WO2020010493A1

WO2020010493A1 - Harq solutions to support multiple active bandwidth parts

Info

Publication number: WO2020010493A1
Application number: PCT/CN2018/095028
Authority: WO
Inventors: Tao Yang; Karol Schober; Xiagang XU; Zhilan XIONG
Original assignee: Nokia Shanghai Bell Co., Ltd.; Nokia Solutions And Networks Oy; Nokia Technologies Oy
Priority date: 2018-07-09
Filing date: 2018-07-09
Publication date: 2020-01-16
Also published as: CN112369089B; CN112369089A

Abstract

In accordance with example embodiments of the invention there is at least a method and apparatus to perform receiving, by a user equipment, signaling associated with at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process for the user equipment, the signaling comprising at least one set of process indicator bits; and applying, by the user equipment, the signaling comprising the at least one set of process indicator bits to identify at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and at least one bandwidth part origin where the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled for data communication by the user equipment. Further, there is determining, by a network node of a communication network, signaling associated with at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process for user equipment of the communication network, the signaling comprising at least one set of process indicator bits; and sending the signaling comprising the at least one set of process indicator bits towards the user equipment for use to identify at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and at least one bandwidth part origin where the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled for data communication by the user equipment.

Description

HARQ SOLUTIONS TO SUPPORT MULTIPLE ACTIVE BANDWIDTH PARTS

TECHNICAL FIELD:

The teachings in accordance with the exemplary embodiments of this invention relate generally to a hybrid automatic repeat request signaling design to improve hybrid automatic repeat request signalling operations and, more specifically, relate to a hybrid automatic repeat request signaling design to reduce L1 signalling overhead while assuring sufficient re-transmission flexibility between active bandwidth parts and possible reuse of UL/DL scheduling downlink control information format without a new downlink control information format definition.

BACKGROUND:

This section is intended to provide a background or context to the invention that is recited in the claims. The description herein may include concepts that could be pursued, but are not necessarily ones that have been previously conceived or pursued. Therefore, unless otherwise indicated herein, what is described in this section is not prior art to the description and claims in this application and is not admitted to be prior art by inclusion in this section.

Certain abbreviations that may be found in the description and/or in the Figures are herewith defined as follows:

ARQ automatic repeat request

BWP bandwidth part

BWPI BWP index

CRC cyclic redundancy check

DCI downlink control information

DL downlink

DL-SCH downlink shared channel

ED error detection

FEC forward error correction

gNB next generation node B

HARQ hybrid automatic repeat request

ID identification

IE information element

MS mobile station (e.g., UE)

NB-IoT narrowband Internet of things

NDI new data indicator

PDSCH physical downlink shared channel

PUSCH physical uplink shared channel

PxSCH physical DL/UL shared channel

RA resource allocation

RAR random access response

RE-TX re-transmission

RRH remote radio head

TB transport block

TTI transmission time interval

UE user-equipment

UL uplink

UL-SCH uplink shared channel

Hybrid automatic repeat request (hybrid ARQ or HARQ) is a combination of high-rate forward error-correcting coding and ARQ error-control. In standard ARQ, redundant bits are added to data to be transmitted using an error-detecting (ED) code such as a cyclic redundancy check (CRC) . Receivers detecting a corrupted message will request a new message from the sender. In Hybrid ARQ, the original data is encoded with a forward error correction (FEC) code, and the parity bits are either immediately sent along with the message or only transmitted upon request when a receiver detects an erroneous message. As a result, hybrid ARQ performs better than ordinary ARQ in poor signal conditions, but in its currently introduced form and even with good signal conditions the HARQ process can still increase signaling overhead and result in lower throughput.

Example embodiments of the invention work to provide improved configurations to at least reduce HARQ signaling overhead and expand available usage of HARQ operations.

SUMMARY:

In an example aspect of the invention, there is an apparatus, such as a user equipment side apparatus, comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory including computer program code, where the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured, with the at least one processor, to cause the apparatus to at least: receive, by a user equipment, signaling associated with at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process for the user equipment, the signaling comprising at least one set of process indicator bits; and apply, by the user equipment, the signaling comprising the at least one set of process indicator bits to identify at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and at least one bandwidth part origin where the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled for data communication by the user equipment.

A further example aspect is an apparatus comprising the apparatus of the previous paragraph, wherein the at least one set of process indicator bits comprises a set of new data indicator bits associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process, wherein the identifying comprises identifying, based on at least the set of new data indicator bits undergoing a value change from a last received set of new data indicator bits, that the at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is a corresponding bandwidth part and data location associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and that new data is communicated on the corresponding bandwidth part, wherein the signaling comprises downlink control information associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process, wherein the downlink control information comprises bandwidth part identification bits identifying at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and identifying a bandwidth part where a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled, and wherein each active bandwidth part is associated with different set of hybrid automatic repeat request processes, wherein the identifying comprises identifying, based on at least the set of new data indicator bits not changing since a last received set of new data indicator bits, that the bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and a data location associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is indicated in downlink control information communicated to the user equipment, wherein the downlink control information comprises bandwidth part identification bits identifying the bandwidth part origin, and wherein a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled on a bandwidth part in which the downlink control information is received, wherein the downlink control information comprises bandwidth part identification bits identifying a bandwidth part where a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled, and the at least one bandwidth part origin of the identified at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process comprises a bandwidth part in which the downlink control information is received, wherein the downlink control information comprises an additional 2 bit bandwidth part identification added to the bandwidth part identification bits, and an indication of a bandwidth part origin for the signaling, and wherein the additional 2 bit bandwidth part identification is used together with another bandwidth part identification of the downlink control information to identify a bandwidth part origin of each hybrid automatic repeat request process of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process, and a scheduling bandwidth part for the data location.

In another example aspect of the invention, there is a method comprising: receiving, by a user equipment, signaling associated with at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process for the user equipment, the signaling comprising at least one set of process indicator bits; and applying, by the user equipment, the signaling comprising the at least one set of process indicator bits to identify at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and at least one bandwidth part origin where the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled for data communication by the user equipment.

A further example aspect is a method comprising the method of the previous paragraph, wherein the at least one set of process indicator bits comprises a set of new data indicator bits associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process, wherein the identifying comprises identifying, based on at least the set of new data indicator bits undergoing a value change from a last received set of new data indicator bits, that the at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is a corresponding bandwidth part and data location associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and that new data is communicated on the corresponding bandwidth part, wherein the signaling comprises downlink control information associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process, wherein the downlink control information comprises bandwidth part identification bits identifying at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and identifying a bandwidth part where a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled, and wherein each active bandwidth part is associated with different set of hybrid automatic repeat request processes, wherein the identifying comprises identifying, based on at least the set of new data indicator bits not changing since a last received set of new data indicator bits, that the bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and a data location associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is indicated in downlink control information communicated to the user equipment, wherein the downlink control information comprises bandwidth part identification bits identifying the bandwidth part origin, and wherein a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled on a bandwidth part in which the downlink control information is received, wherein the downlink control information comprises bandwidth part identification bits identifying a bandwidth part where a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled, and the at least one bandwidth part origin of the identified at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process comprises a bandwidth part in which the downlink control information is received, wherein the downlink control information comprises an additional 2 bit bandwidth part identification added to the bandwidth part identification bits, and an indication of a bandwidth part origin for the signaling, and wherein the additional 2 bit bandwidth part identification is used together with another bandwidth part identification of the downlink control information to identify a bandwidth part origin of each hybrid automatic repeat request process of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process, and a scheduling bandwidth part for the data location.

