WO2022104614A1

WO2022104614A1 - Method and apparatus for data transmission

Info

Publication number: WO2022104614A1
Application number: PCT/CN2020/129898
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jie Shi; Lianhai WU; Haiming Wang; Ran YUE
Original assignee: Lenovo Beijing Ltd
Current assignee: Lenovo Beijing Ltd
Priority date: 2020-11-18
Filing date: 2020-11-18
Publication date: 2022-05-27
Anticipated expiration: 2023-05-18

Abstract

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to methods and apparatuses for data transmission. According to some embodiments of the disclosure, a method for wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE) may include: transmitting a configured grant (CG) resource request; and receiving a first CG resource configuration. The first CG resource configuration may indicate at least one first CG resource, and each of the at least one first CG resource may be configured based on periodicity.

Description

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DATA TRANSMISSION

TECHNICAL FIELD

Embodiments of the present application generally relate to wireless communication technology, especially to a method and apparatus for data transmission.

BACKGROUND

Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various telecommunication services such as telephony, video, data, messaging, broadcasts, and so on. Wireless communication systems may employ multiple access technologies capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources (e.g., time, frequency, and power) . Examples of wireless communication systems may include fourth generation (4G) systems such as long term evolution (LTE) systems, LTE-advanced (LTE-A) systems, or LTE-A Pro systems, and fifth generation (5G) systems which may also be referred to as new radio (NR) systems.

In a wireless communication system, a user equipment (UE) in an RRC_INACTIVE state (also called an inactive mode UE) may transmit uplink (UL) data to a base station (BS) in an initial random access (RA) procedure, such as, a 2-step random access channel (RACH) procedure or a 4-step RACH procedure. Such scheme for data transmission may be referred to as RA-based scheme. In addition, it is also possible for an inactive mode UE to transmit UL data to a BS using a configured grant (CG) resource (s) , which may be referred to as CG-based scheme. However, how to perform such CG-based scheme needs to be considered.

SUMMARY OF THE APPLICATION

Embodiments of the present application provide a method and apparatus for data transmission.

Some embodiments of the present disclosure provide a method for wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE) . The method may include: transmitting a configured grant (CG) resource request; and receiving a first CG resource configuration. The first CG resource configuration may indicate at least one first CG resource, and each of the at least one first CG resource may be configured based on periodicity.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the method may further include: when the UE is in an inactive or idle mode: transmitting initial uplink (UL) data on the at least one first CG resource; receiving a downlink (DL) response message, wherein the DL response message may indicate second CG resource configuration indicating at least one second CG resource for subsequent UL data or a dynamic grant for subsequent UL data; and transmitting the subsequent UL data on the at least one second CG resource or based on the dynamic grant.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the method may further include: when the UE is in an inactive or idle mode: deactivating the at least one first CG resource and storing the first CG resource configuration in response to the reception of the second CG resource configuration or the dynamic grant.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the method may further include: when the UE is in an inactive or idle mode: receiving a message indicating deactivation of the at least one first CG resource, and deactivating the at least one first CG resource and storing the first CG resource configuration in response to the message. The message may indicate a beam specific CG occasion of the at least one first CG resource. Deactivating the at least one first CG resource may include deactivating the beam specific CG occasion of the at least one first CG resource.

In some embodiments, the first CG resource configuration may indicate a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated with the beam specific CG occasion, and deactivating the beam specific CG occasion may include: stopping or suspending the counter or the timer. In some embodiments, the first CG resource configuration may indicate a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated with one of the at least one first CG resource which includes the beam specific CG occasion, and deactivating the beam specific CG occasion may include: stopping or suspending the counter or the timer, and deactivating all beam specific CG occasions of the one of the at least one first CG resource.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the method may further include: receiving a radio resource control (RRC) release message; and activating the at least one first CG resource in response to the RRC release message, or activating the at least one first CG resource in response to the RRC release message including an indication to activate the at least one first CG resource. In some embodiments, the indication may indicate a beam specific CG occasion of the at least one first CG resource. Activating the at least one first CG resource may include activating the beam specific CG occasion of the at least one first CG resource. In some embodiments, the first CG resource configuration may indicate a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated with the beam specific CG occasion. Activating the beam specific CG occasion may include: starting or restarting the counter or the timer.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the method may further include: receiving a radio resource control (RRC) release message; and deactivating the at least one second CG resource in response to the RRC release message, or deactivating the at least one second CG resource in response to the RRC release message including an indication to deactivate the at least one second CG resource.

In some embodiments, the first CG resource configuration may indicate a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated with the at least one first CG resource. Activating the at least one first CG resource may include: starting or restarting the counter or the timer.

In some embodiments, the first CG resource configuration may indicate a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated with the at least one first CG resource. Deactivating the at least one first CG resource may include: stopping or suspending the counter or the timer.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the method may further include: transmitting an indication indicating at least one of: a stop, suspension, start, restart, or reset of the counter or the timer and the cause of the stop, suspension, start, restart, or reset of the counter or the timer.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the method may further include: selecting a CG resource from a plurality of CG resources associated with a first data radio bearer (DRB) , wherein the plurality of the CG resources are from the at least one first CG resource; and transmitting uplink (UL) data from the first DRB on the selected CG resource.

In some embodiments, the selected CG resource is the nearest CG resource of the plurality of CG resources in time domain; or the selected CG resource is associated with the first DRB and at least one second DRB from which another UL data is to be transmitted; or the selected CG resource is selected based on a random value or a preference CG resource for the first DRB.

In some embodiments, selecting the selected CG resource based on the preference CG resource for the first DRB may include in the case that no other UL data from any other DRB is to be transmitted and the preference CG resource for the first DRB is not occupied, selecting the preference CG resource for transmitting the UL data from the first DRB. In some embodiments, selecting the selected CG resource based on the preference CG resource for the first DRB may include in the case that a plurality of DRBs is initialized, at least one of selecting a CG resource that is associated with the maximum number of the plurality of DRBs for transmitting the UL data from the first DRB, and selecting a CG resource for transmitting the UL data according to the logical channel priorities of the plurality of DRBs.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, in the case that one of the at least one first CG resource is already used for uplink (UL) data transmission, transmitting UL data from a data radio bearer (DRB) that is associated with another first CG resource on the one of the at least one first CG resource; in the case that one of the at least one first CG resource is already used for UL data transmission, not transmitting UL data from a DRB that is associated with another first CG resource on the one of the at least one first CG resource; or in the case that one of the at least one first CG resource is already used for UL data transmission, transmitting UL data from a DRB that is associated with the one of the at least one first CG resource and at least one another first CG resource on the one of the at least one first CG resource when the one of the at least one first CG resource is available to transmit the UL data from the DRB.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, each of the at least one first CG resource, each of the at least one second CG resource, or each of the at least one first CG resource and the at least one second CG resource may be configured with a respective periodicity, respective CG resource occasion information for the respective periodicity, and a respective offset.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the respective CG resource occasion information may indicate the number of CG resource occasions in a CG period, the duration of each CG resource occasion, and gap information of the CG resource occasions; or the respective CG resource occasion information may indicate the duration of CG resource occasions in a CG period, the duration of each CG resource occasion, and gap information of the CG resource occasions.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the method may further include: in response to there being additional UL data to be transmitted after the CG resource occasions within the CG period, switching from the inactive or idle mode to a connected mode according to network signaling or autonomously; transmitting a second CG resource request; or receiving an indication allowing the UE to use subsequent CG resource occasions within the CG period. In some embodiments, the indication may indicate the number of the subsequent CG resource occasions or the duration of the subsequent CG resource occasions.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the second CG resource request may indicate one of the following: the number of CG resource occasions; the duration of CG resource occasions; or CG resource occasion information. In some embodiments, the CG resource occasion information may indicate the number of CG resource occasions in a CG period, the duration of each CG resource occasion, and gap information of the CG resource occasions. In some embodiments, the CG resource occasion information may indicate the duration of CG resource occasions in a CG period, the duration of each CG resource occasion, and gap information of the CG resource occasions.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the CG resource request may indicate one of the following: the number of CG resource occasions; the duration of CG resource occasions; or CG resource occasion information. In some embodiments, the CG resource occasion information may indicate the number of CG resource occasions in a CG period, the duration of each CG resource occasion, and gap information of the CG resource occasions. In some embodiments, the CG resource occasion information may indicate the duration of CG resource occasions in a CG period, the duration of each CG resource occasion, and gap information of the CG resource occasions.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the method may further include: in the case that the first CG resource configuration or a radio resource control (RRC) release message may indicate a radio network temporary identifier (RNTI) for CG-based data transmission when the UE is in an inactive or idle mode, performing physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) monitoring using the RNTI during CG-based data transmission when the UE is in the inactive or idle mode. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the method may further include: in the case that the first CG resource configuration or a radio resource control (RRC) release message does not indicate a RNTI for CG-based data transmission when the UE is in an inactive or idle mode, performing PDCCH monitoring using a last effective cell-RNTI (C-RNTI) during CG-based data transmission when the UE is in the inactive or idle mode, wherein the last effective C-RNTI is a C-RNTI of the UE when the UE is in a connected mode or a C-RNTI of the UE when the UE performs the last data transmission in the inactive or idle mode.

