KR20210029278A - Method and apparatus for operation of NR-unlicensed frame-based equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

User equipment (UE) identifies a channel access mechanism to obtain access to an operating channel in the unlicensed band, performs a listen-before-talk (LBT) operation through the operating channel according to the identified channel access mechanism, and performs an LBT operation. After this is successful, the channel occupancy time (COT) for transmission and reception on the operating channel is obtained, and, within the COT, the UE from uplink (UL) transmission to downlink (DL) reception or from DL reception to UL transmission. And at least one processor configured to identify one or more switching points for switching. The UE further comprises a transceiver configured to transmit or receive to a base station (BS) over an operating channel during COT, and to switch from UL transmission to DL reception or from DL reception to UL transmission based on the identified one or more switching points. do.

Description

Method and apparatus for operation of NR-unlicensed frame-based equipment

The present disclosure relates to a communication system, and in particular, supports a frame-based equipment (FBE) mode of operation and provides downlink (DL) to uplink (UL) switching(s) and UL to DL switching. It relates to the composition of the NR unlicensed (NR-U) to apply.

Efforts have been made to develop an improved fifth-generation (5G) or pre-5G communication system in order to meet the increased demand for wireless data traffic since the deployment of fourth-generation (4G) communication systems. Therefore, the 5G or pre-5G communication system is also referred to as a'Beyond 4G network' or a'Post LTE system'. The 5G communication system may be implemented in higher frequency (mmWave) bands, eg, 60 GHz bands compared to the 4G communication system to provide higher data rates. To reduce the propagation loss of radio waves and increase the transmission distance, beamforming, massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO), Full Dimensional MIMO (FD-MIMO), array antenna, analog beamforming, and large-scale scale) antenna techniques are being considered in 5G communication systems. In addition, in 5G communication systems, next-generation small cells, cloud radio access networks (RANs), ultra-dense networks, device-to-device (D2D) communication, wireless backhaul, moving networks, Development for improving the system network is underway based on cooperative communication, Coordinated Multi-Points (CoMP), and interference cancellation at the receiving end. In the 5G system, hybrid FSK and QAM modulation (FQAM) and sliding window superposition coding (SWSC) are used as advanced coding modulation (ACM), and filter bank multi carrier (FBMC), non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA), and SCMA ( sparse code multiple access) was developed as an advanced access technology.

The Internet, a human-centered connected network in which humans generate and consume information, is now evolving into the Internet of things (IoT), in which distributed entities such as things exchange and process information without human intervention. The Internet of everything (IoE), a combination of IoT technology and big data processing technology through connection to a cloud server, has emerged. As technology elements such as "sensing technology", "wired/wireless communication and network infrastructure", "service interface technology", and "security technology" are required for IoT implementation, sensor networks, machine-to-machine ) Communication, MTC (machine type communication), etc. are being studied recently. This IoT environment can provide intelligent Internet technology services that create new value in human life by collecting and analyzing data generated between connected objects. IoT is a smart home, smart building, smart city, smart car or connected car, smart grid, healthcare, smart home appliance through convergence and combination between existing information technology (IT) and various industrial applications. And it can be applied to various fields including next-generation medical services.

In line with this, various attempts have been made to apply 5G communication systems to IoT networks. For example, technologies such as sensor network, MTC, and M2M communication may be implemented with beamforming, MIMO, and array antennas. The application of the cloud RAN as the big data processing technology described above can also be regarded as an example of convergence between 5G technology and IoT technology.

As described above, various services may be provided according to the development of a wireless communication system, and thus a method of easily providing these services is required.

User equipment (UE) in a wireless communication system is provided. The UE identifies the channel access mechanism to obtain access to the operating channel of the unlicensed band, performs a listen-before-talk (LBT) operation through the operating channel according to the identified channel access mechanism, and operates after the LBT operation is successful. Obtains a channel occupancy time (COT) for transmission and reception on the channel, and, within the COT, the UE from uplink (UL) transmission to downlink (DL) reception or from DL reception to UL transmission. And at least one processor configured to identify one or more switching points for switching. The UE further comprises a transceiver configured to transmit or receive to a base station (BS) over an operating channel during COT, and to switch from UL transmission to DL reception or from DL reception to UL transmission based on the identified one or more switching points. do.

For a more complete understanding of the present disclosure and its advantages, the following description will now be referred to, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which like reference numbers indicate like parts, among the drawings:
1 shows an exemplary wireless network in accordance with the present disclosure;
2A and 2B illustrate exemplary wireless transmit and receive paths in accordance with the present disclosure;
3A illustrates an exemplary user equipment according to the present disclosure;
3B shows an exemplary enhanced NodeB (gNB) according to the present disclosure;
4A shows an exemplary encoding process for DCI format according to this disclosure;
4B shows an exemplary decoding process for a DCI format according to this disclosure;
5 shows two exemplary cases of multiplexing two slices within a common subframe or frame according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
6 shows an example of a plurality of antenna elements for mmWave bands according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
7 shows exemplary embodiments of UE-centric access using two radio resource entity levels according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
8 shows an exemplary initial access procedure of mobility or radio resource management described above from the perspective of a UE according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
9 shows an exemplary fixed frame period for FBE operations according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 10 illustrates three exemplary options for cases where the end position of the configured NR-U FBE maximum COT (MCOT) is not aligned with the NR-U slot boundary according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. ;
11 shows an exemplary channel access scheme in which one directional space TX parameter is used according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;
12 illustrates another exemplary channel access scheme using multiple directional spatial TX parameters according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;
13 shows another exemplary channel access scheme using multiple directional spatial TX parameters according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;
14 shows another exemplary FBE channel access scheme using a hybrid approach of omni/quasi-omni-directional LBT and directional LBT according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;
15 shows an exemplary FBE channel access scheme with one or multiple synchronized FBE NR-U operators co-existing in an operating channel according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;
16 shows an exemplary FBE channel access scheme with a set of observation slots according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;
17 provides an exemplary FBE channel access scheme with a set of observation slots according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;
18 shows another exemplary FBE channel access scheme with a set of observation slots according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;
19 shows another exemplary FBE channel access scheme with a set of observation slots according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;
20 provides an exemplary FFP having a set of observation slots according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 21 provides an exemplary FFP in which one portion of the observation slots is located in the idle period and the other portion of the observation slots is located in the next fixed frame period according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;
22 shows an exemplary FBE channel access scheme with two neighboring asynchronous FBE NR-U initiating devices according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;
23 shows another exemplary FBE channel access scheme with two neighboring asynchronous FBE NR-U initiating devices according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;
24 illustrates another exemplary FBE channel access scheme with multiple asynchronous FBE NR-U initiating devices according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;
25 shows another exemplary FBE channel access scheme with multiple asynchronous FBE NR-U initiating devices according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;
26 shows another exemplary FBE channel access scheme with multiple asynchronous FBE NR-U initiating devices according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;
27 shows another exemplary FBE channel access scheme with multiple asynchronous FBE NR-U initiating devices according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;
28 illustrates exemplary DL/UL switching points with channel occupancy time according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
29 shows an exemplary timing relationship for a single LBT at a DL to UL switching point or a UL to DL switching point according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;
30 illustrates an exemplary guard period timing relationship for DL and UL switching points in a gNB according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
31 illustrates another exemplary guard period timing relationship for DL and UL switching points according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
32 shows exemplary short preamble symbols of an 802.11 preamble;
33A and 33B illustrate exemplary embodiments in which a Wi-Fi AP is performing CCA to determine channel availability while an NR-U gNB starts transmitting after passing through the CCA according to embodiments of the present disclosure. Shows;
34A and 34B illustrate exemplary fixed frame periods with an NR-U preamble according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
35 shows an exemplary structure of an NR-U common preamble according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
36A, 36B, 36C, and 36D show exemplary embodiments of transmitting an NR-U common preamble in the next NR-U OFDM symbol that comes after the LBT process as early as in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure;
37A and 37B illustrate exemplary FBE channel access schemes with configurable BWPs for LBT processes according to embodiments of the present disclosure;
38 illustrates an exemplary FBE channel access scheme for performing LBTs in parallel over multiple subbands according to embodiments of the present disclosure; And
39 shows a flowchart of an exemplary method for operating a UE according to embodiments of the present disclosure.
40 illustrates a user equipment (UE) according to embodiments of the present disclosure.
41 illustrates a gNB according to embodiments of the present disclosure.

The present disclosure relates to a pre-5G or 5G communication system to be provided to support higher data rates beyond a 4G communication system such as Long Term Evolution (LTE).

In one embodiment, a user equipment (UE) of a wireless communication system is provided. The UE identifies the channel access mechanism to obtain access to the operating channel of the unlicensed band, performs a listen-before-talk (LBT) operation through the operating channel according to the identified channel access mechanism, and operates after the LBT operation is successful. Obtaining a channel occupancy time (COT) for transmission and reception on the channel, and, within the COT, configured to identify one or more switching points for the UE to switch from UL transmission to DL reception or from DL reception to UL transmission. It includes at least one processor. The UE further comprises a transceiver operatively connected to at least one processor, the transceiver transmitting or receiving to a base station (BS) through an operation channel during COT, and UL transmission based on the identified one or more switching points. It is configured to switch from to DL reception or from DL reception to UL transmission.

In one embodiment, the identified channel access mechanism includes: a load-based equipment (LBE) mode consisting of a configurable sensing duration to obtain an adaptive contention window size for the LBT; And a frame-based equipment (FBE) mode in which an LBT having a fixed detection duration is performed before each FFP among periodic fixed frame periods (FFPs), and the UE transmits or receives a transmission within the COT after the LBT. Is one of them.

In one embodiment, the processor may also: (i) the last DL reception when switching from DL reception to UL transmission occurs, or (ii) one or more after the last UL transmission when switching from UL transmission to DL reception occurs. Determine whether each of the switching points occurs within the gap; In response to each of the one or more switching points occurring within the gap, switching between DL reception and UL transmission without performing LBT; And in response to each of the one or more switching points occurring outside the gap: causing the transceiver to perform an LBT termination prior to each of the one or more switching points; Or, it is configured to extend the cyclic prefix (CP) of the prospective UL transmission so that the prospective UL transmission starts within a gap after the end of the last UL transmission, and the gap is a short interframe space (SIFS ) Is the duration.

In one embodiment, the maximum number of switching between UL transmission and DL reception in the COT is a predefined fixed number; A scalable number that does not decrease for COT; A scalable number for LBT priority classes that do not decrease as the channel access priority decreases; Or it is configured to be one of an expandable number that does not decrease for a fixed frame period.

In one embodiment, the maximum allowed number of LBT attempts at each of the one or more switching points between UL transmission and DL reception may be a predefined fixed number; Or one or more of the one or more switching points between UL transmission and DL reception, after each switching point is configured to be one of a scalable number that does not decrease for the duration of the expected UL transmission, the time interval between adjacent LBT attempts, If the previous LBT attempt fails, a new LBT attempt is immediately restarted; A new LBT attempt starts at one of the next symbol boundary, the next mini slot boundary, or the next slot boundary; Or it is configurable so that a new LBT is attempted so that the expected UL transmission starts at one of the next symbol boundary, the next mini slot boundary, or the next slot boundary.

In one embodiment, the FBE mode includes: the length of the FFP, which is configurable from a set of predefined values in units of 1 millisecond or one slot; The length of the COT, configurable as a fixed maximum value, a percentage of the FFP, or one of the predefined values in one of the predefined values set; Or 1 microsecond, 1 millisecond, one symbol, or one of 1/(480 kilohertz (kHz) * 4096) time granularity configurable by at least one of the starting positions of the FFP.

In one embodiment, when the identified channel access mechanism is configured in FBE mode, the processor is also configured with a spatial RX parameter of each of a plurality of spatial receive (RX) parameters aligned with the intended spatial transmission (TX) parameters. Perform LBT at the same time via and use the spatial parameters passed through the LBT for transmission during COT; And performing LBT through each of the plurality of spatial RX parameters sequentially over each of the time units; Or, when the omni-directional LBT is passed, the transceiver transmits the transmission, or when the omni-directional LBT is not passed, the directional LBT is performed and the transceiver transmits the transmission through the spatial TX parameter passing through the directional LBT. It is configured to perform omni-directional LBT by letting it go.

In one embodiment, the at least one processor is further configured to cause the transceiver to transmit a preamble signal, and in the frequency domain, the preamble sequence is a fixed number of subcarrier indices to which any two adjacent preamble sequence elements are mapped. Mapped to subcarriers different by ( N); And in the time domain, the preamble sequence is transmitted in a periodic repetition pattern having a periodicity of 1/(N * subcarrier spacing of the preamble signal).

In another embodiment, a BS of a wireless communication system is provided. The BS identifies the channel access mechanism to obtain access to the operating channel of the unlicensed band, performs the LBT operation through the operating channel according to the identified channel access mechanism, and transmits and receives on the operating channel after the LBT operation is successful. And at least one processor configured to, within the COT, identify one or more switching points for the BS to switch from DL transmission to UL reception or UL reception to DL transmission. The BS further includes a transceiver operatively connected to at least one processor, the transceiver transmitting or receiving to the UE through an operating channel during COT, and receiving UL from DL transmission based on the identified one or more switching points. Or from UL reception to DL transmission.

In one embodiment, the identified channel access mechanism includes: a load-based equipment (LBE) mode consisting of a configurable sensing duration to obtain an adaptive contention window size for the LBT; And a frame-based equipment (FBE) mode in which an LBT having a fixed detection duration is performed before each FFP among periodic fixed frame periods (FFPs), and the UE transmits or receives a transmission within the COT after the LBT. Is one of them.

In one embodiment, the processor may also: (i) the last UL reception when switching from UL reception to DL transmission occurs, or (ii) one or more after the last DL transmission when switching from DL transmission to UL reception occurs. Determine whether each of the switching points occurs within the gap; In response to each of the one or more switching points in the gap, performing switching between UL reception and DL transmission without performing LBT; And in response to each of the one or more switching points occurring outside the gap: causing the transceiver to perform an LBT termination prior to each of the one or more switching points; Alternatively, the expected DL transmission is configured to extend a cyclic prefix (CP) of the expected DL transmission so that it starts within a gap after the end of the last DL transmission, and the gap is a short interframe interval (SIFS) duration.

In one embodiment, the maximum number of switching between DL transmission and UL reception in the COT is a predefined fixed number; A scalable number that does not decrease for COT; A scalable number for LBT priority classes that do not decrease as the channel access priority decreases; Or it is configured to be one of an expandable number that does not decrease for a fixed frame period.

In one embodiment, the maximum number of allowed LBT attempts at each of the one or more switching points between DL transmission and UL reception may be a predefined fixed number; Or one or more of the one or more switching points between DL transmission and UL reception, after each switching point is configured to be one of a scalable number that does not decrease with respect to the duration of the expected UL transmission, the time interval between adjacent LBT attempts, If the previous LBT attempt fails, a new LBT attempt is immediately restarted; A new LBT attempt starts at one of the next symbol boundary, the next mini slot boundary, or the next slot boundary; Or it is configurable so that a new LBT is attempted so that the expected DL transmission starts at one of the next symbol boundary, the next mini slot boundary, or the next slot boundary.

In one embodiment, the FBE mode includes: a length of an FFP configurable from a set of predefined values in units of 1 millisecond or one slot; The length of the COT, configurable as a fixed maximum value, a percentage of the FFP, or one of the predefined values in one of the predefined values set; Or 1 microsecond, 1 millisecond, one symbol, or at least one of the starting positions of the FFP, configurable by a time granularity of 1/(480 kilohertz (kHz) * 4096).

In one embodiment, when the identified channel access mechanism is configured in FBE mode, the processor is also configured with a spatial RX parameter of each of a plurality of spatial receive (RX) parameters aligned with the intended spatial transmission (TX) parameters. Perform LBT at the same time via and use the spatial parameters passed through the LBT for transmission during COT; And performing LBT through each of the plurality of spatial RX parameters sequentially over each of the time units; Or, when the omni-directional LBT is passed, the transceiver transmits the transmission, or when the omni-directional LBT is not passed, the directional LBT is performed and the transceiver transmits the transmission through the spatial TX parameter passing through the directional LBT. It is configured to perform an omni-directional LBT by allowing it to be performed.

In one embodiment, the at least one processor is further configured to cause the transceiver to transmit a preamble signal, and in the frequency domain, the preamble sequence is a fixed number of subcarrier indices to which any two adjacent preamble sequence elements are mapped. Mapped to subcarriers that are different by ( N); In the time domain, the preamble sequence is transmitted in a periodic repetition pattern having a periodicity of 1/(N * subcarrier interval of the preamble signal).

In yet another embodiment, a method of operating a UE in a wireless communication system is provided. The method includes identifying a channel access mechanism to gain access to an operating channel of an unlicensed band; Performing an LBT operation through an operation channel according to the identified channel access mechanism, and obtaining a COT for transmission and reception on the operation channel after the LBT operation is successful; Within the COT, the UE identifying one or more switching points for switching from UL transmission to DL reception or from DL reception to UL transmission; And switching from UL transmission to DL reception or from DL reception to UL transmission based on the identified one or more switching points.

In one embodiment, the identified channel access mechanism includes: a load-based equipment (LBE) mode consisting of a configurable sensing duration to obtain an adaptive contention window size for the LBT; And a frame-based equipment (FBE) mode in which an LBT having a fixed detection duration is performed before each FFP among periodic fixed frame periods (FFPs), and the UE transmits or receives a transmission within the COT after the LBT. Is one of them.

In one embodiment, the method further comprises: (i) the last DL reception when switching from DL reception to UL transmission occurs, or (ii) one after the last UL transmission when switching from UL transmission to DL reception occurs. Determining whether each of the above switching points occurs within the gap; In response to each of the one or more switching points occurring within the gap, performing switching between DL reception and UL transmission without performing LBT; And in response to each of the one or more switching points occurring outside the gap: performing LBT termination prior to each of the one or more switching points; Or extending the cyclic prefix (CP) of the prospective UL transmission so that the prospective UL transmission starts within a gap after the end of the last UL transmission, wherein the gap is a short inter-frame interval (SIFS) duration. to be.

In one embodiment, the maximum number of switching between UL transmission and DL reception in the COT is a predefined fixed number; A scalable number that does not decrease for COT; A scalable number for LBT priority classes that do not decrease as the channel access priority decreases; Or it is configured to be one of an expandable number that does not decrease for a fixed frame period.

Other technical features may become readily apparent to a person skilled in the art from the following drawings, descriptions, and claims.

Prior to embarking on the description of the specifics for carrying out the invention below, it may be advantageous to refer to the definitions of specific words and phrases used throughout this patent document. The term “couple” and its derivatives refer to any direct or indirect communication between two or more elements, whether or not they are in physical contact with each other. The terms "send", "receive" and "communicate" as well as their derivatives include both direct and indirect communication. The terms "comprises" and "comprises", as well as their derivatives, mean inclusion without limitation. The term “or” is inclusive and means “and/or”. The phrase "related to", as well as its derivatives, includes, contains within, interconnects with, contains, contains within, connects to or connects to, to or to Couples with, can communicate with, cooperates with, interleaves with, juxtaposes with, approaches with, with or is associated with, with, has, has the characteristics of, with It means to have a relationship with or with. The term “controller” refers to any device, system, or portion thereof that controls at least one operation. Such a controller may be implemented in hardware or a combination of hardware and software and/or firmware. Functions associated with any particular controller, whether locally or remotely, may be centralized or distributed. The phrase “at least one of”, when used with a list of items, means that different combinations of one or more of the items listed may be used and only any one item in the list may be required. For example, “at least one of A, B, and C” includes any of the following combinations: A, B, C, A and B, A and C, B and C, and A and B and C.

Moreover, various functions described below may be implemented or supported by one or more computer programs, each of which is formed from computer readable program code and embodied in a computer readable medium. The terms "application" and "program" refer to one or more computer programs, software components, instruction sets, procedures, functions, objects, classes suitable for implementation in suitable computer-readable program code. , Instances, related data, or portions thereof. The phrase "computer readable program code" includes any type of computer code including source code, object code, and executable code. The phrase "computer-readable medium" means read only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), hard disk drive, compact disc (CD), digital video disc (DVD), or any other type of memory. , Any tangible medium that can be accessed by a computer. “Non-transitory” computer-readable media exclude wired, wireless, optical, or other communication links that transmit transient electrical or other signals. Non-transitory computer-readable media include media on which data can be permanently stored and media on which data can be stored and later overwritten, such as a rewritable optical disk or erasable memory device.

Definitions for other specific words and phrases are provided throughout this patent document. Those skilled in the art should understand that in many, if not most, cases, these definitions apply to previous and future uses of the words and phrases so defined.

1 to 39 discussed below, and the various embodiments used to explain the principles of the present disclosure in this patent document are merely exemplary and should not be construed as limiting the scope of the present disclosure in any way. Those skilled in the art will understand that the principles of the present disclosure may be implemented in any suitably arranged wireless communication system.

This disclosure is directed to designing an adaptation procedure in which UE operation enables signaling for both an adaptation request from the UE to a serving base station (gNB) and an adaptation request from the gNB to the UE, which may be based on assistance information from the UE. About. The present disclosure also enables adaptation schemes in UE operation to support adaptation to UE operational characteristics in frequency, time, and antenna domains, in Discontinuous Reception (DRX) configuration, and in processing timeline. It's about what makes it happen. This disclosure further relates to designing a downlink (DL) physical layer signal/channel for a UE to signal information about the UE to the UE for adapting parameters of UE operation. This disclosure further relates to designing an uplink (UL) physical layer signal/channel for the UE to transmit an adaptation request to the gNB. The present disclosure is additionally also directed to specifying assistance information to be transmitted by the UE to the gNB to assist the gNB in determining adaptations in parameters of UE operation.

The present disclosure also improves the design of synchronization signals/physical broadcast channel (SS/PBCH) blocks based mobility measurements by the UE and CSI-by UE for asynchronous networks. It relates to improving the design of RS-based mobility measurements. The present disclosure is also directed to reducing RRM measurement overhead using a change in UE mobility state or channel situation. The present disclosure additionally provides discontinuous reception (DRX) operation in radio resource control (RRC)_CONNECTED state (C-DRX) across reference signal (RS) resources with more flexibility in both time and frequency domains. It relates to optimizing the mobility measurement by the UE.

1 shows an exemplary wireless network 100 in accordance with the present disclosure. The embodiment of the wireless network 100 shown in FIG. 1 is for illustration only. Other embodiments of the wireless network 100 may be used without departing from the scope of this disclosure.

The wireless network 100 includes gNodeB (gNB) 101, gNB 102, and gNB 103. The gNB 101 communicates with the gNB 102 and gNB 103. The gNB 101 also communicates with at least one Internet Protocol (IP) network 130, such as the Internet, a proprietary IP network, or other data network.

Depending on the network type, other well-known terms such as “base station” or “access point” may be used instead of “gNodeB” or “gNB”. For convenience, the terms “gNodeB” and “gNB” are used in this patent document to refer to network infrastructure components that provide radio access to remote terminals. Also, depending on the network type, other well-known terms such as "mobile station", "subscriber station", "remote terminal", "wireless terminal", or "user device" are used instead of "user equipment" or "UE". Can be used. For convenience, the terms “user equipment” and “UE” refer to whether the UE is a mobile device (such as a mobile phone or smart phone) or a stationary device (such as a desktop computer or vending machine) that accesses the gNB wirelessly. It is used in this patent document to refer to remote radio equipment.

The gNB 102 provides wireless broadband access to the network 130 to a first plurality of UEs within the coverage area 120 of the gNB 102. The first plurality of UEs may include a UE 111 that may be located in a small business (SB); UE 112, which may be located in a large-scale establishment (E); UE 113, which may be located in a Wi-Fi hotspot (HS); UE 114 that may be located in the first residence (R); UE 115 that may be located in the second residence R; And a UE 116, which may be a mobile device M, such as a cell phone, a wireless laptop, a wireless PDA, or the like. The gNB 103 provides wireless broadband access to the network 130 to a second plurality of UEs in the coverage area 125 of the gNB 103. The plurality of second UEs includes a UE 115 and a UE 116. In some embodiments, one or more gNBs of the gNBs 101-103 are each other and the UEs using 5G, long-term evolution (LTE), LTE-A, WiMAX, WiFi, or other advanced wireless communication techniques. Can communicate with (111~116).

The broken lines represent an approximate range of the coverage areas 120 and 125, and the coverage areas are shown in an approximate circular shape for purposes of illustration and description only. The coverage areas associated with gNBs, such as coverage areas 120 and 125, may have different shapes, including irregular shapes, depending on the configuration of the gNBs and changes in the wireless environment associated with natural and artificial obstacles. It should be clearly understood that there is.

As will be described in more detail below, one or more of BS 101, BS 102 and BS 103 include 2D antenna arrays as described in embodiments of the present disclosure. In some embodiments, one or more of BS 101, BS 102 and BS 103 supports codebook design and architecture for systems with 2D antenna arrays.

While FIG. 1 shows one example of a wireless network 100, various changes may be made to FIG. 1. For example, wireless network 100 may include any number of gNBs and any number of UEs in any suitable arrangements. In addition, the gNB 101 may communicate directly with any number of UEs and provide wireless broadband access to the network 130 to those UEs. Likewise, each gNB 102-103 may communicate directly with the network 130 and provide UEs with direct wireless broadband access to the network 130. In addition, gNBs 101, 102, and/or 103 may provide access to other or additional external networks, such as external telephone networks or other types of data networks.

2A and 2B illustrate exemplary wireless transmit and receive paths in accordance with the present disclosure. In the following description, the transmit path 200 may be described as being implemented in a gNB (such as gNB 102), while the receive path 250 may be described as being implemented in a UE (such as UE 116). have. However, it will be appreciated that the receive path 250 may be implemented in the gNB and that the transmit path 200 may be implemented in the UE. In some embodiments, receive path 250 is configured to support codebook design and structure for systems with 2D antenna arrays as described in embodiments of the present disclosure.