In an additional example aspect of the invention there is computer readable medium embodying computer program code, the computer program code executable by at least one processor to perform the method according to the paragraphs above.

In another example aspect of the invention, there is an apparatus, such as a user equipment side apparatus, comprising: means for receiving, by a user equipment, signaling associated with at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process for the user equipment, the signaling comprising at least one set of process indicator bits; and means for applying, by the user equipment, the signaling comprising the at least one set of process indicator bits to identify at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and at least one bandwidth part origin where the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled for data communication by the user equipment.

In an example aspect of the invention, there is an apparatus, such as a network side apparatus, comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory including computer program code, where the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured, with the at least one processor, to cause the apparatus to at least: determine, by a network node of a communication network, signaling associated with at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process for user equipment of the communication network, the signaling comprising at least one set of process indicator bits; and send the signaling comprising the at least one set of process indicator bits towards the user equipment for use to identify at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and at least one bandwidth part origin where the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled for data communication by the user equipment.

A further example aspect is an apparatus comprising the apparatus of the previous paragraph, wherein the at least one set of process indicator bits comprises a set of new data indicator bits associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process, wherein based on at least the set of new data indicator bits undergoing a value change from a last sent set of new data indicator bits, the signaling is indicating that the bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is a corresponding bandwidth part and data location associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and that new data is communicated on the corresponding bandwidth part, wherein the signaling comprises downlink control information associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process, wherein the downlink control information comprises bandwidth part identification bits identifying at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and identifying a bandwidth part where a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled, and wherein each active bandwidth part is associated with different set of hybrid automatic repeat request processes, wherein based on values of at least the set of data indicator bits not being changed since a last set of new data indicator bits sent to the user equipment, the signaling is indicating that the bandwidth part origin of the identified at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and a data location associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is indicated in downlink control information communicated to the user equipment, wherein the downlink control information comprises bandwidth part identification bits identifying the bandwidth part origin, and wherein a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled on a bandwidth part in which the downlink control information is communicated, wherein the downlink control information comprises the bandwidth part identification bits identifying a bandwidth part where a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled, and the bandwidth part origin of the identified at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process comprises a bandwidth part in which the downlink control information is communicated, wherein the downlink control information comprises an additional 2 bit bandwidth part identification added to the bandwidth part identification bits, and an indication of the at least one bandwidth part origin for the signaling, and wherein the additional 2 bit bandwidth part identification is used together with another bandwidth part identification of the downlink control information to identify a bandwidth part origin of each hybrid automatic repeat request process of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process, and a scheduling bandwidth part for the data location.

In another example aspect of the invention, there is a method comprising: determining, by a network node of a communication network, signaling associated with at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process for user equipment of the communication network, the signaling comprising at least one set of process indicator bits; and sending the signaling comprising the at least one set of process indicator bits towards the user equipment for use to identify at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and at least one bandwidth part origin where the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled for data communication by the user equipment.

A further example aspect is a method comprising the method of the previous paragraph, wherein the at least one set of process indicator bits comprises a set of new data indicator bits associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process, wherein based on at least the set of new data indicator bits undergoing a value change from a last sent set of new data indicator bits, the signaling is indicating that the bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is a corresponding bandwidth part and data location associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and that new data is communicated on the corresponding bandwidth part, wherein the signaling comprises downlink control information associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process, wherein the downlink control information comprises bandwidth part identification bits identifying at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and identifying a bandwidth part where a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled, and wherein each active bandwidth part is associated with different set of hybrid automatic repeat request processes, wherein based on values of at least the set of data indicator bits not being changed since a last set of new data indicator bits sent to the user equipment, the signaling is indicating that the bandwidth part origin of the identified at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and a data location associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is indicated in downlink control information communicated to the user equipment, wherein the downlink control information comprises bandwidth part identification bits identifying the bandwidth part origin, and wherein a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled on a bandwidth part in which the downlink control information is communicated, wherein the downlink control information comprises the bandwidth part identification bits identifying a bandwidth part where a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled, and the bandwidth part origin of the identified at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process comprises a bandwidth part in which the downlink control information is communicated, wherein the downlink control information comprises an additional 2 bit bandwidth part identification added to the bandwidth part identification bits, and an indication of the at least one bandwidth part origin for the signaling, and wherein the additional 2 bit bandwidth part identification is used together with another bandwidth part identification of the downlink control information to identify a bandwidth part origin of each hybrid automatic repeat request process of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process, and a scheduling bandwidth part for the data location.

In an another example aspect of the invention there is computer readable medium embodying computer program code, the computer program code executable by at least one processor to perform the method at least according to the paragraphs above.

In an example aspect of the invention, there is an apparatus, such as a network side apparatus, comprising: means for determining, by a network node of a communication network, signaling associated with at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process for user equipment of the communication network, the signaling comprising at least one set of process indicator bits; and means for sending the signaling comprising the at least one set of process indicator bits towards the user equipment for use to identify at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and at least one bandwidth part origin where the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled for data communication by the user equipment.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS:

The foregoing and other aspects of embodiments of this invention are made more evident in the following Detailed Description, when read in conjunction with the attached Drawing Figures (FIGs) , wherein:

FIG. 1 shows a high level block diagram of various devices used in carrying out various aspects of the invention;

FIG. 2 shows an illustration of scheduling restriction with Variant 1 in accordance with example embodiments of the invention;

FIG. 3 shows an illustration of scheduling restriction with Variant 2 in accordance with example embodiments of the invention; and

FIG. 4A and FIG. 4B each show a method in accordance with example embodiments of the invention which may be performed by an apparatus.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION:

Example embodiments of the invention provide HARQ signaling improvements including a HARQ signaling design to reduce L1 signalling overhead while assuring sufficient re-transmission flexibility between active BWPs and possible reuse of UL/DL scheduling DCI format without new DCI format definition.

