CN108293191B - Master information block and system information block transmission in unlicensed spectrum - Google Patents

Abstract

An apparatus of an evolved node B is described. The apparatus may include a first circuit and a second circuit. The first circuit is operable to identify a channel of the wireless network, the channel being in one of: independent operation on unlicensed spectrum, or licensed assisted access operation based on dual connectivity. The second circuitry may be operable to encode a system information bearing transmission carrying one or more of: a main information block, and one or more types of system information blocks. The transmission of SI bearer transmissions may be compliant with a listen-before-talk protocol.

Description

Master information block and system information block transmission in unlicensed spectrum

Priority statement

The present application is based on 35U.S. c. ≡119 (e) claiming priority from U.S. provisional patent application serial No. 62/264,222 filed on day 2015, 12, and U.S. non-provisional application serial No. 62/280,578 filed on day 2016, 1, 19, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

Background

Over time, various wireless cellular communication systems have been implemented, including third generation partnership project (3 GPP) universal mobile telecommunications systems, 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) systems, and 3GPP LTE-advanced (LTE-a) systems. Next generation wireless cellular communication systems based on LTE and LTE-a systems, such as fifth generation (5G) wireless systems/5G mobile network systems, are being developed.

Meanwhile, while there is a need for higher and higher data rates in wireless cellular communication systems, the license regime limits the range of available spectrum for such systems.

Drawings

Embodiments of the present disclosure will be more fully understood from the detailed description given below and the accompanying drawings of various embodiments of the disclosure. However, while the drawings assist in explanation and understanding, they are merely an aid and should not be construed to limit the disclosure to the specific embodiments depicted therein.

Fig. 1 illustrates a Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH) structure in a third generation partnership project (3 GPP) Long Term Evolution (LTE) system, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 2 illustrates a Discovery Reference Signal (DRS) transmission structure with a Master Information Block (MIB) inserted, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 3 illustrates a MIB and System Information Block (SIB) transmission scenario in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 4 illustrates an evolved node B (eNB) and a User Equipment (UE) according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 5 illustrates hardware processing circuitry for an eNB to perform MIB transmissions in an unlicensed spectrum, SIB transmissions in an unlicensed spectrum, or both, in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 6 illustrates hardware processing circuitry for a UE to perform MIB transmission in an unlicensed spectrum, SIB transmission in an unlicensed spectrum, or both, in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 7 illustrates a method for an eNB to MIB transmit in an unlicensed spectrum, SIB transmit in an unlicensed spectrum, or both, in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 8 illustrates a method for a UE to MIB transmit in an unlicensed spectrum, SIB transmit in an unlicensed spectrum, or both, in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 9 illustrates example components of a UE device in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

Detailed Description

Various wireless cellular communication systems have been implemented or are being proposed, including third generation partnership project (3 GPP) Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) system, 3GPP LTE-advanced system, and 5 th generation wireless system/5 th generation mobile network (5G) system/5 th generation New Radio (NR) system.

Successive generations of wireless cellular technologies have attempted to use higher data rates. On the one hand, with advances in physical layer design and implementation, further improvements in spectral efficiency may be marginal. On the other hand, licensed spectrum in the lower frequency band is scarce. Both factors prevent an increase in data rate.

Restrictions on licensed spectrum have prompted the emergence of interest in LTE systems (and subsequent systems) operating in unlicensed spectrum. For example, licensed Assisted Access (LAA) may facilitate operation of an LTE system compliant with 3GPP release 13 (open, end date 2016-03-11 (SP-71)), which may extend system bandwidth by utilizing a flexible Carrier Aggregation (CA) framework introduced in LTE-advanced systems.

Enhanced system operation in unlicensed spectrum is for future 3GPP releases (which may include 5G systems). Under one approach, operations in unlicensed spectrum may include LTE operations over Dual Connectivity (DC) based LAA. Under another approach, the operation in the unlicensed spectrum may include independent LTE operation in the unlicensed spectrum, where LTE-based techniques may operate alone in the unlicensed spectrum and may not require an "anchor point. The independent LTE operation in the unlicensed spectrum may include, for example, multewire of multewire alliance of friemont, california ^TM Techniques.

Although CA-based LAA systems may have an ideal backhaul (backhaul) between a primary cell (PCell) and a secondary cell (SCell), DC-based LAA systems may have non-ideal backhaul between various evolved node bs (enbs) (e.g., between a primary eNB (MeNB) and a secondary eNB (SeNB)). As such, the MeNB and SeNB may not be synchronized and the User Equipment (UE) may not be set to rely on System Information (SI) of the MeNB in the licensed carrier to determine SI in the unlicensed carrier. In other words, the UE may be arranged to obtain critical SI (e.g., a Master Information Block (MIB) from an SCell that may be activated with a Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) configured between multiple senbs.

At the same time, a stand-alone system (which may include multewire) lacking an "anchor" that operates in licensed spectrum ^TM System) may be configured to transmit SI (including MIB and SIB) in the unlicensed spectrum.

The unlicensed frequency band of current interest for operation of LTE systems and subsequent systems is the 5 gigahertz (GHz) frequency band, which has a broad spectrum and common availability worldwide. The 5GHz band is governed by the unlicensed national information infrastructure (U-NII) rules of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in the united states and by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) in europe.

In general, wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs), such as WLANs based on IEEE 802.11a/n/ac technology, represent an important incumbent technology in the 5GHz band. Because WLAN systems can be widely deployed by individuals and operators for carrier-grade access service and data offloading, great care must be taken before deploying an LTE system in the 5GHz band, which may be conflicting.

In a Listen Before Talk (LBT) procedure, a radio transmitter may first sense the medium and may then transmit through the medium when it is sensed to be idle. Release 13LTE systems employing LAA may be configured to include LBT features to improve fair coexistence with incumbent WLAN systems.

Meanwhile, the MIB and SIB may include system information that the UE may be configured to acquire in order to enable proper access and operation within the wireless network or within a particular cell of the wireless network. In a legacy LTE system, the MIB may include 3-bit bandwidth information, 3-bit physical hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) indicator channel (PHICH) configuration information, 8-bit System Frame Number (SFN) information, 10 reserved bits, and 16-bit Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) information.

Fig. 1 illustrates a Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH) structure in an LTE system according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. The PBCH structure 100 may include a MIB transmission period 110 in which a plurality of Resource Blocks (RBs) 130 are transmitted in a series of radio frames 120 across a system bandwidth 115. As shown in fig. 1, the MIB transmission period 110 may include 4 radio frames 120, and each radio frame 120 may further include 10 subframes, which constitute 10 RBs 130.MIB transmission period 110 may span 40 milliseconds (ms), radio frame 120 may span 10ms, and the subframe including RB 130 may span 1ms.

The MIB may be repeatedly broadcast over the PBCH in the first RB 130 of each radio frame 120 during the MIB transmission period 110. In some embodiments, the MIB may be broadcast through the PBCH in the central 6 RBs 130 of the system bandwidth. The MIB being broadcast may be identical during MIB transmission period 110. After one MIB transmission period 110 ends, another MIB transmission period 110 may begin in which new and possibly different MIB may be broadcast. In other words, a new MIB may be generated every 40ms, and the same MIB may be repeatedly broadcast every 10ms within a 40ms period.

RB 130 may include a plurality of Resource Elements (REs) 140 that span a set of Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbols in the time domain and span a set of subcarriers in the frequency domain. For example, RB 130 may include REs 140 that span 14 OFDM symbols (which may be enumerated from 0-13) and span 12 subcarriers (which may be enumerated from 0-11).

For OFDM symbols 0, 4, 7, and 11 at subcarriers 0, 3, 6, and 9, some REs 140 may carry port 0 cell specific reference signals (CRSs), and some REs 140 may carry port 1 CRSs. REs 140 in OFDM symbol 5 may carry Secondary Synchronization Signals (SSS), while REs 140 in OFDM symbol 6 may carry Primary Synchronization Signals (PSS). The various REs 140 in OFDM symbols 7 to 10 may carry PBCH. The MIB may then be broadcast over REs carrying a Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH).

For example, as shown in fig. 1, a PBCH carrying MIB may be transmitted in a first RB 130 in a radio frame 120. In some embodiments, the PBCH carrying MIB may be transmitted in various REs 140 of the first 4 OFDM symbols of the second slot of the first subframe in the radio frame (e.g., the second half of the first RB 130 in the radio frame 120).

Up to 13 types of SIBs (from SIB1 to SIB 13) may be broadcast, each of which includes various system information. Different SIBs may have different transmission periods. For example, SIB1 (which may be similar to MIB) may be sent with a fixed transmission period: a new SIB1 may be generated every 80ms and the same SIB1 may be repeatedly transmitted in subframe 5 with a period of 20ms within an 80ms sibb 1 transmission period. SIBs other than SIB1 may have flexible transmission periods, which may be determined by scheduling information included in SIB1. As an example, SIB2 may have a transmission period of 160ms, while SIB3, SIB4, and SIB5 may have a transmission period of 320 ms. Different SIBs may be mapped to different SIs, which may in turn correspond to actual transport blocks to be transmitted on a Downlink (DL) shared channel (DL-SCH). SIBs mapped to the same SI may be set to have the same transmission period.

Each SI may have its own time window within which the SI may be set to be transmitted. The time window may be defined based on scheduling information included in SIB1, and different SIs may have different non-overlapping time windows. Thus, the UE may determine which SI is received in the subframe without reference to the dedicated identifier of each SI.

Thus, MIB and SIB transmissions in conventional LTE can be managed, in general, by a schedule. However, in contrast to conventional LTE environments, transmissions in unlicensed spectrum (including transmissions of MIB and SIBs) may be subject to LBT procedures in order to facilitate fair coexistence with incumbent systems (e.g., WLAN systems). MIB and SIB transmissions in the unlicensed spectrum may not be sent in a particular subframe because they are LBT compliant. If the channel is busy enough for a long enough time, a UE operating in the unlicensed spectrum may not receive MIB or SIB transmissions within the applicable transmission period.

As such, conventional LTE MIB and SIB transmission schemes may not provide MIB and SIBs frequently enough in unlicensed spectrum. Accordingly, it is desirable to increase the transmission opportunities of MIB and SIBs in an unlicensed system. At the same time, however, care may be taken to avoid excessive MIB and SIB transmissions in order to minimize impact on incumbent systems (e.g., wi-Fi systems) and networks of other operators using the same unlicensed spectrum.

Transmission schemes of MIB and SIB for systems in unlicensed spectrum are disclosed herein to increase transmission opportunities of MIB and SIB, thereby enabling a UE to timely acquire system information while avoiding excessive MIB and SIB transmissions.

In the following description, numerous details are discussed to provide a more thorough explanation of embodiments of the present disclosure. However, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that embodiments of the present disclosure may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form, rather than in detail, in order to avoid obscuring embodiments of the present disclosure.

Note that in the corresponding drawings of the embodiments, signals are represented by lines. Some of the lines may be thicker, indicating a greater number of constituent signal paths, and/or some of the lines may have arrows at one or more ends, indicating the direction of information flow. Such descriptions are not intended to be limiting. Rather, these lines are used in conjunction with one or more exemplary embodiments to facilitate a more readily understood understanding of the circuitry or logic elements. As indicated by design requirements or preferences, any represented signal may consist essentially of one or more signals that may propagate in either direction and may be implemented using any suitable type of signal scheme.

Throughout the specification and in the claims, the term "connected" means a direct electrical, mechanical or magnetic connection between the things that are connected, without any intervening devices. The term "coupled" refers to a direct electrical, mechanical, or magnetic connection between things that are connected, or an indirect connection via one or more passive or active intermediary devices. The term "circuit" or "module" may refer to one or more passive and/or active components arranged to cooperate with one another to provide a desired function. The term "signal" may refer to at least one current signal, voltage signal, magnetic signal, or data/clock signal. The meaning of "a", "an", and "the" include plural references. The meaning of "in … …" includes "in … …" and "on … …".

The terms "substantially," "near," "approximately," and "about" generally refer to within +/-10% of a target value. Unless otherwise indicated, the use of ordinal adjectives "first," "second," and "third," etc., to describe a common object, merely indicate that different instances of like objects are being referred to, and are not intended to imply that the objects so described must be in a given sequence (either temporally, spatially, in ranking, or in any other manner).

It is to be understood that the terms so used are interchangeable under appropriate circumstances such that the embodiments of the invention described herein are, for example, capable of operation in other orientations than those illustrated or otherwise described herein.

The terms "left", "right", "front", "rear", "top", "bottom", "above", "below" in the description and claims are used for descriptive purposes and not necessarily for describing permanent relative positions.

For purposes of the embodiments, the transistors in the various circuits, modules, and logic blocks are Tunneling FETs (TFETs). Some transistors of various embodiments may include Metal Oxide Semiconductor (MOS) transistors including a drain terminal, a source terminal, a gate terminal, and a transistor terminal. Transistors may also include tri-gate and FinFET transistors, gate all around cylindrical transistors (Gate All Around Cylindrical Transistor), square-wire or rectangular ribbon transistors, or other devices such as carbon nanotubes or spintronic devices that perform transistor functions. The source and drain terminals of a MOSFET are symmetrical, i.e., the same terminal, and are used interchangeably herein. TFET devices, on the other hand, have asymmetric source and drain terminals. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that other transistors may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, such as, for example, bipolar junction transistor-BJT PNP/NPN, biCMOS, CMOS, etc.

For the purposes of this disclosure, the phrases "a and/or B" and "a or B" refer to (a), (B), or (a and B). For the purposes of this disclosure, the phrase "A, B and/or C" means (a), (B), (C), (a and B), (a and C), (B and C), or (A, B and C).

