BR112017018199B1 - COMMUNICATION METHOD AND APPARATUS IN A WIRELESS DEVICE, AND COMPUTER READABLE NON-TRANSIENT MEMORY - Google Patents

Abstract

FREQUENCY RESOURCE ALLOCATION FOR A NARROWBAND CELLULAR INTERNET SYSTEM, OF THINGS. Improved systems, methods, and apparatus for allocating frequency resources, or tones, for a Cellular Internet of Things (CIoT) system are described. In several aspects, interference can be reduced to a CIoT system and an adjacent wireless communication system by identifying a first group of narrowband tones for the CIoT system that will have reduced interference with wideband tone transmissions of the wireless communication system. adjacent wireless communication and can thereby support higher power transmissions.

Description

REFERENCE REFERENCE

[0001] The present patent application claims priority to US patent application no. 14/988,878 by Li et al., entitled “Frequency Resource allocation for a narrow-band cellular Internet of things System,” filed on January 6, 2016; and US provisional patent application no. 62/120,763 to Li et al., entitled “Frequency Resource allocation for a narrow-band cellular Internet of things system,” filed on February 25, 2015, each of which is assigned to the assignee of this application.

BACKGROUND FIELD OF INVENTION

[0002] What follows refers generally to wireless communication, and more specifically to the allocation of frequency resources (tones) for a Cellular Internet of Things (CIoT) system.

DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART

[0003] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication content such as voice, video, packet data, messaging, broadcast, and so on. These systems may be multiple access systems capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources (e.g., time, frequency, and power). Examples of such multiple access systems include code division multiple access (CDMA) systems, time division multiple access (TDMA) systems, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) systems, and frequency division multiple access (FDMA) systems. orthogonal frequency division (OFDMA), (for example, a Long Term Evolution (LTE) system).

[0004] As an example, a wireless multiple access communication system may include multiple base stations, each simultaneously supporting communication for multiple communication devices, which may otherwise be known as a user equipment (UE). A base station may communicate with UEs on downlink channels (e.g., for transmissions from a base station to a UE) and uplink channels (e.g., for transmissions from a UE to a base station).

[0005] Some UEs may provide automated communication. Automated UEs may include those implementing Machine-to-Machine (M2M) communication or Machine-to-Machine Communication (MTC). M2M or MTC can refer to data communications technologies that allow devices to communicate with each other or a base station without human intervention. M2M or MTC devices can include UEs and can be used as part of an Internet of Things (IoT). Some M2M or MTC devices in an IoT may include parking meters, water and gas meters, and other sensors that may communicate infrequently small amounts of data.

[0006] In some cases, including in an IoT, a UE may be a power-limited device designed for low transmission capacity or infrequent data transfers. In some cases, a UE may be configured to transmit and receive wireless communications in frequency bands that overlap with other wireless communication bands of adjacent wireless communication networks. Such overlap may result in interference to one or both wireless communication networks.

SUMMARY

[0007] The present disclosure may relate generally to wireless communication systems, and more particularly to improved systems, methods and apparatus for allocating frequency or tone resources, for a Cellular Internet of Things (CIoT) system. In various aspects, interference can be reduced for a CIoT system and an adjacent wireless communications system by identifying a first tone group for the CIoT system that will have reduced interference with adjacent wireless communications system transmissions and may thereby mode, support higher power transmissions.

[0008] User equipment (UEs) in the CIoT system that have relatively poor channel conditions and would benefit from higher power transmissions can be identified. Communications with such UEs may be performed via the first group of tones supporting higher power transmissions, and communications with other UEs having more favorable channel conditions may be performed via other tones having lower power transmissions. In certain examples, frequency diversity may be employed to further decrease interference through frequency hopping between tones of the first tone group. In some examples, the remaining tones may be divided into two or more subsets through fractional frequency reuse (FFR) techniques to provide interference mediation and additional interference mitigation.

[0009] A method of wireless communication in a wireless device is described. The method may include identifying a first set of narrowband tones for wireless communications in a first wireless communications network, and identifying a first group of tones from the first set of narrowband tones that support higher power transmissions. than a second group of tones from the first set of narrowband tones, the identification based at least in part on a level of interference between tones from the first group and the second set of wideband tones for wireless communications on a second network of wireless communications.

[00010] An apparatus for wireless communication in a wireless device is described. The apparatus may include means for identifying a first set of narrowband tones for wireless communications in a first wireless communication network, and means for identifying a first group of tones from the first set of narrowband tones supporting transmissions. of higher power than a second group of tones from the first set of narrowband tones, identification based at least in part on a level of interference between tones of the first group and second set of narrowband tones for wireless communications in a second wireless communications network.

[00011] An additional apparatus for wireless communication in a wireless device is described. The apparatus may include a processor, memory in electronic communication with the processor, and instructions stored in the memory, wherein the instructions are executable by the processor to identify a first set of narrowband tones for wireless communications in a first wireless communications network. wire, and identifying a first group of tones from the first set of narrowband tones that support higher power transmissions than a second group of tones from the first set of narrowband tones, the identification based at least in part on a level of interference between tones of the first group and second set of broadband tones for wireless communication in a second wireless communications network.

[00012] A non-transitory computer readable medium that stores code for wireless communication in a wireless device is described. The code may include executable instructions for identifying a first set of narrowband tones for wireless communications in a first wireless communications network, and identifying a first group of tones from the first set of narrowband tones that support wireless transmissions. higher power than a second group of tones of the first set of narrowband tones, the identification is based at least in part on a level of interference between tones of the first group and second set of wideband tones for wireless communications in a second wireless communications network.

[00013] In some examples of the method, apparatus, or non-transitory computer readable media described above, the first set of narrowband tones comprises a plurality of tones having a first frequency spacing between adjacent tones in a first uplink bandwidth /downlink available from the first wireless communications network, the second set of wideband tones comprises a plurality of tones having a second frequency spacing between adjacent tones in a second available uplink/downlink bandwidth from the second wireless communications network , and the second frequency spacing is an integer multiple of the first frequency spacing. Additionally or alternatively, in some examples a spacing between frequency carriers of the first wireless communication network and the second wireless communication network is an integer multiple of the first frequency spacing.

[00014] In some examples of the method, apparatus or non-transitory computer readable media described above, the first group of tones comprises tones that generate less interference with tones of the second set of wideband tones relative to the second group of tones of the first narrowband tone set. Additionally or alternatively, some examples may include determining that a UE has channel conditions that guarantee transmissions on the first tone group and transmitting a resource allocation to the UE indicating that the first tone group is allocated for use in uplink transmissions on the first network. of wireless communications.

[00015] Some examples of the method, apparatus, or non-transitory computer readable media described above may further include transmitting one or more downlink transmissions to a first UR using higher power transmissions on one or more tones of the first tone group, and transmit one or more downlink transmissions to a second UE using lower power transmissions in one or more tones of the second tone group. Additionally or alternatively, some examples may include determining that the first UE has channel conditions that indicate that higher power transmissions are necessary for reliable communications.

[00016] In some examples of the method, apparatus or non-transitory computer readable media described above, the determination is based at least in part on a latency target for communications to the first UE and an associated path loss to the first UE. Additionally or alternatively, some examples may include transmitting one or more downlink transmissions to the first UE comprising transmission using frequency hopping between tones of the first tone group.

[00017] Some examples of the method, apparatus, or non-transitory computer readable media described above may further include employing fractional frequency reuse in the second tone group to identify two or more subsets of the second tone group, and transmitting downlink communications on the two or further subsets using different transmit powers that are each lower than a transmit power for the first tone group. Additionally or alternatively, in some examples identifying the first tone group from the first set of narrowband tones comprises receiving a resource allocation from a base station indicating that the first tone group is to be used for uplink transmissions.

