WO2022120645A1

WO2022120645A1 - Methods and apparatus of enhanced pdsch/pusch scheduling by enhanced pdcch with multiple transmissions

Info

Publication number: WO2022120645A1
Application number: PCT/CN2020/134957
Authority: WO
Inventors: Yi Zhang; Chenxi Zhu; Bingchao LIU; Wei Ling; Lingling Xiao
Original assignee: Lenovo (Beijing) Limited
Priority date: 2020-12-09
Filing date: 2020-12-09
Publication date: 2022-06-16

Abstract

Methods and apparatus of enhanced PDSCH/PUSCH scheduling by enhanced PDCCH with multiple transmissions are disclosed. The method includes: receiving, by a receiver, a first Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) for scheduling a first Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) or a first Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH); scheduling, by a processor, reception of the first PDSCH or transmission of the first PUSCH with last symbol at time T1, according to the first PDCCH; receiving, by the receiver, a second PDCCH for scheduling a second PDSCH or a second PUSCH with starting symbol at time T2; wherein at least one of the first PDCCH and the second PDCCH is enhanced PDCCH that is transmitted with a plurality of repetitions; and deriving, by the processor, a timing reference based, at least partially, on the plurality of repetitions for determining whether out-of-order scheduling is supported; wherein, upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is not supported, it is not expected to receive the second PDSCH or transmit the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1; and upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is supported, it is allowable to receive the second PDSCH or transmit the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1.

Description

METHODS AND APPARATUS OF ENHANCED PDSCH/PUSCH SCHEDULING BY ENHANCED PDCCH WITH MULTIPLE TRANSMISSIONS

FIELD

The subject matter disclosed herein relates generally to wireless communication and more particularly relates to, but not limited to, methods and apparatus of enhanced Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) or Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) scheduling by enhanced Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) with multiple transmissions.

BACKGROUND

The following abbreviations and acronyms are herewith defined, at least some of which are referred to within the specification:

Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) , 5th Generation (5G) , New Radio (NR) , 5G Node B /generalized Node B (gNB) , Long Term Evolution (LTE) , LTE Advanced (LTE-A) , E-UTRAN Node B /Evolved Node B (eNB) , Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) , Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) , Evolved UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN) , Wireless Local Area Networking (WLAN) , Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) , Single-Carrier Frequency-Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) , Downlink (DL) , Uplink (UL) , User Entity/Equipment (UE) , Network Equipment (NE) , Radio Access Technology (RAT) , Receive or Receiver (RX) , Transmit or Transmitter (TX) , Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) , Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) , Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) , Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) , Enhanced Physical Downlink Control Channel (ePDCCH) , Bandwidth Part (BWP) , Control Resource Set (CORESET) , Downlink Control Information (DCI) , enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) , Frequency-Division Multiplexing (FDM) , Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) , Identification (ID) , Single Frequency Network (SFN) , Time-Division Multiplexing (TDM) , Transmit Receive Point (TRP) , Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communications (URLLC) , Frequency Range 1 (FR1) , Frequency Range 2 (FR2) , Technical Specification (TS) , multiple-TRP (mTRP) .

In wireless communication, such as a Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) mobile network, a wireless mobile network may provide a seamless wireless communication service to a wireless communication terminal having mobility, i.e. user equipment (UE) . The wireless mobile network may be formed of a plurality of base stations and a base station may perform wireless communication with the UEs.

The 5G New Radio (NR) is the latest in the series of 3GPP standards which supports very high data rate with lower latency compared to its predecessor LTE (4G) technology. Two types of frequency range (FR) are defined in 3GPP. Frequency of sub-6 GHz range (from 450 to 6000 MHz) is called FR1 and millimeter wave range (from 24.25 GHz to 52.6 GHz) is called FR2. The 5G NR supports both FR1 and FR2 frequency bands.

Enhancements on multi-TRP/panel transmission including improved reliability and robustness with both ideal and non-ideal backhaul between these TRPs (Transmit Receive Points) are studied. A TRP is an apparatus to transmit and receive signals, and is controlled by a gNB through the backhaul between the gNB and the TRP. A TRP may also be referred to as a transmitting-receiving identity, or simply an identity.

In current NR system, Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) is transmitted from a single TRP. With multiple TRPs, time-frequency resources for PDCCH transmission may be from multiple TRPs. The spatial diversity may be exploited in addition to the time-frequency diversity. Enhanced Physical Downlink Control Channel (ePDCCH) allows exploitation of the resources from multiple TRPs to improve PDCCH transmission reliability and robustness. Multiple transmissions of the ePDCCH may be transmitted from a same TRP or some different TRPs.

SUMMARY

Methods and apparatus of enhanced PDSCH/PUSCH scheduling by enhanced PDCCH with multiple transmissions are disclosed.

According to a first aspect, there is provided a method, including: receiving, by a receiver, a first Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) for scheduling a first Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) or a first Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) ; scheduling, by a processor, reception of the first PDSCH or transmission of the first PUSCH with last symbol at time T1, according to the first PDCCH; receiving, by the receiver, a second PDCCH for scheduling a second PDSCH or a second PUSCH with starting symbol at time T2; wherein at least one of the first PDCCH and the second PDCCH is enhanced PDCCH that is transmitted with a plurality of repetitions; and deriving, by the processor, a timing reference based, at least partially, on the plurality of repetitions for determining whether out-of-order scheduling is supported; wherein, upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is not supported, it is not expected to receive the second PDSCH or transmit the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1; and upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is supported, it is allowable to receive the second PDSCH or transmit the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1.

