Patent Description:
The next generation mobile wireless communication system, which is referred to as Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Fifth Generation (<NUM>) or New Radio (NR), will support a diverse set of use cases and a diverse set of deployment scenarios. The latter includes deployment at both low frequencies in the range of hundreds of megahertz (MHz), similar to Long Term Evolution (LTE) today, and very high frequencies referred to as millimeter wave (mmW) in the range of tens of gigahertz (GHz).

Similar to LTE, NR will use Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) in the downlink from a NR base station (gNB) to a User Equipment device (UE). In the uplink from the UE to the gNB, both Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) spread OFDM and OFDM will be supported.

The basic NR physical resource can thus be seen as a time-frequency grid as illustrated in <FIG>, where each Resource Element (RE) corresponds to one OFDM subcarrier during one OFDM symbol interval. Resource allocation in a slot is described in terms of Resource Blocks (RBs) in the frequency domain and number of OFDM symbols in the time domain. A RB corresponds to <NUM> contiguous subcarriers and a slot consists of <NUM> OFDM symbols.

Different subcarrier spacing values are supported in NR. The supported subcarrier spacing values, which are also referred to as numerologies, in NR are given by Δf = (<NUM> × <NUM>α) kHz where α is a non-negative integer.

In the time domain, downlink and uplink transmissions in NR are organized into equally-sized subframes similar to LTE as shown in <FIG>. A subframe is further divided into slots and the number of slots per subframe is <NUM>α+<NUM> for a numerology of (<NUM> × <NUM>α) kHz.

NR supports "slot based" transmission. In each slot, the gNB transmits Downlink Control Information (DCI) about which UE data is to be transmitted to and what resources in the current downlink subframe the data is transmitted on. The DCI is carried on the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) and data is carried on the Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH).

This PDCCH is typically transmitted in Control Resource Sets (CORSETs) in the first few OFDM symbols in each slot. A UE first decodes PDCCH and if a PDCCH is decoded successfully, it then decodes the corresponding PDSCH based on the decoded DCI in the PDCCH.

Uplink data transmissions are also dynamically scheduled using PDCCH. Similar to downlink, a UE first decodes an uplink grant in a DCI carried by PDCCH and then transmits data over the Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) based on the decoded control information in the uplink grant such as modulation order, coding rate, uplink resource allocation, etc. Each UE is assigned a unique Cell Radio Network Temporary Identifier (C-RNTI) during network connection. The Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) bits attached to a DCI for a UE are scrambled by the UE's C-RNTI, so a UE recognizes its own DCI by checking the CRC bits of the DCI against the assigned C-RNTI.

For uplink scheduling over PUSCH, at least the following bit fields are included in an uplink DCI:.

CSI feedback is used by the gNB to obtain downlink CSI from a UE in order to determine how to transmit downlink data to a UE over a plurality of antenna ports. CSI typically includes a channel Rank Indicator (RI), a Precoding Matrix Indicator (PMI), and a Channel Quality Indicator (CQI). RI is used to indicate the number of data layers that can be transmitted simultaneously to a UE, PMI is used to indicate the precoding matrix for the indicated data layers, and CQI is used to indicate the modulation and coding rate that can be achieved with the indicated rank and the precoding matrix.

In NR, in addition to periodic and aperiodic CSI reporting as in LTE, semi-persistent CSI reporting is also supported. Thus, three types of CSI reporting will be supported in NR as follows:.

CSI-RS is used for measuring downlink CSI by a UE. CSI-RS is transmitted over each transmit (Tx) antenna port at the gNB and for different antenna ports and the CSI-RSs are multiplexed in time, frequency, and code domain such that the channel between each Tx antenna port at the gNB and each receive antenna port at a UE can be measured by the UE. A time frequency resource used for transmitting CSI-RS is referred to as a CSI-RS resource.

In NR, a UE can be configured with N≥<NUM> CSI reporting settings (i.e., ReportConfigs), M≥<NUM> resource settings (i.e., ResourceConfigs), and one CSI measurement setting, where the CSI measurement setting includes L≥<NUM> measurement links (i.e., MeasLinkConfigs). At least the following configuration parameters are signaled via RRC for CSI acquisition.

A-CSI reporting over PUSCH is triggered by a DCI for scheduling PUSCH or uplink DCI. A special CSI request bit field in the DCI is defined for the purpose. Each value of the CSI request bit field defines a codepoint and each codepoint can be associated with a higher layer configured CSI report trigger state. For A-CSI reporting, the CSI report trigger states contains a list of Sc measurement links associated with A-CSI reporting. Each CSI report trigger state defines at least the following information:.

The bit width, Lc, of the CSI request field is configurable from <NUM> to <NUM> bits. When the number of CSI triggering states, Sc, is larger than the number of codepoints, i.e. Sc > <NUM>Lc - <NUM>, a Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (CE) is used to select a subset of <NUM>Lc - <NUM> triggering states from the Sc triggering states so that there is a one-to-one mapping between each codepoint and a CSI triggering state. The <NUM>Lc - <NUM> is due to the fact that one codepoint with setting the CSI request field to all zeroes is used to indicate no triggered report.