[00018] Some examples of the method, apparatus or non-transitory computer readable media described above may further include transmitting one or more uplink transmissions to a base station in one or more tones of the first tone group. Additionally or alternatively, some examples may include transmitting one or more uplink transmissions to the base station comprising transmitting frequency hopping between tones of the first tone group.

[00019] Some examples of the method, apparatus or non-transient computer readable media described above may further include receiving a resource allocation from a base station indicating that the second tone group is to be used for uplink transmissions, employing frequency reuse fractional in the second tone group to identify two or more subsets of the second tone group and transmit uplink communications in the two or more subsets using different transmit powers that are individually lower than a transmit power for the first tone group. Additionally or alternatively, in some examples the first set of narrowband tones comprises orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) tones and the second set of wideband tones comprises OFDMA tones.

[00020] The above has very broadly outlined the characteristics and technical advantages of examples according to the disclosure so that the detailed description that follows can be better understood. Additional features and benefits will be described below. The specific design and examples disclosed can be readily used as a basis for modifying or designing other structures to accomplish the same purposes as the present disclosure. Such equivalent constructions do not depart from the scope of the appended claims. Characteristics of the concepts disclosed herein, both their organization and method of operation, together with associated advantages will be better understood from the following description when considered in relation to the attached figures. Each of the figures is provided for purposes of illustration and description only and not as a definition of the limits of the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[00021] A further understanding of the nature and advantages of the present disclosure can be made by reference to the following drawings. In the accompanying figures, similar components or aspects may have the same reference label. Additionally, multiple components of the same type can be distinguished by following the reference label by a dash and a second label that distinguishes between similar components. If only the first reference label is used in the specification, the description is applicable to any of the similar components having the same first reference label independent of the second reference label.

[00022] Figure 1 illustrates an example of a wireless communication system for allocating frequency resources for a Cellular Internet of Things (CIoT) system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure;

[00023] Figure 2 illustrates an example of a wireless communication subsystem for allocating frequency resources for a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure;

[00024] Figure 3A illustrates an example of frequency domain locations of frequency tones for a CIoT system and an adjacent wireless communication system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure;

[00025] Figure 3B illustrates an example of time domain locations of transmitted symbols in a CIoT system and an adjacent wireless communication system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure;

[00026] Figure 4 illustrates an example of tone groupings for allocating frequency resources for a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure;

[00027] Figure 5 illustrates an example of a downlink tone allocation through neighboring cells for a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure;

[00028] Figure 6 illustrates an example of a process flowchart for allocating frequency resources for a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure;

[00029] Figure 7 shows a device block diagram configured for allocating frequency resources for a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure;

[00030] Figure 8 shows a block diagram of a device configured for allocating frequency resources to a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure;

[00031] Figure 9 shows a block diagram of a communication management module configured for allocating frequency resources to a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure;

[00032] Figure 10 illustrates a block diagram of a system including a UE configured for allocating frequency resources to a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure;

[00033] Figure 11 illustrates a block diagram of a system including a base station configured for allocating frequency resources to a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure;

[00034] Figure 12 shows a flowchart illustrating a method for allocating frequency resources for a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure;

[00035] Figure 13 shows a flowchart illustrating a method for allocating frequency resources for a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure;

[00036] Figure 14 shows a flowchart illustrating a method for allocating frequency resources for a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure;

[00037] Figure 15 shows a flowchart illustrating a method for allocating frequency resources for a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure; It is

[00038] Figure 16 shows a flowchart illustrating a method for allocating frequency resources for a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[00039] A network of automated devices that communicate wirelessly may, in some cases, be referred to as the Internet of Things (IoT). Devices that communicate via the IoT network (e.g., machine-type communication (MTC) devices) may include automated meters, sensors, and the like. In some instances, automated devices may have relatively low throughput applications (for example, a water level sensor sending an update to a base station). There may be several wireless communication systems available for use by automated devices, including cellular systems operating on licensed spectrum, referred to as a Cellular Internet of Things (CIoT). However, cellular systems can be used for devices that use high transmission capacity applications. Devices operating under low transmission capacity conditions (e.g., small, infrequent data transfers) may present different design considerations than those associated with higher transmission capacity devices. For example, an automated device may be designed to operate for long periods of time without battery replacement.

[00040] In some cellular systems, such as LTE, there may be a well-defined channel structure having a relatively wide bandwidth and relatively widely separated frequency tones (e.g., 15 kHz tone spacing). Additionally, an adjacent CIoT system may have a relatively narrow bandwidth (e.g., 200 kHz bandwidth with 72 tones spaced 2.5 kHz apart), sufficient to support data transmission rates for the relatively small and infrequent transmissions of UEs in the CIoT system. Therefore, it may be appropriate for a CIoT device and a CIoT base station to operate according to frequency resource allocation that compensates for IoT considerations.

[00041] For example, frequency resource allocation may be determined based on channel conditions of CIoT UEs and tones that can support higher power transmissions. In some examples, the CIoT system may be a narrowband orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) system and a neighboring wireless communication system may be a wideband OFDMA system. In some examples, a network deployment may include the wideband OFDMA system having a tone spacing that is an integer multiple (m) of the tone spacing of the narrowband CIoT OFDMA system. Furthermore, the implementation may provide that a distance between the frequency carriers of the two systems is an integer multiple (K) of the tone spacing of the narrowband CIoT OFDMA system. In such a deployment scenario, one of all m narrowband tones does not interfere with tones in the adjacent wideband OFDMA system.

[00042] For example, many LTE deployments employ 15 kHz tone spacing, and one of all six CIoT tones (with 2.5 KHz tone spacing) has little or no interference with any of the LTE tones. Those tones that have reduced interference can be grouped into a first tone group, and these tones can be used for transmissions with relatively high power (e.g., user equipment (UE) devices corresponding to worse path loss). The remaining tones can be dynamically allocated to UEs with a lower path loss which in return require relatively lower transmit power. Devices using the first group of tones may, in some examples, employ frequency hopping (using different tones over subsequent time partitions) to achieve some interference mediation effect. Devices using the remaining tones may, in some examples, use FFR techniques to provide improved interference mitigation. LTE tones and CIoT tones may individually be, in several examples, OFDMA tones.

[00043] The following description provides examples and is not limiting the scope, applicability or examples set forth in the claims. Changes may be made to the function and arrangement of discussed elements without departing from the scope of the disclosure. Various examples may omit, replace, or add various procedures or components as appropriate. For example, the methods described may be performed in an order different from that described, and various steps may be added, omitted, or combined. Also, aspects described with respect to some examples may be combined in other examples.

[00044] Figure 1 illustrates an example of a wireless communication system 100 in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The wireless communication system 100 includes base stations 105, at least one UE 115, and a core network 130. The core network 130 may provide user authentication, access authorization, tracking, internet protocol (IP) connectivity and other access, routing or mobility functions. The base stations 105 interface with the core network 130 via backhaul links 132 (e.g., S1, etc.). The base stations 105 may perform radio configuration and programming for communication with the UEs 115, or may operate under the control of a base station controller (not shown). In various examples, base stations 105 may communicate, directly or indirectly (e.g., via core network 130), with each other via backhaul links 134 (e.g., X1, etc.) which may be wired communication links. or wireless.

