The device receives a R2D message from the reader wherein the R2D message includes dedicated resources to the device. The device performs retransmissions of its D2R transmission using the dedicated resources allocated in the R2D message.

[0125] In some examples, specific to READ command use case, where AF / CN intends to read device’s memory content, and in order to that, if during an access occasion triggered by a paging message, the device has successfully transmitted Msg3 after passing contention, but failed to transmit D2R / Msg5 or subsequent D2R messages (Msg7 or Msg9...) or related segments of Msg5 / 7)... (related to device memory content), then reader can send

[0126] • Explicit failure indication to CN about failing in receiving device’s related memory data

[0127] • Implicit indication, where reader does not send device’s Msg5 or subsequent Msg to CN, and CN can assume failed data transmission from the device

[0128] and this would result a CN behavior where for re-access for the same device, the CN utilizes another reader for device’s re-access. It has to be noted, the reader sends received Msg3 (device ID) transmission or related information to CN which contains device identification irrespective device has failed or successful with READ command (transmission of D2R Msg5 or subsequent D2R message). The reason for selecting new reader by CN is that the current reader has failed consistently with device for receiving device’s D2R transmissions (including retransmissions), it means there is coverage issue, and thus for re-access, current reader is not suitable. There can be question, how come D2R Msg3 is successful but latter D2R message has failed, there can be few reasons, for example:

[0129] • Encoding of Msg3 and subsequent D2R message can be different, as Msg3 may be small or just contain device ID, but later D2R message may include large amount of data (memory content)After transmitting Msg3, device has moved or some obstacle has come in between current reader and device, leading to failure in latter D2R messages.

[0130] In some examples, specific to WRITE command use case, where AF / CN intends to write onto device’s memory, and in order to do that if during an access occasion, the device has successfully transmitted Msg3 after passing contention, but failed to receive R2D message with data (from CN / AF), e.g., in Msg4 or subsequent R2D messages (Msg6 or Msg8...) then device will not send any upper layer acknowledgement (NAS based) in next D2R message (Msg5, or Msg7, or Msg9...). In case reader does not receive any D2R message in response to R2D message containing WRITE command related data, the reader can perform / trigger:

[0131] • Retransmission of previous failed R2D message (containing WRITE command related data)

[0132] • Inform CN about R2D transmission (or WRITE command) failure by explicit or implicit means

[0133] o If reader fails to receive subsequent D2R message (upper layer data or NAS based acknowledgement),

[0134] ■ Implicit means: then reader unable to send the D2R message content to CN and CN assumes WRITE command has failed

[0135] ■ Explicit means: then reader provides information to CN about failure in reception of D2R message.

[0136] As in the previous example, if WRITE command execution has failed with current reader, CN can pursue WRITE command for the impact device via new reader as part of re-access procedure.

[0137] Figure 11 shows an example of a communication system QQ100 in accordance with some embodiments.

[0138] In the example, the communication system QQ100 includes a telecommunications network QQ102 that includes an access network QQ104, such as a radio access network (RAN), and a core network QQ106, which includes one or more core network nodes QQ108. The access network QQ104 includes one or more access network nodes or base stations of various types, access network nodes QQ110A and QQ110B are depicted (which may be collectively referred to as network nodes QQ110), or any other similar 3rdGeneration Partnership Project (3GPP) access nodes or non-3GPP access points (APs). Some embodiments of the access network QQ104 may include more than one access network technology. The network nodes QQ110 of access network QQ104 facilitate direct or indirect connection ofwireless devices, also referred to as user equipments (UEs), such as by connecting UEs QQ112A, QQ112B, QQ112C, and QQ112D (one or more of which may be generally referred to as UEs QQ112) to the core network QQ106 over one or more wireless connections.

[0139] Moreover, a network node is not necessarily limited to an implementation in which a radio portion and a baseband portion are supplied and integrated by a single vendor. Thus, it will be understood that network nodes include disaggregated implementations or portions thereof. For example, in some embodiments, the telecommunications network QQ102 includes one or more Open-RAN (ORAN) network nodes. An ORAN network node is a network node in the telecommunications network QQ102 that supports an ORAN specification (e.g., a specification published by the O-RAN Alliance, or any similar organization) and may operate alone or together with other network nodes to implement one or more functionalities of any network node in the telecommunications network QQ102, including one or more access network nodes QQ110 and / or core network nodes QQ108.

[0140] Examples of an ORAN network node include an open radio unit (O-RU), an open distributed unit (O-DU), an open central unit (O-CU), including an O-CU control plane (O-CU-CP) or an O-CU user plane (O-CU-UP), a RAN intelligent controller (near-real time or non-real time) hosting software or software plug-ins, such as a near-real time control application (e.g., xApp) or a non-real time control application (e.g., rApp), or any combination thereof (the adjective “open” designating support of an ORAN specification). An ORAN network node may support a specification by, for example, supporting an interface defined by the ORAN specification, such as an A1, F1, W1, E1, E2, X2, Xn interface, an open fronthaul user plane interface, or an open fronthaul management plane interface. Moreover, an ORAN network node may be a logical node in a physical node. Furthermore, an ORAN network node may be implemented in a virtualization environment (described further below) in which one or more network functions are virtualized. For example, the virtualization environment may include an O-Cloud computing platform orchestrated by a Service Management and Orchestration Framework via an 0-2 interface defined by the O-RAN Alliance or comparable technologies.

[0141] The network nodes QQ110 facilitate direct or indirect connection of one or more UEs QQ112 to the core network QQ106 over one or more wireless connections. Example wireless communications over a wireless connection include transmitting and / or receiving wireless signals using electromagnetic waves, radio waves, infrared waves, and / or other types of signals suitable for conveying information without the use of wires, cables, or other material conductors. Moreover, in different embodiments, the communication system QQ100 mayinclude any number of wired or wireless networks, network nodes, UEs, and / or any other components or systems that may facilitate or participate in the communication of data and / or signals whether via wired or wireless connections. The communication system QQ100 may include and / or interface with any type of communication, telecommunication, data, cellular, radio network, and / or other similar type of system.

[0142] The UEs QQ112 may be any of a wide variety of communication devices, including wireless devices arranged, configured, and / or operable to communicate wirelessly with the network nodes QQ110 and other communication devices. Similarly, the network nodes QQ108, QQ110 are arranged, capable, configured, and / or operable to communicate directly or indirectly (e.g., via other devices of telecommunications network QQ102) with the UEs QQ112 and / or with other network nodes or equipment in the telecommunications network QQ102 to enable and / or provide network access, such as wireless network access, and / or to perform other functions, such as administration in the telecommunications network QQ102. More specifically, UEs QQ112 may send messages, data, and / or other signals to network nodes QQ108, QQ110 or other elements of the telecommunications network QQ102 by transmitting such signals to the relevant device directly without the signals passing through any intervening devices or by transmitting such signals to the relevant device indirectly through an intervening device (or multiple intervening devices) that then transmit the signal to the relevant device. Similarly, network nodes QQ108, QQ110 may send messages, data, and other signals to UEs QQ1122, other network nodes QQ108, QQ110, and other devices in telecommunications network QQ102 directly or indirectly. As one specific example, a core network node 108 may transmit a particular message to a UE QQ112 by transmitting the message to an access network node QQ110 that will then transmit the message to the intended UE QQ112. Similarly, a core network node 108 may receive a particular message from a UE QQ112 by receiving the message from an access network node QQ110 that itself received the message from the UE QQ112.

[0143] In the depicted example, the core network QQ106 connects elements of the access network QQ104 (e.g., one or more of the network nodes QQ110) to one or more host computing systems, such as host QQ116. These connections may be direct or indirect via one or more intermediary networks or devices. In other examples, network nodes may be directly coupled to hosts. The core network QQ106 includes one or more core network nodes (e.g., core network node QQ108) of various types, one or more of which may be generally referred to as network nodes QQ108. Network nodes QQ108 are structured with hardware and software components. Features of these components may be substantially similar to those described with respect to the UEs, access network nodes, and / or hosts, such that the descriptionsthereof are generally applicable to the corresponding components of the core network node QQ108. Example core network nodes provide functions of one or more of a Mobile Switching Center (MSC), Mobility Management Entity (MME), Home Subscriber Server (HSS), Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), Session Management Function (SMF), Authentication Server Function (ALISF), Subscription Identifier De-concealing function (SIDF), Unified Data Management (UDM), Security Edge Protection Proxy (SEPP), Network Exposure Function (NEF), and / or a User Plane Function (UPF).

[0144] The host QQ116 may be under the ownership or control of a service provider other than an operator or provider of the access network QQ104 and / or the telecommunications network QQ102. The host QQ116 may be operated by the service provider or on behalf of the service provider. The host QQ116 may host a variety of applications to provide one or more service. Examples of such applications include live and pre-recorded audio / video content, data collection services such as retrieving and compiling data on various ambient conditions detected by a plurality of UEs, analytics functionality, social media, functions for controlling or otherwise interacting with remote devices, functions for an alarm and surveillance center, or any other such function performed by a server.

