Support For Beam Failure Recovery On Secondary Cell In Mobile Communications

Abstract

Techniques and examples of support for beam failure recovery on secondary cell in mobile communications are described. An apparatus (e.g., user equipment (UE)) detects a beam failure in wireless communication with a secondary cell (SCell) of a wireless network. The apparatus then signals on a network-configured resource an indication to inform the wireless network of the beam failure on the SCell. In response to the signaling, the apparatus receives a response from the wireless network.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED PATENT APPLICATION

The present disclosure claims the priority benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/653,561, filed on 6 Apr. 2018, the content of which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure is generally related to mobile communications and, more particularly, to support for beam failure recovery on secondary cell in mobile communications.

BACKGROUND

Unless otherwise indicated herein, approaches described in this section are not prior art to the claims listed below and are not admitted as prior art by inclusion in this section.

Under current 3^rd-Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) specification for New Radio (NR) mobile communications, a user equipment (UE) can select another beam from a list of candidate beams when a serving beam is not available. In general, this involves beam failure detection and beam failure recovery (BFR). With respect to beam failure detection, a physical layer (PHY) in the UE monitors downlink (DL) reference signal received power (RSRP) of the serving beam from a wireless network. When the RSRP of the serving beam is low, the PHY indicates beam failure to a medium access control layer (MAC). Once the number of beam failure indications received by the MAC exceeds a threshold, the MAC considers that beam failure has been detected. With respect to BFR, once the beam failure is detected, the UE triggers a BFR procedure, which in turn triggers a random access channel (RACH) procedure supporting contention-based random access (CBRA) fallback. That is, if the wireless network does not configure a dedicated physical random access channel (PRACH) for BFR, the UE performs CBRA. Conversely, if the wireless network configures dedicated PRACH for BFR, the UE performs a contention-free random access (CFRA) procedure which supports CBRA fallback.

Under current 3GPP specification, BFR is supported on a special cell (SpCell) with CBRA PRACH resource but not on SCell (without CBRA PRACH resource). If RACH procedure is successfully completed, the UE can consider the BFR procedure to be successfully completed. However, if RACH procedure is not successfully completed, the PHY would indicate a random access problem to upper layers.

SUMMARY

The following summary is illustrative only and is not intended to be limiting in any way. That is, the following summary is provided to introduce concepts, highlights, benefits and advantages of the novel and non-obvious techniques described herein. Select implementations are further described below in the detailed description. Thus, the following summary is not intended to identify essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended for use in determining the scope of the claimed subject matter.

In one aspect, a method may involve a processor of an apparatus detecting a beam failure in wireless communication with a secondary cell (SCell) of a wireless network. The method may also involve the processor signaling on a network-configured resource an indication to inform the wireless network of the beam failure on the SCell. The method may further involve the processor receiving a response from the wireless network responsive to the signaling.

In one aspect, an apparatus may include a transceiver and a processor coupled to the transceiver. During operation, the transceiver may wirelessly communicate with a wireless network. During operation, the processor may perform operations including: (a) detecting a beam failure in wireless communication with a SCell of a wireless network; (b) signaling, via the transceiver, on a network-configured resource an indication to inform the wireless network of the beam failure on the SCell; and (c) receiving, via the transceiver, a response from the wireless network responsive to the signaling.

It is noteworthy that, although description provided herein may be in the context of certain radio access technologies, networks and network topologies such as 5G NR, the proposed concepts, schemes and any variation(s)/derivative(s) thereof may be implemented in, for and by other types of radio access technologies, networks and network topologies such as, for example and without limitation, Long-Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Advanced, LTE-Advanced Pro, and Internet-of-Things (IoT). Thus, the scope of the present disclosure is not limited to the examples described herein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the disclosure and are incorporated in and constitute a part of the present disclosure. The drawings illustrate implementations of the disclosure and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the disclosure. It is appreciable that the drawings are not necessarily in scale as some components may be shown to be out of proportion than the size in actual implementation to clearly illustrate the concept of the present disclosure.

FIG. 1 is a diagram of an example scenario in accordance with an implementation of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a diagram of an example table in accordance with an implementation of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an example system in accordance with an implementation of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of an example process in accordance with an implementation of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Detailed embodiments and implementations of the claimed subject matters are disclosed herein. However, it shall be understood that the disclosed embodiments and implementations are merely illustrative of the claimed subject matters which may be embodied in various forms. The present disclosure may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the exemplary embodiments and implementations set forth herein. Rather, these exemplary embodiments and implementations are provided so that description of the present disclosure is thorough and complete and will fully convey the scope of the present disclosure to those skilled in the art. In the description below, details of well-known features and techniques may be omitted to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the presented embodiments and implementations.

