CN117917032A - HARQ timer with single hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback - Google Patents

Abstract

A method of wireless communication by a User Equipment (UE) includes receiving a request from a network entity for a single hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for a plurality of HARQ processes. The method further includes transmitting single HARQ feedback to the network entity in response to receiving the request. The method further includes starting or restarting a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) HARQ Round Trip Time (RTT) timer for one of the plurality of HARQ processes based at least on the condition being met after the single HARQ feedback is transmitted.

Description

HARQ timer with single hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback

Cross Reference to Related Applications

The present application claims priority from U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/841,548, entitled "HYBRID AUTOMATIC REPEAT REQUEST (HARQ) TIMERS WITH ONE SHOT HARQ FEEDBACK", filed on month 6 and 15 of 2022, which claims the benefit of U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 63/245,085, entitled "HYBRID AUTOMATIC REPEAT REQUEST (HARQ) TIMERS WITH ONE SHOT HARQ FEEDBACK", filed on month 9 and 16 of 2021, the disclosure of which is expressly incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates generally to wireless communications, and more particularly to hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) timers with single HARQ feedback.

Background

Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various telecommunication services such as telephony, video, data, messaging, and broadcast. A typical wireless communication system may employ multiple-access techniques capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources (e.g., bandwidth, transmit power, etc.). Examples of such multiple-access techniques include Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) systems, time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) systems, frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) systems, orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) systems, single carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) systems, time division synchronous code division multiple access (TD-SCDMA) systems, and Long Term Evolution (LTE). LTE/LTE-advanced is an enhanced set of mobile standards for the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) promulgated by the third generation partnership project (3 GPP). Narrowband (NB) internet of things (IoT) and enhanced machine type communication (eMTC) are an enhanced set for LTE for machine type communication.

The wireless communication network may include a number of Base Stations (BSs) that may support communication for a number of User Equipments (UEs). The UE may communicate with a Base Station (BS) via a downlink and an uplink. The downlink (or forward link) refers to the communication link from the BS to the UE, and the uplink (or reverse link) refers to the communication link from the UE to the BS. As will be described in more detail, a BS may be referred to as a node B, an evolved node B (eNB), a gNB, an Access Point (AP), a radio head, a Transmission and Reception Point (TRP), a New Radio (NR) BS, a 5G node B, and the like.

The above multiple access techniques have been employed in various telecommunications standards to provide a common protocol that enables different user devices to communicate at the urban, national, regional, and even global levels. The New Radio (NR), which may also be referred to as 5G, is an enhanced set for the LTE mobile standard promulgated by the third generation partnership project (3 GPP). NR is designed to better integrate with other open standards by improving spectral efficiency, reducing costs, improving services, utilizing new spectrum, and using Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) with Cyclic Prefix (CP) on the Downlink (DL) (CP-OFDM), CP-OFDM and/or SC-FDM on the Uplink (UL) (e.g., also known as discrete fourier transform spread OFDM (DFT-s-OFDM)), and support beamforming, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antenna technology, and carrier aggregation, thereby better supporting mobile broadband internet access.

Disclosure of Invention

In some aspects of the disclosure, a method of wireless communication by a User Equipment (UE) includes receiving a request from a network entity for a single hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for a plurality of HARQ processes. The method further includes transmitting single HARQ feedback to the network entity in response to receiving the request. The method further includes starting or restarting a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) HARQ Round Trip Time (RTT) timer for one of the HARQ processes based at least on the condition being met after the single HARQ feedback is transmitted.

In other aspects of the disclosure, a method of wireless communication by a network entity station includes transmitting a request for a single hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for a plurality of HARQ processes. The method further includes receiving a single HARQ feedback in response to the reception request. The method further comprises the steps of: after receiving the single HARQ feedback, scheduling data for one of the plurality of HARQ processes for a period of time is suppressed based at least on the satisfaction of the condition.

Other aspects of the disclosure relate to an apparatus for wireless communication by a User Equipment (UE) having a memory and one or more processors coupled to the memory. The processor(s) is configured to receive a request from a network entity for a single hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for a plurality of HARQ processes. The processor(s) is further configured to send single HARQ feedback to the network entity in response to receiving the request. The processor(s) is further configured to start or restart a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) HARQ Round Trip Time (RTT) timer for one of the HARQ processes based at least on the condition being met after transmitting the single HARQ feedback.

Other aspects relate to an apparatus for wireless communication by a network entity station having a memory and one or more processors coupled to the memory. The processor(s) is configured to send a request for a single hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for a plurality of HARQ processes. The processor(s) is also configured to receive single HARQ feedback in response to the reception request. The processor(s) is further configured to refrain from scheduling data for one of the HARQ processes for a period of time based at least on the condition being met after receiving the single HARQ feedback.

Aspects generally include a method, apparatus, system, computer program product, non-transitory computer readable medium, user device, base station, wireless communication device, and processing system substantially as described with reference to and as illustrated by the accompanying drawings and description.

The foregoing has outlined rather broadly the features and technical advantages of examples in accordance with the present disclosure in order that the detailed description that follows may be better understood. Additional features and advantages will be described. The disclosed concepts and specific examples may be readily utilized as a basis for modifying or designing other structures for carrying out the same purposes of the present disclosure. Such equivalent constructions do not depart from the scope of the appended claims. The features of the disclosed concepts, both as to their organization and method of operation, together with associated advantages will be better understood from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying figures. Each of the figures is provided for the purpose of illustration and description and is not intended as a definition of the limits of the claims.

Drawings

So that the manner in which the features of the disclosure can be understood in detail, a particular description may be had by reference to various aspects, some of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. It is to be noted, however, that the appended drawings illustrate only certain aspects of this disclosure and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope, for the description may admit to other equally effective aspects. The same reference numbers in different drawings may identify the same or similar elements.

Fig. 1 is a block diagram conceptually illustrating an example of a wireless communication system in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

Fig. 2 is a block diagram conceptually illustrating an example of a base station communicating with a User Equipment (UE) in a wireless communication network in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

Fig. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an example exploded base station architecture in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure.

Fig. 4 is a timing diagram illustrating a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) process.

Fig. 5 is a timing diagram illustrating a single HARQ process with an active timer in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

Fig. 6 is a timing diagram illustrating a single HARQ process with a Round Trip Time (RTT) timer started when an active timer is not running, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

Fig. 7 is a flow chart illustrating an example process performed, for example, by a User Equipment (UE), in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

Fig. 8 is a flow chart illustrating an example process performed, for example, by a network entity, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

Detailed Description

Various aspects of the present disclosure are described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings. This disclosure may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to any specific structure or function presented throughout this disclosure. Rather, these aspects are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the disclosure to those skilled in the art. Based on the teachings, one skilled in the art should recognize that the scope of this disclosure is intended to cover any aspect of this disclosure, whether implemented independently of or in combination with any other aspect of this disclosure. For example, an apparatus may be implemented or a method may be practiced using any number of the aspects set forth. Furthermore, the scope of the present disclosure is intended to cover such an apparatus or method that may be practiced using other structures, functions, or structures and functions in addition to or other than the various aspects of the present disclosure set forth. It should be understood that any aspect of the disclosed disclosure may be embodied by one or more elements of the claims.