A version of HARQ, Type I HARQ, adds both ED and FEC information to each message prior to transmission. When the coded data block is received, the receiver first decodes the error-correction code. Based on a channel quality being good all transmission errors should be correctable, and a receiver can obtain a correct data block. Whereas, if a channel quality is bad and/or not all transmission errors can be corrected, a receiver will detect this using an error-detection code thus the receiver rejects the received coded data block and requests a re-transmission. Whereas, in a Type II HARQ version, a message originator alternates between message bits along with error detecting parity bits and only FEC parity bits. Then if a first transmission is received error free, FEC parity bits are not sent. In addition, two consecutive transmissions can be combined for error correction ifneither is free of error.

According to 3GPP TS 36.321 V15.1.0 (2018-03) , HARQ information for DL-SCH or for UL-SCH transmissions consists of New Data Indicator (NDI) , Transport Block (TB) size. For DL-SCH transmissions and for asynchronous UL HARQ, the HARQ information also includes HARQ process ID, except for UEs in NB-IoT configured with a single HARQ process for which this information is not present. For UL-SCH transmission the HARQ information also includes Redundancy Version (RV) . In case of two-codeword transmission on DL-SCH the HARQ information comprises a set of NDI and TB size for each transport block. HARQ information for SL-SCH and SL-DCH transmissions consists of TB size only

Further, in accordance with 3GPP TS 36.321 V15.1.0 (2018-03) there is one HARQ entity at the MAC entity for each Serving Cell which maintains a number of parallel HARQ processes. Each HARQ process is associated with a HARQ process identifier. The HARQ entity directs HARQ information and associated TBs received on the DL-SCH to the corresponding HARQ processes. In addition, in an asynchronous HARQ operation a HARQ process is associated with a TTI based on the received UL grant except for UL grant in RAR. Except for NB-IoT UE configured with a single HARQ process, each asynchronous HARQ process is associated with a HARQ process identifier. For UL transmission with UL grant in RAR, HARQ process identifier 0 is used.

In addition, according to 3GPP TS 36.321 for each TTI where a transmission takes place for the HARQ process, one or two (in case ofdownlink spatial multiplexing) TBs and the associated HARQ information are received from the HARQ entity. For each received TB and associated HARQ information, the HARQ process shall:

- if the NDI, when provided, has been toggled compared to the value of the previous received transmission corresponding to this TB; or

- if the HARQ process is equal to the broadcast process and if this is the first received transmission for the TB according to the system information schedule indicated by RRC;

OR

- if this is the very first received transmission for this TB (i.e., there is no previous NDI for this TB) :

- consider this transmission to be a new transmission.

ELSE:

- consider this transmission to be a retransmission.

In NR R15, only one active BWP is supported for UL/DL data transmission, and per cell up to 16 HARQ processes can be configured. This means the HARQ configuration in R15 is BWP agnostic, each BWP can make use of all the configured HARQ processes. A scheduling DCI contains up to 4-bit HARQ process ID field that is enough to identify each HARQ process without ambiguity. In addition, cross-BWP HARQ retransmissions function is supported in R15. Therefore, HARQ soft buffer is not flushed when BWP is switched, instead, each HARQ process can be retransmitted in the new active BWP after the BWP switch. This feature enables RE-TX of TBs initiated on the BWP A after the switch on BWP B, and such increase the speed in which BWP switching can be performed.

In one potential scenario there are “multiple-active” BWPs in a single serving-cell as part of NR spectrum enhancement [NR_spectrum_enh] RAN email discussion. In an alternative scenario there are realized multiple-active BWP by multiple serving cells with a single active BWP per cells to enable RE-TX of HARQ processed across the serving cells.

One straightforward scheme at the time of this application is to reuse R15 concept, i.e., to adopt per cell HARQ configuration. Considering up to 4 active BWPs (R15) and 16 processes per BWP, gNB could configure up to 64 HARQ processes per cell. This resulting to up to 6-bit HARQ process ID to differentiate these 64 HARQ processes, and such resulting to increased L1 signaling overhead. Potential enhancements to R15 HARQ operation should be considered, enabling efficient utilization of BWPs on Scells.

It may be assumed that if multiple active BWPs are supported within a serving cell, then configuration of HARQ processes may be per BWP instead of per cell. Example embodiments of the invention as described below provide solutions for reducing the L1 signaling overhead while assuring sufficient RE-TX flexibility between active BWPs, as well as reuse R15 UL/DL scheduling DCI format without new DCI format definition.

Before describing the example embodiments of the invention in further detail reference is made to FIG. 1. FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of one possible and non-limiting exemplary system in which the example embodiments of the invention may be practiced. In FIG. 6, a mobile station (MS) 110 is in wireless communication with a wireless network 100. The MS 110 or a UE is a wireless or wired, typically mobile device that can access a wireless network. The MS 110 includes one or more processors 120, one or more memories 125, and one or more transceivers 130 interconnected through one or more buses 127. Each of the one or more transceivers 130 includes a receiver Rx, 132 and a transmitter Tx 133. The one or more buses 127 may be address, data, or control buses, and may include any interconnection mechanism, such as a series of lines on a motherboard or integrated circuit, fiber optics or other optical communication equipment, and the like. The one or more transceivers 130 are connected to one or more antennas 128. The one or more memories 125 include computer program code 123. The MS 110 may include a HARQ Processing unit (HPu) module 140 e.g., a HARQ processor unit (HPu) for UE, such as the MS 110, which is configured to perform at least the HARQ related signal detection and processing of the example embodiments of the invention as described herein. The HPu module 140 comprising one of or both parts 140-1 and/or 140-2, which may be implemented in a number of ways. The HPu module 140 may be implemented in hardware as HPu module 140-1, such as being implemented as part of the one or more processors 120. The HPu module 140-1 may be implemented also as an integrated circuit or through other hardware such as a programmable gate array. In another example, the HPu module 140 may be implemented as HPu module 140-2, which is implemented as computer program code 123 and is executed by the one or more processors 120. For instance, the one or more memories 125 and the computer program code 123 may be configured, with the one or more processors 120, to cause the user equipment 110 to perform one or more of the HARQ related operations as described herein. The MS 110 communicates with gNB 170 via a wireless link 111. Further, it is noted that the labeling of the MS 110 as in FIG. 1 is non-limiting and operations of the MS 110 may similarly be performed by a device labeled as a user equipment or UE, or a user equipment or UE device or a network device, a mobile device (MS) , a, wireless device and/or IoT device.

The gNB 170 (NR/5G Node B or possibly an evolved NB) is a base station (e.g., for LTE, long term evolution, GSM, and other communications technologies including legacy communications technologies) that provides access by wireless devices such as the MS 110 to the wireless network 100. The gNB 170 includes one or more processors 152, one or more memories 155, one or more network interfaces (N/W I/F (s) ) 161, and one or more transceivers 160 interconnected through one or more buses 157. Each of the one or more transceivers 160 includes a receiver Rx 162 and a transmitter Tx 163. The one or more transceivers 160 are connected to one or more antennas 158. The one or more memories 155 include computer program code 153. The gNB 170 includes a HARQ processor unit module for gNB (HPu module 150) which is configured to perform at least the HARQ related signaling and processing of the example embodiments of the invention as described herein. The HPu module 150 comprising one of or both parts HPu module 150-1 and/or HPu module 150-2, which may be implemented in a number of ways. The HPu module 150 may be implemented in hardware as HPu module 150-1, such as being implemented as part of the one or more processors 152. The HPu module 150-1 may be implemented also as an integrated circuit or through other hardware such as a programmable gate array.

