Related Applications

This application claims the benefit of provisional patent application serial number 63/298,054, filed January 10, 2022, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to a cellular communications system and, more specifically, to Configured Grant Small Data Transmission (CG-SDT) in a cellular communications system.

Background

In Release 15, the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) introduced a new radioaccess technology known as New Radio (NR). The technology was further enhanced in Release 16 and will continue to evolve in Release 17 and later. In NR, the device (i.e., the User Equipment (UE)) can be in Radio Resource Control (RRC) idle state, in RRC connected state, or in RRC inactive state. Until Release 16, data transmission was possible only in RRC connected state. Therefore, the UE must be moved to a connected state from idle or inactive states every time there is data to be transferred between the UE and the NR base station (gNB). This leads to significant signaling overhead and power consumption, in particular for UEs that need infrequent transmission of small data packets. In inactive state, the UE has established an RRC context and core network connection. Therefore, the transition from inactive state to connected state is relatively fast and requires less signaling, compared to the transition from idle state to connected state.

In order to enable efficient transmission of small infrequent data packets, 3GPP has approved a new Release 17 work item on NR small data transmissions in inactive state. As stated in RP -212594, “Updated Work Item on NR small data transmissions in INACTIVE state”, ZTE Corporation, 3GPP TSG RAN Meeting #93e, September 2021, one of the objectives of this work item is the following: o Transmission of UL data on pre-configured PUSCH resources (i.e., reusing the configured grant type 1) - when TA is valid

■ General procedure for small data transmission over configured grant type 1 resources from INACTIVE state by including a CCCH message in the first UL message [RAN2]

■ Configuration of the configured grant typel resources for small data transmission in UL for INACTIVE state [RAN2] CG-SDT Transmissions for UE in INACTIVE Mode

The Release 17 Configured Grant (CG) Small Data Transmission (SDT), i.e., “CG-SDT”, feature is partly built on the configured grant type 1 Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) that has already been specified in Release 15. In configured grant type 1, an uplink grant is preconfigured by dedicated RRC signaling and can be activated/deactivated by RRC signaling. The configuration contains the full set of information needed to make use of a periodically occurring PUSCH resource. This means that the UE can transmit on the configured PUSCH resources whenever there is data in its buffer and does not need to wait for an uplink grant from the gNB. This allows the UE to transmit without contention, reducing the overall latency. Note that, unlike Release 15 configured grant type 1 which is applicable only in RRC connected state, Release 17 CG-SDT is applicable only in RRC inactive state. Also, for CG-SDT, the UE can make use of the preconfigured PUSCH resources for transmission only if the timing advance (TA) remains valid.

During CG-SDT configuration, the gNB preconfigures the UE with all the parameters necessary to transmit on a periodically occurring PUSCH resource. These parameters may include, for example, time-frequency resource and periodicity of the grant, link quality parameters (modulation and coding scheme (MCS), transport block size (TBS), and repetition of the TBS), power control parameters (target received power, fractional pathloss compensation factor, closed power control loop to apply), beam related parameters (Sounding Reference Signal (SRS) Resource Indicator (SRI), precoder, and layer indication), Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP) change threshold for TA validation, etc. Depending on the outcome of the discussion in 3GPP, the CG-SDT configuration will be provided to the UE in RRCRelease message in the RRC connected state. Such pre-configuration of PUSCH resources for use in RRC inactive state is particularly useful for transmission of periodic data traffic, such as periodic positioning information from wearables, periodic reporting from sensors, periodic readings from smart meters, etc.

A UE can be provided with multiple CG-SDT configurations, and each CG-SDT configuration can be associated with one or more Synchronization Signal (SS)ZPhysical Broadcast Channel (PBCH) Blocks (SSBs). The parameters contained in the CG-SDT configuration can be common for multiple CG-SDT configurations, or they can be specific to a CG-SDT configuration. The UE, upon initiating the CG-SDT procedure, can select an SSB which has its Synchronization Signal Reference Signal Received Power (SS-RSRP) above a configured threshold. If there are multiple SSBs which satisfies the SS-RSRP threshold criteria, then the UE can choose one of the SSBs which satisfies this threshold criterion.

Figure 1 illustrates the operation of a UE and gNB for a CG-SDT with subsequent transmission. As illustrated, during each periodic CG-SDT transmission, the UE can transmit a Buffer Status Report (BSR) Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (CE) along with its data (i.e., in the CG PUSCH). This allows the gNB to schedule any subsequent transmission for the UE. The gNB will schedule the UE for any subsequent transmissions or re-transmissions of the initial/sub sequent CG-SDT PUSCH transmission by a Downlink Control Information (DCI) transmitted on a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) with a Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) scrambled by Cell Radio Network Temporary Identifier (C-RNTI) or Configured Scheduling Radio Network Temporary Identifier (CS-RNTI), i.e., subsequent transmissions and retransmissions are scheduled using a Dynamic Grant (DG).

Power Control Updates in CG-SDT

In Release 15 configured grant type 1 in connected state, the UE specific parameters P0 and alpha (which are denoted by using PojjEj>uscH,b,f,c ) and ^a b,f,c )> respectively, with j = 1, in 3GPP Technical Specification (TS) 38.213 V16.7.0) are provided to the UE in the configured grant type 1 configuration using the Information Element (IE) ConfiguredGrantConfig (see ASN. l code from 3GPP TS 38.331 V16.7.0 shown in Figures 16A and 16B with emphasis added to highlight the relevant parameter). Here, P0 denotes the target received power and alpha denotes the fractional path-loss compensation factor. Note that P0 and alpha would typically depend on the target data rate, and noise and interference level experienced at the gNB receiver.

The relevant text from 3GPP TS 38.213 on power control for configured grant type 1 is shown in the excerpt below:

***** START EXCERPT FROM 3GPP TS 28.213 *****

For a PUSCH (re)transmission configured by ConfiguredGrantConfig, j=l, provided by pO-NominalWithoutGrant, or ^O_NOMINAIEUSCIJ,CO) ⁼ ^O_NOMINAEUSCIJ,C(0) if pO-NominalWithoutGrant is not provided, and P _o UE PUSCH ,j,/,c(l) is provided by pO obtained from pO-PUSCH-Alpha in ConfiguredGrantConfig that provides an index PO-PUSCH-AlphaSetld to a set of P0-

PUSCH-AlphaSet for active UL BWP b of carrier f of serving cell C

* * * * * END EXCERPT FROM 3GPP TS 28.213 ***** For Release 17 CG-SDT in inactive state, it has been agreed in RANl#107-e that the UE specific power control parameters P0 and alpha are configured for the initial uplink transmissions (see RP-211871, “Status Report to TSC”, 3GPP TSG RAN Meeting #93e, September 2021). These parameters are likely to be provided in the RRCRelease message. For possible retransmissions of the initial uplink transmissions and subsequent uplink transmissions, legacy closed loop power control mechanism will be re-used. That is, during a re-transmission or subsequent transmission (which are scheduled using DCI), the UE will receive a Transmit Power Control (TPC) update from the gNB, and the UE transmit power is adjusted accordingly.

Summary

Systems and methods are disclosed for updating User Equipment (UE) power control parameters for Configured Grant Small Data Transmission (CG-SDT). In one embodiment, a method performed by a UE comprises receiving a CG-SDT configuration from a network node. The method further comprises, while the UE is in an inactive state, receiving, from the network node, information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters. In this manner, power control updates can be performed in an efficient way for CG-SDT.

In one embodiment, the method further comprises, while in the inactive state, performing a first CG-SDT transmission in accordance with the CG-SDT configuration. The step of receiving the information that indicates the one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises receiving the information that indicates the one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters after performing the first CG-SDT transmission. In one embodiment, the method further comprises performing a second CG-SDT transmission in accordance with the CG-SDT configuration as updated with the one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

In one embodiment, the one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprise one or more UE-specific parameters. In one embodiment, the one or more UE-specific parameters comprise one or more UE-specific power control parameters for CG-SDT transmission. In another embodiment, the one or more UE-specific parameters comprise P0 and/or alpha. In another embodiment, the one or more UE-specific parameters comprise Po_UE_puscH,b,f,c j and a _{b iC} j , respectively, withy = 1.

In one embodiment, receiving the information that indicates one or more updated CG- SDT configuration parameters comprises receiving a Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (CE) comprising the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters. In one embodiment, the MAC CE comprise a MAC subheader with a Logical Channel Identifier (LCID) that indicates that the MAC CE is a MAC CE that comprises information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters. In one embodiment, the MAC subheader consists of one-byte of information, the one-byte of information comprising the LCID. In another embodiment, the MAC subheader comprises the LCID and a length field.

In one embodiment, receiving the MAC CE comprising the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises receiving the MAC CE combined with another MAC CE.

In another embodiment, receiving the MAC CE comprising the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises receiving the MAC CE combined with a Timing Advance (TA) MAC CE. In one embodiment, a bit in the TA MAC CE indicates that the MAC CE comprising the information that indicates the one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters is appended to the TA MAC CE.

In one embodiment, receiving the MAC CE comprising the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises receiving the MAC CE on a Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH).

In one embodiment, receiving the MAC CE comprising the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises receiving the MAC CE on a PDSCH scheduled using a Downlink Control Information (DCI) with a Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) scrambled by a Cell Radio Network Temporary Identifier (C-RNTI) or Configured Scheduling Radio Network Temporary Identifier (CS-RNTI) of the UE.

In one embodiment, the MAC CE comprising the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters is comprised within a fixed size MAC subPDU.

In one embodiment, the UE is configured with a plurality of CG-SDT configurations including the CG-SDT configuration, and the MAC CE comprises information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters for two or more of the plurality of CG-SDT configurations.

In one embodiment, the MAC CE comprises two or more P0 and/or alpha values corresponding to different Sounding Reference Signal (SRS) Resource Indicators (SRIs).

In one embodiment, receiving the information that indicates one or more updated CG- SDT configuration parameters comprises receiving a DCI comprising the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters. In one embodiment, the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises a value for at least one of the updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

In one embodiment, the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises a delta value at least one of the updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

In one embodiment, the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises an index that points to a predefined or configured value for at least one of the updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

In one embodiment, the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises an index that points to a predefined or configured set of values for at least a subset of the updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

In one embodiment, receiving the information that indicates the one or more updated CG- SDT configuration parameters is conditional.