Some embodiments of the present disclosure provide a method for wireless communication performed by a base station (BS) . The method may include: receiving a configured grant (CG) resource request from a user equipment (UE) ; and transmitting a first CG resource configuration to the UE. The first CG resource configuration may indicate at least one first CG resource, and each of the at least one first CG resource may be configured based on periodicity.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the method may further include: receiving initial uplink (UL) data on the at least one first CG resource from the UE, wherein the UE is in an inactive or idle mode; transmitting a downlink (DL) response message to the UE, wherein the DL response message may indicate second CG resource configuration indicating at least one second CG resource for subsequent UL data or a dynamic grant for subsequent UL data; and receiving the subsequent UL data on the at least one second CG resource or based on the dynamic grant.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the method may further include: deactivating the at least one first CG resource in response to the second CG resource configuration or the dynamic grant.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the method may further include: transmitting a message indicating deactivation of the at least one first CG resource, and deactivating the at least one first CG resource in response to the message. The message may indicate a beam specific CG occasion of the at least one first CG resource. Deactivating the at least one first CG resource may include deactivating the beam specific CG occasion of the at least one first CG resource.

In some embodiments, the first CG resource configuration may indicate a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated with the beam specific CG occasion. Deactivating the beam specific CG occasion may include: stopping or suspending the counter or the timer. In some embodiments, the first CG resource configuration may indicate a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated with one of the at least one first CG resource which includes the beam specific CG occasion. Deactivating the beam specific CG occasion may include: stopping or suspending the counter or the timer, and deactivating all beam specific CG occasions of the one of the at least one first CG resource.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the method may further include: transmitting a radio resource control (RRC) release message; and activating the at least one first CG resource in response to the RRC release message, or activating the at least one first CG resource in response to the RRC release message including an indication to activate the at least one first CG resource. In some embodiments, the indication may indicate a beam specific CG occasion of the at least one first CG resource. Activating the at least one first CG resource may include activating the beam specific CG occasion of the at least one first CG resource.

In some embodiments, the first CG resource configuration may indicate a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated with the beam specific CG occasion, and activating the beam specific CG occasion may include: starting or restarting the counter or the timer.

In some embodiments, the first CG resource configuration may indicate a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated with the at least one first CG resource, and activating the at least one first CG resource may include: starting or restarting the counter or the timer.

In some embodiments, the first CG resource configuration may indicate a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated with the at least one first CG resource, and deactivating the at least one first CG resource may include: stopping or suspending the counter or the timer.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the method may further include: receiving an indication indicating at least one of: a stop, suspension, start, restart, or reset of the counter or the timer and the cause of the stop, suspension, start, restart, or reset of the counter or the timer.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, in the case that a data radio bearer (DRB) between the UE and the BS is associated a plurality of CG resources from the at least one first CG resource, a preference CG resource from the plurality of CG resources may be configured for the DRB.

In some embodiments, the respective CG resource occasion information may indicate the number of CG resource occasions in a CG period, the duration of each CG resource occasion, and gap information of the CG resource occasions. In some embodiments, the respective CG resource occasion information may indicate the duration of the CG resource occasions in a CG period, the duration of each CG resource occasion, and gap information of the CG resource occasions.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the method may further include at least one of: instructing the UE to switch to a connected mode; receiving a second CG resource request from the UE; and transmitting an indication allowing the UE to use subsequent CG resource occasions within the CG period. In some embodiments, the indication may indicate the number of the subsequent CG resource occasions or the duration of the subsequent CG resource occasions.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the method may further include in the case that the first CG resource configuration or a radio resource control (RRC) release message may indicate a radio network temporary identifier (RNTI) for CG-based data transmission when the UE is in an inactive or idle mode, performing physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) transmission using the RNTI during CG-based data transmission when the UE is in the inactive or idle mode. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the method may further include in the case that the first CG resource configuration or a radio resource control (RRC) release message does not indicate a RNTI for CG-based data transmission when the UE is in an inactive or idle mode, performing PDCCH transmission using a last effective cell-RNTI (C-RNTI) during CG-based data transmission when the UE is in the inactive or idle mode, wherein the last effective C-RNTI is a C-RNTI of the UE when the UE in a connected mode or a C-RNTI of the UE when the UE performs the last data transmission in the inactive or idle mode.

Some embodiments of the present disclosure provide an apparatus. According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, the apparatus may include: at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon computer-executable instructions; at least one receiving circuitry; at least one transmitting circuitry; and at least one processor coupled to the at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium, the at least one receiving circuitry and the at least one transmitting circuitry, wherein the at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium and the computer executable instructions may be configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to perform a method according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order to describe the manner in which the advantages and features of the disclosure can be obtained, a description of the disclosure is rendered by reference to specific embodiments thereof, which are illustrated in the appended drawings. These drawings depict only exemplary embodiments of the disclosure and are not therefore to be considered limiting of its scope.

FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic diagram of a wireless communication system in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary procedure for data transmission in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary CG resource configuration in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary procedure for UL data transmission in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary CG resource configuration in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 illustrates a flow chart of an exemplary procedure for wireless communications in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 7 illustrates a flow chart of an exemplary procedure for wireless communications in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 8 illustrates a block diagram of an exemplary apparatus in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The detailed description of the appended drawings is intended as a description of the preferred embodiments of the present disclosure and is not intended to represent the only form in which the present disclosure may be practiced. It should be understood that the same or equivalent functions may be accomplished by different embodiments that are intended to be encompassed within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.

Reference will now be made in detail to some embodiments of the present disclosure, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. To facilitate understanding, embodiments are provided under specific network architecture and new service scenarios, such as the 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP) 5G (NR) , 3GPP long-term evolution (LTE) Release 8, and so on. It is contemplated that along with the developments of network architectures and new service scenarios, all embodiments in the present disclosure are also applicable to similar technical problems; and moreover, the terminologies recited in the present disclosure may change, which should not affect the principles of the present disclosure.

FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic diagram of a wireless communication system 100 in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

As shown in FIG. 1, a wireless communication system 100 can include at least one BS (e.g., BS 102a and BS 102) , at least one UE (e.g., UE 101) , and a CN node (e.g., CN node 103) . Although a specific number of BSs and UEs, e.g., two BSs (e.g., BS 102a and BS 102b) and a UE (e.g., UE 101) are depicted in FIG. 1, it is contemplated that any number of UEs and BSs may be included in the wireless communication system 100.

A UE (e.g., UE 101) may include computing devices, such as desktop computers, laptop computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs) , tablet computers, smart televisions (e.g., televisions connected to the Internet) , set-top boxes, game consoles, security systems (including security cameras) , vehicle on-board computers, network devices (e.g., routers, switches, and modems) , or the like. According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, the UE 101 may include a portable wireless communication device, a smart phone, a cellular telephone, a flip phone, a device having a subscriber identity module, a personal computer, a selective call receiver, or any other device that is capable of sending and receiving communication signals on a wireless network. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the UE 101 includes wearable devices, such as smart watches, fitness bands, optical head-mounted displays, or the like. Moreover, the UE 101 may be referred to as a subscriber unit, a mobile, a mobile station, a user, a terminal, a mobile terminal, a wireless terminal, a fixed terminal, a subscriber station, a user terminal, or a device, or described using other terminology used in the art. The UE 101 may communicate with a BS (e.g., BS 102a and BS 102b) via uplink (UL) communication signals.