Furthermore, the various elements of the combinational AND sequential logic discussed in this disclosure may relate to a physical structure (e.g., AND gates, OR gates, OR XOR gates), OR to a comprehensive OR otherwise optimized collection of devices implementing a Boolean equivalent logic structure that is the logic in question.

Furthermore, for purposes of this disclosure, the term "eNB" may refer to a legacy eNB, a next generation or 5G eNB, a millimeter wave (mmWave) eNB, a mmWave small cell, an AP, and/or other base stations for a wireless communication system. For purposes of this disclosure, the term "UE" may refer to a UE, a 5G UE, a mmWave UE, a STA, and/or other mobile devices for a wireless communication system.

Various embodiments of enbs and/or UEs discussed below may handle various types of one or more transmissions. Some processing of the transmission may include demodulating, decoding, detecting, parsing, and/or otherwise processing the already received transmission. In some embodiments, the eNB or UE processing the transmission may determine or identify the type of transmission and/or conditions associated with the transmission. For some embodiments, the eNB or UE handling the transmission may take action according to the type of transmission and/or may take action conditionally based on the type of transmission. The eNB or UE handling the transmission may also identify one or more values or fields of the data carried by the transmission. Processing the transmission may include moving the transmission through one or more layers of the protocol stack (which may be implemented in, for example, hardware and/or software configured elements), e.g., by moving the transmission that has been received by the eNB or UE through one or more layers of the protocol stack.

Various embodiments of enbs and/or UEs discussed below may also generate various types of one or more transmissions. Some generation of the transmission may include modulating, encoding, formatting, assembling, and/or otherwise processing the transmission to be sent. In some embodiments, the eNB or UE generating the transmission may establish a type of transmission and/or a condition associated with the transmission. For some embodiments, the eNB or UE generating the transmission may take action according to the type of transmission and/or may take action conditionally based on the type of transmission. The eNB or UE generating the transmission may also determine one or more values or fields of the data carried by the transmission. Generating the transmission may include moving the transmission through one or more layers of the protocol stack (which may be implemented in, for example, hardware and/or software configured elements), e.g., by moving the transmission that has been sent by the eNB or UE through one or more layers of the protocol stack.

Various MIB transmission schemes in an unlicensed system (which may be LBT compliant) may be employed. In the first type MIB transmission scheme, a scheme similar to the conventional LTE MIB transmission scheme may be employed. A new MIB may be generated every 40ms and may be broadcast over the PBCH every 10 ms during a 40ms MIB transmission period.

In a second type of MIB transmission scheme, the MIB may be inserted into a Discovery Reference Signal (DRS) transmission. Fig. 2 illustrates a DRS transmission structure with MIB inserted according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. The DRS transmission structure 200 may include a plurality of RBs 230 in a 1ms subframe spanning at least a portion of the system bandwidth. In some embodiments, RB 230 may span the central 6 RB portions 210 of the system bandwidth.

Each RB 230 may include a plurality of REs 240 that span a set of OFDM symbols in the time domain and span a set of subcarriers in the frequency domain. For example, each RB 230 may include REs 240 that span 14 OFDM symbols (which may be enumerated from 0-13) and span 12 subcarriers (which may be enumerated from 0-11).

For OFDM symbols 0, 4, 7, and 11, some REs 240 may carry port 0CRS, and some REs 240 may carry port 1CRS. In some embodiments, port 0CRS and/or port 1CRS may be carried in subcarriers 1, 4, 7, and/or 10. Further, the subcarriers for port 0CRS and/or port 1CRS may be different from cell to cell and may depend on the cell ID. For some embodiments, the distance between port 0 CRSs and/or the distance between port 1 CRSs (e.g., the distance of 6 subcarriers) may be predetermined.

For example, as shown in fig. 2, port 0CRS may be carried in subcarriers 1 and 7 in a first set of OFDM symbols (e.g., OFDM symbols 0 and 7), and port 1CRS may be carried in subcarriers 4 and 10 in the first set of OFDM symbols; meanwhile, port 0CRS may be carried in subcarriers 4 and 10 in a second set of OFDM symbols (e.g., OFDM symbols 4 and 11), and port 1CRS may be carried in subcarriers 1 and 7 in the second set of OFDM symbols. Some REs 240 in OFDM symbol 5 may carry SSS and some REs 240 in OFDM symbol 6 may carry primary synchronization signal PSS. Other REs 240 in OFDM symbols 5 and 6 may be reserved. In addition, some REs 240 may carry channel state information reference signals (CSI-RS). For example, as shown in fig. 2, OFDM symbols 9 and 10 in subcarrier 11 may carry CSI-RS. However, in various embodiments, various other REs 240 may carry CSI-RS.

In some embodiments, as reflected in fig. 2, REs 240 in OFDM 7, 8, 9, and/or 10 of the central 6 RB portion 210 of the system bandwidth may carry MIB. However, in various embodiments, the MIB may be transmitted on REs of any set of symbols within the RB 230 of the DRS transmission. For example, in some embodiments, in addition to REs 240 in OFDM symbols 7, 8, 9, and 10 that carry MIB, REs 240 in OFDM symbols 2, 3, 4, and/or 11 may also carry MIB. Thus, for example, it may be in OFDM symbols 2, 3, 7 and 8; or in OFDM symbols 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11; or in OFDM symbols 4, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11; or transmit MIB in any combination of OFDM symbols 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11.

In some embodiments, the MIB may not be transmitted in symbols used for PSS and/or SSS transmissions. For some embodiments, the MIB may not be transmitted in REs that are used for CRS transmissions (e.g., for port 0 and port 1CRS transmissions).

In some embodiments, the MIB may not be transmitted in the symbols used for CSI-RS transmission. However, for some embodiments, the PBCH transmission may have a higher priority than the CSI-RS transmission, and the CSI-RS may not be transmitted in the central 6 RB portion 210 of the system bandwidth.

In a third type of MIB transmission scheme, the MIB (LBT-compliant) may be transmitted in a set of predetermined subframes X within the MIB transmission period. For example, in various embodiments, the MIB may be transmitted in subframe 0, or subframe 5, or both subframes 0 and 5 of the MIB transmission period.

For some such embodiments, MIB transmission in a predetermined subframe may occur only outside of a DRS transmission window (DTxW), e.g., in DL data bursts in predetermined subframe X outside of DTxW. DTxW may be a time window in which DRSs may be transmitted and beyond which DRSs should not be transmitted. DTxW may be cell-specific and may be defined accordingly on a cell-by-cell basis. In some embodiments, the MIB may be transmitted in a set of predetermined subframes X within or outside of DTxW even without accompanying DL data transmissions.

In a fourth type of MIB transmission scheme, MIB transmission may be based on UE requests. Thus, if the eNB receives an explicit request for the MIB from the UE, the eNB may send the MIB.

In various embodiments, any combination of the types of MIB transmission schemes discussed herein may be implemented in an eNB and/or UE of a wireless system.

Various SIB transmission schemes in an unlicensed system (which may be subject to LBT) may also be employed. In the SIB transmission scheme of the first type, a SIB transmission scheme similar to the conventional LTE SIB transmission scheme may be employed. Each SIB may have a transmission period in which the SIBs are repeatedly broadcast in a manner similar to that defined for legacy LTE.

In the second type SIB transmission scheme, SIB transmission periods may be reduced relative to conventional LTE SIB transmission schemes. For example, SIB1 may be repeatedly transmitted every 10ms in the transmission period (instead of every 20ms in the transmission period). In various embodiments, the SIB transmission period may be reduced by a constant amount of time (e.g., by subtracting 10 ms), and/or may be scaled by a constant factor (e.g., by dividing by 2).

In a third type of SIB transmission scheme, one or more SIBs may be inserted in the DRS transmission. In various embodiments, one or more SIBs may be transmitted on REs of any set of symbols within an RB of a DRS transmission (e.g., REs discussed above for a third type of MIB transmission scheme). For example, in some embodiments, SIB1 and/or SIB2 may be inserted into the DRS transmission. For some embodiments, some REs within the central 6 PRBs (physical RBs) of the bandwidth may be used for DRS transmission, and REs outside the central 6 PRBs in the same symbol in which the DRS is transmitted may be used for SIB transmission. For example, in a system with a bandwidth spanning 50 PRBs, the central 6 PRBs of 12 OFDM symbols (or 14 OFDM symbols) may carry DRSs, while PRBs other than the central 6 PRBs of the same 12 OFDM symbols (or 14 OFDM symbols) may carry SIBs.

For some embodiments, the SIB may not be transmitted in OFDM symbol 0, or may not be transmitted in OFDM symbols 0 or 1, or may not be transmitted in OFDM symbols 0 through 2. In various embodiments, the SIB may not be transmitted in up to the first 3 OFDM symbols, accordingly. In some embodiments, these OFDM symbols may alternatively be used to transmit DL control information (e.g., over a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH)).

In a fourth type of SIB transmission scheme, one or more of SIB1 through SIB13 may be in one or more groups of respective predetermined subframes Y _j (where j may be any combination of indices 1 through 13) is transmitted (subject to LBT). For example, SIB1 may be transmitted in subframe 5 of the SIB1 transmission period. In various embodiments, each SIB may be transmitted in any set of subframes within its transmission period.

However, for some such embodiments, SIB transmissions (of type j) in the predetermined subframes may occur only outside of DTxW, e.g., outside of DTxW (a set of subframes Y) _j In the DL data burst in a predetermined subframe. In some embodiments, a corresponding set of predetermined subframes Y may be within or outside of DTxW even without accompanying DL data transmission _j The SIB of type j is sent.

Notably, for at least the fourth type of SIB transmission scheme, transmissions of the various SIBs may overlap over a time window for transmissions of different types of SIBs. As such, the time relationship may be insufficient to indicate SIB type. For some such embodiments, various signaling methods may be used to indicate the type of SIB being transmitted.

In a first signaling method, DL Control Information (DCI) may indicate SIB type. In some embodiments, DCI formats 1A and/or 1C may be used to carry SIB type indicators. The CRC parity bits for DCI may be scrambled by a new radio network temporary identifier SIB-j-RNTI, where "j" indicates SIB type (e.g., "1" for SIB1, "2" for SIB2, … …, to "13" for SIB 13).

In a second signaling method, a field for SIB type indicator information may be added to existing DL DCI. The CRC parity bits for DCI may be scrambled by a new radio network temporary identifier SIB-j-RNTI, where "j" indicates SIB type (e.g., "1" for SIB1, "2" for SIB2, … …, to "13" for SIB 13).

In a third signaling method, the Physical Control Format Indicator Channel (PCFICH) transmission may include a 2-bit SIB type indicator. In some embodiments, the potential PDCCH size may be limited to two, which may make bits available for SIB type indicators.

In a fourth signaling method, PHICH resources may carry SIB type indicators. In some embodiments, the SIB type indicator may be encoded by a dynamic length reduced Reed-muller (Reed-muller) block encoding.

In a fifth type SIB transmission scheme, the transmission in the one or more predetermined subframes Z may include one or more types of SIBs having a predetermined period. For example, the one or more predetermined subframes Z may include SIB1 and/or SIB2. Because such transmissions may be LBT compliant, the transmission of SIBs may be opportunistic and may depend on channel availability. In some embodiments, the transmission in one or more predetermined subframes Z including certain types of SIBs having a predetermined period may occur outside of and may not occur within DTxW. For example, transmission of one or more types of SIBs may occur in subframe 0 every 20 milliseconds outside of DTxW.

In a sixth type of SIB transmission scheme, SIB transmission may be based on a UE request. In some such embodiments, if the eNB receives an explicit request for a particular type of SIB from the UE, the particular type of SIB may be sent.

In the seventh type SIB transmission scheme, various different types of SIBs may be included in the newly defined system information block and may be transmitted through a scheme substantially similar to the other SIB transmission schemes discussed herein. For example, SIB1 and SIB2 system information may be carried by a newly defined system information block (e.g., eSIB). The newly defined system information blocks may be transmitted by a scheme substantially similar to the various SIB transmission schemes discussed herein.

In various embodiments, any combination of the types of SIB transmission schemes discussed herein may be implemented in an eNB and/or a UE of a wireless system. Furthermore, different types of SIBs may employ different combinations of SIB transmission schemes of the types described above.

Fig. 3 illustrates MIB and SIB transmission scenarios in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. The MIB/SIB transmission scenario 300 may include a series of 10ms frames 305 that last a first DTxW period 301 and a second DTxW period 302. In the first DTxW period 301, a DRS transmission 310 (which may include MIB and/or SIB transmissions) may occur within the first DTxW 312 (subject to the first LBT 316). Further, in the first DTxW period 301, MIB/SIB transmissions 320 (which may include MIB and/or SIB transmissions) may occur within the first DL burst 324 (subject to the second LBT 326). As shown in fig. 3, in the second DTxW period 302, the third LBT 336 may not succeed until it is outside of the second DTxW 332, after which a second DL burst 334 may be initiated. MIB transmission 330 may occur within a second DL burst 334 following a second DTxW 332. (Note that while the various features of scene 300 (e.g., DTxW, transmission, and LBT) may be enumerated as "first," "second," and/or "third" features, these designations are merely for discussion purposes to enumerate the acts at various points in scene 300 in the context of FIG. 3, and are not meant to imply a sequential order of these acts in the time domain.)