The transmission path 200 includes a channel coding and modulation block 205, a serial-to-parallel (S-to-P) block 210, a size N Inverse Fast Fourier Transform ( IFFT) block 215, parallel-to-serial (P-to-S) block 220, and a cyclic prefix (CP) additional block 225, and an up-converter ( UC) 230. The receive path 450 includes a down-converter (DC) 255, a CP removal block 260, an S-to-P block 265, a size N fast Fourier transform (FFT) block 270, A P-to-S block 275, and a channel decoding and demodulation block 280.

In the transmission path 200, the channel coding and modulation block 205 receives a set of information bits, applies coding (e.g., low-density parity check (LDPC) coding), and applies the input bits (e.g. Modulated by Quadrature Phase Shift Keying (QPSK) or Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM)) to generate a sequence of frequency domain modulation symbols. The serial-to-parallel block 210 converts the serially modulated symbols into parallel data (e.g., demultiplexing) to generate N parallel symbol streams, where N is the IFFT/ This is the FFT size. The size N IFFT block 215 then performs an IFFT operation on the N parallel symbol streams to generate time domain output signals. The parallel to serial block 220 transforms (eg, multiplexes) the parallel time domain output symbols from the size N IFFT block 215 to produce a serial time domain signal. The CP addition block 225 inserts the CP into the time domain signal. The up converter 230 modulates (for example, up-converts) the output of the CP addition block 225 to an RF frequency for transmission over a wireless channel. The signal can also be filtered in baseband prior to conversion to RF frequency.

The transmitted RF signal from the gNB 102 arrives at the UE 116 after passing through the radio channel, and reverse operations for them at the gNB 102 are performed at the UE 116. The down converter 255 down-converts the received signal to a baseband frequency, and the CP removal block 260 removes the CP to generate a serial time domain baseband signal. The serial to parallel block 265 converts the time domain baseband signal into parallel time domain signals. The size N FFT block 270 performs an FFT algorithm to generate N parallel frequency domain signals. The parallel to serial block 275 converts the parallel frequency domain signals into a sequence of modulated data symbols. The channel decoding and demodulation block 280 demodulates the modulated symbols and then decodes them to restore the original input data stream.

Each of the gNBs 101 to 103 can implement a transmission path 200 similar to that of transmitting on the downlink to the UEs 111 to 116, and receiving similar to that of receiving on the uplink from the UEs 111 to 116 Path 250 may be implemented. Similarly, each of the UEs 111 to 116 may implement a transmission path 200 for transmitting on the uplink to the gNBs 101 to 103 and receiving for receiving on the downlink from the gNBs 101 to 103 Path 250 may be implemented.

Each of the components in FIGS. 2A and 2B may be implemented using only hardware or a combination of hardware and software/firmware. As a specific example, at least some of the components of FIGS. 5 and 6 may be implemented in software, while other components may be implemented by configurable hardware or a mixture of software and configurable hardware. For example, FFT block 270 and IFFT block 215 may be implemented as configurable software algorithms, where the value of size N may be modified according to the implementation.

Moreover, although described as using FFT and IFFT, this is merely exemplary and should not be construed as limiting the scope of the present disclosure. Other types of transforms may be used, such as Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) and Inverse Discrete Fourier Transform (IDFT) functions. The value of variable N can be any integer number (e.g. 1, 2, 3, 4, etc.) for DFT and IDFT functions, but the value of variable N is a power of 2 (e.g. 1, 2) for FFT and IFFT functions. , 4, 8, 16, etc.).

4A and 4B show examples of wireless transmit and receive paths, various changes may be made to FIGS. 4A and 4B. For example, various components in FIGS. 2A and 2B may be combined, further subdivided, or omitted, and additional components may be added according to specific needs. Also, FIGS. 2A and 2B are intended to illustrate examples of types of transmit and receive paths that may be used in a wireless network. Any other suitable architectures may be used to support wireless communications in a wireless network.

3A shows an exemplary UE 116 according to this disclosure. The embodiment of the UE 116 shown in FIG. 3 is for illustration only, and the UEs 111 to 115 of FIG. 1 may have the same or similar configuration. However, UEs are provided in a wide variety of configurations, and FIG. 3A does not limit the scope of this disclosure to any particular implementation of the UE.

The UE 116 includes an antenna 305, a radio frequency (RF) transceiver 310, a transmit (TX) processing circuit 315, a microphone 320, and a receive (RX) processing circuit 325. The UE 116 also includes a speaker 330, a main processor 340, an input/output (I/O) interface (IF) 345, a keypad 350, a display 355, and a memory 360. The memory 360 includes a basic operating system (OS) program 361 and one or more applications 362.

The RF transceiver 310 receives, from the antenna 305, an incoming RF signal transmitted by the gNB of the network 100. The RF transceiver 310 down-converts the incoming RF signal to generate an intermediate frequency (IF) or baseband signal. The IF or baseband signal is sent to RX processing circuitry 325, which generates a processed baseband signal by filtering, decoding, and/or digitizing the baseband or IF signal. RX processing circuitry 325 transmits the processed baseband signal to speaker 330 (such as for voice data) or to main processor 340 (such as for web browsing data) for further processing.

TX processing circuit 315 receives analog or digital voice data from microphone 320 or other outgoing baseband data from main processor 340 (such as web data, email, or interactive video game data). TX processing circuitry 315 encodes, multiplexes, and/or digitizes the outgoing baseband data to generate a processed baseband or IF signal. The RF transceiver 310 receives the processed baseband or IF signal transmitted from the TX processing circuit 315 and up-converts the baseband or IF signal to an RF signal transmitted through the antenna 305.

The main processor 340 may include one or more processors or other processing devices and may execute a basic OS program 361 stored in the memory 360 to control the overall operation of the UE 116. For example, the main processor 340 may receive forward channel signals and transmit reverse channel signals by RF transceiver 310, RX processing circuit 325, and TX processing circuit 315 according to well-known principles. Can be controlled. In some embodiments, main processor 340 includes at least one microprocessor or microcontroller.

Main processor 340 may also perform other processes and programs residing in memory 360, such as operations for channel quality measurement and reporting for systems with 2D antenna arrays as described in embodiments of the present disclosure. You can do it. Main processor 340 may move data into or out of memory 360 as required by an executing process. In some embodiments, main processor 340 is configured to execute applications 362 based on OS program 361 or in response to signals received from gNBs or operator. The main processor 340 is also coupled to the I/O interface 345, which provides the UE 116 with the ability to connect to other devices such as laptop computers and handheld computers. The I/O interface 345 is the communication path between these accessories and the main controller 340.

The main processor 340 is also coupled to the keypad 350 and the display unit 355. The operator of the UE 116 can use the keypad 350 to enter data into the UE 116. Display 355 may be, for example, a liquid crystal display or other display capable of rendering text and/or at least limited graphics from a web site.

The memory 360 is coupled to the main processor 340. A portion of memory 360 may include random-access memory (RAM), and another portion of memory 360 may include flash memory or other read-only memory (ROM). Can include.

Although FIG. 3A shows one example of the UE 116, various changes may be made to FIG. 3A. For example, various components in FIG. 3A may be combined, further subdivided, or omitted, and additional components may be added according to specific needs. As a specific example, the main processor 340 may be divided into multiple processors, such as one or more central processing units (CPUs) and one or more graphics processing units (GPUs). I can. Also, although FIG. 3A illustrates the UE 116 configured as a mobile phone or smart phone, the UEs may be configured to operate as other types of mobile or stationary devices. The UE 116 illustrated in FIG. 3A may correspond to the UE 4000 illustrated in FIG. 40. For example, the controller/processor 340 may correspond to the processor 4010.

3B shows an exemplary UE 102 according to this disclosure. The embodiment of the gNB 102 shown in FIG. 3B is for illustration only, and other gNBs in FIG. 1 may have the same or similar configuration. However, gNBs are provided in a wide variety of configurations, and FIG. 3B does not limit the scope of this disclosure to any particular implementation of gNB. Note that the gNB 101 and gNB 103 may include the same or similar structure as the gNB 102.

3B, the gNB 102 includes a plurality of antennas 370a to 370n, a plurality of RF transceivers 372a to 372n, a transmit (TX) processing circuit 374, and a receive (RX) processing. Circuit 376. In certain embodiments, at least one of the plurality of antennas 370a to 370n includes 2D antenna arrays. The gNB 102 also includes a controller/processor 378, a memory 380, and a backhaul or network interface 382.

The RF transceivers 372a to 372n receive incoming RF signals, such as signals transmitted by UEs or other gNBs, from the antennas 370a to 370n. The RF transceivers 372a to 372n down-convert incoming RF signals to generate IF or baseband signals. The IF or baseband signals are sent to RX processing circuitry 376, which generates processed baseband signals by filtering, decoding, and/or digitizing the baseband or IF signals. RX processing circuitry 376 transmits the processed baseband signals to controller/processor 378 for further processing.

TX processing circuitry 374 receives analog or digital data (such as voice data, web data, email, or interactive video game data) from controller/processor 378. TX processing circuitry 374 encodes, multiplexes, and/or digitizes outgoing baseband data to generate processed baseband or IF signals. The RF transceivers 372a to 372n receive the processed baseband or IF signals transmitted from the TX processing circuit 374 and convert the baseband or IF signals into RF signals transmitted through the antennas 370a to 370n. Up-convert.

The controller/processor 378 may include one or more processors or other processing devices that control the overall operation of the gNB 102. For example, the controller/processor 378 can receive and reverse forward channel signals by RF transceivers 372a-372n, RX processing circuit 376, and TX processing circuit 374 according to well-known principles. It is possible to control the transmission of channel signals. The controller/processor 378 may also support additional functions, such as more advanced wireless communication functions. For example, the controller/processor 378 performs a blind interference sensing (BIS) process as performed by the BIS algorithm, and decodes the received signal from which the interfering signals are subtracted. Any of a wide variety of other functions may be supported by the controller/processor 378 at the gNB 102. In some embodiments, the controller/processor 378 includes at least one microprocessor or microcontroller.

Controller/processor 378 may also execute programs and other processes residing in memory 380, such as a basic OS. The controller/processor 378 may also support channel quality measurement and reporting for systems with 2D antenna arrays as described in embodiments of the present disclosure. In some embodiments, the controller/processor 378 supports communications between entities, such as a web RTC. The controller/processor 378 can move data into or out of memory 380 as required by the executing process.

The controller/processor 378 is also coupled to a backhaul or network interface 382. The backhaul or network interface 382 allows the gNB 102 to communicate with other devices or systems via a backhaul connection or over a network. Interface 382 may support communications over any suitable wired or wireless connection(s). For example, when gNB 102 is implemented as part of a cellular communication system (such as supporting 5G, LTE, or LTE-A), interface 382 allows gNB 102 to establish a wired or wireless backhaul connection. It may allow to communicate with other gNBs through. When the gNB 102 is implemented as an access point, the interface 382 will allow the gNB 102 to communicate over a wired or wireless local area network or over a wired or wireless connection to a larger network (such as the Internet). I can. Interface 382 includes any suitable structure that supports communications over a wired or wireless connection, such as an Ethernet or RF transceiver.

The memory 380 is coupled to the controller/processor 378. A portion of memory 380 may include RAM, and another portion of memory 380 may include flash memory or other ROM. In certain embodiments, a plurality of instructions, such as a BIS algorithm, is stored in memory. The plurality of instructions are configured to cause the controller/processor 378 to perform the BIS process and decode the received signal after subtracting the at least one interfering signal determined by the BIS algorithm.

As described in more detail below, the transmit and receive paths of the gNB 102 (implemented using RF transceivers 372a-372n, TX processing circuit 374, and/or RX processing circuit 376). ) Supports communication with a collection of FDD cells and TDD cells.

Although FIG. 3B shows one example of the UE 102, various changes may be made to FIG. 3B. For example, the gNB 102 may include any number of each component shown in FIG. 3. As a specific example, the access point may include multiple interfaces 382 and the controller/processor 378 may support routing functions that route data between different network addresses. As another specific example, although shown as including a single instance of TX processing circuit 374 and a single instance of RX processing circuit 376, the gNB 102 has multiple instances of each (such as one per RF transceiver). Can include. The gNB 102 illustrated in FIG. 3B may correspond to the gNB 4100 illustrated in FIG. 41. For example, the controller/processor 378 may correspond to the processor 4110.

It is typically configured by the gNB for the UE to decode one or more DCI formats to monitor multiple locations for each candidate PDCCH receptions. In order for the UE to confirm correct detection of the DCI format, the DCI format includes cyclic redundancy check (CRC) bits. The DCI format type is identified by a radio network temporary identifier (RNTI) scrambling the CRC bits. In the case of a DCI format for scheduling PDSCH or PUSCH to a single UE, the RNTI may be a cell RNTI (C-RNTI) and may serve as a UE identifier. In the case of a DCI format for scheduling a PDSCH carrying system information (SI), the RNTI may be SI-RNTI. In the case of a DCI format for scheduling a PDSCH providing a random-access response (RAR), the RNTI may be an RA-RNTI. In the case of a DCI format that provides transmit power control (TPC) commands to a group of UEs, the RNTI may be TPC-RNTI. Each RNTI type may be configured for the UE through higher layer signaling such as RRC signaling. The DCI format for scheduling PDSCH reception by the UE is also referred to as DL DCI format or DL assignment, while the DCI format for scheduling PUSCH transmission from the UE is also referred to as UL DCI format or UL grant.

The PDCCH transmission may be in the PRB set. The gNB may configure one or more sets of PRB sets, also referred to as control resource sets (CORESETs), to the UE, for PDCCH receptions. PDCCH transmission may be in control channel elements (CCEs) of CORESET. The UE determines CCEs for PDCCH reception based on the discovery space set. The CCE set used for PDCCH reception by the UE defines the PDCCH candidate location.

4A illustrates a block diagram of a transmitter for PUSCH in a subframe. The embodiment of the PUSCH transmitter block diagram shown in FIG. 4A is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The information data bits 411 are encoded by an encoder 412, such as a turbo encoder, and modulated by a modulator 413. The discrete Fourier transform (DFT) unit 414 applies DFT to the modulated data bits, and resource elements (REs) corresponding to the assigned PUSCH transmission BW are selected by the transmission BW selection unit 415, Unit 416 applies the IFFT, and after CP insertion (not shown), filtering is applied by filter 417 and a signal is transmitted (418).

4B illustrates a block diagram of a receiver for PUSCH in a subframe. The embodiment of the PUSCH receiver block diagram shown in FIG. 4B is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The received signal 421 is filtered by a filter 422. Subsequently, after the CP is removed (not shown), the unit 423 applies the FFT, and the REs 424 corresponding to the assigned PUSCH reception BW are selected by the reception BW selector 429, and the unit 425 applies an inverse DFT (IDFT), and the demodulator 426 coherently demodulates the data symbols by applying a channel estimate obtained from a DMRS (not shown), and a decoder 427, such as a turbo decoder. Decodes the demodulated data to provide an estimate of the information data bits 428.

In next-generation cellular systems, a variety of use cases are anticipated that go beyond the capabilities of LTE. One of those requirements is a system capable of operating below 6 GHz and above 6 GHz (eg, in the mmWave region), referred to as 5G or 5th generation cellular systems. In 3GPP TR 22.891, 74 5G use cases have been identified and described; Their use cases can be roughly classified into three different groups. The first group is called'Enhanced Mobile Broadband' (eMBB) targeting high data rate services with less stringent latency and reliability requirements. The second group is called'ultra-reliable and low latency' (URLL), which targets applications that have less stringent data rate requirements but are less tolerant of latency. A third group is called'Large MTC (mMTC)' targeting multiple low power device connections, such as 1 million per ^{km 2} with less stringent reliability, data rate, and latency requirements.

In order for the 5G network to support these various services with different quality of service (QoS), network slicing is summoned. In order to efficiently use PHY resources in the DL-SCH and multiplex various slices (with different resource allocation schemes, numerologies, and scheduling strategies), a flexible and independent frame or subframe design is used. do.

5 shows two exemplary cases of multiplexing two slices within a common subframe or frame according to embodiments of the present disclosure. In these exemplary embodiments, one transmission instance includes a control (CTRL) component 520a, 560a, 560b, 520b, or 560c and a data component, i.e., a data frame/frame 530a for slice 1, and slice 2 As a data frame/frame 570a for, a data frame/subframe 570b for slice 2, a data frame/subframe 530b for slice 1, or a data frame/subframe 570c for slice 2 A slice is made of one or two transmission instances.

In embodiment 510, the two slices are multiplexed in the frequency domain whereas in embodiment 550, they are multiplexed in the time domain. These two slices can be transmitted in different neurology sets.

Rel.14 LTE supports up to 32 CSI-RS antenna ports that enable the eNB to have multiple antenna elements (such as 64 or 128). In this case, a plurality of antenna elements are mapped onto one CSI-RS port. In the case of next-generation cellular systems such as 5G, the maximum number of CSI-RS ports may remain the same or may increase.

For mmWave bands, the number of CSI-RS ports-which may correspond to the number of digitally precoded ports-is shown in Fig. 10, although the number of antenna elements may be more for a given form factor. It tends to be limited due to hardware constraints (like the feasibility of installing a large number of ADCs/DACs at mmWave frequencies) as illustrated in.

6 shows an example of a plurality of antenna elements for mmWave bands according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 6 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In this case, one CSI-RS port is mapped onto a large number of antenna elements that can be controlled by a bank of analog phase shifters 601. One CSI-RS port may correspond to one sub-array generating a narrow analog beam through analog beamforming 605 at that time. This analog beam can be configured to sweep over a wider angle 620 range by varying the phase shifter bank over symbols or subframes. The number of sub-arrays (equal to the number of RF chains) is equal to the number of CSI-RS ports ( N _CSI-PORT ). The digital beamforming unit 610 performs linear combination across N _CSI-PORT analog beams to further increase the precoding gain. Although the analog beams are wideband (so not frequency selective), digital precoding can be varied across frequency subbands or resource blocks.

In 3GPP LTE, network access and radio resource management (RRM) is enabled by physical layer synchronization signals and higher (MAC) layer procedures. In particular, the UE attempts to detect the presence of synchronization signals along with at least one cell ID for initial access. Once the UE is in the network and associated with the serving cell, the UE monitors several neighboring cells by attempting to detect their synchronization signals and/or by measuring the associated cell specific RSs (e.g., by measuring their RSRPs). do. For next-generation cellular systems, such as 3GPP NR (new radio access or interface), for various use cases (e.g. eMBB, URLLC, mMTC, each corresponding to a different coverage requirement) and frequency bands (with different propagation losses). An efficient and unified radio resource acquisition or tracking mechanism that operates on the network is desirable. If it is likely to be designed with a different network and radio resource paradigm, then the seamless and low-latency RRM is also desirable. These goals pose at least the following issues in designing an access, radio resource, and mobility management framework.

First, since the NR is likely to support a much more diverse network topology, the concept of a cell can be redefined or replaced with other radio resource entities. As an example, in the case of synchronous networks, one cell may be associated with a plurality of transmit-receive points (TRPs) similar to a coordinated multipoint transmission (COM) scenario in LTE. In this case, nodular mobility is a desirable feature.

Second, when large antenna arrays and beamforming are used, defining the radio resource in terms of the beams (maybe called differently) may be a natural approach. Given that a myriad of beamforming architectures may be used, an access, radio resource, and mobility management framework that accommodates a variety of beamforming architectures (or, instead, is independent of the beamforming architecture) is desirable. For example, in the framework, one beam is used for one CSI-RS port (e.g., a plurality of analog ports are connected to one digital port, and a plurality of digital ports that are far apart are used). Whether it is formed or one beam is formed by a plurality of CSI-RS ports, it should be applicable or should be independent. In addition, the framework should be applicable whether or not beam sweeping (as illustrated in Fig. 7) is used.

Third, different frequency bands and use cases impose different coverage restrictions. For example, mmWave bands impose large propagation losses. Therefore, some form of coverage improvement scheme is needed. Several candidates include beam sweeping (see Fig. 6), repetition, diversity, and/or multi-TRP transmission. In the case of mMTC with a small transmission bandwidth, time domain repetition is necessary to ensure sufficient coverage.

7 shows exemplary embodiments 710 and 750 of UE-centric access using two radio resource entity levels according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiments shown in FIG. 7 are for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

These two levels can be called "cell" and "beam". These two terms are illustrative and are used for illustrative purposes. Other terms such as radio resource (RR) 1 and 2 may also be used. In addition, the term "beam" as a unit of radio resource should be distinguished from an analog beam used for beam sweeping in, for example, FIG. 6.

The first RR level (referred to as "cell") is applied when the UE enters the network and therefore participates in the initial access procedure. At 710, UE 711 is connected to cell 712 after performing an initial access procedure that includes detecting the presence of synchronization signals. Synchronization signals can be used to detect coarse timing and frequency acquisitions as well as cell identification (cell ID) associated with the serving cell. At this first level, the UE observes cell boundaries as different cells may be associated with different cell IDs. In FIG. 6, one cell is associated with one TRP (generally, one cell may be associated with a plurality of TRPs). Since the cell ID is a MAC layer entity, initial access entails not only physical layer procedure(s) (such as cell search through synchronization signal acquisition) but also MAC layer procedure(s).

The second RR level (called “beam”) is applied when the UE is already connected to the cell and so is in the network. At this second level, the UE 711 can move within the network without observing cell boundaries as illustrated in embodiment 750. That is, UE mobility is one of the cell is processed by the N number of beams (N is 1 or> May 1st) beam level than the cell level that may be associated with. However, unlike cells, beams are physical layer entities. Therefore, UE mobility management is handled only on the physical layer.

An example of a UE mobility scenario based on the second level RR is given in embodiment 750. After UE 711 is associated with serving cell 712, UE 711 is further associated with beam 751. This is accomplished by obtaining a beam or radio resource (RR) acquisition signal from which the UE can acquire the beam identity or identification. An example of a beam or RR acquisition signal is a measurement reference signal RS. Upon obtaining the beam (or RR) acquisition signal, the UE 711 may report the status to the network or an associated TRP. Examples of such reports include measured beam power (or measured RS power) or at least one recommended “beam identity (ID)” or “RR-ID” set. Based on this report, the network or the associated TRP may allocate the beam to the UE 711 (as a wireless resource) for data and control transmission. When the UE 711 moves to another cell, the boundary between the previous cell and the next cell is neither observed nor visible to the UE 711. Instead of cell handover, the UE 711 switches from beam 751 to beam 752. This nodule mobility is-especially when the UE 711 reports a set of M >1 preferred beam identities by acquiring and measuring M beam (or RR) acquisition signals-from the UE 711 to the network or the associated TRP. Facilitated by reporting.

8 shows an exemplary initial access procedure of mobility or radio resource management described above from the perspective of a UE according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 8 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

The initial access procedure 810 is followed by the retrieval of the cell ID 811 from the DL synchronization signal(s) as well as the retrieval of broadcast information (with system information required by the UE to establish DL and UL connections). UL synchronization (which may include a random access procedure) 812. Once the UE completes 811 and 812, the UE is connected to the network and associated with the cell. Following completion of the initial access procedure, the UE, possibly mobile, is in the RRM state described at 820. This state includes, first, an acquisition stage 821 in which the UE periodically (repeatedly) attempts to acquire a "beam" or RR ID from a "beam" or RR acquisition signal (such as a measurement RS). The UE may be configured with list beams/RR IDs to be monitored. This "beam"/RR ID list can be updated or reconfigured by the TRP/network. This configuration may be signaled via higher layer (eg RRC) signaling or a dedicated L1 or L2 control channel. Based on this list, the UE can monitor and measure the signal associated with each of these beam/RR IDs. This signal may correspond to a measurement RS resource similar to the CSI-RS resource in LTE. In this case, the UE may be configured with a set of K >1 CSI-RS resources to be monitored. Several options are possible for measurement report 822. First, the UE measures each of the K CSI-RS resources, calculates the corresponding RS power (similar to RSRP or RSRQ in LTE), and can report it to the TRP (or network). Second, the UE measures each of the K CSI-RS resources, calculates the associated CSI (which may include CQI and potentially other CSI parameters such as RI and PMI), and calculates it to the TRP (or network). You can report. Based on the report from the UE, M ≥ 1 "beams" or RRs are assigned to the UE via either higher layer (RRC) signaling or L1/L2 control signaling (823). Therefore, the UE is connected to these M "beams"/RRs.

For certain scenarios such as asynchronous networks, the UE may fall back to cell ID based or cell level mobility management similar to 3GPP LTE. Therefore, only one of the two levels of the radio resource entity (cell) is applicable. When a two-level ("cell" and "beam") radio resource entity or management is used, the synchronization signal(s) may be primarily designed for initial access to the network. For mmWave systems where analog beam sweeping or repetition can be used to improve the coverage of common signals (e.g. synchronization signal(s) and broadcast channel), synchronization signals are over time (e.g. OFDM symbols or slots or sub Can be repeated across frames). This repetition factor, however, is not necessarily related to the number of supported "beams" per cell or per TRP (defined as radio resource units distinct from analog beams used in beam sweeping). Therefore, no beam identification (ID) is acquired or detected from the synchronization signal(s). Instead, the beam ID is carried by a beam (RR) acquisition signal such as a measurement RS. Similarly, the beam (RR) acquisition signal does not carry a cell ID (hence, the cell ID is not detected from the beam or RR acquisition signal).

Therefore, considering the above new challenges in the initial access procedure and RRM for a new radio access technology (NR), the primary broadcast channel carrying synchronization signals and broadcast information (along with their associated UE procedures). It is necessary to design (called a master information block or MIB).

In this disclosure, numerology refers to a set of signal parameters that may include subframe duration, subcarrier spacing (SCS), CP length, transmission bandwidth, or any combination of these signal parameters.