A BS (e.g., BS 102a and BS 102b) may be distributed over a geographic region. In certain embodiments of the present disclosure, a BS (e.g., BS 102a and BS 102b) may also be referred to as an access point, an access terminal, a base, a base unit, a macro cell, a Node-B, an evolved Node B (eNB) , a gNB, a Home Node-B, a relay node, or a device, or described using other terminology used in the art. The BS may be generally part of a radio access network that may include one or more controllers communicably coupled to one or more corresponding BS (s) . A BS (e.g., BS 102a and BS 102b) may communicate with a UE (s) (e.g., UE 101) via downlink (DL) communication signals.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, a CN node (e.g., CN node 103) may include a mobility management entity (MME) , a serving gateway (S-GW) , or both. In some embodiments of the present application, the CN node (e.g., CN node 103) may include a mobility management function (AMF) or a user plane function (UPF) or both.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the BS 102a or the BS 102b may communicate with each other via an interface, for example, interface Xn. The BS 102a and the BS 102b may communicate with the CN node 103 via an interface, for example, interface NG.

The wireless communication system 100 may be compatible with any type of network that is capable of sending and receiving wireless communication signals. For example, the wireless communication system 100 is compatible with a wireless communication network, a cellular telephone network, a time division multiple access (TDMA) -based network, a code division multiple access (CDMA) -based network, an orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) -based network, an LTE network, a 3GPP-based network, a 3GPP 5G network, a satellite communications network, a high altitude platform network, and/or other communications networks.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the wireless communication system 100 is compatible with the 5G NR of the 3GPP protocol. For example, BS 102a or BS 102b may transmit data using an orthogonal frequency division multiple (OFDM) modulation scheme on the DL, and the UE 101 may transmit data on the UL using a discrete Fourier transform-spread-orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (DFT-S-OFDM) or cyclic prefix-OFDM (CP-OFDM) scheme. More generally, however, the wireless communication system 100 may implement some other open or proprietary communication protocols, for example, WiMAX, among other protocols.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the BS and UE may communicate using other communication protocols, such as the IEEE 802.11 family of wireless communication protocols. Further, in some embodiments of the present disclosure, the BS and UE may communicate over licensed spectrums, whereas in some other embodiments, the BS and UE may communicate over unlicensed spectrums. The present disclosure is not intended to be limited to the implementation of any particular wireless communication system architecture or protocol.

According to the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) , a UE (e.g., UE 101) may be in one of the following states: an RRC-IDLE state, an RRC_CONNECTED state, and an RRC_INACTIVE state, at a given time. The UE may be in an idle mode corresponding to the RRC_IDLE state, an inactive mode corresponding to the RRC_INACTIVE state, or a connected mode corresponding to the RRC_CONNECTED state.

The specific characteristics of RRC-IDLE state, RRC_CONNECTED state, and RRC_INACTIVE state are defined in 3GPP specifications. For example, the RRC_INACTIVE state is a state where a UE remains in connection management (CM) -CONNECTED and can move within an area configured by a radio access network (RAN) , for example, next generation-RAN (NG-RAN) , without notifying the RAN. Such area may be referred to as a RAN notification area (RNA) .

For example, as shown in FIG. 1, the UE 101 can move within the RNA 122. The BS 102b can be the last serving BS of UE 101, and the UE 101 is currently in the cell covered by the BS 102a. For the UE 101 in an RRC_INACTIVE state, the BS 102b may keep the context of the UE 101 and the associated connection with the CN node 103 (such as, the serving AMF and UPF) .

The UE 101 in the inactive or idle mode may transmit UL data. For example, the UE 101 may perform small data transmission. In some examples, the UE 101 in the inactive or idle mode may transmit UL small data to a BS (e.g., BS 102a) in an initial random access procedure, such as, a 2-step RACH procedure or a 4-step RACH procedure (i.e., RA-based scheme) . For instance, the UE 101 may transmit UL small data to BS 102a in Msg. of a 2-step RACH procedure or Msg. 3 of a 4-step RACH procedure.

In some other examples, the UE 101 in the inactive or idle mode may transmit UL small data to a BS (e.g., BS 102a) over configured grant (CG) resources, such as configured grant type 1 resources or other types of configured grant resources (i.e., CG-based scheme) . For configured grant type 1 (hereinafter, "Type 1" ) , an uplink grant may be provided by RRC signaling, including the activation of the configured grant. Type 1 may set all or most of the transmission parameters, including but not limited to, periodicity, time offset, and frequency resources as well as the modulation and coding scheme (MCS) of possible uplink transmissions, using RRC signaling.

In some examples, when performing the above data transmission, the BS 102a may transmit the data from the UE 101 to the BS 102b via, for example, Xn interface, and then the BS 102b may transmit the data to the CN node 103. In some examples, when performing the above data transmission, the BS 102a may know that there is data from the UE 101 to be transmitted, the BS 102a may first obtain the context of the UE 101 from the BS 102b and then transmit the data from the UE 101 to the CN node 103.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the small data transmission may be configured by the network on a per data radio bearers (DRB) basis. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the UL or DL transmission following a UL small data transmission (SDT) without transitioning to an RRC_CONNECTED state may be supported. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, when a UE is in an RRC_INACTIVE state, it may be possible to send multiple UL and DL packets as part of the same SDT mechanism and without transitioning to the RRC_CONNECTED state on a dedicated grant.

FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary procedure 200 for data transmission in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

Details described in all of the foregoing embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable for the embodiments shown in FIG. 2. It should be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that the sequence of the operations in exemplary procedure 200 may be changed and some of the operations in exemplary procedure 200 may be eliminated or modified, without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 2, the procedure 200 is performed between a UE 201 and a BS 202. The UE 201 may function as the UE 101 in FIG. 1, and the BS 202 may function as the BS 201a or the BS 201b in FIG. 1.

In step 211, the UE 201 may be in a connected mode. In step 213, the BS 202 may transmit an RRC release message to the UE 201. The RRC release message may be transmitted to a UE when the UE transitions from the connected mode to an inactive or idle mode. The RRC release message may include a set of configuration information for the UE in the inactive mode or in the idle mode. For example, the RRC release message may indicate a CG resource configuration, which may indicate CG resources (such as Type 1 CG resources) . These CG resources can be used by the UE for data transmission when it is in the inactive or idle mode (e.g., during a SDT procedure) .

In step 215, the UE 201 may switch from the connected mode to the inactive or idle mode in response to the RRC release message.

In step 217, the UE 201 in the inactive or idle mode may transmit uplink data (e.g., small data) to the BS 202 over the CG resources. In step 219, in response to the uplink data, the BS 202 may transmit a response message to the UE 201. Based on the response message, the UE 201 may transfer to a normal inactive or idle mode (for example, without data transmission such as SDT) or continue the subsequent UL or DL data transmission in the inactive or idle mode.

In some examples, in response to the response message from the BS 202, the UE 201 may transmit an acknowledgement (ACK) or a non-acknowledgement (NACK) to the BS 202 (not shown in FIG. 2) .

FIG. 3 shows an exemplary CG resource configuration 300 in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

The CG resource configuration 300 may configure a CG resource (e.g., CG resource 310) based on periodicity. That is, a CG resource occasion may occur periodically. For example, referring to FIG. 3, the CG resource 310 may include

CG resource occasions

311a, 311b, 311c, and so on. CG resource occasion 311a may occur in CG period 313, and

CG resource occasions

311b and 311c may occur in the following CG periods over time.

Although the CG resource configuration 300 configures a specific number (e.g., one) of CG resources, it is contemplated that any number (i.e., one or more) of CG resources may be configured to a UE.

The benefit of only configuring one CG resource (e.g., CG resource 310) includes saving wireless resources. The UE may transmit an initial UL data packet on a preconfigured CG resource occasion (e.g.,

CG resource occasion

311a, 311b or 311c) . Since the CG resource occasion occurs periodically, a CG resource configuration-based delay may be caused for a subsequent data transmission. Such delay may be the maximum tolerant delay of the subsequent data transmission. Considering that the traffic period may be shorter than the CG resource gap, it is desirable to provide a solution for the UE to perform the subsequent data transmission.

Furthermore, when a plurality of CG resources are configured to a UE via, for example, an RRC release message, each CG resource may be associated with at least one logical channel group (LCG) or at least one DRB. In some cases, a single DRB may be associated with more than one CG resources based on the DRB traffic pattern and CG resource gap. This can provide flexibility since a UE can select a suitable resource for a specific DRB. For example, DRB#1, DRB#2, and DRB#3 may be associated with CG resource#1, and DRB#2, DRB#4, and DRB#5 may be associated with CG resource#2. In this example, DRB#1 is associated with both CG resource#1 and CG resource#2. The UE or BS may trigger a single CG resource from CG resource#1 and CG resource#2 for transmitting data from DRB#1. It is desirable to provide a solution to select a suitable CG resource.

