PATENT DOCUMENT

Publication Number: US-11991721-B2
Application Number: US-202217890634-A
Country: US
Kind Code: B2

Title: Timing determination techniques for 5G radio access network cells

Abstract:
Disclosed herein are timing determination techniques for 5G radio access network (RAN) cells. According to various such techniques, a user equipment (UE) may receive a downlink (DL) scheduling command to schedule a DL data transmission from a base station. The UE may identify a scheduled slot for transmission of hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback corresponding to the DL data transmission based on a received slot of the DL data transmission and an applicable slot offset value. The applicable slot offset value may indicate a number of slots by which the received slot precedes the scheduled slot. The applicable slot offset value may be identified from a value set based on an indicator comprised in the DL scheduling command, or may be identified using the various other techniques described herein.

Claims:
What is claimed is: 
     
       1. An apparatus for a User Equipment (UE), comprising:
 a memory; and 
 one or more processors coupled to the memory, wherein the one or more processors are configured to: 
 obtain a radio resource control (RRC) message received from a base station to configure a value set containing a plurality of slot offset values; 
 obtain a downlink (DL) scheduling command to schedule a DL data transmission from the base station; 
 obtain the DL data transmission received from the base station; 
 identify a scheduled slot for hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback corresponding to the DL data transmission based on a received slot of the DL data transmission and an applicable slot offset value indicating a number of slots by which the received slot precedes the scheduled slot; 
 identify the applicable slot offset value from the value set based on an indicator comprised in the DL scheduling command; and 
 provide the HARQ feedback to be transmitted over a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) during the scheduled slot. 
 
     
     
       2. The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the value set is configured before receiving the DL scheduling command. 
     
     
       3. The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the apparatus is for a User Equipment (UE), and wherein the value set is specific to the UE. 
     
     
       4. The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:
 identify the value set from a plurality of value sets based on an identity of a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) resource used to receive the DL scheduling command. 
 
     
     
       5. The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the indicator comprises an index value pointing to the applicable slot offset value. 
     
     
       6. An apparatus, comprising:
 a memory; and 
 one or more processors coupled to the memory, wherein the one or more processors are configured to: 
 provide a radio resource control (RRC) message to be transmitted to a User Equipment (UE) to configure a value set containing a plurality of slot offset values; 
 provide a downlink (DL) scheduling command to be transmitted to schedule a DL data transmission to the UE; 
 provide the DL data to be transmitted to the UE; and 
 obtain hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback received from the UE over a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) during a scheduled slot, wherein the scheduled slot is based on a slot of the DL data transmission and an applicable slot offset value indicating a number of slots by which the slot of the DL data transmission precedes the scheduled slot; 
 wherein the applicable slot offset value is identified from the value set based on an indicator comprised in the DL scheduling command. 
 
     
     
       7. The apparatus of  claim 6 , wherein the value set is specific to the UE. 
     
     
       8. The apparatus of  claim 6 , wherein the value set is identified from a plurality of value sets, and wherein the value set is identified based on an identity of a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) resource used to transmit the DL scheduling command. 
     
     
       9. The apparatus of  claim 6 , wherein the indicator comprises an index value pointing to the applicable slot offset value. 
     
     
       10. A method to be performed by a User Equipment (UE), comprising:
 receiving a radio resource control (RRC) message from a base station to configure a value set containing a plurality of slot offset values; 
 receiving a downlink (DL) scheduling command to schedule a DL data transmission from the base station; 
 receiving the DL data transmission from the base station; 
 identifying a scheduled slot for hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback corresponding to the DL data transmission based on a received slot of the DL data transmission and an applicable slot offset value indicating a number of slots by which the received slot precedes the scheduled slot; 
 identifying the applicable slot offset value from the value set based on an indicator comprised in the DL scheduling command; and 
 transmitting the HARQ feedback over a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) during the scheduled slot. 
 
     
     
       11. The method of  claim 10 , wherein the value set is configured before receiving the DL scheduling command. 
     
     
       12. The method of  claim 10 , wherein the value set is specific to the UE. 
     
     
       13. The method of  claim 10 , further comprising:
 identifying the value set from a plurality of value sets based on an identity of a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) resource used to receive the DL scheduling command. 
 
     
     
       14. The method of  claim 10 , wherein the indicator comprises an index value pointing to the applicable slot offset value.

