EP4677924A1

EP4677924A1 - Cell measurements using multiple radios of a user equipment

Info

Publication number: EP4677924A1
Application number: EP24873852.8A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Jie Cui; Qiming Li; Yang Tang; Rolando E Bettancourt Ortega; Dawei Zhang; Manasa RAGHAVAN; Haitong Sun
Original assignee: Apple Inc
Current assignee: Apple Inc
Priority date: 2024-05-06
Filing date: 2024-05-06
Publication date: 2026-01-14
Also published as: WO2025231593A1

Abstract

The present application relates to measuring reference signals of cells using multiple radios of a user equipment (UE). In an example, the UE includes a main radio (MR) and a low-power wake-up radio (LP-WUR). The MR can be configured to measure reference signals of a serving cell and a neighbor cell using a non-relaxed measurement mode and/or a relaxed measurement mode. The LP-WUR can be configured to measure reference signals of the serving cell using the non-relaxed measurement mode. While the MR is disabled, serving cell measurements of reference signals received by the LP-WUR can be generated. Upon the MR being woken up, serving cell measurements and neighbor cell measurements of reference signals received by the MR can be generated using one of the two modes. The neighbor cell measurements can be performed using the same or a higher relaxation level than that of the serving cell measurements.

Description

CELL MEASUREMENTS USING MULTIPLE RADIOS OF A USER EQUIPMENT

BACKGROUND

Fifth generation mobile network (5G) is a wireless standard that aims to improve upon data transmission speed, reliability, availability, and more. This standard, while still developing, includes numerous details related to, for instance, a user equipment (UE) communicating with a network to send and receive data. In an example, the UE can operate in different modes to reduce its power consumption and switch between the modes based on signaling from the network.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a network environment in accordance with some embodiments.
FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a multi-radio user equipment (UE) in communication with a network in accordance with some embodiments.
FIG. 3 illustrates an example of multiple measurement modes available to perform cell measurements in accordance with some embodiments.
FIG. 4 illustrates an example of using a measurement mode upon a radio of a multi-radio UE being woken up in accordance with some embodiments.
FIG. 5 illustrates another example of using a measurement mode upon a radio of a multi-radio UE being woken up in accordance with some embodiments.
FIG. 6 illustrates an example of a measurement mode determination for a radio of a multi-radio UE in accordance with some embodiments.
FIG. 7 illustrates another example of a measurement mode determination for a radio of a multi-radio UE with some embodiments.
FIG. 8 illustrates an example of an operational flow/algorithmic structure for using a measurement mode in accordance with some embodiments.
FIG. 9 illustrates an example of an operational flow/algorithmic structure for configuring usage of a measurement mode in accordance with some embodiments.
FIG. 10 illustrates an example of receive components in accordance with some embodiments.
FIG. 11 illustrates an example of a UE in accordance with some embodiments.
FIG. 12 illustrates an example of a base station in accordance with some embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to, among other things, measuring reference signals of cells using multiple radios of a user equipment (UE) . In an example, the UE includes a low-power wake-up radio (LP-WUR) and a main radio (MR) . The LP-WUR may represent a first radio that is configured to use lower power than the MR (e.g., a second radio) . The UE can support multiple measurement modes including a first measurement mode (which can be referred to herein as a non-relaxed measurement mode) and a second measurement mode (which can be referred to herein as a relaxed measurement mode) . Relative to the first measurement mode, the second measurement mode enables a longer measurement time period and/or a longer time interval between measurements of reference signals. The MR can be configured to support the measurement modes, whereas the LP-WUR can be configured to only support a subset of the measurement modes (e.g., only the first measurement mode) .
In an example, the MR is disabled (e.g., powered OFF, in a sleep state, in a standby state, or any other state in which the MR does not receive reference signals and/or does not process such reference signals if received) . While the MR is disabled, the LP-WUR is enabled (e.g., powered ON, in an active state, or any other state in which the LP-WUR can receive and process reference signals) . The LP-WUR can receive a first reference signal of a serving cell (e.g., low power synchronization signal (LP-SS) or synchronization signal block (SSB) reference signal (RS) ) . A first measurement of the first reference signal can be generated. Next, the MR can be woken up (e.g., powered ON, transitioned or in transition to an active state, or any other state in which the MR can receive and process reference signals) . A second reference signal of the serving cell can be received by the MR and LP-WUR and a second measurement of the second reference signal can be generated (e.g., by using one or both radios) . A third reference signal of a neighbor cell can be also received by the MR. Based on a number of factors (e.g., including the first measurement, the second measurement, and/or a UE configuration) , one of the multiple measurement modes is selected for generating a third measurement of the third reference signal. The third measurement for the neighbor cell can be generated by using the selected measurement mode (e.g., the first non-relaxed measurement mode or the second relaxed measurement mode) . By selecting and using a measurement mode, the quality of the measurements can be maintained while improving throughput and/or power consumption of the UE.
The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawings. The same reference numbers may be used in different drawings to identify the same or similar elements. In the following description, for purposes of explanation and not limitation, specific details are set forth, such as particular structures, architectures, interfaces, techniques, etc. in order to provide a thorough understanding of the various aspects of various embodiments. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art having the benefit of the present disclosure that the various aspects of the various embodiments may be practiced in other examples that depart from these specific details. In certain instances, descriptions of well-known devices, circuits, and methods are omitted so as not to obscure the description of the various embodiments with unnecessary detail. For the purposes of the present document, the phrase “A or B” means (A) , (B) , or (A and B) .
The following is a glossary of terms that may be used in this disclosure.
The term “circuitry” as used herein refers to, is part of, or includes hardware components such as an electronic circuit, a logic circuit, a processor (shared, dedicated, or group) or memory (shared, dedicated, or group) , an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) , a field-programmable device (FPD) (e.g., a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) , a programmable logic device (PLD) , a complex PLD (CPLD) , a high-capacity PLD (HCPLD) , a structured ASIC, or a programmable system-on-a-chip (SoC) ) , digital signal processors (DSPs) , etc., that are configured to provide the described functionality. In some embodiments, the circuitry may execute one or more software or firmware programs to provide at least some of the described functionality. The term “circuitry” may also refer to a combination of one or more hardware elements (or a combination of circuits used in an electrical or electronic system) with the program code used to carry out the functionality of that program code. In these embodiments, the combination of hardware elements and program code may be referred to as a particular type of circuitry.
The term “processor circuitry” as used herein refers to, is part of, or includes circuitry capable of sequentially and automatically carrying out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations, or recording, storing, or transferring digital data. The term “processor circuitry” may refer an application processor, baseband processor, a central processing unit (CPU) , a graphics processing unit, a single-core processor, a dual-core processor, a triple-core processor, a quad-core processor, or any other device capable of executing or otherwise operating computer-executable instructions, such as program code, software modules, or functional processes. The term “processor circuitry” may be used synonymously with the term “processing circuitry. ”
The term “interface circuitry” as used herein refers to, is part of, or includes circuitry that enables the exchange of information between two or more components or devices. The term “interface circuitry” may refer to one or more hardware interfaces, for example, buses, I/O interfaces, peripheral component interfaces, network interface cards, or the like.
The term “user equipment” or “UE” as used herein refers to a device with radio communication capabilities and may describe a remote user of network resources in a communications network. The term “user equipment” or “UE” may be considered synonymous to, and may be referred to as, client, mobile, mobile device, mobile terminal, user terminal, mobile unit, mobile station, mobile user, subscriber, user, remote station, access agent, user agent, receiver, radio equipment, reconfigurable radio equipment, reconfigurable mobile device, etc. Furthermore, the term “user equipment” or “UE” may include any type of wireless/wired device or any computing device including a wireless communications interface.
The term “computer system” as used herein refers to any type interconnected electronic devices, computer devices, or components thereof. Additionally, the term “computer system” or “system” may refer to various components of a computer that are communicatively coupled with one another. Furthermore, the term “computer system” or “system” may refer to multiple computer devices or multiple computing systems that are communicatively coupled with one another and configured to share computing or networking resources.
The term “resource” as used herein refers to a physical or virtual device, a physical or virtual component within a computing environment, or a physical or virtual component within a particular device, such as computer devices, mechanical devices, memory space, processor/CPU time, processor/CPU usage, processor and accelerator loads, hardware time or usage, electrical power, input/output operations, ports or network sockets, channel/link allocation, throughput, memory usage, storage, network, database and applications, workload units, or the like. A “hardware resource” may refer to compute, storage, or network resources provided by physical hardware element (s) . A “virtualized resource” may refer to compute, storage, or network resources provided by virtualization infrastructure to an application, device, system, etc. The term “network resource” or “communication resource” may refer to resources that are accessible by computer devices/systems via a communications network. The term “system resources” may refer to any kind of shared entities to provide services, and may include computing or network resources. System resources may be considered as a set of coherent functions, network data objects or services, accessible through a server where such system resources reside on a single host or multiple hosts and are clearly identifiable.
The term “channel” as used herein refers to any transmission medium, either tangible or intangible, which is used to communicate data or a data stream. The term “channel” may be synonymous with or equivalent to “communications channel, ” “data communications channel, ” “transmission channel, ” “data transmission channel, ” “access channel, ” “data access channel, ” “link, ” “data link, ” “carrier, ” “radio-frequency carrier, ” or any other like term denoting a pathway or medium through which data is communicated. Additionally, the term “link” as used herein refers to a connection between two devices for the purpose of transmitting and receiving information.
The term “connected” may mean that two or more elements, at a common communication protocol layer, have an established signaling relationship with one another over a communication channel, link, interface, or reference point.
The term “information element” refers to a structural element containing one or more fields. The term “field” refers to individual contents of an information element, or a data element that contains content. An information element may include one or more additional information elements.
FIG. 1 illustrates a network environment 100, in accordance with some embodiments. The network environment 100 may include a UE 104 and a gNB 108. The gNB 108 may be a base station or a set of transmission and reception points (TRPs) thereof and may provide a wireless access cell; for example, a Third-Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) New Radio (NR) cell, through which the UE 104 may communicate with the gNB 108. This base station may be a component of a network (e.g., a 3GPP NR cellular network) . The UE 104 and the gNB 108 may communicate over an interface compatible with 3GPP technical specifications, such as those that define Fifth-Generation (5G) NR system standards.