In one embodiment, receiving the information that indicates the one or more updated CG- SDT configuration parameters is conditional based on a configured CG-SDT periodicity.

In one embodiment, receiving the information that indicates the one or more updated CG- SDT configuration parameters is conditional based on one or more operating conditions.

In one embodiment, one or more actions performed by the UE are conditional based on reception of information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters. In one embodiment, the one or more actions comprise performing Timing Advance (TA) validation.

Corresponding embodiment of a UE are also disclosed. In one embodiment, a UE comprises a communication interface and processing circuitry associated with the communication interface. The processing circuitry is configured to cause the UE to receive a CG-SDT configuration from a network node and, while in an inactive state, receive, from the network node, information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

Embodiments of a method performed by a method performed by a network node for a cellular communications system. In one embodiment, a method performed by a network node for a cellular communications system comprises transmitting a CG-SDT configuration to a UE and, while the UE is an inactive state, transmitting, to the UE, information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters. Corresponding embodiments of a network node are also disclosed. In one embodiment, a network node for a cellular communications system comprises processing circuitry configured to cause the network node to transmit a CG-SDT configuration to a UE and, while the UE is an inactive state, transmit, to the UE, information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

Brief Description of the Drawings

The accompanying drawing figures incorporated in and forming a part of this specification illustrate several aspects of the disclosure, and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the disclosure.

Figure 1 illustrates the operation of a User Equipment (UE) and New Radio (NR) base station (gNB) for a Configured Grant (CG) Small Data Transmission (SDT), i.e., CG-SDT, with subsequent transmission;

Figure 2 illustrates an example of CG-SDT in which P0 and alpha values are reset for every initial CG-SDT transmission and closed loop power control with Transmit Power Control (TPC) updates is made only for re-transmissions and subsequent transmission in CG-SDT;

Figure 3 illustrates an example of a gNB sending a new power control (PC) Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (CE) in relation to CG-SDT transmission, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;

Figures 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 illustrate example PC MAC CEs in accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure;

Figure 9 illustrates the operation of a User Equipment (UE) and a network node (e.g., a serving base station such as, e.g., a serving gNB of the UE) in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure;

Figure 10 shows an example of a communication system in which embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented;

Figure 11 shows a UE in accordance with some embodiments;

Figure 12 shows a network node in accordance with some embodiments;

Figure 13 is a block diagram of a host, which may be an embodiment of the host of Figure 10, in accordance with various aspects described herein;

Figure 14 is a block diagram illustrating a virtualization environment in which functions implemented by some embodiments may be virtualized;

Figure 15 shows a communication diagram of a host communicating via a network node with a UE over a partially wireless connection in accordance with some embodiments; and Figures 16A and 16B are a reproduction of the ConfiguredGrantConfig Information Element (IE) defined in 3 ^rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Technical Specification (TS) 38.331 V16.7.0.

Detailed Description

The embodiments set forth below represent information to enable those skilled in the art to practice the embodiments and illustrate the best mode of practicing the embodiments. Upon reading the following description in light of the accompanying drawing figures, those skilled in the art will understand the concepts of the disclosure and will recognize applications of these concepts not particularly addressed herein. It should be understood that these concepts and applications fall within the scope of the disclosure.

There currently exist certain challenge(s). The power control updates in a Release 17 Configured Grant (CG) Small Data Transmission (SDT), i.e., “CG-SDT”, transmission gets reset during every periodic transmission. For instance, as illustrated in Figure 2, consider a CG-SDT transmission with the 1 ^st CG-SDT including the initial uplink (UL) transmission with possible subsequent transmissions or re-transmissions. For the initial UL transmission, P0 and alpha provided in the CG-SDT configuration will be used. During the subsequent transmissions/re- transmissions, the User Equipment (UE) will receive Transmit Power Control (TPC) commands from the gNB and perform TPC accumulations for every succeeding subsequent transmissions/re-transmissions. Then, after UE finishes the 1 ^st CG-SDT transmission, the TPC accumulation gets reset. For the initial UL transmission of 2 ^nd CG-SDT, the UE will re-use the initial P0 and alpha and no TPC can be referred to. Currently, there is no possibility to update the values of P0 and alpha between each CG-SDT transmissions (e.g., between the 1 ^st and the 2 ^nd CG-SDT transmissions) in the inactive state.

Considering that the initial CG-SDT UL transmissions are likely to have a period in the order of hundreds of milliseconds to up to a few hours (e.g., 640 ms based on current 3GPP agreement), over N transmissions, N being an integer configured by the New Radio (NR) base station (gNB), the P0 and alpha values may need updates. This is possible even when the UE remains stationary, where the Timing Advance (TA) remains valid, but there may be Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP) variations which may require modification to the UE power control parameters.

Certain aspects of the disclosure and their embodiments may provide solutions to these or other challenges. Embodiments of methods for updating the UE power control parameters efficiently in CG-SDT are proposed. In one embodiment, a new Power Control (PC) Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (CE) is introduced, which enables the gNB to update the UE’s power control parameters P0 and alpha. This MAC CE is sent by the gNB (e.g., similar to Timing Advance Command MAC CE) when the gNB needs to update the power control parameters of the UE. One example of the gNB sending this new PC MAC CE in relation to CG- SDT transmission is illustrated in Figure 3. In this example, this new PC MAC CE is sent by the gNB for updating P0 and alpha, e.g., for at least some of the CG-SDT transmissions (e.g., for every CG-SDT transmission or for every CG-SDT transmission other than a first CG-SDT transmission transmitted after receiving the CG-SDT configuration).

In one embodiment, the gNB transmits this MAC CE in a Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH). In one embodiment, this transmission is scheduled in a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) using Downlink Control Information (DCI) with a Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) scrambled by the UE’s Cell Radio Network Temporary Identifier (C- RNTI) or Configured Scheduling Radio Network Temporary Identifier (CS-RNTI) (e.g., based on the outcome of the discussion in 3GPP). Considering that a CG-SDT UE performs PDCCH monitoring immediately after every initial transmission so as to obtain the information about any possible re-transmission/subsequent transmissions, this MAC CE can be successfully received by the UE without any additional PDCCH monitoring.

Embodiments of an alternate DCI-based approach for PC updates and some conditions for PC updates in CG-SDT are also disclosed herein.

Certain embodiments may provide one or more of the following technical advantage(s). The power control updates can be performed in an efficient way for CG-SDT. This consequently can lead to improvement in overall system performance and reduction in power consumption at the UE.

Identification of the PC MAC CE

In one embodiment, the new PC MAC CE is identified by a MAC subheader with a new Logical Channel Identifier (LCID) taken from the reserved values 35-46 (e.g., as specified in Table 6.2.1-2 and Table 6.2.1-2b of 3GPP TS 38.321 V16.7.0). The MAC subheader can be a one-byte short format consisting of the fields LCID and Reserved bits. This is used in case the PC MAC CE is of fixed length, e.g. used to report one power level (P0 and alpha). An example is shown in Figure 4.

In another embodiment, the MAC subheader can also contain a length field in which case it can carry a number of power level information for several CG configurations or Sounding Reference Signal SRS) Resource Indicators (SRIs). An example is shown in Figure 5. In one embodiment, the new PC MAC CE is sent combined with another MAC CE such as the timing advance MAC CE. In this case, in one embodiment, a new LCID can be used to indicate TA MAC CE followed by, e.g., the new one byte short format. As another option, one of the reserved bits in the TA MAC CE may be used to indicate that the PC MAC CE is appended to the TA MAC CE. By appending the PC MAC CE to an existing MAC CE there is no need to use a specific MAC subheader to indicate the PC MAC CE so one byte of overhead is saved. An example is shown in Figure 6.

In one embodiment, the PC MAC CE indicating P0 and alpha is transmitted on a PDSCH, which is scheduled using a DCI (carried on a PDCCH) with a CRC scrambled by C-RNTI or by CS-RNTI. The UE monitors for the corresponding PDCCH after every CG-SDT initial UL transmission and/or possible ret-transmission(s)/subsequent transmission(s).

Content of the PC MAC CE

In one embodiment, the power control parameters P0 and alpha are indicated to the UE by the gNB using the PC MAC CE. As one example, the MAC CE may contain exact values of P0 and/or alpha. As another example, the MAC CE may contain the change (delta) in P0 and/or the change (delta) in alpha relative to the initial P0 and alpha provided, e.g., in the CG-SDT configuration.

The value of P0 and alpha can be directly provided as a MAC CE within a fixed size MAC subPDU (e.g., using the MAC subheader in Figure 4). Here, as an example, an octet can be reserved for P0 (e.g., coded in 5 bits) and alpha (e.g., coded in 3 bits) as shown in Figure 7.

Since one or more CG-SDT configurations can be provided to the UE, the MAC CE may contain multiple P0 and/or alpha values corresponding to multiple CG-SDT configurations. Also, the UE configured with CG-SDT may determine the SRI (which in practice determines the UL beam) for CG PUSCH transmissions based on either the explicit indication of SRI from the gNB (e.g., in the RRCRelease message) or based on the selected Synchronization Signal (SS)/Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH) Block (SSB) index (e.g., used for path loss determination). Note that since each CG-SDT configuration may be associated with multiple SSBs, the SRI may also change with change in the selected SSB index. Different values of SRI may be associated with different values of P0 and/or alpha, and hence, the MAC CE may contain multiple P0 and/or alpha values corresponding to different SRIs.

In the aforementioned cases (i.e., in cases where MAC CE may contain multiple P0 and/or alpha values), in one embodiment, a variable length PC MAC CE is used, and the PC MAC CE will have fields to identify which specific configuration and/or SRI that each of the P0 and alpha refer to.

In one variant to the embodiment above, the PC MAC CE may contain an index to a set of combinations of P0 and alpha values, where the index indicates to the UE what value of P0 and/or alpha to use. Similar to the embodiment above, multiple indices may be contained in the MAC CE corresponding to multiple CG-SDT configurations and/or SRIs.