Overview

FIG. 1 illustrates an example scenario 100 in accordance with an implementation of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 shows an example table 200 in accordance with an implementation of the present disclosure. Referring to part (A) of FIG. 1, scenario 100 may involve a user equipment (UE) 110 in wireless communication with a wireless network 120 (e.g., a 5^th-Generation (5G) NR mobile network) via a base station or network node 125 (e.g., a gNB or transmit-receive point (TRP)). In scenario 100, UE 110 may perform wireless communications, including beam failure detection and beam failure recovery, with wireless network 120 via base station 125 using one or more of various proposed schemes in accordance with the present disclosure. The follow description of one proposed scheme in accordance with the present disclosure is provided with reference to part (A) and part (B) of FIG. 1 as well as FIG. 2.

Under a proposed scheme in accordance with the present disclosure, a resource (or resources) to be utilized in response to a BFR request may be either on a secondary cell (SCell) or a primary cell (PCell) of a wireless network (e.g., 5G/NR mobile network). Under the proposed scheme, when the resource is on the PCell, the resource may include one of the following: (1) contention-free physical random access channel (PRACH) resource on the SCell, (2) contention-based PRACH resource on the SCell dedicated for BFR request, and (3) contention-based PRACH resource on the SCell not dedicated for BFR request. Under the proposed scheme, when the resource is on the PCell, the resource may include one of the following: (1) contention-free PRACH resource on the PCell dedicated for BFR request, (2) contention-based PRACH resource on the PCell dedicated for BFR request, and (3) contention-based PRACH resource on the PCell not dedicated for BFR request. When the resource includes contention-free PRACH resource on the PCell dedicated for BFR request, PRACH resource and/or preamble for BFR may be split to indicate BFR information (e.g., identify (ID) of the serving cell). Additionally, under the proposed scheme, a new medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) may be utilized for beam failure indication. For instance, the MAC CE may indicate the ID of the SCell on which beam failure occurs, as well as information on candidate beam(s) and ID(s) thereof.

Referring to part (B) of FIG. 1, when UE 110 signals a BFR request to wireless network 120, there may be an uplink (UL) signaling aspect and an UL message aspect to the BFR request. For instance, the UL signaling for the BFR request may be performed via a PRACH, a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) or a configured grant. The PUCCH may be on either the SCell or the PCell. The configured grant may be configured to be dedicated for BFR on the PCell. In terms of types, the PRACH may a contention-free random access (CFRA) PRACH, a contention-based random access (CBRA) PRACH dedicated for BFR, or a CBRA PRACH not dedicated for BFR. In terms of location, the PRACH may be on either the SCell or the PCell. With respect to the UL message for the BFR request, the content of the UL message may include the ID of the SCell and information on any candidate beam(s) as well as associated RSRP of each candidate beam. The UL message may be in the form of a MAC CE.

Referring to FIG. 2, table 200 provides a summary of various schemes implementing support for beam failure recovery on secondary cell in mobile communications in accordance with the present disclosure. As shown in table 200, under a proposed scheme, there may be three different scenarios with respect to RACH resource type/location, including: (1) there is dedicated PRACH for BFR with CFRA (as wireless network 120 knows UE 110 intends to perform BFR); (2) there is only contention-based PRACH, dedicated for BFR, with CBRA (as wireless network 120 knows some UE(s), including UE 110, intend to perform BFR); and (3) there is only contention-based PRACH, not dedicated for BFR, with CBRA (as wireless network 120 does not know why UE 110 triggers CBRA until wireless network 120 receives a message 3 (Msg3) from UE 110).

When there is dedicated PRACH for BFR with CFRA, there may be two cases with respect to PRACH on the SCell with beam failure. In a first case (case 1), a random access response (RAR) may be received on the PCell, which may be the same as legacy CFRA on SCell. In a second case (case 2), the RAR may be received on the SCell. When there is only contention-based PRACH, dedicated for BFR, with CBRA, there may be two cases with respect to PRACH on the SCell with beam failure. In a first case (case 1), the RAR may be received on the PCell. In a second case (case 2), the RAR may be received on the SCell. When there is only contention-based PRACH, not dedicated for BFR, with CBRA, there may be two cases with respect to PRACH on the SCell with beam failure. In a first case (case 1), the RAR may be received on the PCell. In a second case (case 2), the RAR may be received on the SCell.

