WO2020064851A1

WO2020064851A1 - Configuration of sidelink resource allocation with multiple radio access technologies and enhanced vehicle-to-anything services

Info

Publication number: WO2020064851A1
Application number: PCT/EP2019/075891
Authority: WO
Inventors: Zhang Zhang; Marco BELLESCHI
Original assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget Lm Ericsson (Publ)
Priority date: 2018-09-27
Filing date: 2019-09-25
Publication date: 2020-04-02

Abstract

A method performed by a wireless device (110) includes communicating, to a network node (160), an indication that network scheduled sidelink (SL) resource allocation is needed or that data related to a eV2x service requiring high reliability is to be transmitted. The wireless device receives, from the network node, a selection that a Uu communication and a SL communication should use the same radio access technology (RAT) if simultaneous network and SL communication are using the same RAT. The wireless device adopts a resource allocation scheduled by the wireless device or communicate an indication a service cannot be operated with sufficient quality of service if the same RAT cannot be used for SL and Uu simultaneously.

Description

CONFIGURATION OF SIDELINK RESOURCE ALLOCATION WITH MULTIPLE RADIO ACCESS TECHNOLOGIES AND ENHANCED VEHICLE-TO-ANYTHING

SERVICES

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates, in general, to wireless communications and, more particularly, systems and methods for configuration of sidelink resource allocation (SL RA) with multiple Radio Access Technologies (RAT) and Enhanced Vehicle-to-Any (eV2x) services.

BACKGROUND

In Release 14, support for Vehicle-to-Any (V2x) communication was introduced to the LTE specification. V2x is a collective term which includes any combination of direct communication between vehicles, pedestrians, and infrastructure. V2x communication may take advantage of a network (NW) infrastructure, when available, but at least basic V2x connectivity should be possible even in case of lack of coverage. Providing a Long Term Evolution (LTE)-based V2x interface may be economically advantageous because of the LTE economies of scale and it may enable tighter integration between communications with the NW infrastructure (V2I) and vehicle-to-pedestrian (V2P) and vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications, as compared to using a dedicated V2x technology. FIGURE 1 illustrates V2x scenarios for an LTE -based network.

V2x communications may carry both non-safety and safety information, where each of the applications and services may be associated with specific requirements sets, e.g., in terms of latency, reliability, capacity, etc.

European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) has defined two types of messages for road safety: Co-operative Awareness Message (CAM) and Decentralized Environmental Notification Message (DENM).

The CAM message is intended to enable vehicles, including emergency vehicles, to notify their presence and other relevant parameters in a broadcast fashion. Such messages target other vehicles, pedestrians, and infrastructure, and are handled by their applications. A CAM message also serves as active assistance to safety driving for normal traffic. The availability of a CAM message is indicatively checked every 100ms, yielding a maximum detection latency requirement of <=100ms for most messages. However, the latency requirement for Pre-crash sensing warning is 50ms.

The DENM message is event -triggered, such as by braking, and the availability of a DENM message is also checked every 100ms, and the requirement of maximum latency is <= 100ms.

The package size of CAM and DENM message varies from 100+ to 800+ bytes and the typical size is around 300 bytes. These messages are supposed to be detected by all vehicles in proximity.

The SAE (Society of the Automotive Engineers) also defined the Basic Safety Message (BSM) for DSRC (Distributed Short Range Communications) with various messages sizes defined.

According to the importance and urgency of the messages, the BSMs are further classified into different priorities.

With regard to sidelink resource allocation (RA) for V2x, there are two different RA procedures for V2x on sidelink: centralized RA (which may be referred to as“Mode 3”) and distributed RA (which may be referred to as“Mode 4”). The transmission resources are selected within a resource pool which is predefined or configured by the NW.

For Mode 4, there are two fundamental features for achieving a well-fun ctioning distributed operation: semi-persistent transmission and sensing-based RA. Semi-persistent transmission is based on the fact that the user equipment (UE) can predict with reasonable accuracy the arrival of new packets to the transmission buffer. This is so because LTE V2x was mainly designed to support periodic transmissions such as CAM. Using appropriate signaling, a first UE performing transmissions can notify all other UEs about its intention to transmit on specific radio resources at a certain time in the future. Using a sensing algorithm, a second UE can learn the presence of these semi -persistent transmissions. This information can be used by the second UE when selecting radio resources. In this way collisions between UEs can be avoided.

In Mode 3 , the UEs are tightly controlled by the NW. T ypical transmissions by a Mode 3 UE are performed as follows:

1. The UE requests resources for sidelink (SL) transmissions to the NW

by sending sidelink buffer status report (SL BSR) in uplink (UL).

Transmitting SL BSR requires an UL grant. The UL grant may be received either dynamically on physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) when user equipment (UE) is in connected mode, or in a random access response (RAR) during random access. If a connected UE does not have a UL grant yet, the UE needs to first send a scheduling request (SR) to the next generation nodeB (gNB), and then the gNB allocates a UL grant to the UE.

2. The NW grants resources for sidelink transmission to the UE.

3. The UE performs the sidelink transmission on the resources granted

by the NW.

The grant provided by the NW may be valid for the transmission of a single transport block (TB), including its retransmission; or for the transmission of multiple TBs if it is a semi -persistent scheduling (SPS) grant.

Currently only one RA mode at a time can be applicable to a UE (in connected mode).

In new radio (NR) V2x, the above sidelink RA techniques will be used as baseline, though with possible terminology differences, e.g. the mode-3 LTE SL V2x resource allocation is defined as mode-1 in NR SL V2x, while mode-4 as mode-2 in NR SL V2x.

With regard to future V2x enhancements, 3GPP SA1 working group has completed new service requirements for future V2x services in the FS_eV2x. SA1 have identified twenty- five use cases for advanced V2x services which will be used in 5G (i.e. LTE and NR). Such use cases are categorized into four use case groups: vehicles platooning, extended sensors, advanced driving and remote driving. The consolidated requirements for each use case group are captured in TR 22.886. For these advanced applications, the expected requirements to meet the needed data rate, capacity, reliability, latency, communication range and speed are made more stringent.

There currently exist certain challenge(s). For example, today the selection of SL RA does not consider the Uu situation, which may include, for example, the situation with a radio interface between the UE and NodeB. It is not feasible to adopt NW controlled SL RA when Uu and SL use different radio access technology (RAT) as the LI setup (e.g. numerology, timing, etc.) may be quite different. Moreover, NW controlled SL RA should only be applied to licensed spectrum where the NW can have full control. The system performance (either Uu or SL, or both) may be badly impacted if Uu and SL are handled in an inconsistent way.

Besides, a UE may transmit multiple eV2X services with different QoS requirement and could transmit SL on multiple RAT/band. In this case, only allowing one RA mode at a time may not be optimal.

SUMMARY

Certain aspects of the present disclosure and their embodiments may provide solutions to these or other challenges. The disclosure proposes methods to improve system performance by properly configuring the sidelink Resource Allocation (SL RA) modes and/or consistent configuring of Uu and sidelink (SL).

According to certain embodiments, a method performed by a wireless device includes communicating, to a network node, an indication that network scheduled SL resource allocation is needed or that data related to a eV2x service requiring high reliability is to be transmitted. The wireless device receives, from the network node, a selection that a Uu communication and a SL communication should use the same radio access technology (RAT) if simultaneous network and SL communication are using the same RAT. The wireless device adopts a resource allocation scheduled by the wireless device or communicate an indication a service cannot be operated with sufficient quality of service if the same RAT cannot be used for SL and Uu simultaneously.

According to certain embodiments, a wireless device includes processing circuitry configured to communicate, to a network node, an indication that network scheduled SL resource allocation is needed or that data related to a eV2x service requiring high reliability is to be transmitted. The processing circuitry receives, from the network node, a selection that a Uu communication and a SL communication should use the same radio access technology (RAT) if simultaneous network and SL communication are using the same RAT. The processing circuitry is configured to adopt a resource allocation scheduled by the wireless device or communicate an indication a service cannot be operated with sufficient quality of service if the same RAT cannot be used for SL and Uu simultaneously. According to certain embodiments, a method performed by a wireless device includes communicating, to a network node, an indication that network scheduled sidelink (SL) resource allocation is needed or that data related to a eV2x service requiring high reliability is to be transmitted. The wireless device receives, from the network node, a selection that a Uu communication and a SL communication should use the same radio access technology (RAT) if simultaneous network and SL communication are using the same RAT. The wireless device adopts a resource allocation scheduled by the wireless device or communicate an indication a service cannot be operated with sufficient quality of service if the same RAT cannot be used for SL and Uu simultaneously.

According to certain embodiments, a wireless device includes processing circuitry configured to communicate, to a network node, an indication that network scheduled sidelink (SL) resource allocation is needed or that data related to a eV2x service requiring high reliability is to be transmitted. The processing circuitry is configured to receive, from the network node, a selection that a Uu communication and a SL communication should use the same radio access technology (RAT) if simultaneous network and SL communication are using the same RAT. The processing circuitry is configured to adopt a resource allocation scheduled by the wireless device or communicate an indication a service cannot be operated with sufficient quality of service if the same RAT cannot be used for SL and Uu simultaneously.

According to certain embodiments, a method performed by a base station includes determining that a Uu and SL communication are using the same RAT or that a eV2x service requiring high reliability or with intermittent traffic is being used. In response to the determination that the Uu and SL communication are using the same RAT or that the eV2x service requiring high reliability or with intermittent traffic is being used, a network scheduled SL RA is selected to be used. The base station determines that SL communication is occurring on an unlicensed band or that a eV2x service requiring low latency is being used. In response to the determination that SL communication is occurring on the unlicensed band or that the eV2x service requiring low latency is being used, the base station selects a UE autonomously scheduled SL RA to be used

According to certain embodiments, a base station includes processing circuitry configured to determine that a Uu and SL communication are using the same RAT or that a eV2x service requiring high reliability or with intermittent traffic is being used. In response to the determination that the Uu and SL communication are using the same RAT or that the eV2x service requiring high reliability or with intermittent traffic is being used, a network scheduled SL RA is selected to be used. The processing circuitry is configured to determine that SL communication is occurring on an unlicensed band or that a eV2x service requiring low latency is being used. In response to the determination that SL communication is occurring on the unlicensed band or that the eV2x service requiring low latency is being used, the processing circuitry is configured to select a UE autonomously scheduled SL RA to be used. According to certain embodiments, a method performed by a network node includes transmitting, to a wireless device, signaling indicating that the network node supports simultaneous network-scheduled sidelink resource allocation (SL RA) and wireless device- scheduled SL RA.

According to certain embodiments, a network node includes processing circuitry configured to transmit, to a wireless device, signaling indicating that the network node supports simultaneous network-scheduled sidelink resource allocation (SL RA) and wireless device-scheduled SL RA.Certain embodiments may provide one or more of the following technical advantage(s). For example, certain embodiments may allow more consistent handling of Uu and SL communication and a proper SL RA mode configuration so that system performance is improved.

Other advantages may be readily apparent to one having skill in the art. Certain embodiments may have none, some, or all of the recited advantages.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a more complete understanding of the disclosed embodiments and their features and advantages, reference is now made to the following description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 illustrates V2x scenarios for an LTE -based network;

FIGURE 2 illustrates an example wireless network, according to certain embodiments;

FIGURE 3 illustrates an example network node, according to certain embodiments;

FIGURE 4 illustrates an example wireless device, according to certain embodiments;

FIGURE 5 illustrate an example user equipment, according to certain embodiments;

FIGURE 6 illustrates a virtualization environment in which functions implemented by some embodiments may be virtualized, according to certain embodiments;

FIGURE 7 illustrates a telecommunication network connected via an intermediate network to a host computer, according to certain embodiments;

FIGURE 8 illustrates a generalized block diagram of a host computer communicating via a base station with a user equipment over a partially wireless connection, according to certain embodiments;

FIGURE 9 illustrates a method implemented in a communication system, according to one embodiment; FIGURE 10 illustrates another method implemented in a communication system, according to one embodiment;

FIGURE 11 illustrates another method implemented in a communication system, according to one embodiment;

FIGURE 12 illustrates another method implemented in a communication system, according to one embodiment;

FIGURE 13 illustrates an example method, according to certain embodiments;

FIGURE 13 illustrates an exemplary virtual computing device, according to certain embodiments;

FIGURE 14 illustrates an example method by a wireless device, according to certain embodiments;

FIGURE 15 illustrates another exemplary virtual computing device, according to certain embodiments;

FIGURE 16 illustrates an example method by a network node, according to certain embodiments; and

FIGURE 17 illustrates another exemplary virtual computing device, according to certain embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Some of the embodiments contemplated herein will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. Other embodiments, however, are contained within the scope of the subject matter disclosed herein, the disclosed subject matter should not be construed as limited to only the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided by way of example to convey the scope of the subject matter to those skilled in the art.

