Search

EP-4742751-A1 - COMMUNICATION DEVICE AND BASE STATION INVOLVED IN A MEASUREMENT GAP SKIPPING PROCEDURE

EP4742751A1EP 4742751 A1EP4742751 A1EP 4742751A1EP-4742751-A1

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a communication device comprising the following. The communication device includes a processing circuitry, which determines a time offset, which is associated with a measurement gap, MG, and is usable for determining whether to skip the MG or not. Determining the time offset is based on a configuration of a time offset, which defines an initial time offset, and based on additional information.

Inventors

  • SHARIATMADARI, HAMIDREZA
  • SUZUKI, HIDETOSHI

Assignees

  • Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America

Dates

Publication Date
20260513
Application Date
20241108

Claims (15)

  1. A communication device, comprising: processing circuitry, which in operation, determines a time offset, which is associated with a measurement gap, MG, and is usable for determining whether to skip the MG or not, wherein determining the time offset is based on a configuration of a time offset, which defines an initial time offset, and based on additional information.
  2. The communication device according to claim 1, further comprising: a transceiver, which in operation, receives a MG skipping indication, wherein the processing circuitry, in operation, determines whether to skip a MG based on the determined time offset and a reception timing of the received MG skipping indication relative to the MG, optionally wherein the time offset is between a measurement gap skipping indication, which indicates to skip at least one measurement gap, and a measurement gap, MG, that may be skipped.
  3. The communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 2, wherein the additional information used for determining the time offset is a guard time duration, associated with one particular MG, optionally wherein the processing circuitry adjusts a start of an initially configured time offset for another MG, which occurs during the guard time duration of the particular MG and which starts later than the start of the guard time duration, to a start of the guard time duration, optionally wherein the processing circuitry determines that a MG skipping indication received during the guard time duration of said particular MG refers to said particular MG, optionally wherein the guard time duration starts before and ends with the start of the particular MG.
  4. The communication device according to claim 3, wherein the processing circuitry, in operation, determines the guard time duration based on a configuration message received from a network entity, optionally wherein the guard time duration is defined in unit of time, such as ms, symbols, slots or frames, optionally wherein determining the guard time duration is such that the determined guard time duration covers a number of slots, or a number of downlink slots, or a number of occasions for receiving a MG skipping indication.
  5. The communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the additional information used for determining the time offset is a characteristic of a MG configuration, which configures one or more MGs, optionally wherein the MG configuration characteristic is one or more of an index of the MG configuration or a priority of the MG configuration, optionally wherein a plurality of MG configurations are configured for the communication device respectively having an index, and wherein each MG configuration is associated with one time offset, and wherein determining the time offset for a particular MG comprises selecting that time offset, which is associated with the MG configuration that configures the particular MG, optionally wherein one or a plurality of MG configurations are configured for the communication device, each MG configuration having a priority, and wherein each MG configuration priority is associated with one time offset, and wherein determining the time offset for a particular MG comprises selecting that time offset, which is associated with the priority of the MG configuration that configures the particular MG.
  6. The communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the additional information used for determining the time offset is a characteristic of a downlink control information, DCI, message, carrying the MG skipping indication, optionally wherein the DCI characteristic is one or more of: - a format of the DCI message, - a modulation and coding scheme indicated by the DCI message, - a resource allocation indicated by the DCI message, and - a retransmission protocol process ID indicated by the DCI message, optionally wherein the particular characteristics of a DCI message are each associated with a time offset, and wherein determining the time offset for a particular DCI characteristic comprises selecting that time offset, that is associated with the particular DCI characteristic of the DCI message carrying the received MG skipping indication.
  7. The communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the additional information used for determining the time offset is a cell or carrier, to which the MG skipping indication refers, optionally wherein the cell or carrier is that cell or carrier to which a scheduling of a downlink control information, DCI, message refers, which carries the MG skipping indication, optionally wherein each cell or carrier to which the MG skipping indication may refer is associated with a time offset, and wherein determining the time offset comprises selecting that time offset, that is associated with the cell or carrier, to which the MG skipping indication refers, optionally wherein determining whether to skip a MG is performed among MGs of the cell or carrier to which the MG skipping indication refers.
  8. The communication device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the MG skipping indication is carried in a downlink control information, DCI, message, or optionally wherein the time offset is used to determine whether a MG skipping indication refers to a MG, and wherein a value of the MG skipping indication indicates whether the referred MG is to be skipped or not; or optionally wherein determining whether to skip a particular MG comprises determining whether a MG skipping indication is received within or before the time offset of the particular MG, and if the MG skipping indication is received before the time offset, the particular MG is eligible for being skipped, and if the MG skipping indication is received within the time offset, the particular MG is not eligible for being skipped, optionally wherein determining whether to skip a MG comprises determining only one MG, such as the temporally earliest MG after receiving the MG skipping indication, as the particular MG to be skipped.
  9. A base station comprising: processing circuitry, which in operation, determines whether to skip a measurement gap, MG, with which a communication device is configured, the processing circuitry and a transceiver, which in operation, generate and transmit a MG skipping indication to the communication device, indicating to skip the determined MG, and wherein the MG skipping indication is generated and transmitted to the communication device based on additional information, the additional information being usable by the communication device to determine a time offset, which is associated with the MG that may be skipped.
  10. The base station according to claim 9, wherein the additional information used for generating and transmitting the MG skipping indication is a guard time duration, associated with one particular MG, optionally wherein a timing of transmitting the MG skipping indication is determined based on the guard time duration, such that the communication device determines the determined MG to be skipped.
  11. The base station according to claim 9 or 10, wherein the processing circuitry, in operation, configures one time offset for each MG configuration configuring MGs for the communication device, based on a characteristic of the MG configuration, such as an index or priority of the MG configuration.
  12. The base station according to any one of claims 9 to 11, wherein the additional information used for generating and transmitting the MG skipping indication is a characteristic of a downlink control information, DCI, message carrying the MG skipping indication, wherein the processing circuity, in operation, determines one time offset for each characteristic of a DCI message, usable for carrying the MG skipping indication, optionally wherein the DCI characteristic is one or more of: - a format of the DCI message, - a modulation and coding scheme indicated by the DCI message, - a resource allocation indicated by the DCI message, and - a retransmission protocol process ID indicated by the DCI message.
  13. The base station according to any one of clams 9 to 12, wherein the additional information used for generating and transmitting the MG skipping is a cell or carrier, to which the MG skipping indication refers, wherein the processing circuity, in operation, determines one time offset for each cell or carrier.
  14. A method comprising the following steps performed by a communication device: determining a time offset, which is associated with a measurement gap, MG, and is usable for determining whether to skip the MG or not, wherein determining the time offset is based on a configuration of a time offset, which defines an initial time offset, and based on additional information.
  15. A method comprising the following steps performed by a base station: determining whether to skip a measurement gap, MG, with which a communication device is configured, generating and transmitting a MG skipping indication to the communication device, indicating to skip the determined MG, and wherein the MG skipping indication is generated and transmitted to the communication device based on additional information, the additional information being usable by the communication device to determine a time offset, which is associated with the MG that may be skipped.