The gNB 108 may transmit information (for example, data and control signaling) in the downlink direction by mapping logical channels on the transport channels, then transport channels onto physical channels. The logical channels may transfer data between a radio link control (RLC) and media access control (MAC) layers; the transport channels may transfer data between the MAC and PHY layers; and the physical channels may transfer information across the air interface. The physical channels may include a physical broadcast channel (PBCH) ; a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) ; and a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) .
The PBCH may be used to broadcast system information that the UE 104 may use for initial access to a serving cell. The PBCH may be transmitted along with physical synchronization signals (PSS) and secondary synchronization signals (SSS) in a synchronization signal (SS) /PBCH block. The SS/PBCH blocks (SSBs) may be used by the UE 104 during a cell search procedure and for beam selection.
The PDSCH may be used to transfer end-user application data, signaling radio bearer (SRB) messages, system information messages (other than, for example, MIB) , and paging messages.
The PDCCH may transfer downlink control information (DCI) that is used by a scheduler of the gNB 108 to allocate both uplink and downlink resources. The DCI may also be used to provide uplink power control commands, configure a slot format, or indicate that preemption has occurred.
The gNB 108 may also transmit various reference signals to the UE 104. The reference signals may include demodulation reference signals (DMRSs) for the PBCH, PDCCH, and PDSCH. The UE 104 may compare a received version of the DMRS with a known DMRS sequence that was transmitted to estimate an impact of the propagation channel. The UE 104 may then apply an inverse of the propagation channel during a demodulation process of a corresponding physical channel transmission.
The reference signals may also include CSI-RS. The CSI-RS may be a multi-purpose downlink transmission that may be used for CSI reporting, beam management, connected mode mobility, radio link failure detection, beam failure detection and recovery, and fine-tuning of time and frequency synchronization.
The reference signals and information from the physical channels may be mapped to resources of a resource grid. There is one resource grid for a given antenna port, subcarrier spacing configuration, and transmission direction (for example, downlink or uplink) . The basic unit of an NR downlink resource grid may be a resource element, which may be defined by one subcarrier in the frequency domain, and one orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbol in the time domain. Twelve consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain may compose a physical resource block (PRB) . A resource element group (REG) may include one PRB in the frequency domain, and one OFDM symbol in the time domain, for example, twelve resource elements. A control channel element (CCE) may represent a group of resources used to transmit PDCCH. One CCE may be mapped to a number of REGs; for example, six REGs.
Transmissions that use different antenna ports may experience different radio channels. However, in some situations, different antenna ports may share common radio channel characteristics. For example, different antenna ports may have similar Doppler shifts, Doppler spreads, average delay, delay spread, or spatial receive parameters (for example, properties associated with a downlink received signal angle of arrival at a UE) . Antenna ports that share one or more of these large-scale radio channel characteristics may be said to be quasi co-located (QCL) with one another. 3GPP has specified four types of QCL to indicate which particular channel characteristics are shared. In QCL Type A, antenna ports share Doppler shift, Doppler spread, average delay, and delay spread. In QCL Type B, antenna ports share Doppler shift and Doppler spread. In QCL Type C, antenna ports share Doppler shift and average delay. In QCL Type D, antenna ports share spatial receiver parameters.
The gNB 108 may provide transmission configuration indicator (TCI) state information to the UE 104 to indicate QCL relationships between antenna ports used for reference signals (for example, synchronization signal/PBCH or CSI-RS) and downlink data or control signaling (for example, PDSCH or PDCCH) . The gNB 108 may use a combination of RRC signaling, MAC control element signaling, and DCI, to inform the UE 104 of these QCL relationships.
The UE 104 may transmit data and control information to the gNB 108 using physical uplink channels. Different types of physical uplink channels are possible, including a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) and a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) . Whereas the PUCCH carries control information from the UE 104 to the gNB 108, such as uplink control information (UCI) , the PUSCH carries data traffic (e.g., end-user application data) and can carry UCI.
In an example, communications with the gNB 108 can use channels in the frequency range 1 (FR1) band and/or frequency range 2 (FR2) band, although other frequency ranges are possible. The FR1 band includes a licensed band and an unlicensed band. The NR unlicensed band (NR-U) includes a frequency spectrum that is shared with other types of radio access technologies (RATs) (e.g., LTE-LAA, WiFi, etc. ) . A listen-before-talk (LBT) procedure can be used to avoid or minimize collision between the different RATs in the NR-U, whereby a device applies a clear channel assessment (CCA) check before using the channel.
The UE 104 can be located within a network coverage. In particular, the gNB 108 may provide the network coverage with signaling (e.g., which may be carried by one or more beams) . The network coverage may represent a cell or a portion of the cell that the gNB 108 provides. The network coverage may provide network connections to multiple UEs, similar to the UE 104. These UEs may communicate with the gNB 108 on both the uplink and the downlink based on channels available to them when the UEs are in the network coverage.
In an example, the UE 104 supports carrier aggregation (CA) , whereby the UE 104 can connect and exchange data simultaneously over multiple component carriers (CCs) with the gNB 108. The CCs can belong to the same frequency band, in which case they are referred to as intra-band CCs. Intra-band CCs can be contiguous or non-contiguous. The CCs can also belong to different frequency bands, in which case they are referred to as inter-band CCs. A serving cell can be configured for the UE 104 to use a CC. A serving cell can be a primary (PCell) , a primary secondary cell (PSCell) , or a secondary cell (SCell) . Multiple SCells can be activated via an SCell activation procedures where the component carriers of these serving cells can be intra-band contiguous, intra-band noon-contiguous, or inter-band. The serving cells can be collocated or non-collocated.
The UE 104 can also support dual connectivity (DC) , where it can simultaneously transmit and receive data on multiple CCs from two serving nodes or cell groups (a master node (MN) and a secondary node (SN) ) . DC capability can be used with two serving nodes operating in the same RAT or in different RATs (e.g., an MN operating in NR, while an SN operates in LTE) . These different DC modes include, for instance, evolved-universal terrestrial radio access-new radio (EN) -DC, NR-DC, and NE-DC (the MN is a NR gNB and the SN is an LTE eNB) .
As further described in the next figures, the gNB 108 can send a reference signal 120 to the UE 104. The reference signal 120 can be associated with a serving cell or a neighbor cell. The UE 104 can be a multi-radio UE (e.g., by including an MR and an LP-WUR) and can be configured to support multiple measurement modes 112 including a non-relaxed measurement mode and a relaxed measurement mode. Based on the same reference signal 120, a single measurement or multiple measurements can be generated using one or more of the measurement modes 112. Based on a different reference signal (e.g., associated with a different cell) , a single measurement or multiple measurements can be generated using one or more of the measurement modes 112 (which may, but need not, be different from the measurement mode (s) used in measuring the reference signal 120) . These measurements are shown as reference signal measurements 114 in FIG. 1 and can be performed as part of a cell detection, a cell measurement, and/or a cell evaluation.
The reference signal 120 (and other reference signals) can be sent based on a configuration of the UE 104. The gNB 108 can indicate at least a part of the configuration by sending configuration information the UE 104. Further, the configuration information can indicate different parameters to select the relevant measurement mode (s) to use for performing the reference signal measurement (s) . This configuration information can be sent based on LP-WUR capability 110 of the UE 104. In particular, the UE 104 can send capability information to the gNB 108 (e.g., in an information element) , where the capability information can indicate that the UE supports LW-WUR operations (or is a multi-radio UE) and/or supports measurement relaxation.
FIG. 2 illustrates an example 200 of a multi-radio UE 210 in communication with a network 220 in accordance with some embodiments. The multi-radio UE 210 is an example of the UE 104. The network 220 can include a base station (not shown, but similar to the gNB 108) . The communication can be via the base station.
The multi-radio UE 210 includes a main radio (MR) 212 and a low-power wake-up radio (LP-WUR) 214. The MR 212 and the LP-WUR 214 can be implemented separately (e.g., do not share hardware components) or can share one or more hardware resources (e.g., share at least a portion of a radio frequency (RF) chain, such as receive antennas, and/or a portion of a processing circuitry, such as a processor and/or a memory) . The LP-WUR 214 can have lower radio capabilities and can use lower power than the MR 212. The MR 212 can be configured for radio resource management (RRM) functionalities, data reception and transmission, and/or control reception and transmission. As part of the RRM functionalities, the MR 212 can measure reference signals of a serving cell and a neighbor cell in a plurality of measurement modes, including a non-relaxed measurement mode (which can also be referred to as a legacy measurement mode) and a relaxed measurement mode (which can be referred to as a non-legacy measurement mode) . In comparison, the LP-WUR 214 can be configured to support a more limited set of functionalities, among which is measuring reference signals of a serving cell but not a neighbor cell and using a subset of the plurality of measurement modes (e.g., in the non-relaxed measurement mode but not the relaxed measurement mode) . Further, the reference signals measurable by the LP-WUR 214 can be different from those measurable by the MR 212.
As further illustrated in FIG. 2, the network 220 (e.g., the base station, one or more TRPs thereof, and/or one or more base stations) can send legacy reference signals 222 to the UE 210. These legacy reference signals 222 can include SSB reference signals (or other reference signals, such as CSI-RS) of a serving cell and/or a neighbor cell. The main radio 212 can receive (e.g., the corresponding RF chain) the legacy reference signals 222 to then perform measurements (e.g., the corresponding processing circuitry) on the legacy reference signals 222.
Similarly, the network 220 (e.g., the base station, one or more TRPs thereof, and/or one or more base stations) can send legacy reference signals 224 to the UE 210. These legacy reference signals 224 can include SSB reference signals (or other reference signals, such as CSI-RS) of a serving cell. Although illustrated as being separate, the legacy reference signals 222 and 224 can be the same. The LP-WUR 214 can receive (e.g., the corresponding RF chain) the legacy reference signals 224 to then perform measurements (e.g., the corresponding processing circuitry) on the legacy reference signals 224.
Further, the network 220 (e.g., the base station, one or more TRPs thereof, and/or one or more base stations) can send non-legacy reference signals 226 to the UE 210. These non-legacy reference signals 226 can correspond to LP-WUR specific reference signals and can include low-power wake-up signals (LP-WUSs) and/or low-power synchronization signals (LP-SSs) . The non-legacy reference signal 226 can correspond to the serving cell. The LP-WUR 214 can receive (e.g., the corresponding RF chain) the non-legacy reference signals 226 to then perform measurements (e.g., the corresponding processing circuitry) on the non-legacy reference signals 226.
The multi-radio UE 210 can operate in different RRC modes. In the RRC_IDLE and/or RRC_INACTIVE modes, procedure and configuration of LP-WUS can be specified indicating paging monitoring triggered by LP-WUS, including at least configuration, sub-grouping and entry/exit condition for LP-WUS monitoring. LP-SS can be specified with periodicity ( “Y” milliseconds, where “Y” can start at 320ms) for the LP-WUR 214, for synchronization and/or RRM for serving cell. LP-SS can be based on on-off keying-1 (OOK-1) and/or OOK-4 waveform with or without overlaid orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) sequences. Further down selection between with and without overlaid OFDM sequences can be done. If the LP-WUR 214 that can receive a legacy primary synchronization signal (PSS) and/or a legacy secondary synchronization signal (SSS) , the legacy PSS and/or SSS can be used for synchronization and RRM instead of LP-SS. RRM relaxation can be specified for the MR 212 for both serving and neighbor cell measurements, and UE serving cell RRM measurement offloaded from the MR 212 to the LP-WUR 214 including the necessary conditions.