Generally, all terms used herein are to be interpreted according to their ordinary meaning in the relevant technical field, unless a different meaning is clearly given and/or is implied from the context in which it is used. All references to a/an/the element, apparatus, component, means, step, etc. are to be interpreted openly as referring to at least one instance of the element, apparatus, component, means, step, etc., unless explicitly stated otherwise. The steps of any methods disclosed herein do not have to be performed in the exact order disclosed, unless a step is explicitly described as following or preceding another step and/or where it is implicit that a step must follow or precede another step. Any feature of any of the embodiments disclosed herein may be applied to any other embodiment, wherever appropriate. Likewise, any advantage of any of the embodiments may apply to any other embodiments, and vice versa. Other objectives, features and advantages of the enclosed embodiments will be apparent from the following description.

This disclosure contemplates methods on how to improve system performance by properly configuring the SL RA and/or jointly configuring Uu and SL so that Uu and SL can work harmoniously.

As used herein, the Uu interface may be an interface between a base station of a cellular communication and a wireless device. For example, the base station may be a NodeB, LTE base station (eNodeB), or 5G base station (gNodeB). The wireless device may include a user equipment (UE) or vehicle. The Uu interface may also be called a E-UTRAN interface.

Side link communication may include direct communication between wireless devices, which may be performed based on 3GPP technology. As one example, a SL communication may include any communication between wireless devices, which may include one or more UEs or one or more vehicles, using cellular network technology, which may include E-UTRAN or Uu or 5G technology, in particular example embodiments.

Certain aspects of the present disclosure and their embodiments may provide solutions to the challenges described above. The disclosure proposes methods to improve system performance by properly configuring the SL RA modes and/or consistent configuring of Uu and sidelink (SL). More specifically, the disclosure proposes:

• rules regarding which SL RA mode should be used.

• UE/NW signaling regarding support of simultaneous NW and UE scheduled SL RA.

• Joint RAT configuration of Uu and SL.

• Simultaneous configuration of NW and UE scheduled RA in a proper way.

For example, in some instances, SL BSR may be prioritized over other MAC CE if the SL services need low latency.

NW scheduled SL RA (also known as mode-3 in LTE SL V2x, and mode-1 in NR SL V2x) could provide higher reliability, while UE autonomous scheduled SL RA (also known as mode-4 in LTE SL V2x, and mode-2 in NR SL V2x) could provide lower latency. On the other hand, multiple eV2x services with different quality of service (QoS) requirements may be transmitted simultaneously. Thus, simultaneous NW and UE scheduled SL RA should be introduced. The two different SL V2x RA corresponds to two different SL grants (e.g. SL resource allocation).

According to certain embodiments, the following rules regarding which SL RA mode should be used may be (pre)defmed: • NW scheduled SL RA should only be used in case the Uu and SL communication are using the same RAT.

• NW scheduled SL RA is preferred for eV2x services requiring high reliability and/or with intermittent traffic.

• UE autonomous scheduled SL RA should be used for SL communication on unlicensed band.

• UE autonomous scheduled SL RA is preferred for eV2x services that need low latency.

According to an embodiment, a method by a base station includes determining that a Uu and SL communication are using the same RAT or that a eV2x service requiring high reliability or with intermittent traffic is being used and in response to the determination that the Uu and SL communication are using the same RAT or that the eV2x service requiring high reliability or with intermittent traffic is being used, selecting a network scheduled SL RA to be used. The method also includes determining that SL communication is occurring on an unlicensed band or that a eV2x service requiring low latency is being used and in response to the determination that SL communication is occurring on the unlicensed band or that the eV2x service requiring low latency is being used, selecting a UE autonomously scheduled SL RA to be used.

According to certain embodiments, the network may (optionally) inform the UEs using dedicated (e.g. radio resource control (RRC)) and/or common signaling (e.g. system information block (SIB)) whether it supports/enables simultaneous network and UE scheduled SL RA or not.

According to certain embodiments, the UE may also indicate to the network using, for example, sidelinkUelnformation, the UE’s capability/configuration regarding whether or not simultaneous network and UE scheduled SL RA is supported/enabled. The UE may optionally only indicate this when the network informs that the simultaneous network and UE scheduled SL RA can be supported by the network.

According to certain embodiments, the network can store the UE’s capability in some core network entity, such as for, example, MME/AMF, and the gNB fetches the capability when needed (e.g. when the UE connects to the gNB). In this manner, the UE need not indicate the capability each time it switches to a new gNB/cell.

According to certain embodiments, the UE may indicate to the network that network scheduled SL RA is needed and/or eV2x services requiring high reliability are or are going to be transmitted. In case simultaneous network and UE scheduled SL RA is not supported/ enabled, the network should try to ensure that Uu and SL communication are using the same RAT. More specifically, in particular embodiments:

• The Uu RAT is selected first w/o considering SL (PC5) situation, or the current used Uu RAT is kept unchanged, while PC5 RAT selection parameters are adjusted so that PC5 more likely selects the same RAT as Uu and/or uses the Uu RAT for a longer time.

• The PC5 RAT is selected first w/o considering Uu situation, or the current used PC5 RAT is kept unchanged, while Uu RAT selection parameters are adjusted so that Uu more likely selects the same RAT as PC5 and/or uses the PC5 RAT for a longer time.

• Alternatively, first determine for which interface the RAT should be kept or RAT selection should be first performed, based on e.g. the comparison of QoS requirement of services transmitted over Uu and PC5.

According to certain embodiments, if the same RAT cannot be used for SL and Uu simultaneously, the network may indicate to the UE that network scheduled RA cannot be supported/ enabled because the same RAT cannot be used for SL and Uu. The UE may adopt UE scheduled RA instead and/or inform the upper layer that the service cannot (or may not) be operated with sufficient QoS.

In case simultaneous network and UE scheduled SL RA is supported/enabled, both SL RA modes could be (pre)configured by the network or the UE depending the eV2x services’ requirements and/or the RAT/band used by SL:

• Configure NW scheduled RA for eV2x services requiring e.g. high reliability,

• Configure UE autonomous scheduled RA for eV2x services requiring e.g. low latency,

• Configure UE autonomous scheduled RA for eV2x services transmitted on SL with different RAT as that used by Uu and/or on SL using unlicensed band.

For example, according to certain embodiments, the network may configure the UE with a logical channel restriction to indicate which SL logical channels are allowed be transmitted by the UE when using the mode-1 resource allocation (i.e. network scheduled RA), and which ones are allowed to be transmitted by the UE when using mode-2 resource allocation (UE scheduled RA). The logical channel restriction can be expressed in the form of Logical Channel Identities (LCIDs), Logical Channel Group (LCG), or V2x services identifiers (such as Public Service Identifier (PSID), L2 destination addresses) that are allowed to be transmitted with one operational mode or the other. The logical channel restriction may be applied only to mode-2 resource allocation, implying that all the logical channels not included in the mode-2 logical channel restriction shall be sent following mode-1 resource allocation. According to certain embodiments, the network may also configure the UE to apply this logical channel restriction only on certain carriers. For example, the network may configure the UE to use mode-2 resource allocation (UE autonomous scheduled) for all V2x services which are transmitted on unlicensed carriers, thereby implying that all logical channels mapped to such V2x services shall be transmitted on unlicensed carriers by using UE autonomous scheduled operations. Instead, the logical channels associated to the other V2x services shall be transmitted on licensed carriers using NW scheduled resource allocation.

By this, the UE could, for example, transmit eV2x services requiring high reliability on SL with the same RAT as Uu and adopt NW scheduled RA, and simultaneously adopt UE scheduled RA for eV2X services requiring low latency and/or eV2X services transmitted on unlicensed band or SL with different RAT as Uu.

In another embodiment, the UE may be configured to perform both mode-1 and mode- 2, for example, by following the above logical channel restriction. In case the mode-1 and mode-2 grant occur at the same time, or very close in time (the time can be configured or depending on UE capability), such that the UE is not capable to perform both transmissions allocated with mode-1 and mode-2, the UE may prioritize either mode-1 or mode-2. For example, in a particular embodiment, the UE may prioritize either mode-1 or mode-2 depending on which grant comes first in time. In another particular embodiment, the UE may always prioritize mode-1 transmissions, even if the mode-1 grant comes later in time. The UE may prioritize the SL grant corresponding to the operational mode to which the priority of the highest priority data in the SL buffer is mapped, according to the above channel restriction. For example, if the UE has in the SL buffer the sidelink logical channels LCID 1, LCID 2, LCID 3, with LCID 1 mapped to mode-2 and LCID2,3 to mode-1, the UE just performs transmission of the LCID 1 in the mode-2 SL grant.

FIGURE 2 illustrates an example wireless network, in accordance with some embodiments. Although the subject matter described herein may be implemented in any appropriate type of system using any suitable components, the embodiments disclosed herein are described in relation to a wireless network, such as the example wireless network illustrated in FIGURE 2. For simplicity, the wireless network of FIGURE 2 only depicts network 106, network nodes 160 and 160b, and wireless devices 110, 110b, and 110c. In practice, a wireless network may further include any additional elements suitable to support communication between wireless devices or between a wireless device and another communication device, such as a landline telephone, a service provider, or any other network node or end device. Of the illustrated components, network node 160 and wireless device 110 are depicted with additional detail. The wireless network may provide communication and other types of services to one or more wireless devices to facilitate the wireless devices’ access to and/or use of the services provided by, or via, the wireless network.

The wireless network may comprise and/or interface with any type of communication, telecommunication, data, cellular, and/or radio network or other similar type of system. In some embodiments, the wireless network may be configured to operate according to specific standards or other types of predefined rules or procedures. Thus, particular embodiments of the wireless network may implement communication standards, such as Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), Long Term Evolution (LTE), and/or other suitable 2G, 3G, 4G, or 5G standards; wireless local area network (WLAN) standards, such as the IEEE 802.11 standards; and/or any other appropriate wireless communication standard, such as the Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax), Bluetooth, Z-Wave and/or ZigBee standards.

Network 106 may comprise one or more backhaul networks, core networks, IP networks, public switched telephone networks (PSTNs), packet data networks, optical networks, wide-area networks (WANs), local area networks (LANs), wireless local area networks (WLANs), wired networks, wireless networks, metropolitan area networks, and other networks to enable communication between devices.

Network node 160 and wireless device 110 comprise various components described in more detail below. These components work together in order to provide network node and/or wireless device functionality, such as providing wireless connections in a wireless network. In different embodiments, the wireless network may comprise any number of wired or wireless networks, network nodes, base stations, controllers, wireless devices, relay stations, and/or any other components or systems that may facilitate or participate in the communication of data and/or signals whether via wired or wireless connections.

FIGURE 3 illustrates an example network node 160, according to certain embodiments. As used herein, network node refers to equipment capable, configured, arranged and/or operable to communicate directly or indirectly with a wireless device and/or with other network nodes or equipment in the wireless network to enable and/or provide wireless access to the wireless device and/or to perform other functions (e.g., administration) in the wireless network. Examples of network nodes include, but are not limited to, access points (APs) (e.g., radio access points), base stations (BSs) (e.g., radio base stations, Node Bs, evolved Node Bs (eNBs) and NR NodeBs (gNBs)). Base stations may be categorized based on the amount of coverage they provide (or, stated differently, their transmit power level) and may then also be referred to as fe to base stations, pico base stations, micro base stations, or macro base stations. A base station may be a relay node or a relay donor node controlling a relay. A network node may also include one or more (or all) parts of a distributed radio base station such as centralized digital units and/or remote radio units (RRUs), sometimes referred to as Remote Radio Heads (RRHs). Such remote radio units may or may not be integrated with an antenna as an antenna integrated radio. Parts of a distributed radio base station may also be referred to as nodes in a distributed antenna system (DAS). Yet further examples of network nodes include multi-standard radio (MSR) equipment such as MSR BSs, network controllers such as radio network controllers (RNCs) or base station controllers (BSCs), base transceiver stations (BTSs), transmission points, transmission nodes, multi-cell/multicast coordination entities (MCEs), core network nodes (e.g., MSCs, MMEs), O&M nodes, OSS nodes, SON nodes, positioning nodes (e.g., E-SMLCs), and/or MDTs. As another example, a network node may be a virtual network node as described in more detail below. More generally, however, network nodes may represent any suitable device (or group of devices) capable, configured, arranged, and/or operable to enable and/or provide a wireless device with access to the wireless network or to provide some service to a wireless device that has accessed the wireless network.