The first LBT 316 may be a single interval LBT and may last, for example, 25 microseconds (μs). In contrast, the second LBT 326 may be a class 4 LBT, which may have a higher sensitivity than a single interval LBT. In various embodiments, the first LBT 316, the second LBT 326, and/or the third LBT 336 may be single interval LBTs, class 4 LBTs, or another type of LBT.

In MIB/SIB transmission scenario 300, MIB and/or SIBs (including, in some embodiments, newly defined SIBs) may be transmitted in a DRS transmission within DTxW. Further, beyond DTxW, MIB and/or SIB (including, in some embodiments, a newly defined SIB) may be transmitted in a DL burst and in one of a set of predetermined subframes within a radio frame. For example, MIB and/or SIB may be transmitted in subframe X, which may be 0 (according to the second type MIB transmission scheme and/or the third type SIB transmission scheme discussed herein) in some embodiments. In some embodiments, the MIB may not be transmitted in subframe X in the absence of DL transmission bursts in subframe X. In contrast, for some embodiments, MIB may be sent in subframe X outside of DTxW even in the absence of DL transmission bursts in subframe X. In various embodiments, DTxW may be up to 10ms.

In some embodiments, the predetermined duration interval may separate MIB and/or SIB transmissions from DRS transmissions. For example, in some embodiments, MIB and/or SIB (e.g., SIB discussed herein) may be transmitted in subframe Z of two radio frames (e.g., in DL data burst) following the radio frame in which the DRS is transmitted. Thus, the MIB and/or SIB may be transmitted in a radio frame 20ms after the radio frame in which the DRS is transmitted. In other embodiments, the duration interval between the start frame with the DRS transmission and the radio frame in which the MIB and/or SIB (e.g., the SIB discussed herein) may be sent within the DL burst may be set to other values.

Various LBT methods may be employed for MIB transmission schemes in the unlicensed system and SIB transmission schemes in the unlicensed system discussed herein. In the first type of LBT method, for MIB and/or SIB transmission, a substantially similar method as that for DL data transmission may be employed. In some embodiments, different priority levels may be configured for MIB and/or SIB transmissions. For such embodiments, MIB and/or SIB transmissions may belong to a hierarchy having a higher priority than other DL data transmissions (e.g., priority hierarchy 1), or to a hierarchy having the same priority as other DL data transmissions. In some embodiments, LBT requirements (e.g., using single interval LBT, or class 4 LBT) may be different for transmissions of different priority levels.

In a second type of LBT method, the transmission may be subject to a single interval LBT for subframes that include only MIB and/or SIB transmissions but no other data transmissions. For example, a single interval LBT of 25 μs may be performed before transmitting only MIB subframes. As another example, a single interval LBT may be performed for a DRS transmission where the DRS includes 12 OFDM symbols (which may be, for example, a DRS transmission including MIB and/or SIB transmission), while a class 4 LBT may be performed for a DRS transmission where the DRS includes 14 OFDM symbols. In various embodiments, the energy threshold for MIB and/or SIB transmissions may be set to a different value, e.g., a higher value than the energy threshold for DRS transmissions or other DL data transmissions.

In a third type of LBT method, MIB and/or SIB transmissions following a transmission scheme substantially similar to conventional LTE may employ a different LBT method than that employed by MIB and/or SIB transmissions following the various transmission schemes discussed herein. For some embodiments, a class 4 LBT with the highest priority (e.g., priority level 1) may be used for transmissions that only carry MIB and/or SIBs (e.g., transmissions without other DL-SCH data transmissions). Multiplexing of MIB and/or SIB transmissions with other DL-SCHs may be based on multiplexing rules for general DL data transmissions.

To obtain the desired frequency of MIB and/or SIB transmissions while avoiding excessive MIB and/or SIB transmissions, various rules may be applied to direct MIB and/or SIB transmissions toward a reasonable range. Under the first rule, for some embodiments, if a transmission from the latest MIB and/or SIB has been startedMore than a predetermined time T ₁ The eNB may send additional MIB and/or SIB transmissions according to the MIB transmission schemes and/or SIB transmission schemes discussed herein. Predetermined time T ₁ May be parameters established according to the eNB implementation.

Under the second rule, for some embodiments, a predetermined time T ₂ The total number of MIB and/or SIB transmissions within may be limited to a predetermined number N. Predetermined time T ₂ And the predetermined number N may be parameters established according to the eNB implementation. In some embodiments, T ₂ May be set as MIB transmission period or SIB transmission period. For some embodiments, N may be set to a number less than or equal to the total number of desired MIB transmissions within MIB transmission periods and/or the total number of desired SIB transmissions within SIB transmission periods.

For some embodiments, if the MIB and/or SIB is in its transmission period T ₂ Having been successfully transmitted N times, no further MIB and/or SIB transmissions may be transmitted during the transmission period (e.g., in predetermined subframes according to the MIB transmission scheme of the third type and/or SIB transmission scheme of the fourth type discussed herein). For some embodiments, no additional MIB (e.g., according to the second type MIB transmission scheme and/or the third type SIB transmission scheme discussed herein) may be inserted in the DRS transmission.

Under a third rule, in some embodiments, the eNB may determine that additional MIB and/or SIB transmissions should be sent based on an explicit UE request for additional MIB and/or SIB transmissions. In some embodiments, the additional MIB and/or SIB transmissions may be those transmitted according to a similar scheme to legacy LTE (e.g., according to a first type MIB transmission scheme and/or a first type SIB transmission scheme). For some embodiments, the UE request may be determined based on the acquisition of the required system information. For example, if the UE has not acquired system information within a particular time period, the UE may send a request for additional MIB and/or SIB transmissions. The design of the UE request for additional MIB and/or SIB transmissions may be based on a Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH).

In various embodiments, any combination of the types of rules discussed herein for MIB and/or SIB transmissions may be implemented in an eNB and/or UE of a wireless system.

Further, MIB transmissions may carry various information and/or indicators in addition to being transmitted according to the various MIB transmission schemes discussed herein. The MIB transmissions may carry information and/or indicators that differ between different PBCH transmissions according to a first type of information and/or indicators.

According to the second type of information and/or indicators, the transmission symbol index for MIB transmissions may float within DTxW and MIB transmissions may carry subframe indexes accordingly. For example, in some embodiments, 3 bits may be used to indicate the subframe in which a DRS (including MIB) may be transmitted. The 3 bits may indicate an offset from the location where the DRS is transmitted to subframe 0 (if the DRS is transmitted in the first half of the radio frame) or to subframe 5 (if the DRS is transmitted in the second half of the radio frame). In some embodiments, the SFN may change from 8 bits to 10 bits. Some embodiments may use the reserved 10 bits to carry a subframe index, or 2 additional bits of information of the SFN. Alternatively, in embodiments where only 10MHz or 20MHz of system bandwidth is supported, a 1-bit bandwidth indication may be sufficient, while other 2 bits (along with reserved bits) in the MIB used by legacy LTE for system bandwidth indication may be used to indicate other information (which may include SFN).

In various embodiments, any combination of the various information and/or indicators carried by MIB transmissions may be implemented in an eNB and/or UE of a wireless system.

Fig. 4 illustrates an eNB and a UE according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. Fig. 4 includes a block diagram of an eNB 410 and a UE 430 operable to coexist with each other and with other elements of an LTE network. Advanced simplified architecture of eNB 410 and UE 430 are described to avoid obscuring embodiments. It should be noted that in some embodiments, the eNB 410 may be a fixed, non-mobile device.

The eNB 410 is coupled to one or more antennas 405 and the UE 430 is similarly coupled to one or more antennas 425. However, in some embodiments, eNB 410 may incorporate or include antenna 405 and in various embodiments UE 430 may incorporate or include antenna 425.

In some embodiments, antennas 405 and/or 425 may include one or more directional or omnidirectional antennas, including monopole antennas, dipole antennas, loop antennas, patch antennas, microstrip antennas, coplanar wave antennas, or other types of antennas suitable for transmission of RF signals. In some MIMO (multiple input and multiple output) embodiments, antennas 405 are separated to take advantage of spatial diversity.

The eNB 410 and the UE 430 are operable to communicate with each other over a network (e.g., a wireless network). The eNB 410 and the UE 430 may communicate with each other through a wireless communication channel 450, the wireless communication channel 450 having a downlink path from the eNB 410 to the UE 430 and an uplink path from the UE 430 to the eNB 410.

As shown in fig. 4, in some embodiments, the eNB 410 may include physical layer circuitry 412, MAC (medium access control) circuitry 414, a processor 416, memory 418, and hardware processing circuitry 420. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that other components, not shown, may be used to form a complete eNB in addition to the components shown.

In some embodiments, physical layer circuitry 412 includes transceiver 413 for providing signals to UE 430 and from UE 430. The transceiver 413 uses one or more antennas 405 to provide signals to and from UEs or other devices. In some embodiments, MAC circuit 414 controls access to the wireless medium. The memory 418 may be or include one or more storage media, such as magnetic storage media (e.g., magnetic tape or disk), optical storage media (e.g., optical disk), electronic storage media (e.g., a conventional hard disk drive, solid state disk drive, or flash memory-based storage media), or any tangible or non-transitory storage media. The hardware processing circuitry 420 may include logic devices or circuitry to perform various operations. In some embodiments, the processor 416 and the memory 418 are arranged to perform operations of the hardware processing circuitry 420, e.g., operations described herein with reference to logic devices and circuitry within the eNB 410 and/or the hardware processing circuitry 420.

Thus, in some embodiments, the eNB 410 may be a device including an application processor, memory, one or more antenna ports, and an interface for allowing the application processor to communicate with another device.

As also shown in fig. 4, in some embodiments, UE 430 may include physical layer circuitry 432, MAC circuitry 434, processor 436, memory 438, hardware processing circuitry 440, a wireless interface 442, and a display 444. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that other components, not shown, may be used to form a complete UE in addition to the components shown.

In some embodiments, the physical layer circuitry 432 includes a transceiver 433 to provide signals to and from the eNB410 (as well as other enbs). Transceiver 433 provides signals to and from enbs or other devices using one or more antennas 425. In some embodiments, MAC circuit 434 controls access to the wireless medium. The memory 438 may be or include one or more storage media such as magnetic storage media (e.g., magnetic tape or disk), optical storage media (e.g., optical disk), electronic storage media (e.g., a conventional hard disk drive, solid state disk drive, or flash memory-based storage media), or any tangible or non-transitory storage media. The wireless interface 442 may be arranged to allow the processor to communicate with another device. Display 444 may provide a visual and/or tactile display, such as a touch screen display, to a user interacting with UE 430. The hardware processing circuitry 440 may include logic devices or circuitry to perform various operations. In some embodiments, the processor 436 and the memory 438 may be arranged to perform the operations of the hardware processing circuitry 440, e.g., the operations described herein with reference to logic devices and circuitry within the UE 430 and/or the hardware processing circuitry 440.

Thus, in some embodiments, UE 430 may be a device that includes an application processor, memory, one or more antennas, a wireless interface for allowing the application processor to communicate with another device, and a touch screen display.

The elements of fig. 4, as well as elements of other figures having the same names or reference numerals, may operate or function in the manner described herein for any such figure (although the operation and function of these elements is not limited to such description). For example, fig. 5 and 6 also depict embodiments of an eNB, hardware processing circuitry of the eNB, a UE, and/or hardware processing circuitry of the UE, and the embodiments described with reference to fig. 4 and 5 and 6 may operate or function in the manner described herein with respect to any of the figures.

Furthermore, although eNB 410 and UE 430 are each described as having several separate functional elements, one or more of the functional elements may be combined and may be implemented by combinations of software-configured elements and/or other hardware elements. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, a functional element may refer to one or more processes operating on one or more processing elements. Examples of software and/or hardware configured elements include a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), one or more microprocessors, a DSP, a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), a Radio Frequency Integrated Circuit (RFIC), and so forth.

Fig. 5 illustrates hardware processing circuitry for an eNB to perform MIB transmissions in an unlicensed spectrum, SIB transmissions in an unlicensed spectrum, or both, in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. Referring to fig. 4, an enb may include various hardware processing circuitry (e.g., hardware processing circuitry 500 of fig. 5) discussed below, which in turn may include logic devices and/or circuitry operable to perform various operations. For example, in fig. 4, the eNB 410 (or various elements or components therein (e.g., hardware processing circuitry 420), or a combination of elements or components therein) may include some or all of these hardware processing circuitry.

In some embodiments, one or more devices or circuits within these hardware processing circuits may be implemented with a combination of software configured elements and/or other hardware elements. For example, the processor 416 (and/or one or more other processors that the eNB 410 may include) of the eNB 410 (which may include hardware processing circuitry 420), the memory 418, and/or other elements or components may be arranged to perform the operations of the hardware processing circuitry, e.g., the operations described herein with reference to the devices and circuitry within the hardware processing circuitry. In some embodiments, the processor 416 (and/or one or more other processors that the eNB 410 may include) may be a baseband processor.

Returning to fig. 5, an apparatus of an eNB 410 (or another eNB or base station) operable to communicate with one or more UEs over a wireless network may include hardware processing circuitry 500. In some embodiments, the hardware processing circuitry 500 may include one or more antenna ports 505 operable to provide various transmissions over a wireless communication channel (e.g., wireless communication channel 450). The antenna port 505 may be coupled to one or more antennas 507 (which may be antenna 405). In some embodiments, the hardware processing circuit 500 may contain an antenna 507, while in other embodiments, the hardware processing circuit 500 may be coupled only to the antenna 507.

