CN110999357A

CN110999357A - Resource allocation

Info

Publication number: CN110999357A
Application number: CN201780093863.XA
Authority: CN
Inventors: 杨瑾; 卢有雄; 黄双红
Original assignee: ZTE Corp
Current assignee: ZTE Corp
Priority date: 2017-08-11
Filing date: 2017-08-11
Publication date: 2020-04-10
Anticipated expiration: 2037-08-11
Also published as: CN110999357B; WO2019028847A1

Abstract

One or more devices, systems, and/or methods are provided for receiving forward edge link control information from a node, determining a type of forward edge link control information, and based on the type, receiving from the node or transmitting to the node side link data transmissions. One or more devices, systems, and/or methods are also provided for transmitting forward edge link control information to a node, wherein a type of forward edge link control information indicates whether the node receives or transmits edge link data transmissions, and based on the type, receiving or transmitting edge link data transmissions from or to the node.

Description

Resource allocation

Background

In a communication system that utilizes edge link communication, edge link communication can help conserve radio spectrum resources, reduce data transmission pressure on the system network, reduce system resource consumption, improve spectrum efficiency, reduce network (e.g., base station) transmission power consumption, and improve network operating costs. When there is a need to transfer a service between User Equipments (UEs), service data between the UEs can be directly transmitted from a data source UE to a target receiving UE via an edge link without passing through a base station. However, in such edge link communication systems, some service data between UEs may be processed (e.g., forwarded) by a base station of the network. Such service data processed by the base station may still require some radio spectrum resources, resulting in partially increased data transmission pressure on the system network, consuming some system resources, resulting in some reduction in spectral efficiency, resulting in network (e.g., base station) transmission power consumption and consuming some network operating costs.

Disclosure of Invention

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a method is provided. The method includes receiving forward edge link control information from a node, determining a type of the forward edge link control information; and based on the type, receiving side link data transmission from the node or transmitting side link data to the node.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a method is provided. The method includes transmitting forward side link control information to a node, determining a type of the forward side link control information, and based on the type, determining an indication in the forward side link control information, resources for transmitting the forward side link control information, and resources indicated in the forward side link control information.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a communication device is provided. The apparatus includes a processor, and a memory including processor-executable instructions that when executed by the processor cause performance of a method according to an aspect herein.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a non-transitory computer readable medium having stored thereon processor executable instructions that when executed by a processor cause performance of a method according to an aspect herein.

Drawings

Although the techniques provided herein may be embodied in alternative forms, the specific embodiments illustrated in the drawings are merely a few examples, which are intended to be complementary to the descriptions provided herein. These examples should not be construed in a limiting manner, such as to limit the appended claims.

FIG. 1A is a schematic diagram illustrating edge link communications in accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter.

FIG. 1B is a schematic diagram showing edge link communication as a comparison to FIG. 1A.

Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram of a frame structure of an LTE system.

Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of an LTE system resource structure.

Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of an edge link PSCCH/PSCCH resource pool configuration and shows PSCCH/PSCCH resource pool periodicity.

Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram of the side link PSCCH/PSCCH resource pool configuration.

FIG. 6 is an exemplary diagram of a process for determining a SCI type in accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of a first example method in accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter.

Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram of a second example method in accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter.

FIG. 9 is a schematic representation of resources for a third example method in accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter.

FIG. 10 is a schematic representation of resources for a fourth example method in accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter.

FIG. 11 is a schematic representation of resources for a fifth example method in accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter.

Fig. 12 is a schematic diagram of a sixth example method in accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter.

Fig. 13 is a schematic diagram of a seventh example method in accordance with an aspect of the disclosed subject matter.

Fig. 14 is a scenario illustration involving an example configuration of a Base Station (BS) that may utilize and/or implement at least a portion of the techniques provided herein.

Fig. 15 is a scenario illustration involving an example configuration of a User Equipment (UE) that may utilize and/or implement at least a portion of the techniques provided herein.

Fig. 16 is an example of a scenario featuring an example non-transitory computer-readable medium in accordance with one or more provisions set forth herein.

Detailed Description

The subject matter now will be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, which form a part hereof, and which show, by way of illustration, specific exemplary embodiments. This description is not intended to be an extension or a detailed discussion of known concepts. Details that are generally known to one of ordinary skill in the relevant art may be omitted or may be processed in an abstract manner.

The following subject matter may be embodied in a variety of different forms, such as methods, devices, components, and/or systems. Accordingly, the subject matter is not intended to be construed as limiting any example embodiments set forth herein. Rather, the example embodiments are provided for illustration only. Such embodiments may take the form of, for example, hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof.

It will be understood herein that some examples provide a description for one or more User Equipments (UEs) and/or base stations (enbs)/core networks. It should be understood that these are examples of nodes and that the term "node" should be interpreted as including such structures/devices and the term "node" should be interpreted as including any other structure/device that implements the disclosed functionality/acts.

FIG. 1A is a schematic representation of one aspect of the disclosed subject matter. In fig. 1A, a first User Equipment (UE) and a second User Equipment (UE) (e.g., 1550A and 1550B, a first node and a second node) are in side-link (SL) communication without the need for communication to/through a base station (eNB)/core network (e.g., 1450). In one example, the first UE and the second UE may be identified as a far end UE and a relay UE. Further, each of the remote UE and the relay UE is a separate node.

In one example, the relay UE may be a UE with greater capability than the far-end UE. Thus, the relay UE may schedule resources for the remote UE. In another example, the relay UE may be of the same type as the far end UE, e.g., have the same capabilities, and it is configured by the network as a relay UE, or because it is closer to the serving base station. Both the relay UE and the remote UE may be any type of communication device.