In another example, the HPu module 150 may be implemented as HPu module 150-2, which is implemented as computer program code 153 and is executed by the one or more processors 152. For instance, the one or more memories 155 and the computer program code 153 are configured to cause, with the one or more processors 152, the gNB 170 to perform one or more of at least the HARQ related signaling and processing operations as described herein. The one or more network interfaces 161 communicate over a network such as via the

links

176 and 131. Two or more gNB 170 may communicate using, e.g., link 176. The link 176 may be wired or wireless or both and may implement, e.g., an X2 interface.

The one or more buses 157 may be address, data, or control buses, and may include any interconnection mechanism, such as a series of lines on a motherboard or integrated circuit, fiber optics or other optical communication equipment, wireless channels, and the like. For example, the one or more transceivers 160 may be implemented as a remote radio head (RRH) 195, with the other elements of the gNB 170 being physically in a different location from the RRH. The RRH can be part of a base transceiver station (BTS) communicating with devices including the gNB 170 as in FIG. 1. The RRH can have one or more buses 157 that could be implemented in part as fiber optic cable to connect the other elements of the gNB 170 to the remote radio head (RRH) 195.

It is noted that description herein indicates that “cells” perform functions, but it should be clear that the gNB that forms the cell can perform the functions. The cell makes up part ora gNB or eNB. That is, there can be multiple cells per gNB or eNB.

The wireless network 100 may include a base station controller (BSC) 190 that can include HARQ control functionality, and which provides connectivity with a further network, such as a telephone network and/or a data communications network (e.g., the Internet) . The gNB 170 is coupled via a link 131 to the BSC 190. The link 131 may be implemented as, e.g., an S1 interface. The BSC 190 includes one or more processors 175, one or more memories 171, and one or more network interfaces (N/W I/F (s) ) 180, interconnected through one or more buses 185. The one or more memories 171 include computer program code 173. The one or more memories 171 and the computer program code 173 are configured to, with the one or more processors 175, cause the BSC 190 to perform one or more operations.

The wireless network 100 may implement network virtualization, which is the process of combining hardware and software network resources and network functionality into a single, software-based administrative entity, a virtual network. Network virtualization involves platform virtualization, often combined with resource virtualization. Network virtualization is categorized as either external, combining many networks, or parts of networks, into a virtual unit, or internal, providing network-like functionality to software containers on a single system. Note that the virtualized entities that result from the network virtualization are still implemented, at some level, using hardware such as

processors

152 or 175 and memories 155 and 171, and also such virtualized entities create technical effects.

The computer

readable memories

125, 155, and 171 may be of any type suitable to the local technical environment and may be implemented using any suitable data storage technology, such as semiconductor based memory devices, flash memory, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory and removable memory. The computer

readable memories

125, 155, and 171 may be means for performing storage functions. The

processors

120, 152, and 175 may be of any type suitable to the local technical environment, and may include one or more of general purpose computers, special purpose computers, microprocessors, digital signal processors (DSPs) and processors based on a multi-core processor architecture, as non-limiting examples. The

processors

120, 152, and 175 may be means for performing functions, such as controlling the MS 110, gNB 170, and other functions as described herein.

It is noted that any reference to terms used in this specification or labels in the figures which are associated with a particular communication technology are not limiting (e.g., gNB or an eNB) . The Example embodiments of the invention as described herein can be performed using devices operating in GSM/EDGE, LTE, and/or 5G, as well as any devices e.g., gNB, eNB, BTS, BSC, UE, and/or MS operating in any other communication technologies. Further, FIG. 1 can be used for operations in accordance with example embodiments of the invention, between such devices as for example MS-BTS-BSC for GSM; UE-gNB for 5G; and UE-eNB for LTE. It is noted that this example is non-limiting and the operations in accordance with the example embodiments of the invention may performed using different devices and/or different than the example.

In general, the various embodiments of the mobile station 110 can include, but are not limited to, cellular telephones such as smart phones, tablets, personal digital assistants (PDAs) having wireless communication capabilities, portable computers having wireless communication capabilities, image capture devices such as digital cameras having wireless communication capabilities, gaming devices having wireless communication capabilities, music storage and playback appliances having wireless communication capabilities, and/or Internet appliances permitting wireless Internet access and browsing with wireless communication capabilities, as well as portable units or terminals that incorporate combinations of such functions.

Embodiments herein may be implemented in software (executed by one or more processors) , hardware (e.g., an application specific integrated circuit) , or a combination of software and hardware. In an example of an embodiment, the software (e.g., application logic, an instruction set) is maintained on any one of various conventional computer-readable media. In the context of this document, a “computer-readable medium” may be any media or means that can contain, store, communicate, propagate or transport the instructions for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device, such as a computer, with one example of a computer described and depicted, e.g., in FIG. 1. A computer-readable medium may comprise a computer-readable storage medium or other device that may be any media or means that can contain or store the instructions for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device, such as a computer.

As similarly mentioned above, in R16, to support up to 4 active BWPs, per cell HARQ configuration as R15 concept has to configure up to 64 HARQ processes, regardless the active BWP number variation for different application scenarios. And then 6-bit HARQ process has to be designed in R16 to support this strategy, instead of 4-bit in R15. These situations lead to higher L1 signaling overhead. In addition, this new requirement on the HARQ process ID extension will lead to the definition of new DCI format which means R15 DCI for UL/DL scheduling cannot be reused directly in R 16.

In R15, at the time of this application, there has not yet been any discussion regarding how to operate HARQ processes in R16 for scheduling of multiple active BWPs in a single serving-cell or how to enable HARQ-process sharing/re-transmission between active BWPs in different serving cells. Direct extension of R15 solution will result in increased DCI overhead, as discussed above. Other straightforward solution is to support per BWP configurations, which reduce DCI overhead, but do not allow for re-transmission (RE-TX) between BWPs.

In accordance with an example embodiment of the invention there is provided HARQ signalling solutions, which may on a per (active) BWP HARQ configuration basis, enable cross-BWP HARQ retransmissions.

This example embodiment can be described using at least the following steps:

I. Operations related to an example embodiment of the invention as performed at a network node such as, but not limited to, a gNB such as the gNB 170 as in FIG. 1:

● gNB configures up to 16 HARQ processes for a BWP; and

● gNB transmits a scheduling DCI containing among other fields: up to 4-bit HARQ process ID, BWP ID and NDI value (s) ,

◆ NDI (new data indicator) value identifies which BWP’s HARQ process will be (re) transmitted on which active BWP, given the BWP ID and the BWP where the scheduling DCI has been transmitted.