In FIGURE 3, network node 160 includes processing circuitry 170, device readable medium 180, interface 190, auxiliary equipment 184, power source 186, power circuitry 187, and antenna 162. Although network node 160 illustrated in the example wireless network of FIGURE 2 may represent a device that includes the illustrated combination of hardware components, other embodiments may comprise network nodes with different combinations of components. It is to be understood that a network node comprises any suitable combination of hardware and/or software needed to perform the tasks, features, functions and methods disclosed herein. Moreover, while the components of network node 160 are depicted as single boxes located within a larger box, or nested within multiple boxes, in practice, a network node may comprise multiple different physical components that make up a single illustrated component (e.g., device readable medium 180 may comprise multiple separate hard drives as well as multiple RAM modules).

Similarly, network node 160 may be composed of multiple physically separate components (e.g., a NodeB component and a RNC component, or a BTS component and a BSC component, etc.), which may each have their own respective components. In certain scenarios in which network node 160 comprises multiple separate components (e.g., BTS and BSC components), one or more of the separate components may be shared among several network nodes. For example, a single RNC may control multiple NodeB’s. In such a scenario, each unique NodeB and RNC pair, may in some instances be considered a single separate network node. In some embodiments, network node 160 may be configured to support multiple radio access technologies (RATs). In such embodiments, some components may be duplicated (e.g., separate device readable medium 180 for the different RATs) and some components may be reused (e.g., the same antenna 162 maybe shared by the RATs). Network node 160 may also include multiple sets of the various illustrated components for different wireless technologies integrated into network node 160, such as, for example, GSM, WCDMA, LTE, NR, WiFi, or Bluetooth wireless technologies. These wireless technologies may be integrated into the same or different chip or set of chips and other components within network node 160.

Processing circuitry 170 is configured to perform any determining, calculating, or similar operations (e.g., certain obtaining operations) described herein as being provided by a network node. These operations performed by processing circuitry 170 may include processing information obtained by processing circuitry 170 by, for example, converting the obtained information into other information, comparing the obtained information or converted information to information stored in the network node, and/or performing one or more operations based on the obtained information or converted information, and as a result of said processing making a determination.

Processing circuitry 170 may comprise a combination of one or more of a microprocessor, controller, microcontroller, central processing unit, digital signal processor, application-specific integrated circuit, field programmable gate array, or any other suitable computing device, resource, or combination of hardware, software and/or encoded logic operable to provide, either alone or in conjunction with other network node 160 components, such as device readable medium 180, network node 160 functionality. For example, processing circuitry 170 may execute instructions stored in device readable medium 180 or in memory within processing circuitry 170. Such functionality may include providing any of the various wireless features, functions, or benefits discussed herein. In some embodiments, processing circuitry 170 may include a system on a chip (SOC).

In some embodiments, processing circuitry 170 may include one or more of radio frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry 172 and baseband processing circuitry 174. In some embodiments, radio frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry 172 and baseband processing circuitry 174 may be on separate chips (or sets of chips), boards, or units, such as radio units and digital units. In alternative embodiments, part or all of RF transceiver circuitry 172 and baseband processing circuitry 174 may be on the same chip or set of chips, boards, or units

In certain embodiments, some or all of the functionality described herein as being provided by a network node, base station, eNB or other such network device may be performed by processing circuitry 170 executing instructions stored on device readable medium 180 or memory within processing circuitry 170. In alternative embodiments, some or all of the functionality may be provided by processing circuitry 170 without executing instructions stored on a separate or discrete device readable medium, such as in a hard-wired manner. In any of those embodiments, whether executing instructions stored on a device readable storage medium or not, processing circuitry 170 can be configured to perform the described functionality. The benefits provided by such functionality are not limited to processing circuitry 170 alone or to other components of network node 160, but are enjoyed by network node 160 as a whole, and/or by end users and the wireless network generally.

Device readable medium 180 may comprise any form of volatile or non-volatile computer readable memory including, without limitation, persistent storage, solid-state memory, remotely mounted memory, magnetic media, optical media, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), mass storage media (for example, a hard disk), removable storage media (for example, a flash drive, a Compact Disk (CD) or a Digital Video Disk (DVD)), and/or any other volatile or non-volatile, non-transitory device readable and/or computer-executable memory devices that store information, data, and/or instructions that may be used by processing circuitry 170. Device readable medium 180 may store any suitable instructions, data or information, including a computer program, software, an application including one or more of logic, rules, code, tables, etc. and/or other instructions capable of being executed by processing circuitry 170 and, utilized by network node 160. Device readable medium 180 may be used to store any calculations made by processing circuitry 170 and/or any data received via interface 190. In some embodiments, processing circuitry 170 and device readable medium 180 may be considered to be integrated.

Interface 190 is used in the wired or wireless communication of signalling and/or data between network node 160, network 106, and/or wireless devices 110. As illustrated, interface 190 comprises port(s)/terminal(s) 194 to send and receive data, for example to and from network 106 over a wired connection. Interface 190 also includes radio front end circuitry 192 that maybe coupled to, or in certain embodiments a part of, antenna 162. Radio front end circuitry 192 comprises filters 198 and amplifiers 196. Radio front end circuitry 192 may be connected to antenna 162 and processing circuitry 170. Radio front end circuitry may be configured to condition signals communicated between antenna 162 and processing circuitry 170. Radio front end circuitry 192 may receive digital data that is to be sent out to other network nodes or wireless devices via a wireless connection. Radio front end circuitry 192 may convert the digital data into a radio signal having the appropriate channel and bandwidth parameters using a combination of filters 198 and/or amplifiers 196. The radio signal may then be transmitted via antenna 162. Similarly, when receiving data, antenna 162 may collect radio signals which are then converted into digital data by radio front end circuitry 192. The digital data may be passed to processing circuitry 170. In other embodiments, the interface may comprise different components and/or different combinations of components.

In certain alternative embodiments, network node 160 may not include separate radio front end circuitry 192, instead, processing circuitry 170 may comprise radio front end circuitry and may be connected to antenna 162 without separate radio front end circuitry 192. Similarly, in some embodiments, all or some of RF transceiver circuitry 172 may be considered a part of interface 190. In still other embodiments, interface 190 may include one or more ports or terminals 194, radio front end circuitry 192, and RF transceiver circuitry 172, as part of a radio unit (not shown), and interface 190 may communicate with baseband processing circuitry 174, which is part of a digital unit (not shown).

Antenna 162 may include one or more antennas, or antenna arrays, configured to send and/or receive wireless signals. Antenna 162 may be coupled to radio front end circuitry 190 and may be any type of antenna capable of transmitting and receiving data and/or signals wirelessly. In some embodiments, antenna 162 may comprise one or more omni-directional, sector or panel antennas operable to transmit/receive radio signals between, for example, 2 GHz and 66 GHz. An omni-directional antenna may be used to transmit/receive radio signals in any direction, a sector antenna may be used to transmit/receive radio signals from devices within a particular area, and a panel antenna may be a line of sight antenna used to transmit/receive radio signals in a relatively straight line. In some instances, the use of more than one antenna may be referred to as MIMO. In certain embodiments, antenna 162 may be separate from network node 160 and may be connectable to network node 160 through an interface or port.

Antenna 162, interface 190, and/or processing circuitry 170 may be configured to perform any receiving operations and/or certain obtaining operations described herein as being performed by a network node. Any information, data and/or signals may be received from a wireless device, another network node and/or any other network equipment. Similarly, antenna 162, interface 190, and/or processing circuitry 170 may be configured to perform any transmitting operations described herein as being performed by a network node. Any information, data and/or signals maybe transmitted to a wireless device, another network node and/or any other network equipment.

Power circuitry 187 may comprise, or be coupled to, power management circuitry and is configured to supply the components of network node 160 with power for performing the functionality described herein. Power circuitry 187 may receive power from power source 186. Power source 186 and/or power circuitry 187 may be configured to provide power to the various components of network node 160 in a form suitable for the respective components (e.g., at a voltage and current level needed for each respective component). Power source 186 may either be included in, or external to, power circuitry 187 and/or network node 160. For example, network node 160 may be connectable to an external power source (e.g., an electricity outlet) via an input circuitry or interface such as an electrical cable, whereby the external power source supplies power to power circuitry 187. As a further example, power source 186 may comprise a source of power in the form of a battery or battery pack which is connected to, or integrated in, power circuitry 187. The battery may provide backup power should the external power source fail. Other types of power sources, such as photovoltaic devices, may also be used.

Alternative embodiments of network node 160 may include additional components beyond those shown in FIGURE 3 that maybe responsible for providing certain aspects of the network node’s functionality, including any of the functionality described herein and/or any functionality necessary to support the subject matter described herein. For example, network node 160 may include user interface equipment to allow input of information into network node 160 and to allow output of information from network node 160. This may allow a user to perform diagnostic, maintenance, repair, and other administrative functions for network node 160.

FIGURE 4 illustrates an example wireless device 110, according to certain embodiments. As used herein, wireless device refers to a device capable, configured, arranged and/or operable to communicate wirelessly with network nodes and/or other wireless devices. Unless otherwise noted, the term wireless device may be used interchangeably herein with user equipment (UE). Communicating wirelessly may involve transmitting and/or receiving wireless signals using electromagnetic waves, radio waves, infrared waves, and/or other types of signals suitable for conveying information through air. In some embodiments, a wireless device may be configured to transmit and/or receive information without direct human interaction. For instance, a wireless device may be designed to transmit information to a network on a predetermined schedule, when triggered by an internal or external event, or in response to requests from the network. Examples of a wireless device include, but are not limited to, a smart phone, a mobile phone, a cell phone, a voice over IP (VoIP) phone, a wireless local loop phone, a desktop computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a wireless cameras, a gaming console or device, a music storage device, a playback appliance, a wearable terminal device, a wireless endpoint, a mobile station, a tablet, a laptop, a laptop-embedded equipment (LEE), a laptop-mounted equipment (LME), a smart device, a wireless customer- premise equipment (CPE) a vehicle-mounted wireless terminal device, etc.. A wireless device may support device-to-device (D2D) communication, for example by implementing a 3 GPP standard for sidelink communication, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V), vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I), vehicle-to-everything (V2x) and may in this case be referred to as a D2D communication device. As yet another specific example, in an Internet of Things (IoT) scenario, a wireless device may represent a machine or other device that performs monitoring and/or measurements, and transmits the results of such monitoring and/or measurements to another wireless device and/or a network node. The wireless device may in this case be a machine-to-machine (M2M) device, which may in a 3GPP context be referred to as an MTC device. As one particular example, the wireless device may be a UE implementing the 3GPP narrow band internet of things (NB-IoT) standard. Particular examples of such machines or devices are sensors, metering devices such as power meters, industrial machinery, or home or personal appliances (e.g. refrigerators, televisions, etc.) personal wearables (e.g., watches, fitness trackers, etc.). In other scenarios, a wireless device may represent a vehicle or other equipment that is capable of monitoring and/or reporting on its operational status or other functions associated with its operation. A wireless device as described above may represent the endpoint of a wireless connection, in which case the device maybe referred to as a wireless terminal. Furthermore, a wireless device as described above may be mobile, in which case it may also be referred to as a mobile device or a mobile terminal.

As illustrated, wireless device 110 includes antenna 1 11, interface 114, processing circuitry 120, device readable medium 130, user interface equipment 132, auxiliary equipment 134, power source 136 and power circuitry 137. Wireless device 110 may include multiple sets of one or more of the illustrated components for different wireless technologies supported by wireless device 110, such as, for example, GSM, WCDMA, LTE, NR, WiFi, WiMAX, or Bluetooth wireless technologies, just to mention a few. These wireless technologies may be integrated into the same or different chips or set of chips as other components within wireless device 110. Antenna 111 may include one or more antennas or antenna arrays, configured to send and/or receive wireless signals, and is connected to interface 114. In certain alternative embodiments, antenna 111 may be separate from wireless device 110 and be connectable to wireless device 110 through an interface or port. Antenna 111, interface 114, and/or processing circuitry 120 may be configured to perform any receiving or transmitting operations described herein as being performed by a wireless device. Any information, data and/or signals may be received from a network node and/or another wireless device. In some embodiments, radio front end circuitry and/or antenna 111 may be considered an interface.