Several aspects of a telecommunications system will now be presented with reference to various apparatus and techniques. These devices and techniques will be described in the following detailed description with various blocks, modules, components, circuits, steps, processes, algorithms, etc. (collectively referred to as "elements") and are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. These elements may be implemented using hardware, software, or a combination thereof. Whether such elements are implemented as hardware or software depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system.

It should be noted that while aspects may be described using terms commonly associated with 5G and later wireless technologies, aspects of the present disclosure may be applied to other generation-based communication systems, such as and including 3G and/or 4G technologies.

Hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) processing improves communication reliability by acknowledging and negative acknowledging packets sent across a wireless communication medium. If the receiver successfully decodes the packet, the receiver sends an Acknowledgement (ACK) to the sender to prove receipt. If the receiver did not successfully decode the packet, the receiver sends a Negative Acknowledgement (NACK). Upon receiving a NACK, the sender may retransmit the packet to increase the chance of successful decoding at the receiver. Multiple HARQ processes may run in parallel for different data packets. For example, sixteen processes may run in parallel.

The Medium Access Control (MAC) layer of the protocol stack manages HARQ processes. Currently, the MAC entity starts and stops various timers during the HARQ process. For example, when a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) indicates a downlink transmission, a Round Trip Time (RTT) timer starts. The RTT timer controls a minimum duration after a User Equipment (UE) transmits HARQ feedback, before a downlink assignment intended by a MAC entity for HARQ retransmission. Thus, the RTT timer may allow the UE to employ power saving techniques during this time.

In NR-U (new radio operating in unlicensed or shared spectrum), a UE may receive a PDCCH without any downlink data transmission, e.g., a Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH), but it includes a single (one shot) HARQ-ACK request. A single HARQ-ACK request triggers a single (also referred to as type 3) HARQ feedback. The single HARQ feedback once includes HARQ-ACK information for all HARQ processes.

Aspects of the present disclosure address options for UE behavior, such as which HARQ processes should start or restart RTT timers when a UE receives a single HARQ feedback request.

In some aspects of the disclosure, the UE starts or restarts the RTT timer in a first symbol after the end of a corresponding transmission carrying downlink HARQ feedback. In some aspects of the disclosure, if the RTT timer is already running, the RTT timer is started or restarted for the HARQ process. In other aspects, the RTT timer is started or restarted for the HARQ process if the retransmission timer is already running. If the RTT timer is started or restarted due to the retransmission timer being run, the UE stops the retransmission timer.

According to aspects of the present disclosure, the UE starts or restarts the RTT timer for the HARQ process for a preconfigured duration (e.g., a gap) after the retransmission timer expires. According to a further aspect of the disclosure, the UE starts or restarts the RTT timer for the HARQ process when the active timer is not running. The activity timer defines a period of time for when the HARQ process is active.

In a still further aspect of the present disclosure, if the HARQ buffer for the HARQ process is not empty, the UE starts or restarts the RTT timer for this process. According to a further aspect of the present disclosure, for a single HARQ feedback request, the UE starts or restarts an RTT timer for a HARQ process including Downlink Control Information (DCI).

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a network 100 in which aspects of the present disclosure may be practiced. The network 100 may be a 5G or NR network, or some other wireless network, such as an LTE network. Wireless network 100 may include a number of BSs 110 (shown as BS110a, BS110b, BS110c, and BS110 d) and other network entities. A BS is an entity that communicates with User Equipment (UE) and may also be referred to as a base station, NR BS, node B, gNB, 5G node B, access point, transmission and Reception Point (TRP), etc. Each BS may provide communication coverage for a particular geographic area. In 3GPP, the term "cell" can refer to a coverage area of a BS and/or a BS subsystem serving this coverage area, depending on the context in which the term is used.

The BS may provide communication coverage for a macrocell, a picocell, a femtocell, and/or another type of cell. A macro cell may cover a relatively large geographic area (e.g., several kilometers in radius) and may allow unrestricted access by UEs with service subscription. The pico cell may cover a relatively small geographic area and may allow unrestricted access by UEs with service subscription. A femto cell may cover a relatively small geographic area (e.g., a residence) and may allow restricted access by UEs associated with the femto cell (e.g., UEs in a Closed Subscriber Group (CSG)). The BS for the macro cell may be referred to as a macro BS. The BS for the pico cell may be referred to as a pico BS. The BS for the femto cell may be referred to as a femto BS or a home BS. In the example shown in fig. 1, BS110a may be a macro BS for macro cell 102a, BS110b may be a pico BS for pico cell 102b, and BS110c may be a femto BS for femto cell 102 c. The BS may support one or more (e.g., three) cells. The terms "eNB," "base station," "NR BS," "gNB," "AP," "node B," "5G NB," and "cell" may be used interchangeably herein.

In some aspects, the cells are not necessarily stationary, and the geographic area of the cells may move according to the location of the mobile BS. In some aspects, BSs may be interconnected to each other and/or to one or more other BSs or network nodes (not shown) in the wireless network 100 through various types of backhaul interfaces (such as direct physical connections, virtual networks, etc.) using any suitable transport network.

The wireless network 100 may also include relay stations. A relay station is an entity that can receive a transmission of data from an upstream station (e.g., a BS or UE) and send the transmission of data to a downstream station (e.g., a UE or BS). The relay station may also be a UE that may relay transmissions for other UEs. In the example shown in fig. 1, relay station 110d may communicate with macro BS110a and UE 120d in order to facilitate communication between BS110a and UE 120 d. The relay station may also be referred to as a relay BS, a relay base station, a relay, etc.

The wireless network 100 may be a heterogeneous network including different types of BSs (e.g., macro BS, pico BS, femto BS, relay BS, etc.). These different types of BSs may have different transmit power levels, different coverage areas, and different effects on interference in the wireless network 100. For example, a macro BS may have a high transmit power level (e.g., 5 to 40 watts), while pico BSs, femto BSs, and relay BSs may have lower transmit power levels (e.g., 0.1 to 2 watts).

As an example, BS110 (shown as BS110a, BS110b, BS110c, and BS110 d) and core network 130 may exchange communications via backhaul link 132 (e.g., S1, etc.). Base stations 110 may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., through core network 130) over other backhaul links (e.g., X2, etc.).

The core network 130 may be an Evolved Packet Core (EPC) that may include at least one Mobility Management Entity (MME), at least one serving gateway (S-GW), and at least one Packet Data Network (PDN) gateway (P-GW). The MME may be a control node that handles signaling between the UE 120 and the EPC. All user IP packets may be transported through the S-GW, which itself may be connected to the P-GW. The P-GW may provide IP address assignment as well as other functions. The P-GW may connect to IP services of the network operator. The operator's IP services may include internet, intranet, IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) and Packet Switched (PS) streaming services.

The core network 130 may provide user authentication, access authorization, tracking, IP connectivity, and other access, routing, or mobility functions. One or more of the base station 110 or Access Node Controllers (ANC) may be connected with the core network 130 through a backhaul link 132 (e.g., S1, S2, etc.), and may perform radio configuration and scheduling for communications with the UE 120. In some configurations, the various functions of each access network entity or base station 110 may be distributed across various network devices (e.g., radio heads and access network controllers) or incorporated into a single network device (e.g., base station 110).