II. Signal interpretation operations and/or rules related to an example embodiment of the invention as performed at a network device such as, but not limited to, a UE such as the MS 110 as in FIG. 1, as described in the paragraphs below:

If new data transmission DCI (identified by NDI value change) is decoded by a UE, such as the MS 110 as in FIG. 1, in a scheduling DCI:

● BWP ID identifies the BWP to which HARQ process belongs and the BWP where the PxSCH is scheduled,

■ In this case, gNB may transmit the scheduling DCI (new-tx) on any active BWP.

If HARQ retransmission scheduling DCI (no NDI value change) is decoded by a UE, such as the MS 110 as in FIG. 1, in scheduling DCI (variant 1) :

● BWP ID identifies only the BWP to which the HARQ process with HARQ process ID belongs, but does not identify the BWP where the PxSCH is scheduled; and

● PxSCH is scheduled on BWP where scheduling DCI has been received; and/or

If HARQ retransmission scheduling DCI is decoded (no NDI value change) by a UE, such as the MS 110 as in FIG. 1, in scheduling DCI (variant 2) :

● BWP ID identifies only the BWP where the PxSCH is scheduled, but does not identify to which BWP the HARQ process belongs; and

● HARQ process ID identifies HARQ process of the BWP where scheduling DCI has been received.

In R16, a multiple active BWP (per serving cell) concept is being derived to enhance R15 design. One important issue to support this enhancement is how to design HARQ process management taking into account the signaling load, as well as cross-BWP retransmission functionality. In R15, there are two key principles, indicated below, related to BWP based HARQ operation:

● HARQ configuration with up to 16 HARQ process per cell; and

● Cross-BWP HARQ process retransmission.

According to these principles, in R15, each HARQ process belongs to the serving cell/carrier, and these HARQ processes can be identified in any active BWP configured on the serving-cell. And during the BWP switch procedure, there is no HARQ buffer flushing operation, and any HARQ process can be retransmitted on any active BWP until maximum HARQ retransmission number reached. This behaviour helps to achieve faster BWP switching/activation or more frequency diversity gain to improve HARQ retransmission performance. And it is expected that cross-BWP HARQ retransmission will be supported in R16 for this purpose.

In fact, in R15there is no cross-BWP HARQ retransmission since configured HARQ processes belong to a serving cell and are active BWP agnostic. So it is straightforward that each involved HARQ process can be transmitted or retransmitted on any BWP that happens to be active at a given time in a serving cell.

Another issue related to HARQ operation is the BWP based scheduling DCI defined in R15, which includes, among other fields, four key IEs:

● BWP ID: up to 2-bit to support up to 4 BWPs configuration;

● HARQ process ID: up to 4-bit to support up to 16 HARQ process configuration;

● RA: frequency resource allocation field; and

● NDI: new data indicator.

These parameters inform UE that the HARQ process ID indicated HARQ process will be (re) transmitted using the frequency resource identified by RA IE on the BWP indicated by BWP ID.

It is noted that in a HARQ soft combining operation, transport blocks received but not decoded by a receiver are often stored at the receiver rather than discarded, and when a re-transmitted block is received two received versions of a transport block are combined. However, in R16, due to multiple active BWPs operation, up to 4 PDSCH/PUSCH can be transmitted simultaneously considering that up to 4 BWPs maybe configured in R16. So the straightforward solution is to reuse R15 principles to adopt per cell HARQ configuration. If yes, up to 64 HARQ processes should be configured per cell/carrier given that each BWP should support up to 16 HARQ process transmission as that of R15. Then in R16, up to 6-bit HARQ process ID would be used to differentiate these 64 HARQ process, to guarantee UE can locate (relate to a BWP) each HARQ process’s soft buffer without any ambiguity for correct HARQ combining behaviour. So the R16 scheduling DCI will have below format:

● BWP ID: 2-bit to support up to 4 BWP configuration, same as R15;

● HARQ process ID: 6-bit to support 64 HARQ process configuration, need to enhance R15 definition;

● RA: resource allocation, same as R15; and

● NDI: new data indicator.

That is, the R15 scheduling DCI should be enhanced to support 6-bit HARQ process ID, which means R15 scheduling DCI cannot be reused directly. Another disadvantage of this solution is more L1 singling overhead due to 2 extra bits should be used for HARQ process ID IE.

To address these disadvantages on DCI signalling overhead and reuse R15 format, another solution is to adopt per BWP HARQ configuration principle. That is, a set of HARQ process is dedicatedly associated with each configured BWP. In other words, any configured HARQ process belongs to one and only one BWP, which can be identified by the HARQ process ID and BWP ID accordingly. So in R16 HARQ (re) transmission, the scheduling DCI has to clearly indicate two things for correct UE HARQ combining operation:

● BWP of origin for a HARQ process, i.e., to which BWP the HARQ process ID belongs; and

● BWP for data (re) transmission, i.e., on which BWP the PxSCH is scheduled.

The first BWP information is mandatory to help UE, such as the MS 110 as in FIG. 1, to locate the corresponding HARQ soft buffer for correct HARQ combining. The second BWP information is also key to indicate the related PxSCH will be (re) transmitted on which BWP for UE correct data reception. But ifreuse of an R15 scheduling DCI format is desired, there is only one BWP ID included. Therefore, an example embodiment of the invention uses a 2-bit BWP ID, 1-bit NDI (as in legacy) and implicit information on where the DCI has been transmitted to identify the BWP of HARQ process origin and the BWP where PxSCH is scheduled.

The basic solution depends on NDI to differentiate two types of BWP with below basic principles:

● for new-transmission, the HARQ process belongs always to the BWP, where PxSCH was scheduled; and

● for re-transmission, the HARQ process origin is determined based on set of rules, this to enable retransmission of HARQ process ofBWP A on BWP B.

It is noted that the new data scheduling DCI or HARQ retransmission scheduling DCI can be identified by the NDI update situation, which is a legacy behaviour defined in previous release (s) . For example:

● for NDI change from 1-＞0 or from 0-＞1, this indicates the new data is transmitted on the corresponding BWP; and

● for no NDI value change case, which means NDI keeps 1 or 0 as in previous transmission of that HARQ process, HARQ retransmission will occur on the scheduled radio resource.

In more detail, for new transmission in the associated scheduling DCI, the BWP ID included in the scheduling DCI takes two roles:

● identify the corresponding HARQ process’s BWP of orgin;

● indicate the BWP on which the new data (HARQ process) will be transmitted.

It is noted that the operations referred to in the above two sub-bullets are valid and reasonable for new data transmission.