As illustrated, interface 114 comprises radio front end circuitry 112 and antenna 111. Radio front end circuitry 112 comprise one or more filters 118 and amplifiers 116. Radio front end circuitry 114 is connected to antenna 111 and processing circuitry 120, and is configured to condition signals communicated between antenna 111 and processing circuitry 120. Radio front end circuitry 112 may be coupled to or a part of antenna 111. In some embodiments, wireless device 110 may not include separate radio front end circuitry 112; rather, processing circuitry 120 may comprise radio front end circuitry and may be connected to antenna 111. Similarly, in some embodiments, some or all of RF transceiver circuitry 122 may be considered a part of interface 114. Radio front end circuitry 112 may receive digital data that is to be sent out to other network nodes or wireless devices via a wireless connection. Radio front end circuitry 112 may convert the digital data into a radio signal having the appropriate channel and bandwidth parameters using a combination of filters 118 and/or amplifiers 116. The radio signal may then be transmitted via antenna 111. Similarly, when receiving data, antenna 111 may collect radio signals which are then converted into digital data by radio front end circuitry 112. The digital data may be passed to processing circuitry 120. In other embodiments, the interface may comprise different components and/or different combinations of components.

Processing circuitry 120 may comprise a combination of one or more of a microprocessor, controller, microcontroller, central processing unit, digital signal processor, application-specific integrated circuit, field programmable gate array, or any other suitable computing device, resource, or combination of hardware, software, and/or encoded logic operable to provide, either alone or in conjunction with other wireless device 110 components, such as device readable medium 130, wireless device 110 functionality. Such functionality may include providing any of the various wireless features or benefits discussed herein. For example, processing circuitry 120 may execute instructions stored in device readable medium 130 or in memory within processing circuitry 120 to provide the functionality disclosed herein. As illustrated, processing circuitry 120 includes one or more of RF transceiver circuitry 122, baseband processing circuitry 124, and application processing circuitry 126. In other embodiments, the processing circuitry may comprise different components and/or different combinations of components. In certain embodiments processing circuitry 120 of wireless device 110 may comprise a SOC. In some embodiments, RF transceiver circuitry 122, baseband processing circuitry 124, and application processing circuitry 126 may be on separate chips or sets of chips. In alternative embodiments, part or all of baseband processing circuitry 124 and application processing circuitry 126 may be combined into one chip or set of chips, and RF transceiver circuitry 122 may be on a separate chip or set of chips. In still alternative embodiments, part or all of RF transceiver circuitry 122 and baseband processing circuitry 124 maybe on the same chip or set of chips, and application processing circuitry 126 may be on a separate chip or set of chips. In yet other alternative embodiments, part or all of RF transceiver circuitry 122, baseband processing circuitry 124, and application processing circuitry 126 may be combined in the same chip or set of chips. In some embodiments, RF transceiver circuitry 122 may be a part of interface 114. RF transceiver circuitry 122 may condition RF signals for processing circuitry 120.

In certain embodiments, some or all of the functionality described herein as being performed by a wireless device may be provided by processing circuitry 120 executing instructions stored on device readable medium 130, which in certain embodiments may be a computer-readable storage medium. In alternative embodiments, some or all of the functionality may be provided by processing circuitry 120 without executing instructions stored on a separate or discrete device readable storage medium, such as in a hard-wired manner. In any of those particular embodiments, whether executing instructions stored on a device readable storage medium or not, processing circuitry 120 can be configured to perform the described functionality. The benefits provided by such functionality are not limited to processing circuitry 120 alone or to other components of wireless device 110, but are enjoyed by wireless device 110 as a whole, and/or by end users and the wireless network generally.

Processing circuitry 120 may be configured to perform any determining, calculating, or similar operations (e.g., certain obtaining operations) described herein as being performed by a wireless device. These operations, as performed by processing circuitry 120, may include processing information obtained by processing circuitry 120 by, for example, converting the obtained information into other information, comparing the obtained information or converted information to information stored by wireless device 110, and/or performing one or more operations based on the obtained information or converted information, and as a result of said processing making a determination.

Device readable medium 130 may be operable to store a computer program, software, an application including one or more of logic, rules, code, tables, etc. and/or other instructions capable of being executed by processing circuitry 120. Device readable medium 130 may include computer memory (e.g., Random Access Memory (RAM) or Read Only Memory (ROM)), mass storage media (e.g., a hard disk), removable storage media (e.g., a Compact Disk (CD) or a Digital Video Disk (DVD)), and/or any other volatile or non-volatile, non- transitory device readable and/or computer executable memory devices that store information, data, and/or instructions that may be used by processing circuitry 120. In some embodiments, processing circuitry 120 and device readable medium 130 may be considered to be integrated.

User interface equipment 132 may provide components that allow for a human user to interact with wireless device 110. Such interaction may be of many forms, such as visual, audial, tactile, etc. User interface equipment 132 may be operable to produce output to the user and to allow the user to provide input to wireless device 110. The type of interaction may vary depending on the type of user interface equipment 132 installed in wireless device 110. For example, if wireless device 110 is a smart phone, the interaction may be via a touch screen; if wireless device 110 is a smart meter, the interaction may be through a screen that provides usage (e.g., the number of gallons used) or a speaker that provides an audible alert (e.g., if smoke is detected). User interface equipment 132 may include input interfaces, devices and circuits, and output interfaces, devices and circuits. User interface equipment 132 is configured to allow input of information into wireless device 110, and is connected to processing circuitry 120 to allow processing circuitry 120 to process the input information. User interface equipment 132 may include, for example, a microphone, a proximity or other sensor, keys/buUons, a touch display, one or more cameras, a USB port, or other input circuitry. User interface equipment 132 is also configured to allow output of information from wireless device 110, and to allow processing circuitry 120 to output information from wireless device 110. User interface equipment 132 may include, for example, a speaker, a display, vibrating circuitry, a USB port, a headphone interface, or other output circuitry. Using one or more input and output interfaces, devices, and circuits, of user interface equipment 132, wireless device 110 may communicate with end users and/or the wireless network, and allow them to benefit from the functionality described herein.

Auxiliary equipment 134 is operable to provide more specific functionality which may not be generally performed by wireless devices. This may comprise specialized sensors for doing measurements for various purposes, interfaces for additional types of communication such as wired communications etc. The inclusion and type of components of auxiliary equipment 134 may vary depending on the embodiment and/or scenario.

Power source 136 may, in some embodiments, be in the form of a battery or battery pack. Other types of power sources, such as an external power source (e.g., an electricity outlet), photovoltaic devices or power cells, may also be used. Wireless device 110 may further comprise power circuitry 137 for delivering power from power source 136 to the various parts of wireless device 110 which need power from power source 136 to carry out any functionality described or indicated herein. Power circuitry 137 may in certain embodiments comprise power management circuitry. Power circuitry 137 may additionally or alternatively be operable to receive power from an external power source; in which case wireless device 110 may be connectable to the external power source (such as an electricity outlet) via input circuitry or an interface such as an electrical power cable. Power circuitry 137 may also in certain embodiments be operable to deliver power from an external power source to power source 136. This may be, for example, for the charging of power source 136. Power circuitry 137 may perform any formatting, converting, or other modification to the power from power source 136 to make the power suitable for the respective components of wireless device 110 to which power is supplied.

FIGURE 5 illustrates one embodiment of a UE in accordance with various aspects described herein. As used herein, a user equipment or UE may not necessarily have a user in the sense of a human user who owns and/or operates the relevant device. Instead, a UE may represent a device that is intended for sale to, or operation by, a human user but which may not, or which may not initially, be associated with a specific human user (e.g., a smart sprinkler controller). Alternatively, a UE may represent a device that is not intended for sale to, or operation by, an end user but which may be associated with or operated for the benefit of a user (e.g., a smart power meter). UE 2200 may be any UE identified by the 3^rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), including a NB-IoT UE, a machine type communication (MTC) UE, and/or an enhanced MTC (eMTC) UE. UE 200, as illustrated in FIGURE 5, is one example of a wireless device configured for communication in accordance with one or more communication standards promulgated by the 3^rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), such as 3GPP’s GSM, UMTS, LTE, and/or 5G standards. As mentioned previously, the term wireless device and UE may be used interchangeable. Accordingly, although FIGURE 5 is a UE, the components discussed herein are equally applicable to a wireless device, and vice- versa. In FIGURE 5, UE 200 includes processing circuitry 201 that is operatively coupled to input/output interface 205, radio frequency (RF) interface 209, network connection interface 211, memory 215 including random access memory (RAM) 217, read-only memory (ROM) 219, and storage medium 221 or the like, communication subsystem 231, power source 233, and/or any other component, or any combination thereof. Storage medium 221 includes operating system 223, application program 225, and data 227. In other embodiments, storage medium 221 may include other similar types of information. Certain UEs may utilize all of the components shown in FIGURE 5, or only a subset of the components. The level of integration between the components may vary from one UE to another UE. Further, certain UEs may contain multiple instances of a component, such as multiple processors, memories, transceivers, transmitters, receivers, etc.

In FIGURE 5, processing circuitry 201 may be configured to process computer instructions and data. Processing circuitry 201 maybe configured to implement any sequential state machine operative to execute machine instructions stored as machine-readable computer programs in the memory, such as one or more hardware-implemented state machines (e.g., in discrete logic, FPGA, ASIC, etc.); programmable logic together with appropriate firmware; one or more stored program, general-purpose processors, such as a microprocessor or Digital Signal Processor (DSP), together with appropriate software; or any combination of the above. For example, the processing circuitry 201 may include two central processing units (CPUs). Data may be information in a form suitable for use by a computer.

In the depicted embodiment, input/output interface 205 may be configured to provide a communication interface to an input device, output device, or input and output device. UE 200 may be configured to use an output device via input/output interface 205. An output device may use the same type of interface port as an input device. For example, a USB port may be used to provide input to and output from UE 200. The output device may be a speaker, a sound card, a video card, a display, a monitor, a printer, an actuator, an emitter, a smartcard, another output device, or any combination thereof. UE 200 may be configured to use an input device via input/output interface 205 to allow a user to capture information into UE 200. The input device may include a touch-sensitive or presence-sensitive display, a camera (e.g., a digital camera, a digital video camera, a web camera, etc.), a microphone, a sensor, a mouse, a trackball, a directional pad, a trackpad, a scroll wheel, a smartcard, and the like. The presence-sensitive display may include a capacitive or resistive touch sensor to sense input from a user. A sensor maybe, for instance, an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a tilt sensor, a force sensor, a magnetometer, an optical sensor, a proximity sensor, another like sensor, or any combination thereof. For example, the input device may be an accelerometer, a magnetometer, a digital camera, a microphone, and an optical sensor.

In FIGURE 5, RF interface 209 may be configured to provide a communication interface to RF components such as a transmitter, a receiver, and an antenna. Network connection interface 211 may be configured to provide a communication interface to network 243a. Network 243a may encompass wired and/or wireless networks such as a local-area network (LAN), a wide-area network (WAN), a computer network, a wireless network, a telecommunications network, another like network or any combination thereof. For example, network 243a may comprise a Wi-Fi network. Network connection interface 211 may be configured to include a receiver and a transmitter interface used to communicate with one or more other devices over a communication network according to one or more communication protocols, such as Ethernet, TCP/IP, SONET, ATM, or the like. Network connection interface 211 may implement receiver and transmitter functionality appropriate to the communication network links (e.g., optical, electrical, and the like). The transmitter and receiver functions may share circuit components, software or firmware, or alternatively may be implemented separately.

RAM 217 may be configured to interface via bus 202 to processing circuitry 201 to provide storage or caching of data or computer instructions during the execution of software programs such as the operating system, application programs, and device drivers. ROM 219 may be configured to provide computer instructions or data to processing circuitry 201. For example, ROM 219 may be configured to store invariant low-level system code or data for basic system functions such as basic input and output (I/O), startup, or reception of keystrokes from a keyboard that are stored in a non-volatile memory. Storage medium 221 may be configured to include memory such as RAM, ROM, programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), magnetic disks, optical disks, floppy disks, hard disks, removable cartridges, or flash drives. In one example, storage medium 221 may be configured to include operating system 223, application program 225 such as a web browser application, a widget or gadget engine or another application, and data file 227. Storage medium 221 may store, for use by UE 200, any of a variety of various operating systems or combinations of operating systems.

