WO2025166624A1

WO2025166624A1 - Technologies for serving cell setup

Info

Publication number: WO2025166624A1
Application number: PCT/CN2024/076629
Authority: WO
Inventors: Qiming Li; Jie Cui; Yuexia Song; Xiang Chen; Yang Tang; Dawei Zhang; Hong He
Original assignee: Apple Inc
Current assignee: Apple Inc
Priority date: 2024-02-07
Filing date: 2024-02-07
Publication date: 2025-08-14
Anticipated expiration: 2026-08-07

Abstract

The present application relates to devices and components including apparatus, systems, and methods for measurements for serving cell configuration.

Description

TECHNOLOGIES FOR SERVING CELL SETUP

TECHNICAL FIELD

This application relates generally to communication networks and, in particular, to measurements for serving cell configuration.

BACKGROUND

Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Technical Specifications (TSs) define standards for wireless networks. These TSs describe aspects related to user plane and control plane signaling over the networks.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a network environment in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 2 illustrates a timing diagram in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 3 illustrates a configured information element in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 4 illustrates a parameter configuration in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 5 illustrates a network environment in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 6 illustrates another operation flow/algorithmic structure in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 7 illustrates another operation flow/algorithmic structure in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 8 illustrates an operation flow/algorithmic structure in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 9 illustrates a user equipment in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 10 illustrates a network node in accordance with some embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawings. The same reference numbers may be used in different drawings to identify the same or similar elements. In the following description, for purposes of explanation and not limitation, specific details are set forth, such as particular structures, architectures, interfaces, and techniques in order to provide a thorough understanding of the various aspects of various embodiments. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art having the benefit of the present disclosure that the various aspects of the various embodiments may be practiced in other examples that depart from these specific details. In certain instances, descriptions of well-known devices, circuits, and methods are omitted so as not to obscure the description of the various embodiments with unnecessary detail. For the purposes of the present document, the phrases “A/B” and “A or B” mean (A) , (B) , or (A and B) ; and the phrase “based on A” means “based at least in part on A, ” for example, it could be “based solely on A” or it could be “based in part on A. ”

The following is a glossary of terms that may be used in this disclosure.

The term “circuitry” as used herein refers to, is part of, or includes hardware components that are configured to provide the described functionality. The hardware components may include an electronic circuit, a logic circuit, a processor (shared, dedicated, or group) or memory (shared, dedicated, or group) , an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) , a field-programmable device (FPD) (e.g., a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) , a programmable logic device (PLD) , a complex PLD (CPLD) , a high-capacity PLD (HCPLD) , a structured ASIC, or a programmable system-on-a-chip (SoC) ) , or a digital signal processor (DSP) . In some embodiments, the circuitry may execute one or more software or firmware programs to provide at least some of the described functionality. The term “circuitry” may also refer to a combination of one or more hardware elements (or a combination of circuits used in an electrical or electronic system) with the program code used to carry out the functionality of that program code. In these embodiments, the combination of hardware elements and program code may be referred to as a particular type of circuitry.

The term “processor circuitry” as used herein refers to, is part of, or includes circuitry capable of sequentially and automatically carrying out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations, or recording, storing, or transferring digital data. The term “processor circuitry” may refer an application processor, baseband processor, a central processing unit (CPU) , a graphics processing unit, a single-core processor, a dual-core processor, a triple-core processor, a quad-core processor, or any other device capable of executing or otherwise operating computer-executable instructions, such as program code, software modules, or functional processes.

The term “interface circuitry” as used herein refers to, is part of, or includes circuitry that enables the exchange of information between two or more components or devices. The term “interface circuitry” may refer to one or more hardware interfaces, for example, buses, I/O interfaces, peripheral component interfaces, and network interface cards.

The term “user equipment” or “UE” as used herein refers to a device with radio communication capabilities that may allow a user to access network resources in a communications network. The term “user equipment” or “UE” may be considered synonymous to, and may be referred to as, client, mobile, mobile device, mobile terminal, user terminal, mobile unit, mobile station, mobile user, subscriber, user, remote station, access agent, user agent, receiver, radio equipment, reconfigurable radio equipment, or reconfigurable mobile device. Furthermore, the term “user equipment” or “UE” may include any type of wireless/wired device or any computing device including a wireless communications interface.

The term “computer system” as used herein refers to any type interconnected electronic devices, computer devices, or components thereof. Additionally, the term “computer system” or “system” may refer to various components of a computer that are communicatively coupled with one another. Furthermore, the term “computer system” or “system” may refer to multiple computer devices or multiple computing systems that are communicatively coupled with one another and configured to share computing or networking resources.

The term “resource” as used herein refers to a physical or virtual device, a physical or virtual component within a computing environment, or a physical or virtual component within a particular device, such as computer devices, mechanical devices, memory space, processor/CPU time, processor/CPU usage, processor and accelerator loads, hardware time or usage, electrical power, input/output operations, ports or network sockets, channel/link allocation, throughput, memory usage, storage, network, database and applications, or workload units. A “hardware resource” may refer to compute, storage, or network resources provided by physical hardware elements. A “virtualized resource” may refer to compute, storage, or network resources provided by virtualization infrastructure to an application, device, or system. The term “network resource” or “communication resource” may refer to resources that are accessible by computer devices/systems via a communications network. The term “system resources” may refer to any kind of shared entities to provide services and may include computing or network resources. System resources may be considered as a set of coherent functions, network data objects, or services, accessible through a server where such system resources reside on a single host or multiple hosts and are clearly identifiable.

The term “channel” as used herein refers to any transmission medium, either tangible or intangible, which is used to communicate data or a data stream. The term “channel” may be synonymous with or equivalent to “communications channel, ” “data communications channel, ” “transmission channel, ” “data transmission channel, ” “access channel, ” “data access channel, ” “link, ” “data link, ” “carrier, ” “radio-frequency carrier, ” or any other like term denoting a pathway or medium through which data is communicated. Additionally, the term “link” as used herein refers to a connection between two devices for the purpose of transmitting and receiving information.

The terms “instantiate, ” “instantiation, ” and the like as used herein refers to the creation of an instance. An “instance” also refers to a concrete occurrence of an object, which may occur, for example, during execution of program code.

The term “connected” may mean that two or more elements, at a common communication protocol layer, have an established signaling relationship with one another over a communication channel, link, interface, or reference point.

The term “network element” as used herein refers to physical or virtualized equipment or infrastructure used to provide wired or wireless communication network services. The term “network element” may be considered synonymous to or referred to as a networked computer, networking hardware, network equipment, network node, or a virtualized network function.

The term “information element” refers to a structural element containing one or more fields. The term “field” refers to individual contents of an information element or a data element that contains content. An information element may include one or more additional information elements.