According to a second aspect, there is provided a method, including: transmitting, by a transmitter, a first Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) for scheduling a first Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) or a first Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) ; wherein transmission of the first PDSCH, or reception of the first PUSCH, is scheduled with last symbol at time T1, according to the first PDCCH; transmitting, by the transmitter, a second PDCCH for scheduling a second PDSCH or a second PUSCH that is scheduled with starting symbol at time T2; wherein at least one of the first PDCCH and the second PDCCH is enhanced PDCCH that is transmitted with a plurality of repetitions; and deriving, by a processor, a timing reference based, at least partially, on the plurality of repetitions for determining whether out-of-order scheduling is supported; wherein, upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is not supported, it does not transmit the second PDSCH or receive the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1; and upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is supported, it is allowable to transmit the second PDSCH or receive the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1.

According to a third aspect, there is provided an apparatus, including: a receiver that receives a first Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) for scheduling a first Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) or a first Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) ; and a processor that schedules reception of the first PDSCH or transmission of the first PUSCH with last symbol at time T1, according to the first PDCCH; wherein the receiver further receives a second PDCCH for scheduling a second PDSCH or a second PUSCH with starting symbol at time T2; wherein at least one of the first PDCCH and the second PDCCH is enhanced PDCCH that is transmitted with a plurality of repetitions; wherein the processor further derives a timing reference based, at least partially, on the plurality of repetitions for determining whether out-of-order scheduling is supported; and wherein upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is not supported, it is not expected to receive the second PDSCH or transmit the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1; and upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is supported, it is allowable to receive the second PDSCH or transmit the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1.

According to a fourth aspect, there is provided an apparatus, including: a transmitter that transmits a first Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) for scheduling a first Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) or a first Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) ; wherein transmission of the first PDSCH, or reception of the first PUSCH, is scheduled with last symbol at time T1, according to the first PDCCH; wherein the transmitter further transmits a second PDCCH for scheduling a second PDSCH or a second PUSCH that is scheduled with starting symbol at time T2; wherein at least one of the first PDCCH and the second PDCCH is enhanced PDCCH that is transmitted with a plurality of repetitions; and a processor that derives a timing reference based, at least partially, on the plurality of repetitions for determining whether out-of-order scheduling is supported; wherein upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is not supported, it does not transmit the second PDSCH or receive the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1; and upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is supported, it is allowable to transmit the second PDSCH or receive the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more particular description of the embodiments will be rendered by reference to specific embodiments illustrated in the appended drawings. Given that these drawings depict only some embodiments and are not therefore considered to be limiting in scope, the embodiments will be described and explained with additional specificity and details through the use of the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a wireless communication system in accordance with some implementations of the present disclosure;

Figure 2 is a schematic block diagram illustrating components of user equipment (UE) in accordance with some implementations of the present disclosure;

Figure 3 is a schematic block diagram illustrating components of network equipment (NE) in accordance with some implementations of the present disclosure;

Figures 4A and 4B are schematic diagrams illustrating examples of out-of-order behaviour determination with a latest PDCCH as a reference PDCCH in accordance with some implementations of the present disclosure;

Figures 5A and 5B are schematic diagrams illustrating examples of out-of-order behaviour determination with an earliest PDCCH as the reference PDCCH in accordance with some implementations of the present disclosure;

Figure 6A is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of out-of-order scheduling in the case of overlapping reference PDCCH windows in accordance with some implementations of the present disclosure;

Figure 6B is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of in order scheduling in the case of overlapping reference PDCCH windows in accordance with some implementations of the present disclosure;

Figure 6C is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of out-of-order behaviour determination with non-overlapping reference PDCCH windows in accordance with some implementations of the present disclosure;

Figure 7 is a flow chart illustrating steps of enhanced PDSCH/PUSCH scheduling by enhanced PDCCH with multiple transmissions by UE in accordance with some implementations of the present disclosure; and

Figure 8 is a flow chart illustrating steps of enhanced PDSCH/PUSCH scheduling by enhanced PDCCH with multiple transmissions by NE (or gNB) in accordance with some implementations of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As will be appreciated by one skilled in the art, aspects of the embodiments may be embodied as a system, an apparatus, a method, or a program product. Accordingly, embodiments may take the form of an all-hardware embodiment, an all-software embodiment (including firmware, resident software, micro-code, etc. ) or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects.

Furthermore, one or more embodiments may take the form of a program product embodied in one or more computer readable storage devices storing machine readable code, computer readable code, and/or program code, referred to hereafter as “code. ” The storage devices may be tangible, non-transitory, and/or non-transmission.

Reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment, ” “an embodiment, ” “an example, ” “some embodiments, ” “some examples, ” or similar language means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described is included in at least one embodiment or example. Thus, instances of the phrases “in one embodiment, ” “in an example, ” “in some embodiments, ” and similar language throughout this specification may, but do not necessarily, all refer to the same embodiment (s) . It may or may not include all the embodiments disclosed. Features, structures, elements, or characteristics described in connection with one or some embodiments are also applicable to other embodiments, unless expressly specified otherwise. The terms “including, ” “comprising, ” “having, ” and variations thereof mean “including but not limited to, ” unless expressly specified otherwise.