UEs 120 (e.g., 120a, 120b, 120 c) may be dispersed throughout wireless network 100, and each UE may be stationary or mobile. A UE may also be called an access terminal, mobile station, subscriber unit, station, etc. The UE may be a cellular telephone (e.g., a smart phone), a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a wireless modem, a wireless communication device, a handheld device, a laptop computer, a cordless phone, a Wireless Local Loop (WLL) station, a tablet device, a camera, a gaming device, a netbook, a smartbook, a superbook, a medical device or equipment, a biometric sensor/device, a wearable device (smart watch, smart garment, smart glasses, smart wristband, smart jewelry (e.g., smart finger ring, smart bracelet, etc.), an entertainment device (e.g., music or video device, or satellite radio, etc.), a vehicle component or sensor, smart meter/sensor, industrial manufacturing equipment, a global positioning system device, or any other suitable device configured to communicate via a wireless or wired medium.

One or more UEs 120 may establish a Protocol Data Unit (PDU) session for a network slice. In some cases, UE 120 may select a network slice based on an application or subscription service. By having different network slices serve different applications or subscriptions, UE 120 may improve its resource utilization in wireless network 100 while also meeting the performance specifications of the various applications of UE 120. In some cases, the network slices used by UE 120 may be served by an AMF (not shown in fig. 1) associated with one or both of base station 110 or core network 130. Further, session management of network slices may be performed by an access and mobility management function (AMF).

UE 120 may include RTT timer setting module 140. For simplicity, only one UE 120d including RTT timer setting module 140 is shown. The RTT timer setting module 140 may receive a request for a single hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for a plurality of HARQ processes from a base station. The RTT timer setting module 140 may also transmit single HARQ feedback to the base station in response to the reception request. The RTT timer setting module 140 may also start or restart a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) HARQ Round Trip Time (RTT) timer for one of the HARQ processes based at least on the condition being satisfied after the single HARQ feedback is transmitted.

The base station 110 may include an RTT timer setting module 138. For simplicity, only one base station 110a including RTT timer setting module 138 is shown. The RTT timer setting module 138 may transmit a request for a single hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for a plurality of HARQ processes to a User Equipment (UE). The RTT timer setting module 138 may also receive single HARQ feedback from the UE in response to the reception request. The RTT timer setting module 138 may refrain from scheduling data for the UE for a period of time for one of the HARQ processes based at least on the condition being met after receiving the single HARQ feedback.

Some UEs may be considered Machine Type Communication (MTC) or evolved or enhanced machine type communication (eMTC) UEs. For example, MTC and eMTC UEs include robots, drones, remote devices, sensors, meters, monitors, location tags, etc. that may communicate with a base station, another device (e.g., a remote device), or some other entity. The wireless node may provide a connection to or to a network (e.g., a wide area network such as the internet or a cellular network), for example, via a wired or wireless communication link. Some UEs may be considered internet of things (IoT) devices and/or may be implemented as NB-IoT (narrowband internet of things) devices. Some UEs may be considered Customer Premises Equipment (CPE). UE 120 may be included inside a housing that houses components of UE 120 (such as processor components, memory components, etc.).

In general, any number of wireless networks may be deployed in a given geographic area. Each wireless network may support a particular Radio Access Technology (RAT) and may operate on one or more frequencies. A RAT may also be referred to as a radio technology, an air interface, etc. The frequency may also be referred to as a carrier wave, a frequency channel, etc. Each frequency may support a single RAT in a given geographical area in order to avoid interference between wireless networks of different RATs. In some cases, NR or 5G RAT networks may be deployed.

In some aspects, two or more UEs 120 (e.g., shown as UE 120a and UE 120 e) may communicate directly with each other using one or more side-uplink channels (e.g., without using base station 110 as an intermediary device). For example, UE 120 may communicate using peer-to-peer (P2P) communication, device-to-device (D2D) communication, a vehicle networking (V2X) protocol (e.g., which may include a vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) protocol, a vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) protocol, etc.), a mesh network, and so forth. In this case, UE 120 may perform scheduling operations, resource selection operations, and/or other operations described elsewhere as being performed by base station 110. For example, base station 110 may configure UE 120 via Downlink Control Information (DCI), radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling, medium access control-control elements (MAC-CEs), or via system information (e.g., a System Information Block (SIB)).

As indicated above, fig. 1 is provided by way of example only. Other examples may differ from the example described with reference to fig. 1.

Fig. 2 shows a block diagram of a design 200 of base station 110 and UE 120 (which may be one of the base stations and one of the UEs in fig. 1). Base station 110 may be equipped with T antennas 234a through 234T, and UE 120 may be equipped with R antennas 252a through 252R, where typically T is 1 and R is 1.

At base station 110, transmit processor 220 may receive data for one or more UEs from data source 212, select one or more Modulation and Coding Schemes (MCSs) for each UE based at least in part on a Channel Quality Indicator (CQI) received from the UE, process (e.g., encode and modulate) the data for each UE based at least in part on the MCS(s) selected for the UE, and provide data symbols for all UEs. Lowering the MCS reduces throughput but increases the reliability of the transmission. Transmit processor 220 may also process system information (e.g., for semi-Static Resource Partitioning Information (SRPI), etc.) and control information (e.g., CQI requests, grants, upper layer signaling, etc.), as well as provide overhead symbols and control symbols. The transmit processor 220 may also generate reference symbols for reference signals (e.g., cell-specific reference signals (CRSs)) and synchronization signals (e.g., primary Synchronization Signals (PSS) and Secondary Synchronization Signals (SSS)). A Transmit (TX) multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) processor 230 may perform spatial processing (e.g., precoding) on the data symbols, the control symbols, the overhead symbols, and/or the reference symbols, if applicable, and may provide T output symbol streams to T Modulators (MODs) 232a through 232T. Each modulator 232 may process a respective output symbol stream (e.g., for OFDM, etc.) to obtain an output sample stream. Each modulator 232 may also process (e.g., convert to analog, amplify, filter, and upconvert) the output sample stream to obtain a downlink signal. The T downlink signals from modulators 232a through 232T may be transmitted via T antennas 234a through 234T, respectively. According to various aspects described in greater detail below, position encoding may be utilized to generate synchronization signals to convey additional information.

At UE 120, antennas 252a through 252r may receive the downlink signals from base station 110 and/or other base stations and may provide received signals to demodulators (DEMODs) 254a through 254r, respectively. Each demodulator 254 may condition (e.g., filter, amplify, downconvert, and digitize) a received signal to obtain input samples. Each demodulator 254 may further process the input samples (e.g., for OFDM, etc.) to obtain received symbols. MIMO detector 256 may obtain received symbols from all R demodulators 254a through 254R, perform MIMO detection on the received symbols (if applicable), and provide detected symbols. Receive processor 258 may process (e.g., demodulate and decode) the detected symbols, provide decoded data for UE 120 to a data sink 260, and provide decoded control information and system information to controller/processor 280. The channel processor may determine a Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP), a Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI), a Reference Signal Received Quality (RSRQ), a Channel Quality Index (CQI), etc. In some aspects, one or more components of UE 120 may be included in a housing.