FIG. 1 illustrates a network environment 100 in accordance with some embodiments. The network environment 100 may include user equipment (UE) 104 communicatively coupled with base station 108 of a radio access network (RAN) . The UE 104 and the base station 108 may communicate over air interfaces compatible with 3GPP TSs, such as those that define a Fifth Generation (5G) new radio (NR) system or a later system. The base station 108 may provide user plane and control plane protocol terminations toward the UE 104.

The base station 108 may configure the UE 104 with one or more serving cells. One of the serving cells, which may provide control and data plane, may be called a primary cell (PCell) . Some of the serving cells, referred to as secondary cells (SCells) , may belong to the same RAN as PCell. The PCell and configured serving cells that belong to the same RAN may be called a master cell group (MCG) . The PCell and SCells may be configured to provide carrier aggregation (CA) or dual connectivity (DC) .

In some instances, some of the configured serving cells may belong to the same RAN, which is different from the PCell’s RAN. The serving cells that belong to the same RAN, which is different from a RAN of the PCell, may be called a secondary cell group (SCG) . The base station 108 may configure the UE 104 with one or more SCGs. The PCell and the SCGs may be configured to provide CA or DC.

The base station 108 may use configuration 110 to configure the UE 104. The configuration 110 may include one or more messages or signaling transmitted at different times. In one example, the configuration 110 may be a radio resource control (RRC) signaling. In another example, the configuration 110 may include a system information block (SIB) .

The UE 104 may be in an RRC connected, RRC idle, or RRC inactive mode with the network, e.g., the base station 108. In some instances, in RRC connected mode, the UE 104 may remain connected to the network, e.g., the UE 104 may maintain access stratum (AS) context, monitor the downlink (DL) control channel, perform measurements, and generate and transmit reports or data.

In some instances, in RRC idle mode, the UE 104 may be registered with the network but may not maintain an AS context. The UE 104 may perform cell selection, receive and process SIBs, and receive and process messages on a paging channel.

In some instances, in RRC inactive mode, the UE 104 may maintain the RRC connection but reduce signaling and power consumption. The UE 104 and the base station 108 may maintain an AS context associated with the inactive mode.

The transition from RRC connected to RRC idle or inactive mode may be triggered by the base station 108. The base station 108 may send a message to transition the UE 104 from the RRC connected mode to the RRC idle or inactive mode. For example, the base station 108 may use the RRC connection release message to the UE 104 to trigger transitioning to RRC idle or inactive mode.

The UE 104 may trigger transmission from RRC idle or inactive mode to RRC connected mode. The UE 104 may send a message to trigger the transition of the UE 104 from the RRC idle or inactive mode to the RRC connected mode.

The UE 104 may perform a connection setup procedure, e.g., random access procedure, to transition from RRC idle mode to RRC connected mode. The UE may send a setup request message to the base station 108 to trigger the transition from the RRC idle mode to the RRC connected mode. For example, to initiate the connection setup procedure, the UE may generate a message associated with a random-access procedure, e.g., message 1, and send it to the base station 108 using a physical random-access channel (PRACH) . The random-access message 1 may include a random-access preamble.

The UE may send a resume request to trigger the transition from the RRC inactive to the RRC connected mode. For example, the UE 104 may send an RRC resume request message to base station 108 to trigger the transition from the RRC inactive mode to RRC connected mode. The resume request may be the same as random access message 1.

The UE 104 may be configured, e.g., via configuration 110, to perform measurements while in RRC idle or inactive modes. The UE 104 may measure radio resource management (RRM) measurement for cell-reselection operation. In one example, the UE 104 may measure the reference signal received power (RSRP) or reference signal received quality (RSRQ) of one or more neighbor cells.

The UE 104 may perform measurements of one or more neighbor cells for an early measurement report (EMR) . The base station 108 may use the EMR to set up carrier aggregation or ducal connectivity operations.

The base station 108 may configure the UE 104 with information regarding one or more neighbor cells. While in RRC idle or inactive mode, the UE 104 may perform measurements of the configured cells. The base station 108 may use configuration 110 to configure the UE 104 with the information of one or more neighbor cells. The configuration 110 may include a carrier identifier (ID) or a carrier frequency to identify the carriers associated with an EMR.

The UE 104 may report the measurement results obtained during the idle or inactive mode during or after RRC connection setup (transition from RRC idle mode to connected mode) or resume operations (transition from RRC inactive to RRC connected mode) . For example, the UE 104 may generate and send a report 120, which may include one or more measurements during the RRC idle or inactive mode.

The base station 108 may use the reported measurements in the report 120 to set up SCell or SCG for carrier aggregation or dual connectivity operations. Having the UE 104 provide the report 120 to the base station 108 upon RRC connection setup or resume procedures may allow the network to use the measurement results to configure carrier aggregation or dual connectivity more quickly in comparison to a legacy base station that may receive the measurement results after an RRC connection between a legacy UE and a legacy base station is established.

In some embodiments, when the UE 104 enters RRC idle or inactive mode, it may be unclear how long the UE 104 may stay in that mode. The transition from RRC idle or inactive modes to the RRC connected mode may depend on the data traffic at the UE 104. As a result, the base station 108 may not have any indication about the validity of the measurement results in the report. For example, the base station 108 may not know when the results were obtained.

It is desirable that the UE 104 reports only valid measurement results or indicate when the results were obtained.

In some embodiments, the UE 104 may generate and send a UE capability report using report 120. The UE capability may indicate UE support of additional criteria for measurement result validity check. The additional criteria may be associated with whether the UE is stationary. For example, the additional criteria may include a low mobility evaluation criterion or a cell edge evaluation criterion.

In some embodiments, the base station 108 may send a configuration 110 to the UE, including an indication to enable or activate the additional criteria. The configuration 110, including the indication, may be an RRC release command or system information.

FIG. 2 is a timing diagram 200 illustrating aspects of obtaining measurement results and reporting in accordance with some embodiments. The timing diagram 200 may include operations performed by, and signaling messages transmitted between, the UE 104 and the base station 108. Operations described with respect to the base station 108 may be performed by one or more components of the RAN, including, for example, a transmission and reception point (TRP) , a non-terrestrial network (NTN) device, etc. The signaling diagram 200 represents an embodiment in which the UE 104 may perform measurement during the RRC idle or inactive state and send a report to the base station 108 during RRC connection setup or resume procedure or upon completion of RRC connection setup or resume.

At 210, the UE 104 transitions from the RRC connected mode to the RRC idle or inactive mode. Upon entering the RRC idle or inactive mode, the UE 104 may start a timer and start the idle/inactive measurements. The timer may be a T331 timer, as described in the 3GPP specifications. The base station 108 may configure the timer, including the duration of the timer. Upon the expiration of the timer, the UE 104 may stop performing measurements, e.g., ERM measurements. The timer may be used to control the amount of time the UE 104 may spend performing measurements to control the power consumption during the RRC idle or inactive modes. In one example, the timer may expire at 270. The elapsed time between 270 and 210 may represent the time duration of the timer.

In some instances, the UE 104 may continue measurement even after the timer has expired at 270. Whether the UE 104 continues measurement after the timer expiration at 270 may be based on UE implementation.

