Air-to-ground (ATG) user equipment (UE) configurations

Abstract

Examples relate to an apparatus for a user equipment (UE) configured for operation in a wireless network. The apparatus includes processing circuitry to decode a carrier aggregation configuration received from a base station, the carrier aggregation configuration indicating a plurality of downlink carriers to be aggregated at the UE. The processing circuitry processes downlink signals from the plurality of downlink carriers while handling a relative receive timing difference between the slot timing boundaries of the carriers of the plurality of downlink carriers, up to a maximum receive timing difference. The processing circuitry manages an interruption on at least one active serving cell during a carrier aggregation operation associated with the plurality of downlink carriers. The apparatus includes memory coupled to the processing circuitry and configured to store the carrier aggregation configuration.

Description

AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1AIR-TO-GROUND (ATG) USER EQUIPMENT (UE) CONFIGURATIONSPRIORITY CLAIM

[0001] This application claims the benefit of priority to the following provisional applications:

[0002] United States Provisional Application No. 63 / 779,535, filed March 28, 2025, and entitled “5G RAN4 MAXIMUM RECEIVE TIMING DIFFERENCE (MRTD) FOR AIR-TO-GROUND (ATG) USER EQUIPMENT (UE);” and

[0003] United States Provisional Application No. 63 / 780,006, filed March 28, 2025, and entitled “ENHANCED AIR-TO-GROUND USER EQUIPMENT INTERRUPTIONS IN CARRIER AGGREGATION IN WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS.”

[0004] Each of the above-listed provisional applications is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.BACKGROUND

[0005] Mobile communications have evolved significantly from early voice systems to today’s highly sophisticated integrated communication platform. With the growing number of devices communicating with various network devices, the use of 3 GPP LTE systems has increased. The penetration of mobile devices (user equipments or UEs) in modern society has continued to drive demand for a wide variety of networked devices in many disparate environments. Fifth-generation (5G) wireless systems (and beyond) are expected to enable even greater speed, connectivity, and usability. Nextgeneration 5G networks (or NR networks) and beyond (e.g., 6G networks) are expected to increase throughput, coverage, and robustness, while reducing latency and operational and capital expenditures. 5G NR (and beyond) networks will continue to evolve based on 3 GPP LTE- Advanced, with additional potential new radio access technologies (RATs) to enrich people’s lives with seamless wireless connectivity, delivering fast, rich content and services.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0006] Further enhancements to the operation of LTE and NR systems in both licensed and unlicensed spectrum are expected in future releases of 5G and beyond communication systems. Such enhanced operations can include techniques for determining air-to-ground (ATG) user equipment (UE) configurations, including maximum receive timing difference (MRTD) determination for ATG UEs and ATG UE interruptions configuration when the UE is configured with carrier aggregation (CA).AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

[0007] In the figures, which are not necessarily drawn to scale, like numerals may describe similar components in different views. Like numerals having different letter suffixes may represent different instances of similar components. The figures illustrate, generally, by way of example, but not by way of limitation, various aspects discussed in the present document.

[0008] FIG. 1 A illustrates the architecture of a network, in accordance with some aspects.

[0009] FIG. IB and FIG. 1C illustrate a non-roaming 5G system architecture, in accordance with some aspects.

[0010] FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 4, and FIG. 5 illustrate various systems, architectures, devices, and components that may implement aspects of disclosed embodiments.

[0011] FIG. 6 illustrates an example artificial intelligence (Al)-assisted communication architecture for communication between a UE and a RAN, in accordance with some aspects.

[0012] FIG. 7 illustrates an example RAN split architecture, in accordance with some aspects.

[0013] FIG. 8 is a diagram of MRTD for ATG UE configured with inter-band CA, in accordance with some aspects.

[0014] FIG. 9 illustrates a block diagram of a communication device such as an evolved Node-B (eNB), a new generation Node-B (gNB) (or another RAN node), an NCR, an access point (AP), a wireless station (STA), a mobile station (MS), or user equipment (UE), in accordance with some aspects.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0015] The following detailed description provides illustrative examples and embodiments of the present technological development, which pertains to MRTD requirements and interruption requirements for ATGUEs configured with NR CA in Frequency Range 1 (FR1) within the context of 5G and beyond wireless communication systems. This technological development is generally directed toward specifying the maximum allowable relative receive timing difference between slot timing boundaries of aggregated carriers that an ATGAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1UE is required to handle during inter-band NR carrier aggregation, and specifying the allowable interruption lengths, measured in NR slots, that an ATG UE may cause to active serving cells, including a Primary Cell (PCell) and activated Secondary Cells (SCells), when various CA operations are configured or executed, covering both intra-band contiguous and inter-band CA configurations, in next-generation networks, including 5G New Radio (NR) and future 6G systems. These requirements address challenges related to maintaining synchronization across multiple downlink (DL) carriers at the ATG UE receiver when timing differences arise from transmitter offsets at the nextgeneration Node B (gNB) side and propagation delay caused by spatial separation between radio transmitter locations, and to bounding the number and duration of interrupted slots across active serving carriers during SCell addition, release, activation, deactivation, dormancy switching, fast SCell activation, bandwidth part (BWP) switching, SRS antenna port switching, Cell Global Identifier (CGI) reading, and measurements on deactivated Secondary Component Carriers (SCCs) at an ATG UE operating under flight conditions, thereby enabling the ATG UE to correctly process signals from aggregated carriers while maintaining bounded service disruption during carrier aggregation management procedures.

[0016] The examples and embodiments described herein are provided for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the described subject matter. Certain well-known elements, protocols, and processes may be omitted or simplified for clarity, as they are readily understood by those skilled in the art. Furthermore, various modifications, rearrangements, or substitutions of components and steps may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the described subject matter, as defined by the appended claims. The described subject matter encompasses all such variations and equivalents that fall within the intended scope.

[0017] As used herein, the term “base station” refers to a network node configured to communicate with user equipment, schedule transmissions, and transmit or receive radio signals within a cellular network.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0018] As used herein, the term “New Radio (NR) network” refers to a fifthgeneration (5G) (or beyond) wireless communication network architecture defined by 3 GPP standards.

[0019] As used herein, the term “processing circuitry” refers to hardware components, such as microprocessors, digital signal processors, or field-programmable gate arrays, configured to execute instructions or perform specific logical and arithmetic operations.

[0020] As used herein, the term “radio resource control (RRC) signaling” refers to higher-layer control plane signaling used to configure connection parameters, resource allocations, and operational behaviors between user equipment and a base station.

[0021] As used herein, the term “user equipment (UE)” refers to a mobile or non-mobile computing device equipped with radio communication capabilities, configured to connect to a wireless access network.

[0022] As used herein, the term “acknowledgment or negative acknowledgment (ACK / NACK) feedback” may refer to control signaling transmitted by a user equipment to a base station indicating whether a downlink transport block or control message was successfully decoded or not.

[0023] As used herein, the term “active serving cell” may refer to a cell, including a primary cell or an activated secondary cell, on which the user equipment is configured to receive downlink transmissions and from which the user equipment may transmit uplink data or control information.

[0024] As used herein, the term “air-to-ground (ATG) UE” may refer to a user equipment designed for air-to-ground communication systems, equipped with antennas configured to maintain connectivity with ground-based base stations while an aircraft carrying the user equipment is in motion, including handling Doppler shifts and propagation conditions associated with flight.

[0025] As used herein, the term “aperiodic CSI-RS resources” may refer to channel state information reference signal resources that are transmitted on a non-periodic basis, triggered by downlink control information or other signaling, and used in the context of fast secondary cell activation procedures.

[0026] As used herein, the term “bandwidth part (BWP)” may refer to a contiguous set of physical resource blocks on a given carrier, configured for aAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1user equipment by the network, where the user equipment operates within the bandwidth part for transmission and reception at a given time.

[0027] As used herein, the term “carrier aggregation configuration” may refer to signaling information received from a base station that indicates a plurality of downlink carriers to be simultaneously aggregated at the user equipment for combined reception, including parameters identifying the frequency bands, cell identities, and operational characteristics of the aggregated carriers.

[0028] As used herein, the term “carrier aggregation operation” may refer to a procedure performed in connection with carrier aggregation, including addition, release, activation, deactivation, dormancy switching, fast activation, or measurement of secondary cells or secondary component carriers.

[0029] As used herein, the term “cell-specific reference signals” may refer to reference signals transmitted by a cell that are used by the user equipment for channel estimation, synchronization, or measurement purposes, and that are associated with a particular serving cell.

[0030] As used herein, the term “channel quality indicator (CQI) measurement” may refer to a measurement performed by the user equipment to assess the downlink channel quality of a serving cell, the result of which is reported to the network to support link adaptation and scheduling decisions.

[0031] As used herein, the term “co-located transmission points” may refer to base station transmission equipment for multiple carriers that is physically located at the same site, such that propagation path differences between carriers to the user equipment are negligible.

[0032] As used herein, the term “computer-readable storage medium” may refer to a non-transitory medium capable of storing instructions for execution by one or more processors, including solid-state memory, magnetic disks, optical discs, and flash memory devices.

[0033] As used herein, the term “deactivated secondary component carrier (SCC)” may refer to a secondary component carrier that has been configured for the user equipment but is in a deactivated state, on which the user equipment may perform measurements without actively receiving or transmitting user data.

[0034] As used herein, the term “discontinuous reception (DRX) active time” may refer to the period during which the user equipment monitors the physicalAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1downlink control channel for scheduling and control information, as configured by the network via DRX parameters.

[0035] As used herein, the term “dormancy switching delay” may refer to the time interval during which the user equipment transitions a secondary cell between a dormant and a non-dormant bandwidth part, during which an interruption of active serving cells may occur.

[0036] As used herein, the term “dormant bandwidth part” may refer to a bandwidth part configured on a secondary cell that is in a dormant state, in which the user equipment reduces monitoring and processing activity on that secondary cell relative to a non-dormant bandwidth part.

[0037] As used herein, the term “downlink carriers” may refer to carrier frequencies used for transmission from a base station to user equipment in a carrier aggregation configuration.

[0038] As used herein, the term “fast activation” may refer to a procedure for activating a secondary cell using channel state information reference signal resources, including periodic and aperiodic CSI-RS, to reduce the time required for the secondary cell to become operational compared to standard activation procedures.

[0039] As used herein, the term “Frequency Range 1 (FR1)” may refer to the frequency range defined by 3GPP for NR operation, encompassing frequencies from 410 MHz to 7125 MHz.

[0040] As used herein, the term “front-end circuitry” may refer to radio frequency components coupled to one or more antennas, including filters, amplifiers, mixers, and switches, that process signals between the antenna interface and the digital baseband processing components of the user equipment.

[0041] As used herein, the term “inter-band carrier aggregation” may refer to carrier aggregation in which the aggregated carriers are located in different frequency bands, so that the user equipment simultaneously receives downlink signals from carriers in two or more distinct frequency bands.

[0042] As used herein, the term “interruption” may refer to a time interval, measured in NR slots, during which the user equipment cannot correctly receive or process downlink data on an active serving cell due to a carrier aggregation operation being performed on another carrier or cell.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0043] As used herein, the term “master cell group (MCG)” may refer to a group of serving cells associated with the master node in a dual connectivity or standalone configuration, including the primary cell and zero or more secondary cells controlled by the master node.

[0044] As used herein, the term “maximum receive timing difference” may refer to the largest allowable relative time difference between the arrival of downlink signals from different aggregated carriers at the user equipment receiver, measured between the closest slot timing boundaries of the respective carriers.

[0045] As used herein, the term “maximum transmit timing difference” may refer to the relative timing offset between downlink signals transmitted by a base station on different carriers, which contributes to the receive timing difference observed at the user equipment.

[0046] As used herein, the term “measurement period” may refer to the time during which the user equipment performs measurements on a secondary cell, and the duration determines which fast activation interruption formula applies, depending on whether the measurement period exceeds or does not exceed 2400 ms.

[0047] As used herein, the term “medium access control (MAC) control element” may refer to a MAC layer signaling element used to convey control commands from the base station to the user equipment, including commands for secondary cell activation or deactivation.

[0048] As used herein, the term “NA{slot}_{ subframe, p}” may refer to the number of slots per subframe for a given subcarrier spacing numerology p, as defined in 3 GPP TS 38.211, where p = 0 corresponds to 1 slot per subframe and p = 1 corresponds to 2 slots per subframe.

[0049] As used herein, the term “non-dormant serving cell” may refer to a serving cell that is in an active, non-dormant state, on which the user equipment is performing normal reception and transmission operations.

[0050] As used herein, the term “periodic channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) resource” may refer to a CSI-RS resource transmitted at regular, configured intervals and used in the context of fast secondary cell activation to enable user equipment to acquire channel state information prior to activation.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0051] As used herein, the term “primary cell (PCell)” may refer to the cell operating on the primary frequency in a carrier aggregation configuration, on which the user equipment performs initial connection establishment and which serves as the anchor cell for mobility and control plane procedures.

[0052] As used herein, the term “radio resource management (RRM) measurement” may refer to a measurement performed by the user equipment on reference signals from serving or neighboring cells to support mobility, cell selection, and radio resource management functions.

[0053] As used herein, the term “relative receive timing difference” may refer to the time offset between the closest slot timing boundaries of two different downlink carriers as observed at the user equipment receiver.

[0054] As used herein, the term “RRC reconfiguration message” may refer to a radio resource control message transmitted from a base station to a user equipment that reconfigures the user equipment's cell group, including adding, releasing, activating, or modifying secondary cells in a carrier aggregation configuration.

[0055] As used herein, the term “secondary cell (SCell)” may refer to a cell operating on a secondary carrier frequency in a carrier aggregation configuration, configured in addition to the primary cell to provide additional downlink or uplink capacity.

[0056] As used herein, the term “shared radio front-end” may refer to common radio frequency receive circuitry used by the user equipment to simultaneously receive downlink signals from multiple contiguous carriers in the same frequency band.

[0057] As used herein, the term “slot timing boundaries” may refer to the temporal boundaries delineating the start and end of NR slots on a given carrier, used as reference points for measuring relative timing differences between aggregated carriers.

[0058] As used herein, the term “subcarrier spacing numerology” may refer to the parameter p that determines the subcarrier spacing and slot duration in an NR system, where p = 0 corresponds to 15 kHz subcarrier spacing and a 1 ms slot length, and p = 1 corresponds to 30 kHz subcarrier spacing and a 0.5 ms slot length.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0059] As used herein, the term “synchronization signal block (SSB) configuration” may refer to network-provided parameters, including absoluteFrequencySSB, that define the frequency location and transmission characteristics of synchronization signal blocks used for cell detection and measurement.

[0060] As used herein, the term “synchronization signal block-based measurement timing configuration (SMTC) duration” may refer to the configured time window during which the user equipment performs measurements on synchronization signal blocks, expressed in subframes, and used to determine the interruption length during carrier aggregation operations.

[0061] As used herein, the term “T ATRS duration ATG” may refer to a CSI-RS burst duration for secondary cell activation, defined as four CSI-RS resources transmitted in two consecutive slots on the secondary cell being activated, used in computing the interruption length during fast secondary cell activation for an ATG user equipment.

[0062] As used herein, the term “T SMTC duration ATG” may refer to the longest SMTC duration, measured in subframes, among relevant active serving cells and the secondary cell being added, released, activated, deactivated, or measured, used as a parameter in computing the interruption length during carrier aggregation operations for an ATG user equipment.

[0063] As used herein, the term “transceiver circuitry” may refer to circuitry coupled to processing circuitry and to one or more antennas, configured to transmit and receive radio frequency signals for wireless communication.

[0064] The disclosed techniques pertain to wireless communications, and more specifically to Radio Resource Management (RRM) requirements for ATG UEs configured with NR CA.

[0065] ATG UE is a specialized type of user equipment designed for air-to-ground communication systems. These systems provide broadband connectivity to aircraft during flight. ATG UE is equipped with antennas designed to maintain connectivity with ground-based base stations while the aircraft is in motion. The antennas are configured for long-range communication and handle the Doppler shifts associated with high-speed travel. ATG UE supports high data rates to accommodate the bandwidth demands of multiple users on an aircraft. ItAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1is configured to operate under varying altitudes, speeds, and electromagnetic environments.

[0066] NR Carrier Aggregation combines multiple carriers to increase throughput for ATG UE. When an ATG UE is configured with a CA, it simultaneously receives downlink signals from multiple carriers. These carriers may be in the same frequency band (intra-band) or in different frequency bands (inter-band). Two distinct technical problems arise in this context.

[0067] The first problem relates to receive timing differences between aggregated carriers. When the ATG UE is configured with an inter-band CA, signals from different frequency bands may not be time-aligned at the UE receiver. This timing misalignment results from two factors. One factor is the timing difference between transmitters at the next-generation Node B (gNB) side. The other factor is the propagation delay caused by spatial separation between radio transmitter locations serving different frequency bands. For intra-band contiguous CA, co-located deployment is applied, and the timing difference is small, on the order of 260 nanoseconds. For inter-band CA, the timing difference can be substantially larger. Without a defined MRTD requirement, UE implementations would lack a specified bound on the timing misalignment they must handle. This would result in degraded throughput, increased latency, and reduced reliability when the UE fails to correctly process signals from multiple carriers that arrive with differing timing offsets. Prior to the present solution, no MRTD requirement existed for ATG UE configured with inter-band DL C A in FR1.

[0068] The second problem concerns interruptions to active serving cells during CA operations. When an ATG UE performs various CA management procedures, such as SCell addition, release, activation, deactivation, dormancy switching, bandwidth part (BWP) switching, SRS antenna port switching, Cell Global Identifier (CGI) reading, or measurements on deactivated Secondary Component Carriers (SCCs), the UE may cause interruptions to its active serving cells, including the Primary Cell (PCell) and activated SCells. These interruptions manifest as slots during which the UE cannot correctly receive or process downlink data on the affected carriers. Without defined bounds on these interruptions, the duration and frequency of service disruption on active carriersAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1during CA reconfiguration events would be uncontrolled. This would degrade the performance of the DL CA system. The interruptions must also be constrained so that they do not disrupt RRC signalling or ACK / NACK feedback related to RRC reconfiguration procedures and MAC control signalling for SCell activation and deactivation commands.

[0069] The interruption behavior depends on several conditions. These conditions include whether the affected cells are intra-band contiguous or interband, the NR slot length determined by the subcarrier spacing numerology, the SSB Measurement Timing Configuration (SMTC) duration, and whether the SCell is known or unknown to the UE. For fast SCell activation scenarios, the interruption further depends on whether aperiodic CSI-RS resources are configured and whether the measurement period of the SCell being activated exceeds a threshold of 2400 milliseconds.

[0070] Prior to the present solution, there were no interruption requirements for ATG UE configured with an NR CA. The present solution defines specific MRTD values and interruption length formulas applicable to ATG UE across the various CA operation scenarios described above. These requirements establish the bounds that ATG UE implementations can meet to be compliant with 3 GPP specifications and permitted into the market by regulatory and operator bodies.

[0071] The disclosed techniques provide two interrelated sets of configurations for ATG UEs configured with NR CA in FR1. The first set defines MRTD requirements. The second set defines interruption requirements during various CA operations. Together, these requirements establish the performance bounds that an ATG UE must satisfy when operating with NR CA.

[0072] The following techniques relate to MRTD requirements.

[0073] The disclosed techniques specify that an ATGUE shall be capable of handling a relative receive timing difference between the closest slot timing boundaries of different carriers in FR1 for NR carrier aggregation. The solution distinguishes between two CA deployment scenarios.

[0074] For intra-band contiguous CA, the disclosed techniques specify that only co-located deployment is applied to ATGUE. In this configuration, the network ensures that the timing difference between carriers is small enough that the UE can use a shared radio to simultaneously receive signals from any pair ofAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1contiguous carriers in any configured frequency band. The assumed maximum receive timing difference the UE must handle in this case is approximately 260 nanoseconds.

[0075] For inter-band NR carrier aggregation, the disclosed techniques specify that the UE shall be capable of handling a relative receive timing difference of 33 microseconds between the slot timing of all pairs of carriers in FR1 to be aggregated at the UE receiver. This value accounts for the timing difference between transmitters at the gNB side and the propagation delay caused by the spatial separation between radio transmitter locations serving different frequency bands. In inter-band CA, the network does not guarantee that signals from different frequency bands originate from the same set of radio equipment. The UE is not expected to receive these signals simultaneously using a shared radio.

[0076] The rationale for the 33 -microsecond MRTD value for inter-band CA is based on the ATG deployment geometry. ATG UE operates on aircraft at altitude. The distance between the UE and ground-based base stations is larger than in terrestrial deployments. When inter-band carriers are served by transmitters at different physical locations, differences in propagation path lengths to the airborne UE can produce timing offsets of this magnitude. By specifying this bound, the solution ensures that UE implementations allocate sufficient buffering and timing adjustment capability in their receiver chains to accommodate the expected range of timing misalignment.

[0077] The following techniques relate to interruption requirements.

[0078] The disclosed techniques specify the interruptions that an ATG UE is allowed to cause on active serving cells, including the Primary Cell (PCell) and activated Secondary Cells (SCells), when configured with standalone NR CA. The interruption requirements apply when any of the following operations occur: up to 7 DL SCells are configured, de-configured, activated, or deactivated; measurements are performed on a Secondary Component Carrier (SCC) with a deactivated SCell in NR SCG; UL / DL bandwidth part (BWP) is switched on PCell or DL BWP is switched on SCell; CGI reading of an NR neighbour cell with autonomous gaps is performed; UE-specific channel bandwidth (CBW) is changed on PCell or SCell; or NR SRS antenna port switching is performed onAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1PCell. A constraint applies across all scenarios: the interruptions shall not interrupt RRC signalling or ACK / NACKs related to RRC reconfiguration procedures according to TS 38.331 for SCell addition / release, or MAC control signalling according to TS 37.340 for SCell activation / deactivation commands.

[0079] The base station transmits carrier aggregation operation indications to the ATG UE that trigger the interruption scenarios described herein. For SCell addition or release, the base station encodes a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration message, such as an RRCReconfiguration message as defined in TS 38.331, for transmission to the ATG UE, where the RRC reconfiguration message includes information elements indicating the addition or release of one or more SCells. For SCell activation or deactivation, the base station encodes a medium access control (MAC) control element for transmission to the ATG UE, which indicates the activation or deactivation of one or more SCells, as defined in TS 37.340. For dormancy switching, the base station encodes a dormancyswitching indication for transmission to the ATG UE during the UE's discontinuous reception (DRX) active time. For fast SCell activation, the base station configures the ATG UE with a periodic channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) resource and, when applicable, aperiodic CSI-RS resources for the SCell to be activated. For measurements on a deactivated secondary component carrier (SCC), the base station configures a measurement cycle (measCycleSCell) and synchronization signal block-based measurement timing configuration (SMTC) parameters for the deactivated SCC. In each case, the base station transmits the carrier aggregation operation indication on the downlink, and the ATG UE manages the resulting interruption on active serving cells within the bounds specified herein. The base station schedules downlink and uplink transmissions on the active serving cells with awareness that the ATG UE may cause interruptions of the specified lengths during these carrier aggregation operations.

[0080] The base station maintains timing relationships between the downlink signals transmitted on the plurality of downlink carriers. For intra-band contiguous CA applied to an ATG UE, the base station transmits the downlink signals on contiguous carriers from co-located transmission points such that the relative receive timing difference at the ATG UE between the closest slot timing boundaries of the contiguous carriers is approximately 260 nanoseconds. ForAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1inter-band NR carrier aggregation, the base station transmits the downlink signals on carriers in different frequency bands, where the relative timing difference between the transmitted signals on different carriers, combined with propagation delay differences arising from spatial separation between radio transmitter locations, contributes to a maximum receive timing difference of 33 microseconds at the ATG UE for pairs of carriers in FR1. The base station configures the SMTC parameters, SSB configurations, measCycleSCell values, and CSI-RS resource configurations that determine the specific interruption lengths the ATG UE applies during carrier aggregation operations.

[0081] The following techniques address interruptions during SCell addition / release.

[0082] When any number of DL SCells between one and seven are added or released using the same RRCConnectionReconfiguration message as defined in TS 38.331, the ATG UE is allowed an interruption on any active serving cell. The allowed interruption length depends on the relationship between the active serving cells and the SCells being added or released.

[0083] If the active serving cells are contiguous to any of the SCells being added or released in the same FR1 band, and the cell-specific reference signals from the active serving cells and the SCells being added or released are available in the same slot, the interruption length is as follows. For subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0, corresponding to a 1 ms NR slot length, the interruption length is 1 + T_SMTC_duration_ATG * NA{ si ot}_{ subframe, p] slots. For numerology p = 1, corresponding to a 0.5 ms NR slot length, the interruption length is 2 + T_SMTC_duration_ATG * NA{ si ot}_{ subframe, p] slots.

[0084] The parameter T SMTC duration ATG, measured in subframes, is defined as follows when one SCell is added: it is the longest SMTC duration among all active serving cells and the SCell being added. If SSB configuration (absoluteFrequencySSB) but no SMTC configuration is provided for the SCell being added, the SSB transmission periodicity is assumed to be 5 ms, and T SMTC duration ATG for the SCell being added is x ms, where x equals the number of consecutive subframes containing all SSBs in one SSB burst transmitted by the SCell being added. If neither the SSB configuration nor SMTC configuration is provided for the SCell being added,AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1T SMTC duration ATG for the SCell being added is 0 ms. When one SCell is released, T SMTC duration ATG is the longest SMTC duration among all active serving cells in the same band. The parameter NA{slot}_{ subframe, p} is as defined in TS 38.211.

[0085] If the active serving cell and the SCell being added or released are in a FR1 band pair (inter-band CA), the interruption length is 1 slot for numerology p = 0 and 2 slots for numerology p = 1.

[0086] The following techniques address interruptions during SCell acti vati on / deacti vati on .

[0087] When an SCell is activated or deactivated as defined in TS 37.340, the ATG UE is allowed an interruption on any active serving cell. For intra-band contiguous CA, where the active serving cells are contiguous to the SCells being activated or deactivated in the same FR1 band and the cell-specific reference signals are available in the same slot, the interruption length is 1 + T_SMTC_duration_ATG * NA{slot}_{ subframe, p} slots for both numerology p = 0 and p = 1. The definition of T SMTC duration ATG follows the same rules as for SCell addition / release, with “added” replaced by “activated” and “released” replaced by “deactivated.”

[0088] For inter-band CA, where the active serving cell and the SCell being activated or deactivated are in a FR1 band pair, the interruption length is 1 slot for both numerology p = 0 and p = 1.

[0089] The following techniques relate to interruptions during measurements on deactivated SCC.

[0090] Interruptions on PCell due to measurements when an SCell is deactivated are allowed for an ATG UE with up to 0.5% probability of missed ACK / NACK when the configured measCycleSCell is 640 ms or longer. Two sub-cases apply.

[0091] If the PCell is not in the same band as the deactivated SCell, the ATG UE is only allowed to cause interruptions on the PCell immediately before and immediately after an SMTC. Each interruption shall not exceed the requirement specified for SCell activation / deactivation in the intra-band contiguous CA table.

[0092] If the PCell or activated SCell(s) is contiguous to the deactivated SCell in the same FR1 band, the ATG UE is allowed to cause an interruption onAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1PCell no earlier than X slots before T SMTC duration ATG and no later than X slots after T SMTC duration ATG, provided the cell-specific reference signals from the active serving cells and the deactivated SCell are available in the same slot. The value of X is 1 slot for both numerology p = 0 and p = 1. The interruption length is 2 + T_SMTC_duration_ATG * NA{slot}_{ subframe, p} slots for both numerologies. In this context, T SMTC duration ATG is the longest SMTC duration among all active serving cells and the deactivated SCell to be measured.

[0093] The following techniques address interruptions during direct SCell activation.

[0094] When one or more SCells are directly activated at SCell addition, the ATG UE may interrupt any active serving cell. If the active serving cells are in the same band as the SCell being activated and the cell-specific reference signals are available in the same slot, the interruption length follows the intra-band contiguous CA SCell addition / release table. If the active serving cell is not in the same band as the SCell being directly activated, the interruption length follows the inter-band CA SCell addition / release table.

