WO2024168893A1

WO2024168893A1 - User equipment configuration for multi-rx chain reception

Info

Publication number: WO2024168893A1
Application number: PCT/CN2023/076960
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jie Cui; Dawei Zhang; Haitong Sun; Hong He; Qiming Li; Xiang Chen; Yang Tang
Original assignee: Apple Inc
Current assignee: Apple Inc
Priority date: 2023-02-17
Filing date: 2023-02-17
Publication date: 2024-08-22
Anticipated expiration: 2025-08-17

Abstract

A method to be performed by a user equipment (UE), a UE, and a non-transitory computer-readable medium are provided. The method includes receiving, from a base station, a first signal indicative of a measurement object of a measurement to be performed in frequency range 2 (FR2). The method includes determining to apply a mode change on multiple receiver (RX) chains of the UE. transmitting, to the base station, a second signal indicative of the mode change. The method includes determining a configuration of the measurement, where the configuration is based on the measurement object and the mode change.

Description

USER EQUIPMENT CONFIGURATION FOR MULTI-RX CHAIN RECEPTION

BACKGROUND

Wireless communication networks provide integrated communication platforms and telecommunication services to wireless user devices. Example telecommunication services include telephony, data (e.g., voice, audio, and/or video data) , messaging, internet-access, and/or other services. The wireless communication networks have wireless access nodes that exchange wireless signals with the wireless user devices using wireless network protocols, such as protocols described in various telecommunication standards promulgated by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) . Example wireless communication networks include time division multiple access (TDMA) networks, frequency-division multiple access (FDMA) networks, orthogonal frequency-division multiple access (OFDMA) networks, Long Term Evolution (LTE) , and Fifth Generation (5G) New Radio (NR) . The wireless communication networks facilitate mobile broadband service using technologies such as OFDM, multiple input multiple output (MIMO) , advanced channel coding, massive MIMO, beamforming, and/or other features.

SUMMARY

In accordance with one aspect of the present disclosure, a method to be performed by a user equipment (UE) is provided. The method includes receiving, from a base station, a first signal indicative of a measurement object of a measurement to be performed in frequency range 2 (FR2) . The method includes determining to apply a mode change on multiple receiver (RX) chains of the UE. transmitting, to the base station, a second signal indicative of the mode change. The method includes determining a configuration of the measurement, where the configuration is based on the measurement object and the mode change.

In some implementations, the mode change causes the UE to use a different number of RX chains for the measurement.

In some implementations, the method further includes transmitting, to the base station, a third signal indicative of a mode of the multiple RX chains after the mode change.

In some implementations, determining the configuration includes receiving the configuration from the base station.

In some implementations, the UE receives the configuration in at least one of: a radio resource control (RRC) signal, a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) , or a downlink control information (DCI) signal.

In some implementations, the method further includes prior to receiving the first signal, receiving a preconfiguration signal that provides one or more candidate configurations for each mode. Determining the configuration is further based on the preconfiguration signal.

In some implementations, the method further includes determining a plurality of measurement occasions starting from a given system frame number (SFN) . Determining the configuration includes: determining a pattern to be repeatedly applied to the plurality of measurement occasions; determining, based on the pattern, a plurality of usable measurement occasions for the measurement; and applying a single configuration to the plurality of usable measurement occasions.

In some implementations, determining the pattern includes at least one of: receiving the pattern from the base station; determining the pattern based on predefined information stored in the UE; or calculating the pattern based on (i) a predefined rule and (ii) a ratio of the plurality of usable measurement occasions to a total number of the plurality of measurement occasions.

In some implementations, the configuration includes at least one of: an SSB based measurement timing configuration (SMTC) , or a measurement gap (MG) .

In some implementations, the configuration includes a MG configuration.

In some implementations, the first signal is further indicative of a measurement object of another measurement to be performed in frequency range 1 (FR1) , the MG is configured on a per-UE basis, and a periodicity of an SMTC for the measurement object of the another measurement is larger than an existing measurement gap repetition period (MGRP) .

In some implementations, the MG configuration is for the measurement object in FR2.

In some implementations, the configuration comprises a MG configuration, the first signal is further indicative of a measurement object of another measurement to be performed in FR1, and the MG is configured on a per–UE basis. Determining the configuration includes: keeping an original MG configuration.

In accordance with one aspect of the present disclosure, a non-transitory computer-readable medium is provided. The non-transitory computer-readable medium stores program instructions that cause a UE to perform the method as described above.

In accordance with one aspect of the present disclosure, a UE is provided. The UE has a processor configured to execute instructions that cause the UE to perform operations. The operations include receiving, from a base station, a first signal indicative of a measurement object of a measurement to be performed in FR2. The operations include determining to apply a mode change on multiple RX chains of the UE. The operations include transmitting, to the base station, a second signal indicative of the mode change. The operations include determining a configuration of the measurement, the configuration based on the measurement object and the mode change.

In some implementations, the operations further include transmitting, to the base station, a third signal indicative of a mode of the multiple RX chains after the mode change.

In some implementations, determining the configuration includes: receiving the configuration from the base station.