With respect to PRACH on the PCell, when there is dedicated PRACH for BFR with CFRA, the RAR may be received on the PCell. In such cases, BFR information may be implicitly carried in a selected PRACH resource and/or preamble. Additionally, or alternatively, BFR information may be explicitly carried in an UL transmission after CFRA. When there is only contention-based PRACH, dedicated for BFR, with CBRA, the RAR may be received on the PCell. In such cases, BFR information may be implicitly carried in a selected PRACH resource and/or preamble. Additionally, or alternatively, BFR information may be explicitly carried in Msg3. When there is only contention-based PRACH, not dedicated for BFR, with CBRA, the RAR may be received on the PCell (which may be the same as legacy CBRA on PCell). In such cases, BFR information may be carried in Msg3.

Turning back to part (B) of FIG. 1, under a proposed scheme in accordance with the present disclosure, when PUCCH for BFR request is on the SCell, the PUCCH may be dedicated for BFR, which may be associated with different candidate beams. In such cases, a scheduling request (SR) procedure may be reused (e.g., by sending several PUCCHs on different candidate beams). In an event that wireless network 120 receives the PUCCH(s) for BFR, wireless network 120 may send an UL grant to UE 110 on downlink (DL) candidate beam(s). Optionally, a DL MAC CE or a new radio network temporary identifier (RNTI) may be introduced to confirm the receipt of the BFR request.

Under the proposed scheme, when PUCCH for BFR request is on the PCell, a SR configuration may be dedicated for BFR indication. In an event that wireless network 110 receives the PUCCH for BFR, wireless network 110 may send an UL grant to UE 120. UE 120 may then include BFR request information in the UL grant. Information of the BFR request may include an ID of the serving cell as well as information on candidate beam(s) and ID(s) thereof.

In view of the above, support for beam failure recovery on SCell may be accomplished by one of multiple proposed schemes in accordance with the present disclosure. Under a proposed scheme, BFR on the SCell may trigger a CFRA. The CFRA may be the same as legacy (e.g., PRACH on SCell, with RAR received on the PCell). Alternatively, PRACH may be on the SCell, with RAR received on the SCell as well. For instance, the SCell may be configured with a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) or control resource set (CORESET) for RAR reception for BFR.

Under another proposed scheme in accordance with the present disclosure, wireless network 120 may configure a configured grant based on PRACH resource pool on the SCell. For instance, the PRACH resource pool on SCell may be for contention-based beam recovery, not for general CBRA. In this way, upon detection of a message 1 (Msg1) (e.g., from UE 110), wireless network 120 may know that some UE intends to perform contention-based beam recovery. Upon receiving message 3 (Msg3) (e.g., from UE 110), wireless network 120 may know which UE in particular intends to perform beam recovery on which of its SCell.

Alternatively, the contention-based PRACH resource pool on the SCell may be used not only for contention-based beam recovery but also for general CBRA. For instance, in Msg3, a MAC CE may be added to indicate that CBRA is for beam recover, or wireless network 120 may determine whether the CBRA is for beam recovery based on the selected beam used for transmitting RACH procedure (e.g., if UE 110 sends a preamble associated with a candidate beam, the RACH procedure would be for beam recovery).

Under yet another proposed scheme in accordance with the present disclosure, a RACH procedure may be triggered on the PCell for BFR on the SCell. For instance, in Msg3, a MAC CE may be added to include beam recovery information such as, for example and without limitation, ID of the serving cell and notification of beam failure recovery (e.g., expressed as a new logical channel identification (LCID)). Alternatively, wireless network 120 may configure a contention-based PRACH resource pool dedicated for beam recovery on the PCell. In such cases, PRACH resource/preamble may be further split to indicate to wireless network 120 which serving cell has beam failure. In an event that beam failure information has been indicated in selected PRACH resource/preamble, it may not be necessary for Msg3 to carry any beam failure indication. In an event that beam failure information is not provided in selected PRACH resource/preamble, such information may be included in Msg3. Moreover, PDCCH of message 4 (Msg4) may carry information of newly scheduled dedicated PRACH resource on the SCell for UE 110 to perform CFRA beam recovery again.