<FIG> provides an illustration of A-CSI reporting.

<FIG> illustrates SP-CSI reporting over PUSCH. It has been agreed that SP-CSI reporting over PUSCH is activated using DCI, and the CSI is reported on PUSCH periodically until the SP-CSI reporting is deactivated, also by DCI, as shown in <FIG>.

It has also been agreed that the CRC bits of the corresponding DCls for the activation and deactivation are scrambled by a SP-CSI C-RNTI.

For semi-persistent reporting on PUSCH, a set of SP-CSI report settings, or SP-CSI report trigger states, are higher layer configured by Semi-persistent-on-PUSCHReportTrigger and the CSI request field in DCI scrambled with SP-CSI C-RNTI activates one of the SP-CSI reports or trigger states. As used herein, a SP-CSI report trigger state may comprise one or more of a SP-CSI report setting configuration, a SP-CSI resource setting configuration for channel measurement, and a SP-CSI resource setting configuration for interference measurement. When only a single SP-CSI resource is allowed, then a SP-CSI report trigger state is equivalent to one or more SP-CSI report settings.

A UE performs SP-CSI reporting on the PUSCH upon successful decoding an uplink DCI format. The uplink DCI format will contain one or more CSI Reporting Setting Indications where the associated CSI Measurement Links and CSI Resource Settings are higher layer configured. SP-CSI reporting on the PUSCH supports Type I and Type II CSI with wideband, partial band, and sub-band frequency granularities. The PUSCH resources and MCS are allocated semi-persistently by an uplink DCI.

The gNB or UE consists of a number protocol layers, including Physical (PHY) layer, MAC layer, and RRC layer. The PHY layer is also referred to as Layer <NUM> (L1). The MAC layer is part of Layer <NUM> (L2), which also includes Radio Link Control (RLC), Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP), and Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP) layers. Layers above PHY are also referred to as higher layers, such as MAC and RRC. Part of the MAC function is to perform data scheduling while part of the RRC function is to establish, maintain, and release radio link connection between a gNB and a UE.

In addition to dynamic allocation of resources to a UE via PDCCH, the gNB can also semi-statically allocate resources for Configured Scheduling (CS) or Semi-Persistent Scheduling (SPS):.

Type <NUM> and Type <NUM> are configured by RRC per serving cell. For the same serving cell, either Type <NUM> or Type <NUM> is configured to a UE. On each serving cell, there can be only one CS configuration active at a time. Retransmissions other than repetitions are explicitly allocated via PDCCH(s).

RRC configures at least the following parameters when the configured grant Type <NUM> is configured:.

The UE does not transmit anything on the resources configured by the RRC if the higher layers did not deliver a Transport Block (TB) to transmit on the resources allocated for SPS transmission.

A set of allowed periodicities P are defined in table <NUM>. <NUM>-<NUM> of <NUM>, which is copied below, where CP is for Cyclic Prefix type.

Document "On semi-persistent CSI reporting on PUSCH", Ericsson, 3GPP draft, R1-<NUM>, relates to semi-persistent CSI reporting on PUSCH. The following observations were made. Observation <NUM>: It is desirable to support different Tx schemes or feedback types by semi-persistent CSI feedback in different activation time periods. Observation <NUM>: PUCCH is not good for variable CSI sizes and is not good for semi-persistent CSI reporting for different Tx schemes, feedback types, and/or where a report's size varies. Observation <NUM>: Semi-persistent CSI reporting on PUSCH is similar to SPS in LTE. The following proposals were made. Proposal <NUM>: Semi-persistent CSI reporting with semi-persistent CSI-RS transmission supports variable report sizes. Proposal <NUM>: Support semi-persistent CSI reporting on PUSCH with DCI based activation and deactivation.

Document "On semi-persistent CSI reporting on PUSCH", Ericsson, 3GPP draft, R1-<NUM>, discloses some desired features for SP-CSI on PUSCH. The following observations were made. Observation <NUM>: Unlike in SPS where a UE may not have data to send, a UE always has CSI to report in case of SP-CSI. Observation <NUM>: SP-CSI C-RNTI may be useful for SP-CSI activation/deactivation DCI detection and confirmation of SP-CSI activation. Observation <NUM>: When SP-CSI collides with PUSCH data, SP-CSI is piggy backed on data. The following proposals were made. Proposal <NUM>: Dynamic MCS allocation is supported in SP-CSI. Proposal <NUM>: The same confirmation mechanism in LTE Rel-<NUM> for UL SPS activation/deactivation can be used for SP-CSI. Proposal <NUM>: SP-CSI specific C-RNTI is supported for SP-CSI. Proposal <NUM>: SP-CSI re-activation that updates the resource assignment or other parameters is supported. Proposal <NUM>: Retransmissions are not supported for SP-CSI on PUSCH. Proposal <NUM>: Uplink MIMO is supported for SP-CSI on PUSCH. Proposal <NUM>: The same UCI encoding for A-CSI on PUSCH is used for SP-CSI UCI encoding on PUSCH.

