EP4670406A1 - METHOD FOR PRODUCEING PRECONFIGURED COLUMNS FOR DIFFERENTLY CONFIGURED BWP FOR UE WITH REDCAP - Google Patents

Abstract

Various embodiments disclosed herein provide for a method for a Central Unit (gNB-CU) to provide and configure measurement gaps (MG) for multiple Bandwidth Parts (BWPs) selected by a Distributed Unit (gNB-DU) for configuration to a User Equipment Device (UE) and avoid a gNB sending multiple Radio Resource Configuration (RRC) Reconfiguration messages due to Downlink Control Information (DCI) based BWP switching to the UE A gNB-DU can select multiple BWPs for a UE and the gNB-DU can inform the gNB-CU about the multiple BWPs, and the gNB-CU can determine whether to configure preconfigured MGs for current non-active BWPs, and inform the gNB-DU of the selection of non-active BWPs. The gNB-DU can then generate different preconfigured MGs, and inform the gNB-CU of the preconfigured MGs, and the gNB-CU can then configure the UE with the preconfigured MGs via RRCReconfiguration.

Description

METHODS FOR GENERATING PRECONFIGURED GAPs FOR DIFFERENT CONFIGURED BWP FOR RedCap UE

This application claims the benefit of International patent application serial number PCT/CN2023/078039, filed February 24, 2023, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to methods for generating preconfigured measurement gaps for different configured bandwidth parts for Reduced Capability (RedCap) user equipment devices (UEs) in a wireless communication system.

BACKGROUND

NG-RAN Architecture

The overall Fifth Generation (5G) Radio Access Network (RAN) architecture is depicted in Figure 1 where a core network 102 of a wireless communications system can communicate with a Next Generation Radio Access Network (NG-RAN) 104 that includes various base stations or gNBs 106 that respectively may include core units or Central Units (gNB-CU) 108 and Distributed Units (gNB-DU) 110. The gNB 106 with a split architecture is depicted in Figure 2.

• gNB-CU 108 (e.g., gNB-CU 108-1 and gNB-CU 108-2) hosts the RRC and the control plane part of the PDCP; gNB-DU 110 (or gNB-DU 110-1 and gNB-DU 110-2) hosts Radio Link Control (RLC), Medium Access Control (MAC) and the physical layer.

• In split gNB architecture, the Fl UE context management function supports the establishment and modification of the necessary overall UE context.

• The establishment of the Fl UE context is initiated by the gNB-CU 108 and accepted or rejected by the gNB-DU 110 based on admission control criteria (e g., resource not available).

• The modification of the Fl UE context can be initiated by either gNB-CU 108 or gNB- DU 110. The receiving node can accept or reject the modification. The Fl UE context management function also supports the release of the context previously established in the gNB-DU 110.

RedCap A RedCap (Reduced Capability) User Equipment (UE) is a UE with reduced capabilities as specified in clause 4.2.21.1 in TS 38.306. It was introduced by Third Generation Partnership Project (3 GPP) in Release 17 with the intention to have lower complexity with respect to non- RedCap UEs. It is mandatory for a RedCap UE to support 20 MHz maximum UE channel bandwidth in FR1 and 100 MHz in FR2.

In Rel-17, RAN2 have introduced Non-Cell-Defining Synchronization Signal Block (NCD-SSB) dedicated for Redcap UE. One Bandwidth Part (BWP) can have up to one SSB (CD-SSB or NCD-SSB). BWP with NCD-SSB is in different frequency from a Cell Defining SSB (CD-SSB). A RedCap UE may be configured with multiple NCD-SSBs provided that each BWP is configured with at most one SSB. NCD-SSB may be configured for a RedCap UE in RRC CONNECTED to perform Radio Resource Management (RRM) measurements when the active BWP does not contain CD-SSB.

For BWP configuration and activation, the gNB informs RedCap UE of its active BWP via Radio Resource Control (RRC) msg or downlink control information (DCI).

• If BWP configuration (sent in RRC msg) contains NCD-SSB and servingCellMO-rl7 IE in BWP-DownlinkDedicated IE (See TS 38.331 extract below) appears within this BWP configuration, when this BWP becomes RedCap UE’s active BWP, UE would use servingCellMO-rl7 in this BWP’s configuration as its current serving cell measurement object.

• If BWP configuration (sent in RRC msg) does not contain servingCellMO-r!7 IE, when this BWP becomes RedCap UE’s active BWP, UE would use servingCellMO IE in ServingCellConfig IE as its current serving cell measurement object.

****BEGIN TS 38.331 Extract****

BWP-DownlinkDedicated IE -> servingCellMO-rl7: servingCellMO measObjectld of the MeasObjectNR in MeasConfig which is associated to the serving cell. For this MeasObjectNR, the following relationship applies between this MeasObjectNR and nonCellDefiningSSB in BWP-DownlinkDedicated of the associated downlink BWP: if ssbFrequency is configured, its value is the same as the absoluteFrequencySSB in the nonCellDefiningSSB. If the field is present in a downlink BWP and the BWP is activated, the RedCap UE uses this measurement object for serving cell measurements, otherwise, the RedCap UE uses the servingCellMO in ServingCellConfig IE.

****END TS 38.331 Extract**** In NG-RAN split architecture, CU is the entity that decides if the UE’s measured frequency corresponds to intra-frequency or inter-frequency neighbor cell, and thus whether it is needed to perform measurement GAPs or not to reduce UE’s throughput.

It was previously proposed that gNB-CU sends an Fl message to setup/modify the UE context a list of measObjectlds for NCD-SSB with SSB frequency information in this cell to gNB-DU. Then gNB-DU would use the information to encode the measObject IDs used for BWP configuration into the proper place in Cell Group Config (CGC) in RRC message. If RedCap UE’s active BWP is changed via DCI later, the gNB-DU informs the gNB-CU in a Fl AP message, so that gNB-CU updates UE’s neighbor cell measurement based on this new servingCellMO (e.g., choose different SSB to be measured in the neighbor cell).

There currently exist certain challenge(s). In DCI based BWP switch scenario, with the possible introduction and use of preConfGapStatus-rl7 in BWP-DownlinkDedicated IE in RRC (see extract from TS 38.331 below), the UE will autonomously know which Measurement GAP (MG) to apply after active BWP associated with NCD-SSB is changed via DCI. It is not clear however how both gNB-CU and gNB-DU can know the different pre-configured MGs for all the BWPs which will be used by UE so that gNB-CU can prepare the RRC message to UE. Below configuration option available in RRC, which is per BWP Config.

****BEGIN TS 38.331 Extract****

BWP-DownlinkDedicated IE -> preConfGapStatus-rl7 : preConfGap Status Indicates whether the pre-configured measurement gaps (i.e. the gaps configured with preConfiglnd) are activated or deactivated upon the switch to this BWP. If this field is configured, the UE shall apply network-controlled mechanism for activation and deactivation of the pre-configured measurement gaps, otherwise the UE shall apply the autonomous activation/deactivation mechanism, as specified in TS 38 133 [14], The first/leftmost bit corresponds to the measurement gap with gap ID 1, the second bit corresponds to measurement gap with gap ID 2, and so on. Value 0 indicates that the corresponding preconfigured measurement gap is deactivated while value 1 indicates that the corresponding preconfigured measurement gap is activated. The UE shall ignore the bit if the corresponding measurement gap is not a pre-configured measurement gap.

****END TS 38.331 Extract****

Further, in TS 38.133 h60, there is the following description: ****BEGIN TS 38.331 Extract****

If UE indicates support of only preconfiguredNW-ControlledMeasGap , UE can expect the network to configure

9.1.7 Pre-configured measurement gap

9.1.7.1 Introduction

A UE capable of Pre-configured measurement gap (Pre-MG) pattern can be configured with a Pre-MG pattern via RRC signalling [2],

The gap interruption requirements in Section 9.1.2 apply to Pre-MG when Pre-MG is activated, and no gap interruption is expected when Pre-MG is deactivated.

- The requirements apply for NR standalone operation with single carrier and NR CA.

9.1.7.2 Requirements applicability

The requirements related to pre-configured measurement gap apply provided:

- UE indicates support of preconfiguredUE-AutonomousMeasGap [2] and/or preconfiguredNW-ControlledMeasGap [2], and

- either a single per-UE measurement gap is pre-configured by the network, or one or two per-FR measurement gaps are pre-configured by the network, and

- one of measurement gap patterns among measurement gap patterns #0 ~ #25 is configured for pre-configured measurement gap, and

- UE is in NR SA with single carrier or with NR CA.

A measurement gap is configured as pre-configured measurement gap if preConfiglnd is indicated by network in the configuration message of the measurement gap.

If UE indicates support of only preconfiguredNW-ControlledMeasGap [2], UE can expect the network to configure \RAN2 signaling design for per BWP status indication .

Editor’s note: In current RAN2 spec, there is no explicit signaling from network to indicate which activation/deactivation mechanism is chosen by network. RAN2 may resolve this issue later.