[0095] The following techniques address interruptions caused by SCell dormancy. The disclosed techniques address three dormancy-related interruption scenarios.

[0096] For SCell dormancy switching, when one SCell in the Master Cell Group (MCG) is switched from dormancy to non-dormancy or from nondormancy to dormancy while the ATG UE is in DRX active time, the ATG UE is allowed an interruption on active serving cells in the MCG. This interruption is allowed regardless of which parameters differ between the dormant and nondormant BWP. The starting time of the interruption shall be within the dormancy switching delay.

[0097] For CQI measurements during SCell dormancy, when one or more SCells are in dormancy, the ATG UE is allowed to cause interruptions to nondormant serving cells for the purpose of CQI measurements on the dormant SCells. The rate of ACK / NACK feedback loss on any non-dormant serving cell resulting from these CQI measurements shall not exceed 0.5%.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0098] For RRM measurements during SCell dormancy, the ATG UE is similarly allowed to cause interruptions to non-dormant serving cells for the purpose of RRM measurements on dormant SCells. The rate of ACK / NACK feedback loss on any non-dormant serving cell resulting from these RRM measurements shall not exceed 1.0%.

[0099] The following techniques address interruptions during fast SCell activation.

[0100] The requirements for fast SCell activation apply when the ATG UE is configured with a PCell and one SCell, and a periodic CSI-RS resource is configured for fast SCell activation. When one SCell in the MCG configured with aperiodic CSI-RS resources for fast SCell activation is activated from a deactivated state, the ATG UE is allowed an interruption on any active serving cell under three conditions.

[0101] First, if the active serving cell and the SCell being activated are in a FR1 band pair, the interruption length follows the inter-band SCell activation / deactivation table, which specifies 1 slot for both numerology p = 0 and p = 1.

[0102] Second, if the active serving cells are in the same band as the SCells being activated, and either the SCell to be activated is known and belongs to FR1 with a measurement period larger than 2400 ms, or the SCell is unknown and belongs to FR1 and is contiguous to an active serving cell in the same band, the interruption length is A slots + T ATRS duration ATG. The parameter T ATRS duration ATG is defined as a CSI-RS burst for SCell activation, where the CSI-RS burst consists of four CSI-RS resources in two consecutive slots on the SCell being activated. The value of A is 1 slot for both numerology p = 0 and p = 1.

[0103] Third, if the active serving cells are in the same band as the SCells being activated, and the SCell to be activated is known and belongs to FR1 with a measurement period equal to or smaller than 2400 ms, the interruption length is A slots without the T ATRS duration ATG component.

[0104] The following techniques relate to dependencies and prerequisites.

[0105] The disclosed techniques require an ATG UE operating within a 5G NR system that supports carrier aggregation in FR1. The UE must support bothAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1intra-band contiguous and inter-band DL CA operations. The network must be configured to provide the relevant parameters, including SMTC configuration, SSB configuration (absoluteFrequencySSB), measCycleSCell, and CSI-RS resource configurations as applicable. The UE behavior depends on the subcarrier spacing numerology p, which determines the NR slot length and the value of NA{slot}_{ subframe, p} as defined in TS 38.211. The RRC reconfiguration procedures follow TS 38.331, and the SCell activation / deactivation procedures follow TS 37.340.

[0106] The following techniques relate to expected outcomes.

[0107] Application of the disclosed techniques results in defined, bounded behavior for ATG UE during NR CA operations. For MRTD, the UE can handle up to 33 microseconds of relative receive timing difference for inter-band CA in FR1, ensuring correct signal processing across aggregated carriers despite the timing offsets inherent in ATG deployments. For interruptions, the UE is constrained to cause no more than the specified number of interrupted slots on active serving cells during each CA management procedure. The ACK / NACK feedback loss rate is bounded to 0.5% for CQI measurement interruptions during SCell dormancy and 1.0% for RRM measurement interruptions during SCell dormancy. These bounds are verifiable through signaling and RRM test cases defined by 3 GPP, which are referenced by regulatory and operator bodies for market access compliance.

[0108] FIG. 1 A - FIG. 9 illustrate various systems, devices, and components that may implement aspects of disclosed embodiments in different communication systems, such as LTE (EUTRA) and 5G-NR (and beyond) networks. UEs, base stations (such as gNBs), and / or other nodes (e.g., satellites or other computing nodes) discussed herein can be configured to perform the disclosed techniques.

[0109] FIG. 1 A illustrates the architecture of a network in accordance with some aspects. The communication network 140A is illustrated as including user equipment (UE) 101 and UE 102. The UE 101 and UE 102 are illustrated as smartphones (e.g., handheld touchscreen mobile computing devices connectable to one or more cellular networks) but may also include any mobile or non-mobile computing device, such as Personal Data Assistants (PDAs), pagers,AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1laptop computers, desktop computers, wireless handsets, drones, or any other computing device including a wired and / or wireless communications interface. UE 101 and UE 102 can be collectively referred to herein as UEs 101, and UE 101 can be used to perform one or more of the techniques disclosed herein.

[0110] Any of the radio links described herein (e.g., as used in the communication network 140 A or any other illustrated network) may operate according to any exemplary radio communication technology and / or standard.

[0111] LTE and LTE-Advanced are standards for high-speed wireless data communications for UEs, such as mobile telephones. In LTE-Advanced and various wireless systems, carrier aggregation is a technology that allows multiple carrier signals operating on different frequencies to be used to carry communications for a single UE, thereby increasing the bandwidth available to a single device. In some aspects, carrier aggregation may be used where one or more component carriers operate on unlicensed frequencies.

[0112] Aspects described herein can be used in the context of any spectrum management scheme, including, for example, dedicated licensed spectrum, unlicensed spectrum, (licensed) shared spectrum (such as Licensed Shared Access (LSA) in 2.3-2.4 GHz, 3.4-3.6 GHz, 3.6-3.8 GHz, and further frequencies and Spectrum Access System (SAS) in 3.55-3.7 GHz and further frequencies).

[0113] Aspects described herein can also be applied to different Single Carrier or OFDM flavors (CP-OFDM, DFT-S-OFDM, SC-FDMA, SC-OFDM, filter bank-based multicarrier (FBMC), OFDMA, etc.) and, in particular, 3GPP NR (New Radio) by allocating the OFDM carrier data bit vectors to the corresponding symbol resources.

[0114] In some aspects, any of the UE 101 and UE 102 can include an Internet-of-Things (loT) UE or a Cellular loT (CIoT) UE, which can include a network access layer designed for low-power loT applications utilizing shortlived UE connections. In some aspects, any of the UE 101 and UE 102 can include a narrowband (NB) loT UE (e.g., an enhanced NB-IoT (eNB-IoT) UE and a Further Enhanced (FeNB-IoT) UE). An loT UE can utilize technologies such as machine-to-machine (M2M) or machine-type communications (MTC) for exchanging data with an MTC server or device via a public land mobileAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1network (PLMN), Proximity-Based Service (ProSe), or device-to-device (D2D) communication, sensor networks, or loT networks. The M2M or MTC exchange of data may be a machine-initiated exchange of data. An loT network includes interconnecting loT UEs, which may include uniquely identifiable embedded computing devices (within the Internet infrastructure) with short-lived connections. The loT UEs may execute background applications (e.g., keepalive messages, status updates, etc.) to facilitate the connections of the loT network.

[0115] In some aspects, any of the UE 101 and UE 102 can include enhanced MTC (eMTC) UEs or further enhanced MTC (FeMTC) UEs.

[0116] The UE 101 and UE 102 may be configured to connect, e.g., communicatively coupled, with a radio access network (RAN) 110. The RAN 110 may be, for example, a Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), an Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN), a NextGen RAN (NG RAN), or some other type of RAN. The UE 101 and UE 102 utilize connections 103 and 104, respectively, each of which includes a physical communications interface or layer (discussed in further detail below); in this example, the connections 103 and 104 are illustrated as an air interface to enable communicative coupling and can be consistent with cellular communications protocols, such as a Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) protocol, a code-division multiple access (CDMA) network protocol, a Push-to-Talk (PTT) protocol, a PTT over Cellular (POC) protocol, a Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) protocol, a 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) protocol, a fifth-generation (5G) protocol, a New Radio (NR) protocol, and the like.

[0117] In an aspect, the UE 101 and UE 102 may further directly exchange communication data via a ProSe interface 105. The ProSe interface 105 may alternatively be referred to as a sidelink interface comprising one or more logical channels, including but not limited to a Physical Sidelink Control Channel (PSCCH), a Physical Sidelink Shared Channel (PSSCH), a Physical Sidelink Discovery Channel (PSDCH), and a Physical Sidelink Broadcast Channel (PSBCH).AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0118] The UE 102 is shown to be configured to access an access point (AP) 106 via connection 107. The connection 107 can include a local wireless connection, such as, for example, a connection consistent with any IEEE 802.11 protocol, according to which the AP 106 can include a wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) router. In this example, the AP 106 is shown to be connected to the Internet without connecting to the core network of the wireless system (described in further detail below).

[0119] The RAN 110 can include one or more access nodes that enable connections 103 and 104. These access nodes (ANs) can be referred to as base stations (BSs), NodeBs, evolved NodeBs (eNBs), Next Generation NodeBs (gNBs), RAN network nodes, and the like, and can include ground stations (e.g., terrestrial access points) or satellite stations providing coverage within a geographic area (e.g., a cell). In some aspects, communication nodes 111 and 112 can be transmission / reception points (TRPs). In instances when the communication nodes 111 and 112 are NodeBs (e.g., eNBs or gNBs), one or more TRPs can function within the communication cell of the NodeBs. The RAN 110 may include one or more RAN nodes for providing macrocells, e.g., macro RAN nodes, and one or more RAN nodes for providing femtocells or picocells (e.g., cells having smaller coverage areas, smaller user capacity, or higher bandwidth compared to macrocells), e.g., a low-power (LP) RAN node or an unlicensed spectrum-based secondary RAN node.

[0120] Any of the communication nodes 111 and 112 can terminate the air interface protocol and can be the first point of contact for UE 101 and UE 102. In some aspects, any of the communication nodes 111 and 112 can fulfill various logical functions for the RAN 110, including, but not limited to, the radio network controller (RNC) functions such as radio bearer management, uplink, and downlink dynamic radio resource management, data packet scheduling, and mobility management. In an example, any of the communication nodes 111 and / or 112 can be a new generation Node-B (gNB), an evolved node-B (eNB), or another type of RAN node.

[0121] The RAN 110 is shown to be communicatively coupled to a core network (CN) 120 via an SI interface 113. In aspects, the CN 120 may be an evolved packet core (EPC) network, a NextGen Packet Core (NPC) network, orAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1some other type of CN (e.g., as illustrated in FIGS. 1B-1C). In this aspect, the SI interface 113 is split into two parts: the Sl-U interface 114, which carries user traffic data between the communication nodes 111 and 112 and the serving gateway (S-GW) 122, and the SI -mobility management entity (MME) interface 115, which is a signaling interface between the communication nodes 111 and 112 and MMEs 121.

[0122] In this aspect, the CN 120 comprises the MMEs 121, the S-GW 122, the Packet Data Network (PDN) Gateway (P-GW) 123, and a home subscriber server (HSS) 124. The MMEs 121 may be similar in function to the control plane of legacy Serving General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) Support Nodes (SGSN). The MMEs 121 may manage mobility aspects in access, such as gateway selection and tracking area list management. The HSS 124 may comprise a database for network users, including subscription-related information to support the network entities' handling of communication sessions. The CN 120 may comprise one or several HSSs 124, depending on the number of mobile subscribers, the capacity of the equipment, the organization of the network, etc. For example, the HSS 124 can provide support for routing / roaming, authentication, authorization, naming / addressing resolution, location dependencies, etc.

[0123] The S-GW 122 may terminate the SI interface 113 towards the RAN 110 and route data packets between the RAN 110 and the CN 120. In addition, the S-GW 122 may be a local mobility anchor point for inter-RAN node handovers and may also provide an anchor for inter-3GPP mobility. Other responsibilities of the S-GW 122 may include lawful intercept, charging, and some policy enforcement.

[0124] The P-GW 123 may terminate an SGi interface toward a PDN. The P-GW 123 may route data packets between the EPC network (e.g., CN 120) and external networks, such as a network including the application server 184 (alternatively referred to as application function (AF)) via an Internet Protocol (IP) interface 125. The P-GW 123 can also communicate data to external networks 131 A, including the Internet, the IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) network, and other networks. Generally, the application server 184 may be an element offering applications that use IP bearer resources with the core networkAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1(e.g., UMTS Packet Services (PS) domain, LTE PS data services, etc.). In this aspect, the P-GW 123 is shown to be communicatively coupled to an application server 184 via an IP interface 125. The application server 184 can also be configured to support one or more communication services (e.g., Voice-over-Internet Protocol (VoIP) sessions, PTT sessions, group communication sessions, social networking services, etc.) for the UE 101 and UE 102 via the CN 120.

[0125] The P-GW 123 may further be a node for policy enforcement and charging data collection. Policy and Charging Rules Function (PCRF) 126 is the policy and charging control element of the CN 120. In a non-roaming scenario, in some aspects, there may be a single PCRF in the Home Public Land Mobile Network (HPLMN) associated with a UE's Internet Protocol Connectivity Access Network (IP-CAN) session. In a roaming scenario with a local breakout of traffic, there may be two PCRFs associated with a UE's IP-CAN session: a Home PCRF (H-PCRF) within an HPLMN and a Visited PCRF (V-PCRF) within a Visited Public Land Mobile Network (VPLMN). The PCRF 126 may be communicatively coupled to the application server 184 via the P-GW 123.

[0126] In some aspects, the communication network 140 A can be an loT network or a 5G network, including a 5G new radio network using communications in the licensed (5G NR) and the unlicensed (5G NR-U) spectrum. One of the current enablers of loT is the narrowband loT (NB-IoT).

[0127] An NG system architecture can include the RAN 110 and a 5G core network (e.g., CN 120). RAN 110 in an NG system can be referred to as NG-RAN. The RAN 110 can include a plurality of nodes, such as gNBs and NG-eNBs. The CN 120 (also referred to as a 5G core network or 5GC) can include an access and mobility function (AMF) and / or a user plane function (UPF). The AMF and the UPF can be communicatively coupled to the gNBs and the NG-eNBs via NG interfaces. More specifically, in some aspects, the gNBs and the NG-eNBs can be connected to the AMF by NG-C interfaces and the UPF by NG-U interfaces. The gNBs and the NG-eNBs can be coupled to each other via Xn interfaces.

[0128] In some aspects, the NG system architecture can use reference points between various nodes as provided by 3GPP Technical Specification (TS) 23.501 (e.g., V15.4.0, 2018-12). In some aspects, each of the gNBs and the NG-AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1eNBs can be implemented as a base station, a mobile edge server, a small cell, a home eNB, a RAN network node, and so forth. In some aspects, a gNB can be a master node (MN), and an NG-eNB can be a secondary node (SN) in a 5G architecture. In some aspects, the master / primary node may operate in a licensed band, and the secondary node may operate in an unlicensed band.

[0129] FIG. IB illustrates a non-roaming 5G system architecture in accordance with some aspects. Referring to FIG. IB, there is illustrated a 5G system architecture 140B in a reference point representation. More specifically, UE 102 can be in communication with RAN 110 as well as one or more other 5G core (5GC) network entities. The 5G system architecture MOB includes a plurality of network functions (NFs), such as access and mobility management function (AMF) 132, location management function (LMF) 133, session management function (SMF) 136, policy control function (PCF) 148, application function (AF) 150, user plane function (UPF) 134, network slice selection function (NSSF) 142, authentication server function (AUSF) 144, and unified data management (UDM) / home subscriber server (HSS) 146. The UPF 134 can provide a connection to a data network (DN) 152, which can include, for example, operator services, Internet access, or third-party services. The AMF 132 can be used to manage access control and mobility, and can also include network slice selection functionality. The SMF 136 can be configured to set up and manage various sessions in accordance with network policy. The UPF 134 can be deployed in one or more configurations according to the desired service type. The PCF 148 can be configured to provide a policy framework using network slicing, mobility management, and roaming (similar to PCRF in a 4G communication system). The UDM can be configured to store subscriber profiles and data (similar to an HSS in a 4G communication system).

[0130] The LMF 133 may be used in connection with 5G positioning functionalities. In some aspects, LMF 133 receives measurements and assistance information from the RAN 110 and the mobile device (e.g., UE 101) via the AMF 132 over the N1 interface to compute the position of the UE 101. In some aspects, NR positioning protocol A (NRPPa) may be used to carry the positioning information between NG-RAN and LMF 133 over a next-generation control plane interface (NG-C). In some aspects, LMF 133 configures the UE using the LTE positioning protocol (LPP) via AMF 132. The RAN 110AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1configures the UE 101 using radio resource control (RRC) protocol over LTE-Uu and NR-Uu interfaces.

[0131] In some aspects, the 5G system architecture 140B configures different reference signals to enable positioning measurements. Example reference signals that may be used for positioning measurements include the positioning reference signal (NR PRS) in the downlink and the sounding reference signal (SRS) for positioning in the uplink. The downlink positioning reference signal (PRS) is a reference signal configured to support downlink-based positioning methods.

[0132] In some aspects, the 5G system architecture 140B includes an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) 168B as well as a plurality of IP multimedia core network subsystem entities, such as call session control functions (CSCFs). More specifically, the IMS 168B includes a CSCF, which can act as a proxy CSCF (P-CSCF) 162B, a serving CSCF (S-CSCF) 164B, an emergency CSCF (E-CSCF) (not illustrated in FIG. IB), or an interrogating CSCF (I-CSCF) 166B. The P-CSCF 162B can be configured to be the first contact point for the UE 102 within the IMS 168B. The S-CSCF 164B can be configured to handle the session states in the network, and the E-CSCF can be configured to handle certain aspects of emergency sessions, such as routing an emergency request to the correct emergency center or PSAP. The I-CSCF 166B can be configured to function as the contact point within an operator's network for all IMS connections destined to a subscriber of that network operator or a roaming subscriber currently located within that network operator's service area. In some aspects, the I-CSCF 166B can be connected to another IP multimedia network 170, e.g., an IMS operated by a different network operator.

[0133] In some aspects, the UDM / HSS 146 can be coupled to an application server (AS) 160B, which can include a telephony application server (TAS) or another AS. The AS 160B can be coupled to the IMS 168B via the S-CSCF 164B or the I-CSCF 166B.

[0134] A reference point representation shows that interaction can exist between corresponding NF services. For example, FIG. IB illustrates the following reference points: N1 (between the UE 102 and the AMF 132), N2 (between the RAN 110 and the AMF 132), N3 (between the RAN 110 and theAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1UPF 134), N4 (between the SMF 136 and the UPF 134), N5 (between the PCF 148 and the AF 150, not shown), N6 (between the UPF 134 and the DN 152), N7 (between the SMF 136 and the PCF 148, not shown), N8 (between the UDM / HSS 146 and the AMF 132, not shown), N9 (between two UPFs, not shown), N10 (between the UDM / HSS 146 and the SMF 136, not shown), N11 (between the AMF 132 and the SMF 136, not shown), N12 (between the AUSF 144 and the AMF 132, not shown), N13 (between the AUSF 144 and the UDM / HSS 146, not shown), N14 (between two AMFs, not shown), N15 (between the PCF 148 and the AMF 132 in case of a non-roaming scenario, or between the PCF 148 and a visited network and AMF 132 in case of a roaming scenario, not shown), N16 (between two SMFs, not shown), and N22 (between the AMF 132 and the NSSF 142, not shown). Other reference point representations not shown in FIG. IB can also be used.

[0135] FIG. 1C illustrates a 5G system architecture 140C and a service-based representation. In addition to the network entities illustrated in FIG. IB, the 5G system architecture 140C can also include a network exposure function (NEF) 154 and a network repository function (NRF) 156. In some aspects, 5G system architectures can be service-based, and interaction between network functions can be represented by corresponding point-to-point reference points Ni or as service-based interfaces.

[0136] In some aspects, as illustrated in FIG. 1C, service-based representations can be used to represent network functions within the control plane that enable other authorized network functions to access their services. In this regard, the 5G system architecture 140C can include the following servicebased interfaces: Namf 158H (a service-based interface exhibited by the AMF 132), Nsmf 1581 (a service-based interface exhibited by the SMF 136), Nnef 158B (a service-based interface exhibited by the NEF 154), Npcf 158D (a service-based interface exhibited by the PCF 148), a Nudm 158E (a servicebased interface exhibited by the UDM / HSS 146), Naf 158F (a service-based interface exhibited by the AF 150), Nnrf 158C (a service-based interface exhibited by the NRF 156), Nnssf 158 A (a service-based interface exhibited by the NSSF 142), Nausf 158G (a service-based interface exhibited by the AUSF 144). Other service-based interfaces (e.g., Nudr, N5g-eir, and Nudsf) not shown in FIG. 1C can also be used.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0137] FIG. 2 depicts an example network architecture 200. The network architecture 200 may operate in a manner consistent with 3GPP technical specifications for LTE or 5G / NR systems and can implement the disclosed techniques (e.g., the disclosed techniques can be configured / implemented by one or more devices operating within the network architecture 200). However, the example embodiments are not limited in this regard, and the described examples may apply to other networks that benefit from the principles described herein, such as future 3 GPP systems or the like.

[0138] The network architecture 200 includes a UE 202, which is any mobile or non-mobile computing device designed to communicate with a RAN 204 via an over-the-air connection. The UE 202 is communicatively coupled with the RAN 204 by a Uu interface, which may be applicable to both LTE and NR systems. Examples of the UE 202 include, but are not limited to, a smartphone, tablet computer, wearable device (e.g., smart watch, fitness tracker, smart glasses, smart clothing / fabrics, head-mounted displays, smart shoes, and / or the like), desktop computer, workstation, laptop computer, in-vehicle infotainment system, in-car entertainment system, instrument cluster, head-up display (HUD) device, onboard diagnostic device, dashtop mobile equipment, mobile data terminal, electronic engine management system, electronic / engine control unit, electronic / engine control module, embedded system, sensor, microcontroller, control module, engine management system, networked appliance, machine-type communication device, machine-to-machine (M2M), device-to-device (D2D), machine-type communication (MTC) device, Internet of Things (loT) device, smart appliance, flying drone or unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), terrestrial drone or autonomous vehicle, robot, electronic signage, single-board computer (SBC) (e.g., Raspberry Pi, Arduino, Intel Edison, and the like), plug computers, and / or any type of computing device such as any of those discussed herein.

[0139] Additionally or alternatively, the UE 202 can be a reduced capability (RedCap) UE, which is a UE with reduced capabilities as specified in clause 4.2.21.1 in 3GPP TS 38.306 vl7.4.0 (2023-03-30) (“TS 38.306”).

[0140] The network architecture 200 may include a set of UEs 202 coupled directly with one another via a D2D, ProSe, PC5, and / or SL interface, and / or any other suitable interface such as any of those discussed herein. These UEs 202AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1may be M2M / D2D / MTC / IoT devices and / or vehicular systems that communicate using physical sidelink channels such as, but not limited to, PSBCH, PSDCH, PSSCH, PSCCH, PSFCH, and the like. The UE 202 may perform blind decoding attempts of SL channel s / links according to the various examples herein.

[0141] In some examples, the UE 202 may additionally communicate with an AP 206 via an over-the-air (OTA) connection. The AP 206 manages a WLAN connection, which may serve to offload some or all network traffic from the RAN 204. The connection between the UE 202 and the AP 206 may be consistent with any IEEE 802.11 protocol. Additionally, the UE 202, RAN 204, and AP 206 may utilize cellular- WLAN aggregation / integration (e.g., LWA / LWIP). Cellular- WLAN aggregation may involve the UE 202 being configured by the RAN 204 to utilize both cellular radio resources and WLAN resources.

[0142] The RAN 204 includes one or more access network nodes (ANs) 208. The ANs 208 terminate air interface(s) for the UE 202 by providing access to stratum protocols, including RRC, PDCP, RLC, MAC, and PHY / L1 protocols. In this manner, the AN 208 enables data / voice connectivity between the CN 220 and the UE 202. The ANs 208 may be a macrocell base station or a low-power base station for providing femtocells, picocells, or other like cells having smaller coverage areas, smaller user capacity, or higher bandwidth compared to macrocells, or some combination thereof. In these implementations, an AN 208 can be referred to as a BS, gNB, RAN node, eNB, ng-eNB, NodeB, RSU, TRxP, and the like.

[0143] One example implementation is a “CU / DU split” architecture where the ANs 208 are embodied as a gNB-Central Unit (CU) that is communicatively coupled with one or more gNB -Distributed Units (DUs), where each DU may be communicatively coupled with one or more Radio Units (RUs) (also referred to as RRHs, RRUs, or the like) (see, e.g., TS 38.401). In some implementations, the one or more RUs may be individual RSUs. In some implementations, the CU / DU split may include an ng-eNB-CU and one or more ng-eNB-DUs instead of, or in addition to, the gNB-CU and gNB-DUs, respectively. The ANs 208 employed as the CU may be implemented in a discrete device or as one or moreAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1software entities running on server computers as part of, for example, a virtual network including a virtual Base Band Unit (BBU) or BBU pool, cloud RAN (CRAN), Radio Equipment Controller (REC), Radio Cloud Center (RCC), centralized RAN (C-RAN), virtualized RAN (vRAN), and / or the like (although these terms may refer to different implementation concepts). Any other type of architecture, arrangement, and / or configuration can be used.

[0144] The set of ANs may be coupled with one another via an X2 interface (if the RAN 204 is an LTE RAN or Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN) 210) or an Xn interface (if the RAN 204 is an NG-RAN 214). The X2 / Xn interfaces, which may be separated into control / user plane interfaces in some examples, may allow the ANs to communicate information related to handovers, data / context transfers, mobility, load management, interference coordination, and the like.

[0145] The ANs of the RAN 204 may each manage one or more cells, cell groups, component carriers, and the like to provide the UE 202 with an air interface for network access. The UE 202 may be simultaneously connected with a set of cells provided by the same or different ANs 208 of the RAN 204. For example, the UE 202 and RAN 204 may use carrier aggregation to allow the UE 202 to connect with a set of component carriers, each corresponding to a Pcell or Scell. In dual connectivity scenarios, a first AN 208 may be a master node that provides an MCG, and a second AN 208 may be a secondary node that provides an SCG. The first / second ANs 208 may be any combination of eNB, gNB, ng-eNB, and the like.

[0146] The RAN 204 may provide the air interface over a licensed spectrum or an unlicensed spectrum. To operate in the unlicensed spectrum, the nodes may use LAA, eLAA, and / or feLAA mechanisms based on CA technology with PCells / Scells. Prior to accessing the unlicensed spectrum, the nodes may perform medium / carrier-sensing operations based on, for example, a listen-before-talk (LBT) protocol.