It should be noted that the relay UE and the remote UE are capable of efficient side-link communication, which will be discussed further below for several examples. In such a theme, several beneficial aspects/features may be obtained. For example, the disclosed subject matter can more efficiently use edge link resources, can also reduce network side burden, reduce system signaling overhead, improve system resource utilization, and meet various UE traffic needs. The side link communication can save radio frequency spectrum resources, reduce the data transmission pressure of a core network, reduce the consumption of system resources, improve the frequency spectrum efficiency of a cellular communication system, reduce the transmission power consumption of a terminal and save the operation cost of a network.

For comparison and to provide an understanding of the disclosed subject matter, an illustrated side link communication is provided according to another embodiment. Specifically, in the edge link communication system of fig. 1B, when there is a need to transmit edge link communication between a first user equipment and a second user equipment (e.g., 1550A and 1550B), some control information or data is processed by a base station (e.g., 1450). After processing by the base station, direct edge link communication between the two UEs may occur.

Fig. 2-5 provide a brief background description of such communication. Fig. 2 shows a radio frame unit of a radio resource in a time domain in a Long Term Evolution (LTE) system. In one example, each radio frame is 10 milliseconds (ms) and contains 10 subframes. Each subframe is 1ms, divided into 2 slots of 0.5 ms. In the frequency domain, resources are divided in units of subcarriers. In one example, each cell contains resources at 15kHz or 7.5 kHz.

Time and frequency domain resource partitioning according to the aboveThe unit, eNB, schedules sidelink resources for the UE. Specifically, the eNB schedules resources in units of subframes in the time domain and Resource Blocks (RBs) in units of the frequency domain. An RB is defined to include one slot in the time domain and consecutive ones in the frequency domain

The number of sub-carriers is such that,

24 as shown in the example of figure 3. The eNB may flexibly allocate and indicate one or more RB resources for the UE according to scheduling requirements.

Therefore, in the side link communication method, the UE transmits or receives a signal using resources in the side link resource pool. The side link resource pool includes a physical side link control channel (PSCCH) for carrying side link control information and a physical side link shared channel (PSCCH) resource pool for carrying side link data transmission. Based on the PSCCH and PSCCH resource pools, the UE uses PSCCH resources to send side link control information (SCI) indicating the PSCCH resources and associated control information that the UE uses to transmit side link data. In the side link communication scenario of fig. 1B, the UE cannot schedule side link resources by itself, and there is no effective solution to this problem.

Further, as described above, for edge link communications associated with another embodiment, the edge link resources include a PSCCH resource pool and a PSCCH resource pool. The PSCCH resource pool is a set of resources used to carry side link control information (SCI) that is configured by the network side through higher layer signaling configuration or system pre-configuration. The PSCCH resource pool contains one or more subframes in the time domain. The subframes in each PSCCH resource pool may also be referred to as PSCCH subframes. Each PSCCH subframe may be contiguous or non-contiguous. The PSCCH resource pool contains one or more RBs in the frequency domain, and the contained plurality of RBs may be contiguous or non-contiguous.

The PSSCH resource pool is a set of resources used for carrying side link service data, and is configured by a network side through high-layer signaling configuration or system pre-configuration. The psch resource pool contains one or more subframes in the time domain. The subframes in each psch resource pool may also be referred to as psch subframes, and each psch subframe may be consecutive or non-consecutive.

The PSCCH/PSCCH resource pool may have a variety of configurations. Some examples are shown in fig. 4 and 5. FIG. 4 illustrates an edge link resource pool configuration, referred to as case A. The PSCCH/PSCCH resource pool is periodic and both have the same periodicity. Each period comprises a plurality of PSCCH sub-frames and a plurality of PSSCH sub-frames, each PSCCH sub-frame comprises a plurality of RBs as PSCCH resources, and each PSSCH sub-frame comprises a plurality of RBs as PSSCH resources. Fig. 5 shows an edge link resource pool configuration, referred to as case B, where the PSCCH resource pool and the PSCCH resource pool have the same subframes. In the frequency domain, in the amplification section (a), the psch resource pool contains several subchannels, each subchannel containing k RBs. The RB in the frequency domain of the PSCCH resource pool is the two RBs with the smallest RB index in each subchannel. In the frequency domain, in the amplification section (b), the psch resource pool contains several subchannels, each subchannel containing k RBs. The PSCCH resource pool comprises a number of RBs in the frequency domain, and the RBs in the PSCCH resource pool are not adjacent to the RBs in the PSCCH resource pool, each PSCCH resource comprising two RBs.

Therefore, in the edge link communication system, edge link resources are used to transmit data between UEs. The transmitting UE transmits side link control information (SCI) on PSCCH resources, configuration information indicating a PSCCH resource association that the receiving UE uses to transmit side link data, and further transmits the side link data on the indicated PSCCH resources. Thus, in some aspects, the transmitting UE operates similar to a base station.

The edge link communication shown in fig. 1B is a broadcast communication. The edge link UE does not have the functionality to schedule another UE to communicate with. The disclosed subject matter addresses the problem of a UE being unable to schedule and indicate edge link resources in edge link communications. Thus, in accordance with one aspect of the disclosed subject matter, one UE (fig. 1A) can schedule and indicate edge link resources (e.g., two nodes) for another UE. On one hand, the side link resources can be more flexibly and efficiently scheduled, the network side burden is reduced, the system signaling overhead is reduced, the utilization rate of the system resources is improved, and various UE service requirements are met.

In some enhanced edge link communication application scenarios, a pair of UEs (e.g., two nodes) performing edge link communication may be classified as a far-end UE and a relay UE. The side link resources in which the remote UE transmits side link signals may be scheduled by the relay UE, which uses the SCI to indicate side link resource allocation for the remote UE, including PSCCH resources and/or PSCCH resources, and also including other configuration instructions such as MCS, TPC (transmit power control), data retransmission indicators, and so on. The scheduling SCI transmitted by the relay UE and received by the remote UE contains an indication of sidelink resources for the remote UE, referred to as forward SCI type 1. It indicates to the remote UE the resources allocated to it by the relay UE and the associated control information.