Antenna port 505 and antenna 507 may be operable to provide signals from an eNB to a wireless communication channel and/or UE and may be operable to provide signals from a UE and/or wireless communication channel to an eNB. For example, antenna port 505 and antenna 507 may be operable to provide transmissions from eNB 410 to wireless communication channel 450 (and from wireless communication channel 450 to UE 430 or another UE). Similarly, antenna 507 and antenna port 505 may operate to provide transmissions from wireless communication channel 450 (and, prior thereto, from UE 430 or another UE) to eNB 410.

Referring to fig. 5, the hardware processing circuit 500 may include a first circuit 510, a second circuit 520, and a third circuit 530. The first circuit 510 is operable to identify a channel of the wireless network that is in one of: independent operation on unlicensed spectrum, or licensed assisted access operation based on dual connectivity. The second circuit 520 may be operable to encode SI bearer transmissions carrying one or more of: MIB, and one or more types of SIBs. The first circuit 510 may identify a wireless network to the second circuit 520 through the interface 515. In some embodiments, the third circuitry 530 may be operable to process a request transmission from the UE, the request transmission bearing a request for an SI bearer transmission, wherein encoding of the SI bearer transmission may be in response to the request transmission. For some such embodiments, the request transmission may be based on PRACH transmissions. The transmission of SI bearer transmissions may be compliant with the LBT protocol on the channel.

In some embodiments, the SI bearer transmission may be in the same subframe as the DRS transmission. For some embodiments, the second circuit 520 may be operable to generate an SI-bearing transmission for transmission in one of a predefined set of subframes outside of DTxW. In some embodiments, SI bearer transmissions may be generated for transmission within DL bursts carrying other DL data. For some embodiments, SI bearer transmissions may be generated for transmission without DL bursts comprising other DL data. In some embodiments, SI bearer transmissions may carry two or more types of SIBs.

For some embodiments, the second circuit 520 may be operable to generate SI bearer transmissions for transmission within the DTxW, and the LBT protocol may be one of: single interval LBT protocol, or class 4 LBT protocol. In some such embodiments, the LBT protocol may be a single-interval LBT protocol when the SI bearer transmission carries a Discovery Reference Signal (DRS) in 12 Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbols, and the LBT protocol may be a class 4 LBT protocol when the SI bearer transmission carries a DRS in 14 OFMD symbols. In some embodiments, the SI-bearing transmission may carry a MIB, and the MIB may include a subframe index indicator. For some embodiments, the SI-bearing transmission may carry a MIB, and at least a portion of the MIB may be carried in one or more of OFDM symbols 2, 3, 4, and 11.

In some embodiments, the SI bearer transmission may carry one or more types of SIBs, and the second circuitry 520 may be operable to generate an indicator transmission carrying an indicator of the type of SIB being carried. The indicator transmission may be one of the following: DCI transmission, PCFICH transmission, or PHICH transmission.

For some embodiments, the LBT protocol may be an LBT protocol for DL transmissions. In some embodiments, the second circuit 520 may be operative to generate DL transmissions, and SI transmissions may belong to a priority class having a higher priority than DL transmissions. For some embodiments, the SI-bearing transmission may carry a MIB, and the MIB may include a 10-bit SFN indicator. In some embodiments, the SI bearer transmission may carry a MIB, and the MIB may include 3 bits for at least one of: SFN indicator, or subframe index indicator providing an offset from subframe 0 or subframe 5.

In some embodiments, the second circuit 520 may be operable to encode one or more additional SI-bearing transmissions carrying one or more of: MIB, and one or more types of SIBs. In some such embodiments, more than a predetermined time T1 may elapse since the transmission of the most recent previous SI bearer transmission.

For some embodiments, the second circuit 520 may be operable to encode one or more additional SI-bearing transmissions carrying one or more of: MIB, and one or more types of SIBs. In some such embodiments, the total number of SI bearer transmissions in the predetermined time T2 may not exceed a predetermined number N.

In some embodiments, the first circuit 510, the second circuit 520, and the third circuit 530 may be implemented as separate circuits. In other embodiments, one or more of the first circuit 510, the second circuit 520, and the third circuit 530 may be combined and implemented together in a circuit without changing the essence of the embodiments.

Fig. 6 illustrates hardware processing circuitry for a UE to perform MIB transmission in an unlicensed spectrum, SIB transmission in an unlicensed spectrum, or both, in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. Referring to fig. 4, the ue may include various hardware processing circuitry (e.g., hardware processing circuitry 600 of fig. 6) discussed below, which may include logic devices and/or circuitry operable to perform various operations. For example, in fig. 4, UE 430 (or various elements or components therein (e.g., hardware processing circuitry 440), or a combination of elements or components therein) may include some or all of these hardware processing circuitry.

In some embodiments, one or more devices or circuits within these hardware processing circuits may be implemented with a combination of software configured elements and/or other hardware elements. For example, processor 436 (and/or one or more other processors that UE 430 may include hardware processing circuitry 440), memory 438, and/or other elements or components of UE 430 may be arranged to perform the operations of these hardware processing circuitry, e.g., the operations described herein with reference to devices and circuitry within these hardware processing circuitry. In some embodiments, processor 436 (and/or one or more other processors that UE 430 may include) may be a baseband processor.

Returning to fig. 6, an apparatus of a UE 430 (or another UE or mobile handset) operable to communicate with one or more enbs over a wireless network may include hardware processing circuitry 600. In some embodiments, hardware processing circuit 600 may include one or more antenna ports 605 operable to provide various transmissions over a wireless communication channel (e.g., wireless communication channel 450). The antenna port 605 may be coupled to one or more antennas 607 (which may be antennas 425). In some embodiments, the hardware processing circuit 600 may include an antenna 607, while in other embodiments, the hardware processing circuit 600 may be coupled only to the antenna 607.

Antenna port 605 and antenna 607 may be operable to provide signals from a UE to a wireless communication channel and/or eNB and may be operable to provide signals from an eNB and/or wireless communication channel to a UE. For example, antenna port 605 and antenna 607 may be operable to provide transmissions from UE 430 to wireless communication channel 450 (and from wireless communication channel 450 to eNB 410 or another eNB). Similarly, antenna 607 and antenna port 605 may be operable to provide transmissions from wireless communication channel 450 (and in addition thereto from eNB 410 or another eNB) to UE 430.

Referring to fig. 6, the hardware processing circuit 600 may include a first circuit 610, a second circuit 620, and a third circuit 630. The first circuit 610 may be operable to identify a channel of the wireless network that is in one of: independent operation on unlicensed spectrum, or licensed assisted access operation based on dual connectivity. The second circuit 620 may be operable to decode SI bearer transmissions carrying one or more of: MIB, and one or more types of SIBs. The first circuit 610 may identify a wireless network to the second circuit 620 through the interface 615. In some embodiments, the third circuit 630 may be operative to generate a request transmission carrying a request for an SI bearer transmission, wherein the encoding of the SI bearer transmission is transmitted in response to the request. For some such embodiments, the request transmission may be based on PRACH transmissions. SI bearer transmissions may be received after the channel is idle according to the LBT protocol.

In some embodiments, the SI bearer transmission may be in the same subframe as the DRS transmission. For some embodiments, the second circuit 620 may be operative to process SI bearer transmissions in one of a predefined set of subframes outside of DTxW. In some embodiments, SI bearer transmissions may be generated for transmission within DL bursts carrying other DL data. For some embodiments, SI bearer transmissions may be generated for transmission without DL bursts comprising other DL data. In some embodiments, SI bearer transmissions may carry two or more types of SIBs.

For some embodiments, the second circuit 620 may be operative to process SI bearer transmissions within DTxW, and the LBT protocol may be one of: single interval LBT protocol, or class 4 LBT protocol. In some such embodiments, the LBT protocol may be a single-interval LBT protocol when the SI bearer transmission carries a Discovery Reference Signal (DRS) in 12 Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbols, and the LBT protocol may be a class 4 LBT protocol when the SI bearer transmission carries a DRS in 14 OFMD symbols. In some embodiments, the SI-bearing transmission may carry a MIB, and the MIB may include a subframe index indicator. For some embodiments, the SI-bearing transmission may carry a MIB, and at least a portion of the MIB may be carried in one or more of OFDM symbols 2, 3, 4, and 11.

In some embodiments, the SI bearer transmission may carry two or more types of SIBs, and the second circuitry 620 may be operative to process an indicator transmission carrying an indicator of the type of SIB being carried. The indicator transmission may be one of the following: DCI transmission, PCFICH transmission, or PHICH transmission.

For some embodiments, the LBT protocol may be an LBT protocol for DL transmissions. In some embodiments, the second circuit 620 may operate to process DL transmissions, and SI transmissions may belong to a priority class having a higher priority than DL transmissions. For some embodiments, the SI-bearing transmission may carry a MIB, and the MIB may include a 10-bit SFN indicator. In some embodiments, the SI bearer transmission may carry a MIB, and the MIB may include 3 bits for at least one of: SFN indicator, or subframe index indicator providing an offset from subframe 0 or subframe 5.

In some embodiments, the second circuit 620 may be operable to decode one or more additional SI bearer transmissions carrying one or more of: MIB, and one or more types of SIBs. In some such embodiments, more than a predetermined time T1 may elapse since the transmission of the most recent previous SI bearer transmission.

For some embodiments, the second circuit 620 may be operable to decode one or more additional SI-bearing transmissions carrying one or more of: MIB, and one or more types of SIBs. In some such embodiments, the total number of SI bearer transmissions in the predetermined time T2 may not exceed a predetermined number N.

In some embodiments, the first circuit 610, the second circuit 620, and the third circuit 630 may be implemented as separate circuits. In other embodiments, one or more of the first circuit 610, the second circuit 620, and the third circuit 630 may be combined and implemented together in a circuit without changing the essence of the embodiments.

Fig. 7 illustrates a method for an eNB to MIB transmit in an unlicensed spectrum, SIB transmit in an unlicensed spectrum, or both, in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. Referring to fig. 4, various methods that may involve the eNB 410 and hardware processing circuitry 420 are discussed below. Although the acts in the flowchart 700 of fig. 7 are shown in a particular order, the order of the acts may be modified. Thus, the illustrated embodiments may be performed in a different order, and some acts may be performed in parallel. Some of the acts and/or operations listed in fig. 7 are optional according to some embodiments. The numbering of the acts is presented for the sake of clarity and is not intended to dictate the order in which the various acts must occur. Further, operations from the various flows may be utilized in various combinations.

Further, in some embodiments, the machine-readable storage medium may have executable instructions that, when executed, cause the eNB 410 and/or hardware processing circuitry 420 to perform operations comprising the method of fig. 7. Such machine-readable storage media may include any number of storage media, such as magnetic storage media (e.g., magnetic tape or disk), optical storage media (e.g., optical disk), electronic storage media (e.g., conventional hard disk drive, solid state disk drive, or flash memory-based storage media), or any other tangible or non-transitory storage media.

In some embodiments, an apparatus may include means for performing various actions and/or operations of the method of fig. 7.

Returning to fig. 7, method 700 may include identifying 710, encoding 715, generating 720, generating 730, generating 740, processing 750, generating 760, encoding 770, and/or encoding 780. In identification 710, a channel of a wireless network may be identified, the channel being in one of: independent operation on unlicensed spectrum, or licensed assisted access operation based on dual connectivity. In code 715, the code carries SI bearer transmissions of one or more of: MIB, and one or more types of SIBs. The transmission of SI bearer transmissions may be compliant with the LBT protocol on the channel.

In some embodiments, the SI bearer transmission may be in the same subframe as the DRS transmission. For some embodiments, in generating 720, an SI-bearing transmission may be generated for transmission in one of a predefined set of subframes outside of DTxW. In some embodiments, SI bearer transmissions may carry two or more types of SIBs. For some embodiments, SI bearer transmissions may be generated for transmission within DL bursts carrying other DL data. In some embodiments, SI bearer transmissions may be generated for transmission without DL bursts comprising other DL data.

For some embodiments, in generating 730, an SI bearer transmission may be generated for transmission within DTxW, and the LBT protocol may be one of: single interval LBT protocol, or class 4 LBT protocol. In some such embodiments, the LBT protocol may be a single-interval LBT protocol when the SI bearer transmission carries a Discovery Reference Signal (DRS) in 12 Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbols, and the LBT protocol may be a class 4 LBT protocol when the SI bearer transmission carries a DRS in 14 OFMD symbols. In some embodiments, the SI-bearing transmission may carry a MIB, and the MIB may include a subframe index indicator. For some embodiments, the SI-bearing transmission may carry a MIB, and at least a portion of the MIB may be carried in one or more of OFDM symbols 2, 3, 4, and 11.

In some embodiments, SI bearer transmissions may carry two or more types of SIBs. In some such embodiments, in generation 740, an indicator transmission may be generated that carries an indicator of the type of SIB being carried. The indicator transmission may be one of the following: DCI transmission, PCFICH transmission, or PHICH transmission.

For some embodiments, in process 750, a request transmission from the UE may be processed, the request transmission bearing a request for SI bearer transmission. The encoding of the SI bearer transmission may be transmitted in response to the request. For some such embodiments, the request transmission may be based on PRACH transmissions.

For some embodiments, the LBT protocol may be an LBT protocol for DL transmissions. In some embodiments, in generating 760, DL transmissions may be generated and SI transmissions may belong to a priority class having a higher priority than DL transmissions. For some embodiments, the SI-bearing transmission may carry a MIB, and the MIB may include a 10-bit SFN indicator. In some embodiments, the SI bearer transmission may carry a MIB, and the MIB may include 3 bits for at least one of: SFN indicator, or subframe index indicator providing an offset from subframe 0 or subframe 5.