In the case of the LTE system, primary and secondary synchronization signals (PSS and SSS, respectively) are used for coarse timing and frequency synchronization and cell ID acquisition. Since PSS/SSS is transmitted twice per 10ms radio frame and time domain enumeration is introduced in terms of System Frame Number (SFN) (included in MIB), frame timing is a requirement for increased detection burden from PBCH. Is detected from PSS/SSS to avoid. In addition, the cyclic prefix (CP) length and, if unknown, a duplexing scheme can be detected from the PSS/SSS. The PSS is constructed from a frequency-domain ZC sequence of length 63, and the intermediate element d.c. It is cut to avoid using subcarriers. Three routes are selected for the PSS to represent the three physical layer identities within each cell group. SSS sequences are based on maximum length sequences (also known as M sequences). Each SSS sequence is constructed by interleaving two length-31 BPSK modulated sequences in the frequency domain, and the two source sequences before modulation are different cyclic shifts of the same M sequence. Cyclic shift indices are constructed from the physical cell ID group. Since PSS/SSS detection can be erroneous (e.g. due to non-idealities in the auto-correlation and cross-correlation properties of PSS/SSS and lack of CRC protection), the cell ID detected from PSS/SSS Hypotheses can sometimes be confirmed through PBCH detection. The PBCH is mainly used to signal Master Block Information (MIB) consisting of DL and UL system bandwidth information (3 bits), PHICH information (3 bits), and SFN (8 bits). Adding the reserved 10 bits (for other uses such as MTC), the MIB payload becomes 24 bits. After the 16-bit CRC is appended, rate-1/3 tail biting convolution coding, 4x repetition, and QPSK modulation are applied to the 40-bit codeword. The resulting QPSK symbol stream is transmitted over 4 subframes distributed over 4 radio frames. In addition to detecting the MIB, blind detection of the number of CRS ports is also required for the PBCH.

Frame-based equipment, or FBE, has a periodic timing in which the transmit/receive structure has a periodicity named fixed frame period (FFP); And the initiating device is a channel access mechanism that must perform listen-before-talk (LBT) during the observation slot before starting transmissions on the working channel at the start of the FFP. The FFP is within 1 ms to 10 ms, and the observation slot is at least 9 microseconds. If the LBT fails in an operating channel, the initiating device shall not transmit on that channel, except for short control signaling transmissions, assuming compliance with certain requirements. The channel occupancy time (COT) related to the successful LBT check for the FBE operation must be 95% or less of the FFP, and in this COT, the idle period is at least the maximum (5% of the channel occupancy time, 100 microseconds) of the next FFP. There should be an idle period followed by the start.

9 shows an exemplary fixed frame period for FBE operations according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 9 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In the remainder of this disclosure, the observation slot refers to the duration for the FBE device to perform LBT, while the NR-U slot refers to a slot of 14 OFDM symbols of the NR-U system.

In addition to the load-based equipment (LBE) mode of operation, NR Unlicensed (NR-U) may also support the above FBE mode of operation for various application scenarios. Examples are that a single NR-U operator exists in the operating channel(s) and other Wi-Fi networks can be excluded (eg, by deployment); Having two or more NR-U operators present in the operating channel(s) and potentially having coordination between operators; And coexisting with one or more NR-U operators with an FBE operation-based Wi-Fi network, and the like. Considering that the LBT process is much simpler in FBE operation than in LBE operation, compared to the LBE mode of operation, the FBE mode of operation can potentially have a higher spectrum utilization under these scenarios.

This disclosure focuses on design aspects of NR-U to support FBE mode of operation, and enhancements to baseline FBE operations to support more efficient channel access and transmissions for FBE operation-based NR-U. have.

The present disclosure includes several embodiments, principles, and examples that may be used in connection with or in combination with each other, or that may operate as standalone.

In the remainder of this disclosure, FR1 NR-U refers to NR-U operating in unlicensed/shared bands in FR1, such as 5 GHz unlicensed bands or 6 GHz unlicensed/shared bands; FR2 GHz NR-U refers to NR-U operating in unlicensed/shared bands in FR2, such as 60 GHz unlicensed bands.

Example 1. Principles of Supporting FBE Operation Mode for NR-U

Embodiment 1 provides the principles of supporting the FBE mode of operation for NR-U.

In the first principle of Embodiment 1, the FBE mode of operation may be supported for NR-U following the regulations in the unlicensed/shared band of NR-U.

In one example of the first principle, the FBE mode of operation may be supported for NR-U operating on the 5 GHz unlicensed band, where the license-exempt provision already supports FBE operation.

In another example of the first principle, the FBE mode of operation may be supported for FR1 NR-U operating on the 6 GHz unlicensed/shared band.

In another example of the first principle, the FBE mode of operation may be supported for FR1 NR-U operating on unlicensed/shared bands other than 5 GHz or 6 GHz bands.

In another example of the first principle, the FBE mode of operation may be supported for FR2 NR-U. In one sub-example, FR2 NR-U can operate in 60 GHz unlicensed bands.

In another example of the first principle, for FBE NR-U, the initiating device may be a gNB, and the responding device is a UE.

In another example of the first principle, in the case of FBE NR-U, the initiating device may be a UE, and the responding device may be a gNB.

In the second principle of Example 1, if the absence of any other technology (such as Wi-Fi) sharing a carrier can be guaranteed in the long term (such as by deployment), only NR-U operator(s) or FBE operation If only other nodes coordinating NR-U operators supporting the mode coexist on the carrier, the FBE mode of operation may be supported on that carrier.

In the third principle of Embodiment 1, the FBE mode of operation may be supported on the carrier based on the configuration of the NR-U operator, such as the carrier is asked to dynamically switch between the FBE mode of operation and the LBE mode of operation. Can be configured by

In a first example of this principle, the switching between the FBE mode of operation and the LBE mode of operation may be based on the channel access success rate for a specific observation duration T1 , the channel access success rate per gNB, per NR-U operator, Alternatively, the coordination between NR-U operators may be evaluated as at least one of across NR-U operators. For example, the FBE operation mode may be supported by default, and when the channel access success rate over T1 is less than a certain threshold τ1 (eg, 5%), the NR-U operator may decide to switch to the LBE operation mode. . This may occur when there is a random jammer in the operating channel, or when a nearby LBE-based network (eg, LAA, Wi-Fi) is activated. Moreover, the NR-U is from the LBE mode of operation to the FBE mode of operation, such as when the LBE mode is used for a specific duration ( T2 ); Or the channel access success rate over another specific duration T3 exceeds a certain threshold value τ2; Alternatively, a nearby LBE-based network (eg, LAA, Wi-Fi) may be deactivated and then switched again.

In another example of this principle, switching between the FBE operating mode and the LBE operating mode may be based on detecting the presence of an LBE-based network (eg, LAA, Wi-Fi) in the operating channel. For example, the FBE operation mode may be used when it is detected that the LBE-based network does not exist in the operation channel, and the LBE operation mode may be used when it is detected that the LBE-based network is present in the operation channel.

Example 2. Configuration of FBE operation mode

This embodiment 2 provides the configuration of the FBE mode of operation when the FBE mode of operation is supported by NR-U.

In the first approach of embodiment 2, when the FBE mode of operation is supported, a fixed frame period (FFP) is configurable.

In the first example of the first approach of Example 2, for FR-1 FBE NR-U, the FFP may be configured with a value between 1 millisecond (ms) and 10 ms. In the first sub-example, the FFP may be constructed from a set of predefined values in units of 1 ms. For example, the set of supported FFPs may be {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10} ms using 4 bits. In the second sub-example, the FFP may be constructed from a set of predefined values in units of 1 NR-U slot. For example, the set of supported FFPs is {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16} NR- It may be U slots, and the subcarrier spacing (SCS) associated with the slot may be determined from other system parameters. In the third sub-example, the FFP may be constructed from a set of predetermined values in units of 1 NR-U symbol. In the fourth lower example, the value of the FFP may be configured through an upper layer parameter. For example, the FFP value may be configured by the RRC layer through the RRC layer parameter. In the fifth sub-example, the value of the FFP may be configured through downlink control information (DCI) and indicated to the UE, which may indicate a selected FFP value from a set of predefined FFP values.

In the second approach of embodiment 2, when the FBE mode of operation is supported, the channel occupancy time (COT) is configurable or can be determined from configurations for other relevant system information.

In a first example of the second approach of Example 2, the maximum COT (MCOT) value may be configured as a percentage (η) of FFP, for example 0%≦η≦95%. In the first sub-example, the percentage (η) may be fixed in the specification. In a second lower example, a set of values of the percentage (η) for which the selected value of the percentage (η) can be configured by an upper layer parameter or DCI may be supported. For example, the set of supported percentages (η) may be {0, 5, 10, 15, ..., 95}%. In another case, the value of η can be adjusted according to the current cell's load, so that a smaller η can be configured for a low load cell for power saving purposes.

In the second example of the second approach of Example 2, the MCOT value can be determined as the maximum duration fixed in the specification and allowed by the regulation, assuming the following: (1) the COT is at most 95% of the FFP; And (2) the idle period is at least 5% of the COT and at least 100 microseconds.

In a third example of the second approach of embodiment 2, the MCOT value can be constructed from a set of predefined values, and the time unit of the value is {1ms, 1 NR-U slot, 1 NR-U mini slot, 1 NR-U OFDM symbol} may be selected from one or more. In one sub-example, the NR-U mini slot can be 2, 4 or 7 symbols as in NR Rel-15. In another sub-example, the NR-U mini slot can be any number of symbols less than 14 symbols. This sub-example of a mini slot can be applied to the rest of this disclosure when referring to a mini slot. In another sub-example, MCOT may be allocated as 21 NR-U slots with 30 kHz SCS. In another sub-example, the MCOT may be allocated as one NR-U mini slot of 9 NR-U slots plus 7 symbols with 15 kHz SCS. In another lower example, the MCOT value may be configured through an upper layer parameter or DCI.

In the fourth example of the second approach of embodiment 2, for the first to third examples of the second approach of embodiment 2, when the end position of the configured NR-U FBE MCOT is aligned with the NR-U slot boundary, The actual COT for the FBE NR-U will be the same as the configured MCOT.

In a fifth example of the second approach of embodiment 2, this is when the end position of the configured NR-U FBE MCOT is not aligned with the NR-U slot boundary.

10 shows three exemplary options for cases where the end position of the configured NR-U FBE MCOT is not aligned with the NR-U slot boundary according to embodiments of the present disclosure. The embodiments shown in FIG. 10 are for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In the first option of the fifth example of the second approach of embodiment 2, the entire NR-U slot including the end position of the configured NR-U FBE MCOT can be allocated to the IDLE period, and the actual COT is within the current FFP. It will contain NR-U slots that come before the slot.

In the second option of the fifth example of the second approach of embodiment 2, the end position of the FBE NR-U COT can be assigned to the subdivision of the NR-U mini-slot(s), so that the end position of the FBE NR-U COT is It can be aligned at the NR-U mini-slot boundary with the configured MCOT. For example, one NR-U mini slot may consist of 2, 4, or 7 OFDM symbols. In another case, the end position of the FBE COT may be aligned to the OFDM symbol position, which may be configured by a combination of one or a number of mini slots.

In the third option of the fifth example of the second approach of embodiment 2, the end position of the FBE COT can be assigned to the granularity of the OFDM symbol, so that the end position of the FBE COT can be aligned to the NR-U symbol boundary within the configured MCOT. have. As a result, the actual COT may be smaller than the configured MCOT.

In a sixth example of the second approach of embodiment 2, based on the configured fixed frame period and the channel occupancy time, the idle period may be determined accordingly as the fixed frame period-the actual channel occupancy time.

In a seventh example of the second approach of embodiment 2, the idle period duration is configurable and can be adjusted through an upper layer parameter or DCI. Based on the idle period duration and the FFP duration, the corresponding MCOT duration can be inferred.

In the third approach of Embodiment 2, the fixed frame period (FFP) for FBE NR-U can be dynamically adjusted within the allowed value range.

In Example 2, the third of the first embodiment of the adjustment of the FFP may be based on average channel access probability (channel access probability) (CAP) over a specific period of time (T), which may be a period (T) is at least 200ms . For example, if the CAP in T is greater than or equal to a certain threshold value τ3, the FFP may be increased, for example, to the next available value or by a fixed quantity; On the other hand, if the CAP in T is less than a specific threshold value τ4, the FFP may be reduced, for example, to the next available value or by a fixed quantity. In addition, the CAP may be calculated as the success rate of a single shot LBT by the NR-U gNB(s) prior to transmission in each FFP; Alternatively, the CAP can be calculated as the success rate of all LBTs that have occurred within the period T , which also includes, for example, LBT operations for DL/UL switching in the FFP.

In the second example of the third approach of embodiment 2, the FFP duration may be adjusted through a higher layer parameter or DCI.

In a third example of the third approach of this approach, the FFP duration can be adjusted so that coexisting FBE NR-U initiating devices/operators can have the same FFP duration.

In the fourth approach of embodiment 2, the start timing position of the FFP for FBE NR-U can be adjusted.

In the first example of the fourth approach of Example 2, the starting timing position of each FFP for the FBE NR-U operator can be adjusted, so that all FBE NR-U devices belonging to the same NR-U operator have the same fixed duration time. Can be adjusted (eg, advanced or postponed) by. For example, this can be applied for two synchronized NR-U operators to align their respective FFP start timing positions.

In a second example of the fourth approach of embodiment 2, the FFP start timing position for each FBE device of the FBE NR-U operator may be adjusted (eg, advanced or delayed) by a certain duration. For example, this can be applied for a synchronized NR-U operator to align the FFP start timing positions for each gNB in the operator.

In the third example of the fourth approach of Example 2, the time unit for adjusting the FFP start position may be an integer multiple of Tc, where Tc is the time unit for Rel-15 NR and Tc = 1/(480 kHz * 4096 )to be. For example, the granularity may be Tc, or NR-U OFDM symbol duration.

In the fourth example of the fourth approach of embodiment 2, the unit of time for adjusting the FFP start position may be milliseconds or microseconds.

In the fifth example of the fourth approach of the second embodiment, the value of the time unit for adjusting the FFP may be configured and indicated through a higher layer parameter or DCI.

In the fifth approach of the second embodiment, the FFP start timing position for the FBE NR-U may be aligned with the frame structure of the NR-U with a granularity of the NR-U slot/mini slot/symbol level.

In the first example of the fifth approach of Embodiment 2, the start position of each fixed frame period of FBE NR-U may be aligned with the start of the NR-U slot. In one sub-example, the FFP duration also needs to be an integer multiple of the NR-U slot.

In a second example of the fifth approach of Embodiment 2, the start position of each fixed frame period of FBE NR-U may be aligned with the start of an NR-U mini slot or an NR-U symbol.

In one sub-example, the FFP duration also needs to be an integer multiple of the NR-U symbol. In another sub-example, the FFP may start in the middle of the NR-U slot.

Example 3. Channel access scheme for FBE NR-U

Embodiment 3 provides a channel access scheme for FBE operation of NR-U.

In the first approach of Example 3, the FBE NR-U may use the baseline FBE channel access scheme to determine whether the initiating device can acquire channel access in the next FFP, wherein the initiating device is During the duration of the slot, just before starting transmission on the operating channel at the start of the FFP, only energy detection, performs LBT, and the initiating device can start transmitting within the COT of the next FFP once it passes the LBT. have.

In a first example of the first approach of Example 3, the observation slot duration is at least 9 microseconds for the 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum. The same observation slot duration constraint can be used for FR1 FBE NR-U.

In the second example of the first approach of embodiment 3, the FBE NR-U device is a number of devices in which the gap between transmissions does not exceed a specific duration (τ) within the COT without performing additional CCA on the operating channel. Can have transmissions. In one sub-example, for FR1 FBE NR-U, the duration may be 16 μs.

In a third example of the first approach of Example 3, if the gap between the two transmissions of the FBE NR-U device in the COT exceeds a certain duration (τ), then an additional CCA in the gap just before transmission and in the observation slot. Subject to passing through, the FBE NR-U device may continue to transmit.

In the fourth example of the first approach of embodiment 3, if the LBT fails in the observation slot to continue transmitting, the FBE NR-U device may continue to perform this LBT attempt. In one sub-example, the FBE NR-U device may perform LBT to continue transmission as long as the transmission can start within the current COT. In another sub-example, the LBT attempt(s) may start after the interval τ1 with respect to a previously failed LBT attempt. For example, τ1 may be an NR-U slot, an NR-U mini slot, or an NR-U OFDM symbol duration. In another sub-example, the LBT attempt(s) may be performed such that the transmission can start at one of an NR-U OFDM symbol, an NR-U mini slot, and an NR-U slot boundary.

In the second approach of embodiment 3, in addition to the energy detection scheme, one potential improvement in channel access efficiency is to introduce a type of preamble detection of the channel access scheme.

In one example of the second approach of Embodiment 3, the preamble for NR-U is a synchronization signal/physical broadcast channel block (SS/PBCH block, or SSB), a channel state information reference signal. It may be selected from (CSI-RS), a demodulation reference signal (DM-RS), or a sounding reference signal (SRS) for the uplink. In one sub-example, the DM-RS may be a broadband DM-RS for a group common (GC) PDCCH.

In another example of the second approach of embodiment 3, the preamble for NR-U may be to introduce a new type of sequence or message for NR-U compared to Rel-15 NR.

In another example of the second approach of Embodiment 3, with the preamble detection channel access scheme, if the strongest preamble power received at the initiating device is less than the preamble detection threshold, the operating channel is considered to be clear.

In another example of the second approach of embodiment 3, the preamble detection threshold can be proportional to the maximum transmit power and can be lower than the corresponding energy detection threshold. In one sub-example, if the maximum transmit power from the 0 dBi receiving antenna is represented by PH (dBm), the preamble detection threshold (PDT) is PH <= 13 dBm, PDT = -85 dBm /MHz; For 13 dBm <PH <23 dBm, PDT = -85 dBm/MHz + (23 dBm-PH); In the case of PH>= 23 dBm, it may be PH = -85 dBm/MHz.

In another example of the second approach of embodiment 3, a preamble detection scheme is supported, such that one or more of the following LBT modes may be supported to determine whether the operating channel is busy: (1) LBT Mode 1: energy detection only; (2) LBT mode 2: preamble detection only; (3) LBT mode 3: If the total energy exceeds the energy detection threshold or the preamble power exceeds the preamble detection threshold, it is reported that the channel is in use; (4) LBT mode 4: When the total energy exceeds the energy detection threshold and the preamble power exceeds the preamble detection threshold, it is reported that the channel is in use.

In another example of the second approach of embodiment 3, the preamble may be used to facilitate handshake exchange between the initiating device and the responding device, wherein the preamble is a channel access request (CARQ) message/sequence. Can be serviced.

In another example of the second approach of embodiment 3, the preamble may carry certain useful information about the system configuration. For example, useful information may be channel access priority information of the initiating device. In other instances, the preamble may carry information such as COT duration, and/or FFP duration.

In another example of the second approach of embodiment 3, the NR-U preamble carries information about NR-U cell information, and/or NR-U operator, and/or radio access technology (RAT). can do. In one sub-example, as RAT information, the NR-U node detecting the NR-U preamble may determine that the preamble originates from NR-U instead of another RAT such as Wi-Fi.

In another example of the second approach of Embodiment 3, the preamble detection scheme detailed in the above examples may also be extended to LBE-based channel access schemes.

In the third approach of Example 3, the LBT for FBE NR-U can be performed omnidirectionally or quasi-omnidirectional.

In one example of this approach, the omni/quasi-omni LBT can be performed during the observation slot before the FFP, and the omni/quasi-omni or directional communications can be supported during the FFP if the LBT is successful.

In the fourth approach of Example 3, the directional LBT may be supported by FBE NR-unlicensed or NR-U.

11 shows an exemplary channel access scheme in which one directional space TX parameter is used according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 11 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In the first example of the fourth approach of Example 3, if only one directional spatial TX parameter is intended to be used by the initiating device during the FFP, the LBT is space aligned with the spatial TX parameter intended by the initiating device before the FFP. This can be done through the RX parameter.

In the second example of the fourth approach of Example 3, if multiple directional spatial TX parameters are intended to be used by the initiating device during the FFP, the initiating device may have multiple spatial RX parameters aligned with the intended spatial TX parameters in the viewing slot. Since it is possible to perform LBT simultaneously through the parameters, the availability of spatial TX parameters can be determined at the same time. In one sub-example, the spatial parameters passed through the LBT in the observation slot may be used for transmission at the next COT in the FFP, and the initiating device may determine the spatial parameter(s) to use for the transmission. For example, if the directed LBT fails in a subset of spatial parameters, the initiating device can still use the remaining spatial parameter(s) that succeeded in the LBT for transmission in the FFP.

12 illustrates an exemplary channel access scheme using hybrid beamforming or digital beamforming according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 12 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

When multiple directional spatial TX parameters are intended to be used by the initiating device during the FFP, the initiating device can perform LBT at the same time through a number of spatial RX parameters aligned with the intended spatial TX parameters in the observation slot. The availability of TX parameters can be determined at the same time. This sub-example of the second example of the fourth approach of embodiment 3 can be applied when hybrid beamforming or digital beamforming is supported by the initiating device.

In a third example of the fourth approach of Example 3, when multiple directional spatial TX parameters are intended to be used by the initiating device during the FFP, the initiating device aligns with the intended spatial TX parameters over multiple time units. LBTs can be performed through multiple spatial RX parameters.

In one sub-example of the third example of the fourth approach of Embodiment 3, the unit of time may be one or a plurality of observation slots, and the plurality of units of time may be continuous or discontinuous in the time domain. For example, a unit of time may be one observation slot, and multiple units of time may be continuous in the time domain and are located at the end of the idle period. In another sub-example, this option is when hybrid beamforming is not supported; Alternatively, it may be used when hybrid beamforming is supported but the number of RF chains is smaller than the number of intended spatial parameters. In another sub-example, if full-duplex is supported, the initiating device may perform LBT in a time unit while transmitting with spatial TX parameters passing through the LBT in previous time units. In another sub-example, multiple units of time may be within the idle period that comes before the FFP. In another sub-example, a subset of multiple units may be within the idle period, while the remaining units of time are within the next FFP.

12 shows another exemplary channel access scheme using multiple directional spatial TX parameters according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 12 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

As illustrated in FIG. 12, when multiple directional spatial TX parameters are intended to be used by the initiating device during the FFP, the initiating device is aligned with the intended spatial TX parameters over multiple time units. LBTs can be performed through parameters.

13 shows another exemplary channel access scheme using multiple directional spatial TX parameters according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in FIG. 13 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In another sub-example of the third example of the fourth approach of Example 3, the spatial parameters passed through the LBT in their respective observation slots can be used for transmission at the next COT in the next FFP, and the initiating device can use the space for transmission. The parameter(s) can be determined. For example, if the directed LBT fails in a subset of spatial parameters, the initiating device can still use the remaining spatial parameter(s) that succeeded in the LBT for transmission in the FFP.

In the fourth example of the fourth approach of Example 3, a hybrid approach of omni/quasi-omni LBT and directional LBT can be used by FBE NR-U.

In one sub-example of the fourth example of the fourth approach of Example 3, the initiating device may first perform the omni/quasi-omni LBT during the observation slot before the FFP, and the omni/quasi-omni LBT is passed. If so, it can potentially transmit in the next FFP via the directional space TX parameters. In another sub-example, if the omni/quasi-omni LBT fails, the initiating device may further perform the directional LBT according to either the second or third example of the fourth approach of Embodiment 3.

14 shows another exemplary FBE channel access scheme using a hybrid approach of omni/quasi-omni LBT and directional LBT according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 14 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In another sub-example of the fourth example of the fourth approach of Example 3, if the directional LBT is used, the directional LBT may be performed within the idle period before the FFP, or during the start of the FFP.

For the baseline FBE channel access scheme in the first approach of Example 3, when one or multiple synchronized FBE NR-U operator(s) coexist in the operating channel, the initiating devices perform LBT in the same observation slot. And therefore can pass through the LBT process. For each synchronized FBE NR-U network(s), strong interference may exist between neighboring gNBs during COT, and the effect of the hidden terminal problem may also be severe.

15 shows an exemplary FBE channel access scheme with one or multiple synchronized FBE NR-U operators coexisting in an operating channel according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 15 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

When one or more synchronized FBE NR-U operator(s) coexist on the operating channel, the LBT is performed at the same time, so the two neighboring gNBs can always go through their respective LBT processes, but the next transmission Can collide with each other.

In addition, in the case of asynchronous FBE NR-U, an initiating device running in a viewing slot can always be blocked by transmission from a nearby asynchronous initiating device.

Carried out in the fifth approach of Example 3, FBE NR-U increase for the channel access scheme is LBT process for the will to introduce a set of (N> = 1) of the N observation slot, so FBE initiating device is available observed set of slots Can be performed in one or multiple viewing slot(s).

In a first example of the fifth approach of Example 3, the set of N observation slots may be contiguous in the time domain, or may be discontinuous from each other in the time domain. In one sub-example, for non-contiguous viewing slots, the gap between neighboring viewing slots may be less than the viewing slot length (eg, 9 microseconds).

In a second example of the fifth approach of embodiment 3, the number of observation slots ( N ) may be scaled to the duration of the fixed frame period. In one sub-example, the number of allocated observation slots may not decrease as the fixed frame period increases.

In a third example of the fifth approach of embodiment 3, each FBE initiating device may be assigned to one or multiple observation slot(s) according to some predefined rules. In one sub-example, this rule may be to randomly and uniformly select one or multiple observation slot(s) among all N observation slots, such as fairly in terms of channel access. In another sub-example, this rule randomizes one or multiple observation slot(s) within a subset of N observation slots, such as for tiered access to the channel across different NR-U operators. And it may be a uniform selection, in which a subset of observation slots assigned to one operator always comes before a subset assigned to another operator(s). In another sub-example, this rule may be to select a number of neighboring observation slots among all N observation slots, such as to perform LBT with different spatial RX parameters in different assigned observation slots. In another sub-example, this rule may be to select a number of viewing slots (potentially non-contiguous), with the number of allocated viewing slots scaled by the initiating device's access priority for the operating channel.

In the fifth approach of embodiment 3, when a set of sighting slots is allocated, one or many of the following examples may be adopted to determine whether the LBT was successful for the initiating device.

16 shows an exemplary FBE channel access scheme with a set of observation slots according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 16 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In the fourth example of the fifth approach of Example 3, when one observation slot is assigned to the initiating device, the LBT is successful for the initiating device of the FBE NR-U if the LBT in the assigned observation slot is successful.

17 provides an exemplary FBE channel access scheme with a set of observation slots according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 17 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In the fifth example of the fifth approach of Example 3, when one observation slot is assigned to the initiating device, LBT processes performed in the assigned observation slot, as well as observation slot(s) that come before the assigned observation slot If this is successful, the LBT is successful with the initiating device of the FBE NR-U.