On the uplink, at UE 120, transmit processor 264 may receive and process data from data source 262 and control information from controller/processor 280 (e.g., for reports including RSRP, RSSI, RSRQ, CQI, etc.). Transmit processor 264 may also generate reference symbols for one or more reference signals. The symbols from transmit processor 264 may be precoded by a TX MIMO processor 266 if applicable, further processed by modulators 254a through 254r (e.g., for DFT-s-OFDM, CP-OFDM, etc.), and transmitted to base station 110. At base station 110, uplink signals from UE 120 and other UEs may be received by antennas 234, processed by demodulators 254, detected by a MIMO detector 236 (if applicable), and further processed by a receive processor 238 to obtain decoded data and control information sent by UE 120. The receive processor 238 may provide the decoded data to a data sink 239 and the decoded control information to a controller/processor 240. The base station 110 may include a communication unit 244 and communicate with the core network 130 via the communication unit 244. The core network 130 may include a communication unit 294, a controller/processor 290, and a memory 292.

The controller/processor 240 of the base station 110, the controller/processor 280 of the UE 120, and/or any other component(s) of fig. 2 may perform one or more techniques associated with RTT timer settings, as described in more detail elsewhere. For example, controller/processor 240 of base station 110, controller/processor 280 of UE 120, and/or any other component(s) of fig. 2 may perform or direct operations of, for example, the processes of fig. 7 and 8 and/or other processes described. Memories 242 and 282 may store data and program codes for base station 110 and UE 120, respectively. The scheduler 246 may schedule UEs for data transmission on the downlink and/or uplink.

In some aspects, UE 120 and/or base station 110 may include means for receiving, means for transmitting, means for initiating, means for restarting, and means for suppressing. Such units may include one or more components of UE 120 or base station 110 described in connection with fig. 2.

As indicated above, fig. 2 is provided by way of example only. Other examples may differ from the example described with reference to fig. 2.

Deployment of a communication system, such as a 5G New Radio (NR) system, may be arranged in different ways with various components or parts. In a 5G NR system or network, network nodes, network entities, mobility elements of the network, radio Access Network (RAN) nodes, core network nodes, network elements, or network devices, such as a Base Station (BS) or one or more units (or one or more components) performing base station functions, may be implemented in an aggregated or decomposed architecture. For example, BSs, such as Node BS (NB), evolved NB (eNB), NR BS, 5G NB, access Points (APs), transmission and Reception Points (TRP) or cells, etc., may be implemented as an aggregated base station (also referred to as a standalone BS or a monolithic BS) or a decomposed base station.

The aggregated base station may be configured to utilize a radio protocol stack that is physically or logically integrated within a single RAN node. An decomposed base station may be configured to utilize a protocol stack that is physically or logically distributed among two or more units, such as one or more central or Centralized Units (CUs), one or more Distributed Units (DUs), or one or more Radio Units (RUs). In some aspects, a CU may be implemented within a RAN node, and one or more DUs may be co-located with the CU, or alternatively, may be geographically or virtually distributed throughout one or more other RAN nodes. A DU may be implemented to communicate with one or more RUs. Each of the CUs, DUs, and RUs may also be implemented as virtual units (i.e., virtual Central Units (VCUs), virtual Distributed Units (VDUs), or Virtual Radio Units (VRUs)).

Base station type operation or network design may take into account the aggregate nature of the base station functions. For example, the split base station may be utilized in an Integrated Access Backhaul (IAB) network, an open radio access network (O-RAN, such as a network configuration advocated by the O-RAN alliance), or a virtualized radio access network (vRAN, also referred to as a cloud radio access network (C-RAN)), the split may include distributing functionality across two or more elements at various physical locations, and virtually distributing functionality for at least one element, which may enable flexibility in network design.

Fig. 3 shows a schematic diagram illustrating an example split base station 300 architecture. The split base station 300 architecture may include one or more Central Units (CUs) 310 that may communicate directly with the core network 320 via a backhaul link, or indirectly with the core network 320 through one or more split base station units, such as near real-time (near RT) RAN Intelligent Controllers (RIC) 325 via E2 links, or non-real-time (non RT) RIC 315 associated with a Service Management and Orchestration (SMO) framework 305, or both. CU 310 may communicate with one or more Distributed Units (DUs) 330 via respective intermediate links, such as an F1 interface. DU 330 may communicate with one or more Radio Units (RUs) 340 via respective forward links. RU 340 may communicate with respective UEs 120 via one or more Radio Frequency (RF) access links. In some implementations, UE 120 may be served by multiple RUs 340 simultaneously.

Each of the units (e.g., CU 310, DU 330, RU 340, and near RT RIC 325, non-RT RIC 315, and SMO framework 305) may include or be coupled to one or more interfaces configured to receive or transmit signals, data, or information (collectively referred to as signals) via wired or wireless transmission media. Each of the units or an associated processor or controller providing instructions to a communication interface of the unit may be configured to communicate with one or more of the other units via a transmission medium. For example, a unit may include a wired interface configured to receive or transmit signals over a wired transmission medium to one or more of the other units. Further, a unit may include a wireless interface that may include a receiver, transmitter, or transceiver (such as a Radio Frequency (RF) transceiver) configured to receive or transmit signals over a wireless transmission medium to one or more of the other units, or to receive and transmit signals.

In some aspects, CU 310 may host one or more higher layer control functions. Such control functions may include Radio Resource Control (RRC), packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP), service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP), etc. Each control function may be implemented using an interface configured to communicate signals having other control functions hosted by CU 310. CU 310 may be configured to handle user plane functions (e.g., central unit-user plane (CU-UP)), control plane functions (e.g., central unit-control plane (CU-CP)), or a combination thereof. In some implementations, CU 310 may be logically divided into one or more CU-UP units and one or more CU-CP units. When implemented in an O-RAN configuration, the CU-UP unit may communicate bi-directionally with the CU-CP unit via an interface, such as an E1 interface. CU 310 may be implemented to communicate with DU 330 for network control and signaling as desired.

DU 330 may correspond to a logic unit that includes one or more base station functions for controlling the operation of one or more RUs 340. In some aspects, DU 330 may host one or more of a Radio Link Control (RLC) layer, a Medium Access Control (MAC) layer, and one or more high Physical (PHY) layers, such as modules for Forward Error Correction (FEC) encoding and decoding, scrambling, modulation and demodulation, etc., depending at least in part on a functional partitioning, such as that defined by the third generation partnership project (3 GPP). In some aspects, DU 330 may also host one or more lower PHY layers. Each layer (or module) may be implemented with an interface configured to communicate signals with other layers (and modules) hosted by DU 330 or communicate signals having control functions hosted by CU 310.