As one example of this embodiment, either the fixed size PC MAC CE is used or the PC MAC CE is of variable size with a new LCID in the subheader (one of the reserved IDs from Table 6.2.1, TS 38.321) as shown in Figure 8. In Figure 8, the index to P0 and alpha is indicated using a parameter, for example, PO-PUSCH-AlphaSetld. This MAC CE can be optionally sent by the gNB to re-configure the UE with a new set P0 and alpha values for use during the next CG initial transmission.

In one embodiment, when an index to P0 and/or alpha is used, the set of combinations of P0 and alpha values can be preconfigured in the UE while in the RRC connected state, for example, in the RRCRelease message. In this case, the configuration must be saved by the UE when it goes to inactive state.

As another option, a table of indices and their corresponding P0 and alpha can be predefined and be given in a specification.

UE Actions Upon Reception of the PC MAC CE

If the power control parameters are provided to the UE using the PC MAC CE, the UE uses the new/updated values of P0 and alpha starting from the next UL transmission (i.e., from the next CG initial transmission, retransmission, or subsequent transmission). Otherwise, the UE uses the previous values of P0 and alpha.

Conditional Update of PC Parameters

In one embodiment, updates to the power control parameters (e.g., P0, alpha) depends on the configured CG-SDT periodicity. If CG-SDT periodicity is shorter than a certain threshold (e.g., Hl), then UE may not expect any updates to the power control parameters since no significant change is expected. On the other hand, if CG-SDT periodicity is greater than the said threshold (Hl), then updated values for the power control parameter can be expected from the serving node (e.g., gNB). Hl can be predefined or configurable.

In yet another embodiment, updates to the power control parameters (such as P0, alpha) may not be expected by the UE under certain operating conditions or they might be updated less frequently compared to a reference scenario. Factors characterizing the operating conditions comprises at least one or more of the following:

• UE operating under low mobility conditions (e.g., stationary, UE speed below certain level, Doppler below certain threshold)

• Short Discontinuous Reception (DRX) cycles (e.g., DRX cycles 80 seconds)

• Good serving cell quality (e.g., Signal to Interference plus Noise Ratio (SINR) greater thana certain threshold)

In one exemplary embodiment in the UE for operating CG-SDT which requires the UE to perform TA validation based on a relative change of two Radio Resource Management (RRM) measurements, the UE may perform the TA validation provided that it has received the updated values for the power control parameters. Otherwise, it may not even perform the TA validation for performing CG-SDT transmission.

In yet another exemplary embodiment in the UE for operating CG-SDT which requires the UE to perform TA validation based on a relative change of two RRM measurements, the UE may perform the TA validation provided that it has received the updated values for the power control parameters during last time period TO. Otherwise, if it has not received any updates related to the power control parameters during last TO, then it may not even perform the TA validation step.

In one example, the UE does not carry out the CG-SDT transmission in the intended CG- SDT transmission occasion if it has not received any updates related to the power control parameters during last time period Tl. In this case, the UE may drop, or postpone the CG-SDT transmission.

The values of TO and Tl can be configurable or predefined. In one specific examples, TO and Tl correspond to N number of DRX cycles, e.g. N=l,2.

In another example, whether or not updates to the power control parameters are provided or expected by the UE depends on whether or not UE has performed any beam changes and/or the strongest N SSBs used has changed during last time period T3. In one specific example, the UE may expect updated values if UE has performed any beam changes or any of the strongest N SSB have changed during last T3.

In the above examples, “updated values” may also correspond to indication from the NW that no change in the values compared to legacy or reference values. Update of PC Parameters via DCI

In another embodiment, rather than indicating the updated parameters (e.g., P0 and/or alpha) in a new MAC CE as described above, the parameters (e.g., P0 and/or alpha) are updated via DCI. In one embodiment, one or more indices to a set of P0 and alpha values may be indicated to the UE using a DCI carried on a PDCCH, which the UE monitors after a CG PUSCH transmission.

Further Description

Figure 9 illustrates the operation of a UE 900 and a network node 902 (e.g., a serving base station such as, e.g., a serving gNB of the UE 900) in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure. As illustrated, the UE 900 receives a CG-SDT configuration from the network node 902, (step 904). The CG-SDT configuration may be received by the UE 900 while the UE 900 is in connected state (e.g., RRC connected state), e.g., in an RRC Release message or some similar message, but is not limited thereto. The CG-SDT configuration contains information needed by the UE 900 to make use of a periodically occurring PUSCH resource for CG-SDT transmissions (e.g., information that indicates the periodic PUSCH resource (i.e., the time-frequency resource and periodicity of the CG), link quality parameter(s) (e.g., MCS, TBS and repetition of the TBS), power control parameters, beam related parameters, and RSRP change threshold for TA validation, as described above). Notably, the CG-SDT configuration includes information that indicates initial P0 and alpha values.

While in an inactive state (e.g., RRC Inactive state), the UE 900 performs a first CG-SDT transmission in accordance with the CG-SDT configuration (step 906). As discussed above, the CG-SDT transmission is via a CG-PUSCH that includes both the data and a Buffer Status Report (BSR). The network node receives the CG-SDT transmission. Based on the BSR, the network node 902 may optionally schedule one or more subsequent transmissions or re-transmissions via DCI transmitted on PDCCH with a CRC scrambled by the C-RNTI or CS-RNTI (i.e., schedule subsequent transmission(s) and/or retransmission(s) via dynamic grant) (steps 908, 910, 912, 914).

In this example, sometime prior to a second CG-SDT transmission, the network node 902 transmits information to the UE 900 that indicates one or more updated configuration parameters for CG-SDT (step 916). In many of the embodiments described herein, the updated CG-SDT configuration parameters are or include P0 and/or alpha; however, the embodiments described herein may additionally or alternatively be used for other CG-SDT configuration parameters. As described above, in some embodiments, information that indicates the updated CG-SDT configuration parameters is transmitted via a (PC) MAC CE on a PDSCH scheduled via a DCI with a CRC scrambled by the UE’s C-RNTI or CS-RNTI (steps 916A1 and 916A2). The MAC CE may be in accordance with any of the embodiments described above (see, e.g., Figures 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 and the associated text). In an alternative embodiment, the information that indicates the updated CG-SDT configuration parameters is transmitted in a DCI (step 916B). As described above, in step 916, the updating of the CG-SDT configuration parameter(s) may be conditional (see, e.g., the description above in the section entitled “Conditional Update of PC Parameters”).

The UE 900 subsequently performs a second CG-SDT transmission in accordance with the CG-SDT configuration of step 904 and the updated CG-SDT configuration parameter(s) received in step 916 (step 918).

In order to facilitate the description, all the above embodiments are mainly described in terms of the power control parameters P0 (i.e., PojjEj>uscH,b,f,c( ) i ⁿ 3GPP TS 38.213) and alpha (and a _{b iC} (X) in 3GPP TS 38.213), but they are equally applicable also to other powercontrol related parameters, such as powerControlLoopToUse (i.e., closed control loop to apply; see TS 38.213, clause 7.1.1), pO-NominalWithoutGrant (i.e., PojwMiNALj>uscH,f ,<:(] ,' see TS 38.213, clause 7.1.1), PojjEj>uscH,b,f,c j ^a b,f,c(j) (with j> for dynamically scheduled retransmissions and subsequent transmissions), etc.

Also note that, as described above, updating of the PC parameters may be conditional. As such, any of the conditional update of PC parameter related embodiments described above may also be used in relation to the procedure of Figure 9.

Figure 10 shows an example of a communication system 1000 in which embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented.

In the example, the communication system 1000 includes a telecommunication network 1002 that includes an access network 1004, such as a Radio Access Network (RAN), and a core network 1006, which includes one or more core network nodes 1008. The access network 1004 includes one or more access network nodes, such as network nodes 1010A and 1010B (one or more of which may be generally referred to as network nodes 1010), or any other similar Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) access node or non-3GPP Access Point (AP). The network nodes 1010A and 1010B may operate as the network node 902 or gNB in accordance with any of the embodiments described above. The network nodes 1010 facilitate direct or indirect connection of UE, such as by connecting UEs 1012A, 1012B, 1012C, and 1012D (one or more of which may be generally referred to as UEs 1012) to the core network 1006 over one or more wireless connections. One or more of the UEs 1012 may operate as the UE 900 or UE in accordance with any of the embodiments described above.

Example wireless communications over a wireless connection include transmitting and/or receiving wireless signals using electromagnetic waves, radio waves, infrared waves, and/or other types of signals suitable for conveying information without the use of wires, cables, or other material conductors. Moreover, in different embodiments, the communication system 1000 may include any number of wired or wireless networks, network nodes, UEs, and/or any other components or systems that may facilitate or participate in the communication of data and/or signals whether via wired or wireless connections. The communication system 1000 may include and/or interface with any type of communication, telecommunication, data, cellular, radio network, and/or other similar type of system.

The UEs 1012 may be any of a wide variety of communication devices, including wireless devices arranged, configured, and/or operable to communicate wirelessly with the network nodes 1010 and other communication devices. Similarly, the network nodes 1010 are arranged, capable, configured, and/or operable to communicate directly or indirectly with the UEs 1012 and/or with other network nodes or equipment in the telecommunication network 1002 to enable and/or provide network access, such as wireless network access, and/or to perform other functions, such as administration in the telecommunication network 1002.

In the depicted example, the core network 1006 connects the network nodes 1010 to one or more hosts, such as host 1016. These connections may be direct or indirect via one or more intermediary networks or devices. In other examples, network nodes may be directly coupled to hosts. The core network 1006 includes one more core network nodes (e.g., core network node 1008) that are structured with hardware and software components. Features of these components may be substantially similar to those described with respect to the UEs, network nodes, and/or hosts, such that the descriptions thereof are generally applicable to the corresponding components of the core network node 1008. Example core network nodes include functions of one or more of a Mobile Switching Center (MSC), Mobility Management Entity (MME), Home Subscriber Server (HSS), Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), Session Management Function (SMF), Authentication Server Function (AUSF), Subscription Identifier De-Concealing Function (SIDF), Unified Data Management (UDM), Security Edge Protection Proxy (SEPP), Network Exposure Function (NEF), and/or a User Plane Function (UPF).