[00045] The base stations 105 may communicate wirelessly with the UEs 115 via one or more base station antennas. Each of the base stations 105 may provide communications coverage for a respective geographic coverage area 110. In some examples, the base stations 105 may be referred to as a base transceiver station, a radio base station, an access point, a transceiver radio, a NodeB, eNodeB (eNB), native NodeB, a native eNodeB, or some other suitable terminology. The geographic coverage area 110 for a base station 105 may be divided into sectors comprising only a portion of the coverage area (not shown). The wireless communication system 100 may include base stations 105 of different types (e.g., macro and/or small cell base stations). There may be 110 overlapping geographic coverage areas for different technologies.

[00046] In some examples, the wireless communication system 100 is a Long Term Evolution (LTE)/LTE-advanced (LTE-A) network. In LTE/LTE-A networks, the term developed node B (eNB) may be used generally to describe the base stations 105, while the term UE may be used generally to describe the UEs 115. The wireless communication system 100 It can be a heterogeneous LTE/LTE-A network in which different types of eNBs provide coverage for various geographic regions. For example, each eNB or base station 105 may provide communications coverage for a macro cell, a small cell, and/or other cell types. The term “cell” is a 3GPP term that can be used to describe a base station, a carrier or component carrier associated with a base station, or a coverage area (e.g. sector, etc.) of a carrier or base station. , depending on the context.

[00047] A macro cell generally covers a relatively large geographic area (e.g., several kilometers in radius) and may allow unrestricted access by UEs 115 with service subscriptions with the network provider. A small cell is a base station with lower power, as compared to a macro cell, which can operate in the same or different frequency bands (e.g., licensed, unlicensed, etc.) as macro cells. Small cells may include pico cells, femto cells, and micro cells according to various examples. A pico cell, for example, may cover a small geographic area and may allow unrestricted access by UEs 115 with service subscriptions with the network provider. A femto cell may also cover a small geographic area (e.g., a house) and may provide restricted access by UEs 115 having an association with the femto cell (e.g., UEs 115 in a closed subscriber group (CSG), UEs 115 for users in the home, and similar). An eNB for a macro cell can be referred to as a macro eNB. An eNB for a small cell may be referred to as a small cell eNB, a pico eNB, a femto eNB, or a native eNB. An eNB may support one or multiple (e.g., two, three, four, and the like) cells (e.g., component carriers).

[00048] The wireless communication system 100 may support synchronous or asynchronous operation. For synchronous operation, base stations 105 may have similar frame timing, and transmissions from different base stations 105 may be approximately aligned in time. For asynchronous operation, base stations 105 may have different frame timing, and transmissions from different base stations 105 may not be time aligned. The techniques described here can be used for synchronous or asynchronous operations.

[00049] Communication networks that can accommodate some of the various examples disclosed may be packet-based networks that operate according to a layered protocol stack. At the user plane, communications at the Packet or Bearer Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer can be IP-based. A radio link control (RLC) layer can perform packet segmentation and reassembly to communicate over logical channels. A media access control (MAC) layer can perform priority handling and multiplexing of logical channels on transport channels. The MAC layer can also use hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) to provide retransmission at the MAC layer to improve link efficiency. In the control plane, the radio resource control protocol layer (RRC0) may provide establishment, configuration and maintenance of an RRC connection between a UE 115 and base stations 105. The RRC protocol layer may also be used for support of core network 130 of radio bearers for user plane data. In the physical layer (PHY), transport channels can be mapped to physical channels.

[00050] The UEs 115 may be dispersed throughout the wireless communications system 100, and each UE 115 may be stationary or mobile. A UE 115 may also include or be referred to by those skilled in the art as a mobile station, a subscriber station, a mobile unit, a subscriber unit, a wireless unit, a remote unit, a mobile device, a wireless device , a wireless communication device, a remote device, a mobile subscriber station, an access terminal, a mobile terminal, a wireless terminal, a remote terminal, a telephone handset, a user agent, a mobile client, a customer or some other suitable terminology. A UE 115 may be a cellular telephone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a wireless modem, a wireless communication device, a handheld device, a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a cordless telephone, a loop station wireless location (WLL) or similar. A UE may be capable of communicating with various types of base stations and network equipment including macro eNBs, small cell eNBs, relay base stations, and the like.

[00051] In the wireless communication system 100, some UEs 115 may provide automated communication. Wireless automated devices may include those implementing Machine-to-Machine (M2M) communication or machine-to-machine communication (MTC). M2M and/or MTC communication can refer to data communication technologies that allow devices to communicate with each other or a base station without human intervention. For example, M2M and/or MTC communications may refer to communications from devices that integrate sensors or meters to measure or capture information and relay that information to a central server or application program that can make use of the information or present the information to beings. humans interacting with the program or application. Some UEs 115 may be MTC devices, such as those designed to collect information or enable automated machine behavior. Example applications for MTC devices include smart metering, inventory monitoring, water level monitoring, equipment monitoring, healthcare treatment monitoring, wildlife monitoring, geological and weather event monitoring, fleet management and tracking , remote security detection, physical access control, and transaction-based business billing. An MTC device can operate using half-duplex (one-way) communications at a reduced peak speed. MTC devices can also be configured to enter a power-saving “deep sleep” mode when not engaged in active communications. UEs 115 in wireless communication system 100 that are M2M or MTC devices may also be part of an IoT. Thus, the wireless communication system 100 may also include or be part of an IoT system.

[00052] The communication links 125 shown in the wireless communication system 100 may include uplink transmissions from a UE 115 to a base station 105 and/or downlink transmissions from a base station 105 to a UE 115. The downlink transmissions can also be called forward link transmissions while uplink transmissions can also be called reverse link transmissions. Each communication link 125 may include one or more carriers, where each carrier may be a signal composed of multiple subcarriers (e.g., waveform signals of different frequencies) modulated in accordance with the various radio technologies described above. Each modulated signal can be sent on a different subcarrier and can carry control information (e.g. reference signals, control channels, etc.), overhead information, user data, etc. Communication links 125 may transmit bidirectional communications using frequency division duplex (FDD) operation (e.g., using paired spectrum resources) or time division duplex (TDD) operation (e.g., using unpaired spectrum resources). . Frame structures can be defined for FDD (e.g. frame structure type 1) and TDD (e.g. frame structure type 2).

[00053] In some embodiments of the wireless communication system 100, base stations 105 and/or UEs 115 may include multiple antennas to employ antenna diversity schemes to improve the quality and reliability of communication between base stations 105 and UEs 115. Additionally or alternatively, base stations 105 and/or UEs 115 may employ multiple input multiple output (MIMO) techniques that can take advantage of multipath environments to transmit multiple spatial layers carrying the same or different encoded data.

[00054] The wireless communication system 100 may support operation on multiple cells or carriers, a feature that may be referred to as carrier aggregation (CA) or multi-carrier operation. A carrier can also be referred to as a component carrier (CC), a layer, a channel, etc. The terms “carrier”, “component carrier”, “cell” and “channel” may be used interchangeably in the present invention. A UE 115 may be configured with multiple downlink CCs and one or more uplink CCs for carrier aggregation. Carrier aggregation can be used with FDD and TDD component carriers.