In some embodiments, in encoding 770, one or more additional SI bearer transmissions may be encoded, carrying one or more of the following: MIB, and one or more types of SIBs. In some such embodiments, more than a predetermined time T1 may elapse since the transmission of the most recent previous SI bearer transmission.

For some embodiments, in encoding 780, one or more additional SI bearer transmissions may be encoded, carrying one or more of the following: MIB, and one or more types of SIBs. In some such embodiments, the total number of SI bearer transmissions in the predetermined time T2 may not exceed a predetermined number N.

Fig. 8 illustrates a method for a UE to MIB transmit in an unlicensed spectrum, SIB transmit in an unlicensed spectrum, or both, in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. Referring to fig. 4, a method that may involve UE 430 and hardware processing circuitry 440 is discussed below. Although the acts in the flowchart 800 of fig. 8 are shown in a particular order, the order of the acts may be modified. Thus, the illustrated embodiments may be performed in a different order, and some acts may be performed in parallel. Some of the acts and/or operations listed in fig. 8 are optional according to some embodiments. The numbering of the acts is presented for the sake of clarity and is not intended to dictate the order in which the various acts must occur. Further, operations from the various flows may be utilized in various combinations.

Further, in some embodiments, the machine-readable storage medium may have executable instructions that, when executed, cause UE 430 and/or hardware processing circuitry 440 to perform operations comprising the method of fig. 8. Such machine-readable storage media may include any number of storage media, such as magnetic storage media (e.g., magnetic tape or disk), optical storage media (e.g., optical disk), electronic storage media (e.g., conventional hard disk drive, solid state disk drive, or flash memory-based storage media), or any other tangible or non-transitory storage media.

In some embodiments, an apparatus may include means for performing various actions and/or operations of the method of fig. 8.

Returning to fig. 8, method 800 may include identifying 810, decoding 815, process 820, process 830, process 840, generating 850, process 860, decoding 870, and/or decoding 880. In identifying 810, a channel of a wireless network may be identified, the channel being in one of: independent operation on unlicensed spectrum, or licensed assisted access operation based on dual connectivity. In decoding 815, the SI-bearing transmission carrying one or more of the following is decoded: MIB, and one or more types of SIBs. SI bearer transmissions may be received after the channel is idle according to the LBT protocol.

In some embodiments, the SI bearer transmission may be in the same subframe as the DRS transmission. For some embodiments, in process 820, SI bearer transmission in one of a predefined set of subframes outside of DTxW may be processed. In some embodiments, SI bearer transmissions may carry two or more types of SIBs. For some embodiments, SI bearer transmissions may be generated for transmission within DL bursts carrying other DL data. In some embodiments, SI bearer transmissions may be generated for transmission without DL bursts comprising other DL data.

For some embodiments, in process 830, SI bearer transmissions within DTxW may be processed, and LBT protocol may be one of: single interval LBT protocol, or class 4 LBT protocol. In some such embodiments, the LBT protocol may be a single-interval LBT protocol when the SI bearer transmission carries a Discovery Reference Signal (DRS) in 12 Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbols, and the LBT protocol may be a class 4 LBT protocol when the SI bearer transmission carries a DRS in 14 OFMD symbols. In some embodiments, the SI-bearing transmission may carry a MIB, and the MIB may include a subframe index indicator. For some embodiments, the SI-bearing transmission may carry a MIB, and at least a portion of the MIB may be carried in one or more of OFDM symbols 2, 3, 4, and 11.

In some embodiments, SI bearer transmissions may carry two or more types of SIBs. In some such embodiments, in process 840, an indicator transmission may be processed that carries an indicator of the type of SIB being carried. The indicator transmission may be one of the following: DCI transmission, PCFICH transmission, or PHICH transmission.

For some embodiments, in generating 850, a request transmission may be generated that carries a request for SI bearer transmission. The encoding of the SI bearer transmission may be transmitted in response to the request. For some such embodiments, the request transmission may be based on PRACH transmissions.

For some embodiments, the LBT protocol may be an LBT protocol for DL transmissions. In some embodiments, in process 860, DL transmissions may be processed and SI transmissions may belong to a priority class having a higher priority than DL transmissions. For some embodiments, the SI-bearing transmission may carry a MIB, and the MIB may include a 10-bit SFN indicator. In some embodiments, the SI bearer transmission may carry a MIB, and the MIB may include 3 bits for at least one of: SFN indicator, or subframe index indicator providing an offset from subframe 0 or subframe 5.

In some embodiments, in decoding 870, one or more additional SI bearer transmissions may be decoded, carrying one or more of the following: MIB, and one or more types of SIBs. In some such embodiments, more than a predetermined time T1 may elapse since the transmission of the most recent previous SI bearer transmission.

For some embodiments, in decoding 880, one or more additional SI bearer transmissions may be decoded, carrying one or more of the following: MIB, and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs). In some such embodiments, the total number of SI bearer transmissions in the predetermined time T2 may not exceed a predetermined number N.

Fig. 9 illustrates example components of a UE device 900 in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. In some embodiments, UE device 900 may include application circuitry 902, baseband circuitry 904, radio Frequency (RF) circuitry 906, front End Module (FEM) circuitry 908, low power wake-up receiver (LP-WUR), and one or more antennas 910 coupled together at least as shown. In some embodiments, UE device 900 may include additional elements such as memory/storage, displays, cameras, sensors, and/or input/output (I/O) interfaces.

The application circuitry 902 may include one or more application processors. For example, the application circuitry 902 may include circuitry such as, but not limited to: one or more single-core or multi-core processors. The processor(s) may include any combination of general-purpose processors and special-purpose processors (e.g., graphics processors, application processors, etc.). The processor may be coupled to and/or may include memory/storage and may be configured to execute instructions stored in the memory/storage to enable various applications and/or operating systems to run on the system.

The baseband circuitry 904 may include circuitry such as, but not limited to: one or more single-core or multi-core processors. The baseband circuitry 904 may include one or more baseband processors and/or control logic to process baseband signals received from the receive signal path of the RF circuitry 906 and generate baseband signals for the transmit signal path of the RF circuitry 906. The baseband processing circuit 904 may interface with the application circuit 902 for generating and processing baseband signals and for controlling the operation of the RF circuit 906. For example, in some embodiments, the baseband circuitry 904 may include a second generation (2G) baseband processor 904A, a third generation (3G) baseband processor 904B, a fourth generation (4G) baseband processor 904C, and/or other baseband processor(s) 904D for other existing generations, for a developing generation, or for a generation to be developed in the future (e.g., fifth generation (5G), 6G, etc.). The baseband circuitry 904 (e.g., one or more of the baseband processors 904A-904D) may handle various radio control functions that support communication with one or more radio networks via the RF circuitry 906. The radio control functions may include, but are not limited to: signal modulation/demodulation, encoding/decoding, radio frequency shifting, etc. In some embodiments, the modulation/demodulation circuitry of the baseband circuitry 904 may include Fast Fourier Transform (FFT), precoding, and/or constellation mapping/demapping functions. In some embodiments, the encoding/decoding circuitry of the baseband circuitry 904 may include convolution, tail biting convolution, turbo, viterbi, and/or Low Density Parity Check (LDPC) encoder/decoder functions. Embodiments of the modem and encoder/decoder functions are not limited to these examples and may include other suitable functions in other embodiments.

In some embodiments, baseband circuitry 904 may include elements of a protocol stack, such as elements of the EUTRAN protocol, including, for example: physical (PHY), medium Access Control (MAC), radio Link Control (RLC), packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP), and/or RRC elements. The Central Processing Unit (CPU) 904E of the baseband circuitry 904 may be configured to run elements of the protocol stack for PHY, MAC, RLC, PDCP, and/or signaling of the RRC layer. In some embodiments, the baseband circuitry may include one or more audio Digital Signal Processors (DSPs) 904F. The audio DSP(s) 904F may include elements for compression/decompression and echo cancellation, and may include other suitable processing elements in other embodiments. In some embodiments, components of the baseband circuitry may be suitably combined in a single chip, a single chipset, or suitably arranged on the same circuit board. In some embodiments, some or all of the constituent components of baseband circuitry 904 and application circuitry 902 may be implemented together, e.g., on a system on a chip (SOC).

In some embodiments, baseband circuitry 904 may provide communications compatible with one or more radio technologies. For example, in some embodiments, baseband circuitry 904 may support communication with an Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (EUTRAN) and/or other Wireless Metropolitan Area Networks (WMAN), wireless Local Area Networks (WLAN), wireless Personal Area Networks (WPAN). An embodiment in which the baseband circuitry 904 is configured to support radio communications of more than one wireless protocol may be referred to as a multi-mode baseband circuit.

The RF circuitry 906 may support communication with a wireless network using modulated electromagnetic radiation through a non-solid medium. In various embodiments, RF circuitry 906 may include switches, filters, amplifiers, and the like to facilitate communication with a wireless network. RF circuitry 906 may include a receive signal path, which may include circuitry to down-convert RF signals received from FEM circuitry 908 and provide baseband signals to baseband circuitry 904. RF circuitry 906 may also include a transmit signal path, which may include circuitry to up-convert baseband signals provided by baseband circuitry 904 and provide RF output signals to FEM circuitry 908 for transmission.

In some embodiments, RF circuitry 906 may include a receive signal path and a transmit signal path. The receive signal path of RF circuitry 906 may include mixer circuitry 906A, amplifier circuitry 906B, and filter circuitry 906C. The transmit signal path of RF circuitry 906 may include filter circuitry 906C and mixer circuitry 906A. The RF circuitry 906 may also include synthesizer circuitry 906D for synthesizing frequencies for use by the mixer circuitry 906A of the receive signal path and the transmit signal path. In some embodiments, mixer circuit 906A of the receive signal path may be configured to down-convert the RF signal received from FEM circuit 908 based on the synthesized frequency provided by synthesizer circuit 906D. The amplifier circuit 906B may be configured to amplify the down-converted signal and the filter circuit 906C may be a Low Pass Filter (LPF) or a Band Pass Filter (BPF) configured to remove unwanted signals from the down-converted signal to generate an output baseband signal. The output baseband signal may be provided to baseband circuitry 904 for further processing. In some embodiments, the output baseband signal may be a zero frequency baseband signal, but this is not required. In some embodiments, mixer circuit 906A of the receive signal path may comprise a passive mixer, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect.

In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 906A of the transmit signal path may be configured to upconvert the input baseband signal based on a synthesized frequency provided by the synthesizer circuit 906D to generate an RF output signal for the FEM circuit 908. The baseband signal may be provided by baseband circuitry 904 and may be filtered by filter circuitry 906C. The filter circuit 906C may include a Low Pass Filter (LPF), although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect.

In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 906A of the receive signal path and the mixer circuit 906A of the transmit signal path may comprise two or more mixers and may be arranged for quadrature down-conversion and/or up-conversion, respectively. In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 906A of the receive signal path and the mixer circuit 906A of the transmit signal path may include two or more mixers and may be arranged for image rejection (e.g., hartley (r) image rejection). In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 906A of the receive signal path and the mixer circuit 906A of the transmit signal path may be arranged for direct down-conversion and/or direct up-conversion, respectively. In some embodiments, the mixer circuit 906A of the receive signal path and the mixer circuit 906A of the transmit signal path may be configured for superheterodyne operation.

In some embodiments, the output baseband signal and the input baseband signal may be analog baseband signals, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect. In some alternative embodiments, the output baseband signal and the input baseband signal may be digital baseband signals. In these alternative embodiments, the RF circuitry 906 may include analog-to-digital converter (ADC) and digital-to-analog converter (DAC) circuitry, and the baseband circuitry 904 may include a digital baseband interface in communication with the RF circuitry 906.

In some dual mode embodiments, separate radio IC circuits may be provided to process signals for each spectrum, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect.

In some embodiments, synthesizer circuit 906D may be a fractional-N synthesizer or a fractional-N/n+1 synthesizer, although the scope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect as other types of frequency synthesizers may be suitable. For example, synthesizer circuit 906D may be a delta-sigma synthesizer, a frequency multiplier, or a synthesizer including a phase locked loop with a frequency divider.

Synthesizer circuit 906D may be configured to synthesize an output frequency for use by mixer circuit 906A of RF circuit 906 based on the frequency input and the divider control input. In some embodiments, synthesizer circuit 906D may be a fractional N/N+1 synthesizer.

In some embodiments, the frequency input may be provided by a Voltage Controlled Oscillator (VCO), but this is not required. Divider control input may be provided by baseband circuitry 904 or application processor 902, depending on the desired output frequency. In some embodiments, the divider control input (e.g., N) may be determined from a look-up table based on a channel indicated by the application processor 902.

Synthesizer circuitry 906D of RF circuitry 906 may include frequency dividers, delay Locked Loops (DLLs), multiplexers, and phase accumulators. In some embodiments, the frequency divider may be a dual-mode frequency divider (DMD) and the phase accumulator may be a Digital Phase Accumulator (DPA). In some embodiments, the DMD may be configured to divide the input signal by N or n+1 (e.g., based on a carry out) to provide a fractional division ratio. In some example embodiments, a DLL may include a set of cascaded, tunable delay elements, a phase detector, a charge pump, and a D-type flip-flop. In these embodiments, the delay elements may be configured to divide the VCO period into Nd equal phase packets, where Nd is the number of delay elements in the delay line. In this way, the DLL provides negative feedback to help ensure that the total delay through the delay line is one VCO cycle.

