EP4691129A1

EP4691129A1 - Throughput improvement via xoverhead optimization in dynamic spectrum sharing

Info

Publication number: EP4691129A1
Application number: EP23720984.6A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Ho Ting Cheng; Saad Naveed AHMED; Xuegui SONG
Original assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson AB
Current assignee: Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson AB
Priority date: 2023-04-04
Filing date: 2023-04-04
Publication date: 2026-02-11
Also published as: WO2024209232A1

Abstract

Disclosed are methods, apparatuses, and computer readable media for New Radio (NR) throughput improvement via xOverhead optimization in dynamic spectrum sharing. In one aspect a method is performed by a network node of a cellular communications system. The method includes determining a select overhead value for a downlink data channel to a wireless communication device from a set of candidate overhead values that optimizes one or more values of one or more performance metrics for the downlink data channel based on one or more values of one or more parameters related to a radio frequency condition of a wireless channel between the network node and the wireless communication device. The select overhead value sets a resource allocation overhead for the downlink data channel to the wireless communication device. The method further includes transmitting the select overhead value to a wireless communication device for the wireless channel.

Description

THROUGHPUT IMPROVEMENT VIA xOVERHEAD OPTIMIZATION IN DYNAMIC SPECTRUM SHARING

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present disclosure relates to methods, apparatuses, and computer readable media for New Radio (NR) throughput improvement via xOverhead optimization in dynamic spectrum sharing.

BACKGROUND

[0002] In Dynamic Spectrum Sharing (DSS), 5G new radio (NR) and Long-Term Evolution (LTE) dynamically share radio resources in time and frequency, where the NR physical data shared channel (PDSCH) needs to avoid resource elements (REs) occupied by LTE reference signals (e.g., cell specific reference signal (CRS) and LTE physical downlink control channel (PDCCH)). The actual number of REs available per physical resource block (PRB) in NR PDSCH in DSS is smaller than in a clean NR system where NR does not have to share REs.

[0003] Since the number of data REs used in NR PDSCH is often less than the number of nominal REs where the number of nominal REs is defined in DSS, NR PDSCH in DSS often uses a lower modulation and coding scheme (MCS) due to a coding rate exceeding the 0.95 rate limit and hence has a smaller transport block size (TBS) compared to a clean NR system where NR does not have to share REs.

[0004] The nominal number of REs for PDSCH within a PRB is governed by: N_EE = ^Nsc^BNsymb ~ ^NDMRS ~ ^Noh ^B where ^^B=12 is the number of subcarriers in a physical resource block, N^_mb is the number of symbols of the PDSCH allocation within the slot, ^NDM^BRS is the number of REs for DM-RS per PRB, and N^BBBis the overhead configured by higher layer parameter xOverhead in PDSCH-ServingCellConfig with values 0, 6, 12, or 18. xOverhead accounts for overhead from CSI-RS, CORESET, etc. If the xOverhead field is absent, the UE applies value xOhO (see TS 38.214 [19], clause 5.1.3.2).

[0005] To increase the TBS, and hence the throughput, one can carefully configure the xOverhead field in PDSCH-ServingCellConfig. By choosing a higher value of xOverhead, one may achieve higher throughput. However, there are a number of potential issues including: a. Choosing a wrong value of xOverhead may degrade the throughput performance; b. There are only 4 options of xOverhead currently available (0, 6, 12, 18); and c. Compared to the baseline without xOverhead, an xOverhead value that gives better performance in one RF condition (also referred to herein as "RF point") can result in worse performance in another RF condition.

[0006] Disclosed are techniques for improving cellular data throughput.

SUMMARY

[0007] Disclosed are methods, apparatuses, and computer readable media for New Radio (NR) throughput improvement via xOverhead optimization in dynamic spectrum sharing. In one aspect a method is performed by a network node of a cellular communications system. The method includes determining a select overhead value for a downlink data channel to a wireless communication device from a set of candidate overhead values that optimizes one or more values of one or more performance metrics for the downlink data channel based on one or more values of one or more parameters related to a radio frequency condition of a wireless channel between the network node and the wireless communication device. The select overhead value sets a resource allocation overhead for the downlink data channel to the wireless communication device. The method further includes transmitting the select overhead value to a wireless communication device for the wireless channel. Advantages of the proposed subject matter include improved data throughput in the downlink channel. This is achieved by optimizing the overhead value in a way that eliminates the need for manual overhead parameter tuning.

[0008] In some embodiments, the determining the select overhead value for the downlink data channel to the wireless communication device includes determining the select overhead value based on : (a) the one or more values of the one or more parameters related to the RF condition of the wireless channel, and (b) mapping information that maps each different set of the one or more values of the one or more parameters related to the RF condition to a respective overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values that optimizes the one or more performance metrics for the downlink data channel given the set of the one or more values of the one or more parameters related to the RF condition. In some embodiments, the method further includes: identifying, prior to determining the select overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values, an overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values, transmitting the identified overhead value to the wireless communication device, obtaining, for the identified overhead value, information comprising the one or more values of the one or more performance metrics for the downlink data channel to the wireless communication device and a respective set of the one or more values of the one or more parameters related to the RF condition of the wireless channel, and repeating the identifying, the transmitting, and the obtaining for remaining overhead values in the set of candidate overhead values during an observation window.

[0009] In some embodiments, the method includes performing one or more additional iterations of the identifying, the transmitting, and the obtaining during the observation window and or determining the mapping information based on the information obtained for the overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values. In some embodiments, each overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values corresponds to a different number of overhead resource elements in the downlink data channel.

[0010] In some embodiments, the one or more performance metrics for the downlink data channel include any one or more of the following: a throughput of the downlink data channel, a spectral efficiency, a call drop rate, a block error rate (BLER) for the downlink data channel, a latency of the downlink data channel; or a channel quality index (CQI) value.

[0011 ] In some embodiments, the one or more parameters related to the RF condition of the wireless channel include any one or more of: a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), a velocity or speed of the wireless communication device, or a channel condition comprising a multipath condition.