Under still another proposed scheme in accordance with the present disclosure, a resource may be provided for the network dedicated for beam failure indication/report. For instance, wireless network 120 may configure a SR configuration associated with specific serving cell(s). In an event that wireless network 120 detects a SR transmission, wireless network 120 may know that the serving cell associated with the SR configuration has beam failure. Alternatively, wireless network 120 may configure a configured grant dedicated for beam failure recovery. Still alternatively, wireless network 120 may configure contention-based UL resource for beam recovery indication. In such case, any UE with beam failure may send the indication along with its ID explicitly or implicitly (e.g., demodulation reference signal (DMRS) pattern) on the contention-based resource. As another alternatively, wireless network 120 may configure dedicated PRACH resource for BFR on the PCell for SCell BFR report. Under the proposed scheme, wireless network 120 may send a DL message to UE 110 as a response to the transmission of indication/report for SCell beam failure.

Illustrative Implementations

FIG. 3 illustrates an example system 300 having at least an example apparatus 310 and an example apparatus 320 in accordance with an implementation of the present disclosure. Each of apparatus 310 and apparatus 320 may perform various functions to implement schemes, techniques, processes and methods described herein pertaining to support for beam failure recovery on secondary cell in mobile communications, including the various schemes described above with respect to various proposed designs, concepts, schemes, systems and methods described above as well as process 300 described below. For instance, apparatus 310 may be an example implementation of UE 110, and apparatus 320 may be an example implementation of base station 125.

Each of apparatus 310 and apparatus 320 may be a part of an electronic apparatus, which may be a network apparatus or a UE (e.g., UE 110), such as a portable or mobile apparatus, a wearable apparatus, a wireless communication apparatus or a computing apparatus. For instance, each of apparatus 310 and apparatus 320 may be implemented in a smartphone, a smart watch, a personal digital assistant, a digital camera, or a computing equipment such as a tablet computer, a laptop computer or a notebook computer. Each of apparatus 310 and apparatus 320 may also be a part of a machine type apparatus, which may be an IoT apparatus such as an immobile or a stationary apparatus, a home apparatus, a wire communication apparatus or a computing apparatus. For instance, each of apparatus 310 and apparatus 320 may be implemented in a smart thermostat, a smart fridge, a smart door lock, a wireless speaker or a home control center. When implemented in or as a network apparatus, apparatus 310 and/or apparatus 320 may be implemented in a base station (e.g., base station 125), such as an eNB in an LTE, LTE-Advanced or LTE-Advanced Pro network or in a gNB or TRP in a 5G network, an NR network or an IoT network.

In some implementations, each of apparatus 310 and apparatus 320 may be implemented in the form of one or more integrated-circuit (IC) chips such as, for example and without limitation, one or more single-core processors, one or more multi-core processors, or one or more complex-instruction-set-computing (CISC) processors. In the various schemes described above, each of apparatus 310 and apparatus 320 may be implemented in or as a network apparatus or a UE. Each of apparatus 310 and apparatus 320 may include at least some of those components shown in FIG. 3 such as a processor 312 and a processor 322, respectively, for example. Each of apparatus 310 and apparatus 320 may further include one or more other components not pertinent to the proposed scheme of the present disclosure (e.g., internal power supply, display device and/or user interface device), and, thus, such component(s) of apparatus 310 and apparatus 320 are neither shown in FIG. 3 nor described below in the interest of simplicity and brevity.

In one aspect, each of processor 312 and processor 322 may be implemented in the form of one or more single-core processors, one or more multi-core processors, or one or more CISC processors. That is, even though a singular term “a processor” is used herein to refer to processor 312 and processor 322, each of processor 312 and processor 322 may include multiple processors in some implementations and a single processor in other implementations in accordance with the present disclosure. In another aspect, each of processor 312 and processor 322 may be implemented in the form of hardware (and, optionally, firmware) with electronic components including, for example and without limitation, one or more transistors, one or more diodes, one or more capacitors, one or more resistors, one or more inductors, one or more memristors and/or one or more varactors that are configured and arranged to achieve specific purposes in accordance with the present disclosure. In other words, in at least some implementations, each of processor 312 and processor 322 is a special-purpose machine specifically designed, arranged and configured to perform specific tasks including those pertaining to support for beam failure recovery on secondary cell in mobile communications in accordance with various implementations of the present disclosure.