Lower layer functions may be implemented by one or more RUs 340. In some deployments, RU 340 controlled by DU 330 may correspond to a logical node that hosts RF processing functions or lower PHY layer functions (such as performing Fast Fourier Transforms (FFTs), inverse FFTs (iffts), digital beamforming, physical Random Access Channel (PRACH) extraction and filtering, etc.) or both based at least in part on functional partitions (such as lower layer functional partitions). In such an architecture, RU(s) 340 may be implemented to handle over-the-air (OTA) communications with one or more UEs 120. In some implementations, the real-time and non-real-time aspects of control and user plane communications with RU(s) 340 can be controlled by respective DUs 330. In some scenarios, this configuration may enable DU(s) 330 and CU 310 to be implemented in a cloud-based RAN architecture (such as vRAN architecture).

SMO framework 305 may be configured to support RAN deployment and provisioning (provisioning) of non-virtualized network elements and virtualized network elements. For non-virtualized network elements, SMO framework 305 may be configured to support deployment of dedicated physical resources for RAN coverage requirements, which may be managed via an operation and maintenance interface (such as an O1 interface). For virtualized network elements, SMO framework 305 may be configured to interact with a cloud computing platform, such as open cloud (O-cloud) 390, to perform network element lifecycle management (such as to instantiate the virtualized network elements) via a cloud computing platform interface, such as an O2 interface. Such virtualized network elements may include, but are not limited to, CU 310, DU 330, RU 340, and near RT RIC 325. In some implementations, SMO framework 305 may communicate with hardware aspects of the 4G RAN, such as open eNB (O-eNB) 311, via an O1 interface. Further, in some implementations SMO framework 305 may communicate directly with one or more RUs 340 via an O1 interface. SMO framework 305 may also include a non-RT RIC 315 configured to support the functionality of SMO framework 305.

The non-RT RIC 315 may be configured to include logic functions that enable non-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources, artificial intelligence/machine learning (AI/ML) workflows (including model training and updating), or policy-based guidance of applications/functions in the near-RT RIC 325. The non-RT RIC 315 may be coupled or in communication with the near RT RIC 325 (such as via an A1 interface). Near RT RIC 325 may be configured to include logic functions that enable near real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources via data collection and actions over interfaces (e.g., via E2 interfaces) connecting one or more CUs 310, one or more DUs 330, or both, and O-enbs 311 with near RT RIC 325.

In some implementations, to generate the AI/ML model to be deployed in the near RT RIC 325, the non-RT RIC 315 may receive parameters or external rich (enrichment) information from an external server. Such information may be utilized by near RT RIC 325 and may be received at SMO framework 305 or non-RT RIC 315 from a non-network data source or from a network function. In some examples, the non-RT RIC 315 or near-RT RIC 325 may be configured to tune RAN behavior or performance. For example, the non-RT RIC 315 may monitor long-term trends and patterns for performance and employ AI/ML models to perform corrective actions through SMO framework 305 (such as via reconfiguration of O1) or via creation of RAN management policies (such as A1 policies).

Hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) processing improves communication reliability by acknowledging and negative acknowledging packets sent across a wireless communication medium. If the receiver successfully decodes the packet, the receiver sends an Acknowledgement (ACK) to the sender to prove receipt. If the receiver did not successfully decode the packet, the receiver sends a Negative Acknowledgement (NACK). Upon receiving a NACK, the sender may retransmit the packet to increase the chance of successful decoding at the receiver. Multiple HARQ processes may run in parallel for different data packets. For example, sixteen processes may run in parallel.

The Medium Access Control (MAC) layer of the protocol stack manages HARQ processes. Currently, the MAC entity starts and stops various timers during the HARQ process. For example, a Round Trip Time (RTT) timer (e.g., drx-HARQ-RTT-TimerDL) may be started when a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) indicates a downlink transmission. A Round Trip Time (RTT) timer (e.g., drx-HARQ-RTT-TimerDL) controls the minimum duration after the UE sends the HARQ feedback before a downlink assignment intended by the MAC entity for HARQ retransmission. The RTT timer is based on each downlink HARQ process. The RTT timer allows the UE to employ power saving techniques during this time. For example, the UE may sleep when a timer is running.

Fig. 4 is a timing diagram illustrating a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) process. At time t0, the UE receives a control channel (e.g., PDCCH) indicating a Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH). For example, the UE may receive a DCI message scheduling a downlink assignment on the PDSCH. At time t1, the UE receives PDSCH. After failing to decode the PDSCH, the UE sends a NACK (e.g., via a Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) or a Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH)) at time t 2. The UE starts an RTT timer after transmitting NACK. When the RTT timer runs, the UE may enter a sleep mode during this particular HARQ process. After expiration of the RTT timer, the UE wakes up from a sleep mode to receive a retransmission (ReTx) at time t3, and the retransmission timer starts. The retransmission timer is based on each downlink HARQ process. The retransmission timer may specify a maximum duration until a downlink retransmission is received. That is, the retransmission timer specifies the number of time slots that the UE remains active after the first available retransmission time to wait for an incoming retransmission. At time t4, the UE receives a retransmission.

Operations in the unlicensed spectrum and the shared spectrum include alternative solutions for HARQ processing. In NR-U (new radio operating in shared spectrum), the UE may receive PDCCH without any downlink data transmission, but it includes a single HARQ-ACK request. A single HARQ-ACK request triggers a single (also referred to as type 3) HARQ feedback. For type 3HARQ feedback, if the UE is provided with the parameters PDSCH-HARQ-ACK-OneShotFeedback and detects a DCI format in any PDCCH monitoring occasion including a single HARQ-ACK request field with a value of 1, the UE may include HARQ-ACK information in a type 3HARQ-ACK codebook for all HARQ processes.

As described above, when single HARQ feedback is used, the UE transmits HARQ results (e.g., ACK or NACK) for all HARQ processes. Note that the UE sets feedback for HARQ processes without data transmission to NACK.

It would be desirable to define whether an RTT timer (e.g., drx-HARQ-RTT-TimerDL) should be started when the UE receives a single HARQ feedback request. As described above, since the UE sleeps for the entire procedure, a single feedback is for the entire procedure, and thus the UE can be prevented from receiving any signal. Aspects of the present disclosure address options for UE behavior, such as which HARQ processes should start or restart RTT timers.

In some aspects of the disclosure, the UE starts or restarts an RTT timer (e.g., drx-HARQ-RTT-TimerDL) in a first symbol after the end of the corresponding transmission carrying the downlink HARQ feedback. In other aspects, for a single HARQ feedback, the active HARQ feedback is counted as the corresponding transmission carrying the downlink HARQ feedback. That is, the NACK sent in response to no transmission of data does not trigger the RTT timer.

In some aspects of the disclosure, if an RTT timer (e.g., drx-HARQ-RTT-TimerDL) is already running, the RTT timer is started or restarted for the HARQ process. For example, the RTT timer may run for a previous HARQ feedback transmission that is not a single HARQ feedback. In other aspects, the RTT timer is not started for any other HARQ process.