In some implementations, the operations further include prior to receiving the first signal, receiving a preconfiguration signal that provides one or more candidate configurations for each mode. The UE determines the configuration based on the preconfiguration signal.

In some implementations, the operations further include determining a plurality of measurement occasions starting from a given SFN. Determining the configuration includes: determining a pattern to be repeatedly applied to the plurality of measurement occasions; determining, based on the pattern, a plurality of usable measurement occasions for the measurement; and applying a single configuration to the plurality of usable measurement occasions.

In some implementations, the configuration includes at least one of: an SMTC, or a MG.

The details of one or more implementations of these systems and methods are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features, objects, and advantages of these systems and methods will be apparent from the description and drawings, and from the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 illustrates an example wireless network, according to some implementations.

FIG. 2 illustrates a table of example modes of utilizing RX chains, according to some implementations.

FIG. 3 illustrates a flowchart of an example method, according to some implementations.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example UE, according to some implementations.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example access node, according to some implementations.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Generally, a user device, such as a UE, uses one or more RX chains to receive wireless signals from other devices (e.g., base stations) . RX chains can refer to a UE’s antenna panels, a UE’s antenna modules, or beams that the UE uses to receive signals simultaneously. Currently, a UE can utilize multiple RX chains to receive signals from different directions. The received signals can include two types: (i) measurement signals that help a UE determine the communication quality, and (ii) non-measurement signals, such as data or control signals, that the UE uses for other purposes.

As an illustrative example, a UE can have two antenna panels, each corresponding to a respective RX chain. The UE can utilize each antenna panel to perform beam sweeping for a measurement (e.g., a Layer 3 [L3] measurement) with one or more base stations. Assuming both antenna panels support beam sweeping with at least two beams, the UE can utilize its two antenna panels to perform beam sweeping involving four beams, each corresponding to a measurement occasion.

In a first scenario of the above example, the UE can configure the four beams individually. For example, the UE can separately assign an SSB based measurement timing configuration (SMTC) or measurement gap (MG) configuration to each of the four beams. Alternatively, in a second scenario, the UE can use the same SMTC or MG configuration for the two beams on the same RX chain. In the second scenario, the UE only needs two sets of SMTC or MG configurations, one for each antenna panel.

A UE often operates in communication environments that change rapidly. To adapt to the changes in the communication environment, the UE may determine to use fewer RX chains than available to perform measurement or non-measurement communication. For example, in the second scenario described above, the UE may use both RX chains for measurement for some time, and later switch to using only one RX chain for measurement. The UE may make such determinations based on factors such as the network traffic speed or the power consumption mode.

To dynamically switch between the number of RX chains used, the UE needs to properly configure the RX chains. When the switch involves a change of the number of measurement RX chains (as opposed to non-measurement RX chains) , the UE needs to configure measurement configurations, such as SMTC and MG, for the RX chains after the switch.

This disclosure provides solutions to these problems. As described in detail below, implementations of this disclosure provide one or more mechanisms for the UE to determine measurement configurations while changing operating modes of RX chains. Among other advantages, these mechanisms increase a UE’s flexibility in communication.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example wireless network 100, according to some implementations. The wireless network 100 includes a UE 102 and a base station 104 connected via one or more channels 106A, 106B across an air interface 108. The UE 102 and base station 104 communicate using a system that supports controls for managing the access of the UE 102 to a network via the base station 104.

In some implementations, the wireless network 100 may be a Non-Standalone (NSA) network that incorporates LTE and 5G NR communication standards as defined by the 3GPP technical specifications. For example, the wireless network 100 may be a E-UTRA (Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access) -NR Dual Connectivity (EN-DC) network, or a NR-EUTRA Dual Connectivity (NE-DC) network. However, the wireless network 100 may also be a Standalone (SA) network that incorporates only 5G NR. Furthermore, other types of communication standards are possible, including future 3GPP systems (e.g., Sixth Generation (6G) ) systems, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 technology (e.g., IEEE 802.11a; IEEE 802.11b; IEEE 802.11g; IEEE 802.11-2007; IEEE 802.11n; IEEE 802.11-2012; IEEE 802.11ac; or other present or future developed IEEE 802.11 technologies) , IEEE 802.16 protocols (e.g., WMAN, WiMAX, etc. ) , or the like. While aspects may be described herein using terminology commonly associated with 5G NR, aspects of the present disclosure can be applied to other systems, such as 3G, 4G, and/or systems subsequent to 5G (e.g., 6G) .

In the wireless network 100, the UE 102 and any other UE in the system may be, for example, laptop computers, smartphones, tablet computers, machine-type devices such as smart meters or specialized devices for healthcare, intelligent transportation systems, or any other wireless devices with or without a user interface. In network 100, the base station 104 provides the UE 102 network connectivity to a broader network (not shown) . This UE 102 connectivity is provided via the air interface 108 in a base station service area provided by the base station 104. In some implementations, such a broader network may be a wide area network operated by a cellular network provider, or may be the Internet. Each base station service area associated with the base station 104 is supported by antennas integrated with the base station 104. The service areas are divided into a number of sectors associated with certain antennas. Such sectors may be physically associated with fixed antennas or may be assigned to a physical area with tunable antennas or antenna settings adjustable in a beamforming process used to direct a signal to a particular sector.