[00055] A UE 115 attempting to access a wireless network may perform an initial cell search by detecting a primary synchronization signal (PSS) from a base station 105. The PSS may enable partition timing synchronization and may indicate a physical layer identity value. The UE 115 may then receive a secondary synchronization signal (SSS). SSS can enable radio frame synchronization and can provide a cell identity value that can be combined with the physical layer identity value to identify the cell. SSS can also enable detection of a duplexing mode and a cyclic prefix length. Both PSS and SSS can be located in the 6 central resource blocks (RBs) (72 subcarriers) of a carrier. After receiving the PSS and SSS, the UE 115 may receive a master information block (MIB) that may be transmitted on a physical broadcast channel (PBCH). The MIB can contain system bandwidth information as well as tone spacing. After decoding the MIB, the UE 115 may receive one or more system information blocks (SIBs). For example, SIB1 may contain cell access parameters and programming information for other SIBs. Decoding SIB1 may enable the UE 115 to receive SIB2. SIB2 may contain RCC configuration information related to Random Access Channel (RACH) procedures, paging, Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH), Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH), power control, Sound Reference Signal (SRS ) and cell blocking.

[00056] The PBCH may also indicate a channel configuration, which may enable the UE 115 to perform a RACH procedure. The channel configuration may include a frequency and timing resource configuration of a shared traffic channel (for example, Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) or PUSCH). In some cases, the UE 115 may identify resources for data transmission based on an index of a control channel transmission. In some cases, there may be a predetermined delay between control channel transmissions and data channel transmissions. In some deployments, a narrowband CIoT system may have a coverage area that overlaps a wideband OFDMA system. The tone spacing of the wideband CIoT system can be selected such that the tone spacing of the wideband OFDMA system is an integer multiple of the tone spacing of the CIoT system. Such a configuration can provide a group of tones that have reduced interference with wideband OFDMA system tones relative to other tones.

[00057] Figure 2 illustrates an example of a wireless communication subsystem 200 for allocating frequency resources to a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The wireless communication subsystem 200 may include UEs 115-a and 115-b, which may be examples of a UE 115 described above with reference to Figure 1. The wireless communication subsystem 200 may also include base stations 105-a and 105- b, which may be examples of a base station 105 described above with reference to Figure 1. The base stations 105-a and 105-b may have coverage areas 110-a and 110-b, respectively, which may overlap, and which may be Examples of coverage area 110 described with reference to Figure 1. Base stations 105-a and 105-b may be adjacent to and at least partially overlap narrowband CIoT and wideband OFDMA systems, respectively.

[00058] The UE 115-a may communicate with the base station 105-a via an uplink and downlink, as described above in Figure 1. For example, downlink transmissions 205-a may be OFDMA transmissions that are transmitted by the base station 105 -a for UE 115-a using narrowband communication having a bandwidth of 200 kHz divided into a first set of N equally spaced tones (e.g., N=72 tones spaced by 2.5 kHz). Uplink transmissions 205-b may be single carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) that utilize the same bandwidth as downlink transmissions 205-a. The UE 115-b may communicate with the base station 105-a using bidirectional uplink and downlink transmissions 210, also as described above in FIG. 1. For example, uplink and downlink transmissions 210 may be transmitted using wideband communications having a width of 1.4 - 20 MHz band divided into a second set of equally spaced tones (e.g. 15 kHz tone spacing). Communications between UR 115-a and base station 105-a, and UE 115-b and base station 105b, may be time-synchronized, although even if the two systems are not fully time-synchronized, various techniques described here may provide benefits in reducing interference from some high power narrowband tones to the wideband OFDMA system.

[00059] In some examples, both base station 105-a and base station 105-b use an OFDMA-based design, in which the available downlink/uplink bandwidth is divided into N equally spaced tones. The base station 105-a operating in a CIoT system may, as described above, utilize a narrowband bandwidth of 200 kHz, using N=72 tones having a tone spacing of 2.5 kHz. Base station 105-a may allocate, in some examples, different tones to different UEs, such as UE 115-a, based on the needs of the specific device. The tone spacing of the base station 105-b, in examples, may be an integer multiple (m) of the narrowband tone spacing of the base station 105-a (e.g., 15 kHz). The distance between the frequency carriers of base stations 105-a and base station 105-b may be an integer multiple (K) of the NB-OFDMA tone spacing. In this way, one of all m narrowband tones provides relatively low interference with wideband tones. These tones with relatively low interference can be placed in a first tone group, and can support higher transmit power than the remaining tones due to the absence of interference with broadband tones between the base station 105-b and UE 115- B. If UE 115-a has poor channel conditions resulting in relatively high path loss, tones from the first tone group can be used to provide more reliable communications with UE 115-a. the remaining tones, representing a second tone group, can be dynamically allocated to other devices with a lower path loss that, in return, can use lower transmit power. In some examples, transmissions using the first group of tones may employ frequency hopping (using different tones over subsequent time partitions) to achieve some interference measurement effect and additionally increase the reliability of the transmissions.

[00060] Referring now to Figure 3A, an example of frequency domain 300 of tone spacing for adjacent wideband and narrowband OFDMA systems is discussed, in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. Frequency domain tone spacing 300 may be used by UEs 115 to communicate with a base station 105, as described above with reference to Figures 1 or 2. In this example, wideband tones 310 may have a tone spacing D1, which may be equal to m times a narrowband tone spacing D2 between m narrowband tones 315 and narrowband tones 320. Furthermore, a distance D3 between the center frequency carriers of wideband and wideband OFDMA systems narrowband is an integer multiple (k) of the narrowband tone spacing D2 (i.e. D3 = Kd2). In this way, every mth narrowband tone 315 will cause little or no interference with adjacent wideband tones 310, and can be grouped together to provide a first group of mth narrowband tones 315 that have relatively little interference with the mth narrowband tones 315. wideband tones 310. The remaining narrowband tones 320 can similarly be grouped together to provide a second group of narrowband tones 320 that have relatively higher interference with wideband tones 310. Like the first group of m° narrowband tones 315 have relatively little interference, transmission power using the first group of tones can be relatively high. Similarly, as the second group of tones have relatively higher interference with broadband tones 310, transmission power using the second group of times can be relatively low to reduce such interference.

[00061] The higher power transmissions of the first group of narrowband mth tones 315 may be used for communicating with devices having relatively high path loss, or for communications that may have relatively low latency requirements (e.g., high priority communications as opposed to best efforts communications). The lower power transmissions of the second narrowband tone group 320 may be used for communicating with devices having lower path loss and/or communications having less stringent latency requirements. Several multiple coding blocks with potentially different strengths, each corresponding to a device, may be transmitted via the second group of narrowband tones 320, according to various examples.

[00062] Transmissions using the first narrowband tone group 315 or second narrowband tone group 320 may be downlink or uplink transmissions. In some examples, interference may be further diminished through the use of frequency hopping techniques, in which a subset of m narrowband tones 315 allocated to each coding block transmitted to/by each device may change over the duration of its streaming. The mth narrowband tones 315 in such examples are tones in the first group, and such techniques can provide frequency diversity in the transmission of each coding block.

[00063] Figure 3B illustrates an example time domain 350 of transmitted symbol locations in a CIoT system and an adjacent wireless communication system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. Symbols 355 for a narrowband CIoT system and symbols 360 for a wideband OFDMA system may be used by UEs 115 to communicate with a base station 105, as described above with reference to Figures 1 or 2. According to various examples, a symbol duration of 360 symbols of the wideband OFDMA system may be a factor of m shorter than a symbol duration of 355 symbols of the narrowband CIoT system.