Description:
RELATED CASE 
     This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 16/488,133 filed on Aug. 22, 2019, which is a National Phase entry application of International Patent Application No. PCT/US2018/023882 filed on Mar. 22, 2018, which claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application 62/475,054 filed Mar. 22, 2017, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     Embodiments herein generally relate to communications between devices in broadband wireless communications networks. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Mobile communication has evolved significantly from early voice systems to today&#39;s highly sophisticated integrated communication platform. The next generation wireless communication system, 5G, or new radio (NR) will provide access to information and sharing of data anywhere, anytime by various users and applications. NR is expected to be a unified network/system that target to meet vastly different and sometime conflicting performance dimensions and services. Such diverse multi-dimensional requirements are driven by different services and applications. In general, NR will evolve based on 3GPP LTE-Advanced with additional potential new Radio Access Technologies (RATs) to enrich people lives with better, simple and seamless wireless connectivity solutions. NR will enable everything connected by wireless and deliver fast, rich contents and services. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG.  1    illustrates an embodiment of a first operating environment. 
         FIG.  2 A  illustrates an embodiment of a first slot structure. 
         FIG.  2 B  illustrates an embodiment of a second slot structure. 
         FIG.  3    illustrates an embodiment of a second operating environment. 
         FIG.  4    illustrates an embodiment of a first timing diagram, an embodiment of a second timing diagram, and an embodiment of a third timing diagram. 
         FIG.  5    illustrates an embodiment of a third operating environment. 
         FIG.  6    illustrates an embodiment of a fourth operating environment. 
         FIG.  7    illustrates an embodiment of a communications flow. 
         FIG.  8    illustrates an embodiment of a fifth operating environment and an embodiment of a sixth operating environment. 
         FIG.  9    illustrates an embodiment of a seventh operating environment, an embodiment of an eight operating environment, and an embodiment of a ninth operating environment. 
         FIG.  10    illustrates an embodiment of a tenth operating environment, an embodiment of an eleventh operating environment, and an embodiment of a twelfth operating environment. 
         FIG.  11    illustrates an embodiment of a thirteenth operating environment, an embodiment of a fourteenth operating environment, and an embodiment of a fifteenth operating environment. 
         FIG.  12    illustrates an embodiment of a sixteenth operating environment, an embodiment of a seventeenth operating environment, and an embodiment of a eighteenth operating environment. 
         FIG.  13    illustrates an embodiment of a nineteenth operating environment, an embodiment of a twentieth operating environment, and an embodiment of a twenty-first operating environment. 
         FIG.  14    illustrates an embodiment of a twenty-second operating environment. 
         FIG.  15    illustrates an embodiment of a first logic flow. 
         FIG.  16 A  illustrates an embodiment of a second logic flow. 
         FIG.  16 B  illustrates an embodiment of a third logic flow. 
         FIG.  17    illustrates an embodiment of a fourth logic flow. 
         FIG.  18    illustrates an embodiment of a storage medium. 
         FIG.  19    illustrates an embodiment of a system architecture. 
         FIG.  20    illustrates an embodiment of a device. 
         FIG.  21    illustrates an embodiment of baseband circuitry. 
         FIG.  22    illustrates an embodiment of a control plane protocol stack. 
         FIG.  23    illustrates an embodiment of a set of hardware resources. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Timing determination techniques for 5G radio access network cells are described. According to various such techniques, during a random access procedure in a 5G cell, user equipment (UE) may determine slot offset values applicable to various transmissions associated with the random access procedure using procedures that do not rely on UE-specific radio resource control (RRC) signaling. According to some such techniques, during system information acquisition in a 5G cell, a UE may determine applicable slot offset values for one or more system information block (SIB) transmissions using procedures that do not rely on UE-specific radio resource control (RRC) signaling. Other embodiments are described and claimed. 
     Various embodiments may comprise one or more elements. An element may comprise any structure arranged to perform certain operations. Each element may be implemented as hardware, software, or any combination thereof, as desired for a given set of design parameters or performance constraints. Although an embodiment may be described with a limited number of elements in a certain topology by way of example, the embodiment may include more or less elements in alternate topologies as desired for a given implementation. It is worthy to note that any reference to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment. The appearances of the phrases “in one embodiment,” “in some embodiments,” and “in various embodiments” in various places in the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. 
     The techniques disclosed herein may involve transmission of data over one or more wireless connections using one or more wireless mobile broadband technologies. For example, various embodiments may involve transmissions over one or more wireless connections according to one or more 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE), 3GPP LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), 3GPP LTE-Advanced Pro, and/or 3GPP fifth generation (5G)/new radio (NR) technologies and/or standards, including their revisions, progeny and variants. Various embodiments may additionally or alternatively involve transmissions according to one or more Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM)/Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS)/High Speed Packet Access (HSPA), and/or GSM with General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) system (GSM/GPRS) technologies and/or standards, including their revisions, progeny and variants. 
     Examples of wireless mobile broadband technologies and/or standards may also include, without limitation, any of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.16 wireless broadband standards such as IEEE 802.16m and/or 802.16p, International Mobile Telecommunications Advanced (IMT-ADV), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) and/or WiMAX II, Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) 2000 (e.g., CDMA2000 1×RTT, CDMA2000 EV-DO, CDMA EV-DV, and so forth), High Performance Radio Metropolitan Area Network (HIPERMAN), Wireless Broadband (WiBro), High Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA), High Speed Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiplexing (OFDM) Packet Access (HSOPA), High-Speed Uplink Packet Access (HSUPA) technologies and/or standards, including their revisions, progeny and variants. 
     Some embodiments may additionally or alternatively involve wireless communications according to other wireless communications technologies and/or standards. Examples of other wireless communications technologies and/or standards that may be used in various embodiments may include, without limitation, other IEEE wireless communication standards such as the IEEE 802.11, IEEE 802.11a, IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g, IEEE 802.11n, IEEE 802.11u, IEEE 802.11ac, IEEE 802.11ad, IEEE 802.11af, IEEE 802.11ah, IEEE 802.11ax, IEEE 802.11ay, and/or IEEE 802.11y standards, High-Efficiency Wi-Fi standards developed by the IEEE 802.11 High Efficiency WLAN (HEW) Study Group, Wi-Fi Alliance (WFA) wireless communication standards such as Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi Direct, Wi-Fi Direct Services, Wireless Gigabit (WiGig), WiGig Display Extension (WDE), WiGig Bus Extension (WBE), WiGig Serial Extension (WSE) standards and/or standards developed by the WFA Neighbor Awareness Networking (NAN) Task Group, machine-type communications (MTC) standards, and/or near-field communication (NFC) standards such as standards developed by the NFC Forum, including any revisions, progeny, and/or variants of any of the above. The embodiments are not limited to these examples. 
       FIG.  1    illustrates an example of an operating environment  100  that may be representative of various embodiments. In operating environment  100 , a next generation node B (gNB)  102  serves a next generation radio access network (NG-RAN) cell  103 . NG-RAN cell  103  may generally be representative of a radio access network cell within which wireless communications are performed in accordance with 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) fifth generation (5G) new radio (NR) radio interface protocols. User equipment (UE)  104  located within NG-RAN cell  103  may wirelessly communicate with gNB  102  according to such protocols in conjunction with establishing and utilizing wireless data connectivity via gNB  102 . 
     In various embodiments, gNB  102  and UE  104  may be capable of utilizing one or more self-contained time-division duplex (TDD) slot structures in conjunction with wirelessly communicating in NG-RAN cell  103 . Each such self-contained TDD slot structure may generally comprise a structure according to which both DL and UL sub-intervals are present within the same slot. In various embodiments, gNB  102  and UE  104  may be capable of utilizing at least one self-contained TDD slot structure in conjunction with downlink (DL) communications. In various embodiments. gNB  102  and UE  104  may additionally or alternatively be capable of utilizing at least one self-contained TDD slot structure in conjunction with uplink (UL) communications. It is worthy of note that NG-RAN cell  103  need not necessarily be a TDD cell in order to implement one or more self-contained TDD slot structures. While NG-RAN cell  103  may be a TDD cell in some embodiments, in other embodiments it may be an FDD cell, or a cell that implements another duplexing scheme other than TDD. The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
       FIG.  2 A  illustrates a DL data slot structure  250  that may be representative of the implementation of a self-contained TDD slot structure for low-latency DL data communications according to various embodiments. As shown in  FIG.  2 A , according to DL data slot structure  250 , a first sub-interval  252  of a slot  251  is designated as a time interval during which DL control communications may be performed, such as communications over an NR physical downlink control channel (PDCCH). Sub-interval  252  is followed by sub-interval  254 , which is designated as a time interval during which DL data communications may be performed, such as communications over an NR physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH). Sub-interval  254  is followed by sub-interval  256 , which is designated as a guard period (GP). Sub-interval  256  is followed by sub-interval  258 , which is designated as a time interval during which UL control communications may be performed, such as communications over an NR physical uplink control channel (PUCCH). The embodiments are not limited to this example. 
       FIG.  2 B  illustrates a UL data slot structure  260  that may be representative of the implementation of a self-contained TDD slot structure for low-latency UL data communications according to various embodiments. As shown in  FIG.  2 B , according to UL data slot structure  260 , a first sub-interval  262  of a slot  261  is designated as a time interval during which DL control communications may be performed, such as communications over an NR PDCCH. Sub-interval  262  is followed by sub-interval  264 , which is designated as a guard period. Sub-interval  264  is followed by sub-interval  266 , which is designated as a time interval during which UL data communications may be performed, such as communications over an NR physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH). Sub-interval  266  is followed by sub-interval  268 , which is designated as a time interval during which UL control communications may be performed, such as communications over an NR PUCCH. The embodiments are not limited to this example. 
     In operating environment  100 , the use of DL data slot structure  250  may enable DL communications with reduced associated latencies. For example, the use of DL data slot structure  250  may make it possible for gNB  102  and UE  104  to complete an exchange of a DL scheduling command, a corresponding DL data transmission, and hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for the DL data transmission within a same slot. Likewise, the use of UL data slot structure  260  may enable UL communications with reduced associated latencies. For example, the use of UL data slot structure  260  may make it possible for gNB  102  and UE  104  to complete an exchange of a UL scheduling grant and a corresponding UL data transmission within a same slot. 
       FIG.  3    illustrates an example of an operating environment  300  that may be representative of various embodiments. In operating environment  300 , in conjunction with exchanging DL and UL communications with each other, gNB  102  and UE  104  may utilize DL data slot structure  250  and UL data slot structure  260 , respectively. As shown in  FIG.  3   , gNB  102  may transmit a DL scheduling command  306  to UE  104  in order to schedule a subsequent transmission of DL data  308  to UE  104 . UE  104  may provide HARQ feedback for DL data  308  by transmitting HARQ feedback  310  to gNB  102 . In some cases, it may be desirable for gNB  102  to perform same-slot scheduling of the transmission of DL data  308  in order to minimize latency associated with transmission of DL data  308 . In the context of DL data slot structure  250 , such same-slot scheduling may involve transmission of DL scheduling command  306  during sub-interval  252  of slot  251  in order to schedule transmission of DL data  308  during sub-interval  254  of that same slot  251 . In other cases, it may be preferable that gNB  102  instead perform cross-slot scheduling of the transmission of DL data  308 . Such cross-slot scheduling may involve transmission of DL scheduling command  306  during a given slot to schedule DL data  308  for transmission during a subsequent slot. Similarly, in some cases, it may be desirable that UE  104  transmit HARQ  310  with minimal latency—possibly even during the same slot as the transmission of DL data  308 —while in other cases, it may be desirable that transmission of HARQ  310  follow transmission of DL data  308  by one or more slots. 
     As shown in  FIG.  3   , gNB  102  may transmit a UL scheduling grant  312  to UE  104  in order to grant UL channel resources to UE  104  for use in conjunction with a subsequent UL data transmission. In the context of operating environment  300 , that UL data transmission may involve transmission of UL data  314  by UE  104 . In some cases, in order to minimize latency associated with the UL data transmission, it may be desirable that UL scheduling grant  312  constitute a same-slot grant. In the context of UL data slot structure  260 , if UL scheduling grant  312  constitutes a same-slot grant, then UL scheduling grant  312  may be transmitted during sub-interval  262  of slot  261  in order to grant UL channel resources for use in conjunction with UL data transmission during sub-interval  266  of that same slot  261 . In other cases, it may be preferable that UL scheduling grant  312  constitute a cross-slot grant, such that UL scheduling grant  312  is transmitted during a given slot in order to grant UL channel resources for use in conjunction with UL data transmission during a subsequent slot. 
     In various embodiments, in support of protocols providing flexibility regarding the scheduling of DL data transmissions in conjunction with the use of self-contained TDD slot structures, gNB  102  and UE  104  may be configured to recognize, understand, and apply a DL data timing offset parameter (hereinafter, “K D ”). In various embodiments, with respect to a given DL scheduling command, gNB  102  and UE  104  may be configured to understand the applicable value of K D  as an indication of a slot offset value representing a number of slots by which that DL scheduling command precedes the DL data transmission that it schedules. In the context of a given DL data transmission, same-slot scheduling may correspond to an applicable K D  value of 0, while cross-slot scheduling may correspond to an applicable K D  value greater than 0. 
     In various embodiments, in support of protocols providing flexibility regarding the scheduling of UL data transmissions in conjunction with the use of self-contained TDD slot structures, gNB  102  and UE  104  may be configured to recognize, understand, and apply a UL data timing offset parameter (hereinafter, “K U ”). In various embodiments, with respect to a given UL scheduling grant, gNB  102  and UE  104  may be configured to understand the applicable value of K U  as an indication of a slot offset value representing a number of slots by which that UL scheduling grant precedes the expected UL data transmission for which it grants UL channel resources. With respect to UL data transmission performed using UL channel resources allocated via a same-slot grant, the applicable value of K U  may be 0. With respect to UL data transmission performed using UL channel resources allocated via a cross-slot grant, the applicable value of K U  may be greater than 0. 
     In various embodiments, in support of protocols providing flexibility regarding HARQ feedback timing for DL data transmissions in conjunction with the use of self-contained TDD slot structures, gNB  102  and UE  104  may be configured to recognize, understand, and apply a HARQ feedback timing offset parameter (hereinafter, “K H ”). In various embodiments, with respect to a given DL data transmission, gNB  102  and UE  104  may be configured to understand the applicable value of K H  as an indication of a slot offset value representing a number of slots by which that DL data transmission precedes the transmission of the HARQ feedback for that DL data transmission. 
     In the context of a given DL data transmission and the HARQ feedback for that DL data transmission, a K H  value of 0 may indicate that the HARQ feedback is to be transmitted during the same slot as was the DL data, a K H  value of 1 may indicate that the HARQ feedback is to be transmitted during an immediately subsequent slot, and so forth. 
       FIG.  4    depicts timing diagrams  400 ,  450 , and  490  comprising visual illustrations of the meanings of DL data timing offset parameter K D , UL data timing offset parameter K U , and HARQ feedback timing offset parameter K H , respectively. As illustrated by the arrow in timing diagram  400 , if a DL data transmission over an NR PDSCH is scheduled via downlink control information (DCI) transmitted over an NR PDCCH during a slot n, then that DL data transmission is to be performed during a slot [n+K D ]. As illustrated by the arrow in timing diagram  450 , if a UL data transmission over an NR PUSCH is performed using resources granted via DCI transmitted over an NR PDCCH during a slot p, then that UL data transmission is to be performed during a slot [p+K U ]. As illustrated by the arrow in timing diagram  490 , with respect to a DL data transmission performed during a slot q, the associated HARQ feedback is to be transmitted during a slot [q+K H ]. The embodiments are not limited to these examples. 
     In order to receive DL data  308  in operating environment  300 , UE  104  needs to correctly identify the slot during which DL data  308  is to be transmitted on the NR PDSCH. In order to identify that slot, UE  104  may need to determine a value of K D  that applies with respect to the transmission of DL data  308 . In order to enable gNB  102  to receive HARQ feedback  310 , UE  104  needs to correctly identify the slot during which HARQ feedback  310  is to be transmitted on the NR PUCCH. In order to identify that slot, UE  104  may need to determine a value of K H  that applies with respect to the transmission of HARQ feedback  310 . In order to enable gNB  102  to receive UL data  314 , UE  104  needs to correctly identify the slot during which UL data  314  is to be transmitted on the NR PUSCH. In order to identify that slot, UE  104  may need to determine a value of K U  that applies with respect to the transmission of UL data  314 . 
       FIG.  5    illustrates an operating environment  500  that may be representative of various embodiments. In operating environment  500 , RRC connectivity may exist between UE  104  and gNB  102 . RRC connectivity with UE  104  may enable gNB  102  to use UE-specific RRC signaling to configure UE  104  with various types of UE-specific RRC parameters  516 . In various embodiments, gNB  102  may use UE-specific RRC signaling to configure UE  104  with UE-specific RRC parameters  516  that include value sets  518 A,  518 B, and  518 C. In various embodiments, value set  518 A may represent a UE-specific set of possible values of K D . In various embodiments, value set  518 B may represent a UE-specific set of possible values of K H . In various embodiments, value set  518 C may represent a UE-specific set of possible values of K U . 
     Subsequently, in order to notify UE  104  of the value of K D  that applies to transmission of DL data  308 , gNB  102  may include an indicator  520 A in the DL scheduling command  306  that it transmits in order to schedule transmission of DL data  308 . Indicator  520 A may comprise information, such as an index value, that points to a particular value within value set  518 A, and UE  104  may identify that particular value as the applicable value of K D  with respect to transmission of DL data  308 . In order to notify UE  104  of the value of K H  that applies to transmission of HARQ feedback  310 , gNB  102  may include an indicator  520 B in the DL scheduling command  306  that it transmits in order to schedule transmission of DL data  308 . Indicator  520 B may comprise information, such as an index value, that points to a particular value within value set  518 B, and UE  104  may identify that particular value as the applicable value of K H  with respect to transmission of HARQ feedback  310 . In order to notify UE  104  of the value of K U  that applies to transmission of UL data  314 , gNB  102  may include an indicator  520 C in the UL scheduling grant  312  that it transmits in order to grant UL channel resources to UE  104  for use in conjunction with UL data transmission. Indicator  520 C may comprise information, such as an index value, that points to a particular value within value set  518 C, and UE  104  may identify that particular value as the applicable value of K U  with respect to transmission of UL data  314 . 
     In the absence of an RRC connection between UE  104  and gNB  102 , it may not be possible for gNB  102  to configure UE  104  with UE-specific RRC parameters  516  such as value sets  518 A,  518 B, and  518 C. As such, the procedures that UE  104  uses in operating environment  500  in order to identify applicable K D , K H , and K U  values for the various aforementioned transmissions may not be usable for timing determinations associated with transmissions that occur prior to establishment of RRC connectivity between UE  104  and gNB  102 . Thus, if these procedures constitute the only procedures known to UE  104  for determining applicable K D , K H , and K U  values, UE  104  may be unable to complete the processes of system information acquisition and random access in NG-RAN cell  103 . 
     Disclosed herein are timing determination techniques for system information acquisition and random access in 5G RAN cells. According to such techniques, a UE such as UE  104  may generally be operative to determine applicable K D , K H , and K U  values using procedures that do not rely on UE-specific RRC signaling. In various embodiments, during system information acquisition in a 5G RAN cell such as NG-RAN cell  103 , the UE may determine applicable K D  values for one or more system information block (SIB) transmissions without reference to any UE-specific RRC parameters. In various embodiments, during a random access procedure in the 5G RAN cell, the UE may identify values of K D , K H , and K U  that apply to various transmissions without reference to any UE-specific RRC parameters. In various embodiments, the UE may conduct the system information acquisition and initiate the random access procedure in conjunction with an initial access process, such as it may perform upon being powered up within the 5G RAN cell. In various other embodiments, the UE may conduct the system information acquisition and initiate the random access procedure in conjunction with an RRC reconfiguration process, such as may be performed in conjunction with a handover of the UE to the 5G RAN cell from another cell. The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