[0145] As a whole, the communication system QQ100 of Figure 11 enables connectivity between the UEs, network nodes, and hosts. In that sense, the communication system QQ100 may be configured to operate according to predefined rules or procedures, such as specific standards that include, but are not limited to: Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM); Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS); Long Term Evolution (LTE), and / or other suitable 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G standards, or any applicable future generation standard (e.g., 6G); wireless local area network (WLAN) standards, such as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standards (Wi-Fi); and / or any other appropriate wireless communication standard, such as the Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (Wi-Max), Bluetooth, Z-Wave, Near Field Communication (NFC) ZigBee, Li-Fi, and / or any low-power wide-area network (LPWAN) standards such as LoRa and Sigfox. Moreover, the communication system QQ100 may be configured to support multiple different standards, protocols, or other rule sets, with individual components supporting all of the relevant rule sets or with different components or sub-systems within the communication system QQ100 supporting different standards, protocols, or rule sets.

[0146] As one example, in certain embodiments, access network QQ104 may contain some access network nodes QQ110 that support 3GPP radio access technologies (RAT), such as LTE or NR, while other access network nodes QQ110 support (or the same access network nodesQQ110 additionally support) non-3GPP RATs, such as Wi-Fi or a proprietary RAT. As another example, telecommunications network QQ102 may support multiple generations of related communication standards (e.g., 4G and 5G 3GPP communication standards) and, as a result, may include an access network 104 and / or a core network 106 that supports multiple different standard generations or may include multiple access networks 104 and / or multiple core networks 106 with individual networks 104, 106 supporting different standard generations.

[0147] Telecommunications network QQ102 may support network slicing to provide different logical networks to different devices that are connected to the telecommunications network QQ102. For example, the telecommunications network QQ102 may provide Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communication (URLLC) services to some UEs, while providing Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) services to other UEs, and / or Massive Machine Type Communication (mMTC) / Massive loT services to yet further UEs.

[0148] In some examples, one or more of the UEs QQ112 are configured to transmit and / or receive information without direct human interaction. For instance, a UE may be designed to transmit information to the access network QQ104 on a predetermined schedule, when triggered by an internal or external event, or in response to requests from the access network QQ104. Additionally, a UE may be configured for operating in single- or multi-RAT or multi-standard mode. For example, a UE may operate with any one or combination of Wi-Fi, NR (New Radio) and LTE, i.e. being configured for multi-radio dual connectivity (MR-DC), such as E-UTRAN (Evolved-UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network) New Radio - Dual Connectivity (EN-DC).

[0149] In the example, the hub QQ114 communicates with the access network QQ104 to facilitate indirect communication between one or more UEs (e.g., UE QQ112C and / or QQ112D) and network nodes (e.g., network node QQ110B). In some examples, the hub QQ114 may be a controller, router, content source and analytics, or any of the other communication devices described herein regarding UEs. For example, the hub QQ114 may be a broadband router enabling access to the core network QQ106 for the UEs. As another example, the hub QQ114 may be a controller that sends commands or instructions to one or more actuators in the UEs. Commands or instructions may be received from the UEs, network nodes QQ110, or by executable code, script, process, or other instructions in the hub QQ114.

[0150] As another example, the hub QQ114 may be a data collector that acts as temporary storage for UE data and, in some embodiments, may perform analysis or other processing of the data. As another example, the hub QQ114 may be a content source. For example, for a UEthat is a VR headset, display, loudspeaker or other media delivery device, the hub QQ114 may retrieve VR assets, video, audio, or other media or data related to sensory information via a network node, which the hub QQ114 then provides to the UE either directly, after performing local processing, and / or after adding additional local content. In still another example, the hub QQ114 acts as a proxy server or orchestrator for the UEs, in particular if one or more of the UEs are low energy loT devices.

[0151] The hub QQ114 may have a constant / persistent or intermittent connection to the network node QQ110B. The hub QQ114 may also allow for a different communication scheme and / or schedule between the hub QQ114 and UEs (e.g., UE QQ112C and / or QQ112D), and between the hub QQ114 and the core network QQ106. In other examples, the hub QQ114 is connected to the core network QQ106 and / or one or more UEs via a wired connection.

[0152] Moreover, the hub QQ114 may be configured to connect to an M2M service provider over the access network QQ104 and / or to another UE over a direct connection. In some scenarios, UEs may establish a wireless connection with the network nodes QQ110 while still connected via the hub QQ114 via a wired or wireless connection. In some embodiments, the hub QQ114 may be a dedicated hub - that is, a hub whose primary function is to route communications to / from the UEs from / to the network node QQ110B. In other embodiments, the hub QQ114 may be a non-dedicated hub - that is, a device which is capable of operating to route communications between the UEs and network node QQ110B, but which is additionally capable of operating as a communication start and / or end point for certain data channels.

[0153] Figure 12 is another example of a communication system QQ200 according to some embodiments. As used herein, the communication system QQ200 includes multiple access points (APs) QQ210 (with four exemplary APs QQ210A, QQ210B, QQ210C, and QQ210D being depicted) and multiple wireless devices, referred to in the context of communication system QQ200 as stations (STAs) QQ212 (referred to individually as STA QQ212A, STA QQ212B, STA QQ212C, STA QQ212D, and STA QQ212E). STA QQ212A is served by AP QQ210A in a first basic service set (BSS) QQ220A. STA QQ210B and STA QQ210C are served by AP QQ210B in a second BSS, BSS QQ220B. STA QQ212D is served by AP QQ210C in a third BSS, BSS QQ220C. STA QQ212E is served by AP QQ210D in a fourth BSS, BSS QQ220D. Stations QQ212 may be non-AP STAs and correspond to various kinds of wireless devices, for example, user terminals, such as mobile or stationary computing devices like smartphones, laptop computers, desktop computers, tablet computers, gaming devices, head-mounted displays (HMDs) for Augmented Reality (AR) or Virtual Reality (VR), or the like. Further, stations QQ212 could, for example, correspond to other kinds ofequipment like smart home devices, printers, multimedia devices, data storage devices, or the like.

[0154] Each of STAs QQ212 may connect through a radio link to one of APs QQ210. For example, depending on location or channel conditions experienced by a given STA QQ212, the STA may select an appropriate AP and BSS for establishing the radio link. The radio link may be based on one or more orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) carriers from a frequency spectrum that is shared on the basis of a contention-based mechanism, e.g., an unlicensed or license exempt band like 2.4 GHz Industrial, Scientific, and Medical (ISM) band, the 5 GHz band, the 6 GHz band, or the 60 GHz band.

[0155] Each AP QQ210 may provide data connectivity to STAs QQ212 connected to a particular AP QQ210. As illustrated, APs QQ210 may be connected to a data network QQ230. In this way, APs QQ210 may also provide data connectivity between STAs QQ212 and other entities, e.g., to one or more servers, service providers, data sources, data sinks, user terminals, or the like. Accordingly, the radio link established between a given STA QQ212 and its serving AP QQ210 may be used for providing various kinds of services to STA QQ212, e.g., a voice service, a multimedia service, or other data service. Such services may be based on applications that are executed on STA QQ212 and / or on a device linked to STA QQ212. By way of example, Figure 12 illustrates an application service platform QQ232 provided in data network QQ230. The application(s) executed on STA QQ212 and / or on one or more other devices linked to STA QQ212 may use the radio link for data communication with one or more other STA QQ212 and / or the application service platform QQ232, thereby enabling utilization of the corresponding service(s) at STA QQ212.

[0156] Figure 13 shows a wireless device QQ300, which may be configured to operate in communication system QQ100 of Figure 11 or in communication system QQ200 of Figure 12. The wireless device QQ300 may be alternatively referred to as a UE QQ300, like a UE QQ112 within the context of communication system QQ100, or as a station (STA) QQ300 or as a non-access-point station (non-AP STA) QQ300, like a STA QQ212 within the context of the communication system QQ200, in accordance with respective embodiments. As used herein, a wireless device refers to a device capable, configured, arranged and / or operable to communicate wirelessly with network nodes and / or other wireless devices. Examples of a wireless device include, but are not limited to, a smart phone, mobile phone, cell phone, voice over IP (VoIP) phone, wireless local loop phone, desktop computer, personal digital assistant (PDA), wireless cameras, gaming console or device, music storage device, playback appliance, wearable terminal device, wireless endpoint, mobile station, tablet,laptop, laptop-embedded equipment (LEE), laptop-mounted equipment (LME), smart device, wireless customer-premise equipment (CPE), vehicle, vehicle-mounted or vehicle embedded / integrated wireless device, and wireless terminal. Other examples include any type of UE identified by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), including a narrow band internet of things (NB-loT) UE, a machine type communication (MTC) UE, and / or an enhanced MTC (eMTC) UE.

[0157] A wireless device QQ300 may support device-to-device (D2D) communication, for example by implementing a 3GPP standard for sidelink communication, Dedicated Short-Range Communication (DSRC), vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V), vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I), orvehicle-to-everything (V2X). In other examples, wireless device QQ300 may not necessarily have a user in the sense of a human user who owns and / or operates the relevant device. Instead, wireless device QQ300 may represent a device that is intended for sale to, or operation by, a human user but which may not, or which may not initially, be associated with a specific human user (e.g., a smart sprinkler controller). Alternatively, wireless device QQ300 may represent a device that is not intended for sale to, or operation by, an end user but which may be associated with or operated for the benefit of a user (e.g., a smart power meter).