At 280, the UE 104 may transition from the RRC idle or inactive mode to the RRC connection mode. The RRC setup procedure, e.g., random access, may be used to transition from RRC idle to RRC connect mode, and RRC resume signaling and procedure may be used to transition from RRC inactive to RRC connected mode. For example, the UE 104 may send a random-access message 1, e.g., random-access preamble to initiate RRC connection setup/resume to transition to RRC connected mode. At 290, the transition is completed, and the UE 104 may transition to RRC connected mode.

During RRC connection setup or resume procedures, e.g., between 280 and 290, the UE 104 may check whether there are any measurement results to be reported and, if there are, whether the measurement results are valid. The UE 104 may perform validity checks of the measurement results based on the network configurations. If UE reports measurement results, the network may assume that the results are valid and can be used for CA or DC configurations.

In some instances, the UE 104 may report the valid measurement results during the RRC connection setup or resume operations, e.g., via random access message 1 or message 3 or via RRC connection resume signaling. In some instances, the UE 104 may report the valid measurement results upon completion of the RRC connection setup or resume procedures and as the UE 104 transitions to the RRC connected mode, e.g., at or after 290.

In some instances, the measurements may be considered valid if the following two conditions are satisfied.

The first condition may be that the measurements are performed within a predetermined time, e.g., X seconds, before initiation of transition from RRC idle or inactive mode to RRC connected mode at 280, e.g., before setup request (e.g., message 1) or resume request messages.

In some embodiments, the network may configure one or more values for the predetermined time. If the network does not configure the UE 104 with the predetermined time, the UE 104 may assume it is not expected to perform validity checks for the measurement results. Alternatively, or additionally, one or more values of the predetermined time may be defined in a 3GPP technical specification (TS) .

The value of the predetermined time may be based on deployment or scenario. In one example, in an indoor scenario, e.g., in an office, the network may choose to configure the UE 104 with a large value for the predetermined time, e.g., X, based on most UEs being stationary. In another example, in a high-speed scenario, e.g., in a high-speed train, the network may configure the UE 104 with a small value for the predetermined time, e.g., X, based on the rapid temporal channel variations and short channel coherence time.

The second condition may be that the reported measurement results satisfy measurement accuracy criteria at the measurement instance. The 3GPP TSs may define the measurement accuracy criteria.

Any measurement results obtained after 260 are measured within the predetermined time, X, in advance of connection setup or resume procedure at 280 for transitioning from RRC idle or inactive mode to RRC connected mode. The elapsed time between 260 and 280 is X, the predetermined time.

In one example, the UE 104 may configure and trigger a validity timer associated with each measurement result. The UE 104 may set the value of the timer to X, the predetermined time. If at 280, a validity timer is not expired, the UE 104 may determine that the corresponding measurement result is valid.

The UE 104 may generate and send a UE capability report to the base station 108. For example, the UE 104 may send the UE 104 capability report at the initial access or during the RRC connected mode, e.g., before 210. The UE 104 capability report may indicate UE’s support for additional validity check criteria upon starting the RRC connection setup or resume operations. The UE 104 capability associated with the support of additional validity check criteria may be per-UE, e.g., applicable to all frequency ranges (FRs) or per-FR. For example, the UE 104 capability report may include an independent indication for each FR for the validity check of the measurement results associated with that FR.

The base station 108 may send an indication to the UE 104 to enable or activate the additional criteria. The indication may be an information element (IE) in the RRC release command, e.g., sent at 210, or in a system information block.

If the UE 104 determines that the enabled criteria are fulfilled, the UE 104 may perform one of the following two options.

In the first option, the UE 104 may extend the predetermined time, X, by a predetermined amount, DeltaX. The predetermined amount, DeltaX, may be configured, or its values may be defined in 3GPP TSs. The value of DeltaX may be based on deployment or scenario. For example, the value of DeltaX may depend on the mobility of the UE. The UE 104 may start a validity time with each measurement result obtained during the RRC idle or inactive mode. The UE 104 may set the validity timer duration to X+DeltaX. If the validity timer has not expired at 280, the UE 104 may determine that the corresponding measurement result is valid.

At 260, it is X seconds before the start of connection setup or resume operations at 280. Extending the validity duration by DeltaX, at 240, it is X+DeltaX seconds before the start of the connection setup or resume operations at 280. The UE 104 may determine that any measurement result obtained at a time between 240 and 280 is valid.

In the second option, the UE 104 may replace the predetermined time, X, with a different predetermined time, X_stationary (stationary time) . The predetermined time, X_stationary, may be configured, or its values may be defined in 3GPP TSs. The value of X_stationary may be based on deployment or scenario. For example, the value of X_stationary may depend on the mobility of the UE. The UE 104 may start a validity timer with each measurement result obtained during the RRC idle or inactive mode. The UE 104 may set the validity timer duration to X_stationary. If the validity timer has not expired at 280, the UE 104 may determine that the corresponding measurement result is valid.

Replacing the validity duration X by X_stationary, at 230, it is X_stationary seconds before the start of the connection setup or resume operations at 280. The UE 104 may determine that any measurement result obtained at a time between 230 and 280 is valid.

In one example, the UE 104 may obtain a first measurement result at 220, T1 seconds before 280, and a second measurement result at 250, T2 seconds before 280. Consider the following three scenarios.

In the first scenario, the UE 104 is configured with a predetermined timer, X, and the UE 104 does not determine that the additional criteria for the validity check are fulfilled. The first and second measurement results are obtained at a time more than X before the start of connection setup or resume operations at 280. Therefore, the UE 104 may determine that the first and second measurement results are invalid, e.g., the validity timer associated with the first or second measurement results has not expired at 280.

In the second scenario, the UE 104 is configured with DeltaX, and the UE 104 has determined that the additional criteria for the validity check are fulfilled. The UE 104 may extend the validity time to X+DeltaX.

The first measurement at 220 was obtained at T1 seconds before the start of connection setup or resume operations at 280, where T1 is greater than X+DeltaX. Therefore, at 280, the UE 104 may determine that the first measurement result is not valid. For example, the UE 104 may determine or detect that the validity timer associated with the first measurement result is expired at 280.

The second measurement at 250 was obtained at T2 seconds before the start of connection setup or resume operations at 280, where T2 is smaller than X+DeltaX. Therefore, at 280, the UE 104 may determine that the second measurement result is valid. For example, the UE 104 may determine or detect that the validity timer associated with the second measurement result has not expired at 280.

In the third scenario, the UE 104 is configured with X_stationary, and the UE 104 has determined that the additional criteria for the validity check are fulfilled. The UE 104 may replace the validity time with X_stationary.

The first measurement at 220 was obtained at T1 seconds before the start of connection setup or resume operations at 280, where T1 is smaller than X_stationary. Therefore, at 280, the UE 104 may determine that the first measurement result is valid. For example, the UE 104 may determine or detect that the validity timer associated with the first measurement result has not expired at 280.