[0012] In another aspect, a network node apparatus of a cellular communications system is disclosed. The apparatus includes receiver circuitry, and processing circuitry associated with the receiver circuitry, the processing circuitry configured to cause the network node apparatus perform operations including: determine a select overhead value for a downlink data channel to a wireless communication device from a set of candidate overhead values that optimizes one or more values of one or more performance metrics for the downlink data channel based on one or more values of one or more parameters related to a radio frequency, condition of a wireless channel between the network node apparatus and the wireless communication device, wherein the select overhead value sets a resource allocation overhead for the downlink data channel to the wireless communication device, and transmit the select overhead value to a wireless communication device for the wireless channel.

[0013] In some embodiments, the processing circuitry is further configured to cause the network node apparatus to determine the select overhead value based on: (a) the one or more values of the one or more parameters related to the RF condition of the wireless channel, and (b) mapping information that maps each different set of the one or more values of the one or more parameters related to the RF condition to a respective overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values that optimizes the one or more performance metrics for the downlink data channel given the set of the one or more values of the one or more parameters related to the RF condition. In some embodiments, the processing circuitry is further configured to cause the network node apparatus to: select, prior to determining the select overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values, an overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values, transmit the selected overhead value to the wireless communication device, obtain, for the selected overhead value, information comprising the one or more values of the one or more performance metrics for the downlink data channel to the wireless communication device and a respective set of the one or more values of the one or more parameters related to the RF condition of the wireless channel, and repeat the selecting, the transmitting, and the obtaining for remaining overhead values in the set of candidate overhead values during an observation window.

[0014] In some embodiments, the processing circuitry is further configured to cause the network node apparatus to: perform one or more additional iterations of the selecting, the transmitting, and the obtaining during the observation window. In some embodiments, the processing circuitry is further configured to cause the network node apparatus to: determine the mapping information based on the information obtained for the overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values. In some embodiments, each overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values corresponds to a different number of overhead resource elements in the downlink data channel.

[0015] In some embodiments, the one or more performance metrics for the downlink data channel comprise any one or more of the following: a throughput of the downlink data channel, a spectral efficiency, a call drop rate, a BLER for the downlink data channel, a latency of the downlink data channel, or a CQI value. In some embodiments, the one or more parameters related to the RF condition of the wireless channel include any one or more of: a signal-to-noise ratio, SNR, a velocity or speed of the wireless communication device, or a channel condition comprising a multipath condition.

[0016] In another aspect, a network node adapted to perform any variation of the method described above. In yet another aspect, a non-transitory computer readable medium having code stored thereon, the code, when executed, causing a processor to perform any variation of the method described above.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] The accompanying figures incorporated in and forming a part of this specification illustrate several aspects of the disclosure, and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the disclosure.

[0018] FIG. 1 shows a system, in accordance with some embodiments;

[0019] FIG. 2. shows an example table showing throughput change as a percentage for RF Points 1 -5 and xOverhead values including existing values 0, 6, 12, and 18, and new values 4 and 22;

[0020] FIG. 3 shows an example process, in accordance with some embodiments;

[0021] FIG. 4 shows an example timing diagram for a computing module, scheduler, and UE during a training phase and an application phase;

[0022] FIG. 5 shows a method performed by a network node of a cellular communications system, in accordance with some embodiments;

[0023] FIG. 6A shows a continuation of the method shown in FIG. 5, in accordance with some embodiments;

[0024] FIG. 6B shows a continuation of the method shown in FIG. 6A, in accordance with some embodiments;

[0025] FIG. 7 shows a diagram of a cloud implementation of the disclosed subject matter, in accordance with some embodiments;

[0026] FIG. 8 shows an example of an Open Radio Access Network (O-RAN) 5G implementation that includes static xOverhead assignments and an O-RAN implementation that includes throughput maximized xOverhead assignments.

[0027] FIG. 9 illustrates an example of a cellular communications system according to some embodiments;

[0028] FIG. 10A is a schematic block diagram of a radio access node according to some embodiments;

[0029] FIG. 10B is another schematic block diagram of a radio access node according to some embodiments;

[0030] FIG. 11 A is a schematic block diagram of a User Equipment device (UE) according to some embodiments; [0031] FIG. 11 B is another schematic block diagram of a UE according to some embodiments;

[0032] FIG. 12 is a schematic block diagram that illustrates a virtualized embodiment of the radio access node of FIG. 10 according to some embodiments; and

[0033] FIG. 13 illustrates a telecommunication network connected via an intermediate network to a host computer in accordance with some embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0034] The embodiments set forth below represent information to enable those skilled in the art to practice the embodiments and illustrate the best mode of practicing the embodiments. Upon reading the following description in light of the accompanying drawing figures, those skilled in the art will understand the concepts of the disclosure and will recognize applications of these concepts not particularly addressed herein. It should be understood that these concepts and applications fall within the scope of the disclosure. [0035] Radio Node: As used herein, a “radio node” is either a radio access node or a wireless communication device (also referred to herein as a User Equipment (UE)).

[0036] Radio Access Node: As used herein, a “radio access node” or “radio network node” or “radio access network node” is any node in a Radio Access Network (RAN) of a cellular communications network that operates to wirelessly transmit and/or receive signals. Some examples of a radio access node include, but are not limited to, a base station (e.g., a New Radio (NR) base station (gNB) in a Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Fifth Generation (5G) NR network or an enhanced or evolved Node B (eNB) in a 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) network), a high-power or macro base station, a low-power base station (e.g., a micro base station, a pico base station, a home eNB, or the like), a relay node, a network node that implements part of the functionality of a base station or a network node that implements a gNB Distributed Unit (gNB-DU)) or a network node that implements part of the functionality of some other type of radio access node.