Document "On remaining details of CSI reporting", Ericsson, 3GPP draft, R1-<NUM>, relates to a number of issues left open with respect to a number of agreements made regarding CSI reporting. The following observations were made. Observation <NUM>: CSI omission procedure will likely have to be invoked rather infrequently for proper gNB implementations. Observation <NUM>: Adding longer possible CSI reporting periodicities can only reduce UE complexity. The following proposals were made. Proposal <NUM>: For PUSCH CSI reports where partial subband PMI have been omitted, subband CQI is determined according to existing procedure. Proposal <NUM>: No additional CBSR for inter-group co-phasing parameters is introduced. Proposal <NUM>: Support BWP-specific CSI configurations where separate independent instances of CSI report settings are configured for each candidate BWP, each mapping to independent Resource Settings. Proposal <NUM>: Do not reporting CSI corresponding to a non-active BWP if the active and non-active BWPs span different PRBs. Proposal <NUM>: A BWP spanning a subset of PRBs of another BWP can reuse the same CSI configuration as that BWP. Proposal <NUM>: Adopt the additional CSI periodicities in Table <NUM> to ensure alignment between P-CSI reporting and DRX cycles for all supported subcarrier spacings. Proposal <NUM>: For priority rules for CSI collision, the following definition is used: "Two CSI reports are said to collide if the time occupancy of the physical channels scheduled to carry the CSI reports overlap in at least one OFDM symbol and are transmitted on the same carrier". Proposal <NUM>: For P/SP CSI collisions where all colliding CSIs are transmitted on PUCCH, the CSI with the longest periodicity has priority while the other CSIs are dropped. Proposal <NUM>: Extend the agreed priority rules for CSI collision in RAN1#90b also to when Type I and Type II CSI collides. Proposal <NUM>: Adopt the refined subband sizes and ranges in Table <NUM>. Proposal <NUM>: If configured to be present for a CSI report setting, the indicator of strongest DL layer within the CW with highest CQI for DL PTRS port mapping purpose, the so called CPI, is jointly encoded with RI into a single field using at most one additional bit compared to standalone RI field. Proposal <NUM>: The same set of RRC configured PUSCH timing offsets Y is used for PUSCH with and without piggybacked CSI. Proposal <NUM>: SP-CSI reporting on PUCCH is activated with DCI. Proposal <NUM>: SP-CSI reporting on PUCCH uses semi-statically configured PUCCH resources. Proposal <NUM>: Confirm the working assumption to support A-CSI on short PUCCH for Y><NUM>.

A method performed by a wireless device, a wireless device, a method performed by a base station and a base station are defined by the appended independent claims <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> respectively.

Hereinabove and in the following, "examples" pertain to principles underlying the claimed subject-matter and/or being useful for understanding the claimed subject-matter, "embodiments" pertain to the claimed subject-matter within the claim scope and "unclaimed examples" pertain to implementations not comprised by the claim scope.

Note that, in the description herein, reference may be made to the term "cell;" however, particularly with respect to <NUM> NR concepts, beams may be used instead of cells and, as such, it is important to note that the concepts described herein are equally applicable to both cells and beams.

There currently exist certain challenge(s). Although a UE can recognize Downlink Control Information (DCI) (also referred to herein as a DCI message) for Semi-Persistent Channel State Information (SP-CSI) if the DCI is scrambled by SP-CSI Cell Radio Network Temporary Identifier (C-RNTI), how to distinguish between SP-CSI activation and deactivation (or release) remains a problem. The same also exists for uplink Semi-Persistent Scheduling (SPS).

The examples and embodiments may provide solutions to the aforementioned or other challenges. The following options are proposed:.

The embodiment may provide one or more of the following technical advantage(s). The solutions allow a UE to distinguish between an activation DCI and a deactivation DCI for SP-CSI reporting.

<FIG> illustrates an example of a cellular communications network <NUM> according to the embodiment of the present disclosure. In the example described herein, the cellular communications network <NUM> is a <NUM> NR network. In this example, the cellular communications network <NUM> includes base stations <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>, which in <NUM> NR are referred to as gNBs, controlling corresponding macro cells <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>. The base stations <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM> are generally referred to herein collectively as base stations <NUM> and individually as base station <NUM>. Likewise, the macro cells <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM> are generally referred to herein collectively as macro cells <NUM> and individually as macro cell <NUM>. The cellular communications network <NUM> may also include a number of low power nodes <NUM>-<NUM> through <NUM>-<NUM> controlling corresponding small cells <NUM>-<NUM> through <NUM>-<NUM>. The low power nodes <NUM>-<NUM> through <NUM>-<NUM> can be small base stations (such as pico or femto base stations) or Remote Radio Heads (RRHs), or the like. Notably, while not illustrated, one or more of the small cells <NUM>-<NUM> through <NUM>-<NUM> may alternatively be provided by the base stations <NUM>. The low power nodes <NUM>-<NUM> through <NUM>-<NUM> are generally referred to herein collectively as low power nodes <NUM> and individually as low power node <NUM>. Likewise, the small cells <NUM>-<NUM> through <NUM>-<NUM> are generally referred to herein collectively as small cells <NUM> and individually as small cell <NUM>. The base stations <NUM> (and optionally the low power nodes <NUM>) are connected to a core network <NUM>.