FIG. 18 shows another exemplary FBE channel access scheme with a set of observation slots in which the LBT succeeds as (at least) one LBT in the assigned observation slot passes through the LBT process according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 18 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In a sixth example of the fifth approach of embodiment 3, when a number of observation slots are allocated to the initiating device, if the LBT on any one of the allocated observation slots succeeds, the LBT can be considered as successful. In one sub-example, if the initiating device performs LBT using different spatial parameters in different allocated viewing slots, then the device will have the spatial parameter(s) corresponding to the allocated viewing slot(s) passed through the LBT during the COT. Can be used.

FIG. 19 shows another exemplary FBE channel access scheme in which the LBT has a successful set of observation slots as LBTs pass in all assigned observation slots according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 19 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In a seventh example of the fifth approach of embodiment 3, when multiple observation slots are assigned to an initiating device, if LBTs for all of the assigned observation slots succeed, the LBT process may be considered successful. In one example, when two FBE NR-U operators coexist, one operator 1's gNBs are allocated more observation slots than operator 2's gNBs, so that operator 2 has more observation slots for the operating channel than operator 1 It can have a high access priority.

For the fifth approach of Example 3, if the LBT process is successful for the FBE initiating device on the assigned observation slot, the following examples are possible for the initiating device:

In an eighth example of the fifth approach of embodiment 3, the initiating device may start transmissions immediately after the assigned sighting slot that has passed the LBT. In one sub-example, the transmission may be a reservation signal similar to a Licensed Assisted Access (LAA), such that the initiating device may reserve the channel to the end of the set of N observation slots. In another sub-example, the transmission may be useful data addressed to the responding device(s), such as when the assigned slot is the last one of the set of N observation slots.

In the ninth example of the fifth approach of embodiment 3, after the initiating device passes the LBT on the assigned slot, it may delay transmission until a specific time instance (i.e., it may not transmit until the start of the time instance). . In one sub-example, the time instance may be the start of the next fixed frame period. In another sub-example, the time instance may be the end of the last allocated observation slot for the initiating device, if multiple observation slots are allocated. In another sub-example, the time instance may be in the middle of a set of N observation slots, such as at the end of a subset of observation slots that may be assigned to the FBE NR-U operator.

In a tenth example of the fifth approach of embodiment 3, the transmission by the initiating device after the LBT succeeds in its assigned viewing slot(s) may be an NR-U signal. In one sub-example, this NR-U signal may be an SS/PBCH block, CSI-RS, or DM-RS. In another sub-example, this NR-U signal may be an NR-U preamble as detailed in the second approach of Embodiment 3. In another sub-example, the signal transmitted by the initiating device is a handshake between the initiating device and the responding device, and/or preamble detection/energy detection by other initiating devices, and/or as will be described in detail in Example 4 below. It can be used for COT detection by the responding device.

In an eleventh example of the fifth approach of embodiment 3, the transmission by the initiating device after the LBT succeeds in its assigned observation slot(s) may be the FBE NR-U channel. In one sub-example, the transmission may be a group common (GC) PDCCH, and/or a UE-specific PDCCH, and/or an FBE NR-U signal such as a PDSCH.

For the fifth approach of Embodiment 3, one of the following examples may be adopted regarding the timing relationship between the positions of the multiple observation slots and the fixed frame period.

20 provides an exemplary fixed frame period with a set of viewing slots according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 20 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In the twelfth example of the fifth approach of Embodiment 3, the observation slots may all be included within the idle period of the fixed frame period.

In a thirteenth example of the fifth approach of Embodiment 3, a subset of the N observation slots may be included within the idle period, and the remaining observation slots may be included within the start of the next fixed frame period. In one sub-example, this example can be applied in cases where transmission in the idle period is not allowed, for example by a license-exempt regulation.

21 provides an exemplary fixed frame period in which one portion of the observation slots is located in the idle period and the other portion of the observation slots is located in the next fixed frame period according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 21 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In another sub-example, the first observation slot may be at the end of the idle period and before the start of the next fixed frame period, while the remaining N-1 observation slots are within the next fixed frame period. In this case, transmissions in sighting slots by the initiating device(s) that have passed the LBT in the early sighting slot(s) may meet the license-exempt provision. Moreover, such initiating device(s) may also transmit a preamble signal/sequence for preamble detection/energy detection by other initiating devices.

In the sixth approach of embodiment 3, the FBE NR-U can support simultaneous transmissions on adjacent or non-contiguous operating channels through which the FBE device has passed the LBT, so that each FBE initiating device operates at 20 MHz among the supported channels. Any combination/grouping of channels can be used.

In the first example of the sixth approach of embodiment 3, the FBE NR-U may also support this baseline option for subband operation, so that each gNB will use any subband within the system bandwidth passing through the LBT. I can. In one sub-example, each subband may be 20 MHz or a multiple thereof, or a corresponding number of resource blocks (RBs) close to 20 MHz or a multiple thereof.

In the second example of the sixth approach of embodiment 3, FBE NR-U can also support this baseline approach for multi-bandwidth part (BWP) operation, so that each gNB passes through the LBT. Any BWP (within the system bandwidth) can be used. In one sub-example, each BWP may be 20 MHz or a multiple thereof, or a corresponding number of resource blocks (RBs) close to 20 MHz or a multiple thereof.

In the third example of the sixth approach of embodiment 3, when N observation slots are used to improve the channel access efficiency for each operating channel or BWP, the subband or multi-BWP channel access scheme is the following two options: You can follow one of them. In a first option, the same set of sighting slots can be allocated across different subbands/BWPs for the initiating device, and the subband/BWP passing through the LBT can be used for transmission. In a second option, a different set of sighting slots may be allocated across different subbands/BWPs for the initiating device.

In one sub-example of the third example of the sixth approach of embodiment 3, transmissions across different subbands/BWPs may be allocated after the last allocated observation slot across all subbands/BWPs is completed. In another sub-example, transmissions across different subbands/BWPs may be aligned to the end of the N observation slots. In another sub-example, if full-duplex is supported, the operation in each subband/BWP can be independent; So the gNB can perform LBT on a specific subband/BWP and transmit on other subband(s)/BWP(s) that have passed the LBT.

In the seventh approach of embodiment 3, the FBE NR-U UE needs to monitor the PDCCH within a fixed frame period, and one or more of the following examples may be adopted.

In the first example of the seventh approach of embodiment 3, in the case of FBE NR-U, the UE is the PDCCH at the NR-U slot level in the COT of the fixed frame period, similar to the NR-U in the COT or as in the licensed NR. Can be monitored.

In the second example of the seventh approach of embodiment 3, in the case of FBE NR-U, the UE is at the OFDM symbol level or NR-U minislot level in the first or first few NR-U slots in the COT, and the rest For the COT, the PDCCH can be monitored at the NR-U slot level. This example can be applied to a scenario as shown in FIG. 21.

In a third example of the seventh approach of embodiment 3, during the idle period, the UE of the FBE NR-U may postpone monitoring for the PDCCH until the start of the next fixed frame period.

In the fourth example of the seventh approach of Example 3, during the idle period, the UE of the FBE NR-U is assigned observation at the NR-U slot level, or at the NR-U minislot level, or at the time granularity of the OFDM symbol level. After the start of the slot(s), monitoring for the PDCCH may start.

In the fifth example of the seventh approach of the third embodiment, one or many of the first to fourth examples of the seventh approach of the third may also be applied to the subband or multi-BWP operation of the FBE NR-U, and ; When the subband or multi-BWP operation of the FBE NR-U is used, the UE can determine the available subband/BWP for use by detecting the presence of the PDCCH in each subband/BWP.

Example 4. Improved channel access for asynchronous FBE NR-U networks

Embodiment 4 includes approaches and examples for channel access mechanism enhancements for asynchronous FBE NR-U network(s).

The channel access mechanism for an asynchronous FBE NR-U network (e.g., within an operator and/or between operators) should also be improved through a baseline channel access scheme, where the asynchronous for two FBE devices or operators is their fixed The start timing for the frame period is different; And/or the duration of the fixed frame period is different; And/or it may mean that the duration of the COT/idle period is different.

In the case of asynchronous NR-U devices, the LBT performed by one initiating device can always be blocked by a transmission from the other initiating device which has an early start time for a fixed frame period.

22 shows an exemplary FBE channel access scheme with two neighboring asynchronous FBE NR-U initiating devices according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 22 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In this example, LBT is performed omni-directionally between two neighboring asynchronous FBE NR-U initiating devices. One or many of the approaches of embodiment 4 may be adopted to improve the channel access of asynchronous FBE NR-U. Although the approaches in Example 4 are beneficial in improving channel access for asynchronous FBE NR-U networks, these approaches are not limited to being applied only to asynchronous FBE NR-U network(s), but any FBE NR-U It can also be applied to the network.

In the first approach of embodiment 4, each initiating FBE NR-U device may perform directional LBT through the directional space RX parameter(s).

In a first example of the first approach of embodiment 4, for each initiating FBE NR-U device, the directional LBT scheme and the spatial TX parameters used for transmission after the directional LBT follow the fourth approach of embodiment 3. I can. In one sub-example, the initiating FBE NR-U device can perform directional LBT only through one spatial RX parameter. In another sub-example, the initiating FBE NR-U device may perform directional LBT through multiple spatial RX parameters.

Given the first approach of Example 4, the FBE LBT by the initiating device is less likely to be blocked by those device(s) when the beam directions of the neighboring asynchronous initiating device(s) are not aligned, so space reuse Can be improved.

23 shows another exemplary FBE channel access scheme with two neighboring asynchronous FBE NR-U initiating devices according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 23 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In an embodiment, each FBE NR-U initiating device performs directional LBT over one spatial RX parameter, and both FBE NR-U devices can transmit during FFP since their spatial parameters are not aligned.

24 shows another exemplary FBE channel access scheme with multiple asynchronous FBE NR-U initiating devices according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 24 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In Example 4, two FBE NR-U initiating devices perform directional LBT through three spatial RX parameters. Since one pair of spatial RX parameters of gNB0 and gNB1 are aligned, and gNB1 has an earlier start timing for FFP, the directional LBT in beam 1 of gNB0 will be blocked by the directional transmission in beam 1 of gNB1. . However, the LBT in the remaining spatial RX parameters of gNB0 different from beam 1 can still pass their respective directional LBT and thus gNB0 can use the next FFP for transmissions.

In the second approach of Example 4, a set of N observation slots ( N >=1) can be introduced to asynchronous FBE NR-U initiating devices (or operators), such that each asynchronous initiating device (or operator) ) May have a non-zero probability to access the operating channel through selecting the observation slot.

In a first example of the second approach of Example 4, the second approach of Example 4 is that the timing offset between the asynchronous initiating devices (or two asynchronous FBE NR-U operators with a fixed timing offset) is an idle period. It can be used when it is smaller than. In one sub-example, this may be extended until the idle periods of the asynchronous devices/operators are different, and the timing offset is less than the minimum of the idle periods of the asynchronous devices/operators.

In a second example of the second approach of embodiment 4, the second approach of embodiment 4 can be applied to a scenario where the fixed frame period is of the same length for the asynchronous FBE NR-U network(s). In one sub-example, the idle period may be the same or different for the asynchronous FBE NR-U network(s).

In a third example of the second approach of embodiment 4, the second approach of embodiment 4 can be applied to a scenario where the fixed frame period is of a different length for the asynchronous FBE NR-U network(s).

In the fourth example of the second approach of embodiment 4, when a set of observation slots is introduced to asynchronous FBE NR-U initiating devices (operators), the configuration of the observation slot set can follow the fifth approach of embodiment 3. have. In one sub-example, the configuration of the set of observation slots includes the time domain positions of the observation slots, the method of determining whether the LBT has succeeded for the initiating device, the timing relationship between the positions of the multiple observation slots and the fixed frame period, assigned Includes when the initiating device starts transmissions after the sighting slot has passed the LBT.

25 shows another exemplary FBE channel access scheme with multiple asynchronous FBE NR-U initiating devices according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 25 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

As shown, gNB1 can transmit in the next FFP if its assigned observation slot comes before the assigned observation slot of gNB2, and when the gNB1 passes LBT, it starts transmitting after its assigned observation slot. .

In the third approach of embodiment 4, the FBE device/operator may fall back to LBE mode. In the first example of the third approach of Example 4, the third approach of Example 4 is that the FBE device continuously fails the FBE LBT for the duration (D ), or the FBE device is a specific number of LBT attempts ( N ). It can be used when the FBE LBT continues to fail later. For example, this example can occur when the timing offset is greater than the idle period between two asynchronous NR-U operators.

In the fourth approach of embodiment 4, in the case of asynchronous FBE NR-U devices/operators, one or more of the FBE NR-U devices/operators is the start timing, FFP duration, COT or One or more of the idle period duration can be adjusted so that FBE NR-U devices/operators can be synchronized.

In the first example of the fourth approach of Embodiment 4, the start timing, FFP duration, COT or idle period duration of FFP in each FFP may be configured according to Embodiment 2.

In the second example of the fourth approach of Example 4, the adjustment value for one or more of the start timing, FFP duration, COT or idle period duration of the FFP in each FFP is determined and configured by upper layer parameters. I can.

In the third example of the fourth approach of Example 4, the adjustment value for one or more of the start timing, FFP duration, COT or idle period duration of the FFP in each FFP may be determined by the FBE NR-U device. have.

In a fourth example of the fourth approach of embodiment 4, for an FBE NR-U device where the LBT in the observation slot fails due to transmission from a neighboring asynchronous FBE NR-U device(s)/operator(s), The FBE NR-U device, during the FFP(s) corresponding to its failed LBT, the start timing of the FFP of its neighboring FBE NR-U device(s)/operator(s), FFP duration, COT or idle period One or more of the durations can be determined. In one sub-example, during the FFP(s) that the FBE NR-U device does not transmit due to a failed LBT, the FBE NR-U device monitors the energy of its neighboring FBE NR-U device. The start timing, FFP duration, and COT duration configuration of the FFP can be determined. In another sub-example, during the FFP(s) that the FBE NR-U device does not transmit due to a failed LBT, the FBE NR-U device is the start timing, FFP duration, and COT of the FFP of its neighboring FBE NR-U device. The duration configuration may be determined through monitoring channels/signals of neighboring transmissions containing the corresponding configuration information. For example, it is a preamble as detailed in the second approach of Example 3.

26 shows another exemplary FBE channel access scheme with multiple asynchronous FBE NR-U initiating devices according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 26 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

FIG. 26 shows that gNB1 monitors the start timing of the FFP of gNB2 during the FFP(s) in which gNB1 fails LBT due to gNB2 transmission, and gNB1 adjusts the start timing of its FFP accordingly, so that gNB1 and gNB2 are synchronized and at the same time. Both illustrate an instance of the fourth approach that can transmit.

In the fifth approach of embodiment 4, for asynchronous FBE NR-U devices/operators, upon a successful LBT, the initiating FBE NR-U device and its corresponding device(s) may use directional transmissions during COT, So other asynchronous FBE NR-U devices/operators can have a probability in passing through their respective LBT.

In a first example of the fifth approach of embodiment 4, the directional transmissions during COT may be directional transmissions of NR-U signals/channels such as SS/PBCH blocks or DRS.

In a second example of the fifth approach of embodiment 4, directional transmissions during the COT may be at the beginning of the COT.

In a third example of the fifth approach of embodiment 4, directional transmissions during the COT may be at the end of the COT.

In a fourth example of the fifth approach of embodiment 4, directional transmissions of the initiating FBE NR-U device may be enabled in all N ( N >= 1) FFPs upon a successful LBT.

In a fifth example of the fifth approach of embodiment 4, directional transmissions in the initiating FBE NR-U device may be enabled in all N ( N >= 1) FFPs.

27 shows another exemplary FBE channel access scheme with multiple asynchronous FBE NR-U initiating devices according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 27 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

FIG. 27 provides an example of a fifth approach of embodiment 4 in which gNB1 may use directional transmissions after passing its LBT, eg, to transmit SS/PBCH blocks. On the other hand, when gNB2 performs LBT in its observation slot, since the directional space TX parameter from gNB1 is not aligned with gNB2, gNB2 can pass through the LBT and use the following COT for its own transmissions. On the other hand, if only gNB1 uses omni-directional transmission, the LBT at gNB2 will always be blocked by gNB1 as a result of the timing offset.

In the sixth approach of embodiment 4, for FBE NR-U where the carrier channel bandwidth is greater than the operating channel bandwidth of the unlicensed/shared spectrum, and/or when the FBE NR-U supports multiple carriers, the FBE NR-U The device may dynamically adjust its operating channel(s) and/or carrier(s) for FBE operation.

In a first example of the sixth approach of embodiment 4, the operating channel bandwidth may be 20 MHz, and the carrier channel bandwidth may be an integer multiple of the operating channel bandwidth.

In the second example of the sixth approach of embodiment 4, for each operating channel in the carrier and/or the channel bandwidth of the FBE NR-U device, the maximum operating channel and/or carrier can be continuously used for transmission. There may be an FFP number ( N1). In one sub-example, if the operating channel and/or carrier is used for transmission after N1 consecutive FFPs, the FBE NR-U device is not using the current operating channel and/or carrier. Have a duration (T1 ) or N2 ( N2 >= 1) observation period of FFPs, which can monitor the transmission status of other FBE NR-U device(s)/operator(s) on the operating channel and/or carrier. I can. For example, if gNB2 uses the active channel and/or carrier immediately after gNB1 stops transmitting on the current active channel, this indicates that the transmission from gNB1 may have blocked gNB2's LBT attempts due to the timing offset. . In another sub-example, after a duration ( T1 ) or an observation period of N2 ( N2 >= 1) FFPs, the current FBE NR-U device is currently after a duration ( T2 ) or N3 ( N3 >= 1) FFPs. It is possible to resume using the operating channel and/or carrier. For example, T2 or N3 can also be infinite.

In a third example of the sixth approach of embodiment 4, the FBE NR-U device may use the channel bandwidth and/or different operating channel subsets within the carrier in a TDMed pattern. In one sub-example, during the period of M (M >= 1) FFPs, there may be a subset of m (m> = 1), and the FBE NR-U device is M_1 + ... + M_m = M For M_i (1 <= i <= m) FFPs, a channel bandwidth and/or a subset of operating channels in a carrier S_i (1 <= i <= m) may be used. In other sub-examples, different subsets of operating channels may be non-overlapping or overlapping. In one instance, one subset S_i may be all operating channels within the channel bandwidth, and the other subset(s) does not include all operating channels within the channel bandwidth. In another case, S_i (1 <= i <= m) may be non-overlapping, and the union of S_i (1 <= i <= m) is all operating channels within the channel bandwidth. In another case, the subset of operating channels may be a null set. In another sub-example, the duty cycle for each subset of operating channels may be fixed. For example, each subset may share the same time fraction, so the duty cycle for each subset is 1/m. In another sub-example, the duty cycle for each subset of operating channels can be dynamically adjusted. For example, a subset with a larger number of operating channels may have a higher duty cycle and vice versa when the channel occupancy from other FBE NR-U devices using this subset is low. In another sub-example, in terms of a single operating channel, the third example of the sixth approach of embodiment 4 is the same as enabling the FBE NR-U device to use the operating channel via the TDM pattern; The operating channel is used by the device if it belongs to the currently used subset of operating channels, otherwise the operating channel is not used.

Example 5. Short control signaling transmission for FBE NR-U

Embodiment 5 provides principles and examples supporting short control signaling transmissions for FBE NR-U.

In the first principle of embodiment 5, the NR-U FBE can support short control signaling transmissions, and the short control signaling transmissions are sent to the equipment to transmit management and control frames without detecting the channel for the presence of other signals. These are the transmissions used by.

In the first example of the first principle of embodiment 5, the use of short control signaling transmissions needs to meet the following constraints: i) Within the observation period of 50 ms, the number of short control signaling transmissions by the equipment is Must be 50 or less; And ii) the total duration of short control signaling transmissions of the equipment must be less than 2500 μs within the observation period.

In the second example of the first principle of embodiment 5, in the case of an NR-U FBE initiating device looking for an operating channel to be occupied, it is allowed to continue short control signaling transmissions on this channel if the first example of this principle is observed. .

In a third example of the first principle of embodiment 5, the short control signaling constraint is, while each short control signal transmission can be selected from one of the channels/signals in the examples of the second principle of embodiment 5 , it is interpreted that all combined short control signaling transmissions from the UEs associated with the gNB and gNB are satisfied by having a total number of at most 50 transmissions with at most 2500 μs in total within the observation period of 50 ms.

In the fourth example of the first principle, the short control signaling constraint can be interpreted per device (either gNB or UE), so that the constraint is that each short control signal transmission is an example of the second principle of embodiment 5. Choosing from one of the channels/signals at, short control signaling transmissions from this device are satisfied with a total number of at most 50 transmissions with a total of at most 2500 μs within a 50 ms observation period.

In the second principle of embodiment 5, the FBE NR-U can support one or multiple types of signal/channel to be transmitted by using the allowance of short control signaling transmissions without performing LBT.

In the first example of the second principle of embodiment 5, SS/PBCH blocks may be transmitted by the gNB. In one sub-example, the SS/PBCH block may be transmitted for initial access UEs to detect the SS/PBCH block and the corresponding master information block (MIB). For example, the remaining minimum system information (RMSI) and the corresponding control resource set (CORESET) can also be transmitted with the SS/PBCH block, as it satisfies the constraints of short control signaling transmissions. have. In another case, if the SS/PBCH block design for FBE NR-U follows that in Rel-15 NR where the SS burst set period is 20 ms and the SS burst is configured within a 5 ms measurement window, then at most 3 SS bursts are 50 ms. It can be transmitted within the observation period. If the maximum number of SS/PBCH blocks that can be transmitted in each SS burst to ensure that the short control signaling transmissions constraints are met is represented by n , then n needs to satisfy: 3*min(n ,8) <= 50 and 3*4*n*symbol_period <= 2500 μs. As a result, n is 2 and 5 in the 15 kHz SCS and 30 kHz SCS of the SS/PBCH block, respectively. In another sub-example, the SS/PBCH block may be transmitted for measurement purposes, such as by connected UEs. In another sub-example, the gNB may pre-configure SS/PBCH block locations for connected UEs in fixed frame periods that succeed in LBT, and the configured SS/PBCH blocks will be used for measurement purposes. Compared to the initial access, the SS/PBCH transmission period for measurement can be increased from 20 ms to a higher period such as 40 or 80 ms; The number of SS/PBCHs to be transmitted can also be reduced.

In the second example of the second principle of embodiment 5, the CSI-RS may be transmitted by the gNB. In one sub-example, the CSI-RS may be transmitted for measurement purposes, such as to evaluate RSRP/RSRQ for a serving cell or neighbor cells. In another sub-example, the gNB may pre-configure CSI-RS locations for connected UEs in fixed frame periods that succeed in LBT, and the configured CSI-RS will be used for measurement purposes.

In a third example of the second principle of embodiment 5, a DM-RS that can be multiplexed with a PDCCH or PDSCH to be transmitted can be transmitted by the gNB.

In a fourth example of the second principle of embodiment 5, UEs may transmit HARQ-ACK as short control signaling transmissions. In one sub-example, the UE may respond with HARQ-ACK to downlink transmissions from the previous fixed frame period, regardless of whether the LBT for the current fixed frame period in the gNB fails. In another sub-example, the UE does not respond to downlink transmissions when the gap between the timing for HARQ-ACK and the end of the downlink transmission at the UE is greater than the SIFS duration (e.g., 16 μs for 5 GHz unlicensed band). Can respond with HARQ-ACK; So, the UE does not need to perform an extra single shot LBT for the observation slot duration before grating transmission of the HARQ-ACK.

In a fifth example of the second principle of embodiment 5, the UE may transmit PUCCH as short control signaling transmissions. In one sub-example, short PUCCH formats such as PUCCH format 0 or PUCCH format 2 may be transmitted in 1 symbol or 2 symbols in PUCCH.

In a sixth example of the second principle of embodiment 5, the UE may transmit the SRS as short control signaling transmissions.

In a seventh example of the second principle of embodiment 5, the UE may transmit the PRACH as short control signaling transmissions. In one sub-example, the PRACH is to be transmitted when the gap between the timing for its assigned RACH opportunity and the end of the previous downlink transmission is greater than the SIFS duration (e.g., 16 μs for the 5 GHz unlicensed band). Can; So, the UE does not need to perform an extra single shot LBT for the observation slot duration before grating the transmission of the PRACH. In another sub-example, the UE may transmit the PRACH on its assigned RACH opportunity, regardless of whether the LBT for the current fixed frame period in the gNB fails. In another sub-example, following PRACH transmission, one or more of Msg2, Msg3 and Msg4 of the random access procedure may be transmitted as short control signaling transmissions, as constraints are satisfied.

In the eighth example of the second principle of embodiment 5, the FBE NR-U responding device, upon correct reception of the packet intended for this device, can skip the CCA and proceed immediately to the transmission of management and control frames; The continuous sequence of these transmissions by the equipment should not exceed MCOT, without performing a new CCA. For example, the management and control frames for the FBE NR-U device may be HARQ-ACK.

In the third principle of embodiment 5, all previous principles and corresponding examples in the embodiments related to short control signaling transmission of FBE NR-U are applied to NR-U with LBE-based operations subject to license-exempt regulations. It can also be applied.

Example 6. UE Channel Occupation Time Detection for FBE NR-U

Example 6 provides approaches and examples for the detection of COT for an FBE NR-U UE including the UE monitoring behavior of the COT and the detection of the COT structure of the UE.

In the first approach of embodiment 6, the UE monitoring behavior for COT and/or PDCCH can be divided into two or multiple phases where the UE monitoring behavior for COT and/or PDCCH may be different in different phases. have.

In a first example of the first approach of embodiment 6, one phase may be an idle period. In one sub-example, the idle period phase may refer to the total idle period of the fixed frame period. In another sub-example, when the observation slots defined in Embodiment 3 are introduced as an FBE NR-U enhancement, the idle period phase may be related to the start of the idle period until the start of the first contention slot within the idle period.