The host 1016 may be under the ownership or control of a service provider other than an operator or provider of the access network 1004 and/or the telecommunication network 1002, and may be operated by the service provider or on behalf of the service provider. The host 1016 may host a variety of applications to provide one or more service. Examples of such applications include live and pre-recorded audio/video content, data collection services such as retrieving and compiling data on various ambient conditions detected by a plurality of UEs, analytics functionality, social media, functions for controlling or otherwise interacting with remote devices, functions for an alarm and surveillance center, or any other such function performed by a server.

As a whole, the communication system 1000 of Figure 10 enables connectivity between the UEs, network nodes, and hosts. In that sense, the communication system 1000 may be configured to operate according to predefined rules or procedures, such as specific standards that include, but are not limited to: Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM); Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS); Long Term Evolution (LTE), and/or other suitable Second, Third, Fourth, or Fifth Generation (2G, 3G, 4G, or 5G) standards, or any applicable future generation standard (e.g., Sixth Generation (6G)); Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) standards, such as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standards (WiFi); and/or any other appropriate wireless communication standard, such as the Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax), Bluetooth, Z-Wave, Near Field Communication (NFC) ZigBee, LiFi, and/or any Low Power Wide Area Network (LPWAN) standards such as LoRa and Sigfox.

In some examples, the telecommunication network 1002 is a cellular network that implements 3 GPP standardized features. Accordingly, the telecommunication network 1002 may support network slicing to provide different logical networks to different devices that are connected to the telecommunication network 1002. For example, the telecommunication network 1002 may provide Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communication (URLLC) services to some UEs, while providing enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) services to other UEs, and/or massive Machine Type Communication (mMTC)/massive Internet of Things (loT) services to yet further UEs.

In some examples, the UEs 1012 are configured to transmit and/or receive information without direct human interaction. For instance, a UE may be designed to transmit information to the access network 1004 on a predetermined schedule, when triggered by an internal or external event, or in response to requests from the access network 1004. Additionally, a UE may be configured for operating in single- or multi -Radio Access Technology (RAT) or multi-standard mode. For example, a UE may operate with any one or combination of WiFi, New Radio (NR), and LTE, i.e. be configured for Multi -Radio Dual Connectivity (MR-DC), such as Evolved UMTS Terrestrial RAN (E-UTRAN) NR - Dual Connectivity (EN-DC). In the example, a hub 1014 communicates with the access network 1004 to facilitate indirect communication between one or more UEs (e.g., UE 1012C and/or 1012D) and network nodes (e.g., network node 1010B). In some examples, the hub 1014 may be a controller, router, content source and analytics, or any of the other communication devices described herein regarding UEs. For example, the hub 1014 may be a broadband router enabling access to the core network 1006 for the UEs. As another example, the hub 1014 may be a controller that sends commands or instructions to one or more actuators in the UEs. Commands or instructions may be received from the UEs, network nodes 1010, or by executable code, script, process, or other instructions in the hub 1014. As another example, the hub 1014 may be a data collector that acts as temporary storage for UE data and, in some embodiments, may perform analysis or other processing of the data. As another example, the hub 1014 may be a content source. For example, for a UE that is a Virtual Reality (VR) headset, display, loudspeaker or other media delivery device, the hub 1014 may retrieve VR assets, video, audio, or other media or data related to sensory information via a network node, which the hub 1014 then provides to the UE either directly, after performing local processing, and/or after adding additional local content. In still another example, the hub 1014 acts as a proxy server or orchestrator for the UEs, in particular in if one or more of the UEs are low energy loT devices.

The hub 1014 may have a constant/persistent or intermittent connection to the network node 1010B. The hub 1014 may also allow for a different communication scheme and/or schedule between the hub 1014 and UEs (e.g., UE 1012C and/or 1012D), and between the hub 1014 and the core network 1006. In other examples, the hub 1014 is connected to the core network 1006 and/or one or more UEs via a wired connection. Moreover, the hub 1014 may be configured to connect to a Machine-to-Machine (M2M) service provider over the access network 1004 and/or to another UE over a direct connection. In some scenarios, UEs may establish a wireless connection with the network nodes 1010 while still connected via the hub 1014 via a wired or wireless connection. In some embodiments, the hub 1014 may be a dedicated hub - that is, a hub whose primary function is to route communications to/from the UEs from/to the network node 1010B. In other embodiments, the hub 1014 may be a non-dedicated hub - that is, a device which is capable of operating to route communications between the UEs and the network node 1010B, but which is additionally capable of operating as a communication start and/or end point for certain data channels.

Figure 11 shows a UE 1100 in accordance with some embodiments. As used herein, a UE refers to a device capable, configured, arranged, and/or operable to communicate wirelessly with network nodes and/or other UEs. Examples of a UE include, but are not limited to, a smart phone, mobile phone, cell phone, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone, wireless local loop phone, desktop computer, Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), wireless camera, gaming console or device, music storage device, playback appliance, wearable terminal device, wireless endpoint, mobile station, tablet, laptop, Laptop Embedded Equipment (LEE), Laptop Mounted Equipment (LME), smart device, wireless Customer Premise Equipment (CPE), vehicle-mounted or vehicle embedded/integrated wireless device, etc. Other examples include any UE identified by the 3 GPP, including a Narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) UE, a Machine Type Communication (MTC) UE, and/or an enhanced MTC (eMTC) UE.

A UE may support Device-to-Device (D2D) communication, for example by implementing a 3 GPP standard for sidelink communication, Dedicated Short-Range Communication (DSRC), Vehi cl e-to- Vehicle (V2V), Vehicle-to-Infrastructure (V2I), or Vehicle- to-Everything (V2X). In other examples, a UE may not necessarily have a user in the sense of a human user who owns and/or operates the relevant device. Instead, a UE may represent a device that is intended for sale to, or operation by, a human user but which may not, or which may not initially, be associated with a specific human user (e.g., a smart sprinkler controller). Alternatively, a UE may represent a device that is not intended for sale to, or operation by, an end user but which may be associated with or operated for the benefit of a user (e.g., a smart power meter).

The UE 1100 includes processing circuitry 1102 that is operatively coupled via a bus 1104 to an input/output interface 1106, a power source 1108, memory 1110, a communication interface 1112, and/or any other component, or any combination thereof. Certain UEs may utilize all or a subset of the components shown in Figure 11. The level of integration between the components may vary from one UE to another UE. Further, certain UEs may contain multiple instances of a component, such as multiple processors, memories, transceivers, transmitters, receivers, etc.

The processing circuitry 1102 is configured to process instructions and data and may be configured to implement any sequential state machine operative to execute instructions stored as machine-readable computer programs in the memory 1110. The processing circuitry 1102 may be implemented as one or more hardware-implemented state machines (e.g., in discrete logic, Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), etc.); programmable logic together with appropriate firmware; one or more stored computer programs, general purpose processors, such as a microprocessor or Digital Signal Processor (DSP), together with appropriate software; or any combination of the above. For example, the processing circuitry 1102 may include multiple Central Processing Units (CPUs). In the example, the input/output interface 1106 may be configured to provide an interface or interfaces to an input device, output device, or one or more input and/or output devices. Examples of an output device include a speaker, a sound card, a video card, a display, a monitor, a printer, an actuator, an emitter, a smartcard, another output device, or any combination thereof. An input device may allow a user to capture information into the UE 1100. Examples of an input device include a touch-sensitive or presence-sensitive display, a camera (e.g., a digital camera, a digital video camera, a web camera, etc.), a microphone, a sensor, a mouse, a trackball, a directional pad, a trackpad, a scroll wheel, a smartcard, and the like. The presence-sensitive display may include a capacitive or resistive touch sensor to sense input from a user. A sensor may be, for instance, an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a tilt sensor, a force sensor, a magnetometer, an optical sensor, a proximity sensor, a biometric sensor, etc., or any combination thereof. An output device may use the same type of interface port as an input device. For example, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) port may be used to provide an input device and an output device.

In some embodiments, the power source 1108 is structured as a battery or battery pack. Other types of power sources, such as an external power source (e.g., an electricity outlet), photovoltaic device, or power cell, may be used. The power source 1108 may further include power circuitry for delivering power from the power source 1108 itself, and/or an external power source, to the various parts of the UE 1100 via input circuitry or an interface such as an electrical power cable. Delivering power may be, for example, for charging the power source 1108. Power circuitry may perform any formatting, converting, or other modification to the power from the power source 1108 to make the power suitable for the respective components of the UE 1100 to which power is supplied.

The memory 1110 may be or be configured to include memory such as Random Access Memory (RAM), Read Only Memory (ROM), Programmable ROM (PROM), Erasable PROM (EPROM), Electrically EPROM (EEPROM), magnetic disks, optical disks, hard disks, removable cartridges, flash drives, and so forth. In one example, the memory 1110 includes one or more application programs 1114, such as an operating system, web browser application, a widget, gadget engine, or other application, and corresponding data 1116. The memory 1110 may store, for use by the UE 1100, any of a variety of various operating systems or combinations of operating systems.

The memory 1110 may be configured to include a number of physical drive units, such as Redundant Array of Independent Disks (RAID), flash memory, USB flash drive, external hard disk drive, thumb drive, pen drive, key drive, High Density Digital Versatile Disc (HD-DVD) optical disc drive, internal hard disk drive, Blu-Ray optical disc drive, Holographic Digital Data Storage (HDDS) optical disc drive, external mini Dual In-line Memory Module (DIMM), Synchronous Dynamic RAM (SDRAM), external micro-DIMM SDRAM, smartcard memory such as a tamper resistant module in the form of a Universal Integrated Circuit Card (UICC) including one or more Subscriber Identity Modules (SIMs), such as a Universal SIM (USIM) and/or Internet Protocol Multimedia Services Identity Module (ISIM), other memory, or any combination thereof. The UICC may for example be an embedded UICC (eUICC), integrated UICC (iUICC) or a removable UICC commonly known as a ‘SIM card.’ The memory 1110 may allow the UE 1100 to access instructions, application programs, and the like stored on transitory or non-transitory memory media, to off-load data, or to upload data. An article of manufacture, such as one utilizing a communication system, may be tangibly embodied as or in the memory 1110, which may be or comprise a device-readable storage medium.