****END TS 38.331 Extract****

In 38.331 1120 6.3.3 UE capability information elements:

MeasAndMobParametersCommon ::= SEQUENCE {

- R4 19-3-2 pre-configured measurement gap preconfiguredUE-AutonomousMeasGap-r 17 ENUMERATED

{supported} OPTIONAL,

- R4 19-3-1 pre-configured measurement gap preconfiguredNW-ControlledMeasGap-r 17 ENUMERATED

{supported} OPTIONAL, ]]}

And in 38.306 h20 4.2.9

Certain aspects of the disclosure and their embodiments may provide solutions to these or other challenges.

SUMMARY

Various embodiments disclosed herein provide for a method for a Central Unit (gNB-CU, or CU) to provide and configure measurement gaps (MG) for multiple Bandwidth Parts (BWPs) selected by a Distributed Unit (e.g., gNB-DU or DU) for configuration to a User Equipment Device (UE) and avoid a gNB sending multiple Radio Resource Configuration (RRC) Reconfiguration messages due to Downlink Control Information (DCI) based BWP switching to the UE. A gNB-DU can select multiple BWPs for a UE and the gNB-DU can inform the gNB- CU about the multiple BWPs, and the gNB-CU can determine whether to configure preconfigured MGs for current non-active BWPs, and inform the gNB-DU of the selection of non-active BWPs. The gNB-DU can then generate different preconfigured MGs, and inform the gNB-CU of the preconfigured MGs, and the gNB-CU can then configure the UE with the preconfigured MGs via RRCReconfiguration.

In an embodiment, a method is provided that is performed by a first network node for generating preconfigured measurement gaps for a plurality of BWPs for a UE. The method includes providing, to a second network node, a list of configured BWPs associated with the UE. The method also includes receiving, from the second network node a request to generate preconfigured measurement gaps associated with selected BWPs of the list of configured BWPs and providing, to the second network node, information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the selected BWPs. In an embodiment, providing the list of configured BWPs associated with the UE is in a UE Context Modification Response message in response to receiving a UE Context Modification Request message.

In an embodiment, providing the list of configured BWPs associated with the UE is in a UE Context Setup Response message in response to receiving a UE Context Setup Request message.

In an embodiment, the list of configured BWPs associated with the UE further comprises at least one of a serving cell or a BWP location associated with each BWP of the list of configured BWPs.

In an embodiment, the providing the information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the selected BWPs is in response to the first network node supporting active BWP switching via downlink control information.

In an embodiment, the request to generate preconfigured measurement gaps associated with selected BWPs comprises a list of frequencies for which the second network node requests the first network node to generate the preconfigured measurement gaps.

In an embodiment, the information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps is included in another UE Context Modification Response message that also comprises an updated CellGroupConfig information element.

In an embodiment, the first network node is a DU network node, and wherein the second network node is a CU network node.

In an embodiment, a first network node can be provided that generates preconfigured measurement gaps for a plurality of BWPs for a UE, the first network node comprising processing circuitry to perform operations. The operations can include providing, to a second network node, a list of configured BWPs associated with the UE. The operations can also include receiving, from the second network node a request to generate preconfigured measurement gaps associated with selected BWPs of the list of configured BWPs and providing, to the second network node, information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the selected BWPs.

In an embodiment, a method can be performed by a second network node for requesting preconfigured measurement gaps for a plurality of BWPs for a UE. The method can include receiving, from a first network node, a list of configured non-active BWPs associated with the UE. The method can also include determining to request preconfigured measurement gaps for one or more non-active BWPs of the list of configured non-active BWPs. The method can also include providing, to the first network node, a request to generate preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the one or more non-active BWPs of the list of configured non-active BWPs. The method can also include receiving, from the first network node, information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the selected BWPs.

In an embodiment, receiving the list of configured BWPs associated with the UE is in a UE Context Modification Response message in response to providing a UE Context Modification Request message to the first network node.

In an embodiment, receiving the list of configured BWPs associated with the UE is in a UE Context Setup Response message in response to providing a UE Context Setup Request message to the first network node.

In an embodiment, the list of configured BWPs associated with the UE further comprises at least one of a serving cell or a BWP location associated with each BWP of the list of configured BWPs.

In an embodiment, the receiving the information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the selected BWPs is in response to the first network node supporting active BWP switching via downlink control information.

In an embodiment, the request to generate preconfigured measurement gaps associated with selected BWPs comprises a list of frequencies for which the second network node requests the first network node to generate the preconfigured measurement gaps.

In an embodiment, the information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps is included in another UE Context Modification Response message that also comprises an updated CellGroupConfig information element.

In an embodiment, the first network node is a DU network node, and wherein the second network node is a CU network node.

In an embodiment, a second network node is provided that requests preconfigured measurement gaps for a plurality of BWPs for a UE. The second network node can include processing circuitry to perform operations and the operations can include receiving, from a first network node, a list of configured non-active BWPs associated with the UE. The operations can include determining to request preconfigured measurement gaps for one or more non-active BWPs of the list of configured non-active BWPs. The operations can include providing, to the first network node, a request to generate preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the one or more non-active BWPs of the list of configured non-active BWPs. The operations can also include receiving, from the first network node, information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the selected BWPs.

Certain embodiments may provide one or more of the following technical advantage(s). The present disclosure allows CU to provide all MGs required for multiple BWPs selected by DU for configuration to UE and avoids gNB sending multiple RRC Reconfiguration messages due to DCI based BWP switching to UE which consumes a lot of Uu resources.

In fact, by configuring multiple measurement gaps in advance (covering all possible gaps considering the list of BWPs that can be configured active via DCI at some point in time) the CU can provide a presetting via RRC signaling so that the UE would know which gaps it should apply when active BWP has been switched via DCI and this does not require any RRC reconfiguration from the CU.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawing figures incorporated in and forming a part of this specification illustrate several aspects of the disclosure, and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the disclosure.

Figure 1 shows an overall Fifth Generation (5G) Radio Access Network (RAN) architecture;

Figure 2 shows a 5G RAN split architecture;

Figure 3 shows a message sequence chart between a distributed unit and a core unit for configuring preconfigured measurement gaps for a plurality of bandwidth parts (BWPs) for a user equipment device (UE);

Figure 4 shows an example of a communication system in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;

Figure 5 shows a UE in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;

Figure 6 shows a network node in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;

Figure 7 is a block diagram of a host, which may be an embodiment of the host of Figure 4, in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure described herein; and

Figure 8 is a block diagram illustrating a virtualization environment in which functions implemented by some embodiments of the present disclosure may be virtualized.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The embodiments set forth below represent information to enable those skilled in the art to practice the embodiments and illustrate the best mode of practicing the embodiments. Upon reading the following description in light of the accompanying drawing figures, those skilled in the art will understand the concepts of the disclosure and will recognize applications of these concepts not particularly addressed herein. It should be understood that these concepts and applications fall within the scope of the disclosure.

Some of the embodiments contemplated herein will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. Embodiments are provided by way of example to convey the scope of the subject matter to those skilled in the art.

Various embodiments disclosed herein provide for a method for a Central Unit (gNB- CU) to provide and configure measurement gaps (MG) for multiple Bandwidth Parts (BWPs) selected by a Distributed Unit (gNB-DU) for configuration to a User Equipment Device (UE) and avoid a gNB sending multiple Radio Resource Configuration (RRC) Reconfiguration messages due to Downlink Control Information (DCI) based BWP switching to the UE. A gNB- DU can select multiple BWPs for a UE and the gNB-DU can inform the gNB-CU about the multiple BWPs, and the gNB-CU can determine whether to configure preconfigured MGs for current non-active BWPs, and inform the gNB-DU of the selection of non-active BWPs. The gNB-DU can then generate different preconfigured MGs, and inform the gNB-CU of the preconfigured MGs, and the gNB-CU can then configure the UE with the preconfigured MGs via RRCReconfiguration.

If gNB-DU selects multiple BWPs for UE (i.e., BWPs are encoded in CellGroupConfig) and if DU may ask UE to change active BWP via DCI later, some new information elements (IES), proposed in the following chapters, should be provided from the gNB-DU to gNB-CU in UE CONTEXT SETUP RESPONSE/ UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION RESPONSE

After receiving above response, if gNB-CU decides to configure preconfigured measurement GAPs for current-non-active BWP, gNB-CU should send UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST to DU, with some new information elements (IEs), proposed in the following chapters.

After receiving above response, if gNB-CU determines also that measurement GAP is required for UE’s current active BWP, in the same UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST, gNB-CU can still ask gNB-DU to generate it in legacy Fl IEs.

With this proposed method, it’s possible for gNB-CU not to use the legacy IEs (in UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST) to ask gNB-DU to generate measurement GAP for UE’s current active BWP, but only configuring preconfigured measurement GAP for UE’s current active BWP.

Upon receiving above UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message with preconfigured measurement GAP generation request, gNB-DU generates different preconfigured measurement GAP for BWPs in CellGroupConfig in BWP-change-via-DCI scenario. In case of success, the gNB-DU sends UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION RESPONSE message to gNB-CU with updated CellGroupConfig and measurement GAP configuration. This allows CU to send all MGs in single RRC Reconfig message to UE.

The present disclosure adds new Fl AP function where DU informs CU of list of configured BWPs information.

