Multi-panel activation/deactivation status reporting

1. A method of wireless communication, comprising:

determining, at a user equipment (UE) having a plurality of panels, a nominal number of active panels;

mapping, by the UE, a number of panel identifiers equal to the nominal number of active panels to an actual number of active panels of the plurality of panels;

determining, by the UE, to autonomously change an activation status of one or more of the plurality of panels;

remapping the number of panel identifiers to a new number of actual active panels, wherein the number of panel identifiers remains equal to the nominal number of active panels;

receiving, from a base station, a downlink control information (DCI) scheduling a communication based on one of the panel identifiers;

determining a panel for the communication based on the mapping; and

communicating according to the DCI using the determined panel.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising transmitting a radio resource control (RRC) message to the base station indicating the nominal number of active panels.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the nominal number of active panels remains the same while the UE is connected to the base station.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein mapping the number of panel identifiers to the actual number of active panels comprises mapping at least two of the panel identifiers to a single active panel.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein mapping the number of panel identifiers to the actual number of active panels comprises mapping a same panel identifier to multiple active panels when the nominal number of active panels is less than the actual number of active panels.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining the nominal number of active panels comprises selecting one of: a total number of panels of the UE, a current number of active panels, a maximum number of active panels, or a desired number of active panels.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the DCI includes the one panel identifier.

8. An apparatus for wireless communication, comprising:

a memory storing computer-executable instructions; and

at least one processor coupled with the memory and configured to execute the instructions to:

determine, at a user equipment (UE) having a plurality of panels, a nominal number of active panels;

map, by the UE, a number of panel identifiers equal to the nominal number of active panels to an actual number of active panels of the plurality of panels;

determine, by the UE, to autonomously change an activation status of one or more of the plurality of panels;

remap the number of panel identifiers to a new number of actual active panels, wherein the number of panel identifiers remains equal to the nominal number of active panels;

receive, from a base station, a downlink control information (DCI) scheduling a communication based on one of the panel identifiers;

determine a panel for the communication based on the mapping; and

communicate according to the DCI using the determined panel.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the at least one processor is configured to transmit a radio resource control (RRC) message to the base station indicating the nominal number of active panels.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 , wherein the nominal number of active panels remains the same while the UE is connected to the base station.

11. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the at least one processor is configured to map at least two of the panel identifiers to a single active panel.

12. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the at least one processor is configured to map a same panel identifier to multiple active panels when the nominal number of active panels is less than the actual number of active panels.

13. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the at least one processor is configured to determine the nominal number of active panels by selecting one of: a total number of panels of the UE, a current number of active panels, a maximum number of active panels, or a desired number of active panels.

14. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the DCI includes the one panel identifier.

15. An apparatus for wireless communication, comprising:

means for determining, at a user equipment (UE) having a plurality of panels, a nominal number of active panels;

means for mapping, by the UE, a number of panel identifiers equal to the nominal number of active panels to an actual number of active panels of the plurality of panels;

means for determining, by the UE, to autonomously change an activation status of one or more of the plurality of panels;

means for remapping the number of panel identifiers to a new number of actual active panels, wherein the number of panel identifiers remains equal to the nominal number of active panels;

means for receiving, from a base station, a downlink control information (DCI) scheduling a communication based on one of the panel identifiers;

means for determining a panel for the communication based on the mapping; and

means for communicating according to the DCI using the determined panel.

16. The apparatus of claim 15 , further comprising means for transmitting a radio resource control (RRC) message to the base station indicating the nominal number of active panels.

17. The apparatus of claim 16 , wherein the nominal number of active panels remains the same while the UE is connected to the base station.

18. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the means for mapping the number of panel identifiers to the actual number of active panels is configured to map at least two of the panel identifiers to a single active panel.

19. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the means for mapping the number of panel identifiers to the actual number of active panels is configured to map a same panel identifier to multiple active panels when the nominal number of active panels is less than the actual number of active panels.

20. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the means for determining the nominal number of active panels is configured to select one of: a total number of panels of the UE, a current number of active panels, a maximum number of active panels, or a desired number of active panels.

21. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the DCI includes the one panel identifier.

22. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that when executed by a processor, cause the processor to:

determine, at a user equipment (UE) having a plurality of panels, a nominal number of active panels;

map, by the UE, a number of panel identifiers equal to the nominal number of active panels to an actual number of active panels of the plurality of panels;

determine, by the UE, to autonomously change an activation status of one or more of the plurality of panels;

remap the number of panel identifiers to a new number of actual active panels, wherein the number of panel identifiers remains equal to the nominal number of active panels;

receive, from a base station, a downlink control information (DCI) scheduling a communication based on one of the panel identifiers;

determine a panel for the communication based on the mapping; and

communicate according to the DCI using the determined panel.