An enumerated listing of items does not imply that any or all of the items are mutually exclusive, unless expressly specified otherwise. The terms “a, ” “an, ” and “the” also refer to “one or more” unless expressly specified otherwise.

Throughout the disclosure, the terms “first, ” “second, ” “third, ” and etc. are all used as nomenclature only for references to relevant devices, components, procedural steps, and etc. without implying any spatial or chronological orders, unless expressly specified otherwise. For example, a “first device” and a “second device” may refer to two separately formed devices, or two parts or components of the same device. In some cases, for example, a “first device” and a “second device” may be identical, and may be named arbitrarily. Similarly, a “first step” of a method or process may be carried or performed after, or simultaneously with, a “second step. ”

It should be understood that the term “and/or” as used herein refers to and includes any and all possible combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. For example, “A and/or B” may refer to any one of the following three combinations: existence of A only, existence of B only, and co-existence of both A and B. The character “/” generally indicates an “or” relationship of the associated items. This, however, may also include an “and” relationship of the associated items. For example, “A/B” means “A or B, ” which may also include the co-existence of both A and B, unless the context indicates otherwise.

Furthermore, the described features, structures, or characteristics of the embodiments may be combined in any suitable manner. In the following description, numerous specific details are provided, such as examples of programming, software modules, user selections, network transactions, database queries, database structures, hardware modules, hardware circuits, hardware chips, etc., to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments. One skilled in the relevant art will recognize, however, that embodiments may be practiced without one or more of the specific details, or with other methods, components, materials, and so forth. In other instances, well-known structures, materials, or operations are not shown or described in detail to avoid obscuring aspects of an embodiment.

Aspects of various embodiments are described below with reference to schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams of methods, apparatuses, systems, and program products. It will be understood that each block of the schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams, as well as combinations of blocks in the schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams, can be implemented by code. This code may be provided to a processor of a general-purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions executed via the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus create a means for implementing the functions or acts specified in the schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams.

The code may also be stored in a storage device that can direct a computer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other devices to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the storage device produce an article of manufacture including instructions which implement the function or act specified in the schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams.

The schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams in the Figures illustrate the architecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementations of different apparatuses, systems, methods, and program products according to various embodiments. In this regard, each block in the schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portion of code, which includes one or more executable instructions of the code for implementing the specified logical function (s) . One skilled in the relevant art will recognize, however, that the flowchart diagrams need not necessarily be practiced in the sequence shown and are able to be practiced without one or more of the specific steps, or with other steps not shown.

It should also be noted that, in some alternative implementations, the functions noted in the identified blocks may occur out of the order noted in the Figures. For example, two blocks shown in succession may, in fact, be substantially executed in concurrence, or the blocks may sometimes be executed in reverse order, depending upon the functionality involved.

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a wireless communication system. It depicts an embodiment of a wireless communication system 100. In one embodiment, the wireless communication system 100 may include a user equipment (UE) 102 and a network equipment (NE) 104. Even though a specific number of UEs 102 and NEs 104 is depicted in Figure 1, one skilled in the art will recognize that any number of UEs 102 and NEs 104 may be included in the wireless communication system 100.

The UEs 102 may be referred to as remote devices, remote units, subscriber units, mobiles, mobile stations, users, terminals, mobile terminals, fixed terminals, subscriber stations, user terminals, apparatus, devices, or by other terminology used in the art.

In one embodiment, the UEs 102 may be autonomous sensor devices, alarm devices, actuator devices, remote control devices, or the like. In some other embodiments, the UEs 102 may include computing devices, such as desktop computers, laptop computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs) , tablet computers, smart phones, smart televisions (e.g., televisions connected to the Internet) , set-top boxes, game consoles, security systems (including security cameras) , vehicle on-board computers, network devices (e.g., routers, switches, modems) , or the like. In some embodiments, the UEs 102 include wearable devices, such as smart watches, fitness bands, optical head-mounted displays, or the like. The UEs 102 may communicate directly with one or more of the NEs 104.

The NE 104 may also be referred to as a base station, an access point, an access terminal, a base, a Node-B, an eNB, a gNB, a Home Node-B, a relay node, an apparatus, a device, or by any other terminology used in the art. Throughout this specification, a reference to a base station may refer to any one of the above referenced types of the network equipment 104, such as the eNB and the gNB.

The NEs 104 may be distributed over a geographic region. The NE 104 is generally part of a radio access network that includes one or more controllers communicably coupled to one or more corresponding NEs 104. The radio access network is generally communicably coupled to one or more core networks, which may be coupled to other networks, like the Internet and public switched telephone networks. These and other elements of radio access and core networks are not illustrated, but are well known generally by those having ordinary skill in the art.

In one implementation, the wireless communication system 100 is compliant with a 3GPP 5G new radio (NR) . In some implementations, the wireless communication system 100 is compliant with a 3GPP protocol, where the NEs 104 transmit using an OFDM modulation scheme on the DL and the UEs 102 transmit on the uplink (UL) using a SC-FDMA scheme or an OFDM scheme. More generally, however, the wireless communication system 100 may implement some other open or proprietary communication protocols, for example, WiMAX. The present disclosure is not intended to be limited to the implementation of any particular wireless communication system architecture or protocol.