In other aspects, if a retransmission timer (e.g., drx-RetransmissionTimerDL) is already running, the RTT timer is started or restarted for the HARQ process. In other aspects, the RTT timer is not started for any other HARQ process. If the RTT timer is started or restarted due to the running retransmission timer, the UE stops the retransmission timer (e.g., drx-RetransmissionTimerDL) because both timers should not run at the same time. In a further aspect, if an RTT timer (e.g., drx-HARQ-RTT-TimerDL) or a retransmission timer (e.g., drx-RetransmissionTimerDL) is currently running, the UE starts or restarts the RTT timer for the HARQ process. In other aspects, the RTT timer is not started for any other HARQ process. Again, in this case, if the retransmission timer is running, the UE stops the retransmission timer (e.g., drx-RetransmissionTimerDL).

According to aspects of the disclosure, the UE starts or restarts the RTT timer for the HARQ process a preconfigured duration (e.g., a gap) after expiration of a retransmission timer (e.g., drx-RetransmissionTimerDL). The base station may configure the gap length during RRC signaling. In some aspects, the gap is 10ms. The UE may determine whether the retransmission timer expires within this duration in order to start or restart the RTT timer. The UE may restart the RTT timer after the gap, e.g., 10ms after expiration of the retransmission timer.

According to a further aspect of the disclosure, the UE starts or restarts the RTT timer for the HARQ process when the active timer is not running. In some aspects, when data for a HARQ process is received, an active timer is started for the process. Fig. 5 is a timing diagram illustrating a single HARQ process with an active timer in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. At t0, the UE receives a PDCCH type 3 request. For example, the UE receives a DCI message including a single HARQ-ACK request. At time t1, the UE receives PDSCH and starts an active timer. The activity timer defines a period of time for when the HARQ process is active. A timer is started every time data is received on the HARQ process, e.g. 50ms. When the activity timer expires, the HARQ process is considered to be no longer in use. Although not shown in fig. 5, the active timer may be started when the UE transmits HARQ feedback (e.g., at time t 2) rather than when the incoming PDSCH is received (e.g., at time t 1). At time t3, the UE receives a retransmission.

Fig. 6 is a timing diagram illustrating a single HARQ process with a Round Trip Time (RTT) timer started when an active timer is not running, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. At t0, the UE receives a PDCCH type 3 request. For example, the UE receives a DCI message including a single HARQ-ACK request. At time t1, the UE receives PDSCH. In this example, the UE does not start an active timer. At time t2, the UE sends HARQ feedback and determines that the active timer is not running. Thus, at time t2, the UE starts an RTT timer. At time t3, the UE receives a retransmission.

In a still further aspect of the present disclosure, if the HARQ buffer for the HARQ process is not empty, the UE starts or restarts the RTT timer for this process. This option may vary based on the UE implementation. For example, different UEs may have different reasons for flushing (flush) buffers, or different UEs may have different buffer sizes. In some UE implementations, the UE flushes the HARQ buffer once the packet is successfully received and delivered to the upper layer. The base station may not schedule any new retransmissions. In this case, the UE implementation may flush the buffer after waiting a certain time even if the packet is not successfully received. The particular time will depend on the implementation. In other aspects, the RTT timer is not started for any other HARQ process.

According to a still further aspect of the present disclosure, for a single HARQ feedback request, the UE starts or restarts an RTT timer for the HARQ process comprising DCI. That is, a single HARQ feedback request arrives via DCI and has a corresponding HARQ process. The DCI also includes a field for the HARQ process number. In these aspects of the disclosure, the UE starts an RTT timer for this particular HARQ process. In some aspects, the RTT timer is not started for any other HARQ process. In a further aspect, the UE starts or restarts the RTT timer for a certain HARQ process specified in the DCI. That is, the base station may request a single feedback for certain HARQ processes. In these aspects, a timer is started (or restarted) for these requested HARQ processes.

As indicated above, fig. 4-6 are provided by way of example only. Other examples may differ from the examples described with reference to fig. 4-6.

Fig. 7 is a flow chart illustrating an example process 700 performed, for example, by a User Equipment (UE), in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The example process 700 is an example of managing a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) timer for single HARQ feedback. The operations of process 700 may be implemented by UE 120.

At block 702, a User Equipment (UE) receives a request from a network entity station for a single hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for a plurality of HARQ processes. For example, the UE (e.g., using antenna 252, DEMOD/MOD 254, MIMO detector 256, receive processor 258, controller/processor 280, and/or memory 282) may receive the request. The single HARQ feedback may be a type 3HARQ feedback. At block 704, a User Equipment (UE) sends single HARQ feedback to a network entity in response to receiving the request. For example, the UE (e.g., using antenna 252, DEMOD/MOD 254, TX MIMO processor 256, transmit processor 264, controller/processor 280, and/or memory 282) may send feedback. The UE may start or restart an active timer in response to receiving data or in response to sending any HARQ feedback for one of the plurality of HARQ processes, the active timer defining a period of time when one of the plurality of HARQ processes is active.

At block 706, the User Equipment (UE) starts or restarts a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) HARQ Round Trip Time (RTT) timer for one of the HARQ processes based at least on the condition being met after transmitting the single HARQ feedback. For example, the UE (e.g., using the controller/processor 280, and/or the memory 282) may start or restart a Round Trip Timer (RTT). In some aspects, the starting or restarting occurs in a first symbol after transmission of the single HARQ feedback has been completed. In some aspects, the condition is satisfied when a single HARQ feedback is associated with receiving a transmission with data. In other aspects, the condition is satisfied when a DRX HARQ RTT timer is currently running for one of the HARQ processes. In yet other aspects, the condition is satisfied when the DRX retransmission timer is currently running for one of the processes. In still other aspects, the condition is satisfied for a preconfigured duration of time after expiration of one of the procedures at the DRX retransmission time. In yet other aspects, the condition is satisfied when the activity timer is not currently running for one of the processes. In some aspects, the condition is satisfied when the buffer for one of the HARQ processes contains data. In other aspects, the condition is satisfied when one of the HARQ processes includes Downlink Control Information (DCI) for a request for single HARQ feedback.

Fig. 8 is a flow chart illustrating an example process 800 performed, for example, by a wireless device, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The example process 800 is an example of managing hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) timers for single HARQ feedback. The operations of process 800 may be implemented by base station 110 or Distributed Units (DUs) 330 of base station 300.

At block 802, a network entity sends a request for a single hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for a plurality of HARQ processes. For example, a base station (e.g., using antenna 234, MOD/DEMOD 232, TX MIMO processor 230, transmit processor 220, controller/processor 240, and/or memory 242) may transmit the request. The single HARQ feedback may be a type 3HARQ feedback. At block 804, the network entity receives single HARQ feedback in response to the reception request. For example, the UE (e.g., using antenna 234, MOD/DEMOD 232, MIMO detector 236, receive processor 238, controller/processor 240, and/or memory 242) may receive the feedback.

At block 806, the network entity refrains from scheduling data for one of the HARQ processes for a period of time based at least on the condition being met after receiving the single HARQ feedback. For example, the base station (e.g., using the controller/processor 240 and/or the memory 242) may refrain from scheduling data. In some aspects, the condition is satisfied when a single HARQ feedback is associated with receiving a transmission with data. In other aspects, the condition is met when a DRX HARQ RTT timer is currently running for one of the HARQ processes. In yet other aspects, the condition is met when the DRX retransmission timer is currently running for one of the processes. In still other aspects, the condition is satisfied for a preconfigured duration of time after expiration of one of the procedures at the DRX retransmission time. In yet other aspects, the condition is satisfied when the activity timer is not currently running for one of the processes. In some aspects, the condition is satisfied when the buffer for one of the HARQ processes contains data. In other aspects, the condition is satisfied when one of the HARQ processes includes Downlink Control Information (DCI) for a request for single HARQ feedback.