[0158] In particular embodiments, wireless device QQ300 includes processing circuitry QQ302 that is operatively coupled via a bus QQ304 to an input / output interface QQ306, a power source QQ308, a memory QQ310, a communication interface QQ312, and / or any other component, or any combination thereof. Certain embodiments of wireless device QQ300 may include all or a subset of the components shown in Figure 13. The level of integration between the components may vary from some examples of wireless device QQ300 to another. In general, in a particular embodiment of wireless device QQ300, processing circuitry QQ302, input / output interface QQ306, power source QQ308, memory QQ310, and communication interface QQ312 may, in whole or in part, represent or include physical components common to or shared by one or more of the other elements of wireless device QQ300.

[0159] Further, certain embodiments of wireless devices QQ300 may contain multiple instances of a component, such as multiple processors, memories, transceivers, transmitters, receivers, etc.

[0160] The processing circuitry QQ302 is configured to process instructions and data and may be configured to implement any sequential state machine operative to execute instructions stored as machine-readable computer programs in the memory QQ310. The processing circuitry QQ302 may be implemented as one or more hardware-implemented state machines (e.g., in discrete logic, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application specificintegrated circuits (ASICs), etc.); programmable logic together with appropriate firmware; one or more stored computer programs, general-purpose processors, such as a microprocessor or digital signal processor (DSP), together with appropriate software; or any combination of the above. For example, the processing circuitry QQ302 may include multiple central processing units (CPUs). The processing circuitry QQ302 may be configured to cause the wireless device QQ300 to perform the methods as described with reference to Figure 5, 6, 7, 8 and / or 8.

[0161] In the example, the input / output interface QQ306 may be configured to provide an interface or interfaces to an input device, output device, or one or more input and / or output devices. Examples of an output device include a speaker, a sound card, a video card, a display, a monitor, a printer, an actuator, an emitter, a smartcard, another output device, or any combination thereof. An input device may allow a user to capture information into wireless device QQ300. Examples of an input device include a touch-sensitive or presence-sensitive display, a camera (e.g., a digital camera, a digital video camera, a web camera, etc.), a microphone, a sensor, a mouse, a trackball, a directional pad, a trackpad, a scroll wheel, a smartcard, and the like. The presence-sensitive display may include a capacitive or resistive touch sensor to sense input from a user. A sensor may be, for instance, an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a tilt sensor, a force sensor, a magnetometer, an optical sensor, a proximity sensor, a biometric sensor, etc., or any combination thereof. An output device may use the same type of interface port as an input device. For example, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) port may be used to provide an input device and an output device.

[0162] In some embodiments, the power source QQ308 is structured as a battery or battery pack. Other types of power sources, such as an external power source (e.g., an electricity outlet), photovoltaic device, or power cell, may be used to supply power to circuitry or to charge an associated battery. The power source QQ308 may further include power circuitry for delivering power from the power source QQ308 itself, and / or an external power source, to the various parts of wireless device QQ300 via input circuitry or an interface such as an electrical power cable. Power source QQ308 may perform any formatting, converting, or other modification to make accessible power suitable for the respective components of the wireless device QQ300 to which power is supplied.

[0163] The memory QQ310 may be or be configured to include memory such as random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), magnetic disks, optical disks, hard disks, removablecartridges, flash drives, and so forth. In one example, the memory QQ310 includes one or more programs QQ314, such as an operating system, web browser application, a widget, gadget engine, or other application, and corresponding data QQ316. The memory QQ310 may store, for use by wireless device QQ300, any of a variety of various operating systems or combinations of operating systems.

[0164] The memory QQ310 may be configured to include a number of physical drive units, such as redundant array of independent disks (RAID), flash memory, USB flash drive, external hard disk drive, thumb drive, pen drive, key drive, high-density digital versatile disc (HD-DVD) optical disc drive, internal hard disk drive, Blu-Ray optical disc drive, holographic digital data storage (HDDS) optical disc drive, external mini-dual in-line memory module (DIMM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), external micro-DIMM SDRAM, smartcard memory such as tamper resistant module in the form of a universal integrated circuit card (UICC) including one or more subscriber identity modules (SIMs), such as a USIM and / or ISIM, other memory, or any combination thereof. The UICC may for example be an embedded UICC (eUlCC), integrated UICC (iUICC) or a removable UICC commonly known as ‘SIM card.’ The memory QQ310 may allow wireless device QQ300 to access instructions, programs and the like, stored on transitory or non-transitory memory media, to off-load data, or to upload data. An article of manufacture, such as one utilizing a communication system may be tangibly embodied as or in the memory QQ310, which may be or comprise a device-readable storage medium.

[0165] The processing circuitry QQ302 may be configured to communicate with an access network or other network via or using the communication interface QQ312. The communication interface QQ312 may comprise one or more communication subsystems and may include or be communicatively coupled to an antenna QQ322. The communication interface QQ312 may include one or more transceivers used to communicate, such as by communicating with one or more remote transceivers of another device capable of wireless communication (e.g., another wireless device or a network node in an access network). Each transceiver may include a transmitter QQ318 and / or a receiver QQ320 appropriate to provide network communications (e.g., optical, electrical, frequency allocations, and so forth). Moreover, the transmitter QQ318 and receiver QQ320 may be coupled to one or more antennas (e.g., antenna QQ322) and may share circuit components, software or firmware, or alternatively be implemented separately.

[0166] In the illustrated embodiment, communication functions of the communication interface QQ312 may include cellular communication, Wi-Fi communication (e.g., according to anIEEE 802.11 family standard), LPWAN communication, data communication, voice communication, multimedia communication, short-range communications such as Bluetooth, near-field communication, location-based communication such as the use of the global positioning system (GPS) to determine a location, another like communication function, or any combination thereof. Communications may be implemented according to one or more communication protocols and / or standards, such as IEEE 802.11, Code Division Multiplexing Access (CDMA), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), GSM, LTE, New Radio (NR), UMTS, WiMax, Ethernet, transmission control protocol / internet protocol (TCP / IP), synchronous optical networking (SONET), Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM), QUIC, Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), and so forth.

[0167] In particular embodiments, wireless device QQ300 may provide an output of data captured via a sensor, through its communication interface QQ312, via a wireless connection to a network node, and / or in any appropriate manner. Data captured by sensors of a wireless device QQ300 can be communicated through a wireless connection to a network node via another wireless device QQ300. In particular embodiments, such output may be periodic (e.g., once every 15 minutes if it reports the sensed temperature), random (e.g., to even out the load from reporting from several sensors), in response to a triggering event (e.g., when moisture is detected an alert is sent), in response to a request (e.g., a user initiated request), or a continuous stream (e.g., a live video feed of a patient).

[0168] As another example, wireless device QQ300 comprises an actuator, a motor, or a switch, related to a communication interface configured to receive wireless input from a network node via a wireless connection. In response to the received wireless input the states of the actuator, the motor, or the switch may change. For example, wireless device QQ300 may comprise a motor that adjusts the control surfaces or rotors of a drone in flight according to the received input or to a robotic arm performing a medical procedure according to the received input.

[0169] Wireless device QQ300, when in the form of an Internet of Things (loT) device, may be a device for use in one or more application domains, these domains comprising, but not limited to, wearable technology, extended industrial application and healthcare. Non-limiting examples of such an loT device are a device which is or which is embedded in: a connected refrigerator or freezer, a TV, a connected lighting device, an electricity meter, a robot vacuum cleaner, a voice controlled smart speaker, a home security camera, a motion detector, a thermostat, a smoke detector, a door / window sensor, a flood / moisture sensor, an electrical door lock, a connected doorbell, an air conditioning system like a heat pump, anautonomous vehicle, a surveillance system, a weather monitoring device, a vehicle parking monitoring device, an electric vehicle charging station, a smartwatch, a fitness tracker, a wearable for tactile augmentation or sensory enhancement, a water sprinkler, an animal- or item-tracking device, a sensor for monitoring a plant or animal, an industrial robot, an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), and any kind of medical device, like a heart rate monitor or a remote controlled surgical robot. In particular embodiments, wireless device QQ300 represents an loT device that comprises circuitry and / or software in dependence of the intended application of the loT device in addition to other components as described in relation to the example embodiment of wireless device QQ300 shown in Figure 13.

[0170] As yet another specific example, in an loT scenario, wireless device QQ300 may represent a machine or other device that performs monitoring and / or measurements, and transmits the results of such monitoring and / or measurements to another wireless device and / or a network node. Wireless device QQ300 may in this case be an M2M device, which may in a 3GPP context be referred to as an MTC device. As one particular example, wireless device QQ300 may implement the 3GPP NB-loT standard. In other scenarios, wireless device QQ300 may represent a vehicle, such as a car, a bus, a truck, a ship and an airplane, or other equipment that is capable of monitoring and / or reporting on its operational status or other functions associated with its operation.

[0171] In practice, any number of wireless devices QQ300 may be used together with respect to a single use case. For example, a first wireless device QQ300 might be or be integrated in a drone and provide the drone’s speed information (obtained through a speed sensor) to a second wireless device QQ300 that is a remote controller operating the drone. When a user makes changes from the remote controller, the first wireless device QQ300 may adjust the throttle on the drone (e.g. by controlling an actuator) to increase or decrease the drone’s speed. The first and / or the second wireless device QQ300 can also include more than one of the functionalities described above. For example, wireless device QQ300 might comprise the sensor and the actuator, and handle communication of data for both the speed sensor and the actuators.