       FIG.  6    illustrates an example of an operating environment  600  that may be representative of the implementation of one or more of the disclosed timing determination techniques according to various embodiments. In operating environment  600 , a UE  604  may enter an NG-RAN cell  603  served by a gNB  602 . In various embodiments, in order to obtain system information that it requires for proper operation within NG-RAN cell  603 , UE  604  may initiate a system information acquisition process. In various embodiments, in conjunction with the system information acquisition process, UE  604  may acquire an NR master information block (MIB)  622  for NG-RAN cell  603 . In various embodiments, gNB  602  may broadcast the NR MIB  622  over an NR physical broadcast channel (PBCH) of NG-RAN cell  603 . In various embodiments, NR MIB  622  may comprise information that, once known to UE  604 , enables UE  604  to begin accessing an NR PDCCH of NG-RAN cell  603 . In various embodiments, once it is able to access the NR PDCCH, UE  604  may begin monitoring the NR PDCCH for DCI comprising a format associated with the scheduling of system information block (SIB) transmissions. 
     In various embodiments, by monitoring the NR PDCCH, UE  604  may detect a DL scheduling command  606  that gNB  602  transmits during a slot S 606 . In various embodiments, DL scheduling command  606  may comprise downlink control information that gNB  602  transmits over the NR PDCCH to schedule transmission of DL data  608  comprising an NR SIB  624 . In various embodiments, gNB  602  may transmit DL data  608  over an NR PDSCH of NG-RAN cell  603 . In various embodiments, gNB  602  may transmit DL data  608  over an NR PDSCH during a slot S 608 , which may or may not be a different slot than slot S 606 . In various embodiments, in order to acquire NR SIB  624 , UE  604  may need to identify the slot S 608  during which to access the NR PDSCH and obtain the DL data  608  comprising NR SIB  624 . In various embodiments, UE  604  may identify an offset value  626  that constitutes an applicable value of K D  with respect to the transmission of DL data  608 , and may identify slot S 608  based on the identity of slot S 606  and on the identified offset value  626 . 
     In various embodiments, offset value  626  may correspond to a value indicated in NR MIB  622 . In various embodiments, offset value  626  may correspond to a value indicated in an NR SIB acquired prior to receipt of the DL scheduling command  606  associated with NR SIB  624 . In various embodiments, DL scheduling command  606  may comprise a direct indication of offset value  626 . In various embodiments, UE  604  may be configured to regard a particular fixed value as constituting the applicable K D  value with respect to DL data transmissions that carry NR SIBs, and offset value  626  may correspond to that fixed value. In various embodiments, for example, UE  604  may be configured to regard the applicable K D  value to be fixed at 0 with respect to DL data transmissions that carry NR SIBs, and offset value  626  may thus be equal to 0. The embodiments are not limited to this example. 
       FIG.  7    illustrates an example of a communications flow  700  that may be representative of communications between gNB  602  and UE  604  according to various embodiments. More particularly, communications flow  700  may be representative of communications associated with a random access procedure that UE  604  may initiate while located within NG-RAN cell  603  in operating environment  600  of  FIG.  6   . In various embodiments, UE  604  may initiate the random access procedure in conjunction with an initial access process. In an example embodiment, UE  604  may be powered up within NG-RAN cell  603 , perform cell acquisition, and then initiate the random access procedure. In various other embodiments, UE  604  may initiate the random access procedure in conjunction with an RRC reconfiguration process. In an example embodiment, UE  604  may initiate the random access procedure in conjunction with RRC reconfiguration associated with a handover of UE  604  to NG-RAN cell  603  from another cell. The embodiments are not limited to these examples. 
     According to communications flow  700 , UE  604  may transmit a random access preamble  728  in order to initiate the random access procedure. In response to receipt of random access preamble, gNB  602  may send a random access response  730  to UE  604 . As illustrated in  FIG.  7   , following receipt of random access response  730 , UE  604  may adjust its uplink timing and then send a radio resource control (RRC) message  732  to gNB  602 . In response to RRC message  732 , gNB  602  may send a contention resolution message  734  to UE  604 . 
       FIG.  8    illustrates an example of an operating environment  800  that may be representative of the implementation of one or more of the disclosed timing determination techniques according to various embodiments. In operating environment  800 , while located within the NG-RAN cell  603  (not pictured in  FIG.  8   ) served by gNB  602 , UE  604  may transmit random access preamble  728  in order to initiate a random access procedure. In various embodiments, as of the time of transmission of random access preamble  728 , UE  604  may have acquired the NR MIB  622  for NG-RAN cell  603  and one or more NR SIBs  824  for NG-RAN cell  603 . In various embodiments, UE  604  may transmit random access preamble  728  over an NR physical random access channel (PRACH) of NG-RAN cell  603 . In various embodiments, UE  604  may randomly select a PRACH resource and transmit random access preamble  728  via that randomly-selected PRACH resource. In various embodiments, UE  604  may generate random access preamble  728  based on a preamble sequence that it randomly selects. For example, according to various embodiments, when initiating the random access procedure in conjunction with an initial access process, UE  604  may randomly select a preamble sequence and generate random access preamble  728  based on that randomly-selected preamble sequence. In various other embodiments, UE  604  may generate random access preamble  728  based on a preamble sequence that gNB  602  has reserved for use by UE  604 . For example, according to various embodiments, UE  604  may generate random access preamble  728  based on a reserved preamble sequence when initiating the random access procedure in conjunction with an RRC configuration process. The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
     In various embodiments, in response to receipt of random access preamble  728 , gNB  602  may send random access response  730  to UE  604 . In various embodiments, gNB  602  may transmit a DL scheduling command  806  during a slot S 806  in order to schedule transmission, during a slot S 808 , of DL data  808  comprising random access response  730 , where slot S 808  may or may not be a different slot than slot S 806 . In various embodiments, UE  604  may identify an offset value  826  that constitutes an applicable value of K D  with respect to the transmission of DL data  808 , and may identify slot S 808  based on the identity of slot S 806  and on the identified offset value  826 . 
     In various embodiments, offset value  826  may correspond to a value indicated in NR MIB  622  or a value indicated in an NR SIB  824 . In various embodiments, DL scheduling command  806  may comprise a direct indication of offset value  826 . In various embodiments, UE  604  may be configured to regard a particular fixed value as constituting the applicable K D  value with respect to DL data transmissions that carry random access responses, and offset value  826  may correspond to that fixed value. In various embodiments, for example, UE  604  may be configured to regard the applicable K D  value to be fixed at 0 with respect to DL data transmissions that carry random access responses, and offset value  826  may thus be equal to 0. The embodiments are not limited to this example. 
     In various embodiments, gNB  602  may define one or more PRACH resource sets, any given one of which may generally comprise a subset of the collective set of PRACH resources in NG-RAN cell  603 . In various embodiments, different PRACH resource sets may be multiplexed using one or more of time-division multiplexing (TDM), frequency-division multiplexing (FDM), and code-division multiplexing (CDM). In various embodiments, UE  604  may be configured with knowledge of the defined PRACH resource sets via information comprised in NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  824 . In various embodiments, based on such information, UE  604  may determine that the randomly-selected PRACH resource used to transmit random access preamble  728  is comprised in a PRACH resource set  829 . In various embodiments, NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  824  may comprise information designating a particular value as constituting the applicable K D  value with respect to DL data transmissions that carry random access responses sent in reply to random access preamble transmission via PRACH resources comprised in PRACH resource set  829 , and offset value  826  may correspond to that particular value. The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
       FIG.  8    additionally illustrates an example of an operating environment  800 A. In operating environment  800 A, UE  604  may identify a value set  818  comprising two or more possible K D  values, and identify one such value as constituting offset value  826  based on an indicator  820  comprised in DL scheduling command  806 . In various embodiments, value set  818  may comprise a predefined set of possible K D  values. In other embodiments, NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  824  may comprise information specifying the values comprised in value set  818 . In some embodiments, rather than enumerating each individual value comprised in value set  818 , NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  824  may simply indicate a largest value comprised in value set  818 . In such embodiments, UE  604  may apply predefined rules to identify the other values comprised in value set  818  as a function of that largest value. In various embodiments, value set  818  may comprise one of multiple defined sets of possible K D  values, where each of the multiple defined sets corresponds, respectively, to one or more defined PRACH resource sets. In such embodiments, UE  604  may be configured with knowledge of the correspondences between PRACH resource sets and their respective value sets via information comprised in NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  824 , and may identify value set  818  based on the identity of PRACH resource set  829 . The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
       FIG.  9    illustrates an example of an operating environment  900  that may be representative of the implementation of one or more of the disclosed timing determination techniques according to various embodiments. In operating environment  900 , in response to receipt of random access response  730 , UE  604  may send RRC message  732  to gNB  602 . In various embodiments, as of the time at which it receives random access response  730 , UE  604  may have acquired the NR MIB  622  for NG-RAN cell  603  (not pictured in  FIG.  9   ) and one or more NR SIBs  924  for NG-RAN cell  603 . In various embodiments, NR SIB(s)  924  may constitute the same NR SIB(s) as NR SIB(s)  824  of  FIG.  8   . In various other embodiments, NR SIB(s)  924  may include one or more additional NR SIBs acquired after transmission of random access preamble  728  (not pictured in  FIG.  9   ). In various embodiments, RRC message  732  may comprise an RRC Connection Request message. For example, RRC message  732  may comprise an RRC Connection Request message in various embodiments in which UE  604  initiates the random access procedure in conjunction with an initial access process. In various other embodiments, RRC message  732  may comprise an RRC Connection Reconfiguration Complete message. For example, RRC message  732  may comprise an RRC Connection Reconfiguration Complete message in various embodiments in which UE  604  initiates the random access procedure in conjunction with an RRC reconfiguration process. 
     In various embodiments, UE  604  may receive DL data  808  during slot S 808  and extract random access response  730  from DL data  708 . In various embodiments, UE  604  may set the value of its UL timing advance based on information, such as a timing advance command, comprised in random access response  730 . In various embodiments, random access response  730  may comprise UL grant information  912 . In various embodiments, UL grant information  912  may comprise information specifying UL channel resources that are granted to UE  604  for use in conjunction with UL data transmission during a slot S 914 , which may or may not be a different slot than slot S 808 . In various embodiments, using the UL channel resources specified by UL grant information  912 , UE  604  may transmit UL data  914  comprising RRC message  732  during slot S 914 . In various embodiments, UE  604  may identify an offset value  926  that constitutes an applicable value of K U  with respect to the transmission of UL data  914 , and may identify slot S 914  based on the identity of slot S 808  and on the identified offset value  926 . 
     In various embodiments, offset value  926  may correspond to a value indicated in NR MIB  622 , or a value indicated in an NR SIB  924 . In some embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, such a value may be specific to one or more PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies offset value  926  based on the identity of the PRACH resource set  829  comprising the randomly-selected PRACH resource used for transmission of random access preamble  728 . In other embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, such a value may apply to all PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies offset value  926  without reference to the identity of PRACH resource set  829 . In various embodiments, UE  604  may be configured to regard a particular fixed value as constituting the applicable K U  value with respect to transmission of UL data comprising an initial transmission of RRC message  732  during a random access procedure, and offset value  926  may correspond to that fixed value. The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
       FIG.  9    additionally illustrates an example of an operating environment  900 A. In operating environment  900 A, UE  604  may identify a value set  918  comprising two or more possible K U  values, and may identify one such value as constituting offset value  926  based on an indicator  920  comprised in random access response  730 . In various embodiments, value set  918  may comprise a predefined set of possible K U  values. In other embodiments, NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  924  may comprise information specifying the values comprised in value set  918 . In some embodiments, rather than enumerating each individual value comprised in value set  918 , NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  924  may simply indicate a largest value comprised in value set  918 . In such embodiments, UE  604  may apply predefined rules to identify the other values comprised in value set  918  as a function of that largest value. In a non-limiting example, an NR SIB  924  may comprise information indicating that the largest value comprised in value set  918  is 8, and based on that information and on predefined rules, UE  604  may determine that value set  918  consists of the values 1, 2, 4, and 8. In some embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, value set  918  may be specific to one or more particular PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies value set  918  based on the identity of the PRACH resource set  829  comprising the randomly-selected PRACH resource used for transmission of random access preamble  728 . In other embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, value set  918  may apply to all PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies value set  918  without reference to the identity of PRACH resource set  829 . The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
       FIG.  9    further illustrates an example of an operating environment  900 B. In operating environment  900 B, UE  604  may identify offset value  926  based on a value  931  comprised in random access response  730 . In various embodiments, value  931  may itself constitute the applicable K U  value with respect to transmission of UL data  914 , such that offset value  926  is equal to value  931 . In various other embodiments, value  931  may be representative of a delay value that is to be added to a base value in order to calculate offset value  926 . For example, in various embodiments, UE  604  may be configured to determine offset value  926  by adding value  931  to a predefined base value. In another example, in various embodiments, UE  604  may be configured to determine offset value  926  by adding value  931  to a base value indicated in NR MIB  622  or in an NR SIB  924 . In various embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, such a base value may be specific to one or more particular PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies that base value based on the identity of the PRACH resource set  829  comprising the randomly-selected PRACH resource used for transmission of random access preamble  728 . In other embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, such a base value may apply to all PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies that base value without reference to the identity of PRACH resource set  829 . The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
     It is worthy of note that in various embodiments, rather than representing possible values of K U , the values in value set  918  in operating environment  900 A may represent possible delay values. In some such embodiments, based on indicator  920 , UE  604  may identify a particular value in value set  918  as a delay value that is to be added to a base value in order to calculate offset value  926 . As in operating environment  900 B, such a base value may be predefined, or may be indicated in NR MIB  622  or in an NR SIB  924 . Likewise, if PRACH resource sets are defined, such a base value may be specific to one or more particular PRACH resource sets, or may apply to all PRACH resource sets. The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
       FIG.  10    illustrates an example of an operating environment  1000  that may be representative of the implementation of one or more of the disclosed timing determination techniques according to various embodiments. In operating environment  1000 , having failed to successfully receive UL data  914  of  FIG.  9    and extract RRC message  732  from therein, gNB  602  may prompt UE  604  to resend RRC message  732 . In various embodiments, in order to prompt UE  604  to resend RRC message  732 , gNB  602  may transmit a UL scheduling grant  1012  to UE  604 . In various embodiments, as of the time at which it receives UL scheduling grant  1012 , UE  604  may have acquired the NR MIB  622  for NG-RAN cell  603  (not pictured in  FIG.  10   ) and one or more NR SIBs  1024  for NG-RAN cell  603 . In various embodiments, NR SIB(s)  1024  may constitute the same NR SIB(s) as NR SIB(s)  824  of  FIG.  8   . In various other embodiments, NR SIB(s)  1024  may include one or more additional NR SIBs acquired after transmission of random access preamble  728  (not pictured in  FIG.  10   ). In various embodiments, gNB  602  may transmit UL scheduling grant  1012  during a slot S 1012  in order to grant UL channel resources to UE  604  for use in conjunction with UL data transmission during a slot S 1014 , which may or may not be the same as slot S 1012 . In various embodiments, using the UL channel resources granted via UL scheduling grant  1012 , UE  604  may transmit UL data  1014  comprising RRC message  732  during slot S 1014 . In various embodiments, UE  604  may identify an offset value  1026  that constitutes an applicable value of K U  with respect to the transmission of UL data  1014 , and may identify slot S 1014  based on the identity of slot S 1012  and on the identified offset value  1026 . 
     In various embodiments, offset value  1026  may correspond to a value indicated in NR MIB  622  or a value indicated in an NR SIB  1024 . In some embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, such a value may be specific to one or more PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies offset value  1026  based on the identity of the PRACH resource set  829  comprising the randomly-selected PRACH resource used for transmission of random access preamble  728 . In other embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, such a value may apply to all PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies offset value  1026  without reference to the identity of PRACH resource set  829 . In various embodiments, UE  604  may be configured to regard a particular fixed value as constituting the applicable K U  value with respect to transmission of UL data comprising a retransmission of RRC message  732  during a random access procedure, and offset value  1026  may correspond to that fixed value. In some embodiments, for example, UE  604  may be configured to regard the applicable K U  value to be fixed at 4 with respect to transmission of UL data comprising a retransmission of RRC message  732  during a random access procedure, and offset value  1026  may thus be equal to 4. In various embodiments, in conjunction with network configuration, such a fixed value may be chosen based on a designated maximum allowable number of HARQ processes. For instance, in some embodiments, such a fixed value may be equal to half the designated maximum allowable number of HARQ processes. In an example embodiment, the designated maximum allowable number of HARQ processes may be equal to 8, and UE  604  may be configured to regard the applicable K U  value to be fixed at 4 with respect to transmission of UL data comprising a retransmission of RRC message  732  during a random access procedure. The embodiments are not limited to this example. 
     In various embodiments, offset value  1026  may correspond to a value—such as may be predefined, or may be indicated in NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  1024 —that is specific to the context of retransmission of RRC message  732 . In various other embodiments, offset value  1026  may correspond to a value that applies both in the context of initial transmission of RRC message  732  and in the context of retransmission of RRC message  732 . In various such embodiments, offset value  926  of  FIG.  9    may correspond to that same value, and thus offset value  1026  may be the same as offset value  926 . The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
       FIG.  10    additionally illustrates an example of an operating environment  1000 A. In operating environment  1000 A, UE  604  may identify a value set  1018  comprising two or more possible K U  values, and may identify one such value as constituting offset value  1026  based on an indicator  1020  comprised in UL scheduling grant  1012 . In some embodiments, rather than being comprised in UL scheduling grant  1012 , indicator  1020  may be comprised in random access response  730 . In various embodiments, value set  1018  may comprise a predefined set of possible K U  values. In other embodiments, NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  1024  may comprise information specifying the values comprised in value set  1018 . In some embodiments, rather than enumerating each individual value comprised in value set  1018 , NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  1024  may simply indicate a largest value comprised in value set  1018 . In such embodiments, UE  604  may apply predefined rules to identify the other values comprised in value set  1018  as a function of that largest value. In an example, an NR SIB  1024  may comprise information indicating that the largest value comprised in value set  1018  is 8, and based on that information and on predefined rules, UE  604  may determine that value set  1018  consists of the values 1, 2, 4, and 8. The embodiments are not limited to this example. 