In some implementations, apparatus 310 may also include a transceiver 316 coupled to processor 312. Transceiver 316 may be capable of wirelessly transmitting and receiving data. In some implementations, apparatus 320 may also include a transceiver 326 coupled to processor 322. Transceiver 326 may include a transceiver capable of wirelessly transmitting and receiving data.

In some implementations, apparatus 310 may further include a memory 314 coupled to processor 312 and capable of being accessed by processor 312 and storing data therein. In some implementations, apparatus 320 may further include a memory 324 coupled to processor 322 and capable of being accessed by processor 322 and storing data therein. Each of memory 314 and memory 324 may include a type of random-access memory (RAM) such as dynamic RAM (DRAM), static RAM (SRAM), thyristor RAM (T-RAM) and/or zero-capacitor RAM (Z-RAM). Alternatively, or additionally, each of memory 314 and memory 324 may include a type of read-only memory (ROM) such as mask ROM, programmable ROM (PROM), erasable programmable ROM (EPROM) and/or electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM). Alternatively, or additionally, each of memory 314 and memory 324 may include a type of non-volatile random-access memory (NVRAM) such as flash memory, solid-state memory, ferroelectric RAM (FeRAM), magnetoresistive RAM (MRAM) and/or phase-change memory.

Each of apparatus 310 and apparatus 320 may be a communication entity capable of communicating with each other using various proposed schemes in accordance with the present disclosure. For illustrative purposes and without limitation, a description of capabilities of apparatus 310, as a UE, and apparatus 320, as a base station of a serving cell of a wireless network (e.g., 5G/NR mobile network), is provided below. It is noteworthy that, although the example implementations described below are provided in the context of a UE, the same may be implemented in and performed by a base station. Thus, although the following description of example implementations pertains to apparatus 310 as a UE (e.g., UE 110), the same is also applicable to apparatus 320 as a network node or base station such as a gNB, TRP or eNodeB (e.g., base station 125) of a wireless network (e.g., wireless network 120) such as a 5G/NR mobile network.

Under a proposed scheme with respect to support for beam failure recovery on secondary cell in mobile communications in accordance with the present disclosure, processor 312 of apparatus 310 may detect a beam failure in wireless communication with a SCell of a wireless network. Additionally, processor 312 may signal, via transceiver 316, on a network-configured resource an indication to inform the wireless network via apparatus 320 of the beam failure on the SCell. Moreover, processor 312 may receive, via transceiver 316, a response from the wireless network via apparatus 320 responsive to the signaling.

In some implementations, the network-configured resource may include a contention-free PRACH resource on the SCell. In such cases, the contention-free PRACH resource may be dedicated for beam failure recovery for the SCell. In some implementations, in receiving the response, processor 312 may receive, via transceiver 316, the response from the SCell on which the beam failure is detected. In some implementations, in signaling on the network-configured resource, processor 312 may transmit, via transceiver 316, a preamble using the contention-free PRACH resource on the SCell. In such cases, the response may include an UL grant which includes an ID of apparatus 310 and optionally beam failure information. Alternatively, in receiving the response, processor 312 may receive, via transceiver 316, the response from a PCell of the wireless network. In some implementations, in signaling on the network-configured resource, processor 312 may transmit, via transceiver 316, a preamble using the contention-free PRACH resource on the SCell. In such cases, the response may include an UL grant which includes an ID of apparatus 310 and optionally beam failure information.

In some implementations, the network-configured resource may include a contention-based PRACH resource on the SCell. In such cases, the contention-based PRACH resource may be dedicated for beam failure recovery for the SCell.

In some implementations, the network-configured resource may include a contention-based PRACH resource on the SCell. In such cases, the contention-based PRACH resource may be not dedicated for beam failure recovery for the SCell.

In some implementations, the network-configured resource may include a contention-free PRACH resource on a PCell. In such cases, the contention-free PRACH resource may be dedicated for beam failure recovery for the SCell. In some implementations, the contention-free PRACH resource may be split to indicate to the network a serving cell on which the beam failure occurs. In some implementations, processor 312 may perform additional operations. For instance, in an event that serving cell information is indicated in the PRACH resource or a preamble signaled to the wireless network, processor 312 may perform, via transceiver 316, a CFRA procedure responsive to receiving the response from the wireless network. Alternatively, in an event that the serving cell information is not indicated in the PRACH resource or any preamble signaled to the wireless network, processor 312 may perform, via transceiver 316, a CBRA procedure and transmitting to the wireless network a message 3 (Msg3) indicating the serving cell information with beam failure.