[0172] Figure 14 shows a network node QQ400 in accordance with some embodiments. As used herein, network node refers to equipment capable, configured, arranged and / or operable to communicate directly or indirectly with a UE and / or with other network nodes or equipment, in a telecommunications network. In accordance with respective embodiments, network node QQ400 may be configured to operate in communication system QQ100 of Figure 11, like network nodes QQ108 or QQ110, or in communication system QQ200 of Figure 12, likean AP QQ210 or a station QQ212. Examples of network nodes include, but are not limited to, access points (APs) (e.g., radio access points), base stations (BSs) (e.g., radio base stations, Node Bs, evolved Node Bs (eNBs) and NR NodeBs (gNBs)), O-RAN nodes or components of an O-RAN node (e.g., 0-Rll, 0-Dll, O-CU).

[0173] Network nodes QQ400 may be categorized based on the amount of coverage they provide (or, stated differently, their transmit power level) and so, depending on the provided amount of coverage, may be referred to as femto base stations, pico base stations, micro base stations, or macro base stations. Network node QQ400 may be a relay node or a relay donor node controlling a relay. Network nodes QQ400 may also include one or more (or all) parts of a distributed radio base station such as centralized digital units, distributed units (e.g., in an O-RAN access node) and / or remote radio units (RRUs), sometimes referred to as Remote Radio Heads (RRHs). Such remote radio units may or may not be integrated with an antenna as an antenna integrated radio. Parts of a distributed radio base station may also be referred to as nodes in a distributed antenna system (DAS).

[0174] Other examples of network nodes QQ400 include multiple transmission point (multi-TRP) 5G access nodes, multi-standard radio (MSR) equipment such as MSR BSs, network controllers such as radio network controllers (RNCs) or base station controllers (BSCs), base transceiver stations (BTSs), transmission points, transmission nodes, multi-cell / multicast coordination entities (MCEs), Operation and Maintenance (O&M) nodes, Operations Support System (OSS) nodes, Self-Organizing Network (SON) nodes, positioning nodes (e.g., Evolved Serving Mobile Location Centers (E-SMLCs)), and / or Minimization of Drive Tests (MDTs).

[0175] In particular embodiments, network node QQ400 includes a processing circuitry QQ402, a memory QQ404, a communication interface QQ406, and a power source QQ408. In general, in a particular embodiment of network node QQ400, processing circuitry QQ402, memory QQ404, communication interface QQ406, and power source QQ408 may, in whole or in part, represent or include physical components common to or shared by one or more of the other elements of network node QQ400.

[0176] The network node QQ400 may be composed of multiple distinct network entities (e.g., a NodeB entity and a RNC entity, or a BTS entity and a BSC entity, etc.), which may each have or utilize their own respective physical components. In certain scenarios in which the network node QQ400 comprises multiple such entities (e.g., BTS and BSC), one or more of the separate entities may be shared among several network nodes. For example, a single RNC may control multiple NodeBs. In such a scenario, each unique NodeB and RNC pair,may in some instances be considered a single separate network node. In some embodiments, the network node QQ400 may be configured to support multiple radio access technologies (RATs). In such embodiments, some components may be duplicated (e.g., separate memories QQ404 or portions of memory QQ404 for different RATs) and some components may be reused (e.g., a same antenna QQ410 may be shared by different RATs). The network node QQ400 may also include multiple sets of the various illustrated components for different wireless technologies integrated into network node QQ400, for example GSM, WCDMA, LTE, NR, Wi-Fi (e.g., according to an IEEE 802.11 family standard), Zigbee, Z-wave, LoRaWAN, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) or Bluetooth wireless technologies. These wireless technologies may be integrated into the same or different chip or set of chips and other components within network node QQ400.

[0177] The processing circuitry QQ402 may comprise a combination of one or more of a microprocessor, controller, microcontroller, central processing unit, digital signal processor, application-specific integrated circuit, field programmable gate array, or any other suitable computing device, resource, or combination of hardware, software and / or encoded logic operable to provide, either alone or in conjunction with other components, such as the memory QQ404, to provide network node QQ400 functionality. For example, the processing circuitry QQ402 may be configured to cause the network node QQ400 to perform the methods as described with reference to Figure 5, 6, 7, 8 and / or 8.

[0178] In some embodiments, the processing circuitry QQ402 includes a system on a chip (SOC). In some embodiments, the processing circuitry QQ402 includes one or more of radio frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry QQ412 and baseband processing circuitry QQ414. In some embodiments, the RF transceiver circuitry QQ412 and the baseband processing circuitry QQ414 may be on separate chips (or sets of chips), boards, or units, such as radio units and digital units. In alternative embodiments, part or all of RF transceiver circuitry QQ412 and baseband processing circuitry QQ414 may be on the same chip or set of chips, boards, or units.

[0179] The memory QQ404 may comprise any form of volatile or non-volatile computer-readable memory including, without limitation, persistent storage, solid-state memory, remotely mounted memory, magnetic media, optical media, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), mass storage media (for example, a hard disk), removable storage media (for example, a flash drive, a Compact Disk (CD) or a Digital Video Disk (DVD)), and / or any other volatile or non-volatile, non-transitory device-readable and / or computer-executable memory devices that store information, data, and / or instructions that may be used by theprocessing circuitry QQ402. The memory QQ404 may store any suitable instructions, data, or information, including a computer program, software, an application including one or more of logic, rules, code, tables, and / or other instructions capable of being executed by the processing circuitry QQ402 and utilized by the network node QQ400. The memory QQ404 may be used to store any calculations made by the processing circuitry QQ402 and / or any data received via the communication interface QQ406. In some embodiments, the processing circuitry QQ402 and memory QQ404 is integrated.

[0180] The communication interface QQ406 is used in wired or wireless communication of signaling and / or data with UEs, other network nodes, and / or any other network equipment. In the illustrated embodiment, communication interface QQ406 comprises port(s) / terminal(s) QQ416 to send and receive data, for example to and from a network over a wired connection. In particular embodiments, network node QQ300 may be capable of wireless communication and communication interface QQ406 may also include radio front-end circuitry QQ418 that may be coupled to, or in certain embodiments a part of, an antenna QQ410. Particular embodiments of radio front-end circuitry QQ418 include filter(s) QQ420 and amplifier(s) QQ422. The radio front-end circuitry QQ418 may be connected to an antenna QQ410 and processing circuitry QQ402. The radio front-end circuitry may be configured to condition signals communicated between antenna QQ410 and processing circuitry QQ402. The radio front-end circuitry QQ418 may receive digital data that is to be sent out to other network nodes or UEs via a wireless connection. The radio front-end circuitry QQ418 may convert the digital data into a radio signal(s) having the appropriate channel and bandwidth parameters using a combination of filters QQ420 and / or amplifiers QQ422. The radio signal(s) may then be transmitted via the antenna QQ410. Similarly, when receiving data, the antenna QQ410 may collect radio signals which are then converted into digital data by the radio front-end circuitry QQ418. The digital data may be passed to the processing circuitry QQ402. In other embodiments, the communication interface may comprise different components and / or different combinations of components.

[0181] In certain alternative embodiments, network node QQ400 may be capable of wireless communication but does not include separate radio front-end circuitry QQ418, instead, the processing circuitry QQ402 includes radio front-end circuitry and is connected to the antenna QQ410. Similarly, in some embodiments, all or some of the RF transceiver circuitry QQ412 is part of the communication interface QQ406. In still other embodiments, the communication interface QQ406 includes one or more ports or terminals QQ416, the radio front-end circuitry QQ418, and the RF transceiver circuitry QQ412, as part of a radio unit (not shown), and thecommunication interface QQ406 communicates with the baseband processing circuitry QQ414, which is part of a digital unit (not shown).

[0182] The antenna QQ410 may include one or more antennas, or antenna arrays, configured to send and / or receive wireless signals. The antenna QQ410 may be coupled to the radio frontend circuitry QQ418 and may be any type of antenna capable of transmitting and receiving data and / or signals wirelessly. In certain embodiments, the antenna QQ410 is separate from the network node QQ400 and connectable to the network node QQ400 through one or more interfaces or ports.

[0183] The antenna QQ410, communication interface QQ406, and / or the processing circuitry QQ402 may be configured to perform some or all of the receiving operations and / or obtaining operations described herein as being performed by the network node QQ400. Any information, data and / or signals may be received from a UE, another network node and / or any other network equipment. Similarly, the antenna QQ410, the communication interface QQ406, and / or the processing circuitry QQ402 may be configured to perform some or all of the transmitting or sending operations described herein as being performed by the network node QQ400. Any information, data and / or signals may be transmitted to a UE, another network node and / or any other network equipment.