In addition, as described above, the CG resource may be configured based on periodicity (e.g., as shown in FIG. 3) . However, in some cases, continuous service may be triggered in a certain CG period. For example, several data transmissions may need to be performed within a certain CG period. Due to the distribution of CG resource occasions over CG periods, the CG resource occasions could be a limited number of CG resource occasions in a long period and the subsequent data transmissions on the CG resource may be a limited number of transmission shots. Therefore, it is also desirable to provide an enhanced CG resource configuration.

Embodiments of present disclosure provide solutions to facilitate data transmissions, especially, data transmissions occurred when a UE is in an inactive or idle mode. The disclosed solutions can solve the above problems. More details on the embodiments of the present disclosure will be illustrated in the following text in combination with the appended drawings.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, a UE may transmit an initial UL data packet (e.g., initial SDT) on a preconfigured CG resource. In some example, the UE may be configured with only one preconfigured CG resource. In some examples, the UE may be configured with more than one preconfigured CG resource. In the subsequent data transmission (s) (e.g., subsequent SDT (s) ) , the preconfigured CG resource may not be used by the UE. An updated CG resource configuration or a dynamic scheduling scheme may be employed and applied to the subsequent data transmission (s) to alleviate the above-mentioned CG resource configuration-based delay.

In some examples, a dedicated CG resource (s) may be configured to the UE for the subsequent data transmission (s) . For example, the BS may transmit an updated CG resource configuration indicating the dedicated CG resource (s) to the UE via, for example, an RRC message (e.g., the response message as described with respect to step 219 in FIG. 2 or any other RRC messages) . In some other examples, dynamic scheduling information (e.g., a dynamic grant such as a downlink control information (DCI) format) may be provided to the UE for the subsequent data transmission (s) . For example, the UE may monitor the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) transmission, and may receive a DCI format scheduling a resource (s) for the subsequent data transmission (s) .

The dedicated CG resource (s) may be released or suspended by the network (e.g., the BS) , and may be reassigned to other UEs. For example, in response to receiving an RRC release message (e.g., after completion of the subsequent data transmission (s) ) , the dedicated CG resource (s) may be released or suspended.

In the above embodiments, how to deal with the preconfigured CG resource is an issue further to be addressed.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the preconfigured CG resource may not be released even though it is not used for the subsequent data transmission (s) (e.g., subsequent SDT procedure (s) ) . The UE may deactivate and store the preconfigured CG resource, which may be reused or activated (or reactivated) when the UE gets back to a normal (e.g., no SDT) inactive or idle mode. For example, after the completion of the subsequent data transmission (s) , the UE may receive an RRC release message. In response to the RRC release message, the preconfigured CG resource may be reused or reactivated, and the dedicated CG resource (s) may be released or suspended.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the preconfigured CG resource may be configured with a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated with the CG resources. In response to the overflow of the counter or the expiry of the timer, the preconfigured CG resource may be released. For example, if the counter value is larger than or equals to a configured value, the UE will release the CG resource associated with this counter.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, when the preconfigured CG resource is not used by the UE, it may be deactivated, and the counter or timer may be stopped or suspended. For example, the counter or timer may be reset or paused. The counter or timer may be started or restarted after the preconfigured CG resource is reactivated. For example, the preconfigured CG resource may be reactivated in response to receiving an RRC release message putting the UE into a normal inactive or idle mode. For example, the counter or timer may be continued or reset.

FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary procedure 400 for UL data transmission in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

Details described in all of the foregoing embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable for the embodiments shown in FIG. 4. It should be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that the sequence of the operations in exemplary procedure 400 may be changed and some of the operations in exemplary procedure 400 may be eliminated or modified, without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 4, the procedure 400 is performed between a UE 401 and a BS 402. The UE 401 may function as the UE 101 in FIG. 1, and the BS 402 may function as the BS 201a or the BS 201b in FIG. 1.

In step 411, the UE 401 may transition from a connected mode to an inactive or idle mode in response to an RRC release message. The RRC release message may include a CG resource configuration (hereinafter, “initial CG resource configuration” ) indicating at least one CG resource that can be used for the UL transmission (e.g., UL SDT) . The at least one CG resource may also be referred to as preconfigured CG resource (s) . In some examples, each of the at least one CG resource may be configured based on periodicity.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, a CG resource configuration may be transmitted to the UE 401 in response to a CG resource request from the UE 401 (not shown in FIG. 4) . For example, the UE 401 may transmit a request for CG resources to a BS (e.g., BS 402 or any other BS) at any time when it is possible, for example, when the UE 201 is in a connected, inactive, or idle mode. The BS may respond with a CG resource configuration via, for example, the RRC release message as described above or any other message. Details regarding the CG resource request will be described in the following text.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, each CG resource may be configured with a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated with the CG resource. In some examples, all of the at least one CG resource may be configured with different or the same counter or timer. In response to the RRC release message, the UE 401 and the BS 202 may activate the at least one CG resource. For example, the UE 401 and the BS 402 may start the corresponding counter or timer. When the counter or timer reaches the configured value, the corresponding CG resource (s) may become invalid, and may be released.

In some examples, the counter may be set as “0” and may be increased by “1” per each CG period, and when the value of counter is equal to or greater than the configured counter value, the corresponding CG resource (s) may be released. In some examples, the counter may be set as the configured value and may be decreased by “1” per each CG period, and when the counter is equal to or less than “0” , the corresponding CG resource (s) may be released. In some examples, when the timer expires, the corresponding CG resource (s) may be released.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, a CG resource may include at least one CG resource occasion, each of which may be associated with the same or different beams. For example, referring back to FIG. 2,

CG resource occasions

311a, 311b, and 311c may be associated with beam#1, beam#2, and beam#1, respectively. In this example,

CG resource occasions

311a and 311c are instances of beam#1 specific CG occasion and CG resource occasion 311b is an instance of beam#2 specific CG occasion.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, each beam specific CG occasion may be configured with a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated with the beam specific CG occasion. In some examples, the beam specific CG occasions in the same CG resource may be configured with different or the same counter or timer. Activating the at least one CG resource may include starting the corresponding counter or timer. When the counter or timer reaches the configured value, the corresponding beam specific CG occasion (s) may become invalid, and may be released.

For example, a timer (e.g., Timer#1) for beam#1 specific CG occasion and a timer (e.g., Timer#2) for beam#2 specific CG occasion may be started. When Timer#1 or Timer#2 expires, instances of beam#1 specific CG occasion (e.g.,

CG resource occasions

311a and 311c) or instances of beam#2 specific CG occasions (e.g., CG resource occasion 311b) may be released.

Referring to FIG. 4, in step 413, the UE 401 in the inactive or idle mode may transmit uplink data (e.g., small data) to the BS 402 over the at least one CG resource. This transmission may also be referred to as the initial transmission.

In step 415, in response to the initial uplink data, the BS 402 may transmit a response message to the UE 401.

In some examples, the response message may indicate an updated CG resource configuration, which may indicate at least one updated CG resource for subsequent data transmission. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the updated CG resource configuration may be transmitted to the UE 401 in response to a CG resource request from the UE 401 (not shown in FIG. 4) . In step 417, the UE 401 in the inactive or idle mode may transmit the subsequent data (e.g., small data) to the BS 402 over the at least one updated CG resource. Similar to the preconfigured CG resource, a updated CG resource may be configured with a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated therewith, or a beam specific CG occasion in the updated CG resource may be configured with a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated therewith, which may function in a similar manner as describe above.

In some other examples, the response message may indicate a dynamic grant for subsequent data transmission. In step 417, the UE 401 in the inactive or idle mode may transmit the subsequent data (e.g., small data) to the BS 402 based on the dynamic grant. For example, the UE 401 may receive a DCI format and may transmit the subsequent data on the resource (s) scheduled by the DCI format.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the BS 402 may implicitly or explicitly instruct the UE 401 to deactivate the at least one preconfigured CG resource. The BS 402 may also deactivate the at least one preconfigured CG resource.

For example, in response to the updated CG resource configuration or the dynamic grant, the UE 401 and the BS 402 may deactivate (or suspending) the at least one preconfigured CG resource and/or store the initial CG resource configuration.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the initial CG resource configuration may indicate a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated with the at least one preconfigured CG resource, deactivating the at least one preconfigured CG resource may include stopping or suspending the counter or timer.