In one sub-example, during this phase, the UE does not monitor any NR-U channel/signal. For example, the UE may stay in the power saving mode.

In one sub-example, if this phase is configured/supported, the UE may monitor UE specific PDCCH and/or GC-PDCCH and/or FBE NR-U preamble signals in this phase. In addition, if the UE detects these signals/channels, the UE can determine that its serving gNB has successfully passed the LBT and will transmit in the COT.

In another sub-example, if the UE monitors UE-specific PDCCH and/or GC-PDCCH and/or FBE NR-U preamble signals in this phase, the granularity for UE monitoring is NR-U slot level or NR-U mini-slot Level or NR-U symbol level; The granularity can be fixed in the specification, or it can be configured by higher layer parameters. In addition, the granularity for different channels/signals monitored by the UE may be the same or different. For example, the UE may be configured with dedicated monitoring periods for PDCCH and GC-PDCCH, respectively. In another sub-example, this monitoring phase may be referred to as phase A.

In a second example of the first approach of Embodiment 6, when the observation slots defined in Embodiment 3 are introduced as FBE NR-U enhancement, one phase may be configured observation slots. In one sub-example, the configuration of the observation slots may be indicated through system information such as remaining system information (RMSI) and/or other system information (OSI). In another sub-example, the configured observation slots may span between both the end of the idle period and the start of the channel occupancy time of the next fixed frame period. In another sub-example, if this phase is configured/supported, the UE can transmit signals/channels after the NR-U FBE initiating device (i.e. gNB) passes its LBT in its assigned observation slot(s). Can be monitored, which signals/channels are described in detail in the fifth approach of embodiment 3. In addition, if these signals/channels are detected by the FBE UE, the UE can determine that it will transmit in the COT that its serving gNB has successfully passed the LBT. In another sub-example, the time domain granularity for UE monitoring may be an observation slot. In another sub-example, this monitoring phase may be referred to as phase B.

In a third example of the first approach of embodiment 6, another monitoring phase may be the total channel occupancy time (COT). In one sub-example, the UE may have the same monitoring behavior within the entire COT. This is when there is no improvement of random observation slots; And when the start time of the fixed frame period is aligned with the start position of the NR-U slot. In one sub-example, if this phase is configured/supported, the UE may monitor UE specific PDCCH and/or GC-PDCCH and/or FBE NR-U preamble signals in this phase. In addition, if these signals/channels are detected by the FBE UE, the UE can determine that its serving gNB has successfully passed the LBT and transmits in the current COT (i.e., the COT is detected by the UE). In another sub-example, the granularity for UE monitoring in this phase may be NR-U slot level or NR-U mini slot level; The granularity can be fixed in the specification, or configured by higher layer parameters, or can be dynamically adjusted according to DCI. In addition, the granularity for different channels/signals monitored by the UE may be the same or different. For example, the UE may be configured with dedicated monitoring periods for PDCCH and GC-PDCCH, respectively. In another lower example, the UE monitoring behavior in this phase may be configured by a higher layer and/or DCI, such that the UE only monitors FBE NR-U channels/signals for a subset duration of this phase. In another sub-example, this monitoring phase may be referred to as phase C.

In the fourth example of the first approach of embodiment 6, another monitoring phase may be the beginning with a duration of COT (τ) in a fixed frame period. In one sub-example, when the start of the channel occupancy time is aligned with the NR-U frame structure at the mini-slot and/or symbol level, τ may be the duration of the initial partial slot of the COT. In one sub-example, if this phase is configured/supported, the UE may monitor UE specific PDCCH and/or GC-PDCCH and/or FBE NR-U preamble signals in this phase. In addition, if these signals/channels are detected by the FBE UE, the UE can determine that its serving gNB has successfully passed the LBT and transmits in the current COT (i.e., the COT is detected by the UE). In another sub-example, the granularity for UE monitoring in this phase may be at the NR-U mini-slot level or the NR-U symbol level; The granularity can be fixed in the specification, or it can be configured by higher layer parameters. In addition, the granularity for different channels/signals monitored by the UE may be the same or different. For example, the UE may be configured with dedicated monitoring periods for PDCCH and GC-PDCCH, respectively. In another sub-example, this monitoring phase may be referred to as phase D.

In the fifth example of the first approach of embodiment 6, the other monitoring phase may be from the duration (τ) after the start of the COT to the end of the COT of the fixed frame period.In one sub-example, this example shows that the observation slots are Applicable when introduced, and the configured observation slots are terminated after the duration of the COT (τ). If the observation slots are all included within the idle period, τ may be 0; Otherwise, τ> 0. In another sub-example, this example can be applied when, in one sub-example, the start of the channel occupancy time is aligned with the NR-U frame structure at the mini-slot and/or symbol level, τ is the initial partial slot of the COT. It can be a duration. In one sub-example, if this phase is configured/supported, the UE may monitor the UE specific PDCCH and/or GC-PDCCH in this phase and/or FBE NR-U preamble signals. In another sub-example, the granularity for UE monitoring in this phase may be at the NR-U slot level or the NR-U mini slot level; The granularity can be fixed in the specification or configured by higher layer parameters, or can be dynamically adjusted according to DCI. In addition, the granularity for different channels/signals monitored by the UE may be the same or different. For example, the UE may be configured with a dedicated monitoring period for PDCCH and GC-PDCCH, respectively. In another sub-example, this monitoring phase may be referred to as phase E.

In the sixth example of the first approach of embodiment 6, each fixed frame period can be divided into two monitoring phases having only phase A and phase C , which phase A spans the entire idle period of the COT. In one sub-example, the UE switching from phase A (of the previous COT) to phase C (of the current COT) may be implicit, where the UE has a fixed frame period (i.e., COT duration and idle duration duration in each COT). Period) from phase A (of the previous COT) to phase C (of the current COT) according to the configured structure of the period), and the UE may obtain a fixed frame period configuration according to the second embodiment. In one sub-example, the UE switching from phase A (of the previous COT) to phase C (of the current COT) may be explicit, where the UE switches from phase A (of the previous COT) to phase C (of the current COT). The trigger for is that the UE specific PDCCH and/or GC-PDCCH and/or FBE NR-U preamble signals have been detected by the UE. In one sub-example, the UE switching from phase C (of the current COT) to phase A (of the current COT) may be implicit, where the UE has a fixed frame period (i.e., the COT duration and idle period duration in each COT). Period) from phase C (of the current COT) to phase A (of the current COT) according to the configured structure of the period), and the UE may obtain a fixed frame period configuration according to the second embodiment. In one sub-example, the UE switching from phase C (of the current COT) to phase A (of the current COT) may be implicit, where the UE has a fixed frame period (i.e., the COT duration and idle period duration in each COT). Period) from phase C (of the current COT) to phase A (of the current COT) according to the configured structure of the period), and the UE may obtain a fixed frame period configuration according to the second embodiment.

In the seventh example of the first approach of embodiment 6, each fixed frame period can be divided into three monitoring phases with phase A , phase B and phase E. In one sub-example, this example can be used when random observation slots are introduced. In another sub-example, the UE switching from phase A to phase B (of the previous COT) may be implicit, wherein the UE is configured with a fixed frame period (i.e., the COT duration and the idle period duration in each COT). Accordingly, switching from phase A (of the previous COT) to phase B , the UE can obtain a fixed frame period configuration according to the second embodiment. In one sub-example, the UE switching from phase A to phase B (of the previous COT) may be explicit, and the trigger for the UE to switch from phase A to phase B (of the previous COT) is a UE-specific PDCCH and/or GC-PDCCH and/or FBE NR-U preamble signals were detected by the UE. In one sub-example, the UE switching from phase B to phase E (of the current COT) may be implicit, wherein the UE has a structure consisting of a fixed frame period (i.e., the COT duration and the idle duration duration in each COT) According to the switching from phase B to phase A (of the current COT), the UE can obtain a fixed frame period configuration according to the second embodiment. This example can be applied irrespective of whether the UE has detected signals/channels to be transmitted after passing its LBT in its assigned observation slot(s) by the NR-U FBE initiating device (i.e., gNB), This is described in detail in the second example of the first approach of the sixth embodiment. In another sub-example, the UE switching from phase B to phase E (of the current COT) may be explicit, with its LBT in its assigned observation slot(s) by the NR-U FBE initiating device (i.e. gNB). When the UE detects signals/channels to be transmitted after passing through, the UE switches from phase B to phase E (of the current COT), which is described in detail in the second example of the first approach of embodiment 6. In one sub-example, switching the UE from phase E (of the current COT) to phase A (of the current COT) may be implicit, where the UE has a fixed frame period (i.e., COT duration and idle duration duration in each COT). Period) from phase E (of the current COT) to phase A (of the current COT) according to the configured structure of the period), and the UE may obtain a fixed frame period configuration according to the second embodiment.

In the eighth example of the first approach of embodiment 6, each fixed frame period can be divided into three monitoring phases, phase A , phase D and phase E. In one sub-example, this example can be used when the start of the channel occupancy time is aligned with the NR-U frame structure at the mini-slot and/or symbol level. In another sub-example, this example shows that the UE monitoring behavior (e.g., for PDCCH/GC-PDCCH/preamble signal) in the first k >= 1 slots (including the mini-slot) of the channel occupancy time is the remaining slots of the COT. Can be used when different from the field. In another sub-example, the UE switching from phase A (of the previous COT) to phase D (of the current COT) may be implicit, where the UE has a fixed frame period (i.e., the COT duration and idle period duration in each COT). ), switching from phase A (of the previous COT ) to phase D (of the current COT), and the UE can obtain a fixed frame period configuration according to the second embodiment. In one sub-example, the UE switching from phase A (of the previous COT) to phase D (of the current COT) may be explicit, where the UE switches from phase A (of the previous COT) to phase D (of the current COT). The trigger for, may be a UE specific PDCCH and/or GC-PDCCH and/or FBE NR-U preamble signals have been detected by the UE. In another sub-example, the UE switching from phase D (of the current COT) to phase E (of the current COT) may be implicit, where the UE has a fixed frame period (i.e., the COT duration and idle period duration in each COT). ), from phase D (of the current COT) to phase E (of the current COT) according to the structure of), and the UE switches from the FBE frame structure as well as the fixed frame period configuration (e.g., according to embodiment 2), from phase D. A switching boundary to phase E can be obtained. For example, phase D may be an initial NR-U mini slot, while phase E may start from the first NR-U full slot in the COT. This example can be applied irrespective of whether the UE has detected signals/channels to be transmitted after passing its LBT in its assigned observation slot(s) by the NR-U FBE initiating device (i.e., gNB), This is described in detail in the second example of the first approach of the sixth embodiment. In another sub-example, the UE switching from phase B to phase E (of the current COT) may be explicit, where the trigger for the UE to switch from phase D to phase E (of the current COT) is the NR-U FBE initiating device (i.e. , gNB) has detected the signals/channels to be transmitted by the NR-U FBE initiating device (i.e. gNB) after passing its LBT in its assigned observation slot(s), which is implemented It is described in detail in the second example of the first approach of Example 6. In one sub-example, switching the UE from phase E (of the current COT) to phase A (of the current COT) may be implicit, where the UE has a fixed frame period (i.e., COT duration and idle duration duration in each COT). Period) from phase E (of the current COT) to phase A (of the current COT) according to the configured structure of the period), and the UE may obtain a fixed frame period configuration according to the second embodiment.

In the second approach of embodiment 6, the UE may acquire the structure of the channel occupancy time during the monitoring phase(s) of the fixed frame period.

In the first example of the second approach of embodiment 6, the UE may obtain the slot format for each slot of the COT from the GC-PDCCH detected during the COT. In one sub-example, the GC-PDCCH may reuse DCI format 2_0 from NR Rel-15, and the DCI format may represent DL/UL/flexible symbols for each slot in the COT. In another sub-example, GC-PDCCH may be enhanced from DCI format 2_0 of NR Rel-15. For example, the GC-PDCCH may be a new DCI format other than DCI format 2_0.

In the second example of the second approach of embodiment 6, for the FBE NR-U slot(s) overlapping with the idle period of the FBE fixed frame period, the UE is this FBE NR-U slot(s) overlapping with the idle period. It is possible to ignore the slot format configuration for the symbol(s) of. In one sub-example, if random observation slots are used, the UE may ignore the slot format configuration for the symbol(s) of such FBE NR-U slot(s) overlapping the idle period except for the observation slots. In another sub-example, if random observation slots are used, the UE may treat the symbol(s) of those FBE NR-U slot(s) overlapping the observation slots as DL symbols by default. In another sub-example, if random observation slots are used, the UE may determine the format of the symbol(s) overlapping the observation slots according to the corresponding slot format indication (SFI).

In a third example of the second approach of embodiment 6, the subband usage information may also be indicated through GC-PDCCH/UE specific PDCCH/FBE NR-U preamble signals that the UE will detect during monitoring phases of the fixed frame period. have. In one sub-example, the subband usage information may include the subband(s) the gNB is currently available in the COT for DL/UL transmissions. For example, these subbands may be determined by the gNB according to the sixth approach of embodiment 3. In another case, this information may be indicated through the GC-PDCCH. In another sub-example, the subband usage information may include the subband(s) the gNB configures in the current COT for DL/UL transmissions to the UE. For example, these subbands may be a subset of subbands determined by the gNB according to the sixth approach of embodiment 3. In another case, this information may be indicated through a UE specific PDCCH.

The extension of 5G NR to the unlicensed spectrum is an important component of the Rel-16 NR, and one of the most important design considerations for unlicensed operations is the channel access mechanism. The license-exempt regulation has defined two types of channel access mechanisms, FBE and LBE, for devices/equipments operating in the unlicensed spectrum. The FBE has a periodic timing in which the transmission/reception structure has a periodicity named fixed frame period (FFP); And the initiating device is a channel access mechanism that must perform LBT during the observation slot before starting transmissions on the working channel at the beginning of the FFP. Load-based equipment, or LBE, is a channel access mechanism that implements an LBT with random backoff with a contention window of variable size.

For both FBE and LBE operations, the licence-exempt provision allows the initiating device to allow one or more associated responding devices to transmit on the current operating channel within the current COT, wherein the responding device is the last transmission by the initiating device. After the SIFS period (ie, 16 μs in the 5 GHz unlicensed band), this transmission can proceed without LBT; Otherwise, the responding device performs LBT during the observation slot within the PIFS period (ie, 25 μs in the 5 GHz unlicensed band) ending immediately before the permitted transmission time.

In this disclosure, a viewing slot refers to a period in which an operating channel is checked for the presence of other transmissions. The maximum time available for the LBT mechanism to evaluate an active channel to determine an active or idle active channel within a viewing slot is implementation dependent. For both FBE and LBE, the observation slot is at least 9 microseconds in the 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum. For the 60 GHz unlicensed spectrum, the observation slot, or equivalently a clear channel assessment (CCA) slot, is 5 microseconds. In addition, SIFS and PIFS refer to a short inter-frame space and a point coordination function inter-frame space, respectively, and their duration depends on the unlicensed band and may be configurable. For example, in the case of an NR-U less than 7 GHz operating in a 5 GHz unlicensed band, the SIFS duration may be 16 μs, and the PIFS duration may be 25 μs. In another example, for NR-U above 7 GHz in the 60 GHz unlicensed band, the SIFS duration may be 3 μs, and the PIFS duration may be 8 μs.

For downlink (DL) to uplink (UL) switching and uplink to downlink switching operations performed by NR Unlicensed (NR-U), the above unlicensed rules regarding LBT requirements need to be met.

The present disclosure is designed to support DL to UL switching and UL to DL switching of NR-U, NR-U operations at DL to UL switching point(s) and UL to DL switching point(s) and corresponding LBT requirements It focuses on aspects.

The present disclosure includes several embodiments, principles, approaches, and examples that may be used in connection with or in combination with each other, or that may operate as standalone. Embodiments/principles/approaches/examples of the present disclosure may be applied to FBE-based NR-U, LBE-based NR-U, or NR-U of both FBE-based and LBE-based.

In the remainder of this disclosure, NR-U below 7 GHz refers to NR-U operating in unlicensed/shared bands below 7 GHz, such as 5 GHz unlicensed bands or 6 GHz unlicensed/shared bands; NR-U above 7 GHz refers to NR-U operating in unlicensed/shared bands above 7 GHz, such as 60 GHz unlicensed bands. In addition, "DL/UL switching" refers to either one DL to UL switching, or one UL to DL switching.

Example 7. Principles of DL/UL Switching for NR-U

Embodiment 7 includes principles of supporting DL/UL switching for NR-U.

In the first principle of embodiment 7, NR-U can support downlink to uplink switching within the channel occupancy time (COT), so that the UE(s) associated with the gNB are authorized for uplink transmissions within the COT ( authorization).

In the first example of the first principle of embodiment 7, the COT may be obtained by the gNB, for example, for FBE-based NR-U or LBE-based NR-U.

In a second example of this first principle, the uplink transmission is via UL grant, or unlicensed uplink transmissions, or through HARQ-ACK in response to previous downlink transmissions, or other PUCCH transmissions, or SRS transmissions. It can be scheduled by the gNB.

In a third example of the first principle, the LBT requirements for these uplink transmissions by the UE must comply with the license-exempt regulation, i.e., the LBT is the SIFS duration (e.g., in the 5 GHz band) after the last downlink transmission. If started within 16 μs) is not required; Otherwise, the LBT needs to be performed during the observation slot within a period of the PIFS duration (e.g., 25 μs for the 5 GHz band) ending before it needs to be performed by the licensed uplink transmitting UE.

In the fourth example of the first principle, the no LBT option can be adopted for this uplink transmission according to the regulatory allowances and restrictions. For example, this LBT no option can be used when the UE responds to the corresponding DL transmission with HARQ-ACK according to regulatory restrictions.

In the second principle of embodiment 7, NR-U can support uplink to downlink switching in the COT, so that the serving gNB of the UE can be authorized for downlink transmissions in the COT.

In the first example of the second principle of embodiment 7, the COT is for LBE-based NR-U, or if the UE is an initiating device for FBE-based NR-U, Category-4 (CAT-4) LBT of LTE-LAA It can be obtained by the UE through the similar LBT operation.

In a second example of the second principle, the LBT requirements for these downlink transmissions by the gNB must comply with the license-exempt provisions, i.e., the downlink transmission is the SIFS duration after the last uplink transmission (e.g., 16 for the 5 GHz band). LBT is not required if started within μs); Otherwise, the LBT needs to be performed during the observation slot within the period of the PIFS duration (e.g., 25 μs for the 5 GHz band) ending before the downlink transmission needs to be performed by the gNB.

In a third example of the second principle, the LBT no option can be adopted for this downlink transmission, subject to regulatory allowances and restrictions. For example, this LBT no option may be used when the gNB responds to the corresponding UL transmission with HARQ-ACK, according to regulatory restrictions.

In the license-exempt provision, the responding device may transmit on the current operating channel for the remaining COT after receiving the authorization from the initiating device, and may have multiple transmissions if the gap does not exceed 16 μs. In addition, a grant may be issued to multiple responding devices, and each responding device may transmit in the remaining COT according to the start time indicated in the grant. In one example, under license-exempt provisions, if the initiating device is gNB and the responding device is UE, the NR-U may have at most one DL to UL switching. In one sub-example, multiple UEs may perform UL transmissions with COT after DL to UL switching. In another example, under license-exempt provisions, if the initiating device is a UE and the responding device is gNB, the NR-U may have at most one UL to DL switching.

In the third principle of Embodiment 7, NR-U may allow more than one DL to UL switching point(s) and UL to DL switching point(s) within the channel occupancy time.

In the first example of the third principle, the COT may be the COT obtained by the gNB in the LBE mode. In a second example of the third principle, the COT may be the COT obtained by the gNB in the FBE mode. In a third example of the third principle, the COT can be obtained by the UE in the LBE mode. In the fourth example of the third principle, the COT can be obtained by the UE in the FBE mode.

In the fifth example of the third principle, for each of the DL to UL switching points, if the uplink transmission starts within the SIFS duration (e.g., 16 μs for the 5 GHz band) after the last downlink transmission from the UE point of view, the LBT is Not required by the UE; Otherwise, the LBT needs to be performed by the UE during the observation slot within the period of the PIFS duration (e.g., 25 μs for the 5 GHz band) ending before the permitted uplink transmission. In one sub-example, this can be applied to the COT obtained by the gNB, and the uplink transmission is the initial uplink transmission from the UE within this COT.

In a sixth example of the third principle, for each of the UL to DL switching points, if the downlink transmission starts within the SIFS duration (e.g., 16 μs for the 5 GHz band) after the last uplink transmission from the gNB point of view, the LBT is not required for gNB; Otherwise, the LBT needs to be performed by the gNB during the observation slot within the period of the PIFS duration (e.g., 25 μs for the 5 GHz band) ending before the downlink transmission. In one sub-example, this can be applied to the COT obtained by the UE, and the downlink transmission is the initial downlink transmission from the gNB within this COT.

In a seventh example of the third principle, the LBT no option may be adopted for DL to UL switching point(s), and/or UL to DL switching point(s), according to regulatory allowances and restrictions. For example, this LBT no option can be used when the UE responds to the corresponding DL transmission with HARQ-ACK at the DL to UL switching point, according to regulatory restrictions.

In the eighth example of the third principle, for each switching from DL to UL and then back to DL during the COT obtained by the gNB (e.g., DL-UL-DL switching), this DL-UL-DL switching If the gap between the end of the first DL transmission for and the start of the second DL transmission is within the SIFS duration (eg, 16 μs for the 5 GHz band), the LBT is not required by the gNB to resume DL transmission; If the gap between the end of the first DL transmission and the start of the second DL transmission is between the SIFS duration and the PIFS duration (e.g., [16 μs, 25 μs] for the 5 GHz band), the LBT during the observation slot If passed, the gNB can resume DL transmission. For example, this can be applied to a sub-7 NR-U system with a higher subcarrier spacing such as 60 kHz SCS or 120 kHz SCS. In another case, this can be applied to an FDD NR-U system, such as when the NR-U uplink is transmitted on a licensed carrier, and the gap between the two DL transmissions of this DL-UL-DL switching is only 1 OFDM It may be a symbol, which is less than 25 μs in the subcarrier spacing of the SCS above 60 kHz.

In one sub-example of the seventh example of the third principle, if the gap between the end of the first DL transmission and the start of the second DL transmission is greater than the PIFS duration (e.g., 25 μs for the 5 GHz band), LBT If is passed during the observation slot within the period of the PIFS duration ending before the start of the second DL transmission, the gNB may resume the second DL transmission. For example, it can be used for an FBE-based NR-U, or an LBE-based NR-U in a 6 GHz band or a 5 GHz band, or an FDD-based NR-U, such as an uplink carrier on a licensed band. In another sub-example, if the gap between the end of the first DL transmission and the start of the second DL transmission is greater than the PIFS duration (eg, 25 μs for the 5 GHz band), the gNB cannot resume DL transmission. For example, this can be used for LBE based TDD NR-U in the 5 GHz band and when COT is obtained by gNB LBT. In another sub-example, if after DL-UL-DL switching, another DL-to-UL switching is initiated, the second DL-to-UL switching for this DL-UL-DL-UL switching is performed by two UL transmissions using an unlicensed carrier. Originating from the same UE via and allowed only if the gap between the two UL transmissions is within the SIFS duration (eg, 16 μs for the 5 GHz band); Or if two UL transmissions are on a licensed carrier; Or, if the two UL transmissions originate from different UEs over an unlicensed carrier, the second DL to UL switching is LBT for this uplink transmission from the first principle of embodiment 7 (i.e., the third example of the first principle). Meets the example requirements. For example, for an NR-U less than 7 GHz and a subcarrier spacing less than 60 kHz and an SIFS duration of 16 μs, if two UL transmissions on an unlicensed carrier originate from the same UE, DL-UL-DL-UL Switching cannot be allowed; The UE HARQ-ACK for the second DL transmission for DL-UL-DL switching can be obtained by the gNB and then reported by the UE within the COT, or to the COT obtained by the UE via CAT-4 LBT. It can be reported by this UE. In another sub-example, if additional DL/UL switching is required, the LBT requirements from this example need to be met, and the total number of DL/UL switching points is equal to the maximum number of allowed DL/UL switching points for this principle. Need to meet the example for.

In the ninth example of the third principle, for each switching from UL to DL and then back to UL during the COT obtained by the UE (e.g., UL-DL-UL switching), this UL-DL-UL switching If the gap between the end of the first UL transmission and the start of the second UL transmission is within the SIFS duration (eg, 16 μs for the 5 GHz band), the LBT is not required by the UE to resume UL transmission; If the gap between the end of the first UL transmission and the start of the second UL transmission is between the SIFS duration and the PIFS duration (e.g., [16 μs, 25 μs] for the 5 GHz band), the LBT during the observation slot If passed, the UE can resume UL transmission.

In one sub-example of the ninth example of the third principle, if the gap between the end of the first UL transmission and the start of the second UL transmission is greater than the PIFS duration (e.g., 25 μs for the 5 GHz band), the LBT If is passed during the observation slot within the period of the PIFS duration ending before the start of the second DL transmission, the UE may resume UL transmission. For example, it can be used for FBE-based NR-U, or LBE-based NR-U in the GHz band or 5 GHz band. In another sub-example, if the gap between the end of the first UL transmission and the start of the second UL transmission is greater than the PIFS duration (eg, 25 μs for the 5 GHz band), the UE cannot resume UL transmission. For example, this can be used for LBE based NR-U in the 5 GHz band and when the COT is obtained by the UE LBT. In another sub-example, if, after UL-DL-UL switching, another UL-to-DL switching is initiated, the second UL-to-DL switching for this UL-DL-UL-DL switching is performed when the two DL transmissions are the same gNB ( Or TRP) and is allowed only if the gap between the two DL transmissions is within the SIFS duration (eg, 16 μs for the 5 GHz band); Or, if the two DL transmissions originate from different gNBs (or TRPs), the second UL to DL switching is for this downlink transmission from the second principle of embodiment 7 (i.e., the third example of the second principle). It satisfies examples of LBT requirements. For example, for an NR-U less than 7 GHz and a subcarrier spacing less than 60 kHz and a SIFS duration of 16 μs, UL-DL-UL-DL switching could be allowed if two DL transmissions originate from the same gNB. none. In another sub-example, if additional DL/UL switching is required, the LBT requirements from this example need to be met, and the total number of DL/UL switching points is equal to the maximum number of allowed DL/UL switching points for this principle. Need to meet the example for.