[0037] Core Network Node: As used herein, a “core network node” is any type of node in a core network or any node that implements a core network function. Some examples of a core network node include, e.g., a Mobility Management Entity (MME), a Packet Data Network Gateway (P-GW), a Service Capability Exposure Function (SCEF), a Home Subscriber Server (HSS), or the like. Some other examples of a core network node include a node implementing an Access and Mobility Function (AMF), a User Plane Function (UPF), a Session Management Function (SMF), an Authentication Server Function (AUSF), a Network Slice Selection Function (NSSF), a Network Exposure Function (NEF), a Network Function (NF) Repository Function (NRF), a Policy Control Function (PCF), a Unified Data Management (UDM), or the like.

[0038] Communication Device: As used herein, a “communication device” is any type of device that has access to an access network. Some examples of a communication device include, but are not limited to: mobile phone, smart phone, sensor device, meter, vehicle, household appliance, medical appliance, media player, camera, or any type of consumer electronic, for instance, but not limited to, a television, radio, lighting arrangement, tablet computer, laptop, or Personal Computer (PC). The communication device may be a portable, hand-held, computer-comprised, or vehicle-mounted mobile device, enabled to communicate voice and/or data via a wireless or wireline connection.

[0039] Wireless Communication Device: One type of communication device is a wireless communication device, which may be any type of wireless device that has access to (i.e., is served by) a wireless network (e.g., a cellular network). Some examples of a wireless communication device include, but are not limited to: a User Equipment device (UE) in a 3GPP network, a Machine Type Communication (MTC) device, and an Internet of Things (loT) device. Such wireless communication devices may be, or may be integrated into, a mobile phone, smart phone, sensor device, meter, vehicle, household appliance, medical appliance, media player, camera, or any type of consumer electronic, for instance, but not limited to, a television, radio, lighting arrangement, tablet computer, laptop, or PC. The wireless communication device may be a portable, hand-held, computer-comprised, or vehicle-mounted mobile device, enabled to communicate voice and/or data via a wireless connection.

[0040] Network Node: As used herein, a “network node” is any node that is either part of the RAN or the core network of a cellular communications network/system.

[0041] Note that the description given herein focuses on a 3GPP cellular communications system and, as such, 3GPP terminology or terminology similar to 3GPP terminology is oftentimes used. However, the concepts disclosed herein are not limited to a 3GPP system.

[0042] Note that, in the description herein, reference may be made to the term “cell”; however, particularly with respect to 5G NR concepts, beams may be used instead of cells and, as such, it is important to note that the concepts described herein are equally applicable to both cells and beams. [0043] Disclosed is a self-optimized network (SON) process for adaptively adjusting the value of xOverhead to improve throughput performance in dynamic spectrum sharing (DSS). Existing solutions do not optimize throughput performance.

[0044] FIG. 2 shows a table summarizing the throughput performance of an NR UE with different xOverhead configurations under various radio frequency (RF) conditions (also referred to herein as RF points). Each different RF point corresponds to a different channel condition experienced by a UE such as a combination of a system signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and conditions such as multipath conditions and/or a velocity or speed of the UE (also referred to herein as the wireless communication device).

[0045] A single fixed xOverhead value does not optimize NR throughput performance across different RF conditions. Existing xOverhead options do not maximize throughput performance. It is desired to have an adaptive process that chooses the correct xOverhead based on an SNR and channel conditions so as to maximize system performance (e.g., throughput performance).

[0046] Systems and methods are disclosed herein that: a. Configure a UE(s) with an xOverhead value and collect throughput performance and Channel Quality Index (CQI) or other channel metric per RF condition during a training phase; and b. Configure a UE (e.g., the same UE from which the information was collected during the training phase or a different UE) with an optimized xOverhead value (i.e., maximizes throughput) during an application phase, where the optimized xOverhead value is determined based on the collected information during the training phase and a current RF condition of the UE.

[0047] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, xOverhead has a value selected from a set of integer values from 0 to N, where N is a user configurable parameter. For example, if N is 20, there are 21 xOverhead value options. In contrast, current systems only allow for four xOverhead values: 0, 6, 12, and 18.

[0048] Advantages of the proposed subject matter include improved NR data throughput. This is achieved by optimizing xOverhead via a SON process that eliminates the need for manual xOverhead parameter tuning.

[0049] In some embodiments, the overall system architecture is similar to the Ericsson Spectrum Sharing (ESS) system architecture where a shared resource allocator outputs and informs LTE scheduling and NR scheduling of resource allocation.

[0050] Embodiments of the present disclosure include the following: a) A computing module is introduced and resides, e.g., in the NR system. b) xOverhead configurations are adjusted dynamically during a training phase and are communicated from the computing module in the NR system to a UE (e.g., via a PDSCH-ServingCellConfig message). c) An entry of throughput performance obtained along with UE performance metrics such as CQI feedback, pathloss, and L3 measurements (e.g., Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP)) in the NR system is stored in a lookup table. d) After the training is finished, the computing module in NR will configure and communicate the optimal xOverhead to the UE.

[0051] FIG. 1 depicts a diagram of an example system 100, in accordance with some embodiments. System 100 includes UE 150 and a network node 120 that operates in accordance with a dynamic spectrum sharing scheme. In this example, the network node 120 is a NR base station (i.e. , a gNB), and the dynamic spectrum sharing scheme shares spectrum between NR and, e.g., LTE. The network node 120 includes a computing module 130 which interfaces with scheduler 140 and UE 150 to assign an overhead (e.g., xOverhead) configuration 132 to UE 150 and scheduler 140 at 134. UE 150 provides feedback such as a CQI to scheduler 140. Scheduler 140, in turn, provides UE data throughput information and the CQI to computing module 130 which then adjusts the xOverhead configuration as needed to optimize throughput. In some implementations, computing module 130 and scheduler 140 are the same module or implemented in one module.