The UE 102 includes control circuitry 110 coupled with transmit circuitry 112 and receive circuitry 114. The transmit circuitry 112 and receive circuitry 114 may each be coupled with one or more antennas. The control circuitry 110 may include various combinations of application-specific circuitry and baseband circuitry. The transmit circuitry 112 and receive circuitry 114 may be adapted to transmit and receive data, respectively, and may include radio frequency (RF) circuitry or front-end module (FEM) circuitry.

In various implementations, aspects of the transmit circuitry 112, receive circuitry 114, and control circuitry 110 may be integrated in various ways to implement the operations described herein. The control circuitry 110 may be adapted or configured to perform various operations such as those described elsewhere in this disclosure related to a UE. For instance, the control circuitry 110 can control the transmit circuitry 112 and the receive circuitry 114 to perform measurements and exchange data or control signals with the base station 104.

The transmit circuitry 112 may transmit a plurality of multiplexed uplink physical channels. The plurality of uplink physical channels may be multiplexed according to time division multiplexing (TDM) or frequency division multiplexing (FDM) along with carrier aggregation. The transmit circuitry 112 may be configured to receive block data from the control circuitry 110 for transmission across the air interface 108.

The receive circuitry 114 may receive a plurality of multiplexed downlink physical channels from the air interface 108 and relay the physical channels to the control circuitry 110. The plurality of downlink physical channels may be multiplexed according to TDM or FDM along with carrier aggregation. The transmit circuitry 112 and the receive circuitry 114 may transmit and receive both control data and content data (e.g., messages, images, video, etc. ) structured within data blocks that are carried by the physical channels.

FIG. 1 also illustrates the base station 104. In implementations, the base station 104 may be an NG radio access network (RAN) or a 5G RAN, an E-UTRAN, a non-terrestrial cell, or a legacy RAN, such as a UTRAN or GERAN. As used herein, the term “NG RAN” or the like may refer to the base station 104 that operates in an NR or 5G wireless network 100, and the term “E-UTRAN” or the like may refer to a base station 104 that operates in an LTE or 4G wireless network 100. The UE 102 utilizes connections (or channels) 106A, 106B, each of which includes a physical communications interface or layer.

The base station 104 circuitry may include control circuitry 116 coupled with transmit circuitry 118 and receive circuitry 120. The transmit circuitry 118 and receive circuitry 120 may each be coupled with one or more antennas that may be used to enable communications via the air interface 108. The transmit circuitry 118 and receive circuitry 120 may be adapted to transmit and receive data, respectively, to any UE connected to the base station 104. The transmit circuitry 118 may transmit downlink physical channels includes of a plurality of downlink subframes. The receive circuitry 120 may receive a plurality of uplink physical channels from various UEs, including the UE 102.

In FIG. 1, the one or more channels 106A, 106B are illustrated as an air interface to enable communicative coupling, and can be consistent with cellular communications protocols, such as a GSM protocol, a CDMA network protocol, a UMTS protocol, a 3GPP LTE protocol, an Advanced long term evolution (LTE-A) protocol, a LTE-based access to unlicensed spectrum (LTE-U) , a 5G protocol, a NR protocol, an NR-based access to unlicensed spectrum (NR-U) protocol, and/or any of the other communications protocols discussed herein. In implementations, the UE 102 may directly exchange communication data via a ProSe interface. The ProSe interface may alternatively be referred to as a sidelink (SL) interface and may include one or more logical channels, including but not limited to a Physical Sidelink Control Channel (PSCCH) , a Physical Sidelink Control Channel (PSCCH) , a Physical Sidelink Discovery Channel (PSDCH) , and a Physical Sidelink Broadcast Channel (PSBCH) .

FIG. 2 illustrates a table 200 of example operating modes of RX chains, according to some implementations. A UE, such as UE 102, can dynamically switch between the 4 modes in table 200.

In mode 1, the UE uses multiple RX chains for both the measurement reception and the non-measurement reception. For example, assuming the UE has two RX chains, the UE uses both RX chains for the measurement and non-measurement receptions.

In mode 2, the UE uses one RX chain for the measurement reception and one RX chain for the non-measurement reception, even if the UE has multiple RX chains available.

In mode 3, the UE uses multiple RX chains for the measurement reception and uses one RX chain for the non-measurement reception. For example, assuming the UE has two RX chains, the UE uses two RX chains for the measurement reception and uses one RX chain for the non-measurement reception.

In mode 4, the UE uses one RX chain for the measurement reception and uses multiple RX chains for the non-measurement reception. For example, assuming the UE has two RX chains, the UE uses one RX chain for the measurement reception and uses two RX chains for the non-measurement reception.