[0184] The power source QQ408 provides power to the various components of network node QQ400 in a form suitable for the respective components (e.g., at a voltage and current level needed for each respective component). The power source QQ408 may further comprise, or be coupled to, power management circuitry to supply the components of the network node QQ400 with power for performing the functionality described herein. For example, the network node QQ400 may be connectable to an external power source (e.g., the power grid, an electricity outlet) via an input circuitry or interface such as an electrical cable, whereby the external power source supplies power to power circuitry of the power source QQ408. As a further example, the power source QQ408 may comprise a source of power in the form of a battery or battery pack which is connected to, or integrated in, power circuitry. The battery may provide backup power should the external power source fail.

[0185] Embodiments of the network node QQ400 may include additional components beyond those shown in Figure 14 for providing certain aspects of the network node’s functionality, including any of the functionality described herein and / or any functionality necessary to support the subject matter described herein. For example, the network node QQ400 may include user interface equipment to allow input of information into the network node QQ400 and to allow output of information from the network node QQ400. This may allow a user toperform diagnostic, maintenance, repair, and other administrative functions for the network node QQ400.

[0186] Figure 15 is a block diagram illustrating a virtualization environment QQ500 in which functions implemented by some embodiments may be virtualized. In the present context, virtualizing means creating virtual versions of apparatuses or devices which may include virtualizing hardware platforms, storage devices and networking resources. As used herein, virtualization can be applied to any device described herein, or components thereof, and relates to an implementation in which at least a portion of the functionality is implemented as one or more virtual components. Some or all of the functions described herein may be implemented as virtual components executed by one or more virtual machines (VMs) implemented in one or more virtual environments QQ500 hosted by one or more of hardware nodes, such as a hardware computing device that operates as an access network node, UE, core network node, or host. Further, in embodiments in which a virtual node does not require radio connectivity (e.g., a core network node or host), then the node may be entirely virtualized. In some embodiments, the virtualization environment QQ500 includes components defined by the O-RAN Alliance, such as an O-Cloud environment orchestrated by a Service Management and Orchestration Framework via an 0-2 interface.

[0187] Applications QQ502 (which may alternatively be called software instances, virtual appliances, network functions, virtual nodes, virtual network functions, etc.) are run in the virtualization environment Q400 to implement some of the features, functions, and / or benefits of some of the embodiments disclosed herein.

[0188] Hardware QQ504 includes processing circuitry, memory that stores software and / or instructions executable by hardware processing circuitry, and / or other hardware devices as described herein, such as a network interface, input / output interface, and so forth. Software may be executed by the processing circuitry to instantiate one or more virtualization layers QQ506 (also referred to as hypervisors or virtual machine monitors (VMMs)), provide VM QQ508A and VM QQ508B (which may be collectively referred to as VMs QQ508), and / or perform any of the functions, features and / or benefits described in relation with some embodiments described herein. The virtualization layer QQ506 may present a virtual operating platform that appears like networking hardware to one or more of the VMs QQ508.

[0189] The VMs QQ508 comprise virtual processing, virtual memory, virtual networking or interface and virtual storage, and may be run by virtualization layer QQ506. Different embodiments of the instance of a virtual appliance QQ502 may be implemented on one or more of VMs QQ508, and the implementations may be made in different ways. Virtualization of thehardware is in some contexts referred to as network function virtualization (NFV). NFV may be used to consolidate many network equipment types onto industry standard high volume server hardware, physical switches, and physical storage, which can be located in data centers, and customer premise equipment.

[0190] In the context of NFV, each of the VMs QQ508 may be a software implementation of a physical machine that runs programs as if they were executing on a physical, non-virtualized machine. Each of the VMs QQ508, and that part of hardware QQ504 that executes that VM, be it hardware dedicated to that VM and / or hardware shared by that VM with others of the VMs, forms separate virtual network elements. Still in the context of NFV, a virtual network function is responsible for handling specific network functions that run in one or more of the VMs QQ508 on top of the hardware QQ504 and corresponds to an application QQ502.

[0191] Hardware QQ504 may be implemented in a standalone network node with generic or specific components. Hardware QQ504 may implement some functions via virtualization. Alternatively, hardware QQ504 may be part of a larger cluster of hardware (e.g. such as in a data center or CPE) where many hardware nodes work together and are managed via management and orchestration QQ510, which, among others, oversees lifecycle management of applications QQ502. In some embodiments, hardware QQ504 is coupled to one or more radio units that each include one or more transmitters and one or more receivers that may be coupled to one or more antennas. Radio units may communicate directly with other hardware nodes via one or more appropriate network interfaces and may be used in combination with the virtual components to provide a virtual node with radio capabilities, such as a radio access node or a base station. In some embodiments, some signaling can be provided with the use of a control system QQ512 which may alternatively be used for communication between hardware nodes and radio units.

[0192] Although the computing devices described herein (e.g., UEs, network nodes, hosts) may include the illustrated combination of hardware components, other embodiments may comprise computing devices with different combinations of components. It is to be understood that these computing devices may comprise any suitable combination of hardware and / or software needed to perform the tasks, features, functions and methods disclosed herein. Determining, calculating, obtaining or similar operations described herein may be performed by processing circuitry, which may process information by, for example, converting the obtained information into other information, comparing the obtained information or converted information to information stored in the network node, and / or performing one or more operations based on the obtained information or convertedinformation, and as a result of said processing making a determination. Moreover, while components are depicted as single boxes located within a larger box, or nested within multiple boxes, in practice, computing devices may comprise multiple different physical components that make up a single illustrated component, and functionality may be partitioned between separate components. For example, a communication interface may be configured to include any of the components described herein, and / or the functionality of the components may be partitioned between the processing circuitry and the communication interface. In another example, non-computationally intensive functions of any of such components may be implemented in software or firmware and computationally intensive functions may be implemented in hardware.

[0193] This disclosure includes the following enumerated embodiments:

[0194] Group A Embodiments

[0195] 1. A method performed by a first wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a second wireless communication device, the method comprising:

[0196] sending, to the second wireless communication device, a configuration, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled;

[0197] exchanging a communication with the second wireless communication device; and if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled, exchanging feedback with the second wireless communication device, wherein the feedback is for the communication.

[0198] 2. The method of embodiment 1 , wherein:

[0199] exchanging the communication with the second wireless communication device comprises sending the communication to the second wireless communication device; and exchanging the feedback with the second wireless communication device comprises receiving, preparing for or monitoring for the feedback from the second wireless communication device.

[0200] 3. The method of embodiment 2, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled for communications from the first wireless communication device to the second wireless communication device, and exchanging feedback with the second wireless communication device is performed if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled for communications from the first wireless communication device to the second wireless communication device.4. The method of embodiment 2 or 3, wherein preparing for or monitoring for the feedback from the second wireless communication device only within a predetermined time period after sending the communication to the second wireless communication device.

[0201] 5. The method of embodiment 4, wherein the predetermined time period is identified in the configuration.

[0202] 6. The method of embodiment 1, wherein:

[0203] exchanging the communication with the second wireless communication device comprises receiving the communication from the second wireless communication device; and

[0204] exchanging the feedback with the second wireless communication device comprises sending the feedback to the second wireless communication device.

[0205] 7. The method of embodiment 6, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled for communications received at the first wireless communication device from the second wireless communication device, and exchanging feedback with the second wireless communication device is performed if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled for communications received at the first wireless communication device from the second wireless communication device.

[0206] 8. The method of any of embodiments 1 to 7, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled for positive acknowledgements or ACKs, and the feedback is exchanged with the second wireless communication device also if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled for positive acknowledgements or ACKs and the feedback is a positive acknowledgment or ACK.

[0207] 9. The method of any of embodiments 1 to 8, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled for negative acknowledgements or NACKs, and the feedback is exchanged with the second wireless communication device also if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled for negative acknowledgements or NACKs and the feedback is a negative acknowledgment or NACK.

[0208] 10. The method of any of embodiments 1 to 9, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled for one or more communication types, and the feedback is exchanged with the second wireless communication device also if the configuration indicates thatfeedback is enabled for a communication type that is a type of the communication exchanged with the second wireless communication device.

[0209] 11. The method of embodiment 10, wherein the one or more communication types include one or more of:

[0210] a WRITE command;

[0211] a READ command;

[0212] an inventory plus command related communication;

[0213] an inventory related communication.

[0214] 12. The method of any of embodiments 1 to 11 , wherein the communication comprises one or more of:

[0215] a Msg3 or Msg5;

[0216] a command;

[0217] a WRITE command;

[0218] a READ command;

[0219] an inventory plus command related communication;

[0220] an inventory related communication.

[0221] 13. The method of any of embodiments 1 to 12, wherein the configuration is sent to the second wireless communication device in one or more of:

[0222] one or more paging messages;

[0223] one or more Msg2 messages;

[0224] one or more Layer 2 (L2) sub-headers or Medium Access Control (MAC) sub-headers; one or more L2 control element payloads or MAC control element payloads;

[0225] one or more L2 control Protocol Data Units (PDUs) or MAC control PDUs;

[0226] one or more Layer 1 (L1) and / or L2 signaling messages.

[0227] 14. The method of any of embodiments 1 to 13, wherein:

[0228] the first wireless communication device comprises a reader or ambient-internet of things (A-loT) reader; and / or

[0229] the second wireless communication device comprises an ultra low power device, zero energy device or A-loT device.

[0230] 15. A method performed by a first wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a second wireless communication device, the method comprising:receiving, from the second wireless communication device, a configuration, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled;

[0231] exchanging a communication with the second wireless communication device; and if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled, exchanging feedback with the second wireless communication device, wherein the feedback is for the communication.

