Patent Publication Number: US-2023156506-A1

Title: Communication Apparatus and Method for Handling a Measurement Configuration

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/279,210, filed on Nov. 15, 2021. Further, this application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/332,743, filed on Apr. 20, 2022. The contents of these applications are incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     In the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standard, a measurement mechanism performed by the user equipments (UEs) is predefined. The network configures the measurement configuration to the UEs, and the UEs perform the measurements and transmit the measurement results according to the measurement configuration. However, the measurement configuration is not necessarily suitable for all UEs. The performances of performing the measurement and transmitting the measurement result may be reduced. For example, a delay in transmitting the measurement result may occur due to the UE with an improper measurement configuration. 
     SUMMARY 
     It is an objective of the invention to provide a communication apparatus, in order to solve the above problem. 
     An embodiment of the invention provides a method for handling a measurement configuration comprising: determining a measurement configuration, wherein the measurement configuration comprises a measurement object and a plurality of reporting configurations; performing at least one first measurement for the measurement object, to generate at least one first measurement result; and transmitting the at least one first measurement result to a network device according to a reporting configuration of the plurality of reporting configurations in response to the reporting configuration being satisfied; wherein that the plurality of reporting configurations correspond to the measurement object. 
     An embodiment of the invention provides a communication apparatus comprising a radio transceiver and a processing circuit. The radio transceiver is configured to transmit or receive wireless signals. The processing circuit is coupled to the radio transceiver and configured to perform operations comprising: determining a measurement configuration, wherein the measurement configuration comprises a measurement object and a plurality of reporting configurations; performing at least one measurement for the measurement object, to generate at least one measurement result; and transmitting the at least one measurement result to a network device according to a reporting configuration of the plurality of reporting configurations in response to the reporting configuration being satisfied; wherein the plurality of reporting configurations correspond to the measurement object. 
     These and other objectives of the present invention will no doubt become obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art after reading the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment that is illustrated in the various figures and drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG.  1    is an exemplary block diagram of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the invention. 
         FIG.  2    is an exemplary block diagram of a processing device according to an embodiment of the invention. 
         FIG.  3    is a flowchart of a process according to an embodiment of the invention. 
         FIG.  4    is a schematic diagram of a scenario according to an embodiment of the invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Certain terms are used throughout the following description and claims, which refer to particular components. As one skilled in the art will appreciate, electronic equipment manufacturers may refer to a component by different names. This document does not intend to distinguish between components that differ in name but not in function. In the following description and in the claims, the terms “include” and “comprise” are used in an open-ended fashion, and thus should be interpreted to mean “include, but not limited to . . . ”. Also, the term “couple” is intended to mean either an indirect or direct electrical connection. Accordingly, if one device is coupled to another device, that connection may be through a direct electrical connection, or through an indirect electrical connection via other devices and connections. 
       FIG.  1    is an exemplary block diagram of a communication apparatus  100  according to an embodiment of the invention. The communication apparatus  100  may be a portable electronic device, such as a Mobile Station (MS), which may be interchangeably referred to as User Equipment (UE). The communication apparatus  100  may comprise a radio transceiver  110 , a processing device  120 , an application processing device  130 , a subscriber identity card  140 , a memory device  150  and at least one antenna  160 . The radio transceiver  110  may be configured to transmit and/or receive wireless signals to and/or from a network device (not shown) via the antenna(s)  160 , so as to communicate with the network device via a communication link established between the communication apparatus  100  and the network device. The radio transceiver  110  may comprise a receiver  112  configured to receive wireless signals and a transmitter  111  configured to transmit wireless signals. The radio transceiver  110  may be further configured to perform radio frequency (RF) signal processing. For example, the receiver  112  may convert the received signals into intermediate frequency (IF) or baseband signals to be processed, or the transmitter  111  may receive the IF or baseband signals from the processing device  120  and convert the received signals into wireless signals to be transmitted to the network device in the wireless network or in an access network (e.g., a terrestrial network (TN), a non-terrestrial network (NTN), a wireless local area network (WLAN), a personal area network (PAN) or a wireless local access network). According to an embodiment of the invention, the network device may be a cell, a Node-B (NB), an evolved Node-B (eNB), a g Node-B (gNB), a base station, a Mobility Management Entity (MME), an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) device, etc., at the network side and communicating with the communication apparatus  100  by the wireless signals via the communication link. 