[00064] Figure 4 illustrates an example 400 of transmit power for different groups of tones of a narrowband CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. Tone groups for a narrowband CIoT system may be used by UEs 115 to communicate with a base station 105, as described above with reference to Figures 1 or 2. In the example of Figure 4, a first tone group 405 may be identified as including every mth tone in a tone set 410, as discussed above. A second group of tones 415 may be identified as remaining tones from the set of tones 410. In some examples, fractional frequency reuse (FFR) techniques may be employed on the second group of tones 415 to identify two or more subsets of the second group of tones. tones 415. In the example of Figure 4, two subsets of tones 420 and 425 are identified that can use FFR techniques. Such FFR techniques envision that, in a cell, devices can be categorized based on their path loss and required downlink/uplink transmission power, and then allocated to different subgroups. In this example, group 2.1 420 may include 20 tones that are transmitted using a transmit power that is less than the transmit power for the first tone group 405. Additionally, group 2.2 425 may include 40 tones that are transmitted using a transmit power that is less than the transmit power for group 2.1 420.

[00065] Figure 5 illustrates an example 500 of subgroup allocations across neighboring cells of a narrowband CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. In some examples, subgroup allocations may be different across neighboring cells to benefit from interference mediation. Tone groups for a narrowband CIoT system may be used by UEs 115 to communicate with base stations 105 of neighboring cells, as described above with reference to Figures 1 or 2. In the example of Figure 5, three neighboring cells may transmit CIoT tones. , with a first cell transmitting tones 505, a second cell transmitting tones 510, and a third cell transmitting tones 515. Each cell may group tones in a manner as discussed above, in which group 1 may include tones that have reduced interference with tones. broadband. Group 2.1 can be identified as discussed above, and the tones allocated to this subgroup can be selected so that the selection of tones for this subgroup is orthogonal between neighboring cells. Group 2.2 can also be identified as discussed above, and the remaining tones for each cell can be allocated to this subgroup. As discussed above, different groups of tones may have different transmission powers. In an example, group 1 may include 12 tones that predict transmissions using a very high transmit power of more than 28 dBm/tone, group 2.1 may include 20 tones that predict transmissions using a high transmit power of about 25 dBm/tone. tone, and group 2.2 may include 40 tones that provide for transmissions using relatively low power less than 20 dBm/tone. Of course, these examples are just one of countless examples as will be readily recognized by one skilled in the art.

[00066] Figure 6 illustrates an example of a process flowchart 600 for allocating frequency resources for a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The process flowchart 600 for resource allocation may include a UE 115-c, which may be an example of a UE 115 described above with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. The process flowchart 600 for resource allocation may also include the station base 105-c, which may be an example of a base station 105 described above with reference to figures 1 and 2.

[00067] In step 605, the UE 115-c may transmit channel quality information to the base station 105-c, which may be used to determine a path loss for UE 115-a in step 610. In step 615, the ase 105-c station can identify narrowband tones for use in CIoT transmissions. In step 620, base station 105-c may identify first and second groups of tones, in a similar manner as discussed above. The base station 105-c may transmit downlink transmissions 625 using the identified group of tones for UE 115-c. the base station 105-c may also transmit resource allocation 630 to the UE 115-c. Resource allocation 630 may provide an identification of tones that UE 115-c should use for transmissions. For example, the base station 105-c may determine that the UE 115-c has a relatively high path loss that ensures higher power transmissions, and may identify which tones from the first tone group should be used for uplink transmissions. of EU 115-c. Similarly, if the base station 105-c determines that the UE 115-c has relatively low path loss (or that communications do not have stringent latency requirements), the base station may identify tones from the second group of tones for UE 115-c uplink transmissions. In step 635, the UE 115-c may identify a narrowband tone group for uplink transmissions and may transmit uplink transmissions 640 using the identified tone group.

[00068] Figure 7 shows a block diagram 700 of a device 701 configured for allocating frequency resources to a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. Device 701 may be an example of aspects of a UE 115 or base station 105 described with reference to Figures 1-6. Device 701 may include a receiver 705, a communication management module 710, and/or a transmitter 715. Device 701 may also include a processor. Each of these components can be in communication with each other.

[00069] Receiver 705 may receive information such as packets, user data and/or control information associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, and information related to the allocation of frequency resources to a system CIoT, etc.). Information may be passed to the communication management module 710, and to other components of the device 701. In some examples, the receiver 705 may receive communications from a group of tones identified for communication between a UE 115 and a base station 105.

[00070] The communications management module 710 may receive communications on one or more tone groups and may manage communications on one or more tone groups of a narrowband CIoT system using techniques as discussed above. Transmitter 715 may transmit signals received from other components of device 701. In some examples, transmitter 715 may be co-located with receiver 705 in a transceiver module. Transmitter 715 may include a single antenna, or may include a plurality of antennas. In some examples, the transmitter 715 may transmit an uplink signal with the generated uplink carrier frequency. In some examples, transmitter 715 may transmit data channel transmission on the time frequency resource of the shared data traffic channel. In some examples, the transmitter 715 may be placed in a low power mode during a sleep interval and then turned on to transmit a data channel transmission after the expiration of a sleep wake-up timer.

[00071] Figure 8 shows a block diagram 800 of a device 801 for allocating frequency resources for a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The device 801 may be an example of aspects of a UE 115 or base station described with reference to Figures 1-6 or aspects of the device 701 of Figure 7. The device 801 may include a receiver 705-a, a communication management module 710-a, or a 715-a transmitter. device 801 may also include a processor. Each of these components can be in communication with each other. The communication management module 710-a may also include a tone identification module 805, a group identification module 810, and a channel condition determination module 815.

[00072] The receiver 705-a can receive information that can be passed to the communication management module 710-a, and to other components of the device 801. The communication management module 710-a can perform the operations described above with reference to Figure 7. Transmitter 715-a can transmit signals received from other components of device 801.

[00073] The tone identification module 805 can identify narrowband tones for use in communication in a narrowband CIoT, as described above with reference to figures 2-6. The group identification module 810 may determine different available tone groups for transmissions in a narrowband CIoT, the different tone groups having an associated available transmit power, as described above with reference to Figures 2-6. The group identification module 810 may also determine one or more subsets of a tone group that can be used for FFR techniques. The channel condition determination module 815 may determine channel conditions associated with a specific UE and may determine a path loss associated with a UE based at least in part on channel conditions of the UE as described above with reference to Figures 2 -6.

[00074] Figure 9 shows a block diagram 900 of a communication management module 710-b for allocating frequency resources to a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The communication management module 710-b may be an example of aspects of a communication management module 710 described with reference to Figures 7-8. The communication management module 710-b may include a tone identification module 805-a, a group identification module 810-a, and a channel condition determination module 815-a. each of these modules may perform the functions described above with reference to FIG. 8. The communication management module 710-b may also include a wideband tone determining module 905, an interference cancellation module 910, a hopping module frequency module 915 , a resource allocation module 920 , a transmit power module 925 , a latency determination module 930 , or an FFR module 935 .

[00075] The broadband tone determination module 905 can identify tone characteristics of one or more neighboring broadband wireless communications systems as described above with reference to figures 2-6. The interference cancellation module 910 can perform interference suppression or interference cancellation techniques in transmissions over a narrowband CIoT system as described above with reference to Figures 2-6. The frequency hopping module 915 can perform frequency hopping techniques for transmissions in a tone group to provide one or more frequency diversity or interference mediation for the transmissions, as described above with reference to Figures 2-6. The resource allocation module 920 may determine resources that should be used for narrowband CIoT transmissions as described above with reference to Figures 2-6. The resource allocation module 920 may also determine resources to be used by a UE 115 for transmissions in examples where the communication management module 710-b is included as part of a base station. The transmit power module 925 may determine a transmit power for identified tone transmissions of a narrowband CIoT system as described above with reference to Figures 2-6.