[0232] 16. The method of embodiment 15, wherein:

[0233] exchanging the communication with the second wireless communication device comprises sending the communication to the second wireless communication device; and exchanging the feedback with the second wireless communication device comprises receiving, preparing for or monitoring for the feedback from the second wireless communication device.

[0234] 17. The method of embodiment 16, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled for communications from the first wireless communication device to the second wireless communication device, and exchanging feedback with the second wireless communication device is performed if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled for communications from the first wireless communication device to the second wireless communication device.

[0235] 18. The method of embodiment 16 or 17, wherein preparing for or monitoring for the feedback from the second wireless communication device only within a predetermined time period after sending the communication to the second wireless communication device.

[0236] 19. The method of embodiment 18, wherein the predetermined time period is identified in the configuration.

[0237] 20. The method of embodiment 15, wherein:

[0238] exchanging the communication with the second wireless communication device comprises receiving the communication from the second wireless communication device; and

[0239] exchanging the feedback with the second wireless communication device comprises sending the feedback to the second wireless communication device.

[0240] 21. The method of embodiment 20, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled for communications received at the first wireless communication device from thesecond wireless communication device, and exchanging feedback with the second wireless communication device is performed if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled for communications received at the first wireless communication device from the second wireless communication device.

[0241] 22. The method of any of embodiments 15 to 21 , wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled for positive acknowledgements or ACKs, and the feedback is exchanged with the second wireless communication device also if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled for positive acknowledgements or ACKs and the feedback is a positive acknowledgment or ACK.

[0242] 23. The method of any of embodiments 15 to 22, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled for negative acknowledgements or NACKs, and the feedback is exchanged with the second wireless communication device also if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled for negative acknowledgements or NACKs and the feedback is a negative acknowledgment or NACK.

[0243] 24. The method of any of embodiments 15 to 23, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled for one or more communication types, and the feedback is exchanged with the second wireless communication device also if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled for a communication type that is a type of the communication exchanged with the second wireless communication device.

[0244] 25. The method of embodiment 24, wherein the one or more communication types include one or more of:

[0245] a WRITE command;

[0246] a READ command;

[0247] an inventory plus command related communication;

[0248] an inventory related communication.

[0249] 26. The method of any of embodiments 15 to 25, wherein the communication comprises one or more of:

[0250] a Msg3 or Msg5;

[0251] a command;

[0252] a WRITE command;

[0253] a READ command;an inventory plus command related communication;

[0254] an inventory related communication.

[0255] 27. The method of any of embodiments 15 to 26, wherein the configuration is received in one or more of:

[0256] one or more paging messages;

[0257] one or more Msg2 messages;

[0258] one or more Layer 2 (L2) sub-headers or Medium Access Control (MAC) sub-headers; one or more L2 control element payloads or MAC control element payloads;

[0259] one or more L2 control Protocol Data Units (PDUs) or MAC control PDUs;

[0260] one or more Layer 1 (L1) and / or L2 signaling messages.

[0261] 28. The method of any of embodiments 15 to 27, wherein:

[0262] the first wireless communication device comprises a reader or ambient-internet of things (A-loT) reader; and / or

[0263] the second wireless communication device comprises an ultra low power device, zero energy device or A-loT device.

[0264] 29. A method performed by a first wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a second wireless communication device, the method comprising performing a first random access (RA) procedure with the second wireless communication device for the second wireless communication device to obtain a first access occasion (AO);

[0265] determining that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the second wireless communication device in the first AO;

[0266] sending a paging message to the second wireless communication device, wherein the paging message identifies a period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device;

[0267] performing a second RA procedure with the second wireless communication device in the period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device; and

[0268] exchanging the communication with the second wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure.30. The method of embodiment 29, wherein determining that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the second wireless communication device in the first AO comprises:

[0269] sending the communication to the second wireless communication device; and receiving a negative acknowledgement (NACK), or not receiving an acknowledgement (ACK), response or other message after sending the communication to the second wireless communication device.

[0270] 31. The method of embodiment 30, wherein the communication comprises one or more of:

[0271] a command;

[0272] a read command;

[0273] a write command;

[0274] an inventory plus command;

[0275] a Msg4 in the first RA procedure.

[0276] 32. The method of embodiment 30 or 31 , wherein exchanging the communication with the second wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure comprises re-sending the communication to the second wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure.

[0277] 33. The method of embodiment 29, wherein determining that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the second wireless communication device in the first AO comprises:

[0278] sending a message to the second wireless communication device; and

[0279] not receiving the communication from the second wireless communication device after sending the message to the second wireless communication device, wherein the communication comprises a response to the message or other message.

[0280] 34. The method of embodiment 33, wherein the message comprises one or more of:

[0281] a command;

[0282] a read command;

[0283] a write command;

[0284] an inventory plus command;

[0285] a Msg4 in the first RA procedure.35. The method of embodiment 33 or 34, comprising re-sending the message to the second wireless communication device during the second RA procedure.

[0286] 36. The method of any of embodiments 33 to 35, wherein the communication comprises a response to the message, a Msg5 or other message.

[0287] 37. The method of any of embodiments 33 to 36, wherein exchanging the communication with the second wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure comprises receiving the response to the message in a message received from the second wireless communication device during the second RA procedure.

[0288] 38. The method of embodiment 37, wherein the message received from the second wireless communication device during the second RA procedure comprises a Msg1 or Msg3.

[0289] 39. The method of any of embodiments 33 to 38, wherein the message sent to the second wireless communication device comprises a READ command, and the response comprises read data.

[0290] 40. The method of any of embodiments 29 to 39, wherein exchanging the communication with the second wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure comprises exchanging the communication with the second wireless communication device in a second AO obtained from the second RA procedure.

[0291] 41. The method of any of embodiments 29 to 40, comprising receiving an identifier from the second wireless communication device during the first RA procedure.

[0292] 42. The method of embodiment 41 , wherein the identifier comprises a device identifier or random identifier.

[0293] 43. The method of embodiment 41 or 42, wherein the identifier is received in a Msg1 or Msg3 from the second wireless communication device.

[0294] 44. The method of any of embodiment 41 to 43, wherein sending the paging message to the second wireless communication device comprises sending the paging message to the second wireless communication device using the identifier.45. The method of any of embodiments 29 to 44, wherein:

[0295] the first wireless communication device comprises a reader or ambient4nternet of things (A4oT) reader; and / or

[0296] the second wireless communication device comprises an ultra low power device, zero energy device or A-loT device.

[0297] 46. A method performed by a second wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a first wireless communication device, the method comprising performing a first random access (RA) procedure with the first wireless communication device to obtain a first access occasion (AO);

[0298] determining that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the first wireless communication device in the first AO;

[0299] receiving a paging message from the first wireless communication device, wherein the paging message identifies a period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device;

[0300] performing a second RA procedure with the first wireless communication device in the period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device; and

[0301] exchanging the communication with the first wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure.

[0302] 47. The method of embodiment 46, wherein determining that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the second wireless communication device in the first AO comprises not receiving or not successfully receiving the communication from the first wireless communication device.

[0303] 48. The method of embodiment 47, wherein the communication comprises one or more of:

[0304] a command;

[0305] a read command;

[0306] a write command;

[0307] an inventory plus command;

[0308] a Msg4 in the first RA procedure.

[0309] 49. The method of embodiment 47 or 48, wherein exchanging the communication with the first wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure comprisesreceiving the communication from the first wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure.

[0310] 50. The method of embodiment 46, wherein determining that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the second wireless communication device in the first AO comprises:

[0311] receiving a message from the first wireless communication device;

[0312] sending the communication to the first wireless communication device; and receiving a negative acknowledgement (NACK), or not receiving an acknowledgement (ACK), response or other message, after sending the communication to the first wireless communication device.

[0313] 51. The method of embodiment 50, wherein the message comprises one or more of: a command;

[0314] a read command;

[0315] a write command;

[0316] an inventory plus command;

[0317] a Msg4 in the first RA procedure.

[0318] 52. The method of embodiment 50 or 51 , comprising receiving the message to the second wireless communication device during the second RA procedure.

[0319] 53. The method of any of embodiments 50 to 53, wherein the communication comprises a response to the message, a Msg5 or other message.

[0320] 54. The method of any of embodiments 50 to 54, wherein exchanging the communication with the second wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure comprises re-sending the communication in a message sent to the first wireless communication device during the second RA procedure.

[0321] 55. The method of embodiment 54, wherein the message sent to the first wireless communication device during the second RA procedure comprises a Msg1 or Msg3.

[0322] 56. The method of any of embodiments 50 to 55, wherein the message sent to the second wireless communication device comprises a READ command, and the response comprises read data.57. The method of any of embodiments 46 to 56, wherein exchanging the communication with the first wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure comprises exchanging the communication with the first wireless communication device in a second AO obtained from the second RA procedure.

[0323] 58. The method of any of embodiments 46 to 57, comprising sending an identifier to the first wireless communication device during the first RA procedure.

[0324] 59. The method of embodiment 58, wherein the identifier comprises a device identifier or random identifier.