[0147] Additionally or alternatively, individual UEs 202 provide radio information to one or more ANs 208 and / or one or more edge compute nodes (e.g., edge servers / hosts and the like). The radio information may be in the form of one or more measurement reports and may include, for example, signalAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1strength measurements, signal quality measurements, and / or the like. Each measurement report is tagged with a timestamp and the location of the measurement (e.g., the UE’s 202 current location). As examples, the measurements collected by the UEs 202 and / or included in the measurement reports may include one or more of the following: bandwidth (BW), network or cell load, latency, jitter, round trip time (RTT), number of interrupts, out-of-order delivery of data packets, transmission power, bit error rate, bit error ratio (BER), Block Error Rate (BLER), packet error ratio (PER), packet loss rate, packet reception rate (PRR), data rate, peak data rate, end-to-end (e2e) delay, signal -to-noise ratio (SNR), signal-to-noise and interference ratio (SINR), signal-plus-noise-plus-distortion (SINAD) ratio, carrier-to-interference plus noise ratio (CINR), Additive White Gaussian Noise (AWGN), energy per bit to noise power density ratio (Eb / NO), energy per chip to interference power density ratio (Ec / 10), energy per chip to noise power density ratio (Ec / NO), peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR), reference signal received power (RSRP), Reference Signal Received Path Power (RSRPP), reference signal received quality (RSRQ), received signal strength indicator (RS SI), received channel power indicator (RCPI), received signal to noise indicator (RSNI), Received Signal Code Power (RSCP), reference signal carrier phase (RSCP), reference signal carrier phase difference (RSCPD), carrier phase positioning (CPP), Reference Signal Time Difference (RSTD), Sidelink Synchronization Signal Block (S-SSB) measurements including SSB RP (Received (linear) average power of the resource elements that carry NR SSB signals and channels, measured at the UE antenna connector or radiated interface boundary) and / or the like, Relative Time Difference (RTD), receiver (Rx) time delay, Rx Timing Error, transmitter (Tx) time delay, Tx Timing Error, NR E-CID, Observed Time Difference Of Arrival (OTDOA), average noise plus interference (ANPI), GNSS timing of cell frames for UE positioning for E-UTRAN or 5G / NR (e.g., a timing between an AP or RAN node reference time and a GNSS-specific reference time for a given GNSS), GNSS code measurements (e.g., the GNSS code phase (integer and fractional parts) of the spreading code of the ith GNSS satellite signal), GNSS carrier phase measurements (e.g., the number of carrier-phase cycles (integer and fractional parts) of the ith GNSS satellite signal, measured since locking onto the signal; also called Accumulated Delta Range (ADR)),AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1channel interference measurements, thermal noise power measurements, received interference power measurements, power histogram measurements, channel load measurements, STA statistics, and / or other like measurements. The RSRP, RS SI, and / or RSRQ measurements may include RSRP, RS SI, and / or RSRQ measurements of cell-specific reference signals, channel state information reference signals (CSI-RS), and / or synchronization signals (SS) or SS blocks for 3GPP networks (e.g., LTE or 5G / NR), and RSRP, RSSI, RSRQ, RCPI, RSNI, and / or ANPI measurements of various beacon, Fast Initial Link Setup (FILS) discovery frames, or probe response frames for WLAN / WiFi (e.g., [IEEE80211]) networks. Other measurements may be additionally or alternatively used, such as those discussed in 3GPP TS 36.214 V17.0.0 (2022-03-31) (“[TS36214]”), 3GPP TS 38.215 vl7.3.0 (2023-03-30) (“[TS38215]”), 3GPP TS 38.314 vl7.2.0 (2023-01-13) (“[TS38314]”), IEEE Standard for Information Technology— Telecommunications and Information Exchange between Systems - Local and Metropolitan Area Networks— Specific Requirements - Part 11 : Wireless LAN Medium Access Control (MAC) and Physical Layer (PHY) Specifications, IEEE Std 802.11-2020, pp. 1-4379 (26 Feb. 2021) (“[IEEE80211]”), and / or the like. Additionally or alternatively, any of the measurements above (or a combination of measurements) may be collected by one or more ANs 208 and provided to the edge compute node(s).

[0148] Additionally or alternatively, the measurements can include one or more of the following measurements: measurements related to Data Radio Bearer (DRB) (e.g., number of DRBs attempted to be set up, number of DRBs successfully set up, number of released active DRBs, in-session activity time for DRB, number of DRBs attempted to be resumed, number of DRBs successfully resumed, and the like); measurements related to Radio Resource Control (RRC) (e.g., mean number of RRC connections, maximum number of RRC connections, mean number of stored inactive RRC connections, maximum number of stored inactive RRC connections, number of attempted, successful, and / or failed RRC connection establishments, and the like); measurements related to UE Context (UECNTX); measurements related to Radio Resource Utilization (RRU) (e.g., DL total PRB usage, UL total PRB usage, distribution of DL total PRB usage, distribution of UL total PRB usage, DL PRB used for data traffic, UL PRB used for data traffic, DL total available PRBs, UL totalAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1available PRBs, and the like); measurements related to Registration Management (RM); measurements related to Session Management (SM) (e.g., number of PDU sessions requested to be set up; number of PDU sessions successfully set up; number of PDU sessions failed to be set up, and the like); measurements related to GTP Management (GTP); measurements related to IP Management (IP); measurements related to Policy Association (PA); measurements related to Mobility Management (MM) (e.g., for inter-RAT, intra-RAT, and / or Intra / Inter-frequency handovers and / or conditional handovers: number of requested, successful, and / or failed handover preparations; number of requested, successful, and / or failed handover resource allocations; number of requested, successful, and / or failed handover executions; mean and / or maximum time of requested handover executions; number of successful and / or failed handover executions per beam pair, and the like); measurements related to Virtualized Resource(s) (VR); measurements related to Carrier (CARR); measurements related to QoS Flows (QF) (e.g., number of released active QoS flows, number of QoS flows attempted to release, in-session activity time for QoS flow, in-session activity time for a UE 202, number of QoS flows attempted to set up, number of QoS flows successfully established, number of QoS flows failed to set up, number of initial QoS flows attempted to set up, number of initial QoS flows successfully established, number of initial QoS flows failed to set up, number of QoS flows attempted to modify, number of QoS flows successfully modified, number of QoS flows failed to modify, and the like); measurements related to Application Triggering (AT); measurements related to Short Message Service (SMS); measurements related to Power, Energy and Environment (PEE); measurements related to NF service (NFS); measurements related to Packet Flow Description (PFD); measurements related to Random Access Channel (RACH); measurements related to Measurement Report (MR); measurements related to Layer 1 Measurement (L1M); measurements related to Network Slice Selection (NSS); measurements related to Paging (PAG); measurements related to Non-IP Data Delivery (NIDD); measurements related to external parameter provisioning (EPP); measurements related to traffic influence (TI); measurements related to Connection Establishment (CE); measurements related to Service Parameter Provisioning (SPP); measurements related to Background Data Transfer Policy (BDTP); measurements related to Data Management (DM); and / or any otherAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1performance measurements such as those discussed in 3GPP TS 28.552 vl7.3.1 (2021-06-24) (“[TS28552]”), 3GPP TS 32.425 vl7.1.0 (2021-06-24) (“[TS32425]”), and / or the like.

[0149] The radio information may be reported in response to a trigger event and / or on a periodic basis. Additionally or alternatively, individual UEs 202 report radio information either at a low periodicity or a high periodicity depending on a data transfer that is to take place and / or other information about the data transfer. Additionally or alternatively, the edge compute node(s) may request the measurements from the ANs 208 at low or high periodicity, or the ANs 208 may provide the measurements to the edge compute node(s) at low or high periodicity. Additionally or alternatively, the edge compute node(s) may obtain other relevant data from other edge compute node(s), core network functions (NFs), application functions (AFs), and / or other UEs 202, such as Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), with the measurement reports or separately from the measurement reports.

[0150] Additionally or alternatively, in cases where there is a discrepancy in the observation data from one or more UEs, one or more RAN nodes, and / or core network NFs (e.g., missing reports, erroneous data, and the like), simple imputations may be performed to supplement the obtained observation data, such as, for example, substituting values from previous reports and / or historical data, applying an extrapolation filter, and / or the like. Additionally or alternatively, acceptable bounds for the observation data may be predetermined or configured. For example, CQI and MCS measurements may be configured to only be within ranges defined by suitable 3GPP standards. In cases where a reported data value does not make sense (e.g., it exceeds an acceptable range or bounds), such values may be dropped for the current learning / training episode or epoch. For example, during packet delivery, delay bounds may be defined or configured, and packets determined to have been received after the delay bound may be dropped.

[0151] The UE 202 can also perform reference signal (RS) measurement and reporting procedures to provide the network with information about the quality of one or more wireless channels and / or the communication media in general, and this information can be used to optimize various aspects of theAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1communication system. As examples, the measurement and reporting procedures performed by the UE 202 can include those discussed in 3 GPP TS 38.211 V17.4.0 (2023-01-04) (“[TS38211]”), 3GPP TS 38.212 vl7.4.0 (2023-01-04) (“[TS38212]”), 3GPP TS 38.213 vl7.4.0 (2023-01-04) (“[TS38213]”), 3GPP TS 38.214 vl7.4.0 (2023-01-04) (“[TS38214]”), [TS38215], 3GPP TS 38.101-1 V18.0.0 (2023-01-12) (“[TS38.101-1]”), 3GPP TS 38.104 vl8.0.0 (2023-01-10) (“[TS38104]”), 3GPP TS 38.133 vl8.0.0 (2023-01-12) (“[TS38133]”), [TS38331], and / or the like. The physical signals and / or RScan include demodulation reference signals (DM-RS), phase-tracking reference signals (PT-RS), positioning reference signal (PRS), channel-state information reference signal (CSI-RS), synchronization signal block (SSB), primary synchronization signal (PSS), secondary synchronization signal (SSS), and sounding reference signal (SRS).

[0152] In any of the examples discussed herein, any suitable data collection and / or measurement mechanism(s) may be used to collect the observation data. For example, data marking (e.g., sequence numbering and the like), packet tracing, signal measurement, data sampling, and / or timestamping techniques may be used to determine any of the aforementioned metrics / observations. The collection of data may be based on the occurrence of events that trigger the collection of the data. Additionally or alternatively, data collection may take place at the initiation or termination of an event. The data collection can be continuous, discontinuous, and / or have start and stop times. The data collection techniques / mechanisms may be specific to an HW configuration / implementation or non-HW-specific or may be based on various software parameters (e.g., OS type and version, and the like). Various configurations may be used to define any of the aforementioned data collection parameters. Such configurations may be defined by suitable specifications / standards, such as 3GPP (e.g., [SA6Edge]), ETSI (e.g., [MEC]), 0-RAN (e.g., [0-RAN]), Intel® Smart Edge Open (formerly OpenNESS) (e.g., [ISEO]), IETF (e.g., MAMS [RFC8743]), lEEE / WiFi (e.g., [IEEE80211], [WiMAX], [IEEE1609.0], and the like), and / or any other like standards such as those discussed herein.

[0153] In V2X scenarios, the UE 202 or AN 208 may be or act as a roadside unit (RSU), which may refer to any transportation infrastructure entity used for V2X communications. An RSU may be implemented in or by a suitable AN or aAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1stationary (or relatively stationary) UE. An RSU implemented in or by a UE may be referred to as a “UE-type RSU”; an eNB may be referred to as an “eNB-type RSU”; a gNB may be referred to as a “gNB-type RSU’; and the like. In one example, an RSU is a computing device coupled with radio frequency circuitry located on a roadside that provides connectivity support to passing vehicle UEs. The RSU may also include internal data storage circuitry to store intersection map geometry, traffic statistics, and media, as well as applications / software to sense and control ongoing vehicular and pedestrian traffic. The RSU may provide very low-latency communications required for high-speed events, such as crash avoidance, traffic warnings, and the like.Additionally or alternatively, the RSU may provide other cellular / WLAN communications services. The components of the RSU may be packaged in a weatherproof enclosure suitable for outdoor installation and may include a network interface controller to provide a wired connection (e.g., Ethernet) to a traffic signal controller or a backhaul network. Furthermore, one or more V2X RATs may be employed, which allow V2X nodes to communicate directly with one another, with infrastructure equipment (e.g., AN 208), and / or other devices / nodes. In some implementations, at least two distinct V2X RATs may be used, including WLAN V2X (W-V2X) RATs based on IEEE V2X technologies (e.g., DSRC for the U.S. and ITS-G5 for Europe) and cellular V2X (C-V2X) RATs based on 3 GPP V2X technologies (e.g., LTE V2X, 5G / NR V2X, and beyond). In one example, the C-V2X RAT may utilize a C-V2X air interface, and the WLAN V2X RAT may utilize a W-V2X air interface.

[0154] The W-V2X RATs include, for example, IEEE Guide for Wireless Access in Vehicular Environments (WAVE) Architecture, IEEE Standards Association, IEEE 1609.0-2019 (10 Apr. 2019) (“[IEEE 16090]”), V2X Communications Message Set Dictionary, SAE IntT (23 Jul. 2020) (“[J2735_202007]”), Intelligent Transport Systems in the 5 GHz frequency band (ITS-G5), the [IEEE8021 Ip] (which is the layer 1 (LI) and layer 2 (L2) part of WAVE, DSRC, and ITS-G5), and / or IEEE Standard for Air Interface for Broadband Wireless Access Systems, IEEE Std 802.16-2017, pp. 1-2726 (02 Mar. 2018) (“[WiMAX]”). The term “DSRC” refers to vehicular communications in the 5.9 GHz frequency band that is generally used in the United States, while “ITS-G5” refers to vehicular communications in the 5.9AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1GHz frequency band in Europe. Since any number of different RATs are applicable (including [IEEE8021 Ip] RATs) that may be used in any geographic or political region, the terms “DSRC” (used, among other regions, in the U.S.) and “ITS-G5” (used, among other regions, in Europe) may be used interchangeably. The access layer for the ITS-G5 interface is outlined in ETSI EN 302663 Vl.3.1 (2020-01) (hereinafter, “[EN302663]”), which describes the access layer of the ITS-S reference architecture. The ITS-G5 access layer comprises [IEEE80211] (which now incorporates [IEEE8021 Ip]) and features for Decentralized Congestion Control (DCC) methods, as discussed in ETSI TS 102687 VI.2.1 (2018-04) (“[TS 102687]”). The access layer for 3GPP LTE-V2X-based interface(s) is outlined in, inter alia, ETSIEN 303 613 VI.1.1 (2020-01), 3GPP TS 23.285 vl6.2.0 (2019-12); and 3GPP 5G / NR-V2X is outlined in, inter alia, 3GPP TR 23.786 vl6.1.0 (2019-06) and 3GPP TS 23.287 vl8.0.0 (2023-03-31) (“[TS23287]”).

[0155] In examples where the RAN 204 is an E-UTRAN 210 with one or more eNBs 212, the E-UTRAN 210 provides an LTE air interface (Uu) with the parameters and characteristics at least as discussed in 3GPP TS 36.300 vl7.2.0 (2022-09-30) (“[TS36300]”). In examples where the RAN 204 is a nextgeneration (NG)-RAN 214 with a set of gNBs 216. Each gNB 216 connects with 5G-enabled UEs 202 using a 5G-NR air interface (also referred to as the Uu interface), with parameters and characteristics as discussed in [TS38300], among many other 3GPP standards. Where the NG-RAN 214 includes a set of ng-eNBs 218, the one or more ng-eNBs 218 connect with a UE 202 via the 5G Uu and / or LTE Uu interface. The gNBs 216 and the ng-eNBs 218 connect with the 5GC 240 through respective NG interfaces, which include an N2 interface, an N3 interface, and / or other interfaces. The gNB 216 and the ng-eNB 218 are connected over an Xn interface. Additionally, individual gNBs 216 are connected via respective Xn interfaces, and individual ng-eNBs 218 are connected via respective Xn interfaces. In some examples, the NG interface may be split into two parts: an NG user plane (NG-U) interface, which carries traffic data between the nodes of the NG-RAN 214 and a UPF 248 (e.g., N3 interface), and an NG control plane (NG-C) interface, which is a signaling interface between the nodes of the NG-RAN 214 and an AMF 244 (e.g., N2 interface).AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0156] The NG-RAN 214 may provide a 5G-NR air interface (which may also be referred to as a Uu interface) with the following characteristics: variable SCS; CP-OFDM for DL, CP-OFDM, and DFT-s-OFDM for UL; polar, repetition, simplex, and Reed-Muller codes for control and LDPC for data. The 5G-NR air interface may rely on CSI-RS, PDSCH / PDCCH DMRS, similar to the LTE air interface. The 5G-NR air interface may not use a CRS but may use PBCH DMRS for PBCH demodulation, PTRS for phase tracking for PDSCH, and a tracking reference signal for time tracking. The 5G-NR air interface may operate on FR1 bands that include bands from 410 MHz to 7125 MHz or FR2 bands that include bands from 24.25 GHz to 71 GHz. The 5G-NR air interface may include an SSB, which is an area of a downlink resource grid that includes PSS / SSS / PBCH.

[0157] The 5G-NR air interface may utilize BWPs for various purposes. For example, BWP can be used to adapt the SCS dynamically. For example, the UE 202 can be configured with multiple BWPs, with each BWP configuration having a different SCS. When a BWP change is indicated to the UE 202, the SCS of the transmission is changed as well. Another use case example of BWP is related to power saving. In particular, multiple BWPs can be configured for the UE 202 with different amounts of frequency resources (e.g., PRBs) to support data transmission under different traffic loading scenarios. A BWP containing a smaller number of PRBs can be used for data transmission with a small traffic load while allowing power saving at the UE 202 and, in some cases, at the gNB 216. A BWP with a larger number of PRBs can be used for scenarios with higher traffic load.

[0158] In some implementations, individual gNBs 216 can include a gNB-CU and a set of gNB-DUs. Additionally or alternatively, gNBs 216 can include one or more RUs. In these implementations, the gNB-CU may be connected to each gNB-DU via respective Fl interfaces. In network sharing with multiple cell ID broadcasts, each cell identity associated with a subset of PLMNs corresponds to a gNB-DU, and the gNB-CU is connected to share the same physical-layer cell resources. For resiliency, a gNB-DU may be connected to multiple gNB-CUs by an appropriate implementation. Additionally, a gNB-CU can be separated into the gNB-CU control plane (gNB-CU-CP) and the gNB-CU user plane (gNB-CU-UP). The gNB-CU-CP is connected to a gNB-DU throughAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1an Fl control plane interface (Fl-C), the gNB-CU-UP is connected to the gNB-DU through an Fl user plane interface (Fl-U), and the gNB-CU-UP is connected to the gNB-CU-CP through an El interface. In some implementations, one gNB-DU is connected to only one gNB-CU-CP, and one gNB-CU-UP is connected to only one gNB-CU-CP. For resiliency, a gNB-DU and / or a gNB-CU-UP may be connected to multiple gNB-CU-CPs by an appropriate implementation. One gNB-DU can be connected to multiple gNB-CU-UPs under the control of the same gNB-CU-CP, and one gNB-CU-UP can be connected to multiple DUs under the control of the same gNB-CU-CP. Data forwarding between gNB-CU-UPs during intra-gNB-CU-CP handover within a gNB may be supported by Xn-U.

[0159] Similarly, individual ng-eNBs 218 can include an ng-eNB-CU and a set of ng-eNB-DUs. In these implementations, the ng-eNB-CU and each ng-eNB-DU are connected via respective W1 interfaces. An ng-eNB can include an ng-eNB-CU-CP, one or more ng-eNB-CU-UP(s), and one or more ng-eNB-DU(s). An ng-eNB-CU-CP and an ng-eNB-CU-UP are connected via the El interface. An ng-eNB-DU is connected to an ng-eNB-CU-CP via the Wl-C interface and to an ng-eNB-CU-UP via the Wl-U interface. The general principle described herein with respect to gNB aspects also applies to ng-eNB aspects and corresponding El and W1 interfaces if not explicitly specified otherwise.

[0160] The node hosting the user plane part of the PDCP protocol layer (e.g., gNB-CU, gNB-CU-UP, and for EN-DC, MeNB, or SgNB, depending on the bearer split) performs user inactivity monitoring. Further, it informs its inactivity or (re)activation to the node having a control plane connection towards the core network (e.g., over El, X2, or the like). The node hosting the RLC protocol layer (e.g., gNB-DU) may perform user inactivity monitoring and further inform its inactivity or (re)activation to the node hosting the control plane (e.g., gNB-CU or gNB-CU-CP).

[0161] In these implementations, the NG-RAN 214 is layered into a Radio Network Layer (RNL) and a Transport Network Layer (TNL). The NG-RAN 214 architecture (e.g., the NG-RAN logical nodes and their interfaces) is part of the RNL. For each NG-RAN interface (e.g., NG, Xn, Fl, and the like), theAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1related TNL protocol and the functionality are specified, for example, in TS 38.401. The TNL provides services for user plane transport and / or signaling transport. In NG-Flex configurations, each NG-RAN node is connected to all AMFs, 244 of which are AMF sets within an AMF region, supporting at least one slice, also supported by the NG-RAN node. The AMF Set and the AMF Region are defined in TS 23.501.

[0162] The RAN 204 is communicatively coupled to CN 220, which includes network elements and / or network functions (NFs) to provide various functions to support data and telecommunications services to customers / subscribers (e.g., UE 202). The components of the CN 220 may be implemented in one physical node or separate physical nodes. In some examples, NFV may be utilized to virtualize any or all of the functions provided by the network elements of the CN 220 onto physical compute / storage resources in servers, switches, and the like. A logical instantiation of the CN 220 may be referred to as a network slice, and a logical instantiation of a portion of the CN 220 may be referred to as a network subslice.

[0163] The CN 220 may be an LTE CN 220 (also referred to as an Evolved Packet Core (EPC) 222). The EPC 222 may include MME 224, SGW 226, SGSN 228, HSS 230, PGW 232, and PCRF 234 coupled with one another over interfaces (or “reference points”) as shown. The NFs in the EPC 222 are briefly introduced as follows.

[0164] The MME 224 implements mobility management functions to track the UE 202's current location and facilitate paging, bearer activation / deactivation, handovers, gateway selection, authentication, and the like. The SGW 226 terminates an SI interface toward the RAN and routes data packets between the RAN and the EPC 222. The SGW 226 may serve as a local mobility anchor point for inter-RAN node handovers and as an anchor for inter-3GPP mobility. Other responsibilities may include lawful intercept, charging, and some policy enforcement. The SGSN 228 tracks the UE 202's location and performs security functions and access control. The SGSN 228 also performs inter-EPC node signaling for mobility between different RAT networks; PDN and S-GW selection as specified by MME 224; MME 224 selection for handovers; and the like.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0165] The S3 reference point between the MME 224 and the SGSN 228 enables the exchange of user and bearer information for inter-3 GPP access network mobility in idle / active states. The HSS 230 includes a database for network users, including subscription-related information to support the network entities’ handling of communication sessions. The HSS 230 can support routing / roaming, authentication, authorization, naming / addressing resolution, location-dependent services, and the like.

[0166] An S6a reference point between the HSS 230 and the MME 224 may enable the transfer of subscription and authentication data for authenticating / authorizing user access to the EPC 222. The PGW 232 may terminate an SGi interface toward a data network (DN) 236 that may include an application (app) / content server 238. The PGW 232 routes data packets between the EPC 222 and the DN 236. The PGW 232 is communicatively coupled with the SGW 226 by an S5 reference point to facilitate user plane tunneling and tunnel management. The PGW 232 may further include a node for policy enforcement and charging data collection (e.g., PCEF). Additionally, the SGi reference point may communicatively couple the PGW 232 with the same or different DN 236. The PGW 232 may be communicatively coupled with a PCRF 234 via a Gx reference point. The PCRF 234 is the policy and charging control element of the EPC 222. The PCRF 234 is communicatively coupled to the app / content server 238 to determine appropriate QoS and charging parameters for service flows. The PCRF 234 also provisions associated rules into a PCEF (via Gx reference point) with appropriate TFT and QCI.

[0167] The CN 220 may be a 5GC 240, including an AUSF 242, AMF 244, SMF 246, UPF 248, NSSF 250, NEF 252, NRF 254, PCF 256, UDM 258, and AF 260 coupled with one another over various interfaces as shown. The NFs in the 5GC 240 are briefly introduced as follows.

[0168] The AUSF 242 stores data for UE 202 authentication and handles authentication-related functionality. The AUSF 242 may facilitate a common authentication framework for various access types.

[0169] The AMF 244 allows other functions of the 5GC 240 to communicate with the UE 202 and the RAN 204, and to subscribe to notifications about mobility events for the UE 202. The AMF 244 is also responsible forAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1registration management (e.g., UE 202 registration), connection management, reachability management, mobility management, lawful interception of AMF-related events, and access authentication and authorization. The AMF 244 provides transport for SM messages between the UE 202 and the SMF 246 and acts as a transparent proxy for routing SM messages. The AMF 244 also provides transport for SMS messages between the UE 202 and an SMSF. The AMF 244 interacts with the AUSF 242 and the UE 202 to perform various security-anchor and context-management functions. Furthermore, the AMF 244 is a termination point for a RAN-CP interface, which includes the N2 reference point between the RAN 204 and the AMF 244. The AMF 244 is also a termination point of NAS (Nl) signaling and performs NAS ciphering and integrity protection.

[0170] The AMF 244 also supports NAS signaling with the UE 202 over an N3IWF interface. The N3IWF provides access to untrusted entities. N3IWF may be a termination point for the N2 interface between the RAN 204 and the AMF 244 for the control plane, and may be a termination point for the N3 reference point between the RAN 204 and the UPF 248 for the user plane. As such, the AMF 244 handles N2 signaling from the SMF 246 and the AMF 244 for PDU sessions and quality of service, encapsulates / de-encapsulates packets for IPSec and N3 tunneling, marks N3 user-plane packets in the uplink, and enforces quality of service corresponding to N3 packet marking taking into account quality of service requirements associated with such marking received over N2. N3IWF may also relay UL and DL control-plane NAS signaling between the UE 202 and AMF 244 via an Nl reference point between the UE 202 and the AMF 244, and relay uplink and downlink user-plane packets between the UE 202 and UPF 248. The N3IWF also provides mechanisms for IPsec tunnel establishment with the UE 202. The AMF 244 may exhibit a Namf service-based interface and may be a termination point for an N14 reference point between two AMFs 244 and an N17 reference point between the AMF 244 and a 5G-EIR (not shown by FIG. 2).

[0171] The SMF 246 is responsible for SM (e.g., session establishment, tunnel management between UPF 248 and AN 208); UE IP address allocation and management (including optional authorization); selection and control of UP function; configuring traffic steering at UPF 248 to route traffic to the properAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1destination; termination of interfaces toward policy control functions; controlling part of policy enforcement, charging, and quality of service; lawful intercept (for SM events and interface to LI system); termination of SM parts of NAS messages; downlink data notification; initiating AN-specific SM information, sent via AMF 244 over N2 to AN 208; and determining SSC mode of a session. SM refers to the management of a PDU session, and a PDU session or “session” refers to a PDU connectivity service that provides or enables the exchange of PDUs between the UE 202 and the DN 236. The SMF 246 may also include the following functionalities to support edge computing enhancements (see, e.g., [TS23548]): selection of EASDF 261 and provision of its address to the UE as the DNS server for the PDU session; usage of EASDF 261 services as defined in [TS23548]; and for supporting the application layer architecture defined in [TS23558], provision and updates of ECS address configuration information to the UE. Discovery and selection procedures for EASDFs 261 are discussed in [TS23501] § 6.3.23.

[0172] The UPF 248 acts as an anchor point for intra-RAT and inter-RAT mobility, an external PDU session point of interconnect to DN 236, and a branching point to support multi-homed PDU sessions. The UPF 248 also performs packet routing and forwarding, packet inspection, enforces user plane part of policy rules, lawfully intercepts packets (UP collection), performs traffic usage reporting, performs quality of service handling for a user plane (e.g., packet filtering, gating, UL / DL rate enforcement), performs uplink traffic verification (e.g., SDF-to-QoS flow mapping), transport-level packet marking in the uplink and downlink, and performs downlink packet buffering and downlink data notification triggering. UPF 248 may include an uplink classifier to support routing traffic flows to a data network.

[0173] The NSSF 250 selects a set of network slice instances serving the UE 202. The NSSF 250 also determines allowed NSSAI and the mapping to the subscribed S-NSSAIs, if needed. The NSSF 250 also determines an AMF set to be used to serve the UE 202 or a list of candidate AMFs 244 based on a suitable configuration and possibly by querying the NRF 254. The selection of a set of network slice instances for the UE 202 may be triggered by the AMF 244 with which the UE 202 is registered by interacting with the NSSF 250; this may lead to a change of AMF 244. The NSSF 250 interacts with the AMF 244 via an N22AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1reference point and may communicate with another NSSF in a visited network via an N31 reference point (not shown).

