Abstract: A communication system, a method, and one or more non-transitory computer-readable storage devices allowing joint a user equipment to perform initial access with terrestrial and non-terrestrial communication nodes of a service area. The service area is partitioned into terrestrial initial-access zones and non-terrestrial initial-access zones with each terrestrial initial-access zone associated with one or more of the terrestrial communication nodes and each non-terrestrial initial-access zone associated with at least one of the non-terrestrial communication nodes. The user equipment uses positioning reference signals from positioning anchors to determine its location, determine a zone from the terrestrial and non-terrestrial initial-access zones based on the location, select one of the terrestrial and non-terrestrial communication nodes based on the determined zone, and establishing communication with the selected communication node.

Abstract: A resource mapping method and apparatus are described that reduce resource mapping complexity. The method includes an access network device obtaining resource mapping information of at least one terminal, and sending the resource mapping information to the at least one terminal respectively. The resource mapping information indicates a resource element RE to which each of the at least one terminal performs mapping in each RMB in a first resource mapping block RMB set. An RE to which a first terminal performs mapping in each RMB in the first RMB set is determined based on a first interleaved sequence, and the first interleaved sequence is determined based on a base sequence. The first terminal is any one of the at least one terminal, and the first RMB set includes at least one RMB.

Abstract: A notification regarding a transition of a User Equipment (UE) from a standby operating mode to an active operating mode is exchanged between a UE and a network element in a communication network. The notification could be an uplink notification that is transmitted by the UE to the network element in response to an operating mode transition criterion for the UE being met at the UE, or a downlink notification that is transmitted by the network element to the UE in response to an operating mode transition criterion for the UE being met at the network element. The UE transitions from the standby operating mode to the active operating mode in response to the operating mode transition criterion being satisfied. The transmitter of the notification, which could be the UE or the network element, could also perform grant-free transmission of data without first receiving a response to the notification.

Abstract: Some embodiments of the present disclosure provide for secure information transfer from apparatus to network device. The network device may define and configure a secure transfer path, having functions of secure data transmission with or without QoS. A new entity plane may take one or more new radio network temporary identifiers for flexible transmission scheduling. The network device may initiate the secure information transfer for downlink or uplink transmissions. The apparatus may initiate the secure information transfer for uplink transmissions.

Abstract: Cross-link switching between terrestrial and non-terrestrial links in integrated wireless communication networks involves interactions between a user equipment (UE), a terrestrial network device, and a non-terrestrial network device. Signaling is sent by one of the network devices and received by the UE, to schedule a transmission between the other network device and the UE. The scheduled transmission, which is cross-scheduled by one network device for the other network device, is communicated between the UE and the other network device according to the signaling. Communicating a transmission may involve sending the transmission by the UE and receiving the transmission by the other network device, or sending the transmission by the other network device and receiving the transmission by the UE.

Abstract: A method that includes sensing, by a first user equipment (UE), a signal transmitted by a second UE indicating a resource reservation for a shared channel for a sidelink (SL) transmission by the second UE and a priority associated with the SL transmission; determining, by the first UE, a threshold based on a type of the SL transmission and the priority; and selecting, by the first UE, a resource in the shared channel to use for a SL transmission by the first UE based on the threshold.

Abstract: Multiple communication paths are established for communications between a User Equipment (UE) and a wireless communication network, before switching between those paths is initiated. Signaling that includes an explicit indication that the UE is to switch between the multiple communication paths is transmitted to and received by at least the UE for which the multiple communication paths were established. Responsive to the explicit indication, communications are switched between the communication paths. At least one of the communication paths includes a relay path between the UE and the wireless communication network through another UE. Establishment of the multiple paths in advance of the switching may be useful in enabling fast switching with low latency and/or no traffic loss.

Abstract: A communication method and apparatus. A set of signal outputs includes one or more reference signals including a primary reference signal defined based on a configuration parameter. The reference signals are defined to eliminate phase distortion of the primary reference signal without impacting the peak to average power ratio of a signal waveform. The primary reference signal is transmitted at a time p. The set of signal outputs may also include a second reference signal transmitted at a time p+1, and a third reference signal transmitted at a time p?1. The power level of the primary reference signal may be boosted without impacting the peak to average power ratio of the signal waveform. The primary reference signal may be a first real reference signal replacing imaginary traffic at time p or a first imaginary reference signal replacing real traffic at time p.

Abstract: Signaling resource overhead associated with current communication link adaptation mechanisms can be quite large and such mechanisms typically rely upon a channel state information (CSI) feedback process that can result in poor scheduling performance. Embodiments are disclosed in which a first device channel state information characterizing a wireless communication channel between the first device and a second device, and trains a machine learning (ML) module of the first device using the CSI as an ML module input and one or more modulation and coding scheme (MCS) parameters as an ML module output to satisfy a training target. By applying the concepts disclosed herein, overhead associated with feedback for MCS selection may be reduced compared to conventional link adaptation procedures, because, once ML modules at a pair of devices have been trained, the MCS selection by the ML modules can be done without requiring the ongoing feedback of CSI.

Abstract: A communication method, a communication device and a non-transitory computer readable memory are provided for generating a first message only within a radio access network (RAN) of the wireless communication network and for communicating the first message in a radio bearer (RB) with a second communication device within the RAN. The first message is associated with a first message type, a priority of the first message type being lower than a priority of a second message having second message type communicated via a core network (CN) of the wireless communication network. The first message can comprise control signaling or data.