The present disclosure adds new FAP function where CU informs DU of generating different pre-configured measurement GAP for the all configured BWPs in CGC in BWP- change-via-DCI scenario based on the information received previously from DU.

The present disclosure adds new RRC function where CU informs UE of the list of preconfigured Meas GAPS based on DU scheduling to supported network controlled meas preconfigured GAPs.

Certain embodiments may provide one or more of the following technical advantage(s).

Th present disclosure allows CU to provide all MGs required for multiple BWPs selected by DU for configuration to UE and avoids gNB sending multiple RRC Reconfiguration messages due to DCI based BWP switching to UE which consumes a lot of Uu resources.

In fact, by configuring multiple measurement gaps in advance (covering all possible gaps considering the list of BWPs that can be configured active via DCI at some point in time) the CU can provide a presetting via RRC signaling so that the UE would know which gaps it should apply when active BWP has been switched via DCI and this does not require any RRC reconfiguration from the CU

BWP information element

- ASN1 START

- TAG-BWP-START

BWP ::= SEQUENCE { locationAndBandwidth INTEGER (0..37949), subcarrierSpacing SubcarrierSpacing, cyclicPrefix ENUMERATED { extended

} OPTIONAL - Need R

}

- TAG-BWP-STOP

- ASN1STOP

BWP Field Descriptions

CyclicPrefix (CP)_: Indicates whether to use the extended cyclic prefix for this bandwidth part. If not set, the UE uses the normal cyclic prefix. Normal CP is supported for all subcarrier spacings and slot formats. Extended CP is supported only for 60 kHz subcarrier spacing. (See TS 38.211 [16], clause 4.2). Except for SUL, the network ensures the same cyclic prefix length is used in active downlink (DL) BWP and active uplink (UL) BWP within a serving cell.

LocationAndBandwidth: Frequency domain location and bandwidth of this bandwidth part. The value of the field shall be interpreted as resource indicator value (RIV) as defined TS 38.214 [19] with assumptions as described in TS 38.213 [13], clause 12, i.e., setting ^BWP=275. The first Physical Resource Block (PRB) is a PRB determined by subcarrier Spacing of this BWP and offsetToCarrier (configured in SCS-SpecificCarrier contained within FrequencylnfoDL / FrequencylnfoUL / FrequencylnfoUL-SIB I FrequencylnfoDL-SIB within ServingCellConfigCommon / ServingCellConfigCommonSIB) corresponding to this subcarrier spacing. In case of time division duplex (TDD), a BWP-pair (UL BWP and DL BWP with the same bwp-Id) must have the same center frequency (see TS 38.213 [13], clause 12).

Subcarrier spacing to be used in this BWP for all channels and reference signals unless explicitly configured elsewhere. Corresponds to subcarrier spacing according to TS 38.211 [16], table 4.2-1. The value kHz!5 corresponds to p=0, value kHz30 corresponds to p=l, and so on.

Only the following values are applicable depending on the used frequency:

• FR1 : 15, 30, or 60 kHz

• FR2-1 : 60 or 120 kHz

• FR2-2: 120, 480, or 960 kHz

For the initial DL BWP and operation in licensed spectrum this field has the same value as the field subCarrierSpacingCommon in MIB of the same serving cell. Except for SUL, the network ensures the same subcarrier spacing is used in active DL BWP and active UL BWP within a serving cell. For the initial DL BWP and operation with shared spectrum channel access, the value of this field corresponds to the subcarrier spacing of the SSB associated to the initial DL BWP.

In Figure 3, illustrated is a message sequence chart between a distributed unit 110 and a core unit 108 for configuring preconfigured measurement gaps for a plurality of bandwidth parts BWPs for a UE 302. Optional steps in the message sequence chart are represented with dashed lines.

At step 304, the CU 108 can send a UE Context Setup/Modification Request to the DU 110. The message can include for example a list of Non-Cell Defining Synchronization Signal Block (NCD-SSB) measurement objects info. If the gNB-DU succeeds to establish the UE context, it replies to the gNB-CU with UE CONTEXT SETUP RESPONSE. If no UE-associated logical Fl-connection exists, the UE-associated logical Fl-connection shall be established as part of the procedure. The gNB-CU shall perform Radio Resource Configuration (RRC) Reconfiguration or RRC connection resume as described in TS 38.331 [8], The CellGroupConfig IE shall transparently be signaled to the UE as specified in TS 38.331 [8],

If the UE-CapabilityRAT-ContainerList IE is included in the UE CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST, the gNB-DU shall take this information into account for UE specific configurations.

If the servingCellMO IE is included in the UE CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message, the gNB-DU shall configure servingCellMO for the indicated SpCell accordingly.

If the servingCellMO List IE is included in the UE CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message, the gNB-DU shall select servingCellMO after determining the list of BWPs for the UE and include the used servingCellMOs as Used servingCellMO List IE in the UE CONTEXT SETUP RESPONSE message

If the Active BWP LocationAnd Bandwidth IE is included in the UE CONTEXT SETUP RESPONSE message, the gNB-CU shall if supported, consider that the UE’s currently used servingCellMO points to SSB outside of UE’s active BWP

If DU configures multiple BWPs for UE (at 306) (in CellGroupConfig) and DU supports active BWP switch via DCI, the Configured current non-active BWP List IE is included in the UE CONTEXT SETUP RESPONSE message at step 308. If the current non-active BWP List IE is included in the UE CONTEXT SETUP RESPONSE message the gNB-CU shall, if supported, take it in account when requesting DU generating preconfigured MG for the indicated BWPs / BWPs IDs.

If the message at 304 is a UE context Modification Request message, Upon reception of the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message, the gNB-DU shall perform the modifications at step 306, and if successful reports the update in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION RESPONSE message at step 308.

If the SpCell ID IE is included in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message, the gNB-DU shall replace any previously received value and regard it as a reconfiguration with sync as defined in TS 38.331 [8], If the ServCelllndex IE is included in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message, the gNB-DU shall take this into account for the indicated SpCell. If the SpCell UL Configured IE is included in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message, the gNB-DU shall configure UL for the indicated SpCell accordingly. If the servingCellMO IE is included in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message, the gNB-DU shall configure servingCellMO for the indicated SpCell accordingly. If the servingCellMO List IE is included in the UE CONTEXT SETUP MODIFICATION REQUEST message, the gNB-DU shall configure servingCellMO after determining the list of BWPs for the UE and include the used servingCellMOs as Used servingCellMO List IE in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION RESPONSE message. If the Active BWP LocationAnd Bandwidth IE is included in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION RESPONSE message, the gNB-CU shall if supported, at step 312 determine to ask the gNB-DU 110 to generate preconfigured MGs for selected configured BWPs.

If the current non-active BWP List IE is included in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION RESPONSE message the gNB-CU shall, if supported, take it in account when requesting DU generating preconfigured MG for the indicated BWPs / BWPs IDs at step 314.

If the Preconfigured Measurement GAP Information List IE is present (in the CU to DU RRC Information IE) in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message in step 314, DU shall generate different pre-configured measurement GAP for BWPs. If gNB-DU succeeds to generate different pre-configured measurement GAP for BWPs, gNB-DU shall update CellGroupConfig and preconfigured measurement GAP configuration in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION RESPONSE message at step 316.

The gNB-CU 108 can then configure the UE 302 with the preconfigured MGs at step 318.

If the SCell To Be Setup List IE is included in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message, the gNB-DU shall consider it as a list of candidate SCells to be set up. If the SCell To Be Setup List IE is included in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message and the indicated SCell(s) are already setup, the gNB-DU shall replace any previously received value. If the SCell UL Configured IE is included in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message, the gNB-DU shall configure UL for the indicated SCell accordingly. If the servingCellMO IE is included in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message, the gNB-DU shall configure servingCellMO for the indicated SCell accordingly.

Below is an example of implementation of the above embodiments to TS 38.473 with new changes underlined:

<Start of changes>

8.3.1 UE Context S etup

8.3.1.1 General

The purpose of the UE Context Setup procedure is to establish the UE Context including, among others, SRB,DRB, BH RLC channel, Uu Relay RLC channel, PC5 Relay RLC channel, and SL DRB configuration. The procedure uses UE-associated signalling.

8.3.1.2 Successful Operation

The gNB-CU initiates the procedure by sending UE CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message to the gNB-DU. If the gNB-DU succeeds to establish the UE context, it replies to the gNB-CU with UE CONTEXT SETUP RESPONSE. If no UE-associated logical Fl -connection exists, the UE-associated logical Fl -connection shall be established as part of the procedure. The gNB-CU shall perform RRC Reconfiguration or RRC connection resume as described in TS 38.331 [8], The CellGroupConfig IE shall transparently be signaled to the UE as specified in TS 38.331 [8] If the UE-CapabilityRAT-ContainerList IE is included in the UE CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST, the gNB-DU shall take this information into account for UE specific configurations.

If the servingCellMO IE is included in the UE CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message, the gNB-DU shall configure servingCellMO for the indicated SpCell accordingly.

If the servingCellMO List IE is included in the UE CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST message, the gNB-DU shall select servingCellMO after determining the list of BWPs for the UE and include the used servingCellMOs as Used servingCellMO List IE in the UE CONTEXT SETUP RESPONSE message.