In some implementations, the network-configured resource may include a contention-based PRACH resource on a PCell. In such cases, the contention-free PRACH resource may be dedicated for beam failure recovery for the SCell. In some implementations, the response may include an UL grant which includes an ID of apparatus 310 and information of a serving cell on which the beam failure occurs.

In some implementations, the network-configured resource may include a contention-based PRACH resource on a PCell. In such cases, the contention-free PRACH resource may be not dedicated for beam failure recovery for the SCell. In some implementations, the response may include an UL grant which includes an ID of apparatus 310 and information of a serving cell on which the beam failure occurs.

In some implementations, the network-configured resource may include a configured grant dedicated for beam failure report on a PCell.

In some implementations, the network-configured resource may be not dedicated for beam failure recovery. In such cases, the response may include an UL grant. Moreover, processor 312 may transmit, via transceiver 316, to the wireless network via apparatus 320 an indication in the UL grant that a RACH procedure is for the beam failure recovery.

In some implementations, the indication may include a MAC CE with a separate LCID. In some implementations, the MAC CE may include a bitmap that indicates an ID of the SCell on which the beam failure occurs. Alternatively, or additionally, the MAC CE may include an ID of the SCell on which the beam failure occurs and an ID of a candidate beam with a relatively better RSRP on the SCell.

Illustrative Processes

FIG. 4 illustrates an example process 400 in accordance with an implementation of the present disclosure. Process 400 may represent an aspect of implementing various proposed designs, concepts, schemes, systems and methods described above. More specifically, process 400 may represent an aspect of the proposed concepts and schemes pertaining to support for beam failure recovery on secondary cell in mobile communications. Process 400 may include one or more operations, actions, or functions as illustrated by one or more of blocks 410, 420 and 430. Although illustrated as discrete blocks, various blocks of process 400 may be divided into additional blocks, combined into fewer blocks, or eliminated, depending on the desired implementation. Moreover, the blocks/sub-blocks of process 400 may be executed in the order shown in FIG. 4 or, alternatively in a different order. Furthermore, one or more of the blocks/sub-blocks of process 400 may be executed repeatedly or iteratively. Process 400 may be implemented by or in apparatus 310 and apparatus 320 as well as any variations thereof. Solely for illustrative purposes and without limiting the scope, process 400 is described below in the context of apparatus 310 as a UE (e.g., UE 110) and apparatus 320 as a base station (e.g., base station 125) of a wireless network (e.g., wireless network 120) such as a 5G/NR mobile network. Process 400 may begin at block 410.

At 410, process 400 may involve processor 312 of apparatus 310 detecting a beam failure in wireless communication with a SCell of a wireless network. Process 400 may proceed from 410 to 420.

At 420, process 400 may involve processor 312 signaling, via transceiver 316, on a network-configured resource an indication to inform the wireless network via apparatus 320 of the beam failure on the SCell. Process 400 may proceed from 420 to 430.

At 430, process 400 may involve processor 312 receiving, via transceiver 316, a response from the wireless network via apparatus 320 responsive to the signaling.

In some implementations, the network-configured resource may include a contention-free PRACH resource on the SCell. In such cases, the contention-free PRACH resource may be dedicated for beam failure recovery for the SCell. In some implementations, in receiving the response, process 400 may involve processor 312 receiving, via transceiver 316, the response from the SCell on which the beam failure is detected. In some implementations, in signaling on the network-configured resource, process 400 may involve processor 312 transmitting, via transceiver 316, a preamble using the contention-free PRACH resource on the SCell. In such cases, the response may include an UL grant which includes an ID of apparatus 310 and optionally beam failure information. Alternatively, in receiving the response, process 400 may involve processor 312 receiving, via transceiver 316, the response from a PCell of the wireless network. In some implementations, in signaling on the network-configured resource, process 400 may involve processor 312 transmitting, via transceiver 316, a preamble using the contention-free PRACH resource on the SCell. In such cases, the response may include an UL grant which includes an ID of apparatus 310 and optionally beam failure information.

In some implementations, the network-configured resource may include a contention-based PRACH resource on the SCell. In such cases, the contention-based PRACH resource may be dedicated for beam failure recovery for the SCell.

In some implementations, the network-configured resource may include a contention-based PRACH resource on the SCell. In such cases, the contention-based PRACH resource may be not dedicated for beam failure recovery for the SCell.

