IP Library › Granted Patent US 12,302,396
Granted Patent B2
US 12,302,396 · App. 18/233,571 · Granted May 13, 2025

Apparatus, system and method of communication over common control channels

Inventors: Sudeep Palat (Cheltenham, GB); Yi Guo (Shanghai, CN); Yujian Zhang (Beijing, CN); Seau Sian Lim (Swindon, GB)
Assignee: Apple Inc.
H04W74/0816H04W84/12
View Patent ↗
Loading inventors, assignments & file history…
Monitor This Case
Get email alerts when status or documents change.
Order Certified Copies
Most orders are placed with the USPTO same day — all within 24 business hours.
Order via The Patent Place →
Pre-filled with this patent's details
Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,302,396
App. No.
18/233,571
Granted
May 13, 2025
Kind
B2
Abstract

Some demonstrative embodiments include devices, systems and/or methods of communication over common control channels. For example, an apparatus may include logic and circuitry configured to cause a User Equipment (UE) to determine a selected Common Control Channel (CCCH) message configuration from a first predefined message configuration and a second predefined message configuration, the first predefined message configuration having a first predefined message bit-size, the second predefined message configuration having a second predefined message bit-size; to generate an Uplink (UL) CCCH message according to the selected CCCH message configuration, the UL CCCH message comprising a Medium Access Control (MAC) header comprising a Logical Channel Identify (ID) (LCID) field having a value corresponding to the selected CCCH message configuration; and to transmit the UL CCCH message to a Next Generation Node B (gNB) over a logical channel corresponding to the selected CCCH message configuration.

Claims (28)

1. An apparatus comprising logic and circuitry configured to cause a User Equipment (UE) to:

determine a Common Control Channel (CCCH) message configuration selected from a first predefined message configuration that includes a first Radio Resource Control (RRC) message configuration, and a second predefined message configuration that includes a second RRC message configuration, the first predefined message configuration having a first predefined message bit-size, the second predefined message configuration having a second predefined message bit-size;

generate an Uplink (UL) CCCH message according to the selected CCCH message configuration, the UL CCCH message comprising a RRC message and a Medium Access Control (MAC) header; and

transmit the UL CCCH message to a base station.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the RRC message of the CCCH message includes an RRC System Information (Info) Request.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein to transmit the UL CCCH message to the base station, the logic and circuitry are configured to cause the UE to transmit the UL CCCH message over a logical channel corresponding to the selected CCCH message configuration.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the logic and circuitry are configured to cause the UE to transmit the UL CCCH message over a first logical channel (CCCH channel) when the selected CCCH message configuration comprises the first predefined message configuration, and to transmit the UL CCCH message over a second logical channel (CCCH1 channel) when the selected CCCH message configuration comprises the second predefined message configuration.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first predefined message configuration comprises a first identifier field having a first predefined bit-size, and the second predefined message configuration comprises a second identifier field having a second predefined bit-size different from the first predefined bit-size.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the MAC header comprises a Logical Channel Identify (ID) (LCID) field having a value corresponding to the selected CCCH message configuration.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 , wherein the logic and circuitry are configured to cause the UE to set the LCID field to a first predefined LCID value when the selected CCCH message configuration comprises the first predefined message configuration, and to set the LCID field to a second predefined LCID value, different from the first predefined LCID value, when the selected CCCH message configuration comprises the second predefined message configuration.

8. A method performed by a User Equipment (UE), comprising:

determining a Common Control Channel (CCCH) message configuration selected from a first predefined message configuration that includes a first Radio Resource Control (RRC) message configuration, and a second predefined message configuration that includes a second RRC message configuration, the first predefined message configuration having a first predefined message bit-size, the second predefined message configuration having a second predefined message bit-size;

generating an Uplink (UL) CCCH message according to the selected CCCH message configuration, the UL CCCH message comprising a RRC message and a Medium Access Control (MAC) header; and

transmitting the UL CCCH message to a base station.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the RRC message of the CCCH message includes an RRC System Information (Info) Request.