Storage medium 221 may be configured to include a number of physical drive units, such as redundant array of independent disks (RAID), floppy disk drive, flash memory, USB flash drive, external hard disk drive, thumb drive, pen drive, key drive, high-density digital versatile disc (HD-DVD) optical disc drive, internal hard disk drive, Blu-Ray optical disc drive, holographic digital data storage (HDDS) optical disc drive, external mini-dual in-line memory module (DIMM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), external micro-DIMM SDRAM, smartcard memory such as a subscriber identity module or a removable user identity (SIM/RUIM) module, other memory, or any combination thereof. Storage medium 221 may allow UE 200 to access computer-executable instructions, application programs or the like, stored on transitory or non-transitory memory media, to off load data, or to upload data. An article of manufacture, such as one utilizing a communication system may be tangibly embodied in storage medium 221, which may comprise a device readable medium.

In FIGURE 5, processing circuitry 201 may be configured to communicate with network 243b using communication subsystem 231. Network 243a and network 243b may be the same network or networks or different network or networks. Communication subsystem 231 maybe configured to include one or more transceivers used to communicate with network 243b. For example, communication subsystem 231 may be configured to include one or more transceivers used to communicate with one or more remote transceivers of another device capable of wireless communication such as another wireless device, UE, or base station of a radio access network (RAN) according to one or more communication protocols, such as IEEE 802.2, CDMA, WCDMA, GSM, LTE, UTRAN, WiMax, or the like. Each transceiver may include transmitter 233 and/or receiver 235 to implement transmitter or receiver functionality, respectively, appropriate to the RAN links (e.g., frequency allocations and the like). Further, transmitter 233 and receiver 235 of each transceiver may share circuit components, software or firmware, or alternatively may be implemented separately.

In the illustrated embodiment, the communication functions of communication subsystem 231 may include data communication, voice communication, multimedia communication, short-range communications such as Bluetooth, near-field communication, location-based communication such as the use of the global positioning system (GPS) to determine a location, another like communication function, or any combination thereof. For example, communication subsystem 231 may include cellular communication, Wi-Fi communication, Bluetooth communication, and GPS communication. Network 243b may encompass wired and/or wireless networks such as a local-area network (LAN), a wide-area network (WAN), a computer network, a wireless network, a telecommunications network, another like network or any combination thereof. For example, network 243b may be a cellular network, a Wi-Fi network, and/or a near- field network. Power source 213 may be configured to provide alternating current (AC) or direct current (DC) power to components of UE 200.

The features, benefits and/or functions described herein may be implemented in one of the components of UE 200 or partitioned across multiple components of UE 200. Further, the features, benefits, and/or functions described herein may be implemented in any combination of hardware, software or firmware. In one example, communication subsystem 231 may be configured to include any of the components described herein. Further, processing circuitry 201 may be configured to communicate with any of such components over bus 202. In another example, any of such components may be represented by program instructions stored in memory that when executed by processing circuitry 201 perform the corresponding functions described herein. In another example, the functionality of any of such components may be partitioned between processing circuitry 201 and communication subsystem 231. In another example, the non-computationally intensive functions of any of such components may be implemented in software or firmware and the computationally intensive functions may be implemented in hardware.

FIGURE 6 is a schematic block diagram illustrating a virtualization environment 300 in which functions implemented by some embodiments may be virtualized. In the present context, virtualizing means creating virtual versions of apparatuses or devices which may include virtualizing hardware platforms, storage devices and networking resources. As used herein, virtualization can be applied to a node (e.g., a virtualized base station or a virtualized radio access node) or to a device (e.g., a UE, a wireless device or any other type of communication device) or components thereof and relates to an implementation in which at least a portion of the functionality is implemented as one or more virtual components (e.g., via one or more applications, components, functions, virtual machines or containers executing on one or more physical processing nodes in one or more networks).

In some embodiments, some or all of the functions described herein may be implemented as virtual components executed by one or more virtual machines implemented in one or more virtual environments 300 hosted by one or more of hardware nodes 330. Further, in embodiments in which the virtual node is not a radio access node or does not require radio connectivity (e.g., a core network node), then the network node may be entirely virtualized.

The functions may be implemented by one or more applications 320 (which may alternatively be called software instances, virtual appliances, network functions, virtual nodes, virtual network functions, etc.) operative to implement some of the features, functions, and/or benefits of some of the embodiments disclosed herein. Applications 320 are run in virtualization environment 300 which provides hardware 330 comprising processing circuitry 360 and memory 390. Memory 390 contains instructions 395 executable by processing circuitry 360 whereby application 320 is operative to provide one or more of the features, benefits, and/or functions disclosed herein.

Virtualization environment 300, comprises general-purpose or special-purpose network hardware devices 330 comprising a set of one or more processors or processing circuitry 360, which may be commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) processors, dedicated Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), or any other type of processing circuitry including digital or analog hardware components or special purpose processors. Each hardware device may comprise memory 390-1 which may be non-persistent memory for temporarily storing instructions 395 or software executed by processing circuitry 360. Each hardware device may comprise one or more network interface controllers (NICs) 370, also known as network interface cards, which include physical network interface 380. Each hardware device may also include non-transitory, persistent, machine-readable storage media 390-2 having stored therein software 395 and/or instructions executable by processing circuitry 360. Software 395 may include any type of software including software for instantiating one or more virtualization layers 350 (also referred to as hypervisors), software to execute virtual machines 340 as well as software allowing it to execute functions, features and/or benefits described in relation with some embodiments described herein.

Virtual machines 340, comprise virtual processing, virtual memory, virtual networking or interface and virtual storage, and may be run by a corresponding virtualization layer 350 or hypervisor. Different embodiments of the instance of virtual appliance 320 may be implemented on one or more of virtual machines 340, and the implementations may be made in different ways.

During operation, processing circuitry 360 executes software 395 to instantiate the hypervisor or virtualization layer 350, which may sometimes be referred to as a virtual machine monitor (VMM). Virtualization layer 350 may present a virtual operating platform that appears like networking hardware to virtual machine 340.

As shown in FIGURE 6, hardware 330 maybe a standalone network node with generic or specific components. Hardware 330 may comprise antenna 3225 and may implement some functions via virtualization. Alternatively, hardware 330 may be part of a larger cluster of hardware (e.g. such as in a data center or customer premise equipment (CPE)) where many hardware nodes work together and are managed via management and orchestration (MANO) 3100, which, among others, oversees lifecycle management of applications 320.

Virtualization of the hardware is in some contexts referred to as network function virtualization (NFV). NFV may be used to consolidate many network equipment types onto industry standard high volume server hardware, physical switches, and physical storage, which can be located in data centers, and customer premise equipment.

In the context of NFV, virtual machine 340 may be a software implementation of a physical machine that runs programs as if they were executing on a physical, non- virtualized machine. Each of virtual machines 340, and that part of hardware 330 that executes that virtual machine, be it hardware dedicated to that virtual machine and/or hardware shared by that virtual machine with others of the virtual machines 340, forms a separate virtual network elements (VNE).

Still in the context of NFV, Virtual Network Function (VNF) is responsible for handling specific network functions that run in one or more virtual machines 340 on top of hardware networking infrastructure 330 and corresponds to application 320 in FIGURE 6.

In some embodiments, one or more radio units 3200 that each include one or more transmitters 3220 and one or more receivers 3210 may be coupled to one or more antennas 3225. Radio units 3200 may communicate directly with hardware nodes 330 via one or more appropriate network interfaces and may be used in combination with the virtual components to provide a virtual node with radio capabilities, such as a radio access node or a base station.

In some embodiments, some signalling can be effected with the use of control system 3230 which may alternatively be used for communication between the hardware nodes 330 and radio units 3200.

FIGURE 7 illustrates a telecommunication network connected via an intermediate network to a host computer in accordance with some embodiments. With reference to FIGURE 7, in accordance with an embodiment, a communication system includes telecommunication network 410, such as a 3GPP-type cellular network, which comprises access network 411, such as a radio access network, and core network 414. Access network 411 comprises a plurality of base stations 412a, 412b, 412c, such as NBs, eNBs, gNBs or other types of wireless access points, each defining a corresponding coverage area 413a, 413b, 413c. Each base station 412a, 412b, 412c is connectable to core network 414 over a wired or wireless connection 415. A first UE 491 located in coverage area 413c is configured to wirelessly connect to, or be paged by, the corresponding base station 412c. A second UE 492 in coverage area 413a is wirelessly connectable to the corresponding base station 412a. While a plurality of UEs 491, 492 are illustrated in this example, the disclosed embodiments are equally applicable to a situation where a sole UE is in the coverage area or where a sole UE is connecting to the corresponding base station 412.

Telecommunication network 410 is itself connected to host computer 430, which may be embodied in the hardware and/or software of a standalone server, a cloud-implemented server, a distributed server or as processing resources in a server farm. Host computer 430 may be under the ownership or control of a service provider, or may be operated by the service provider or on behalf of the service provider. Connections 421 and 422 between telecommunication network 410 and host computer 430 may extend directly from core network 414 to host computer 430 or may go via an optional intermediate network 420. Intermediate network 420 may be one of, or a combination of more than one of, a public, private or hosted network; intermediate network 420, if any, may be a backbone network or the Internet; in particular, intermediate network 420 may comprise two or more sub-networks (not shown).

The communication system of FIGURE 7 as a whole enables connectivity between the connected UEs 491, 492 and host computer 430. The connectivity may be described as an over-the-top (OTT) connection 450. Host computer 430 and the connected UEs 491, 492 are configured to communicate data and/or signaling via OTT connection 450, using access network 411, core network 414, any intermediate network 420 and possible further infrastructure (not shown) as intermediaries. OTT connection 450 may be transparent in the sense that the participating communication devices through which OTT connection 450 passes are unaware of routing of uplink and downlink communications. For example, base station 412 may not or need not be informed about the past routing of an incoming downlink communication with data originating from host computer 430 to be forwarded (e.g., handed over) to a connected UE 491. Similarly, base station 412 need not be aware of the future routing of an outgoing uplink communication originating from the UE 491 towards the host computer 430.

FIGURE 8 illustrates a host computer communicating via a base station with a user equipment over a partially wireless connection in accordance with some embodiments. In communication system 500, host computer 510 comprises hardware 515 including communication interface 516 configured to set up and maintain a wired or wireless connection with an interface of a different communication device of communication system 500. Host computer 510 further comprises processing circuitry 518, which may have storage and/or processing capabilities. In particular, processing circuitry 518 may comprise one or more programmable processors, application-specific integrated circuits, field programmable gate arrays or combinations of these (not shown) adapted to execute instructions. Host computer 510 further comprises software 511, which is stored in or accessible by host computer 510 and executable by processing circuitry 518. Software 511 includes host application 512. Host application 512 may be operable to provide a service to a remote user, such as UE 530 connecting via OTT connection 550 terminating at UE 530 and host computer 510. In providing the service to the remote user, host application 512 may provide user data which is transmitted using OTT connection 550.

Communication system 500 further includes base station 520 provided in a telecommunication system and comprising hardware 525 enabling it to communicate with host computer 510 and with UE 530. Hardware 525 may include communication interface 526 for setting up and maintaining a wired or wireless connection with an interface of a different communication device of communication system 500, as well as radio interface 527 for setting up and maintaining at least wireless connection 570 with UE 530 located in a coverage area (not shown in FIGURE 8) served by base station 520. Communication interface 526 may be configured to facilitate connection 560 to host computer 510. Connection 560 may be direct or it may pass through a core network (not shown in FIGURE 8) of the telecommunication system and/or through one or more intermediate networks outside the telecommunication system. In the embodiment shown, hardware 525 of base station 520 further includes processing circuitry 528, which may comprise one or more programmable processors, application-specific integrated circuits, field programmable gate arrays or combinations of these (not shown) adapted to execute instructions. Base station 520 further has software 521 stored internally or accessible via an external connection.