[0325] 60. The method of embodiment 58 or 59, wherein the identifier is received in a Msg1 or Msg3 from the second wireless communication device.

[0326] 61. The method of any of embodiment 58 to 60, wherein receiving the paging message from the first wireless communication device comprises receiving the paging message from the first wireless communication device using the identifier.

[0327] 62. The method of any of embodiments 46 to 61 , wherein:

[0328] the first wireless communication device comprises a reader or ambient4nternet of things (A4oT) reader; and / or

[0329] the second wireless communication device comprises an ultra low power device, zero energy device or A4oT device.

[0330] 63. A method in a network node for sending a communication,

[0331] determining that a communication has not been successfully sent by a first wireless communication device to a second wireless communication device, or a response to the communication has not been successfully sent by the second wireless communication device to the first wireless communication device;

[0332] sending the communication to a third wireless communication device for the third wireless communication device to send the communication to the second wireless communication device.

[0333] 64. The method of embodiment 63, wherein the communication comprises one or more of:

[0334] a command;a READ command;

[0335] a WRITE command;

[0336] an inventory plus command;

[0337] a Msg2 or Msg4.

[0338] 65. The method of embodiment 63 or 64, wherein the response to the communication comprises a Msg3, Msg5 or other message.

[0339] 66. The method of any of embodiments 63 to 65, wherein determining that the communication has not been successfully sent by a first wireless communication device to a second wireless communication device comprises receiving a notification from the first wireless communication device.

[0340] 67. The method of embodiment 66, wherein the notification indicates one or more of: the first wireless communication device received a negative acknowledgement (NACK) of the communication from the second wireless communication device;

[0341] the first wireless communication device did not receive an acknowledgement (ACK) of the communication from the second wireless communication device;

[0342] the first wireless communication device did not receive the response from the second wireless communication device.

[0343] 68. The method of any of embodiments 63 to 67, wherein determining that the communication has not been successfully sent by a first wireless communication device to a second wireless communication device comprises not receiving a notification from the first wireless communication device that the communication has been successfully sent by the first wireless communication device to the second wireless communication device, or that the response to the communication has been successfully sent by the second wireless communication device to the first wireless communication device.

[0344] 69. The method of any of embodiments 63 to 68, wherein determining that the communication has not been successfully sent by a first wireless communication device to a second wireless communication device comprises not receiving a copy of the communication and / or the response from the first wireless communication device.

[0345] 70. The method of any of embodiments 63 to 69, wherein the network node comprises a core network node, an application function (AF), or an Ambient loT Function (AIOTF).71. The method of any of embodiments 63 to 70, wherein:

[0346] the first wireless communication device comprises a reader or ambient-internet of things (A-loT) reader; and / or

[0347] the second wireless communication device comprises an ultra low power device, zero energy device or A-loT device; and / or

[0348] the third wireless communication device comprises a reader or ambient-internet of things (A-loT) reader.

[0349] 72. The method of any of the previous embodiments, further comprising:

[0350] providing user data; and

[0351] forwarding the user data to a host via the transmission to the network node.

[0352] Group C Embodiments

[0353] 73. A wireless device (QQ112, QQ212, QQ300) comprising:

[0354] processing circuitry (QQ302) configured to cause the wireless device to perform any of the operations of any of the Group A embodiments; and

[0355] a power source (QQ308) configured to supply power to the processing circuitry (QQ302).

[0356] 74. A wireless device comprising:

[0357] one or more antennas;

[0358] communication interface connected to the one or more antennas and to processing circuitry;

[0359] the processing circuitry being configured to cause the wireless device to perform any of the operations of any of the Group A embodiments;

[0360] an input interface connected to the processing circuitry and configured to allow input of information into the wireless device to be processed by the processing circuitry;

[0361] an output interface connected to the processing circuitry and configured to output information from the wireless device that has been processed by the processing circuitry; and

[0362] a power source connected to the processing circuitry and configured to supply power to the wireless device.75. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer-readable medium having computer-readable code embodied therein, the computer-readable code being configured such that, on execution by a suitable computer or processing circuitry, the computer or processing circuitry is caused to perform the method of any of the Group A embodiments and the Group B embodiments.

[0363] 76. A wireless device (QQ112, QQ212, QQ300) configured to perform the method of any of the Group A embodiments.

[0364] 77. A wireless device (QQ112, QQ212, QQ300) comprising processing circuitry (QQ302) and a memory (QQ310), said memory containing instructions executable by said processing circuitry whereby said wireless device is operative to perform the method of any of the Group A embodiments.

[0365] 78. A tangible, non-transient computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry, cause the processing circuitry to perform operations in a first wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a second wireless communication device, the operations comprising:

[0366] sending (502), to the second wireless communication device, a configuration, or receiving, from the second wireless communication device, the configuration, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled;

[0367] exchanging (504) a communication with the second wireless communication device; and

[0368] if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled, exchanging (506) feedback with the second wireless communication device, wherein the feedback is for the communication.

[0369] 79. The computer-readable medium of embodiment 78, comprising instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry, cause the processing circuitry to perform the method (500) of any of embodiments 1 to 28.

[0370] 80. A tangible, non-transient computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry, cause the processing circuitry to perform operations in a first wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a second wireless communication device, the operations comprising:performing (602) a first random access, RA, procedure with the second wireless communication device for the second wireless communication device to obtain a first access occasion, AO;

[0371] determining (604) that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the second wireless communication device in the first AO;

[0372] sending (606) a paging message to the second wireless communication device, wherein the paging message identifies a period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device;

[0373] performing (608) a second RA procedure with the second wireless communication device in the period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device; and

[0374] exchanging (610) the communication with the second wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure.

[0375] 81. The computer-readable medium of embodiment 80, comprising instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry, cause the processing circuitry to perform the method (600) of any of embodiments 30 to 45.

[0376] 82. A tangible, non-transient computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry, cause the processing circuitry to perform operations in a second wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a first wireless communication device, the operations comprising:

[0377] performing (702) a first random access, RA, procedure with the first wireless communication device to obtain a first access occasion, AO;

[0378] determining (704) that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the first wireless communication device in the first AO;

[0379] receiving (706) a paging message from the first wireless communication device, wherein the paging message identifies a period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device;

[0380] performing (708) a second RA procedure with the first wireless communication device in the period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device; and

[0381] exchanging (710) the communication with the first wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure.83. The computer-readable medium of embodiment 82, comprising instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry, cause the processing circuitry to perform the method (700) of any of embodiments 47 to 62.

[0382] 84. A tangible, non-transient computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry, cause the processing circuitry to perform operations in a network node for sending a communication, the operations comprising:

[0383] determining (802) that a communication has not been successfully sent by a first wireless communication device to a second wireless communication device, or a response to the communication has not been successfully sent by the second wireless communication device to the first wireless communication device;

[0384] sending (804) the communication to a third wireless communication device for the third wireless communication device to send the communication to the second wireless communication device.

[0385] 85. The computer-readable medium of embodiment 84, comprising instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry, cause the processing circuitry to perform the method (800) of any of embodiments 64 to 71.

[0386] 86. A computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry, cause the processing circuitry to carry out the method (500, 600, 700, 800) according to any of embodiments 1 to 71.

[0387] 87. A computer program, comprising instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry, cause the processing circuitry to carry out the method (500, 600, 700, 800) according to any of embodiments 1 to 71.

[0388] 88. A carrier containing the computer program of embodiment 87, wherein the carrier is one of an electronic signal, optical signal, radio signal, or computer-readable medium.

[0389] 89. Apparatus in a network node for sending a communication, the apparatus comprising processing circuitry and a memory, the apparatus configured to:

[0390] determine (802) that a communication has not been successfully sent by a first wireless communication device to a second wireless communication device, or a response to the communication has not been successfully sent by the second wireless communication device to the first wireless communication device;send (804) the communication to a third wireless communication device for the third wireless communication device to send the communication to the second wireless communication device.

[0391] 90. The apparatus of embodiment 89, wherein the apparatus is configured to perform the method (800) of any of embodiments 64 to 71.

[0392] In certain embodiments, some or all of the functionality described herein may be provided by processing circuitry executing instructions stored on in memory, which in certain embodiments may be a computer program product in the form of a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. In alternative embodiments, some or all of the functionality may be provided by the processing circuitry without executing instructions stored on a separate or discrete device-readable storage medium, such as in a hard-wired manner. In any of those particular embodiments, whether executing instructions stored on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium or not, the processing circuitry can be configured to perform the described functionality. The benefits provided by such functionality are not limited to the processing circuitry alone or to other components of the computing device, but are enjoyed by the computing device as a whole, and / or by end users and a wireless network generally.

Claims

Claims1. A method (500) performed by a first wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a second wireless communication device, the method comprising:sending (502), to the second wireless communication device, a configuration, or receiving, from the second wireless communication device, the configuration, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled;exchanging (504) a communication with the second wireless communication device; andif the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled, exchanging (506) feedback with the second wireless communication device, wherein the feedback is for the communication.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein:exchanging (504) the communication with the second wireless communication device comprises sending the communication to the second wireless communication device; and exchanging (506) the feedback with the second wireless communication device comprises receiving, preparing for or monitoring for the feedback from the second wireless communication device.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled for communications from the first wireless communication device to the second wireless communication device, and exchanging (506) feedback with the second wireless communication device is performed if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled for communications from the first wireless communication device to the second wireless communication device.