10. The method of claim 8 , wherein the transmitting the UL CCCH message comprises transmitting the UL CCCH message over a logical channel corresponding to the selected CCCH message configuration.

11. The method of claim 8 , wherein the MAC header comprises a Logical Channel Identify (ID) (LCID) field having a value corresponding to the selected CCCH message configuration.

12. The method of claim 11 , further comprising setting the LCID field to a first predefined LCID value when the selected CCCH message configuration comprises the first predefined message configuration, and setting the LCID field to a second predefined LCID value, different from the first predefined LCID value, when the selected CCCH message configuration comprises the second predefined message configuration.

13. The method of claim 8 , wherein the transmitting comprises transmitting the UL CCCH message over a first logical channel (CCCH channel) when the selected CCCH message configuration comprises the first predefined message configuration, and transmitting the UL CCCH message over a second logical channel (CCCH1 channel) when the selected CCCH message configuration comprises the second predefined message configuration.

14. The method of claim 8 , wherein the first predefined message configuration comprises a first identifier field having a first predefined bit-size, and the second predefined message configuration comprises a second identifier field having a second predefined bit-size different from the first predefined bit-size.

15. An apparatus comprising logic and circuitry configured to cause a base station to:

transmit a message comprising an indication of a Common Control Channel (CCCH) message configuration selected from a first predefined message configuration that includes a first Radio Resource Control (RRC) message configuration, and a second predefined message configuration that includes a second RRC message configuration, the first predefined message configuration having a first predefined message bit-size, the second predefined message configuration having a second predefined message bit-size; and

receive an Uplink (UL) CCCH message from a User Equipment (UE), the UL CCCH message comprising a RRC message and a Medium Access Control (MAC) header, wherein the UL CCCH message is generated by the UE according to the selected CCCH message configuration.

16. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the RRC message of the UL CCCH message includes an RRC System Information (Info) Request.

17. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein to receive the UL CCCH message, the logic and circuitry are configured to cause the base station to receive the UL CCCH message over a logical channel corresponding to the selected CCCH message configuration.

18. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the logic and circuitry are configured to cause the base station to receive the UL CCCH message over a first logical channel (CCCH channel) when the selected CCCH message configuration comprises the first predefined message configuration, and to receive the UL CCCH message over a second logical channel (CCCH1 channel) when the selected CCCH message configuration comprises the second predefined message configuration.

19. The apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the MAC header comprises a Logical Channel Identify (ID) (LCID) field having a value corresponding to the selected CCCH message configuration.

20. The apparatus of claim 19 , wherein the LCID field comprises a first predefined LCID value when the selected CCCH message configuration comprises the first predefined message configuration, and wherein the LCID field comprises a second predefined LCID value, different from the first predefined LCID value, when the selected CCCH message configuration comprises the second predefined message configuration.

Continuity (3)
Continuation 16446973 · Jun 20, 2019
Provisional Application 62688297 · Jun 21, 2018
Related Publication 20230389077A1 · Nov 30, 2023
References Cited (12)
US 10660135B2 · Takahashi · 2020 [cited by examiner]
US 11140717B2 · Agiwal · 2021 [cited by examiner]
US 20170332419A1 · Kim et al. · 2017 [cited by applicant]
US 20180176962A1 · Wu · 2018 [cited by applicant]
US 20180220288A1 · Agiwal et al. · 2018 [cited by applicant]
US 20190254114A1 · Son · 2019 [cited by applicant]
US 20190306884A1 · Palat et al. · 2019 [cited by applicant]
US 20190349837A1 · Shih · 2019 [cited by examiner]
3GPP TS 38.331 V15.2.1 (Jun. 2018); Technical Specification; 3 [cited by applicant]
3GPP TS 38.321 V15.2.0 (Jun. 2018); Technical Specification; 3 [cited by applicant]
R2-163368, “RA preamble partitioning for multiple CCCH SDU sizes”, source NTT Docomo, Inc. (Year: 2016). [cited by applicant]
62670227, Specification, May 11, 2018 (Year: 2018). [cited by applicant]