Communication system 500 further includes UE 530 already referred to. Its hardware 535 may include radio interface 537 configured to set up and maintain wireless connection 570 with a base station serving a coverage area in which UE 530 is currently located. Hardware 535 of UE 530 further includes processing circuitry 538, which may comprise one or more programmable processors, application-specific integrated circuits, field programmable gate arrays or combinations of these (not shown) adapted to execute instructions. UE 530 further comprises software 531, which is stored in or accessible by UE 530 and executable by processing circuitry 538. Software 531 includes client application 532. Client application 532 may be operable to provide a service to a human or non-human user via UE 530, with the support of host computer 510. In host computer 510, an executing host application 512 may communicate with the executing client application 532 via OTT connection 550 terminating at UE 530 and host computer 510. In providing the service to the user, client application 532 may receive request data from host application 512 and provide user data in response to the request data. OTT connection 550 may transfer both the request data and the user data. Client application 532 may interact with the user to generate the user data that it provides.

It is noted that host computer 510, base station 520 and UE 530 illustrated in FIGURE 8 may be similar or identical to host computer 430, one of base stations 412a, 412b, 412c and one of UEs 491, 492 of FIGURE 7, respectively. This is to say, the inner workings of these entities may be as shown in FIGURE 8 and independently, the surrounding network topology may be that of FIGURE 7.

In FIGURE 8, OTT connection 550 has been drawn abstractly to illustrate the communication between host computer 510 and UE 530 via base station 520, without explicit reference to any intermediary devices and the precise routing of messages via these devices. Network infrastructure may determine the routing, which it may be configured to hide from UE 530 or from the service provider operating host computer 510, or both. While OTT connection 550 is active, the network infrastructure may further take decisions by which it dynamically changes the routing (e.g., on the basis of load balancing consideration or reconfiguration of the network).

Wireless connection 570 between UE 530 and base station 520 is in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure. One or more of the various embodiments improve the performance of OTT services provided to UE 530 using OTT connection 550, in which wireless connection 570 forms the last segment. More precisely, the teachings of these embodiments may improve the of Uu and SL communication and a proper SLA RA mode configuration and thereby provide benefits such as improve the performance of the system.

A measurement procedure may be provided for the purpose of monitoring data rate, latency and other factors on which the one or more embodiments improve. There may further be an optional network functionality for reconfiguring OTT connection 550 between host computer 510 and UE 530, in response to variations in the measurement results. The measurement procedure and/or the network functionality for reconfiguring OTT connection 550 may be implemented in software 511 and hardware 515 of host computer 510 or in software 531 and hardware 535 of UE 530, or both. In embodiments, sensors (not shown) may be deployed in or in association with communication devices through which OTT connection 550 passes; the sensors may participate in the measurement procedure by supplying values of the monitored quantities exemplified above, or supplying values of other physical quantities from which software 511, 531 may compute or estimate the monitored quantities. The reconfiguring of OTT connection 550 may include message format, retransmission settings, preferred routing etc.; the reconfiguring need not affect base station 520, and it may be unknown or imperceptible to base station 520. Such procedures and functionalities may be known and practiced in the art. In certain embodiments, measurements may involve proprietary UE signaling facilitating host computer 510’s measurements of throughput, propagation times, latency and the like. The measurements may be implemented in that software 511 and 531 causes messages to be transmitted, in particular empty or‘dummy’ messages, using OTT connection 550 while it monitors propagation times, errors etc.

FIGURE 9 is a flowchart illustrating a method implemented in a communication system, in accordance with one embodiment. The communication system includes a host computer, a base station and a UE which may be those described with reference to FIGURES 7 and 8. For simplicity of the present disclosure, only drawing references to FIGURE 9 will be included in this section. In step 610, the host computer provides user data. In substep 611 (which may be optional) of step 610, the host computer provides the user data by executing a host application. In step 620, the host computer initiates a transmission carrying the user data to the UE. In step 630 (which may be optional), the base station transmits to the UE the user data which was carried in the transmission that the host computer initiated, in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure. In step 640 (which may also be optional), the UE executes a client application associated with the host application executed by the host computer.

FIGURE 10 is a flowchart illustrating a method implemented in a communication system, in accordance with one embodiment. The communication system includes a host computer, a base station and a UE which may be those described with reference to FIGURES 7 and 8. For simplicity of the present disclosure, only drawing references to FIGURE 10 will be included in this section. In step 710 of the method, the host computer provides user data. In an optional substep (not shown) the host computer provides the user data by executing a host application. In step 720, the host computer initiates a transmission carrying the user data to the UE. The transmission may pass via the base station, in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure. In step 730 (which may be optional), the UE receives the user data carried in the transmission.

FIGURE 11 is a flowchart illustrating a method implemented in a communication system, in accordance with one embodiment. The communication system includes a host computer, a base station and a UE which may be those described with reference to FIGURES 7 and 8. For simplicity of the present disclosure, only drawing references to FIGURE 11 will be included in this section. In step 810 (which may be optional), the UE receives input data provided by the host computer. Additionally or alternatively, in step 820, the UE provides user data. In substep 821 (which may be optional) of step 820, the UE provides the user data by executing a client application. In substep 811 (which may be optional) of step 810, the UE executes a client application which provides the user data in reaction to the received input data provided by the host computer. In providing the user data, the executed client application may further consider user input received from the user. Regardless of the specific manner in which the user data was provided, the UE initiates, in substep 830 (which may be optional), transmission of the user data to the host computer. In step 840 of the method, the host computer receives the user data transmitted from the UE, in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure.

FIGURE 12 is a flowchart illustrating a method implemented in a communication system, in accordance with one embodiment. The communication system includes a host computer, a base station and a UE which may be those described with reference to FIGURES 7 and 8. For simplicity of the present disclosure, only drawing references to FIGURE 12 will be included in this section. In step 910 (which may be optional), in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure, the base station receives user data from the UE. In step 920 (which may be optional), the base station initiates transmission of the received user data to the host computer. In step 930 (which may be optional), the host computer receives the user data carried in the transmission initiated by the base station.

Any appropriate steps, methods, features, functions, or benefits disclosed herein may be performed through one or more functional units or modules of one or more virtual apparatuses. Each virtual apparatus may comprise a number of these functional units. These functional units may be implemented via processing circuitry, which may include one or more microprocessor or microcontrollers, as well as other digital hardware, which may include digital signal processors (DSPs), special-purpose digital logic, and the like. The processing circuitry may be configured to execute program code stored in memory, which may include one or several types of memory such as read-only memory (ROM), random-access memory (RAM), cache memory, flash memory devices, optical storage devices, etc. Program code stored in memory includes program instructions for executing one or more telecommunications and/or data communications protocols as well as instructions for carrying out one or more of the techniques described herein. In some implementations, the processing circuitry may be used to cause the respective functional unit to perform corresponding functions according one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIGURE 13 depicts a method in accordance with particular embodiments, the method begins at step 1002 with a network node using a NW scheduled SL RA in response to a determination that a Uu and SL communication are using the same RAT. The method proceeds to 1004 with the network node using a NW scheduled SL RA in response to a determination that eV2x services requiring high reliability and/or with intermittent traffic are being used. In 1006, the network node uses a UE autonomously scheduled SL RA in response to a determination that SL communication on an unlicensed band is being used. The network node uses a UE autonomously scheduled SL RA in response to a determination that eV2x services requiring low latency are being used in 1008.

FIGURE 14 illustrates a schematic block diagram of a virtualization apparatus 1100 in a wireless network (for example, the wireless network shown in FIGURE 2). The apparatus maybe implemented in a wireless device or networknode (e.g., wireless device 110 ornetwork node 160 shown in FIGURE 2). Apparatus 1100 is operable to carry out the example method described with reference to FIGURE 13 and possibly any other processes or methods disclosed herein. It is also to be understood that the method of FIGURE 13 is not necessarily carried out solely by apparatus 1100. At least some operations of the method can be performed by one or more other entities.

Virtual Apparatus 1100 may comprise processing circuitry, which may include one or more microprocessor or microcontrollers, as well as other digital hardware, which may include digital signal processors (DSPs), special-purpose digital logic, and the like. The processing circuitry may be configured to execute program code stored in memory, which may include one or several types of memory such as read-only memory (ROM), random-access memory, cache memory, flash memory devices, optical storage devices, etc. Program code stored in memory includes program instructions for executing one or more telecommunications and/or data communications protocols as well as instructions for carrying out one or more of the techniques described herein, in several embodiments. In some implementations, the processing circuitry may be used to cause determining unit 1102 and selecting unit 1104, and any other suitable units of apparatus 1100 to perform corresponding functions according one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.

As illustrated in FIGURE 14, apparatus 1100 includes determining unit 1102 and selecting unit 1104 Determining unit 1102 is configured to determine different aspects of communication within the system. For example, determining unit 1102 may determine that Uu and SL communication are using the same RAT, that eV2x services requiring high reliability and/or with intermittent traffic are being used, that SL communication on an unlicensed band is occurring, and/or that eV2x services requiring low latency are being used. Determining unit 1102 may make these determinations based on indications provided by another device within the network (e.g., a UE).

Selecting unit 1104 selects different scheduled SLRA depending on the determination made by determining unit 1102. For example, selecting unit 1104 uses NW scheduled SL RA is determining unit 1102 determines that Uu and SL communication are using the same RAT or that eV2x services requiring high reliability and/or with intermittent traffic are being used. As another example, selecting unit 1104 uses UE autonomously scheduled SL RA if determining unit 1102 determines that SL communication on an unlicensed band is occurring or that eV2x services requiring low latency are being used.

The term unit may have conventional meaning in the field of electronics, electrical devices and/or electronic devices and may include, for example, electrical and/or electronic circuitry, devices, modules, processors, memories, logic solid state and/or discrete devices, computer programs or instructions for carrying out respective tasks, procedures, computations, outputs, and/or displaying functions, and so on, as such as those that are described herein.

FIGURE 15 depicts a method 1200 performed by a wireless device 110. At step 1202, the wireless device 110 receives, from a network node 160, signaling indicating that the network node supports simultaneous network-scheduled sidelink resource allocation (SL RA) and wireless device-scheduled SL RA. At step 1204, the wireless device 110 selects one of the network-scheduled SL RA or the wireless device-scheduled SL-RA for providing for transmitting a communication on a sidelink.

In a particular embodiment, the signaling is received from the network node via dedicated RRC signaling.

In a particular embodiment, the signaling is received via common DCI signaling.

In a particular embodiment, the wireless device 110 transmits, to the network node 160, signaling indicating that the wireless device supports simultaneous network-scheduled SL RA and wireless device-scheduled SL RA.

In a particular embodiment, the signaling is transmitted to the network node using sidelink User Equipment Information (Ueinformation). In a particular embodiment, the signaling is transmitted to the network node in response to receiving, from the network node, signaling indicating that the network node supports simultaneous network-scheduled SLRA and wireless device-scheduled SL RA.

In a particular embodiment, the wireless device 110 determines whether a SL communication and a Uu communication are using a same RAT and selects the network- scheduled SL RA and/or the wireless device-scheduled SL RA based on whether the SL communication and the Uu communication are using the same RAT.

In a particular embodiment, selecting the network-scheduled SL RA or the wireless device-scheduled SL RA includes if the SL communication and the Uu communication are using the same RAT, selecting the network-scheduled SL RA, or if the SL communication and the Uu communication are not using the same RAT, selecting the wireless device-scheduled SL RA.

In a particular embodiment, selecting the one of the network-scheduled SL RA or the wireless device-scheduled SL RA for providing the eV2x service comprises selecting the one of the network-scheduled SL RA or the wireless device-scheduled SL RA based on a service requirement.

In a particular embodiment, wireless device 110 receives, from the network node 160, logical channel restriction information indicating: at least one first sidelink (SL) logical channel for transmitting a communication on the SL in response to selecting the network- scheduled SL RA, and at least one second SL logical channel for transmitting the communication on the SL in response to selecting the wireless device-scheduled SLRA.

In a particular embodiment, the wireless device 110 selects the at least one first SL logical channel if network-scheduled SL RA is selected and/or selects the at least one second SL logical channel if wireless device-scheduled SL RA is selected.

In a particular embodiment, the wireless device 110 receives a first grant for transmitting on the SL, receives a second grant for transmitting on a uplink (Uu); and prioritizes a resource allocation by the network node or a resource allocation by the wireless device based on which of the first grant and the second grant was received first.

In a particular embodiment, the wireless device 110 receives a first grant for transmitting on a sidelink (SL); receives a second grant for transmitting on a uplink (Uu); and prioritizes a resource allocation by the network node regardless of which of the first grant and the second grant was received first.