4. The method of claim 2 or 3, wherein preparing for or monitoring for the feedback from the second wireless communication device only within a predetermined time period after sending the communication to the second wireless communication device.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the predetermined time period is identified in the configuration.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein:exchanging (504) the communication with the second wireless communication device comprises receiving the communication from the second wireless communication device; andexchanging (506) the feedback with the second wireless communication device comprises sending the feedback to the second wireless communication device.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled for communications received at the first wireless communication device from the second wireless communication device, and exchanging (506) feedback with the second wireless communication device is performed if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled for communications received at the first wireless communication device from the second wireless communication device.

8. The method of any of claims 1 to 7, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled for positive acknowledgements or ACKs, and the feedback is exchanged with the second wireless communication device also if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled for positive acknowledgements or ACKs and the feedback is a positive acknowledgment or ACK.

9. The method of any of claims 1 to 8, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled for negative acknowledgements or NACKs, and the feedback is exchanged with the second wireless communication device also if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled for negative acknowledgements or NACKs and the feedback is a negative acknowledgment or NACK.

10. The method of any of claims 1 to 9, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled for one or more communication types, and the feedback is exchanged with the second wireless communication device also if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled for a communication type that is a type of the communication exchanged with the second wireless communication device.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the one or more communication types include one or more of:a WRITE command;a READ command;an inventory plus command related communication;an inventory related communication.

12. The method of any of claims 1 to 11 , wherein the communication comprises one or more of:a Msg3 or Msg5;a command;a WRITE command;a READ command;an inventory plus command related communication;an inventory related communication.

13. The method of any of claims 1 to 12, wherein the configuration is sent to or received from the second wireless communication device in one or more of:one or more paging messages;one or more Msg2 messages;one or more Layer 2, L2, sub-headers or Medium Access Control, MAC, sub-headers; one or more L2 control element payloads or MAC control element payloads;one or more L2 control Protocol Data Units, PDUs, or MAC control PDUs;one or more Layer 1, L1, and / or L2 signaling messages.

14. The method of any of claims 1 to 13, wherein:the first wireless communication device comprises a reader or ambient-internet of things, A-loT, reader, and the second wireless communication device comprises an ultra low power device, zero energy device or A-loT device; orthe second wireless communication device comprises a reader or ambient-internet of things, A-loT, reader, and the first wireless communication device comprises an ultra low power device, zero energy device or A-loT device.

15. A method (600) performed by a first wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a second wireless communication device, the method comprising: performing (602) a first random access, RA, procedure with the second wireless communication device for the second wireless communication device to obtain a first access occasion, AO;determining (604) that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the second wireless communication device in the first AO;sending (606) a paging message to the second wireless communication device, wherein the paging message identifies a period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device;performing (608) a second RA procedure with the second wireless communication device in the period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device; andexchanging (610) the communication with the second wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein determining (604) that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the second wireless communication device in the first AO comprises:sending the communication to the second wireless communication device; and receiving a negative acknowledgement, NACK, or not receiving an acknowledgement, ACK, response or other message after sending the communication to the second wireless communication device.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the communication comprises one or more of:a command;a read command;a write command;an inventory plus command;a Msg4 in the first RA procedure.

18. The method of claim 16 or 17, wherein exchanging (610) the communication with the second wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure comprises re-sending the communication to the second wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein determining (604) that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the second wireless communication device in the first AO comprises:sending a message to the second wireless communication device; andnot receiving the communication from the second wireless communication device after sending the message to the second wireless communication device, wherein the communication comprises a response to the message or other message.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the message comprises one or more of: a command;a read command;a write command;an inventory plus command;a Msg4 in the first RA procedure.

21. The method of claim 19 or 20, wherein the communication comprises a response to the message, a Msg5 or other message.

22. The method of any of claims 19 to 21, wherein exchanging (610) the communication with the second wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure comprises receiving the response to the message in a message received from the second wireless communication device during the second RA procedure.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the message received from the second wireless communication device during the second RA procedure comprises a Msg1 or Msg3.

24. The method of any of claims 19 to 23, wherein the message sent to the second wireless communication device comprises a READ command, and the response comprises read data.

25. The method of any of claims 15 to 24, wherein exchanging (610) the communication with the second wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure comprises exchanging the communication with the second wireless communication device in a second AO obtained from the second RA procedure.

26. The method of any of claims 15 to 25, comprising receiving an identifier from the second wireless communication device during the first RA procedure, and wherein sending (606) the paging message to the second wireless communication device comprises sending the paging message to the second wireless communication device using the identifier.

27. The method of any of claims 15 to 26, wherein:the first wireless communication device comprises a reader or ambient-internet of things, A-loT, reader; and / orthe second wireless communication device comprises an ultra low power device, zero energy device or A-loT device.

28. A method (700) performed by a second wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a first wireless communication device, the method comprising:performing (702) a first random access, RA, procedure with the first wireless communication device to obtain a first access occasion, AO;determining (704) that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the first wireless communication device in the first AO;receiving (706) a paging message from the first wireless communication device, wherein the paging message identifies a period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device;performing (708) a second RA procedure with the first wireless communication device in the period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device; andexchanging (710) the communication with the first wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein determining (704) that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the second wireless communication device in the first AO comprises not receiving or not successfully receiving the communication from the first wireless communication device.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein the communication comprises one or more of:a command;a read command;a write command;an inventory plus command;a Msg4 in the first RA procedure.

31. The method of claim 29 or 30, wherein exchanging (710) the communication with the first wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure comprises receiving the communication from the first wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure.

32. The method of claim 28, wherein determining (704) that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the second wireless communication device in the first AO comprises:receiving a message from the first wireless communication device;sending the communication to the first wireless communication device; and receiving a negative acknowledgement, NACK, or not receiving an acknowledgement, ACK, response or other message, after sending the communication to the first wireless communication device.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein the message comprises one or more of:a command;a read command;a write command;an inventory plus command;a Msg4 in the first RA procedure.

34. The method of claim 32 or 33, wherein the communication comprises a response to the message, a Msg5 or other message.

35. The method of any of claims 32 to 34, wherein exchanging (710) the communication with the second wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure comprises re-sending the communication in a message sent to the first wireless communication device during the second RA procedure.

36. The method of claim 35, wherein the message sent to the first wireless communication device during the second RA procedure comprises a Msg1 or Msg3.

37. The method of any of claims 32 to 36, wherein the message sent to the second wireless communication device comprises a READ command, and the response comprises read data.

38. The method of any of claims 28 to 37, wherein exchanging (710) the communication with the first wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure comprises exchanging the communication with the first wireless communication device in a second AO obtained from the second RA procedure.

39. The method of any of claims 28 to 38, comprising sending an identifier to the first wireless communication device during the first RA procedure, and wherein receiving (706) the paging message from the first wireless communication device comprises receiving the paging message from the first wireless communication device using the identifier.

40. The method of any of claims 28 to 39, wherein:the first wireless communication device comprises a reader or ambient-internet of things, A-loT, reader; and / orthe second wireless communication device comprises an ultra low power device, zero energy device or A-loT device.

41. The method of any of the previous claims, further comprising:providing user data; andforwarding the user data to a host via the transmission to the network node.

42. Apparatus in a first wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a second wireless communication device, the apparatus comprising processing circuitry and a memory, the apparatus configured to:send (502), to the second wireless communication device, a configuration, or receiving, from the second wireless communication device, the configuration, wherein the configuration indicates whether feedback is enabled;exchange (504) a communication with the second wireless communication device; and if the configuration indicates that feedback is enabled, exchange (506) feedback with the second wireless communication device, wherein the feedback is for the communication.

43. The apparatus of claim 42, wherein the apparatus is configured to perform the method (500) of any of claims 2 to 14.

44. Apparatus in a first wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a second wireless communication device, the apparatus comprising processing circuitry and a memory, the apparatus configured to:perform (602) a first random access, RA, procedure with the second wireless communication device for the second wireless communication device to obtain a first access occasion, AO;determine (604) that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the second wireless communication device in the first AO;send (606) a paging message to the second wireless communication device, wherein the paging message identifies a period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device;perform (608) a second RA procedure with the second wireless communication device in the period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device; andexchange (610) the communication with the second wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure.

45. The apparatus of claim 44, wherein the apparatus is configured to perform the method (600) of any of claims 16 to 27.

46. Apparatus in a second wireless communication device for exchanging a communication with a first wireless communication device, the apparatus comprising processing circuitry and a memory, the apparatus configured to:perform (702) a first random access, RA, procedure with the first wireless communication device to obtain a first access occasion, AO;determine (704) that a communication is not successfully exchanged with the first wireless communication device in the first AO;receive (706) a paging message from the first wireless communication device, wherein the paging message identifies a period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device;perform (708) a second RA procedure with the first wireless communication device in the period for contention-free random access for the second wireless communication device; andexchange (710) the communication with the first wireless communication device during or after the second RA procedure.

47. The apparatus of claim 46, wherein the apparatus is configured to perform the method (700) of any of claims 29 to 40.

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