The mode in which the UE operates depends on the communication with a base station. When the UE is about to perform a measurement with the base station (e.g., when the UE moves to an area covered by a cell associated with the base station) , the base station can transmit a signal to the UE to provide the UE with a measurement object. The measurement object can include one or more of the following information: the frequency range (FR) of the measurement; whether the measurement is intra-frequency (e.g., the measurement is performed in the same frequency band as the UE’s current operating frequency) or inter-frequency (e.g., the measurement is performed in a frequency band different from the UE’s current operating frequency) ; or whether the measurement should be performed with a MG. In scenarios where the measurement is to be performed with a MG, the measurement object can further indicate whether the MG is on a per-UE basis (e.g., the UE applies the same MG regardless of FR) or whether the MG is on a per-FR basis (e.g., the MG applies only to a specified FR) .

In some implementations, the UE receives, from the base station, a measurement object of a measurement to be performed in FR2. Considering the measurement object and/or other factors, the UE can determine to switch between modes 1-4 to perform the FR2 measurement. Among all possible switches, switches between modes 1 and 2, between modes 1 and 4, between modes 2 and 3, and between modes 3 and 4, result in a change of the number of measurement RX chains. Because of this change, the UE needs to determine measurement configurations, such as SMTC and/or MG configurations, to properly perform the measurement. Alternatively or additionally, the UE can signal the change to the base station. In addition, the UE can indicate the mode after the change, and/or the determined configurations for performing the measurement.

In scenarios where the measurement object indicates that the FR2 measurement does not use a MG, the UE can determine an SMTC configuration for the FR2 measurement. The UE has a number of options to determine the SMTC configuration, a few of which are described below as examples.

In a first example option for determining the SMTC configuration, the UE can receive the SMTC configuration from the base station. For instance, after the UE signals the mode change to the base station, the base station can indicate the SMTC for the measurement via any of a RRC signal, a MAC CE, or a DCI signal. In some implementations, prior to sending the measurement object, the base station can preconfigure the UE with multiple SMTC candidates. In these cases, the base station can select, based on the measurement object, an SMTC configuration from the multiple candidates and use a MAC CE or a DCI signal to inform the UE of the selection.

In a second example option for determining the SMTC configuration, the UE can select the SMTC configuration from multiple preconfigured SMTC candidates on its own. For example, prior to sending the measurement object, the base station can preconfigure the UE with multiple SMTC candidates. In the preconfiguration, the base station can further specify a mode associated with each SMTC candidate. Thus, after receiving the measurement object from the base station, the UE can make the selection based on the mode after the switch. The UE can also update the base station with the configuration that the UE has selected based on the mode change. This update can keep the base station informed of both the mode the UE is in when performing the measurement, and the SMTC configuration the UE uses when performing the measurement.

In a third example option for determining the SMTC configuration, the UE can receive a single SMTC configuration from the base station. The UE can then repeatedly apply the single SMTC configuration to a plurality of measurement occasions according to a pattern. For example, based on the measurement object, the UE can arrange a series of measurement occasions for performing the measurement. The UE can then divide the measurement occasions into usable measurement occasions (e.g., measurement occasions when the UE actually performs the measurement) and non-usable measurement occasions (e.g., measurement occasions when the UE does not actually perform the measurement) based on the pattern. As an example, when the pattern is “1100, ” the UE can determine that, for every four consecutive measurement occasions, the first two measurement occasions are usable while the last two are punctured (e.g., skipped from the measurement) as non-usable. Because the pattern is repeatedly applied, the UE can use a given system frame number (SFN) , such as SFN #0, as a reference point to start determining the usable and non-usable measurement occasions.

Keeping with the third example option, the UE can have multiple ways of obtaining the pattern. As an example, the UE can obtain the pattern from the base station via wireless signaling. As another example, the UE can obtain the pattern from its own memory where the pattern is predefined. As yet another example, the UE can receive a ratio of a number usable measurement occasions to a total number of measurement occasions, such as 3/4. The UE can then apply a predefined rule (e.g., a rule stored in the UE’s own memory or a rule agreed upon between the UE and the base station) to interpret the ratio and determine the pattern (e.g., 3/4 can mean, for every 4 measurement occasions, the first 3 measurement occasions are usable and the last 1 is punctured) .

In scenarios where the measurement object indicates that the FR2 measurement uses a MG, the UE may need to determine a MG configuration for the FR2 measurement. The UE has a number of options to determine the MG configuration, a few of which are described below as examples.

In a first example option for determining the MG configuration, the UE can receive the MG configuration from the base station via, e.g., a RRC signal, a MAC CE, or a DCI signal. Similar to the first example option for determining the SMTC configuration, in some implementations, the base station can preconfigure the UE with multiple MG candidates and use a MAC CE or a DCI signal to inform the UE of a selected MG configuration. Because a MG can be configured on a per-UE basis or on a per-FR basis, the UE in some implementations treats the two types of configurations discretionally, as described below, to avoid unwanted impact on other measurements in a different FR.

In some implementations, the first example option for determining the MG configuration applies when (a) the MG is configured per UE, (b) the UE also receives a measurement object of another measurement to be performed in FR1, and (c) a periodicity of an SMTC configured for the FR1 measurement object is larger than an existing MGRP. In particular, (c) can suggest that some FR2 MGs do not overlap FR1 SMTC and thus can be configured without unwanted impact on the FR1 measurement. When (a) - (c) are all satisfied, the UE can receive the MG configuration from the base station and use the received MG configuration for the FR2 measurement.