The processing circuitry 1102 may be configured to communicate with an access network or other network using the communication interface 1112. The communication interface 1112 may comprise one or more communication subsystems and may include or be communicatively coupled to an antenna 1122. The communication interface 1112 may include one or more transceivers used to communicate, such as by communicating with one or more remote transceivers of another device capable of wireless communication (e.g., another UE or a network node in an access network). Each transceiver may include a transmitter 1118 and/or a receiver 1120 appropriate to provide network communications (e.g., optical, electrical, frequency allocations, and so forth). Moreover, the transmitter 1118 and receiver 1120 may be coupled to one or more antennas (e.g., the antenna 1122) and may share circuit components, software, or firmware, or alternatively be implemented separately.

In the illustrated embodiment, communication functions of the communication interface 1112 may include cellular communication, WiFi communication, LPWAN communication, data communication, voice communication, multimedia communication, short-range communications such as Bluetooth, NFC, location-based communication such as the use of the Global Positioning System (GPS) to determine a location, another like communication function, or any combination thereof. Communications may be implemented according to one or more communication protocols and/or standards, such as IEEE 802.11, Code Division Multiplexing Access (CDMA), Wideband CDMA (WCDMA), GSM, LTE, NR, UMTS, WiMax, Ethernet, Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP), Synchronous Optical Networking (SONET), Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM), Quick User Datagram Protocol Internet Connection (QUIC), Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), and so forth. Regardless of the type of sensor, a UE may provide an output of data captured by its sensors, through its communication interface 1112, or via a wireless connection to a network node. Data captured by sensors of a UE can be communicated through a wireless connection to a network node via another UE. The output may be periodic (e.g., once every 15 minutes if it reports the sensed temperature), random (e.g., to even out the load from reporting from several sensors), in response to a triggering event (e.g., when moisture is detected an alert is sent), in response to a request (e.g., a user initiated request), or a continuous stream (e.g., a live video feed of a patient).

As another example, a UE comprises an actuator, a motor, or a switch related to a communication interface configured to receive wireless input from a network node via a wireless connection. In response to the received wireless input the states of the actuator, the motor, or the switch may change. For example, the UE may comprise a motor that adjusts the control surfaces or rotors of a drone in flight according to the received input or to a robotic arm performing a medical procedure according to the received input.

A UE, when in the form of an loT device, may be a device for use in one or more application domains, these domains comprising, but not limited to, city wearable technology, extended industrial application, and healthcare. Non-limiting examples of such an loT device are a device which is or which is embedded in: a connected refrigerator or freezer, a television, a connected lighting device, an electricity meter, a robot vacuum cleaner, a voice controlled smart speaker, a home security camera, a motion detector, a thermostat, a smoke detector, a door/window sensor, a flood/moisture sensor, an electrical door lock, a connected doorbell, an air conditioning system like a heat pump, an autonomous vehicle, a surveillance system, a weather monitoring device, a vehicle parking monitoring device, an electric vehicle charging station, a smart watch, a fitness tracker, a head-mounted display for Augmented Reality (AR) or VR, a wearable for tactile augmentation or sensory enhancement, a water sprinkler, an animal- or itemtracking device, a sensor for monitoring a plant or animal, an industrial robot, an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), and any kind of medical device, like a heart rate monitor or a remote controlled surgical robot. A UE in the form of an loT device comprises circuitry and/or software in dependence of the intended application of the loT device in addition to other components as described in relation to the UE 1100 shown in Figure 11.

As yet another specific example, in an loT scenario, a UE may represent a machine or other device that performs monitoring and/or measurements and transmits the results of such monitoring and/or measurements to another UE and/or a network node. The UE may in this case be an M2M device, which may in a 3GPP context be referred to as an MTC device. As one particular example, the UE may implement the 3 GPP NB-IoT standard. In other scenarios, a UE may represent a vehicle, such as a car, a bus, a truck, a ship, an airplane, or other equipment that is capable of monitoring and/or reporting on its operational status or other functions associated with its operation.

In practice, any number of UEs may be used together with respect to a single use case. For example, a first UE might be or be integrated in a drone and provide the drone’s speed information (obtained through a speed sensor) to a second UE that is a remote controller operating the drone. When the user makes changes from the remote controller, the first UE may adjust the throttle on the drone (e.g., by controlling an actuator) to increase or decrease the drone’s speed. The first and/or the second UE can also include more than one of the functionalities described above. For example, a UE might comprise the sensor and the actuator and handle communication of data for both the speed sensor and the actuators.

Figure 12 shows a network node 1200 in accordance with some embodiments. As used herein, network node refers to equipment capable, configured, arranged, and/or operable to communicate directly or indirectly with a UE and/or with other network nodes or equipment in a telecommunication network. Examples of network nodes include, but are not limited to, APs (e.g., radio APs), Base Stations (BSs) (e.g., radio BSs, Node Bs, evolved Node Bs (eNBs), and NR. Node Bs (gNBs)).

BSs may be categorized based on the amount of coverage they provide (or, stated differently, their transmit power level) and so, depending on the provided amount of coverage, may be referred to as femto BSs, pico BSs, micro BSs, or macro BSs. A BS may be a relay node or a relay donor node controlling a relay. A network node may also include one or more (or all) parts of a distributed radio BS such as centralized digital units and/or Remote Radio Units (RRUs), sometimes referred to as Remote Radio Heads (RRHs). Such RRUs may or may not be integrated with an antenna as an antenna integrated radio. Parts of a distributed radio BS may also be referred to as nodes in a Distributed Antenna System (DAS).

Other examples of network nodes include multiple Transmission Point (multi-TRP) 5G access nodes, Multi -Standard Radio (MSR) equipment such as MSR BSs, network controllers such as Radio Network Controllers (RNCs) or BS Controllers (BSCs), Base Transceiver Stations (BTSs), transmission points, transmission nodes, Multi-Cell/Multicast Coordination Entities (MCEs), Operation and Maintenance (O&M) nodes, Operations Support System (OSS) nodes, Self-Organizing Network (SON) nodes, positioning nodes (e.g., Evolved Serving Mobile Location Centers (E-SMLCs)), and/or Minimization of Drive Tests (MDTs). The network node 1200 includes processing circuitry 1202, memory 1204, a communication interface 1206, and a power source 1208. The network node 1200 may be composed of multiple physically separate components (e.g., a Node B component and an RNC component, or a BTS component and a BSC component, etc.), which may each have their own respective components. In certain scenarios in which the network node 1200 comprises multiple separate components (e.g., BTS and BSC components), one or more of the separate components may be shared among several network nodes. For example, a single RNC may control multiple Node Bs. In such a scenario, each unique Node B and RNC pair may in some instances be considered a single separate network node. In some embodiments, the network node 1200 may be configured to support multiple RATs. In such embodiments, some components may be duplicated (e.g., separate memory 1204 for different RATs) and some components may be reused (e.g., an antenna 1210 may be shared by different RATs). The network node 1200 may also include multiple sets of the various illustrated components for different wireless technologies integrated into network node 1200, for example GSM, WCDMA, LTE, NR, WiFi, Zigbee, Z- wave, Long Range Wide Area Network (LoRaWAN), Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), or Bluetooth wireless technologies. These wireless technologies may be integrated into the same or different chip or set of chips and other components within the network node 1200.

The processing circuitry 1202 may comprise a combination of one or more of a microprocessor, controller, microcontroller, CPU, DSP, ASIC, FPGA, or any other suitable computing device, resource, or combination of hardware, software, and/or encoded logic operable to provide, either alone or in conjunction with other network node 1200 components, such as the memory 1204, to provide network node 1200 functionality.

In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 1202 includes a System on a Chip (SOC). In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 1202 includes one or more of Radio Frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry 1212 and baseband processing circuitry 1214. In some embodiments, the RF transceiver circuitry 1212 and the baseband processing circuitry 1214 may be on separate chips (or sets of chips), boards, or units, such as radio units and digital units. In alternative embodiments, part or all of the RF transceiver circuitry 1212 and the baseband processing circuitry 1214 may be on the same chip or set of chips, boards, or units.

The memory 1204 may comprise any form of volatile or non-volatile computer-readable memory including, without limitation, persistent storage, solid state memory, remotely mounted memory, magnetic media, optical media, RAM, ROM, mass storage media (for example, a hard disk), removable storage media (for example, a flash drive, a Compact Disk (CD), or a Digital Video Disk (DVD)), and/or any other volatile or non-volatile, non-transitory device-readable, and/or computer-executable memory devices that store information, data, and/or instructions that may be used by the processing circuitry 1202. The memory 1204 may store any suitable instructions, data, or information, including a computer program, software, an application including one or more of logic, rules, code, tables, and/or other instructions capable of being executed by the processing circuitry 1202 and utilized by the network node 1200. The memory 1204 may be used to store any calculations made by the processing circuitry 1202 and/or any data received via the communication interface 1206. In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 1202 and the memory 1204 are integrated.

The communication interface 1206 is used in wired or wireless communication of signaling and/or data between a network node, access network, and/or UE. As illustrated, the communication interface 1206 comprises port(s)/terminal(s) 1216 to send and receive data, for example to and from a network over a wired connection. The communication interface 1206 also includes radio front-end circuitry 1218 that may be coupled to, or in certain embodiments a part of, the antenna 1210. The radio front-end circuitry 1218 comprises filters 1220 and amplifiers 1222. The radio front-end circuitry 1218 may be connected to the antenna 1210 and the processing circuitry 1202. The radio front-end circuitry 1218 may be configured to condition signals communicated between the antenna 1210 and the processing circuitry 1202. The radio front-end circuitry 1218 may receive digital data that is to be sent out to other network nodes or UEs via a wireless connection. The radio front-end circuitry 1218 may convert the digital data into a radio signal having the appropriate channel and bandwidth parameters using a combination of the filters 1220 and/or the amplifiers 1222. The radio signal may then be transmitted via the antenna 1210. Similarly, when receiving data, the antenna 1210 may collect radio signals which are then converted into digital data by the radio front-end circuitry 1218. The digital data may be passed to the processing circuitry 1202. In other embodiments, the communication interface 1206 may comprise different components and/or different combinations of components.