Description

FIELD OF THE PRESENT DISCLOSURE The present disclosure is directed to methods, devices and articles in communication systems, such as 3GPP communication systems. TECHNICAL BACKGROUND Currently, the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) works at the technical specifications for the new radio access technology - 5G NR (New Radio), which is also called fifth generation (5G) or NR and used interchangeably herein. One objective is to provide a single technical framework addressing all usage scenarios, requirements and deployment scenarios (see e.g., section 6 of 3GPP TR 38.913 e.g., version 16.0.0 or version 17.0.0 or version 18.0.0), at least including enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable low-latency communications (URLLC), and massive machine type communication (mMTC). For example, eMBB deployment scenarios may include indoor hotspot, dense urban, rural, urban macro and high speed; URLLC deployment scenarios may include industrial control systems, mobile health care (remote monitoring, diagnosis and treatment), real time control of vehicles, wide area monitoring and control systems for smart grids; mMTC deployment scenarios may include scenarios with large number of devices with non-time critical data transfers such as smart wearables and sensor networks. The services eMBB and URLLC are similar in that they both demand a very broad bandwidth, while they are different in that the URLLC service may preferably require ultra-low latencies. A second objective is to achieve forward compatibility, which facilitates a completely new system design and/or the introduction of novel features. SUMMARY One non-limiting and exemplary embodiment facilitates providing a user equipment to perform an improved measurement gap skipping procedure. In an embodiment, the techniques disclosed here feature a communication device comprising the following. The communication device includes a processing circuitry, which determines a time offset, which is associated with a measurement gap, MG, and is usable for determining whether to skip the MG or not. Determining the time offset is based on a configuration of a time offset, which defines an initial time offset, and based on additional information. Additional benefits and advantages of the disclosed embodiments and different implementations will be apparent from the specification and figures. The benefits and/or advantages may be individually obtained by the various embodiments and feature1s of the specification and drawings, which need not all be provided in order to obtain one or more of such benefits and/or advantages. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES In the following exemplary embodiments are described in more detail with reference to the attached figures and drawings. Fig. 1shows an exemplary architecture for a 3GPP NR system to which the improved procedures of the present disclosure may be applied;Fig. 2illustrates the arrival of video frame data and a configured measurement gap pattern;Fig. 3, 4 and 5illustrate examples of a disadvantageous measurement gap skipping procedure;Fig. 6illustrates an exemplary and simplified structure of a communication device, such as UE, and a base station,Fig. 7illustrates a structure of the communication device, such as the UE, according to an exemplary implementation of the improved MG skipping procedure,Fig. 8illustrates a flow diagram for the UE behavior according to an exemplary implementation of the improved MG skipping procedure,Fig. 9illustrates a structure of the communication device, such as the base station, according to an exemplary implementation of the improved MG skipping procedure,Fig. 10illustrates a flow diagram for the base station behavior, according to an exemplary implementation of the improved MG skipping procedure,Fig. 11is a signaling diagram illustrating an exemplary exchange between the UE and the gNB for an exemplary implementation of the improved MG skipping procedure,Fig. 12is another signaling diagram illustrating an exemplary exchange between the UE and the gNB for another more detailed exemplary implementation of the improved MG skipping procedure,Fig. 13an exemplary implementation of the First Solution of the improved MG skipping procedure,Fig. 14illustrates another exemplary implementation of the First Solution of the improved MG skipping procedure,Fig. 15illustrates an exemplary implementation of the First Variant of the Second Solution of the improved MG skipping procedure,Fig. 16illustrates an exemplary implementation of the Second Variant of the Second Solution of the improved MG skipping procedure,Fig. 17illustrates an exemplary implementation of the First Variant of the Third Solution of the improved MG skipping procedure,Fig. 18illustrates an exemplary implementation of the Second Variant of the Third Solution of the improved MG skipping procedure,Fig. 19illustrates an exemplary implementation of the Fourth Solution of the improved MG skipping procedure, andFig. 20shows exemplary functional sp