In some embodiments, synthesizer circuit 906D may be configured to generate a carrier frequency as the output frequency, while in other embodiments, the output frequency may be a multiple of the carrier frequency (e.g., twice the carrier frequency, four times the carrier frequency), and may be used in conjunction with a quadrature generator and a frequency divider circuit to generate a plurality of signals having a plurality of mutually different phases at the carrier frequency. In some embodiments, the output frequency may be an LO frequency (fLO). In some embodiments, the RF circuitry 906 may include an IQ/polarity converter.

FEM circuitry 908 may include a receive signal path, which may include circuitry configured to operate on RF signals received from one or more antennas 910, amplify the received signals, and provide an amplified version of the received signals to RF circuitry 906 for further processing. FEM circuitry 908 may also include a transmit signal path, which may include circuitry configured to amplify signals provided by RF circuitry 906 for transmission by one or more of the one or more antennas 910.

In some embodiments, FEM circuitry 908 may include a transmit/receive (TX/RX) converter to switch between transmit and receive mode operation. The FEM circuitry may include a receive signal path and a transmit signal path. The receive signal path of the FEM circuitry may include a Low Noise Amplifier (LNA) to amplify the received RF signal and provide the amplified received RF signal as an output (e.g., to the RF circuitry 906). The transmit signal path of FEM circuitry 908 may include a Power Amplifier (PA) to amplify the input RF signal (e.g., provided by RF circuitry 906) and may include one or more filters to generate the RF signal for subsequent transmission (e.g., through one or more antennas 910).

In some embodiments, the UE 900 includes multiple power saving mechanisms. If the UE 900 is in an RRC Connected state (rrc_connected state) in which the UE 900 is still Connected to the eNB because it expects to receive traffic in a short period of time, the UE 900 may enter a state called discontinuous reception mode (DRX) after a period of inactivity. In this state, the device may be turned off for a short period of time, thereby saving power.

If there is no data traffic activity for an extended period of time, the UE 900 may transition to an RRC Idle state (rrc_idle state) in which the UE 900 is disconnected from the network and does not perform operations such as channel quality feedback, handover, and the like. The UE 900 enters a very low power state and performs paging, where the UE 900 wakes up again periodically to listen to the network and then powers down again. Since the device cannot receive data in this state, the device should switch back to the RRC connected state in order to receive data.

The additional power saving mode may allow the device to be unavailable to the network for a period of time longer than the paging interval (from a few seconds to a few hours). During this time, the device is not connected to the network at all and can be powered down completely. Any data transmitted during this period will create a large delay and this delay is assumed to be acceptable.

Further, in various embodiments, the eNB may include components substantially similar to one or more example components of the UE device 900 described herein.

Reference in the specification to "an embodiment," "one embodiment," "some embodiments," or "other embodiments" means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiments is included in at least some embodiments, but not necessarily all embodiments. The various appearances of "an embodiment," "one embodiment," or "some embodiments" are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiments. If the specification states a component, feature, structure, or characteristic "may", "might", or "could" be included, that particular component, feature, structure, or characteristic is not required to be included. If the specification or claim refers to "a" or "an" element, that does not mean there is only one of the element. If the specification or claims refer to "an additional" element, that does not preclude there being a plurality of additional elements.

Furthermore, the particular features, structures, functions, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. For example, a first embodiment may be combined with a second embodiment so long as the particular features, structures, functions, or characteristics associated with the two embodiments are not mutually exclusive.

Although the present disclosure has been described in conjunction with specific embodiments, many alternatives, modifications, and variations of those embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art in light of the foregoing description. For example, other memory architectures (e.g., dynamic RAM (DRAM)) may use the embodiments discussed. The embodiments of the present disclosure are intended to embrace all such alternatives, modifications and variances which fall within the broad scope of the appended claims.

Moreover, well-known power/ground connections for Integrated Circuit (IC) chips and other components may or may not be shown in the illustrated figures for simplicity of illustration and discussion, and so as not to obscure the disclosure. Furthermore, to avoid obscuring the disclosure, and in view of the fact that specifics with respect to implementation of such block diagram arrangements are highly dependent upon the platform within which the disclosure is implemented (i.e., such specifics should be well known to those skilled in the art), the arrangements may be shown in block diagram form. Where specific details (e.g., circuits) are set forth in order to describe example embodiments of the disclosure, it should be apparent to one skilled in the art that the disclosure can be practiced without, or with variation of, these specific details. The description is thus to be regarded as illustrative instead of limiting.

The following examples relate to further embodiments. The details in the examples may be used anywhere in one or more embodiments. All optional features of the apparatus described herein may also be implemented in relation to the method or process.

Example 1 provides an apparatus of an evolved node B (eNB) operable to communicate with a User Equipment (UE) over a wireless network, comprising: one or more processors configured to: identifying a channel of the wireless network, the channel being in one of: independent operation on unlicensed spectrum, or licensed assisted access operation based on dual connectivity; and encoding a System Information (SI) bearer transmission carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein transmissions of SI bearer transmissions are compliant with a Listen Before Talk (LBT) protocol on a channel.

In example 2, the apparatus of example 1, wherein the SI bearer transmission is in the same subframe as a Discovery Reference Signal (DRS) transmission.

In example 3, the apparatus of any of examples 1 or 2, wherein the one or more processors are further to: SI bearer transmissions are generated for transmission in a subframe of a predefined set of subframes outside a DRS transmission window (DTxW).

In example 4, the apparatus of example 3, wherein the SI bearer transmission is generated for transmission within DL bursts carrying other DL data.

In example 5, the apparatus of example 3, wherein the SI bearer transmission is generated to transmit without DL bursts comprising other DL data.

In example 6, the apparatus of any of examples 1 to 5, wherein the SI bearer transmission carries two or more types of SIBs.

In example 7, the apparatus of any one of examples 1 to 6, wherein the one or more processors are further to: generating SI bearer transmissions for transmission within a DRS transmission window (DTxW), wherein the LBT protocol is one of: single interval LBT protocol, or class 4 LBT protocol.

In example 8, the apparatus of example 7, wherein when the SI-bearing transmission carries Discovery Reference Signals (DRSs) in 12 Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbols, the LBT protocol is a single-interval LBT protocol; and wherein when the SI bearer transmission carries a DRS in 14 OFMD symbols, the LBT protocol is a class 4 LBT protocol.

In example 9, the apparatus of any of examples 1 to 8, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and the MIB includes a subframe index indicator.

In example 10, the apparatus of any of examples 1 to 9, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and at least a portion of the MIB is carried in one or more of OFDM symbols 2, 3, 4, and 11.

In example 11, the apparatus of any of examples 1 to 10, wherein the SI bearer transmission carries one or more types of SIBs, and wherein the one or more processors are further to: generating an indicator transmission carrying an indicator of the type of SIB being carried, wherein the indicator transmission is one of: downlink Control Information (DCI) transmission, physical Control Format Indicator Channel (PCFICH) transmission, or physical Hybrid-automatic repeat request (Hybrid-ARQ) channel (PHICH) transmission.

In example 12, the apparatus of any one of examples 1 to 11, wherein the one or more processors are further to: a request transmission from the UE is processed, the request transmission bearing a request for an SI bearer transmission, wherein the encoding of the SI bearer transmission is transmitted in response to the request.

In example 13, the apparatus of example 12, wherein the request transmission is based on a Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH) transmission.

In example 14, the apparatus of any of examples 1 to 13, wherein the LBT protocol is an LBT protocol for Downlink (DL) transmission.

In example 15, the apparatus of any one of examples 1 to 14, wherein the one or more processors are further to: a Downlink (DL) transmission is generated, wherein the SI transmission belongs to a priority class having a higher priority than the DL transmission.

In example 16, the apparatus of any of examples 1 to 15, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and the MIB includes a 10-bit System Frame Number (SFN) indicator.

In example 17, the apparatus of any of examples 1 to 16, wherein the SI bearer transport carries a MIB, and the MIB comprises 3 bits for at least one of: a System Frame Number (SFN) indicator, or a subframe index indicator, wherein the subframe index indicator provides an offset from one of: subframe 0, or subframe 5.

In example 18, the apparatus of any one of examples 1 to 17, wherein the one or more processors are further to: encoding one or more additional SI bearer transmissions carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein more than a predetermined time T1 has elapsed since the transmission of the most recent previous SI bearer transmission.

In example 19, the apparatus of any one of examples 1 to 18, wherein the one or more processors are further to: encoding one or more additional SI bearer transmissions carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein a total number of SI bearer transmissions in the predetermined time T2 does not exceed a predetermined number N.

Example 20 provides an evolved node B (eNB) apparatus comprising an application processor, memory, one or more antenna ports, and an interface to allow the application processor to communicate with another apparatus, the eNB apparatus comprising the apparatus of any one of examples 1 to 19.

Example 21 provides a method, comprising: identifying a channel of the wireless network, the channel being in one of: independent operation on unlicensed spectrum, or licensed assisted access operation based on dual connectivity; and encoding a System Information (SI) bearer transmission carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein transmissions of SI bearer transmissions are compliant with a Listen Before Talk (LBT) protocol on a channel.

In example 22, the method of example 21, wherein the SI bearer transmission is in the same subframe as a Discovery Reference Signal (DRS) transmission.

In example 23, the method of any of examples 21 or 22, the operations comprising: SI bearer transmissions are generated for transmission in a subframe of a predefined set of subframes outside a DRS transmission window (DTxW).

In example 24, the method of example 23, wherein the SI bearer transmission is generated for transmission within DL bursts carrying other DL data.

In example 25, the method of example 23, wherein the SI bearer transmission is generated for transmission without DL bursts comprising other DL data.

In example 26, the method of any of examples 21 to 25, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries two or more types of SIBs.

In example 27, the method of any one of examples 21 to 26, the operations comprising: generating SI bearer transmissions for transmission within a DRS transmission window (DTxW), wherein the LBT protocol is one of: single interval LBT protocol, or class 4 LBT protocol.

In example 28, the method of example 27, wherein when the SI-bearing transmission carries Discovery Reference Signals (DRSs) in 12 Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbols, the LBT protocol is a single-interval LBT protocol; and wherein when the SI bearer transmission carries a DRS in 14 OFMD symbols, the LBT protocol is a class 4 LBT protocol.

In example 29, the method of any of examples 21 to 67, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and the MIB includes a subframe index indicator.

In example 30, the method of any of examples 21 to 29, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and at least a portion of the MIB is carried in one or more of OFDM symbols 2, 3, 4, and 11.

In example 31, the method of any of examples 21 to 30, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries one or more types of SIBs, and the operations comprise: generating an indicator transmission carrying an indicator of the type of SIB being carried, wherein the indicator transmission is one of: downlink Control Information (DCI) transmission, physical Control Format Indicator Channel (PCFICH) transmission, or physical Hybrid-automatic repeat request (Hybrid-ARQ) channel (PHICH) transmission.

In example 32, the method of any one of examples 21 to 31, the operations comprising: a request transmission from the UE is processed, the request transmission bearing a request for an SI bearer transmission, wherein the encoding of the SI bearer transmission is transmitted in response to the request.

In example 33, the method of example 32, wherein the request transmission is based on a Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH) transmission.

In example 34, the method of any of examples 21 to 33, wherein the LBT protocol is an LBT protocol for Downlink (DL) transmission.

In example 35, the method of any one of examples 21 to 34, the operations comprising: a Downlink (DL) transmission is generated, wherein the SI transmission belongs to a priority class having a higher priority than the DL transmission.

In example 36, the method of any of examples 21 to 35, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and the MIB includes a 10-bit System Frame Number (SFN) indicator.

In example 37, the method of any of examples 21 to 36, wherein the SI bearer transport carries a MIB, and the MIB comprises 3 bits for at least one of: a System Frame Number (SFN) indicator, or a subframe index indicator, wherein the subframe index indicator provides an offset from one of: subframe 0, or subframe 5.

In example 38, the method of any one of examples 21 to 37, the operations comprising: encoding one or more additional SI bearer transmissions carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein more than a predetermined time T1 has elapsed since the transmission of the most recent previous SI bearer transmission.

In example 39, the method of any of examples 21 to 38, the operations comprising: encoding one or more additional SI bearer transmissions carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein a total number of SI bearer transmissions in the predetermined time T2 does not exceed a predetermined number N.

Example 40 provides a machine-readable storage medium having stored thereon machine-executable instructions that, when executed, cause one or more processors to perform the method according to any of examples 21 to 39.

Example 41 provides an apparatus of an evolved node B (eNB) operable to communicate with a User Equipment (UE) over a wireless network, comprising: means for identifying a channel of a wireless network, the channel being in one of: independent operation on unlicensed spectrum, or licensed assisted access operation based on dual connectivity; and means for encoding a System Information (SI) bearer transmission carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein transmissions of SI bearer transmissions are compliant with a Listen Before Talk (LBT) protocol on a channel.

In example 42, the apparatus of example 41, wherein the SI bearer transmission is in the same subframe as a Discovery Reference Signal (DRS) transmission.

In example 43, the apparatus of any one of examples 41 or 42, comprising: means for generating an SI bearer transmission for transmission in one of a predefined set of subframes outside a DRS transmission window (DTxW).

In example 44, the apparatus of example 43, wherein the SI bearer transmission is generated for transmission within DL bursts carrying other DL data.

In example 45, the apparatus of example 43, wherein the SI bearer transmission is generated to transmit without DL bursts comprising other DL data.

In example 46, the apparatus of any of examples 41 to 45, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries two or more types of SIBs.

In example 47, the apparatus of any one of examples 41 to 46, comprising: means for generating an SI bearer transmission for transmission within a DRS transmission window (DTxW), wherein the LBT protocol is one of: single interval LBT protocol, or class 4 LBT protocol.