FIG. 3 illustrates an example of multiple measurement modes available to perform cell measurements in accordance with some embodiments. Two measurement modes are illustrated: a non-relaxed measurement mode 301 and a relaxed measurement mode 302. In each of the measurement modes, a UE (e.g., the multi-radio UE 210) can perform a measurement on a reference signal within a measurement time period (also referred to as a measurement period) , where the measurement needs to be completed before an expiration of the measurement time period. The measurement time period can be a time period for cell detection, cell measurement, and/or cell evaluation. Further, in each of the measurement modes, the UE can repeat the measuring after a measurement time interval (also referred to as a time interval) .
Generally, the relaxed measurement mode 302 enables a relaxation level relative to the non-relaxed measurement mode 301. The relaxation level (also referred to as RRM relaxation) can be for any of the measurement time period and/or the measurement time interval. For example, the measurement time period and/or the measurement time interval can become longer (e.g., each increased by a scaling factor that is larger than one, where a scaling factor can be the same for both the measurement time period and measurement time interval, or where each one of the measurement time period and measurement time interval can be associated with a corresponding scaling factor) .
In an example, the non-relaxed measurement mode 301 enables a first measurement time period 310 and a first measurement time interval 320. The first measurement time period 310 repeats after each first measurement time interval 320.
In comparison, the relaxed measurement mode 302 enables a second measurement time period 350 and a second measurement time interval 360. The second measurement time period 350 repeats after each second measurement time interval 350.
The second measurement time period 350 is relaxed relative to the first measurement time period 310 (e.g., made longer by using a first scaling factor that is larger than one) . Additionally, or alternatively, the second measurement time interval 360 is relaxed relative to the first measurement time interval 320 (e.g., made longer by using a second scaling factor that is larger than one) . The first and second scaling factors can, but need not, be the same.
With a single-radio UE (e.g., a UE that only includes an MR and excludes an LP-WUR) , no relaxation is enabled (e.g., only the non-relaxed measurement mode 301 can be used) for measurements on a serving cell (e.g., for cell detection, cell measurement, and or cell evaluation) . In comparison, for measurements on a neighbor cell (e.g., for cell detection, cell measurement, and or cell evaluation) , relaxation can be enabled (e.g., the relaxed measurement mode 302 may be used) based on the measurements on the serving cell. Such relaxations are described in 3GPP TS 38.133, V18.5.0 (2024-03) , the content of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
With a multi-radio UE (e.g., a UE that includes an MR and an LP-WUR) , multiple radios (e.g., both the MR and the LP-WUR) can be enabled at the same time (e.g., powered ON, in an active state, or any other state in which the radios can receive and process reference signals) . One of the enabled radios (e.g., the MR) may be performing measurements on a serving cell and/or neighbor cell with RRM relaxation. Generally, the serving and neighbor cell measurement relaxation can be different for the MR. For example, a neighbor cell measurement may need to have a higher relaxation level (e.g., larger scaling factor (s) ) than a serving cell measurement. As such, if the serving cell measurement is in non-relaxed measurement mode 301 (e.g., a measurement mode without relaxation) , the neighbor cell measurement can use the non-relaxed measurement mode 301 or the relaxed measurement mode 302, or can be even disabled (no neighbor cell measurement is triggered) . If the serving cell measurement is in the relaxed measurement mode 302 (also referred as relaxation mode) , the neighbor cell measurement may need to use the relaxed measurement mode 302 or can be even disabled. If the relaxed measurement mode 302 is used for the neighbor cell measurement, the used relaxation level (measurement period or interval extension level) of the neighbor cell measurement may not be less than that of the serving cell measurement. Further, a measurement threshold can be used to trigger the relaxation. The measurement threshold can be a reference signal received power (RSRP) and/or reference signal received quality (RSRQ) threshold. The value of the measurement threshold can be different for the serving cell measurement relaxation from that of the neighbor cell measurement relaxation. For instance, the RSRP/RSRQ threshold to trigger neighbor cell measurement relaxation can be smaller than that of the serving cell measurement relaxation. Additionally, if the neighbor cell measurement is triggered, the MR can cancel the serving cell measurement relaxation directly.
As such, for a UE that includes an MR and an LP-WUR, measurement relaxation can be applied to the MR. In other words, the MR can use the relaxed measurement mode 302 to measure a serving cell and/or a neighbor cell. Here, a measurement on a cell is performed on a reference signal (e.g., one or more of the legacy reference signals 222) of the cell and can include a cell detection, a cell measurement, and/or a cell evaluation. A measurement of a neighbor cell can include an intra-frequency measurement, an inter-frequency measurement, and/or an inter-radio access technology (RAT) measurement. The measurement of a neighbor cell may need to have the more relax measurement than a measurement of the serving cell (e.g., use a higher relaxation level) .
Further described herein below are situations of using one of the measurement modes 301 or 302 for an MR upon the MR being woken up or after the MR is woken up and an LP-WUR is enabled. In the interested of clarity, the MR and the LP-WUR are described as examples of two radios included in a multi-radio UE. However, the embodiments of the present disclosure may not be limited to only the two radio types or to only two radios.
FIG. 4 illustrates an example of using a measurement mode upon a radio of a multi-radio UE 410 being woken up in accordance with some embodiments. Here, the radio is an MR. The multi-radio UE 410 is an example of the UE 104. As illustrated, the multi-radio UE 410 is operated in a first operational state 401 in which its MR is disabled and its LP-WUR is enabled. The MR being disabled corresponds to the MR being powered OFF, in a sleep state, in a standby state, or any other state in which the MR cannot receive reference signals and/or cannot process such reference signals if received. The LP-WUR being enabled corresponds to the LP-WUR being powered ON, in an active state, or any other state in which the LP-WUR can receive and process reference signals. Subsequently, the multi-radio UE 410 is operated in a second operational state 402 in which its MR is woken up and its LP-WUR remains enabled. The MR being woken up can correspond to the MR being enabled or to a transition from being disabled to becoming enabled. The MR being enabled corresponds to the MR being powered ON, in an active state, or any other state in which the MR can receive and process reference signals.
In the first operational state 401, the LP-WUR can receive and measure a serving cell reference signal 420. Generally, the LP-WUR performs the measurement using a non-relaxed measurement mode (e.g., the non-relaxed measurement mode 301) . The serving cell reference signal 420 can be a reference signal of a serving cell, where this reference signal can be one of the non-legacy reference signals 226 (e.g., an LP-SS) or the legacy reference signals 224 (e.g., SSB) . The measurement is shown in FIG. 4 as an LP-WUR serving cell measurement 412 and can correspond to a cell detection of the serving cell, a cell measurement of the serving cell, and/or a cell evaluation of the serving cell.
In the second operational state 402, the LP-WUR can also receive and measure a serving cell reference signal 422. Here also, the LP-WUR can continue using the non-relaxed measurement mode to perform the measurement. The serving cell reference signal 422 can be a reference signal of the serving cell, where this reference signal can be one of the non-legacy reference signals 226 (e.g., an LP-SS) or the legacy reference signals 224 (e.g., SSB) . The measurement is shown in FIG. 4 as an LP-WUR serving cell measurement 413 and can correspond to a cell detection of the serving cell, a cell measurement of the serving cell, and/or a cell evaluation of the serving cell.
Also in the second operational mode 402, the MR can receive and measure the serving cell reference signal 422 (in which case, the serving cell reference signal 422 is one of the legacy reference signals 222) , or a different serving cell reference signal (in which case, the serving cell reference signal 422 received by the LP-WUR can be one of the non-legacy reference signals 226) . The measurement is shown in FIG. 4 as an MR serving cell measurement 415 and can correspond to a cell detection of the serving cell, a cell measurement of the serving cell, and/or a cell evaluation of the serving cell. Additionally, the MR can receive and measure a neighbor cell reference signal 440. The neighbor cell reference signal 440 can be a reference signal of a neighbor cell, where this reference signal can be one of the legacy reference signals 224 (e.g., SSB) . The measurement is shown in FIG. 4 as an MR neighbor cell measurement 417 and can correspond to a cell detection of the neighbor cell, a cell measurement of the neighbor cell, and/or a cell evaluation of the neighbor cell.
Different triggers may exit to switch from the first operational mode 401 to the second operational mode 402. One example trigger is a comparison of the LP-WUR serving cell measurement 413 to a measurement threshold. For example, the LP-WUR serving cell measurement 413 can include an RSRP (and/or RSRQ) measurement and can be compared with an RSRP (and/or RSRQ) threshold. If greater than the measurement threshold, the switch can occur. The measurement threshold can be configured via a network (e.g., indicated in configuration information sent by a base station of the network) or predefined in a technical specification with which the multi-radio UE 410 complies. Other example triggers include low mobility conditions. A low mobility condition can be defined relative to a measurement threshold and/or mobility speed of the multi-radio UE 410. Here also, the low mobility condition can be configured via the network or predefined in the technical specification. Yet another example trigger can be a network indication or command to perform the switch.
Regardless of the cause for the switch to the second operational mode 402, FIG. 4 illustrates a use case of, upon being woken up, the MR defaults to using a non-relaxed measurement mode 414. As such, the MR serving cell measurement 415 is generated using the non-relaxed measurement mode 414. As previously explained, the MR neighbor cell measurement 417 may be more relaxed than the MR serving cell measurement 415 (but the MR serving cell measurement 415 may not be more relaxed than the MR neighbor cell measurement 417) . Accordingly, here the MR neighbor cell measurement 417 can be generated using the non-relaxed measurement mode 414 or a relaxed measurement mode 416. Different options exist to determine which of the two measurement modes 414 or 416 to use for the MR neighbor cell measurement 417.
In a first option, the multi-radio UE 410 may perform the MR neighbor cell measurement 417 in the non-relaxed measurement mode 414 (without measurement relaxation) . In a second option, the multi-radio UE 410 may perform the MR neighbor cell measurement 417 in the relaxed measurement mode (e.g., in a in relaxation mode where the measurement period and/or the measurement interval is/are relaxed) . The relaxation level can be a default setting (e.g., where this default setting is defined in the technical specification or is a UE implementation) or can be configured by the network (e.g., in configuration information) . Alternatively, the MR neighbor cell measurement 417 may not be generated at all (e.g., using a disabled mode such that no neighbor cell measurement is performed) .
Which of the first option or the second option to use can be based on a number of factors. One factor can include a default setting (e.g., the MR defaults to using the non-relaxed measurement mode 414 or the relaxed measurement mode 416 upon being woken up, where this default is defined in the technical specification or is a UE implementation) or can be configured by the network (e.g., in configuration information) . Another factor can include using a serving cell measurement (e.g., one, a combination, or all of the LP-WUR serving cell measurement 412, the LP-WUR serving cell measurement 413, and/or the MR serving cell measurement 415) . The serving cell measurement can be compared with a corresponding measurement threshold (e.g., an RSRP (and/or RSRQ) threshold) . If larger than the measurement threshold, the relaxed measurement mode 416 can be selected. Otherwise, the MR continues using the non-relaxed measurement mode 414. The measurement threshold (s) can be defined in the technical specification or configured by the network.
