Adapting PHY layer procedures for a moving RAN in non-terrestrial networks

1. A method of operating a wireless device that is communicating with a network node of a communications network via a non-terrestrial communication path that comprises a plurality of satellites and a plurality of satellite gateways, the method comprising:

determining that communication between the wireless device and the network node will experience a communication interrupting transition during a transition period in which the non-terrestrial communication path between the wireless device and the network node will be interrupted; and

adjusting a PHY layer procedure of the wireless device to mitigate switching problems with a first satellite of the plurality of satellites during and/or after the interruption by configuring a transmission gap during uplink and/or downlink data transmission, the transmission gap being greater than or equal to the transition period.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein adjusting the PHY layer procedure comprises:

pausing communication with the first satellite during the transition period; and

resuming communication with the first satellite after the transition period.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein resuming communication with the first satellite after the transition period comprises communicating with a second satellite of the plurality of satellites after the transition period, and

wherein the wireless device communicated with the first satellite prior to the transition period and the first satellite is different from the second satellite.

4. The method of claim 2 , further comprising communicating with a first cell of the first satellite of the plurality of satellites prior to the transition period, and

wherein resuming communication with the first satellite after the transition comprises communicating with a second cell of the first satellite after the transition period.

5. The method of claim 2 , wherein determining that the communication between the wireless device and the network node will experience a communication interrupting transition comprises receiving an indication that the network node of the communications network has activated access barring with respect to the wireless device in anticipation of the communication interrupting transition.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the network node activates access barring based on a class of the wireless device.

7. The method of claim 5 , wherein the network node activates access barring based on a cell of the first satellite, wherein the wireless device communicates with the cell.

8. The method of claim 1 , further comprising receiving a message from the network node of the communications network, the message instructing the wireless device to adjust a timing advance and/or a Doppler frequency shift,

wherein adjusting a PHY layer procedure comprises adjusting the timing advance and/or the Doppler frequency shift in response to the message from the network node.

9. The method of claim 1 , further comprising receiving downlink control information from the network node in the communications network.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein adjusting the PHY layer procedure comprises configuring a plurality of periodic transmission gaps based on a plurality of periodic transition periods, wherein the plurality of periodic transmission gaps comprises the transmission gap and the plurality of periodic transition periods comprises the transition period.

11. The method of claim 9 , wherein the downlink control information includes a new downlink control information format and/or a repurposed existing downlink control information field.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining that the communication between the wireless device and the network node will experience the communication interrupting transition during the transition period comprises:

determining a coupling loss between the wireless device and the first satellite; and

determining that the communication between the wireless device and the network node will experience the communication interruption,

wherein adjusting the PHY layer procedures comprises adapting an uplink transmission power of the wireless device based on the coupling loss between the wireless device and the first satellite.

13. The method of claim 1 , wherein adjusting the PHY layer procedures comprises:

ignoring a current coupling loss estimate;

pausing subsequent uplink transmissions until a new coupling loss estimate has been determined;

recalibrating an uplink power control based on downlink signal measurements from a second satellite of the plurality of satellites; and

resuming uplink transmissions, wherein the uplink transmissions are sent to the second satellite instead of the first satellite.

14. The method of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of satellites are non-geostationary satellites, and

wherein the network node is a ground network node.

15. The method of claim 1 , wherein the communication path is altered in response to a first access link between the wireless device and the first satellite of the plurality of satellites being switched to a second access link between the wireless device and a second satellite.

16. The method of claim 1 , wherein the communication path is altered in response to a first feeder link between the first satellite and a first satellite gateway being switched to a second feeder link between the first satellite and a second satellite gateway.

17. A method of operating a network node that is communicating with a wireless device via a non-terrestrial network that comprises a plurality of satellite gateways and a plurality of satellites, the method comprising:

determining that communication between the network node and the wireless device will experience a communication interruption during a transition period, the transition period comprising a time period in which a communication path between the network node and the wireless device will be interrupted; and

providing downlink control information to the wireless device to mitigate switching problems during and/or after the communication interruption, the downlink control information including an indication that the wireless device configure a transmission gap during uplink and/or downlink data transmission, the transmission gap being greater than or equal to the transition period.

18. The method of claim 17 , further comprising:

determining the time period of the transition period associated with the wireless device and a first satellite of the plurality of satellites,

wherein providing the information to the wireless device comprises providing instructions to pause communication with the first satellite during the time period.

19. The method of claim 18 , further comprising:

receiving velocity information from the wireless device, the velocity information including a speed and a direction of movement of the wireless device; and

receiving velocity information for the first satellite,

wherein the transition period is determined based on the received velocity information for the wireless device and/or the received velocity information for the first satellite.

20. The method of claim 17 , wherein the communication path will be altered during the transition period by one of:

a transition from a first satellite of the plurality of satellites to a second satellite of the plurality of satellites;

a transition from a first cell of the first satellite to a second cell of the first satellite; and

a transition in communication between the first satellite and a first satellite gateway of the plurality of satellite gateways and a second satellite gateway of the plurality of satellites gateways, wherein the first and second satellite gateways are provided by terrestrial network nodes.

21. The method of claim 17 , wherein the network node is a ground network node.

22. The method of claim 17 , wherein the network node is a base station in a 5G communications network.

23. A wireless device operable to communicate with a network node of a communications network via a non-terrestrial communication path that comprises one of a plurality of satellites and one of a plurality of satellite gateways, wherein the wireless device comprising:

processing circuitry; and

memory coupled with the processing circuitry, wherein the memory includes instructions that when executed by the processing circuitry causes the wireless device to perform operations comprising:

determining that communication between the wireless device and the network node will experience a communication interrupting transition during a transition period in which the non-terrestrial communication path between the wireless device and the network node will be interrupted; and

adjusting a PHY layer procedure of the wireless device to mitigate switching problems with a first satellite of the plurality of satellites during and/or after the interruption by configuring a transmission gap during uplink and/or downlink data transmission, the transmission gap being greater than or equal to the transition period.

24. A network node operable to communicate with a wireless device via a non-terrestrial network that comprises a first satellite gateway of a plurality of satellite gateways and a first satellite of a plurality of satellites and, the network node comprising:

processing circuitry; and

memory coupled with the processing circuitry, wherein the memory includes instructions that when executed by the processing circuitry causes the wireless device to perform operations comprising:

determining that communication between the network node and the wireless device will experience a communication interruption during a transition period, the transition period comprising a time period in which a communication path between the network node and the wireless device will be interrupted; and

providing downlink control information to the wireless device to mitigate switching problems during and/or after the communication interruption, the downlink control information including an indication that the wireless device configure a transmission gap during uplink and/or downlink data transmission, the transmission gap being greater than or equal to the transition period.