On the other hand, the relay UE may transmit its side link signal on the side link resources, including transmitting the forward SCI on the PSCCH resources, and this type of forward SCI indicates the PSCCH resources used by the relay UE and other control parameters, and this type of forward SCI is referred to as forward SCI type 2. Briefly, forward SCI type 2 indicates to the remote UE the resources of the relay UE itself for side link data transmission and associated control information.

As described above, the relay UE relays signals between the remote UE and the network. The relay UE may be a UE having resource scheduling capability among a pair of UEs performing side link communication. The sidelink resource indicated in the forward SCI type 1 for sidelink transmission by the remote UE may be determined by the eNB (as a network side node) and forwarded by the relay UE to the remote UE; alternatively, the relay UE may determine itself and then indicate to the remote UE.

The method of the disclosed subject matter of fig. 6, and as a whole, the disclosed subject matter provides a method for implementing edge link communications to reduce the need for communications to travel to/through a base station. Fig. 6 illustrates the overall method of the disclosed subject matter. In fig. 6, the method starts at action S602, where the remote UE blindly detects SCIs in the PSCCH resource pool. Then at action S604, it is determined whether the received SCI is a forward SCI type 1 or a forward SCI type 2. If the received SCI is a forward SCI type 1, it means that the sidelink resources indicated in the SCI are resources for sidelink transmission by the remote UE, and the remote UE should transmit its signal to the relay UE using the indicated resources. Further, in case the received SCI is a forward SCI type 1, the method proceeds to action S606.

If the received SCI is not a forward SCI type 1 (i.e., the received SCI is a forward SCI type 2), it indicates that the received SCI provides resources from the relay UE, as well as some other control information. Accordingly, the method of fig. 6 proceeds from act S604 to act S608. Further, the remote UE should receive/hold/use the signal from the relay UE on the indicated resources.

In addition, the relay UE may perform side link communication with multiple remote UEs at the same time, and the relay UE needs to indicate side link resources for the remote UEs respectively, and when corresponding PSCCH resource pools of multiple remote UEs for blind detection of SCIs are the same or partially overlap, each remote UE needs to be able to correctly identify a forward SCI type 1 received by the current remote UE.

It will be appreciated that at act S604 within the overall method of fig. 6, the determination is made by the remote UE, rather than elsewhere (e.g., not determined by the base station, as the communication does not proceed to/through the base station). Moreover, the decision is determined by blind detection, since the remote UE makes the decision at action S604 of each sequence by the method of fig. 6 based only on the currently received communication.

Thus, the disclosed subject matter includes the following: the method may include receiving forward edge link control information from a node, determining a type of the received forward edge link control information, and receiving or transmitting edge link data transmissions from or to the node based on the determined type. Further, the disclosed subject matter includes the following: transmitting forward edge link control information to a node, determining a type of the forward edge link control information, and based on the type, determining at least one of: an indication in the forward side link control information, resources for transmitting the forward side link control information, and resources indicated in the forward side link control information.

As described above, in order for the remote UE to blindly detect the forward SCI in the PSCCH resource pool to obtain the corresponding resource allocation instruction, two problems are involved:

(i) determining whether the received forward SCI is a forward SCI type 1 or a forward SCI type 2; and

(ii) it is determined whether the received forward SCI is of type 1 for the far-end UE's own forward SCI.

To address the above issues, it is contemplated that various different solutions (e.g., solutions) are possible. These various solutions are considered to be within the scope of the disclosed subject matter. Several example solutions are provided below. It should be understood, however, that these examples are not intended as limitations on the scope of the disclosed subject matter.

The method of the first solution is based on the transmit/schedule indication in the forward SCI. Specifically, the method includes setting an indication bit at the SCI to indicate whether the SCI is a forward SCI type 1 (which may be referred to as a "dispatch forward SCI") or a forward SCI type 2. An example is described below, and an example flow diagram is provided in FIG. 7. In this example, a 1-bit indicator bit is indicated in the SCI. In one example, the indication indicates that the SCI is forward SCI type 1 by a value of "1" and SCI is forward SCI type 2 by a value of "0", or vice versa.

In fig. 7, at action S702, the remote UE blindly detects SCIs in the PSCCH resource pool. At action S704, decoding of the indication in the SCI is performed. Specifically, it is determined whether the indication bit indicates that the SCI is a forward SCI type 1 or indicates that the SCI is a forward SCI type 2. In the current example, a location "1" is indicated to indicate that the SCI is a forward SCI type 1 and a "0" is indicated to indicate that the SCI is a forward SCI type 2. Of course, the indications of "1" and "0" may be reversed for different examples. Also, while this example provides a binary digit of a value of "1" or "0," it is to be understood that this is not necessarily a particular limitation, and that other/different values may be used and even not necessarily binary.

In the example shown in fig. 7, if the determination at act S704 is yes (i.e., the indication is "1"), the method proceeds to act S706. Specifically, the remote UE acquires the side link PSCCH and/or PSCCH resource indication in forward SCI type 1 and then transmits on the indicated resource.

If the determination at act S704 is negative (i.e., indicating a "0"), the method proceeds to act S708. Specifically, the far-end UE has determined that the received SCI is a forward SCI type 2. Accordingly, the relay UE's side link data transmission is received on the corresponding PSSCH resource according to the resources indicated in the SCI.

The reverse SCI refers to an SCI sent by the remote UE on the configured PSCCH resource according to the scheduling instructions of the relay UE, and may indicate parameters, such as MCS, TPC, etc., used by the remote UE to transmit side-link data on the configured PSCCH resource. The PSCCH used to transmit the reverse SCI is indicated by the relay UE in forward SCI type 1. Also, in this example, the reverse SCI is transmitted by the far-end UE to the relay UE.