Here also, whether to use one, a combination, or all of the LP-WUR serving cell measurement 412, the LP-WUR serving cell measurement 413, and/or the MR serving cell measurement 415 can be by default or configured by the network. If both radio measurements are used, two different measurement thresholds can be defined (each corresponding to one of the radios) . An absolute rule or a minority rule can be used. The majority rule can necessitate that all the radio measurements are larger than the corresponding measurement thresholds. The minority rule can necessitate that at least one or at least half of the radio measurements is/are larger than the corresponding measurement thresholds.
To illustrate the decision about whether to use the first option or the second option, consider the following. The use is based on a comparison with an RSRP/RSRQ threshold, while the serving cell measurement 415 is not in a relaxation mode after waking up the MR radio. After the multi-radio UE 410 wakes up the MR, the multi-radio UE 410 performs the MR serving cell measurement 415 in the non-relaxed measurement mode 414 and uses the MR measurement result (e.g., the MR serving cell measurement 415) to decide whether neighbor relaxation is to be used or not for measuring the neighbor cell reference signal 440. Alternatively, after the multi-radio UE 410 wakes up the MR, the multi-radio UE 410 performs the MR serving cell measurement 415 in the non-relaxed measurement mode 414 and uses the LP-WUR measurement result (e.g., the LP-WUR serving cell measurement 413) to decide whether neighbor relaxation is to be used or not for measuring the neighbor cell reference signal 440.
FIG. 5 illustrates another example of using a measurement mode upon a radio of a multi-radio UE 510 being woken up in accordance with some embodiments. Here, the radio is an MR. The multi-radio UE 510 is an example of the UE 104. As illustrated, the multi-radio UE 510 is operated in a first operational state 501 in which its MR is disabled and its LP-WUR is enabled. Subsequently, the multi-radio UE 510 is operated in a second operational state 502 in which its MR is woken up and its LP-WUR remains enabled.
Many aspects of FIG. 5 are similar to those of FIG. 4. In the interest of brevity, the similarities are not repeated herein and similarly and equivalently apply to the description of FIG. 5. A difference over FIG. 4 is that, upon being woken up, the MR uses a relaxed measurement mode 516 (e.g., the relaxed measurement mode 416) . Because neighbor cell measurements may be more relaxed than serving cell measurements, but not the other way around, the MR can the relaxed measurement mode 516 (with the same or even higher relaxation level) for the neighbor cell measurements or such measurements can be disabled altogether.
In the first operational state 501, the LP-WUR can receive and measure a serving cell reference signal 520. The measurement is shown in FIG. 5 as an LP-WUR serving cell measurement 512 and can correspond to a cell detection of the serving cell, a cell measurement of the serving cell, and/or a cell evaluation of the serving cell. In the second operational state 502, the LP-WUR can also receive and measure a serving cell reference signal 522. The measurement is shown in FIG. 5 as an LP-WUR serving cell measurement 513 and can correspond to a cell detection of the serving cell, a cell measurement of the serving cell, and/or a cell evaluation of the serving cell.
Also in the second operational mode 502, the MR can receive and measure the serving cell reference signal 522 (or a different serving cell reference signal) . The measurement is shown in FIG. 5 as an MR serving cell measurement 515 and can correspond to a cell detection of the serving cell, a cell measurement of the serving cell, and/or a cell evaluation of the serving cell. Additionally, the MR can receive and measure a neighbor cell reference signal 540. The measurement is shown in FIG. 5 as an MR neighbor cell measurement 517 and can correspond to a cell detection of the neighbor cell, a cell measurement of the neighbor cell, and/or a cell evaluation of the neighbor cell.
Regardless of the cause for the switch to the second operational mode 502, FIG. 5 illustrates a use case of, upon being woken up, the MR defaults to using the relaxed measurement mode 516. As such, the MR serving cell measurement 515 is generated using the relaxed measurement mode 516. As previously explained, the MR neighbor cell measurement 517 may be more relaxed than the MR serving cell measurement 515 (but the MR serving cell measurement 515 may not be more relaxed than the MR neighbor cell measurement 517) . Different options exist.
In a first option, the multi-radio UE 510 may perform the MR neighbor cell measurement 517 in the relaxed measurement mode 516 (with measurement relaxation) . The relaxation level of the neighbor cell measurement 517 cannot be less than that of the MR serving cell measurement 415 (e.g., a longer measurement period and/or a longer interval extension level is/are used, or conversely, a larger scaling factor (s) is (are) used) . The relaxation level can be a default setting (e.g., where this default setting is defined in the technical specification or is a UE implementation) or can be configured by the network (e.g., in configuration information) . The relaxation level can also be defined relative to the relaxation level of the serving cell measurement 415 (e.g., as a delta or scaling factor relative to the relaxation level of the serving cell measurement 415) . In a second option, generating the MR neighbor cell measurement 517 or can be disabled (e.g., using a disabled mode such that no MR neighbor cell measurements are generated) .
Which of the first option or the second option to use can be based on a number of factors. One factor can include a default setting (e.g., the MR defaults to using the relaxed measurement mode 516 upon being woken up, where this default is defined in the technical specification or is a UE implementation) or can be configured by the network (e.g., in configuration information) . Another factor can include using a serving cell measurement (e.g., one, a combination, or all of the LP-WUR serving cell measurement 512, the LP-WUR serving cell measurement 513, and/or the MR serving cell measurement 515) . The serving cell measurement can be compared with a corresponding measurement threshold (e.g., an RSRP (and/or RSRQ) threshold) . If larger than the measurement threshold, the disabled mode can be selected. Otherwise, the relaxed measurement mode 516 is selected. The measurement threshold (s) can be defined in the technical specification or configured by the network. Here also, whether to use one, a combination, or all of the LP-WUR serving cell measurement 512, the LP-WUR serving cell measurement 513, and/or the MR serving cell measurement 515 can be by default or configured by the network.
To illustrate the decision about whether to use the first option or the second option, consider the following. The use is based on a comparison with an RSRP/RSRQ threshold, while the serving cell measurement 515 is in a relaxation mode after waking up the MR radio. After the multi-radio UE 510 wakes up the MR, the multi-radio UE 510 performs the MR serving cell measurement 515 in the relaxed measurement mode measurement 516 and uses the MR measurement result (e.g., the MR serving cell measurement 515) to decide whether neighbor relaxation is to be used for measuring the neighbor cell reference signal 540 or whether measuring the neighbor cell is to be disabled. Alternatively, after the multi-radio UE 510 wakes up the MR, the multi-radio UE 510 performs the MR serving cell measurement 515 in the non-relaxed measurement mode 514 and uses the LP-WUR measurement result (e.g., the LP-WUR serving cell measurement 513) to decide whether neighbor relaxation is to be used for measuring the neighbor cell reference signal 540 or whether measuring the neighbor cell is to be disabled.
FIG. 6 illustrates an example of a measurement mode determination for a radio of a multi-radio UE 610 in accordance with some embodiments. Here, the radio is an MR. The multi-radio UE 610 is an example of the UE 104. As illustrated, the MR is woken up 601 with a first measurement mode for use with measuring a serving cell. The first measurement mode can be a non-relaxed measurement mode or a relaxed measurement mode, similar to what is described in FIGS. 4 and 5. The MR remains enabled 602 for a time duration. While the MR is enabled 602, a decision can be made to switch the first measurement mode to a second measurement mode (e.g., from the non-relaxed measurement mode to the relaxed measurement mode or vice versa) or to further relax the first measurement mode (e.g., if the first measurement mode is already the relaxed measurement mode) . As explained herein above, a measurement mode usable for measuring a neighbor cell can be more, but not less, relaxed than that for measuring the serving cell. As such, the switch to the second measurement mode or the further relaxation of the first measurement mode can impact the measurement mode usable for the neighbor cell.
In a first example, the MR is woken up 601 with the non-relaxed measurement mode for measuring the serving cell. In this case, the non-relaxed measurement mode, the relaxed measurement mode, or a disabled mode can be used for the neighbor cell. While the MR is enabled 602, a switch is made to the relaxed measurement mode for measuring the serving cell. Upon this switch, the relaxed measurement mode (having a same or higher relaxation level) or the disabled mode can be used for the neighbor cell.
In a second example, the MR is woken up 601 with the relaxed measurement mode for measuring the serving cell. In this case, the relaxed measurement mode (having a same or higher relaxation level) or the disabled mode can be used for the neighbor cell. While the MR is enabled 602, a switch is made to the non-relaxed measurement mode for measuring the serving cell. Upon this switch, the non-relaxed measurement mode, the relaxed measurement mode (having the same or a lower relaxation level as before) , or the disabled mode can be used for the neighbor cell.
In a third example, the MR is woken up 601 with the relaxed measurement mode for measuring the serving cell. In this case, the relaxed measurement mode (having a same or higher relaxation level) or the disabled mode can be used for the neighbor cell. While the MR is enabled 602, a switch is made to further relax the relaxed measurement mode for measuring the serving cell (e.g., the scaling factor is increased) . Upon this switch, the relaxed measurement mode (having a same or higher relaxation level than the further relaxation used for the serving cell) or the disabled mode can be used for the neighbor cell.
The relaxation of the first and third examples can be determined based on a number of factors. Among these factors can be existing serving cell and/or neighbor cell measurements. As illustrated in FIG. 6, upon the MR being woken up 601, the multi-radio UE 610 receives a serving cell reference signal 620 and a neighbor cell reference signal 630. The LP-WUR can receive the serving cell reference signal 620 such that a measurement of the serving cell reference signal 620 is performed, resulting in an LP-WUR serving cell measurement 612. The MR can receive the serving cell reference signal 620 (or a different serving cell reference signal) such that a measurement of the serving cell reference signal 620 (or the different one) is performed, resulting in an MR serving cell measurement 614. The MR can receive the neighbor cell reference signal 630 such that a measurement of the neighbor cell reference signal 630 is performed, resulting in an MR neighbor cell measurement 616.
One or more of the LP-WUR serving cell measurement 612, the MR serving cell measurement 614, and/or the MR neighbor cell measurement 616 can be used to decide whether to change 618 the measurement mode (e.g., whether to switch from the non-relaxed measurement mode to the relaxed measurement mode, or to further relax the relaxed measurement mode) . If a decision is made to relax, the measurement mode for the neighbor cell can be adjusted per the examples above.
In an example, a cell measurement (e.g., the LP-WUR serving cell measurement 612, the MR serving cell measurement 614, or the MR neighbor cell measurement 616) can be compared with a set of measurement thresholds as part of generating the relaxation decision. Each measurement threshold of the set can be associated with a measurement mode and/or a type of cell (e.g., serving cell or neighbor cell) . Based on the result of the comparison, the relaxation decision is made (e.g., the cell measurement being larger than a measurement threshold can result in a relaxation being decided) .
To illustrate, consider an example of three measurement thresholds: X, Y, and Z. Say that X is a first measurement threshold to trigger or enable neighbor cell measurements without relaxation, Y is a second measurement threshold to trigger or enable neighbor cell measurements with relaxation, and Z is a third measurement threshold to trigger or enable serving cell measurements with relaxation.
