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Additional Material To 5G NTN Course

K-offset and K-mac were introduced in 5G NR NTN in Release 17 to address timing challenges due to increased signal propagation times in satellite networks. K-offset is a time offset parameter that aids in physical layer procedures and is transmitted to the UE via SIB 19, while K-mac extends the response window for the initial network access procedure. Both parameters enhance the efficiency of communication between the UE and gNB in NTN environments.

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Gleb Marchenko
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226 views2 pages

Additional Material To 5G NTN Course

K-offset and K-mac were introduced in 5G NR NTN in Release 17 to address timing challenges due to increased signal propagation times in satellite networks. K-offset is a time offset parameter that aids in physical layer procedures and is transmitted to the UE via SIB 19, while K-mac extends the response window for the initial network access procedure. Both parameters enhance the efficiency of communication between the UE and gNB in NTN environments.

Uploaded by

Gleb Marchenko
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Additional material to 5G NTN course (Gleb Marchenko)

Question: Why K-mac/K-offset were introduced in 5G NR NTN in Release 17?

Answer:
K-offset is an additional parameter - a time offset (ranging from 0 to 1023 ms, depending on the orbit)—that is
transmitted from the network to the UE via SIB 19. It is used for physical layer procedures, including the initial
network access procedure. This parameter can also be updated after a successful initial access procedure.

The ue-specific-K-Offset-r17 parameter in the UE capability message indicates whether the UE supports this
functionality in NTN. Specifically, it shows support for:

• Receiving UE-specific K-offset via MAC-CE

• Calculating timing for PUSCH, PUCCH, CSI-RS

• Transmitting aperiodic SRS

• Activating TA commands

• Performing the first PUSCH (CG Type 2) transmission using this parameter

Why is K-offset needed in 5G NTN networks?

Let's consider an example: Suppose both DL and UL use a subcarrier spacing (SCS) of 15 kHz, and TA (Timing Advance)
is set to 0. The timing for PUSCH transmission is provided via DCI messages through the PDCCH channel.

In this case, PUSCH transmission will occur at n + k2, where K2 offset takes values from 0 to 32 ms.

If we take into account the Timing Advance (TA) and the time required by the UE for demodulating and decoding the
received DCI message, then the resource scheduler should also consider this:

In the case of an NTN NR channel, the time shift K2 is not sufficient. Therefore, an additional K-offset was introduced
in 3GPP Rel-17.
A similar situation is observed for the initial network access procedure over the radio when using the timing offset K-
mac.

Specifically, due to the increased signal propagation time between the UE and gNB, there is a need to extend the
response window duration for the RA procedure and the Contention Resolution timer.

After the UE sends the preamble (Step 1), it monitors the PDCCH for the reception of Msg2 (RAR message). The
reception window for the RAR message is called the ra-ResponseWindow. If the UE does not receive the RAR
message within this window, it retransmits the preamble.

In terrestrial 5G NR networks, the maximum response waiting time for the RAR message is 2 ms for a subcarrier
spacing of 15 kHz. However, for satellite-based 5G networks, this is insufficient. Therefore, an additional parameter,
K-mac, has been introduced, which is also signaled in SIB19.

UE-gNB RTT is calculated as UE-TA + K-mac.

As for the RA Contention Resolution parameter, its value is sufficient for both terrestrial and space-based 5G NR
networks. However, to minimize UE battery consumption, this parameter is also calculated considering the UE-gNB
RTT.

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