     The transmitter  111  and the receiver  112  of the radio transceiver  110  may comprise a plurality of hardware devices to perform RF conversion and RF signal processing. For example, the transmitter  111  and/or the receiver  112  may comprise a power amplifier for amplifying the RF signals, a filter for filtering unwanted portions of the RF signals and/or a mixer for performing radio frequency conversion. According to an embodiment of the invention, the radio frequency may be, for example, the frequency of any specific frequency band for a long-term evolution (LTE) system, the frequency of any specific frequency band for a 5G next generation (NR) system, the frequency of any specific frequency band for a WiFi system, or the frequency of any specific frequency band for a Bluetooth (BT) system, etc. 
     The processing device  120  may be configured to handle corresponding communication protocol operations and processing the signals received from or to be transmitted to the radio transceiver  110 . The application processing device  130  is configured to run the operating system of the communication apparatus  100  and to run application programs installed in the communication apparatus  100 . The processing device  120  and the application processing device  130  can be realized by means of hardware (circuitry), software, firmware (known as a combination of a hardware device and computer instructions and data that reside as read-only software on the hardware device), an electronic system, or combination thereof. In the embodiments of the invention, the processing device  120  and the application processing device  130  may be designed as discrete chips with some buses or hardware interfaces coupled therebetween, or they may be integrated into a combo chip (i.e., a system on chip (SoC)), and the invention should not be limited thereto. 
     The subscriber identity card  140  may be a subscriber identity module (SIM), universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS) SIM (USIM), removable user identity module (R-UIM) or code division multiple access (CDMA) SIM (CSIM) card, or the like and may typically contain user account information, an International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) and a set of SIM application toolkit (SAT) commands and may provide storage space for phone book contacts. The memory device  150  may be coupled to the processing device  120  and the application processing device  130  and may store system data or user data. 
     It should be noted that, in order to clarify the concept of the invention,  FIG.  1    presents a simplified block diagram in which only the elements relevant to the invention are shown. For example, in some embodiments of the invention, the communication apparatus  100  may further comprise some peripheral devices not shown in  FIG.  1   . In another example, in some embodiments of the invention, the communication apparatus  100  may further comprise a central controller coupled to the processing device  120  and the application processing device  130 . Therefore, the invention should not be limited to what is shown in  FIG.  1   . 
     In some embodiments of the invention, the communication apparatus  100  is capable of supporting multiple radio access technologies (RATs) communications via the single-card structure as shown in  FIG.  1   . It should be noted that, although  FIG.  1    shows a single-card application, the invention should not be limited herein. For example, in some embodiments of the invention, the communication apparatus  100  may comprise multiple subscriber identity cards to support the multi-RATS communications, in either a single-standby or a multiple-standby manner. In the multi-RATS communication applications, the modem, the radio transceiver and/or the antenna module may be shared by the subscriber identity card(s) and may have the capability of handling the operations of different RATS and processing the corresponding RF, IF or baseband signals in compliance with the corresponding communication protocols. 
     In addition, those who are skilled in this technology can still make various alterations and modifications based on the descriptions given above to derive the communication apparatuses comprising multiple radio transceivers and/or multiple antenna modules for supporting multi-RAT wireless communications without departing from the scope and spirit of this invention. Therefore, in some embodiments of the invention, the communication apparatus  100  may be designed to support a multi-card application, in either a single-standby or a multiple-standby manner, by making some alterations and modifications. 
     It should be further noted that the subscriber identity card  140  may be dedicated hardware cards as described above, or in some embodiments of the invention, there may be virtual cards, such as individual identifiers, numbers, addresses, or the like which are burned in the internal memory device of the corresponding modem and are capable of identifying the communication apparatus  100 . Therefore, the invention should not be limited to what is shown in  FIG.  1   . 