If the Active BWP LocationAnd Bandwidth IE is included in the UE CONTEXT SETUP RESPONSE message, the gNB-CU shall if supported, consider that the UE’s currently used servingCellMO points to SSB outside of UE’s active BWP.

If DU configures multiple BWPs for UE (in CellGroupConfig') and DU supports active BWP switch via PCI, the Configured current non-active BWP List IE is included in the UE CONTEXT SETUP RESPONSE message. If the current non-active BWP List IE is included in the UE CONTEXT SETUP RESPON SE message the gNB -CU shall, if supported, take it in account when requesting DU generating preconfigured MG for the indicated BWPs / BWPs IDs.

<Next change>

8.3.4 UE Context Modification (gNB-CU initiated)

8.3.4.1 General

The purpose of the UE Context Modification procedure is to modify the established UE Context, e.g., establishing, modifying and releasing radio resources or sidelink resources. This procedure is also used to command the gNB- DU to stop data transmission for the UE for mobility (see TS 38.401 [4]). The procedure uses UE -associated signalling.

8.3.4.2 Successful Operation

The UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message is initiated by the gNB-CU.

Upon reception of the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message, the gNB-DU shall perform the modifications, and if successful reports the update in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION RESPONSE message. If the SpCell ID IE is included in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message, the gNB-DU shall replace any previously received value and regard it as a reconfiguration with sync as defined in TS 38.331 [8], If the ServCelllndex IE is included in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message, the gNB-DU shall take this into account for the indicated SpCell. If the SpCell UL Configured IE is included in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message, the gNB-DU shall configure UL for the indicated SpCell accordingly. If the servingCellMO IE is included in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message, the gNB-DU shall configure servingCellMO for the indicated SpCell accordingly. If the servingCellMO List IE is included in the UE CONTEXT SETUP MODIFICATION REQUEST message, the gNB-DU shall configure servingCellMO after determining the list of BWPs for the UE and include the used servingCellMOs as Used servingCellMO List IE in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION RESPONSE message. If the Active BWP LocationAnd Bandwidth IE is included in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION RESPONSE message, the gNB-CU shall if supported, consider that the UE’s currently used servingCellMO points to SSB outside of UE’s active BWP.

If the current non-active BWP List IE is included in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION RESPONSE message the gNB-CU shall, if supported, take it in account when requesting DU generating preconfigured MG for the indicated BWPs / BWPs IDs.

If the Preconfigured Measurement GAP Information List IE is present (in the CU to DU RRC Information IE) in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message. DU shall generate different pre-configured measurement GAP for BWPs. If gNB-DU succeeds to generate different pre -configured measurement GAP for BWPs. gNB-DU shall update CellGroupConfig and preconfigured measurement GAP configuration in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION RESPONSE message.

If the SCell To Be Setup List IE is included in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message, the gNB- DU shall consider it as a list of candidate SCells to be set up. If the SCell To Be Setup List IE is included in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message and the indicated SCell(s) are already setup, the gNB-DU shall replace any previously received value. If the SCell UL Configured IE is included in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message, the gNB-DU shall configure UL for the indicated SCell accordingly. If the servingCellMO IE is included in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST message, the gNB-DU shall configure servingCellMO for the indicated SCell accordingly.

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9.2.2 2 UE CONTEXT SETUP RESPONSE

This message is sent by the gNB-DU to confirm the setup of a UE context.

Direction: gNB-DU gNB-CU.

In one embodiment, the above information is also present in the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION RESPONSE message.

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9.2.2 7 UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST

5 This message is sent by the gNB-CU to provide UE Context information changes to the gNB-DU.

Direction: gNB-CU -> gNB-DU

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5 9.2.2 8 UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION RESPONSE

This message is sent by the gNB-DU to confirm the modification of a UE context Direction: gNB-DU gNB-CU.

<Next change>

This IE contains the RRC Information that are sent from gNB-CU to gNB-DU.

This IE contains the RRC Information that are sent from the gNB-DU to the gNB-CU.

Figure 4 shows an example of a communication system 400 in accordance with some embodiments.

In the example, the communication system 400 includes a telecommunication network 402 that includes an access network 404, such as a Radio Access Network (RAN), and a core network 406, which includes one or more core network nodes 408. The access network 404 includes one or more access network nodes, such as network nodes 410A and 410B (one or more of which may be generally referred to as network nodes 410), or any other similar Third Generation Partnership Project (3 GPP) access node or non-3GPP Access Point (AP). The network nodes 410 facilitate direct or indirect connection of a UE, such as by connecting UEs 412A, 412B, 412C, and 412D (one or more of which may be generally referred to as UEs 412) to the core network 406 over one or more wireless connections.

Example wireless communications over a wireless connection include transmitting and/or receiving wireless signals using electromagnetic waves, radio waves, infrared waves, and/or other types of signals suitable for conveying information without the use of wires, cables, or other material conductors. Moreover, in different embodiments, the communication system 400 may include any number of wired or wireless networks, network nodes, UEs, and/or any other components or systems that may facilitate or participate in the communication of data and/or signals whether via wired or wireless connections. The communication system 400 may include and/or interface with any type of communication, telecommunication, data, cellular, radio network, and/or other similar type of system. The UEs 412 may be any of a wide variety of communication devices, including wireless devices arranged, configured, and/or operable to communicate wirelessly with the network nodes 410 and other communication devices. Similarly, the network nodes 410 are arranged, capable, configured, and/or operable to communicate directly or indirectly with the UEs 412 and/or with other network nodes or equipment in the telecommunication network 402 to enable and/or provide network access, such as wireless network access, and/or to perform other functions, such as administration in the telecommunication network 402.

In the depicted example, the core network 406 connects the network nodes 410 to one or more hosts, such as host 416. These connections may be direct or indirect via one or more intermediary networks or devices. In other examples, network nodes may be directly coupled to hosts. The core network 406 includes one more core network nodes (e.g., core network node 408) that are structured with hardware and software components. Features of these components may be substantially similar to those described with respect to the UEs, network nodes, and/or hosts, such that the descriptions thereof are generally applicable to the corresponding components of the core network node 408. Example core network nodes include functions of one or more of a Mobile Switching Center (MSC), Mobility Management Entity (MME), Home Subscriber Server (HSS), Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), Session Management Function (SMF), Authentication Server Function (AUSF), Subscription Identifier De-Concealing Function (SIDF), Unified Data Management (UDM), Security Edge Protection Proxy (SEPP), Network Exposure Function (NEF), and/or a User Plane Function (UPF).

The host 416 may be under the ownership or control of a service provider other than an operator or provider of the access network 404 and/or the telecommunication network 402, and may be operated by the service provider or on behalf of the service provider. The host 416 may host a variety of applications to provide one or more service. Examples of such applications include live and pre-recorded audio/video content, data collection services such as retrieving and compiling data on various ambient conditions detected by a plurality of UEs, analytics functionality, social media, functions for controlling or otherwise interacting with remote devices, functions for an alarm and surveillance center, or any other such function performed by a server.

As a whole, the communication system 400 of Figure 4 enables connectivity between the UEs, network nodes, and hosts. In that sense, the communication system 400 may be configured to operate according to predefined rules or procedures, such as specific standards that include, but are not limited to: Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM); Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS); Long Term Evolution (LTE), and/or other suitable Second, Third, Fourth, or Fifth Generation (2G, 3G, 4G, or 5G) standards, or any applicable future generation standard (e.g., Sixth Generation (6G)); Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) standards, such as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standards (WiFi); and/or any other appropriate wireless communication standard, such as the Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax), Bluetooth, Z-Wave, Near Field Communication (NFC) ZigBee, LiFi, and/or any Low Power Wide Area Network (LPWAN) standards such as LoRa and Sigfox.

In some examples, the telecommunication network 402 is a cellular network that implements 3 GPP standardized features. Accordingly, the telecommunication network 402 may support network slicing to provide different logical networks to different devices that are connected to the telecommunication network 402. For example, the telecommunication network 402 may provide Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communication (URLLC) services to some UEs, while providing enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) services to other UEs, and/or massive Machine Type Communication (mMTC)/massive Internet of Things (loT) services to yet further UEs.

In some examples, the UEs 412 are configured to transmit and/or receive information without direct human interaction. For instance, a UE may be designed to transmit information to the access network 404 on a predetermined schedule, when triggered by an internal or external event, or in response to requests from the access network 404. Additionally, a UE may be configured for operating in single- or multi -Radio Access Technology (RAT) or multi-standard mode. For example, a UE may operate with any one or combination of WiFi, New Radio (NR), and LTE, i.e. be configured for Multi-Radio Dual Connectivity (MR-DC), such as Evolved UMTS Terrestrial RAN (E-UTRAN) NR - Dual Connectivity (EN-DC).