The method of the second solution is based on UE Identity (ID). In one example, one or more indication fields are set in the forward SCI to indicate the UE ID of the UE to which the current SCI belongs.

The UE ID refers to identification information that can clearly identify one UE. The UE ID may be embodied in various types, such as: an RNTI that can uniquely identify a UE in a cell; a side link UE ID that can uniquely identify a UE among a plurality of UEs that perform side link communication; UE index within a group, which may uniquely identify a UE within a group, and so on. Wherein the relay UE may set a UE index for one or more remote UEs with which it communicates, the UE index being known to the relay UE and the corresponding remote UE, and the UE index of each remote UE is unique among the plurality of remote UEs in side-link communication with the relay UE. In this manner, FIG. 8 is an example flow chart.

In this example, the forward SCI contains an N-bit indication field that indicates the UE ID of the UE to which the current forward SCI belongs. As such, the method begins at act S802. At action S802, the remote UE blindly detects the forward SCI in the PSCCH resource pool. At action S804, a UE ID is acquired from the received SCI.

At action S806, it is determined whether the UE ID is a remote UE ID. In the current example, when the N-bit indication field indicates that the UE ID is the current far-end UE ID, it is determined that the current SCI is a forward SCI type 1 for the current UE and indicates a sidelink resource indication for far-end UE transmission.

The method then proceeds from act S806 to act S808. At action S808, an indication of the sidelink PSCCH and/or PSCCH resources for forward SCI type 1 is acquired and the remote UE then transmits on the indicated resources. Specifically, when the remote UE determines that the received SCI is a forward SCI type 1 for scheduling its sidelink resources and the PSCCH and PSCCH resources are indicated in the SCI, the remote UE transmits the reverse SCI on the indicated PSCCH resources and/or transmits sidelink data on the indicated PSCCH resources. At action S806, it is determined that the UE ID is not a remote UE ID. In the present example, the remote UE proceeds from action S806 to action S810. At action S810, it is determined whether the UE ID is a relay UE ID. When the N-bit indication field indicates that the UE ID is a relay UE ID, then the SCI is forward SCI type 2. To do so, the method proceeds from act S810 to act S812. Based on the forward SCI type 2, the remote UE receives the signal from the relay UE on the psch resource indicated in the SCI. If the determination at act S810 is negative, the method proceeds to act S814. The remote UE then determines that the SCI is invalid and that no further processing is to be performed.

The method of the third solution is based on a dedicated PSCCH resource pool. Two example scenarios are provided below. However, other examples are possible. As a general starting point for using the dedicated PSCCH resource pool, reference is made to the example shown in fig. 9.

In a first scenario, when both the remote UE and the relay UE are configured with dedicated PSCCH resource pools, the SCI type may be determined by transmitting the SCI using resources in the associated dedicated PSCCH resource pool.

In the dedicated PSCCH resource pool, it may only be able to carry information related to the UE to which the current resource pool belongs. For example, the dedicated PSCCH resource pool of the remote UE can only carry forward SCI type 1 for scheduling PSCCH resource indications for the remote UE. The dedicated PSCCH resource pool of the relay UE can only carry forward SCI type 2 indicating relay UE side link data transmission.

The remote UE obtains the configuration of the side link resource pool through network side high-level configuration, or signaling configuration from the relay UE, or system pre-configuration. The side link resource pool configuration comprises a dedicated PSCCH resource pool for relay UEs and a dedicated PSCCH resource pool for remote UEs. The remote UE blindly detects the SCI in the relay UE's dedicated PSCCH resource pool and its own dedicated PSCCH resource pool.

When the remote UE receives an SCI in the relay UE's dedicated PSCCH resource pool, it may be determined that the SCI is a forward SCI type 2. Further, the remote UE receives the edge link data transmission of the relay UE on the corresponding psch resource according to the resource indicated in the SCI. When the remote UE receives an SCI in its own dedicated resource pool, it can be determined that the SCI is a forward SCI type 1. Further, PSCCH resources for the remote UE are indicated, and PSCCH resources for the reverse SCI may be indicated in the SCI. The remote UE transmits the reverse SCI (if PSCCH is indicated) and sidelink data on the indicated resources.

In the example shown in fig. 9, the remote UE and the relay UE have their own dedicated PSCCH resource pools. The relay UE transmits a forward SCI type 2 in its PSCCH resource pool to indicate its data transmission on the PSCCH resource. To schedule the remote UE transmission, the relay UE indicates forward SCI type 1 in the PSCCH resource pool of the remote UE. For the remote UE, the PSCCH resource pools for the relay UE and for itself are both receive resource pools, and the remote UE will attempt to blindly detect SCIs in these PSCCH resource pools. When the remote UE detects SCI in the relay UE's PSCCH resource pool, this means that SCI is forward SCI type 2, while when SCI is detected in its own PSCCH resource pool, it should be forward SCI type 1. Based on the indication in the received SCI, the remote UE should receive data on the psch resources when the SCI is forward SCI type 2 or transmit its SCI and/or data on the indicated resources when the SCI is forward SCI type 1.

In a second scenario, when the remote UE shares the same dedicated resource pool with the relay UE, the dedicated resource pool contains at least the PSCCH resource pool and may also include a dedicated PSCCH resource pool. In this dedicated PSCCH resource pool, the relay UE only sends SCIs associated with edge link communications between the relay UE and the current remote UE, and does not send SCIs for other remote UEs, including forward SCI type 2 instructing the relay UE to transmit to other remote UEs, and forward SCI type 1 scheduling resources for another remote UE.

The forward SCI type 2 for indicating relay UE side link data transmission and the forward SCI type 1 for scheduling remote UE side link resources may be carried in a dedicated resource pool shared by the remote UE and the relay UE.

When the remote UE receives an SCI in the dedicated resource pool, it may be determined that the SCI is a forward SCI type 2 or a forward SCI type 1 associated with itself. Further, the remote UE needs to distinguish whether the received SCI is forward SCI type 1 or forward SCI type 2.