FIGURE 16 illustrates a schematic block diagram of a virtualization apparatus 1300 in a wireless network (for example, the wireless network shown in FIGURE 2). The apparatus maybe implemented in a wireless device or network node (e.g., wireless device 110 or network node 160 shown in FIGURE 2). Apparatus 1300 is operable to carry out the example method described with reference to FIGURE 15 and possibly any other processes or methods disclosed herein. It is also to be understood that the method of FIGURE 15 is not necessarily carried out solely by apparatus 1300. At least some operations of the method can be performed by one or more other entities.

Virtual Apparatus 1300 may comprise processing circuitry, which may include one or more microprocessor or microcontrollers, as well as other digital hardware, which may include digital signal processors (DSPs), special-purpose digital logic, and the like. The processing circuitry may be configured to execute program code stored in memory, which may include one or several types of memory such as read-only memory (ROM), random-access memory, cache memory, flash memory devices, optical storage devices, etc. Program code stored in memory includes program instructions for executing one or more telecommunications and/or data communications protocols as well as instructions for carrying out one or more of the techniques described herein, in several embodiments. In some implementations, the processing circuitry may be used to cause receiving unit 1302 and selecting unit 1304, and any other suitable units of apparatus 1300 to perform corresponding functions according one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.

As illustrated in FIGURE 16, apparatus 1300 includes receiving unit 1302 and selecting unit 1304 Receiving unit 1302 is configured to perform certain receiving operations. For example, receiving unit 1302 may receive, from network node 160, signaling indicating that the network node 160 supports simultaneous network-scheduled SL RA and wireless device-scheduled SL RA.

Selecting unit 1304 performs certain selecting operations. For example, selecting unit 1304 selects one of the network-scheduled SL RA or the wireless device-scheduled SL RA for providing for transmitting a communication on a SL.

FIGURE 17 depicts a method 1400 performed by a network node 160, according to certain embodiments. At step 1402, network node 160 transmits, to a wireless device 110, signaling indicating that the network node supports simultaneous network-scheduled SL RA and wireless device-scheduled SL RA.

In a particular embodiment, the signaling is transmitted via dedicated RRC signaling.

In a particular embodiment, the signaling is transmitted via common DCI signaling.

In a particular embodiment, the network node 160 receives from the wireless device 110, signaling indicating that the wireless device supports simultaneous network-scheduled SL RA and wireless device-scheduled SL RA.

In a particular embodiment, the signaling is received from the wireless device using sidelink Ueinformation.

In a particular embodiment, the network node 160 determines whether a SL communication and a Uu communication are using a same RAT and selects the network- scheduled SL RA and/or the wireless device-scheduled SL RA based on whether the SL communication and the Uu communication are using the same RAT.

In a particular embodiment, selecting the network-scheduled SL RA or the wireless device-scheduled SL RA includes: if the SL communication and the Uu communication are using the same RAT, selecting the network-scheduled SL RA; or if the SL communication and the Uu communication are not using the same RAT, selecting the wireless device-scheduled SL RA.

In a particular embodiment, the network node 160 transmits, to the wireless device 110, logical channel restriction information indicating: at least one first sidelink (SL) logical channel for transmitting a communication on the SL in response to selecting the network- scheduled SL RA, and at least one second SL logical channel for transmitting the communication on the SL in response to selecting the wireless device-scheduled SLRA.

FIGURE 18 illustrates a schematic block diagram of a virtualization apparatus 1500 in a wireless network (for example, the wireless network shown in FIGURE 2). The apparatus maybe implemented in a wireless device or networknode (e.g., wireless device 110 ornetwork node 160 shown in FIGURE 2). Apparatus 1500 is operable to carry out the example method described with reference to FIGURE 17 and possibly any other processes or methods disclosed herein. It is also to be understood that the method of FIGURE 17 is not necessarily carried out solely by apparatus 1500. At least some operations of the method can be performed by one or more other entities.

Virtual Apparatus 1500 may comprise processing circuitry, which may include one or more microprocessor or microcontrollers, as well as other digital hardware, which may include digital signal processors (DSPs), special-purpose digital logic, and the like. The processing circuitry may be configured to execute program code stored in memory, which may include one or several types of memory such as read-only memory (ROM), random-access memory, cache memory, flash memory devices, optical storage devices, etc. Program code stored in memory includes program instructions for executing one or more telecommunications and/or data communications protocols as well as instructions for carrying out one or more of the techniques described herein, in several embodiments. In some implementations, the processing circuitry may be used to cause transmitting unit 1502 and any other suitable units of apparatus 1500 to perform corresponding functions according one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.

As illustrated in FIGURE 18, apparatus 1500 includes transmitting unit 1502. Transmitting unit 1502 is configured to determine different aspects of communication within the system. For example, transmitting unit 1502 may transmit, to a wireless device 110 signaling indicating that the network node 160 supports simultaneous network-scheduled SL RA and wireless device-scheduled SL RA.

of electronics, electrical devices and/or electronic devices and may include, for example, electrical and/or electronic circuitry, devices, modules, processors, memories, logic solid state and/or discrete devices, computer programs or instructions for carrying out respective tasks, procedures, computations, outputs, and/or displaying functions, and so on, as such as those that are described herein.

EXAMPLE EMBODIMENTS

Group A Embodiments

Embodiment 1 : A method performed by a wireless device for improving network efficiency, the method comprising: communicating, to a network node, an indication that network scheduled sidelink (SL) resource allocation is needed or that eV2x services requiring high reliability are to be transmitted;

receiving, from the network node, a selection that a Uu communication and a SL communication should use the same radio access technology (RAT) if simultaneous network and SL communication are using the same RAT; and

adopting a resource allocation scheduled by the wireless device or communicate an indication a service cannot be operated with sufficient quality of service if the same RAT cannot be used for SL and Uu simultaneously.

Embodiment 2: The method of Embodiment 1, wherein the selection comprises selecting a Uu RAT without considering a SL condition.

Embodiment 3: The method of Embodiment 1, wherein the selection comprises selecting an SL RAT without considering a Uu condition.

Group B Embodiments

Embodiment 4: A method performed by a base station for improving network efficiency, the method comprising:

determining that a Uu and SL communication are using the same RAT or that a eV2x service requiring high reliability or with intermittent traffic is being used;

in response to the determination that the Uu and SL communication are using the same RAT or that the eV2x service requiring high reliability or with intermittent traffic is being used, selecting a network scheduled SL RA to be used;

determining that SL communication is occurring on an unlicensed band or that a eV2x service requiring low latency is being used; and

in response to the determination that SL communication is occurring on the unlicensed band or that the eV2x service requiring low latency is being used, selecting a UE autonomously scheduled SL RA to be used.

Embodiment 5 : The method of Embodiment 4, further comprising informing the UE using dedicated signaling or common signaling whether simultaneous network and UE scheduled SL RA is supported.

Embodiment 6: The method of any of the previous embodiments, further comprising receiving from a UE an indication whether simultaneous network and UE scheduled SL RA is supported. Embodiment 7: The method of any of the previous embodiments, further comprising configuring a UE with a logical channel restriction. Group C Embodiments

Embodiment 8: A wireless device for improving network efficiency, the wireless device comprising:

processing circuitry configured to perform any of the steps of any of the Group A embodiments; and

power supply circuitry configured to supply power to the wireless device.

Embodiment 9: A base station for improving network efficiency, the base station comprising: processing circuitry configured to perform any of the steps of any of the Group B embodiments;

power supply circuitry configured to supply power to the wireless device.

Embodiment 10: A user equipment (UE) for improving network efficiency, the UE comprising:

an antenna configured to send and receive wireless signals;

radio front-end circuitry connected to the antenna and to processing circuitry, and configured to condition signals communicated between the antenna and the processing circuitry;

the processing circuitry being configured to perform any of the steps of any of the Group A embodiments;

an input interface connected to the processing circuitry and configured to allow input of information into the UE to be processed by the processing circuitry;

an output interface connected to the processing circuitry and configured to output information from the UE that has been processed by the processing circuitry; and

a battery connected to the processing circuitry and configured to supply power to the UE.

Embodiment 11 : A communication system including a host computer comprising:

processing circuitry configured to provide user data; and

a communication interface configured to forward the user data to a cellular network for transmission to a user equipment (UE),

wherein the cellular network comprises a base station having a radio interface and processing circuitry, the base station’s processing circuitry configured to perform any of the steps of any of the Group B embodiments.

Embodiment 12: The communication system of the pervious embodiment further including the base station. Embodiment 13 : The communication system of the previous 2 embodiments, further including the UE, wherein the UE is configured to communicate with the base station.

Embodiment 14: The communication system of the previous 3 embodiments, wherein: the processing circuitry of the host computer is configured to execute a host application, thereby providing the user data; and

the UE comprises processing circuitry configured to execute a client application associated with the host application.

Embodiment 15: A method implemented in a communication system including a host computer, a base station and a user equipment (UE), the method comprising:

at the host computer, providing user data; and

at the host computer, initiating a transmission carrying the user data to the UE via a cellular network comprising the base station, wherein the base station performs any of the steps of any of the Group B embodiments.

Embodiment 16: The method of the previous embodiment, further comprising, at the base station, transmitting the user data.

Embodiment 17 : The method of the previous 2 embodiments, wherein the user data is provided at the host computer by executing a host application, the method further comprising, at the UE, executing a client application associated with the host application.

Embodiment 18: A user equipment (UE) configured to communicate with a base station, the UE comprising a radio interface and processing circuitry configured to performs the of the previous 3 embodiments.

Embodiment 19: A communication system including a host computer comprising:

processing circuitry configured to provide user data; and

a communication interface configured to forward user data to a cellular network for transmission to a user equipment (UE),

wherein the UE comprises a radio interface and processing circuitry, the UE’s components configured to perform any of the steps of any of the Group A embodiments. Embodiment 20: The communication system of the previous embodiment, wherein the cellular network further includes a base station configured to communicate with the UE.

Embodiment 21 : The communication system of the previous 2 embodiments, wherein: the processing circuitry of the host computer is configured to execute a host application, thereby providing the user data; and

the UE’s processing circuitry is configured to execute a client application associated with the host application. Embodiment 22: A method implemented in a communication system including a host computer, a base station and a user equipment (UE), the method comprising:

at the host computer, providing user data; and

at the host computer, initiating a transmission carrying the user data to the UE via a cellular network comprising the base station, wherein the UE performs any of the steps of any of the Group A embodiments.

Embodiment 23: The method of the previous embodiment, further comprising at the UE, receiving the user data from the base station.

Embodiment 24: A communication system including a host computer comprising:

communication interface configured to receive user data originating from a transmission from a user equipment (UE) to a base station,

wherein the UE comprises a radio interface and processing circuitry, the UE’s processing circuitry configured to perform any of the steps of any of the Group A embodiments.

Embodiment 25: The communication system of the previous embodiment, further including the UE.

Embodiment 26: The communication system of the previous 2 embodiments, further including the base station, wherein the base station comprises a radio interface configured to communicate with the UE and a communication interface configured to forward to the host computer the user data carried by a transmission from the UE to the base station.

Embodiment 27: The communication system of the previous 3 embodiments, wherein: the processing circuitry of the host computer is configured to execute a host application; and

the UE’s processing circuitry is configured to execute a client application associated with the host application, thereby providing the user data.

Embodiment 28: The communication system of the previous 4 embodiments, wherein: the processing circuitry of the host computer is configured to execute a host application, thereby providing request data; and

the UE’s processing circuitry is configured to execute a client application associated with the host application, thereby providing the user data in response to the request data. Embodiment 29: A method implemented in a communication system including a host computer, a base station and a user equipment (UE), the method comprising:

at the host computer, receiving user data transmitted to the base station from the UE, wherein the UE performs any of the steps of any of the Group A embodiments. Embodiment 30: The method of the previous embodiment, further comprising, at the UE, providing the user data to the base station.

Embodiment 31 : The method of the previous 2 embodiments, further comprising:

at the UE, executing a client application, thereby providing the user data to be transmitted; and

at the host computer, executing a host application associated with the client application.

Embodiment 32: The method of the previous 3 embodiments, further comprising:

at the UE, executing a client application; and

at the UE, receiving input data to the client application, the input data being provided at the host computer by executing a host application associated with the client application, wherein the user data to be transmitted is provided by the client application in response to the input data.

Embodiment 33: A communication system including a host computer comprising a communication interface configured to receive user data originating from a transmission from a user equipment (UE) to a base station, wherein the base station comprises a radio interface and processing circuitry, the base station’s processing circuitry configured to perform any of the steps of any of the Group B embodiments.