[0052] FIG. 2. shows an example table showing throughput change as a percentage (with a (+) percentage meaning an increase in throughput and a (-) percentage meaning a decrease in throughput) at example RF Points 1 -5 and xOverhead values including existing values 0, 6, 12, and 18, and new values 4 and 22. Existing xOverhead values are values described in the 3GPP standards, the new values are not now in the standards. No single xOverhead value provides the highest throughput for all RF conditions (RF points). In FIG. 2, the example five RF points (RF Point 1 - RF Point 5) represent five different RF or wireless channel conditions experienced by a UE. In a simplest case of different channel conditions, the RF points have only different SNRs with, for example, RF Point 1 having the highest SNR and RF Point 5 has the lowest SNR. RF Points can have additional parameters that vary from RF point to RF point such as different multipath conditions and/or velocity or speed of the UE. For each RF Point, the best throughput is circled and corresponds to the xOverhead value that provides the best throughput (multiple values are circled for tied throughputs). As can be seen in the table, the best throughput for RF Point 1 can be achieved with xOverhead values of 12, 18, or 22. The best throughput for RF Point 2 can be achieved with xOverhead value of 22. The best throughput for RF Point 3 can be achieved with the baseline xOhO. The best throughput for RF Point 4 can be achieved with xOverhead value of 12. The best throughput for RF Point 5 can be achieved with xOverhead value of 4. Each xOverhead value corresponds to a particular number of Resource Elements (REs). A table of values of throughput as a function of RF Point and xOverhead value such as the example table shown in FIG. 2 can be generated as part of a training phase (see FIG. 3). The table can be stored in a memory associated with computing module 130 in FIG. 1 . xOverhead configurations are adjusted dynamically during the training phase and are communicated from the new module in the NR system to a UE (e.g., via a PDSCH-ServingCellConfig message). After the training phase, a best xOverhead value is determined by the computing module based on the RF Point of the UE 150 which can be indicated, at least in part, by the throughput to the UE 150 and CQI feedback from the UE 150. In another embodiment the xOverhead lookup table can be determined by exhausting all RF points of interest during the training phase to eliminate the need of retraining during an application phase. One way is to place a test UE at various RF points for training purposes.

[0053] Some instances of the lookup table described above are one dimensional arrays values of throughput change for the allowable xOverhead values for a single RF Point. Other instances of the lookup table are two dimensional arrays with values of throughput change for the allowable xOverhead values for more than one RF Point. For example, the lookup table may be similar to FIG. 2 where each row corresponds to a different RF Point and the columns correspond to the various allowable xOverhead values. The lookup table can be arranged column-wise instead of row-wise as shown in FIG. 2.

[0054] FIG. 3 shows a process 300, in accordance with some example embodiments. Steps 310-350 correspond to a training phase, and steps 360-395 correspond to an application, or execution, phase.

[0055] At 310, the process includes selecting a size for an observation widow used in a training phase. An observation window defines a period of time in which key performance indicator (KPI) metrics such as throughput are collected. For example, if the size of the observation window is 100ms, KPI metrics are collected for 100ms for each xOverhead value during training.

[0056] At 320, the process includes selecting a next xOverhead value from a set of values. In an example, the xOverhead can take integer values from 1 to N with N being, for example 20.

[0057] At 330, the process includes communicating the selected xOverhead value to the UE (e.g., via a PDSCH-ServingCellConfig message). At 340, the process includes collecting throughput and UE CQI metrics after the observation window expires. At 345, the process includes adding a new entry to a lookup table of training values based on the collected throughput and CQI metric values. Thus, for the selected xOverhead value, the table stores an entry such as a throughput value that associates the CQI metric values to the throughout for the selected xOverhead value.

[0058] At 350, the system determines whether training is finished. For example, training may be completed when all the possible xOverhead values are communicated to the UE and the corresponding throughput and metric (e.g., CQI) values collected. If training is not completed, the process returns to 320. The process 310-350 can be performed for each RF point for at least one UE but possibly not all UEs. For example, the process 310-350 may be performed for one or more RF points for one UE but not other UEs. In practice, it may not be known how many different RF points (or RF conditions) to which the UE may be exposed. For example, if a UE is stationary and the wireless environment is static, the UE will likely be exposed to fewer RF conditions than a UE that is moving or mobile. If all the different RF points are known, the process 310- 350 is performed for each RF point. The training process generates a lookup table that has enough entries to cover most of the RF points and their corresponding KPIs but small enough not to affect normal operations. If training is completed, the process proceeds to 360.

[0059] At 360, the system selects from the lookup table the xOverhead value that provides the best (e.g., maximizes) throughput performance for the UE considering a current RF condition (e.g., current or latest reported CQI values) of the UE. At 370, the system communicates to the UE the xOverhead value that maximizes throughput. The system configures the scheduler of the network node to use this same xOverhead value for the UE. The system will communicate this same xOverhead value in the PDSCH- ServingCellConfig message to the UE. At 380, the system continues to collect throughput information from the UE and metric values (e.g., CQI). [0060] At 390, current throughput performance using the configured xOverhead value is compared to throughput from other available xOverhead values in the lookup table. If the selected xOverhead value still maximizes throughput ("yes" at 390), the process returns to 380 to continue to collect throughput information from the UE and metric values. If the selected xOverhead value no longer maximizes throughput ("no" at 390) and retraining is not needed at 395 ("no" at 395), the process returns to 360 to select a new xOverhead value from the table. If the selected xOverhead value no longer maximizes throughput ("no" at 390) and retraining is needed at 395 ("yes" at 395), the process returns to 310 to begin the training process again. For example, retraining would be needed if throughput has dropped but the RF conditions have not changed. If the throughput performance falls below a threshold value (e.g., due to a lookup table with coarse values for table entries), retraining can be triggered to add more entries to fine-adjust the KPI lookup table. Retraining can also be triggered periodically, e.g., at night time when the user traffic is low.

[0061] The xOverhead lookup table can be populated by exhausting all RF conditions of interest during a training phase to eliminate the need of retraining during an application phase. This can be performed by placing a test UE in various RF conditions (points) for training purposes.

