System and method for physical downlink control channel monitoring based on user equipment capability in dual connectivity

A method for monitoring a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), by a base station (BS), the method comprising:

• receiving, from a user equipment (UE), capability information indicating a first set of one or more pairs and a second set of one or more tuples, wherein each pair of the first set indicates a combination of serving cells configured for per-slot and per-span monitoring that the UE is capable of supporting, and each tuple of the second set indicates a combination of serving cells configured for per-slot and per-span monitoring that the UE is capable of supporting in each of a master cell group (MCG) and a secondary cell group (SCG);
• and
• providing a first pair of values for the MCG and a second pair of values for the SCG, in response to the capability information, wherein a first value in each of the first and second pairs of values is a maximum number of serving cells configured for per-slot monitoring, and a second value in each of the first and second pairs of values is a maximum number of serving cells configured for per-span monitoring,
• wherein a monitored candidate limit per slot is determined for each of the MCG and the SCG based on the first value in each of the first and second pairs of values, and
• wherein a monitored candidate limit per span is determined for each of the MCG and the SCG based on the second value in each of the first and second pairs of values.

A user equipment (UE) comprising:

• a processor;
• and
• a non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to:
• report capability information indicating a first set of one or more pairs and a second set of one or more tuples, wherein each pair of the first set indicates a combination of serving cells configured for per-slot and per-span monitoring that the UE is capable of supporting, and each tuple of the second set indicates a combination of serving cells configured for per-slot and per-span monitoring that the UE is capable of supporting in each of a master cell group (MCG) and a secondary cell group (SCG);
• receive, in response to the capability information, a first pair of values for the MCG and a second pair of values for the SCG, wherein a first value in each of the first and second pairs of values is a maximum number of serving cells configured for per-slot monitoring, and a second value in each of the first and second pairs of values is a maximum number of serving cells configured for per-span monitoring;
• determine, for each of the MCG and the SCG, a monitored candidate limit per slot based on the first value in each of the first and second pairs of values;
• and
• determine, for each of the MCG and the SCG, a monitored candidate limit per span based on the second value in each of the first and second pairs of values.

A base station (BS) comprising:

• a processor;
• and
• a non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to:
• receive, from a user equipment (UE), capability information indicating a first set of one or more pairs and a second set of one or more tuples, wherein each pair of the first set indicates a combination of serving cells configured for per-slot and per-span monitoring that the UE is capable of supporting, and each tuple of the second set indicates a combination of serving cells configured for per-slot and per-span monitoring that the UE is capable of supporting in each of a master cell group (MCG) and a secondary cell group (SCG);
• and
• provide a first pair of values for the MCG and a second pair of values for the SCG, in response to the capability information, wherein a first value in each of the first and second pairs of values is a maximum number of serving cells configured for per-slot monitoring, and a second value in each of the first and second pairs of values is a maximum number of serving cells configured for per-span monitoring,
• wherein a monitored candidate limit per slot is determined for each of the MCG and the SCG based on the first value in each of the first and second pairs of values, and
• wherein a monitored candidate limit per span is determined for each of the MCG and the SCG based on the second value in each of the first and second pairs of values.

A method for monitoring a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) by a user equipment (UE), the method comprising:

• reporting capability information indicating a set of one or more tuples, wherein each tuple of the set indicates a combination of serving cells configured for per-slot and per-span monitoring that the UE is capable of supporting in each of a master cell group (MCG) and a secondary cell group (SCG);
• receiving, in response to the capability information, a first pair of values for the MCG and a second pair of values for the SCG, wherein a first value in each of the first and second pairs of values is a maximum number of serving cells configured for per-slot monitoring, and a second value in each of the first and second pairs of values is a maximum number of serving cells configured for per-span monitoring;
• determining, for each of the MCG and the SCG, a monitored candidate limit per slot based on the first value in each of the first and second pairs of values;
• and
• determining, for each of the MCG and the SCG, a monitored candidate limit per span based on the second value in each of the first and second pairs of values.