[0174] The NEF 252 securely exposes services and capabilities provided by 3 GPP NFs for third-party, internal exposure / re-exposure, AFs 260, edge computing, or fog computing systems (e.g., edge compute node, and the like). In such examples, the NEF 252 may authenticate, authorize, or throttle the AFs. NEF 252 may also translate information exchanged with the AF 260 and information exchanged with internal network functions. For example, the NEF 252 may translate between an AF-Service-Identifier and an internal 5GC information. NEF 252 may also receive information from other NFs based on the capabilities of other NFs that are exposed. This information may be stored at the NEF 252 as structured data or at a data storage NF using standardized interfaces. The stored information can then be re-exposed by the NEF 252 to other NFs and AFs or used for other purposes, such as analytics.

[0175] The NRF 254 supports service discovery functions, receives NF discovery requests from NF instances, and provides information on the discovered NF instances to the requesting NF instances. NRF 254 also maintains information on available NF instances and their supported services. The NRF 254 also supports service discovery functions, wherein the NRF 254 receives an NF Discovery Request from an NF instance or an SCP (not shown) and provides information about the discovered NF instances to the NF instance or SCP.

[0176] The PCF 256 provides policy rules to control plane functions and enforces them, and it may also support a unified policy framework to govern network behavior. The PCF 256 may also implement a front end to access subscription information relevant to policy decisions from a unified data repository (UDR) within the UDM 258. In addition to communicating with functions via reference points, as shown, the PCF 256 also provides an Npcf service-based interface.

[0177] The UDM 258 handles subscription-related information to support the network entities’ handling of communication sessions and stores UE 202's subscription data. For example, subscription data may be communicated via an N8 reference point between the UDM 258 and the AMF 244. The UDM 258AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1may include two parts: an application front end and a UDR. The UDR may store subscription data and policy data for the UDM 258 and the PCF 256, and / or structured data for exposure and application data (including PFDs for application detection and application request information for multiple UEs 202) for the NEF 252. The Nudr service-based interface may be exhibited by the UDR to allow the UDM 258, PCF 256, and NEF 252 to access a particular set of stored data, as well as to read, update (e.g., add, modify), delete, and subscribe to notification of relevant data changes in the UDR. The UDM 258 may include a UDM-FE, which is in charge of processing credentials, location management, subscription management, and so on. Several different front ends may serve the same user in different transactions. The UDM-FE accesses subscription information stored in the UDR and performs authentication credential processing, user identification handling, access authorization, registration / mobility management, and subscription management. In addition to communicating with other NFs over reference points, as shown, the UDM 258 may exhibit the Nudm service-based interface.

[0178] Edge Application Server Discovery Function (EASDF) 261 exhibits a Neasdf service-based interface and is connected to the SMF 246 via an N88 interface. One or multiple EASDF instances may be deployed within a PLMN, and interactions between 5GC NF(s) and the EASDF 261 take place within a PLMN. The EASDF 261 includes one or more of the following functionalities: registering to NRF 254 for EASDF 261 discovery and selection; handling the DNS messages according to the instruction from the SMF 246; and / or terminating DNS security if used. Handling the DNS messages according to the instruction from the SMF 246 includes one or more of the following functionalities: receiving DNS message handling rules and / or BaselineDNSPattern from the SMF 246; exchanging DNS messages from / with the UE 202; forwarding DNS messages to C-DNS or L-DNS for DNS query; adding EDNS client subnet (ECS) option into DNS query for an FQDN; reporting to the SMF 246 the information related to the received DNS messages; and / or buffering / discarding DNS messages from the UE 202 or DNS Server. The EASDF has direct user plane connectivity (e.g., without any NAT) with the PSA UPF over N6 for the transmission of DNS signaling exchanged with the UE. The deployment of a NAT between EASDF 261 and PSA UPF 248 may orAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1may not be supported. Additional aspects of the EASDF 261 are discussed in [TS23548],

[0179] AF 260 provides application influence on traffic routing, provides access to NEF 252, and interacts with the policy framework for policy control. The AF 260 may influence UPF 248 (re)selection and traffic routing. Based on operator deployment, when AF 260 is considered to be a trusted entity, the network operator may permit AF 260 to interact directly with relevant NFs. In some implementations, the AF 260 is used for edge computing implementations.

[0180] The 5GC 240 may enable edge computing by selecting operator / 3rd party services to be geographically close to the point where the UE 202 is attached to the network. This may reduce latency and network load. In edge computing implementations, the 5GC 240 may select a UPF 248 close to the UE 202 and execute traffic steering from the UPF 248 to DN 236 via the N6 interface. This may be based on the UE subscription data, UE location, and information provided by the AF 260, which allows the AF 260 to influence UPF (re)selection and traffic routing.

[0181] The DN 236 may represent various network operator services, Internet access, or third-party services provided by one or more servers, including, for example, app / content server 238. The DN 236 may be an external public operator, a private PDN, or an intra-operator packet data network, for example, for the provision of IMS services. In this example, the app / content server 238 can be coupled to an IMS via an S-CSCF or the I-CSCF. In some implementations, the DN 236 may represent one or more local area DNs (LADNs), which are DNs (or DN names (DNNs)) that are accessible by a UE 202 in one or more specific areas. Outside these specific areas, the UE 202 cannot access the LADN / DN.

[0182] Additionally, or alternatively, the DN 236 may be an edge DN 236, which is a (local) DN that supports the architecture for enabling edge applications. In these examples, the app / content server 238 may represent the physical hardware systems / devices providing app server functionality and / or the application software resident in the cloud or at an edge compute node that performs server function(s). In some examples, the app / content server 238AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1provides an edge hosting environment that supports the Edge Application Server's execution.

[0183] In some examples, the 5GS can use one or more edge compute nodes to provide an interface and offload processing of wireless communication traffic. In these examples, the edge compute nodes may be included in or co-located with one or more RANs. For example, the edge compute nodes can provide connectivity between the NG-RAN 214 and the UPF 248 in the 5GC 240. The edge compute nodes can use one or more NFV instances instantiated on virtualization infrastructure within the edge compute nodes to process wireless connections to and from the NG-RAN 214 and UPF 248.

[0184] In some implementations, the edge compute nodes provide a distributed computing environment for application and service hosting, as well as storage and processing resources, so that data and / or content can be processed in close proximity to subscribers (e.g., users of UEs 202) for faster response times. The edge compute nodes also support multitenancy run-time and hosting environment s) for applications, including virtual appliance applications that may be delivered as packaged virtual machine (VM) images, middleware applications, and infrastructure services, content delivery services, including content caching, mobile big data analytics, and computational offloading, among others. Computational offloading involves moving computational tasks, workloads, applications, and / or services from UEs 202, CN 220, DN 236, and / or server(s) 238 to edge compute nodes, or vice versa. For example, a device application or client application operating in a UE 202 may offload application tasks or workloads to one or more edge compute nodes. In another example, an edge compute node may offload application tasks or workloads to a set of UEs 202 (e.g., for distributed machine learning computation and / or the like).

[0185] The edge compute nodes may include or be part of an edge system that employs one or more edge computing technologies (ECTs) (also referred to as an “edge computing framework” or the like). The edge compute nodes may also be referred to as “edge hosts” or “edge servers.” The edge system includes a collection of edge servers and edge management systems (not shown) necessary to run edge computing applications within an operator network or a subset of an operator network. Edge servers are physical computer systems that may includeAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1an edge platform and / or virtualization infrastructure and provide compute, storage, and network resources to edge computing applications. Each of the edge servers is disposed at an edge of a corresponding access network and is arranged to provide computing resources and / or various services (e.g., computational task and / or workload offloading, cloud-computing capabilities, IT services, and other like resources and / or services as discussed herein) in relatively close proximity to UEs 202. The VI of the edge compute nodes provides virtualized environments and virtualized resources for the edge hosts, and the edge computing applications may run as VMs and / or application containers on top of the VI.

[0186] In one example implementation, the ECT is and / or operates according to the MEC framework, as discussed in ETSI GR MEC 001 v3.1.1 (2022-01), ETSI GS MEC 003 v3.1.1 (2022-03), ETSI GS MEC 009 v3.1.1 (2021-06), ETSI GS MEC 010-1 vl.1.1 (2017-10), ETSI GS MEC 010-2 v2.2.1 (2022-02), ETSI GS MEC 011 v2.2.1 (2020-12), ETSI GS MEC 012 v2.2.1 (2022-02), ETSI GS MEC 013 v2.2.1 (2022-01), ETSI GS MEC 014 v2.1.1 (2021-03), ETSI GS MEC 015 v2.1.1 (2020-06), ETSI GS MEC 016 v2.2.1 (2020-04), ETSI GS MEC 021 v2.2.1 (2022-02), ETSI GR MEC 024 v2.1.1 (2019-11), ETSI GS MEC 028 v2.2.1 (2021-07), ETSI GS MEC 029 v2.2.1 (2022-01), ETSI MEC GS 030 v2.1.1 (2020-04), ETSI GRMEC 031 v2.1.1 (2020-10), U.S. Provisional App. No. 63 / 003,834, filed April 1, 2020 (“[US’834]”), and IntT App. No. PCT / US2020 / 066969, filed on December 23, 2020 (“[PCT’696]”) (collectively referred to herein as “[MEC]”), the contents of each of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties. This example implementation (and / or in any other example implementation discussed herein) may also include NFV and / or other like virtualization technologies such as those discussed in ETSI GRNFV 001 vl.3.1 (2021-03), ETSI GS NFV 002 vl.2.1 (2014-12), ETSI GR NFV 003 vl .6.1 (2021-03), ETSI GS NFV 006 v2.1.1 (2021-01), ETSI GS NFV-INF 001 vl.1.1 (2015-01), ETSI GS NFV-INF 003 vl.1.1 (2014-12), ETSI GS NFV-INF 004 vl.1.1 (2015-01), ETSI GS NFV-MAN 001 vl.1.1 (2014-12), and / or Israel et al., OSM Release FIVE Technical Overview, ETSI Open Source MANO, OSM White Paper, 1st ed. (Jan. 2019), https : / / osm . etsi . org / images / O SM-Whitepaper-T echContent-ReleaseFIVE-FINAL.pdf (collectively referred to as “[ETSINFV]”), the contents of each ofAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties. Other virtualization technologies and / or service orchestration and automation platforms may be used, such as those discussed in E2E Network Slicing Architecture, GSMA, Official Doc. NG.127, vl.O (03 Jun. 2021), https: / / www.gsma.eom / newsroom / wp-content / uploads / / NG.127-vl.0-2.pdf, Open Network Automation Platform (ONAP) documentation, Release Istanbul, v9.0.1 (17 Feb. 2022), https: / / docs.onap.org / en / latest / index.html (“[ONAP]”), 3GPP Service Based Management Architecture (SBMA) as discussed in 3GPP TS 28.533 V17.1.0 (2021-12-23) (“[TS28533]”), the contents of each of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties.

[0187] In another example implementation, the ECT is and / or operates according to the 0-RAN framework. Typically, front-end and back-end device vendors and carriers have worked closely to ensure compatibility. The flip side of such a working model is that it becomes quite difficult to plug and play with other devices, and this can hamper innovation. To combat this and to promote openness and interoperability at every level, several key players interested in the wireless domain (e.g., carriers, device manufacturers, academic institutions, and / or the like) formed the Open RAN Alliance (“0-RAN”) in 2018. The O-RAN network architecture is a building block for designing virtualized RAN on programmable hardware with radio access control powered by AI / ML. Various aspects of the 0-RAN architecture are described in 0-RAN Architecture Description v07.00, 0-RAN Alliance WG1 (Oct. 2022) (“ [0-RAN. WG1.0-RAN-Architecture-Description]”); 0-RAN Operations and Maintenance Architecture Specification v04.00, 0-RAN Alliance WG1 (Feb. 2021)(“[0-RAN.WG1.0AM- Architecture]”); 0-RAN Operations and Maintenance Interface Specification v04.00, 0-RAN Alliance WG1 (Feb. 2021) (“[O-RAN.WGl.Ol-Interface.O]”); 0-RAN Information Model and Data Models Specification vOl.OO, 0-RAN Alliance WG1 (Feb. 2021); 0-RAN Working Group 1 Slicing Architecture v08.00 (Oct. 2022); 0-RAN Working Group 2 (Non-RT RIC and Al interface WG) Al interface: Application Protocol v03.02 (Jul. 2021); 0-RAN Working Group 1 Use Cases Detailed Specification v09.00 (Oct. 2022) (“ [0-RAN. WG1.Use-Cases]”); 0-RAN Working Group 2 (Non-RT RIC and Al interface WG) Al interface: General Aspects and Principles v03.00 (Oct. 2022) (“[0-RAN. WG2.A1GAP]”); 0-RAN Working Group 2 (Non-RTAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1RIC and Al interface WG) Al interface: Type Definitions v04.00 (Oct. 2021); 0-RAN Working Group 2 (Non-RT RIC and Al interface WG) Al interface: Transport Protocol v02.00 (Oct. 2022); 0-RAN Working Group 2 AI / ML workflow description and requirements v01.03, O-RAN Alliance WG2 (Oct. 2021) (“[0-RAN.WG2.AIML]”); O-RAN Working Group 2 (Non-RT RIC and Al interface WG) Non-RT RIC Architecture v02.01 (Oct. 2022); O-RAN Working Group 2 Non-RT RIC: Functional Architecture vOl.Ol, O-RAN Alliance WG2 (Jun. 2021); O-RAN Working Group 2 (Non-RT RIC and Al interface WG): R1 interface: General Aspects and Principles v03.00, O-RAN Alliance WG2 (Oct. 2022); O-RAN Working Group 3 Near-Real-time RAN Intelligent Controller Architecture & E2 General Aspects and Principles v02.02 (Jul. 2022) (“ [O-RAN. WG3.E2GAP]”); O-RAN Working Group 3 Near-Realtime Intelligent Controller E2 Service Model (E2SM) v02.01 (Mar. 2022) (“[O-RAN.WG3.E2SM]”); O-RAN Working Group 3 Near-Real-time Intelligent Controller E2 Service Model (E2SM), Cell Configuration and Control vOl.OO (Oct. 2022) (“[O-RAN. WG3.E2SM-CCC]”); O-RAN Working Group 3 Near-Real-time Intelligent Controller E2 Service Model (E2SM) KPM v02.03 (Oct.2022) (“[O-RAN.WG3.E2SM-KPM]”); O-RAN Working Group 3 Near-Realtime Intelligent Controller E2 Service Model (E2SM) RAN Function Network Interface (NI) vOl.OO (Feb. 2020) (“[O-RAN-WG3.E2SM-NI]”); O-RAN Working Group 3 Near-Real-time Intelligent Controller E2 Service Model (E2SM) RAN Control v01.03 (Oct. 2022) (“[O-RAN.WG3.E2SM-RC]”); O-RAN Working Group 3, Near-Real-time Intelligent Controller, E2 Application Protocol (E2AP) v02.03 (Oct. 2022) (“ [O-RAN. WG3.E2AP]”); O-RAN Working Group 3 (Near-Real-time RAN Intelligent Controller and E2 Interface Working Group): Near-RT RIC Architecture v03.00 (Oct. 2022) (“[O-RAN.WG3. RIC ARCH]”); O-RAN Working Group 4 (Open Fronthaul Interfaces WG) Control, User and Synchronization Plane Specification v09.00 (Jul. 2022) (“[O-RAN-WG4.CUS.0]”); O-RAN Fronthaul Working Group 4 Cooperative Transport Interface Transport Control Plane Specification v02.00, O-RAN Alliance WG4 (Jun. 2021); O-RAN Fronthaul Working Group 4 Cooperative Transport Interface Transport Management Plane Specification v02.00 (Jun. 2021); O-RAN Fronthaul Working Group 4 (Open Fronthaul Interfaces WG): Management Plane Specification v09.00 (Jul. 2022) (“[O-RAN.WG4.MP.0]”);AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1O-RAN Alliance Working Group 5 01 Interface specification for 0-CU-UP and O-CU-CP v04.00 (Oct. 2022); O-RAN Alliance Working Group 5 01 Interface specification for 0-DU v05.00 (Oct. 2022); O-RAN Open Fl / Wl / El / X2 / Xn Interfaces Working Group Transport Specification vOl.OO, O-RAN Alliance WG5 (Apr. 2020); O-RAN Working Group 6 (Cloudification and Orchestration) Cloud Architecture and Deployment Scenarios for O-RAN Virtualized RAN v04.00 (Oct. 2022) (“[O-RAN. WG6.CADS]”); O-RAN Cloud Platform Reference Designs v02.00, O-RAN Alliance WG6 (Feb. 2021); O-RAN Working Group 602 Interface General Aspects and Principles v02.00 (Oct. 2022); O-RAN Working Group 6 (Cloudification and Orchestration Work Group); O-RAN Acceleration Abstraction Layer General Aspects and Principles v04.00 (Oct. 2022); O-RAN Working Group 6: O-Cloud Notification API Specification for Event Consumersv03.00 (“[O-RAN.WG6.O-Cloud Notification API]”); O-RAN White Box Hardware Working Group Hardware Reference Design Specification for Indoor Pico Cell with Fronthaul Split Option 6 v02.00, O-RAN Alliance WG7 (Oct. 2021) (“[O-RAN. WG7.IPC-HRD-Opt6]”); O-RAN WG7 Hardware Reference Design Specification for Indoor Picocell (FR1) with Split Architecture Option 7-2 v03.00, O-RAN Alliance WG7 (Oct. 2021) (“[O-RAN.WG7.IPC-HRD-Opt7-2]”); O-RAN WG7 Hardware Reference Design Specification for Indoor Picocell (FR1) with Split Architecture Option 8 v03.00 (Oct. 2021) (“[O-RAN. WG7.IPC-HRD-Opt8]”); O-RAN White Box Hardware Working Group Hardware Reference Design Specification for Outdoor Micro Cell with Split Architecture Option 7.2 v03.00, O-RAN Alliance WG7 (Oct. 2022) (“[O-RAN. WG7.OMC-HRD-Opt7-2]”); O-RAN White Box Hardware Working Group Hardware Reference Design Specification for Outdoor Macro Cell with Split Architecture Option 7.2 v03.00, O-RAN Alliance WG7 (Jul. 2022) (“[O-RAN. WG7.0MAC-HRD]”); O-RAN Open X-haul Transport Working Group Management interfaces for Transport Network Elements v04.00, O-RAN Alliance WG9 (Jul. 2022); O-RAN Open X-haul Transport Working Group Synchronization Architecture and Solution Specification v02.00, O-RAN Alliance WG9 (Mar. 2022); O-RAN Open Xhaul Transport WG9 WDM-based Fronthaul Transport v2.0, O-RAN Alliance WG9 (Mar. 2022); O-RAN Open Transport Working Group 9 Xhaul Packet Switched Architectures and Solutions v03.00, O-RAN Alliance WG9 (Jul. 2022) (“[O-AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1RAN.WG9.XPSAAS]”); O-RAN Operations and Maintenance Architecture v07.00, O-RAN Alliance WG10 (Jul. 2022) (“[O-RAN.WGIO.OAM-Architecture]”); O-RAN Operations and Maintenance Interface Specification v07.00, O-RAN Alliance WG10 (Jul. 2022); O-RAN Operations and Maintenance Interface Specification v08.00, O-RAN Alliance WG10 (Oct. 2022) (“[O-RAN.WGlO.Ol-Interface.O]”); O-RAN: Towards an Open and Smart RAN, O-RAN Alliance, White Paper (Oct. 2018); and U.S. App. No. 17 / 484,743 filed on 24 Sep. 2021 (collectively referred to as “[O-RAN]”), the contents of each of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.

[0188] In another example implementation, the ECT is and / or operates according to the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) System Aspects Working Group 6 (SA6) Architecture for enabling Edge Applications (referred to as “3GPP edge computing”) as discussed in 3GPP TS 23.558 vl8.1.0 (2022-12-23) (“[TS23558]”), 3GPP TS 23.501 vl8.0.0 (2022-12-21) (“[TS23501]”), 3GPP TS 23.548 vl7.4.0 (2022-09-22) (“[TS23548]”), 3GPP TR 23.700-98 V18.0.0 (2022-12-23) (“[TR23700-98]”), 3GPP TS 23.222 vl8.0.0 (2022-12-23) (“[TS23222]”), TS 33.122 vl8.0.0 (2022-12-16) (“[TS33122]”), and 3GPP TS 29.222 V17.1.0 (2021-06-25) (“[TS29222]”), 3GPP TS 23.502 vl8.0.0 (2022-12-21) (“[TS23502]”), 3GPP TS 29.522 vl8.0.0 (2022-12-16) (“[TS29522]”), 3GPP TS 29.122 vl8.0.0 (2022-12-16) (“[TS29122]”), 3GPP TS 23.682 vl7.3.0 (2022-06-15) (“[TS23682]”), 3GPP TS 23.434 vl8.3.0 (2022-12-23) (“[TS23434]”), and 3GPP TS 23.401 vl8.0.0 (2022-12-21) (collectively referred to as “[SA6Edge]”), the contents of each of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties.

[0189] In another example implementation, the ECT is and / or operates according to the Intel® Smart Edge Open framework (formerly known as OpenNESS) as discussed in Intel® Smart Edge Open Developer Guide, version 21.09 (30 Sep. 2021), available at: https: / / smart-edge-open.github.io / (“[ISEO]”), the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.

[0190] In another example implementation, the ECT operates according to the Multi-Access Management Services (MAMS) framework as discussed in Kanugovi et al., Multi-Access Management Services (MAMS), InternetAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1Engineering Task Force (IETF), Request for Comments (RFC) 8743 (Mar. 2020) (“[RFC8743]”), Ford et al., TCP Extensions for Multipath Operation with Multiple Addresses, IETF RFC 8684, (Mar. 2020), De Coninck et al., Multipath Extensions for QUIC (MP-QUIC), IETF draft-deconinck-quic-multipath-07, IETF, QUIC Working Group (03 -May-2021), Zhu, et al., User-Plane Protocols for Multiple Access Management Service, IETF draft-zhu-intarea-mams-user-protocol-09, IETF, INTAREA (04-Mar-2020), and Zhu et al., Generic MultiAccess (GMA) Convergence Encapsulation Protocols, IETF RFC 9188 (Feb. 2022) (collectively referred to as “[MAMS]”), the contents of each of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties.

[0191] It should be understood that the aforementioned edge computing frameworks / ECTs and services deployment examples are only illustrative examples of ECTs and that the present techniques may be applicable to many other or additional edge computing / networking technologies in various combinations and layouts of devices located at the edge of a network, including the various edge computing networks / sy stems described herein. Further, the techniques disclosed herein may relate to other loT edge network systems and configurations, and other intermediate processing entities and architectures may also be applicable to the disclosed techniques. Examples of such edge computing / networking technologies include [MEC]; [0-RAN]; [ISEO];[SA6Edge]; Content Delivery Networks (CDNs) (also referred to as “Content Distribution Networks” or the like); Mobility Service Provider (MSP) edge computing and / or Mobility as a Service (MaaS) provider systems (e.g., used in AECC architectures); Nebula edge-cloud systems; Fog computing systems; Cloudlet edge-cloud systems; Mobile Cloud Computing (MCC) systems; Central Office Re-architected as a Datacenter (CORD), mobile CORD (M-CORD), and / or Converged Multi-Access and Core (COMAC) systems; and / or the like. Further, the techniques disclosed herein may relate to other loT edge network systems and configurations, and other intermediate processing entities and architectures may also be used for purposes of the disclosed techniques.

[0192] The 5GC 240 interfaces include reference points and service-based interfaces. The reference points include N1 (between the UE 202 and the AMF 244), N2 (between NG-RAN 214 and AMF 244), N3 (between NG-RAN 214 and UPF 248), N4 (between the SMF 246 and UPF 248), N5 (between PCF 256AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1and AF 260), N6 (between UPF 248 and DN 236), N7 (between SMF 246 and PCF 256), N8 (between UDM 258 and AMF 244), N9 (between two UPFs 248), N10 (between the UDM 258 and the SMF 246), Nil (between the AMF 244 and the SMF 246), N12 (between AUSF 242 and AMF 244), N13 (between AUSF 242 and UDM 258), N14 (between two AMFs 244; not shown), N15 (between PCF 256 and AMF 244 in case of a non-roaming scenario, or between the PCF 256 in a visited network and AMF 244 in case of a roaming scenario), N16 (between two SMFs 246; not shown), and N22 (between AMF 244 and NSSF 250). Other reference point representations not shown in Figure 2 can also be used. The service-based representation of Figure 2 represents NFs within the control plane that enable other authorized NFs to access their services. The service-based interfaces (SBIs) include Namf (SBI exhibited by AMF 244), Nsmf (SBI exhibited by SMF 246), Nnef (SBI exhibited by NEF 252), Npcf (SBI exhibited by PCF 256), Nudm (SBI exhibited by UDM 258), Naf (SBI exhibited by AF 260), Nnrf (SBI exhibited by NRF 254), Nnssf (SBI exhibited by NSSF 250), Nausf (SBI exhibited by AUSF 242). Other service-based interfaces (e.g., Nudr, N5g-eir, and Nudsf) not shown in FIG. 2 can also be used. In some examples, the NEF 252 can provide an interface to edge compute nodes, which can be used to process wireless connections with the NG-RAN 214.

[0193] In some implementations, the network architecture 200 may include an SMSF, which is responsible for SMS subscription checking and verification and relaying SM messages to / from the UE 202 to / from other entities, such as an SMS-GMSC / IWMSC / SMS-router. The SMS may also interact with AMF 244 and UDM 258 to notify the UE 202 that it is available for SMS transfer (e.g., by setting a UE not reachable flag and notifying UDM 258 when UE 202 becomes available for SMS).

[0194] The 5GS may also include an SCP (or individual instances of the SCP) that supports indirect communication (see, e.g., 3GPP TS 23.501 section 7.1.1); delegated discovery (see, e.g., 3GPP TS 23.501 section 7.1.1); message forwarding and routing to destination NF / NF service(s), communication security (e.g., authorization of the NF Service Consumer to access the NF Service Producer API) (see, e.g., 3GPP TS 33.501), load balancing, monitoring, overload control, and the like; and discovery and selection functionality for UDM(s) 258, AUSF(s) 242, UDR(s), PCF(s) 256 with access to subscription data stored in theAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1UDR based on UE's SUPI, SUCI, or GPSI (see e.g., [TS23501] § 6.3). Load balancing, monitoring, and overload control functionality provided by the SCP may be implementation-specific. The SCP may be deployed in a distributed manner. More than one SCP can be present in the communication path between various NF Services. The SCP, although not an NF instance, can also be deployed in a distributed, redundant, and scalable manner.

[0195] FIG. 3 schematically illustrates a wireless network 300 in accordance with various embodiments. The wireless network 300 may include a UE 302 in wireless communication with an AN 304. The UE 302 and AN 304 may be similar to, and substantially interchangeable with, like-named components described elsewhere herein.

[0196] The UE 302 may be communicatively coupled with the AN 304 via connection 306. Connection 306 is illustrated as an air interface to enable communicative coupling and can be consistent with cellular communications protocols such as an LTE protocol or a 5G NR protocol operating at FR2 (mmWave) or FR1 (sub-7 GHz) frequencies.

[0197] The UE 302 may include a host platform 308 coupled with a modem platform 310. The host platform 308 may include application processing circuitry 312, which may be coupled with protocol processing circuitry 314 of the modem platform 310. The application processing circuitry 312 may run various applications for the UE 302 that source / sink application data. The application processing circuitry 312 may further implement one or more layer operations to transmit / receive application data to / from a data network. These layer operations may include transport (for example, UDP) and Internet (for example, IP) operations.

[0198] The protocol processing circuitry 314 may implement one or more layer operations to facilitate the transmission or reception of data over connection 306. The layer operations implemented by the protocol processing circuitry 314 may include, for example, MAC, RLC, PDCP, RRC, and NAS operations.

[0199] The modem platform 310 may further include digital baseband circuitry 316 that may implement one or more layer operations that are “below” the layer operations performed by the protocol processing circuitry 314 in aAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1network protocol stack. These operations may include, for example, PHY operations including one or more of HARQ-ACK functions, scrambling / descrambling, encoding / decoding, layer mapping / de-mapping, modulation symbol mapping, received symbol / bit metric determination, multiantenna port precoding / decoding, which may include one or more of space-time, space-frequency, or spatial coding, reference signal generation / detection, preamble sequence generation and / or decoding, synchronization sequence generation / detection, control channel signal blind decoding, and other related functions.