[00076] The latency determination module 930 can determine a latency associated with data that must be transmitted to or from a UE, which can be used to help identify a group of tones that must be used to transmit the data, as described above with reference to figures 2-6. The FFR 935 module can perform FFR techniques for mediating interference and frequency diversity on a tone group as described above with reference to figures 2-6.

[00077] Figure 10 shows a diagram of a system 1000 including a UE 115-d configured for allocating frequency resources to a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. System 1000 may include UE 115-d, which may be an example of a UE 115 or device 701 or 801 described above with reference to Figures 1-9. The UE 115-d may include a communication management module 1010, which may be an example of a communication management module 710 described with reference to Figures 7-9. The UE 115-d may also include a narrowband CIoT module 1025. The UE 115-d may also include components for two-way data or voice communications including components for transmitting communications and components for receiving communications. For example, UE 115-d may communicate bidirectionally with base station 105-f.

[00078] The narrowband CIoT module 1025 can exchange data with a network based on MTC procedures or narrowband IoT procedures as described above with reference to figures 2-6. For example, the narrowband CIoT module 1025 may facilitate enhanced communication between the UE 115-d and a base station 105-f using tone groups from a set of narrowband tones that support transmissions at different power levels. In other examples of MTC procedures, the UE 115-d may use OFDMA to demodulate downlink messages and SC-FDMA for uplink modulation.

[00079] The UE 115-d may also include a processor module 1005 and memory 1015 (including software (SW)) 1020, a transceiver module 1035 and one or more antenna(s) 1040, each of which can communicate, directly or indirectly, between each other (for example, through 1045 buses). The transceiver module 1035 may communicate bidirectionally, via the antenna(s) 1040 and/or wired or wireless links, with one or more networks, as described above. For example, the transceiver module 1035 may communicate bidirectionally with a base station 105 and/or another UE 115. The transceiver module 1035 may include a modem for modulating the packets and providing the modulated packets to the antenna(s) 1040 for transmission and demodulate packets received from the antenna(s) 1040. Although UE 115-d may include a single antenna 1040, the UE 115-d may also have multiple antennas 1040 capable of simultaneously transmitting and/or receiving multiple transmissions wireless.

[00080] Memory 1015 may include random access memory (RAM) and read-only memory (ROM). Memory 1015 may store computer-executable, computer-readable firmware/software code 1020 including instructions that, when executed, cause processor module 1005 to perform various functions described herein (e.g., allocating frequency resources to a system CIoT, etc.). Alternatively, firmware/software code 1020 may not be directly executable by processor module 1005, but cause a computer (e.g., when compiled and executed) to perform functions described herein. The processor module 1005 may include an intelligent hardware device (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller, an ASIC, etc.).

[00081] Figure 11 shows a diagram of a system 1100 including a base station 105 configured for allocating frequency resources to a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. System 1100 may include base station 105-c, which may be an example of a device 701, a device 801, or a base station 105 as described above with reference to Figures 1-9. The base station 105-e may include a base station communications management module 1110, which may be an example of a communications management module 710 described with reference to Figures 7-9. The base station 105-e may also include components for two-way data and voice communications including components for transmitting communications and components for receiving communications. For example, base station 105-e may communicate bidirectionally with UE 115-e (which may be a CIoT or MTC device) or UE 115-f.

[00082] In some cases, the base station 105-e may have one or more wired backhaul links. The base station 105-e may have a wired backhaul link (e.g., S1 interface, etc.) to the core network 130. The base station 105-e may also communicate with other base stations 105, such as the base station 105-e. 105-f and the base station 105-g via inter-base station backhaul links (e.g., an X2 interface). Each of the base stations 105 may communicate with UEs 115 using the same or different wireless communications technologies. In some cases, the base station 105-e may communicate with other base stations such as 105-f or 105-g using base station communication module 1125. In some implementations, the base station communication module 1125 may provide an X2 interface in a non-LTE/LTE-A communication network technology to provide communication between some of the base stations 105. In some embodiments, the base station 105-e may communicate with other base stations via the core network 130. In some cases, the base station 105-e may communicate with the core network 130 via the network communication module 1130.

[00083] Base station 105-e may include a processor module 1105, memory 1115 (including software (SW) 1120), transceiver modules 1135, and antenna(s) 1140, which may individually be in communication, directly or indirectly. , to each other (e.g., via the 1145 bus system). Transceiver modules 1135 may be configured to communicate bidirectionally, via antenna(s) 1140, with UEs 115, which may be multimode devices. The transceiver module 1135 (or other components of the base station 105-e) may also be configured to communicate bidirectionally, via the antennas 1140, with one or more other base stations (not shown). Transceiver module 1135 may include a modem configured to modulate packets and provide the modulated packets to antennas 1140 for transmission, and demodulate packets received from antennas 1140. Base station 105-e may include multiple transceiver modules 1135, each with one or more associated antennas 1140. The transceiver module may be an example of a combined receiver and transmitter of Figure 6.

[00084] Memory 1115 may include RAM and ROM. Memory 1115 may also store computer-executable, computer-readable software code 1120 containing instructions that are configured to, when executed, cause processor module 1110 to perform various functions described herein (e.g., allocation of frequency resources to a CIoT system, etc.). Alternatively, software code 1120 may not be directly executable by processor module 1105, but may be configured to cause the computer (e.g., when compiled and executed) to perform functions described herein. The processor module 1105 may include an intelligent hardware device (e.g., a CPU, a microcontroller, an ASIC, etc.). The processor module 1105 may include various special purpose processors such as encoders, queue processing modules, baseband processors, radio head controllers, digital signal processors (DSPs), and the like.

[00085] The base station communication module 1125 may manage communications with other base stations 105. The communication management module may include a controller or scheduler for controlling communications with UEs 115 in cooperation with other base stations 105. For example, the base station communication module 1125 may coordinate scheduling for transmissions to UEs 115 for various interference mitigation techniques such as beamforming or co-transmission.

[00086] Figure 12 shows a flowchart illustrating a method 1200 for allocating frequency resources for a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The operations of method 1200 may be implemented by a UE 115 or components thereof as described with reference to Figures 1-10, by a base station 105 or components thereof as described with reference to Figures 1-11, or by a device 701 or 801 described with reference to Figures 7 or 8. For example, operations of method 1200 may be performed by communication management module 710 as described with reference to Figures 7-11. In some examples, a UE 115 or base station 105 may execute a set of codes to control functional elements of the UE 115 or base station 105 to perform the functions described below. Additionally or alternatively, the UE 115 or base station may perform aspects of the functions described below using special purpose hardware.

[00087] In block 1205, method 1200 includes identifying a first set of narrowband tones for wireless communications in a first wireless communication network as described above with reference to Figures 2-6. In certain examples, block 1205 operations may be performed by tone identification module 805 as described above with reference to Figures 8-9.

[00088] In block 1210, method 1200 may include identifying a first group of tones from the first set of narrowband tones that support higher power transmissions than a second group of tones from the first set of tones, identifying based at least in part on a level of interference between tones of the first group and second set of broadband tones for wireless communications in a second wireless communication network as described above with reference to figures 2-6. In certain examples, block 1210 operations may be performed by group identification module 810 as described above with reference to FIGS. 89.

[00089] Figure 13 shows a flowchart illustrating a method 1300 for allocating frequency resources for a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The operations of method 1300 may be implemented by a base station 105 or components thereof as described with reference to FIGS. 1-11, or by a device 701 or 801 described with reference to FIGS. 7 or 8. For example, the operations of method 1300 may be performed by the communication management module 710 as described with reference to FIGS. 7-11. In some examples, a base station 105 may execute a set of codes to control the functional elements of the base station 105 to perform the functions described below. Additionally or alternatively, base station 105 may perform aspects of the functions described below using special purpose hardware.