Enabling neighbor cell measurement is typically easier than enabling serving cell measurement relaxation (e.g., given the RSRP/RSRQ measurements) . Accordingly, X can be set to be equal to or smaller than Z. Enabling neighbor cell measurement relaxation is typically easier than enabling serving cell measurement relaxation (e.g., given the approach that the neighbor cell measurements can be more, but not less, relaxed that the serving cell measurements) . Accordingly, Y can be set to be equal to or smaller than Z. It then follows that X is equal to smaller than Y.
In one example, a cell measurement can include an RSRP and/or an RSRQ measurement. In this example, each of X, Y, and Z corresponds to an RSRP threshold and/or an RSRQ threshold. An RSRP threshold (or an RSRQ) threshold can be threshold of an absolute RSRP value (or an absolute RSRQ value) to represent a cell center, a cell-edge, or a not-at-cell-edge. Additionally, or alternatively, an RSRP threshold (or an RSRQ) threshold can be threshold of an RSRP variance value (or an RSRQ variance value) to represent a UE mobility status (e.g., stationary, low mobility, or high mobility) . Each of the X, Y, and Z can be defined in a technical specification with which the multi-radio UE 610 complies, or can be configured by a network (e.g., indicated in configuration information sent by a base station of the network to the multi-radio UE 610) .
The multi-radio UE 610 may use LP-WUR based measurements and/or MR based measurements to compare with the set of measurement thresholds to generate the measurement relaxation decision. For example, the LP-WUR serving cell measurement 612 is compared with X, Y, and/or X. If the LP-WUR serving cell measurement 612 is smaller than or equal to X, the decision can be that the neighbor cell measurement is disabled and no measurement relaxation is to be used for the serving cell measurements. If the LP-WUR serving cell measurement 612 is larger than X and smaller than or equal to Y, the decision can be that the neighbor cell measurement is enabled and no measurement relaxation is to be used for the neighbor cell measurements and the serving cell measurements. If the LP-WUR serving cell measurement 612 is larger than Y and smaller than or equal to Z, the decision can be that the neighbor cell measurement is enabled and measurement relaxation is to be used for the neighbor cell measurements, but that no measurement relaxation is to be used for the serving cell measurements. If the LP-WUR serving cell measurement 612 is larger than Z, the decision can be that the neighbor cell measurement is enabled and measurement relaxation is to be used for the neighbor cell measurements and the serving cell measurements (with the neighbor cell measurements having the same or a higher relaxation level than that of the serving cell measurements) . Similarly, any of the MR serving cell measurement 614 and/or the M neighbor cell measurement 616 can be compared to X, Y, and/or Z. The value of X, Y, and Z can be adjusted depending on the type of radio and/or type of cell (e.g., the values are increased for MR relative to the LP-WUR, and the values are increased for the MR serving cell measurements 614 relative to the MR neighbor cell measurements) . The increases and/or the specific values can be defined in the technical specification or configured by the network.
If multiple cell measurement types are used (e.g., a combination of or all of the LP-WUR serving cell measurement 612, the MR serving cell measurement 614, or the MR neighbor cell measurement 616) , different rules can be implemented to resolve situations where the outcomes of comparing the cell measurements to the measurement thresholds are not aligned (say that the comparison using the LP-WUR serving cell measurement 612 results this measurement 612 being between Y and Z, whereas the comparison using the MR serving cell measurement 614 results this measurement 614 being smaller than X) . In these situations, the outcomes can include different measurement relaxations (including disabling, no relaxation, and a relaxation level) . A first rule can be restrictive, where the least possible measurement relaxation is selected. A second rule can be non-restrictive, where the largest possible measurement relaxation is selected.
FIG. 7 illustrates an example of a measurement mode determination for a radio of a multi-radio UE 710 in accordance with some embodiments. Here, the radio is an MR. The multi-radio UE 710 is an example of the UE 104. As illustrated, the MR is woken up 701 with a relaxed measurement mode, similar to what is described in FIG. 5. The MR remains enabled 702 for a time duration. While the MR is enabled 702, a decision can be made to change the relaxed measurement mode (e.g., to switch to a non-relaxed measurement mode or to change a relaxation level of the relaxed measurement mode) .
Many aspects of FIG. 7 are similar to those of FIG. 6. In the interest of brevity, the similarities are not repeated herein and similarly and equivalently apply to the description of FIG. 7. A difference over FIG. 6 is that the MR is woken up with the relaxed measurement mode and a decision is made whether to change it or not. The decision may not be based on actual cell measurements. In an example, as long as neighbor cell measurements are enabled, the MR can cancel the serving cell measurement relaxation directly, or can reduce the serving cell measurement relaxation level (e.g., to speed up serving cell measurement by making the measurement time period shorter and/or the measurement time interval shorter) .
As illustrated, the MR is woken up 701 with the relaxed measurement mode for measuring the serving cell. In this case, the relaxed measurement mode (having a same or higher relaxation level) or the disabled mode can be used for the neighbor cell. Upon the MR being woken up 701, the multi-radio UE 710 receives a serving cell reference signal 720 and a neighbor cell reference signal 730. The LP-WUR can receive the serving cell reference signal 720 such that a measurement of the serving cell reference signal 720 is performed, resulting in an LP-WUR serving cell measurement 712. The MR can receive the serving cell reference signal 720 (or a different serving cell reference signal) such that a measurement of the serving cell reference signal 720 (or the different one) is performed, resulting in an MR serving cell measurement 714. The MR can receive the neighbor cell reference signal 730 such that a measurement of the neighbor cell reference signal 730 is performed, resulting in an MR neighbor cell measurement 716.
Unlike FIG. 6, here none of the LP-WUR serving cell measurement 712, the MR serving cell measurement 714, and/or the MR neighbor cell measurement 716 is used to decide whether to change 718 the measurement mode (e.g., whether to switch from the relaxed measurement mode to the non-relaxed measurement mode, or to further relax the relaxed measurement mode) . Instead, a factor considered for generating the decision includes whether a neighbor cell measurement is enabled 740. Based on the decision, the measurement mode for the neighbor cell can be adjusted such that the neighbor cell measurements cannot be more relaxed than the serving cell measurements.
If the neighbor cell measurement is disabled, the decision may be not to change the measurement mode (e.g., the non-relaxed measurement mode continues to be used for the MR serving cell measurements) . If the neighbor cell measurement is enabled 740, the cancel the serving cell measurement relaxation directly. In other words, the multi-radio UE 710 switches to using the non-relaxed measurement mode. Alternatively, the MR can reduce the serving cell measurement relaxation level (speed up serving cell measurement) . The reduction can be defined in a technical specification with which the multi-radio UE 710 complies or configured by a network (e.g., indicated in configuration information sent by a base station of the network) .
FIG. 8 illustrates an example of an operational flow/algorithmic structure 800 for using a measurement mode in accordance with some embodiments. The operational flow/algorithmic structure 800 can be implemented by a UE (e.g., performed by components thereof including, for example, an apparatus of the UE, where the apparatus includes processing circuitry) . The UE can be a multi-radio UE corresponding to any of the UEs described herein. In some embodiments, the operational flow/algorithmic structure 800 may be implemented by executing instructions stored in a tangible, non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium, such as a memory of the UE. While the operational flow/algorithmic structure 800 is described using steps in a specific sequence, it should be understood that the present disclosure contemplates that the described steps may be performed in different sequences than the sequence illustrated, and certain described steps may be omitted or not performed altogether.
In an example, the operational flow/algorithmic structure 800 includes, at 802, performing a first measurement of a first reference signal associated with a serving cell and received by a first radio of the UE. For instance, the first radio is an LP-WUR. The first measurement can include a serving cell measurement of a reference signal of the serving cell.
In an example, the operational flow/algorithmic structure 800 includes, at 804, performing, upon a second radio of the UE being woken up, a second measurement of a second reference signal associated with the serving cell, the first radio configured to use lower power than the second radio, the second radio configured to support a first measurement mode and a second measurement mode, the second measurement mode enabling at least one of: a longer measurement period or a longer measurement time interval relative to the first measurement mode. For instance, the second radio can be an MR. The first measurement mode can be a non-relaxed measurement mode, whereas the second measurement mode can be a relaxed measurement mode. The second measurement can include a serving cell measurement of a reference signal of a serving cell, where this reference signal is received by the LP-WUR or the MR. If received by the MR, the second measurement can be performed using the second measurement mode.
In an example, the operational flow/algorithmic structure 800 includes, at 806, determining whether a third measurement of a third reference signal associated with a neighbor cell and received by the second radio is to be performed using the first measurement mode or the second measurement mode or is to be foregone. For instance, one or more factors described in FIGS. 4-5 can be used to perform this determination upon the MR radio being woken up. If the MR radio has been enabled for a time duration, one or more factors described in FIGS. 6-7 can be used to perform this determination. The third measurement can include a neighbor cell measurement of a reference signal of the neighbor cell.
FIG. 9 illustrates an example of an operational flow/algorithmic structure for configuring usage of a measurement mode in accordance with some embodiments. The operational flow/algorithmic structure 900 can be implemented by a network (e.g., by a base station thereof and/or an apparatus of the base station, where the apparatus includes processing circuitry) . The network can be any of the networks described herein. In some embodiments, the operational flow/algorithmic structure 900 may be implemented by executing instructions stored in a tangible, non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium, such as a memory of the base station. While the operational flow/algorithmic structure 900 is described using steps in a specific sequence, it should be understood that the present disclosure contemplates that the described steps may be performed in different sequences than the sequence illustrated, and certain described steps may be omitted or not performed altogether.
In an example, the operational flow/algorithmic structure 900 includes, at 902, determining, based on capability information received from a UE, that the UE supports cell measurements using a first radio and a second radio, the first radio configured to use lower power than the second radio, the second radio configured to support a first measurement mode and a second measurement mode, the second measurement mode enabling at least one of:a longer measurement period or a longer measurement time interval relative to the first measurement mode. For instance, the first radio is an LP-WUR, whereas the second radio is an MR. Further, the first measurement mode can be a non-relaxed measurement mode, whereas the second measurement mode can be a relaxed measurement mode. The capability information can be received in an information element indicating that the UE includes the LP-WUR, supports LP-WUR operations, or supports measurement relaxation on a serving cell and/or a neighbor cell.
In an example, the operational flow/algorithmic structure 900 includes, at 902, sending, to the UE, configuration information based on the capability information, the configuration information enabling the UE to (i) perform a first measurement a first reference signal associated with a serving cell and received by at least one of the first radio or the second radio, and (ii) determine whether a second measurement of a second reference signal associated with a neighbor cell and received by the second radio is to be performed using the first measurement mode or the second measurement mode or is to be foregone. For instance, the first measurement can include a serving cell measurement of a reference signal of a serving cell, where this reference signal is received by the LP-WUR or the MR. The second measurement can include a neighbor cell measurement of a reference signal of the neighbor cell. The configuration information can indicate different parameters to perform the first and second measurements including any of the measurement thresholds and/or other factors described in FIGS. 4-7.