Various examples and an embodiment for activation and deactivation of SP-CSI reporting on Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) are described below. In this regard, <FIG> illustrates an example of the operation of a network node (e.g., a base station <NUM>) and a wireless device <NUM> to provide activation/deactivation of SP-CSI reporting. As illustrated, the network node sends, to the wireless device <NUM>, a control message (e.g., an Uplink (UL) DCI which is also referred to herein as an UL DCI message) for activation or deactivation of SP-SCI reporting (step <NUM>). In some examples, the control message is also for uplink grant free data transmission, as described below in detail.

In some examples, the control message is an UL DCI message that is scrambled with an identifier of the wireless device <NUM> (e.g., a SP-CSI C-RNTI of the wireless device <NUM>), where the wireless device <NUM> is to toggle between activation and deactivation of SP-CSI reporting upon receiving the UL DCI message that is scrambled with its SP-CSI C-RNTI. In some other examples, the control message is an UL DCI message that is scrambled with an identifier of the wireless device <NUM> (e.g., a SP-CSI C-RNTI of the wireless device <NUM>) and includes information that indicates whether the control message is for activation of SP-CSI reporting or deactivation of SP-CSI reporting. As described below in detail, in some examples, this information may be one or more bits in one or more fields that are defined for other purposes and reused to provide an indication of whether the message is for activation or deactivation of SP-CSI reporting, as described in more detail below. In some other examples, this information is one or more bits of a CSI Request Field included in the UL DCI message. Still further, in an unclaimed example, this information is indicated by a SP-CSI trigger state indicated by the UL DCI message, where separate SP-CSI trigger states are defined for activation of SP-CSI reporting and deactivation of SP-CSI reporting. Lastly, in some other examples, information included in the UL DCI message and a current state of the wireless device <NUM> are both taken into account to determine whether to activate or deactivate SP-CSI reporting and, in unclaimed examples, whether to activate or deactivate uplink grant free transmission at the wireless device <NUM>.

Upon receiving the control message, the wireless device <NUM> determines whether the control message is for activation of SP-CSI reporting or for deactivation of SP-CSI reporting (step <NUM>). In an unclaimed example, the wireless device <NUM> also determines whether the message is for activation of uplink grant free data transmission or for deactivation of uplink grant free data transmission. In some examples, this process includes determining that the control message is scrambled with the identity (e.g., SP-CSI C-RNTI) of the wireless device <NUM> and, if so, proceeding to determine whether to activate or deactivate SP-CSI reporting based on the message. The wireless device <NUM> then activates or deactivates SP-CSI reporting in accordance with the determination made in step <NUM> (step <NUM>).

A more detailed embodiment and examples will now be described.

One way for SP-CSI activation and deactivation indication is to toggle between activation and deactivation (or release). In this approach, the first transmitted UL DCI scrambled with SP-CSI C-RNTI is for SP-CSI activation. The second SP-CSI DCI following the first SP-CSI DCI is for deactivation (or release) of the SP-CSI activated by the first SP-CSI DCI. The third SP-CSI DCI following the second SP-CSI is for activation of a new SP-CSI, and the fourth SP-CSI DCI following the third SP-CSI DCI is for deactivation of the SP-CSI activated by the third SP-CSI DCI, and so on. An example is shown in <FIG>.

The drawback of this toggling approach is that it may prevent reconfiguration of an on-going SP-CSI reporting on PUSCH. For example, the gNB may want to change the resource allocation or modulation order for an ongoing SP-CSI; this cannot be done with the toggling approach as a UE could treat a reconfiguration SP-CSI DCI as for deactivation. In addition, if a UE missed a SP-CSI DCI due to, for example, decoding error, then the subsequent SP-CSI reporting would be wrong.

In one variant of this unclaimed example, if the second SP-CSI DCI which follows the first SP-CSI DCI that activated a SP-CSI reporting on PUSCH contains the same bit field values as the first SP-CSI, then the UE can assume that the second SP-CSI DCI has deactivated the SP-CSI reporting on PUSCH. For instance, if the modulation order or resource allocation indicated by the first and second SP-CSI DCIs is the same, then the UE can assume that the second SP-CSI DCI has deactivated the SP-CSI reporting on PUSCH. However, if one or more bit field values between the first and second SP-CSI DCIs are different, then the UE can assume that the second SP-CSI DCI has reconfigured the SP-CSI reporting on PUSCH. For example, if the modulation order or resource allocation indicated by the first and second SP-CSI DCIs is different, then the UE can assume that the second SP-CSI DCI has reconfigured the SP-CSI reporting on PUSCH.

<FIG> illustrates an unclaimed example of the operation of a network node (e.g., the base station <NUM>) and the wireless device <NUM> in accordance with Unclaimed example <NUM>. As illustrated, the network node sends, to the wireless device <NUM>, a first control message (e.g., a first UL DCI message that is scrambled with the identity (e.g., SP-CSI C-RNTI) of the wireless device <NUM>) for activation/deactivation of SP-CSI reporting (step <NUM>). Upon receiving the first control message, the wireless device <NUM> determines that the control message is for activation of SP-CSI reporting since the control message is the first control message received by the wireless device <NUM> for activation or deactivation of SP-CSI reporting (step <NUM>). As such, the wireless device <NUM> activates SP-CSI reporting (step <NUM>).