The reason is that for any new data transmission, the scheduler will select one active BWP to transmit a TB on one of its available HARQ processes. It is clear that this HARQ process used to transmit this packet should belong to the selected BWP. Also, in the scheduling DCI, since the data is to be sent on this selected BWP, then the BWP ID in the DCI will refer to this selected BWP without any ambiguity. That is, the BWP ID will refer to the same BWP which is the owner of this HARQ process as well as the one for this packet transmission.

In addition, gNB can freely select one of UE’s active BWPs to carry this scheduling DCI. That is, the cross-BWP scheduling is easy to be supported by the principles in above two sub-bullets.

Further, at a UE side after decoding the scheduling DCI, when UE interprets that NDI bit indicates new transmission, then BWP ID included in the scheduling DCI will take two roles as above mentioned.

For re-transmissions in the associated scheduling DCI. To guarantee correct UE HARQ processing behaviours, following issues should be resolved:

● Issue 1: How to determine the BWP of origin for the HARQ process with given ID; and

● Issue 2: How to determine the BWP where the data (PxSCH) are scheduled

While according to R15 scheduling DCI format, there is only one BWP ID included in the DL scheduling DCI, so it is not understood how this IE is to solve above two issues.

Although there is only one BWP ID in the R15 defined scheduling DCI, in fact, UE has one more useful information in addition to BWPI. It knows on which BWP the scheduling DCI has been received.

Based on these two pieces of information, example embodiments of the invention provide at least the following variants to address the above issues 1 and 2:

● Variant 1: BWP ID in the scheduling DCI solves issue 1, and BWP carrying the scheduling DCI solves issue 2; and

● Variant 2: BWP ID in the scheduling DCI solves issue 2, and BWP carrying scheduling DCI solves issue 1.

In Variant 1, illustrated in FIG. 2, a gNB has to send the scheduling DCI for retransmission on the BWP where PxSCH is to be scheduled (as in Slot#3) . And the BWP ID included in this DCI refers to the HARQ process’s BWP of origin. On the other hand, scheduling illustrated in the Slot#2 is not possible, because PDCCH carrying scheduling DCI implicitly schedules PxSCH always on the same BWP. Therefore, when UE receives the scheduling DCI and interprets that NDI bit indicates retransmission, UE knows the subjected HARQ process will be retransmitted on this BWP where the DCI is received. Further, UE will identify the related HARQ soft buffer based on the BWP ID and HARQ process ID included in this scheduling DCI. The HARQ process belongs to the BWP identified by this BWP ID.

Advantages/Disadvantages of Variant 1

With Variant 1, cross-BWP HARQ retransmission can be easily supported. The only constraint is gNB has to send the scheduling DCI on the scheduled BWP, which is not a critical issue, if all BWP are monitored for the scheduling DCI, or only self-scheduling is configured for a BWP.

In Variant 2, illustrated in FIG. 3, a gNB has to send scheduling DCI for retransmission on BWP of the scheduled HARQ process origin (as in Slot#3) . The BWP carrying the PxSCH is identified by the BWP ID included in the DCI explicitly. On the other hand, scheduling in Slot#2 is not allowed, because “HARQ-ID” is implicitly given by the BWP where scheduling DCI has been received. It is noted that HARQ-ID (BWP0) =1 may not be possible when a PDCCH carrying scheduling DCI is transmitted on BWPI=1. At UE side, after interpreting NDI bit as re-transmission, UE knows the HARQ retransmission will be done in the BWP identified by the BWP ID included in this DCI. UE will also locate the corresponding HARQ soft buffer accurately based on the BWP where DCI has been received as well as the HARQ process ID included in the DCI. The HARQ process belongs to the BWP where scheduling DCI has been received.

Advantages/Disadvantages of Variant 2

With Variant 2, cross-BWP HARQ retransmission can be easily supported. The only constraint is gNB has to send the scheduling DCI on the BWP of HARQ process origin, which is not a critical issue, if all BWP are monitored for the scheduling DCI, or if only cross-scheduling is configured for a BWP.

So in summary, based on a re-transmission being scheduled, above two alternatives leverages R15 DCI format to support cross-BWP HARQ retransmission, and guarantee correct HARQ combining behaviour without any ambiguity at UE side. Another benefit is to keep the scheduling DCI overhead low.

Besides above embodiments for enabling solutions on HARQ aspects for R16, following are also potential options, in accordance with example embodiments of the invention, to support per BWP HARQ operation for multiple active BWPs scenario in R16:

● Option a: the value range of HARQ process ID is extended from 16 to 64;

● Option b: include one extra 2-bit BWP ID in the scheduling DCI; and

● Option c: ignore BWP ID. It means that, ifUE supports multiple active BWPs, then BWP ID could be ignored, otherwise BWP ID indicates BWP for current data transmission

For Option a, the HARQ process ID is extended from 4-bit to 6-bit to differentiate all 64 HARQ processes. Under this consideration, no need to configure per BWP HARQ operation, and per cell HARQ configuration is enough. Then the extra BWP ID is not needed to identify the HARQ process’s belonging BWP to locate the HARQ soft buffer. But instead, the 6-bit HARQ process ID can identify each HARQ soft buffer without any confuse.

For Option b, one extra BWP ID filed (2-bit) is added in the DCI, which is used together with the legacy BWP ID (2-bit) defined in R15 DCI format to realize the two tasks:

● Identify the subjected HARQ process belongs to which BWP; and

● Identify the scheduling BWP for data transmission.

These two options or tasks above are valid such as with added signalling to introduce 2 extra bits in an R16 DCI for example.

For Option c, how UE clarifies the BWP ID depends on whether multiple active BWPs function is configured or not. If they are configured, then UE will not care about the include BWP ID IE in the DCI, and just assumes the data is transmitted in the BWP with DCI received, and also, the subjected HARQ process belongs to the BWP with DCI received. And for this solution, no cross-BWP scheduling and no-cross HARQ retransmission will be done, with the benefit to save 2-bit signalling because the HARQ process ID is just 4-bit. While for the later, UE should act as R15 defined behaviour, where the BWP for data transmission is identified by the BWP ID IE presented in the DCI.

To implement option c, example embodiments of the invention provide that the BWP activation/de-activation in R16 can be done by RRC, MAC CE (L2 signalling) or new L1 signalling. For the former high layer signalling (RRC/L2 signalling) based schemes, in accordance with example embodiments of the invention there can be included either BWP ID explicitly or just the bit-map based solution to identify which BWP (s) will be activated (de-activated) by this high layer signalling. And for the L1 signalling based BWP active/de-active operation, bit-map based solution should be adopted to avoid the explicit BWP ID in this DCI. From this point of view, the scheduling DCI is only used to schedule data transmission. So UE can either ignore the included BWP ID or not depending on multiple BWPs configuration situation.