     In various embodiments, value set  1018  may represent a value set that is specific to the context of retransmission of RRC message  732 , while value set  918  of  FIG.  9    may represent another value set that is specific to the context of initial transmission of RRC message  732 . In various other embodiments, value sets  918  and  1018  may both represent a same value set that is used both in conjunction with initial transmissions of RRC message  732  and in conjunction with retransmissions of RRC message  732 . In some embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, value set  1018  may be specific to one or more particular PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies value set  1018  based on the identity of the PRACH resource set  829  comprising the randomly-selected PRACH resource used for transmission of random access preamble  728 . In other embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, value set  1018  may apply to all PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies value set  1018  without reference to the identity of PRACH resource set  829 . The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
       FIG.  10    further illustrates an example of an operating environment  1000 B. In operating environment  1000 B, UE  604  may identify offset value  1026  based on a value  1031  comprised in UL scheduling grant  1012 . In various embodiments, value  1031  may itself constitute the applicable K U  value with respect to transmission of UL data  1014 , such that offset value  1026  is equal to value  1031 . In various other embodiments, value  1031  may be representative of a delay value that is to be added to a base value in order to calculate offset value  1026 . For example, in various embodiments, UE  604  may be configured to determine offset value  1026  by adding value  1031  to a predefined base value. In another example, in various embodiments, UE  604  may be configured to determine offset value  1026  by adding value  1031  to a base value indicated in NR MIB  622  or in an NR SIB  1024 . In various embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, such a base value may be specific to one or more particular PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies that base value based on the identity of the PRACH resource set  829  comprising the randomly-selected PRACH resource used for transmission of random access preamble  728 . In other embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, such a base value may apply to all PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies that base value without reference to the identity of PRACH resource set  829 . The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
     It is worthy of note that in various embodiments, rather than representing possible values of K U , the values in value set  1018  in operating environment  1000 A may represent possible delay values. In some such embodiments, based on indicator  1020 , UE  604  may identify a particular value in value set  1018  as a delay value that is to be added to a base value in order to calculate offset value  1026 . As in operating environment  1000 B, such a base value may be predefined, or may be indicated in NR MIB  622  or in an NR SIB  1024 . Likewise, if PRACH resource sets are defined, such a base value may be specific to one or more particular PRACH resource sets, or instead may apply to all PRACH resource sets. According to various embodiments, offset value  1026  may be determined in operating environment  1000 A or  1000 B using a base value—such as may be predefined, or may be indicated in NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  1024 —that is specific to the context of retransmission of RRC message  732 . According to various other embodiments, offset value  1026  may be determined in operating environment  1000 A or  1000 B using a base value that applies both in the context of initial transmission of RRC message  732  and in the context of retransmission of RRC message  732 . In various such embodiments, a base value used to determine offset value  926  in operating environment  900 A or  900 B of  FIG.  9    may also be used to determine offset value  1026  in operating environment  1000 A or  1000 B. The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
     In various embodiments, UE  604  may be configured to determine offset value  1026  as a function of the offset value  926  that characterizes the timing of transmission of UL data  914  of  FIG.  9   . In various embodiments, for instance, UE  604  may be configured to determine offset value  1026  by applying a relative timing offset to offset value  926 . In a non-limiting example, offset value  926  may indicate a K U  value of 6 slots with respect to transmission of UL data  914 , and based on an applicable relative timing offset of −2 slots, UE  604  may calculate offset value  1026  as being equal to 4 (indicating an K U  value of 4 slots with respect to transmission of UL data  1014 ). In various embodiments, the value of such a relative timing offset may be predefined. In various other embodiments, NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  1024  may comprise information indicating the value of such a relative timing offset. The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
       FIG.  11    illustrates an example of an operating environment  1100  that may be representative of the implementation of one or more of the disclosed timing determination techniques according to various embodiments. In operating environment  1100 , in response to receipt of RRC message  732  (not pictured in  FIG.  11   ), gNB  602  may send contention resolution message  734  to UE  604 . In various embodiments, contention resolution message  734  may comprise a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE). In various embodiments, for example, contention resolution message  734  may comprise a UE Contention Resolution Identity MAC CE. In various embodiments, in order to schedule transmission of DL data comprising contention resolution message  734 , gNB  602  may transmit a DL scheduling command  1106  to UE  604 . In various embodiments, as of the time at which it receives DL scheduling command  1106 , UE  604  may have acquired the NR MIB  622  for NG-RAN cell  603  (not pictured in  FIG.  11   ) and one or more NR SIBs  1124  for NG-RAN cell  603 . In various embodiments, NR SIB(s)  1124  may constitute the same NR SIB(s) as NR SIB(s)  824  of  FIG.  8   . In various other embodiments, NR SIB(s)  1124  may include one or more additional NR SIBs acquired after transmission of random access preamble  728  (not pictured in  FIG.  11   ). In various embodiments, gNB  602  may transmit DL scheduling command  1106  during a slot S 1106  in order to schedule transmission, during a slot S 1108 , of DL data  1108  comprising contention resolution message  734 , where slot S 1108  may or may not be a different slot than slot S 1106 . In various embodiments, UE  604  may identify an offset value  1126  that constitutes an applicable value of K D  with respect to the transmission of DL data  1108 , and may identify slot S 1108  based on the identity of slot S 1106  and on the identified offset value  1126 . 
     In various embodiments, offset value  1126  may correspond to a value indicated in NR MIB  622  or a value indicated in an NR SIB  1124 . In various embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, such a value may be specific to one or more PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies offset value  1126  based on the identity of the PRACH resource set  829  comprising the randomly-selected PRACH resource used for transmission of random access preamble  728 . In other embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, such a value may apply to all PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies offset value  1126  without reference to the identity of PRACH resource set  829 . In various embodiments, UE  604  may be configured to regard a particular fixed value as constituting the applicable K D  value with respect to transmission of DL data comprising an initial transmission of contention resolution message  734  during a random access procedure, and offset value  1126  may correspond to that fixed value. In various embodiments, for example, UE  604  may be configured to regard the applicable K D  value to be fixed at 0 with respect to transmission of DL data comprising an initial transmission of contention resolution message  734 , and offset value  1126  may thus be equal to 0. The embodiments are not limited to this example. 
       FIG.  11    additionally illustrates an example of an operating environment  1100 A. In operating environment  1100 A, UE  604  may identify a value set  1118  comprising two or more possible K D  values, and may identify one such value as constituting offset value  1126  based on an indicator  1120  comprised in DL scheduling command  1106 . In various embodiments, value set  1118  may comprise a predefined set of possible K D  values. In other embodiments, NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  1124  may comprise information specifying the values comprised in value set  1118 . In some embodiments, rather than enumerating each individual value comprised in value set  1118 , NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  1124  may simply indicate a largest value comprised in value set  1118 . In such embodiments, UE  604  may apply predefined rules to identify the other values comprised in value set  1118  as a function of that largest value. In some embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, value set  1118  may be specific to one or more particular PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies value set  1118  based on the identity of the PRACH resource set  829  comprising the randomly-selected PRACH resource used for transmission of random access preamble  728 . In other embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, value set  1118  may apply to all PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies value set  1118  without reference to the identity of PRACH resource set  829 . The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
       FIG.  11    further illustrates an example of an operating environment  1100 B. In operating environment  1100 B, UE  604  may identify offset value  1126  based on a value  1131  comprised in DL scheduling command  1106 . In various embodiments, value  1131  may itself constitute the applicable K D  value with respect to transmission of DL data  1108 , such that offset value  1126  is equal to value  1131 . In various other embodiments, value  1131  may be representative of a delay value that is to be added to a base value in order to calculate offset value  1126 . For example, in various embodiments, UE  604  may be configured to determine offset value  1126  by adding value  1131  to a predefined base value. In another example, in various embodiments, UE  604  may be configured to determine offset value  1126  by adding value  1131  to a base value indicated in NR MIB  622  or in an NR SIB  1124 . In various embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, such a base value may be specific to one or more particular PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies that base value based on the identity of the PRACH resource set  829  comprising the randomly-selected PRACH resource used for transmission of random access preamble  728 . In other embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, such a base value may apply to all PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies that base value without reference to the identity of PRACH resource set  829 . The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
     It is worthy of note that in various embodiments, rather than representing possible values of K U , the values in value set  1118  in operating environment  1100 A may represent possible delay values. In some such embodiments, based on indicator  1120 , UE  604  may identify a particular value in value set  1118  as a delay value that is to be added to a base value in order to calculate offset value  1126 . As in operating environment  1100 B, such a base value may be predefined, or may be indicated in NR MIB  622  or in an NR SIB  1124 . Likewise, if PRACH resource sets are defined, such a base value may be specific to one or more particular PRACH resource sets, or instead may apply to all PRACH resource sets. The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
       FIG.  12    illustrates an example of an operating environment  1200  that may be representative of the implementation of one or more of the disclosed timing determination techniques according to various embodiments. In operating environment  1200 , based on a determination that a positive acknowledgment of receipt of contention resolution message  734  has not been received from UE  604 , gNB  602  may resend contention resolution message  734 . In various embodiments, in order to schedule a DL data transmission comprising a retransmission of contention resolution message  734 , gNB  602  may transmit a DL scheduling command  1206  to UE  604 . In various embodiments, as of the time at which it receives DL scheduling command  1206 , UE  604  may have acquired the NR MIB  622  for NG-RAN cell  603  (not pictured in  FIG.  12   ) and one or more NR SIBs  1224  for NG-RAN cell  603 . In various embodiments, NR SIB(s)  1224  may constitute the same NR SIB(s) as NR SIB(s)  824  of  FIG.  8   . In various other embodiments, NR SIB(s)  1224  may include one or more additional NR SIBs acquired after transmission of random access preamble  728  (not pictured in  FIG.  12   ). In various embodiments, gNB  602  may transmit DL scheduling command  1206  during a slot S 1206  in order to schedule transmission, during a slot S 1208 , of DL data  1208  comprising contention resolution message  734 , where slot S 1208  may or may not be a different slot than slot S 1206 . In various embodiments, UE  604  may identify an offset value  1226  that constitutes an applicable value of K D  with respect to the transmission of DL data  1208 , and may identify slot S 1208  based on the identity of slot S 1206  and on the identified offset value  1226 . 
     In various embodiments, offset value  1226  may correspond to a value indicated in NR MIB  622  or a value indicated in an NR SIB  1224 . In various embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, such a value may be specific to one or more PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies offset value  1226  based on the identity of the PRACH resource set  829  comprising the randomly-selected PRACH resource used for transmission of random access preamble  728 . In other embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, such a value may apply to all PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies offset value  1226  without reference to the identity of PRACH resource set  829 . In various embodiments, UE  604  may be configured to regard a particular fixed value as constituting the applicable K D  value with respect to transmission of DL data comprising a retransmission of contention resolution message  734  during a random access procedure, and offset value  1226  may correspond to that fixed value. In various embodiments, for example, UE  604  may be configured to regard the applicable K D  value to be fixed at 0 with respect to transmission of DL data comprising a retransmission of contention resolution message  734 , and offset value  1226  may thus be equal to 0. The embodiments are not limited to this example. 
     In various embodiments, offset value  1226  may correspond to a value— such as may be predefined, or may be indicated in NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  1224 —that is specific to the context of retransmission of contention resolution message  734 . In various other embodiments, offset value  1226  may correspond to a value that applies both in the context of initial transmission of contention resolution message  734  and in the context of retransmission of contention resolution message  734 . In various such embodiments, offset value  1126  of  FIG.  11    may correspond to that same value, and thus offset value  1226  may be the same as offset value  1126 . The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
       FIG.  12    additionally illustrates an example of an operating environment  1200 A. In operating environment  1200 A, UE  604  may identify a value set  1218  comprising two or more possible K D  values, and may identify one such value as constituting offset value  1226  based on an indicator  1220  comprised in DL scheduling command  1206 . In various embodiments, value set  1218  may comprise a predefined set of possible K D  values. In other embodiments, NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  1224  may comprise information specifying the values comprised in value set  1218 . In some embodiments, rather than enumerating each individual value comprised in value set  1218 , NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  1224  may simply indicate a largest value comprised in value set  1218 . In such embodiments, UE  604  may apply predefined rules to identify the other values comprised in value set  1218  as a function of that largest value. The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
     In various embodiments, value set  1218  may represent a value set that is specific to the context of retransmission of contention resolution message  734 , while value set  1118  of  FIG.  11    may represent another value set that is specific to the context of initial transmission of contention resolution message  734 . In various other embodiments, value sets  1118  and  1218  may both represent a same value set that is used both in conjunction with initial transmissions of contention resolution message  734  and in conjunction with retransmissions of contention resolution message  734 . In some embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, value set  1218  may be specific to one or more particular PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies value set  1218  based on the identity of the PRACH resource set  829  comprising the randomly-selected PRACH resource used for transmission of random access preamble  728 . In other embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, value set  1218  may apply to all PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies value set  1218  without reference to the identity of PRACH resource set  829 . The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
       FIG.  12    further illustrates an example of an operating environment  1200 B. In operating environment  1200 B, UE  604  may identify offset value  1226  based on a value  1231  comprised in DL scheduling command  1206 . In various embodiments, value  1231  may itself constitute the applicable K D  value with respect to transmission of DL data  1208 , such that offset value  1226  is equal to value  1231 . In various other embodiments, value  1231  may be representative of a delay value that is to be added to a base value in order to calculate offset value  1226 . For example, in various embodiments, UE  604  may be configured to determine offset value  1226  by adding value  1231  to a predefined base value. In another example, in various embodiments, UE  604  may be configured to determine offset value  1226  by adding value  1231  to a base value indicated in NR MIB  622  or in an NR SIB  1224 . In various embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, such a base value may be specific to one or more particular PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies that base value based on the identity of the PRACH resource set  829  comprising the randomly-selected PRACH resource used for transmission of random access preamble  728 . In other embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, such a base value may apply to all PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies that base value without reference to the identity of PRACH resource set  829 . The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
     It is worthy of note that in various embodiments, rather than representing possible values of K D , the values in value set  1218  in operating environment  1200 A may represent possible delay values. In some such embodiments, based on indicator  1220 , UE  604  may identify a particular value in value set  1218  as a delay value that is to be added to a base value in order to calculate offset value  1226 . As in operating environment  1200 B, such a base value may be predefined, or may be indicated in NR MIB  622  or in an NR SIB  1224 . Likewise, if PRACH resource sets are defined, such a base value may be specific to one or more particular PRACH resource sets, or instead may apply to all PRACH resource sets. According to various embodiments, offset value  1226  may be determined in operating environment  1200 A or  1200 B using a base value— such as may be predefined, or may be indicated in NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  1224 —that is specific to the context of retransmission of contention resolution message  734 . According to various other embodiments, offset value  1226  may be determined in operating environment  1200 A or  1200 B using a base value that applies both in the context of initial transmission of contention resolution message  734  and in the context of retransmission of contention resolution message  734 . In various such embodiments, a base value used to determine offset value  1126  in operating environment  1100 A or  1100 B of  FIG.  11    may also be used to determine offset value  1226  in operating environment  1200 A or  1200 B. The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
       FIG.  13    illustrates an example of an operating environment  1300  that may be representative of the implementation of one or more of the disclosed timing determination techniques according to various embodiments. In operating environment  1300 , gNB  602  may transmit a DL scheduling command  1306  in order to schedule transmission of DL data  1308  comprising contention resolution message  734 . In various embodiments, as of the time at which it receives DL scheduling command  1306 , UE  604  may have acquired the NR MIB  622  for NG-RAN cell  603  (not pictured in  FIG.  13   ) and one or more NR SIBs  1324  for NG-RAN cell  603 . In various embodiments, NR SIB(s)  1324  may constitute the same NR SIB(s) as NR SIB(s)  824  of  FIG.  8   . In various other embodiments, NR SIB(s)  1324  may include one or more additional NR SIBs acquired after transmission of random access preamble  728  (not pictured in  FIG.  12   ). In various embodiments, gNB  602  may transmit DL scheduling command  1306  during a slot S 1306  in order to schedule DL data  1308  for transmission during a slot S 1308 , which may or may not be a different slot than slot S 1306 . According to various embodiments, DL data  1308  may be representative of DL data  1108  of  FIG.  11   , in which case the transmission of DL data  1308  may correspond to an initial transmission of contention resolution message  734 , and slots S 1306  and S 1308  may correspond to slots S 1106  and S 1108 , respectively. According to various other embodiments, DL data  1308  may be representative of DL data  1208  of  FIG.  12   , in which case the transmission of DL data  1308  may correspond to a retransmission of contention resolution message  734 , and slots S 1306  and S 1308  may correspond to slots S 1206  and S 1208 , respectively. The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
     In order to acknowledge receipt of the contention resolution message  734  comprised in DL data  1308 —or to report non-receipt of that contention resolution message  734 —UE  604  may transmit HARQ feedback  1310  to gNB  602  during a slot S 1310 , which may or may not be a different slot than slot Silos. In various embodiments, UE  604  may identify an offset value  1326  that constitutes an applicable value of K H  with respect to the transmission of HARQ feedback  1310 , and may identify slot S 1310  based on the identity of slot S 1308  and on the identified offset value  1326 . 