Sometime thereafter, the network node sends a second control message (e.g., a second UL DCI message that is scrambled with the identity (e.g., SP-CSI C-RNTI) of the wireless device <NUM>) for activation/deactivation of SP-CSI reporting (step <NUM>). Upon receiving the second control message, the wireless device <NUM> determines that the control message is for deactivation of SP-CSI reporting since the control message is the second control message received by the wireless device <NUM> for activation or deactivation of SP-CSI reporting (step <NUM>). As such, the wireless device <NUM> deactivates SP-CSI reporting (step <NUM>). The process can continue in this manner. In this way, the wireless device <NUM> toggles between activation and deactivation of SP-CSI reporting upon receiving the control messages.

Notably, in the unclaimed example, the determination to deactivate SP-CSI reporting in step <NUM> further includes a determination whether the values in one or more predefined fields in the second control message are the same as the values for the same field(s) in the first control message. If so, the wireless device <NUM> determines that SP-CSI reporting is to be deactivated. If not, the wireless device <NUM> determines that SP-CSI reporting is to remain activated.

Example <NUM> - Reuse Some Bit Field in UL DCI for Activation and Deactivation Indication: For uplink data transmission on PUSCH, when a decoding error occurs at the gNB, the gNB may request a retransmission of the data by a UE. For this purpose, the UE keeps a copy of the original data in its transmission buffer until a DCI with a New Data Indication (NDI) is received from the gNB for the same Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) process. When a retransmission is needed, the gNB typically sends another uplink grant in DCI with the "New Data Indication" bit set to "<NUM>" and the "Redundancy Version" bit field set to a desired value.

For SP-CSI reporting on PUSCH, when a decoding error occurs, a retransmission is not necessary because either a retransmitted SP-CSI can be aged or a SP-CSI update is not possible as a UE needs to keep an old copy of the CSI even though a new CSI measurement is available between the first transmission and the retransmission. In the latter case, it would be better to report the new updated CSI instead of retransmitting the old CSI. Without retransmission, the "New Data Indication" field and the "Redundancy Version" field in the uplink DCI are redundant for SP-CSI activation and deactivation. Therefore, they can be used for SP-CSI activation and deactivation indication.

In one example, the "New Data Indication" bit may be used for SP-CSI activation and deactivation indication. After a UE detects an UL DCI scrambled by its SP-CSI C-RNTI, the UE can further check the "New Data Indication" bit to determine whether it is for SP-CSI activation or deactivation. For example, the bit is set to "<NUM>" for activation and to "<NUM>" for deactivation. This allows for reconfiguration of an ongoing SP-CSI by sending a new activation DCI with new parameters such as a new resource allocation or a new modulation order. An example is shown in <FIG>.

Alternatively, the <NUM> bit "Redundancy Version" field in the UL DCI can be used for the purpose. For example, the bits are set to "<NUM>" for activation and to "<NUM>" for deactivation.

Embodiment - Reuse More Than One Bit Field in UL DCI for Activation and Deactivation Indication: To further enhance the validation reliability for SP-CSI activation or deactivation, more than one bit field in UL DCI may be used.

For SP-CSI activation validation, a UE first validates a SP-CSI DCI in a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) by verifying that the Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) bits of the DCI are scrambled by SP-CSI C-RNTI. As an example, the UE further verifies that at least one or all of the following conditions are met:.

For SP-CSI deactivation or release validation, a UE first validates a SP-CSI DCI in a PDCCH by verifying that the CRC bits of the DCI are scrambled by SP-CSI C-RNTI. As an example, the UE further verifies that at least one or all of the following conditions are met:.

Unclaimed example <NUM> - Use One Bit in the CSI Request Field in UL DCI for Activation and Deactivation Indication: Another option is to use one bit in the CSI request bit field for activation and deactivation indication and the rest of the bits in the CSI request field for selecting a SP-CSI trigger state. However, when the configured number of bits in the CSI request field is small, this would reduce the number of SP-CSI trigger states that can be supported. Furthermore, if only one bit for the CSI request field is configured, then this option would not allow more than one SP-CSI trigger state, which is a limitation. This option doesn't work when the zero bit is configured for the CSI request field.

Unclaimed example <NUM> - Define Activation/Deactivation as Part of the SP-CSI Trigger States Indication: Another option is to include SP-CSI activation and deactivation as part of the SP-CSI trigger states, in which case for each SP-CSI reporting configuration and resource configuration, two states are configured - one for activation and the other for deactivation, as shown in <FIG>. The codepoint of the CSI request field is used to indicate a joint SP-CSI reporting configuration, resource configuration, and SP-CSI activation or deactivation. Using <FIG> as an example, when SP-CSI state #k is indicated by the CSI request field in DCI, it is for SP-CSI activation. Otherwise, if SP-CSI state #k+<NUM> is indicated by the CSI request field in DCI, it is for SP-CSI deactivation.