[0062] Per-CQI entries in the lookup table may produce frequent xOverhead reconfiguration. To achieve a good balance between throughput improvement and reconfiguration overhead reduction, a practical approach is to group the CQI values into categories such as: very good RF (e.g., CQI > 11 ), good RF, poor RF, very poor RF.

[0063] FIG. 4 shows an example timing diagram 400 for computing module 130, scheduler 140, and UE 150 during a training phase 410 and an application phase 415.

[0064] Training phase 410: At 132, computing module 130 sends a first xOverhead value to the scheduler 140. At 142, the first xOverhead value is sent from the scheduler 140 to the UE 150. At 152, the UE provides CQI performance feedback using the first xOverhead value to the computing module 130. At 143, the scheduler 140 sends the UE throughput to the computing module 130. At 144, the computing module 130 stores the received throughput and/or CQI information corresponding to the first xOverhead value in a lookup table. The foregoing describes the timing and signals sent between the computing module 130, scheduler 140, and UE 150 for a first xOverhead value. For N xOverhead values, the foregoing messages starting with 132 are repeated for the next (N-2) allowed xOverhead values. For the last xOverhead value (the Nth value), the same process is performed. At 134, computing module 130 sends a last xOverhead value to the scheduler 140. At 145, the last xOverhead value is sent from the scheduler 140 to the UE 150. At 154, the UE provides CQI feedback using the last xOverhead value to the computing module 130. At 145, the scheduler 140 sends the UE throughput to the computing module 130. At 146, the computing module 130 stores the received throughput and/or CQI information corresponding to the last xOverhead value in the lookup table. FIG. 3 at 310-350 further describe the training phase/process.

[0065] Application phase 415: The lookup table generated in the training phase 410 that is stored in a memory so that table can be accessed and values retrieved. At 136, a selected xOverhead value that maximizes throughput is sent from computing module 130 to scheduler 140. At 147, the selected xOverhead value is sent from scheduler 140 to UE 150. At 156, the UE sends CQI feedback to the computing module 130. At 148, the scheduler 140 sends UE throughput information to computing module 130. Based on the CQI feedback 156 and UE throughput 148, the computing module 130 may select a different xOverhead value (not shown in FIG. 4) to improve throughput and start the process again at 136. Note that application phase 415 may repeat many times before the training phase 410 is repeated or application phase 415 may repeat and the training phase 410 is not repeated. FIG. 3 at 360-395 further describe the application phase/process.

[0066] FIG. 5 shows a method performed by a network node of a cellular communications system, in accordance with some embodiments. At 510, the method includes determining a select overhead value for a downlink data channel to a wireless communication device from a set of candidate overhead values. The select overhead value optimizes one or more values of one or more performance metrics for the downlink data channel based on one or more values of one or more parameters related to a radio frequency (RF), condition of a wireless channel between the network node and the wireless communication device. The select overhead value sets a resource allocation overhead for the downlink data channel to the wireless communication device. At 520, the method includes transmitting the select overhead value to a wireless communication device for the wireless channel. The determining and the transmitting can be performed by the computing module 130 of FIG. 1 . The select overhead value can be an xOverhead value that maximizes a throughput to the wireless communication device. As an illustrative example using FIG. 2, with the wireless communication device at RF Point 2, xOverhead value 22 corresponding to a 12% increase in throughput would be sent to the wireless communication device. [0067] FIG. 6A shows a continuation 600 of the method shown in FIG. 5, in accordance with some example embodiments. At 610, the determining the select overhead value for the downlink data channel to the wireless communication device in FIG. 5 further includes determining the select overhead value based on: (a) the one or more values of the one or more parameters related to the RF condition of the wireless channel, and (b) mapping information that maps each different set of the one or more values of the one or more parameters related to the RF condition to a respective overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values that optimizes the one or more performance metrics for the downlink data channel given the set of the one or more values of the one or more parameters related to the RF condition.

[0068] FIG. 6B shows a continuation 615 of the method shown in FIG. 6A, in accordance with some example embodiments. The method includes at 620 identifying, prior to determining the select overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values, an overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values. At 630, the method includes transmitting the identified overhead value to the wireless communication device. At 640, the method includes obtaining, for the identified overhead value, information comprising the one or more values of the one or more performance metrics for the downlink data channel to the wireless communication device and a respective set of the one or more values of the one or more parameters related to the RF condition of the wireless channel. At 650, the method includes repeating the identifying, the transmitting, and the obtaining for remaining overhead values in the set of candidate overhead values during an observation window.

[0069] At 660, the method includes performing one or more additional iterations of the identifying, the transmitting, and the obtaining during the observation window.

[0070] At 670, the method includes determining the mapping information based on the information obtained for the overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values.

[0071 ] FIG. 7 shows a diagram 700 of a cloud implementation of the disclosed subject matter, in accordance with some embodiments. DSS cell 710 includes one or more wireless communication devices (e.g., UEs) and one or more network nodes to provide cellular communications between the wireless communication devices and wireless/fixed devices outside DSS cell 710. One or more network nodes in DSS cell 710 are able to communicate via a communication link to a cloud implementation of the computing module 130. In existing systems, radio resource scheduling in dynamic spectrum sharing is performed per timeslot in baseband units. The throughput performance and UE CQI feedback can be communicated between DSS cell 710 and the cloud 720 during a training phase (e.g., FIG. 4). The computing module 130 in the cloud communicates the optimal xOverhead value to the DSS cell 710 during an application phase (e.g., FIG. 4).

[0072] FIG. 8 shows an example of an Open Radio Access Network (O-RAN) 5G implementation 800 that includes static xOverhead assignments and an O-RAN implementation 870 that includes throughput maximized xOverhead assignments, in accordance with some embodiments. O-RAN 5G implementation 800 includes radio unit 810, distributed unit 820, static xOverhead assignment 830A, central unit 840, platform 850 and application 860. Traditional implementations include static xOverhead assignment 830A where radio resource scheduling for dynamic spectrum sharing normally resides in distributed units (Dlls) since this belongs to MAC-layer resource allocation.