     In various embodiments, offset value  1326  may correspond to a value indicated in NR MIB  622  or a value indicated in an NR SIB  1324 . In various embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, such a value may be specific to one or more PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies offset value  1326  based on the identity of the PRACH resource set  829  comprising the randomly-selected PRACH resource used for transmission of random access preamble  728 . In other embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, such a value may apply to all PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies offset value  1326  without reference to the identity of PRACH resource set  829 . In various embodiments, UE  604  may be configured to regard a particular fixed value as constituting the applicable K H  value with respect to transmission of HARQ feedback for contention resolution message  734 , and offset value  1326  may correspond to that fixed value. The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
     In various embodiments in which the transmission of DL data  1308  constitutes an initial transmission of contention resolution message  734 , offset value  1326  may correspond to a value—such as may be predefined, or may be indicated in NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  1324 —that is specific to the context of HARQ feedback for an initial transmission of contention resolution message  734 . In other embodiments in which the transmission of DL data  1308  constitutes an initial transmission of contention resolution message  734 , offset value  1326  may correspond to a value that also applies in the context of HARQ feedback for a retransmission of contention resolution message  734 . In various embodiments in which the transmission of DL data  1308  constitutes a retransmission of contention resolution message  734 , offset value  1326  may correspond to a value— such as may be predefined, or may be indicated in NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  1324 — that is specific to the context of HARQ feedback for a retransmission of contention resolution message  734 . In other embodiments in which the transmission of DL data  1308  constitutes a retransmission of contention resolution message  734 , offset value  1326  may correspond to a value that also applies in the context of HARQ feedback for an initial transmission of contention resolution message  734 . The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
       FIG.  13    additionally illustrates an example of an operating environment  1300 A. In operating environment  1300 A, UE  604  may identify a value set  1318  comprising two or more possible K H  values, and may identify one such value as constituting offset value  1326  based on an indicator  1320  comprised in DL scheduling command  1306 . In various embodiments, value set  1318  may comprise a predefined set of possible K H  values. In other embodiments, NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  1324  may comprise information specifying the values comprised in value set  1318 . In some embodiments, rather than enumerating each individual value comprised in value set  1318 , NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  1324  may simply indicate a largest value comprised in value set  1318 . In such embodiments, UE  604  may apply predefined rules to identify the other values comprised in value set  1318  as a function of that largest value. In some embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, value set  1318  may be specific to one or more particular PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies value set  1318  based on the identity of the PRACH resource set  829  comprising the randomly-selected PRACH resource used for transmission of random access preamble  728 . In other embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, value set  1318  may apply to all PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies value set  1318  without reference to the identity of PRACH resource set  829 . The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
     In various embodiments in which the transmission of DL data  1308  constitutes an initial transmission of contention resolution message  734 , value set  1318  may represent a value set that is specific to the context of HARQ feedback for an initial transmission of contention resolution message  734 . In other embodiments in which the transmission of DL data  1308  constitutes an initial transmission of contention resolution message  734 , value set  1318  may represent a value set that also applies in the context of HARQ feedback for a retransmission of contention resolution message  734 . 
     In various embodiments in which the transmission of DL data  1308  constitutes a retransmission of contention resolution message  734 , value set  1318  may represent a value set that is specific to the context of HARQ feedback for a retransmission of contention resolution message  734 . In other embodiments in which the transmission of DL data  1308  constitutes a retransmission of contention resolution message  734 , value set  1318  may represent a value set that also applies in the context of HARQ feedback for an initial transmission of contention resolution message  734 . The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
       FIG.  13    further illustrates an example of an operating environment  1300 B. In operating environment  1300 B, UE  604  may identify offset value  1326  based on a value  1331  comprised in DL scheduling command  1306 . In various embodiments, value  1331  may itself constitute the applicable K H  value with respect to transmission of HARQ feedback  1310 , such that offset value  1326  is equal to value  1331 . In various other embodiments, value  1331  may be representative of a delay value that is to be added to a base value in order to calculate offset value  1326 . For example, in various embodiments, UE  604  may be configured to determine offset value  1326  by adding value  1331  to a predefined base value. In another example, in various embodiments, UE  604  may be configured to determine offset value  1326  by adding value  1331  to a base value indicated in NR MIB  622  or in an NR SIB  1324 . In various embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, such a base value may be specific to one or more particular PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies that base value based on the identity of the PRACH resource set  829  comprising the randomly-selected PRACH resource used for transmission of random access preamble  728 . In other embodiments in which PRACH resource sets are defined, such a base value may apply to all PRACH resource sets, such that UE  604  identifies that base value without reference to the identity of PRACH resource set  829 . The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
     It is worthy of note that in various embodiments, rather than representing possible values of K H , the values in value set  1318  in operating environment  1300 A may represent possible delay values. In some such embodiments, based on indicator  1320 , UE  604  may identify a particular value in value set  1318  as a delay value that is to be added to a base value in order to calculate offset value  1326 . As in operating environment  1300 B, such a base value may be predefined, or may be indicated in NR MIB  622  or in an NR SIB  1324 . Likewise, if PRACH resource sets are defined, such a base value may be specific to one or more particular PRACH resource sets, or instead may apply to all PRACH resource sets. The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
     In various embodiments in which the transmission of DL data  1308  constitutes an initial transmission of contention resolution message  734 , offset value  1326  may be determined in operating environment  1300 A or  1300 B using a base value that is specific to the context of HARQ feedback for an initial transmission of contention resolution message  734 . In other embodiments in which the transmission of DL data  1308  constitutes an initial transmission of contention resolution message  734 , offset value  1326  may be determined in operating environment  1300 A or  1300 B using a base value that also applies in the context of HARQ feedback for a retransmission of contention resolution message  734 . In various embodiments in which the transmission of DL data  1308  constitutes a retransmission of contention resolution message  734 , offset value  1326  may be determined in operating environment  1300 A or  1300 B using a base value that is specific to the context of HARQ feedback for a retransmission of contention resolution message  734 . In other embodiments in which the transmission of DL data  1308  constitutes a retransmission of contention resolution message  734 , offset value  1326  may be determined in operating environment  1300 A or  1300 B using a base value that also applies in the context of HARQ feedback for an initial transmission of contention resolution message  734 . The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
     In the preceding discussion, with respect to each of  FIGS.  8 - 13   , it has been mentioned that in some embodiments, gNB  602  may define a plurality of PRACH resource sets, and that UE  604  may identify a value set associated with a particular PRACH resource set  829  comprising the PRACH resource used for transmission of random access preamble  728  and then identify a particular value within that value set as an applicable offset value. It is worthy of note that in some embodiments, an analogous relationship may be established between the value sets used for offset value determinations and the PDCCH resources used for DL scheduling command transmissions. 
     In some embodiments, for example, gNB  602  may define one or more PDCCH resource sets, and UE  604  may be configured with knowledge of the defined PDCCH resource sets via information comprised in an NR MIB or NR SIB for NG-RAN cell  603 . In some embodiments, based on the identity of a particular PDCCH resource set comprising the PDCCH resource(s) via which UE  604  receives DCI comprising a DL scheduling command, UE  604  may identify a particular value set to be used in conjunction with identifying a K D  value applicable to the DL data transmission being scheduled. In some embodiments, based on the identity of a particular PDCCH resource set comprising the PDCCH resource(s) via which UE  604  receives DCI comprising a DL scheduling command, UE  604  may identify a particular value set to be used in conjunction with identifying a K H  value applicable to transmission of HARQ feedback for a message comprised in the DL data transmission being scheduled. In some embodiments, based on the identity of a particular PDCCH resource set comprising the PDCCH resource(s) via which UE  604  receives DCI comprising a UL scheduling grant, UE  604  may identify a particular value set to be used in conjunction with identifying a K U  value applicable to the UL data transmission being scheduled. The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
       FIG.  14    illustrates an example of an operating environment  1400  that may be representative of the implementation of one or more of the disclosed timing determination techniques according to various embodiments. In operating environment  1400 , gNB  602  may initiate an RRC connection reconfiguration procedure in order to reconfigure an RRC connection of UE  604 . In various embodiments, prior to the time of initiation of the RRC connection reconfiguration procedure, UE  604  may be configured with UE-specific RRC parameters  1416  that include a value set  1418 A representing a UE-specific set of possible values of K D , a value set  1418 B representing a UE-specific set of possible values of K H , and a value set  1418 C representing a UE-specific set of possible values of K U . In various embodiments, gNB  602  may initiate the RRC connection reconfiguration procedure by sending an RRC connection reconfiguration message  1435  to UE  604 . In various embodiments, gNB  602  may transmit DL data  1408  comprising RRC connection reconfiguration message  1435  during a slot S 1408 . In various embodiments, in order to acknowledge receipt of RRC connection reconfiguration message  1435 , UE  604  may transmit HARQ feedback  1410  to gNB  602  during a slot S 1410 , which may or may not be a different slot than slot S 1408 . The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
     In various embodiments, RRC connection reconfiguration message  1435  may comprise UE-specific RRC parameters  1436  that include a value set  1438 A representing a UE-specific set of possible values of K D , a value set  1438 B representing a UE-specific set of possible values of K H , and a value set  1438 C representing a UE-specific set of possible values of K U . In various embodiments, according to the RRC connection reconfiguration procedure, UE  604  may be configured with the UE-specific RRC parameters  1436  comprised in RRC connection reconfiguration message  1435 , and those UE-specific RRC parameters  1436  may generally replace the UE-specific RRC parameters  1416  with which UE  604  was previously configured. In various embodiments, in conjunction with the RRC connection reconfiguration procedure, the value sets  1438 A,  1438 B, and  1438 C comprised among the UE-specific RRC parameters  1436  contained in RRC connection reconfiguration message  1435  may replace the respective value sets  1418 A,  1418 B, and  1418 C comprised among UE-specific RRC parameters  1416 . The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
     In various embodiments, UE  604  may be configured to wait until after the end of a designated timing gap before it begins using the value sets  1438 A,  1438 B, and  1438 C contained in RRC connection reconfiguration message  1435 . In various embodiments, the timing gap may generally be representative of a waiting period to be observed prior to initiating use of new UE-specific value sets received during RRC connection reconfiguration procedures. In various embodiments, UE  604  may use the value sets  1418 A,  1418 B, and  1418 C comprised among UE-specific RRC parameters  1416  for determinations of K D , K U , and K U  values during the timing gap. In various other embodiments, UE  604  may use value sets defined in an NR SIB  1424  for determinations of K D , K U , and K U  values during the timing gap. The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
     In various embodiments, the duration of the timing gap may be specified as an integer number N of slots. In various embodiments, N may be predefined as a particular fixed value. In various other embodiments, the value of N may be specified by information comprised in NR MIB  622  or an NR SIB  1424 . In yet other embodiments, the value of N may be configured via RRC signaling. In various embodiments, the timing gap may be defined to comprise the first N slots immediately following the slot during which the RRC connection reconfiguration message is sent. In such embodiments, in the context of operating environment  1400 , the timing gap may comprise the first N slots immediately following the slot S 1408  during which gNB  602  transmits the DL data  1408  comprising RRC connection reconfiguration message  1435 . In various other embodiments, the timing gap may be defined to comprise the first N slots immediately following the slot during which HARQ feedback is transmitted in order to acknowledge receipt of the RRC connection reconfiguration message. In such embodiments, in the context of operating environment  1400 , the timing gap may comprise the first N slots immediately following the slot S 1410  during which UE  604  transmits HARQ feedback  1410  in order to acknowledge receipt of RRC connection reconfiguration message  1435 . The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
     Operations for the above embodiments may be further described with reference to the following figures and accompanying examples. Some of the figures may include a logic flow. Although such figures presented herein may include a particular logic flow, it can be appreciated that the logic flow merely provides an example of how the general functionality as described herein can be implemented. Further, the given logic flow does not necessarily have to be executed in the order presented unless otherwise indicated. In addition, the given logic flow may be implemented by a hardware element, a software element executed by a processor, or any combination thereof. The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
       FIG.  15    illustrates an example of a logic flow  1500  that may be representative of the implementation of one or more of the disclosed timing determination techniques according to various embodiments. For example, according to some embodiments, logic flow  1500  may be representative of operations that UE  604  may perform in conjunction with system information acquisition in operating environment  600  of  FIG.  6   . As shown in  FIG.  15   , DCI may be detected at  1502  that schedules a DL data transmission comprising one or more NR SIBs for an NG-RAN cell. For example, in operating environment  600 , UE  604  may detect DL scheduling command  606 , which may be received during slot S 606  and may comprise DCI that schedules transmission, during slot S 608 , of DL data  608  comprising NR SIB  624 . 
     At  1504 , an applicable slot offset value for the DL data transmission may be identified. For example, in operating environment  600 , UE  604  may identify offset value  626 , which may constitute a slot offset value applicable to transmission of DL data  608 . At  1506 , a scheduled slot for the DL data transmission may be identified, based on a slot of receipt of the DCI and the applicable slot offset value. For example, in operating environment  600 , UE  604  may identify slot S 608  based on the identity of slot S 606  and on the identified offset value  626 . At  1508 , a DL wireless channel of the NG-RAN cell may be accessed during the scheduled slot identified at  1506  in order to receive the DL data transmission. For example, in operating environment  600 , UE  604  may access an NR PDSCH of NG-RAN cell  603  during slot S 608  in order to receive DL data  608 . The embodiments are not limited to these examples. 
       FIG.  16 A  illustrates an example of a logic flow  1600  that may be representative of the implementation of one or more of the disclosed timing determination techniques according to various embodiments. For example, according to some embodiments, logic flow  1600  may be representative of operations that UE  604  may perform in conjunction with receiving random access response  730  in either of operating environments  800  and  800 A of  FIG.  8   . According to various other example embodiments, logic flow  1600  may be representative of operations that UE  604  may perform in conjunction with receiving an initial transmission of contention resolution message  734  in any of operating environments  1100 ,  1100 A, and  1100 B of  FIG.  11   , and/or in conjunction with receiving a retransmission of contention resolution message  734  in any of operating environments  1200 ,  1200 A, and  1200 B of  FIG.  12   . The embodiments are not limited to these examples. 
     As shown in  FIG.  16 A , DCI may be detected at  1602  that schedules a DL data transmission during a random access procedure in an NG-RAN cell. In a first example, in either of operating environments  800  and  800 A, UE  604  may detect DL scheduling command  806 , which may be received during slot S 806  and may comprise DCI that schedules transmission, during slot S 808 , of DL data  808  comprising random access response  730 . In a second example, in any of operating environments  1100 ,  1100 A, and  1100 B, UE  604  may detect DL scheduling command  1106 , which may be received during slot S 1106  and may comprise DCI that schedules transmission, during slot S 1108 , of DL data  1108  comprising an initial transmission of contention resolution message  734 . 
     In a third example, in any of operating environments  1200 ,  1200 A, and  1200 B, UE  604  may detect DL scheduling command  1206 , which may be received during slot S 1206  and may comprise DCI that schedules transmission, during slot S 1208 , of DL data  1208  comprising a retransmission of contention resolution message  734 . The embodiments are not limited to these examples. 
     At  1604 , an applicable slot offset value for the DL data transmission may be identified. In a first example, in either of operating environments  800  and  800 A, UE  604  may identify offset value  826 , which may constitute a slot offset value applicable to transmission of DL data  808 . In a second example, in any of operating environments  1100 ,  1100 A, and  1100 B, UE  604  may identify offset value  1126 , which may constitute a slot offset value applicable to transmission of DL data  1108 . In a third example, in any of operating environments  1200 ,  1200 A, and  1200 B, UE  604  may identify offset value  1226 , which may constitute a slot offset value applicable to transmission of DL data  1208 . The embodiments are not limited to these examples. 
     At  1606 , a scheduled slot for the DL data transmission may be identified, based on a slot of receipt of the DCI and the applicable slot offset value. In a first example, in either of operating environments  800  and  800 A, UE  604  may identify slot S 808  based on the identity of slot S 806  and on the identified offset value  826 . In a second example, in any of operating environments  1100 ,  1100 A, and  1100 B, UE  604  may identify slot S 1108  based on the identity of slot S 1106  and on the identified offset value  1126 . In a third example, in any of operating environments  1200 ,  1200 A, and  1200 B, UE  604  may identify slot S 1208  based on the identity of slot S 1206  and on the identified offset value  1226 . The embodiments are not limited to these examples. 
     At  1608 , a DL wireless channel of the NG-RAN cell may be accessed during the scheduled slot identified at  1606  in order to receive the DL data transmission. In a first example, in either of operating environments  800  and  800 A, UE  604  may access an NR PDSCH of NG-RAN cell  603  during slot S 808  in order to receive DL data  808 . In a second example, in any of operating environments  1100 ,  1100 A, and  1100 B, UE  604  may access an NR PDSCH of NG-RAN cell  603  during slot S 1108  in order to receive DL data  1108 . In a third example, in any of operating environments  1200 ,  1200 A, and  1200 B, UE  604  may access an NR PDSCH of NG-RAN cell  603  during slot S 1208  in order to receive DL data  1208 . The embodiments are not limited to these examples. 
       FIG.  16 B  illustrates an example of a logic flow  1650  that may be representative of the implementation of one or more of the disclosed timing determination techniques according to various embodiments. For example, according to some embodiments, logic flow  1650  may be representative of operations that UE  604  may perform in any of operating environments  1300 ,  1300 A, and  1300 B of  FIG.  13   . As shown in  FIG.  16 B , at  1652 , a DL data transmission may be received during a random access procedure in an NG-RAN cell. For example, in any of operating environments  1300 ,  1300 A, and  1300 B, UE  604  may receive DL data  1308  during slot S 1308 . 
     According to various embodiments, the DL data transmission received at  1652  may be received via a DL wireless channel accessed at  1608  in  FIG.  16 A , during a slot identified at  1606 . Thus, for example, receipt of the DL data transmission at  1652  may involve receipt, via an NR PDSCH of RAN cell  603 , of DL data  1108  during slot S 1108  in any of operating environments  1100 ,  1100 A, and  1100 B of  FIG.  11   , or of DL data  1208  during slot S 1208  in any of operating environments  1200 ,  1200 A, and  1200 B of  FIG.  12   . The embodiments are not limited to these examples. 
     At  1654 , a slot offset value may be identified that is applicable to the transmission of HARQ feedback for a message comprised in the DL data transmission received at  1652 . For example, in any of operating environments  1300 ,  1300 A, and  1300 B, UE  604  may identify offset value  1326 , which may constitute a slot offset value applicable to transmission of HARQ feedback  1310  for a contention resolution message  734  comprised in DL data  1308 . At  1656 , a slot during which the HARQ feedback is to be transmitted may be identified based on a slot of receipt of the DL data transmission and the applicable slot offset value. For example, in any of operating environments  1300 ,  1300 A, and  1300 B, UE  604  may identify slot S 1310  based on the identity of slot S 1308  and on the identified offset value  1326 . At  1658 , the HARQ feedback may be transmitted over a UL wireless channel of the NG-RAN cell during the slot identified at  1656 . For example, in any of operating environments  1300 ,  1300 A, and  1300 B, UE  604  may transmit HARQ feedback  1310  over an NR PUCCH of NG-RAN cell  603  during slot S 1310 . The embodiments are not limited to these examples. 