In certain alternative embodiments, the network node 1200 does not include separate radio front-end circuitry 1218; instead, the processing circuitry 1202 includes radio front-end circuitry and is connected to the antenna 1210. Similarly, in some embodiments, all or some of the RF transceiver circuitry 1212 is part of the communication interface 1206. In still other embodiments, the communication interface 1206 includes the one or more ports or terminals 1216, the radio front-end circuitry 1218, and the RF transceiver circuitry 1212 as part of a radio unit (not shown), and the communication interface 1206 communicates with the baseband processing circuitry 1214, which is part of a digital unit (not shown). The antenna 1210 may include one or more antennas, or antenna arrays, configured to send and/or receive wireless signals. The antenna 1210 may be coupled to the radio front-end circuitry 1218 and may be any type of antenna capable of transmitting and receiving data and/or signals wirelessly. In certain embodiments, the antenna 1210 is separate from the network node 1200 and connectable to the network node 1200 through an interface or port.

The antenna 1210, the communication interface 1206, and/or the processing circuitry 1202 may be configured to perform any receiving operations and/or certain obtaining operations described herein as being performed by the network node 1200. Any information, data, and/or signals may be received from a UE, another network node, and/or any other network equipment. Similarly, the antenna 1210, the communication interface 1206, and/or the processing circuitry 1202 may be configured to perform any transmitting operations described herein as being performed by the network node 1200. Any information, data, and/or signals may be transmitted to a UE, another network node, and/or any other network equipment.

The power source 1208 provides power to the various components of the network node 1200 in a form suitable for the respective components (e.g., at a voltage and current level needed for each respective component). The power source 1208 may further comprise, or be coupled to, power management circuitry to supply the components of the network node 1200 with power for performing the functionality described herein. For example, the network node 1200 may be connectable to an external power source (e.g., the power grid or an electricity outlet) via input circuitry or an interface such as an electrical cable, whereby the external power source supplies power to power circuitry of the power source 1208. As a further example, the power source 1208 may comprise a source of power in the form of a battery or battery pack which is connected to, or integrated in, power circuitry. The battery may provide backup power should the external power source fail.

Embodiments of the network node 1200 may include additional components beyond those shown in Figure 12 for providing certain aspects of the network node’s functionality, including any of the functionality described herein and/or any functionality necessary to support the subject matter described herein. For example, the network node 1200 may include user interface equipment to allow input of information into the network node 1200 and to allow output of information from the network node 1200. This may allow a user to perform diagnostic, maintenance, repair, and other administrative functions for the network node 1200.

Figure 13 is a block diagram of a host 1300, which may be an embodiment of the host 1016 of Figure 10, in accordance with various aspects described herein. As used herein, the host 1300 may be or comprise various combinations of hardware and/or software including a standalone server, a blade server, a cloud-implemented server, a distributed server, a virtual machine, container, or processing resources in a server farm. The host 1300 may provide one or more services to one or more UEs.

The host 1300 includes processing circuitry 1302 that is operatively coupled via a bus 1304 to an input/output interface 1306, a network interface 1308, a power source 1310, and memory 1312. Other components may be included in other embodiments. Features of these components may be substantially similar to those described with respect to the devices of previous figures, such as Figures 11 and 12, such that the descriptions thereof are generally applicable to the corresponding components of the host 1300.

The memory 1312 may include one or more computer programs including one or more host application programs 1314 and data 1316, which may include user data, e.g. data generated by a UE for the host 1300 or data generated by the host 1300 for a UE. Embodiments of the host 1300 may utilize only a subset or all of the components shown. The host application programs 1314 may be implemented in a container-based architecture and may provide support for video codecs (e.g., Versatile Video Coding (VVC), High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC), Advanced Video Coding (AVC), Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG), VP9) and audio codecs (e.g., Free Lossless Audio Codec (FLAC), Advanced Audio Coding (AAC), MPEG, G.711), including transcoding for multiple different classes, types, or implementations of UEs (e.g., handsets, desktop computers, wearable display systems, and heads-up display systems). The host application programs 1314 may also provide for user authentication and licensing checks and may periodically report health, routes, and content availability to a central node, such as a device in or on the edge of a core network. Accordingly, the host 1300 may select and/or indicate a different host for Over-The-Top (OTT) services for a UE. The host application programs 1314 may support various protocols, such as the HTTP Live Streaming (HLS) protocol, Real-Time Messaging Protocol (RTMP), Real-Time Streaming Protocol (RTSP), Dynamic Adaptive Streaming over HTTP (DASH or MPEG-DASH), etc.

Figure 14 is a block diagram illustrating a virtualization environment 1400 in which functions implemented by some embodiments may be virtualized. In the present context, virtualizing means creating virtual versions of apparatuses or devices which may include virtualizing hardware platforms, storage devices, and networking resources. As used herein, virtualization can be applied to any device described herein, or components thereof, and relates to an implementation in which at least a portion of the functionality is implemented as one or more virtual components. Some or all of the functions described herein may be implemented as virtual components executed by one or more Virtual Machines (VMs) implemented in one or more virtual environments 1400 hosted by one or more of hardware nodes, such as a hardware computing device that operates as a network node, UE, core network node, or host. Further, in embodiments in which the virtual node does not require radio connectivity (e.g., a core network node or host), then the node may be entirely virtualized.

Applications 1402 (which may alternatively be called software instances, virtual appliances, network functions, virtual nodes, virtual network functions, etc.) are run in the virtualization environment Q400 to implement some of the features, functions, and/or benefits of some of the embodiments disclosed herein.

Hardware 1404 includes processing circuitry, memory that stores software and/or instructions executable by hardware processing circuitry, and/or other hardware devices as described herein, such as a network interface, input/output interface, and so forth. Software may be executed by the processing circuitry to instantiate one or more virtualization layers 1406 (also referred to as hypervisors or VM Monitors (VMMs)), provide VMs 1408A and 1408B (one or more of which may be generally referred to as VMs 1408), and/or perform any of the functions, features, and/or benefits described in relation with some embodiments described herein. The virtualization layer 1406 may present a virtual operating platform that appears like networking hardware to the VMs 1408.

The VMs 1408 comprise virtual processing, virtual memory, virtual networking, or interface and virtual storage, and may be run by a corresponding virtualization layer 1406. Different embodiments of the instance of a virtual appliance 1402 may be implemented on one or more of the VMs 1408, and the implementations may be made in different ways. Virtualization of the hardware is in some contexts referred to as Network Function Virtualization (NFV). NFV may be used to consolidate many network equipment types onto industry standard high volume server hardware, physical switches, and physical storage, which can be located in data centers and customer premise equipment.

In the context of NFV, a VM 1408 may be a software implementation of a physical machine that runs programs as if they were executing on a physical, non-virtualized machine. Each of the VMs 1408, and that part of the hardware 1404 that executes that VM, be it hardware dedicated to that VM and/or hardware shared by that VM with others of the VMs 1408, forms separate virtual network elements. Still in the context of NFV, a virtual network function is responsible for handling specific network functions that run in one or more VMs 1408 on top of the hardware 1404 and corresponds to the application 1402.

The hardware 1404 may be implemented in a standalone network node with generic or specific components. The hardware 1404 may implement some functions via virtualization. Alternatively, the hardware 1404 may be part of a larger cluster of hardware (e.g., such as in a data center or CPE) where many hardware nodes work together and are managed via management and orchestration 1410, which, among others, oversees lifecycle management of the applications 1402. In some embodiments, the hardware 1404 is coupled to one or more radio units that each include one or more transmitters and one or more receivers that may be coupled to one or more antennas. Radio units may communicate directly with other hardware nodes via one or more appropriate network interfaces and may be used in combination with the virtual components to provide a virtual node with radio capabilities, such as a RAN or a BS. In some embodiments, some signaling can be provided with the use of a control system 1412 which may alternatively be used for communication between hardware nodes and radio units.

Figure 15 shows a communication diagram of a host 1502 communicating via a network node 1504 with a UE 1506 over a partially wireless connection in accordance with some embodiments. Example implementations, in accordance with various embodiments, of the UE (such as the UE 1012A of Figure 10 and/or the UE 1100 of Figure 11), the network node (such as the network node 1010A of Figure 10 and/or the network node 1200 of Figure 12), and the host (such as the host 1016 of Figure 10 and/or the host 1300 of Figure 13) discussed in the preceding paragraphs will now be described with reference to Figure 15.

Like the host 1300, embodiments of the host 1502 include hardware, such as a communication interface, processing circuitry, and memory. The host 1502 also includes software, which is stored in or is accessible by the host 1502 and executable by the processing circuitry. The software includes a host application that may be operable to provide a service to a remote user, such as the UE 1506 connecting via an OTT connection 1550 extending between the UE 1506 and the host 1502. In providing the service to the remote user, a host application may provide user data which is transmitted using the OTT connection 1550.

The network node 1504 includes hardware enabling it to communicate with the host 1502 and the UE 1506 via a connection 1560. The connection 1560 may be direct or pass through a core network (like the core network 1006 of Figure 10) and/or one or more other intermediate networks, such as one or more public, private, or hosted networks. For example, an intermediate network may be a backbone network or the Internet.

The UE 1506 includes hardware and software, which is stored in or accessible by the UE 1506 and executable by the UE’s processing circuitry. The software includes a client application, such as a web browser or operator-specific “app” that may be operable to provide a service to a human or non-human user via the UE 1506 with the support of the host 1502. In the host 1502, an executing host application may communicate with the executing client application via the OTT connection 1550 terminating at the UE 1506 and the host 1502. In providing the service to the user, the UE's client application may receive request data from the host's host application and provide user data in response to the request data. The OTT connection 1550 may transfer both the request data and the user data. The UE's client application may interact with the user to generate the user data that it provides to the host application through the OTT connection 1550.

The OTT connection 1550 may extend via the connection 1560 between the host 1502 and the network node 1504 and via a wireless connection 1570 between the network node 1504 and the UE 1506 to provide the connection between the host 1502 and the UE 1506. The connection 1560 and the wireless connection 1570, over which the OTT connection 1550 may be provided, have been drawn abstractly to illustrate the communication between the host 1502 and the UE 1506 via the network node 1504, without explicit reference to any intermediary devices and the precise routing of messages via these devices.