In some implementations, the first example option for determining the MG configuration applies when the MG is configured per FR and the measurement object specifies that the MG is used in the FR2 measurement. In these implementations, because the MG is applied only to the specified FR2 measurement and does not affect measurements in other FRs, the UE can receive the MG configuration from the base station and use the received MG configuration for the FR2 measurement.

In a second example option for determining the MG configuration, the UE can select the MG configuration from multiple preconfigured MG candidates on its own. For example, prior to sending the measurement object, the base station can preconfigure the UE with multiple MG candidates. In the preconfiguration, the base station can further specify a mode associated with each MG candidate. Thus, after receiving the measurement object form the base station, the UE can make the selection on its own based on the mode after the switch. This example option can be similar to the second example option for determining the SMTC configuration.

In a third example option for determining the MG configuration, the UE can receive a single MG configuration from the base station. The UE can then repeatedly apply the single MG configuration to a plurality of measurement occasions according to a pattern. This example option can be similar to the third example option for determining the SMTC configuration.

In a fourth example option for determining the MG configuration, the UE can determine to use an original (e.g., existing) MG configuration instead of receiving a new configuration from the base station. The fourth example option can apply when (a) the MG is configured per UE and (b) the UE also receives a measurement object of another measurement to be performed in FR1. In other words, when the MG is configured on a per-UE basis, and when the base station also provides the UE with a measurement object of a FR1 measurement besides the FR2 measurement, the UE can decide to keep using the original MG configuration in order to avoid unwanted impact on the FR1 measurement from new MG configurations.

FIG. 3 illustrates a flowchart of an example method 300, according to some implementations. For clarity of presentation, the description that follows generally describes method 300 in the context of the other figures in this description. For example, method 300 can be performed by UE 102 of FIG. 1. It will be understood that method 300 can be performed, for example, by any suitable system, environment, software, hardware, or a combination of systems, environments, software, and hardware, as appropriate. In some implementations, various steps of method 300 can be run in parallel, in combination, in loops, or in any order.

At 302, method 300 involves receiving, from a base station, a first signal indicative of a measurement object of a measurement to be performed in FR2. As previously described, the measurement object can indicate the FR of the measurement, whether the measurement is intra–frequency or inter-frequency, and/or whether the measurement should be performed with a MG.

At 304, method 300 involves determining to apply a mode change on multiple RX chains of the UE. The mode change can include a switch between any of the two modes in table 200 of FIG. 2

At 306, method 300 involves transmitting, to the base station, a second signal indicative of the mode change. The second signal can help the base station decide a configuration of the measurement and possibly provide the configuration back to the UE.

At 308, method 300 involves determining the configuration of the measurement. The configuration is based on the measurement object and the mode change. As described previously, the UE can determine the configuration on its own or from a signal received from the base station.

FIG. 3B illustrates another flowchart of an example method 350, according to some implementations. For clarity of presentation, the description that follows generally describes method 350 in the context of the other figures in this description. For example, method 350 can be performed by base station 104 of FIG. 1. It will be understood that method 350 can be performed, for example, by any suitable system, environment, software, hardware, or a combination of systems, environments, software, and hardware, as appropriate. In some implementations, various steps of method 350 can be run in parallel, in combination, in loops, or in any order. It is noted some implementations may include more or fewer steps than those shown in method 350.

At 352, method 350 involves transmitting, to a UE, a first signal indicative of a measurement object of a measurement to be performed in FR2. As previously described, the measurement object can indicate the FR of the measurement, whether the measurement is intra–frequency or inter-frequency, and/or whether the measurement should be performed with a MG.

At 354, method 350 involves receiving, from the UE, a second signal indicative of the mode change. The second signal can help the base station decide a configuration of the measurement and possibly provide the configuration back to the UE.

At 356, method 350 involves transmitting the configuration to the UE.

At 358, method 350 involves receiving, from the UE, a third signal indicative of the a mode of the multiple RX chains after the mode change.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example UE 400, according to some implementations. The UE 400 may be similar to and substantially interchangeable with UE 102 of FIG. 1.

The UE 400 may be any mobile or non-mobile computing device, such as, for example, mobile phones, computers, tablets, industrial wireless sensors (for example, microphones, pressure sensors, thermometers, motion sensors, accelerometers, inventory sensors, electric voltage/current meters, etc. ) , video devices (for example, cameras, video cameras, etc. ) , wearable devices (for example, a smart watch) , relaxed-IoT devices.

The UE 400 may include processors 402, RF interface circuitry 404, memory/storage 406, user interface 408, sensors 410, driver circuitry 412, power management integrated circuit (PMIC) 414, one or more antenna (s) 416, and battery 418. The components of the UE 400 may be implemented as integrated circuits (ICs) , portions thereof, discrete electronic devices, or other modules, logic, hardware, software, firmware, or a combination thereof. The block diagram of FIG. 4 is intended to show a high-level view of some of the components of the UE 400. However, some of the components shown may be omitted, additional components may be present, and different arrangement of the components shown may occur in other implementations.