In some implementations, the network-configured resource may include a contention-free PRACH resource on a PCell. In such cases, the contention-free PRACH resource may be dedicated for beam failure recovery for the SCell. In some implementations, the contention-free PRACH resource may be split to indicate to the network a serving cell on which the beam failure occurs. In some implementations, process 400 may involve processor 312 performing additional operations. For instance, in an event that serving cell information is indicated in the PRACH resource or a preamble signaled to the wireless network, process 400 may involve processor 312 performing, via transceiver 316, a CFRA procedure responsive to receiving the response from the wireless network. Alternatively, in an event that the serving cell information is not indicated in the PRACH resource or any preamble signaled to the wireless network, process 400 may involve processor 312 performing, via transceiver 316, a CBRA procedure and transmitting to the wireless network a message 3 (Msg3) indicating the serving cell information with beam failure.

In some implementations, the network-configured resource may include a contention-based PRACH resource on a PCell. In such cases, the contention-free PRACH resource may be dedicated for beam failure recovery for the SCell. In some implementations, the response may include an UL grant which includes an ID of apparatus 310 and information of a serving cell on which the beam failure occurs.

In some implementations, the network-configured resource may include a contention-based PRACH resource on a PCell. In such cases, the contention-free PRACH resource may be not dedicated for beam failure recovery for the SCell. In some implementations, the response may include an UL grant which includes an ID of apparatus 310 and information of a serving cell on which the beam failure occurs.

In some implementations, the network-configured resource may include a configured grant dedicated for beam failure report on a PCell.

In some implementations, the network-configured resource may be not dedicated for beam failure recovery. In such cases, the response may include an UL grant. Moreover, process 400 may also involve processor 312 transmitting, via transceiver 316, to the wireless network via apparatus 320 an indication in the UL grant that a RACH procedure is for the beam failure recovery.

In some implementations, the indication may include a MAC CE with a separate LCID. In some implementations, the MAC CE may include a bitmap that indicates an ID of the SCell on which the beam failure occurs. Alternatively, or additionally, the MAC CE may include an ID of the SCell on which the beam failure occurs and an ID of a candidate beam with a relatively better RSRP on the SCell.

Additional Notes

The herein-described subject matter sometimes illustrates different components contained within, or connected with, different other components. It is to be understood that such depicted architectures are merely examples, and that in fact many other architectures can be implemented which achieve the same functionality. In a conceptual sense, any arrangement of components to achieve the same functionality is effectively “associated” such that the desired functionality is achieved. Hence, any two components herein combined to achieve a particular functionality can be seen as “associated with” each other such that the desired functionality is achieved, irrespective of architectures or intermedial components. Likewise, any two components so associated can also be viewed as being “operably connected”, or “operably coupled”, to each other to achieve the desired functionality, and any two components capable of being so associated can also be viewed as being “operably couplable”, to each other to achieve the desired functionality. Specific examples of operably couplable include but are not limited to physically mateable and/or physically interacting components and/or wirelessly interactable and/or wirelessly interacting components and/or logically interacting and/or logically interactable components.

Further, with respect to the use of substantially any plural and/or singular terms herein, those having skill in the art can translate from the plural to the singular and/or from the singular to the plural as is appropriate to the context and/or application. The various singular/plural permutations may be expressly set forth herein for sake of clarity.

Moreover, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that, in general, terms used herein, and especially in the appended claims, e.g., bodies of the appended claims, are generally intended as “open” terms, e.g., the term “including” should be interpreted as “including but not limited to,” the term “having” should be interpreted as “having at least,” the term “includes” should be interpreted as “includes but is not limited to,” etc. It will be further understood by those within the art that if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is intended, such an intent will be explicitly recited in the claim, and in the absence of such recitation no such intent is present. For example, as an aid to understanding, the following appended claims may contain usage of the introductory phrases “at least one” and “one or more” to introduce claim recitations. However, the use of such phrases should not be construed to imply that the introduction of a claim recitation by the indefinite articles “a” or “an” limits any particular claim containing such introduced claim recitation to implementations containing only one such recitation, even when the same claim includes the introductory phrases “one or more” or “at least one” and indefinite articles such as “a” or “an,” e.g., “a” and/or “an” should be interpreted to mean “at least one” or “one or more;” the same holds true for the use of definite articles used to introduce claim recitations. In addition, even if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is explicitly recited, those skilled in the art will recognize that such recitation should be interpreted to mean at least the recited number, e.g., the bare recitation of “two recitations,” without other modifiers, means at least two recitations, or two or more recitations. Furthermore, in those instances where a convention analogous to “at least one of A, B, and C, etc.” is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention, e.g., “a system having at least one of A, B, and C” would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc. In those instances where a convention analogous to “at least one of A, B, or C, etc.” is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention, e.g., “a system having at least one of A, B, or C” would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc. It will be further understood by those within the art that virtually any disjunctive word and/or phrase presenting two or more alternative terms, whether in the description, claims, or drawings, should be understood to contemplate the possibilities of including one of the terms, either of the terms, or both terms. For example, the phrase “A or B” will be understood to include the possibilities of “A” or “B” or “A and B.”