FIG. 4A illustrates operations which may be performed by a network device such as, but not limited to, an MS 110 as in FIG. 1 or a mobile station (MS) or user equipment (UE) . As shown in step 410 of Figure4A there is receiving, by a user equipment, signaling associated with at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process for the user equipment, the signaling comprising at least one set of process indicator bits. Then as shown in step 420 of FIG. 4A there is applying, by the user equipment, the signaling comprising the at least one set of process indicator bits to identify at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and at least one bandwidth part origin where the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled for data communication by the user equipment.

In accordance with the example embodiments as described in the paragraph above, wherein the at least one set of process indicator bits comprises a set of new data indicator bits associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process.

In accordance with the example embodiments as described in the paragraphs above, the identifying comprises identifying, based on at least the set of new data indicator bits undergoing a value change from a last received set of new data indicator bits, that the at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is a corresponding bandwidth part and data location associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and that new data is communicated on the corresponding bandwidth part.

In accordance with the example embodiments as described in the paragraphs above, the signaling comprises downlink control information associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process, wherein the downlink control information comprises bandwidth part identification bits identifying at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and identifying a bandwidth part where a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled, and wherein each active bandwidth part is associated with different set of hybrid automatic repeat request processes.

In accordance with the example embodiments as described in the paragraphs above, the identifying comprises identifying, based on at least the set of new data indicator bits not changing since a last received set of new data indicator bits, that the bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and a data location associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is indicated in downlink control information communicated to the user equipment.

In accordance with the example embodiments as described in the paragraphs above, the downlink control information comprises bandwidth part identification bits identifying the bandwidth part origin, and wherein a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled on a bandwidth part in which the downlink control information is received.

In accordance with the example embodiments as described in the paragraphs above, the downlink control information comprises bandwidth part identification bits identifying a bandwidth part where a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled, and the at least one bandwidth part origin of the identified at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process comprises a bandwidth part in which the downlink control information is received.

In accordance with the example embodiments as described in the paragraphs above, the downlink control information comprises an additional 2 bit bandwidth part identification added to the bandwidth part identification bits, and an indication of a bandwidth part origin for the signaling.

In accordance with the example embodiments as described in the paragraphs above, the additional 2 bit bandwidth part identification is used together with another bandwidth part identification of the downlink control information to identify a bandwidth part origin of each hybrid automatic repeat request process of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process, and a scheduling bandwidth part for the data location.

A non-transitory computer-readable medium (Memory (ies) 125 of FIG. 1) storing program code (Computer Program Code 123 and/or HPu Module 140-2 of FIG. 1) , the program code executed by at least one processor (Processor (s) 120 and/or HPu Module 140-1 of FIG. 1) to perform the operations as at least described in the paragraphs above.

In accordance with an example embodiment of the invention as described above there is an apparatus comprising: means for receiving (transceivers 130, Computer Program Code 123 and/or HPu Module 140-2; and Processor (s) 120 and/or HPu Module 140-1 of FIG. 1) signaling associated with at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process for the user equipment, the signaling comprising at least one set of process indicator bits; and means for applying (Computer Program Code 123 and/or HPu Module 140-2; and Processor (s) 120 and/or HPu Module 140-1 of FIG. 1) , by the user equipment, the signaling comprising the at least one set of process indicator bits to identify at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and at least one bandwidth part origin where the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled for data communication by the user equipment.

In the example aspect of the invention according to the paragraph above, wherein at least the means for receiving and applying comprises a non-transitory computer readable medium [Memory (ies) 125 and/or HPu Module 140-2 of FIG. 1] encoded with a computer program [Computer Program Code 123 and/or HPu Module 140-2 as in FIG. 1) ] executable by at least one processor [Processor (s) 120 and/or HPu Module 140-1 as in FIG. 1] .

FIG. 4B illustrates operations which may be performed by a network node such as, but not limited to, a network node gNB 170 as in FIG. 1 or a base station or an eNB. As shown in step 450 of FIG. 4B there is determining, by a network node of a communication network, signaling associated with at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process for user equipment of the communication network, the signaling comprising at least one set of process indicator bits. Then as shown in step 460 of FIG. 4B there is sending the signaling comprising the at least one set of process indicator bits towards the user equipment for use to identify at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and at least one bandwidth part origin where the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled for data communication by the user equipment.

In accordance with the example embodiments as described in the paragraph above, the at least one set of process indicator bits comprises a set of new data indicator bits associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process.

In accordance with the example embodiments as described in the paragraphs above, based on at least the set of new data indicator bits undergoing a value change from a last sent set of new data indicator bits, the signaling is indicating that the bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is a corresponding bandwidth part and data location associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and that new data is communicated on the corresponding bandwidth part.

In accordance with the example embodiments as described in the paragraphs above, based on values of at least the set of data indicator bits not being changed since a last set of new data indicator bits sent to the user equipment, the signaling is indicating that the bandwidth part origin of the identified at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and a data location associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is indicated in downlink control information communicated to the user equipment.

In accordance with the example embodiments as described in the paragraphs above, the downlink control information comprises bandwidth part identification bits identifying the bandwidth part origin, and wherein a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled on a bandwidth part in which the downlink control information is communicated.

In accordance with the example embodiments as described in the paragraphs above, the downlink control information comprises the bandwidth part identification bits identifying a bandwidth part where a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled, and the bandwidth part origin of the identified at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process comprises a bandwidth part in which the downlink control information is communicated.

In accordance with the example embodiments as described in the paragraphs above, the downlink control information comprises an additional 2 bit bandwidth part identification added to the bandwidth part identification bits, and an indication of the at least one bandwidth part origin for the signaling.

A non-transitory computer-readable medium (Memory (ies) 155 as in FIG. 1) storing program code (Computer Program Code 153 and/or HPu Module 150-2 as in FIG. 1) , the program code executed by at least one processor (Processor (s) 152 and/or HPu Module 150-1 as in FIG. 1) to perform the operations as at least described in the paragraphs above.

In accordance with an example embodiment of the invention as described above there is an apparatus comprising: means for determining (Computer Program Code 153 and/or HPu Module 150-2; and Processor (s) 152 and/or HPu Module 150-1 as in FIG. 1) , by a network node (gNB 170 as in FIG. 1) of a communication network (network 100 as in FIG. 1) , signaling associated with at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process for user equipment of the communication network, the signaling comprising at least one set of process indicator bits; and means for sending (Transceivers 160, Computer Program Code 153 and/or HPu Module 150-2; and Processor (s) 152 and/or HPu Module 150-1 as in FIG. 1) the signaling comprising the at least one set of process indicator bits towards the user equipment for use to identify at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and at least one bandwidth part origin where the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled for data communication by the user equipment

In the example aspect of the invention according to the paragraph above, wherein at least the means for determining and sending comprises a non-transitory computer readable medium [Memory (ies) 155 and/or HPu Module 50-2 as in FIG. 1] encoded with a computer program [Computer Program Code 153 and/or HPu Module 150-2 as in FIG. 1] executable by at least one processor [Processor (s) 152 and/or HPu Module 150-1 as in FIG. 1] .