It is worth noting at this point that the approaches of multiple solutions can be combined. The current solution example (i.e., the third method) is an example candidate. For example, this third method may be combined with the first method (i.e., SCI 1-bit indicator bit indication). The combination of methods may enable or improve the discrimination between implementing forward SCI type 1 and forward SCI type 2. Alternatively, forward SCI type 1 and forward SCI type 2 are distinguished in a unique (e.g., implicit) manner in the other instruction fields of the SCI.

The method of the fourth solution is based on a dedicated pscch resource pool. When both the remote UE and the relay UE are configured with their own dedicated psch resource pool, the psch resources in the dedicated psch resource pool only carry the side link data transmission of the relevant UE. For example, the dedicated pscch resource pool of the remote UE can only carry remote UE side link data, while the dedicated pscch resource pool of the relay UE can only carry relay UE side link data.

Based on this dedicated psch resource pool, the remote UE may determine the type of SCI from the psch resources indicated in the SCI. When the indicated psch resource is in the remote UE psch resource pool, it may be determined that the SCI is a forward SCI type 1 and the indicated psch resource is a remote UE sidelink transmission resource. When the indicated psch resource is in the relay UE psch resource pool, it may be determined that the SCI is a forward SCI type 2 and the indicated psch resource is a relay UE side link transmission resource.

The remote UE obtains the configuration of the side link resource pool through the high-level configuration of the network side or the signaling configuration of the relay UE or the system pre-configuration, wherein the configuration comprises the special PSSCH resource pool of the relay UE, and the special PSSCH resource pool and the PSCCH resource pool of the relay UE. The remote UE blindly detects the SCIs in the PSCCH resource pool and decodes the PSCCH resource allocation indicated in the SCIs.

When the psch resource indicated in the received SCI is included in the relay UE-specific psch resource pool, it may be determined that the SCI is a forward SCI type 2. Further, the remote UE receives the relay UE's side link data transmission on the corresponding psch resource. When the psch resource indicated in the received SCI is included in the remote UE-specific psch resource pool, it may be determined that the SCI is a forward SCI type 1. Further, the remote UE transmits the side link data on the indicated psch resources.

As a method example of the fourth solution, fig. 10 may be referred to. The remote UE and the relay UE have their own dedicated pscch resource pool. The relay UE transmits the SCI and indicates the psch resources in the SCI. To schedule the remote UE transmission, the relay UE indicates in the SCI the psch resources contained in the remote UE-specific psch. For relay UEs, the relay UE side link data transmission indicates psch resources in a relay UE-specific psch resource pool.

The remote UE should attempt to blindly detect the SCI in the PSCCH resource pool and decode the information contained in the SCI. When the psch resource indicated in the received SCI is included in the remote UE psch resource pool, this means that the SCI is forward SCI type 1, and when the psch resource indicated in the received SCI is included in the relay UE psch resource pool, this means that the SCI is forward SCI type 2. Based on the indication in the received SCI, the remote UE should receive data on the psch resources when the SCI is forward SCI type 2 or transmit its SCI and/or data on the indicated resources when the SCI is forward SCI type 1.

The method of the fifth solution is based on the timing relationship between the SCI and the corresponding psch resource. For the fifth method, an example is shown in fig. 11.

The remote UE may obtain rules to determine the type of forward SCI based on the timing relationship between the forward SCI and the psch resources indicated in the forward SCI. For example, when the interval between an SCI and the psch resource indicated in the SCI is greater than or equal to k, where k is a constant or pre-configured by the system, then the SCI is a forward SCI type 1 and the psch resource indicated by the SCI is for far-end UE transmissions, and when the subframe interval between an SCI and the psch resource indicated in the SCI is less than or equal to t, where t is a constant or pre-configured by the system, then the SCI is a forward SCI type 2, which indicates edge link transmissions for relay UEs. Also, k and t may be given the same value.

For example (see e.g., fig. 11), the remote UE shares the pscch resource pool with the relay UE. The system can be preconfigured with: the SCI is a forward SCI type 1 when a subframe interval between a subframe of the SCI and a subframe of the psch resource indicated by the SCI is greater than or equal to k, and is a forward SCI type 2 when a subframe interval between the SCI subframe and a subframe in which the psch resource indicated by the SCI is located is less than t, and t is 4. When the relay UE indicates the psch resource in the SCI, the indicated psch resource may clearly determine the location of the subframe, e.g., directly indicate the psch resource subframe number, or indicate the subframe spacing between the psch resource and the SCI.

The remote UE blindly receives the SCI in the PSCCH resource pool and acquires PSSCH resource information indicated in the SCI to determine a subframe interval between a subframe where the indicated PSSCH resource is located and the subframe where the SCI is received. Further, based on the subframe interval and the timing rules predefined by the system, the remote UE determines whether the SCI type is forward SCI type 1 or forward SCI type 2.

When the subframe interval is greater than or equal to 4, it may be determined that the SCI is a forward SCI type 1. Further, the remote UE transmits the side link data on the indicated psch resources. When the subframe interval is less than 4, it may be determined that the SCI is a forward SCI type 2. Further, the remote UE receives the relay UE's side link data transmission on the corresponding pscch resource, as shown in fig. 11.

It will be appreciated that for one particular example, the value of k is the same as the value of t. If so, the timing relationships may be coordinated such that the timing relationship determination fails to provide conflicting results. Specifically, both timing relationship determinations should not include the option of time being equal to the same value. As an example adjustment, if k is equal to t, the timing relationship determination may be: greater than or equal to k, and less than t.