The NE 104 may serve a number of UEs 102 within a serving area, for example, a cell (or a cell sector) or more cells via a wireless communication link. The NE 104 transmits DL communication signals to serve the UEs 102 in the time, frequency, and/or spatial domain.

Communication links are provided between the NE 104 and the

UEs

102a, 102b, 102c, and 102d, which may be NR UL or DL communication links, for example. Some UEs 102 may simultaneously communicate with different Radio Access Technologies (RATs) , such as NR and LTE. Direct or indirect communication link between two or more NEs 104 may be provided.

The NE 104 may also include one or more transmit receive points (TRPs) 104a. In some embodiments, the network equipment may be a gNB 104 that controls a number of TRPs 104a. In addition, there is a backhaul between two TRPs 104a. In some other embodiments, the network equipment may be a TRP 104a that is controlled by a gNB.

Communication links are provided between the

NEs

104, 104a and the

UEs

102, 102a, respectively, which, for example, may be NR UL/DL communication links. Some

UEs

102, 102a may simultaneously communicate with different Radio Access Technologies (RATs) , such as NR and LTE.

In some embodiments, the UE 102a may be able to communicate with two or more TRPs 104a that utilize a non-ideal backhaul, simultaneously. A TRP may be a transmission point of a gNB. Multiple beams may be used by the UE and/or TRP (s) . The two or more TRPs may be TRPs of different gNBs, or a same gNB. That is, different TRPs may have the same Cell-ID or different Cell-IDs. The terms “TRP” and “transmitting-receiving identity” may be used interchangeably throughout the disclosure.

The technology disclosed, or at least some of the examples, may be applicable to scenarios with multiple TRPs or without multiple TRPs, as long as multiple PDCCH transmissions are supported.

Figure 2 is a schematic block diagram illustrating components of user equipment (UE) according to one embodiment. A UE 200 may include a processor 202, a memory 204, an input device 206, a display 208, and a transceiver 210. In some embodiments, the input device 206 and the display 208 are combined into a single device, such as a touchscreen. In certain embodiments, the UE 200 may not include any input device 206 and/or display 208. In various embodiments, the UE 200 may include one or more processors 202 and may not include the input device 206 and/or the display 208.

The processor 202, in one embodiment, may include any known controller capable of executing computer-readable instructions and/or capable of performing logical operations. For example, the processor 202 may be a microcontroller, a microprocessor, a central processing unit (CPU) , a graphics processing unit (GPU) , an auxiliary processing unit, a field programmable gate array (FPGA) , or similar programmable controller. In some embodiments, the processor 202 executes instructions stored in the memory 204 to perform the methods and routines described herein. The processor 202 is communicatively coupled to the memory 204 and the transceiver 210.

The memory 204, in one embodiment, is a computer readable storage medium. In some embodiments, the memory 204 includes volatile computer storage media. For example, the memory 204 may include a RAM, including dynamic RAM (DRAM) , synchronous dynamic RAM (SDRAM) , and/or static RAM (SRAM) . In some embodiments, the memory 204 includes non-volatile computer storage media. For example, the memory 204 may include a hard disk drive, a flash memory, or any other suitable non-volatile computer storage device. In some embodiments, the memory 204 includes both volatile and non-volatile computer storage media. In some embodiments, the memory 204 stores data relating to trigger conditions for transmitting the measurement report to the network equipment. In some embodiments, the memory 204 also stores program code and related data.

The input device 206, in one embodiment, may include any known computer input device including a touch panel, a button, a keyboard, a stylus, a microphone, or the like. In some embodiments, the input device 206 may be integrated with the display 208, for example, as a touchscreen or similar touch-sensitive display.

The display 208, in one embodiment, may include any known electronically controllable display or display device. The display 208 may be designed to output visual, audio, and/or haptic signals.

The transceiver 210, in one embodiment, is configured to communicate wirelessly with the network equipment. In certain embodiments, the transceiver 210 comprises a transmitter 212 and a receiver 214. The transmitter 212 is used to transmit UL communication signals to the network equipment and the receiver 214 is used to receive DL communication signals from the network equipment.

The transmitter 212 and the receiver 214 may be any suitable type of transmitters and receivers. Although only one transmitter 212 and one receiver 214 are illustrated, the transceiver 210 may have any suitable number of transmitters 212 and receivers 214. For example, in some embodiments, the UE 200 includes a plurality of the transmitter 212 and the receiver 214 pairs for communicating on a plurality of wireless networks and/or radio frequency bands, with each of the transmitter 212 and the receiver 214 pairs configured to communicate on a different wireless network and/or radio frequency band.

Figure 3 is a schematic block diagram illustrating components of network equipment (NE) 300 according to one embodiment. The NE 300 may include a processor 302, a memory 304, an input device 306, a display 308, and a transceiver 310. As may be appreciated, the processor 302, the memory 304, the input device 306, the display 308, and the transceiver 310 may be similar to the processor 202, the memory 204, the input device 206, the display 208, and the transceiver 210 of the UE 200, respectively.

In some embodiments, the processor 302 controls the transceiver 310 to transmit DL signals or data to the UE 200. The processor 302 may also control the transceiver 310 to receive UL signals or data from the UE 200. In another example, the processor 302 may control the transceiver 310 to transmit DL signals containing various configuration data to the UE 200.