The second measurement at 250 was obtained at T2 seconds before the start of connection setup or resume operations at 280, where T2 is smaller than X_stationary. Therefore, at 280, the UE 104 may determine that the second measurement result is valid. For example, the UE 104 may determine or detect that the validity timer associated with the second measurement result has not expired at 280.

FIG. 3 is a configured information element (IE) 300 illustrating aspects of validity check of measurement results in accordance with some embodiments. The IE 300 may include operations performed by, and signaling messages transmitted between, the UE 104 and the base station 108. Operations described with respect to the base station 108 may be performed by one or more components of the RAN, including, for example, a TRP, an NTN device, etc. The IE 300 represents an embodiment in which the configured stationary criteria are used for the validity check of the measurement results obtained during the RRC idle or inactive modes.

The IE 300 may be a stationary criteria IE, e.g., an RRC IE. The stationary criteria IE may be similar to RRC relaxed measurement IE. The IE may define criteria to determine whether the UE 104 is stationary. The stationary criteria may include a low mobility evaluation criterion or a cell edge evaluation criterion.

The low mobility evaluation criterion may include one or more thresholds for variations in received signal strength (RxLev) over a specific time period and one or more specific time periods. The thresholds may set the minimum change in RxLev that may need to occur within the specific time period for the UE 104 to trigger additional measurements.

For example, the s-SearchDeltaP may be used to configure the one or more thresholds for RxLev and the t-SearchDeltaP may be used to configure the one or more specific time periods. The s-SearchDeltaP may take values in decibels (dB) , and t-SearchDeltaP may take values in seconds. For example, a s-SearchDeltaP of 3 dB and t-SearchDeltaP of 10 s may indicate that as long as the variation of RxLev is at least 6 dB within 10 s for the UE 104 to trigger additional measurements.

The cell edge evaluation criterion may include a signal level threshold or a signal quality threshold. The cell edge criterion is satisfied when the UE 104 is not at the cell edge. The UE 104 may determine that the cell edge criterion is satisfied when RxLev is greater than the signal level threshold and the signal quality (Qual) is greater than the signal quality threshold. RxLev and Qual may be measured and obtained as described in the 3GPP TSs or may be based on UE implementation.

The IE 300 may include an indication of whether both criteria, e.g., low mobility evaluation and cell edge evaluation criterion, are configured. When both criteria are configured, the UE 104 may need to determine that both criteria are fulfilled in order to determine that the UE 104 is stationary. If this indicator is absent, the UE 104 may determine whether the UE 104 is stationary based on either criterion.

The IE 300 may include a high-priority stationary field to indicate whether the stationary condition should be determined on high-priority frequencies.

FIG. 4 is a parameter configuration 400 illustrating aspects of validity check of measurement results in accordance with some embodiments. The parameter configuration 400 may include operations performed by, and signaling messages transmitted between, the UE 104 and the base station 108. Operations described with respect to the base station 108 may be performed by one or more components of the RAN, including, for example, a TRP, an NTN device, etc. The parameter configuration 400 represents an embodiment in which configured parameters are used for the validity check of the measurement results obtained during the RRC idle or inactive modes.

The UE 104 may be configured with an initial validity time 410, e.g., predetermined time, X. The network may configure X. The UE 104 may determine that any measurement results obtained within X seconds before message 1 transmission for RRC setup or before the RRC resume request is valid. The predetermined time, X, may take values a1-a7. In this example, the predetermined time, X, takes seven values, and the number of values is used as an example and not a limitation. For example, X may be 5 s, 10 s, 20 s, 50 s, etc.

The UE 104 may be configured with the extension time 420, e.g., DeltaX. The network may configure DeltaX. The UE 104 may determine the validity time based on X and DeltaX. For example, the validity time may be X+DeltaX. The UE 104 may determine that any measurement results obtained within X+DeltaX seconds before message 1 transmission for RRC setup or before the RRC resume request is valid. The DeltaX may take values b1-b7. The DeltaX in this example takes seven values, and the number of values is used as an example and not a limitation.

The value of DeltaX may depend on whether UE’s stationary state is determined based on the low mobility evaluation criterion, cell edge evaluation criterion, or both.

When UE’s stationary state is determined based on the low mobility evaluation criterion, DeltaX may be explicitly configured by the network. For example, DeltaX may be configured to take the following values: 5 s, 10 s, 20 s, 50 s, 100 s, 200 s, etc. In another example, DeltaX may be determined based on the value of the initial validity time 410, X. For example, DeltaX may be 2*X, 3*X, or, in general, a function of X, f (X) .

When UE’s stationary state is determined based on the cell edge evaluation criterion, DeltaX may be explicitly configured by the network. For example, DeltaX may be configured to take the following values: 5 s, 10 s, 20 s, 50 s, 100 s, 200 s, etc. In another example, DeltaX may be determined based on the value of the initial validity time 410, X. For example, DeltaX may be 2*X, 3*X, or, in general, a function of X, g (X) .

When UE’s stationary state is determined based on the low mobility evaluation and cell edge evaluation criteria, DeltaX may be explicitly configured by the network. For example, DeltaX may be configured to take the following values: 5 s, 10 s, 20 s, 50 s, 100 s, 200 s, 500 s, 3600 s, etc. In another example, DeltaX may be determined based on the value of the initial validity time 410, X. For example, DeltaX may be 2*X, 3*X, or in general, a function of X, h (X) .

The UE 104 may be configured with the replacement time 430, e.g., X_stationary. The network may configure X_stationary. The UE 104 may determine the validity time based on X_stationary. The UE 104 may determine that any measurement results obtained within X_stationary seconds before message 1 transmission for RRC setup or before RRC resume request is valid. The X_stationary may take values c1-c7. The X_stationary in this example takes seven values, and the number of values is used as an example and not a limitation.

The value of X_stationary may depend on whether UE’s stationary state is determined based on the low mobility evaluation criterion, cell edge evaluation criterion, or both. The X_stationary may be configured together with the initial validity time 410, X.

When UE’s stationary state is determined based on the low mobility evaluation criterion, X_stationary may be explicitly configured by the network. For example, DeltaX may be configured to take the following values: 10 s, 20 s, 50 s, 100 s, 200 s, 500 s, 3600 s, etc.

When UE’s stationary state is determined based on the cell edge evaluation criterion, X_stationary may be explicitly configured by the network. For example, X_stationary may be configured to take the following values: 10 s, 20 s, 50 s, 100 s, 200 s, 500 s, 3600 s, etc.

When UE’s stationary state is determined based on the low mobility evaluation and cell edge evaluation criteria, X_stationary may be explicitly configured by the network. For example, X_stationary may be configured to take the following values: 500 s, 100 s, 3600 s, 7200 s, 14400, etc.

FIG. 5 illustrates a network environment 500 in accordance with some embodiments. The network environment 500 is an example of determining the stationary criteria based on UE’s position.