Another problem to be solved in the side link communication of the relay UE and the remote UE is to distinguish eNB scheduling information for the side link resources. When the eNB schedules the relay UE and the remote UE side link resources, the resource allocation information for the relay UE and the remote UE is indicated in the DCI. Since the relay UE is able to relay the indication from the eNB to the remote UE, that is, the sidelink resource allocation scheduled by the eNB for the remote UE should be relayed to the remote UE through the relay UE. For a relay UE, it needs to receive its own DCI and related far-end UE DCI, and then forward information about the far-end UE DCI to the corresponding far-end UE on the side link.

To address this issue, when the relay UE receives DCI from the eNB, it should be determined whether the current DCI is DCI type 1 indicating PSCCH and/or PSCCH resource allocation for the relay UE or DCI type 2 indicating PSCCH and/or PSCCH resource allocation for the remote UE. The DCI differentiation scheme is similar to the schemes disclosed for SCI type 1 and type 2.

To address the above issues, a variety of different solutions are contemplated that fall within the scope of the disclosed subject matter. Several example solutions are provided below. It should be understood, however, that these examples are not limiting on the breadth of the disclosed subject matter.

The method of the sixth solution is based on scheduling/forwarding indication in DCI. Specifically, the method includes setting an indication bit in the DCI to indicate that it is DCI type 1 (which may be referred to as "scheduling DCI") or DCI type 2 (which may be referred to as "forwarding DCI"). An example is described below, and an example flow diagram is provided in FIG. 12. In this example, the 1-bit indicator is an indication in the DCI. The indication indicates that the DCI is DCI type 1 by a value of "1" or DCI is DCI type 2 by a value of "0", or vice versa.

In fig. 12, in act S1202, the relay UE blindly detects DCI in the PDCCH. At action S1204, decoding of the instruction in the DCI is performed. Specifically, the determination indication bit indicates whether DCI is DCI type 1 or DCI type 2. In the current example, the indication bit may be "1" to indicate that the DCI is DCI type 1, and "0" to indicate that the DCI is DCI type 2. Of course, the indications of "1" and "0" may be reversed for different examples. Also, while this example provides a binary digit of a value of "1" or "0," it will be appreciated that this is not necessarily a particular limitation, other/different values may be used and even not necessarily binary.

In the example shown in fig. 12, if it is determined to be yes (i.e., the indication is "1") at act S1204, the method proceeds to act S1206. Specifically, the relay UE acquires eNB-scheduled sidelink PSCCH and/or PSCCH resource indications in DCI type 1 and then transmits on the indicated resources.

If the determination at act S1204 is negative (i.e., indicating a "0"), the method proceeds to act S1208. Specifically, the relay UE has determined that the received DCI is DCI type 2. Thus, the sidelink resources indicated in the DCI are for the remote UE, and the relay UE needs to forward the resource allocation to the remote UE via the SCI.

The method of the seventh solution is based on the UE ID. In one example, an indication field is set in the DCI to indicate the UE ID of the UE to which the current DCI belongs. Attention is directed to fig. 13.

In this example, the DCI contains one N-bit indication field indicating the UE ID of the UE to which the current DCI belongs. As such, the method begins at act S1302. At action S1302, the relay UE blindly detects DCI in the PDCCH resource. At action S1304, a UE ID is acquired from the received DCI.

At action S1306, it is determined whether the UE ID is a remote UE ID or a relay UE ID. In the current example, when the N-bit indication field indicates that the UE ID is a relay UE ID, it is determined that the current DCI is DCI type 1 for the relay UE and indicates an edge link resource indication for the relay UE transmission.

The method then proceeds from act S1306 to act S1308. At action S1308, an indication of sidelink PSCCH and/or PSCCH resources in DCI type 1 is obtained, and the relay UE transmits on the indicated resources.

At action S1306, it is determined that the UE ID is not a relay UE ID. In the present example, the relay UE proceeds from action S1306 to action S1310. At action S1310, it is determined that the N-bit indication field indicates that the UE ID is a far end UE ID, and thus the DCI is DCI type 2. For this, the relay UE forwards the information contained in DCI type 2 to the corresponding remote UE on the side link.

Fig. 14 presents a schematic architecture diagram 1400 of a base station 1450 that may be used with UEs that utilize at least some of the techniques provided herein. Such a base station 1450 may vary widely in configuration and/or capabilities, alone or in combination with other base stations, nodes, end units, and/or servers and/or the like, to provide services such as at least some of one or more other disclosed techniques, scenarios, and/or the like. A base station may be considered a node.

For example, base station 1450 may connect one or more User Equipments (UEs) to a (e.g., wireless) network (e.g., which may be connected to and/or include one or more other base stations), such as a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) network, a Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) network, a Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) network, an orthogonal FDMA (ofdma) network, a single-carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA) network, and so forth. The network may implement radio technologies such as Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), CDMA13000, global system for mobile communications (GSM), evolved UTRA (E-UTRA), IEEE 802.11, IEEE 802.16, IEEE 802.20, flash-OFDM, and so on. The base station 1450 and/or the network may communicate using a standard, such as Long Term Evolution (LTE).

Base station 1450 may include one or more (e.g., hardware) processors 1410 that process instructions. The one or more processors 1410 optionally may include multiple cores; one or more coprocessors, such as math coprocessors or integrated Graphics Processing Units (GPUs); and/or one or more local cache memory layers. Base station 1450 may include memory 1402 that stores various forms of applications, such as an operating system 1404; one or more base station applications 1406; and/or various forms of data such as a database 1408 and/or file system, among others. Base station 1450 may include various peripheral components, such as a wired and/or wireless network adapter 1414 that may be connected to a local area network and/or a wide area network; one or more storage components 1416, such as hard disk drives, solid State Storage Devices (SSDs), flash memory devices, and/or magnetic and/or optical disk readers; and/or other peripheral components.