     It should be further noted that in some embodiments of the invention, the communication apparatus  100  may further support multiple IMSIs. 
       FIG.  2    is an exemplary block diagram of a processing device  220  according to an embodiment of the invention. The processing device  220  may be the processing device  120  shown in  FIG.  1   , and may comprise at least a baseband processing device  221 , a processing circuit  222 , an internal memory device  223  and a network card  224 . The baseband processing device  221 , the processing circuit  222 , the internal memory device  223  and the network card  224  can be realized by means of hardware (circuitry), software, firmware, an electronic system, or combination thereof. The baseband processing device  221  may receive the IF or baseband signals from the radio transceiver  110  and perform IF or baseband signal processing. For example, the baseband processing device  221  may convert the IF or baseband signals into a plurality of digital signals, and process the digital signals, and vice versa. The baseband processing device  221  may comprise a plurality of hardware circuits to perform signal processing, such as an analog-to-digital converter for ADC conversion, a digital-to-analog converter for DAC conversion, an amplifier for gain adjustment, a modulator for signal modulation, a demodulator for signal demodulation, an encoder for signal encoding, a decoder for signal decoding, and so on. 
     According to an embodiment of the invention, the baseband processing device  221  may be designed to have the capability of handling the baseband signal processing operations for different RATs and processing the corresponding IF or baseband signals in compliance with the corresponding communications protocols, so as to support the multi-RAT wireless communications. According to another embodiment of the invention, the baseband processing device  221  may comprise a plurality of sub-units, each being designed to have the capability of handling the baseband signal processing operations of one or more specific RATs and processing the corresponding IF or baseband signals in compliance with the corresponding communications protocols, so as to support the multi-RAT wireless communications. Therefore, the invention should not be limited to any specific way of implementation. 
     The processing circuit  222  may control the operations of the processing device  220 . According to an embodiment of the invention, the processing circuit  222  may be a processor arranged to execute the program codes of the processing device  220 . For example, the processing circuit  222  may maintain and execute the individual tasks, threads, and/or protocol stacks for different software modules. A protocol stack may be implemented so as to respectively handle the radio activities of one RAT. However, it is also possible to implement more than one protocol stack to handle the radio activities of one RAT at the same time, or implement only one protocol stack to handle the radio activities of more than one RAT at the same time, and the invention should not be limited thereto. 
     In some embodiments of the invention, the processing circuit  222  may be pure hardware dedicated to dealing with the proposed method for handling a measurement configuration. This alternative design also falls within the scope of the present invention. 
     The processing circuit  222  may also read data from the subscriber identity card coupled to the processing device (e.g., the subscriber identity card  140  in  FIG.  1   ), and write data to the subscriber identity card. The internal memory device  223  may store system data and user data for the processing device  220 . The processing circuit  222  may also access the internal memory device  223 . 
     The network card  224  provides Internet access services for the communication apparatus  100 . It should be noted that, although the network card  224  shown in  FIG.  2    is configured inside of the processing device  220 , the invention should not be limited thereto. In some embodiments of the invention, the communication apparatus  100  may also comprise a network card configured outside of the processing device, or the communication apparatus  100  may also be coupled to an external network card for providing Internet access services. In some embodiments of the invention, the network card  224  may be a virtual network card, instead of a tangible card, that is created by the operating system of the communication apparatus  100 . Therefore, the invention should not be limited to any specific implementation method. 
     It should be noted that, in order to clarify the concept of the invention,  FIG.  2    presents simplified block diagrams in which only the elements relevant to the invention are shown. Therefore, the invention should not be limited to what is shown in  FIG.  2   . 
     It should be further noted that in some embodiments of the invention, the processing device  220  may also comprise more than one processing circuit and/or more than one baseband processing device. For example, the processing device  220  may comprise multiple processing circuits and/or multiple baseband processing devices for supporting multi-RAT operations. Therefore, the invention should not be limited to what is shown in  FIG.  2   . 