As an example of transmitting data via the OTT connection 1550, in step 1508, the host 1502 provides user data, which may be performed by executing a host application. In some embodiments, the user data is associated with a particular human user interacting with the UE 1506. In other embodiments, the user data is associated with a UE 1506 that shares data with the host 1502 without explicit human interaction. In step 1510, the host 1502 initiates a transmission carrying the user data towards the UE 1506. The host 1502 may initiate the transmission responsive to a request transmitted by the UE 1506. The request may be caused by human interaction with the UE 1506 or by operation of the client application executing on the UE 1506. The transmission may pass via the network node 1504 in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure. Accordingly, in step 1512, the network node 1504 transmits to the UE 1506 the user data that was carried in the transmission that the host 1502 initiated, in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure. In step 1514, the UE 1506 receives the user data carried in the transmission, which may be performed by a client application executed on the UE 1506 associated with the host application executed by the host 1502.

In some examples, the UE 1506 executes a client application which provides user data to the host 1502. The user data may be provided in reaction or response to the data received from the host 1502. Accordingly, in step 1516, the UE 1506 may provide user data, which may be performed by executing the client application. In providing the user data, the client application may further consider user input received from the user via an input/output interface of the UE 1506. Regardless of the specific manner in which the user data was provided, the UE 1506 initiates, in step 1518, transmission of the user data towards the host 1502 via the network node 1504. In step 1520, in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure, the network node 1504 receives user data from the UE 1506 and initiates transmission of the received user data towards the host 1502. In step 1522, the host 1502 receives the user data carried in the transmission initiated by the UE 1506.

One or more of the various embodiments improve the performance of OTT services provided to the UE 1506 using the OTT connection 1550, in which the wireless connection 1570 forms the last segment. More precisely, the teachings of these embodiments may improve, e.g., overall system performance and power consumption at the UE and thereby provide benefits such as extended battery lifetime.

In an example scenario, factory status information may be collected and analyzed by the host 1502. As another example, the host 1502 may process audio and video data which may have been retrieved from a UE for use in creating maps. As another example, the host 1502 may collect and analyze real-time data to assist in controlling vehicle congestion (e.g., controlling traffic lights). As another example, the host 1502 may store surveillance video uploaded by a UE. As another example, the host 1502 may store or control access to media content such as video, audio, VR, or AR which it can broadcast, multicast, or unicast to UEs. As other examples, the host 1502 may be used for energy pricing, remote control of non-time critical electrical load to balance power generation needs, location services, presentation services (such as compiling diagrams etc. from data collected from remote devices), or any other function of collecting, retrieving, storing, analyzing, and/or transmitting data.

In some examples, a measurement procedure may be provided for the purpose of monitoring data rate, latency, and other factors on which the one or more embodiments improve. There may further be an optional network functionality for reconfiguring the OTT connection 1550 between the host 1502 and the UE 1506 in response to variations in the measurement results. The measurement procedure and/or the network functionality for reconfiguring the OTT connection 1550 may be implemented in software and hardware of the host 1502 and/or the UE 1506. In some embodiments, sensors (not shown) may be deployed in or in association with other devices through which the OTT connection 1550 passes; the sensors may participate in the measurement procedure by supplying values of the monitored quantities exemplified above, or by supplying values of other physical quantities from which software may compute or estimate the monitored quantities. The reconfiguring of the OTT connection 1550 may include message format, retransmission settings, preferred routing, etc.; the reconfiguring need not directly alter the operation of the network node 1504. Such procedures and functionalities may be known and practiced in the art. In certain embodiments, measurements may involve proprietary UE signaling that facilitates measurements of throughput, propagation times, latency, and the like by the host 1502. The measurements may be implemented in that software causes messages to be transmitted, in particular empty or ‘dummy’ messages, using the OTT connection 1550 while monitoring propagation times, errors, etc.

Although the computing devices described herein (e.g., UEs, network nodes, hosts) may include the illustrated combination of hardware components, other embodiments may comprise computing devices with different combinations of components. It is to be understood that these computing devices may comprise any suitable combination of hardware and/or software needed to perform the tasks, features, functions, and methods disclosed herein. Determining, calculating, obtaining, or similar operations described herein may be performed by processing circuitry, which may process information by, for example, converting the obtained information into other information, comparing the obtained information or converted information to information stored in the network node, and/or performing one or more operations based on the obtained information or converted information, and as a result of said processing making a determination. Moreover, while components are depicted as single boxes located within a larger box or nested within multiple boxes, in practice computing devices may comprise multiple different physical components that make up a single illustrated component, and functionality may be partitioned between separate components. For example, a communication interface may be configured to include any of the components described herein, and/or the functionality of the components may be partitioned between the processing circuitry and the communication interface. In another example, non-computationally intensive functions of any of such components may be implemented in software or firmware and computationally intensive functions may be implemented in hardware.

In certain embodiments, some or all of the functionality described herein may be provided by processing circuitry executing instructions stored in memory, which in certain embodiments may be a computer program product in the form of a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. In alternative embodiments, some or all of the functionality may be provided by the processing circuitry without executing instructions stored on a separate or discrete device- readable storage medium, such as in a hardwired manner. In any of those particular embodiments, whether executing instructions stored on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium or not, the processing circuitry can be configured to perform the described functionality. The benefits provided by such functionality are not limited to the processing circuitry alone or to other components of the computing device, but are enjoyed by the computing device as a whole and/or by end users and a wireless network generally. Some example embodiments of the present disclosure are as follows:

Group A Embodiments

Embodiment 1 : A method performed by a user equipment, UE, (900), the method comprising: receiving (904) a Configured Grant Small Data Transmission, CG-SDT, configuration from a network node (902); and while in an inactive state, receiving (916), from the network node (902), information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

Embodiment 2: The method of embodiment 1 further comprising, while in the inactive state, performing (906) a first CG-SDT transmission in accordance with the CG-SDT configuration, wherein receiving (916) the information that indicates the one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises receiving (916) the information that indicates the one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters after performing (906) the first CG-SDT transmission.

Embodiment 3: The method of embodiment 2 further comprising performing (918) a second CG-SDT transmission in accordance with the CG-SDT configuration as updated with the one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

Embodiment 4: The method of any of embodiments 1 to 3 wherein the one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprise one or more UE-specific parameters.

Embodiment 5: The method of embodiment 4 wherein the one or more UE-specific parameters comprise one or more UE-specific power control parameters for CG-SDT transmission.

Embodiment 6: The method of embodiment 4 wherein the one or more UE-specific parameters comprise P0 and/or alpha.

Embodiment 7: The method of embodiment 4 wherein the one or more UE-specific parameters comprise Po_uE_puscH,bj,c(f) ^an d ^a b,f,c )> respectively, with j = 1.

Embodiment 8: The method of any of embodiments 1 to 7 wherein receiving (916) the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises receiving (916A2) a Medium Access Control, MAC, Control Element, CE, comprising the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

Embodiment 9: The method of embodiment 8 wherein the MAC CE comprise a MAC subheader with a Logical Channel Identifier, LCID, that indicates that the MAC CE is a MAC CE that comprises information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters. Embodiment 10: The method of embodiment 9 wherein the MAC subheader consists of one-byte of information, the one-byte of information comprising the LCID.

Embodiment 11 : The method of embodiment 9 wherein the MAC subheader comprises the LCID and a length field.

Embodiment 12: The method of any of embodiments 8 to 11 wherein receiving (916A2) the MAC CE comprising the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises receiving (916A2) the MAC CE combined with another MAC CE.

Embodiment 13: The method of any of embodiments 8 to 11 wherein receiving (916A2) the MAC CE comprising the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises receiving (916A2) the MAC CE combined with a Timing Advance, TA, MAC CE.

Embodiment 14: The method of embodiment 13 wherein a bit in the TA MAC CE indicates that the MAC CE comprising the information that indicates the one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters is appended to the TA MAC CE.

Embodiment 15: The method of any of embodiments 8 to 14 wherein receiving (916A2) the MAC CE comprising the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises receiving (916A2) the MAC CE on a PDSCH.

Embodiment 16: The method of any of embodiments 8 to 14 wherein receiving (916A2) the MAC CE comprising the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises receiving (916A2) the MAC CE on a PDSCH scheduled using a DCI with a CRC scrambled by a C-RNTI or CS-RNTI of the UE (900).

Embodiment 17: The method of any of embodiments 8 to 16 wherein the MAC CE comprising the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters is comprised within a fixed size MAC subPDU.

Embodiment 18: The method of any of embodiments 8 to 16 wherein the UE (900) is configured with a plurality of CG-SDT configurations including the CG-SDT configuration, and the MAC CE comprises information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters for two or more of the plurality of CG-SDT configurations.

Embodiment 19: The method of any of embodiments 8 to 16 wherein the MAC CE comprises two or more P0 and/or alpha values corresponding to different SRIs.

Embodiment 20: The method of any of embodiments 1 to 7 wherein receiving (916) the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises receiving (916B) a Downlink Control Information, DCI, comprising the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

Embodiment 21 : The method of any of embodiments 1 to 20 wherein the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises a value for at least one of the updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

Embodiment 22: The method of any of embodiments 1 to 20 wherein the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises a delta value at least one of the updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

Embodiment 23 : The method of any of embodiments 1 to 20 wherein the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises an index that points to a predefined or configured value for at least one of the updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

Embodiment 24: The method of any of embodiments 1 to 20 wherein the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises an index that points to a predefined or configured set of values for at least a subset of the updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

Embodiment 25: The method of any of the previous embodiments, further comprising: providing user data; and forwarding the user data to a host via the transmission to the network node.

Group B Embodiments

Embodiment 26: A method performed by a network node (902) for a cellular communications system, the method comprising: transmitting (904) a Configured Grant Small Data Transmission, CG-SDT, configuration to a User Equipment, UE, (900); and, while the UE (900) is an inactive state, transmitting (916), to the UE (900), information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

Embodiment 27: The method of embodiment 26 further comprising, while UE (900) is in the inactive state, receiving (906), from the UE (900), a first CG-SDT transmission in accordance with the CG-SDT configuration, wherein transmitting (916) the information that indicates the one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises transmitting (916) the information that indicates the one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters to the UE (916) after receiving (906) the first CG-SDT transmission from the UE (900). Embodiment 28: The method of embodiment 27 further comprising receiving (918) a second CG-SDT transmission from the UE (900) in accordance with the CG-SDT configuration as updated with the one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

Embodiment 29: the method of any of embodiments 26 to 28 wherein the one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprise one or more UE-specific parameters.