In the tenth example of the third principle, the maximum number of allowed DL/UL switching points in the COT including both DL to UL switching point(s) and UL to DL switching point(s) may be predefined or configurable in the specification. I can. The specification may specify the total number of DL to UL switching point(s) and UL to DL switching point(s), or the number of DL to UL switching point(s) and the number of UL to DL switching point(s) respectively Can specify, or can specify either the number of DL to UL switching point(s) or the number of UL to DL switching point(s). In one approach, the maximum number of switching points can be predefined in the specification as a fixed number such as N ( N >=1) within the COT duration. In another approach, the maximum number of switching points may be predefined in the specification, the number being scalable for the COT duration, such as not decreasing for the COT duration for at least one of LBE-based or FBE-based NR-U. Does not. For example, if the COT duration is M milliseconds, the maximum allowable total number of switching points is 2 * M -1, which is, at least, a scenario in which the UE responds to corresponding DL transmissions with HARQ-ACK feedback every 1 millisecond. Can be applied to

28 illustrates exemplary DL/UL switching points having a channel occupancy time according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 28 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

The maximum number of allowed DL/UL switching points in the COT can be predefined or configurable in the specification. In one case, the unit of time is 1 ms. In another case, if the COT duration is M NR-U slots of a given subcarrier interval (e.g., 15 kHz SCS for NR-U less than 7 GHz), the maximum number of allowed switching points may be 2*M -1 , and , This can be applied to a scenario in which the UE responds with HARQ-ACK feedback to corresponding DL transmissions at least once per NR-U slot duration of a given subcarrier interval. As illustrated in FIG. 28, the unit of time is the slot duration of a given subcarrier interval, such as 15 kHz SCS for NR-U less than 7 GHz or 60 kHz SCS for NR-U greater than 7 GHz.

In another approach, the maximum number of switching points may be predefined in the specification, the number being extensible for the LBT priority class, such as not decreasing as the LBT priority class increases. That is, NR-U has a lower priority for the access channel. In another approach, the maximum number of switching points can be increased for the FFP duration for FBE based NR-U. In another approach, for a given COT, the maximum number of switching points can be increased as the subcarrier spacing for NR-U increases. In another approach, there may be a maximum number of allowed switch points per NR-U slot, denoted by N, and this number may be greater than or equal to one; Alternatively, it may be less than 1, and in that case, there may be at most 1 DL/UL switching point per 1/N NR-U slots on average. In another approach, there may be at most 1 DL/UL switching point per NR-U mini slot.

In the eleventh example of the third principle, the NR-U is one or more DL/in the COT so that the UE reports HARQ-ACK feedback(s) for the corresponding downlink transmissions in the UL portion(s) of the COT. You can use the allowance of UL switching points. For example, the license-exempt provision allows the device to skip the LBT and immediately proceed with transmission of management and control frames (eg, ACK or block ACK frames) upon correct reception of a packet that was intended for this device. In one sub-example, if the gNB does not receive HARQ-ACK from the UE at a predetermined location(s) in which the UE responds with HARQ-ACK, the gNB may treat this state as receiving a NACK. In another sub-example, HARQ-ACK can also be treated as part of short control signaling transmissions so that the LBT can be skipped, as long as the constraints for short control signaling transmissions are met.

Example 8. LBT in DL/UL Switching Points for NR-U

Example 8 is the principles for operations in the DL/UL switching point(s) for NR-U and corresponding LBT requirements, which apply to both NR-U below 7 GHz and NR-U above 7 GHz and Provides approaches.

29 shows an exemplary timing relationship for a single LBT at a DL to UL switching point or a UL to DL switching point according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 29 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

An important design consideration for DL/UL switching of NR-U (which includes both FBE-based NR-U and LBE-based NR-U) is to perform single-shot LBT at the DL to UL switching point and UL to DL switching point. It is a timing analysis of necessity. In Rel-15 NR, uplink NR-U slot transmission to the UE occurs before _{the start τ = (N TA} + N _{TA, offset} ) * T _{c of the corresponding downlink NR-U slot in the UE, T c} = 1 /(4096*480 kHz), N _TA *T _c represents the timing advance value of the UE (eg, round trip delay between gNB and UE); N _{TA, offset} *T _c represents the guard period for UL to DL switching time, which is 0 for FDD, 25560 T _c =(13) μs for TDD in FR1, and 13763 T for TDD in FR2. _c = 7 μs.

30 shows an exemplary guard period timing relationship for DL and UL switching points in a gNB according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 30 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In the first principle of Example 8, if the total assigned guard period (GP) duration for one DL-to-UL switching and corresponding UL-to-DL switching is indicated by the GP, the GP is an integer that needs to meet the following: Is the number of NR-U OFDM symbols:

GP >= TA _max + N _{TA, offset} * T _c + T _{UE DL-UL} ,

Where T _{UE DL-UL} is the UE RF switching time from DL (reception) to UL (transmission); While N _{TA, offset} * T _c consider the guard period allocated for UL to DL switching; GP-N _{TA, offset} * T _c is the guard period allocated for DL to UL switching, which is at least the UE RF switching time from DL to UL (i.e., T _{UE DL-UL} ) and the maximum UE timing advance value based on the cell size (Ie, TA _max ) needs to be included.

31 illustrates another exemplary guard period timing relationship for DL and UL switching points according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 31 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

31 shows the timing relationship at both the gNB side and the UE side for DL to UL switching, where the timing advance value for the UE is N _TA *T _c (in units of _{T c ).}

In the first approach of embodiment 8, for the downlink to uplink switching point during the COT, the gap duration between the start of the assigned uplink transmission and the end of the previous downlink transmission is less than the SIFS duration from the UE point of view. If (eg, GP-τ <SIFS and τ = (N _TA + N _{TA, offset} ) * T _c ), LBT is not required for the NR-U UE to start UL transmission; If the gap duration between the start of the assigned uplink transmission and the end of the previous downlink transmission is at least the SIFS duration from the perspective of the UE (e.g., GP-τ >= SIFS and τ = (N _TA + N _{TA, offset} ) * T _c ), at least one of the following options may be adopted by the NR-U UE for DL to UL switching.

In the first option, the UE may perform the LBT process during the observation slot within the period of the PIFS duration that ends before the start of the assigned UL transmission within the guard period. In one example of this option, the start time for performing the LBT process is within [max(t ₀ , t ₀ +GP-τ-PIFS), t ₀ +GP-τ-observation slot], where t ₀ is also As illustrated in 31, it indicates the end of DL transmission in the UE.

In a second option, the UE may transmit a reservation signal starting at time instance t , which time instance is within [t ₀ + T _{UE DL-UL} , t ₀ +SIFS]; t _{0 ends at t 0} +GP-τ indicating the end of DL transmission in the UE as illustrated in FIG. 31; In this case, the LBT is not required by the UE. This option requires that SIFS _{is not less than T UE DL-UL} , i.e. UE DL to UL switching time.

In the third option, the UE extends the cyclic prefix (CP) of its next uplink transmission, so that the extended CP is _{within [T UE DL-UL} , SIFS] and t ₀ is illustrated in FIG. As described above, it may be transmitted from [t0 + t, t0 + GP- τ] indicating the end of DL transmission in the UE. In this case, the LBT is not required by the UE for the next uplink transmission. This option requires that SIFS _{is not less than T UE DL-UL} , i.e. UE DL to UL switching time.

In the fourth option, the UE may use the LBT no option according to the provisions allowance and restriction. For example, this LBT no option can be used when the UE responds to the corresponding DL transmission with HARQ-ACK according to the unlicensed band regulation restrictions.

In one example of the first approach of Example 8, for NR-U below 7 GHz, the observation slot duration may be 9 μs, the SIFS duration may be 16 μs, and the PIFS duration may be 25 μs. have. In another example of the first approach of Example 8, for NR-U above 7 GHz, the observation slot duration may be 5 μs, the SIFS duration may be 3 μs, and the PIFS duration may be 8 μs. have.

In another example of the first approach of Example 8, for NR-U less than 7 GHz, the maximum allowed UE DL to UL RF switching time (T _{UE DL-UL} ) is 13 μs; For NR-U above 7 GHz, the maximum allowed UE DL to UL RF switching time (T _{UE DL-UL} ) is 7 μs.

In another example of the first approach of Example 8 _{, the same value of N TA, offset} from Rel-15 TDD NR in FR1 can be used for NR-U less than 7 GHz, which is N _{TA, offset} * T _c = 13 μs. In another example of the first approach of Example 8 _{, the same value of N TA, offset} from Rel-15 TDD NR in FR2 can be used for NR-U above 7 GHz, which is N _{TA, offset} * T _c = 7 μs.

In another example of the first approach of Example 8, if the DL to UL switching during COT is part of UL-DL-UL switching, the LBT requirement in DL to UL switching is also the ninth of the third principle of Example 7 You should follow the example.

In another example of the first approach of embodiment 8, if the LBT is required by the UE for DL to UL switching, the GP as defined in the first principle of embodiment 8 needs to further meet:

GP >= TA _max + N _{TA, offset} * T _c + T _{UE DL-UL} + LBT_time,

Where LBT_time is the maximum time the LBT mechanism can use to evaluate the medium to determine whether the medium is in use or idle during the observation slot, which is implementation dependent and at most the observation slot duration; Other parameters are defined the same as in the first principle of the eighth embodiment.

In another example of the first approach of Example 8, for NR-U below 7 GHz, the LBT requirements and guard period duration (GP) at the DL to UL switching point(s) depend on the NR-U subcarrier spacing. do.

-In one sub-example, for NR-U less than 7 GHz with 15 kHz SCS, the GP may be one OFDM symbol length, and the first option of the first approach of this embodiment is GP-τ >= SIFS In this case, it is preferable for DL to UL switching in the COT. Specifically, for NR-U less than 7 GHz, the TA offset is 13 μs, and therefore τ = (13 + TA) μs, and TA represents the timing advance value of the UE. For a 15 kHz SCS NR-U with an average symbol duration of 71.4 μs, a GP of one OFDM symbol length is sufficient to support a cell with a coverage area of up to 6.81 km. In addition, GP- τ = GP-13 μs-TA; For GP-τ <= 16 μs, it needs to be TA> GP-29 μs, indicating that the distance from the UE to the gNB needs to be at least 6.36 km. Since NR-U primarily targets small cell scenarios with cell radius less than several kilometers, most UEs will meet that GP-τ is much greater than 16 μs, and the third or second option is to reserve the channel. This can lead to high time overhead. Therefore, for NR-U with 15 kHz SCS, it is more preferable for the UE to perform LBT during the observation slot at the DL to UL switching point. For UEs in NR-U cells with a large coverage size (e.g., more than 5 km), the second or third option is also adopted when the corresponding market overhead for the reservation signal or extended CP is reasonable. Can be.

-In another sub-example, for NR-U less than 7 GHz with 30 kHz SCS, the GP may be one OFDM symbol length, and the third option of the first approach in Embodiment 8 is GP-τ >= SIFS In this case, it can be used for DL to UL switching in the COT. Specifically, for a 30 kHz SCS NR-U with an average symbol duration of 35.7 μs, the GP of one OFDM symbol is sufficient to support a cell with a coverage area of up to 1.455 km. In addition, GP-τ = GP-13-TA; For GP- τ <= 16 μs, it needs to be TA> GP-29 μs, indicating that the distance from the UE needs to be at least 1.005 km. For UEs closer than 1.005 km to the associated gNB, option 2 and option 3 are feasible to allow UL transmission at the DL to UL switching point. In one example, in the case of option 3, the UE can extend its CP for the next uplink transmission, so that the extra CP is [t ₀ + 16 μs, t ₀ + GP- τ] (time t ₀ Is the beginning of the guard period at the UE), where an extra copy of the UL data of the duration (GP-29 μs-TA) is attached as an extra CP. It is a more preferred option for 30 kHz SCS NR-U as option 3 does not require extra LBT and can also potentially facilitate decoding of uplink data. On the other hand, in order to use option 1, GP needs to be GP >= TA _max + N _{TA, offset} * T _c + T _{UE DL-UL} + LBT_time, which is T _{UE DL-UL} = 13 μs and LBT_time Assuming = 9 μs, we _{mean TA max} <= 0.7 μs, which corresponds to a maximum cell size of 105 meters, which is too small for most NR-U application scenarios. Therefore, option 1 is not feasible for most NR-U scenarios with a 30 kHz SCS and a GP of one symbol.

-In another sub-example, for NR-U less than 7 GHz with 60 kHz SCS, the GP can be made of two OFDM symbols, and the third option of the first approach of embodiment 8 is GP-τ >= SIFS When is, it is preferable for DL to UL switching in the COT. In the case of a 60 kHz SCS NR-U with an average symbol duration of 17.8 μs, a GP of at least two OFDM symbols is required to satisfy the first principle of embodiment 8. If the GP consists of 2 OFDM symbols, the analysis will be the same as in the case of 30 kHz SCS NR-U with a GP of 1 OFDM symbol, so option 3 is preferred for UEs and for DL to UL switching. LBT is not required.

-In another sub-example, for NR-U less than 7 GHz with 60 kHz SCS, the GP may be one OFDM symbol. In this case, smaller N _{TA, offset} and/or T _{UE DL-UL} may be required, so that the first principle of Embodiment 8 may be satisfied, and LBT is not required by the UE at the DL to UL switching point.

-In another sub-example, for NR-U less than 7 GHz with 30 kHz SCS and 60 kHz SCS, GP will have two each to support NR-U cells with large coverage size (e.g., exceeding 1.5 km). It may be the above OFDM symbols and two OFDM symbols. In this case, when GP-τ >= SIFS, the first option of the first approach of Embodiment 8 may be used for DL to UL switching in the COT.

In another sub-example, for NR-U less than 7 GHz, the subcarrier spacing may be greater than 60 kHz, such as 120 kHz, and the GP may be two or more OFDM symbols for DL to UL switching in the COT.

In another example of the first approach of Example 8, when the NR-U UE RF switching time from DL to UL exceeds SIFS regardless of the NR-U subcarrier interval, the UE performs LBT at the DL to UL switching point. It is required to do. This is because the UE cannot start UL transmission within the SIFS duration after the end of the previous DL transmission, and thus the second and third options of the first approach of Embodiment 8 cannot be applied. In one sub-example, this scenario can be applied to NR-U above 7 GHz. For example, NR-U in the 60 GHz band has a SIFS duration of 3 μs less than 7 μs, which is the maximum allowable UE RF switching time from DL to UL, so LBT typically has a DL greater than 3 μs in that case. It is required for UEs with RF switching time from to UL. In another sub-example, for NR-U above 7 GHz where it is necessary to perform LBT at the DL to UL switching point, the GP needs to meet: GP >= TA _max + N _{TA, offset} * T _c + T _{UE DL-UL} + LBT_time, which leads to GP >= 6.67 + 7 + 7 + 5 = 25.67 μs assuming a maximum cell radius of 1 km, TUE DL-UL = 7 μs and LBT_time = 5 μs. This indicates that it is necessary for the corresponding GP to have at least 2 OFDM symbols and 3 OFDM symbols respectively for NR-U above 7 GHz with 60 kHz SCS and 120 kHz SCS, respectively.

In the second approach of embodiment 8, for UL to DL switching during COT, if the gap duration between the start of the assigned downlink transmission and the end of the previous uplink transmission is less than the SIFS duration from the gNB point of view (i.e. , N _{TA, offset} *T _c <SIFS), LBT is not required for gNB to start DL transmission; On the other hand, if the gap duration between the start of the assigned downlink transmission and the end of the previous uplink transmission is at least the SIFS duration from the gNB point of view (i.e., if N _{TA, offset} *T _c >= SIFS), the following options At least one of may be adopted by the NR-U gNB for UL to DL switching:

In the first option, the gNB may perform LBT during the observation slot within the period of the PIFS duration that ends before the start of the assigned DL transmission. In one example of this option, the start time for performing LBT is [max(t ₁ , t ₁ + N _{TA, offset} *T _c -PIFS), t ₁ + N _{TA, offset} *T _c -observation slot] Within, t ₁ represents the end of UL reception in the gNB as illustrated in FIG. 30.

In the second option, the gNB may transmit a reservation signal starting at time instance t , which time instance is within [t ₁ + T _{gNB UL-DL} , t ₁ +SIFS]; t _{1 ends at t 1} + N _{TA, offset} *T _c indicating the end of UL reception at the UE as illustrated in FIG. 8; In this case, the LBT is not required by the gNB. This option requires that the SIFS _{is not less than the T gNB UL-DL} , i.e. gNB UL (receive) to DL (transmit) RF switching time.

In the third option, the gNB extends the cyclic prefix (CP) of its next uplink transmission, so that the extended CP is _{within [T gNB UL-DL} , SIFS] and t ₁ is illustrated in FIG. 30. As described above, it may be transmitted from _{[t 1} + t, t ₁ + N _{TA, offset} *T _c ] indicating the end of UL reception in the gNB. In this case, the LBT is not required by the gNB for the next downlink transmission. This option requires that SIFS _{is not less than T gNB UL-DL} , i.e. gNB UL to DL RF switching time.

In the fourth option, the gNB may use the LBT no option according to the regulatory permits and restrictions.

In one example of the second approach of Example 8, for NR-U below 7 GHz, the observation slot duration may be 9 μs, the SIFS duration may be 16 μs, and the PIFS duration may be 25 μs. have. In another example of the second approach of Example 8, for NR-U above 7 GHz, the observation slot duration may be 5 μs, the SIFS duration may be 3 μs, and the PIFS duration may be 8 μs. have.

In another example of the second approach of Example 8 _{, the same value of N TA from TDD Rel-15 NR, offset} is 13 μs for NR-U less than 7 GHz, and 7 μs for NR-U above 7 GHz. Can be applied to unify the UL to DL switching time for NR-U.

In another example of the second approach of Example 8, if UL to DL switching during COT is part of DL-UL-DL switching, the LBT requirement in UL to DL switching is also the eighth of the third principle of Example 7 You should follow the example.

In another example of the second approach of embodiment 8, if the LBT is required by the gNB for UL to DL switching, the guard period for UL to DL switching needs to be at least T _{gNB UL-DL} + LBT_time, where LBT_time is The maximum time the LBT mechanism can be used to evaluate the medium to determine if the medium is in use or idle during the observation slot, which is implementation dependent and at most the observation slot duration; T _{gNB UL-DL} is the gNB UL receive to DL transmit RF switching time.

In another example of the second approach of embodiment 8, for NR-U below 7 GHz, the gNB does not need to perform LBT when switching from UL to DL, regardless of the subcarrier spacing. For NR-U less than 7 GHz, this is N _{TA with a guard period of 13 μs for UL to DL switching, offset} * Because it _{is contained within T c} and is always smaller than the SIFS duration of 16 μs for unlicensed bands below 7 GHz.

In another example of the second approach of embodiment 8, for NR-U above 7 GHz _{, if the same value of N TA, offset} from Rel-15 NR is used for NR-U, the assigned downlink transmission The gap duration between the start and the end of the previous uplink transmission is greater than the SIFS duration. This is because in the case of NR-U above 7 GHz, the guard period for UL to DL switching is 7 μs greater than the SIFS duration for unlicensed bands above 7 GHz, that is, 3 μs in the case of 60 GHz unlicensed bands. In one sub-example, if the gNB RF switching time from UL to DL satisfies T _{gNB UL-DL} <SIFS, then the second option or the third option of the second approach of Example 8 may be used, so that the LBT is UL It is not required by the gNB for the vs. DL switching. In another sub-example, if the gNB RF switching time from UL to DL satisfies T _{gNB UL-DL} >= SIFS and N _{TA, offset} *T _c >= T _{gNB UL-DL} + LBT_time, then LBT is UL to DL switching. It may be performed by the gNB during the observation slot within the guard period (N _{TA, offset} *T _{c) for.}

In another example of the second approach of Example 8, for NR-U above 7 GHz, the gNB RF switching time from UL to DL is T _{gNB UL-DL} >= SIFS and T _{gNB UL-DL} + LBT_time> 7 μs When the LBT is satisfied, the LBT needs to be performed by the gNB during the observation slot within the guard period allocated for UL to DL switching, and at least one of the following options for the duration of the guard period for UL to DL switching is Can be adopted:

In the first option of this example _{, a larger value of N TA, offset} than that of Rel-15 NR can be adopted for NR-U above 7 GHz, so that N _{TA, offset} *T _c is the RF switching from UL to DL. And LBT operation for gNB is sufficient, that is, N _{TA, offset} *T _c >= T _{gNB UL-DL} + LBT_time. This also affects GP, which is the total allocated guard period for both DL to UL guard and UL to DL guard, so that GP is GP >= TA _max + T _{gNB UL-DL} + N _{TA, offset} *T _c >= TA _max Note that it is necessary to meet + T _{gNB UL-DL} + LBT_time + T _{UE DL-UL.}

In the second option of this example, the gNB can extend the guard period assigned to UL to DL switching (or delay the start of the assigned DL transmission equally), so that RF switching from UL to DL and LBT operation for the gNB. Is enough. In addition, the gNB can align the end of this guard period to an NR-U OFDM symbol or mini-slot boundary. Note that this option does not require changing the value _{of N TA, offset} from Rel-15 NR.

In the third approach of Example 8, when LBT is required at a DL to UL switching point or a UL to DL switching point, the number of LBT attempt(s) allowed to permit UL transmission or DL transmission respectively within the current COT is the specification May be predefined or configurable in.

In one example of the third approach, the maximum number of LBT attempt(s) allowed may be predefined in the specification as a fixed number such as N ( N >=1). In one sub-example, N may be 1, which means that at most one LBT attempt is allowed, and UL data or DL data will not be transmitted if the LBT fails. In another sub-example, N can be infinite, meaning that there is no upper limit on the number of LBT attempts.

In another example of the third approach, the maximum number of allowed LBT attempt(s) is scalable and decreases with the duration of the assigned UL transmission for DL to UL transmission, or the assigned DL transmission for UL to DL transmission. I never do that. In one sub-example, if the desired duration of the assigned UL or DL transmission is T , the maximum number of allowed LBT attempts may be min(ceil(T/t ₀ ), M) , where M>=1 is Is the maximum number of allowed LBT attempts that can be infinite, where t ₀ is one NR-U OFDM symbol duration, one NR-U mini-slot duration (2/4/7 OFDM symbols), one NR-U It can refer to any time interval, such as the slot duration, or the duration of any other arbitrary number of NR-U symbols. For example, if the desired duration of UL transmission allocated in the DL versus UL switching point is one symbol (e.g., in the case of HARQ-ACK in a self-contained slot), t ₀ is one NR -U slot, the maximum number of LBT attempts is 1. In another case, if the desired duration of the assigned UL or DL transmission is 10 NR-U slots, and t ₀ is one NR-U slot, the maximum number of LBT attempts allowed may be 10.

In another example of the third approach, the maximum number of allowed LBT attempt(s) at the DL to UL switching point or UL to DL switching point is the COT duration, and/or packet duration for UL transmission or DL transmission, respectively. It can be extensible. In one sub-example, the COT duration may be referred to as the total duration of the current COT; Alternatively, the COT duration may be referred to as the remaining duration of the current COT. In another sub-example, depending on the maximum number of LBT attempts that can be predefined in the specification, the number of LBT attempts is the corresponding UL transmission (for DL-to-UL switching) or DL transmission (for UL-to-DL switching). There may be no restrictions as long as you can start within the COT. In another sub-example, depending on the maximum number of LBT attempts that can be predefined in the specification, the number of LBT attempts is the corresponding UL transmission (for DL-to-UL switching) or DL transmission (for UL-to-DL switching). There may be no restrictions as long as they can be completely contained within the COT.

In another example of the third approach, the time interval for adjacent LBT attempts can be configured at the DL/UL switching points; If the current LBT attempt fails, the start for the next LBT attempt may follow one of the following options: (1) If a single shot LBT of the PIFS duration fails, the next LBT attempts start immediately at the next PIFS duration. Can; This option means that the spacing between two adjacent LBT trials can be PIFS (ie 25 μs in the 5 GHz band and 8 μs in the 60 GHz band); (2) NR-U OFDM symbol duration, or one NR-U mini-slot duration (2/4/7 OFDM symbols), or one NR-U slot duration, or any other arbitrary number of The next LBT may start after a certain interval from the start of the previous LBT attempt, which may be the duration of NR-U symbols. In one sub-example, the maximum number of allowed LBT switching points may be correspondingly determined as min(ceil(T/t ₀ ), M) , where T is the desired duration of the assigned UL or DL transmission, or the remaining COT duration. The duration, or the desired duration of the assigned UL or DL transmission and the remaining COT duration; t ₀ is the time interval for adjacent LBT attempts, M>=1 is the maximum number of allowed LBT attempts by the specification, and M can be infinite, in which case there is no upper limit on the number of LBT attempts by the specification. For example, if the first option of this example is used, this means that there is no limit to the number of LBT attempts as long as the number of LBT attempts does not exceed the maximum value allowed by the specification (i.e., M in the sub-example).

In another example of the third approach, it may be configured at start time DL/UL switching points for adjacent LBT attempts; If the current LBT attempt fails, the start time for the next LBT attempt may be just before the NR-U OFDM symbol/NR-U mini slot/NR-U slot/ms boundary, so that the transmission after DL/UL switching passes through the LBT. It can start at the NR-U OFDM symbol/NR-U mini slot/NR-U slot/ms boundary.

In another example of the third approach, if all allowed LBT attempts in the current COT fail for an assigned UL transmission at a DL to UL switching point, or an assigned DL transmission at a UL to DL switching point, the UE or gNB is For each assigned UL transmission or DL transmission, a CAT-4 LBT-like LBT may be attempted outside the current COT. In one sub-example, the COT associated with the new CAT-4 LBT may be adjusted (longer, shorter, or remain the same as the previous COT) to include the assigned UL transmission or DL transmission. This may depend on the network implementation that determines the COT.