[00090] In block 1305, method 1300 includes identifying a first set of narrowband tones for wireless communication in a first wireless communication network as described above with reference to figures 2-6. In certain examples, block 1305 operations may be performed by tone identification module 805 as described above with reference to Figures 8-9.

[00091] In block 1310, method 1300 may include identifying a first group of tones from the first set of narrowband tones that support higher power transmissions than a second group of tones from the first set of tones, identifying based at least in part on a level of interference between tones of the first group and second set of broadband tones for wireless communication in a second wireless communication network as described above with reference to figures 2-6. In certain examples, block 1310 operations may be performed by group identification module 810 as described above with reference to Figures 8-9.

[00092] In block 1315, method 1300 includes determining that a UE has channel conditions that guarantee transmissions in the first tone group as described above with reference to figures 2-6. In certain examples, the operations of block 1315 may be performed by the group identification module 810 or the channel condition determination module 815 as described above with reference to Figures 8-9.

[00093] In block 1320, method 1300 includes transmitting a resource allocation to the UE indicating the first tone group is allocated for use in uplink transmissions from the UE in the first wireless communication network as described above with reference to Figures 2- 6. In certain examples, block 1320 operations may be performed by group identification module 810 or resource allocation module 920 as described above with reference to FIGS. 8-9.

[00094] Figure 14 shows a flowchart illustrating a method 1400 for allocating frequency resources for a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The operations of method 1400 may be implemented by a base station 105 or components thereof as described with reference to FIGS. 1-11 or by a device 701 or 801 described with reference to FIGS. 7 or 8. For example, the operations of method 1400 may be be performed by the communication management module 710 as described with reference to FIGS. 711. In some examples, a base station 105 may execute a set of codes to control the functional elements of the base station 105 to perform the functions described below. Additionally or alternatively, base station 105 may perform aspects of the functions described below using special purpose hardware.

[00095] In block 1405, method 1400 includes identifying a first set of narrowband tones for wireless communications in a first wireless communication network as described above with reference to figures 2-6. In certain examples, operations of block 1405 may be performed by tone identification module 805 as described above with reference to Figures 8-9.

[00096] In block 1410, method 1400 may include identifying a first group of tones from the first set of narrowband tones that support higher power transmissions than a second group of tones from the first set of tones, identifying based at least in part on a level of interference between tones of the first group and the second set of broadband tones for wireless communications in a second wireless communications network as described above with reference to figures 2-6. In certain examples, operations of block 1410 may be performed by group identification module 810 as described above with reference to Figures 89.

[00097] In block 1415, method 1400 includes transmitting one or more downlink transmissions to a first UE using higher power transmissions on one or more tones of the first tone group as described above with reference to Figures 2-6. In certain examples, block 1415 operations may be performed by group identification module 810 or transmitter 715 as described above with reference to Figures 7-9.

[00098] In block 1420, method 1400 includes transmitting one or more downlink transmissions to a second UE using lower power transmissions in one or more tones of the second tone group as described above with reference to Figures 2-6. In certain examples, the operations of block 1420 may be performed by the group identification module 810 or the transmitter 715 as described above with reference to Figures 7-9.

[00099] Figure 15 shows a flowchart illustrating a method 1500 for allocating frequency resources for a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The operations of method 1500 may be implemented by a base station 105 or components thereof as described with reference to FIGS. 1-11, or by a device 701 or 801 described with reference to FIGS. 7 or 8. For example, the operations of method 1500 may be performed by the communication management module 710 as described with reference to FIGS. 711. In some examples, a base station 105 may execute a set of codes to control the functional elements of the base station 105 to perform the functions described below. Additionally or alternatively, base station 105 may perform aspects of the functions described below using special purpose hardware.

[000100] In block 1505, method 1500 includes identifying a first set of narrowband tones for wireless communications in a first wireless communications network as described above with reference to Figures 2-6. In certain examples, operations of block 1505 may be performed by tone identification module 805 as described above with reference to Figures 8-9.

[000101] In block 1510, method 1500 may include identifying a first group of tones from the first set of narrowband tones that support higher power transmissions than a second group of tones from the first set of tones, identifying based at least in part on a level of interference between tones of the first group and second set of broadband tones for wireless communications in a second wireless communications network as described above with reference to figures 2-6. In certain examples, operations of block 1510 may be performed by group identification module 810 as described above with reference to Figures 89.

[000102] In block 1515, method 1500 includes employing fractional frequency reuse in the second group of tones to identify two or more subsets of the second group of tones as described above with reference to figures 2-6. In certain examples, the operations of block 1515 may be performed by the group identification module 810 or the FFR module 935 as described above with reference to Figures 7-9.

[000103] In block 1520, method 1500 includes transmitting downlink communication in the two or more subsets using different transmit powers that are individually lower than a transmit power for the first tone group as described above with reference to Figures 2-6 . In certain examples, block operations 1520 may be performed by the group identification module 810, the FFR module 935, or the transmitter 715 as described above with reference to Figures 7-9.

[000104] Figure 16 shows a flowchart illustrating a method 1600 for allocating frequency resources for a CIoT system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The operations of method 1600 may be implemented by a UE 115 or components thereof as described with reference to FIGS. 1-10 or by a device 701 or 801 described with reference to FIGS. 7 or 8. For example, the operations of method 1600 may be performed by the communication management module 710 as described with reference to Figures 7-11. In some examples, a UE 115 may execute a set of codes to control functional elements of the UE 115 to perform the functions described below. Additionally or alternatively, the UE 115 may perform aspects of the functions described below using special purpose hardware.

[000105] In block 1605, method 1600 includes receiving a resource allocation from a base station indicating that a first tone group should be used for uplink transmissions as described above with reference to Figures 2-6. In certain examples, block 1605 operations may be performed by group identification module 810 or resource allocation module 920 as described above with reference to FIGS. 8-9.

[000106] In block 1610, method 1600 may include identifying a first group of tones from the first set of narrowband tones that support higher power transmissions than a second group of tones from the first set of tones, identifying based at least in part on a level of interference between tones of the first group and second set of broadband tones for wireless communications in a second wireless communication network as described above with reference to figures 2-6. In certain examples, block 1610 operations may be performed by group identification module 810 as described above with reference to FIGS. 8-9.

[000107] In block 1615, method 1600 includes transmitting one or more uplink transmissions to a base station in one or more tones of the first tone group as described above with reference to Figures 2-6. In certain examples, the operations of block 1615 may be performed by the group identification module 810, the frequency hopping module 915, or the transmitter 715 as described above with reference to FIGS. 8-9.

[000108] In this way, methods 1200, 1300, 1400, 1500 and 1600 can provide frequency resource allocation for a CIoT system. It should be noted that methods 1200, 1300, 1400, 1500 and 1600 describe possible implementation, and that the operations and steps may be rearranged or otherwise modified so that other embodiments are possible. In some examples, aspects of two or more of methods 1200, 1300, 1400, 1500, and 1600 may be combined.