In some embodiments, the transceiver 310 comprises a transmitter 312 and a receiver 314. The transmitter 312 is used to transmit DL communication signals to the UE 200 and the receiver 314 is used to receive UL communication signals from the UE 200.

The transceiver 310 may communicate simultaneously with a plurality of UEs 200. For example, the transmitter 312 may transmit DL communication signals to the UE 200. As another example, the receiver 314 may simultaneously receive UL communication signals from the UE 200. The transmitter 312 and the receiver 314 may be any suitable type of transmitters and receivers. Although only one transmitter 312 and one receiver 314 are illustrated, the transceiver 310 may have any suitable number of transmitters 312 and receivers 314. For example, the NE 300 may serve multiple cells and/or cell sectors, where the transceiver 310 includes a transmitter 312 and a receiver 314 for each cell or cell sector.

For normal PDCCH, a Downlink Control Information (DCI) is transmitted on only one candidate. However, for ePDCCH (enhanced PDCCH) transmission, one DCI may be transmitted with multiple candidates with repetitions from multiple TRPs to improve reliability, i.e., multiple candidates with multiple repeat transmissions may be used for enhanced PDCCH transmission.

For non-SFN (Single Frequency Network) based mTRP (multiple-TRP) PDCCH reliability enhancements, different encoding/rate matching options are possible. In one of the options, the encoding/rate matching is based on one repetition, and the same coded bits are repeated for the other repetition. Each repetition has the same number of Control Channel Elements (CCEs) and coded bits, and corresponds to the same DCI payload.

The PDCCH candidates may be linked with one another for transmissions of the PDCCH. In one of the cases, two or more enhanced PDCCH candidates for one DCI transmission are explicitly linked together and UE knows explicitly the linkage among these enhanced PDCCH candidates before decoding.

However, out-of-order or in-order definition for PDCCH-to-PDSCH and PDCCH-to-PUSCH was not clearly made for enhanced PDCCH transmission.

In Release 15, out of order behaviour is clearly defined in TS 38.214 specification as following for single DCI scheduled PDSCH or PUSCH. That is, out of order scheduling is not supported in Release 15.

For any two HARQ process IDs in a given scheduled cell, if the UE is scheduled to start receiving a first PDSCH starting in symbol j by a PDCCH ending in symbol i, the UE is not expected to be scheduled to receive a PDSCH starting earlier than the end of the first PDSCH with a PDCCH that ends later than symbol i.

For any two HARQ process IDs in a given scheduled cell, if the UE is scheduled to start a first PUSCH transmission starting in symbol j by a PDCCH ending in symbol i, the UE is not expected to be scheduled to transmit a PUSCH starting earlier than the end of the first PUSCH by a PDCCH that ends later than symbol i.

In Release 16, according to the current TS 38.214 specification, out of order scheduling may be supported for PDSCH/PUSCH scheduled by multiple PDCCHs associated with different values of CORESETPoolIndex.

For any two HARQ process IDs in a given scheduled cell, if the UE is scheduled to start receiving a first PDSCH starting in symbol j by a PDCCH associated with a value of CORESETpoolIndex ending in symbol i, the UE can be scheduled to receive a PDSCH starting earlier than the end of the first PDSCH with a PDCCH associated with a different value of CORESETpoolIndex that ends later than symbol i.

If a UE is configured by higher layer parameter PDCCH-Config that contains two different values of CORESETPoolIndex in ControlResourceSet for the active BWP of a serving cell and PDCCHs that schedule two non-overlapping in time domain PUSCHs are associated to different ControlResourceSets having different values of CORESETPoolIndex, for any two HARQ process IDs in a given scheduled cell, if the UE is scheduled to start a first PUSCH transmission starting in symbol j by a PDCCH associated with a value of CORESETpoolIndex ending in symbol i, the UE can be scheduled to transmit a PUSCH starting earlier than the end of the first PUSCH by a PDCCH associated with a different value of CORESETpoolIndex that ends later than symbol i.

In Release 15 and Release 16, the PDCCH ending symbol is used to define out of order scheduling. Only one definite ending symbol for PDCCH transmission is used to define out of order scheduling. Different out-of-order behaviours are defined for single PDCCH scheduled PDSCH/PUSCH transmission and multiple PDCCH scheduled PDSCH/PUSCH transmission.

According to out-of-order behaviour defined in Release 15, for any two HARQ process IDs in a given scheduled cell, if the UE is scheduled to start receiving a first PDSCH (or start a first PUSCH transmission) in symbol j by a PDCCH ending in symbol i, the UE is not expected to be scheduled to receive a PDSCH (or transmit a PUSCH) starting earlier than the end of the first PDSCH (or the first PUSCH) with a PDCCH that ends later than symbol i. That is, if a PDCCH ends later than another PDCCH, its scheduled PDSCH/PUSCH is not expected to start earlier than the end of the PDSCH/PUSCH scheduled by the another PDCCH.

For enhanced PDCCH scheduling PDSCH/PUSCH, repeated PDCCH (i.e., a plurality of repetitions of the PDCCH) can be transmitted from two candidates from two TRPs with explicit linkage between the candidates, and the ending symbols of multiple PDCCH transmissions are different for TDM cases. In the case where two PDCCH candidates are used for enhanced PDCCH transmission, the ending symbol for defining out of order scheduling can be the ending symbol of the PDCCH for the first candidate, the ending symbol of the PDCCH for the second candidate, detected PDCCH, or other options. Thus, the out-of-order behavior based on Release 15 definition is not clear and additional specification is required.