In example 48, the apparatus of example 47, wherein when the SI-bearing transmission carries Discovery Reference Signals (DRSs) in 12 Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbols, the LBT protocol is a single-interval LBT protocol; and wherein when the SI bearer transmission carries a DRS in 14 OFMD symbols, the LBT protocol is a class 4 LBT protocol.

In example 49, the apparatus of any of examples 41 to 48, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and the MIB includes a subframe index indicator.

In example 50, the apparatus of any of examples 41 to 49, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and at least a portion of the MIB is carried in one or more of OFDM symbols 2, 3, 4, and 11.

In example 51, the apparatus of any one of examples 41 to 50, wherein the SI bearer transmission carries one or more types of SIBs, and comprising: means for generating an indicator transmission carrying an indicator of a type of SIB being carried, wherein the indicator transmission is one of: downlink Control Information (DCI) transmission, physical Control Format Indicator Channel (PCFICH) transmission, or physical Hybrid-automatic repeat request (Hybrid-ARQ) channel (PHICH) transmission.

In example 52, the apparatus of any one of examples 41 to 51, comprising: means for processing a request transmission from a UE, the request transmission bearing a request for an SI bearer transmission, wherein a coding of the SI bearer transmission is transmitted in response to the request.

In example 53, the apparatus of example 52, wherein the request transmission is based on a Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH) transmission.

In example 54, the apparatus of any one of examples 41 to 53, wherein the LBT protocol is an LBT protocol for Downlink (DL) transmission.

In example 55, the apparatus of any one of examples 41 to 54, comprising: means for generating a Downlink (DL) transmission, wherein the SI transmission belongs to a priority class having a higher priority than the DL transmission.

In example 56, the apparatus of any of examples 41 to 55, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and the MIB includes a 10-bit System Frame Number (SFN) indicator.

In example 57, the apparatus of any of examples 41 to 56, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and the MIB comprises 3 bits for at least one of: a System Frame Number (SFN) indicator, or a subframe index indicator, wherein the subframe index indicator provides an offset from one of: subframe 0, or subframe 5.

In example 58, the apparatus of any one of examples 41 to 57, comprising: means for encoding one or more additional SI bearer transmissions carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein more than a predetermined time T1 has elapsed since the transmission of the most recent previous SI bearer transmission.

In example 59, the apparatus of any one of examples 41 to 58, comprising: means for encoding one or more additional SI bearer transmissions carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein a total number of SI bearer transmissions in the predetermined time T2 does not exceed a predetermined number N.

Example 60 provides a machine-readable storage medium having machine-executable instructions that, when executed, cause one or more processors of an evolved node B (eNB) to perform operations comprising: identifying a channel of the wireless network, the channel being in one of: independent operation on unlicensed spectrum, or licensed assisted access operation based on dual connectivity; and encoding a System Information (SI) bearer transmission carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein transmissions of SI bearer transmissions are compliant with a Listen Before Talk (LBT) protocol on a channel.

In example 61, the machine-readable storage medium of example 60, wherein the SI-bearing transmission is in the same subframe as a Discovery Reference Signal (DRS) transmission.

In example 62, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 60 or 61, the operations comprising: SI bearer transmissions are generated for transmission in a subframe of a predefined set of subframes outside a DRS transmission window (DTxW).

In example 63, the machine-readable storage medium of example 62, generate an SI bearer transmission to transmit within a DL burst carrying other DL data.

In example 64, the machine-readable storage medium of example 62, wherein the SI-bearing transmission is generated to transmit without DL bursts comprising other DL data.

In example 65, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 60 to 64, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries two or more types of SIBs.

In example 66, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 60 to 65, the operations comprising: generating SI bearer transmissions for transmission within a DRS transmission window (DTxW), wherein the LBT protocol is one of: single interval LBT protocol, or class 4 LBT protocol.

In example 67, the machine-readable storage medium of example 66, wherein when the SI-bearing transmission carries Discovery Reference Signals (DRSs) in 12 Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbols, the LBT protocol is a single-interval LBT protocol; and wherein when the SI bearer transmission carries a DRS in 14 OFMD symbols, the LBT protocol is a class 4 LBT protocol.

In example 68, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 60 to 67, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and the MIB comprises a subframe index indicator.

In example 69, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 60 to 68, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and at least a portion of the MIB is carried in one or more of OFDM symbols 2, 3, 4, and 11.

In example 70, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 60 to 69, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries one or more types of SIBs, and the operations comprise: generating an indicator transmission carrying an indicator of the type of SIB being carried, wherein the indicator transmission is one of: downlink Control Information (DCI) transmission, physical Control Format Indicator Channel (PCFICH) transmission, or physical Hybrid-automatic repeat request (Hybrid-ARQ) channel (PHICH) transmission.

In example 71, the machine-readable storage medium of any one of examples 60 to 70, the operations comprising: a request transmission from the UE is processed, the request transmission bearing a request for an SI bearer transmission, wherein the encoding of the SI bearer transmission is transmitted in response to the request.

In example 72, the machine-readable storage medium of example 71, wherein the request transmission is based on a Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH) transmission.

In example 73, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 60 to 72, wherein the LBT protocol is an LBT protocol for Downlink (DL) transmission.

In example 74, the machine-readable storage medium of any one of examples 60 to 73, the operations comprising: a Downlink (DL) transmission is generated, wherein the SI transmission belongs to a priority class having a higher priority than the DL transmission.

In example 75, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 60 to 74, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and the MIB comprises a 10-bit System Frame Number (SFN) indicator.

In example 76, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 60 to 75, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and the MIB comprises 3 bits for at least one of: a System Frame Number (SFN) indicator, or a subframe index indicator, wherein the subframe index indicator provides an offset from one of: subframe 0, or subframe 5.

In example 77, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 60 to 76, the operations comprising: encoding one or more additional SI bearer transmissions carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein more than a predetermined time T1 has elapsed since the transmission of the most recent previous SI bearer transmission.

In example 78, the machine-readable storage medium of any one of examples 60 to 77, the operations comprising: encoding one or more additional SI bearer transmissions carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein a total number of SI bearer transmissions in the predetermined time T2 does not exceed a predetermined number N.

Example 79 provides an apparatus of a User Equipment (UE) operable to communicate with an evolved node B (eNB) over a wireless network, comprising: one or more processors configured to: identifying a channel of the wireless network, the channel being in one of: independent operation on unlicensed spectrum, or licensed assisted access operation based on dual connectivity; and decoding a System Information (SI) bearer transmission carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein SI bearer transmissions are received after a channel is idle in accordance with a Listen Before Talk (LBT) protocol.

In example 80, the apparatus of example 79, wherein the SI bearer transmission is in the same subframe as a Discovery Reference Signal (DRS) transmission.

In example 81, the apparatus of any of examples 79 or 80, wherein the one or more processors are further to: SI bearer transmission in one subframe of a predefined set of subframes outside the DRS transmission window (DTxW) is processed.

In example 82, the apparatus of example 81, wherein the SI bearer transmission is generated for transmission within DL bursts carrying other DL data.

In example 83, the apparatus of example 81, wherein the SI bearer transmission is generated to transmit without DL bursts comprising other DL data.

In example 84, the apparatus of any one of examples 79 to 83, wherein the SI bearer transmission carries two or more types of SIBs.

In example 85, the apparatus of any one of examples 79 to 84, wherein the one or more processors are further to: processing SI bearer transmissions within a DRS transmission window (DTxW), wherein the LBT protocol is one of: single interval LBT protocol, or class 4 LBT protocol.

In example 86, the apparatus of example 85, wherein the LBT protocol is a single-interval LBT protocol when the SI bearer transmission carries a Discovery Reference Signal (DRS) in 12 Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbols, and the LBT protocol is a class 4 LBT protocol when the SI bearer transmission carries a DRS in 14 OFMD symbols.

In example 87, the apparatus of any of examples 79 to 86, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and the MIB includes a subframe index indicator.

In example 88, the apparatus of any of examples 79 to 87, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and at least a portion of the MIB is carried in one or more of OFDM symbols 2, 3, 4, and 11.

In example 89, the apparatus of any of examples 79 to 88, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries one or more types of SIBs, and wherein the one or more processors are further to: processing an indicator transmission carrying an indicator of the type of SIB being carried, wherein the indicator transmission is one of: downlink Control Information (DCI) transmission, physical Control Format Indicator Channel (PCFICH) transmission, or physical Hybrid-automatic repeat request (Hybrid-ARQ) channel (PHICH) transmission.

In example 90, the apparatus of any one of examples 79 to 89, wherein the one or more processors are further to: a request transmission is generated for a request for a SI bearer transmission by a bearer, wherein an encoding of the SI bearer transmission is transmitted in response to the request.

In example 91, the apparatus of example 90, wherein the request transmission is based on a Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH) transmission.

In example 92, the apparatus of any of examples 79 to 91, wherein the LBT protocol is an LBT protocol for Downlink (DL) transmission.

In example 93, the apparatus of any one of examples 79 to 92, wherein the one or more processors are further to: downlink (DL) transmissions are processed, wherein SI transmissions belong to a priority class having a higher priority than DL transmissions.

In example 94, the apparatus of any of examples 79 to 93, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and the MIB includes a 10-bit System Frame Number (SFN) indicator.

In example 95, the apparatus of any one of examples 79 to 94, wherein the SI bearer transport carries a MIB, and the MIB comprises 3 bits for at least one of: a System Frame Number (SFN) indicator, or a subframe index indicator, wherein the subframe index indicator provides an offset from one of: subframe 0, or subframe 5.

In example 96, the apparatus of any one of examples 79 to 95, wherein the one or more processors are further to: decoding one or more additional SI bearer transmissions carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein more than a predetermined time T1 has elapsed since the transmission of the most recent previous SI bearer transmission.

In example 97, the apparatus of any of examples 79 to 96, wherein the one or more processors are further to: decoding one or more additional SI bearer transmissions carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein a total number of SI bearer transmissions in the predetermined time T2 does not exceed a predetermined number N.

Example 98 provides a User Equipment (UE) device comprising an application processor, memory, one or more antennas, a wireless interface to allow the application processor to communicate with another device, and a touch screen display, the UE device comprising the apparatus of any of examples 79 to 97.

Example 99 provides a method, comprising: identifying a channel of the wireless network, the channel being in one of: independent operation on unlicensed spectrum, or licensed assisted access operation based on dual connectivity; and decoding a System Information (SI) bearer transmission carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein SI bearer transmissions are received after a channel is idle in accordance with a Listen Before Talk (LBT) protocol.

In example 100, the method of example 99, wherein the SI bearer transmission is in the same subframe as a Discovery Reference Signal (DRS) transmission.

In example 101, the method of any of examples 99 or 100, the operations comprising: SI bearer transmission in one subframe of a predefined set of subframes outside the DRS transmission window (DTxW) is processed.

In example 102, the method of example 101, wherein the SI bearer transmission is generated for transmission within DL bursts carrying other DL data.

In example 103, the method of example 101, wherein the SI bearer transmission is generated for transmission without DL bursts comprising other DL data.

In example 104, the method of any of examples 99 to 103, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries two or more types of SIBs.

In example 105, the method of any one of examples 99 to 104, the operations comprising: processing SI bearer transmissions within a DRS transmission window (DTxW), wherein the LBT protocol is one of: single interval LBT protocol, or class 4 LBT protocol.

In example 106, the method of example 105, wherein the LBT protocol is a single-interval LBT protocol when the SI bearer transmission carries a Discovery Reference Signal (DRS) in 12 Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbols, and the LBT protocol is a class 4 LBT protocol when the SI bearer transmission carries a DRS in 14 OFMD symbols.

In example 107, the method of any of examples 99 to 106, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and the MIB includes a subframe index indicator.

In example 108, the method of any of examples 99 to 107, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and at least a portion of the MIB is carried in one or more of OFDM symbols 2, 3, 4, and 11.

In example 109, the method of any one of examples 99 to 108, wherein the SI bearer transmission carries one or more types of SIBs, and the operations comprise: processing an indicator transmission carrying an indicator of the type of SIB being carried, wherein the indicator transmission is one of: downlink Control Information (DCI) transmission, physical Control Format Indicator Channel (PCFICH) transmission, or physical Hybrid-automatic repeat request (Hybrid-ARQ) channel (PHICH) transmission.

In example 110, the method of any one of examples 99 to 109, the operations comprising: a request transmission is generated for a request for a SI bearer transmission by a bearer, wherein an encoding of the SI bearer transmission is transmitted in response to the request.

In example 111, the method of example 110, wherein the request transmission is based on a Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH) transmission.

In example 112, the method of any one of examples 99 to 111, wherein the LBT protocol is an LBT protocol for Downlink (DL) transmissions.

In example 113, the method of any one of examples 99 to 112, the operations comprising: downlink (DL) transmissions are processed, wherein SI transmissions belong to a priority class having a higher priority than DL transmissions.

In example 114, the method of any of examples 99 to 113, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and the MIB includes a 10-bit System Frame Number (SFN) indicator.

In example 115, the method of any of examples 99 to 114, wherein the SI bearer transport carries a MIB, and the MIB comprises 3 bits for at least one of: a System Frame Number (SFN) indicator, or a subframe index indicator, wherein the subframe index indicator provides an offset from one of: subframe 0, or subframe 5.

In example 116, the method of any one of examples 99 to 115, the operations comprising: decoding one or more additional SI bearer transmissions carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein more than a predetermined time T1 has elapsed since the transmission of the most recent previous SI bearer transmission.