[000109] Techniques described here can be used for wireless communication systems such as CDMA, TDMA, FDMA, OFDMA, SC-FDMA and other systems. The terms “system” and “network” are often used interchangeably. A CDMA system can implement radio technology such as CDMA2000, Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), etc. CDMA2000 covers IS-2000, IS-95 and IS-856 standards. IS-2000 releases 0 and A are commonly referred to as CDMA2000 1X, 1X, etc. IS-856 (TIA-856) is commonly referred to as CDMA2000 1xEV-DO, High Rate Packet Data (HRPD), etc. UTRA includes wideband CDMA (WCDMA) and other CDMA variants. A TDMA system can implement a radio technology such as Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM). An OFDMA system can implement radio technology such as Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), Developed UTRA (E-UTRA), IEEE 802.11 (WiFi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20, Flash-OFDM™, etc. UTRA and E-UTRA are part of the universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS). LTE (Long Term Evolution) and LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) are new releases of UMTS that use E-UTRA. UTRA, E-UTRA, UMTS, LTE, LTE-A and GSM are described in documents from an organization called the “3rd Generation Society Project” (3GPP). CDMA2000 and UMB are described in documents from an organization called “3rd Generation Society Project 2” (3GPP2). The techniques described here can be used for the radio systems and technologies mentioned above as well as other radio systems and technologies, including cellular communications (e.g., LTE) over unlicensed and/or shared bandwidth. The description below, however, describes an LTE/LTE-A system for example purposes, and LTE terminology is used throughout much of the description below, although the techniques are applicable beyond LTE/LTE-A applications.

[000110] The detailed description set out above in relation to the attached drawings describes examples and does not represent the only examples that can be implemented or that are included within the scope of the claims. The terms “example” and “exemplary,” when used in this description, mean “to serve as an example, instance, or illustration” and not “preferred” or “advantageous over other examples.” The detailed description includes specific details for the purpose of providing an understanding of the techniques described. These techniques, however, can be put into practice without these specific details. In some instances, well-known structures and apparatus are shown in block diagram form to avoid obscuring the concepts of the examples described.

[000111] Information and signals can be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and techniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols and chips that may be referenced throughout the above description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic particles or fields, optical particles or fields or any combination of the same.

[000112] The various illustrative logic blocks and components described in connection with the disclosure of the present invention can be implemented or executed with a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an ASIC, a field programmable gate array ( FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but alternatively, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, for example, a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in combination with a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

[000113] The functions described here can be implemented in hardware, software executed by a processor, firmware or any combination thereof. If implemented in software executed by a processor, the functions may be stored in or transmitted through as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Other examples and implementations are within the scope and spirit of the disclosure and appended claims. For example, due to the nature of software, functions described above may be implemented using software running by a processor, hardware, firmware, wired connection, or combinations of any of these. Aspects implementing functions may also be physically located in various positions, including being distributed so that portions of functions are implemented in different physical locations. As used herein, including in the claims, the term “and/or”, when used in a list of two or more items, means that any one of the items listed may be employed by itself, or any combination of two or more of the items listed can be employed. For example, if a composition is described as containing components A, B and/or C, the composition may contain A alone; B alone; C alone; A and B in combination; A and C in combination; B and C in combination; or A, B, and C in combination. Also, as used herein, including in claims “or” as used in a list of items (e.g., a list of items prefaced by a phrase such as “at least one of” or “one or more of”) indicates a disjunctive list. so that, for example, a list of “at least one of A, B, or C” means A or B or C or AB or AC or BC or ABC (that is, A and B and C).

[000114] Computer readable media includes both computer storage media and communication media including any media that facilitates transfer of a computer program from one location to another. Storage media can be any available media that can be accessed by a general purpose or special purpose computer. By way of example and not limitation, computer-readable media may comprise RAM, ROM, EEPROM, flash memory, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other media that may be used to load or store desirable program code media in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a general purpose or special purpose computer, or a general purpose or special purpose processor. Also, any connection is appropriately named a computer-readable medium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, or digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and micro- waves, then coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of media. Disk and disc, as used here, include compact disc (CD), laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disc, and Blu-ray disc where disks typically reproduce data magnetically, while disks reproduce data optically with lasers. Combinations of the above are also included in the scope of computer-readable media.

[000115] The foregoing description of the disclosure is provided to enable a person skilled in the art to make or use the disclosure. Various modifications to the disclosure will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other variations without departing from the scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, the disclosure should not be limited to the examples and designs described here, but the broadest scope compatible with the principles and new aspects disclosed here should be agreed upon.

Claims (15)

1. A method of communicating in a wireless device, comprising: identifying (1205) a first set of narrowband tones for wireless communications in a first wireless communication network; and identifying (1210) a first group of tones from the first set of narrowband tones that support higher power transmissions than a second group of tones from the first set of narrowband tones, identifying the first group of tones based at least in part on an interference level indicating a degree to which the first group of tones causes interference to a set of broadband tones for wireless communications in a second wireless communications network; wherein the first set of narrowband tones comprises a first plurality of tones having a first frequency spacing between adjacent tones in a first available uplink/downlink bandwidth of the first wireless communication network, the set of narrowband tones wide comprises a second plurality of tones having a second frequency spacing between adjacent tones in a second available uplink/downlink bandwidth of the second wireless communication network; the method characterized by the fact that: the second frequency spacing is an integer multiple of the first frequency spacing; and a spacing between frequency carriers of the first wireless communication network and the second wireless communication network is the integer multiple of the first frequency spacing. 2. Method according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that the first group of tones comprises tones that cause less interference in tones of the broadband tone set relative to the second group of tones of the first band tone set narrow. 3. Method, according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that it further comprises: determining (1315) that a user equipment, UE, has channel conditions that guarantee transmissions in the first tone group; and transmitting (1320) a resource allocation to the UE indicating that the first tone group is allocated for use in uplink transmissions of the UE in the first wireless communication network. 4. The method of claim 1, further comprising: transmitting (1415) one or more downlink transmissions to a first UE using higher power transmissions in one or more tones of the first tone group; and transmitting (1420) one or more downlink transmissions to a second UE using lower power transmissions in one or more tones of the second tone group. 5. The method of claim 4, further comprising: determining that the first UE has channel conditions that indicate higher power transmissions are required for reliable communications. 6. The method of claim 5, wherein the determination is based at least in part on a latency target for communication to or from the first UE and a path loss associated with the first UE, the latency target determined from a priority associated with communications to or from the first UE, the path loss determined based at least in part on the first UE transmitting channel quality information to a base station. 7. The method of claim 4, wherein transmitting one or more downlink transmissions to the first UE comprises using frequency hopping between tones of the first tone group. 8. The method of claim 1, further comprising: employing (1515) fractional frequency reuse in the second group of tones to identify two or more subsets of the second group of tones; and transmitting (1520) downlink communications in two or more subsets using different powers that are individually lower than a transmit power for the first tone group. 9. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying the first group of tones from the first set of narrowband tones comprises: receiving (1605) a resource allocation from a base station indicating that the first tone group should be used for uplink transmissions. 10. The method of claim 9, further comprising: transmitting (1615) one or more uplink transmissions to the base station in one or more tones of the first tone group. 11. The method of claim 10, further comprising: transmitting one or more uplink transmissions to the base station comprises transmitting using frequency hopping between tones of the first tone group. 12. The method of claim 1, further comprising: receiving a resource allocation from a base station indicating that the second tone group is to be used for uplink transmissions; employing fractional frequency reuse in the second tone group to identify two or more subsets of the second tone group; and transmitting uplink communications in two or more subsets using different powers that are individually lower than a transmit power for the first tone group. 13. The method of claim 1, wherein the first set of narrowband tones comprises orthogonal frequency division multiple access, OFDMA, tones, and the set of wideband tones comprises OFDMA tones. 14. Apparatus for communicating on a wireless device, characterized in that it comprises means for carrying out the method steps as defined in any one of claims 1 to 13. 15. Non-transitory computer-readable memory, characterized by the fact that it comprises recorded therein the method as defined in any one of claims 1 to 13.