In the example, a hub 414 communicates with the access network 404 to facilitate indirect communication between one or more UEs (e g., UE 412C and/or 412D) and network nodes (e g., network node 410B). In some examples, the hub 414 may be a controller, router, content source and analytics, or any of the other communication devices described herein regarding UEs. For example, the hub 414 may be a broadband router enabling access to the core network 406 for the UEs. As another example, the hub 414 may be a controller that sends commands or instructions to one or more actuators in the UEs. Commands or instructions may be received from the UEs, network nodes 410, or by executable code, script, process, or other instructions in the hub 414. As another example, the hub 414 may be a data collector that acts as temporary storage for UE data and, in some embodiments, may perform analysis or other processing of the data. As another example, the hub 414 may be a content source. For example, for a UE that is a Virtual Reality (VR) headset, display, loudspeaker or other media delivery device, the hub 414 may retrieve VR assets, video, audio, or other media or data related to sensory information via a network node, which the hub 414 then provides to the UE either directly, after performing local processing, and/or after adding additional local content. In still another example, the hub 414 acts as a proxy server or orchestrator for the UEs, in particular in if one or more of the UEs are low energy loT devices.

The hub 414 may have a constant/persistent or intermittent connection to the network node 410B. The hub 414 may also allow for a different communication scheme and/or schedule between the hub 414 and UEs (e.g., UE 412C and/or 412D), and between the hub 414 and the core network 406. In other examples, the hub 414 is connected to the core network 406 and/or one or more UEs via a wired connection. Moreover, the hub 414 may be configured to connect to a Machine-to-Machine (M2M) service provider over the access network 404 and/or to another UE over a direct connection. In some scenarios, UEs may establish a wireless connection with the network nodes 410 while still connected via the hub 414 via a wired or wireless connection. In some embodiments, the hub 414 may be a dedicated hub - that is, a hub whose primary function is to route communications to/from the UEs from/to the network node 410B. In other embodiments, the hub 414 may be a non-dedicated hub - that is, a device which is capable of operating to route communications between the UEs and the network node 41 OB, but which is additionally capable of operating as a communication start and/or end point for certain data channels.

Figure 5 shows a UE 500 in accordance with some embodiments. As used herein, a UE refers to a device capable, configured, arranged, and/or operable to communicate wirelessly with network nodes and/or other UEs. Examples of a UE include, but are not limited to, a smart phone, mobile phone, cell phone, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone, wireless local loop phone, desktop computer, Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), wireless camera, gaming console or device, music storage device, playback appliance, wearable terminal device, wireless endpoint, mobile station, tablet, laptop, Laptop Embedded Equipment (LEE), Laptop Mounted Equipment (LME), smart device, wireless Customer Premise Equipment (CPE), vehicle-mounted or vehicle embedded/integrated wireless device, etc. Other examples include any UE identified by the 3GPP, including a Narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) UE, a Machine Type Communication (MTC) UE, and/or an enhanced MTC (eMTC) UE.

A UE may support Device-to-Device (D2D) communication, for example by implementing a 3GPP standard for sidelink communication, Dedicated Short-Range Communication (DSRC), Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V), Vehicle-to-Infrastructure (V2I), or Vehicle- to-Everything (V2X). In other examples, a UE may not necessarily have a user in the sense of a human user who owns and/or operates the relevant device. Instead, a UE may represent a device that is intended for sale to, or operation by, a human user but which may not, or which may not initially, be associated with a specific human user (e.g., a smart sprinkler controller). Alternatively, a UE may represent a device that is not intended for sale to, or operation by, an end user but which may be associated with or operated for the benefit of a user (e.g., a smart power meter).

The UE 500 includes processing circuitry 502 that is operatively coupled via a bus 504 to an input/output interface 506, a power source 508, memory 510, a communication interface 512, and/or any other component, or any combination thereof. Certain UEs may utilize all or a subset of the components shown in Figure 5. The level of integration between the components may vary from one UE to another UE. Further, certain UEs may contain multiple instances of a component, such as multiple processors, memories, transceivers, transmitters, receivers, etc.

The processing circuitry 502 is configured to process instructions and data and may be configured to implement any sequential state machine operative to execute instructions stored as machine-readable computer programs in the memory 510. The processing circuitry 502 may be implemented as one or more hardware-implemented state machines (e.g., in discrete logic, Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), etc.); programmable logic together with appropriate firmware; one or more stored computer programs, general purpose processors, such as a microprocessor or Digital Signal Processor (DSP), together with appropriate software; or any combination of the above. For example, the processing circuitry 502 may include multiple Central Processing Units (CPUs).

In the example, the input/output interface 506 may be configured to provide an interface or interfaces to an input device, output device, or one or more input and/or output devices. Examples of an output device include a speaker, a sound card, a video card, a display, a monitor, a printer, an actuator, an emitter, a smartcard, another output device, or any combination thereof. An input device may allow a user to capture information into the UE 500. Examples of an input device include a touch-sensitive or presence-sensitive display, a camera (e.g., a digital camera, a digital video camera, a web camera, etc.), a microphone, a sensor, a mouse, a trackball, a directional pad, a trackpad, a scroll wheel, a smartcard, and the like. The presence-sensitive display may include a capacitive or resistive touch sensor to sense input from a user. A sensor may be, for instance, an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a tilt sensor, a force sensor, a magnetometer, an optical sensor, a proximity sensor, a biometric sensor, etc., or any combination thereof. An output device may use the same type of interface port as an input device. For example, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) port may be used to provide an input device and an output device.

In some embodiments, the power source 508 is structured as a battery or battery pack. Other types of power sources, such as an external power source (e.g., an electricity outlet), photovoltaic device, or power cell, may be used. The power source 508 may further include power circuitry for delivering power from the power source 508 itself, and/or an external power source, to the various parts of the UE 500 via input circuitry or an interface such as an electrical power cable. Delivering power may be, for example, for charging the power source 508. Power circuitry may perform any formatting, converting, or other modification to the power from the power source 508 to make the power suitable for the respective components of the UE 500 to which power is supplied.

The memory 510 may be or be configured to include memory such as Random Access Memory (RAM), Read Only Memory (ROM), Programmable ROM (PROM), Erasable PROM (EPROM), Electrically EPROM (EEPROM), magnetic disks, optical disks, hard disks, removable cartridges, flash drives, and so forth. In one example, the memory 510 includes one or more application programs 514, such as an operating system, web browser application, a widget, gadget engine, or other application, and corresponding data 516. The memory 510 may store, for use by the UE 500, any of a variety of various operating systems or combinations of operating systems.

The memory 510 may be configured to include a number of physical drive units, such as Redundant Array of Independent Disks (RAID), flash memory, USB flash drive, external hard disk drive, thumb drive, pen drive, key drive, High Density Digital Versatile Disc (HD-DVD) optical disc drive, internal hard disk drive, Blu-Ray optical disc drive, Holographic Digital Data Storage (HDDS) optical disc drive, external mini Dual In-line Memory Module (DIMM), Synchronous Dynamic RAM (SDRAM), external micro-DIMM SDRAM, smartcard memory such as a tamper resistant module in the form of a Universal Integrated Circuit Card (UICC) including one or more Subscriber Identity Modules (SIMs), such as a Universal SIM (USIM) and/or Internet Protocol Multimedia Services Identity Module (ISIM), other memory, or any combination thereof. The UICC may for example be an embedded UICC (eUICC), integrated UICC (iUICC) or a removable UICC commonly known as a ‘ SIM card.’ The memory 510 may allow the UE 500 to access instructions, application programs, and the like stored on transitory or non-transitory memory media, to off-load data, or to upload data. An article of manufacture, such as one utilizing a communication system, may be tangibly embodied as or in the memory 510, which may be or comprise a device-readable storage medium. The processing circuitry 502 may be configured to communicate with an access network or other network using the communication interface 512. The communication interface 512 may comprise one or more communication subsystems and may include or be communicatively coupled to an antenna 522. The communication interface 512 may include one or more transceivers used to communicate, such as by communicating with one or more remote transceivers of another device capable of wireless communication (e.g., another UE or a network node in an access network). Each transceiver may include a transmitter 518 and/or a receiver 520 appropriate to provide network communications (e.g., optical, electrical, frequency allocations, and so forth). Moreover, the transmitter 518 and receiver 520 may be coupled to one or more antennas (e.g., the antenna 522) and may share circuit components, software, or firmware, or alternatively be implemented separately.

In the illustrated embodiment, communication functions of the communication interface 512 may include cellular communication, WiFi communication, LPWAN communication, data communication, voice communication, multimedia communication, short-range communications such as Bluetooth, NFC, location-based communication such as the use of the Global Positioning System (GPS) to determine a location, another like communication function, or any combination thereof. Communications may be implemented according to one or more communication protocols and/or standards, such as IEEE 802.11, Code Division Multiplexing Access (CDMA), Wideband CDMA (WCDMA), GSM, LTE, NR, UMTS, WiMax, Ethernet, Transmission Control Protocol/Intemet Protocol (TCP/IP), Synchronous Optical Networking (SONET), Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM), Quick User Datagram Protocol Internet Connection (QUIC), Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), and so forth.

Regardless of the type of sensor, a UE may provide an output of data captured by its sensors, through its communication interface 512, or via a wireless connection to a network node. Data captured by sensors of a UE can be communicated through a wireless connection to a network node via another UE. The output may be periodic (e g., once every 15 minutes if it reports the sensed temperature), random (e.g., to even out the load from reporting from several sensors), in response to a triggering event (e.g., when moisture is detected, an alert is sent), in response to a request (e.g., a user initiated request), or a continuous stream (e.g., a live video feed of a patient).