The UE 104 may include a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) 510. The UE 104 may determine that it has been stationary. The UE 104 may determine that it has been stationary based on its location variation in a predetermined period of time. The UE 104 may determine that its location has not changed when its location variation in a given period of time is smaller than a threshold. The UE 104 may determine that it has been stationary when its location variation is less than A meter within T seconds. For example, the UE 104 may determine that it has been stationary when its location variation is less than 200 meters (m) in 10 minutes. The UE 104 may determine its location variation based on GNSS 510. The base station 108 may configure the threshold, A, and its corresponding time period, T.

The UE 104 may generate an indication 520 for all the examples above and send it to the base station 108. The indication 520 may indicate that the reported measurement results were obtained earlier than the initial validity time, X seconds, before transmitting message 1 or resume request message.

The base station 108 may receive and process the indication 520. The base station 108 may use the information conveyed by the indication 520 to determine whether to configure carrier aggregation or dual connectivity operations based on the measurement results associated with the indication 520. In one example, the UE 104 may generate a general indication for all scenarios, e.g., whether i) low mobility evaluation, ii) cell edge evaluation, or iii) low mobility and cell edge evaluation criteria are used to determine whether the UE 104 has been stationary. In another example, the UE 104 may generate a specific indication separately for each scenario.

FIG. 6 illustrates an operation flow/algorithmic structure 600 in accordance with some embodiments. The operation flow/algorithmic structure 600 may be performed or implemented by a UE such as, for example, the UE 104 or UE 900; or components thereof, for example, baseband processor circuitry 904A.

The operation flow/algorithmic structure 600 may include, at 610, generating a UE capability indication to indicate support of a feature. The UE capability feature may indicate that the UE 104 supports criteria for validity check of measurement results. The UE 104 may perform the validity check of measurement results upon the start of an RRC connection setup or resume. The UE 104 may start an RRC connection setup when the UE 104 sends a PRACH message 1 to initiate the transition from RRC idle mode to RRC connected mode. The UE 104 may start an RRC connection resume when the UE 104 sends an RRC resume request message to initiate the transition from RRC inactive mode to RRC connected mode. The resume request message may be the same as PRACH message 1.

The operation flow/algorithmic structure 600 may include, at 620, processing a message to enable the feature. The UE 104 may receive and process a message from the base station 108. The message may enable or activate the UE capability. The message, or another message, may configure a predetermined time.

The UE capability feature may be the support of additional criteria for validity check upon the start of RRC connection setup or resume operations. The UE 104 may determine that a measurement result is valid if the associated criteria are fulfilled. The additional criteria may be criteria associated with the UE 104 low mobility evaluation criterion or cell edge evaluation criterion.

If the UE 104 determines that the criteria are fulfilled, the UE 104 may extend the validity time. In one embodiment, the UE 104 may extend the time in advance of the message 1 transmission by a predetermined amount, e.g., DeltaX. The UE 104 may assume that measurement results obtained between X+DeltaX and X seconds in advance of message 1 are also valid.

In another embodiment, if the UE 104 determines that the criteria are fulfilled, the UE 104 may replace the predetermined time, X. The UE 104 may replace the predetermined time, X, with another predetermined time, X_stationary. The UE 104 may assume that measurement results obtained within X_stationary seconds in advance of message 1 are valid.

In one example, determining whether the criteria are fulfilled includes determining whether the UE 104 has been stationary. To determine whether the UE 104 has been stationary, the UE 104 may be configured with a low mobility evaluation configuration or, a cell edge evaluation configuration, or both.

To determine whether the UE 104 has been stationary, the UE 104 may determine whether the low mobility evaluation criterion is fulfilled. In one embodiment, the low mobility evaluation criterion is fulfilled when the RSRP or RSRQ of the channel has not changed in a configured amount of time.

To determine whether the UE 104 has been stationary, the UE 104 may determine whether the cell edge evaluation criterion is fulfilled. In one embodiment, the cell edge evaluation criterion is fulfilled when the channel’s RSRP, RSRQ, or other measurements are greater than the corresponding thresholds.

The UE 104 may configure a timer and associate it with a measurement result. The UE 104 may configure or adjust the timer duration based on determining whether stationary criteria are fulfilled. If the UE 104 determines that stationary criteria are fulfilled, the UE 104 may extend the time duration or replace the duration of the timer accordingly.

The UE 104 may determine that the stationary criteria are fulfilled before generating the measurement results. The UE 104 may update the validity timer duration based on the determination that the stationary criteria are fulfilled and configure the timer associated with the measurement result based on the updated validity timer duration.

The UE 104 may determine that the stationary criteria are fulfilled at or after the message 1 transmission. The UE 104 may update the validity timer duration associated with a measurement result and determine the validity of the measurement result accordingly.

Figure 7 illustrates an operational flow/algorithmic structure 700 in accordance with some embodiments. The operation flow/algorithmic structure 700 may be performed or implemented by a base station such as, for example, the base station 108 or the base station 1000; or components thereof, for example, baseband processor circuitry 1004A.

The operation flow/algorithmic structure 700 may include, at 710, receiving a capability report. The capability report may indicate that the UE 104 supports a feature. The UE capability feature may be the support of additional criteria for validity check upon the start of RRC connection setup or resume operations. The additional criteria may be criteria associated with the UE 104 low mobility evaluation criterion or cell edge evaluation criterion.

The operation flow/algorithmic structure 700 may include, at 720, sending a message to the UE. The message may enable the UE capability to support additional criteria for validity check of measurement results obtained during the RRC idle or inactive mode.

The message may include validity time for different criteria. For example, the message may include a predetermined time that the UE 104 may use as validity time if the additional criteria are not fulfilled, e.g., predetermined time, X, in the examples above.

The message may include one or more extension times associated with low mobility evaluation criteria, one or more extension times associated with cell edge evaluation criteria, and one or more extension times associated with both low mobility evaluation and cell edge evaluation criteria. For example, the extension time may be the DeltaX in the examples above.

The message may include one or more replacement times associated with low mobility evaluation criteria, one or more replacement times associated with cell edge evaluation criteria, and one or more replacement times associated with both low mobility evaluation and cell edge evaluation criteria. For example, the replacement times may be the X_stationary in the examples above.

The message may include configurations associated with low mobility evaluation criterion, cell edge evaluation criterion, or configurations associated with both low mobility and cell edge evaluation criteria.

FIG. 8 illustrates an operation flow/algorithmic structure 800 in accordance with some embodiments. The operation flow/algorithmic structure 800 may be performed or implemented by a UE such as, for example, the UE 104 or UE 900; or components thereof, for example, baseband processor circuitry 904A.

The operation flow/algorithmic structure 800 may include, at 810, detecting a stationary state. The UE 104 may determine a stationary state based on the location variation and a time period associated with the location variation. The UE 104 may obtain its location information based on GNSS and determine the location variation based on its location information.