In some other examples, the BS 402 may explicitly instruct the UE 401 to deactivate the at least one preconfigured CG resource. For instance, the BS 402 may transmit a message explicitly indicating the deactivation of the at least one preconfigured CG resource. The UE 401 and the BS 402 may deactivate the at least one preconfigured CG resource and/or store the initial CG resource configuration in response to such message. The message may be the response message as described with respect to step 415 or any other message.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the message may indicate a beam specific CG occasion of the at least one preconfigured CG resource. Deactivating the at least one preconfigured CG resource may include deactivating the beam specific CG occasion of the at least one preconfigured CG resource. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the initial CG resource configuration may indicate a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated with the beam specific CG occasion, deactivating the beam specific CG occasion may include stopping or suspending the counter or timer.

For example, referring back to FIG. 2,

CG resource occasions

311a and 311c may be instances of beam#1 specific CG occasions and CG resource occasion 311b may be an instance of beam#2 specific CG occasion. In the case that the message indicating beam#1 specific CG occasion,

CG resource occasions

311a and 311c may be deactivated (or suspended) . The counter or timer associated with beam#1 specific CG occasion, if configured, may be stopped or suspended.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the initial CG resource configuration may indicate a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated with one (e.g., CG resource#1) of the at least one preconfigured CG resource which includes the indicated beam specific CG occasion. Deactivating the beam specific CG occasion may include stopping or suspending the counter or the timer associated with, for example, CG resource#1. Deactivating the beam specific CG occasion may further include deactivating all beam specific CG occasions of, for example, CG resource#1. For example, all CG occasions of CG resource#1 may be deactivated.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, when any one of the beam specific CG occasions in a CG resource (either the preconfigured or the update CG resource) is used for UL data transmission, the corresponding counter or timer (e.g., the counter or timer associated with the used beam specific CG occasion (s) or the CG resource) may be stopped or suspended (e.g., not increasing its value) .

Referring to FIG. 4, in some embodiments of the present disclosure, similar to the deactivation of the least one preconfigured CG resource, the BS 402 may implicitly or explicitly instruct the UE 401 to activate the at least one updated CG resource. The BS 402 may also activate the at least one updated CG resource. For example, in response to the updated CG resource configuration, the UE 401 and the BS 402 may activate the at least one updated CG resource. In some other examples, the BS 402 may explicitly instruct the UE 401 to activate the at least one updated CG resource. Activating the at least one updated CG resource may include starting a counter or timer associated with the at least one updated CG resource. Or activating the at least one updated CG resource may include activating a beam specific CG occasion of the at least one updated CG resource and starting a counter or timer associated with the beam specific CG occasion.

In some examples, in response to the response message from the BS 402, the UE 401 may transmit an acknowledgement (ACK) or a non-acknowledgement (NACK) to the BS 402 (not shown in FIG. 4) . Deactivating the preconfigured CG resource and storing the initial CG resource configuration in response to the updated CG resource configuration or dynamic grant may include performing such operations in response to the ACK. Activating the updated CG resource in response to the updated CG resource configuration may include performing such operation in response to the ACK.

In step 419, the BS 402 may transmit an RRC release message to the UE 401, which may put the UE 401 in a normal inactive or idle mode (e.g., no data transmission) . In some embodiments of the present disclosure, in response to the RRC release message, the UE 401 as well as the BS 402 may activate (or reactivate) the at least one preconfigured CG resource. In some other embodiments of the present disclosure, the UE 401 may only activate (or reactivate) the at least one preconfigured CG resource in response to an explicit indication. For example, the UE 401 may activate (or reactivate) the at least one preconfigured CG resource in response to the RRC release message including an indication to activate the at least one preconfigured CG resource.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, similar to the deactivation of the least one preconfigured CG resource or activation of the at least one updated CG resource, activating (or reactivating) the least one preconfigured CG resource may include starting or restarting the counter or timer of the corresponding CG resource (s) .

For example, activating (or reactivating) the at least one preconfigured CG resource may include starting or restarting a counter or timer associated with the at least one preconfigured CG resource. Or activating (or reactivating) the at least one preconfigured CG resource may include activating a beam specific CG occasion of the at least one preconfigured CG resource. The beam specific CG occasion may be indicated by the activation indication. Activating the beam specific CG occasion may include starting or restarting the counter or timer associated with the beam specific CG occasion.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, in response to the RRC release message, the UE 401 as well as the BS 402 may deactivate or release the at least one updated CG resource. In some other embodiments of the present disclosure, the UE 401 may only deactivate or release the at least one updated CG resource in response to an explicit indication. For example, the UE 401 may deactivate or release the at least one updated CG resource in response to the RRC release message including an indication to deactivate the at least one updated CG resource.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, similar to the deactivation of the least one preconfigured CG resource or activation of the at least one updated CG resource, deactivating (or suspending) the least one updated CG resource may include stopping or suspending the counter or timer of the corresponding CG resource (s) .

For example, deactivating (or suspending) the at least one updated CG resource may include starting or restarting a counter or timer associated with the at least one updated CG resource. Or deactivating (or suspending) the at least one updated CG resource may include deactivating a beam specific CG occasion of the at least one updated CG resource. The beam specific CG occasion may be indicated by the deactivation indication. Deactivating the beam specific CG occasion may include stopping or suspending the counter or timer associated with the beam specific CG occasion.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the UE 401 may transmit an indication indicating a stop, suspension, start, restart, or reset of the counter or timer associated with the CG resource (either the preconfigured or the update CG resource) or beam specific CG occasion, the cause of the stop, suspension, start, restart, or reset of the counter or timer, or both to the BS 402. The cause of the stop, suspension, start, restart, or reset of the counter or timer may include, for example, deactivation of a corresponding CG resource or beam specific CG occasion, bad quality of a corresponding CG resource or beam specific CG resource, and other cause.

During the above data transmission procedure when the UE 401 is in the inactive or idle mode, the UE 401 may perform PDCCH monitoring using a radio specific network temporary identifier (RNTI) . In the case that the initial CG resource configuration or the RRC release message (e.g., the one UE 401 received in step 411) indicates a RNTI (hereinafter, “dedicated RNTI” ) for CG-based data transmission when the UE is in an inactive or idle mode, the UE 401 may perform the PDCCH monitoring using the dedicated RNTI during the above CG-based data transmission when the UE is in the inactive or idle mode. In some examples, the dedicated RNTI may be a SDT-RNTI.

In the case that the initial CG resource configuration or the RRC release message does not indicate a dedicated RNTI, the UE 401 may perform PDCCH monitoring using a last effective cell-RNTI (C-RNTI) during CG-based data transmission when the UE is in the inactive or idle mode. The last effective C-RNTI may be a C-RNTI of the UE 401 when the UE 401 is in a connected mode (e.g., before UE 401 entering to the inactive or idle mode in step 411) or a C-RNTI (e.g., a SDT-RNTI) of the UE when the UE performs the last data transmission in the inactive or idle mode.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, more than one CG resources (either the preconfigured or the update CG resources) may be configured to the UE 401. Each CG resource may be associated with at least one logical channel group (LCG) or at least one DRB of the UE 401. In some cases, a single DRB may be associated with a plurality of CG resources based on the DRB traffic pattern and CG resource gap. When there is data from such DRB to be transmitted, the UE 401 may select a CG resource from the plurality of CG resources for transmitting the data.

For example, procedure 400 may be further include selecting a CG resource from the plurality of CG resources (either the preconfigured or the update CG resources) associated with a specific DRB (hereinafter, “DRB#A” ) and transmitting the UL data from DRB#A on the selected CG resource.

The CG resource may be selected according to various methods. The following shows some of the methods that can be employed. It is contemplated that modifications, variations, and/or combination of these methods may be apparent to persons skilled in the art.

In some embodiments, the UE 401 may select the nearest CG resource of the plurality of CG resources in time domain. For example, assuming that DRB#A is associated with CG resources #1A and #2A, when the UE 401 detects UL data from DRB#A to be transmitted at time T1, the UE 401 may select one from CG resources #1A and #2A. The UE 401 may determine which of the CG resources #1A and #2A has an upcoming CG resource occasion nearest time T1 in time domain, and may select it for transmitting the UL data from DRB#A.

In some embodiments, the UE 401 may select a CG resource associated with DRB#A and at least one other DRB (e.g., DRB#B) from which another UL data is to be transmitted. For example, the UE 401 may detect UL data from DRB#A to be transmitted, and may predict that another UL data from DRB#B will be generated. DRB#A and DRB#B may be associated with the same CG resource (s) (e.g., CG resource #1A) . The UE 401 may select CG resource #1A for transmitting the UL data from DRB#A.