Abstract: A first user equipment (UE) is configured to receive from a base station a signaling comprising indication of one or more time-frequency resources and an indicator indicating a time gap, and transmit a transport block (TB) to a second UE using the one or more time-frequency resources. For each of the time-frequency resources, the first UE monitors a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback from the second UE, using a physical sidelink feedback channel (PSFCH) resource; and transmits to the base station a HARQ feedback report signal based on the HARQ feedback or absence thereof, in a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH), using a single PUCCH resource determined based on the time gap from a last one of the PSFCH resources.

Abstract: With sidelink reservation signals sent together with the sidelink data, there is the possibility of interference with other sidelink signals. In order to address this, systems and methods are provided in which a first UE transmits a reservation signal to indicate at least one time-frequency resource for transmitting sidelink data. Following this, the first UE transmits at least one sidelink data transmission to a second UE using the at least one time-frequency resource indicated by the reservation signal. The reservation signal is transmitted before the at least one sidelink data transmission signal so that a third UE may detect the reservation signal and use the reservation signal to avoid using the at least one time-frequency resource indicated in the reservation signal.

Abstract: A method embodiment includes implementing, by a base station (BS), a grant-free uplink transmission scheme. The grant-free uplink transmission scheme defines a first contention transmission unit (CTU) access region in a time-frequency domain, defines a plurality of CTUs, defines a default CTU mapping scheme by mapping at least some of the plurality of CTUs to the first CTU access region, and defines a default user equipment (UE) mapping scheme by defining rules for mapping a plurality of UEs to the plurality of CTUs.

Abstract: Current frame structures in Long-Term Evolution (LTE) and New Radio (NR) are not designed to accommodate full duplex (FD) communication. Embodiments are disclosed in which frame structures are provided that support FD communication and frequency division duplex (FDD) communication and time division duplex (TDD) communication. In some embodiments, there is defined two separate and independent frame structures: a frame structure for reception (e.g. a downlink frame structure) and a frame structure for transmission (e.g. an uplink frame structure).

Abstract: Current radio frame structures in Long-Term Evolution (LTE) and New Radio (NR) have some restrictions. A frame structure is disclosed herein that aims to provide more flexibility. Embodiments of the flexible frame structure include different parameters that are flexible, i.e. that are configurable. A non-exhaustive list of parameters that may be configurable include: length of the frame; length of a subframe (if a subframe is even defined); length of a slot and/or number of symbol blocks in a slot (if a slot is even defined); length of the CP and/or data portion in a symbol block, or ratio of CP to data portion, which may vary between symbol blocks; downlink/uplink switching gap length, etc.

Abstract: Methods and devices utilizing artificial intelligence (AI) or machine learning (ML) for customization of a device specific air interface configuration in a wireless communication network are provided. An over the air information exchange to facilitate the training of one or more AI/ML modules involves the exchange of AI/ML capability information identifying whether a device supports AI/ML for optimization of the air interface.

Abstract: Some embodiments of the present disclosure provide a location management function that receives, from a sensor system, a sensing-based profile that includes a sensing-based observation of a UE and receives, from a communication system, a reference-signal-based observation of the UE. The location management function may derive, from the sensing-based observation, a position hypothesis and may determine, from the reference-signal-based observation, UE identity information for the UE. By processing the reference-signal-based observation in conjunction with the sensing-based observation, the location management function may determine an association between the sensing-based observation and the reference-signal-based observation. The location management function may then transmit, to the UE having the UE identity information determined from the reference-signal-based observation, an indication of the position hypothesis derived from the sensing-based observation.

Abstract: Aspects of the present application provide methods and device for use in User Equipment (UE) cooperation. UE cooperation may include the cooperating UEs (CUEs) forwarding traffic to or from one or more target UEs (TUEs) with redundant signal transmissions or receptions. Methods involve a base station transmitting configuration information to at least one cooperative user equipment (CUE) and to a target user equipment (TUE). The configuration information includes an indication of resources for a sidelink (SL) transmission and a redundancy parameter for the SL transmission. The SL transmission is a transmission for the at least one CUE to forward a packet intended for the TUE. The base station also transmits the packet intended for the TUE, to a plurality of UEs comprising the at least one CUE and the TUE.

Abstract: A first communication apparatus obtains first configuration information, and performs carrier aggregation communication on at least two receive carriers based on the first configuration information. The first configuration information may indicate the first communication apparatus to perform carrier aggregation communication on the at least two receive carriers, the at least two receive carriers include a first receive carrier and a second receive carrier, the first receive carrier corresponds to a first communication standard, the second receive carrier corresponds to a second communication standard, and the first communication standard is different from the second communication standard.

Abstract: Some embodiments of the present disclosure provide control signaling mechanisms to support data transmission by a user equipment (UE) that is in the RRC_INACTIVE state and, more generally, in any inactive state. Beyond simply supporting data transmission by a user equipment that is in the RRC_INACTIVE state, aspects of the present application provide mechanisms for configuring the UE for preamble transmission or sounding reference signal (SRS) transmission and for toggling between such transmissions. Aspects of the present application relate to mechanisms for enabling Timing Advance estimation, which mechanisms are not burdened with high overhead and which allow the UE to remain in the RRC_INACTIVE state.