[0200] The modem platform 310 may further include transmit circuitry 318, receive circuitry 320, RF circuitry 322, and RF front end (RFFE) 324, which may include or connect to one or more antenna panels 326. Briefly, the transmit circuitry 318 may include a digital -to-analog converter, a mixer, intermediate frequency (IF) components, etc.; the receive circuitry 320 may include an analog-to-digital converter, a mixer, IF components, etc.; the RF circuitry 322 may include a low-noise amplifier, a power amplifier, power tracking components, etc.; the RFFE 324 may include filters (for example, surface / bulk acoustic wave filters), switches, antenna tuners, beamforming components (for example, phase-array antenna components), etc. The selection and arrangement of the components of the transmit circuitry 318, receive circuitry 320, RF circuitry 322, RFFE 324, and one or more antenna panels 326 (referred to generically as “transmit / receive components”) may be specific to details of a specific implementation, such as, for example, whether the communication is TDM or FDM, in FR2 (mmWave) or FR1 (sub-7 GHz) frequencies, etc. In some embodiments, the transmit / receive components may be arranged in multiple parallel transmit / receive chains, may be disposed of in the same or different chips / modules, etc.

[0201] In some embodiments, the protocol processing circuitry 314 may include one or more instances of control circuitry (not shown) to provide control functions for the transmit / receive components.

[0202] A UE reception may be established by and via the one or more antenna panels 326, RFFE 324, RF circuitry 322, receive circuitry 320, digital baseband circuitry 316, and protocol processing circuitry 314. In someAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1embodiments, the one or more antenna panels 326 may receive a transmission from the AN 304 by receive-beamforming signals received by a plurality of antennas / antenna elements of the one or more antenna panels 326.

[0203] A UE transmission may be established by and via the protocol processing circuitry 314, digital baseband circuitry 316, transmit circuitry 318, RF circuitry 322, RFFE 324, and one or more antenna panels 326. In some embodiments, the transmit components of the UE 302 may apply a spatial filter to the data to be transmitted to form a transmit beam emitted by the antenna elements of the one or more antenna panels 326.

[0204] Similar to the UE 302, the AN 304 may include a host platform 328 coupled with a modem platform 330. The host platform 328 may include application processing circuitry 332 coupled with protocol processing circuitry 334 of the modem platform 330. The modem platform may further include digital baseband circuitry 336, transmit circuitry 338, receive circuitry 340, RF circuitry 342, RFFE circuitry 344, and antenna panels 346. The components of the AN 304 may be similar to and substantially interchangeable with the like-named components of the UE 302. In addition to performing data transmission / reception as described above, the components of the AN 304 may perform various logical functions that include, for example, RNC functions such as radio bearer management, uplink and downlink dynamic radio resource management, and data packet scheduling.

[0205] FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating components, according to some example embodiments, able to read instructions from a machine-readable or computer-readable medium (e.g., a non-transitory machine-readable storage medium) and perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein. Specifically, FIG. 4 shows a diagrammatic representation of hardware resources 400, including one or more processors (or processor cores) 410, one or more memory / storage devices 420, and one or more communication resources 430, each of which may be communicatively coupled via a bus 440 or other interface circuitry. For embodiments where node virtualization (e.g., NFV) is utilized, a hypervisor 402 may be executed to provide an execution environment for one or more network slices / sub-slices to utilize the hardware resources 400.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0206] The one or more processors 410 may include, for example, a processor 412 and a processor 414. The one or more processors 410 may be, for example, a central processing unit (CPU), a reduced instruction set computing (RISC) processor, a complex instruction set computing (CISC) processor, a graphics processing unit (GPU), a digital signal processor (DSP) such as a baseband processor, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a radio-frequency integrated circuit (RFIC), another processor (including those discussed herein), or any suitable combination thereof.

[0207] The memory / storage devices 420 may include a main memory, disk storage, or any suitable combination thereof. The memory / storage devices 420 may include but are not limited to, any type of volatile, non-volatile, or semivolatile memory such as dynamic random access memory (DRAM), static random access memory (SRAM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), Flash memory, solid-state storage, etc.

[0208] The one or more communication resources 430 may include interconnection or network interface controllers, components, or other suitable devices to communicate with one or more peripheral devices 404 or one or more databases 406 or other network elements via a network 408. For example, the one or more communication resources 430 may include wired communication components (e.g., for coupling via USB, Ethernet, etc.), cellular communication components, near-field communication (NFC) components, Bluetooth® (or Bluetooth Low Energy) components, Wi-Fi components, and other communication components.

[0209] Instructions 450 may comprise software, a program, an application, an applet, an app, or other executable code for causing at least one of the one or more processors 410 to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein. Instructions 450 may reside, completely or partially, within at least one of the one or more processors 410 (e.g., within the processor’s cache memory), the memory / storage devices 420, or any suitable combination thereof.Furthermore, any portion of the instructions 450 may be transferred to the hardware resources 400 from any combination of one or more peripheral devicesAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1404 or one or more databases 406. Accordingly, the memory of one or more processors 410, the memory / storage devices 420, one or more peripheral devices 404, and one or more databases 406 are examples of computer-readable and machine-readable media.

[0210] FIG. 5 illustrates another example network architecture 500. The network architecture 500 may operate in a manner consistent with 3 GPP technical specifications or technical reports for 6G systems. In some examples, the network architecture 500 may operate concurrently with network architecture 200. For example, in some examples, network architecture 500 may share one or more frequency or bandwidth resources with network architecture 200. As one specific example, a UE (e.g., UE 502) may be configured to operate in both network architecture 500 and network architecture 200. Such a configuration may be based on a UE including circuitry configured for communication with the frequency and bandwidth resources of both network architectures 200 and 500. In general, several elements of network architecture 500 may share one or more characteristics with elements of network architecture 200. For the sake of brevity and clarity, such elements may not be repeated in the description of network architecture 500.

[0211] The network architecture 500 may include a UE 502, which may include any mobile or non-mobile computing device designed to communicate with a RAN 508 via an over-the-air connection. The UE 502 may be similar to, for example, UE 202. The UE 502 may be, but is not limited to, a smartphone, tablet computer, wearable computer device, desktop computer, laptop computer, in-vehicle infotainment, in-car entertainment device, instrument cluster, a head-up display device, onboard diagnostic device, dashtop mobile equipment, mobile data terminal, electronic engine management system, electronic / engine control unit, electronic / engine control module, embedded system, sensor, microcontroller, control module, engine management system, networked appliance, machine-type communication device, M2M or D2D device, loT device, etc.

[0212] Although not explicitly shown in FIG. 5, in some examples, the network architecture 500 may include a set of UEs coupled directly with one another via a sidelink interface. The UEs may be M2M / D2D devices thatAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1communicate using physical sidelink channels such as, but not limited to, PSBCH, PSDCH, PSSCH, PSCCH, PSFCH, etc. Similarly, although not explicitly shown in FIG. 5, the UE 502 may be communicatively coupled with an AP, such as AP 206, as described with respect to FIG. 2. Additionally, although not explicitly shown in FIG. 5, in some examples, the RAN 508 may include one or more ANs, such as AN 208, as described with respect to FIG. 2. The RAN 508 and / or the AN of the RAN 508 may be referred to as a base station (BS), a RAN node, or using some other term or name.

[0213] The UE 502 and the RAN 508 may be configured to communicate via an air interface that may be referred to as a sixth-generation (6G) air interface. The 6G air interface may include one or more features, such as communication in terahertz (THz) or sub-THz bandwidth, or joint communication and sensing. As used herein, the term “joint communication and sensing” may refer to a system that allows for wireless communication as well as radar-based sensing via various types of multiplexing. As used herein, THz or sub-THz bandwidths may refer to communication in the 80 GHz and above frequency ranges. Such frequency ranges may additionally, or alternatively, be referred to as “millimeter wave” or “mmWave” frequency ranges.

[0214] The RAN 508 may allow for communication between the UE 502 and a 6G core network (CN) 510. Specifically, the RAN 508 may facilitate the transmission and reception of data between the UE 502 and the 6G CN 510. The 6G CN 510 may include various functions, such as NSSF 550, NEF 552, NRF 554, PCF 556, UDM 558, AF 560, SMF 546, and AUSF 542. The 6GCN 510 may additionally include UPF 548 and DN 539, as shown in FIG. 5.

[0215] Additionally, the RAN 508 may include various additional functions that are in addition to, or alternative to, the functions of a legacy cellular network, such as a 4G or 5G network. Two such functions may include a Compute Control Function (Comp CF) 524 and a Compute Service Function (Comp SF) 536. The Comp CF 524 and the Comp SF 536 may be parts or functions of the Computing Service Plane. Comp CF 524 may be a control plane function that provides functionalities such as management of the Comp SF 536, computing task context generation and management (e.g., create, read, modify, delete), interaction with the underlying computing infrastructure forAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1computing resource management, etc. Comp SF 536 may be a user plane function that serves as the gateway to interface computing service users (such as UE 502) and computing nodes behind a Comp SF instance. Some functionalities of the Comp SF 536 may include parsing computing service data received from users to compute tasks executable by computing nodes, holding service mesh ingress gateway or service API gateway, service and charging policies enforcement, performance monitoring, and telemetry collection. In some examples, a Comp SF 536 instance may serve as the user plane gateway for a cluster of computing nodes. A Comp CF 524 instance may control one or more Comp SF 536 instances.

[0216] Two other such functions may include a Communication Control Function (Comm CF) 528 and a Communication Service Function (Comm SF) 538, which may be parts of the Communication Service Plane. The Comm CF 528 may be the control plane function for managing the Comm SF 538, communication session creation / configuration / releasing, and managing communication session context. The Comm SF 538 may be a user plane function for data transport. Comm CF 528 and Comm SF 538 may be considered as upgrades of SMF 246 and UPF 248, which were described with respect to a 5G system in FIG. 2. The upgrades provided by the Comm CF 528 and the Comm SF 538 may enable service-aware transport. For legacy (e.g., 4G or 5G) data transport, SMF 246 and UPF 248 may still be used.

[0217] Two other such functions may include a Data Control Function (Data CF) 522 and a Data Service Function (Data SF) 532, which may be parts of the Data Service Plane. Data CF 522 may be a control plane function and provides functionalities such as Data SF 532 management, Data service creation / configuration / releasing, Data service context management, etc. Data SF 532 may be a user plane function and serve as the gateway between data service users (such as UE 502 and the various functions of the 6G CN 510) and data service endpoints behind the gateway. Specific functionalities may include parsing data service user data and forwarding it to corresponding data service endpoints, generating charging data, and reporting data service status.

[0218] Another such function may be the Service Orchestration and Chaining Function (SOCF) 520, which may discover, orchestrate, and chain upAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1communication / computing / data services provided by functions in the network. Upon receiving service requests from users, SOCF 520 may interact with one or more of Comp CF 524, Comm CF 528, and Data CF 522 to identify Comp SF 536, Comm SF 538, and Data SF 532 instances, configure service resources, and generate the service chain, which could contain multiple Comp SF 536, Comm SF 538, and Data SF 532 instances and their associated computing endpoints. Workload processing and data movement may then be conducted within the generated service chain. The SOCF 520 may also be responsible for maintaining, updating, and releasing a created service chain.

[0219] Another such function may be the service registration function (SRF) 514, which may act as a registry for system services provided in the user plane, such as services provided by service endpoints behind Comp SF 536 and Data SF 532 gateways and services provided by the UE 502. The SRF 514 may be considered a counterpart of NRF 254, which may act as the registry for network functions.

[0220] Other such functions may include an evolved service communication proxy (eSCP) and a service infrastructure control function (SICF) 526, which may provide service communication infrastructure for control plane services and user plane services. The eSCP may be related to the service communication proxy (SCP) of 5G, with the addition of user plane service communication proxy capabilities. The eSCP is therefore expressed in two parts: eCSP-C 512 and eSCP-U 534, for control plane service communication proxy and user plane service communication proxy, respectively. The SICF 526 may control and configure eCSP instances in terms of service traffic routing policies, access rules, load balancing configurations, performance monitoring, etc.

[0221] Another such function is the AMF 544. The AMF 544 may be similar to 244 but with additional functionality. Specifically, the AMF 544 may include potential functional repartition, such as moving the message forwarding functionality from the AMF 544 to the RAN 508.

[0222] Another such function is the service orchestration exposure function (SOEF) 518. The SOEF may be configured to expose service orchestration and chaining services to external users, such as applications.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0223] The UE 502 may include an additional function that is referred to as a computing client service function (comp CSF) 504. The comp CSF 504 may have both the control plane functionalities and user plane functionalities and may interact with corresponding network-side functions, such as SOCF 520, Comp CF 524, Comp SF 536, Data CF 522, and / or Data SF 532, for service discovery, request / response, compute task workload exchange, etc. The comp CSF 504 may also work with network-side functions to decide whether a computing task should be run on the UE 502, the RAN 508, or an element of the 6G CN 510.

[0224] The UE 502 and / or the comp CSF 504 may include a service mesh proxy 506. The service mesh proxy 506 may act as a proxy for service-to-service communication in the user plane. Capabilities of the service mesh proxy 506 may include one or more of addressing, security, load balancing, and / or the like.

[0225] FIG. 6 depicts an example artificial intelligence (Al)-assisted communication architecture for communication between a UE 605 and a RAN 610. More specifically, as described in further detail below, AEmachine learning (ML) models may be used or leveraged to facilitate over-the-air communication between UE 605 and RAN 610.

[0226] In this example, the UE 605 and the RAN 610 operate in a manner consistent with 3GPP technical specifications and / or technical reports for 6G systems. In some examples, the wireless cellular communication between the UE 605 and the RAN 610 may be part of or operate concurrently with network architectures 500, 200, and / or some other network described herein.

[0227] The UE 605 may be similar to and share one or more features with UE 202, UE 302, UE 502, UE 702, hardware resources 400, and / or some other UE or device(s), such as any of those described herein. The UE 605 may be, but is not limited to, a smartphone, tablet computer, wearable computer device, desktop computer, laptop computer, in-vehicle infotainment, in-car entertainment device, instrument cluster, a head-up display device, onboard diagnostic device, dashtop mobile equipment, mobile data terminal, electronic engine management system, electronic / engine control unit, electronic / engine control module, embedded system, sensor, microcontroller, control module,AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1engine management system, networked appliance, machine-type communication device, M2M or D2D device, loT device, etc. The RAN 610 may be similar to, and share one or more features with, NG-RAN 214, RAN 508, and / or some other RAN described herein.

[0228] As may be seen in FIG. 6, the Al-related elements of UE 605 may be similar to the Al-related elements of RAN 610. For the sake of discussion herein, a description of the various elements will be provided from the point of view of the UE 605. However, it will be understood that such discussion or description will apply to equally named / numbered elements of RAN 610 unless explicitly stated otherwise.

[0229] As previously noted, the UE 605 may include various elements or functions that are related to AI / ML. Such elements may be implemented as hardware, software, firmware, and / or some combination thereof. For example, one or more of the elements may be implemented as part of the same hardware (e.g., a chip or a multi-processor chip), software (e.g., a computing program), or firmware as another element.

[0230] One such element may be a data repository 615. The data repository 615 may be responsible for data collection and storage. Specifically, the data repository 615 may collect and store RAN configuration parameters, measurement data, performance key performance indicators (KPIs), model performance metrics, etc., for model training, update, and inference. More generally, collected data is stored in the repository. Stored data can be discovered and extracted by other elements from the data repository 615. For example, as may be seen, the inference data selection / filtering element 650 may retrieve data from the data repository 615. In various examples, the UE 605 may be configured to discover and request data from the data repository 615 in the RAN and vice versa. More generally, the data repository 615 of the UE 605 may be communicatively coupled with the data repository 615 of the RAN 610 so that the respective data repositories of the UE and the RAN may share collected data.

[0231] Another such element may be a training data selection / filtering functional block 620. The training data selection / filtering functional block 620 may be configured to generate training, validation, and testing datasets for modelAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1training. Training data may be extracted from the data repository 615. Data may be selected / filtered based on the specific AI / ML model to be trained. Data may optionally be transformed / augmented / pre-processed (e.g., normalized) before being loaded into datasets. The training data selection / filtering functional block 620 may label data in datasets for supervised learning. The produced datasets may then be fed into the model training functional block 625.

[0232] As noted above, another such element may be the model training functional block 625. This functional block may be responsible for training and updating (re-training) AI / ML models. The selected model may be trained using the fed-in datasets (including training, validation, and testing) from the training data selection / filtering functional block. The model training functional block 625 may produce trained and tested AI / ML models that are ready for deployment. The produced, trained, and tested models can be stored in a model repository 635.

[0233] The model repository 635 may be responsible for the storage and exposure of AI / ML models (both trained and untrained). Trained / updated model(s) may be stored in the model repository 635. Model and model parameters may be discovered and requested by other functional blocks (e.g., the training data selection / filtering functional block 620 and / or the model training functional block 625). In some examples, the UE 605 may discover and request AI / ML models from the model repository 635 of the RAN 610. Similarly, the RAN 610 may be able to discover and / or request AI / ML models from the model repository 635 of the UE 605. In some examples, the RAN 610 may configure models and / or model parameters in the model repository 635 of the UE 605.

[0234] Another such element may be a model management functional block 640. The model management functional block 640 may be responsible for the management of the AI / ML model produced by the model training functional block 625. Such management functions may include the deployment of a trained model, monitoring model performance, etc. In model deployment, the model management functional block 640 may allocate and schedule hardware and / or software resources for inference based on received trained and tested models. As used herein, “inference” refers to the process of using trained AI / ML model(s) to generate data analytics, actions, policies, etc., based on inputAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1inference data. In performance monitoring, based on wireless performance KPIs and model performance metrics, the model management functional block 640 may decide to terminate the running model, start model re-training, select another model, etc. For example, the model management functional block 640 of the RAN 610 may be able to configure model management policies in the UE 605, as shown.

[0235] Another such element may be an inference data selection / filtering element 650. The inference data selection / filtering element 650 may be responsible for generating datasets for model inference at the inference functional block 645, as described below. Specifically, inference data may be extracted from the data repository 615. The inference data selection / filtering element 650 may select and / or filter the data based on the deployed AI / ML model. Data may be transformed / augmented / pre-processed following the same transformation / augmentation / pre-processing as those in training data selection / filtering, as described with respect to the training data selection / filtering functional block 620. The produced inference dataset may be fed into the inference functional block 645.

[0236] Another such element may be the inference functional block 645. The inference functional block 645 may be responsible for executing inference as described above. Specifically, the inference functional block 645 may consume the inference dataset provided by the inference data selection / filtering element 650 and generate one or more outcomes. Such outcomes may include data analytics, actions, policies, etc. The outcome(s) may be provided to the performance measurement functional block 630.

[0237] The performance measurement functional block 630 may be configured to measure model performance metrics (e.g., accuracy, model bias, run-time latency, etc.) of deployed and executing models based on the inference outcome(s) for monitoring purposes. Model performance data may be stored in the data repository 615.

[0238] FIG. 7 depicts example RAN split architecture aspects. FIG. 7 shows an example network deployment including an example next-generation fronthaul (NGF) deployment 700a where a UE 702 is connected to an RU 730 (also referred to as a “remote radio unit 730”, “a remote radio head 730”, or “RRHAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1730”) via an air interface, the RU 730 is connected to a Digital Unit (DU) 731 via a NGF interface (NGFI)-I, the DU 731 is connected to a Central Unit (CU) 732 via an NGFI-II, and the CU 732 is connected to a core network (CN) 742 via a backhaul interface. In 3 GPP NG-RAN implementations (see, e.g., [TS38401 ]), the DU 731 may be a distributed unit (the term “DU” may refer to a digital unit and / or a distributed unit unless the context dictates otherwise). UEs 702 may be the same or similar to UEs 202 and / or any other UE or user / client device discussed herein.

[0239] In some implementations, the NGF deployment 700a may be arranged in a distributed RAN (D-RAN) architecture where the CU 732, DU 731, and RU 730 reside at a cell site, and the CN 742 is located at a centralized site.Alternatively, the NGF deployment 700a may be arranged in a centralized RAN (C-RAN) architecture with centralized processing of one or more baseband units (BBUs) at the centralized site. In C-RAN architectures, the radio components are split into discrete components, which can be located in different locations. In one example C-RAN implementation, only the RU 730 is disposed at the cell site, and the DU 731, the CU 732, and the CN 742 are centralized or disposed at a central location. In another example C-RAN implementation, the RU 730 and the DU 731 are located at the cell site, and the CU 732 and the CN 742 are at the centralized site. In another example of C-RAN implementation, only the RU 730 is disposed at the cell site, the DU 731 and the CU 732 are located at a RAN hub site, and the CN 742 is at the centralized site.

[0240] The CU 732 is a central controller that can serve or otherwise connect to one or multiple DUs 731 and / or multiple RUs 730. The CU 732 is a network (logical) node hosting higher / upper layers of a network protocol functional split. For example, in the 3GPP NG-RAN and / or 0-RAN architectures, a CU 732 hosts the radio resource control (RRC), Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP), and Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layers of a nextgeneration NodeB (gNB), or hosts the RRC and PDCP protocol layers when included in or operating as an E-UTRA-NR gNB (en-gNB). The SDAP sublayer performs mapping between quality of service flows and data radio bearers (DRBs) and marking quality of service flow IDs (QFI) in both DL and UL packets. The PDCP sublayer performs transfer of user plane or control plane data; maintains PDCP sequence numbers (SNs); header compression andAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1decompression using the Robust Header Compression (ROHC) and / or Ethernet Header Compression (EHC) protocols; ciphering and deciphering; integrity protection and integrity verification; provides timer-based SDU discard; routing for split bearers; duplication and duplicate discarding; reordering and in-order delivery; and / or out-of-order delivery. In various implementations, a CU 732 terminates respective Fl interfaces connected with corresponding DUs 731 (see, e.g., [TS38401]).

[0241] A CU 732 may include a CU-control plane (CP) entity (referred to herein as “CU-CP 732”) and a CU-user plane (UP) entity (referred to herein as “CU-UP 732”). The CU-CP 732 is a logical node hosting the RRC layer and the control plane part of the PDCP protocol layer of the CU 732 (e.g., a gNB-CU for an en-gNB or a gNB). The CU-CP 732 terminates an El interface connected with the CU-UP, and the Fl-C interface is connected with a DU 731. The CU-UP 732 is a logical node hosting the user plane part of the PDCP protocol layer (e.g., for a gNB-CU 732 of an en-gNB), and the user plane part of the PDCP protocol layer and the SDAP protocol layer (e.g., for the gNB-CU 732 of a gNB). The CU-UP 732 terminates the El interface connected with the CU-CP 732 and the Fl -U interface connected with a DU 731.

[0242] The DU 731 controls radio resources, such as time and frequency bands, locally in real time and allocates resources to one or more UEs. The DUs 731 are network (logical) nodes hosting middle and / or lower layers of the network protocol functional split. For example, in the 3GPP NG-RAN and / or O-RAN architectures, a DU 731 hosts the radio link control (RLC) medium access control (MAC), and high-physical (PHY) layers of the gNB or en-gNB, and its operation is at least partly controlled by the CU 732. The RLC sublayer operates in one or more of the Transparent Mode (TM), Unacknowledged Mode (UM), and Acknowledged Mode (AM). The RLC sublayer performs transfer of upperlayer PDUs; sequence numbering independent of the one in PDCP (UM and AM); error correction through ARQ (AM only); segmentation (AM and UM) and re-segmentation (AM only) of RLC SDUs; reassembly of SDUs (AM and UM); duplicate detection (AM only); RLC SDU discard (AM and UM); RLC reestablishment; and / or protocol error detection (AM only). The MAC sublayer performs mapping between logical channels and transport channels; multiplexing / demultiplexing of MAC SDUs belonging to one or different logicalAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1channels into / from transport blocks (TB) delivered to / from the physical layer on transport channels; scheduling information reporting; error correction through HARQ (one HARQ entity per cell in case of CA); priority handling between UEs by means of dynamic scheduling; priority handling between logical channels of one UE by means of logical channel prioritization; priority handling between overlapping resources of one UE; and / or padding. In some implementations, a DU 731 can host a Backhaul Adaptation Protocol (BAP) layer (see e.g., 3GPP TS 38.340 V16.5.0 (2021-07-07)) and / or an Fl application protocol (F1AP) (see e.g., 3GPP TS 38.470 V16.5.0 (2021-07-01)), such as when the DU 731 is operating as an Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB) node. One DU 731 supports one or multiple cells, and one cell is supported by only one DU 731. A DU 731 terminates the Fl interface connected with a CU 732.Alternatively, the DU 731 may be connected to one or more RRHs / RUs 730.

[0243] The RU 730 is a transmission / reception point (TRP) or other physical node that handles radio frequency (RF) processing functions. The RU 730 is a network (logical) node hosting lower layers based on a lower-layer functional split. For example, in 3GPP NG-RAN and / or 0-RAN architectures, the RU 730 hosts low-PHY layer functions and RF processing of the radio interface based on a lower-layer functional split. The RU 730 may be similar to 3GPP’s transmission / reception point (TRP) or RRH, but specifically includes the Low-PHY layer. Examples of low-PHY functions include Fast Fouriertransform (FFT), inverse FFT (IFFT), physical random access channel (PRACH) extraction, and the like.

[0244] Each of the CUs 732, DUs 731, and RUs 730 is connected via its respective link, which may be any suitable wireless and / or wired link (e.g., fiber, copper, and the like). In some implementations, various combinations of the CU 732, DU 731, and RU 730 may correspond to one or more of the ANs 208 of FIG. 2. Additional aspects of CUs 732, DUs 731, and RUs 730 are discussed in [0-RAN], [TS38401], [TS38410], and [TS38300], the contents of each of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.

[0245] In some implementations, a fronthaul gateway function (FHGW) may be disposed between the DU 731 and the RU / RRU 730 (not shown by FIG. 7), where the interface between the DU 731 and the FHGW is an Open FronthaulAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1(e.g., Option 7-2x) interface, the interface between the FHGW function and the RU / RRU 730 is an Open Fronthaul (e.g., Option 7-2x) interface or any other suitable interface (e.g., option 7, option 8, or the like) including those that do not support Open Fronthaul (e.g., Option 7-2x). The FHGW may be packaged with one or more other functions (e.g., Ethernet switching and / or the like) in a physical device or appliance. In some implementations, a RAN controller may be communicatively coupled with the CU 732 and / or the DU 731.

[0246] NGFI (also referred to as “xHaul” or the like) is a two-level fronthaul architecture that separates the traditional RRU 730 to BBU connectivity in the C-RAN architecture into two levels, namely levels I and II. Level I connects the RU 730 via the NGFI-I to the DU 731, and level II connects the DU 731 via the NGFI-II to the CU 732, as shown by deployment 700a in FIG. 7. The NGFI-I and NGFI-II connections may be wired connections or wireless connections, which may utilize any suitable RAT such as any of those discussed herein. The purpose of the two-level architecture is to distribute (split) the RAN node protocol functions between CU 732 and DU 731 such that latencies are relaxed, giving more deployment flexibility. In general, the NGFI-I interfaces with the lower layers of the function split, which have stringent delay and data rate requirements. In contrast, NGFI-II interfaces with higher layers of the function split relative to the layers of the NGFI-I, relaxing the requirements for the fronthaul link. Examples of the NGFI fronthaul interfaces and functional split architectures include 0-RAN 7.2x fronthaul (see e.g., [O-RAN.WG9.XPSAAS] and [O-RAN-WG4.CUS.0]), Enhanced Common Radio Interface (CPRI) based C-RAN fronthaul (see e.g., Common Public Radio Interface: eCPRI Interface Specification, eCPRI Specification v2.0 (2019-05-10), Common Public Radio Interface: Requirements for the eCPRI Transport Network, eCPRI Transport Network vl.2 (2018-06-25), and [O-RAN-WG4.CUS.0]), Radio over Ethernet (RoE) based C-RAN fronthaul (see, e.g., IEEE Standard for Radio over Ethernet Encapsulations and Mappings, IEEE Standards Association, IEEE 1914.3-2018 (Oct. 5, 2018) (“[IEEE1914.3]”)), and / or the like. Additional aspects of NGFI are also discussed in [O-RAN. WG9.XPSAAS], [O-RAN-WG4.CUS.0], IEEE Standard for Packet-based Fronthaul Transport Networks, IEEE Standards Association, IEEE 1914.1-2019 (Apr. 21, 2020) (“[IEEE1914.1]”), [IEEE1914.3], and Nasrallah et al., Ultra-Low Latency (ULL) Networks: AAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1Comprehensive Survey Covering the IEEE TSN Standard and Related ULL Research, arXiv:1803.07673vl [cs.NI] (Mar. 20, 2018) (“[Nasrallah]”), the contents of each of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.