       FIG.  17    illustrates an example of a logic flow  1700  that may be representative of the implementation of one or more of the disclosed timing determination techniques according to various embodiments. For example, according to some embodiments, logic flow  1700  may be representative of operations that UE  604  may perform in conjunction with performing an initial transmission of RRC message  732  in any of operating environments  900 ,  900 A, and  900 B of  FIG.  9   . According to various other example embodiments, logic flow  1700  may be representative of operations that UE  604  may perform in conjunction with performing a retransmission of RRC message  732  in any of operating environments  1000 ,  1000 A, and  1000 B of  FIG.  10   . The embodiments are not limited to these examples. 
     As shown in  FIG.  17   , receipt may be detected at  1702  of a grant of resources for a UL data transmission during a random access procedure in an NG-RAN cell. In a first example, having received DL data  808  during slot S 808  in any of operating environments  900 ,  900 A, and  900 B, UE  604  may detect UL grant information  912  comprised in random access response  730 , and UL grant information  912  may constitute a grant of resources for use to transmit, during slot S 914 , UL data  914  comprising an initial transmission of RRC message  732 . In a second example, in any of operating environments  1000 ,  1000 A, and  1000 B, UE  604  may detect UL scheduling grant  1012 , which may be received during slot S 1012  and may constitute a grant of resources for use to transmit, during slot S 1014 , UL data  1014  comprising a retransmission of RRC message  732 . The embodiments are not limited to these examples. 
     At  1704 , an applicable slot offset value for the UL data transmission may be identified. In a first example, in any of operating environments  900 ,  900 A, and  900 B, UE  604  may identify offset value  926 , which may constitute a slot offset value applicable to transmission of UL data  914 . In a second example, in any of operating environments  1000 ,  1000 A, and  1000 B, UE  604  may identify offset value  1026 , which may constitute a slot offset value applicable to transmission of UL data  1014 . The embodiments are not limited to these examples. 
     At  1706 , a scheduled slot for the UL data transmission may be identified, based on a slot of receipt of the grant and the applicable slot offset value. In a first example, in any of operating environments  900 ,  900 A, and  900 B, UE  604  may identify slot S 914  based on the identity of slot S 808  and on the identified offset value  926 . In a second example, in any of operating environments  1000 ,  1000 A, and  1000 B, UE  604  may identify slot S 1014  based on the identity of slot S 1012  and on the identified offset value  1026 . The embodiments are not limited to these examples. 
     At  1708 , data may be encoded for transmission over a UL wireless channel of the NG-RAN cell during the scheduled slot identified at  1706 . In a first example, in any of operating environments  900 ,  900 A, and  900 B, UE  604  may encode UL data  914  for transmission over an NR PUSCH of NG-RAN cell  603  during slot S 914 . In a second example, in any of operating environments  1000 ,  1000 A, and  1000 B, UE  604  may encode UL data  1014  for transmission over an NR PUSCH of NG-RAN cell  603  during slot S 1014 . The embodiments are not limited to these examples. 
       FIG.  18    illustrates an embodiment of a storage medium  1800 . Storage medium  1800  may comprise any non-transitory computer-readable storage medium or machine-readable storage medium, such as an optical, magnetic or semiconductor storage medium. In various embodiments, storage medium  1800  may comprise an article of manufacture. In some embodiments, storage medium  1800  may store computer-executable instructions, such as computer-executable instructions to implement one or more of logic flow  1500  of  FIG.  15   , logic flow  1600  of  FIG.  16 A , logic flow  1650  of  FIG.  16 B , and logic flow  1700  of  FIG.  17   . Examples of a computer-readable storage medium or machine-readable storage medium may include any tangible media capable of storing electronic data, including volatile memory or non-volatile memory, removable or non-removable memory, erasable or non-erasable memory, writeable or re-writeable memory, and so forth. Examples of computer-executable instructions may include any suitable type of code, such as source code, compiled code, interpreted code, executable code, static code, dynamic code, object-oriented code, visual code, and the like. The embodiments are not limited in this context. 
       FIG.  19    illustrates an architecture of a system  1900  of a network in accordance with some embodiments. The system  1900  is shown to include a user equipment (UE)  1901  and a UE  1902 . The UEs  1901  and  1902  are illustrated as smartphones (e.g., handheld touchscreen mobile computing devices connectable to one or more cellular networks), but may also comprise any mobile or non-mobile computing device, such as Personal Data Assistants (PDAs), pagers, laptop computers, desktop computers, wireless handsets, or any computing device including a wireless communications interface. 
     In some embodiments, any of the UEs  1901  and  1902  can comprise an Internet of Things (IoT) UE, which can comprise a network access layer designed for low-power IoT applications utilizing short-lived UE connections. An IoT UE can utilize technologies such as machine-to-machine (M2M) or machine-type communications (MTC) for exchanging data with an MTC server or device via a public land mobile network (PLMN), Proximity-Based Service (ProSe) or device-to-device (D2D) communication, sensor networks, or IoT networks. The M2M or MTC exchange of data may be a machine-initiated exchange of data. An IoT network describes interconnecting IoT UEs, which may include uniquely identifiable embedded computing devices (within the Internet infrastructure), with short-lived connections. The IoT UEs may execute background applications (e.g., keep-alive messages, status updates, etc.) to facilitate the connections of the IoT network. 
     The UEs  1901  and  1902  may be configured to connect, e.g., communicatively couple, with a radio access network (RAN)  1910  the RAN  1910  may be, for example, an Evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN), a NextGen RAN (NG RAN), or some other type of RAN. The UEs  1901  and  1902  utilize connections  1903  and  1904 , respectively, each of which comprises a physical communications interface or layer (discussed in further detail below); in this example, the connections  1903  and  1904  are illustrated as an air interface to enable communicative coupling, and can be consistent with cellular communications protocols, such as a Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) protocol, a code-division multiple access (CDMA) network protocol, a Push-to-Talk (PTT) protocol, a PTT over Cellular (POC) protocol, a Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) protocol, a 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) protocol, a fifth generation (5G) protocol, a New Radio (NR) protocol, and the like. 
     In this embodiment, the UEs  1901  and  1902  may further directly exchange communication data via a ProSe interface  1905 . The ProSe interface  1905  may alternatively be referred to as a sidelink interface comprising one or more logical channels, including but not limited to a Physical Sidelink Control Channel (PSCCH), a Physical Sidelink Shared Channel (PSSCH), a Physical Sidelink Discovery Channel (PSDCH), and a Physical Sidelink Broadcast Channel (PSBCH). 
     The UE  1902  is shown to be configured to access an access point (AP)  1906  via connection  1907 . The connection  1907  can comprise a local wireless connection, such as a connection consistent with any IEEE 802.11 protocol, wherein the AP  1906  would comprise a wireless fidelity (WiFi®) router. In this example, the AP  1906  is shown to be connected to the Internet without connecting to the core network of the wireless system (described in further detail below). 
     The RAN  1910  can include one or more access nodes that enable the connections  1903  and  1904 . These access nodes (ANs) can be referred to as base stations (BSs), NodeBs, evolved NodeBs (eNBs), next Generation NodeBs (gNB), RAN nodes, and so forth, and can comprise ground stations (e.g., terrestrial access points) or satellite stations providing coverage within a geographic area (e.g., a cell). The RAN  1910  may include one or more RAN nodes for providing macrocells, e.g., macro RAN node  1911 , and one or more RAN nodes for providing femtocells or picocells (e.g., cells having smaller coverage areas, smaller user capacity, or higher bandwidth compared to macrocells), e.g., low power (LP) RAN node  1912 . 
     Any of the RAN nodes  1911  and  1912  can terminate the air interface protocol and can be the first point of contact for the UEs  1901  and  1902 . In some embodiments, any of the RAN nodes  1911  and  1912  can fulfill various logical functions for the RAN  1910  including, but not limited to, radio network controller (RNC) functions such as radio bearer management, uplink and downlink dynamic radio resource management and data packet scheduling, and mobility management. 
     In accordance with some embodiments, the UEs  1901  and  1902  can be configured to communicate using Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiplexing (OFDM) communication signals with each other or with any of the RAN nodes  1911  and  1912  over a multicarrier communication channel in accordance various communication techniques, such as, but not limited to, an Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) communication technique (e.g., for downlink communications) or a Single Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) communication technique (e.g., for uplink and ProSe or sidelink communications), although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect. The OFDM signals can comprise a plurality of orthogonal subcarriers. 
     In some embodiments, a downlink resource grid can be used for downlink transmissions from any of the RAN nodes  1911  and  1912  to the UEs  1901  and  1902 , while uplink transmissions can utilize similar techniques. The grid can be a time-frequency grid, called a resource grid or time-frequency resource grid, which is the physical resource in the downlink in each slot. Such a time-frequency plane representation is a common practice for OFDM systems, which makes it intuitive for radio resource allocation. Each column and each row of the resource grid corresponds to one OFDM symbol and one OFDM subcarrier, respectively. The duration of the resource grid in the time domain corresponds to one slot in a radio frame. The smallest time-frequency unit in a resource grid is denoted as a resource element. Each resource grid comprises a number of resource blocks, which describe the mapping of certain physical channels to resource elements. Each resource block comprises a collection of resource elements; in the frequency domain, this may represent the smallest quantity of resources that currently can be allocated. There are several different physical downlink channels that are conveyed using such resource blocks. 
     The physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) may carry user data and higher-layer signaling to the UEs  1901  and  1902 . The physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) may carry information about the transport format and resource allocations related to the PDSCH channel, among other things. It may also inform the UEs  1901  and  1902  about the transport format, resource allocation, and H-ARQ (Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request) information related to the uplink shared channel. Typically, downlink scheduling (assigning control and shared channel resource blocks to the UE  1902  within a cell) may be performed at any of the RAN nodes  1911  and  1912  based on channel quality information fed back from any of the UEs  1901  and  1902 . The downlink resource assignment information may be sent on the PDCCH used for (e.g., assigned to) each of the UEs  1901  and  1902 . 
     The PDCCH may use control channel elements (CCEs) to convey the control information. Before being mapped to resource elements, the PDCCH complex-valued symbols may first be organized into quadruplets, which may then be permuted using a sub-block interleaver for rate matching. Each PDCCH may be transmitted using one or more of these CCEs, where each CCE may correspond to nine sets of four physical resource elements known as resource element groups (REGs). Four Quadrature Phase Shift Keying (QPSK) symbols may be mapped to each REG. The PDCCH can be transmitted using one or more CCEs, depending on the size of the downlink control information (DCI) and the channel condition. There can be four or more different PDCCH formats defined in LTE with different numbers of CCEs (e.g., aggregation level, L=1, 2, 4, or 8). 
     Some embodiments may use concepts for resource allocation for control channel information that are an extension of the above-described concepts. For example, some embodiments may utilize an enhanced physical downlink control channel (EPDCCH) that uses PDSCH resources for control information transmission. The EPDCCH may be transmitted using one or more enhanced the control channel elements (ECCEs). Similar to above, each ECCE may correspond to nine sets of four physical resource elements known as an enhanced resource element groups (EREGs). An ECCE may have other numbers of EREGs in some situations. 
     The RAN  1910  is shown to be communicatively coupled to a core network (CN)  1920  via an S1 interface  1913 . In embodiments, the CN  1920  may be an evolved packet core (EPC) network, a NextGen Packet Core (NPC) network, or some other type of CN. In this embodiment the S1 interface  1913  is split into two parts: the S1-U interface  1914 , which carries traffic data between the RAN nodes  1911  and  1912  and the serving gateway (S-GW)  1922 , and the S1-mobility management entity (MME) interface  1915 , which is a signaling interface between the RAN nodes  1911  and  1912  and MMEs  1921 . 
     In this embodiment, the CN  1920  comprises the MMEs  1921 , the S-GW  1922 , the Packet Data Network (PDN) Gateway (P-GW)  1923 , and a home subscriber server (HSS)  1924 . The MMEs  1921  may be similar in function to the control plane of legacy Serving General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) Support Nodes (SGSN). The MMEs  1921  may manage mobility aspects in access such as gateway selection and tracking area list management. The HSS  1924  may comprise a database for network users, including subscription-related information to support the network entities&#39; handling of communication sessions. The CN  1920  may comprise one or several HSSs  1924 , depending on the number of mobile subscribers, on the capacity of the equipment, on the organization of the network, etc. For example, the HSS  1924  can provide support for routing/roaming, authentication, authorization, naming/addressing resolution, location dependencies, etc. 
     The S-GW  1922  may terminate the S1 interface  1913  towards the RAN  1910 , and routes data packets between the RAN  1910  and the CN  1920 . In addition, the S-GW  1922  may be a local mobility anchor point for inter-RAN node handovers and also may provide an anchor for inter-3GPP mobility. Other responsibilities may include lawful intercept, charging, and some policy enforcement. 
     The P-GW  1923  may terminate an SGi interface toward a PDN. The P-GW  1923  may route data packets between the CN  1920  and external networks such as a network including the application server  1930  (alternatively referred to as application function (AF)) via an Internet Protocol (IP) interface  1925 . Generally, the application server  1930  may be an element offering applications that use IP bearer resources with the core network (e.g., UMTS Packet Services (PS) domain, LTE PS data services, etc.). In this embodiment, the P-GW  1923  is shown to be communicatively coupled to an application server  1930  via an IP communications interface  1925 . The application server  1930  can also be configured to support one or more communication services (e.g., Voice-over-Internet Protocol (VoIP) sessions, PTT sessions, group communication sessions, social networking services, etc.) for the UEs  1901  and  1902  via the CN  1920 . 
     The P-GW  1923  may further be a node for policy enforcement and charging data collection. Policy and Charging Enforcement Function (PCRF)  1926  is the policy and charging control element of the CN  1920 . In a non-roaming scenario, there may be a single PCRF in the Home Public Land Mobile Network (HPLMN) associated with a UE&#39;s Internet Protocol Connectivity Access Network (IP-CAN) session. In a roaming scenario with local breakout of traffic, there may be two PCRFs associated with a UE&#39;s IP-CAN session: a Home PCRF (H-PCRF) within a HPLMN and a Visited PCRF (V-PCRF) within a Visited Public Land Mobile Network (VPLMN). The PCRF  1926  may be communicatively coupled to the application server  1930  via the P-GW  1923 . The application server  1930  may signal the PCRF  1926  to indicate a new service flow and select the appropriate Quality of Service (QoS) and charging parameters. The PCRF  1926  may provision this rule into a Policy and Charging Enforcement Function (PCEF) (not shown) with the appropriate traffic flow template (TFT) and QoS class of identifier (QCI), which commences the QoS and charging as specified by the application server  1930 . 
       FIG.  20    illustrates example components of a device  2000  in accordance with some embodiments. In some embodiments, the device  2000  may include application circuitry  2002 , baseband circuitry  2004 , Radio Frequency (RF) circuitry  2006 , front-end module (FEM) circuitry  2008 , one or more antennas  2010 , and power management circuitry (PMC)  2012  coupled together at least as shown. The components of the illustrated device  2000  may be included in a UE or a RAN node. In some embodiments, the device  2000  may include less elements (e.g., a RAN node may not utilize application circuitry  2002 , and instead include a processor/controller to process IP data received from an EPC). In some embodiments, the device  2000  may include additional elements such as, for example, memory/storage, display, camera, sensor, or input/output (T/O) interface. In other embodiments, the components described below may be included in more than one device (e.g., said circuitries may be separately included in more than one device for Cloud-RAN (C-RAN) implementations). 
     The application circuitry  2002  may include one or more application processors. For example, the application circuitry  2002  may include circuitry such as, but not limited to, one or more single-core or multi-core processors. The processor(s) may include any combination of general-purpose processors and dedicated processors (e.g., graphics processors, application processors, etc.). The processors may be coupled with or may include memory/storage and may be configured to execute instructions stored in the memory/storage to enable various applications or operating systems to run on the device  2000 . In some embodiments, processors of application is circuitry  2002  may process IP data packets received from an EPC. 
     The baseband circuitry  2004  may include circuitry such as, but not limited to, one or more single-core or multi-core processors. The baseband circuitry  2004  may include one or more baseband processors or control logic to process baseband signals received from a receive signal path of the RF circuitry  2006  and to generate baseband signals for a transmit signal path of the RF circuitry  2006 . Baseband processing circuitry  2004  may interface with the application circuitry  2002  for generation and processing of the baseband signals and for controlling operations of the RF circuitry  2006 . For example, in some embodiments, the baseband circuitry  2004  may include a third generation (3G) baseband processor  2004 A, a fourth generation (4G) baseband processor  2004 B, a fifth generation (5G) baseband processor  2004 C, or other baseband processor(s)  2004 D for other existing generations, generations in development or to be developed in the future (e.g., second generation (2G), sixth generation (6G), etc.). The baseband circuitry  2004  (e.g., one or more of baseband processors  2004 A-D) may handle various radio control functions that enable communication with one or more radio networks via the RF circuitry  2006 . In other embodiments, some or all of the functionality of baseband processors  2004 A-D may be included in modules stored in the memory  2004 G and executed via a Central Processing Unit (CPU)  2004 E. The radio control functions may include, but are not limited to, signal modulation/demodulation, encoding/decoding, radio frequency shifting, etc. In some embodiments, modulation/demodulation circuitry of the baseband circuitry  2004  may include Fast-Fourier Transform (FFT), precoding, or constellation mapping/demapping functionality. In some embodiments, encoding/decoding circuitry of the baseband circuitry  2004  may include convolution, tail-biting convolution, turbo, Viterbi, or Low Density Parity Check (LDPC) encoder/decoder functionality. Embodiments of modulation/demodulation and encoder/decoder functionality are not limited to these examples and may include other suitable functionality in other embodiments. 
     In some embodiments, the baseband circuitry  2004  may include one or more audio digital signal processor(s) (DSP)  2004 F. The audio DSP(s)  2004 F may be include elements for compression/decompression and echo cancellation and may include other suitable processing elements in other embodiments. Components of the baseband circuitry may be suitably combined in a single chip, a single chipset, or disposed on a same circuit board in some embodiments. In some embodiments, some or all of the constituent components of the baseband circuitry  2004  and the application circuitry  2002  may be implemented together such as, for example, on a system on a chip (SOC). 
     In some embodiments, the baseband circuitry  2004  may provide for communication compatible with one or more radio technologies. For example, in some embodiments, the baseband circuitry  2004  may support communication with an evolved universal terrestrial radio access network (EUTRAN) or other wireless metropolitan area networks (WMAN), a wireless local area network (WLAN), a wireless personal area network (WPAN). Embodiments in which the baseband circuitry  2004  is configured to support radio communications of more than one wireless protocol may be referred to as multi-mode baseband circuitry. 
     RF circuitry  2006  may enable communication with wireless networks using modulated electromagnetic radiation through a non-solid medium. In various embodiments, the RF circuitry  2006  may include switches, filters, amplifiers, etc. to facilitate the communication with the wireless network. RF circuitry  2006  may include a receive signal path which may include circuitry to down-convert RF signals received from the FEM circuitry  2008  and provide baseband signals to the baseband circuitry  2004 . RF circuitry  2006  may also include a transmit signal path which may include circuitry to up-convert baseband signals provided by the baseband circuitry  2004  and provide RF output signals to the FEM circuitry  2008  for transmission. 
     In some embodiments, the receive signal path of the RF circuitry  2006  may include mixer circuitry  2006   a , amplifier circuitry  2006   b  and filter circuitry  2006   c . In some embodiments, the transmit signal path of the RF circuitry  2006  may include filter circuitry  2006   c  and mixer circuitry  2006   a . RF circuitry  2006  may also include synthesizer circuitry  2006   d  for synthesizing a frequency for use by the mixer circuitry  2006   a  of the receive signal path and the transmit signal path. In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry  2006   a  of the receive signal path may be configured to down-convert RF signals received from the FEM circuitry  2008  based on the synthesized frequency provided by synthesizer circuitry  2006   d . The amplifier circuitry  2006   b  may be configured to amplify the down-converted signals and the filter circuitry  2006   c  may be a low-pass filter (LPF) or band-pass filter (BPF) configured to remove unwanted signals from the down-converted signals to generate output baseband signals. Output baseband signals may be provided to the baseband circuitry  2004  for further processing. In some embodiments, the output baseband signals may be zero-frequency baseband signals, although this is not a requirement. In some embodiments, mixer circuitry  2006   a  of the receive signal path may comprise passive mixers, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect. 