Embodiment 30: The method of embodiment 29 wherein the one or more UE-specific parameters comprise one or more UE-specific power control parameters for CG-SDT transmission.

Embodiment 31 : The method of embodiment 29 wherein the one or more UE-specific parameters comprise P0 and/or alpha.

Embodiment 32: The method of embodiment 29 wherein the one or more UE-specific parameters comprise PojjEj>uscH,b,f,c ) and ^a b,f,c )> respectively, with j = 1.

Embodiment 33 : The method of any of embodiments 26 to 32 wherein transmitting (916) the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises transmitting (916A2) a Medium Access Control, MAC, Control Element, CE, comprising the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

Embodiment 34: The method of embodiment 33 wherein the MAC CE comprises a MAC subheader with a Logical Channel Identifier, LCID, that indicates that the MAC CE is a MAC CE that comprises information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

Embodiment 35: The method of embodiment 34 wherein the MAC subheader consists of one-byte of information, the one-byte of information comprising the LCID.

Embodiment 36: The method of embodiment 34 wherein the MAC subheader comprises the LCID and a length field.

Embodiment 37: The method of any of embodiments 33 to 36 wherein transmitting (916A2) the MAC CE comprising the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises transmitting (916A2) the MAC CE combined with another MAC CE.

Embodiment 38: The method of any of embodiments 33 to 36 wherein transmitting (916A2) the MAC CE comprising the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises transmitting (916A2) the MAC CE combined with a Timing Advance, TA, MAC CE. Embodiment 39: The method of embodiment 38 wherein a bit in the TA MAC CE indicates that the MAC CE comprising the information that indicates the one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters is appended to the TA MAC CE.

Embodiment 40: the method of any of embodiments 33 to 39 wherein transmitting (916A2) the MAC CE comprising the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises transmitting (916A2) the MAC CE on a PDSCH.

Embodiment 41 : The method of any of embodiments 33 to 39 wherein transmitting (916A2) the MAC CE comprising the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises transmitting (916A2) the MAC CE on a PDSCH scheduled using a DCI with a CRC scrambled by a C-RNTI or CS-RNTI of the UE (900).

Embodiment 42: The method of any of embodiments 33 to 41 wherein the MAC CE comprising the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters is comprised within a fixed size MAC subPDU.

Embodiment 43 : The method of any of embodiments 33 to 41 wherein the UE (900) is configured with a plurality of CG-SDT configurations including the CG-SDT configuration, and the MAC CE comprises information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters for two or more of the plurality of CG-SDT configurations.

Embodiment 44: The method of any of embodiments 33 to 41 wherein the MAC CE comprises two or more P0 and/or alpha values corresponding to different SRIs.

Embodiment 45: The method of any of embodiments 26 to 32 wherein transmitting (916) the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises transmitting (916B) a Downlink Control Information, DCI, comprising the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

Embodiment 46: The method of any of embodiments 26 to 45 wherein the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises a value for at least one of the updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

Embodiment 47 : The method of any of embodiments 26 to 45 wherein the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises a delta value at least one of the updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

Embodiment 48: The method of any of embodiments 26 to 45 wherein the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises an index that points to a predefined or configured value for at least one of the updated CG-SDT configuration parameters. Embodiment 49: The method of any of embodiments 26 to 45 wherein the information that indicates one or more updated CG-SDT configuration parameters comprises an index that points to a predefined or configured set of values for at least a subset of the updated CG-SDT configuration parameters.

Embodiment 50: The method of any of the previous embodiments, further comprising: obtaining user data; and forwarding the user data to a host or a user equipment.

Group C Embodiments

Embodiment 51 : A user equipment comprising: processing circuitry configured to perform any of the steps of any of the Group A embodiments; and power supply circuitry configured to supply power to the processing circuitry.

Embodiment 52: A network node comprising: processing circuitry configured to perform any of the steps of any of the Group B embodiments; power supply circuitry configured to supply power to the processing circuitry.

Embodiment 53 : A user equipment (UE) comprising: an antenna configured to send and receive wireless signals; radio front-end circuitry connected to the antenna and to processing circuitry, and configured to condition signals communicated between the antenna and the processing circuitry; the processing circuitry being configured to perform any of the steps of any of the Group A embodiments; an input interface connected to the processing circuitry and configured to allow input of information into the UE to be processed by the processing circuitry; an output interface connected to the processing circuitry and configured to output information from the UE that has been processed by the processing circuitry; and a battery connected to the processing circuitry and configured to supply power to the UE.

Embodiment 54: A host configured to operate in a communication system to provide an over-the-top (OTT) service, the host comprising: processing circuitry configured to provide user data; and a network interface configured to initiate transmission of the user data to a cellular network for transmission to a user equipment (UE), wherein the UE comprises a communication interface and processing circuitry, the communication interface and processing circuitry of the UE being configured to perform any of the steps of any of the Group A embodiments to receive the user data from the host.

Embodiment 55: The host of the previous embodiment, wherein the cellular network further includes a network node configured to communicate with the UE to transmit the user data to the UE from the host. Embodiment 56: The host of the previous 2 embodiments, wherein: the processing circuitry of the host is configured to execute a host application, thereby providing the user data; and the host application is configured to interact with a client application executing on the UE, the client application being associated with the host application.

Embodiment 57: A method implemented by a host operating in a communication system that further includes a network node and a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: providing user data for the UE; and initiating a transmission carrying the user data to the UE via a cellular network comprising the network node, wherein the UE performs any of the operations of any of the Group A embodiments to receive the user data from the host.

Embodiment 58: The method of the previous embodiment, further comprising: at the host, executing a host application associated with a client application executing on the UE to receive the user data from the UE.

Embodiment 59: The method of the previous embodiment, further comprising: at the host, transmitting input data to the client application executing on the UE, the input data being provided by executing the host application, wherein the user data is provided by the client application in response to the input data from the host application.

Embodiment 60: A host configured to operate in a communication system to provide an over-the-top (OTT) service, the host comprising: processing circuitry configured to provide user data; and a network interface configured to initiate transmission of the user data to a cellular network for transmission to a user equipment (UE), wherein the UE comprises a communication interface and processing circuitry, the communication interface and processing circuitry of the UE being configured to perform any of the steps of any of the Group A embodiments to transmit the user data to the host.

Embodiment 61 : The host of the previous embodiment, wherein the cellular network further includes a network node configured to communicate with the UE to transmit the user data from the UE to the host.

Embodiment 62: The host of the previous 2 embodiments, wherein: the processing circuitry of the host is configured to execute a host application, thereby providing the user data; and the host application is configured to interact with a client application executing on the UE, the client application being associated with the host application.

Embodiment 63 : A method implemented by a host configured to operate in a communication system that further includes a network node and a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: at the host, receiving user data transmitted to the host via the network node by the UE, wherein the UE performs any of the steps of any of the Group A embodiments to transmit the user data to the host.

Embodiment 64: The method of the previous embodiment, further comprising: at the host, executing a host application associated with a client application executing on the UE to receive the user data from the UE.

Embodiment 65: The method of the previous embodiment, further comprising: at the host, transmitting input data to the client application executing on the UE, the input data being provided by executing the host application, wherein the user data is provided by the client application in response to the input data from the host application.

Embodiment 66: A host configured to operate in a communication system to provide an over-the-top (OTT) service, the host comprising: processing circuitry configured to provide user data; and a network interface configured to initiate transmission of the user data to a network node in a cellular network for transmission to a user equipment (UE), the network node having a communication interface and processing circuitry, the processing circuitry of the network node configured to perform any of the operations of any of the Group B embodiments to transmit the user data from the host to the UE.

Embodiment 67: The host of the previous embodiment, wherein: the processing circuitry of the host is configured to execute a host application that provides the user data; and the UE comprises processing circuitry configured to execute a client application associated with the host application to receive the transmission of user data from the host.

Embodiment 68: A method implemented in a host configured to operate in a communication system that further includes a network node and a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: providing user data for the UE; and initiating a transmission carrying the user data to the UE via a cellular network comprising the network node, wherein the network node performs any of the operations of any of the Group B embodiments to transmit the user data from the host to the UE.

Embodiment 69: The method of the previous embodiment, further comprising, at the network node, transmitting the user data provided by the host for the UE.

Embodiment 70: The method of any of the previous 2 embodiments, wherein the user data is provided at the host by executing a host application that interacts with a client application executing on the UE, the client application being associated with the host application.

Embodiment 71 : A communication system configured to provide an over-the-top service, the communication system comprising: a host comprising: processing circuitry configured to provide user data for a user equipment (UE), the user data being associated with the over-the-top service; and a network interface configured to initiate transmission of the user data toward a cellular network node for transmission to the UE, the network node having a communication interface and processing circuitry, the processing circuitry of the network node configured to perform any of the operations of any of the Group B embodiments to transmit the user data from the host to the UE.

Embodiment 72: The communication system of the previous embodiment, further comprising: the network node; and/or the user equipment.

Embodiment 73 : A host configured to operate in a communication system to provide an over-the-top (OTT) service, the host comprising: processing circuitry configured to initiate receipt of user data; and a network interface configured to receive the user data from a network node in a cellular network, the network node having a communication interface and processing circuitry, the processing circuitry of the network node configured to perform any of the operations of any of the Group B embodiments to receive the user data from a user equipment (UE) for the host.

Embodiment 74: The host of the previous 2 embodiments, wherein: the processing circuitry of the host is configured to execute a host application, thereby providing the user data; and the host application is configured to interact with a client application executing on the UE, the client application being associated with the host application.

Embodiment 75: The host of the any of the previous 2 embodiments, wherein the initiating receipt of the user data comprises requesting the user data.

Embodiment 76: A method implemented by a host configured to operate in a communication system that further includes a network node and a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: at the host, initiating receipt of user data from the UE, the user data originating from a transmission which the network node has received from the UE, wherein the network node performs any of the steps of any of the Group B embodiments to receive the user data from the UE for the host.

Embodiment 77: The method of the previous embodiment, further comprising at the network node, transmitting the received user data to the host.

Those skilled in the art will recognize improvements and modifications to the embodiments of the present disclosure. All such improvements and modifications are considered within the scope of the concepts disclosed herein.