[0247] In one example, the deployment 700a may implement a low-level split (LLS) (also referred to as a “Lower Layer Functional Split 7-2x” or “Split Option 7-2x”) that runs between the RU 730 (e.g., an O-RU in O-RAN architectures) and the DU 731 (e.g., an O-DU in O-RAN architectures) (see, e.g., [O-RAN.WG7.IPC-HRD-Opt7-2], [O-RAN. WG7.0MAC-HRD], [O-RAN.WG7.OMC-HRD-Opt7-2], [O-RAN. WG7.OMC-HRD-Opt7-2]). In this example implementation, the NGFI-I is the Open Fronthaul interface described in the O-RAN Open Fronthaul Specification (see, e.g., [O-RAN-WG4.CUS.0]). Other LLS options may be used, such as the relevant interfaces described in other standards or specifications such as, for example, the 3GPP NG-RAN functional split (see e.g., [TS38401] and 3GPP TR 38.801 vl4.0.0 (2017-04-03)), the Small Cell Forum for Split Option 6 (see e.g., 5G small cell architecture and product definitions: Configurations and Specifications for companies deploying small cells 2020-2025, Small Cell Forum, document 238.10.01 (Jul. 5, 2020) (“[SCF238]”), 5GNRFR1 Reference Design: The case for a common, modular architecture for 5G NR FR1 small cell distributed radio units, Small Cell Forum, document 251.10.01 (Dec. 15, 2021) (“[SCF251]”), and [O-RAN.WG7.IPC-HRD-Opt6]), the contents of each of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety, and / or in O-RAN white-box hardware Split Option 8 (e g., [O-RAN.WG7.IPC-HRD-Opt8]).

[0248] Additionally or alternatively, the CUs 732, DUs 731, and / or RUs 730 may be IAB nodes. IAB enables wireless relaying in an NG-RAN where a relaying node (referred to as an “lAB-node”) supports access and backhauling via 3GPP 5G / new radio (NR) links / interfaces. The terminating node of NR backhauling on the network side is referred to as an “lAB-donor,” which represents a RAN node (e.g., a gNB) with additional functionality to support IAB. Backhauling can occur via a single or multiple hops. All IAB nodes that are connected to an lAB-donor via one or multiple hops form a directed acyclic graph (DAG) topology with the lAB-donor as its root. The lAB-donor performs centralized resource, topology, and route management for the IAB topology. The IAB architecture is shown and described in [TS38300],AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0249] Although the NGF deployment 700a shows the CU 732, DU 731, RRH 730, and CN 742 as separate entities, in other implementations, some or all of these network nodes can be bundled, combined, or otherwise integrated into a single device or element, including collapsing some internal interfaces (e.g., Fl-C, Fl-U, El, E2, and the like). At least the following implementations are possible: (i) integrating the CU 732 and the DU 731 (e.g., a CU-DU), which is connected to the RRH 730 via the NGFI-I; (ii) integrating the DU 731 and the RRH 730 (e.g., a DU-RRH), which is connected to the CU 732 via NGFI-II; (iii) integrating a RAN controller and the CU 732, which is connected to the DU 731 via NGFI-II; (iv) integrating the CU 732, the DU 731, and the RRH 730, which is connected to the CN 742 via a backhaul interface; and (v) integrating the network controller (or intelligent controller), the CU 732, the DU 731, and the RRH 730. Any of the aforementioned example implementations involving the CU 732 may also include integrating the CU-CP and CU-UP.

[0250] FIG. 7 also shows an example RAN disaggregation deployment 700b (also referred to as “disaggregated RAN 700b”) where the UE 702 is connected to the RRH 730, and the RRH 730 is communicatively coupled with one or more of the RAN functions (RANFs) 1-N (where N is a number). The RANFs 1-N are disaggregated and distributed geographically across several component segments and network nodes. In some implementations, each RANF 1-N is a software (SW) element executed on a physical compute node, and the RRH 730 includes radio-frequency (RF) circuitry (e.g., an RF propagation module for a particular RAT and / or the like). In this example, RANF 1 is operated on a physical compute node co-located with the RRH 730, and the other RANFs are located farther from the RRH 730. Additionally, in this example, CN 742 is also disaggregated into CN NFs 1-x (where x is a number) in the same or similar manner as the RANFs 1-N. However, in other implementations, the CN 742 is not disaggregated.

[0251] Network disaggregation (or disaggregated networking) involves separating networking equipment into functional components and allowing each component to be deployed individually. This may encompass separating SW elements (e.g., NFs) from specific HW elements and / or using APIs to enable software-defined networking (SDN) and / or NF virtualization (NFV). RAN disaggregation involves network disaggregation and the virtualization of variousAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1RANFs (e.g., RANFs 1-N in FIG. 7). The RANFs 1-N can be deployed across different physical sites and topologies in an RAN deployment, depending on the use case. This enables RANF distribution and deployment across different geographic areas, allowing RANFs to be broken out to support various use cases (e.g., low-latency use cases) and to support flexible RAN implementations. Disaggregation provides a common, uniform RAN platform that can assume a distinct profile based on its deployment location. This enables fewer fixed-function devices and a lower total cost of ownership compared to existing RAN architectures. Example RAN disaggregation frameworks include the Telecom Infra Project (TIP) OpenRAN, Cisco Open vRAN, [O-RAN], Open Optical & Packet Transport (OOPT), Reconfigurable Optical Add Drop Multiplexer (RO ADM), and / or the like.

[0252] In a first example implementation, the RANFs 1-N disaggregate RAN HW and SW using commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) HW and open interfaces (e.g., NGFI-I, NGFI-II, and the like). In this example implementation, each RANF 1-N may be a virtual BBU or vRAN controller operating on COTS compute infrastructure with HW acceleration for BBU / vRANFs.

[0253] In a second example implementation, the RANFs 1-N disaggregate layers of one or more RAT protocol stacks. As an example of this implementation, RANF 1 is a DU 731 operating on the first COTS compute infrastructure with HW acceleration for BBU / vRANFs, and RANF 2 is a virtual CU 732 operating on the second COTS compute infrastructure.

[0254] In a third example implementation, the RANFs 1-N disaggregate control plane and user plane functions. As an example of this implementation, the RANF l is a DU 731 operating on COTS compute infrastructure with HW acceleration for BBU / vRANFs, RANF 2 is a virtual CU-CP 732 operating on COTS compute infrastructure, and a third RANF (e.g., RANF 3 (not shown by FIG. 7)) is a virtual CU-UP 732 operating on the same or different COTS compute infrastructure as the virtual CU-CP 732. Additionally or alternatively, in this implementation, one or more CN NFs 1-x may be CN-UP functions, and one or more other CN NFs 1-x may be CN-CP functions.

[0255] In a fourth example implementation, the RANFs 1-N disaggregate layers of an [IEEE802] RAT. As an example of this implementation, the RRHAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1730 implements a WiFi PHY layer, RANF 1 implements a WiFi MAC sublayer, RANF 1 implements a WiFi logical link control (LLC) sublayer, RANF 2 implements one or more WiFi upper layer protocols (e.g., network layer, transport layer, session layer, presentation layer, and / or application layer), and so forth.

[0256] In a fifth example implementation, the RANFs 1-N disaggregate different 0-RAN RANFs, including E2SMs. As an example of this implementation, RANF 1 implements the near-RT RIC, RANF 2 implements the E2SM-KPM, RANF 3 implements the E2SM-CCC, RANF 4 implements the E2SM RAN control, RANF 5 implements the E2SM-NI, RANF 6 implements functions for providing Al services, and so forth.

[0257] In any of the implementations discussed herein, the lower layers of the RAN protocol stack can be characterized by real-time (RT) functions and relatively complex signal processing algorithms, and the higher layers of the RAN protocol stack can be characterized by non-RT functions. In these implementations, the RT functions and signal processing algorithms can be implemented in DUs 731 and / or RRHs 730, either using purpose-built network elements or COTS hardware augmented with purpose-built hardware accelerators.

[0258] FIG. 7 also shows various functional split options 700c for both DL and UL directions. The traditional RAN is an integrated network architecture based on a distributed RAN (D-RAN) model, in which D-RAN aggregates all RANFs into a few network elements. As previously alluded to, the disaggregated RAN architecture offers flexible function split options to overcome the various drawbacks of the D-RAN model. The disaggregated RAN breaks the integrated network system into several functional components that can be relocated individually as needed without hindering their ability to work together to provide holistic network services. The split options 700c are mostly split between the CU 732 and the DU 731, but can also include a split among the CU 732, DU 731, and RU 730. For each option 700c, protocol entities on the left side of the figure are included in the RANF implementing the CU 732, and the protocol entities on the right side of the figure are included in the RANF implementing the DU 731. For example, the Option 2 function split includesAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1splitting non-RT processing (e.g., RRC and PDCP layers) from RT processing (e.g., RLC, MAC, and PHY layers), where the RANF implementing the CU 732 performs network functions of the RRC and PDCP layers, and the RANF implementing the DU 731 performs the baseband processing functions of the RLC (including high-RLC and low-RLC), MAC (including high-MAC and low-MAC), and PHY layers. In some implementations, the PHY layer is further split between the DU 731 and the RU 730, with the RANF in the DU 731 performing the high-PHY layer functions, and the RU 730 handling the low-PHY layer functions. In some implementations, the Low-PHY entity may be operated by the RU 730 regardless of the selected functional split option. Under the Option 2 split, the RANF implementing the CU 732 can connect to multiple DUs 731 (e.g., a centralized CU 732), eliminating the need to change the RRC and PDCP anchors during handovers across DUs 731 and allowing the centralized CU 732 to pool resources across several DUs 731. In this way, the Option 2 function split can improve resource efficiency. The specific function split option used may vary depending on service requirements and network deployment scenarios, and may be implementation-specific. It should also be noted that in some implementations, all of the function split options can be selected where each protocol stack entity is operated by a respective RANF (e.g., a first RANF operates the RRC layer, a second RANF operates the PDCP layer, a third RANF operates the high-RLC layer, and so forth until an eighth RANF operates the low-PHY layer). Other split options are possible, such as those discussed in [O-RAN.WG7.IPC-HRD-Opt6], [O-RAN.WG7.IPC-HRD-Opt7-2], [O-RAN.WG7.IPC-HRD-Opt8], [0-RAN.WG7.0MAC-HRD], and [O-RAN. WG7. OMC-HRD-Opt7-2] .

[0259] For one or more embodiments, at least one of the components outlined in one or more of the preceding figures may be configured to perform one or more operations, techniques, processes, and / or methods as discussed herein (including the examples listed in the examples sections below). For example, baseband circuitry associated with one or more of the preceding figures may be configured to operate in accordance with one or more of the examples set forth below. For another example, circuitry associated with a UE, base station, satellite, network element, etc., as described above in connection with one orAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1more of the preceding figures, may be configured to operate in accordance with one or more of the examples set forth below in the example section.

[0260] The term “application” may refer to a complete, deployable package or environment that performs a specific function in an operational environment. The term “AI / ML application,” or a similar term, may refer to an application that incorporates artificial intelligence (Al) and / or machine learning (ML) models, along with application-level descriptions. In some embodiments, an AI / ML application may be used to configure or implement one or more of the disclosed aspects.

[0261] The term “machine learning” or “ML” refers to the use of computer systems implementing algorithms and / or statistical models to perform a specific task(s) without using explicit instructions but instead relying on patterns and inferences. ML algorithms build or estimate mathematical models (referred to as “ML models” or the like) based on sample data (referred to as “training data,” “model training information,” or the like) to make predictions or decisions without being explicitly programmed to perform such tasks. Generally, an ML algorithm is a computer program that learns from experience regarding a specific task and a corresponding performance measure. An ML model, on the other hand, may be any object or data structure created after an ML algorithm is trained on one or more training datasets. After training, an ML model may be used to make predictions on new datasets. Although the term “ML algorithm” refers to concepts different from the term “ML model,” these terms, as discussed herein, may be used interchangeably.

[0262] The term “machine learning model,” “ML model,” or the like may also refer to ML methods and concepts used by an ML-assisted solution. An “ML-assisted solution” addresses a specific use case by using ML algorithms during operation. ML models include supervised learning (e.g., linear regression, k-nearest neighbor (KNN), decision tree algorithms, support machine vectors, Bayesian algorithm, ensemble algorithms, etc.), unsupervised learning (e.g., K-means clustering, principal component analysis (PCA), etc.), reinforcement learning (e.g., Q-leaming, multi-armed bandit learning, deep RL, etc.), neural networks, and the like. Depending on the implementation, a specific ML model may comprise many sub-models, and the model may train allAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1of them simultaneously. Separately trained ML models can also be chained together in an ML pipeline during inference. An “ML pipeline” is a set of functionalities, functions, or functional entities specific to an ML-assisted solution; an ML pipeline may include one or several data sources in a data pipeline, a model training pipeline, a model evaluation pipeline, and an actor. The “actor” is an entity that hosts an ML-assisted solution that uses the ML model's inference output. The term “ML training host” refers to an entity, such as a network function, that hosts the model training. The term “ML inference host” refers to an entity, such as a network function, that hosts the model during inference (including both model execution and any online learning, if applicable). The ML host informs the actor of the ML algorithm's output, and the actor decides on an action (an “action” is performed by an actor as a result of the ML-assisted solution's output). The term “model inference information” refers to information used as an input to the ML model for determining inference(s); the data used to train an ML model and the data used to determine inferences may overlap, however, “training data” and “inference data” refer to different concepts.

[0263] The disclosed techniques include ATG UE configurations, including MRTD determination for ATG UEs and ATG UE interruption configuration when the UE is configured with CA. The following discussion may be applicable to any type of communication device (including UEs or base stations), such as the devices discussed in connection with FIGS. 1 A-9.

[0264] In NR systems, radio resource management specifications define the criteria governing how user equipment handles timing differences and service interruptions when configured for carrier aggregation. These specifications now include provisions for ATG UEs to address the propagation and deployment characteristics of aerial communication environments.

[0265] The disclosed MRTD configurations define the bounds within which an ATG UE processes downlink signals from aggregated carriers. These bounds apply even when the carriers originate from non-co-located transmission points separated by distances typical in air-to-ground scenarios. For intra-band contiguous carrier aggregation within FR1, the network deploys co-located cells. In this deployment, the relative receive timing difference between the closest slotAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1timing boundaries remains at approximately 260 nanoseconds. This permits the ATG UE to use a shared radio front-end for simultaneous reception across contiguous carriers in the same frequency band. For inter-band NR carrier aggregation involving pairs of carriers in FR1, the ATG UE handles a relative receive timing difference of at least 33 microseconds between the slot timing boundaries of all aggregated carrier pairs at the UE receiver. This value accounts for the combined effects of transmitter timing offsets at the gNB and propagation delays arising from altitude and velocity differences in ATG operations. These MRTD values are defined in dedicated clauses addressing ATG-specific radio resource management. Compliance is verified through signaling and radio resource management test cases that confirm correct UE operation under the specified timing offsets.

[0266] The interruption requirements complement the MRTD provisions. These requirements define the permissible durations and conditions under which an ATG UE may experience temporary service interruptions in active serving cells during carrier aggregation operations. When up to seven downlink SCells are added or released via a single RRC reconfiguration message, the ATG UE is permitted an interruption on any active serving cell. The allowable interruption length varies based on whether the affected cells are contiguous within the same FR1 band, where cell-specific reference signals align in the same slot, or reside in an FR1 band pair for inter-band cases. Corresponding tables specify interruption lengths in slots as a function of numerology. For numerology p = 0, corresponding to a 1 ms slot length, the interruption length is up to 1 +T SMTC duration ATG x NA{ slot} {subframe, p} slots for intra-band contiguous cases. For numerology p = 1, corresponding to a 0.5 ms slot length, the interruption length is up to 2 + T SMTC duration ATG x NA{ slot} {subframe, p} slots for intra-band contiguous cases. The parameter TSMTCduration ATG represents the longest synchronization signal block (SSB)-based measurement timing configuration (SMTC) duration across relevant cells. This parameter is calculated under defined assumptions for SSB periodicity and burst content when explicit configurations are absent.

[0267] For SCell activation or deactivation procedures, analogous interruption allowances apply. Tables provide numerology-dependent slot counts. For inter-band scenarios, the interruption length is fixed at 1 slot for bothAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1. = 0 and [1= 1. This reflects the independent radio handling across frequency bands. Interruptions arising from measurements on a deactivated secondary component carrier are constrained to occur immediately adjacent to the SMTC window. The probability of missed ACK / NACK feedback is bounded to 0.5 percent when the measurement cycle is 640 ms or longer. Extended windows, defined via parameter X slots before and after ESA 7'Cduration_ATG, are permitted for intra-band contiguous configurations where reference signals align.

[0268] Additional interruption provisions address direct SCell activation at the time of addition, BWP switching on the primary cell or secondary cells, CGI reading of neighbor cells with autonomous gaps, UE-specific channel bandwidth changes, NR SRS antenna port switching, and SCell dormancy transitions. For SCell dormancy, both switching between dormant and non-dormant bandwidth parts during DRX active time and associated CQI or RRM measurements on dormant SCells are covered. ACK / NACK loss rates are bounded to 0.5 percent for CQI measurements and 1.0 percent for RRM measurements. Fast SCell activation procedures utilize periodic or aperiodic CSI-RS resources. These procedures impose bounded interruption lengths. For same-band cases, the interruption length includes A slots plus TATRSdurationATG, where TATRSdurationATG corresponds to the CSI-RS burst duration of four resources over two consecutive slots. These values are calibrated to numerology-specific tables. Across all scenarios, interruptions shall not affect RRC signaling or ACK / NACK feedback associated with reconfiguration commands. SCell management procedures follow the RRC protocol specification, and MAC -level activation signaling follows the applicable dual connectivity specification.

[0269] The disclosed techniques are associated with the NR performance specification for UE radio transmission and reception, which defines minimum demodulation and channel state information (CSI) reporting capabilities. This specification includes ATGUE considerations to address the Doppler shifts, frequency offsets, and propagation conditions encountered in air-to-ground deployments, particularly when such UEs are configured for carrier aggregation. The applicability rules for carrier aggregation performance extend to ATG UEs supporting the air-to-ground network feature. Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) demodulation tests account for specialized channel models and frequency offsets, such as 220 Hz in Frequency Division Duplex (FDD)AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1scenarios and 500 Hz in Time Division Duplex (TDD) scenarios. For ATG UEs equipped with 2RX or 4RX antenna configurations, dedicated test cases verify PDSCH throughput at or above 70 percent of the maximum achievable rate across various modulation and coding schemes, including 16QAM, 64QAM, and 256QAM, under Additive White Gaussian Noise (AWGN) propagation with the specified offsets. These performance requirements interact with the MRTD and interruption bounds by requiring sustained Block Error Rate (BLER) targets and throughput fractions in CA scenarios involving power-imbalanced component carriers, non-co-located intra-band arrangements, shared-spectrum access, and mobility enhancements such as High-Speed Train Single Frequency Network (HST-SFN) or High-Speed Train Distributed Processing Scheme (HST-DPS). These scenarios are adaptable to the ATG context through conditional feature support, for example, extended Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) process numbers or out-of-order downlink operation. CSI reporting performance in CA is similarly addressed through applicability clauses that govern the periodic accuracy of the Channel Quality Indicator (CQI) under AWGN and fading conditions. ATG-specific adaptations address elevation beamforming and Doppler resilience to maintain feedback reliability on aggregated carriers. The specification defines test rules for CA configurations, including intra-band contiguous, non-contiguous, and inter-band, based on bandwidth combination sets, antenna connection mappings for multi-RX UEs, and reference signal levels.

[0270] The disclosed techniques are associated with the slot structure, numerology, and timing parameters that form the mathematical framework for the interruption length calculations and receive timing difference requirements applicable to ATG UEs in carrier aggregation. The number of slots per subframe is enumerated for each supported subcarrier spacing numerology p.NA{slot}_{ subframe, p} equals 1 for p = 0, corresponding to 15 kHz subcarrier spacing and a 1 ms slot. NA{ si ot}_{ subframe, p} equals 2 for p = 1, corresponding to 30 kHz subcarrier spacing and a 0.5 ms slot. Each normal cyclic prefix slot comprises 14 Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbols. These parameters directly scale the allowable interruption durations, expressed in slots, in the ATG-specific tables. This scaling ensures that the time-domain impact of SCell addition, activation, measurement, orAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1dormancy events remains proportional to the configured subcarrier spacing. The specification also defines the slot timing boundaries and OFDM symbol indexing, which serve as reference points for computing relative receive timing differences between carriers. The 33 -microsecond MRTD threshold for FR1 inter-band pairs is interpreted with sub-symbol precision relative to the closest slot edges. These uniform timing and structural conventions allow ATGUE implementations to map the interruption and MRTD requirements into physicallayer operations.

[0271] The disclosed techniques are associated with the procedures for RRC reconfiguration messages. These procedures govern the addition, release, activation, and modification of secondary cells in carrier aggregation configurations. These procedures supply the signaling mechanisms that trigger and bind the interruptions permitted for ATG UEs. Upon reception of an RRCReconfiguration message containing SCell addition or release information elements, the ATG UE executes the corresponding cell group configuration updates. The UE adheres to the interruption allowances defined in the radio resource management specification. RRC signaling itself and any associated ACK / NACK feedback remain uninterrupted. The protocol further defines the MAC control element handling for SCell activation and deactivation commands, the configuration of measurement objects and SMTC windows for deactivated SCell monitoring, the BWP switching procedures on primary and secondary cells, the dormancy signaling for bandwidth part transitions, and the fast SCell activation framework utilizing CSI-RS resources. These procedures map directly onto the interruption tables and probability bounds applicable to ATG UEs. Conditional and autonomous gap configurations for CGI acquisition, as well as the management of UE-specific channel bandwidth and SRS antenna switching, are likewise defined. These RRC mechanisms provide the control-plane procedures that, when combined with the physical-layer timing definitions and performance requirements, enable compliant ATG UE behavior in downlink carrier aggregation scenarios.

[0272] An ATG UE can be configured to handle a specified amount of timing difference between DL carriers when NR carrier aggregation is enabled. The disclosed techniques specify the MRTD for the ATG UE, thereby guaranteeing the system's throughput, latency, and reliability.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0273] The disclosed techniques specify the MRTD requirements for ATG UE when the UE is configured with inter-band DL CA. The UE can be configured to handle a maximum receive timing difference across the aggregate DL carriers, ensuring the performance of the DL CA system is guaranteed.

[0274] An ATG UE is “Air-to-Ground User Equipment,” a specialized type of user equipment designed for connectivity in air-to-ground communication systems. These systems provide broadband connectivity to aircraft, enabling passengers and crew to access the internet and other communication services while in flight.

[0275] An ATG UE discussed herein can be assumed to have the following characteristics:

[0276] (a) Specialized Antennas: The ATG UE is equipped with antennas designed to maintain connectivity with ground stations while the aircraft is in motion. These antennas are optimized for long-range communication and can handle the Doppler shifts associated with high-speed travel.

[0277] (b) Robust Connectivity: The equipment is designed to provide stable and reliable connectivity despite the challenges posed by altitude, speed, and environmental conditions. This includes handling rapid handovers between ground stations as the aircraft moves.

[0278] (c) High Throughput: The ATG UE is capable of supporting high data rates to accommodate the bandwidth demands of multiple users on an aircraft, including streaming, browsing, and other internet services.

[0279] (d) Adaptation to Flight Conditions: The equipment is engineered to function effectively in the unique conditions of flight, such as varying altitudes and speeds, and to withstand the physical and electromagnetic environment of an aircraft.

[0280] The following configurations relate to MRTD in NR CA.

[0281] To facilitate the ATG UE characteristics and benefits, NR Carrier Aggregation is necessary to be supported from both ATG UE and network perspectives.

[0282] MRTD refers to the largest allowable time difference between the arrival of signals from different cells or carriers at a user equipment (UE). The concept is important in the context of CA operations for ATG UEs, as it helpsAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1maintain synchronization and ensure that the UE correctly processes signals from multiple carriers without significant performance degradation.

[0283] FIG. 8 is a diagram 800 of MRTD for ATG UE configured with interband CA, in accordance with some aspects.

[0284] In some aspects, an ATG UE is configured to support both intra-band and inter-band DL CA operations.

[0285] When the UE is configured with intra-band contiguous CA, the network guarantees that the timing difference is small enough for the UE to use a shared radio to simultaneously receive signals from any pair of contiguous carriers in any configured frequency band. In some aspects, the maximum receive timing difference the UE can handle is about 260 nanoseconds.

[0286] When the UE is configured with inter-band CA, the network does not guarantee that signals from different frequency bands are from the same set of radios. Or the UE is not supposed to receive the signals simultaneously using a shared radio. Usually, the timing difference between inter-band aggregated carriers consists of the timing difference between transmitters at the gNB side and the propagation delay caused by the separation between the radio transmitter locations.

[0287] The following configurations relate to MRTD requirements for ATG UEs.

[0288] In some aspects, an ATG UE can be configured to handle a relative receive timing difference between the closest slot timing boundaries of different carriers in FR1 to be aggregated in NR carrier aggregation.

[0289] In some aspects, for intra-band contiguous CA, co-located deployment is applied to an ATG UE.

[0290] In some aspects, for inter-band NR carrier aggregation, the UE shall be capable of handling at least a relative receive timing difference between slot timing of all pairs of carriers in FR1 to be aggregated at the UE receiver, as shown in Table 1 below.Frequency Range of the Maximum receive timing pair of carriers difference (ps)FR1 33Table 1 : Maximum receive timing difference requirement for ATG UE in interband NR carrier aggregation.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0291] In some aspects, an ATG UE can be configured to handle a relative receive timing difference between the closest slot timing boundaries of different carriers in FR1 to be aggregated in NR carrier aggregation.

[0292] In some aspects, for inter-band NR carrier aggregation, the UE can be configured to handle at least a relative receive timing difference between slot timing of all pairs of carriers in FR1 to be aggregated at the UE receiver as 33 microseconds.

[0293] In some aspects, an ATG UE is allowed to cause interruptions to active serving cells when configured with NR carrier aggregation. The following configurations specify the interruptions allowed for ATG UEs when different CA operations are configured or performed across one of the aggregated carriers. The interruption is allowed for all active serving carriers configured to the ATG UE.

[0294] The following configurations relate to interruptions for ATG UEs, specifically those involving standalone NR CA.

[0295] The following configurations specify the requirements related to the interruptions on PCell and activated SCell if configured to an ATG UE, when up to 7 DL SCells are configured, de-configured, activated, deactivated, or measurements on SCC with deactivated SCell in NR SCG, or UL / DL BWP is switched on PCell or DL BWP is switched on SCell, or CGI reading of an NR neighbor cell with autonomous gaps, or UE-specific CBW is changed on PCell or SCell, or NR SRS antenna port switching on PCell.

[0296] In some aspects, interruptions at SCell addition / release, activation / deactivation, and during measurements on SCC may not be required by all UEs.

[0297] In some cases, the interruptions may not affect RRC signalling or ACK / NACKs related to the RRC reconfiguration procedure according to TS 38.331 for SCell addition / release, or MAC control signalling according to TS 37.340 for SCell activation / deactivation commands.

[0298] The following configurations relate to interruptions at SCell addition / release.