The components of the UE 400 may be coupled with various other components over one or more interconnects 420, which may represent any type of interface, input/output, bus (local, system, or expansion) , transmission line, trace, optical connection, etc. that allows various circuit components (on common or different chips or chipsets) to interact with one another.

The processors 402 may include processor circuitry such as, for example, baseband processor circuitry (BB) 422A, central processor unit circuitry (CPU) 422B, and graphics processor unit circuitry (GPU) 422C. The processors 402 may include any type of circuitry or processor circuitry that executes or otherwise operates computer-executable instructions, such as program code, software modules, or functional processes from memory/storage 406 to cause the UE 400 to perform operations as described herein.

In some implementations, the baseband processor circuitry 422A may access a communication protocol stack 424 in the memory/storage 406 to communicate over a 3GPP compatible network. In general, the baseband processor circuitry 422A may access the communication protocol stack to: perform user plane functions at a physical (PHY) layer, medium access control (MAC) layer, radio link control (RLC) layer, packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) layer, and PDU layer; and perform control plane functions at a PHY layer, MAC layer, RLC layer, PDCP layer, RRC layer, and a non-access stratum layer. In some implementations, the PHY layer operations may additionally/alternatively be performed by the components of the RF interface circuitry 404. The baseband processor circuitry 422A may generate or process baseband signals or waveforms that carry information in 3GPP-compatible networks. In some implementations, the waveforms for NR may be based cyclic prefix orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) “CP-OFDM” in the uplink or downlink, and discrete Fourier transform spread OFDM “DFT-S-OFDM” in the uplink.

The memory/storage 406 may include one or more non-transitory, computer-readable media that includes instructions (for example, communication protocol stack 424) that may be executed by one or more of the processors 402 to cause the UE 400 to perform various operations described herein. The memory/storage 406 include any type of volatile or non-volatile memory that may be distributed throughout the UE 400. In some implementations, some of the memory/storage 406 may be located on the processors 402 themselves (for example, L1 and L2 cache) , while other memory/storage 406 is external to the processors 402 but accessible thereto via a memory interface. The memory/storage 406 may include any suitable volatile or non-volatile memory such as, but not limited to, dynamic random access memory (DRAM) , static random access memory (SRAM) , erasable programmable read only memory (EPROM) , electrically erasable programmable read only memory (EEPROM) , Flash memory, solid-state memory, or any other type of memory device technology.

The RF interface circuitry 404 may include transceiver circuitry and radio frequency front module (RFEM) that allows the UE 400 to communicate with other devices over a radio access network. The RF interface circuitry 404 may include various elements arranged in transmit or receive paths. These elements may include, for example, switches, mixers, amplifiers, filters, synthesizer circuitry, control circuitry, etc.

In the receive path, the RFEM may receive a radiated signal from an air interface via antenna 416 and proceed to filter and amplify (with a low-noise amplifier) the signal. The signal may be provided to a receiver of the transceiver that downconverts the RF signal into a baseband signal that is provided to the baseband processor of the processors 402.

In the transmit path, the transmitter of the transceiver up-converts the baseband signal received from the baseband processor and provides the RF signal to the RFEM. The RFEM may amplify the RF signal through a power amplifier prior to the signal being radiated across the air interface via the antenna 416. In various implementations, the RF interface circuitry 404 may be configured to transmit/receive signals in a manner compatible with NR access technologies.

The antenna 416 may include antenna elements to convert electrical signals into radio waves to travel through the air and to convert received radio waves into electrical signals. The antenna elements may be arranged into one or more antenna panels. The antenna 416 may have antenna panels that are omnidirectional, directional, or a combination thereof to enable beamforming and multiple input, multiple output communications. The antenna 416 may include microstrip antennas, printed antennas fabricated on the surface of one or more printed circuit boards, patch antennas, phased array antennas, etc. The antenna 416 may have one or more panels designed for specific frequency bands including bands in FR1 or FR2.

The user interface 408 includes various input/output (I/O) devices designed to enable user interaction with the UE 400. The user interface 408 includes input device circuitry and output device circuitry. Input device circuitry includes any physical or virtual means for accepting an input including, inter alia, one or more physical or virtual buttons (for example, a reset button) , a physical keyboard, keypad, mouse, touchpad, touchscreen, microphones, scanner, headset, or the like. The output device circuitry includes any physical or virtual means for showing information or otherwise conveying information, such as sensor readings, actuator position (s) , or other like information. Output device circuitry may include any number or combinations of audio or visual display, including, inter alia, one or more simple visual outputs/indicators (for example, binary status indicators such as light emitting diodes “LEDs” and multi-character visual outputs) , or more complex outputs such as display devices or touchscreens (for example, liquid crystal displays “LCDs, ” LED displays, quantum dot displays, projectors, etc. ) , with the output of characters, graphics, multimedia objects, and the like being generated or produced from the operation of the UE 400.