In the disclosure, three schemes are proposed to define enhanced out-of-order behavior for ePDCCH scheduled PDSCH/PUSCH, where the reference PDCCH and the reference PDCCH window are introduced. To be consistent with Release 16 specification, the out of order behavior when two DCIs are sent in ePDCCH over CORESETs with different values of CORESETPoolIndex is maintained compatible.

Out-of-Order Behaviour Determined by Reference PDCCH

In one example, the PDCCH with a latest ending symbol (i.e., the PDCCH having an ending symbol which is the latest in the time domain) among multiple transmissions may serve as a reference PDCCH for determining out-of-order behaviour. The PDCCH ending symbol of the reference PDCCH is used to determine out-of-order behavior. In detail, if the UE is scheduled to start receiving a first PDSCH starting in symbol j by an ePDCCH with a reference PDCCH ending in symbol i, the UE is not expected to be scheduled to receive a PDSCH starting earlier than the end of the first PDSCH by a PDCCH/ePDCCH with its PDCCH/reference PDCCH ending later than symbol i; and if the UE is scheduled to start a first PUSCH transmission starting in symbol j by an ePDCCH with a reference PDCCH ending in symbol i, the UE is not expected to be scheduled to transmit a PUSCH starting earlier than the end of the first PUSCH by a PDCCH/ePDCCH with its PDCCH/reference PDCCH ending later than symbol i. The reference PDCCH may be the last repetition of the ePDCCH, or the starting repetition of the ePDCCH.

Figures 4A and 4B are schematic diagrams illustrating examples of out-of-order behaviour determination with the latest PDCCH as the reference PDCCH in accordance with some implementations of the present disclosure. Figure 4A illustrates an example of in order scheduling and Figure 4B illustrates an example of out of order scheduling. In Figures 4A and 4B, PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 1 404 is scheduled by ePDCCH with repeat transmissions (i.e. the first transmission 402A and the second transmission 402B) from CORESET 1 and CORESET 2, respectively. PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 2 414 is scheduled by a PDCCH 412 from CORESET 3.

In the examples of Figures 4A and 4B, the reference PDCCH of the ePDCCH is defined as the PDCCH with a latest ending symbol among the repeated PDCCHs, which is the PDCCH for second transmission 402B. Based on the scheme for defining out-of-order behaviour with the reference PDCCH, Figure 4A illustrates an example of in order scheduling since the starting symbol of PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 1 404 is not earlier than the ending symbol of PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 2 414, i.e., T2 is not earlier than T1, when the last symbol of the reference PDCCH 402B for ePDCCH scheduling PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 1 ends later than the PDCCH 412 scheduling PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 2. Reception/transmission of both PDSCH/PUSCH 404 and PDSCH/PUSCH 414 are allowable.

Figure 4B illustrates an example of out of order scheduling since the starting symbol of PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 1 404 is earlier than the ending symbol of PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 2 414, i.e., T2 is earlier than T1, when the last symbol of the reference PDCCH 402B for ePDCCH scheduling PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 1 ends later than the PDCCH 412 scheduling PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 2. With the definition of out of order behaviour, the transmission in Figure 4B is not allowed.

Figures 4A and 4B illustrate examples for TDM based transmission. When the same ending symbol is used for repeated PDCCHs, e.g., in FDM based transmission, any of the ending symbols of the repeated PDCCHs may serve as the reference PDCCH. In one example, for simplicity, the PDCCH with the smaller CORESET index or search space set index may be used as the reference PDCCH for the repeated PDCCHs having the same ending symbol.

Figures 5A and 5B are schematic diagrams illustrating examples of out-of-order behaviour determination with the earliest PDCCH as the reference PDCCH in accordance with some implementations of the present disclosure. Figure 5A illustrates an example of in order scheduling and Figure 5B illustrates an example of out of order scheduling. In Figures 5A and 5B, PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 1 504 is scheduled by ePDCCH with repeat transmissions (i.e. the first transmission 502A and the second transmission 502B) from CORESET 1 and CORESET 2, respectively. PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 2 514 is scheduled by a PDCCH 512 from CORESET 3.

In the examples of Figures 5A and 5B, the reference PDCCH of the ePDCCH is defined as the PDCCH with an earliest ending symbol among the repeated PDCCHs, which is the PDCCH for first transmission 502A. Based on the scheme for defining out-of-order behaviour with the reference PDCCH, Figure 5A illustrates an example of in order scheduling since the starting symbol of PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 2 514 is not earlier than the ending symbol of PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 1 504, i.e., T2 is not earlier than T1, when the last symbol of the PDCCH 512 scheduling PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 2 ends later than the reference PDCCH 502A for ePDCCH scheduling PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 1. Reception/transmission of both PDSCH/PUSCH 504 and PDSCH/PUSCH 514 are allowable.

Figure 5B illustrates an example of out of order scheduling since the starting symbol of PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 2 514 is earlier than the ending symbol of PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 1 504, i.e., T2 is earlier than T1, when the last symbol of the PDCCH 512 scheduling PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 2 ends later than the reference PDCCH 502A for ePDCCH scheduling PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 1. With the above definition of out of order behaviour, the transmission in Figure 5B is not allowed.