In another example of the third approach, if all allowed LBT attempts in the current COT fail for an assigned UL transmission at a DL to UL switching point, or an assigned DL transmission at a UL to DL switching point, the UE or gNB is Each assigned UL data or DL data may be discarded.

In another example of the third approach, if the assigned UL transmission (or the assigned DL transmission) at the DL to UL switching point (or UL to DL switching point) is not finished within the remaining COT, the UE (or gNB) is You can try a CAT-4 LBT-like LBT outside of the current COT to transmit UL transmissions (or DL transmissions). In one sub-example, the COT associated with the new CAT-4 LBT may be adjusted (longer, shorter, or remain the same as the previous COT) to include the remaining UL transmissions or DL transmissions. This may depend on the network implementation that determines the COT.

In another example of the third approach, if the assigned UL transmission (or the assigned DL transmission) at the DL to UL switching point (or UL to DL switching point) is not finished within the remaining COT, the UE (or gNB) is UL transmission (or DL transmission) can be discarded.

32 shows exemplary short preamble symbols of an 802.11 preamble. For the short preamble symbols of the 802.11 preamble, a repetition of 0.8 μs can be achieved by allowing only OFDM subcarriers with indices that are multiples of 4 to have a non-zero amplitude, which is a 3.2 μs IFFT/ A periodicity of 0.8 μs is given to the FFT period and the subcarrier spacing of 312.5 kHz (ie, 20 MHz/64). IEEE 802.11 preambles as illustrated in FIG. 32 may be detected through autocorrelation-based algorithms by using a repeated short training symbol structure, or through cross-correlation-based algorithms by using a known short or long training sequence as a local reference signal. I can.

If the 802.11 preamble part is present in OFDM transmission and is received at a reception level above the receiver minimum input level sensitivity (this is also referred to as PDT, for example, -82 dBm for a 20 MHz channel), the Wi-Fi device is within 4 μs. It should indicate a clear channel assessment (CCA) as being in use with a probability> 90%. This mechanism may be referred to as preamble detection (PD). In the absence of the 802.11 preamble, the Wi-Fi device must indicate the CCA as being in use for any signal that exceeds the receiver minimum input level sensitivity by 20 dB (this is also referred to as EDT, e.g. -62 dBm for a 20 MHz channel). do. This mechanism may be referred to as energy detection (ED).

Without introducing a Wi-Fi preamble in the NR system, the Wi-Fi system can only detect the presence of NR in an unlicensed system through an energy detection mechanism, which is a much higher ED threshold (as compared to the PD Threshold (PDT)). EDT) can negatively affect SINR and rate performance for Wi-Fi. On the other hand, support for NR Unlicensed Systems (NR-U) to transmit 802.11-like preambles that are also detectable by Wi-Fi. Then, the preamble detection mechanism can be used instead of the energy detection mechanism for NR-U and Wi-Fi coexistence, which is an improved coexistence between NR-U and Wi-Fi, better SINR for Wi-Fi and NR-U. And rate performance, reduced Wi-Fi power consumption, and the like.

The present disclosure is provided by both NR-U and Wi-Fi, including potential changes to NR-U channel access procedure, sequence design, and time/frequency resource for common preamble of NR-U and Wi-Fi. It provides a common preamble design of NR-U that can be detected.

Embodiment 9. Channel access procedure using common preamble for NR-U and Wi-Fi

The first embodiment includes a change of specifications for the channel access procedure when the NR-U supports a common preamble for NR-U and Wi-Fi.

In the first approach of this embodiment, the common preamble for NR-U and Wi-Fi is the NR-U device, as well as the NR-U that can be detected by the Wi-Fi device through the existing Wi-Fi preamble detection algorithm. Push the preamble for.

In one example of the first approach of Embodiment 9, the Wi-Fi receiver may detect the presence of a common preamble through auto-correlation-based algorithms or cross-correlation-based algorithms.

In another example of the first approach, in order for the Wi-Fi receiver to correctly detect the common preamble, the NR-U channel assignment will be selected from the set of valid operating channel numbers defined for the corresponding unlicensed band by local unlicensed regulations. I can. In one sub-example, for the 5 GHz unlicensed band, this means that the NR-U channel bandwidth is an integer multiple of 20 MHz and each 20 MHz subband follows the effective channel center frequencies allowed by the regulatory domain. In addition, the common preamble may be transmitted over one or more of these 20 MHz subbands.

In another example of the first approach of this example, supporting a common preamble for NR-U and Wi-Fi allows the carrier sensing clear channel evaluation (CS/CCA) mechanism (or preamble detection mechanism) to detect the NR-U preamble. In addition to energy detection, it can be used by Wi-Fi. In detecting the NR-U common preamble, the preamble detection threshold for the Wi-Fi device may be the minimum modulation and coding rate sensitivity of Wi-Fi corresponding to the channel bandwidth, and the 802.11a device is -82 dBm in the 20 MHz channel. Preamble detection can be performed with a threshold value; The 802.11n device may perform preamble detection with a -82 dBm threshold in a 20 MHz channel or a -79 dBm threshold in a 40 MHz channel; 802.11ac devices can perform preamble detection with a -82 dBm threshold on a basic 20 MHz channel.

33A and 33B illustrate exemplary embodiments in which a Wi-Fi AP is performing CCA to determine channel availability while an NR-U gNB starts transmitting after passing through the CCA according to embodiments of the present disclosure. Shows. The embodiments shown in FIGS. 33A and 33B are for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

33A, the NR-U does not support the common preamble, and the Wi-Fi AP determines that the channel is available because the AP received power from the gNB is less than -62 dBm; In FIG. 33B, NR-U first transmits a common preamble, and Wi-Fi detects the presence of a common preamble through a preamble detection mechanism. As a result, the Wi-Fi station (STA) of FIG. 33A will have a low SINR due to strong interference from the gNB, which can significantly lower its rate or cause retransmissions to the Wi-Fi AP. On the other hand, the preamble detection mechanism of FIG. 33B can facilitate power saving and avoiding transmissions from a Wi-Fi AP to an STA using a low SINR in Wi-Fi.

In another example of the first approach of this example, with the support of the NR-U common preamble, the carrier sense clear channel evaluation (CS/CCA) mechanism (or preamble detection mechanism) will be used by the NR-U as supported channel access procedures. I can. In one sub-example, with the CS/CCA mechanism for NR-U, any NR-U common preamble is detected and the corresponding received power of the preamble detected in the NR-U device is CS/CCA within a specific channel detection duration. If the detection threshold or preamble detection threshold (PDT) is exceeded, the channel is considered to be in use by the NR-U device. In another sub-example, due to the similar structure of the NR-U common preamble and the existing Wi-Fi preamble, at least in the time domain, the NR-U device has the ability to detect Wi-Fi preambles through auto-correlation or cross-correlation based detection algorithms. It can also be optionally implemented to have. In another sub-example, the PDT for the NR-U common preamble by NR-U and the PDT for the Wi-Fi preamble by NR-U if the NR-U device can detect the Wi-Fi preamble are corresponding The bandwidth may be selected equal to the Wi-Fi preamble detection threshold, which may be -82 dBm in the 20 MHz channel or -79 dBm in the 40 MHz channel.

In another example of the first approach of this example, NR-U can use the CS/CCA mechanism in combination with the energy detection mechanism, so that within a specific channel sensing duration, the observation channel is NR- Considered as in use by the U device; The preamble refers to an NR-U common preamble or, if the NR-U device can also detect a Wi-Fi preamble, refers to both an NR-U common preamble and a Wi-Fi preamble.

In one sub-example, the channel is considered to be in use if the total energy received on the observation channel exceeds the energy detection threshold.

In one sub-example, if the total energy received on the observation channel exceeds the energy detection threshold and any preamble exceeding the PDT is detected, the channel is considered busy.

In one sub-example, the channel is considered busy if the total energy received on the observation channel exceeds the energy detection threshold or any preamble exceeding the PDT is detected.

In one sub-example, the channel is considered to be in use if any preamble exceeding the PDT is detected.

In another sub-example, when the NR-U supports a common preamble, the energy detection threshold (EDT) for the NR-U may be selected to be equal to the Wi-Fi preamble detection threshold for the corresponding bandwidth. For example, the EDT may be -62 dBm in a 20 MHz channel or -59 dBm in a 40 MHz channel.

In another sub-example, in determining whether the observation channel is in use, the above rules can be used by a single shot LBT procedure, where the channel detection duration is the PIFS duration in the unlicensed band (e.g., in the 5 GHz unlicensed band). 25 μs).

In another sub-example, in determining whether the observation channel is in use, the above rules can be used by the CAT-4 LBT procedure, where the channel detection duration for decreasing the backoff counter is that of the observation slot (e.g., 5 GHz unlicensed Band in 9 μs). In another lower example, the NR-U may use one of the rules as a default in determining whether the observation channel is in use, which rule is also configurable through a higher layer parameter.

In another example of the first approach of Example 9, the applicable unlicensed band for enabling the NR-U to support a common preamble is a 5 GHz unlicensed band, and/or a 6 GHz unlicensed band, and/or in FR2. It may include unlicensed bands (eg, 60 GHz band).

Example 10. Designs for common preamble of NR-U

Example 10 provides approaches for common preamble design for NR-U.

In the first approach of Embodiment 10, the NR-U preamble can directly reuse the Wi-Fi preamble design and follow the Wi-Fi 802.11 OFDM timing related parameters.

In one example of the first approach of Example 10, the NR-U preamble may follow the 802.11a training sequence, the subcarrier spacing is 312.5 kHz for the 802.11 system, and the FFT/IFFT size for the 20 MHz channel is 64 And the total number of subcarriers is 52 (48 data carriers and 4 pilot subcarriers). A short OFDM training symbol consists of only 12 subcarriers out of 52 subcarriers, while subcarriers with indices of multiples of 4 have a non-zero amplitude; The long training sequence consists of 53 subcarriers (including zero values in the DC subcarrier). Details of the sequences are provided in IEEE Std 802.11-2016, "Part 11: Wireless LAN Medium Access Control (MAC) and Physical Layer (PHY) Specifications", 2016, and an example of an 802.11a preamble is provided in FIG. 32.

In one sub-example, the NR-U common preamble may consist of only the short training symbol portion of the 802.11a preamble with a duration of 10 x 0.8 μs, which can be detected by neighboring Wi-Fi devices. In another sub-example, the NR-U common preamble may consist of both long training symbols and short training symbols of an 802.11a preamble with a duration of 8+8 μs. In another sub-example, the NR-U common preamble may consist of short training symbols, long training symbols of the 802.11a preamble, and the SIG field of the 802.11a preamble having a duration of 8+8 + 4 μs. In another sub-example, this example can be used for NR-U in the 5 GHz unlicensed band. In another sub-example, this example can be used for NR-U in the 6 GHz unlicensed band.

In another example of the first approach of Example 10, the NR-U preamble is a non-HT short training field (i.e., L-STF), or L-STF and non-HT long training of the 802.11n HT and 802.11ac VHT systems. Can follow both fields (L-LTF). In particular, the L-STF and L-LTF bandwidth may be 20 MHz, 40 MHz, 80 MHz, 160 MHz, or 80 MHz+80 MHz, that is, a collection of two non-contiguous 80 MHz channels). The duration of L-STF is 10 x 0.8 μs = 8 μs, whereas the duration of L-LTF is also 8 μs as in 802.11a. In another sub-example, this example can be used for NR-U in the 5 GHz unlicensed band. In another sub-example, this example can be used for NR-U in the 6 GHz unlicensed band.

In another example of the first approach of embodiment 10, the NR-U preamble may follow the HT-Greenfield short training field (HT-GF-STF) of the 802.11n HT system. In particular, the HT-GF-STF bandwidth may be 20 MHz or 40 MHz as detailed in [6], and the duration of HT-GF-STF is 10 x 0.8 μs = 8 μs. In another sub-example, this example can be used for NR-U in the 5 GHz unlicensed band. In another sub-example, this example can be used for NR-U in the 6 GHz unlicensed band.

In another example of the first approach of embodiment 10, the NR-U preamble may follow the high efficiency (HE) portion of the preamble of the 802.11ax HE system. In another sub-example, this example can be used for NR-U in the 5 GHz unlicensed band. In another sub-example, this example can be used for NR-U in the 6 GHz unlicensed band.

In another example of the first approach of embodiment 10, in order for the NR-U to directly reuse the Wi-Fi preamble sequence, the NR-U device is used for Wi-Fi processing in an existing NR-U RF module or NR-U device. Wi-Fi 802.11 transmitter for generating a Wi-Fi preamble sequence (e.g., an FFT size of 64 in a 20/40 MHz channel and a subcarrier spacing of 312.5 kHz) via any one supporting a separate RF module Need to support block processing.

In addition to the supported preamble sequence, another important design consideration is the time position to transmit such an NR-U common preamble that reuses the Wi-Fi preamble.

34A and 34B illustrate exemplary fixed frame periods with an NR-U preamble according to embodiments of the present disclosure. The embodiments shown in FIGS. 34A and 34B are for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In one example of the first approach of embodiment 10, the NR-U common preamble may be transmitted after the LBT has successfully completed and some additional processing time (τ). The processing time (τ) is the processing time for the NR-U transmitter to switch from the LBT to transmit the NR-U preamble using Wi-Fi timing related parameters; Or consider the time for the NR-U transmitter to switch to transmit using the Wi-Fi RF module (if supported), which may be implementation dependent. T is the NR-U OFDM symbol duration, t (0<=t<=T) is the time instance of LBT completion for the start of the NR-U OFDM symbol containing this time instance, T _pre is the NR-U preamble duration The period, and τ ₂ represents the additional processing time for the NR-U transmitter to switch from the transmission preamble to the transmission NR-U signal/channel (eg, PDCCH/PDSCH).

-In one sub-example, if t + τ + T _pre + τ ₂ <= T, the NR-U preamble may be transmitted within the same NR-U OFDM symbol in which LBT is completed. 34A provides an example of this sub-example.

-In another sub-example, if t + τ + T _pre + τ ₂ > T, the NR-U preamble is transmitted over two NR-U OFDM symbols or the NR-U OFDM symbol followed by the NR-U OFDM symbol for which LBT is completed. It can be transmitted within the U OFDM symbol. If the duration of the NR-U preamble in this approach is either 8 μs or 16 μs, then a higher NR-U subcarrier spacing such as 60 kHz or 30 kHz is more suitable in supporting this sub-example, which is The chance for a gap greater than 25 μs between the end of the NR-U preamble and the start of the next NR-U transmission in the COT can be avoided or reduced. 34B provides an example of this sub-example.

In another sub-example, the earliest NR-U OFDM symbol in the COT at which the NR-U transmitter can start transmitting the NR-U signal/channel (e.g., PDCCH/PDSCH) is the NR-U OFDM with LBT completed. It is the earliest NR-U OFDM symbol that comes after a time instance (t + τ + T _pre + τ _{2) starting from the start of the symbol.} 34B provides an example of this sub-example of.

In the second approach of embodiment 10, the NR-U common preamble can be transmitted over the NR-U resource grid, so that the continuous time OFDM baseband signal for the common preamble is applied to the NR-U receiver, as well as the Wi-Fi receiver. It may have a periodic repeating pattern that can be detected by.

In the first example of the second approach of Example 10, the duration of the repetition pattern for the NR-U common preamble is 0.8 μs of the 802.11 short training symbol, with a difference of less than 0.05 μs sample duration of the Wi-Fi 802.11 system. It can be close to the period. This may be referred to as a short NR-U common preamble. In one sub-example, with this repetition pattern for the NR-U common preamble, the NR-U device will detect the presence of the NR-U common preamble through either auto-correlation-based algorithms or cross-correlation-based algorithms. I can. In another sub-example, with this repetition pattern for the NR-U common preamble, the Wi-Fi device can detect the presence of the NR-U common preamble through at least auto-correlation based algorithms.

In the second example of the second approach of Example 10, in addition to supporting the first example of the second approach of this example, the NR-U common preamble is a difference of less than one or several of the 0.05 μs sample duration of the 802.11 system. In addition, a longer preamble sequence having a periodic repetition pattern close to the 3.2 μs period of the 802.11 long training symbol may be further included. This can be referred to as the long NR-U common preamble.

을 갖는 리소스 그리드 내에서 NR-U 서브캐리어들 상에 0이 아닌 진폭들을 잠재적으로 갖거나 그렇지 않으면 0의 진폭을 가질 수 있도록 하는 정수 파라미터이며; i 는 정수이며,

는 PRB 단위의 리소스 그리드 사이즈이며,

는 PRB 당 서브캐리어 수이고,

는 3GPP TS(38).211 v15.4.0의 섹션 5.3.1, "NR, 물리 채널들 및 변조"에서 정의된다. 구체적으로는, 안테나 포트(p) 상의 NR-U 공통 프리앰블 및 OFDM 심볼(l)에 대한 서브캐리어 간격(μ)의 시간 연속적인 OFDM 기저대역 신호는 다음에 의해 주어지며:In the third example of the second approach of Example 10, the repeating pattern for the NR-U common preamble can be achieved by having a periodicity of 1 / (Δf × δ), where Δf is the subcarrier spacing of NR-U. Is the subcarrier spacing of the preamble sharing δ is the common NR-U preamble sequence indexes

Is an integer parameter that allows to potentially have non-zero amplitudes on NR-U subcarriers within the resource grid having N, or otherwise have zero amplitude; i is an integer,

Is the resource grid size in PRB units,

Is the number of subcarriers per PRB,

Is defined in section 5.3.1, “NR, Physical Channels and Modulation” of 3GPP TS 38.211 v15.4.0. Specifically, the time-continuous OFDM baseband signal of the NR-U common preamble on the antenna port ( p ) and the subcarrier interval (μ) for the OFDM symbol (l) is given by:

,

,

는 안테나 포트(p)에서 서브캐리어(k) 및 OFDM 심볼(l)로 송신되는 NR-U 공통 프리앰블 시퀀스의 복소 심볼이며;

는 T_c 단위의 CP 길이이고,

는 OFDM 심볼(l)의 시작 시간이다. 이 예의 NR-U 공통 프리앰블 시퀀스의 경우,

및

;

인 임의의

에 대해

을 충족시킨다. 그 결과, 공통 NR-U 프리앰블에 대한 시간 연속적인 OFDM 기저대역 신호는 다음에 의해 주어지며:

, 이는

를 충족시키는 주기적 신호이다.here

Is a complex symbol of the NR-U common preamble sequence transmitted in the subcarrier (k ) and the OFDM symbol ( l ) at the antenna port ( p);

Is the CP length in units of _{T c,}

Is the start time of the OFDM symbol ( l). For the NR-U common preamble sequence in this example,

And

;

Phosphorus random

About

Meets. As a result, the time continuous OFDM baseband signal for the common NR-U preamble is given by:

, this is

Is a periodic signal that satisfies.

35 illustrates an exemplary structure of an NR-U common preamble according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in FIG. 35 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

에 대해

인 반면; 나머지 서브캐리어들/RE들은 잠재적으로 0이 아닌 진폭을 가질 수 있다.In this example, the NR-U common preamble is transmitted in an OFDM symbol (l ), where i _m ≤ _{i ≤ i M}

About

While being; The remaining subcarriers/REs can potentially have non-zero amplitude.

= 0 인 임의의

에 대해

를 가정하면

로서 획득되며;

의 다른 값들(예컨대, 6, 12)에 대한 최대 프리앰블 시퀀스 길이는 유사하게 획득될 수 있다.In one sub-example, the short NR-U common preamble (i.e., the first example of the second approach of Example 10) is as defined in this example according to one or more of the options as shown in Table 1. This can be achieved by setting the NR-U subcarrier spacing [Delta]f, and the parameter [delta]. In addition, for each carrier bandwidth and subcarrier interval, the maximum length of the NR-U common preamble sequence corresponding to the maximum number of subcarriers that can have non-zero amplitudes is illustrated in Table 2. Table 2 shows i _m ≤ _{i ≤ i M}

Random with = 0

About

Assuming

Obtained as;

The maximum preamble sequence length for other values of (e.g., 6, 12) can be similarly obtained.

Table 1

Table 2

인 임의의

에 대해

를 가정하면

로서 획득되며;

의 다른 값들(예컨대, 6, 12)에 대한 최대 프리앰블 시퀀스 길이는 유사하게 획득될 수 있다. 짧은 NR-U 공통 프리앰블에 비해, 긴 NR-U 공통 프리앰블에 대한 시퀀스 길이는 시간 도메인에서의 더 긴 주기성으로 인해 훨씬 더 길 수 있다.In another sub-example, the long NR-U common preamble (i.e., the second example of the second approach of Example 10) is the NR as defined in this example according to one or more of the options as shown in Table 3. -U can be achieved by setting the subcarrier spacing Δf, and the parameter δ. As can be observed from Table 3, (Δf,δ)=(15 kHz,21) is the difference between the periodicity for the NR-U preamble and the 3.2 μs periodicity of the long training symbol for 802.11 is 1 802.11 OFDM sample. While less than the period, the other configurations from Table 3 satisfy that they have a greater difference than the 1 802.11 OFDM sample period. In addition, for each carrier bandwidth and subcarrier interval, the maximum length of the NR-U common preamble sequence corresponding to the maximum number of subcarriers having non-zero amplitudes is illustrated in Table 4. Table 4 shows i _m ≤ _{i ≤ i M}

Phosphorus random

About

Assuming

Obtained as;

The maximum preamble sequence length for other values of (e.g., 6, 12) can be similarly obtained. Compared to the short NR-U common preamble, the sequence length for the long NR-U common preamble can be much longer due to the longer periodicity in the time domain.

Table 3

Table 4

개 PRB들이 전체 리소스 그리드; 또는 NR-U 캐리어를 위한

개 PRB들의 리소스 그리드 서브세트 중 어느 하나에 매핑될 수 있다. 예를 들면, NR-U 공통 프리앰블을 위한 주파수 리소스는 DL 또는 UL 송신을 위한 구성된 BWP(들)일 수 있는 한편, 나머지 RE들은 NR-U 공통 프리앰블이 공통 리소스 그리드 내의 안테나 포트(p)에서 서브캐리어(k) 및 OFDM 심볼(l)에 매핑되지 않으면 프리앰블을 위한 OFDM 신호에 생성함에 있어서 0의 진폭, 즉,

을 가질 수 있다. 덧붙여서, NR-U 공통 프리앰블이 매핑되는 주파수 리소스들 중에서, NR-U 공통 프리앰블을 송신하는데 이용될 수 있는 실제 주파수 리소스가 LBT의 결과에 더 의존적일 것이다.In another sub-example, depending on the frequency resources for which the NR-U common preamble is intended to be transmitted if the LBT is successful, the NR-U common preamble is used for the NR-U carrier in the frequency domain.

The total resource grid of four PRBs; Or for NR-U carriers

It can be mapped to any one of the resource grid subsets of four PRBs. For example, the frequency resource for the NR-U common preamble may be configured BWP(s) for DL or UL transmission, while the remaining REs have the NR-U common preamble sub in the antenna port (p ) in the common resource grid. If not mapped to the carrier ( k ) and the OFDM symbol ( l ), the amplitude of 0 in generating the OFDM signal for the preamble, that is,

Can have. In addition, among the frequency resources to which the NR-U common preamble is mapped, the actual frequency resource that can be used to transmit the NR-U common preamble will be more dependent on the result of the LBT.

In addition to the design of the NR-U common preamble sequence pattern, another important consideration is the timing position for transmitting the preamble.

36A, 36B, 36C, and 36D illustrate exemplary embodiments of transmitting an NR-U common preamble in the next NR-U OFDM symbol that comes after the LBT process as soon as possible according to embodiments of the present disclosure. The embodiments shown in FIGS. 36A, 36B, 36C, and 36D are for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In one example of the second approach of embodiment 10, the time domain resource to transmit the NR-U common preamble sequence may be NR-U OFDM symbol(s) that come after completion of a successful LBT process.

In one sub-example, if the LBT is completed in the middle of the NR-U OFDM symbol, the NR-U common preamble will be transmitted to the next NR-U OFDM following the LBT as early as possible. In one sub-example, if the NR-U common preamble contains only a short NR-U preamble sequence, it can be transmitted in the first NR-U OFDM symbol that comes after completion of a successful LBT process. An example of this sub-example is provided by FIG. 36A.

In another sub-example, if the NR-U common preamble contains both a short NR-U preamble sequence and a long NR-U preamble sequence, the NR-U preamble is in the first two NR-U symbols that come after completion of the successful LBT process. Can be sent. An example of this sub-example is provided by FIG. 36B.

In another sub-example, the NR-U common preamble may contain only a short NR-U preamble sequence, which is transmitted in an NR-U OFDM symbol that comes after completion of a successful LBT process while another wake-up signal (WUS) is NR-U. It may be transmitted after one or several OFDM symbols of the common preamble, which may carry information such as NR-U cell-ID, UE-group ID, COT duration information, and the like. An example of this sub-example is provided in FIG. 36C. In one case, WUS may follow the NR-U frame structure and time-frequency domain resource allocation. In another case, WUS may be the SIG field of 802.11a.

In another sub-example, the NR-U common preamble may include a short NR-U preamble sequence and a long NR-U preamble sequence, which are transmitted in the first two NR-U OFDM symbols that come after completion of a successful LBT process. Meanwhile, another wake-up signal (WUS) may be transmitted after one or several OFDM symbols of the NR-U common preamble, which may carry information such as NR-U cell-ID, UE-group ID, COT duration information, etc. Can; The bandwidth of WUS may be the same as or different from the bandwidth of the preamble. An example of this sub-example is provided by FIG. 36D. In one case, WUS may follow the NR-U frame structure and time-frequency domain resource allocation. In another case, WUS may be the SIG field of 802.11a.

In another sub-example, the NR-U common preamble may comprise a subset of all samples of a short NR-U preamble sequence in the time domain, and/or a subset of all samples of a long NR-U preamble sequence in the time domain. In this case, the resulting subset of samples of the short/long NR-U preamble sequence has the same duration (ie, 8 μs) as the short/long training symbols of 802.11a.