     It should be further noted that in some embodiments of the invention, the baseband processing device  221  and the processing circuit  222  may be integrated into one processing unit, and the processing device may comprise one or multiple such processing units, for supporting multi-RAT operations. Therefore, the invention should not be limited to what is shown in  FIG.  2   . 
     According to an embodiment of the invention, the processing circuit  222  and the application processing device  130  may comprise a plurality of logics designed for handling one or more functionalities. The logics may be configured to execute the program codes of one or more software and/or firmware modules, thereby performing the corresponding operations. When performing the corresponding operations by executing the corresponding programs, the logics may be regarded as dedicated hardware devices or circuits, such as dedicated processor sub-units. Generally, the processing circuit  222  may be configured to perform operations of relative lower protocol layers while the application processing device  130  may be configured to perform operations of relative higher protocol layers. Therefore, in some embodiments of the invention, the application processing device  130  may be regarded as the upper layer entity or upper layer processing circuit with respect to the processing circuit  222  and the processing circuit  222  may be regarded as the lower layer entity or lower layer processing circuit with respect to the application processing device  130 . 
       FIG.  3    is a flowchart of a process  30  utilized in a first communication apparatus (e.g., the communication apparatus  100  shown in  FIG.  1   ) according to an embodiment of the invention, to handle a measurement configuration. Provided that the result is substantially the same, the steps are not required to be executed in the exact order shown in  FIG.  3   . The process  30  comprises the following steps: 
     Step S 300 : Start. 
     Step S 302 : Determine a first measurement configuration, wherein the first measurement configuration comprises a first measurement object and a plurality of first reporting configurations. 
     Step S 304 : Perform at least one first measurement for the first measurement object, to generate at least one first measurement result. 
     Step S 306 : Transmit the at least one first measurement result to a network device according to a first reporting configuration of the plurality of first reporting configurations in response to the first reporting configuration being satisfied. 
     Step S 308 : End. 
     The processing circuit  222  is configured to perform steps of the process  30 . According to the process  30 , the first communication apparatus determines (e.g., sets or is configured with) a first measurement configuration. The first measurement configuration comprises a first measurement object and a plurality of first reporting configurations. The plurality of first reporting configurations correspond to (e.g., are linked to) the first measurement object. Then, the first communication apparatus performs at least one first measurement for the first measurement object, to generate at least one first measurement result. The first communication apparatus transmits (e.g., reports) the at least one first measurement result to a network device according to a first reporting configuration of the plurality of first reporting configurations in response to the first reporting configuration being satisfied. Thus, the plurality of first reporting configurations are applied flexibly, and the performances of performing the at least one first measurement and transmitting the at least one first measurement result can be improved. 
     Realization of the process  30  is not limited to the above description. The following embodiments of the invention may be applied to realize the process  30 . 
     There are various ways to determine the first measurement configuration. In an embodiment of the invention, the first communication apparatus may receive the first measurement configuration from the network device. That is, the first communication apparatus is configured with the first measurement configuration by the network device. In this case, the first measurement configuration comprising the plurality of the reporting configurations is configured by the network device. Each of the plurality of reporting configurations is configured to at least one particular communication apparatus with a specific condition. In an embodiment of the invention, the first communication apparatus may set the first measurement configuration according to a design algorithm. That is, the first communication apparatus configures the first measurement configuration by itself. 
     In an embodiment of the invention, a second communication apparatus determines a second measurement configuration. The second measurement configuration comprises a second measurement object and a plurality of second reporting configuration. The plurality of second reporting configurations correspond to (e.g., are linked to) the second measurement object. Then, the second communication apparatus performs at least one second measurement for the second measurement object, to generate at least one second measurement result. The second communication apparatus transmits the at least one second measurement result to the network device according to a second reporting configuration of the plurality of second reporting configurations in response to the second reporting configuration being satisfied. That is, the first communication apparatus and the second communication apparatus under different conditions (e.g., in different environments) may perform the measurements and transmit the measurement results according to different reporting configurations with different parameters. It should be noted that, there are two communication apparatuses (e.g., the first communication apparatus and the second communication apparatus) in the present embodiment, but not limited herein. The number of communication apparatuses may be two or more than two. 