The UE 104 may configure a timer associated with its location information and determine the time duration associated with the location variation. The UE 104 may determine a stationary state when its location variation is smaller than a threshold within a predetermined period of time. The time duration may be greater than or equal to the predetermined period of time. The network may configure the threshold and the predetermined period of time.

The operation flow/algorithmic structure 800 may include, at 820, determining the validity of a measurement result. The UE 104 may determine that the measurement results obtained while the UE 104 was in a stationary state are valid. The stationary state may be needed to last from the time the measurement results were obtained until the transmission of message 1 to start the transition from the RRC idle or inactive mode to the RRC connected mode.

The operation flow/algorithmic structure 800 may include, at 830, generating a report. The UE 104 may generate a report and send it to the base station 108. The report may include an indication that the UE 104 has been in a stationary state. The base station 108 may use the information to determine the validity of the associated measurement results.

FIG. 9 illustrates a UE 900 in accordance with some embodiments. The UE 900 may be similar to and substantially interchangeable with the UE 104.

The UE 900 may be any mobile or non-mobile computing device, such as, for example, mobile phones, computers, tablets, industrial wireless sensors (for example, microphones, carbon dioxide sensors, pressure sensors, humidity sensors, thermometers, motion sensors, accelerometers, laser scanners, fluid level sensors, inventory sensors, electric voltage/current meters, or actuators) , video surveillance/monitoring devices (for example, cameras or video cameras) , wearable devices (for example, a smart watch) , or Internet-of-things devices.

The UE 900 may include processors 904, RF interface circuitry 908, memory/storage 912, user interface 916, sensors 920, driver circuitry 922, power management integrated circuit (PMIC) 924, antenna 926, and battery 928. The components of the UE 900 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. 9 is intended to show a high-level view of some of the components of the UE 900. However, some of the components shown may be omitted, additional components may be present, and different arrangements of the components shown may occur in other implementations.

The components of the UE 900 may be coupled with various other components over one or more interconnects 932, which may represent any type of interface, input/output, bus (local, system, or expansion) , transmission line, trace, or optical connection that allows various circuit components (on common or different chips or chipsets) to interact with one another.

The processors 904 may include processor circuitry such as, for example, baseband processor circuitry (BB) 904A, central processor unit circuitry (CPU) 904B, and graphics processor unit circuitry (GPU) 904C. The processors 904 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 912 to cause the UE 900 to perform operations as described herein. The processors 904 may also include interface circuitry 904D to communicatively couple the processor circuitry with one or more other components of the UE 900.

In some embodiments, the baseband processor circuitry 904A may access a communication protocol stack 936 in the memory/storage 912 to communicate over a 3GPP compatible network. In general, the baseband processor circuitry 904A may access the communication protocol stack 936 to: perform user plane functions at a PHY layer, MAC layer, RLC layer, PDCP layer, SDAP layer, and PDU layer; and perform control plane functions at a PHY layer, MAC layer, RLC layer, PDCP layer, RRC layer, and a NAS layer. In some embodiments, the PHY layer operations may additionally/alternatively be performed by the components of the RF interface circuitry 908.

The baseband processor circuitry 904A may generate or process baseband signals or waveforms that carry information in 3GPP-compatible networks. In some embodiments, the waveforms for NR may be based on cyclic prefix OFDM (CP-OFDM) in the uplink or downlink, and discrete Fourier transform spread OFDM (DFT-S-OFDM) in the uplink.

The memory/storage 912 may include one or more non-transitory, computer-readable media that includes instructions (for example, communication protocol stack 936) that may be executed by one or more of the processors 904 to cause the UE 900 to perform various operations described herein.

The memory/storage 912 includes any type of volatile or non-volatile memory that may be distributed throughout the UE 900. In some embodiments, some of the memory/storage 912 may be located on the processors 904 themselves (for example, memory/storage 912 may be part of a chipset that corresponds to the baseband processor circuitry 904A) , while other memory/storage 912 is external to the processors 904 but accessible thereto via a memory interface. The memory/storage 912 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 908 may include transceiver circuitry and a radio frequency front module (RFEM) that allows the UE 900 to communicate with other devices over a radio access network. The RF interface circuitry 908 may include various elements arranged in transmit or receive paths. These elements may include, for example, switches, mixers, amplifiers, filters, synthesizer circuitry, and control circuitry.

In the receive path, the RFEM may receive a radiated signal from an air interface via antenna 926 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 down-converts the RF signal into a baseband signal that is provided to the baseband processor of the processors 904.

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 926.

In various embodiments, the RF interface circuitry 908 may be configured to transmit/receive signals in a manner compatible with NR access technologies.

The antenna 926 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 926 may have antenna panels that are omnidirectional, directional, or a combination thereof to enable beamforming and multiple input, multiple output communications. The antenna 926 may include microstrip antennas, printed antennas fabricated on the surface of one or more printed circuit boards, patch antennas, or phased array antennas. The antenna 926 may have one or more panels designed for specific frequency bands including bands in FR1 or FR2.

The user interface 916 includes various input/output (I/O) devices designed to enable user interaction with the UE 900. The user interface 916 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, and projectors) , with the output of characters, graphics, multimedia objects, and the like being generated or produced from the operation of the UE 900.

The sensors 920 may include devices, modules, or subsystems whose purpose is to detect events or changes in their environment and send the information (sensor data) about the detected events to some other device, module, or subsystem. Examples of such sensors include inertia measurement units comprising accelerometers, gyroscopes, or magnetometers; microelectromechanical systems or nanoelectromechanical systems comprising 3-axis accelerometers, 3-axis gyroscopes, or magnetometers; level sensors; flow sensors; temperature sensors (for example, thermistors) ; pressure sensors; barometric pressure sensors; gravimeters; altimeters; 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; and microphones or other like audio capture devices.

The driver circuitry 922 may include software and hardware elements that operate to control particular devices that are embedded in the UE 900, attached to the UE 900, or otherwise communicatively coupled with the UE 900. The driver circuitry 922 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 900. For example, driver circuitry 922 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 920 and control and allow access to sensors 920, 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 924 may manage power provided to various components of the UE 900. In particular, with respect to the processors 904, the PMIC 924 may control power-source selection, voltage scaling, battery charging, or DC-to-DC conversion.

A battery 928 may power the UE 900, although in some examples the UE 900 may be mounted deployed in a fixed location and may have a power supply coupled to an electrical grid. The battery 928 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 928 may be a typical lead-acid automotive battery.

FIG. 10 illustrates a network device 1000 in accordance with some embodiments. The network device 1000 may be similar to and substantially interchangeable with base station 108.

The network device 1000 may include processors 1004, RF interface circuitry 1008 (if implemented as a base station) , core network (CN) interface circuitry 1014, memory/storage circuitry 1012, and antenna structure 1026.

The components of the network device 1000 may be coupled with various other components over one or more interconnects 1028.

The processors 1004, RF interface circuitry 1008, memory/storage circuitry 1012 (including communication protocol stack 1010) , antenna structure 1026, and interconnects 1028 may be similar to like-named elements shown and described with respect to FIG. 9.