[0073] O-RAN 5G implementation 870 includes radio unit 810, distributed unit 820, throughput maximized xOverhead assignment 830B, central unit 840, platform 850 and application 860. In some embodiments, the disclosed subject matter can be incorporated in a DU as part of the O-RAN implementation without altering the existing radio unit 810, central unit 840, platform 850, or application 860.

[0074] FIG. 9 illustrates one example of a cellular communications system 900 in which embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented. In the embodiments described herein, the cellular communications system 900 is a 5G system (5GS) including a Next Generation RAN (NG-RAN) and a 5G Core (5GC) or an Evolved Packet System (EPS) including an Evolved Universal Terrestrial RAN (E-UTRAN) and an Evolved Packet Core (EPC). In this example, the RAN includes base stations 902-1 and 902-2, which in the 5GS include NR base stations (gNBs) and optionally next generation eNBs (ng-eNBs) (e.g., LTE RAN nodes connected to the 5GC) and in the EPS include eNBs controlling corresponding (macro) cells 904-1 and 904-2. The base stations 902-1 and 902-2 are generally referred to herein collectively as base stations 902 and individually as base station 902. Likewise, the (macro) cells 904-1 and 904-2 are generally referred to herein collectively as (macro) cells 904 and individually as (macro) cell 904. The RAN may also include a number of low power nodes 906-1 through 906-4 controlling corresponding small cells 908-1 through 908-4. The low power nodes 906-1 through 906-4 can be small base stations (such as pico or femto base stations) or RRHs, or the like. Notably, while not illustrated, one or more of the small cells 908-1 through 908-4 may alternatively be provided by the base stations 902. The low power nodes 906-1 through 906-4 are generally referred to herein collectively as low power nodes 906 and individually as low power node 906. Likewise, the small cells 908-1 through 908-4 are generally referred to herein collectively as small cells 908 and individually as small cell 908. The cellular communications system 900 also includes a core network 910, which in the 5G System (5GS) is referred to as the 5GC. The base stations 902 (and optionally the low power nodes 906) are connected to the core network 910.

[0075] The base stations 902 and the low power nodes 906 provide service to wireless communication devices 912-1 through 912-5 in the corresponding cells 904 and 908. The wireless communication devices 912-1 through 912-5 are generally referred to herein collectively as wireless communication devices 912 and individually as wireless communication device 912. In the following description, the wireless communication devices 912 are oftentimes UEs, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

[0076] FIG. 10A is a schematic block diagram of a radio access node 1000 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. Optional features are represented by dashed boxes. For example, the computing module 130 detailed above can reside or be implemented in radio access node 1000. The radio access node 1000 may be, for example, a base station 902 or 906 or a network node that implements all or part of the functionality of the base station 902 or gNB described herein. As illustrated, the radio access node 1000 includes a control system 1002 that includes one or more processors 1004 (e.g., Central Processing Units (CPUs), Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), and/or the like), memory 1006, and a network interface 1008. The one or more processors 1004 are also referred to herein as processing circuitry. In addition, the radio access node 1000 may include one or more radio units 1010 that each includes one or more transmitters 1012 and one or more receivers 1014 coupled to one or more antennas 1016. The radio units 1010 may be referred to or be part of radio interface circuitry. In some embodiments, the radio unit(s) 1010 is external to the control system 1002 and connected to the control system 1002 via, e.g., a wired connection (e.g., an optical cable). However, in some other embodiments, the radio unit(s) 1010 and potentially the antenna(s) 1016 are integrated together with the control system 1002. The one or more processors 1004 operate to provide one or more functions of a radio access node 1000 as described herein. In some embodiments, the function(s) are implemented in software that is stored, e.g., in the memory 1006 and executed by the one or more processors 1004. [0077] FIG. 10B is a schematic block diagram of the radio access node 1000 according to some other embodiments of the present disclosure. The radio access node 1000 includes one or more modules 1040, each of which is implemented in software. The module(s) 1040 provide the functionality of the radio access node 1000 described herein. This discussion is equally applicable to the processing node 1200 of FIG. 12. where the modules 1040 may be implemented at one of the processing nodes 1200 or distributed across multiple processing nodes 1200 and/or distributed across the processing node(s) 1200 and the control system 1002.

[0078] FIG. 11 A is a schematic block diagram of a wireless communication device 1 100 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. As illustrated, the wireless communication device 1100 includes one or more processors 1 102 (e.g., CPUs, ASICs, FPGAs, and/or the like), memory 1104, and one or more transceivers 1106 each including one or more transmitters 1 108 and one or more receivers 1 110 coupled to one or more antennas 11 12. The transceiver(s) 1106 includes radio-front end circuitry connected to the antenna(s) 1112 that is configured to condition signals communicated between the antenna(s) 1 1 12 and the processor(s) 1 102, as will be appreciated by on of ordinary skill in the art. The processors 1102 are also referred to herein as processing circuitry. The transceivers 1106 are also referred to herein as radio circuitry. In some embodiments, the functionality of the wireless communication device 1 100 described above may be fully or partially implemented in software that is, e.g., stored in the memory 1 104 and executed by the processor(s) 1 102. Note that the wireless communication device 1 100 may include additional components not illustrated in FIG. 1 1 A such as, e.g., one or more user interface components (e.g., an input/output interface including a display, buttons, a touch screen, a microphone, a speaker(s), and/or the like and/or any other components for allowing input of information into the wireless communication device 1100 and/or allowing output of information from the wireless communication device 1 100), a power supply (e.g., a battery and associated power circuitry), etc.