In the examples, out-of-order behaviour is determined based on the reference PDCCH, more specifically, the last symbol (or ending symbol) of the reference PDCCH as the timing reference.

In the example shown in Figure 4B, it may be used in a typical case with URLLC service scheduled by ePDCCH and eMBB service scheduled by PDCCH. According to the out-of-order behaviour based on the reference PDCCH being the latest transmission (e.g., the second transmission in Figure 4B) , it is out-of-order scheduling and thus there is scheduling restriction. It is not desirable from gNB’s realization view. Similar scheduling restriction may happen when the first or earliest PDCCH serves as the reference PDCCH for determining out-of-order behaviour as shown in Figure 5B.

To achieve more scheduling flexibility and simplify gNB’s realization, the reference PDCCH may be configured according to gNB’s requirement. The configured reference PDCCH may be the first transmitted PDCCH, the second transmitted PDCCH, or both transmitted PDCCHs for allowing maximum flexibility. When “both transmitted PDCCHs” is configured for the reference PDCCH, the reference PDCCH may be flexibly selectable from the first transmitted PDCCH and the second transmitted PDCCH such that in-order scheduling may be determined. In this configuration, the best scheduling flexibility may be achieved.

The reference PDCCH is used for determining out-of-order behaviour. For the PDCCH to PDSCH/PUSCH timing, it is determined by a reference PDCCH, which may be the same for reference PDCCH for determining out-of-order behaviour. It is natural with the latest PDCCH as the reference PDCCH for timing in the case of “both transmitted PDCCHs” .

In summary, to improve scheduling flexibility, the reference PDCCH of ePDCCH with repeat transmissions may be configured for determination of out-of-order behaviour, where the configured reference PDCCH may be the first PDCCH, the second PDCCH and both PDCCHs.

Out-of-Order Behaviour Determined by Reference PDCCH window

In another example, a reference PDCCH window is defined to determine out-of-order behaviour in the case of ePDCCH scheduling PDSCH/PUSCH. The reference window may be defined as starting from the ending symbol of the PDCCH having the earliest ending symbol among multiple repeat transmissions and ending at the ending symbol of the PDCCH with the latest ending symbol among multiple repeat transmissions. For normal PDCCH, the window length may be considered as 1 symbol. In Release 15, there is no out-of-order restriction when PDCCH ending symbols overlap for two PDCCHs scheduling two PDSCHs/PUSCHs. With similar consideration for the case of ePDCCH scheduling, the out-of-order behaviour may be determined based on the reference PDCCH window as follows.

When there is overlapping between two PDCCH reference windows, there is no out-of-order scheduling restriction, i.e., out-of-order scheduling is supported to increase scheduling flexibility. Figures 6A and 6B illustrate examples where flexible scheduling is supported in the case of overlapping reference windows.

Figures 6A is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of out-of-order scheduling in the case of overlapping reference PDCCH windows in accordance with some implementations of the present disclosure; and Figure 6B is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of in order scheduling in the case of overlapping reference PDCCH windows in accordance with some implementations of the present disclosure.

In Figures 6A and 6B, PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 1 604 is scheduled by ePDCCH with repeat transmissions (i.e. the first transmission 602A and the last transmission 602X) from CORESET 1 and CORESET 2, respectively; and PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 2 614 is scheduled by ePDCCH with repeat transmissions (i.e. the first transmission 612A and the last transmission 612X) from CORESET 1 and CORESET 2, respectively. The reference PDCCH window for PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 1 604 starts from the ending symbol of the first transmission 602A and ends at the ending symbol of the last transmission 602X, and is illustrated by box 608. The reference PDCCH window for PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 1 614 is illustrated by box 618. Since the two

reference PDCCH windows

608, 618 overlap, there is no out-of-order scheduling restriction, and the scheduling for both cases are supported by UE.

Figure 6C is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of out-of-order behaviour determination with non-overlapping reference PDCCH windows in accordance with some implementations of the present disclosure. When there is no overlapping between the PDCCH reference windows, the ending symbol of the reference PDCCH window is used to determine whether it is out of order scheduling in the case of ePDCCH scheduling. As shown in Figure 6C, the two

reference PDCCH windows

608, 618 do not overlap, and the out-of-order behaviour is determined based on the last symbols of

PDCCH reference windows

608, 618. This is an example of out-of-order scheduling, which is not supported, since the starting symbol of PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 2 614 is earlier than the ending symbol of PDSCH/PUSCH with process ID 1 604 when the last symbol of the PDCCH reference window 618 ends later than the reference window 608, and thus UE is not expected such scheduling.

In these examples, the last symbol of the PDCCH reference window is used to determine out-of-order behaviour in the case of PDSCH/PUSCH scheduled by ePDCCH, where the PDCCH reference window of the enhanced PDCCH starts from an earliest ending symbol of the repetitions of the enhanced PDCCH, and ends at a latest ending symbol of the repetitions of the enhanced PDCCH. The last symbol of the PDCCH reference window and the last symbol of the reference PDCCH in the earlier examples may be collectively referred to as a timing reference.