In some embodiments, the UE 401 may select a CG resource from the plurality of CG resources based on a random value. For example, the UE 401 may generate a random value, may select CG resources #1A when the random value is equal to or greater than a threshold (e.g., 0.5) , and may select CG resources #2A when the random value is less than the threshold.

In some embodiments, the UE 401 may select a CG resource from the plurality of CG resources based on a preference CG resource for DRB#A. The preference CG resource may be configured by the network (e.g., BS 402) or predefined. For example, when the BS 402 configures the plurality of CG resources to the UE 401, it may indicate which one of the plurality of CG resources is a preference CG resource for DRB#A. A preference CG resource configured by the network may be beneficial since it allows a more accurate CG resource usage, thereby improving the wireless resource usage.

In some examples, the UE 401 may always select the preference CG re source.

In some examples, in the case that no other UL data from any other DRB (e.g., DRB#B) is to be transmitted and the preference CG resource for DRB#A is not occupied (e.g., not used by other DRB) , the UE 401 may select the preference CG resource for transmitting the UL data from DRB#A.

In some examples, in the case that a plurality of DRBs is initialized (e.g., data from the plurality of DRBs are to be transmitted) , the UE 401 may select a CG resource from the plurality of CG resources that is associated with the maximum number of the plurality of DRBs for transmitting the UL data from DRB#A. For example, assuming that DRB#A, DRB#B, and DRB#C are initialized at the UE 401, DRB#A is associated with CG resources #1A and #2A, DRB#B is associated with CG resources #1A and #1B, DRB#C is associated with CG resource #1C, the UE 401 may select CG resource #1A for transmitting the UL data from DRB#A since CG resource #1A is associated with two DRBs (i.e., DRB#A and DRB#B) , and CG resource #2A is associated with one DRB (i.e., DRB#A) .

Each DRB may be associated with a logical channel (LCH) or logical channel group (LCG) , which may have a LCH or LCG priority. In the context of the present disclosure, the priority of an associated LCH or LCG of a DRB is also referred to as the LCH or LCG priority of a DRB. In some examples, in the case that a plurality of DRBs is initialized, the selection of CG resource (s) for transmitting UL data may be performed according to the logical channel priorities of the plurality of DRBs.

For instance, a UE may first select a CG resource for a DRB which has the highest LCH priority. In some embodiments, the UE may apply a CG resource which is not used and is configured to be associated with the DRB having the highest LCH priority. In some embodiments, the UE may apply a used CG resource which is configured to be associated with the DRB having the highest LCH priority. Then, the UE may select a CG resource for another DRB with a relatively higher LCH priority or with a LCH priority in a descending order. In some embodiments, the selected CG resource for the another DRB is a CG resource that has not been used (or selected) . In some embodiments, in the case, for example, that the CG resource (s) associated with the another DRB has been used (or selected) , the UE may apply a used CG resource which is configured to be associated with the another DRB to the another DRB. The UE may finish the CG resource selection procedure when the UE finishes the CG resource selection for all the initialized DRB (s) . The used CG resource may refer to a CG resource that has been used for UL data transmission or UL initial data transmission in the SDT procedure where the UE is in inactive mode or idle mode.

In another instance, the UE may first select a CG resource for a DRB which has the highest LCH priority. In some embodiments, the UE may apply a used CG resource which is configured to be associated with the DRB having the highest LCH priority. In some embodiments, the UE may apply a CG resource which is not used and is configured to be associated with the DRB having the highest LCH priority. Then, the UE may select a CG resource for another DRB with a relatively higher LCH priority or with a LCH priority in a descending order. In some embodiments, the selected CG resource for the another DRB is a CG resource that has been used. In some embodiments, in the case, for example, that the CG resource (s) associated with the another DRB has not been used (or selected) , the UE may apply a not-used CG resource which is configured to be associated with the another DRB. The UE may finish the CG resource selection procedure when the UE finishes the CG resource selection for all the initialized DRB (s) . The used CG resource may refer to a CG resource that has been used for UL data transmission or UL initial data transmission in the SDT procedure where the UE is in inactive mode or idle mode.

For example, assuming that DRB#A, DRB#B, and DRB#C are initialized at the UE 401, the LCH priority of DRB#A is higher than that of DRB#B and DRB#C, and the LCH priority of DRB#B is higher than that of DRB#C, the UE 401 may select CG resources for transmitting UL data from DRB#A, DRB#B, and DRB#C according to the following steps:

(1) the UE 401 may first select a CG resource for DRB#A, which has the highest LCH priority;

(2) then, the UE 401 may select a CG resource for DRB#B, which has the relatively higher LCH priority; and

(3) then, the UE 401 may select a CG resource for DRB#C, which has the lowest LCH priority.

As another example, the UE 401 may select CG resources for transmitting UL data from DRB#A, DRB#B, and DRB#C according to the following steps:

(2) then, the UE 401 may select a CG resource for DRB#B, which has the relatively higher LCH priority if the already selected CG resource (s) is not associated with DRB#B; and

(3) then, the UE 401 may select a CG resource for DRB#C, which has the lowest LCH priority if the already selected CG resource (s) is not associated with DRB#C.

In some other examples, the above procedure may be performed from the DRB having the lowest priority to the highest priority.

In each of the above steps, the UE 401 may select a CG resource for a specific DRB according to various methods, including those described above. In some examples, , the UE 401 may select the configured or predefined preference CG resource among a plurality of CG resources associated with the specific DRB. In some other examples, the UE 401 may select the configured or predefined preference CG resource among a plurality of CG resources associated with the specific DRB that is associated with the maximum number of the plurality of DRBs.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, in the case that a CG resource (either the preconfigured or the update CG resource) is already used for UL data transmission, the UE 401 may transmit UL data from a DRB that is associated with another CG resource on the already used CG resource.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, in the case that a CG resource (either the preconfigured or the update CG resource) is already used for UL data transmission, the UE 401 may not transmit UL data from a DRB that is associated with another CG resource on the already used CG resource.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, in the case that a CG resource (either the preconfigured or the update CG resource) is already used for UL data transmission, the UE 401 may not transmit UL data from a DRB that is associated with another CG resource and not associated with the already used CG resource on the already used CG resource.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, in the case that a CG resource (either the preconfigured or the update CG resource) is already used for UL data transmission, the UE 401 may transmit data from a DRB that is associated with the already used CG resource and at least one another CG resource (either the preconfigured or the update CG resource) on the already used CG resource. For example, the UE 401 may do so when the already used CG resource is available to transmit the UL data from the DRB. For instance, the already used CG resource is sufficient enough to transmit the data.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, an enhanced CG resource configuration may be provided. The enhanced CG resource configuration may be applied to either the initial or updated CG resource configuration as described above.

In the enhanced CG resource configuration, a CG resource may be configured with a periodicity, CG resource occasion information for the respective periodicity, and an offset. The offset indicates a time interval between the start of a CG period and the start of the first CG resource occasion in the CG period. By utilizing the CG resource occasion information, more than one CG resource occasion can be configured in a CG period. In some examples, the CG resource occasion information may indicate the number of CG resource occasions in a CG period, the duration of each CG resource occasion, and gap information of the CG resource occasions. In some other examples, the CG resource occasion information may indicate the duration of CG resource occasions in a CG period, the duration of each CG resource occasion, and gap information of the CG resource occasions.

Gap information of the CG resource occasions may indicate the time interval between the starting points of two adjacent CG resource occasions. In some other cases, gap information of the CG resource occasions may indicate the time interval between the ending point of a CG resource occasion and the starting point of the next CG resource occasion. In some other cases, gap information of the CG resource occasions may indicate the time interval between the ending point of a CG resource occasion and the ending point of the next CG resource occasion.

FIG. 5 shows an exemplary CG resource configuration 500 in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

The CG resource configuration 500 may configure a CG resource (e.g., CG resource 510) based on periodicity. For example, the CG resource 510 may be configured with a periodicity and an offset indicating the time interval between the start of a CG period and the start of the first CG resource occasion in the CG period.

Referring to FIG. 5, CG resource occasions of CG resource 510 may occur in CG periods such as CG period 513, and offset 515 indicates that the time interval between the start of a CG period (e.g., CG period 513) and the start of the first CG resource occasion (e.g., CG resource occasion 511a-1) in the CG period is 0. It is contemplated that the time interval indicated by the offset can be any values ranging from 0 to the CG period.