FIG. 10 illustrates receive components 1000 of a, such as any of the UE’s described herein above, in accordance with some embodiments. The receive components 1000 may include an antenna panel 1004 that includes a number of antenna elements. The panel 1004 is shown with four antenna elements, but other embodiments may include other numbers.
The antenna panel 1004 may be coupled to analog beamforming (BF) components that include a number of phase shifters 1008 (1) –1008 (4) . The phase shifters 1008 (1) –1008 (4) may be coupled with a radio-frequency (RF) chain 1012. The RF chain 1012 may amplify a receive analog RF signal, downconvert the RF signal to baseband, and convert the analog baseband signal to a digital baseband signal that may be provided to a baseband processor for further processing. In an example, receive components 1000 can include multiple antenna panels 1004 and/or multiple RF chains 1012. An MR can include an antenna panel 1004 and an RF chain 1012. An LP-WUR can include the same antenna panel 1004 or a different antenna panel and a different RF chain 1012.
In various embodiments, control circuitry, which may reside in a baseband processor, may provide BF weights (for example W1 –W4) , which may represent phase shift values, to the phase shifters 1008 (1) –1008 (4) to provide a receive beam at the antenna panel 1004. These BF weights may be determined based on the channel-based beamforming.
FIG. 11 illustrates a UE 1100, in accordance with some embodiments. The UE 1100 may be similar to and substantially interchangeable with any of the UEs described herein above. Particularly, the UE 1100 can send capability information indicating its support of LP-WUR operations or a relaxed measurement mode, receive and store configuration information associated with performing the LP-WUR operations and MR operations including measuring reference signals of a serving cell and a neighbor cell in a non-relaxed measurement mode or a relaxed measurement mode. The UE 1100 can also switch between such measurement modes and/or control a relaxation level of the relaxed measurement mode.
Similar to that described above with respect to UE 104, the UE 1100 may be any mobile or non-mobile computing device, such as mobile phones, computers, tablets, industrial wireless sensors (for example, microphones, carbon dioxide sensors, pressure sensors, humidity sensors, thermometers, motion sensors, accelerometers, laser scanners, fluid level sensors, inventory sensors, electric voltage/current meters, actuators, etc. ) , video surveillance/monitoring devices (for example, cameras, video cameras, etc. ) , wearable devices, or relaxed-IoT devices. In some embodiments, the UE may be a reduced capacity UE or NR-Light UE.
The UE 1100 may include processors 1104, RF interface circuitry 1108, memory/storage 1112, user interface 1116, sensors 1120, driver circuitry 1122, power management integrated circuit (PMIC) 1124, and battery 1128. The processors 1104, or portions thereof, can represent processing circuitry that can be coupled with an RF chain to form an MR or the LP-WUR. The components of the UE 1100 may be implemented as integrated circuits (ICs) , portions thereof, discrete electronic devices, or other modules, logic, hardware, software, firmware, or a combination thereof. The block diagram of FIG. 11 is intended to show a high-level view of some of the components of the UE 1100. However, some of the components shown may be omitted, additional components may be present, and different arrangements of the components shown may occur in other implementations.
The components of the UE 1100 may be coupled with various other components over one or more interconnects 1132, which may represent any type of interface, input/output, bus (local, system, or expansion) , transmission line, trace, optical connection, etc. that allows various circuit components (on common or different chips or chipsets) to interact with one another.
The processors 1104 may include processor circuitry, such as baseband processor circuitry (BB) 1104A, central processor unit circuitry (CPU) 1104B, and graphics processor unit circuitry (GPU) 1104C. The processors 1104 may include any type of circuitry or processor circuitry that executes or otherwise operates computer-executable instructions, such as program code, software modules, or functional processes from memory/storage 1112 to cause the UE 1100 to perform operations as described herein.
In some embodiments, the baseband processor circuitry 1104A may access a communication protocol stack 1136 in the memory/storage 1112 to communicate over a 3GPP compatible network. In general, the baseband processor circuitry 1104A may access the communication protocol stack to: perform user plane functions at a PHY layer, MAC layer, RLC layer, PDCP layer, SDAP layer, and PDU layer; and perform control plane functions at a PHY layer, MAC layer, RLC layer, PDCP layer, RRC layer, and a non-access stratum “NAS” layer. In some embodiments, the PHY layer operations may additionally/alternatively be performed by the components of the RF interface circuitry 1108.
The baseband processor circuitry 1104A may generate or process baseband signals or waveforms that carry information in 3GPP-compatible networks. In some embodiments, the waveforms for NR may be based on cyclic prefix OFDM (CP-OFDM) in the uplink or downlink, and discrete Fourier transform spread OFDM (DFT-S-OFDM) in the uplink.
The baseband processor circuitry 1104A may also access group information from memory/storage 1112 to determine search space groups in which a number of repetitions of a PDCCH may be transmitted.
The memory/storage 1112 may include any type of volatile or non-volatile memory that may be distributed throughout the UE 1100. In some embodiments, some of the memory/storage 1112 may be located on the processors 1104 themselves (for example, L1 and L2 cache) , while other memory/storage 1112 is external to the processors 1104 but accessible thereto via a memory interface. The memory/storage 1112 may include any suitable volatile or non-volatile memory, such as, but not limited to, dynamic random-access memory (DRAM) , static random-access memory (SRAM) , erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM) , electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM) , Flash memory, solid-state memory, or any other type of memory device technology.
The RF interface circuitry 1108 may include transceiver circuitry and a radio frequency front module (RFEM) that allows the UE 1100 to communicate with other devices over a radio access network. The RF interface circuitry 1108 may include various elements arranged in transmit or receive paths. These elements may include, for example, switches, mixers, amplifiers, filters, synthesizer circuitry, control circuitry, etc.
In the receive path, the RFEM may receive a radiated signal from an air interface via an antenna 1150 and proceed to filter and amplify (with a low-noise amplifier) the signal. The signal may be provided to a receiver of the transceiver that down-converts the RF signal into a baseband signal that is provided to the baseband processor of the processors 1104.
In the transmit path, the transmitter of the transceiver up-converts the baseband signal received from the baseband processor and provides the RF signal to the RFEM. The RFEM may amplify the RF signal through a power amplifier prior to the signal being radiated across the air interface via the antenna 1150.
In various embodiments, the RF interface circuitry 1108 may be configured to transmit/receive signals in a manner compatible with NR access technologies.
The antenna 1150 may include a number of antenna elements that each convert electrical signals into radio waves to travel through the air and to convert received radio waves into electrical signals. The antenna elements may be arranged into one or more antenna panels. The antenna 1150 may have antenna panels that are omnidirectional, directional, or a combination thereof to enable beamforming and multiple input, multiple output communications. The antenna 1150 may include microstrip antennas, printed antennas fabricated on the surface of one or more printed circuit boards, patch antennas, phased array antennas, etc. The antenna 1150 may have one or more panels designed for specific frequency bands including bands in FR1 or FR2.
The user interface circuitry 1116 includes various input/output (I/O) devices designed to enable user interaction with the UE 1100. The user interface 1116 includes input device circuitry and output device circuitry. Input device circuitry includes any physical or virtual means for accepting an input including, inter alia, one or more physical or virtual buttons (for example, a reset button) , a physical keyboard, keypad, mouse, touchpad, touchscreen, microphones, scanner, headset, or the like. The output device circuitry includes any physical or virtual means for showing information or otherwise conveying information, such as sensor readings, actuator position (s) , or other like information. Output device circuitry may include any number or combinations of audio or visual display, including, inter alia, one or more simple visual outputs/indicators (for example, binary status indicators, such as light emitting diodes (LEDs) and multi-character visual outputs, or more complex outputs, such as display devices or touchscreens (for example, liquid crystal displays (LCDs) , LED displays, quantum dot displays, projectors, etc. ) , with the output of characters, graphics, multimedia objects, and the like being generated or produced from the operation of the UE 1100.
The sensors 1120 may include devices, modules, or subsystems whose purpose is to detect events or changes in its environment and send the information (sensor data) about the detected events to some other device, module, subsystem, etc. Examples of such sensors include, inter alia, inertia measurement units comprising accelerometers; gyroscopes; or magnetometers; microelectromechanical systems or nanoelectromechanical systems comprising 3-axis accelerometers; 3-axis gyroscopes; or magnetometers; level sensors; flow sensors; temperature sensors (for example, thermistors) ; pressure sensors; barometric pressure sensors; gravimeters; altimeters; image capture devices (for example; cameras or lensless apertures) ; light detection and ranging sensors; proximity sensors (for example, infrared radiation detector and the like) ; depth sensors; ambient light sensors; ultrasonic transceivers; microphones or other like audio capture devices; etc.
The driver circuitry 1122 may include software and hardware elements that operate to control particular devices that are embedded in the UE 1100, attached to the UE 1100, or otherwise communicatively coupled with the UE 1100. The driver circuitry 1122 may include individual drivers allowing other components to interact with or control various input/output (I/O) devices that may be present within, or connected to, the UE 1100. For example, driver circuitry 1122 may include a display driver to control and allow access to a display device, a touchscreen driver to control and allow access to a touchscreen interface, sensor drivers to obtain sensor readings of sensor circuitry 1120 and control and allow access to sensor circuitry 1120, drivers to obtain actuator positions of electro-mechanic components or control and allow access to the electro-mechanic components, a camera driver to control and allow access to an embedded image capture device, audio drivers to control and allow access to one or more audio devices.
The PMIC 1124 may manage power provided to various components of the UE 1100. In particular, with respect to the processors 1104, the PMIC 1124 may control power-source selection, voltage scaling, battery charging, or DC-to-DC conversion.
In some embodiments, the PMIC 1124 may control, or otherwise be part of, various power saving mechanisms of the UE 1100. For example, if the platform UE is in an RRC_Connected state, where it is still connected to the RAN node as it expects to receive traffic shortly, then it may enter a state known as Discontinuous Reception Mode (DRX) after a period of inactivity. During this state, the UE 1100 may power down for brief intervals of time and thus save power. If there is no data traffic activity for an extended period of time, then the UE 1100 may transition off to an RRC_Idle state, where it disconnects from the network and does not perform operations, such as channel quality feedback, handover, etc. The UE 1100 goes into a very low power state and it performs paging where again it periodically wakes up to listen to the network and then powers down again. The UE 1100 may not receive data in this state; in order to receive data, it must transition back to RRC_Connected state. An additional power saving mode may allow a device to be unavailable to the network for periods longer than a paging interval (ranging from seconds to a few hours) . During this time, the device is totally unreachable to the network and may power down completely. Any data sent during this time incurs a large delay and it is assumed the delay is acceptable.
A battery 1128 may power the UE 1100, although in some examples the UE 1100 may be mounted deployed in a fixed location and may have a power supply coupled to an electrical grid. The battery 1128 may be a lithium-ion battery, a metal-air battery, such as a zinc-air battery, an aluminum-air battery, a lithium-air battery, and the like. In some implementations, such as in vehicle-based applications, the battery 1128 may be a typical lead-acid automotive battery.