[0299] When any number of DL SCells between one and 7 is added or released using the same RRCConnectionReconfiguration message as defined inAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO13GPP TS 38.331, the ATGUE is allowed an interruption on any active serving cell during the RRC reconfiguration-based SCell addition / release procedures as follows:

[0300] (a) of up to the interruption length specified in Table D.2.2.1-1, if the active serving cells are contiguous to any of the SCells being added or released in the same FR1 band, provided the cell-specific reference signals from the active serving cells and the SCells being added or released are available in the same slot or,

[0301] (b) of up to the interruption length specified in Table D.2.2.1-2, if the active serving cell and the SCell being added or released are in a FR1 band pair.NR Slot length Interruption length (slots) (ms)0 1 ,T*KTsubframe, Lt1 + 1 SMTC duration ATG l\lot1 0.5 ~ .T*KTsubframe, Lt2 + 1 SMTC duration ATG N itNOTE 1 : TSMTC duration ATG measured in subframes is- the longest SMTC duration among all above active serving cells and the SCell being added when one SCell is added. If SSB configuration (absoluteFrequencySSB) but no SMTC configuration is provided for the SCell being added, the SSB transmission periodicity is assumed to be 5ms and TSMTC duration ATG for the SCell being added is x ms, where x = the number of consecutive subframes containing all SSBs in one SSB burst transmitted by the SCell being added. If neither SSB configuration (absoluteFrequencySSB) nor SMTC configuration is provided for the SCell being added, TSMTC duration ATG for the SCell being added is 0ms;- the longest SMTC duration among all active serving cells in the same band when one SCell is released.NOTE 2: Nss^frame’Ris as defined in TS 38.211.Table D.2.2.1-1 : Interruption length for SCell addition / release for ATG intraband contiguous CANR Slot length Interruption length (slots)(ms) of victimcell0 1 11 0.5 2Table D.2.2.1-2: Interruption length for SCell addition / release for ATG interband CA

[0302] The following configurations relate to interruptions at SCell acti vati on / deacti vati on .AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0303] When an SCell is activated or deactivated as defined in 3GPP TS 37.340, the ATG UE is allowed an interruption on any active serving cell:

[0304] (a) of up to the interruption length specified in Table D.2.2.2-1, if the active serving cells are contiguous to any of the SCells being activated or deactivated in the same FR1 band, provided the cell-specific reference signals from the active serving cells and the SCells being activated or deactivated are available in the same slot or,

[0305] (b) of up to the interruption length specified in Table D.2.2.2-2, if the active serving cell and the SCell being activated or deactivated are in a FR1 band pair.NR Slot length Interruption length (slots) (ms)0 1 ,T*KTsubframe, Lt I + 1 SMTC duration ATG l\lot1 0.5 ,T*KTsubframe, Lt I + 1 SMTC duration ATG N itNOTE 1 : TSMTC duration ATG measured in subframes is- the longest SMTC duration among all above active serving cells and the SCell being activated when one SCell is activated. If SSB configuration (absoluteFrequencySSB) but no SMTC configuration is provided for the SCell being activated, the SSB transmission periodicity is assumed to be 5ms and TSMTC duration ATG for the SCell being activated is x ms, where x = the number of consecutive subframes containing all SSBs in one SSB burst transmitted by the SCell being activated. If neither SSB configuration (absoluteFrequencySSB) nor SMTC configuration is provided for the SCell being activated, TSMTC duration ATG for the SCell being activated is 0ms;- the longest SMTC duration among all active serving cells in the same band when one SCell is deactivated.NOTE 2: N^ubframe^ is as defined in TS 38.211.Table D.2.2.2-1: Interruption length for SCell activation / deactivation for ATG intra-band contiguous CANR Slot Interruption length X2 (slots)length (ms)of victim cell0 1 11 0.5 1Table D.2.2.2-2: Interruption length for SCell activation / deactivation for ATG inter-band CA

[0306] The following configurations relate to interruptions during measurements on deactivated SCC.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0307] Interruptions on PCell due to measurements when an SCell is deactivated are allowed for an ATG UE, with up to 0.5% probability of missed ACK / NACK when the configured measCycleSCell is 640 ms or longer.

[0308] (a) If the PCell is not in the same band as the deactivated SCell, the ATG UE is only allowed to cause interruptions on the PCell immediately before and immediately after an SMTC. Each interruption shall not exceed the requirement in Table D.2.2.2-1 or,

[0309] (b) If the PCell or activated SCell(s) is contiguous to the deactivated SCell in the same FR1 band, the ATG UE is allowed to cause an interruption on PCell no earlier than X slots before T SMTC duration ATG and no later than X slots after T SMTC duration ATG, provided the cell-specific reference signals from the active serving cells and the deactivated SCell are available in the same slot, where X and T SMTC duration ATG are given by Table D.2.2.3-1. The interruption shall not exceed the requirements in Table D.2.2.3-1.NR Slot length X (slots) Interruption length (slots) (ms)0 1 1 2 + TSMTC duration ATG *»TSubframe,|i1Nslot1 0.5 1 2 + TSMTC duration ATG *..subframe,1NslotNOTE 1: TSMTC duration ATG measurer in subframes is the longest SMTC duration among all a bove active serving cells and the deactivated SCell to be mea sured;NOTE 2: N®^frame,riis as defined it i TS 38.211.Table D.2.2.3-1: Interruption duration for measurement on deactivated SCell for intra-band CA

[0310] The following configurations relate to interruptions at direct SCell activation.

[0311] When one or multiple SCell(s) are directly activated at SCell addition, the ATG UE is allowed an interruption on any active serving cell:

[0312] (a) of up to the interruption length specified in Table D.2.2.1-1, if the active serving cells are in the same band as the SCell being activated, provided the cell-specific reference signals from the active serving cells and the SCell being activated are available in the same slot or,

[0313] (b) of up to the interruption length specified in Table D.2.2.1-2, if the active serving cell is not in the same band as the SCell being directly activated.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0314] The following configurations relate to interruptions caused by SCell dormancy and by the SCell dormancy switch.

[0315] When one SCell in MCG is switched from dormancy to nondormancy or from non-dormancy to dormancy when an ATG UE is in DRX active time, the ATG UE is allowed an interruption on the active serving cell in MCG, except that the interruption is allowed regardless of which parameters change between the dormant BWP and the non-dormant BWP. In some aspects, the interruption start time shall be within the dormancy switching delay.

[0316] The following configurations address interruptions caused by CQI measurements during SCell dormancy.

[0317] When one or more SCells are in dormancy, the ATG UE, for the purpose of CQI measurements on the dormant SCell(s), allowing interruptions to non-dormant serving cell(s).

[0318] The rate of ACK / NACK feedback loss on any non-dormant serving cell resulting from CQI measurements on dormant SCells shall not exceed 0.5%.

[0319] The following configurations address interruptions caused by RRM measurements during SCell dormancy.

[0320] When one or more SCells are in dormancy, the ATG UE, for the purpose of RRM measurements on the dormant SCell(s), is allowing interruptions to non-dormant serving cell(s).

[0321] The rate of ACK / NACK feedback loss on any non-dormant serving cell resulting from RRM measurements on dormant SCells shall not exceed 1.0 %.

[0322] The following configurations relate to interruptions at fast SCell activation.

[0323] The configurations discussed herein can apply to the ATGUE configured with a PCell and one SCell when a periodic CSI-RS resource is configured for fast SCell activation.

[0324] When one SCell in MCG configured with aperiodic CSI-RS resources is configured for fast SCell activation from deactivated, the ATG UE is allowed an interruption on any active serving cell:AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0325] (a) of up to the interruption length specified in Table D.2.2.2-2, if the active serving cell and the SCell being activated are in a FR1 band pair, or

[0326] (b) of up to A slots + T ATRS duration ATG, if the active serving cells are in the same band as any of the SCells being activated, when the SCell to be activated is known and belongs to FR1 (if the measurement period of the SCell being activated is larger than 2400 ms), or the SCell is unknown and belongs to FR1, and the SCell is contiguous to an active serving cell in the same band, or

[0327] (c) of up to A slots if the active serving cells are in the same band as any of the SCells being activated, when the SCell to be activated is known and belongs to FR1, if the measurement period of the SCell being activated is equal to or smaller than 2400 ms.

[0328] As used herein, T ATRS duration ATG is a CSI-RS burst for SCell activation, where the CSI-RS burst comprises four CSI-RS resources in two consecutive slots on the SCell being activated. A is specified in Table D.2.2.6-1 below.NR Slot Interruption length Alength (ms) (slots)Aof victimcell0 1 11 0.5 1Table D.2.2.6-1: Interruption length A at SCell activation / deactivation for ATG UE

[0329] In some aspects, an ATG UE is configured to meet the configurations discussed herein.

[0330] FIG. 9 illustrates a block diagram of a communication device, such as an evolved Node-B (eNB), a new generation Node-B (gNB) (or another RAN node, such as a base station), a network-controlled repeater (NCR), an access point (AP), a wireless station (STA), a mobile station (MS), or user equipment (UE), in accordance with some aspects, and to perform one or more of the techniques disclosed herein. In alternative aspects, the communication device 900 may operate as a standalone device or may be connected (e.g., networked) to other communication devices.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0331] Circuitry (e.g., processing circuitry) is a collection of circuits implemented in tangible components of the device 900, including hardware (e.g., simple circuits, gates, logic). Circuitry membership may be flexible over time. Circuitries include members that may, alone or in combination, perform specified operations when operating. For example, the circuitry hardware may be immutably designed to carry out a specific operation (e.g., hardwired). For example, the circuitry may include variably connected physical components (e.g., execution units, transistors, simple circuits, etc.), including a machine-readable medium physically modified (e.g., magnetically, electrically, or by moving invariant-mass particles) to encode instructions for the specific operation.

[0332] In connecting the physical components, the underlying electrical properties of a hardware constituent are changed, for example, from an insulator to a conductor or vice versa. The instructions enable embedded hardware (e.g., execution units or a loading mechanism) to create members of the circuitry in hardware via variable connections, thereby carrying out portions of the specific operation during operation. Accordingly, in an example, the machine-readable medium elements are part of the circuitry or are communicatively coupled to the other components of the circuitry when the device is operating. For example, any physical component may be used in more than one member of more than one circuitry. For example, under operation, execution units may be used in the first circuit of a first circuitry at one point in time and reused by a second circuit in the first circuitry or by a third circuit in a second circuitry at a different time. Additional examples of these components with respect to the device 900 follow.

[0333] In some aspects, the device 900 may operate as a standalone device or may be connected (e.g., networked) to other devices. In a networked deployment, the communication device 900 may operate as a server communication device, a client communication device, or both in server-client network environments. For example, the communication device 900 may act as a peer-to-peer (P2P) communication device in a peer-to-peer (P2P) or other distributed network environment. The communication device 900 may be a UE, eNB, PC, tablet PC, STB, PDA, mobile telephone, smartphone, a web appliance, network router, a switch or bridge, or any communication device capable of executing instructions (sequential or otherwise) that specify actions to be takenAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1by that communication device. Further, while only a single communication device is illustrated, the term “communication device” shall also be taken to include any collection of communication devices that individually or jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) of instructions to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein, such as cloud computing, software as a service (SaaS), and other computer cluster configurations.

[0334] Examples, as described herein, may include or may operate on logic or several components, modules, or mechanisms. Modules are tangible entities (e.g., hardware) capable of performing specified operations and may be configured or arranged in a particular manner. In an example, circuits may be arranged (e.g., internally or with respect to external entities such as other circuits) in a specified manner as a module. In an example, the whole or part of one or more computer systems (e.g., a standalone, client, or server computer system) or one or more hardware processors may be configured by firmware or software (e.g., instructions, an application portion, or an application) as a module that operates to perform specified operations. In an example, the software may reside on a communication device-readable medium. In an example, the software, when executed by the underlying hardware of the module, causes the hardware to perform the specified operations.

[0335] Accordingly, the term “module” is understood to encompass a tangible entity, be that an entity that is physically constructed, specifically configured (e.g., hardwired), or temporarily (e.g., transitorily) configured (e.g., programmed) to operate in a specified manner or to perform part or all of any operation described herein. Considering examples in which modules are temporarily configured, each of the modules does not need to be instantiated at any one moment in time. For example, where the modules comprise a general-purpose hardware processor configured using the software, the general -purpose hardware processor may be configured as different modules at different times. The software may accordingly configure a hardware processor, for example, to constitute a particular module at one instance of time and to constitute a different module at a different instance of time.

[0336] The communication device (e.g., UE) 900 may include a hardware processor 902 (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unitAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1(GPU), a hardware processor core, or any combination thereof), a main memory 904, a static memory 906, and a storage device 916 (e.g., hard drive, tape drive, flash storage, or other block or storage devices), some or all of which may communicate with each other via an interlink 908 (e.g., a bus).

[0337] The communication device 900 may further include a display device 910, an input device 912 (e.g., a keyboard), and a user interface (UI) navigation device 914 (e.g., a mouse). In an example, the display device 910, input device 912, and UI navigation device 914 may be a touchscreen display. The communication device 900 may additionally include a signal generation device 918 (e.g., a speaker), a network interface device 920, and one or more sensors 921, such as a global positioning system (GPS) sensor, compass, accelerometer, or another sensor. The communication device 900 may include an output controller 928, such as a serial (e.g., universal serial bus (USB)), parallel, or other wired or wireless (e.g., infrared (IR), near field communication (NFC), etc.) connection to communicate or control one or more peripheral devices (e.g., a printer, card reader, etc.).

[0338] The storage device 916 may include a device-readable medium 922, on which one or more sets of data structures or instructions 924 (e.g., software) are stored, embodying or utilized by any one or more of the techniques or functions described herein. In some aspects, registers of the hardware processor 902, the main memory 904, the static memory 906, and / or the storage device 916 may be, or include (entirely or at least partially), the device-readable medium 922, on which are stored the one or more sets of data structures or instructions 924, embodying or utilized by any one or more of the techniques or functions described herein. In an example, one or any combination of the hardware processor 902, the main memory 904, the static memory 906, or the storage device 916 may constitute the device-readable medium 922.

[0339] As used herein, the term “device-readable medium” is interchangeable with “computer-readable medium” or “machine-readable medium.” While the device-readable medium 922 is illustrated as a single medium, the term “communication device-readable medium” may refer to a single medium or to multiple media (e.g., a centralized or distributed database and / or associated caches and servers) configured to store the instructions 924. The termAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1“communication device-readable medium” is inclusive of the terms “machine-readable medium” or “computer-readable medium” and may include any medium that is capable of storing, encoding, or carrying instructions (e.g., instructions 924) for execution by the communication device 900 and that causes the communication device 900 to perform any one or more of the disclosed techniques, or that is capable of storing, encoding, or carrying data structures used by or associated with such instructions. Non-limiting examples of communication device-readable media may include solid-state memories and optical and magnetic media. Specific examples of communication device-readable media may include non-volatile memory, such as semiconductor memory devices (e.g., Electrically Programmable Read-Only Memory (EPROM), Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory (EEPROM)) and flash memory devices; magnetic disks, such as internal hard disks and removable disks; magneto-optical disks; Random Access Memory (RAM); and CD-ROM and DVD-ROM disks. In some examples, communication device-readable media may include non-transitory communication device-readable media. In some examples, communication device-readable media may include communication device-readable media that are not transitory propagating signals.

[0340] Instructions 924 may further be transmitted or received over a communications network 926 using a transmission medium via the network interface device 920, utilizing any one of several transfer protocols. In an example, the network interface device 920 may include one or more physical jacks (e.g., Ethernet, coaxial, or phonejacks) or one or more antennas to connect to the communications network 926. In an example, the network interface device 920 may include a plurality of antennas to wirelessly communicate using at least one of the single-input-multiple-output (SIMO), multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO), or multiple-input-single-output (MISO) techniques. In some examples, the network interface device 920 may wirelessly communicate using multiple-user MIMO techniques.

[0341] The term “transmission medium” shall be taken to include any intangible medium that is capable of storing, encoding, or carrying instructions for execution by the communication device 900, and includes digital or analog communications signals or another intangible medium to facilitateAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1communication of such software. In this regard, a transmission medium in the context of the disclosed techniques is a device-readable medium.

[0342] The terms “machine-readable medium,” “computer-readable medium,” and “device-readable medium” mean the same thing and may be used interchangeably. The terms are defined to include both machine-storage media and transmission media. Thus, the terms include both storage devices / media and carrier waves / modulated data signals.

[0343] For handling evaluations based on synchronization signals that are activated only when needed, the device is expected to possess certain radio and processing attributes to align with the expected speed and precision of these tasks. These attributes ensure the device can swiftly adjust its reception settings, reliably detect intermittent signals, and process them without exceeding allowable delays or error margins, particularly in higher-frequency operations or combined-carrier environments where quick cell readiness is crucial.

[0344] A primary expectation is rapid adjustment of radio settings when switching between signal occasions on different frequencies, with the device capable of completing this shift in under half a millisecond for lower-frequency bands and even quicker (e.g., around a fifth of a millisecond) for higher-frequency bands, to minimize interruptions during activation phases. This speed supports seamless transitions without compromising ongoing connections, assuming the hardware includes agile frequency synthesizers and filters that stabilize promptly after changes.

[0345] The processing circuitry and front-end support retuning between adjacent frequencies in the lower frequency range within approximately 0.6 milliseconds, and in the higher frequency range within approximately 0.3 milliseconds. The device maintains at least two independent reception paths in the lower frequency range and up to four reception branches in the higher frequency range to support parallel capture of synchronization signals. The baseband searchers operate at a sensitivity sufficient to declare detection for synchronization signals at levels near a configured threshold within the synchronization signal measurement timing configuration window.

[0346] The device can also maintain multiple independent reception paths, at a minimum two for basic diversity at lower frequencies and up to four at higherAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1frequencies for advanced beam handling, allowing simultaneous capture from various directions or paths. This enables parallel signal processing, essential for quick assessments during limited availability windows, with the paths isolated to prevent cross-interference and equipped with sufficient gain control to adapt to varying signal strengths.

[0347] Signal detection thresholds are set so the device can reliably identify and measure these intermittent references, even at low power levels, typically around -94 dB relative to a milliwatt or better, depending on the operational band and noise conditions. This sensitivity ensures high-probability acquisition (e.g., over 90%) in environments with moderate interference, leveraging correlation techniques in the processing core to extract timing and quality metrics from brief bursts.

[0348] On the processing side, the baseband must support dedicated units for signal searching, capable of handling up to eight layers concurrently without overload, including buffering for raw samples and filtering at higher layers to produce accurate power and quality reports within one or two cycles. These capabilities assume integrated digital front-ends with low-latency pipelines, enabling the device to meet activation timelines of 10 to 20 milliseconds, including detection and reporting, while maintaining error rates below 1% for critical metrics.

[0349] Overall, these minimal traits (e.g., quick tuning, dual or quad reception paths, high detection thresholds, and robust parallel processing) form the foundation for efficiently handling demand-based signals, ensuring compliance with scaled timelines and accuracy bounds across diverse network setups.

[0350] Described implementations of the subject matter can include one or more features, alone or in combination, as illustrated below by way of examples.

[0351] Example 1 is an apparatus for a user equipment (UE) configured for operation in a wireless network, the apparatus comprising: processing circuitry, the processing circuitry to: decode a carrier aggregation configuration received from a base station, the carrier aggregation configuration indicating a plurality of downlink carriers to be aggregated at the UE; process downlink signals from the plurality of downlink carriers while handling a relative receive timing differenceAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1between slot timing boundaries of carriers of the plurality of downlink carriers up to a maximum receive timing difference; and manage an interruption on at least one active serving cell during a carrier aggregation operation associated with the plurality of downlink carriers; and memory coupled to the processing circuitry and configured to store the carrier aggregation configuration.

[0352] In Example 2, the subject matter of Example 1 includes functionalities such that the UE is an air-to-ground (ATG) UE configured for air-to-ground communication.

[0353] In Example 3, the subject matter of Examples 1-2 includes functionalities such that the wireless network is a New Radio (NR) network.

[0354] In Example 4, the subject matter of Examples 1-3 includes functionalities such that the plurality of downlink carriers includes at least a first carrier in a first frequency band and a second carrier in a second frequency band different from the first frequency band.

[0355] In Example 5, the subject matter of Examples 1-4 includes functionalities such that the plurality of downlink carriers is in Frequency Range 1 (FR1), and the maximum receive timing difference is 33 microseconds for inter-band carrier aggregation of the first carrier and the second carrier.

[0356] In Example 6, the subject matter of Examples 1-5 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation configuration indicates at least one pair of contiguous carriers in a same frequency band, and the processing circuitry is to: process downlink signals from the at least one pair of contiguous carriers using a shared radio front-end while handling a relative receive timing difference of approximately 260 nanoseconds between closest slot timing boundaries of the at least one pair of contiguous carriers.

[0357] In Example 7, the subject matter of Examples 1-6 includes functionalities such that the interruption has a length determined based on at least one of a subcarrier spacing numerology of the at least one active serving cell or a frequency band relationship between the at least one active serving cell and a cell associated with the carrier aggregation operation.

[0358] In Example 8, the subject matter of Examples 1-7 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises addition orAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1release of at least one secondary cell (SCell) indicated in a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration message decoded from the base station.

[0359] In Example 9, the subject matter of Example 8 includes functionalities such that the at least one active serving cell is contiguous to the at least one SCell being added or released in a same frequency band, cell-specific reference signals from the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell are available in a same slot, and a length of the interruption is based on a subcarrier spacing numerology of the at least one active serving cell and a synchronization signal block-based measurement timing configuration (SMTC) duration.

[0360] In Example 10, the subject matter of Examples 8-9 includes functionalities such that the length of the interruption is l + T_SMTC_duration_ATGx NA{slot}_{ subframe, p} slots for a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 corresponding to a 1 ms NR slot length, and 2 + T_SMTC_duration_ATGx NA{slot}_{ subframe, p} slots for a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1 corresponding to a 0.5 ms NR slot length, T SMTC duration ATG being a longest SMTC duration among the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell, and NA{ si ot}_{ subframe, p} being a number of slots per subframe for the subcarrier spacing numerology p.

[0361] In Example 11, the subject matter of Examples 8-10 includes functionalities such that T SMTC duration ATG for the at least one SCell being added is determined as follows: when a synchronization signal block (SSB) configuration but no SMTC configuration is provided for the at least one SCell being added, an SSB transmission periodicity is assumed to be 5 ms and T SMTC duration ATG for the at least one SCell being added is a number of consecutive subframes containing all SSBs in one SSB burst transmitted by the at least one SCell being added; and when neither an SSB configuration nor an SMTC configuration is provided for the at least one SCell being added,T SMTC duration ATG for the at least one SCell being added is 0 ms.

[0362] In Example 12, the subject matter of Examples 8-11 includes functionalities such that the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell being added or released are in different frequency bands, and a length of the interruption is 1 slot for a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 and 2 slots for a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0363] In Example 13, the subject matter of Examples 8-12 includes functionalities such that the processing circuitry is to: maintain RRC signaling and acknowledgment or negative acknowledgment (ACK / NACK) feedback related to the RRC reconfiguration message without interruption during the addition or release of the at least one SCell.

[0364] In Example 14, the subject matter of Examples 1-13 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises activation or deactivation of at least one secondary cell (SCell).

[0365] In Example 15, the subject matter of Example 14 includes functionalities such that the at least one active serving cell is contiguous to the at least one SCell being activated or deactivated in a same frequency band, cellspecific reference signals from the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell are available in a same slot, and a length of the interruption is 1 + T SMTC duration ATGx NA{slot}_{ subframe, p} slots for both a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 and a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1,T SMTC duration ATG being a longest SMTC duration among the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell, and NA{ si ot}_{ subframe, p} being a number of slots per subframe for the subcarrier spacing numerology p.

[0366] In Example 16, the subject matter of Examples 14-15 includes functionalities such that the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell being activated or deactivated are in different frequency bands, and a length of the interruption is 1 slot for both a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 and a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1.

[0367] In Example 17, the subject matter of Examples 1-16 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises a measurement on a deactivated secondary component carrier (SCC), and the processing circuitry is to manage the interruption on a primary cell (PCell) with up to 0.5 percent probability of missed ACK / NACK feedback when a configured measurement cycle for the deactivated SCC is 640 ms or longer.

[0368] In Example 18, the subject matter of Example 17 includes functionalities such that the PCell is not in a same band as the deactivated SCC, and the processing circuitry is to cause the interruption on the PCell immediatelyAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1before and immediately after a synchronization signal block-based measurement timing configuration (SMTC) window associated with the deactivated SCC.

[0369] In Example 19, the subject matter of Examples 17-18 includes functionalities such that the PCell or at least one activated SCell is contiguous to the deactivated SCC in a same frequency band, cell-specific reference signals from the PCell or the at least one activated SCell and the deactivated SCC are available in a same slot, and the processing circuitry is to cause the interruption on the PCell no earlier than X slots before T SMTC duration ATG and no later than X slots after T SMTC duration ATG, X being 1 slot for both a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 and a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1, and a length of the interruption being 2 + T SMTC duration ATG x NA{slot}_{ subframe, p} slots, T SMTC duration ATG being a longest SMTC duration among the PCell or the at least one activated SCell and the deactivated SCC.

[0370] In Example 20, the subject matter of Examples 1-19 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises direct activation of at least one secondary cell (SCell) at a time of SCell addition, and a length of the interruption is determined based on whether the at least one active serving cell is in a same band as the at least one SCell being directly activated.

[0371] In Example 21, the subject matter of Examples 1-20 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises a dormancy switch of a secondary cell (SCell) in a master cell group (MCG) from dormancy to non-dormancy or from non-dormancy to dormancy while the UE is in a discontinuous reception (DRX) active time, the interruption being allowed on the at least one active serving cell in the MCG regardless of which parameters change between a dormant bandwidth part (BWP) and a non-dormant BWP, and a starting time of the interruption being within a dormancy switching delay.

[0372] In Example 22, the subject matter of Examples 1-21 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises a channel quality indicator (CQI) measurement on at least one dormant secondary cell (SCell), and the processing circuitry is to cause the interruption on at least one non-dormant serving cell, a rate of ACK / NACK feedback loss on any non-AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1dormant serving cell resulting from the CQI measurement not exceeding 0.5 percent.

[0373] In Example 23, the subject matter of Examples 1-22 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises a radio resource management (RRM) measurement on at least one dormant secondary cell (SCell), and the processing circuitry is to cause the interruption on at least one non-dormant serving cell, a rate of ACK / NACK feedback loss on any nondormant serving cell resulting from the RRM measurement not exceeding 1.0 percent.

[0374] In Example 24, the subject matter of Examples 1-23 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises fast activation of a secondary cell (SCell), the UE being configured with a primary cell (PCell) and the SCell, and a periodic channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) resource being configured for the fast activation of the SCell.

[0375] In Example 25, the subject matter of Example 24 includes functionalities such that the SCell is configured with aperiodic CSI-RS resources for the fast activation and is activated from a deactivated state, the at least one active serving cell and the SCell are in different frequency bands, and a length of the interruption is 1 slot for both a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 and a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1.

[0376] In Example 26, the subject matter of Examples 24-25 includes functionalities such that the SCell is configured with aperiodic CSI-RS resources for the fast activation and is activated from a deactivated state, the at least one active serving cell is in a same band as the SCell, and a length of the interruption is A slots + T ATRS duration ATG when the SCell is known with a measurement period larger than 2400 ms, or when the SCell is unknown and is contiguous to the at least one active serving cell in the same band,T ATRS duration ATG being a CSI-RS burst duration defined as four CSI-RS resources in two consecutive slots on the SCell being activated, and A being 1 slot for both a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 and a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1.

[0377] In Example 27, the subject matter of Examples 24-26 includes functionalities such that the SCell is configured with aperiodic CSI-RS resourcesAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1for the fast activation and is activated from a deactivated state, the at least one active serving cell is in a same band as the SCell, the SCell is known with a measurement period equal to or smaller than 2400 ms, and a length of the interruption is A slots, A being 1 slot for both a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 and a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1.