[0079] In some embodiments, a computer program including instructions which, when executed by at least one processor, causes the at least one processor to carry out the functionality of the wireless communication device 1 100 according to any of the embodiments described herein is provided. In some embodiments, a carrier comprising the aforementioned computer program product is provided. The carrier is one of an electronic signal, an optical signal, a radio signal, or a computer readable storage medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer readable medium such as memory). [0080] FIG. 1 1 B is a schematic block diagram of the wireless communication device 1 100 according to some other embodiments of the present disclosure. The wireless communication device 1100 includes one or more modules 1 160, each of which is implemented in software. The module(s) 1160 provide the functionality of the wireless communication device 1 100 described herein.

[0081] FIG. 12 is a schematic block diagram that illustrates a virtualized embodiment of the radio access node 1000 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. For example, the computing module 130 detailed above can reside or be implemented in radio access node 1000 or radio access node 1200. This discussion is equally applicable to other types of network nodes. Further, other types of network nodes may have similar virtualized architectures. Again, optional features are represented by dashed boxes.

[0082] As used herein, a “virtualized” radio access node is an implementation of the radio access node 1000 in which at least a portion of the functionality of the radio access node 1000 is implemented as a virtual component(s) (e.g., via a virtual machine(s) executing on a physical processing node(s) in a network(s)). As illustrated, in this example, the radio access node 1000 may include the control system 1002 and/or the one or more radio units 1010, as described above. The control system 1002 may be connected to the radio unit(s) 1010 via, for example, an optical cable or the like. The radio access node 1000 includes one or more processing nodes 1200 coupled to or included as part of a network(s) 1202. If present, the control system 1002 or the radio unit(s) are connected to the processing node(s) 1200 via the network 1202. Each processing node 1200 includes one or more processors 1204 (e.g., CPUs, ASICs, FPGAs, and/or the like), memory 1206, and a network interface 1208.

[0083] In this example, functions 1210 of the radio access node 1000 described herein are implemented at the one or more processing nodes 1200 or distributed across the one or more processing nodes 1200 and the control system 1002 and/or the radio unit(s) 1010 in any desired manner. In some particular embodiments, some or all of the functions 1210 of the radio access node 1000 described herein are implemented as virtual components executed by one or more virtual machines implemented in a virtual environment(s) hosted by the processing node(s) 1200. As will be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art, additional signaling or communication between the processing node(s) 1200 and the control system 1002 is used in order to carry out at least some of the desired functions 1210. Notably, in some embodiments, the control system 1002 may not be included, in which case the radio unit(s) 1010 communicate directly with the processing node(s) 1200 via an appropriate network interface(s).

[0084] In some embodiments, a computer program including instructions which, when executed by at least one processor, causes the at least one processor to carry out the functionality of radio access node 1000 or a node (e.g., a processing node 1200) implementing one or more of the functions 1210 of the radio access node 1000 in a virtual environment according to any of the embodiments described herein is provided. In some embodiments, a carrier comprising the aforementioned computer program product is provided. The carrier is one of an electronic signal, an optical signal, a radio signal, or a computer readable storage medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer readable medium such as memory).

[0085] With reference to FIG. 13, in accordance with an embodiment, a communication system includes a telecommunication network 1300, such as a 3GPP-type cellular network, which comprises an access network 1302, such as a RAN, and a core network 1304. The access network 1302 comprises a plurality of base stations 1306A, 1306B, 1306C, such as Node Bs, eNBs, gNBs, or other types of wireless Access Points (APs), each defining a corresponding coverage area 1308A, 1308B, 1308C. Each base station 1306A, 1306B, 1306C is connectable to the core network 1304 over a wired or wireless connection 1310. A first UE 1312 located in coverage area 1308C is configured to wirelessly connect to, or be paged by, the corresponding base station 1306C. A second UE 1314 in coverage area 1308A is wirelessly connectable to the corresponding base station 1306A. While a plurality of UEs 1312, 1314 are illustrated in this example, the disclosed embodiments are equally applicable to a situation where a sole UE is in the coverage area or where a sole UE is connecting to the corresponding base station 1306. [0086] The telecommunication network 1300 is itself connected to a host computer 1316, which may be embodied in the hardware and/or software of a standalone server, a cloud-implemented server, a distributed server, or as processing resources in a server farm. For example, the computing module 130 detailed above can reside or be implemented in host computer 1316 which may be implemented in the cloud. The host computer 1316 may be under the ownership or control of a service provider, or may be operated by the service provider or on behalf of the service provider. Connections 1318 and 1320 between the telecommunication network 1300 and the host computer 1316 may extend directly from the core network 1304 to the host computer 1316 or may go via an optional intermediate network 1322. The intermediate network 1322 may be one of, or a combination of more than one of, a public, private, or hosted network; the intermediate network 1322, if any, may be a backbone network or the Internet; in particular, the intermediate network 1322 may comprise two or more sub-networks (not shown).

[0087] The communication system of Figure 13 as a whole enables connectivity between the connected UEs 1312, 1314 and the host computer 1316. The connectivity may be described as an Over-the-Top (OTT) connection 1324. The host computer 1316 and the connected UEs 1312, 1314 are configured to communicate data and/or signaling via the OTT connection 1324, using the access network 1302, the core network 1304, any intermediate network 1322, and possible further infrastructure (not shown) as intermediaries. The OTT connection 1324 may be transparent in the sense that the participating communication devices through which the OTT connection 1324 passes are unaware of routing of uplink and downlink communications. For example, the base station 1306 may not or need not be informed about the past routing of an incoming downlink communication with data originating from the host computer 1316 to be forwarded (e.g., handed over) to a connected UE 1312. Similarly, the base station 1306 need not be aware of the future routing of an outgoing uplink communication originating from the UE 1312 towards the host computer 1316.