Example aspects

Aspect 1: a method of wireless communication by a User Equipment (UE), comprising: receiving a request for a single hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for a plurality of HARQ processes from a network entity; transmitting single HARQ feedback to the network entity in response to receiving the request; and starting or restarting a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) HARQ Round Trip Time (RTT) timer for one of the plurality of HARQ processes based at least on the condition being met after the single HARQ feedback is transmitted.

Aspect 2: the method according to aspect 1, wherein the starting or restarting occurs in a first symbol after transmission of the single HARQ feedback has been completed.

Aspect 3: the method according to aspect 1 or 2, wherein the condition is met when a single HARQ feedback is associated with receiving a downlink data transmission.

Aspect 4: the method according to any of the preceding aspects, wherein the condition is met when a DRX HARQ RTT timer is currently running for one of the plurality of HARQ processes.

Aspect 5: the method of any of the preceding aspects, wherein the condition is met when the DRX retransmission timer is currently running for one of a plurality of procedures, the method further comprising: the DRX retransmission timer for one of the multiple procedures is stopped.

Aspect 6: the method according to any of the preceding aspects, wherein the condition is met within a pre-configured duration after expiration of the DRX retransmission time for one of the multiple procedures.

Aspect 7: the method according to any of the preceding aspects, wherein the condition is met when an activity timer is not currently running for one of the plurality of processes, the activity timer defining when one of the plurality of HARQ processes is active.

Aspect 8: the method according to any of the preceding aspects, further comprising: an activity timer is started or restarted in response to receiving data or in response to sending any HARQ feedback for one of the plurality of HARQ processes, the activity timer defining a period of time when one of the plurality of HARQ processes is active.

Aspect 9: the method according to any of the preceding aspects, wherein the condition is met when a buffer for one of the plurality of HARQ processes contains data.

Aspect 10: the method according to any of the preceding aspects, wherein the condition is met when one of the plurality of HARQ processes comprises Downlink Control Information (DCI) for a request for a single HARQ feedback.

Aspect 11: the method according to any of the preceding aspects, wherein the condition is met when Downlink Control Information (DCI) specifies one of a plurality of HARQ processes for a single HARQ feedback.

Aspect 12: the method according to any of the preceding aspects, wherein the single HARQ feedback comprises type 3HARQ feedback.

Aspect 13: a method of wireless communication by a network entity, comprising: transmitting a request for a single hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for a plurality of HARQ processes; receiving a single HARQ feedback in response to the reception request; and refraining from scheduling data for a User Equipment (UE) for a period of time for one of the plurality of HARQ processes based at least on the condition being met after receiving the single HARQ feedback.

Aspect 14: the method of aspect 13, wherein the condition is met when a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) HARQ Round Trip Time (RTT) timer is currently running for one of the plurality of HARQ processes.

Aspect 15: the method of any of aspects 13-14, wherein the condition is satisfied when a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) retransmission timer is currently running for one of a plurality of procedures.

Aspect 16: the method of any of aspects 13-15, wherein the condition is satisfied for a preconfigured duration after a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) retransmission time expires for one of a plurality of procedures.

Aspect 17: the method according to any of the aspects 13-16, wherein the condition is met when an activity timer is not currently running for one of the plurality of processes, the activity timer defining when one of the plurality of HARQ processes is active.

Aspect 18: the method according to any of the claims 13-17, wherein the condition is met when a User Equipment (UE) buffer for one of the plurality of HARQ processes contains data.

Aspect 19: the method according to any of the aspects 13-18, wherein the condition is met when one of the plurality of HARQ processes comprises Downlink Control Information (DCI) for a request for single HARQ feedback.

Aspect 20: the method according to any of the claims 13-19, wherein the single HARQ feedback comprises type 3HARQ feedback.

Aspect 21: an apparatus for wireless communication by a User Equipment (UE), comprising: a memory; and at least one processor coupled to the memory, the at least one processor configured to: receiving a request for a single hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for a plurality of HARQ processes from a network entity; transmitting single HARQ feedback to the network entity in response to receiving the request; and starting or restarting a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) HARQ Round Trip Time (RTT) timer for one of the plurality of HARQ processes based at least on the condition being met after the single HARQ feedback is transmitted.

Aspect 22: the apparatus of aspect 21, wherein the at least one processor is configured to initiate or restart in a first symbol after transmission of the single HARQ feedback has been completed.

Aspect 23: the apparatus of claim 21 or 22, wherein the condition is satisfied when a single HARQ feedback is associated with receiving a downlink data transmission.

Aspect 24: the apparatus according to any of the claims 21-23, wherein the condition is met when a DRX HARQ RTT timer is currently running for one of the plurality of HARQ processes.

Aspect 25: the apparatus of any of claims 21-24, wherein the condition is met when the DRX retransmission timer is currently running for one of a plurality of procedures, the method further comprising: the DRX retransmission timer for one of the multiple procedures is stopped.

Aspect 26: the apparatus according to any of claims 21-25, wherein the condition is met for a preconfigured duration of time after expiration of a DRX retransmission time for one of a plurality of procedures.

Aspect 27: the apparatus of any of claims 21-26, wherein the condition is met when an activity timer is not currently running for one of the plurality of processes, the activity timer defining when one of the plurality of HARQ processes is active.

Aspect 28: the apparatus of any of claims 21-27, wherein the condition is satisfied when a buffer for one of the plurality of HARQ processes contains data.

Aspect 29: the apparatus of any of claims 21-28, wherein the condition is satisfied when one of the plurality of HARQ processes includes Downlink Control Information (DCI) for a request for single HARQ feedback.

Aspect 30: the apparatus of any of claims 21-29, wherein the single HARQ feedback comprises type 3HARQ feedback.

Aspect 31: an apparatus for wireless communication by a network entity station, comprising: a memory; and at least one processor coupled to the memory, the at least one processor configured to: transmitting a request for a single hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for a plurality of HARQ processes; receiving a single HARQ feedback in response to the reception request; and refraining from scheduling data for a User Equipment (UE) for a period of time for one of the plurality of HARQ processes based at least on the condition being met after receiving the single HARQ feedback.

Aspect 32: the apparatus of aspect 31, wherein the condition is met when a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) HARQ Round Trip Time (RTT) timer is currently running for one of the plurality of HARQ processes.

Aspect 33: the apparatus of aspect 31 or 32, wherein the condition is satisfied when a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) retransmission timer is currently running for one of a plurality of procedures.

Aspect 34: the apparatus of any of aspects 31-33, wherein the condition is satisfied for a preconfigured duration after a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) retransmission time expires for one of a plurality of procedures.

Aspect 35: the apparatus of any of aspects 31-34, wherein the condition is met when an activity timer is not currently running for one of the plurality of processes, the activity timer defining when one of the plurality of HARQ processes is active.