Base station 1450 may include a motherboard featuring one or more communication buses 1412, using various bus technologies, such as variants of the serial or parallel AT attachment (ATA) bus protocols; universal Serial Bus (USB) protocol; and/or a small computer system interface (SCI) bus protocol to interconnect the processor 1410, the memory 1402, and/or various peripherals. In a multi-bus scenario, communication bus 1412 may interconnect base station 1450 with at least one other server. Other components that may optionally be included in base station 1450 (although not shown in schematic illustration 1400 of fig. 14) include a display; a display adapter, such as a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU); input peripherals such as a keyboard and/or mouse; and/or a flash memory device that can store basic input/output system (BIOS) routines that help to start the base station 1450 to a ready state, etc.

Base station 1450 may operate in various physical enclosures such as a desktop or tower, and/or may be a "unified" device that integrates a display. Base station 1450 may be horizontally disposed and/or disposed in a cabinet or rack, and/or may simply comprise a set of interconnected components. Base station 1450 may include a dedicated and/or shared power supply 1418 that supplies and/or regulates power for other components. Base station 1450 may provide power to and/or receive power from another base station and/or a server and/or other devices. The base station 1450 may include a shared and/or dedicated climate control unit 1420 that adjusts climate properties such as temperature, humidity, and/or airflow. A plurality of such base stations 1450 may be configured and/or adapted to utilize at least some of the techniques provided herein.

Fig. 15 presents a schematic architecture diagram 1500 of a User Equipment (UE)1550 (e.g., a node) upon which at least some of the techniques provided herein can be implemented. Such UEs 1550 may vary widely in configuration and/or capability to provide various functionalities to users. It should be understood that a UE may be a type of node.

The UE 1550 may be provided in a variety of forms, such as a mobile phone (e.g., a smartphone); a desk or tower workstation; an "all-in-one" device that integrates a display 1508; a laptop, a tablet, a convertible tablet, or a palm device; wearable devices, such as may be mounted on headphones, glasses, earphones, and/or a wristwatch, and/or integrated with a garment; and/or a furniture component, such as a table top, and/or another device, such as a vehicle or residence. The UE 1550 may serve users in various roles, such as a phone, a workstation, a kiosk, a media player, a gaming device, and/or an appliance.

The UE 1550 may include one or more (e.g., hardware) processors 1510 that process instructions. The one or more processors 1510 optionally may include multiple cores; one or more coprocessors, such as math coprocessors or integrated Graphics Processing Units (GPUs); and/or one or more local cache memory layers. The UE 1550 may include memory 1501, such as an operating system 1503; one or more user applications 1502, such as a document application, a media application, a file and/or data access application, a communication application, such as a web browser and/or email client, a utility, and/or a game; and/or drivers for various peripherals. The UE 1550 may include various peripheral components, such as a wired and/or wireless network adapter 1506 that may connect to a local area network and/or a wide area network; one or more output components, such as a display 1508 coupled with a display adapter (optionally including a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU)), a sound adapter coupled with speakers, and/or a printer; an input device for receiving input from a user, a touch-sensitive component such as a keyboard 1511, mouse, microphone, camera, and/or display 1508; and/or environmental sensors such as a GPS receiver that detects the location, velocity, and/or acceleration of UE 1550, a compass, an accelerometer, and/or a gyroscope that detects the physical orientation of UE 1550. Other components that may optionally be included in the UE 1550 (although not shown in the schematic architecture diagram 1500 of fig. 15) include one or more storage components, such as a hard disk drive, a solid State Storage Device (SSD), a flash memory device, and/or a magnetic and/or optical disk reader; a flash memory device that may store basic input/output system (BIOS) routines that assist in starting the UE 1550 to a ready state; and/or a climate control unit that adjusts climate properties such as temperature, humidity, and/or airflow.

The UE 1550 may include a motherboard featuring one or more communication buses 1512 that use various bus technologies, such as variants of the serial or parallel AT attachment (ATA) bus protocols; universal Serial Bus (USB) protocol; and/or a small computer system interface (SCI) bus protocol interconnecting the processor 1510, memory 1501, and/or various peripherals. The UE 1550 may include a dedicated and/or shared power supply 1518 that supplies and/or regulates power for other components, and/or a battery 1504 that stores power for use when the UE is not connected to a power source via the power supply 1518. The UE 1550 may provide power to and/or receive power from other client devices.

Fig. 16 is an illustration of a scenario 1600 involving an example non-transitory computer-readable medium 1602. Non-transitory computer-readable medium 1602 may contain processor-executable instructions 1612 that, when executed by processor 1616, cause (e.g., by processor 1616) performance of at least some of the disclosure herein (e.g., embodiment 1614). Non-transitory computer-readable medium 1602 may include a memory semiconductor (e.g., a semiconductor utilizing Static Random Access Memory (SRAM), Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM), and/or Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory (SDRAM) technology), a hard disk drive, a flash memory device, or a magnetic or optical disk such as a Compact Disk (CD), a Digital Versatile Disk (DVD), and/or a floppy disk. An example non-transitory computer-readable medium 1602 stores computer-readable data 1604 that, when read 1606 by a reader 1610 of a device 1608 (e.g., a read head of a hard disk drive, or a read operation invoked on a solid state storage device), represents processor-executable instructions 1612. In some embodiments, the processor-executable instructions 1612, when executed, cause operations to be performed, such as at least portions of the example methods discussed above. Example methods include, but are not limited to, the methods provided herein and other described methods.

The following is a list of some abbreviations/definitions that may be used herein:

UE: user equipment

eNB: E-UTRAN node B, base station

SL: edge link

SCI: side link control information

DCI: downlink control information

PSCCH: physical edge link control channel

PSSCH: physical edge link shared channel

PDCCH: physical downlink control channel

RB: resource block

RRC: radio resource control

TPC: transmission power control

MCS: modulation and coding scheme

As used in this application, the terms "component," "module," "system," "interface," and/or the like are generally intended to refer to a computer-related entity, either hardware, a combination of hardware and software, or software in execution. For example, a component may be, but is not limited to being, a process running on a processor, an object, an executable, a thread of execution, a program, and/or a computer. By way of example, both an application running on a controller and the controller can be a component. One or more components can reside within a process and/or thread of execution and a component can be localized on one computer and/or distributed between two or more computers (e.g., nodes).