In example 117, the method of any of examples 99 to 116, the operations comprising: decoding one or more additional SI bearer transmissions carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein a total number of SI bearer transmissions in the predetermined time T2 does not exceed a predetermined number N.

Example 118 provides a machine-readable storage medium having stored thereon machine-executable instructions that, when executed, cause one or more processors to perform the method according to any of examples 99 to 117.

Example 119 provides an apparatus of a User Equipment (UE) operable to communicate with an evolved node B (eNB) over a wireless network, comprising: means for identifying a channel of a wireless network, the channel being in one of: independent operation on unlicensed spectrum, or licensed assisted access operation based on dual connectivity; and means for decoding a System Information (SI) bearer transmission carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein SI bearer transmissions are received after a channel is idle in accordance with a Listen Before Talk (LBT) protocol.

In example 120, the apparatus of example 119, wherein the SI bearer transmission is in a same subframe as a Discovery Reference Signal (DRS) transmission.

In example 121, the apparatus of any of examples 119 or 120, comprising: means for processing SI bearer transmissions in one of a predefined set of subframes outside a DRS transmission window (DTxW).

In example 122, the apparatus of example 121, wherein the SI bearer transmission is generated to transmit within DL bursts carrying other DL data.

In example 123, the apparatus of example 121, wherein the SI bearer transmission is generated to transmit without DL bursts comprising other DL data.

In example 124, the apparatus of any of examples 119 to 123, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries two or more types of SIBs.

In example 125, the apparatus of any one of examples 119 to 124, comprising: means for processing SI bearer transmissions within a DRS transmission window (DTxW), wherein the LBT protocol is one of: single interval LBT protocol, or class 4 LBT protocol.

In example 126, the apparatus of example 125, wherein the LBT protocol is a single-interval LBT protocol when the SI bearer transmission carries a Discovery Reference Signal (DRS) in 12 Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbols, and the LBT protocol is a class 4 LBT protocol when the SI bearer transmission carries a DRS in 14 OFMD symbols.

In example 127, the apparatus of any of examples 119 to 126, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and the MIB includes a subframe index indicator.

In example 128, the apparatus of any of examples 119-127, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and at least a portion of the MIB is carried in one or more of OFDM symbols 2, 3, 4, and 11.

In example 129, the apparatus of any of examples 119-128, wherein the SI bearer transmission carries one or more types of SIBs, and comprising: means for processing an indicator transmission carrying an indicator of a type of SIB being carried, wherein the indicator transmission is one of: downlink Control Information (DCI) transmission, physical Control Format Indicator Channel (PCFICH) transmission, or physical Hybrid-automatic repeat request (Hybrid-ARQ) channel (PHICH) transmission.

In example 130, the apparatus of any one of examples 119 to 129, comprising: means for generating a request transmission carrying a request for an SI bearer transmission, wherein the encoding of the SI bearer transmission is transmitted in response to the request.

In example 131, the apparatus of example 130, wherein the request transmission is based on a Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH) transmission.

In example 132, the apparatus of any one of examples 119 to 131, wherein the LBT protocol is an LBT protocol for Downlink (DL) transmissions.

In example 133, the apparatus of any one of examples 119 to 132, comprising: an apparatus for processing Downlink (DL) transmissions, wherein SI transmissions belong to a priority class having a higher priority than DL transmissions.

In example 134, the apparatus of any of examples 119-133, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and the MIB includes a 10-bit System Frame Number (SFN) indicator.

In example 135, the apparatus of any of examples 119-134, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and the MIB comprises 3 bits for at least one of: a System Frame Number (SFN) indicator, or a subframe index indicator, wherein the subframe index indicator provides an offset from one of: subframe 0, or subframe 5.

In example 136, the apparatus of any one of examples 119 to 135, comprising: means for decoding one or more additional SI bearer transmissions carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein more than a predetermined time T1 has elapsed since the transmission of the most recent previous SI bearer transmission.

In example 137, the apparatus of any one of examples 119 to 136, comprising: means for decoding one or more additional SI bearer transmissions carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein a total number of SI bearer transmissions in the predetermined time T2 does not exceed a predetermined number N.

Example 138 provides a machine-readable storage medium having machine-executable instructions that, when executed, cause one or more processors of a User Equipment (UE) to perform operations comprising: identifying a channel of the wireless network, the channel being in one of: independent operation on unlicensed spectrum, or licensed assisted access operation based on dual connectivity; and decoding a System Information (SI) bearer transmission carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein SI bearer transmissions are received after a channel is idle in accordance with a Listen Before Talk (LBT) protocol.

In example 139, the machine-readable storage medium of example 138, wherein the SI-bearing transmission and the Discovery Reference Signal (DRS) transmission are in the same subframe.

In example 140, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 138 or 139, the operations comprising: SI bearer transmission in one subframe of a predefined set of subframes outside the DRS transmission window (DTxW) is processed.

In example 141, the machine-readable storage medium of example 140, wherein the SI-bearing transmission is generated for transmission within DL bursts carrying other DL data.

In example 142, the machine-readable storage medium of example 140, wherein the SI-bearing transmission is generated for transmission without DL bursts comprising other DL data.

In example 143, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 138 to 142, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries two or more types of SIBs.

In example 144, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 138 to 143, the operations comprising: processing SI bearer transmissions within a DRS transmission window (DTxW), wherein the LBT protocol is one of: single interval LBT protocol, or class 4 LBT protocol.

In example 145, the machine-readable storage medium of example 144, wherein the LBT protocol is a single-interval LBT protocol when the SI bearer transmission carries a Discovery Reference Signal (DRS) in 12 Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbols, and the LBT protocol is a class 4 LBT protocol when the SI bearer transmission carries a DRS in 14 OFMD symbols.

In example 146, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 138 to 145, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and the MIB includes a subframe index indicator.

In example 147, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 138 to 146, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and at least a portion of the MIB is carried in one or more of OFDM symbols 2, 3, 4, and 11.

In example 148, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 138 to 147, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries one or more types of SIBs, and the operations comprise: processing an indicator transmission carrying an indicator of the type of SIB being carried, wherein the indicator transmission is one of: downlink Control Information (DCI) transmission, physical Control Format Indicator Channel (PCFICH) transmission, or physical Hybrid-automatic repeat request (Hybrid-ARQ) channel (PHICH) transmission.

In example 149, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 138 to 148, the operations comprising: a request transmission is generated for a request for a SI bearer transmission by a bearer, wherein an encoding of the SI bearer transmission is transmitted in response to the request.

In example 150, the machine-readable storage medium of example 149, wherein the request transmission is based on a Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH) transmission.

In example 151, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 138 to 150, wherein the LBT protocol is an LBT protocol for Downlink (DL) transmissions.

In example 152, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 138 to 151, the operations comprising: downlink (DL) transmissions are processed, wherein SI transmissions belong to a priority class having a higher priority than DL transmissions.

In example 153, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 138 to 152, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and the MIB includes a 10-bit System Frame Number (SFN) indicator.

In example 154, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 138 to 153, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries a MIB, and the MIB comprises 3 bits for at least one of: a System Frame Number (SFN) indicator, or a subframe index indicator, wherein the subframe index indicator provides an offset from one of: subframe 0, or subframe 5.

In example 155, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 138 to 154, the operations comprising: decoding one or more additional SI bearer transmissions carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein more than a predetermined time T1 has elapsed since the transmission of the most recent previous SI bearer transmission.

In example 156, the machine-readable storage medium of any of examples 138 to 155, the operations comprising: decoding one or more additional SI bearer transmissions carrying one or more of: a Master Information Block (MIB), and one or more types of System Information Blocks (SIBs), wherein a total number of SI bearer transmissions in the predetermined time T2 does not exceed a predetermined number N.

In example 157, the apparatus of any of examples 1 to 19, and 79 to 97, wherein the one or more processors comprise a baseband processor.

In example 158, the apparatus of any of examples 1 to 19, and 79 to 97, comprising transceiver circuitry to perform at least one of: generate a transmission, encode a transmission, process a transmission, or decode a transmission.

In example 159, the apparatus of any one of examples 1 to 19, and 79 to 97, comprising transceiver circuitry to generate transmissions and process the transmissions.

The abstract is provided to allow the reader to ascertain the nature and gist of the technical disclosure. This abstract is submitted with the understanding that it will not be used to limit the scope or meaning of the claims. The following claims are hereby incorporated into the detailed description, with each claim standing on its own as a separate embodiment.

Claims (25)

1. An apparatus of an evolved node B, eNB, operable to communicate with a user equipment, UE, over a wireless network, comprising:

one or more processors configured to:

identifying a channel of the wireless network, the channel being in one of: independent operation on unlicensed spectrum, or licensed assisted access operation based on dual connectivity; and

the system information SI bearer transmission carrying at least two or more types of system information blocks SIBs is encoded,

wherein the transmission of the SI bearer transmission is compliant with a listen before talk, LBT, protocol over the channel.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the SI-bearing transmission and discovery reference signal, DRS, transmission are in the same subframe.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further to:

the SI bearer transmission is generated for transmission in one of a predefined set of subframes outside the DRS transmission window DTxW.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further to:

downlink control information, DCI, is generated to indicate the type of the SIB in the SI bearer transmission.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further to:

the physical control format indicator channel PCFICH transmission including a 2-bit SIB type indicator is encoded.

6. An evolved node B, eNB, apparatus comprising an application processor, memory, one or more antenna ports, and an interface for allowing the application processor to communicate with other apparatuses, the eNB apparatus comprising the apparatus of any one of claims 1 to 5.

7. A method for communication, comprising:

identifying a channel of a wireless network, the channel in one of: independent operation on unlicensed spectrum, or licensed assisted access operation based on dual connectivity; and

the system information SI bearer transmission carrying at least two or more types of system information blocks SIBs is encoded,

wherein the transmission of the SI bearer transmission is compliant with a listen before talk, LBT, protocol over the channel.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the SI-bearing transmission is in the same subframe as a discovery reference signal, DRS, transmission.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

the SI bearer transmission is generated for transmission in one of a predefined set of subframes outside the DRS transmission window DTxW.

10. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

downlink control information, DCI, is generated to indicate the type of the SIB in the SI bearer transmission.

11. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

the physical control format indicator channel PCFICH transmission including a 2-bit SIB type indicator is encoded.

12. An apparatus of an evolved node B, eNB, operable to communicate with a user equipment, UE, over a wireless network, comprising:

means for identifying a channel of the wireless network, the channel being in one of: independent operation on unlicensed spectrum, or licensed assisted access operation based on dual connectivity; and

means for encoding a system information SI bearer transmission carrying one or more of: a master information block MIB and one or more types of system information block SIBs,

wherein the transmission of the SI bearer transmission is compliant with a listen before talk LBT protocol on the channel, and

wherein the SI bearer transmission and the discovery reference signal DRS transmission are in the same subframe.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the SI-bearing transmission is transmitted outside of symbols for a primary synchronization signal and a secondary synchronization signal.

14. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the SI-bearing transmission is transmitted outside of symbols for channel state information reference signals and cell reference signals.

15. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries two or more types of SIBs.

16. An apparatus of a user equipment, UE, operable to communicate with an evolved node B, eNB, over a wireless network, comprising:

one or more processors configured to:

identifying a channel of the wireless network, the channel being in one of: independent operation on unlicensed spectrum, or licensed assisted access operation based on dual connectivity; and

decoding a system information SI bearer transmission carrying one or more of: a master information block MIB and one or more types of system information block SIBs,

wherein the SI bearer transmission is received after the channel is idle according to a listen before talk LBT protocol,

wherein the SI bearer transmission and the discovery reference signal DRS transmission are in the same subframe.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the SI-bearing transmission is transmitted outside of symbols for a primary synchronization signal and a secondary synchronization signal.

18. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the SI-bearing transmission is transmitted outside of symbols for channel state information reference signals and cell reference signals.

19. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries two or more types of SIBs.

20. A user equipment, UE, device comprising an application processor, a memory, one or more antennas, a wireless interface for allowing the application processor to communicate with other devices, and a touch screen display, the UE device comprising the apparatus of any of claims 16 to 19.

21. A method for communication, comprising:

identifying a channel of a wireless network, the channel in one of: independent operation on unlicensed spectrum, or licensed assisted access operation based on dual connectivity; and

decoding a system information SI bearer transmission carrying one or more of: a master information block MIB, and one or more types of system information blocks SIBs; and

processing the SI bearer transmission in one of a predefined set of subframes outside the DRS transmission window DTxW,

wherein the SI bearer transmission is received after the channel is idle according to a listen before talk LBT protocol.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the SI-bearing transmission carries two or more types of SIBs.

23. An apparatus of a user equipment, UE, operable to communicate with an evolved node B, eNB, over a wireless network, comprising:

means for identifying a channel of the wireless network, the channel being in one of: independent operation on unlicensed spectrum, or licensed assisted access operation based on dual connectivity;

means for decoding a system information SI bearer transmission carrying one or more of: a master information block MIB, and one or more types of system information blocks SIBs; and

means for processing the SI bearer transmission in one of a predefined set of subframes outside the DRS transmission window DTxW,

wherein the SI bearer transmission is received after the channel is idle according to a listen before talk LBT protocol.

24. A machine readable storage medium having instructions stored thereon that, when executed, cause one or more processors of an evolved node B eNB to perform the method of any one of claims 7-11.

25. A machine readable storage medium having instructions stored thereon that, when executed, cause one or more processors of a user equipment, UE, to perform the method of any of claims 21-22.

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