FIG. 12 illustrates a gNB 1200, in accordance with some embodiments. The gNB 1200 may be similar to and substantially interchangeable with the gNB 108 of FIG. 1 and other base stations described herein above. Particularly, the gNB 1200 can receive capability information indicating a UE’s support of LP-WUR operations or a relaxed measurement mode. Based on the capability information, the gNB 1200 can send configuration information to the UE, where this information can configure the UE to perform the LP-WUR operations and MR operations including measuring reference signals of a serving cell and a neighbor cell in a non-relaxed measurement mode or a relaxed measurement mode, switching between such measurement modes, and/or controlling a relaxation level of the relaxed measurement mode.
The gNB 1200 may include processors 1204, RAN interface circuitry 1208, core network (CN) interface circuitry 1212, and memory/storage circuitry 1216.
The components of the gNB 1200 may be coupled with various other components over one or more interconnects 1228.
The processors 1204, RAN interface circuitry 1208, memory/storage circuitry 1216 (including communication protocol stack 1210) , antenna 1250, and interconnects 1228 may be similar to like-named elements shown and described with respect to FIG. 11.
The CN interface circuitry 1212 may provide connectivity to a core network, for example, a Fifth Generation Core network (5GC) using a 5GC-compatible network interface protocol, such as carrier Ethernet protocols, or some other suitable protocol. Network connectivity may be provided to/from the gNB 1200 via a fiber optic or wireless backhaul. The CN interface circuitry 1212 may include one or more dedicated processors or FPGAs to communicate using one or more of the aforementioned protocols. In some implementations, the CN interface circuitry 1212 may include multiple controllers to provide connectivity to other networks using the same or different protocols.
It is well understood that the use of personally identifiable information should follow privacy policies and practices that are generally recognized as meeting or exceeding industry or governmental requirements for maintaining the privacy of users. In particular, personally identifiable information data should be managed and handled so as to minimize risks of unintentional or unauthorized access or use, and the nature of authorized use should be clearly indicated to users.
For one or more embodiments, at least one of the components set forth in one or more of the preceding figures may be configured to perform one or more operations, techniques, processes, or methods as set forth in the example section below. For example, the baseband circuitry as described above in connection with one or more of the preceding figures may be configured to operate in accordance with one or more of the examples set forth below. For another example, circuitry associated with a UE, base station, network element, etc. as described above in connection with one or more of the preceding figures may be configured to operate in accordance with one or more of the examples set forth below in the example section.
Examples
In the following sections, further exemplary embodiments are provided.
Example 1 includes a method comprising: performing a first measurement of a first reference signal associated with a serving cell and received by a first radio of a user equipment (UE) ; performing, upon a second radio of the UE being woken up, a second measurement of a second reference signal associated with the serving cell, the first radio configured to use lower power than the second radio, the second radio configured to support a first measurement mode and a second measurement mode, the second measurement mode enabling at least one of: a longer measurement period or a longer measurement time interval relative to the first measurement mode; and determining whether a third measurement of a third reference signal associated with a neighbor cell and received by the second radio is to be performed using the first measurement mode or the second measurement mode or is to be foregone.
Example 2 includes a method comprising: determining, based on capability information received from a user equipment (UE) , that the UE supports cell measurements using a first radio and a second radio, the first radio configured to use lower power than the second radio, the second radio configured to support a first measurement mode and a second measurement mode, the second measurement mode enabling at least one of: a longer measurement period or a longer measurement time interval relative to the first measurement mode; and sending, to the UE, configuration information based on the capability information, the configuration information enabling the UE to perform a first measurement a first reference signal associated with a serving cell and received by at least one of the first radio or the second radio, and determine whether a second measurement of a second reference signal associated with a neighbor cell and received by the second radio is to be performed using the first measurement mode or the second measurement mode or is to be foregone.
Example 3 includes the method of any example 1 to 2, wherein the third measurement or the second measurement includes at least one of: an intra-frequency measurement, an inter-frequency measurement, or an inter-radio access technology (RAT) measurement, and wherein the third measurement corresponds to at least one of: a cell detection, a cell measurement, or a cell evaluation.
Example 4 includes the method of any example 1 to 3, wherein the second measurement is performed using a first measurement time period, wherein the third measurement is performed using a second measurement time period that is longer than or equal to the first measurement time period.
Example 5 includes the method of any example 1 to 4, wherein the second measurement is performed using a first measurement time interval, wherein the third measurement is performed using a second measurement time interval that is longer than or equal to the first measurement time interval.
Example 6 includes the method of any example 1 to 5, wherein the second reference signal is received by the second radio, wherein the second measurement is performed using the first measurement mode, and wherein the third measurement is performed using the first measurement mode based on the second measurement being performed using the first measurement mode.
Example 7 includes the method of any example 1 to 5, wherein the second reference signal is received by the second radio, wherein the second measurement is performed using the first measurement mode, and wherein the third measurement is performed using the second measurement mode based on the second measurement being performed using the first measurement mode.
Example 8 includes the method of any example 1 to 5, wherein the second reference signal is received by the second radio, wherein the second measurement is performed using the first measurement mode, and wherein the third measurement is foregone based on the second measurement being performed using the first measurement mode.
Example 9 includes the method of any example 1 to 7, further comprising: comparing or causing a comparison of the second measurement with a measurement threshold, wherein determining whether the third measurement is to be performed using the first measurement mode or the second measurement mode or is to be foregone is based on the comparing.
Example 10 includes the method of example 8, wherein the second measurement is performed using the first measurement mode and based on reception of the second reference signal by the second radio.
Example 11 includes the method of example 8, wherein the second measurement is performed using the first measurement mode and based on reception of the second reference signal by the first radio.
Example 12 includes the method of example 8, wherein the measurement threshold is determined based on configuration information received from a base station.
Example 13 includes the method of any example 1 to 5, wherein the second reference signal is received by the second radio, wherein the second measurement is performed using the second measurement mode according to a first measurement relaxation level, wherein the third measurement is performed using the second measurement mode and according to a second measurement relaxation level based on the second measurement being performed using the second measurement mode, and wherein the second measurement relaxation level enables at least one of: a used measurement period or a used measurement time interval to be longer or the same relative to the first measurement relaxation level.
Example 14 includes the method of any example 1 to 5, wherein the second reference signal is received by the second radio, wherein the second measurement is performed using the second measurement mode, and wherein the third measurement is foregone based on the second measurement being performed using the second measurement mode.
Example 15 includes the method of any example 1 to 5, wherein the second measurement is performed based on a reception of the second reference signal by the first radio or the second radio, and further comprising: comparing or causing a comparison of the second measurement with a measurement threshold, wherein the third measurement, based on the comparing, is performed using the second measurement mode or is foregone.
Example 16 includes the method of any example 1 to 5, further comprising: determining or causing a determination of a first measurement threshold associated with neighbor cell measurements using the first measurement mode, a second measurement threshold associated with the neighbor cell measurements using the second measurement mode, and a third measurement threshold associated with serving cell measurements using the first measurement mode; and comparing or causing a comparison of the second measurement with a measurement threshold that is smaller than or equal to the first measurement threshold, the second measurement threshold, and the third measurement threshold, wherein the second measurement mode is used after the second radio is woken up based on the comparing.
Example 17 includes the method of example 16, wherein the second measurement is performed based on a reception of the second reference signal by the first radio or the second radio.
Example 18 includes the method of any example 1 to 5, further comprising: after the second radio is woken up and upon neighbor cell measurement being enabled, determining or causing a determination of whether to cancel serving cell measurement using the first measurement mode or whether to change a measurement relaxation level of the first measurement mode.
Example 19 includes the method of any example 1 to 18, wherein the configuration information indicates a set of measurement thresholds usable by the UE in at least determining whether the second measurement is to be performed using the first measurement mode or the second measurement mode or is to be foregone, or using the first measurement mode after the second radio is woken up.
Example 20 includes a user equipment (UE) or an apparatus comprising: one or more processors; and one or more memory storing instructions that, upon execution by the one or more processors, configure the UE or the apparatus to perform a method described in or related to any of the preceding examples.
Example 21 includes one or more computer-readable media storing instructions that, when executed on a user equipment (UE) or an apparatus, cause the UE or the apparatus to perform operations comprising those of a method described in or related to any of the preceding examples.
Example 22 includes an apparatus comprising means to perform one or more elements of a method described in or related to any of the preceding examples.
Example 23 includes one or more non-transitory computer-readable media comprising instructions to cause an apparatus, upon execution of the instructions by one or more processors of the apparatus, to perform one or more elements of a method described in or related to any of the preceding examples.
Example 24 includes an apparatus comprising logic, modules, or processing circuitry configured to perform one or more elements of a method described in or related to any of the preceding examples.
Example 25 includes an apparatus, a network, a base station, or a system comprising: one or more processors and one or more computer-readable media comprising instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform one or more elements of a method described in or related to any of the preceding examples.
Any of the above-described examples may be combined with any other example (or combination of examples) , unless explicitly stated otherwise. The foregoing description of one or more implementations provides illustration and description but is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the scope of embodiments to the precise form disclosed. Modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings or may be acquired from practice of various embodiments.
Although the embodiments above have been described in considerable detail, numerous variations and modifications will become apparent to those skilled in the art once the above disclosure is fully appreciated. It is intended that the following claims be interpreted to embrace all such variations and modifications.