The processors 1004 may include processor circuitry such as, for example, baseband processor circuitry (BB) 1004A, central processor unit circuitry (CPU) 1004B, and graphics processor unit circuitry (GPU) 1004C. The processors 1004 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 circuitry 1012 to cause the UE 900 to perform operations as described herein. The processors 1004 may also include interface circuitry 1004D to communicatively couple the processor circuitry with one or more other components of the network device 1000.

The CN interface circuitry 1014 may provide connectivity to a core network, for example, a 5^th 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 network device 1000 via a fiber optic or wireless backhaul. The CN interface circuitry 1014 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 1014 may include multiple controllers to provide connectivity to other networks using the same or different protocols.

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.

For one or more embodiments, 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, or network element 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.

EXAMPLES

In the following sections, further exemplary embodiments are provided.

Example 1 includes a method including: generating a user equipment (UE) capability indication to be transmitted to a base station, the UE capability indication to indicate that the UE supports criteria for validity check of measurement results upon a start of a radio resource control (RRC) connection setup or resume; and processing a message from the base station, the message to enable the criteria.

Example 2 includes the method of example 1 or some other examples herein, further including: determining the criteria is satisfied; and determining, based on said determining the criteria is satisfied, that measurement results obtained during an idle or inactive mode and within a predetermined time in advance of a message 1 transmission for an RRC connection setup or resume request are valid.

Example 3 includes the method of examples 1 or 2 or some other example herein, wherein determining the criteria is satisfied includes: determining that the UE is stationary.

Example 4 includes the method of any of examples 1-3 or some other example herein, further including: processing a configuration message from the base station, the configuration message to configure the UE with a low mobility evaluation criterion.

Example 5 includes the method of any of examples 1-4 or some other example herein, wherein determining that the UE is stationary includes: determining that the low mobility evaluation criterion is satisfied.

Example 6 includes the method of any of examples 1-5 or some other example herein, the method further includes: updating the predetermined time: by replacing the predetermined time with a stationary time, based on said determining that the low mobility evaluation criterion is satisfied; or by extending the predetermined time by an amount, based on said determining that the low mobility evaluation criterion is satisfied.

Example 7 includes the method of any of examples 1-6 or some other example herein, further including: processing a configuration message from the base station, the configuration message to configure the UE with a cell edge evaluation criterion.

Example 8 includes the method of any of examples 1-7 or some other example herein, wherein determining that the UE is stationary includes: determining that the cell edge evaluation criterion is satisfied.

Example 9 includes the method of any of examples 1-8 or some other example herein, the method further includes: updating the predetermined time: by replacing the predetermined time with a stationary time, based on said determining that the cell edge evaluation criterion is satisfied; or by extending the predetermined time by an amount, based on said determining that the cell edge evaluation criterion is satisfied.

Example 10 includes the method of any of examples 1-9 or some other example herein, further including: processing a configuration message from the base station, the configuration message to configure the UE with a low mobility evaluation criterion and a cell edge evaluation criterion.

Example 11 includes the method of any of examples 1-10 or some other example herein, wherein determining that the UE is stationary includes: determining that the low mobility evaluation criterion and the cell edge evaluation criterion are satisfied.

Example 12 includes the method of any of examples 1-11 or some other example herein, the method further includes: updating the predetermined time: by replacing the predetermined time with a stationary time, based on said determining that the low mobility evaluation criterion is satisfied; or by extending the predetermined time by an amount, based on said determining that the low mobility evaluation criterion is satisfied.

Example 13 includes the method of any of examples 1-12 or some other example herein, further including: generating an indication to be sent to the base station to indicate that the measurement results were obtained at a time that is greater than the predetermined time in advance of the message 1 transmission for the RRC connection setup or resume request.

Example 14 includes a method including: detecting a stationary state based on a location variation and a duration associated with the location variation; determining that a measurement result is valid based on the detection of the stationary state; and generating a report to be transmitted to a base station, including an indication associated with the stationary state.

Example 15 includes the method of claim 14 or some other example herein, further including: obtaining a location information based on a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) ; and determining the location variation based on the location information.

Example 16 includes the method of examples 14 or 15 or some other example herein, wherein said detecting the stationary state includes: determining that the location variation is smaller than a first threshold; and determining that the duration associated with the location variation is larger than a second threshold.

Example 17 includes the method of any of examples 14-16 or some other example herein, further including: processing a configuration including the first threshold and the second threshold.

Example 18 includes a method including: receiving a capability report from a user equipment (UE) associated with a duration of a measurement result validity, the capability report including an indication associated with supporting additional criteria for extending the duration by an amount or selecting the duration; and sending a configuration to the UE to enable the UE to extend the duration by an amount or select the duration based on additional criteria.

Example 19 includes the method of example 18 or some other example herein, wherein the configuration includes one or more durations associated with a criterion.

Example 20 includes the method of examples 18 or 19 or some other example herein, wherein the additional criteria include a low mobility evaluation criteria and a cell edge evaluation criteria, and the configuration includes a low mobility evaluation configuration or a cell edge evaluation configuration.

Example 21 includes a method including: detecting a condition; and extending a duration by an amount based on the condition, wherein the extended duration is associated with a validity of a measurement result obtained before a signaling for a transitioning from an idle mode to a connected mode, or selecting a duration based on the condition, wherein the selected duration is associated with a validity of a measurement result obtained before a signaling for transitioning from an idle mode to a connected mode.

Example 22 includes the method of example 21 or some other example herein, the method further including: generating a capability report, to be transmitted to a base station, the capability report including an indication associated with supporting said extending the duration by the amount based on the condition or said selecting the duration based on the condition.

Example 23 includes the method of examples 21 or 22 or some other example herein, wherein the indication is associated with a frequency range.

Example 24 includes the method of any of example 21-23 or some other example herein, the method further including: processing an indication, received from a base station, the indication is to enable performing said detecting a condition, extending the duration by the amount, or selecting the duration.

Example 25 includes the method of any of example 21-24 or some other example herein, wherein the indication is included in a radio resource control (RRC) release command or in a system information block (SIB) .

Example 26 includes the method of any of example 21-25 or some other example herein, method further including: processing a configuration including the duration or the amount.

Example 27 includes the method of any of example 21-26 or some other example herein, wherein the configuration includes one or more amounts, and the method further includes: selecting the amount from the one or more amounts based on the condition.

Example 28 includes the method of any of example 21-27 or some other example herein, wherein the duration is extended by the amount, the method further includes: determining the validity of the measurement based on the amount.

Example 29 includes the method of any of example 21-28 or some other example herein, wherein the duration is selected, and the method further includes: determining the validity of the measurement result based on the duration and a time of obtaining the measurement result.

Example 30 includes the method of any of example 21-29 or some other example herein, wherein the measurement result is obtained during a radio resource control (RRC) idle mode or during an RRC inactive mode.