Unless otherwise stated, "first," "second," and/or the like are not intended to imply temporal aspects, spatial aspects, order, or the like. Rather, such terms are merely used as labels, names, etc. for features, elements, items, etc. For example, the first object and the second object typically correspond to object a and object B or two different or two identical objects or the same object.

Also, as used herein, "exemplary" means serving as an example, illustration, or the like, and is not necessarily advantageous. As used herein, "or" is intended to mean an inclusive "or" rather than an exclusive "or". In addition, the use of "a" and "an" in this application is generally understood to mean "one or more" unless specified otherwise or clear from context to be directed to a singular form. Furthermore, at least one of A and B and/or similar terms typically refer to A or B or both A and B. Furthermore, if the terms "including," having, "" with, "and/or variants thereof are used in either the detailed description or the claims, such terms are intended to be inclusive in a manner similar to the term" comprising.

Although the subject matter has been described in language specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the subject matter defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing at least part of the claims.

Furthermore, the claimed subject matter may be implemented as a method, apparatus, or article of manufacture using standard programming and/or engineering techniques to produce software, firmware, hardware, or any combination thereof to control a computer (e.g., a node) to implement the disclosed subject matter. The term "article of manufacture" as used herein is intended to encompass a computer program accessible from any computer-readable device, carrier, or media. Of course, many modifications may be made to this configuration without departing from the scope or spirit of the claimed subject matter.

Various operations of embodiments and/or examples are provided herein. The order of some or all of the operations described herein should not be construed as to imply that these operations are necessarily order dependent. Alternative sequences will be understood by those skilled in the art having the benefit of this description. Moreover, it will be understood that not all operations are necessarily present in each embodiment and/or example provided herein. Likewise, it will be understood that not all operations are necessarily in some embodiments and/or examples.

Moreover, although the disclosure has been shown and described with respect to one or more implementations, equivalent alterations and modifications will occur to others skilled in the art upon the reading and understanding of this specification and the annexed drawings. The present disclosure includes all such modifications and alterations, limited only by the scope of the following claims. In particular regard to the various functions performed by the above described components (e.g., elements, resources, etc.), the terms used to describe such components are intended to correspond, unless otherwise indicated, to any component which performs the specified function of the described component (e.g., that is functionally equivalent), even though not structurally equivalent to the disclosed structure. In addition, while a particular feature of the disclosure may have been disclosed with respect to only one of several implementations, such feature may be combined with one or more other features of the other implementations as may be desired and advantageous for any given or particular application.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving forward edge link control information from a node;

determining a type of the forward edge link control information; and

based on the type, receiving side-link data transmission from the node or transmitting side-link data to the node.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the determining includes determining the type of the forward side link control information as forward side link control information type 1 or forward side link control information type 2, wherein:

the forward side link control information type 1 indicates side link resource allocation, including side link control channel resources and/or side link data channel resources; and is

The forward edge link control information type 2 indicates an edge link data resource of the node.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the forward edge link control information includes an indication bit, and

the determining includes determining a type of the forward edge link control information based on a value of the indicator bit.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the forward edge link control information includes an identification, and

the determining includes determining a type of the forward edge link control information based on the identification.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the determining includes determining a type of the forward side link control information based on a resource pool from which the forward side link control information is received.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the resource pool from which the forward side link control information is received is a dedicated physical side link control channel resource pool.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the determining comprises determining the type of forward edge link control information based on at least one of a resource pool of edge link control channel resources or a resource pool of edge link data channel resources, wherein:

at least one of the side link control channel resources or the side link data channel resources is indicated by the forward side link control information.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein:

the resource pool of the side link control channel resource is a dedicated physical side link control channel resource pool; and is

The resource pool of the side link data channel resource is a dedicated physical side link shared channel resource pool.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein

The determining includes determining the type of forward edge link control information based on a time interval, wherein:

the time interval is an interval between a subframe where the forward side link control information is received and a subframe where the forward side link control information indicates resources.

10. A method, comprising:

transmitting forward side link control information to a node;

determining a type of the forward edge link control information; and

based on the type, determining at least one of:

an indication in the forward edge link control information;

resources for transmitting the forward side link control information; or

Resources indicated in the forward edge link control information.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein:

the forward edge link control information type 1 indicates edge link resource allocation to the node, including edge link control channel resources and/or edge link data channel resources; and

the forward edge link control information type 2 indicates an edge link data resource.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein:

determining the indication in the forward edge link control information comprises determining an indication bit, wherein:

the indication bit indicates a type of the forward edge link control information.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein:

determining that the indication in the forward edge link control information comprises an identification, wherein:

the identification indicates a type of the forward edge link control information.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein:

determining resources for transmitting the forward side link control information comprises determining side link control channel resources for transmitting the forward side link control information, wherein:

the side link control channel resource is in a dedicated physical side link control channel resource pool.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein:

determining resources indicated in the forward edge link control information comprises determining at least one of edge link control channel resources or edge link data channel resources, wherein:

the side link control channel resource is in a dedicated physical side link control channel resource pool; and is

The side link data channel resources are in a dedicated physical side link shared channel resource pool.

16. The method of claim 10, wherein:

determining resources indicated in the forward edge link control information comprises determining edge link resources with a time interval, wherein:

the time interval is an interval between a subframe in which the forward side link control information is transmitted and a subframe in which the forward side link control information indicates the side link resources; and is

The side link resource is a side link control channel resource or a side link data channel resource.

17. A communication device, comprising:

a processor; and

memory comprising processor-executable instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause performance of the method of any one of claims 1 to 16.

18. A non-transitory computer readable medium having stored thereon processor-executable instructions that, when executed, cause performance of the method of any one of claims 1-16.