     By way of example, but not limitation, each of the first communication apparatus and the second communication apparatus may be implemented using the same hardware architecture such as that of the communication apparatus  100  shown in  FIG.  1   , and the same process  30  may also be utilized in the second communication apparatus. 
     There are various ways to determine the second measurement configuration of the plurality of measurement configurations. In an embodiment of the invention, the second communication apparatus may receive the second measurement configuration from the network device. In this case, the first measurement configuration and the second measurement configuration are the same measurement configuration. That is, the network device configures the same measurement configuration to all communication apparatuses. In an embodiment of the invention, the second communication apparatus may set the second measurement configuration according to the design algorithm. In this case, the first measurement configuration and the second measurement configuration are the same measurement configuration or different measurement configurations. The detail of determining the second measurement configuration may be referred to the above embodiments of determining the first measurement configuration, and is not narrated herein for brevity. 
     In an embodiment of the invention, the plurality of first reporting configurations comprise a plurality of first time durations (e.g., time-to-trigger (TTT)) and a plurality of first measurement thresholds, respectively. A time duration (e.g., one of the plurality of first time durations) guarantees that a ping-pong effect can be eliminated by specifying a time window in which an entering condition for a measurement event occurs to transmit the measurement result to the network device. A measurement threshold (e.g., one of the plurality of first measurement thresholds) is a threshold parameter for a measurement event. In an embodiment of the invention, the plurality of first time durations have (e.g, are) different values. In an embodiment of the invention, the plurality of first measurement thresholds have (e.g, are) different values. 
     In an embodiment of the invention, one of the plurality of first reporting configurations comprises a time duration with the greatest value among the plurality of first time durations, and comprises a measurement threshold with the smallest value among the plurality of first measurement thresholds. In an embodiment of the invention, one of the plurality of first reporting configurations comprises a time duration with the smallest value among the plurality of first time durations, and comprises a measurement threshold with the greatest value among the plurality of first measurement thresholds. In an embodiment of the invention, one of the plurality of first reporting configurations comprises a time duration with the second greatest value among the plurality of first time durations, and comprises a measurement threshold with the second smallest value among the plurality of first measurement thresholds. The relationship between the time duration and the measurement threshold in one of the plurality of first reporting configurations is analogous, and is not narrated herein for brevity. 
     In an embodiment of the invention, the plurality of first reporting configurations comprise a plurality of first measurement hystereses, respectively. A measurement hysteresis (e.g., one of the plurality of first measurement hystereses) is a hysteresis parameter for a measurement event. 
     In an embodiment of the invention, the plurality of second reporting configurations comprise a plurality of second time durations (e.g., time-to-trigger (TTT)) and a plurality of second measurement thresholds, respectively. In an embodiment of the invention, the plurality of second reporting configurations comprise a plurality of second measurement hystereses, respectively. The plurality of second time durations, the plurality of second measurement thresholds, the plurality of second measurement hystereses and a relationship between a time duration and a measurement threshold in one of the plurality of second reporting configurations may be referred to the above embodiments of the plurality of first time durations, the plurality of first measurement thresholds, the plurality of first measurement hystereses and the relationship between the time duration and the measurement threshold in one of the plurality of first reporting configurations, and are not narrated herein for brevity. 
     In an embodiment of the invention, an entering condition and a leaving condition for a measurement event are predefined by, for example, the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standard. The measurement event may be one of the measurement events A1-A6 and B1-B2, but not limited herein. Taking the measurement event A1 as an example, the entering condition is Ms−Hys&gt;Thresh, and the leaving condition is Ms+Hys&lt;Thresh. Ms is the measurement result of a serving cell without taking any offsets into account. Hys is a measurement hysteresis (e.g., one of the plurality of first measurement hystereses or one of the plurality of second measurement hystereses) for the measurement event A1. Thresh is a measurement threshold (e.g., one of the plurality of first measurement thresholds or one of the plurality of second measurement thresholds) for the measurement event A1. 