As another example, a UE comprises an actuator, a motor, or a switch related to a communication interface configured to receive wireless input from a network node via a wireless connection. In response to the received wireless input the states of the actuator, the motor, or the switch may change. For example, the UE may comprise a motor that adjusts the control surfaces or rotors of a drone in flight according to the received input or to a robotic arm performing a medical procedure according to the received input.

A UE, when in the form of an loT device, may be a device for use in one or more application domains, these domains comprising, but not limited to, city wearable technology, extended industrial application, and healthcare. Non-limiting examples of such an loT device are a device which is or which is embedded in: a connected refrigerator or freezer, a television, a connected lighting device, an electricity meter, a robot vacuum cleaner, a voice controlled smart speaker, a home security camera, a motion detector, a thermostat, a smoke detector, a door/window sensor, a flood/moisture sensor, an electrical door lock, a connected doorbell, an air conditioning system like a heat pump, an autonomous vehicle, a surveillance system, a weather monitoring device, a vehicle parking monitoring device, an electric vehicle charging station, a smart watch, a fitness tracker, a head-mounted display for Augmented Reality (AR) or VR, a wearable for tactile augmentation or sensory enhancement, a water sprinkler, an animal- or item-tracking device, a sensor for monitoring a plant or animal, an industrial robot, an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), and any kind of medical device, like a heart rate monitor or a remote controlled surgical robot. A UE in the form of an loT device comprises circuitry and/or software in dependence of the intended application of the loT device in addition to other components as described in relation to the UE 500 shown in Figure 5.

As yet another specific example, in an loT scenario, a UE may represent a machine or other device that performs monitoring and/or measurements and transmits the results of such monitoring and/or measurements to another UE and/or a network node. The UE may in this case be an M2M device, which may in a 3GPP context be referred to as an MTC device. As one particular example, the UE may implement the 3 GPP NB-IoT standard In other scenarios, a UE may represent a vehicle, such as a car, a bus, a truck, a ship, an airplane, or other equipment that is capable of monitoring and/or reporting on its operational status or other functions associated with its operation.

In practice, any number of UEs may be used together with respect to a single use case. For example, a first UE might be or be integrated in a drone and provide the drone’s speed information (obtained through a speed sensor) to a second UE that is a remote controller operating the drone. When the user makes changes from the remote controller, the first UE may adjust the throttle on the drone (e.g., by controlling an actuator) to increase or decrease the drone’s speed. The first and/or the second UE can also include more than one of the functionalities described above. For example, a UE might comprise the sensor and the actuator and handle communication of data for both the speed sensor and the actuators. Figure 6 shows a network node 600 in accordance with some embodiments. As used herein, network node refers to equipment capable, configured, arranged, and/or operable to communicate directly or indirectly with a UE and/or with other network nodes or equipment in a telecommunication network. Examples of network nodes include, but are not limited to, APs (e.g., radio APs), Base Stations (BSs) (e.g., radio BSs, Node Bs, evolved Node Bs (eNBs), and NR Node Bs (gNBs)).

BSs may be categorized based on the amount of coverage they provide (or, stated differently, their transmit power level) and so, depending on the provided amount of coverage, may be referred to as femto BSs, pico BSs, micro BSs, or macro BSs. A BS may be a relay node or a relay donor node controlling a relay. A network node may also include one or more (or all) parts of a distributed radio BS such as centralized digital units and/or Remote Radio Units (RRUs), sometimes referred to as Remote Radio Heads (RRHs). Such RRUs may or may not be integrated with an antenna as an antenna integrated radio. Parts of a distributed radio BS may also be referred to as nodes in a Distributed Antenna System (DAS).

Other examples of network nodes include multiple Transmission Point (multi-TRP) 5G access nodes, Multi -Standard Radio (MSR) equipment such as MSR BSs, network controllers such as Radio Network Controllers (RNCs) or BS Controllers (BSCs), Base Transceiver Stations (BTSs), transmission points, transmission nodes, Multi-Cell/Multicast Coordination Entities (MCEs), Operation and Maintenance (O&M) nodes, Operations Support System (OSS) nodes, Self-Organizing Network (SON) nodes, positioning nodes (e.g., Evolved Serving Mobile Location Centers (E-SMLCs)), and/or Minimization of Drive Tests (MDTs).

The network node 600 includes processing circuitry 602, memory 604, a communication interface 606, and a power source 608. The network node 600 may be composed of multiple physically separate components (e.g., a Node B component and an RNC component, or a BTS component and a BSC component, etc.), which may each have their own respective components. In certain scenarios in which the network node 600 comprises multiple separate components (e.g., BTS and BSC components), one or more of the separate components may be shared among several network nodes. For example, a single RNC may control multiple Node Bs. In such a scenario, each unique Node B and RNC pair may in some instances be considered a single separate network node. In some embodiments, the network node 600 may be configured to support multiple RATs. In such embodiments, some components may be duplicated (e.g., separate memory 604 for different RATs) and some components may be reused (e.g., an antenna 610 may be shared by different RATs). The network node 600 may also include multiple sets of the various illustrated components for different wireless technologies integrated into network node 600, for example GSM, WCDMA, LTE, NR, WiFi, Zigbee, Z-wave, Long Range Wide Area Network (LoRaWAN), Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), or Bluetooth wireless technologies. These wireless technologies may be integrated into the same or different chip or set of chips and other components within the network node 600.

The processing circuitry 602 may comprise a combination of one or more of a microprocessor, controller, microcontroller, CPU, DSP, ASIC, FPGA, or any other suitable computing device, resource, or combination of hardware, software, and/or encoded logic operable to provide, either alone or in conjunction with other network node 600 components, such as the memory 604, to provide network node 600 functionality.

In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 602 includes a System on a Chip (SOC). In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 602 includes one or more of Radio Frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry 612 and baseband processing circuitry 614. In some embodiments, the RF transceiver circuitry 612 and the baseband processing circuitry 614 may be on separate chips (or sets of chips), boards, or units, such as radio units and digital units. In alternative embodiments, part or all of the RF transceiver circuitry 612 and the baseband processing circuitry 614 may be on the same chip or set of chips, boards, or units.

The memory 604 may comprise any form of volatile or non-volatile computer-readable memory including, without limitation, persistent storage, solid state memory, remotely mounted memory, magnetic media, optical media, RAM, ROM, mass storage media (for example, a hard disk), removable storage media (for example, a flash drive, a Compact Disk (CD), or a Digital Video Disk (DVD)), and/or any other volatile or non-volatile, non-transitory device-readable, and/or computer-executable memory devices that store information, data, and/or instructions that may be used by the processing circuitry 602. The memory 604 may store any suitable instructions, data, or information, including a computer program, software, an application including one or more of logic, rules, code, tables, and/or other instructions capable of being executed by the processing circuitry 602 and utilized by the network node 600. The memory 604 may be used to store any calculations made by the processing circuitry 602 and/or any data received via the communication interface 606. In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 602 and the memory 604 are integrated.

The communication interface 606 is used in wired or wireless communication of signaling and/or data between a network node, access network, and/or UE. As illustrated, the communication interface 606 comprises port(s)/terminal(s) 616 to send and receive data, for example to and from a network over a wired connection. The communication interface 606 also includes radio front-end circuitry 618 that may be coupled to, or in certain embodiments a part of, the antenna 610. The radio front-end circuitry 618 comprises filters 620 and amplifiers 622. The radio front-end circuitry 618 may be connected to the antenna 610 and the processing circuitry 602. The radio front-end circuitry 618 may be configured to condition signals communicated between the antenna 610 and the processing circuitry 602. The radio front-end circuitry 618 may receive digital data that is to be sent out to other network nodes or UEs via a wireless connection. The radio front-end circuitry 618 may convert the digital data into a radio signal having the appropriate channel and bandwidth parameters using a combination of the filters 620 and/or the amplifiers 622. The radio signal may then be transmitted via the antenna 610. Similarly, when receiving data, the antenna 610 may collect radio signals which are then converted into digital data by the radio front-end circuitry 618. The digital data may be passed to the processing circuitry 602. In other embodiments, the communication interface 606 may comprise different components and/or different combinations of components.

In certain alternative embodiments, the network node 600 does not include separate radio front-end circuitry 618; instead, the processing circuitry 602 includes radio front-end circuitry and is connected to the antenna 610. Similarly, in some embodiments, all or some of the RF transceiver circuitry 612 is part of the communication interface 606. In still other embodiments, the communication interface 606 includes the one or more ports or terminals 616, the radio frontend circuitry 618, and the RF transceiver circuitry 612 as part of a radio unit (not shown), and the communication interface 606 communicates with the baseband processing circuitry 614, which is part of a digital unit (not shown).

The antenna 610 may include one or more antennas, or antenna arrays, configured to send and/or receive wireless signals. The antenna 610 may be coupled to the radio front-end circuitry 618 and may be any type of antenna capable of transmitting and receiving data and/or signals wirelessly. In certain embodiments, the antenna 610 is separate from the network node 600 and connectable to the network node 600 through an interface or port.