[0088] Any appropriate steps, methods, features, functions, or benefits disclosed herein may be performed through one or more functional units or modules of one or more virtual apparatuses. Each virtual apparatus may comprise a number of these functional units. These functional units may be implemented via processing circuitry, which may include one or more microprocessor or microcontrollers, as well as other digital hardware, which may include Digital Signal Processors (DSPs), special-purpose digital logic, and the like. The processing circuitry may be configured to execute program code stored in memory, which may include one or several types of memory such as Read Only Memory (ROM), Random Access Memory (RAM), cache memory, flash memory devices, optical storage devices, etc. Program code stored in memory includes program instructions for executing one or more telecommunications and/or data communications protocols as well as instructions for carrying out one or more of the techniques described herein. In some implementations, the processing circuitry may be used to cause the respective functional unit to perform corresponding functions according one or more embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0089] While processes in the figures may show a particular order of operations performed by certain embodiments of the present disclosure, it should be understood that such order is exemplary (e.g., alternative embodiments may perform the operations in a different order, combine certain operations, overlap certain operations, etc.).

[0090] Those skilled in the art will recognize improvements and modifications to the embodiments of the present disclosure. All such improvements and modifications are considered within the scope of the concepts disclosed herein.

Claims

CLAIMS What is claimed is:

1 . A method performed by a network node of a cellular communications system, the method comprising: determining (510) a select overhead value for a downlink data channel to a wireless communication device from a set of candidate overhead values that optimizes one or more values of one or more performance metrics for the downlink data channel based on one or more values of one or more parameters related to a radio frequency, RF, condition of a wireless channel between the network node and the wireless communication device, wherein the select overhead value sets a resource allocation overhead for the downlink data channel to the wireless communication device; and transmitting (520) the select overhead value to a wireless communication device for the wireless channel.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein determining (510) the select overhead value for the downlink data channel to the wireless communication device comprises determining (610) the select overhead value based on: (a) the one or more values of the one or more parameters related to the RF condition of the wireless channel, and (b) mapping information that maps each different set of the one or more values of the one or more parameters related to the RF condition to a respective overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values that optimizes the one or more performance metrics for the downlink data channel given the set of the one or more values of the one or more parameters related to the RF condition.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising: identifying (620), prior to determining the select overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values, an overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values; transmitting (630) the identified overhead value to the wireless communication device; obtaining (640), for the identified overhead value, information comprising the one or more values of the one or more performance metrics for the downlink data channel to the wireless communication device and a respective set of the one or more values of the one or more parameters related to the RF condition of the wireless channel; and repeating (650) the identifying, the transmitting, and the obtaining for remaining overhead values in the set of candidate overhead values during an observation window.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising: performing (660) one or more additional iterations of the identifying, the transmitting, and the obtaining during the observation window.

5. The method of claim 3 or 4, further comprising: determining (670) the mapping information based on the information obtained for the overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values.

6. The method of any of claims 1 to 5, wherein each overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values corresponds to a different number of overhead resource elements in the downlink data channel.

7. The method of any of claims 1 to 6, wherein the one or more performance metrics for the downlink data channel comprise any one or more of the following: a throughput of the downlink data channel; a spectral efficiency; a call drop rate; a block error rate, BLER, for the downlink data channel; a latency of the downlink data channel; or a channel quality index, CQI, value.

8. The method of any of claims 1 to 7, wherein the one or more parameters related to the RF condition of the wireless channel comprise any one or more of: a signal-to-noise ratio, SNR; a velocity or speed of the wireless communication device; or a channel condition comprising a multipath condition.

9. A network node apparatus of a cellular communications system, the network node apparatus comprising: receiver circuitry; and processing circuitry associated with the receiver circuitry, the processing circuitry configured to cause the network node apparatus to at least: determine (510) a select overhead value for a downlink data channel to a wireless communication device from a set of candidate overhead values that optimizes one or more values of one or more performance metrics for the downlink data channel based on one or more values of one or more parameters related to a radio frequency, RF, condition of a wireless channel between the network node apparatus and the wireless communication device, wherein the select overhead value sets a resource allocation overhead for the downlink data channel to the wireless communication device; and transmit (520) the select overhead value to a wireless communication device for the wireless channel.

10. The network node apparatus of claim 9, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to cause the network node apparatus to determine (610) the select overhead value based on: (a) the one or more values of the one or more parameters related to the RF condition of the wireless channel, and (b) mapping information that maps each different set of the one or more values of the one or more parameters related to the RF condition to a respective overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values that optimizes the one or more performance metrics for the downlink data channel given the set of the one or more values of the one or more parameters related to the RF condition.

11 . The network node apparatus of claim 10, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to cause the network node apparatus to: select (620), prior to determining the select overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values, an overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values; transmit (630) the selected overhead value to the wireless communication device; obtain (640), for the selected overhead value, information comprising the one or more values of the one or more performance metrics for the downlink data channel to the wireless communication device and a respective set of the one or more values of the one or more parameters related to the RF condition of the wireless channel; and repeat (650) the selecting, the transmitting, and the obtaining for remaining overhead values in the set of candidate overhead values during an observation window.

12. The network node apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to cause the network node apparatus to: perform (660) one or more additional iterations of the selecting, the transmitting, and the obtaining during the observation window.

13. The network node apparatus of claim 11 or 12, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to cause the network node apparatus to: determine (670) the mapping information based on the information obtained for the overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values.

14. The network node apparatus of any of claims 9 to 13, wherein each overhead value from the set of candidate overhead values corresponds to a different number of overhead resource elements in the downlink data channel.

15. The network node apparatus of any of claims 9 to 14, wherein the one or more performance metrics for the downlink data channel comprise any one or more of the following: a throughput of the downlink data channel; a spectral efficiency; a call drop rate; a block error rate, BLER, for the downlink data channel; a latency of the downlink data channel; or a channel quality index, CQI, value.

16. The network node apparatus of any of claims 9 to 15, wherein the one or more parameters related to the RF condition of the wireless channel comprise any one or more of: a signal-to-noise ratio, SNR; a velocity or speed of the wireless communication device; or a channel condition comprising a multipath condition.

17. A network node adapted to perform the method of any of claims 1 to 8.

18. A non-transitory computer readable medium having code stored thereon, the code, when executed, causing a processor to perform the method recited in any of claims 1 to 8.