In general, the various embodiments may be implemented in hardware or special purpose circuits, software, logic or any combination thereof. For example, some aspects may be implemented in hardware, while other aspects may be implemented in firmware or software which may be executed by a controller, microprocessor or other computing device, although the invention is not limited thereto. While various aspects of the invention may be illustrated and described as block diagrams, flow charts, or using some other pictorial representation, it is well understood that these blocks, apparatus, systems, techniques or methods described herein may be implemented in, as non-limiting examples, hardware, software, firmware, special purpose circuits or logic, general purpose hardware or controller or other computing devices, or some combination thereof.

Embodiments of the inventions may be practiced in various components such as integrated circuit modules. The design of integrated circuits is by and large a highly automated process. Complex and powerful software tools are available for converting a logic level design into a semiconductor circuit design ready to be etched and formed on a semiconductor substrate.

The word "exemplary" is used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration. " Any embodiment described herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments. All of the embodiments described in this Detailed Description are exemplary embodiments provided to enable persons skilled in the art to make or use the invention and not to limit the scope of the invention which is defined by the claims.

The foregoing description has provided by way of exemplary and non-limiting examples a full and informative description of the best method and apparatus presently contemplated by the inventors for carrying out the invention. However, various modifications and adaptations may become apparent to those skilled in the relevant arts in view of the foregoing description, when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the appended claims. However, all such and similar modifications of the teachings of this invention will still fall within the scope of this invention.

It should be noted that the terms "connected, " "coupled, " or any variant thereof, mean any connection or coupling, either direct or indirect, between two or more elements, and may encompass the presence of one or more intermediate elements between two elements that are "connected" or "coupled" together. The coupling or connection between the elements can be physical, logical, or a combination thereof. As employed herein two elements may be considered to be "connected" or "coupled" together by the use of one or more wires, cables and/or printed electrical connections, as well as by the use of electromagnetic energy, such as electromagnetic energy having wavelengths in the radio frequency region, the microwave region and the optical (both visible and invisible) region, as several non-limiting and non-exhaustive examples.

Furthermore, some of the features of the preferred embodiments of this invention could be used to an advantage with or without using corresponding other features. As such, the foregoing description should be considered as merely illustrative of the principles of the invention, and not in limitation thereof.

Claims

A method, comprising:

receiving, by a user equipment, signaling associated with at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process for the user equipment, the signaling comprising at least one set of process indicator bits; and

applying, by the user equipment, the signaling comprising the at least one set of process indicator bits to identify at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and at least one bandwidth part origin where the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled for data communication by the user equipment.
The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one set of process indicator bits comprises a set of new data indicator bits associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process.
The method of claim 2, wherein the identifying comprises identifying, based on at least the set of new data indicator bits undergoing a value change from a last received set of new data indicator bits, that the at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is a corresponding bandwidth part and data location associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and that new data is communicated on the corresponding bandwidth part.
The method according to any one of claims 1-3, wherein the signaling comprises downlink control information associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process, wherein the downlink control information comprises bandwidth part identification bits identifying at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and identifying a bandwidth part where a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled, and wherein each active bandwidth part is associated with different set of hybrid automatic repeat request processes.
The method of claim 2, wherein the identifying comprises identifying, based on at least the set of new data indicator bits not changing since a last received set of new data indicator bits, that the bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and a data location associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is indicated in downlink control information communicated to the user equipment.
The method of claim 5, wherein the downlink control information comprises bandwidth part identification bits identifying the bandwidth part origin, and wherein a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled on a bandwidth part in which the downlink control information is received.
The method of claim 5, wherein the downlink control information comprises bandwidth part identification bits identifying a bandwidth part where a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled, and the at least one bandwidth part origin of the identified at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process comprises a bandwidth part in which the downlink control information is received.
The method according to any one of claims 4 or 6, wherein the downlink control information comprises an additional 2 bit bandwidth part identification added to the bandwidth part identification bits, and an indication of a bandwidth part origin for the signaling.
The method of claim 8, wherein the additional 2 bit bandwidth part identification is used together with another bandwidth part identification of the downlink control information to identify a bandwidth part origin of each hybrid automatic repeat request process of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process, and a scheduling bandwidth part for the data location.
A computer readable medium embodying computer program code, the computer program code executable by at least one processor to perform the method according to any one of claims 1-9.
A method, comprising:

determining, by a network node of a communication network, signaling associated with at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process for user equipment of the communication network, the signaling comprising at least one set of process indicator bits; and

sending the signaling comprising the at least one set of process indicator bits towards the user equipment for use to identify at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and at least one bandwidth part origin where the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled for data communication by the user equipment.
The method of claim 11, wherein the at least one set of process indicator bits comprises a set of new data indicator bits associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process.
The method of claim 12, wherein based on at least the set of new data indicator bits undergoing a value change from a last sent set of new data indicator bits, the signaling is indicating that the bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is a corresponding bandwidth part and data location associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and that new data is communicated on the corresponding bandwidth part.
The method as in any one of claims 11-13, wherein the signaling comprises downlink control information associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process, wherein the downlink control information comprises bandwidth part identification bits identifying at least one bandwidth part origin of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and identifying a bandwidth part where a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled, and wherein each active bandwidth part is associated with different set of hybrid automatic repeat request processes.
The method of claim 12, wherein based on values of at least the set of data indicator bits not being changed since a last set of new data indicator bits sent to the user equipment, the signaling is indicating that the bandwidth part origin of the identified at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process and a data location associated with the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is indicated in downlink control information communicated to the user equipment.
The method of claim 15, wherein the downlink control information comprises bandwidth part identification bits identifying the bandwidth part origin, and wherein a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled on a bandwidth part in which the downlink control information is communicated.
The method of claim 15, wherein the downlink control information comprises the bandwidth part identification bits identifying a bandwidth part where a shared channel for the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process is scheduled, and the bandwidth part origin of the identified at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process comprises a bandwidth part in which the downlink control information is communicated.
The method according to any one of claims 14 or 16, wherein the downlink control information comprises an additional 2 bit bandwidth part identification added to the bandwidth part identification bits, and an indication of the at least one bandwidth part origin for the signaling.
The method of claim 18, wherein the additional 2 bit bandwidth part identification is used together with another bandwidth part identification of the downlink control information to identify a bandwidth part origin of each hybrid automatic repeat request process of the at least one hybrid automatic repeat request process, and a scheduling bandwidth part for the data location.
A computer readable medium embodying computer program code, the computer program code executable by at least one processor to perform the method according to any one of claims 11-19.
An apparatus, comprising: means for performing the method according to any one of claims 1-9 or to any one of claims 11-19.
An apparatus, comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory including computer program code, where the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured, with the at least one processor, to cause the apparatus to: perform the method according to any one of claims 1-9 or to any one of claims 11-19.