     In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry  2006   a  of the transmit signal path may be configured to up-convert input baseband signals based on the synthesized frequency provided by the synthesizer circuitry  2006   d  to generate RF output signals for the FEM circuitry  2008 . The baseband signals may be provided by the baseband circuitry  2004  and may be filtered by filter circuitry  2006   c.    
     In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry  2006   a  of the receive signal path and the mixer circuitry  2006   a  of the transmit signal path may include two or more mixers and may be arranged for quadrature downconversion and upconversion, respectively. In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry  2006   a  of the receive signal path and the mixer circuitry  2006   a  of the transmit signal path may include two or more mixers and may be arranged for image rejection (e.g., Hartley image rejection). In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry  2006   a  of the receive signal path and the mixer circuitry  2006   a  may be arranged for direct downconversion and direct upconversion, respectively. In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry  2006   a  of the receive signal path and the mixer circuitry  2006   a  of the transmit signal path may be configured for super-heterodyne operation. 
     In some embodiments, the output baseband signals and the input baseband signals may be analog baseband signals, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect. In some alternate embodiments, the output baseband signals and the input baseband signals may be digital baseband signals. In these alternate embodiments, the RF circuitry  2006  may include analog-to-digital converter (ADC) and digital-to-analog converter (DAC) circuitry and the baseband circuitry  2004  may include a digital baseband interface to communicate with the RF circuitry  2006 . 
     In some dual-mode embodiments, a separate radio IC circuitry may be provided for processing signals for each spectrum, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect. 
     In some embodiments, the synthesizer circuitry  2006   d  may be a fractional-N synthesizer or a fractional N/N+1 synthesizer, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect as other types of frequency synthesizers may be suitable. For example, synthesizer circuitry  2006   d  may be a delta-sigma synthesizer, a frequency multiplier, or a synthesizer comprising a phase-locked loop with a frequency divider. 
     The synthesizer circuitry  2006   d  may be configured to synthesize an output frequency for use by the mixer circuitry  2006   a  of the RF circuitry  2006  based on a frequency input and a divider control input. In some embodiments, the synthesizer circuitry  2006   d  may be a fractional N/N+1 synthesizer. 
     In some embodiments, frequency input may be provided by a voltage controlled oscillator (VCO), although that is not a requirement. Divider control input may be provided by either the baseband circuitry  2004  or the applications processor  2002  depending on the desired output frequency. In some embodiments, a divider control input (e.g., N) may be determined from a look-up table based on a channel indicated by the applications processor  2002 . 
     Synthesizer circuitry  2006   d  of the RF circuitry  2006  may include a divider, a delay-locked loop (DLL), a multiplexer and a phase accumulator. In some embodiments, the divider may be a dual modulus divider (DMD) and the phase accumulator may be a digital phase accumulator (DPA). In some embodiments, the DMD may be configured to divide the input signal by either N or N+1 (e.g., based on a carry out) to provide a fractional division ratio. In some example embodiments, the DLL may include a set of cascaded, tunable, delay elements, a phase detector, a charge pump and a D-type flip-flop. In these embodiments, the delay elements may be configured to break a VCO period up into Nd equal packets of phase, where Nd is the number of delay elements in the delay line. In this way, the DLL provides negative feedback to help ensure that the total delay through the delay line is one VCO cycle. 
     In some embodiments, synthesizer circuitry  2006   d  may be configured to generate a carrier frequency as the output frequency, while in other embodiments, the output frequency may be a multiple of the carrier frequency (e.g., twice the carrier frequency, four times the carrier frequency) and used in conjunction with quadrature generator and divider circuitry to generate multiple signals at the carrier frequency with multiple different phases with respect to each other. In some embodiments, the output frequency may be a LO frequency (fLO). In some embodiments, the RF circuitry  2006  may include an IQ/polar converter. 
     FEM circuitry  2008  may include a receive signal path which may include circuitry configured to operate on RF signals received from one or more antennas  2010 , amplify the received signals and provide the amplified versions of the received signals to the RF circuitry  2006  for further processing. FEM circuitry  2008  may also include a transmit signal path which may include circuitry configured to amplify signals for transmission provided by the RF circuitry  2006  for transmission by one or more of the one or more antennas  2010 . In various embodiments, the amplification through the transmit or receive signal paths may be done solely in the RF circuitry  2006 , solely in the FEM  2008 , or in both the RF circuitry  2006  and the FEM  2008 . 
     In some embodiments, the FEM circuitry  2008  may include a TX/RX switch to switch between transmit mode and receive mode operation. The FEM circuitry may include a receive signal path and a transmit signal path. The receive signal path of the FEM circuitry may include an LNA to amplify received RF signals and provide the amplified received RF signals as an output (e.g., to the RF circuitry  2006 ). The transmit signal path of the FEM circuitry  2008  may include a power amplifier (PA) to amplify input RF signals (e.g., provided by RF circuitry  2006 ), and one or more filters to generate RF signals for subsequent transmission (e.g., by one or more of the one or more antennas  2010 ). 
     In some embodiments, the PMC  2012  may manage power provided to the baseband circuitry  2004 . In particular, the PMC  2012  may control power-source selection, voltage scaling, battery charging, or DC-to-DC conversion. The PMC  2012  may often be included when the device  2000  is capable of being powered by a battery, for example, when the device is included in a UE. The PMC  2012  may increase the power conversion efficiency while providing desirable implementation size and heat dissipation characteristics. 
       FIG.  20    shows the PMC  2012  coupled only with the baseband circuitry  2004 . However, in other embodiments, the PMC  2012  may be additionally or alternatively coupled with, and perform similar power management operations for, other components such as, but not limited to, application circuitry  2002 , RF circuitry  2006 , or FEM  2008 . 
     In some embodiments, the PMC  2012  may control, or otherwise be part of, various power saving mechanisms of the device  2000 . For example, if the device  2000  is in an RRC_Connected state, where it is still connected to the RAN node as it expects to receive traffic shortly, then it may enter a state known as Discontinuous Reception Mode (DRX) after a period of inactivity. During this state, the device  2000  may power down for brief intervals of time and thus save power. 
     If there is no data traffic activity for an extended period of time, then the device  2000  may transition off to an RRC_Idle state, where it disconnects from the network and does not perform operations such as channel quality feedback, handover, etc. The device  2000  goes into a very low power state and it performs paging where again it periodically wakes up to listen to the network and then powers down again. The device  2000  may not receive data in this state, in order to receive data, it must transition back to RRC_Connected state. 
     An additional power saving mode may allow a device to be unavailable to the network for periods longer than a paging interval (ranging from seconds to a few hours). During this time, the device is totally unreachable to the network and may power down completely. Any data sent during this time incurs a large delay and it is assumed the delay is acceptable. 
     Processors of the application circuitry  2002  and processors of the baseband circuitry  2004  may be used to execute elements of one or more instances of a protocol stack. For example, processors of the baseband circuitry  2004 , alone or in combination, may be used execute Layer 3, Layer 2, or Layer 1 functionality, while processors of the application circuitry  2004  may utilize data (e.g., packet data) received from these layers and further execute Layer 4 functionality (e.g., transmission communication protocol (TCP) and user datagram protocol (UDP) layers). As referred to herein, Layer 3 may comprise a radio resource control (RRC) layer, described in further detail below. As referred to herein, Layer 2 may comprise a medium access control (MAC) layer, a radio link control (RLC) layer, and a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, described in further detail below. As referred to herein, Layer 1 may comprise a physical (PHY) layer of a UE/RAN node, described in further detail below. 
       FIG.  21    illustrates example interfaces of baseband circuitry in accordance with some embodiments. As discussed above, the baseband circuitry  2004  of  FIG.  20    may comprise processors  2004 A- 2004 E and a memory  2004 G utilized by said processors. Each of the processors  2004 A- 2004 E may include a memory interface,  2104 A- 2104 E, respectively, to send/receive data to/from the memory  2004 G. 
     The baseband circuitry  2004  may further include one or more interfaces to communicatively couple to other circuitries/devices, such as a memory interface  2112  (e.g., an interface to send/receive data to/from memory external to the baseband circuitry  2004 ), an application circuitry interface  2114  (e.g., an interface to send/receive data to/from the application circuitry  2002  of  FIG.  20   ), an RF circuitry interface  2116  (e.g., an interface to send/receive data to/from RF circuitry  2006  of  FIG.  20   ), a wireless hardware connectivity interface  2118  (e.g., an interface to send/receive data to/from Near Field Communication (NFC) components, Bluetooth® components (e.g., Bluetooth® Low Energy), Wi-Fi® components, and other communication components), and a power management interface  2120  (e.g., an interface to send/receive power or control signals to/from the PMC  2012 . 
       FIG.  22    is an illustration of a control plane protocol stack in accordance with some embodiments. In this embodiment, a control plane  2200  is shown as a communications protocol stack between the UE  1901  (or alternatively, the UE  1902 ), the RAN node  1911  (or alternatively, the RAN node  1912 ), and the MME  1921 . 
     The PHY layer  2201  may transmit or receive information used by the MAC layer  2202  over one or more air interfaces. The PHY layer  2201  may further perform link adaptation or adaptive modulation and coding (AMC), power control, cell search (e.g., for initial synchronization and handover purposes), and other measurements used by higher layers, such as the RRC layer  2205 . The PHY layer  2201  may still further perform error detection on the transport channels, forward error correction (FEC) coding/decoding of the transport channels, modulation/demodulation of physical channels, interleaving, rate matching, mapping onto physical channels, and Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) antenna processing. 
     The MAC layer  2202  may perform mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC service data units (SDUs) from one or more logical channels onto transport blocks (TB) to be delivered to PHY via transport channels, de-multiplexing MAC SDUs to one or more logical channels from transport blocks (TB) delivered from the PHY via transport channels, multiplexing MAC SDUs onto TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction through hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ), and logical channel prioritization. 
     The RLC layer  2203  may operate in a plurality of modes of operation, including: Transparent Mode (TM), Unacknowledged Mode (UM), and Acknowledged Mode (AM). The RLC layer  2203  may execute transfer of upper layer protocol data units (PDUs), error correction through automatic repeat request (ARQ) for AM data transfers, and concatenation, segmentation and reassembly of RLC SDUs for UM and AM data transfers. The RLC layer  2203  may also execute re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs for AM data transfers, reorder RLC data PDUs for UM and AM data transfers, detect duplicate data for UM and AM data transfers, discard RLC SDUs for UM and AM data transfers, detect protocol errors for AM data transfers, and perform RLC re-establishment. 
     The PDCP layer  2204  may execute header compression and decompression of IP data, maintain PDCP Sequence Numbers (SNs), perform in-sequence delivery of upper layer PDUs at re-establishment of lower layers, eliminate duplicates of lower layer SDUs at re-establishment of lower layers for radio bearers mapped on RLC AM, cipher and decipher control plane data, perform integrity protection and integrity verification of control plane data, control timer-based discard of data, and perform security operations (e.g., ciphering, deciphering, integrity protection, integrity verification, etc.). 
     The main services and functions of the RRC layer  2205  may include broadcast of system information (e.g., included in Master Information Blocks (MIBs) or System Information Blocks (SIBs) related to the non-access stratum (NAS)), broadcast of system information related to the access stratum (AS), paging, establishment, maintenance and release of an RRC connection between the UE and E-UTRAN (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), establishment, configuration, maintenance and release of point to point Radio Bearers, security functions including key management, inter radio access technology (RAT) mobility, and measurement configuration for UE measurement reporting. Said MIBs and SIBs may comprise one or more information elements (IEs), which may each comprise individual data fields or data structures. 
     The UE  1901  and the RAN node  1911  may utilize a Uu interface (e.g., an LTE-Uu interface) to exchange control plane data via a protocol stack comprising the PHY layer  2201 , the MAC layer  2202 , the RLC layer  2203 , the PDCP layer  2204 , and the RRC layer  2205 . 
     The non-access stratum (NAS) protocols  2206  form the highest stratum of the control plane between the UE  1901  and the MME  1921 . The NAS protocols  2206  support the mobility of the UE  1901  and the session management procedures to establish and maintain IP connectivity between the UE  1901  and the P-GW  1923 . 
     The S1 Application Protocol (S1-AP) layer  2215  may support the functions of the S1 interface and comprise Elementary Procedures (EPs). An EP is a unit of interaction between the RAN node  1911  and the CN  1920 . The S1-AP layer services may comprise two groups: UE-associated services and non UE-associated services. These services perform functions including, but not limited to: E-UTRAN Radio Access Bearer (E-RAB) management, UE capability indication, mobility, NAS signaling transport, RAN Information Management (RIM), and configuration transfer. 
     The Stream Control Transmission Protocol (SCTP) layer (alternatively referred to as the SCTP/IP layer)  2214  may ensure reliable delivery of signaling messages between the RAN node  1911  and the MME  1921  based, in part, on the IP protocol, supported by the IP layer  2213 . The L2 layer  2212  and the L1 layer  2211  may refer to communication links (e.g., wired or wireless) used by the RAN node and the MME to exchange information. 
     The RAN node  1911  and the MME  1921  may utilize an S1-MME interface to exchange control plane data via a protocol stack comprising the L1 layer  2211 , the L2 layer  2212 , the IP layer  2213 , the SCTP layer  2214 , and the S1-AP layer  2215 . 
       FIG.  23    is a block diagram illustrating components, according to some example embodiments, able to read instructions from a machine-readable or computer-readable medium (e.g., a non-transitory machine-readable storage medium) and perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein. Specifically,  FIG.  23    shows a diagrammatic representation of hardware resources  2300  including one or more processors (or processor cores)  2310 , one or more memory/storage devices  2320 , and one or more communication resources  2330 , each of which may be communicatively coupled via a bus  2340 . For embodiments where node virtualization (e.g., NFV) is utilized, a hypervisor  2302  may be executed to provide an execution environment for one or more network slices/sub-slices to utilize the hardware resources  2300   
     The processors  2310  (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a reduced instruction set computing (RISC) processor, a complex instruction set computing (CISC) processor, a graphics processing unit (GPU), a digital signal processor (DSP) such as a baseband processor, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a radio-frequency integrated circuit (RFIC), another processor, or any suitable combination thereof) may include, for example, a processor  2312  and a processor  2314 . 
     The memory/storage devices  2320  may include main memory, disk storage, or any suitable combination thereof. The memory/storage devices  2320  may include, but are not limited to any type of volatile or non-volatile memory such as dynamic random access memory (DRAM), static random-access memory (SRAM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), Flash memory, solid-state storage, etc. 
     The communication resources  2330  may include interconnection or network interface components or other suitable devices to communicate with one or more peripheral devices  2304  or one or more databases  2306  via a network  2308 . For example, the communication resources  2330  may include wired communication components (e.g., for coupling via a Universal Serial Bus (USB)), cellular communication components, NFC components, Bluetooth® components (e.g., Bluetooth® Low Energy), Wi-Fi® components, and other communication components. 
     Instructions  2350  may comprise software, a program, an application, an applet, an app, or other executable code for causing at least any of the processors  2310  to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein. The instructions  2350  may reside, completely or partially, within at least one of the processors  2310  (e.g., within the processor&#39;s cache memory), the memory/storage devices  2320 , or any suitable combination thereof. Furthermore, any portion of the instructions  2350  may be transferred to the hardware resources  2300  from any combination of the peripheral devices  2304  or the databases  2306 . Accordingly, the memory of processors  2310 , the memory/storage devices  2320 , the peripheral devices  2304 , and the databases  2306  are examples of computer-readable and machine-readable media. 
     As used herein, the term “circuitry” may refer to, be part of, or include an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), an electronic circuit, a processor (shared, dedicated, or group), and/or memory (shared, dedicated, or group) that execute one or more software or firmware programs, a combinational logic circuit, and/or other suitable hardware components that provide the described functionality. In some embodiments, the circuitry may be implemented in, or functions associated with the circuitry may be implemented by, one or more software or firmware modules. In some embodiments, circuitry may include logic, at least partially operable in hardware. 
     Various embodiments may be implemented using hardware elements, software elements, or a combination of both. Examples of hardware elements may include processors, microprocessors, circuits, circuit elements (e.g., transistors, resistors, capacitors, inductors, and so forth), integrated circuits, ASICs, programmable logic devices (PLD), digital signal processors (DSP), field programmable gate array (FPGA), logic gates, registers, semiconductor device, chips, microchips, chip sets, and so forth. Examples of software may include software components, programs, applications, computer programs, application programs, system programs, machine programs, operating system software, middleware, firmware, software modules, routines, subroutines, functions, methods, procedures, software interfaces, application program interfaces (API), instruction sets, computing code, computer code, code segments, computer code segments, words, values, symbols, or any combination thereof. Determining whether an embodiment is implemented using hardware elements and/or software elements may vary in accordance with any number of factors, such as desired computational rate, power levels, heat tolerances, processing cycle budget, input data rates, output data rates, memory resources, data bus speeds and other design or performance constraints. 
     The following examples pertain to further embodiments: 
     Example 1 is a method, comprising detecting downlink control information (DCI) scheduling a downlink (DL) data transmission during a random access procedure in a next generation radio access network (NG-RAN) cell, identifying an applicable slot offset value for the DL data transmission, identifying a scheduled slot for the DL data transmission based on a slot of receipt of the DCI and the applicable slot offset value, and accessing a DL wireless channel of the NG-RAN cell during the scheduled slot to receive the DL data transmission. 
     Example 2 is the method of Example 1, comprising identifying the applicable slot offset value based on an indication comprised in a master information block (MIB) for the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 3 is the method of Example 1, comprising identifying the applicable slot offset value based on an indication comprised in a system information block (SIB) for the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 4 is the method of Example 1, the DCI to comprise a direct indication of the applicable slot offset value. 
     Example 5 is the method of Example 1, comprising identifying the applicable slot offset value based on an identity of a physical random access channel (PRACH) resource used for transmission of a random access preamble during the random access procedure. 
     Example 6 is the method of Example 5, comprising identifying a PRACH resource set comprising the PRACH resource, and identifying the applicable slot offset value based on an identity of the identified PRACH resource set. 
     Example 7 is the method of Example 1, comprising identifying one of a plurality of values in a value set as the applicable slot offset value, based on an indicator comprised in the DCI. 
     Example 8 is the method of Example 7, comprising identifying the value set based on information comprised in a master information block (MIB) for the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 9 is the method of any one of Examples 7 to 8, comprising identifying the value set based on information comprised in a system information block (SIB) for the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 10 is the method of any one of Examples 7 to 9, comprising identifying the value set based on an identity of a physical random access channel (PRACH) resource used to transmit a random access preamble during the random access procedure. 
     Example 11 is the method of Example 10, comprising identifying a PRACH resource set comprising the PRACH resource, and identifying the value set based on an identity of the PRACH resource set. 
     Example 12 is the method of any one of Examples 7 to 11, comprising identifying the applicable slot offset value based on an identity of a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) resource used for transmission of the DCI. 