From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that various implementations of the present disclosure have been described herein for purposes of illustration, and that various modifications may be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the present disclosure. Accordingly, the various implementations disclosed herein are not intended to be limiting, with the true scope and spirit being indicated by the following claims.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

detecting, by a processor of an apparatus, a beam failure in wireless communication with a secondary cell (SCell) of a wireless network;

signaling, by the processor, on a network-configured resource an indication to inform the wireless network of the beam failure on the SCell; and

receiving, by the processor, a response from the wireless network responsive to the signaling.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the network-configured resource comprises a contention-free physical random access channel (PRACH) resource on the SCell, and wherein the contention-free PRACH resource is dedicated for beam failure recovery for the SCell.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the receiving of the response comprises receiving the response from the SCell on which the beam failure is detected.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the signaling on the network-configured resource comprises transmitting a preamble using the contention-free PRACH resource on the SCell, and wherein the response comprises an uplink (UL) grant which includes an identity (ID) of the apparatus and optionally beam failure information.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein the receiving of the response comprises receiving the response from a primary cell (PCell) of the wireless network.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the signaling on the network-configured resource comprises transmitting a preamble using the contention-free PRACH resource on the SCell, and wherein the response comprises an uplink (UL) grant which includes an identity (ID) of the apparatus and optionally beam failure information.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the network-configured resource comprises a contention-based physical random access channel (PRACH) resource on the SCell, and wherein the contention-based PRACH resource is dedicated for beam failure recovery for the SCell.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the network-configured resource comprises a contention-based physical random access channel (PRACH) resource on the SCell, and wherein the contention-based PRACH resource is not dedicated for beam failure recovery for the SCell.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the network-configured resource comprises a contention-free physical random access channel (PRACH) resource on a primary cell (PCell), and wherein the contention-free PRACH resource is dedicated for beam failure recovery for the SCell.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the contention-free PRACH resource is split to indicate to the network a serving cell on which the beam failure occurs.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

in an event that serving cell information is indicated in the PRACH resource or a preamble signaled to the wireless network, performing a contention-free random access (CFRA) procedure responsive to receiving the response from the wireless network; or

in an event that the serving cell information is not indicated in the PRACH resource or any preamble signaled to the wireless network: performing a contention-based random access (CBRA) procedure; and transmitting to the wireless network a message 3 (Msg3) indicating the serving cell information with beam failure.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the network-configured resource comprises a contention-based physical random access channel (PRACH) resource on a primary cell (PCell), and wherein the contention-free PRACH resource is dedicated for beam failure recovery for the SCell.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the response comprises an uplink (UL) grant which includes an identity (ID) of the apparatus and information of a serving cell on which the beam failure occurs.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the network-configured resource comprises a contention-based physical random access channel (PRACH) resource on a primary cell (PCell), and wherein the contention-free PRACH resource is not dedicated for beam failure recovery for the SCell.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the response comprises an uplink (UL) grant which includes an identity (ID) of the apparatus and information of a serving cell on which the beam failure occurs.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the network-configured resource comprises a configured grant dedicated for beam failure report on a primary cell (PCell).

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the network-configured resource is not dedicated for beam failure recovery, wherein the response comprises an uplink (UL) grant, further comprising:

transmitting to the wireless network an indication in the UL grant that a random access channel (RACH) procedure is for the beam failure recovery.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein the indication comprises a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) with a separate logical channel identification (LCID).

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the MAC CE comprises a bitmap that indicates an identity (ID) of the SCell on which the beam failure occurs.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the MAC CE comprises an identity (ID) of the SCell on which the beam failure occurs and an ID of a candidate beam with a relatively better reference signal received power (RSRP) on the SCell.