As a further enhanced feature, the CG resource 510 may be further configured with CG resource occasion information. In some examples, the CG resource occasion information may indicate that there are 3 CG resource occasions in a CG period (e.g., CG resource occasions 511a-1, 511a-2, and 511a-3 in CG period 513) . The CG resource occasion information may further indicate duration 517 for each CG resource occasion (e.g., CG resource occasions 511a-1, 511a-2, and 511a-3) and gap information (e.g., time interval 519 or time interval 521) of the CG resource occasions (e.g., CG resource occasions 511a-1, 511a-2, and 511a-3) .

In some other examples, the CG resource occasion information may indicate duration 523 of CG resource occasions in a CG period (e.g., CG resource occasions 511a-1, 511a-2, and 511a-3 in CG period 513) . The CG resource occasion information may further indicate duration 517 for each CG resource occasion (e.g., CG resource occasions 511a-1, 511a-2, and 511a-3) and gap information (e.g., time interval 519 or time interval 521) of the CG resource occasions (e.g., CG resource occasions 511a-1, 511a-2, and 511a-3) .

Although the CG resource configuration 500 configures a specific number (e.g., one) of CG resources, it is contemplated that any number (i.e., one or more) of CG resources may be configured to a UE.

In some examples, a UE may use CG resource 510 to transmit UL data when the UE is in an inactive or idle mode. In some cases, after the UE transmits data on CG resource occasions 511a-1, 511a-2, and 511a-3, the UE may still have additional data to be transmitted. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the UE may wait for the next CG period, which may lead to transmission delay.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the UE may switch from the inactive or idle mode to a connected mode according to network signaling or autonomously. The UE may then transmit the additional data in the connected mode.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the BS may transmit an indication allowing the UE to use subsequent CG resource occasions within the CG period (e.g., CG resource occasion 511a-4 in CG period 513) for transmitting the additional data. The indication may be in response to a CG resource request or some other information from the UE. In some instances, the indication may indicate the number of the subsequent CG resource occasions that can be used by the UE. In some other instances, the indication may indicate the duration of the subsequent CG resource occasions. The number and duration of the subsequent CG resource occasions may be based on the UE’s CG resource request. In some examples, the indication may further indicate a starting point of the subsequent CG resource occasions within the CG period. In some examples, the UE may assume that the subsequent CG resource occasions starts from a certain number of CG resource occasions after the indication. For example, the UE may assume that the subsequent CG resource occasions starts from an immediately followed CG resource occasion within the CG period. Referring to FIG. 5, assuming that the UE receives the indication between CG resource occasions 511a-3 and 511a-4, the UE may assume that the subsequent CG resource occasions starts from CG resource occasion 511a-4 for transmission.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the UE may transmit a CG resource request to a BS. The CG resource request may indicate resources needed for transmitting the additional data. The UE may operate according to the response from the BS. In some examples, the BS may instruct the UE to switch to a connected mode to transmit the additional data. In some other examples, the BS may simply respond with an ACK, the UE may wait for the next CG period or switch to a connected mode. In yet other examples, the BS may instruct the UE to wait for the next CG period. In yet other examples, the BS may transmit an indication allowing the UE to use subsequent CG resource occasions within the CG period.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the CG resource request (or information element (IE) ) may include CG resource configuration information, such that the network could configure a proper number of CG resource occasions based on, for example, the UE’s service requirement (s) and wireless resource wasting can be avoided. For example, the CG resource request may indicate at least one of the following: the number of CG resource occasions; the duration of CG resource occasions; or CG resource occasion information.

FIG. 6 illustrates a flow chart of an exemplary procedure 600 for wireless communications in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. Details described in all of the foregoing embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable for the embodiments shown in FIG. 6. In some examples, the procedure may be performed by a UE, for example, UE 101 in FIG. 1, UE 201 in FIG. 2, and UE 401 in FIG. 4.

Referring to FIG. 6, in operation 611, a UE may transmit a CG resource request to a BS. The description regarding the CG resource request in the above text may apply here. In operation 613, the UE may receive a CG resource configuration (hereinafter, “first CG resource configuration” ) , which may indicate at least one CG resource (hereinafter, “first CG resource” ) . Each of the at least one first CG resource may be configured based on periodicity. For example, the at least one first CG resource may be configured according to the manner described with respect to FIG. 3 or FIG. 5. In some examples, the first CG resource configuration may be received via an RRC release message (e.g., in step 211 in FIG. 2 or step 411 in FIG. 4) .

In some embodiments, the UE may transition from the connected mode to an inactive or idle mode, and may transmit UL data (hereinafter, “initial UL data” ) on the at least one first CG resource when the UE is in the inactive or idle mode. The inactive or idle UE may receive a DL response message in response to the initial UL data. In some embodiments, the DL response message may include an ACK or NACK to the initial UL data. In some embodiments, the DL response message may indicate an updated CG resource configuration (hereinafter, “second CG resource configuration” ) , which may indicate at least one updated CG resource (hereinafter, “second CG resource” ) for subsequent UL data transmission. For example, the at least one second CG resource may be configured according to the manner described with respect to FIG. 3 or FIG. 5. In some embodiments, the DL response message may indicate a dynamic grant for subsequent UL data transmission. The inactive or idle UE may transmit the subsequent UL data transmission on the at least one first CG resource or the at least one second CG resource, or according to the dynamic grant.

In some embodiments, as described above with respect to FIG. 4, the UE may deactivate the at least one first CG resource and store the first CG resource configuration according to explicit or implicit indication.

In some embodiments, the UE may receive an RRC release message, putting the UE into a normal inactive or idle mode. As described above with respect to FIG. 4, the UE may activate the at least one first CG resource according to explicit or implicit indication. As described above with respect to FIG. 4, the UE may deactivate the at least one second CG resource according to explicit or implicit indication.

In some embodiments, at least one DRB may be initialized at the UE. A plurality of CG resources may be associated with a specific DRB (hereinafter, “the first DRB” ) . The UE may select a CG resource from the plurality of CG resources for transmitting UL data from the first DRB, and may transmit the UL data from the first DRB on the selected resource. The UE may select such CG resource according to the method as described above with respect to FIG. 4.

In some embodiments, in response to there being additional UL data to be transmitted after the CG resource occasions of a selected CG resource within a CG period, the UE may perform at least one of the following operations to transmit the additional UL data: switching from the inactive or idle mode to a connected mode according to network signaling or autonomously; transmitting another CG resource request; and receiving an indication allowing the UE to use subsequent CG resource occasions within the CG period. Details regarding these operations are described with respect to FIG. 4 and thus are omitted herein.

In some embodiments, during the above data transmission procedure when the UE is in the inactive or idle mode, the UE may perform PDCCH monitoring using a dedicated RNTI or a last effective C-RNTI, as described above with respect to FIG. 4.

It should be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that the sequence of the operations in exemplary procedure 600 may be changed and some of the operations in exemplary procedure 600 may be eliminated or modified, without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure.

FIG. 7 illustrates a flow chart of an exemplary procedure 700 for wireless communications in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. Details described in all of the foregoing embodiments of the present disclosure are applicable for the embodiments shown in FIG. 7. In some examples, the procedure may be performed by a BS, for example, BS 102a or BS 102b in FIG. 1, BS 202 in FIG. 2, and BS 402 in FIG. 4.

Referring to FIG. 7, in operation 711, a BS may receive a CG resource request from a UE. The description regarding the CG resource request in the above text may apply here. In operation 713, the BS may transmit a CG resource configuration (hereinafter, “first CG resource configuration” ) , which may indicate at least one CG resource (hereinafter, “first CG resource” ) to the UE. Each of the at least one first CG resource may be configured based on periodicity. For example, the at least one first CG resource may be configured according to the manner described with respect to FIG. 3 or FIG. 5. In some examples, the first CG resource configuration may be transmitted via an RRC release message (e.g., in step 211 in FIG. 2 or step 411 in FIG. 4) .

In some embodiments, the BS may receive UL data (hereinafter, “initial UL data” ) on the at least one first CG resource from the inactive or idle UE. The BS may transmit a DL response message to the inactive or idle UE in response to the initial UL data. In some embodiments, the DL response message may include an ACK or NACK to the initial UL data. In some embodiments, the DL response message may indicate an updated CG resource configuration (hereinafter, “second CG resource configuration” ) , which may indicate at least one updated CG resource (hereinafter, “second CG resource” ) for subsequent UL data transmission at the UE. For example, the at least one second CG resource may be configured according to the manner described with respect to FIG. 3 or FIG. 5. In some embodiments, the DL response message may indicate a dynamic grant for subsequent UL data transmission at the UE. The BS may receive from the UE the subsequent UL data transmission on the at least one first CG resource or the at least one second CG resource, or according to the dynamic grant.