     Example 13 is the method of Example 12, comprising identifying a PDCCH resource set comprising the PDCCH resource, and identifying the applicable slot offset value based on an identity of the identified PDCCH resource set. 
     Example 14 is the method of Example 1, comprising identifying a delay value based on information comprised in the DCI, and identifying the applicable slot offset value by adding the identified delay value to a base value. 
     Example 15 is the method of Example 14, comprising identifying one or both of the applicable delay value and the base value based on an identity of a physical random access channel (PRACH) resource used for transmission of a random access preamble during the random access procedure. 
     Example 16 is the method of any one of Examples 14 to 15, comprising identifying one or both of the applicable delay value and the base value based on an identity of a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) resource used for transmission of the DCI. 
     Example 17 is the method of Example 14, the DCI to comprise a direct indication of the delay value. 
     Example 18 is the method of Example 14, comprising identifying one of a plurality of values in a value set as the delay value, based on an indicator comprised in the DCI. 
     Example 19 is the method of Example 18, comprising identifying the value set based on information comprised in a master information block (MIB) for the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 20 is the method of any one of Examples 18 to 19, comprising identifying the value set based on information comprised in a system information block (SIB) for the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 21 is the method of any one of Examples 18 to 20, comprising identifying the value set based on an identity of a physical random access channel (PRACH) resource used to transmit a random access preamble during the random access procedure. 
     Example 22 is the method of Example 21, comprising identifying a PRACH resource set comprising the PRACH resource, and identifying the value set based on an identity of the PRACH resource set. 
     Example 23 is the method of any one of Examples 18 to 22, comprising identifying the applicable slot offset value based on an identity of a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) resource used for transmission of the DCI. 
     Example 24 is the method of Example 23, comprising identifying a PDCCH resource set comprising the PDCCH resource, and identifying the applicable slot offset value based on an identity of the identified PDCCH resource set. 
     Example 25 is the method of any one of Examples 1 to 24, the DL data transmission to comprise a random access response message. 
     Example 26 is the method of any one of Examples 1 to 24, the DL data transmission to comprise a contention resolution message. 
     Example 27 is the method of any one of Examples 1 to 26, the DL wireless channel to comprise a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) of the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 28 is an apparatus, comprising a memory interface, and circuitry for user equipment (UE), the circuitry to perform the method of any one of Examples 1 to 27. 
     Example 29 is a device, comprising the apparatus of Example 28, one or more application processors, radio frequency (RF) circuitry, and one or more RF antennas. 
     Example 30 is user equipment (UE), comprising radio frequency (RF) circuitry, and baseband circuitry coupled to the RF circuitry, the baseband circuitry to perform the method of any one of Examples 1 to 27. 
     Example 31 is at least one computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry of user equipment (UE), cause the UE to perform the method of any one of Examples 1 to 27. 
     Example 32 is an apparatus, comprising means for performing the method of any one of Examples 1 to 27. 
     Example 33 is user equipment (UE), comprising the apparatus of Example 32, one or more application processors, radio frequency (RF) circuitry, and one or more RF antennas. 
     Example 34 is a method, comprising detecting receipt of a downlink (DL) transmission comprising a grant of resources for an uplink (UL) data transmission during a random access procedure in a next generation radio access network (NG-RAN) cell, identifying an applicable slot offset value for the UL data transmission, identifying a scheduled slot for the UL data transmission based on a slot of receipt of the DL transmission, and the applicable slot offset value, and encoding data for transmission over a UL wireless channel of the NG-RAN cell during the scheduled slot. 
     Example 35 is the method of Example 34, comprising identifying the applicable slot offset value based on an indication comprised in a master information block (MIB) for the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 36 is the method of Example 34, comprising identifying the applicable slot offset value based on an indication comprised in a system information block (SIB) for the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 37 is the method of Example 34, the DL transmission to comprise a direct indication of the applicable slot offset value. 
     Example 38 is the method of Example 34, comprising identifying the applicable slot offset value based on an identity of a physical random access channel (PRACH) resource used for transmission of a random access preamble during the random access procedure. 
     Example 39 is the method of Example 38, comprising identifying a PRACH resource set comprising the PRACH resource, and identifying the applicable slot offset value based on an identity of the identified PRACH resource set. 
     Example 40 is the method of Example 34, comprising identifying one of a plurality of values in a value set as the applicable slot offset value, based on an indicator comprised in the DL transmission. 
     Example 41 is the method of Example 40, comprising identifying the value set based on information comprised in a master information block (MIB) for the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 42 is the method of any one of Examples 40 to 41, comprising identifying the value set based on information comprised in a system information block (SIB) for the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 43 is the method of any one of Examples 40 to 42, comprising identifying the value set based on an identity of a physical random access channel (PRACH) resource used to transmit a random access preamble during the random access procedure. 
     Example 44 is the method of Example 43, comprising identifying a PRACH resource set comprising the PRACH resource, and identifying the value set based on an identity of the PRACH resource set. 
     Example 45 is the method of Example 34, comprising identifying a delay value based on information comprised in the DL transmission, and identifying the applicable slot offset value by adding the identified delay value to a base value. 
     Example 46 is the method of Example 45, comprising identifying one or both of the applicable delay value and the base value based on an identity of a physical random access channel (PRACH) resource used for transmission of a random access preamble during the random access procedure. 
     Example 47 is the method of Example 45, the DL transmission to comprise a direct indication of the delay value. 
     Example 48 is the method of Example 45, comprising identifying one of a plurality of values in a value set as the delay value, based on an indicator comprised in the DL transmission. 
     Example 49 is the method of Example 48, comprising identifying the value set based on information comprised in a master information block (MIB) for the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 50 is the method of any one of Examples 48 to 49, comprising identifying the value set based on information comprised in a system information block (SIB) for the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 51 is the method of any one of Examples 48 to 50, comprising identifying the value set based on an identity of a physical random access channel (PRACH) resource used to transmit a random access preamble during the random access procedure. 
     Example 52 is the method of Example 51, comprising identifying a PRACH resource set comprising the PRACH resource, and identifying the value set based on an identity of the PRACH resource set. 
     Example 53 is the method of any one of Examples 34 to 52, the data to comprise a radio resource control (RRC) message. 
     Example 54 is the method of Example 53, the RRC message to comprise an RRC Connection Request message. 
     Example 55 is the method of any one of Examples 34 to 54, the UL wireless channel to comprise a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) of the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 56 is the method of any one of Examples 34 to 55, the DL transmission to comprise a random access response message. 
     Example 57 is the method of any one of Examples 34 to 55, the DL transmission to comprise downlink control information. 
     Example 58 is an apparatus, comprising a memory interface, and circuitry for user equipment (UE), the circuitry to perform the method of any one of Examples 34 to 57. 
     Example 59 is a device, comprising the apparatus of Example 58, one or more application processors, radio frequency (RF) circuitry, and one or more RF antennas. 
     Example 60 is user equipment (UE), comprising radio frequency (RF) circuitry, and baseband circuitry coupled to the RF circuitry, the baseband circuitry to perform the method of any one of Examples 34 to 57. 
     Example 61 is at least one computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry of user equipment (UE), cause the UE to perform the method of any one of Examples 34 to 57. 
     Example 62 is an apparatus, comprising means for performing the method of any one of Examples 34 to 57. 
     Example 63 is user equipment (UE), comprising the apparatus of Example 62, one or more application processors, radio frequency (RF) circuitry, and one or more RF antennas. 
     Example 64 is a method, comprising detecting downlink control information (DCI) scheduling a downlink (DL) data transmission during a random access procedure in a next generation radio access network (NG-RAN) cell, accessing a DL wireless channel to receive the DL data transmission, identifying a slot offset value applicable to transmission of hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for a message comprised in the DL data transmission, identifying slot during which to transmit the HARQ feedback based on a slot of receipt of the DL data transmission, and the applicable slot offset value, and generating the HARQ feedback for transmission over a UL wireless channel of the NG-RAN cell during the identified slot. 
     Example 65 is the method of Example 64, comprising identifying the applicable slot offset value based on an indication comprised in a master information block (MIB) for the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 66 is the method of Example 64, comprising identifying the applicable slot offset value based on an indication comprised in a system information block (SIB) for the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 67 is the method of Example 64, the DCI to comprise a direct indication of the applicable slot offset value. 
     Example 68 is the method of Example 64, comprising identifying the applicable slot offset value based on an identity of a physical random access channel (PRACH) resource used for transmission of a random access preamble during the random access procedure. 
     Example 69 is the method of Example 68, comprising identifying a PRACH resource set comprising the PRACH resource, and identifying the applicable slot offset value based on an identity of the identified PRACH resource set. 
     Example 70 is the method of Example 64, comprising identifying one of a plurality of values in a value set as the applicable slot offset value, based on an indicator comprised in the DCI. 
     Example 71 is the method of Example 70, comprising identifying the value set based on information comprised in a master information block (MIB) for the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 72 is the method of any one of Examples 70 to 71, comprising identifying the value set based on information comprised in a system information block (SIB) for the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 73 is the method of any one of Examples 70 to 72, comprising identifying the value set based on an identity of a physical random access channel (PRACH) resource used to transmit a random access preamble during the random access procedure. 
     Example 74 is the method of Example 73, comprising identifying a PRACH resource set comprising the PRACH resource, and identifying the value set based on an identity of the PRACH resource set. 
     Example 75 is the method of any one of Examples 70 to 74, comprising identifying the applicable slot offset value based on an identity of a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) resource used for transmission of the DCI. 
     Example 76 is the method of Example 75, comprising identifying a PDCCH resource set comprising the PDCCH resource, and identifying the applicable slot offset value based on an identity of the identified PDCCH resource set. 
     Example 77 is the method of Example 64, comprising identifying a delay value based on information comprised in the DCI, and identifying the applicable slot offset value by adding the identified delay value to a base value. 
     Example 78 is the method of Example 77, comprising identifying one or both of the applicable delay value and the base value based on an identity of a physical random access channel (PRACH) resource used for transmission of a random access preamble during the random access procedure. 
     Example 79 is the method of any one of Examples 77 to 78, comprising identifying one or both of the applicable delay value and the base value based on an identity of a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) resource used for transmission of the DCI. 
     Example 80 is the method of Example 77, the DCI to comprise a direct indication of the delay value. 
     Example 81 is the method of Example 77, comprising identifying one of a plurality of values in a value set as the delay value, based on an indicator comprised in the DCI. 
     Example 82 is the method of Example 81, comprising identifying the value set based on information comprised in a master information block (MIB) for the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 83 is the method of any one of Examples 81 to 82, comprising identifying the value set based on information comprised in a system information block (SIB) for the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 84 is the method of any one of Examples 81 to 83, comprising identifying the value set based on an identity of a physical random access channel (PRACH) resource used to transmit a random access preamble during the random access procedure. 
     Example 85 is the method of Example 84, comprising identifying a PRACH resource set comprising the PRACH resource, and identifying the value set based on an identity of the PRACH resource set. 
     Example 86 is the method of any one of Examples 81 to 85, comprising identifying the applicable slot offset value based on an identity of a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) resource used for transmission of the DCI. 
     Example 87 is the method of Example 86, comprising identifying a PDCCH resource set comprising the PDCCH resource, and identifying the applicable slot offset value based on an identity of the identified PDCCH resource set. 
     Example 88 is the method of any one of Examples 64 to 87, the message to comprise a random access response message. 
     Example 89 is the method of any one of Examples 64 to 87, the message to comprise a contention resolution message. 
     Example 90 is the method of any one of Examples 64 to 89, the DL wireless channel to comprise a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) of the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 91 is the method of any one of Examples 64 to 90, the UL wireless channel to comprise a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) of the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 92 is an apparatus, comprising a memory interface, and circuitry for user equipment (UE), the circuitry to perform the method of any one of Examples 64 to 91. 
     Example 93 is a device, comprising the apparatus of Example 92, one or more application processors, radio frequency (RF) circuitry, and one or more RF antennas. 
     Example 94 is user equipment (UE), comprising radio frequency (RF) circuitry, and baseband circuitry coupled to the RF circuitry, the baseband circuitry to perform the method of any one of Examples 64 to 91. 
     Example 95 is at least one computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry of user equipment (UE), cause the UE to perform the method of any one of Examples 64 to 91. 
     Example 96 is an apparatus, comprising means for performing the method of any one of Examples 64 to 91. 
     Example 97 is user equipment (UE), comprising the apparatus of Example 96, one or more application processors, radio frequency (RF) circuitry, and one or more RF antennas. 
     Example 98 is a method, comprising transmitting a random access preamble to initiate a random access procedure in a next generation radio access network (NG-RAN) cell, detecting downlink control information (DCI) scheduling a data transmission over a wireless channel of the NG-RAN cell during the random access procedure, identifying a scheduled slot for the data transmission based on a slot of receipt of the DCI and a slot offset value applicable to the data transmission, and accessing the wireless channel during the scheduled slot. 
     Example 99 is the method of Example 98, the DCI to comprise a direct indication of the applicable slot offset value. 
     Example 100 is the method of Example 98, comprising identifying one of a plurality of values in a value set as the applicable slot offset value based on information comprised in the DCI. 
     Example 101 is the method of Example 98, comprising identifying a delay value based on information comprised in the DCI, and identifying the applicable slot offset value by adding the delay value to a base value. 
     Example 102 is the method of any one of Examples 98 to 101, comprising identifying the applicable slot offset value based on one or both of information comprised in a master information block (MIB) for the NG-RAN cell, and information comprised in a system information block (SIB) for the NG-RAN cell. 
     Example 103 is the method of any one of Examples 98 to 101, comprising identifying the applicable slot offset value based on one or both of an identity of a physical random access channel (PRACH) resource used for transmission of a random access preamble during the random access procedure, and an identity of a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) resource used for transmission of the DCI. 
     Example 104 is the method of any of Examples 98 to 101, the data transmission to comprise a downlink (DL) transmission over a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) of data comprising a random access response message or a contention resolution message. 
     Example 105 is the method of any of Examples 98 to 101, the data transmission to comprise an uplink (UL) transmission over a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) of data comprising a Radio Resource Control (RRC) Connection Request message. 
     Example 106 is an apparatus, comprising a memory interface, and circuitry for user equipment (UE), the circuitry to perform the method of any one of Examples 98 to 105. 
     Example 107 is a device, comprising the apparatus of Example 106, one or more application processors, radio frequency (RF) circuitry, and one or more RF antennas. 
     Example 108 is user equipment (UE), comprising radio frequency (RF) circuitry, and baseband circuitry coupled to the RF circuitry, the baseband circuitry to perform the method of any one of Examples 98 to 105. 
     Example 109 is at least one computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon instructions that, when executed by processing circuitry of user equipment (UE), cause the UE to perform the method of any one of Examples 98 to 105. 
     Example 110 is an apparatus, comprising means for performing the method of any one of Examples 98 to 105. 
     Example 111 is user equipment (UE), comprising the apparatus of Example 110, one or more application processors, radio frequency (RF) circuitry, and one or more RF antennas.] 
     Numerous specific details have been set forth herein to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments. It will be understood by those skilled in the art, however, that the embodiments may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known operations, components, and circuits have not been described in detail so as not to obscure the embodiments. It can be appreciated that the specific structural and functional details disclosed herein may be representative and do not necessarily limit the scope of the embodiments. 
     Some embodiments may be described using the expression “coupled” and “connected” along with their derivatives. These terms are not intended as synonyms for each other. For example, some embodiments may be described using the terms “connected” and/or “coupled” to indicate that two or more elements are in direct physical or electrical contact with each other. The term “coupled,” however, may also mean that two or more elements are not in direct contact with each other, but yet still co-operate or interact with each other. 
     It should be noted that the methods described herein do not necessarily have to be executed in the order described, or in any particular order. Moreover, various activities described with respect to the methods identified herein can be executed in serial or parallel fashion. 
     Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and described herein, it should be appreciated that any arrangement calculated to achieve the same purpose may be substituted for the specific embodiments shown. This disclosure is intended to cover any and all adaptations or variations of various embodiments. It is to be understood that the above description has been made in an illustrative fashion, and not a restrictive one. Combinations of the above embodiments, and other embodiments not specifically described herein will be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reviewing the above description. Thus, the scope of various embodiments includes any other applications in which the above compositions, structures, and methods are used. 
     It is emphasized that the Abstract of the Disclosure is provided merely to allow the reader to ascertain the general nature of the technical disclosure. It is submitted with the understanding that it will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the claims. In addition, in the foregoing Detailed Description, it can be seen that various features are grouped together in a single embodiment for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure. This method of disclosure is not to be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the claimed embodiments require more features than are expressly recited in each claim. Rather, as the following claims reflect, inventive subject matter lies in less than all features of a single disclosed embodiment. Thus the following claims are hereby incorporated into the Detailed Description, with each claim standing on its own as a separate preferred embodiment. 
     Although the subject matter has been described in language specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the subject matter defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims.

Metadata:
Filing Date: 20220818
Publication Date: 20240521
Grant Date: 20240521
Priority Date: 20170322
Inventors: XIONG, GANG
CHATTERJEE, Debdeep
NIMBALKER, AJIT
HE, HONG
Assignee: APPLE INC
CPC Classifications: [{"code": "H04W74/0833", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04W72/23", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04W72/0446", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04W74/0833", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04W76/27", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04W72/23", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04W72/23", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04W76/27", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04W72/0446", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04W74/0833", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}]
Family ID: 62111167