In yet another unclaimed example, there is a limitation of supporting only one SP-CSI report active at the same time. Only one codepoint of the CSI request field needs to be reserved for deactivation, for instance CSI request = "<NUM>".

<FIG> illustrates one example of the operation of a network node (e.g., the base station <NUM>) and the wireless device <NUM> in accordance with any one of the Embodiment and examples <NUM>-<NUM>. As illustrated, the network node sends, to the wireless device <NUM>, a control message (e.g., a UL DCI message that is scrambled with the identity (e.g., SP-CSI C-RNTI) of the wireless device <NUM>) that includes infor-mation that indicates activation of SP-CSI reporting or indicates deactivation of SP-CSI reporting (step <NUM>). In regard to Example <NUM>, the information included in the control message is one or more bits in a field that are reused for purposes of indicating activation or deactivation of SP-CSI reporting. In Embodiment, this information includes bits in multiple fields of the control message. In Unclaimed example <NUM>, this information includes a bit(s) in the CSI Request Field in the DCI that indicates whether the message is for activation or for deactivation of SP-CSI reporting. In Unclaimed example <NUM>, this information includes information that indicates the SP-CSI trigger state, where different SP-CSI trigger states are predefined or preconfigured for activation and deactivation of SP-CSI reporting.

Upon receiving the control message, the wireless device <NUM> determines whether the control message is for activation of SP-CSI reporting or deactivation of SP-CSI reporting based on the information included in the control message (step <NUM>). More specifically, using an UL DCI message as an example, the wireless device <NUM> determines that the UL DCI message is scrambled with the SP-CSI C-RNTI of the wireless device <NUM>. By determining that the UL DCI message is scrambled with the SP-CSI C-RNTI of the wireless device <NUM>, the wireless device <NUM> can validate that the control message is intended for the wireless device <NUM> and that the control message is either for activation or for deactivation of SP-CSI. The wireless device <NUM> then determines whether the UL DCI message is for activation or for deactivation of SP-CSI reporting based on the information included in the UL DCI message, as described above with respect to any one of the Embodiment and (unclaimed) examples <NUM>-<NUM>.

The wireless device <NUM> activates or deactivates SP-CSI reporting in accordance with the determination made in step <NUM> (step <NUM>).

In this unclaimed example, the assumption is that only a single semi-persistent uplink grant can be active at the time. This uplink grant allows the UE to convey Uplink Shared Channel (UL-SCH) on the PUSCH using uplink grant free transmission (i.e., SPS) and may optionally allow transmission of a SP-CSI report. If SPS is activated, UL-SCH may always be mapped to the PUSCH from a Medium Access Control (MAC) perspective. However, since Uplink Control Information (UCI) (which comprises the CSI report) is supposed to be multiplexed with the transport blocks provided by UL-SCH on L1 by mapping UCI to the allocated resource first, it may be possible to convey only SP-CSI reports on PUSCH if the resource allocation for the PUSCH is set appropriately by the gNB so that only the content of the CSI reports fits in the PUSCH payload.

In the unclaimed example, SPS and SP-CSI reporting are activated with the same UL DCI message. Said UL DCI message may be differentiated from dynamic uplink grants due to CRC being scrambled with a certain Radio Network Temporary Identifier (RNTI), such as a configured Configured Scheduling (CS) RNTI. The activation DCI may be additionally identified by the setting of a combination of certain bit fields in the DCI. In one unclaimed example, the bit fields set according to:.

If both the SPS transmission and the SP-CSI transmission should be deactivated, the gNB may send a deactivation DCI message (which may also be CRC scrambled with a CS-RNTI). Upon reception of the deactivation DCI, the semi-persistent PUSCH transmission is stopped, implying that both SPS and any active SP-CSI reporting is deactivated. Thus, the CSI request field may be ignored in the deactivation DCI, and any SP-CSI report that is active is deactivated anyway regardless of if the CSI request field is equal to "<NUM>" or not. The format of the deactivation DCI may assert that the CSI request field is set to "<NUM>" in order to further provide DCI detection reliability for the deactivation DCI. The deactivation DCI may be identified by setting a certain combination of bit fields to certain values. For instance, the bit fields may be set according to:.

In <FIG>, one Unclaimed example <NUM> is illustrated with a state transition diagram, identifying to which state the UE moves upon reception of the different DCI messages. In general, any number of SP-CSI report settings may be supported and each activated SP-CSI report corresponds to a state, but only two states (#<NUM> and #N) for activated SP-CSI reports is shown in <FIG>, for readability, but it is implied that from the illustration that omitted SP-CSI report states #<NUM>, #<NUM>,. , #N-<NUM> are present as well.

Note that SP-CSI reporting may not be activated without SPS also being activated.

The "states" refer to Radio Resource Control (RRC) configured SP-CSI trigger states. A DCI may simultaneously activate one or more SP-CSI report settings, such that the one or more SP-CSI reports are transmitted on the same PUSCH. When an activation DCI message is received, the UE stops SP-CSI reporting on the SP-CSI reports associated with the previously active SP-CSI trigger state and commences SP-CSI reporting on the SP-CSI report settings associated with the SP-CSI trigger state identified with the CSI request field in the activation DCI message.