In some embodiments, as described above with respect to FIG. 4, the BS may deactivate the at least one first CG resource. For example, as described above, the BS may transmit a message indicate the deactivation of the at least one first CG re source.

In some embodiments, the BS may transmit an RRC release message, putting the UE into a normal inactive or idle mode. In some embodiments, as described above with respect to FIG. 4, the BS may activate the at least one first CG resource. In some example, as described above, the RRC release message may include a corresponding activation indication. In some embodiments, as described above with respect to FIG. 4, the BS may deactivate the at least one second CG resource. In some example, as described above, the RRC release message may include a corresponding deactivation indication.

In some embodiments, a specific DRB between the UE and the BS may be associated with a plurality of CG resources. The BS may indicate a preference CG resource from the plurality of CG resources in the corresponding CG resource configuration. The UE may select a suitable CG resource from the plurality of CG resources for transmitting UL data from the specific DRB according to various methods as described above with respect to FIG. 4. The preference CG resource could be indicated based on the order of the CG resources in the CG resource configuration. For example, the order of CG resources associated with a DRB could be used to indicate the preference CG resource associated with a DRB. For example, the first CG resource configured to a DRB is the preference CG resource of the DRB or the least preference CG resource of the DRB.

In some embodiments, in response to there being additional UL data to be transmitted after the CG resource occasions of a selected CG resource within a CG period, the BS may perform at least one of the following operations: instructing the UE to switch to a connected mode; receiving another CG resource request from the UE; and transmitting an indication allowing the UE to use subsequent CG resource occasions within the CG period. Details regarding these operations are described with respect to FIG. 4 and thus are omitted herein.

In some embodiments, during the above data transmission procedure when the UE is in the inactive or idle mode, the BS may perform PDCCH transmission using a dedicated RNTI or a last effective C-RNTI, as described above with respect to FIG. 4.

It should be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that the sequence of the operations in exemplary procedure 700 may be changed and some of the operations in exemplary procedure 700 may be eliminated or modified, without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure.

FIG. 8 illustrates a block diagram of an exemplary apparatus 800 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

As shown in FIG. 8, the apparatus 800 may include at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium 801, at least one receiving circuitry 802, at least one transmitting circuitry 804, and at least one processor 806 coupled to the non-transitory computer-readable medium 801, the receiving circuitry 802 and the transmitting circuitry 804. The apparatus 800 may be a base station side apparatus (e.g., a BS) or a communication device (e.g., a UE) .

Although in this figure, elements such as the at least one processor 806, transmitting circuitry 804, and receiving circuitry 802 are described in the singular, the plural is contemplated unless a limitation to the singular is explicitly stated. In some embodiments of the present application, the receiving circuitry 802 and the transmitting circuitry 804 are combined into a single device, such as a transceiver. In certain embodiments of the present application, the apparatus 800 may further include an input device, a memory, and/or other components.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the non-transitory computer-readable medium 801 may have stored thereon computer-executable instructions to cause a processor to implement the method with respect to the UEs as described above. For example, the computer-executable instructions, when executed, cause the processor 806 interacting with receiving circuitry 802 and transmitting circuitry 804, so as to perform the operations with respect to the UEs described in FIGS. 1-6.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the non-transitory computer-readable medium 801 may have stored thereon computer-executable instructions to cause a processor to implement the method with respect to the BSs as described above. For example, the computer-executable instructions, when executed, cause the processor 806 interacting with receiving circuitry 802 and transmitting circuitry 804, so as to perform the operations with respect to the BSs described in FIGS. 1-5 and 7.

Those having ordinary skill in the art would understand that the operations or steps of a method described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein may be embodied directly in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two. A software module may reside in RAM memory, flash memory, ROM memory, EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, registers, a hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. Additionally, in some aspects, the operations or steps of a method may reside as one or any combination or set of codes and/or instructions on a non-transitory computer-readable medium, which may be incorporated into a computer program product.

While this disclosure has been described with specific embodiments thereof, it is evident that many alternatives, modifications, and variations may be apparent to those skilled in the art. For example, various components of the embodiments may be interchanged, added, or substituted in other embodiments. Also, all of the elements of each figure are not necessary for the operation of the disclosed embodiments. For example, one of ordinary skill in the art of the disclosed embodiments would be enabled to make and use the teachings of the disclosure by simply employing the elements of the independent claims. Accordingly, embodiments of the disclosure as set forth herein are intended to be illustrative, not limiting. Various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure.

In this document, the terms "includes, " "including, " or any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that includes a list of elements does not include only those elements but may include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. An element proceeded by "a, " "an, " or the like does not, without more constraints, preclude the existence of additional identical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that includes the element. Also, the term "another" is defined as at least a second or more. The term "having" and the like, as used herein, are defined as "including. " The wording "the first, " "the second" or the like is only used to clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present application, but is not used to limit the substance of the present application.

Claims

A method for wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE) , comprising:

transmitting a configured grant (CG) resource request; and

receiving a first CG resource configuration, wherein the first CG resource configuration indicates at least one first CG resource, and each of the at least one first CG resource is configured based on periodicity.
The method of claim 1, further comprising: when the UE is in an inactive or idle mode,

transmitting initial uplink (UL) data on the at least one first CG resource;

receiving a downlink (DL) response message, wherein the DL response message indicates second CG resource configuration indicating at least one second CG resource for subsequent UL data or a dynamic grant for subsequent UL data; and

transmitting the subsequent UL data on the at least one second CG resource or based on the dynamic grant.
The method of claim 2, further comprising: when the UE is in an inactive or idle mode,

deactivating the at least one first CG resource and storing the first CG resource configuration in response to the reception of the second CG resource configuration or the dynamic grant.
The method of claim 1, further comprising: when the UE is in an inactive or idle mode,

receiving a message indicating deactivation of the at least one first CG resource, and

deactivating the at least one first CG resource and storing the first CG resource configuration in response to the message.
The method of claim 4, wherein the message indicates a beam specific CG occasion of the at least one first CG resource, and

wherein deactivating the at least one first CG resource comprises deactivating the beam specific CG occasion of the at least one first CG resource.
The method of claim 5, wherein:

the first CG resource configuration indicates a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated with the beam specific CG occasion, and deactivating the beam specific CG occasion comprises: stopping or suspending the counter or the timer; or

the first CG resource configuration indicates a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated with one of the at least one first CG resource which includes the beam specific CG occasion, and deactivating the beam specific CG occasion comprises: stopping or suspending the counter or the timer, and deactivating all beam specific CG occasions of the one of the at least one first CG resource.
The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a radio resource control (RRC) release message; and

activating the at least one first CG resource in response to the RRC release message, or

activating the at least one first CG resource in response to the RRC release message including an indication to activate the at least one first CG resource.
The method of claim 7, wherein the indication indicates a beam specific CG occasion of the at least one first CG resource, and

wherein activating the at least one first CG resource comprises activating the beam specific CG occasion of the at least one first CG resource.
The method of claim 8, wherein the first CG resource configuration indicates a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated with the beam specific CG occasion, and activating the beam specific CG occasion comprises:

starting or restarting the counter or the timer.
The method of claim 2, further comprising:

receiving a radio resource control (RRC) release message; and

deactivating the at least one second CG resource in response to the RRC release message, or

deactivating the at least one second CG resource in response to the RRC release message including an indication to deactivate the at least one second CG resource.
The method of claim 7, wherein the first CG resource configuration indicates a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated with the at least one first CG resource, and activating the at least one first CG resource comprises:

starting or restarting the counter or the timer.
The method of claim 3, wherein the first CG resource configuration indicates a value of a counter or a value of a timer associated with the at least one first CG resource, and deactivating the at least one first CG resource comprises:

stopping or suspending the counter or the timer.
The method of claim 6, 9, 11 or 12, further comprising:

transmitting an indication indicating at least one of: a stop, suspension, start, restart, or reset of the counter or the timer and the cause of the stop, suspension, start, restart, or reset of the counter or the timer.
The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting a CG resource from a plurality of CG resources associated with a first data radio bearer (DRB) , wherein the plurality of the CG resources are from the at least one first CG resource; and

transmitting uplink (UL) data from the first DRB on the selected CG resource.
The method of claim 14, wherein:

the selected CG resource is the nearest CG resource of the plurality of CG resources in time domain; or

the selected CG resource is associated with the first DRB and at least one second DRB from which another UL data is to be transmitted; or

the selected CG resource is selected based on a random value or a preference CG resource for the first DRB.