The sensors 410 may include devices, modules, or subsystems whose purpose is to detect events or changes in its environment and send the information (sensor data) about the detected events to some other device, module, subsystem, etc. Examples of such sensors include, inter alia, inertia measurement units including accelerometers, gyroscopes, or magnetometers; microelectromechanical systems or nanoelectromechanical systems including 3-axis accelerometers, 3-axis gyroscopes, or magnetometers; level sensors; temperature sensors (for example, thermistors) ; pressure sensors; image capture devices (for example, cameras or lensless apertures) ; light detection and ranging sensors; proximity sensors (for example, infrared radiation detector and the like) ; depth sensors; ambient light sensors; ultrasonic transceivers; microphones or other like audio capture devices; etc.

The driver circuitry 412 may include software and hardware elements that operate to control particular devices that are embedded in the UE 400, attached to the UE 400, or otherwise communicatively coupled with the UE 400. The driver circuitry 412 may include individual drivers allowing other components to interact with or control various input/output (I/O) devices that may be present within, or connected to, the UE 400. For example, driver circuitry 412 may include a display driver to control and allow access to a display device, a touchscreen driver to control and allow access to a touchscreen interface, sensor drivers to obtain sensor readings of sensors 428 and control and allow access to sensors 428, drivers to obtain actuator positions of electro-mechanic components or control and allow access to the electro-mechanic components, a camera driver to control and allow access to an embedded image capture device, audio drivers to control and allow access to one or more audio devices.

The PMIC 414 may manage power provided to various components of the UE 400. In particular, with respect to the processors 402, the PMIC 414 may control power-source selection, voltage scaling, battery charging, or DC-to-DC conversion.

In some implementations, the PMIC 414 may control, or otherwise be part of, various power saving mechanisms of the UE 400. A battery 418 may power the UE 400, although in some examples the UE 400 may be mounted deployed in a fixed location, and may have a power supply coupled to an electrical grid. The battery 418 may be a lithium ion battery, a metal-air battery, such as a zinc-air battery, an aluminum-air battery, a lithium-air battery, and the like. In some implementations, such as in vehicle-based applications, the battery 418 may be a typical lead-acid automotive battery.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example access node 600 (e.g., a base station or gNB) , according to some implementations. The access node 600 may be similar to and substantially interchangeable with base station 104. The access node 600 may include processors 602, RF interface circuitry 604, core network (CN) interface circuitry 606, memory/storage circuitry 608, and one or more antenna (s) 610.

The components of the access node 600 may be coupled with various other components over one or more interconnects 612. The processors 602, RF interface circuitry 604, memory/storage circuitry 608 (including communication protocol stack 614) , antenna 610, and interconnects 612 may be similar to like-named elements shown and described with respect to FIG. 4. For example, the processors 602 may include processor circuitry such as, for example, baseband processor circuitry (BB) 616A, CPU 616B, and GPU 616C.

The CN interface circuitry 606 may provide connectivity to a core network, for example, a 5th Generation Core network (5GC) using a 5GC-compatible network interface protocol such as carrier Ethernet protocols, or some other suitable protocol. Network connectivity may be provided to/from the access node 600 via a fiber optic or wireless backhaul. The CN interface circuitry 606 may include one or more dedicated processors or FPGAs to communicate using one or more of the aforementioned protocols. In some implementations, the CN interface circuitry 606 may include multiple controllers to provide connectivity to other networks using the same or different protocols.

As used herein, the terms “access node, ” “access point, ” or the like may describe equipment that provides the radio baseband functions for data and/or voice connectivity between a network and one or more users. These access nodes can be referred to as BS, gNBs, RAN nodes, eNBs, NodeBs, RSUs, TRxPs or TRPs, and so forth, and can include ground stations (e.g., terrestrial access points) or satellite stations providing coverage within a geographic area (e.g., a cell) . As used herein, the term “NG RAN node” or the like may refer to an access node 600 that operates in an NR or 5G system (for example, a gNB) , and the term “E-UTRAN node” or the like may refer to an access node 500 that operates in an LTE or 4G system (e.g., an eNB) . According to various implementations, the access node 500 may be implemented as one or more of a dedicated physical device such as a macrocell base station, and/or a low power (LP) base station for providing femtocells, picocells or other like cells having smaller coverage areas, smaller user capacity, or higher bandwidth compared to macrocells.

In some implementations, all or parts of the access node 500 may be implemented as one or more software entities running on server computers as part of a virtual network, which may be referred to as a CRAN and/or a virtual baseband unit pool (vBBUP) . In V2X scenarios, the access node 500 may be or act as a “Road Side Unit. ” The term “Road Side Unit” or “RSU” may refer to any transportation infrastructure entity used for V2X communications. An RSU may be implemented in or by a suitable RAN node or a stationary (or relatively stationary) UE, where an RSU implemented in or by a UE may be referred to as a “UE-type RSU, ” an RSU implemented in or by an eNB may be referred to as an “eNB-type RSU, ” an RSU implemented in or by a gNB may be referred to as a “gNB-type RSU, ” and the like.

Various components may be described as performing a task or tasks, for convenience in the description. Such descriptions should be interpreted as including the phrase “configured to. ” Reciting a component that is configured to perform one or more tasks is expressly intended not to invoke 35 U.S.C. § 112 (f) interpretation for that component.