[0378] In Example 28, the subject matter of Example 2 includes functionalities such that the UE comprises antennas configured to maintain connectivity with ground-based base stations while an aircraft carrying the UE is in motion, the antennas being configured for long-range communication and to handle Doppler shifts associated with the aircraft being in motion.

[0379] In Example 29, the subject matter of Examples 1-28 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation configuration indicates up to seven downlink secondary cells (SCells) to be configured, de-configured, activated, or deactivated.

[0380] In Example 30, the subject matter of Examples 1-29 includes functionalities such that the processing circuitry comprises protocol processing circuitry, digital baseband circuitry, and radio frequency circuitry, the radio frequency circuitry including receive circuitry to receive the downlink signals from the plurality of downlink carriers via a radio frequency front-end (RFFE).

[0381] In Example 31, the subject matter of Examples 1-30 includes functionalities such that the apparatus further comprises: transceiver circuitry coupled to the processing circuitry; and one or more antennas coupled to the transceiver circuitry.

[0382] Example 32 is a computer-readable storage medium that stores instructions for execution by one or more processors of a user equipment (UE), the instructions to configure the UE for operation in a New Radio (NR) network, and to cause the UE to perform operations comprising: decoding a carrier aggregation configuration received from a base station, the carrier aggregation configuration indicating a plurality of downlink carriers to be aggregated at the UE; processing downlink signals from the plurality of downlink carriers while handling a relative receive timing difference between slot timing boundaries of carriers of the plurality of downlink carriers up to a maximum receive timing difference; and managing an interruption on at least one active serving cellAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1during a carrier aggregation operation associated with the plurality of downlink carriers.

[0383] In Example 33, the subject matter of Example 32 includes functionalities such that the UE is an air-to-ground (ATG) UE configured for air-to-ground communication.

[0384] In Example 34, the subject matter of Examples 32-33 includes functionalities such that the plurality of downlink carriers includes at least a first carrier in a first frequency band and a second carrier in a second frequency band different from the first frequency band.

[0385] In Example 35, the subject matter of Examples 32-34 includes functionalities such that the plurality of downlink carriers is in Frequency Range 1 (FR1), and the maximum receive timing difference is 33 microseconds for inter-band carrier aggregation of the first carrier and the second carrier.

[0386] In Example 36, the subject matter of Examples 32-35 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation configuration indicates at least one pair of contiguous carriers in a same frequency band, the operations further comprising: processing downlink signals from the at least one pair of contiguous carriers using a shared radio front-end while handling a relative receive timing difference of approximately 260 nanoseconds between closest slot timing boundaries of the at least one pair of contiguous carriers.

[0387] In Example 37, the subject matter of Examples 32-36 includes functionalities such that the interruption has a length determined based on at least one of a subcarrier spacing numerology of the at least one active serving cell or a frequency band relationship between the at least one active serving cell and a cell associated with the carrier aggregation operation.

[0388] In Example 38, the subject matter of Examples 32-37 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises addition or release of at least one secondary cell (SCell) indicated in a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration message decoded from the base station.

[0389] In Example 39, the subject matter of Example 38 includes functionalities such that the at least one active serving cell is contiguous to the at least one SCell being added or released in a same frequency band, cell-specific reference signals from the at least one active serving cell and the at least oneAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1SCell are available in a same slot, and a length of the interruption is based on a subcarrier spacing numerology of the at least one active serving cell and a synchronization signal block-based measurement timing configuration (SMTC) duration.

[0390] In Example 40, the subject matter of Examples 38-39 includes functionalities such that the length of the interruption is l + T_SMTC_duration_ATGx NA{slot}_{ subframe, p} slots for a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 corresponding to a 1 ms NR slot length, and 2 + T_SMTC_duration_ATGx NA{slot}_{ subframe, p} slots for a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1 corresponding to a 0.5 ms NR slot length,T SMTC duration ATG being a longest SMTC duration among the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell, and NA{ si ot}_{ subframe, p} being a number of slots per subframe for the subcarrier spacing numerology p.

[0391] In Example 41, the subject matter of Examples 38-40 includes functionalities such that the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell being added or released are in different frequency bands, and a length of the interruption is 1 slot for a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 and 2 slots for a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1.

[0392] In Example 42, the subject matter of Examples 38-41 includes functionalities such that the operations further comprise: maintaining RRC signaling and acknowledgment or negative acknowledgment (ACK / NACK) feedback related to the RRC reconfiguration message without interruption during the addition or release of the at least one SCell.

[0393] In Example 43, the subject matter of Examples 32-42 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises activation or deactivation of at least one secondary cell (SCell).

[0394] In Example 44, the subject matter of Example 43 includes functionalities such that the at least one active serving cell is contiguous to the at least one SCell being activated or deactivated in a same frequency band, cellspecific reference signals from the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell are available in a same slot, and a length of the interruption is 1 + T SMTC duration ATGx NA{slot}_{ subframe, p} slots for both a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 and a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1,AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1T SMTC duration ATG being a longest SMTC duration among the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell, and NA{ si ot}_{ subframe, p} being a number of slots per subframe for the subcarrier spacing numerology p.

[0395] In Example 45, the subject matter of Examples 43-44 includes functionalities such that the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell being activated or deactivated are in different frequency bands, and a length of the interruption is 1 slot for both a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 and a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1.

[0396] In Example 46, the subject matter of Examples 32-45 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises a measurement on a deactivated secondary component carrier (SCC), and the operations further comprise managing the interruption on a primary cell (PCell) with up to 0.5 percent probability of missed ACK / NACK feedback when a configured measurement cycle for the deactivated SCC is 640 ms or longer.

[0397] In Example 47, the subject matter of Examples 32-46 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises a dormancy switch of a secondary cell (SCell) in a master cell group (MCG) from dormancy to non-dormancy or from non-dormancy to dormancy while the UE is in a discontinuous reception (DRX) active time, the interruption being allowed on the at least one active serving cell in the MCG regardless of which parameters change between a dormant bandwidth part (BWP) and a non-dormant BWP, and a starting time of the interruption being within a dormancy switching delay.

[0398] In Example 48, the subject matter of Examples 32-47 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises a channel quality indicator (CQI) measurement on at least one dormant secondary cell (SCell), and the operations further comprise causing the interruption on at least one non-dormant serving cell, a rate of ACK / NACK feedback loss on any nondormant serving cell resulting from the CQI measurement not exceeding 0.5 percent.

[0399] In Example 49, the subject matter of Examples 32-48 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises a radio resource management (RRM) measurement on at least one dormant secondary cell (SCell), and the operations further comprise causing the interruption on atAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1least one non-dormant serving cell, a rate of ACK / NACK feedback loss on any non-dormant serving cell resulting from the RRM measurement not exceeding 1.0 percent.

[0400] In Example 50, the subject matter of Examples 32-49 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises fast activation of a secondary cell (SCell), the UE being configured with a primary cell (PCell) and the SCell, and a periodic channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) resource being configured for the fast activation of the SCell.

[0401] In Example 51, the subject matter of Example 50 includes functionalities such that the SCell is configured with aperiodic CSI-RS resources for the fast activation and is activated from a deactivated state, the at least one active serving cell is in a same band as the SCell, and a length of the interruption is A slots + T ATRS duration ATG when the SCell is known with a measurement period larger than 2400 ms, or when the SCell is unknown and is contiguous to the at least one active serving cell in the same band,T ATRS duration ATG being a CSI-RS burst duration defined as four CSI-RS resources in two consecutive slots on the SCell being activated, and A being 1 slot for both a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 and a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1.

[0402] In Example 52, the subject matter of Examples 50-51 includes functionalities such that the SCell is configured with aperiodic CSI-RS resources for the fast activation and is activated from a deactivated state, the at least one active serving cell is in a same band as the SCell, the SCell is known with a measurement period equal to or smaller than 2400 ms, and a length of the interruption is A slots, A being 1 slot for both a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 and a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1.

[0403] Example 53 is a computer-readable storage medium that stores instructions for execution by one or more processors of a base station, the instructions to configure the base station for operation in a New Radio (NR) network, and to cause the base station to perform operations comprising: encoding a carrier aggregation configuration for transmission to a user equipment (UE), the carrier aggregation configuration indicating a plurality of downlink carriers to be aggregated at the UE; transmitting downlink signals onAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1the plurality of downlink carriers to the UE, the downlink signals having a relative timing difference between slot timing boundaries of carriers of the plurality of downlink carriers up to a maximum transmit timing difference; and transmitting a carrier aggregation operation indication to the UE associated with the plurality of downlink carriers, the carrier aggregation operation indication causing the UE to manage an interruption on at least one active serving cell during a carrier aggregation operation.

[0404] In Example 54, the subject matter of Example 53 includes functionalities such that the UE is an air-to-ground (ATG) UE configured for air-to-ground communication.

[0405] In Example 55, the subject matter of Examples 53-54 includes functionalities such that the plurality of downlink carriers includes at least a first carrier in a first frequency band and a second carrier in a second frequency band different from the first frequency band.

[0406] In Example 56, the subject matter of Examples 53-55 includes functionalities such that the plurality of downlink carriers is in Frequency Range 1 (FR1), and the maximum transmit timing difference contributes to a maximum receive timing difference of 33 microseconds at the UE for inter-band carrier aggregation of the first carrier and the second carrier.

[0407] In Example 57, the subject matter of Examples 53-56 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation configuration indicates at least one pair of contiguous carriers in a same frequency band, the base station transmitting the downlink signals on the at least one pair of contiguous carriers from co-located transmission points such that a relative receive timing difference at the UE between closest slot timing boundaries of the at least one pair of contiguous carriers is approximately 260 nanoseconds.

[0408] In Example 58, the subject matter of Examples 53-57 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises addition or release of at least one secondary cell (SCell), the operations further comprising: encoding a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration message for transmission to the UE, the RRC reconfiguration message indicating the addition or release of the at least one SCell.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0409] In Example 59, the subject matter of Example 58 includes functionalities such that the at least one active serving cell is contiguous to the at least one SCell being added or released in a same frequency band, cell-specific reference signals from the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell are transmitted in a same slot, and an interruption length at the UE is based on a subcarrier spacing numerology of the at least one active serving cell and a synchronization signal block-based measurement timing configuration (SMTC) duration.

[0410] In Example 60, the subject matter of Examples 58-59 includes functionalities such that the interruption length at the UE is l + T_SMTC_duration_ATGx NA{slot}_{ subframe, p} slots for a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 corresponding to a 1 ms NR slot length, and 2 + T_SMTC_duration_ATGx NA{slot}_{ subframe, p} slots for a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1 corresponding to a 0.5 ms NR slot length,T SMTC duration ATG being a longest SMTC duration among the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell, and NA{ si ot}_{ subframe, p} being a number of slots per subframe for the subcarrier spacing numerology p.

[0411] In Example 61, the subject matter of Examples 58-60 includes functionalities such that the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell being added or released are in different frequency bands, and an interruption length at the UE is 1 slot for a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 and 2 slots for a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1.

[0412] In Example 62, the subject matter of Examples 58-61 includes functionalities such that RRC signaling and acknowledgment or negative acknowledgment (ACK / NACK) feedback related to the RRC reconfiguration message are maintained without interruption at the UE during the addition or release of the at least one SCell.

[0413] In Example 63, the subject matter of Examples 53-62 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises activation or deactivation of at least one secondary cell (SCell), the operations further comprising: encoding a medium access control (MAC) control element for transmission to the UE, the MAC control element indicating the activation or deactivation of the at least one SCell.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0414] In Example 64, the subject matter of Example 63 includes functionalities such that the at least one active serving cell is contiguous to the at least one SCell being activated or deactivated in a same frequency band, cellspecific reference signals from the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell are transmitted in a same slot, and an interruption length at the UE is 1 + T_SMTC_duration_ATG x NA{ si ot}_{ subframe, p} slots for both a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 and a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1,T SMTC duration ATG being a longest SMTC duration among the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell, and NA{slot}_{ subframe, p} being a number of slots per subframe for the subcarrier spacing numerology p.

[0415] In Example 65, the subject matter of Examples 63-64 includes functionalities such that the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell being activated or deactivated are in different frequency bands, and an interruption length at the UE is 1 slot for both a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 and a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1.

[0416] In Example 66, the subject matter of Examples 53-65 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises a measurement on a deactivated secondary component carrier (SCC), the base station configuring a measurement cycle for the deactivated SCC of 640 ms or longer, and the UE managing an interruption on a primary cell (PCell) with up to 0.5 percent probability of missed ACK / NACK feedback.

[0417] In Example 67, the subject matter of Examples 53-66 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises a dormancy switch of a secondary cell (SCell) in a master cell group (MCG) from dormancy to non-dormancy or from non-dormancy to dormancy, the operations further comprising: encoding a dormancy switching indication for transmission to the UE while the UE is in a discontinuous reception (DRX) active time, the UE being allowed an interruption on the at least one active serving cell in the MCG regardless of which parameters change between a dormant bandwidth part (BWP) and a non-dormant BWP.

[0418] In Example 68, the subject matter of Examples 53-67 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises fast activation of a secondary cell (SCell), the base station configuring the UE with aAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1primary cell (PCell) and the SCell, and a periodic channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) resource being configured for the fast activation of the SCell.

[0419] In Example 69, the subject matter of Example 68 includes functionalities such that the SCell is configured with aperiodic CSI-RS resources for the fast activation, the at least one active serving cell is in a same band as the SCell, and an interruption length at the UE is A slots + T ATRS duration ATG when the SCell is known with a measurement period larger than 2400 ms, or when the SCell is unknown and is contiguous to the at least one active serving cell in the same band, T ATRS duration ATG being a CSI-RS burst duration defined as four CSI-RS resources in two consecutive slots on the SCell being activated, and A being 1 slot for both a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 and a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1.

[0420] In Example 70, the subject matter of Examples 53-69 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation configuration indicates up to seven downlink secondary cells (SCells) to be configured, de-configured, activated, or deactivated.

[0421] Example 71 is a user equipment (UE) configured for operation in a New Radio (5GNR) network, the UE comprising: front-end circuitry coupled to one or more antennas; and processing circuitry coupled to the front-end circuitry, the processing circuitry to: decode a carrier aggregation configuration received from a base station via the front-end circuitry, the carrier aggregation configuration indicating a plurality of downlink carriers to be aggregated at the UE; process downlink signals received via the front-end circuitry from the plurality of downlink carriers while handling a relative receive timing difference between slot timing boundaries of carriers of the plurality of downlink carriers up to a maximum receive timing difference; and manage an interruption on at least one active serving cell during a carrier aggregation operation associated with the plurality of downlink carriers.

[0422] In Example 72, the subject matter of Example 71 includes functionalities such that the UE is an air-to-ground (ATG) UE configured for air-to-ground communication.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0423] In Example 73, the subject matter of Examples 71-72 includes functionalities such that the plurality of downlink carriers includes at least a first carrier in a first frequency band and a second carrier in a second frequency band different from the first frequency band.

[0424] In Example 74, the subject matter of Examples 71-73 includes functionalities such that the plurality of downlink carriers is in Frequency Range 1 (FR1), and the maximum receive timing difference is 33 microseconds for inter-band carrier aggregation of the first carrier and the second carrier.

[0425] In Example 75, the subject matter of Examples 71-74 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation configuration indicates at least one pair of contiguous carriers in a same frequency band, and the processing circuitry is to process downlink signals from the at least one pair of contiguous carriers using a shared radio front-end while handling a relative receive timing difference of approximately 260 nanoseconds between closest slot timing boundaries of the at least one pair of contiguous carriers.

[0426] In Example 76, the subject matter of Examples 71-75 includes functionalities such that the interruption has a length determined based on at least one of a subcarrier spacing numerology of the at least one active serving cell or a frequency band relationship between the at least one active serving cell and a cell associated with the carrier aggregation operation.

[0427] In Example 77, the subject matter of Examples 71-76 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises addition or release of at least one secondary cell (SCell) indicated in a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration message decoded from the base station.

[0428] In Example 78, the subject matter of Example 77 includes functionalities such that the at least one active serving cell is contiguous to the at least one SCell being added or released in a same frequency band, cell-specific reference signals from the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell are available in a same slot, and a length of the interruption is based on a subcarrier spacing numerology of the at least one active serving cell and a synchronization signal block-based measurement timing configuration (SMTC) duration.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0429] In Example 79, the subject matter of Examples 77-78 includes functionalities such that the length of the interruption is l + T_SMTC_duration_ATGx NA{slot}_{ subframe, p} slots for a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 corresponding to a 1 ms NR slot length, and 2 + T_SMTC_duration_ATGx NA{slot}_{ subframe, p} slots for a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1 corresponding to a 0.5 ms NR slot length, T SMTC duration ATG being a longest SMTC duration among the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell, and NA{ si ot}_{ subframe, p} being a number of slots per subframe for the subcarrier spacing numerology p.

[0430] In Example 80, the subject matter of Examples 77-79 includes functionalities such that the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell being added or released are in different frequency bands, and a length of the interruption is 1 slot for a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 and 2 slots for a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1.

[0431] In Example 81, the subject matter of Examples 77-80 includes functionalities such that the processing circuitry is to maintain RRC signaling and acknowledgment or negative acknowledgment (ACK / NACK) feedback related to the RRC reconfiguration message without interruption during the addition or release of the at least one SCell.

[0432] In Example 82, the subject matter of Examples 71-81 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises activation or deactivation of at least one secondary cell (SCell).

[0433] In Example 83, the subject matter of Example 82 includes functionalities such that the at least one active serving cell is contiguous to the at least one SCell being activated or deactivated in a same frequency band, cellspecific reference signals from the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell are available in a same slot, and a length of the interruption is 1 + T SMTC duration ATGx NA{slot}_{ subframe, p} slots for both a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 and a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1,T SMTC duration ATG being a longest SMTC duration among the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell, and NA{ si ot}_{ subframe, p} being a number of slots per subframe for the subcarrier spacing numerology p.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0434] In Example 84, the subject matter of Examples 82-83 includes functionalities such that the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell being activated or deactivated are in different frequency bands, and a length of the interruption is 1 slot for both a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 and a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1.

[0435] In Example 85, the subject matter of Examples 71-84 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises a measurement on a deactivated secondary component carrier (SCC), and the processing circuitry is to manage the interruption on a primary cell (PCell) with up to 0.5 percent probability of missed ACK / NACK feedback when a configured measurement cycle for the deactivated SCC is 640 ms or longer.

[0436] In Example 86, the subject matter of Examples 71-85 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises a dormancy switch of a secondary cell (SCell) in a master cell group (MCG) from dormancy to non-dormancy or from non-dormancy to dormancy while the UE is in a discontinuous reception (DRX) active time, the interruption being allowed on the at least one active serving cell in the MCG regardless of which parameters change between a dormant bandwidth part (BWP) and a non-dormant BWP, and a starting time of the interruption being within a dormancy switching delay.

[0437] In Example 87, the subject matter of Examples 71-86 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises a channel quality indicator (CQI) measurement on at least one dormant secondary cell (SCell), and the processing circuitry is to cause the interruption on at least one non-dormant serving cell, a rate of ACK / NACK feedback loss on any nondormant serving cell resulting from the CQI measurement not exceeding 0.5 percent.

[0438] In Example 88, the subject matter of Examples 71-87 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises a radio resource management (RRM) measurement on at least one dormant secondary cell (SCell), and the processing circuitry is to cause the interruption on at least one non-dormant serving cell, a rate of ACK / NACK feedback loss on any nondormant serving cell resulting from the RRM measurement not exceeding 1.0 percent.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0439] In Example 89, the subject matter of Examples 71-88 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation operation comprises fast activation of a secondary cell (SCell), the UE being configured with a primary cell (PCell) and the SCell, and a periodic channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) resource being configured for the fast activation of the SCell.

[0440] In Example 90, the subject matter of Example 89 includes functionalities such that the SCell is configured with aperiodic CSI-RS resources for the fast activation and is activated from a deactivated state, the at least one active serving cell is in a same band as the SCell, and a length of the interruption is A slots + T ATRS duration ATG when the SCell is known with a measurement period larger than 2400 ms, or when the SCell is unknown and is contiguous to the at least one active serving cell in the same band,T ATRS duration ATG being a CSI-RS burst duration defined as four CSI-RS resources in two consecutive slots on the SCell being activated, and A being 1 slot for both a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 and a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1.

[0441] In Example 91, the subject matter of Examples 89-90 includes functionalities such that the SCell is configured with aperiodic CSI-RS resources for the fast activation and is activated from a deactivated state, the at least one active serving cell is in a same band as the SCell, the SCell is known with a measurement period equal to or smaller than 2400 ms, and a length of the interruption is A slots, A being 1 slot for both a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 and a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 1.

[0442] In Example 92, the subject matter of Example 72 includes functionalities such that the UE comprises antennas configured to maintain connectivity with ground-based base stations while an aircraft carrying the UE is in motion, the antennas being configured for long-range communication and to handle Doppler shifts associated with the aircraft being in motion.

[0443] In Example 93, the subject matter of Examples 71-92 includes functionalities such that the carrier aggregation configuration indicates up to seven downlink secondary cells (SCells) to be configured, de-configured, activated, or deactivated.AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1

[0444] In Example 94, the subject matter of Examples 71-93 includes functionalities such that the UE further comprises memory coupled to the processing circuitry and configured to store the carrier aggregation configuration.

[0445] Example 95 is at least one machine-readable medium including instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry, cause the processing circuitry to perform operations to implement any of Examples 1-94.

[0446] Example 96 is an apparatus comprising means to implement any of Examples 1-94.

[0447] Example 97 is a system to implement any of Examples 1-94.

[0448] Example 98 is a method to implement any of Examples 1-94.

[0449] Example 99 is at least one machine-readable storage medium including machine-readable instructions, which, when executed, cause a computer to implement a method or a process as claimed in any of Examples 1-94.

[0450] Example 100 is a computer program comprising instructions which, when the program is executed by a computer, cause the computer to carry out one or more operations according to at least one of Examples 1-94.

[0451] Example 101 is an apparatus comprising means to perform a method or a process as recited by at least one of Examples 1-94.

[0452] Example 102 is a computer storage medium that stores instructions for execution by one or more processors of a communication device, the instructions causing the communication device to perform a method or process as recited by at least one of Examples 1-94.

[0453] Although an aspect has been described concerning specific exemplary aspects, it will be evident that various modifications and changes may be made to these aspects without departing from the broader scope of the present disclosure. Accordingly, the specification and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense. This Detailed Description, therefore, is not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of various aspects is defined only by the appended claims, along with the full range of equivalents to which such claims are entitled.

Claims

AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1CLAIMSWhat is claimed is:

1. An apparatus for a user equipment (UE) configured for operation in a wireless network, the apparatus comprising:processing circuitry, the processing circuitry to:decode a carrier aggregation configuration received from a base station, the carrier aggregation configuration indicating a plurality of downlink carriers to be aggregated at the UE; process downlink signals from the plurality of downlink carriers while handling a relative receive timing difference between slot timing boundaries of carriers of the plurality of downlink carriers up to a maximum receive timing difference; andmanage an interruption on at least one active serving cell during a carrier aggregation operation associated with the plurality of downlink carriers; andmemory coupled to the processing circuitry and configured to store the carrier aggregation configuration.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, the UE being an air-to-ground (ATG) UE configured for air-to-ground communication.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, the wireless network being a New Radio (NR) network.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, the plurality of downlink carriers including at least a first carrier in a first frequency band and a second carrier in a second frequency band different from the first frequency band.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, the plurality of downlink carriers being in Frequency Range 1 (FR1), and the maximum receive timing difference being 33AG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1microseconds for inter-band carrier aggregation of the first carrier and the second carrier.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the carrier aggregation configuration indicates at least one pair of contiguous carriers in a same frequency band, and the processing circuitry is to:process downlink signals from the at least one pair of contiguous carriers using a shared radio front-end while handling a relative receive timing difference of approximately 260 nanoseconds between closest slot timing boundaries of the at least one pair of contiguous carriers.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, the interruption having a length determined based on at least one of a subcarrier spacing numerology of the at least one active serving cell or a frequency band relationship between the at least one active serving cell and a cell associated with the carrier aggregation operation.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, the carrier aggregation operation comprising addition or release of at least one secondary cell (SCell) indicated in a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration message decoded from the base station.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, the at least one active serving cell being contiguous to the at least one SCell being added or released in a same frequency band, cell-specific reference signals from the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell being available in a same slot, and a length of the interruption being based on a subcarrier spacing numerology of the at least one active serving cell and a synchronization signal block-based measurement timing configuration (SMTC) duration.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, the length of the interruption being 1 + T_SMTC_duration_ATGx NA{slot}_{ subframe, p} slots for a subcarrier spacing numerology p = 0 corresponding to a 1 ms NR slot length, and 2 + T_SMTC_duration_ATGx NA{slot}_{ subframe, p} slots for a subcarrierAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1spacing numerology p = 1 corresponding to a 0.5 ms NR slot length, T SMTC duration ATG being a longest SMTC duration among the at least one active serving cell and the at least one SCell, and NA{ si ot}_{ subframe, p} being a number of slots per subframe for the subcarrier spacing numerology p.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein T SMTC duration ATG for the at least one SCell being added is determined as follows:when a synchronization signal block (SSB) configuration but no SMTC configuration is provided for the at least one SCell being added, an SSB transmission periodicity is assumed to be 5 ms, and T SMTC duration ATG for the at least one SCell being added is a number of consecutive subframes containing all SSBs in one SSB burst transmitted by the at least one SCell being added; andwhen neither an SSB configuration nor an SMTC configuration is provided for the at least one SCell being added, T SMTC duration ATG for the at least one SCell being added is 0 ms.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:transceiver circuitry coupled to the processing circuitry; and one or more antennas coupled to the transceiver circuitry.

13. A computer-readable storage medium that stores instructions for execution by one or more processors of a base station, the instructions to configure the base station for operation in a New Radio (NR) network, and to cause the base station to perform operations comprising:encoding a carrier aggregation configuration for transmission to a user equipment (UE), the carrier aggregation configuration indicating a plurality of downlink carriers to be aggregated at the UE;transmitting downlink signals on the plurality of downlink carriers to the UE, the downlink signals having a relative timing difference between slot timing boundaries of carriers of the plurality of downlink carriers up to a maximum transmit timing difference; andAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1transmitting a carrier aggregation operation indication to the UE associated with the plurality of downlink carriers, the carrier aggregation operation indication causing the UE to manage an interruption on at least one active serving cell during a carrier aggregation operation.

14. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, the UE being an air-to-ground (ATG) UE configured for air-to-ground communication.

15. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, the plurality of downlink carriers including at least a first carrier in a first frequency band and a second carrier in a second frequency band different from the first frequency band.

16. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, the plurality of downlink carriers being in Frequency Range 1 (FR1), and the maximum transmit timing difference contributing to a maximum receive timing difference of 33 microseconds at the UE for inter-band carrier aggregation of the first carrier and the second carrier.

17. A user equipment (UE) configured for operation in a New Radio (5G NR) network, the UE comprising:front-end circuitry coupled to one or more antennas; and processing circuitry coupled to the front-end circuitry, the processing circuitry to:decode a carrier aggregation configuration received from a base station via the front-end circuitry, the carrier aggregation configuration indicating a plurality of downlink carriers to be aggregated at the UE;process downlink signals received via the front-end circuitry from the plurality of downlink carriers while handling a relative receive timing difference between slot timing boundaries ofAG9580-PCT 1884.R78WO1carriers of the plurality of downlink carriers up to a maximum receive timing difference; andmanage an interruption on at least one active serving cell during a carrier aggregation operation associated with the plurality of downlink carriers.

18. The UE of claim 17, the UE being an air-to-ground (ATG) UE configured for air-to-ground communication.

19. The UE of claim 17, the plurality of downlink carriers including at least a first carrier in a first frequency band and a second carrier in a second frequency band different from the first frequency band.

20. The UE of claim 19, the plurality of downlink carriers being in Frequency Range 1 (FR1), and the maximum receive timing difference being 33 microseconds for inter-band carrier aggregation of the first carrier and the second carrier.

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