Embodiment 34: The communication system of the previous embodiment further including the base station.

Embodiment 35: The communication system of the previous 2 embodiments, further including the UE, wherein the UE is configured to communicate with the base station.

Embodiment 36: The communication system of the previous 3 embodiments, wherein: the processing circuitry of the host computer is configured to execute a host application;

the UE is configured to execute a client application associated with the host application, thereby providing the user data to be received by the host computer.

Embodiment 37: A method implemented in a communication system including a host computer, a base station and a user equipment (UE), the method comprising:

at the host computer, receiving, from the base station, user data originating from a transmission which the base station has received from the UE, wherein the UE performs any of the steps of any of the Group A embodiments.

Embodiment 38: The method of the previous embodiment, further comprising at the base station, receiving the user data from the UE. Embodiment 39: The method of the previous 2 embodiments, further comprising at the base station, initiating a transmission of the received user data to the host computer.

Claims

1. A method performed by a wireless device (110), the method comprising:

communicating, to a network node (160), an indication that network scheduled sidelink (SL) resource allocation is needed or that data related to a eV2x service requiring high reliability is to be transmitted;

2. The method of Claim 1, wherein the selection comprises selecting a Uu RAT without considering a SL condition.

3. The method of Claim 1, wherein the selection comprises selecting an SL RAT without considering a Uu condition.

4. A wireless device (110) comprising:

processing circuitry (120) configured to:

communicate, to a network node (160), an indication that network scheduled sidelink (SL) resource allocation is needed or that data related to a eV2x service requiring high reliability is to be transmitted;

receive, from the network node, a selection that a Uu communication and a SL communication should use the same radio access technology (RAT) if simultaneous network and SL communication are using the same RAT; and

adopt a resource allocation scheduled by the wireless device or communicate an indication a service cannot be operated with sufficient quality of service if the same RAT cannot be used for SL and Uu simultaneously.

5. The wireless device of Claim 4, wherein the selection comprises selecting a Uu RAT without considering a SL condition.

6. The wireless device of Claim 4, wherein the selection comprises selecting an SL RAT without considering a Uu condition.

7. A method performed by a wireless device (110), the method comprising:

receiving, from a network node (160), signaling indicating that the network node supports simultaneous network-scheduled sidelink resource allocation (SL RA) and wireless device-scheduled SL RA; and

selecting one of the network-scheduled SL RA or the wireless device-scheduled SL- RA for providing for transmitting a communication on a sidelink.

8. The method of Claim 7, wherein the signaling is received from the network node via dedicated Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling.

9. The method of Claim 7, wherein the signaling is received via common downlink control (DCI) signaling.

10. The method of any one of Claims 7 to 9, further comprising transmitting, to the network node, signaling indicating that the wireless device supports simultaneous network-scheduled SL RA and wireless device-scheduled SL RA.

11. The method of Claim 10, wherein the signaling is transmitted to the network node using sidelink User Equipment Information (Ueinformation).

12. The method of any one of Claims 10 to 11, wherein the signaling is transmitted to the network node in response to receiving, from the network node, signaling indicating that the network node supports simultaneous network-scheduled SLRA and wireless device-scheduled SL RA.

13. The method of any one of Claims 7 to 12, further comprising:

determining whether a sidelink (SL) communication and a Uu communication are using a same radio access technology (RAT); and

selecting the network-scheduled SL RA and/or the wireless device-scheduled SL RA based on whether the SL communication and the Uu communication are using the same RAT.

14. The method of Claim 13, wherein selecting the network-scheduled SL RA or the wireless device-scheduled SL RA comprises:

if the SL communication and the Uu communication are using the same RAT, selecting the network-scheduled SL RA; or

if the SL communication and the Uu communication are not using the same RAT, selecting the wireless device-scheduled SL RA.

15. The method of any one of Claims 7 to 14, wherein selecting the one of the network- scheduled SL RA or the wireless device-scheduled SL RA for providing the eV2x service comprises selecting the one of the network-scheduled SL RA or the wireless device-scheduled SL RA based on a service requirement.

16. The method of any one of Claims 7 to 15, further comprising:

receiving, from the network node, logical channel restriction information indicating: at least one first sidelink (SL) logical channel for transmitting a communication on the SL in response to selecting the network-scheduled SL RA, and

at least one second SL logical channel for transmitting the communication on the SL in response to selecting the wireless device-scheduled SLRA.

17. The method of Claim 16, further comprising:

selecting the at least one first SL logical channel if network-scheduled SL RA is selected, and/or

selecting the at least one second SL logical channel if wireless device-scheduled SL RA is selected.

18. The method of any one of Claims 7 to 17, further comprising:

receiving a first grant for transmitting on the SL;

receiving a second grant for transmitting on a uplink (Uu); and

prioritizing a resource allocation by the network node or a resource allocation by the wireless device based on which of the first grant and the second grant was received first.

19. The method of any one of Claims 7 to 18, further comprising:

receiving a first grant for transmitting on a sidelink (SL);

receiving a second grant for transmitting on a uplink (Uu); and prioritizing a resource allocation by the network node regardless of which of the first grant and the second grant was received first.

20. A wireless device (110) comprising:

processing circuitry (120) configured to:

receive, from a network node (160), signaling indicating that the network node supports simultaneous network-scheduled sidelink resource allocation (SL RA) and wireless device-scheduled SL RA; and

select one of the network-scheduled SL RA or the wireless device-scheduled SL-RA for providing for transmitting a communication on a sidelink.

21. The wireless device of Claim 20, wherein the signaling is received from the network node via dedicated Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling.

22. The wireless device of Claim 20, wherein the signaling is received via common downlink control (DCI) signaling.

23. The wireless device of any one of Claims 20 to 22, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to transmit, to the network node, signaling indicating that the wireless device supports simultaneous network-scheduled SL RA and wireless device-scheduled SL RA.

24. The wireless device of Claim 23, wherein the signaling is transmitted to the network node using sidelink User Equipment Information (Ueinformation).

25. The wireless device of any one of Claims 23 to 24, wherein the signaling is transmitted to the network node in response to receiving, from the network node, signaling indicating that the network node supports simultaneous network-scheduled SLRA and wireless device- scheduled SL RA.

26. The wireless device of any one of Claims 20 to 25, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to:

determine whether a sidelink (SL) communication and a Uu communication are using a same radio access technology (RAT); and select the network-scheduled SL RA and/or the wireless device-scheduled SL RA based on whether the SL communication and the Uu communication are using the same RAT.

27. The wireless device of Claim 26, wherein selecting the network-scheduled SL RA or the wireless device-scheduled SL RA comprises:

28. The wireless device of any one of Claims 20 to 27, wherein selecting the one of the network-scheduled SL RA or the wireless device-scheduled SL RA for providing the eV2x service comprises selecting the one of the network-scheduled SL RA or the wireless device- scheduled SL RA based on a service requirement.

29. The wireless device of any one of Claims 20 to 28, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to:

receive, from the network node, logical channel restriction information indicating: at least one first sidelink (SL) logical channel for transmitting a communication on the SL in response to selecting the network-scheduled SL RA, and

30. The wireless device of Claim 29, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to: select the at least one first SL logical channel if network-scheduled SL RA is selected, and/or

select the at least one second SL logical channel if wireless device-scheduled SL RA is selected.

31. The wireless device of any one of Claims 20 to 30, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to:

receive a first grant for transmitting on the SL;

receive a second grant for transmitting on a uplink (Uu); and prioritize a resource allocation by the network node or a resource allocation by the wireless device based on which of the first grant and the second grant was received first.

32. The wireless device of any one of Claims 20 to 31, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to:

receive a first grant for transmitting on a sidelink (SL);

receive a second grant for transmitting on a uplink (Uu); and

prioritize a resource allocation by the network node regardless of which of the first grant and the second grant was received first.

33. A method performed by a base station (160), the method comprising:

in response to the determination that SL communication is occurring on the unlicensed band or that the eV2x service requiring low latency is being used, selecting a UE (110) autonomously scheduled SL RA to be used.

34. The method of Claim 33, further comprising informing the UE using dedicated signaling or common signaling whether simultaneous network and UE scheduled SL RA is supported.

35. The method of any one of Claims 33 to 34, further comprising receiving from a UE an indication whether simultaneous network and UE scheduled SL RA is supported.

36. The method of any one of Claims 33 to 35, further comprising configuring a UE with a logical channel restriction.

37. A method performed by a network node (160), the method comprising: transmitting, to a wireless device (110), signaling indicating that the network node supports simultaneous network-scheduled sidelink resource allocation (SL RA) and wireless device-scheduled SL RA.

38. The method of Claim 37, wherein the signaling is transmitted via dedicated Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling.

39. The method of Claim 37, wherein the signaling is transmitted via common downlink control (DCI) signaling.

40. The method of any one of Claims 37 to 39, further comprising receiving from the wireless device, signaling indicating that the wireless device supports simultaneous network- scheduled SL RA and wireless device-scheduled SL RA.

41. The method of Claim 40, wherein the signaling is received from the wireless device using sidelink User Equipment Information (Ueinformation).

42. The method of any one of Claims 37 to 41, further comprising:

43. The method of Claim 42, wherein selecting the network-scheduled SL RA or the wireless device-scheduled SL RA comprises:

44. The method of any one of Claims 42 to 43, wherein selecting the one of the network- scheduled SL RA or the wireless device-scheduled SL RA for providing the eV2x service comprises selecting the one of the network-scheduled SL RA or the wireless device-scheduled SL RA based on a service requirement.

45. The method of any one of Claims 37 to 44, further comprising:

transmitting, to the wireless device, logical channel restriction information indicating: at least one first sidelink (SL) logical channel for transmitting a communication on the SL in response to selecting the network-scheduled SL RA, and

46. A network node (160) comprising:

processing circuitry (170) configured to:

transmit, to a wireless device (110), signaling indicating that the network node supports simultaneous network-scheduled sidelink resource allocation (SL RA) and wireless device-scheduled SL RA.

47. The network node of Claim 46, wherein the signaling is transmitted via dedicated Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling.

48. The network node of Claim 46, wherein the signaling is transmitted via common downlink control (DCI) signaling.

49. The network node of any one of Claims 46 to 48, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to receive from the wireless device, signaling indicating that the wireless device supports simultaneous network-scheduled SL RA and wireless device-scheduled SL RA.

50. The network node of Claim 49, wherein the signaling is received from the wireless device using sidelink User Equipment Information (Ueinformation).

51. The network node of any one of Claims 36 to 50, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to:

determine whether a sidelink (SL) communication and a Uu communication are using a same radio access technology (RAT); and

select the network-scheduled SL RA and/or the wireless device-scheduled SL RA based on whether the SL communication and the Uu communication are using the same RAT.

52. The network node of Claim 51 , wherein selecting the network-scheduled SL RA or the wireless device-scheduled SL RA comprises:

53. The network node of any one of Claims 51 to 52, wherein selecting the one of the network-scheduled SL RA or the wireless device-scheduled SL RA for providing the eV2x service comprises selecting the one of the network-scheduled SL RA or the wireless device- scheduled SL RA based on a service requirement.

54. The network node of any one of Claims 46 to 53, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to:

transmit, to the wireless device, logical channel restriction information indicating: at least one first sidelink (SL) logical channel for transmitting a communication on the SL in response to selecting the network-scheduled SL RA, and

at least one second SL logical channel for transmitting the communication on the SL in response to selecting the wireless device-scheduled SL RA.

55. A base station (160) comprises:

processing circuitry configured to:

determine that a Uu and SL communication are using the same RAT or that a eV2x service requiring high reliability or with intermittent traffic is being used;

in response to the determination that the Uu and SL communication are using the same RAT or that the eV2x service requiring high reliability or with intermittent traffic is being used, select a network scheduled SL RA to be used;

determine that SL communication is occurring on an unlicensed band or that a eV2x service requiring low latency is being used; and

in response to the determination that SL communication is occurring on the unlicensed band or that the eV2x service requiring low latency is being used, select a UE autonomously scheduled SL RA to be used.

56. The base station of Claim 55, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to inform the UE using dedicated signaling or common signaling whether simultaneous network and UE scheduled SL RA is supported.

57. The base station of any one of Claims 55 to 56, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to receive from a UE an indication whether simultaneous network and UE scheduled SL RA is supported.

58. The base station of any one of Claims 55 to 57, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to configure a UE with a logical channel restriction.