For one or more implementations, at least one of the components set forth in one or more of the preceding figures may be configured to perform one or more operations, techniques, processes, or methods as set forth in the example section below. For example, the baseband circuitry as described above in connection with one or more of the preceding figures may be configured to operate in accordance with one or more of the examples set forth below. For another example, circuitry associated with a UE, base station, network element, etc. as described above in connection with one or more of the preceding figures may be configured to operate in accordance with one or more of the examples set forth below in the example section.

Any of the above-described examples may be combined with any other example (or combination of examples) , unless explicitly stated otherwise. The foregoing description of one or more implementations provides illustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the scope of implementations to the precise form disclosed. Modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings or may be acquired from practice of various implementations.

Although the implementations above have been described in considerable detail, numerous variations and modifications will become apparent to those skilled in the art once the above disclosure is fully appreciated. It is intended that the following claims be interpreted to embrace all such variations and modifications.

It is well understood that the use of personally identifiable information should follow privacy policies and practices that are generally recognized as meeting or exceeding industry or governmental requirements for maintaining the privacy of users. In particular, personally identifiable information data should be managed and handled so as to minimize risks of unintentional or unauthorized access or use, and the nature of authorized use should be clearly indicated to users.

Claims

A method to be performed by a user equipment (UE) , the method comprising:

receiving, from a base station, a first signal indicative of a measurement object of a measurement to be performed in frequency range 2 (FR2) ;

determining to apply a mode change on multiple receiver (RX) chains of the UE;

transmitting, to the base station, a second signal indicative of the mode change; and

determining a configuration of the measurement, the configuration based on the measurement object and the mode change.
The method of claim 1, wherein the mode change causes the UE to use a different number of RX chains for the measurement.
The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transmitting, to the base station, a third signal indicative of a mode of the multiple RX chains after the mode change.
The method of claim 1, wherein determining the configuration comprises:

receiving the configuration from the base station.
The method of claim 4, wherein the UE receives the configuration in at least one of:

a radio resource control (RRC) signal, a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) , or a downlink control information (DCI) signal.
The method of claim 1, further comprising:

prior to receiving the first signal, receiving a preconfiguration signal that provides one or more candidate configurations for each mode,

wherein determining the configuration is further based on the preconfiguration signal.
The method of claim 1, further comprising determining a plurality of measurement occasions starting from a given system frame number (SFN) , wherein determining the configuration comprises:

determining a pattern to be repeatedly applied to the plurality of measurement occasions;

determining, based on the pattern, a plurality of usable measurement occasions for the measurement; and

applying a single configuration to the plurality of usable measurement occasions.
The method of claim 7, wherein determining the pattern comprises at least one of:

receiving the pattern from the base station;

determining the pattern based on predefined information stored in the UE; or

calculating the pattern based on (i) a predefined rule and (ii) a ratio of the plurality of usable measurement occasions to a total number of the plurality of measurement occasions.
The method of claim 1, wherein the configuration comprises at least one of: an SSB based measurement timing configuration (SMTC) , or a measurement gap (MG) .
The method of claim 4, wherein the configuration comprises a measurement gap (MG) configuration.
The method of claim 10, wherein:

the first signal is further indicative of a measurement object of another measurement to be performed in frequency range 1 (FR1) ,

the MG is configured on a per–UE basis, and

a periodicity of an SSB based measurement timing configuration (SMTC) for the measurement object of the another measurement is larger than an existing measurement gap repetition period (MGRP) .
The method of claim 10, wherein the MG configuration is for the measurement object in FR2.
The method of claim 1, wherein:

the configuration comprises a measurement gap (MG) configuration,

the first signal is further indicative of a measurement object of another measurement to be performed in frequency range 1 (FR1) ,

the MG is configured on a per–UE basis, and

determining the configuration comprises: keeping an original MG configuration.
A user equipment (UE) comprising a processor configured to execute instructions that cause the UE to perform operations comprising:

receiving, from a base station, a first signal indicative of a measurement object of a measurement to be performed in frequency range 2 (FR2) ;

determining to apply a mode change on multiple receiver (RX) chains of the UE;

transmitting, to the base station, a second signal indicative of the mode change; and

determining a configuration of the measurement, the configuration based on the measurement object and the mode change.
The UE of claim 14, the operations further comprising:

transmitting, to the base station, a third signal indicative of a mode of the multiple RX chains after the mode change.
The UE of claim 14, wherein determining the configuration comprises:

receiving the configuration from the base station.
The UE of claim 14, the operations further comprising:

prior to receiving the first signal, receiving a preconfiguration signal that provides one or more candidate configurations for each mode,

wherein the UE determines the configuration based on the preconfiguration signal.
The UE of claim 14, the operations further comprising: determining a plurality of measurement occasions starting from a given system frame number (SFN) , wherein determining the configuration comprises:

determining a pattern to be repeatedly applied to the plurality of measurement occasions;

determining, based on the pattern, a plurality of usable measurement occasions for the measurement; and

applying a single configuration to the plurality of usable measurement occasions.
The UE of claim 14, wherein the configuration comprises at least one of: an SSB based measurement timing configuration (SMTC) , or a measurement gap (MG) .
A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing program instructions that cause a user equipment (UE) to perform a method according to any of claims 1-13.