Aspect 36: the apparatus of any of claims 31-35, wherein the condition is satisfied when a User Equipment (UE) buffer for one of the plurality of HARQ processes contains data.

Aspect 37: the apparatus of any of claims 31-36, wherein the condition is met when one of the plurality of HARQ processes includes Downlink Control Information (DCI) for a request for single HARQ feedback.

Aspect 38: the apparatus of any of aspects 31-37, wherein the single HARQ feedback comprises type 3HARQ feedback.

The foregoing disclosure provides illustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the aspects to the precise form disclosed. Modifications and variations are possible in light of the above disclosure or may be acquired from practice of the various aspects.

As used herein, the term "component" is intended to be broadly interpreted as hardware, firmware, and/or a combination of hardware and software. As used herein, a processor is implemented in hardware, firmware, and/or a combination of hardware and software.

Some aspects are described in connection with thresholds. As used, satisfying a threshold may refer to a value greater than a threshold, greater than or equal to a threshold, less than or equal to a threshold, not equal to a threshold, etc., depending on the context.

It will be apparent that the described systems and/or methods may be implemented in various forms of hardware, firmware, and/or combinations of hardware and software. The actual specialized control hardware or software code used to implement the systems and/or methods is not limited in scope by the various aspects. Thus, the operations and behavior of the systems and/or methods were described without reference to the specific software code-it being understood that software and hardware can be designed to implement the systems and/or methods based at least in part on the description.

Although specific combinations of features are recited in the claims and/or disclosed in the specification, such combinations are not intended to limit the disclosure of the various aspects. Indeed, many of these features may be combined in ways not specifically recited in the claims and/or disclosed in the specification. While each of the dependent claims listed below may depend directly on only one claim, the disclosure of the various aspects includes the various dependent claims in combination with each other claim in the set of claims. A phrase referring to "at least one of" a list of items refers to any combination of those items, including individual members. As an example, "at least one of a, b, or c" is intended to cover a, b, c, a-b, a-c, b-c, and a-b-c, as well as any combination having multiples of the same element (e.g., a-a-a, a-a-b, a-a-c, a-b-b, a-c-c, b-b-b, b-c, c-c, and c-c-c, or any other ordering of a, b, and c).

No element, act, or instruction used should be construed as critical or essential unless explicitly described as such. Furthermore, as used, the articles "a" and "an" are intended to include one or more items, and may be used interchangeably with "one or more. Furthermore, as used herein, the terms "set" and "group" are intended to include one or more items (e.g., related items, unrelated items, combinations of related and unrelated items, etc.), and can be used interchangeably with "one or more. Where only one item is intended, the phrase "only one" or similar language is used. Further, as used, the terms "having", and the like are intended to be open terms. Further, the phrase "based on" is intended to mean "based, at least in part, on" unless explicitly stated otherwise.

Claims (30)

1. A method of wireless communication by a User Equipment (UE), comprising:

Receiving a request for a single hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for a plurality of HARQ processes from a network entity;

in response to receiving the request, sending the single HARQ feedback to the network entity; and

After transmitting the single HARQ feedback, a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) HARQ Round Trip Time (RTT) timer for one of the plurality of HARQ processes is started or restarted based at least on a condition being met.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the starting or restarting occurs in a first symbol after transmission of the single HARQ feedback has been completed.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the condition is satisfied when the single HARQ feedback is associated with receiving a downlink data transmission.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the condition is met when the DRX HARQ RTT timer is currently running for the one of the plurality of HARQ processes.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the condition is met when a DRX retransmission timer is currently running for the one of the plurality of procedures, the method further comprising: the DRX retransmission timer for the one of the plurality of procedures is stopped.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the condition is met within a preconfigured duration of time after a DRX retransmission time expires for the one of the plurality of procedures.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the condition is satisfied when an activity timer is not currently running for the one of the plurality of processes, the activity timer defining when the one of the plurality of HARQ processes is active.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising: an activity timer is started or restarted in response to receiving data or in response to sending any HARQ feedback for said one of the plurality of HARQ processes, said activity timer defining a period of time when said one of the plurality of HARQ processes is active.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the condition is satisfied when a buffer for the one of the plurality of HARQ processes contains data.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the condition is satisfied when the one of the plurality of HARQ processes includes Downlink Control Information (DCI) for the request for single HARQ feedback.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the condition is satisfied when Downlink Control Information (DCI) specifies that the one of the plurality of HARQ processes is for a single HARQ feedback.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the single HARQ feedback comprises type 3HARQ feedback.

13. A method of wireless communication by a network entity, comprising:

Transmitting a request for a single hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for a plurality of HARQ processes;

receiving the single HARQ feedback in response to receiving the request; and

After receiving the single HARQ feedback, refraining from scheduling data for a User Equipment (UE) for a period of time for one of the plurality of HARQ processes based at least on a condition being met.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the condition is met when a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) HARQ Round Trip Time (RTT) timer is currently running for the one of the plurality of HARQ processes.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the condition is satisfied when a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) retransmission timer is currently running for the one of the plurality of processes.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein the condition is satisfied for a preconfigured duration of time after a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) retransmission time expires for the one of the plurality of processes.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein the condition is satisfied when an activity timer is not currently running for the one of the plurality of processes, the activity timer defining when the one of the plurality of HARQ processes is active.

18. The method of claim 13, wherein the condition is satisfied when a User Equipment (UE) buffer for the one of the plurality of HARQ processes contains data.

19. The method of claim 13, wherein the condition is satisfied when the one of the plurality of HARQ processes includes Downlink Control Information (DCI) for the request for single HARQ feedback.

20. The method of claim 13, wherein the single HARQ feedback comprises type 3HARQ feedback.

21. An apparatus for wireless communication by a User Equipment (UE), comprising:

A memory; and

At least one processor coupled to the memory, the at least one processor configured to:

Receiving a request for a single hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for a plurality of HARQ processes from a network entity;

in response to receiving the request, sending the single HARQ feedback to the network entity; and

After transmitting the single HARQ feedback, a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) HARQ Round Trip Time (RTT) timer for one of the plurality of HARQ processes is started or restarted based at least on a condition being met.

22. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the at least one processor is configured to initiate or restart in a first symbol after transmission of the single HARQ feedback has been completed.

23. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the condition is satisfied when the single HARQ feedback is associated with receiving a downlink data transmission.

24. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the condition is met when the DRX HARQ RTT timer is currently running for the one of the plurality of HARQ processes.

25. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the condition is met when a DRX retransmission timer is currently running for the one of the plurality of processes, the at least one processor further configured to stop the DRX retransmission timer for the one of the plurality of processes.

26. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the condition is met within a preconfigured duration after a DRX retransmission time expires for the one of the multiple processes.

27. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the condition is met when an activity timer is not currently running for the one of the plurality of processes, the activity timer defining when the one of the plurality of HARQ processes is active.

28. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the condition is satisfied when a buffer for the one of the plurality of HARQ processes contains data.

29. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the condition is satisfied when the one of the plurality of HARQ processes comprises Downlink Control Information (DCI) for the request for single HARQ feedback.

30. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the single HARQ feedback comprises type 3HARQ feedback.