<FIG> illustrates the operation of a network node (e.g., the base station <NUM>) and the wireless device <NUM> in accordance with Unclaimed Example <NUM>. As illustrated, the network node sends, to the wireless device <NUM>, a control message (e.g., a UL DCI message that is scrambled with the identity (e.g., CS-CSI C-RNTI) of the wireless device <NUM>) that includes information that indicates activation or deactivation of SP-CSI reporting and activation or deactivation of uplink grant free data transmission (e.g., SPS data transmission) (step <NUM>). Upon receiving the control message, the wireless device <NUM> determines whether the control message is for activation of SP-CSI reporting or deactivation of SP-CSI reporting as well as for activation of uplink grant free data transmission or deactivation of uplink grant free data transmission based on the information included in the control message and a current state of the wireless device <NUM> (step <NUM>), as described above. The wireless device <NUM> activates or deactivates SP-CSI reporting in accordance with the determination made in step <NUM> (step <NUM>).

<FIG> is a schematic block diagram of a radio access node <NUM> according to the embodiment of the present disclosure. The radio access node <NUM> may be, for example, a base station <NUM> or <NUM>. As illustrated, the radio access node <NUM> includes a control system <NUM> that includes one or more processors <NUM> (e.g., Central Processing Units (CPUs), Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), and/or the like), memory <NUM>, and a network interface <NUM>. In addition, the radio access node <NUM> includes one or more radio units <NUM> that each includes one or more transmitters <NUM> and one or more receivers <NUM> coupled to one or more antennas <NUM>. In some embodiments, the radio unit(s) <NUM> is external to the control system <NUM> and connected to the control system <NUM> via, e.g., a wired connection (e.g., an optical cable). However, in some other embodiments, the radio unit(s) <NUM> and potentially the antenna(s) <NUM> are integrated together with the control system <NUM>. The one or more processors <NUM> operate to provide one or more functions of a radio access node <NUM> as described herein. In some embodiments, the function(s) are implemented in software that is stored, e.g., in the memory <NUM> and executed by the one or more processors <NUM>.

<FIG> is a schematic block diagram that illustrates a virtualized example of the radio access node <NUM>.

As used herein, a "virtualized" radio access node is an implementation of the radio access node <NUM> in which at least a portion of the functionality of the radio access node <NUM> is implemented as a virtual component(s) (e.g., via a virtual machine(s) executing on a physical processing node(s) in a network(s)). As illustrated, in this example, the radio access node <NUM> includes the control system <NUM> that includes the one or more processors <NUM> (e.g., CPUs, ASICs, FPGAs, and/or the like), the memory <NUM>, and the network interface <NUM> and the one or more radio units <NUM> that each includes the one or more transmitters <NUM> and the one or more receivers <NUM> coupled to the one or more antennas <NUM>, as described above. The control system <NUM> is connected to the radio unit(s) <NUM> via, for example, an optical cable or the like. The control system <NUM> is connected to one or more processing nodes <NUM> coupled to or included as part of a network(s) <NUM> via the network interface <NUM>. Each processing node <NUM> includes one or more processors <NUM> (e.g., CPUs, ASICs, FPGAs, and/or the like), memory <NUM>, and a network interface <NUM>.

In this example, functions <NUM> of the radio access node <NUM> described herein are implemented at the one or more processing nodes <NUM> or distributed across the control system <NUM> and the one or more processing nodes <NUM> in any desired manner. In some particular examples, some or all of the functions <NUM> of the radio access node <NUM> described herein are implemented as virtual components executed by one or more virtual machines implemented in a virtual environment(s) hosted by the processing node(s) <NUM>. As will be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art, additional signaling or communication between the processing node(s) <NUM> and the control system <NUM> is used in order to carry out at least some of the desired functions <NUM>. Notably, in some examples, the control system <NUM> may not be included, in which case the radio unit(s) <NUM> communicate directly with the processing node(s) <NUM> via an appropriate network interface(s).

In some examples, a computer program including instructions which, when executed by at least one processor, causes the at least one processor to carry out the functionality of radio access node <NUM> or a node (e.g., a processing node <NUM>) implementing one or more of the functions <NUM> of the radio access node <NUM> in a virtual environment according to any of the examples described herein is provided. In some examples, a carrier comprising the aforementioned computer program product is provided.

<FIG> is a schematic block diagram of the radio access node <NUM> according to an unclaimed example.

<FIG> is a schematic block diagram of a UE <NUM> according to the embodiment of the present disclosure. As illustrated, the UE <NUM> includes one or more processors <NUM> (e.g., CPUs, ASICs, FPGAs, and/or the like), memory <NUM>, and one or more transceivers <NUM> each including one or more transmitters <NUM> and one or more receivers <NUM> coupled to one or more antennas <NUM>. In some examples, the functionality of the UE <NUM> described above may be fully or partially implemented in software that is, e.g., stored in the memory <NUM> and executed by the processor(s) <NUM>.