The antenna 610, the communication interface 606, and/or the processing circuitry 602 may be configured to perform any receiving operations and/or certain obtaining operations described herein as being performed by the network node 600. Any information, data, and/or signals may be received from a UE, another network node, and/or any other network equipment. Similarly, the antenna 610, the communication interface 606, and/or the processing circuitry 602 may be configured to perform any transmitting operations described herein as being performed by the network node 600. Any information, data, and/or signals may be transmitted to a UE, another network node, and/or any other network equipment. The power source 608 provides power to the various components of the network node 600 in a form suitable for the respective components (e.g., at a voltage and current level needed for each respective component). The power source 608 may further comprise, or be coupled to, power management circuitry to supply the components of the network node 600 with power for performing the functionality described herein. For example, the network node 600 may be connectable to an external power source (e.g., the power grid or an electricity outlet) via input circuitry or an interface such as an electrical cable, whereby the external power source supplies power to power circuitry of the power source 608. As a further example, the power source 608 may comprise a source of power in the form of a battery or battery pack which is connected to, or integrated in, power circuitry. The battery may provide backup power should the external power source fail.

Embodiments of the network node 600 may include additional components beyond those shown in Figure 6 for providing certain aspects of the network node’s functionality, including any of the functionality described herein and/or any functionality necessary to support the subject matter described herein. For example, the network node 600 may include user interface equipment to allow input of information into the network node 600 and to allow output of information from the network node 600. This may allow a user to perform diagnostic, maintenance, repair, and other administrative functions for the network node 600.

Figure 7 is a block diagram of a host 700, which may be an embodiment of the host 416 of Figure 4, in accordance with various aspects described herein. As used herein, the host 700 may be or comprise various combinations of hardware and/or software including a standalone server, a blade server, a cloud-implemented server, a distributed server, a virtual machine, container, or processing resources in a server farm. The host 700 may provide one or more services to one or more UEs.

The host 700 includes processing circuitry 702 that is operatively coupled via a bus 704 to an input/output interface 706, a network interface 708, a power source 710, and memory 712. Other components may be included in other embodiments. Features of these components may be substantially similar to those described with respect to the devices of previous figures, such as Figures 5 and 6, such that the descriptions thereof are generally applicable to the corresponding components of the host 700.

The memory 712 may include one or more computer programs including one or more host application programs 714 and data 716, which may include user data, e.g. data generated by a UE for the host 700 or data generated by the host 700 for a UE. Embodiments of the host 700 may utilize only a subset or all of the components shown. The host application programs 714 may be implemented in a container-based architecture and may provide support for video codecs (e.g., Versatile Video Coding (VVC), High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC), Advanced Video Coding (AVC), Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG), VP9) and audio codecs (e.g., Free Lossless Audio Codec (FLAC), Advanced Audio Coding (AAC), MPEG, G.711), including transcoding for multiple different classes, types, or implementations of UEs (e.g., handsets, desktop computers, wearable display systems, and heads-up display systems). The host application programs 714 may also provide for user authentication and licensing checks and may periodically report health, routes, and content availability to a central node, such as a device in or on the edge of a core network. Accordingly, the host 700 may select and/or indicate a different host for Over-The-Top (OTT) services for a UE. The host application programs 714 may support various protocols, such as the HTTP Live Streaming (HLS) protocol, Real-Time Messaging Protocol (RTMP), Real-Time Streaming Protocol (RTSP), Dynamic Adaptive Streaming over HTTP (DASH or MPEG-DASH), etc.

Figure 8 is a block diagram illustrating a virtualization environment 800 in which functions implemented by some embodiments may be virtualized. In the present context, virtualizing means creating virtual versions of apparatuses or devices which may include virtualizing hardware platforms, storage devices, and networking resources. As used herein, virtualization can be applied to any device described herein, or components thereof, and relates to an implementation in which at least a portion of the functionality is implemented as one or more virtual components. Some or all of the functions described herein may be implemented as virtual components executed by one or more Virtual Machines (VMs) implemented in one or more virtual environments 800 hosted by one or more of hardware nodes, such as a hardware computing device that operates as a network node, UE, core network node, or host. Further, in embodiments in which the virtual node does not require radio connectivity (e.g., a core network node or host), then the node may be entirely virtualized.

Applications 802 (which may alternatively be called software instances, virtual appliances, network functions, virtual nodes, virtual network functions, etc.) are run in the virtualization environment 800 to implement some of the features, functions, and/or benefits of some of the embodiments disclosed herein.

Hardware 804 includes processing circuitry, memory that stores software and/or instructions executable by hardware processing circuitry, and/or other hardware devices as described herein, such as a network interface, input/output interface, and so forth. Software may be executed by the processing circuitry to instantiate one or more virtualization layers 806 (also referred to as hypervisors or VM Monitors (VMMs)), provide VMs 808A and 808B (one or more of which may be generally referred to as VMs 808), and/or perform any of the functions, features, and/or benefits described in relation with some embodiments described herein. The virtualization layer 806 may present a virtual operating platform that appears like networking hardware to the VMs 808.

The VMs 808 comprise virtual processing, virtual memory, virtual networking, or interface and virtual storage, and may be run by a corresponding virtualization layer 806. Different embodiments of the instance of a virtual appliance 802 may be implemented on one or more of the VMs 808, and the implementations may be made in different ways. Virtualization of the hardware is in some contexts referred to as Network Function Virtualization (NFV). NFV may be used to consolidate many network equipment types onto industry standard high volume server hardware, physical switches, and physical storage, which can be located in data centers and customer premise equipment.

In the context of NFV, a VM 808 may be a software implementation of a physical machine that runs programs as if they were executing on a physical, non-virtualized machine. Each of the VMs 808, and that part of the hardware 804 that executes that VM, be it hardware dedicated to that VM and/or hardware shared by that VM with others of the VMs 808, forms separate virtual network elements. Still in the context of NFV, a virtual network function is responsible for handling specific network functions that run in one or more VMs 808 on top of the hardware 804 and corresponds to the application 802.

The hardware 804 may be implemented in a standalone network node with generic or specific components. The hardware 804 may implement some functions via virtualization. Alternatively, the hardware 804 may be part of a larger cluster of hardware (e.g., such as in a data center or CPE) where many hardware nodes work together and are managed via management and orchestration 810, which, among others, oversees lifecycle management of the applications 802. In some embodiments, the hardware 804 is coupled to one or more radio units that each include one or more transmitters and one or more receivers that may be coupled to one or more antennas. Radio units may communicate directly with other hardware nodes via one or more appropriate network interfaces and may be used in combination with the virtual components to provide a virtual node with radio capabilities, such as a RAN or a BS. In some embodiments, some signaling can be provided with the use of a control system 812 which may alternatively be used for communication between hardware nodes and radio units.

Although the computing devices described herein (e.g., UEs, network nodes, hosts) may include the illustrated combination of hardware components, other embodiments may comprise computing devices with different combinations of components. It is to be understood that these computing devices may comprise any suitable combination of hardware and/or software needed to perform the tasks, features, functions, and methods disclosed herein. Determining, calculating, obtaining, or similar operations described herein may be performed by processing circuitry, which may process information by, for example, converting the obtained information into other information, comparing the obtained information or converted information to information stored in the network node, and/or performing one or more operations based on the obtained information or converted information, and as a result of said processing making a determination. Moreover, while components are depicted as single boxes located within a larger box or nested within multiple boxes, in practice computing devices may comprise multiple different physical components that make up a single illustrated component, and functionality may be partitioned between separate components. For example, a communication interface may be configured to include any of the components described herein, and/or the functionality of the components may be partitioned between the processing circuitry and the communication interface. In another example, non-computationally intensive functions of any of such components may be implemented in software or firmware and computationally intensive functions may be implemented in hardware.

In certain embodiments, some or all of the functionality described herein may be provided by processing circuitry executing instructions stored in memory, which in certain embodiments may be a computer program product in the form of a non-transitory computer- readable storage medium. In alternative embodiments, some or all of the functionality may be provided by the processing circuitry without executing instructions stored on a separate or discrete device-readable storage medium, such as in a hardwired manner. In any of those particular embodiments, whether executing instructions stored on a non-transitory computer- readable storage medium or not, the processing circuitry can be configured to perform the described functionality. The benefits provided by such functionality are not limited to the processing circuitry alone or to other components of the computing device, but are enjoyed by the computing device as a whole and/or by end users and a wireless network generally.

Some of the embodiments of the present disclosure include:

Embodiment 1. A method performed by a first network node (110) for generating preconfigured measurement gaps for a plurality of bandwidth parts, BWPs, for a user equipment device, UE, (302) the method comprising: providing (308), to a second network node (108), a list of configured non-active BWPs associated with the UE (302); receiving (314), from the second network node (108); a request to generate preconfigured measurement gaps associated with selected BWPs of the list of configured non-active BWPs; and providing (316), to the second network node (108), information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the selected BWPs.

Embodiment 2. The method of embodiment 1, wherein providing the list of configured non-active BWPs associated with the UE (302) is in a UE Context Modification Response message in response to receiving (304) a UE Context Modification Request message.