In another sub-example, when a WUS carrying information about the COT duration or end time instance of the COT is transmitted after the NR-U common preamble, it can detect the NR-U common preamble and decode the WUS of the NR-U. The unlicensed device can determine whether the channel will be occupied for the duration or until the end position indicated by WUS. For example, this may facilitate virtual carrier detection for NR-U and/or Wi-Fi.

In another example of the second approach of embodiment 10, the NR-U common preamble sequence may carry radio access technology (RAT) information, so that when the NR-U UE detects the presence of the NR-U common preamble, the preamble is Wi It can be further determined that it is derived from NR-U and not from -Fi.

This can be achieved by using cross-correlation based algorithms or by observing the frequency domain structure of the preamble by the UE. In addition, upon detecting the preamble sequence, the Wi-Fi device can also discriminate whether the if sequence is from NR-U or from Wi-Fi using similar approaches, so that the Wi-Fi device can use fine synchronization/channel estimation or You can stop detecting the SIGNAL field, which is beneficial for power savings.

In another example of the second approach of embodiment 10, the NR-U common preamble sequence can carry NR-U operator information, so that the NR-U receiver identifies the NR-U operator to which the detected NR-U common preamble belongs. can do.

In addition to the NR-U common preamble sequence detailed in the first two approaches of Example 10, another design factor is the frequency position for the NR-U transmitter to transmit the NR-U common preamble sequence after a successful LBT, which is the LBT It will depend on the frequency unit(s) being performed and the corresponding LBT result.

In the third approach of embodiment 10, the NR-U transmitter may transmit the NR-U common preamble sequence over all frequency units that have passed the LBT.

In one example of the third approach of embodiment 10, LBTs can be performed over the entire component carrier bandwidth, and the NR-U common preamble can be transmitted over the entire component carrier once the LBT is passed. In one sub-example, the component carrier bandwidth may be 20/40/60/80/100 MHz. In another sub-example, in the case of the first approach of Embodiment 10 in which the NR-U preamble reuses the Wi-Fi preamble, the Wi-Fi is 20 MHz (802.11a/n/ac), 40 MHz (802.11n/ac). , 80 MHz (802.11ac), 80 + 80 MHz (802.11ac), and 160 MHz (802.11ac), so that the NR-U is supported by Wi-Fi when the first approach of Embodiment 10 is used. The selected carrier bandwidth may be supported as one of the options, and a Wi-Fi preamble corresponding to the selected carrier bandwidth may be transmitted by the NR-U transmitter.

In another example of the third approach of embodiment 10, the frequency unit for LBT may be a bandwidth portion (BWP). In one sub-example, the NR-U transmitter may perform LBT in parallel across at least one BWP, and the NR-U common preamble sequence may be transmitted in BWP(s) that have successfully passed the LBT. In one sub-example, each BWP may be an integer multiple of 20 MHz. In another sub-example, for the first approach of Embodiment 10 in which the NR-U preamble reuses the Wi-Fi preamble, the NR-U is a Wi-Fi supported bandwidth, that is, 20 MHz (802.11a/n/ac). , The BWP bandwidth can be selected to be one of 40 MHz (802.11n/ac), 80 MHz (802.11ac), and 160 MHz (802.11ac); The Wi-Fi preamble corresponding to the selected BWP bandwidth can be transmitted by the NR-U transmitter once the LBT passes over this BWP.

In another example of the third approach of embodiment 10, the frequency unit for the LBT may be a fixed bandwidth subband, the NR-U transmitter may perform LBTs in parallel across multiple subbands, and the NR- The U common preamble sequence may be transmitted in the subband(s) that have successfully passed the LBT. In one sub-example, each subband may be 20 MHz. In another sub-example, for the first approach of Embodiment 10 in which the NR-U preamble reuses the Wi-Fi preamble, the NR-U is a Wi-Fi supported bandwidth, that is, 20 MHz (802.11a/n/ac). , The subband bandwidth can be selected to be one of 40 MHz (802.11n/ac), 80 MHz (802.11ac), and 160 MHz (802.11ac); The Wi-Fi preamble corresponding to the selected subband bandwidth may be transmitted by the NR-U transmitter once the LBT is passed on this subband; Alternatively, in the case of neighboring consecutive subbands passing through the LBT and the combined bandwidth is one of the supported Wi-Fi bandwidths, a Wi-Fi preamble corresponding to the bandwidth of the combined subbands may be transmitted by the NR-U transmitter. have.

에 대해

를 의미한다.In another example of the third approach of Example 10 corresponding to the second approach of Example 10, this is i _m ≤ i ≤ i _M and the subcarrier ( k ) belongs to any frequency unit that has passed the LBT.

About

Means.

In another example of the third approach of embodiment 10, through the frequency unit(s) at which the NR-U preamble is detected, the NR-U receiver can derive the frequency position(s) through which the NR-U transmitter has passed the LBT. have.

37A and 37B show exemplary FBE channel access schemes with configurable BWPs for LBT processes according to embodiments of the present disclosure. The embodiments shown in FIGS. 37A and 37B are for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In another sub-example, this example includes configured BWPs (e.g., successful detection of an NR-U preamble is treated as an indicator of the availability of the corresponding configured BWP), for monitoring the PDCCH inside the current COT, or an adjunct within the configured BWPs. Can be applied by the UE to down-select from stations (eg, successful detection of an NR-U preamble is treated as an indicator of availability of the corresponding subband within the configured BWP); So the UE monitors the PDCCH from the BWP(s), or subband(s) in the configured BWPs that have passed the LBT. As a result, PDCCH monitoring opportunities for the UE can potentially be reduced after detecting the NR-U common preamble.

-In one case of the sub-example, if the UE is configured with 4 DL BWPs indexed with BWP 0 to BWP 3, BWP 0 is an active DL BWP previously configured for the UE; It is assumed that BWP 0 and BWP 1 fail the LBT while BWP 2 and BWP 3 pass the LBT. If the NR-U common preamble is not supported, the UE may need to monitor the PDCCH only on the previously configured active BWP that failed the LBT; Or, in order to enable switching to a new active DL BWP that has passed the LBT in the current COT, the UE also needs to monitor the PDCCH on BWP 1, BWP 2 and BWP 3 in the current COT; This potentially leads to high UE power consumption. An example of this scenario is provided in FIG. 37A. On the other hand, if the NR-U common preamble is supported and the NR-U common preamble is detected only on BWP 2 and BWP 3, not BWP 0 and BWP 1, the UE PDCCH only on BWP 2 and BWP 3 for BWP switching. You can choose downward to monitor it. An example of this scenario is provided in FIG. 37B.

In the fourth approach of embodiment 10, the NR-U transmitter may transmit the NR-U common preamble sequence over a subset (S) of frequency units that have passed the LBT.

In one example of the fourth approach of embodiment 10, LBTs can be performed over the entire component carrier bandwidth, and the NR-U common preamble can be transmitted over the subband of the component carrier once the LBT is passed. In one sub-example, the subband may be 20 or 40 MHz. In another sub-example, for the first approach of Embodiment 10 in which the NR-U preamble reuses the Wi-Fi preamble, the NR-U is a Wi-Fi supported bandwidth, that is, 20 MHz (802.11a/n/ac). , You can select this subband bandwidth to be one of 40 MHz (802.11n/ac), 80 MHz (802.11ac), or 160 MHz (802.11ac); The Wi-Fi preamble corresponding to the selected BWP bandwidth may be transmitted by the NR-U transmitter.

In another example of the fourth approach of embodiment 10, the frequency unit for the LBT may be a bandwidth portion (BWP), the NR-U transmitter may perform LBT in parallel across multiple BWPs, and the NR-U The common preamble sequence may be transmitted in a subset of BWP(s) that have successfully passed the LBT.

-In one sub-example, this example can be applied by the gNB to indicate to the UE and, if necessary, the active DL BWP to BWP switching, through selecting one BWP (if any) from among the BWPs that have passed the LBT. have.

-In one case of this sub-example, if the gNB configures 4 BWPs for the UE and the previously configured active DL BWP passes the LBT, the gNB can only transmit the NR-U common preamble sequence on the active DL BWP, and In addition, the UE detecting the NR-U common preamble can continue to monitor this active DL BWP for the PDCCH/PDSCH inside the current COT.

-In another instance of this sub-example, if the gNB configures 4 BWPs for the UE and the previously configured active DL BWP fails LBT, the gNB will NR-U common preamble on one of the remaining DL BWPs that have passed the LBT. While being able to transmit the sequence, the UE switches to this DL BWP to receive the PDCCH/PDSCH when it detects the NR-U common preamble on this BWP inside the current COT.

In another sub-example, for the first approach of Embodiment 10 in which the NR-U preamble reuses the Wi-Fi preamble, the NR-U is a Wi-Fi supported bandwidth, that is, 20 MHz (802.11a/n/ac). , Each BWP bandwidth can be selected to be one of 40 MHz (802.11n/ac), 80 MHz (802.11ac), and 160 MHz (802.11ac); The Wi-Fi preamble corresponding to the selected BWP bandwidth may be transmitted by the NR-U transmitter.

38 illustrates an exemplary FBE channel access scheme for performing LBTs in parallel through multiple subbands according to embodiments of the present disclosure. The embodiment shown in Fig. 38 is for illustration only. Other embodiments may be used without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

In another example of the fourth approach of embodiment 10, the frequency unit for the LBT process may be a fixed bandwidth subband, the NR-U transmitter may perform LBTs in parallel across multiple subbands, and the NR The -U common preamble sequence may be transmitted in a subset of subband(s) that have successfully passed the LBT.

-In one sub-example, through selecting the subband(s) that have passed through the LBT to transmit the NR-U preamble sequence, the gNB is the active DL BWP to be monitored to receive the PDCCH/PDSCH as well as the active DL BWP. The subband(s) within may be indicated to the UE.

-For example, if the gNB configures 4 BWPs for the UE, and a specific subband(s) in the previously configured active DL BWP passes the LBT, the gNB is the subband in the active DL BWP that has passed the LBT ( S), while being able to transmit the NR-U common preamble sequence, the UE can only receive the PDCCH/PDSCH from these subband(s) in the active DL BWP inside the current COT.

-An example of this sub-example is provided in Fig. 38, in which the active BWP consists of two subbands: subband 0 that passed the LBT and subband 1 that failed the LBT; Then the gNB transmits the NR-U common preamble on subband 0 and transmits only on subband 0 for the remainder of the current COT.

In another sub-example, for the first approach of Embodiment 10 in which the NR-U preamble reuses the Wi-Fi preamble, the NR-U is a Wi-Fi supported bandwidth, that is, 20 MHz (802.11a/n/ac). , Each subband bandwidth can be selected to be one of 40 MHz (802.11n/ac), 80 MHz (802.11ac), and 160 MHz (802.11ac); The Wi-Fi preamble corresponding to the selected subband bandwidth may be transmitted by the NR-U transmitter; Alternatively, in the case of neighboring consecutive subbands passing through the LBT and the combined bandwidth is one of the supported Wi-Fi bandwidths, a Wi-Fi preamble corresponding to the bandwidth of the combined subbands may be transmitted by the NR-U transmitter. have.

에 대해

를 의미한다.Exemplary case of Example 10 the fourth approach, the second approach of Example 10 In another example of which, i _m i ≤ _M ≤i a subcarrier (k) the selected subset in a frequency units through the LBT process ( Random belonging to S)

About

Means.

Another design factor is additional information that can be derived or conveyed from the NR-U common preamble sequence.

In the fifth approach of embodiment 10, the NR-U receiver can detect the start of the channel occupancy time by detecting the presence of the NR-U common preamble sequence.

In one example, for the NR-U downlink, the UE may detect the start of the COT upon detecting the NR-U common preamble sequence; Thereafter, the UE can start monitoring the PDCCH until the corresponding PDCCH can be received, or until the end of the COT is reached, the UE as the longest COT allowed by the license-exempt regulation, and the COT duration (e.g., 5 GHz Band) can be determined.

39 shows a flow diagram of a method 3900 of operating a UE in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure. The embodiment of method 3900 illustrated in FIG. 39 is for illustration only. 39 does not limit the scope of the present disclosure to any particular implementation. The method 3900 may be performed by a UE, such as UE 116 or any other UEs discussed in this disclosure.

The method 3900 begins with the UE 116 identifying a channel access mechanism in step 3901 to gain access to an operating channel in the unlicensed band. For example, in step 3901, the identified channel access mechanism may include: a load-based equipment (LBE) mode consisting of a configurable sensing duration for the LBT to obtain an adaptable contention window size; And a frame-based equipment (FBE) mode in which an LBT having a fixed detection duration is performed before each FFP among periodic fixed frame periods (FFPs), and the UE transmits or receives a transmission within the COT after the LBT. Is one of them.

In another example, the FBE mode includes: the length of the FFP, configurable from a set of predefined values in units of 1 millisecond or one slot; The length of the COT, configurable as a fixed maximum value, a percentage of the FFP, or one of the predefined values in one of the predefined values set; Or 1 microsecond, 1 millisecond, one symbol, or at least one of the starting positions of the FFP, configurable by a time granularity of 1/(480 kilohertz (kHz) * 4096).

In another example, when the identified channel access mechanism is configured in FBE mode and the carrier channel bandwidth is greater than the operating channel bandwidth of the unlicensed band, the UE 116 may also have the maximum to be used continuously by the UE for transmission or reception. Consisting of the number of FFPs, the UE is configured to use different operating channel subsets of the unlicensed band within the carrier channel bandwidth in a time division multiplexed pattern.

The UE 116 performs a listen-before-talk (LBT) operation through the operation channel according to the channel access mechanism identified in step 3902, and after the LBT operation is successful, the channel occupancy time (COT) for transmission and reception on the operation channel To obtain.

For example, in step 3902, when the identified channel access mechanism is configured in the FBE mode, the UE 116 is configured with each of the plurality of spatial reception (RX) parameters aligned with the intended spatial transmission (TX) parameters. Perform LBT at the same time through the spatial RX parameter, and use the spatial parameters passed through the LBT for transmission during the COT; Alternatively, the UE 116 performs LBT through each of the plurality of spatial RX parameters sequentially over each of the time units; Alternatively, the UE 116, when the omni LBT passes, causes the transceiver to transmit the transmission, or if the omni LBT does not pass, performs a directional LBT and causes the transceiver to set a spatial TX parameter that has passed the directional LBT. By allowing the transmission to be transmitted through, omni-directional LBT is performed.

The UE 116 then identifies, in step 3903, one or more switching points within the COT that the UE will switch from uplink (UL) transmission to downlink (DL) reception or from DL reception to UL transmission.

For example, in step 3903, if the UE 116 further switches from DL reception to UL transmission, the last DL reception, or when switching from UL transmission to DL reception, each switching point occurs within the gap after the last UL transmission. Decide whether or not. In response to each switching point occurring within the gap, the UE 116 performs switching between DL reception and UL transmission without performing LBT, and in response to each switching point occurring outside the gap, the UE 116 performs LBT termination prior to each switching point, or extends the CP of the expected UL transmission so that the expected UL transmission occurs within a gap after the end of the last UL transmission. In one case, the gap is a short inter-frame interval (SIFS) duration.

Thereafter, the UE 116 switches from UL transmission to DL reception or from DL reception to UL transmission based on the one or more switching points identified in step 3904. For example, in step 3904, the maximum number of switching between UL transmission and DL reception in the COT is a predefined fixed number, a scalable number that does not decrease for the COT, the LBT that does not decrease as the channel access priority decreases. It is configured to be either an expandable number for the priority class, or an expandable number that does not decrease for a fixed frame period. For another example, the UE 116 transmits a preamble signal. In the frequency domain, the preamble sequence is applied to subcarriers in which subcarrier indexes to which two adjacent preamble sequence elements are mapped are different by the same fixed number (N ). Mapped; And in the time domain, the preamble sequence is transmitted in a periodic repetition pattern having a periodicity of 1/(N * subcarrier interval of the preamble signal).

BS 102 identifies a channel access mechanism to gain access to an operating channel of the unlicensed band; Perform an LBT operation over the working channel according to the identified channel access mechanism, and obtain a COT for transmission and reception on the working channel after the LBT operation is successful; Within the COT, the BS identifies one or more switching points for switching from DL transmission to UL reception or from UL reception to DL transmission; And BS 102 may perform the reverse process in that it switches from DL transmission to UL reception or from UL reception to DL transmission based on the identified one or more switching points.

40 illustrates a user equipment (UE) according to embodiments of the present disclosure.

The UEs described above may correspond to the UE 4000. For example, the UE 116 illustrated in FIG. 3A may correspond to the UE 4000.

Referring to FIG. 40, the UE 4000 may include a processor 4010, a transceiver 4020, and a memory 4030. However, not all of the illustrated components are essential. The UE 4000 may be implemented with more or fewer components than those illustrated in FIG. 40. Additionally, the processor 4010, the transceiver 4020, and the memory 4030 may be implemented as a single chip according to another embodiment.

The above-described components will now be described in detail.

Processor 4010 may include one or more processors or other processing devices that control the proposed function, process, and/or method. The operation of the UE 4000 may be implemented by the processor 4010.

The processor 4010 may detect the PDCCH on the configured control resource set. The processor 4010 determines a method of dividing CBs according to the PDCCH and a method of rate matching the PDSCH. The processor 4010 may control the transceiver 4020 to receive the PDSCH according to the PDCCH. The processor 4010 may generate HARQ-ACK information according to the PDSCH. The processor 4010 may control the transceiver 4020 to transmit HARQ-ACK information.

The transceiver 4020 may include an RF transmitter for up-converting and amplifying a transmitted signal, and an RF receiver for down-converting a frequency of a received signal. However, according to another embodiment, the transceiver 4020 may be implemented with more or fewer components than those shown as components.

The transceiver 4020 may be coupled to the processor 4010 and/or may transmit and/or receive signals. The signals may contain control information and data. Also, the transceiver 4020 may receive a signal through a wireless channel and output the signal to the processor 4010. The transceiver 4020 may transmit a signal output from the processor 4010 through a wireless channel.

The memory 4030 may store control information or data included in a signal acquired by the UE 4000. The memory 4030 is coupled to the processor 4010 and may store at least one command or protocol or parameter for the proposed function, process, and/or method. The memory 4030 may include read-only memory (ROM) and/or random access memory (RAM) and/or hard disk and/or CD-ROM and/or DVD and/or other storage devices.

41 illustrates a gNB according to embodiments of the present disclosure.

The gNBs, eNBs or BSs described above may correspond to the gNB 4100. For example, the gNB 102 illustrated in FIG. 2 may correspond to the gNB 4100.

Referring to FIG. 41, the gNB 4100 may include a processor 4110, a transceiver 4120, and a memory 4130. However, not all of the illustrated components are essential. The gNB 4100 may be implemented with more or fewer components than those illustrated in FIG. 41. Additionally, the processor 4110, the transceiver 4120, and the memory 4130 may be implemented as a single chip according to another embodiment.

The above-described components will now be described in detail.

Processor 4110 may include one or more processors or other processing devices that control the proposed function, process, and/or method. The operation of the gNB 4100 may be implemented by the processor 4110.

The processor 4110 may detect the PUCCH on the configured control resource set. The processor 4110 determines a method for dividing CBs according to PUCCH and a method for rate matching PUSCH. The processor 4110 may control the transceiver 4120 to receive the PUSCH according to the PUCCH. The processor 4110 may generate HARQ-ACK information according to the PUSCH. The processor 4110 may control the transceiver 4120 to transmit HARQ-ACK information.

The transceiver 4120 may include an RF transmitter for up-converting and amplifying a transmitted signal, and an RF receiver for down-converting a frequency of a received signal. However, according to another embodiment, the transceiver 4120 may be implemented by more or fewer components than those shown as components.

The transceiver 4120 may be connected to the processor 4110 and/or transmit and/or receive signals. The signals may contain control information and data. Also, the transceiver 4120 may receive a signal through a wireless channel and may output the signal to the processor 4110. The transceiver 4120 may transmit a signal output from the processor 4110 through a wireless channel.

The memory 4130 may store control information or data included in a signal obtained by the gNB 4100. The memory 4130 is coupled to the processor 4110 and may store at least one command or protocol or parameter for the proposed function, process, and/or method. The memory 4130 may include read-only memory (ROM) and/or random access memory (RAM) and/or hard disk and/or CD-ROM and/or DVD and/or other storage devices.

In order to assist the JPO and any reader with respect to any patent issued in this application in interpreting the appended claims, Applicants should not explicitly use the terms "means to" or "step to" in any particular claim Unless the appended claims or claim elements are covered by 35 USC It is not intended to call §(112)(f). "Mechanism", "Module", "Device", "Unit", "Component", "Element", "Member", "Device", "Machine", "System", "Processor", or "Controller" in the claims The use of any other term including, but not limited to, is understood by the applicant to refer to structures known to those of ordinary skill in the art and is understood by 35 USC. It is not intended to call § 112(f).

Although the present disclosure has been described with an exemplary embodiment, various changes and modifications may be suggested to those skilled in the art. This disclosure is intended to cover such changes and modifications that fall within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims (20)

In a terminal supporting shared spectrum channel access in a wireless communication system,
At least one transceiver configured to receive from the base station a higher layer parameter carried by the downlink channel sensed by the base station; And
At least one processor operably connected to the at least one transceiver; Including,
The at least one processor,
Based on the upper layer parameter, identify a fixed frame period,
During at least one observation slot included in an idle period within the fixed frame period, sensing for a downlink channel is performed,
When the downlink channel is determined to be idle in the at least one observation slot, receiving downlink signals or downlink channels from the base station at a channel occupancy time. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor,
Identifying the channel occupancy time within the fixed frame period from the fixed frame period,
The value of the fixed frame period corresponds to a value within 1 ms to 10 ms,
The channel occupancy time corresponds to a value equal to or less than 95% of the fixed frame period. The method of claim 1,
The minimum value of the fixed frame period is 100us,
The length of at least one observation slot included in the idle period within the fixed frame period is 9us, the terminal. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor,
When the interval between transmission of other downlink signals or other downlink channels and the previous transmission is greater than 16us, it is determined whether at least one observation slot is in an idle state,
The terminal, configured to receive the other downlink signals or the other downlink channels within the channel occupancy time, from the base station when the at least one observation slot is in an idle state. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor,
A terminal that does not receive, from the base station, the downlink signals, or the downlink channels, between the starting instance of the idle period and the ending instance of the at least one observation slot. In a base station supporting shared spectrum channel access in a wireless communication system,
At least one transceiver configured to transmit a higher layer parameter including a fixed frame period to the terminal; And
At least one processor operably connected to the at least one transceiver; Including,
The at least one processor,
During at least one observation slot included in an idle period within the fixed frame period, sensing for a downlink channel is performed,
When the downlink channel is determined to be idle in the at least one observation slot, transmitting downlink signals or downlink channels to the terminal at a channel occupancy time. The method of claim 6, wherein the at least one processor,
Identifying the channel occupancy time within the fixed frame period from the fixed frame period,
The value of the fixed frame period corresponds to a value within 1 ms to 10 ms,
The channel occupancy time corresponds to a value equal to or less than 95% of the fixed frame period. The method of claim 6,
The minimum value of the fixed frame period is 100us,
The length of at least one observation slot included in the idle period within the fixed frame period is 9us, the base station. The method of claim 6, wherein the at least one processor,
When the interval between transmission of other downlink signals or other downlink channels and the previous transmission is greater than 16us, it is determined whether at least one observation slot is in an idle state,
When the at least one observation slot is in an idle state, the base station is configured to transmit the other downlink signals or the other downlink channels to the terminal within the channel occupancy time. The method of claim 6, wherein the at least one processor,
The base station, which does not transmit the downlink signals, or the downlink channels, to the terminal between the starting instance of the idle period and the ending instance of the at least one observation slot. In a method for a terminal to perform shared spectrum channel access in a wireless communication system,
Receiving, from the base station, higher layer parameters carried by the downlink channel sensed by the base station;
Identifying a fixed frame period based on the upper layer parameter;
Sensing a downlink channel during at least one observation slot included in an idle period within the fixed frame period; And
Receiving downlink signals or downlink channels from the base station at a channel occupancy time when the downlink channel is determined to be idle in the at least one observation slot. The method of claim 11,
Identifying the channel occupancy time within the fixed frame period from the fixed frame period; Including more,
The value of the fixed frame period corresponds to a value within 1 ms to 10 ms,
Wherein the channel occupancy time corresponds to a value equal to or less than 95% of the fixed frame period. The method of claim 11,
The minimum value of the fixed frame period is 100us,
The length of at least one observation slot included in the idle period within the fixed frame period is 9us. The method of claim 11,
Determining whether at least one observation slot is in an idle state when the interval between transmission of other downlink signals or other downlink channels and the previous transmission is greater than 16us; And
When the at least one observation slot is in an idle state, receiving, from the base station, the other downlink signals or the other downlink channels within the channel occupancy time. The method of claim 11,
Not receiving, from the base station, the downlink signals, or the downlink channels, between the starting instance of the idle period and the ending instance of the at least one observation slot. In a method for a base station to perform shared spectrum channel access in a wireless communication system,
Transmitting an upper layer parameter including a fixed frame period to the terminal;
Sensing a downlink channel during at least one observation slot included in an idle period within the fixed frame period; And
When the downlink channel is determined to be idle in the at least one observation slot, transmitting downlink signals or downlink channels to the terminal at a channel occupancy time. The method of claim 16,
Identifying the channel occupancy time within the fixed frame period from the fixed frame period;
The value of the fixed frame period corresponds to a value within 1 ms to 10 ms,
Wherein the channel occupancy time corresponds to a value that is 95% or less of the fixed frame period. The method of claim 16,
The minimum value of the fixed frame period is 100us,
The length of at least one observation slot included in the idle period within the fixed frame period is 9us. The method of claim 16,
Determining whether at least one observation slot is in an idle state when the interval between transmission of other downlink signals or other downlink channels and the previous transmission is greater than 16us; And
When the at least one observation slot is in an idle state, transmitting the other downlink signals or the other downlink channels to the terminal within the channel occupancy time. The method of claim 16,
Not transmitting, to the terminal, the downlink signals, or the downlink channels, between the starting instance of the idle period and the ending instance of the at least one observation slot.

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