In some examples, a computer program including instructions which, when executed by at least one processor, causes the at least one processor to carry out the functionality of the UE <NUM> according to any of the examples described herein is provided. In some examples, a carrier comprising the aforementioned computer program product is provided.

<FIG> is a schematic block diagram of the UE <NUM> according to an unclaimed example.

With reference to <FIG>, in accordance with an example, a communication system includes a telecommunication network <NUM>, such as a 3GPP-type cellular network, which comprises an access network <NUM>, such as a Radio Access Network (RAN), and a core network <NUM>. The access network <NUM> comprises a plurality of base stations 1906A, 1906B, 1906C, such as Node Bs, eNBs, gNBs, or other types of wireless Access Points (APs), each defining a corresponding coverage area 1908A, 1908B, 1908C. Each base station 1906A, 1906B, 1906C is connectable to the core network <NUM> over a wired or wireless connection <NUM>. A first UE <NUM> located in coverage area 1908C is configured to wirelessly connect to, or be paged by, the corresponding base station 1906C. A second UE <NUM> in coverage area 1908A is wirelessly connectable to the corresponding base station 1906A. While a plurality of UEs <NUM>, <NUM> are illustrated in this example, the disclosed examples 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 <NUM>.

Example implementations, in accordance with an example, of the UE, base station, and host computer discussed in the preceding paragraphs will now be described with reference to <FIG>.

The communication system <NUM> further includes a base station 2018provided in a telecommunication system and comprising hardware <NUM> enabling it to communicate with the host computer <NUM> and with the UE <NUM>. In the example shown, the hardware <NUM> of the base station <NUM> further includes processing circuitry <NUM>, which may comprise one or more programmable processors, ASICs, FPGAs, or combinations of these (not shown) adapted to execute instructions.

It is noted that the host computer <NUM>, the base station <NUM>, and the UE <NUM> illustrated in <FIG> may be similar or identical to the host computer <NUM>, one of the base stations 1906A, 1906B, 1906C, and one of the UEs <NUM>, <NUM> of <FIG>, respectively.

The wireless connection <NUM> between the UE <NUM> and the base station <NUM> is in accordance with the teachings of the examples described throughout this disclosure. One or more of the various examples improve the performance of OTT services provided to the UE <NUM> using the OTT connection <NUM>, in which the wireless connection <NUM> forms the last segment. More precisely, the teachings of these examples may improve the, e.g., data rate, latency, and/or power consumption and thereby provide benefits such as, e.g., reduced user waiting time, relaxed restriction on file size, better responsiveness, and/or extended battery lifetime.

A measurement procedure may be provided for the purpose of monitoring data rate, latency, and other factors on which the one or more examples improve. In some examples, sensors (not shown) may be deployed in or in association with communication devices through which the OTT connection <NUM> 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 the software <NUM>, <NUM> may compute or estimate the monitored quantities. In certain examples, measurements may involve proprietary UE signaling facilitating the host computer <NUM>'s measurements of throughput, propagation times, latency, and the like.

<FIG> is a flowchart illustrating a method implemented in a communication system, in accordance with one example. In step <NUM> (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 examples described throughout this disclosure.

<FIG> is a flowchart illustrating a method implemented in a communication system, in accordance with one example. The transmission may pass via the base station, in accordance with the teachings of the examples described throughout this disclosure.

<FIG> is a flowchart illustrating a method implemented in a communication system, in accordance with one example. In step <NUM> of the method, the host computer receives the user data transmitted from the UE, in accordance with the teachings of the examples described throughout this disclosure.

<FIG> is a flowchart illustrating a method implemented in a communication system, in accordance with one example. In step <NUM> (which may be optional), in accordance with the teachings of the examples described throughout this disclosure, the base station receives user data from the UE.

In some implementations, the processing circuitry may be used to cause the respective functional unit to perform corresponding functions according to the embodiments of the present disclosure and the examples.

If there is any inconsistency between abbreviations, preference should be given to how it is used above.

Claim 1:
A method performed by a wireless device for Semi-Persistent Channel State Information, SP-CSI, reporting for a wireless communication system, the method comprising:
receiving, from a base station (<NUM>), an uplink downlink control information, DCI, message for activation or deactivation of the SP-CSI reporting, wherein:
the uplink DCI message comprises Cyclic Redundancy Check, CRC, bits that are scrambled with a SP-CSI Cell Radio Network Temporary Identifier, SP-CSI-RNTI, of the wireless device; and
the uplink DCI message comprises information that indicates whether the uplink DCI message is for the activation of the SP-CSI reporting or for the deactivation of the SP-CSI reporting, wherein the information comprises bit values configured in one or more bit fields of the uplink DCI message and the one or more bit fields comprise one or more bit fields defined for the purpose of providing a redundancy version;
wherein the one or more bit fields defined for the purpose of providing the redundancy version are set to all zeros and all bits of a field for communicating a Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request, HARQ, process number are set to zero;
making, based on the information comprised in the uplink DCI message, a determination as to whether to activate the SP-CSI reporting or to deactivate the SP-CSI reporting; and
activating or deactivating the SP-CSI reporting in accordance with the determination.