Embodiment 3. The method of embodiment 1, wherein providing the list of configured non-active BWPs associated with the UE (302) is in a UE Context Setup Response message in response to receiving (304) a UE Context Setup Request message.

Embodiment 4. The method of any of embodiments 1 to 3, wherein the list of configured non-active BWPs associated with the UE (302) further comprises at least one of a serving cell or a BWP location associated with each non-active BWP of the list of configured non-active BWPs.

Embodiment 5. The method of any of embodiments 1 to 4, wherein the providing the information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the selected BWPs is in response to the first network node (110) supporting active BWP switching via downlink control information.

Embodiment 6. The method of any of embodiments 1 to 5, wherein the request to generate preconfigured measurement gaps associated with selected BWPs comprises a list of frequencies for which the second network node (108) requests the first network node (110) to generate the preconfigured measurement gaps.

Embodiment 7. The method of any of embodiments 1 to 6, wherein the information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps is included in another UE Context Modification Response message that also comprises an updated CellGroupConfig information element.

Embodiment 8. The method of any of embodiments 1-7, wherein the first network node (110) is a Distributed Unit, DU, network node, and wherein the second network node (108) is a Central Unit, CU, network node.

Embodiment 9. A first network node (110) that generates preconfigured measurement gaps for a plurality of bandwidth parts, BWPs, for a user equipment device, UE, (302) the first network node (110) comprising processing circuitry to perform operations, the operations comprising: providing (308), to a second network node (108), a list of configured non-active BWPs associated with the UE (302); receiving (314), from the second network node (108); a request to generate preconfigured measurement gaps associated with selected BWPs of the list of configured non-active BWPs; and providing (316), to the second network node (108), information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the selected BWPs. Embodiment 10. The first network node (110) of embodiment 9, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to perform the methods of embodiments 2-8.

Embodiment 11. A method performed by a second network node (108) for requesting preconfigured measurement gaps for a plurality of bandwidth parts, BWPs, for a user equipment device, UE, (302) the method comprising: receiving (306), from a first network node (110), a list of configured non-active BWPs associated with the UE (302); determining (312) to request preconfigured measurement gaps for one or more non-active BWPs of the list of configured nonactive BWPs; providing (314), to the first network node (110) a request to generate preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the one or more non-active BWPs of the list of configured non-active BWPs; receiving (316), from the first network node (110), information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the selected BWPs; and configuring (318) the UE (302) with the preconfigured measurement gaps.

Embodiment 12. The method of embodiment 11, wherein receiving the list of configured non-active BWPs associated with the UE (302) is in a UE Context Modification Response message in response to providing (304) a UE Context Modification Request message to the first network node (110).

Embodiment 13. The method of embodiment 11, wherein receiving the list of configured non-active BWPs associated with the UE (302) is in a UE Context Setup Response message in response to providing (304) a UE Context Setup Request message to the first network node (HO).

Embodiment 14. The method of any of embodiments 11 to 13, wherein the list of configured non-active BWPs associated with the UE (302) further comprises at least one of a serving cell or a BWP location associated with each non-active BWP of the list of configured non-active BWPs.

Embodiment 15. The method of any of embodiments 11 to 14, wherein the receiving the information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the selected BWPs is in response to the first network node (110) supporting active BWP switching via downlink control information.

Embodiment 16. The method of any of embodiments 11 to 15, wherein the request to generate preconfigured measurement gaps associated with selected BWPs comprises a list of frequencies for which the second network node (108) requests the first network node (110) to generate the preconfigured measurement gaps. Embodiment 17. The method of any of embodiments 11 to 16, wherein the information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps is included in another UE Context Modification Response message that also comprises an updated CellGroupConfig information element.

Embodiment 18. The method of any of embodiments 11-17, wherein the first network node (110) is a Distributed Unit, DU, network node, and wherein the second network node (108) is a Central Unit, CU, network node.

Embodiment 19. A second network node (108) that requests preconfigured measurement gaps for a plurality of bandwidth parts, BWPs, for a user equipment device, UE, (302) the second network node (108) comprising processing circuitry to perform operations, the operations comprising: receiving (306), from a first network node (110), a list of configured non-active BWPs associated with the UE (302); determining (312) to request preconfigured measurement gaps for one or more non-active BWPs of the list of configured non-active BWPs; providing (314), to the first network node (110) a request to generate preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the one or more non-active BWPs of the list of configured non-active BWPs; receiving (316), from the first network node (110), information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the selected BWPs; and configuring (318) the UE (302) with the preconfigured measurement gaps.

Embodiment 20. The second network node (108) of embodiment 19, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to perform the methods of embodiments 12-18.

Those skilled in the art will recognize improvements and modifications to the embodiments of the present disclosure. All such improvements and modifications are considered within the scope of the concepts disclosed herein

Claims

Claims

1. A method performed by a first network node (110) for generating preconfigured measurement gaps for a plurality of bandwidth parts, BWPs, for a user equipment device, UE, (302) the method comprising: providing (308), to a second network node (108), a list of configured BWPs associated with the UE (302); receiving (314), from the second network node (108), a request to generate preconfigured measurement gaps associated with selected BWPs of the list of configured BWPs; and providing (316), to the second network node (108), information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the selected BWPs.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the list of configured BWPs associated with the UE (302) is in a UE Context Modification Response message in response to receiving (304) a UE Context Modification Request message.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the list of configured BWPs associated with the UE (302) is in a UE Context Setup Response message in response to receiving (304) a UE Context Setup Request message.

4. The method of any of claims 1 to 3, wherein the list of configured BWPs associated with the UE (302) further comprises at least one of a serving cell or a BWP location associated with each BWP of the list of configured BWPs.

5. The method of any of claims 1 to 4, wherein the providing the information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the selected BWPs is in response to the first network node (110) supporting active BWP switching via downlink control information.

6. The method of any of claims 1 to 5, wherein the request to generate preconfigured measurement gaps associated with selected BWPs comprises a list of frequencies for which the second network node (108) requests the first network node (110) to generate the preconfigured measurement gaps.

7. The method of any of claims 1 to 6, wherein the information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps is included in another UE Context Modification Response message that also comprises an updated CellGroupConfig information element.

8. The method of any of claims 1-7, wherein the first network node (110) is a Distributed Unit, DU, network node, and wherein the second network node (108) is a Central Unit, CU, network node.

9. A first network node (110) that generates preconfigured measurement gaps for a plurality of bandwidth parts, BWPs, for a user equipment device, UE, (302) the first network node (110) comprising processing circuitry to perform operations, the operations comprising: providing (308), to a second network node (108), a list of configured BWPs associated with the UE (302); receiving (314), from the second network node (108); a request to generate preconfigured measurement gaps associated with selected BWPs of the list of configured BWPs; and providing (316), to the second network node (108), information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the selected BWPs.

10. The first network node (110) of claim 9, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to perform the methods of claims 2-8.

11. A method performed by a second network node (108) for requesting preconfigured measurement gaps for a plurality of bandwidth parts, BWPs, for a user equipment device, UE, (302) the method comprising: receiving (306), from a first network node (110), a list of configured BWPs associated with the UE (302); determining (312) to request preconfigured measurement gaps for one or more BWPs of the list of configured BWPs; providing (314), to the first network node (110) a request to generate preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the one or more BWPs of the list of configured BWPs; and receiving (316), from the first network node (110), information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the selected BWPs.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein receiving the list of configured BWPs associated with the UE (302) is in a UE Context Modification Response message in response to providing (304) a UE Context Modification Request message to the first network node (110).

13. The method of claim 11, wherein receiving the list of configured BWPs associated with the UE (302) is in a UE Context Setup Response message in response to providing (304) a UE Context Setup Request message to the first network node (110).

14. The method of any of claims 11 to 13, wherein the list of configured BWPs associated with the UE (302) further comprises at least one of a serving cell or a BWP location associated with each BWP of the list of configured BWPs.

15. The method of any of claims 11 to 14, wherein the receiving the information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the selected BWPs is in response to the first network node (110) supporting active BWP switching via downlink control information.

16. The method of any of claims 11 to 15, wherein the request to generate preconfigured measurement gaps associated with selected BWPs comprises a list of frequencies for which the second network node (108) requests the first network node (110) to generate the preconfigured measurement gaps.

17. The method of any of claims 11 to 16, wherein the information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps is included in another UE Context Modification Response message that also comprises an updated CellGroupConfig information element.

18. The method of any of claims 11-17, wherein the first network node (110) is a Distributed Unit, DU, network node, and wherein the second network node (108) is a Central Unit, CU, network node.

19. A second network node (108) that requests preconfigured measurement gaps for a plurality of bandwidth parts, BWPs, for a user equipment device, UE, (302) the second network node (108) comprising processing circuitry to perform operations, the operations comprising: receiving (306), from a first network node (110), a list of configured BWPs associated with the UE (302); determining (312) to request preconfigured measurement gaps for one or more BWPs of the list of configured BWPs; providing (314), to the first network node (110) a request to generate preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the one or more BWPs of the list of configured BWPs; and receiving (316), from the first network node (110), information identifying the preconfigured measurement gaps associated with the selected BWPs.

20. The second network node (108) of claim 19, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to perform the methods of claims 12-18.