Example 31 includes the method of any of example 21-30 or some other example herein, wherein the condition is a low mobility condition or a not-at-cell edge condition, and the method further includes: processing a configuration received from a base station including a low mobility evaluation configuration or a cell edge evaluation configuration.

Example 32 includes the method of any of example 21-31 or some other example herein, , further including: determining that the measurement result is valid; and generating a report based on the measurement result to be transmitted to a base station.

Example 33 includes the method of any of example 21-32 or some other example herein, wherein the duration is a first duration and the amount is a first amount, and the method further includes: determining a second duration associated with the validity of the measurement result based on a configuration or a predefined value before detecting the condition, the second duration is smaller than the first duration; generating an indication to be sent to a base station to indicate that an elapsed time from a first time associated with obtaining the measurement result to a second time associated with the transitioning from the idle mode to the connected mode is larger than the second duration.

Another example may include an apparatus comprising: processing circuitry to perform one or more elements of the method described in or related to any of examples 1-33, or any other method or process describe herein; and interface circuitry, coupled with the processing circuitry, the interface circuitry to communicatively couple the processing circuitry to one or more components of a computing platform.

Another example may include an apparatus comprising means to perform one or more elements of a method described in or related to any of examples 1-33, or any other method or process described herein.

Another example may include one or more non-transitory computer-readable media comprising instructions to cause an electronic device, upon execution of the instructions by one or more processors of the electronic device, to perform one or more elements of a method described in or related to any of examples 1-33, or any other method or process described herein.

Another example may include an apparatus comprising logic, modules, or circuitry to perform one or more elements of a method described in or related to any of examples 1-33, or any other method or process described herein.

Another example may include a method, technique, or process as described in or related to any of examples 1-33, or portions or parts thereof.

Another example may include an apparatus comprising: one or more processors and one or more computer-readable media comprising instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform the method, techniques, or process as described in or related to any of examples 1-33, or portions thereof.

Another example may include a signal as described in or related to any of examples 1-33, or portions or parts thereof.

Another example may include a datagram, information element, packet, frame, segment, PDU, or message as described in or related to any of examples 1-33, or portions or parts thereof, or otherwise described in the present disclosure.

Another example may include a signal encoded with data as described in or related to any of examples 1-33, or portions or parts thereof, or otherwise described in the present disclosure.

Another example may include a signal encoded with a datagram, IE, packet, frame, segment, PDU, or message as described in or related to any of examples 1-33, or portions or parts thereof, or otherwise described in the present disclosure.

Another example may include an electromagnetic signal carrying computer-readable instructions, wherein execution of the computer-readable instructions by one or more processors is to cause the one or more processors to perform the method, techniques, or process as described in or related to any of examples 1-33, or portions thereof.

Another example may include a computer program comprising instructions, wherein execution of the program by a processing element is to cause the processing element to carry out the method, techniques, or process as described in or related to any of examples 1-33, or portions thereof.

Another example may include a signal in a wireless network as shown and described herein.

Another example may include a method of communicating in a wireless network as shown and described herein.

Another example may include a system for providing wireless communication as shown and described herein.

Another example may include a device for providing wireless communication as shown and described herein.

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 embodiments to the precise form disclosed. Modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings or may be acquired from practice of various embodiments.

Although the embodiments 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.

Claims

A method comprising:

generating a user equipment (UE) capability indication to be transmitted to a base station, the UE capability indication to indicate that a UE supports criteria for validity check of measurement results upon a start of a radio resource control (RRC) connection setup or resume; and

processing a message from the base station, the message to enable the criteria.
The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining the criteria is satisfied; and

determining, based on said determining the criteria is satisfied, that measurement results obtained during an idle or inactive mode and within a predetermined time in advance of a message 1 transmission for an RRC connection setup or resume request are valid.
The method of claim 2, wherein determining the criteria is satisfied comprises:

determining that the UE is stationary.
The method of claim 3, further comprising:

processing a configuration message from the base station, the configuration message to configure the UE with a low mobility evaluation criterion.
The method of claim 4, wherein determining that the UE is stationary comprises:

determining that the low mobility evaluation criterion is satisfied.
The method of claim 5, further comprising:

updating the predetermined time:

by replacing the predetermined time with a stationary time, based on said determining that the low mobility evaluation criterion is satisfied; or

by extending the predetermined time by an amount, based on said determining that the low mobility evaluation criterion is satisfied.
The method of claim 3, further comprising:

processing a configuration message from the base station, the configuration message to configure the UE with a cell edge evaluation criterion.
The method of claim 7, wherein determining that the UE is stationary comprises:

determining that the cell edge evaluation criterion is satisfied.
The method of claim 8, the method further comprises:

updating the predetermined time:

by replacing the predetermined time with a stationary time, based on said determining that the cell edge evaluation criterion is satisfied; or

by extending the predetermined time by an amount, based on said determining that the cell edge evaluation criterion is satisfied.
The method of claim 3, further comprising:

processing a configuration message from the base station, the configuration message to configure the UE with a low mobility evaluation criterion and a cell edge evaluation criterion.
The method of claim 10, wherein determining that the UE is stationary comprises:

determining that the low mobility evaluation criterion and the cell edge evaluation criterion are satisfied.
The method of claim 11, the method further comprises:

updating the predetermined time:

by replacing the predetermined time with a stationary time, based on said determining that the low mobility evaluation criterion is satisfied; or

by extending the predetermined time by an amount, based on said determining that the low mobility evaluation criterion is satisfied.
The method of claim 3, further comprising:

generating an indication to be sent to the base station to indicate that the measurement results were obtained at a time that is greater than the predetermined time in advance of the message 1 transmission for the RRC connection setup or resume request.
An apparatus comprising:

processing circuitry to:

detect a stationary state based on a location variation and a duration associated with the location variation;

determine that a measurement result is valid based on the detection of the stationary state; and

generate a report to be transmitted to a base station, including an indication associated with the stationary state.
The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the processing circuitry is further to:

obtain location information based on a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) ; and

determine the location variation based on the location information.
The apparatus of claim 15, wherein said detect the stationary state comprises:

determine that the location variation is smaller than a first threshold; and

determine that the duration associated with the location variation is larger than a second threshold.
The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the processing circuitry is further to:

process a configuration including the first threshold and the second threshold.
One or more computer-readable media having instructions that, when executed, cause processing circuitry to:

receive a capability report from a user equipment (UE) associated with a duration of a measurement result validity, the capability report including an indication associated with supporting criteria for extending the duration by an amount or selecting the duration; and

send a configuration to the UE to enable the UE to extend the duration by an amount or select the duration based on additional criteria.
The one or more computer-readable media of claim 18, wherein the configuration includes one or more durations associated with the criteria.
The one or more computer-readable media of claim 19, wherein the criteria include a low mobility evaluation criterion and a cell edge evaluation criterion, and the configuration includes a low mobility evaluation configuration or a cell edge evaluation configuration.