Claims

A method comprising:

performing a first measurement of a first reference signal associated with a serving cell and received by a first radio of a user equipment (UE) ;

performing, upon a second radio of the UE being woken up, a second measurement of a second reference signal associated with the serving cell, the first radio configured to use lower power than the second radio, the second radio configured to support a first measurement mode and a second measurement mode, the second measurement mode enabling at least one of: a longer measurement period or a longer measurement time interval relative to the first measurement mode; and

determining whether a third measurement of a third reference signal associated with a neighbor cell and received by the second radio is to be performed using the first measurement mode or the second measurement mode or is to be foregone.
The method of claim 1, wherein the third measurement includes at least one of: an intra-frequency measurement, an inter-frequency measurement, or an inter-radio access technology (RAT) measurement, and wherein the third measurement corresponds to at least one of: a cell detection, a cell measurement, or a cell evaluation.
The method of claim 1, wherein the second measurement is performed using a first measurement time period, wherein the third measurement is performed using a second measurement time period that is longer than or equal to the first measurement time period.
The method of claim 1, wherein the second measurement is performed using a first measurement time interval, wherein the third measurement is performed using a second measurement time interval that is longer than or equal to the first measurement time interval.
The method of claim 1, wherein the second reference signal is received by the second radio, wherein the second measurement is performed using the first measurement mode, and wherein the third measurement is performed using the first measurement mode based on the second measurement being performed using the first measurement mode.
The method of claim 1, wherein the second reference signal is received by the second radio, wherein the second measurement is performed using the first measurement mode, and wherein the third measurement is performed using the second measurement mode based on the second measurement being performed using the first measurement mode.
The method of claim 1, wherein the second reference signal is received by the second radio, wherein the second measurement is performed using the first measurement mode, and wherein the third measurement is foregone based on the second measurement being performed using the first measurement mode.
The method of claim 1, further comprising:

comparing the second measurement with a measurement threshold, wherein determining whether the third measurement is to be performed using the first measurement mode or the second measurement mode or is to be foregone is based on the comparing.
The method of claim 8, wherein the second measurement is performed using the first measurement mode and based on reception of the second reference signal by the second radio.
The method of claim 8, wherein the second measurement is performed using the first measurement mode and based on reception of the second reference signal by the first radio.
The method of claim 8, wherein the measurement threshold is determined based on configuration information received from a base station.
An apparatus comprising:

processing circuitry coupled with a first receiver and a second receiver, wherein:

at least a first portion of the processing circuitry coupled with the first receiver corresponds to a first radio,

at least a second portion of the processing circuitry coupled with the second receiver corresponds to a second radio,

the first radio is configured to use lower power than the second radio, and

the processing circuitry is configured to:

perform a first measurement of a first reference signal associated with a serving cell and received by the first radio;

perform, upon a second radio of the UE being woken up, a second measurement of a second reference signal associated with the serving cell, the second radio configured to support a first measurement mode and a second measurement mode, the first measurement mode enabling at least one of: a longer measurement period or a longer measurement time interval relative to the second measurement mode; and

determine whether a third measurement of a third reference signal associated with a neighbor cell and received by the second radio is to be performed using the first measurement mode or the second measurement mode or is to be foregone.
The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the second reference signal is received by the second radio, wherein the second measurement is performed using the second measurement mode according to a first measurement relaxation level, wherein the third measurement is performed using the second measurement mode and according to a second measurement relaxation level based on the second measurement being performed using the second measurement mode, and wherein the second measurement relaxation level enables at least one of: a used measurement period or a used measurement time interval to be longer or the same relative to the first measurement relaxation level.
The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the second reference signal is received by the second radio, wherein the second measurement is performed using the second measurement mode, and wherein the third measurement is foregone based on the second measurement being performed using the second measurement mode.
The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the second measurement is performed based on a reception of the second reference signal by the first radio or the second radio, and wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:

compare the second measurement with a measurement threshold, wherein the third measurement, based on the comparing, is performed using the second measurement mode or is foregone.
The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:

determine a first measurement threshold associated with neighbor cell measurements using the first measurement mode, a second measurement threshold associated with the neighbor cell measurements using the second measurement mode, and a third measurement threshold associated with serving cell measurements using the first measurement mode; and

compare the second measurement with a measurement threshold that is smaller than or equal to the first measurement threshold, the second measurement threshold, and the third measurement threshold, wherein the second measurement mode is used after the second radio is woken up based on the comparing.
The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the second measurement is performed based on a reception of the second reference signal by the first radio or the second radio.
The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to:

after the second radio is woken up and upon neighbor cell measurement being enabled, determine whether to cancel serving cell measurement using the first measurement mode or whether to change a measurement relaxation level of the first measurement mode.
A method comprising:

determining, based on capability information received from a user equipment (UE) , that the UE supports cell measurements using a first radio and a second radio, the first radio configured to use lower power than the second radio, the second radio configured to support a first measurement mode and a second measurement mode, the second measurement mode enabling at least one of: a longer measurement period or a longer measurement time interval relative to the first measurement mode; and

sending, to the UE, configuration information based on the capability information, the configuration information enabling the UE to perform a first measurement a first reference signal associated with a serving cell and received by at least one of the first radio or the second radio, and determine whether a second measurement of a second reference signal associated with a neighbor cell and received by the second radio is to be performed using the first measurement mode or the second measurement mode or is to be foregone.
The method of claim 19, wherein the configuration information indicates a set of measurement thresholds usable by the UE in at least determining whether the second measurement is to be performed using the first measurement mode or the second measurement mode or is to be foregone, or using the first measurement mode after the second radio is woken up.