     In an embodiment of the invention, the first reporting configuration is satisfied (in Step S 306 ) means (e.g., represents) that the entering condition applied according to a hysteresis and a measurement threshold in the first reporting configuration is satisfied and that the leaving condition applied according to the hysteresis and the measurement threshold in the first reporting configuration is not satisfied. In an embodiment of the invention, the second reporting configuration is satisfied means that the entering condition applied according to a hysteresis and a measurement threshold in the second reporting configuration is satisfied and that the leaving condition applied according to the hysteresis and the measurement threshold in the second reporting configuration is not satisfied. That is, the first/second communication apparatus determines that the first/second reporting configuration is satisfied in response to the satisfied entering condition and the unsatisfied leaving condition. 
     In an embodiment of the invention, a measurement object (e.g., the first measurement object or the second measurement object) indicates (e.g., specifies) a synchronization signal block (SSB) or a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) to be measured, and further comprises (e.g., specifies) related auxiliary information for the measurement. The first measurement object and the second measurement object may be the same measurement object or different measurement objects. 
     In an embodiment of the invention, the first measurement configuration comprises a plurality of first measurement identities, and the second measurement configuration comprises a plurality of second measurement identities. In an embodiment of the invention, the plurality of first measurement identities indicate that the plurality of first reporting configurations correspond to the first measurement object, respectively. In an embodiment of the invention, the plurality of second measurement identities indicate that the plurality of second reporting configurations correspond to the second measurement object, respectively. That is, one reporting configuration may correspond to one measurement object, while one measurement object may correspond to one or more reporting configurations. 
       FIG.  4    is a schematic diagram of a scenario  40  according to an embodiment of the invention. There is a next generation Node-B (gNB)  400  (e.g., the network device in the process  30 ) in the present embodiment. A coverage area  402  of the gNB  400  is divided into areas AR1-AR3. The gNB  400  configures reporting configurations RpConfig1-RpConfig3 to communication apparatuses CA1-CA3. The reporting configurations RpConfig1-RpConfig3 correspond to the same measurement object, and comprise time durations TTT1-TTT3 (e.g., TTT1&lt;TTT2&lt;TTT3) and measurement thresholds Thresh1-Thresh3 (e.g., Thresh1&gt;Thresh2&gt;Thresh3), respectively. 
     In  FIG.  4   , the communication apparatus CA1 in the area AR1 with a high measurement result applies the reporting configuration RpConfig1 with the short time duration TTT1 to transmit the high measurement result to the gNB  400 . The communication apparatus CA2 in the area AR2 with a moderate measurement result applies the reporting configuration RpConfig2 and waits for the moderate time duration TTT2, to transmit the moderate measurement result to the gNB  400 . The communication apparatus CA3 in the area AR3 with a small measurement result applies the reporting configuration RpConfig3 and waits for the long time duration TTT3, to transmit the small measurement result to the gNB  400 . The communication apparatuses CA1-CA3 in different areas AR1-AR3 are configured with the same reporting configurations by the gNB  400 , but apply different reporting configurations to ensure a stable connection quality. The performances of performing the measurements and transmitting the measurement results can be improved. 
     In other embodiment of the invention, the communication apparatuses CA1-CA3 set the reporting configurations RpConfig1-RpConfig3 by themselves, instead of receiving the reporting configurations RpConfig1-RpConfig3 from the gNB  400  that configures the reporting configurations RpConfig1-RpConfig3 to the communication apparatuses CA1-CA3. 
     To sum up, the present invention provides a communication apparatus and a method for handling a measurement configuration. The communication apparatuses under different conditions perform measurements and transmit measurement results according to different reporting configurations with different parameters. Therefore, the communication apparatus with a proper reporting configuration may improve the performances of performing the measurement and transmitting the measurement result. 
     Those skilled in the art will readily observe that numerous modifications and alterations of the device and method may be made while retaining the teachings of the invention. Accordingly, the above disclosure should be construed as limited only by the metes and bounds of the appended claims.