Out-of-Order Behaviour Determined by Configuration

In Release 16, multiple PDSCH/PUSCH may be scheduled by multiple DCIs when multiple TRPs are used for PDSCH/PUSCH transmission. When PDSCH/PUSCH is scheduled by PDCCHs from different CORESET resource pools, out-of-order PDSCH/PUSCH may be supported. In detail, for any two HARQ process IDs in a given scheduled cell, if the UE is scheduled to start receiving a first PDSCH (or start a first PUSCH transmission) starting in symbol j by a PDCCH associated with a value of CORESETpoolIndex ending in symbol i, the UE can be scheduled to receive a PDSCH (or transmit a PUSCH) starting earlier than the end of the first PDSCH (or the first PUSCH) by a PDCCH associated with a different value of CORESETpoolIndex that ends later than symbol i.

With similar mechanism, it may be configured whether out of order behavior can be supported for PDSCH/PUSCH scheduled by different PDCCH/ePDCCH. In detail, PDCCH/ePDDCH and their corresponding CORESETs/search space sets are divided into two sets, i.e., Out-Of-Order Sets. Out-of-order scheduling is supported when PDSCH/PUSCH are scheduled by PDCCH/ePDCCH with different Out-Of-Order Set indexes (OutOfOrderSetIndex) ; out-of-order scheduling is not supported when PDSCH/PUSCH are scheduled by PDCCH/ePDCCH with the same Out-Of-Order Set index (OutOfOrderSetIndex) .

As an example for determining out-of-order behavior based on configuration, ePDCCH for scheduling PDSCH/PUSCH may be associated with one value of OutOfOrderSetIndex, which can be introduced in the CORESET configuration or search space set configuration. Moreover, the same value is expected to be configured for two CORESETs/search space sets for multiple repeat transmissions for ePDCCH. When one PDSCH/PUSCH scheduled by ePDCCH is associated with one OutOfOrderSetIndex value, out-of-order behavior can be supported when another PDSCH/PUSCH scheduled by PDCCH/ePDCCH is associated with another OutOfOrderSetIndex value. When the same value for associated OutOfOrderSetIndex is configured for multiple PDCCH/ePDCCH, out-of-order behavior may be determined using the reference PDCCH or the PDCCH reference window as discussed above.

When CORESETPool index is configured in the CORESETs for ePDCCH transmission, the configured value of OutOfOrderSetIndex may be one of the CORESETPool indexes. There is no out-of-order scheduling restriction in the case that values of OutOfOrderSetIndex of ePDCCH and CORESETPoolIndex of normal PDCCH are different.

Out-of-order behaviour for PDSCH/PUSCH scheduled by ePDCCH may be determined based on configured sets, each including one or more CORESETs and/or search space sets. These configured sets may be denoted as Out-Of-Order Sets and may be indicated by a parameter OutOfOrderSetIndex. There is no out-of- order scheduling restriction, i.e., out-of-order scheduling is supported, when PDCCH/ePDCCH are from different Out-Of-Order Sets.

Figure 7 is a flow chart illustrating steps of enhanced PDSCH/PUSCH scheduling by enhanced PDCCH with multiple transmissions by UE in accordance with some implementations of the present disclosure.

At step 702, the receiver 214 of UE 200 receives a first Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) for scheduling a first Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) or a first Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) .

At step 704, the processor 202 of UE 200 schedules reception of the first PDSCH or transmission of the first PUSCH with last symbol at time T1, according to the first PDCCH.

At step 706, the receiver 214 of UE 200 receives a second PDCCH for scheduling a second PDSCH or a second PUSCH with starting symbol at time T2; wherein at least one of the first PDCCH and the second PDCCH is enhanced PDCCH that is transmitted with a plurality of repetitions.

At step 708, the processor 202 of UE 200 derives a timing reference based, at least partially, on the plurality of repetitions for determining whether out-of-order scheduling is supported; wherein upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is not supported, it is not expected to receive the second PDSCH or transmit the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1; and upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is supported, it is allowable to receive the second PDSCH or transmit the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1.

Figure 8 is a flow chart illustrating steps of enhanced PDSCH/PUSCH scheduling by enhanced PDCCH with multiple transmissions by NE in accordance with some implementations of the present disclosure.

At step 802, the transmitter 312 of NE 300 transmits a first Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) for scheduling a first Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) or a first Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) ; wherein transmission of the first PDSCH, or reception of the first PUSCH, is scheduled with last symbol at time T1, according to the first PDCCH.

At step 804, the transmitter 312 of NE 300 transmits a second PDCCH for scheduling a second PDSCH or a second PUSCH that is scheduled with starting symbol at time T2; wherein at least one of the first PDCCH and the second PDCCH is enhanced PDCCH that is transmitted with a plurality of repetitions.

At step 806, the processor 302 of NE 300 derives a timing reference based, at least partially, on the plurality of repetitions for determining whether out-of-order scheduling is supported; wherein upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is not supported, it does not transmit the second PDSCH or receive the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1; and upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is supported, it is allowable to transmit the second PDSCH or receive the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1.

In one aspect, some items as examples of the disclosure concerning a method of a UE or remote device may be summarized as follows:

1. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a receiver, a first Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) for scheduling a first Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) or a first Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) ;

scheduling, by a processor, reception of the first PDSCH or transmission of the first PUSCH with last symbol at time T1, according to the first PDCCH;

receiving, by the receiver, a second PDCCH for scheduling a second PDSCH or a second PUSCH with starting symbol at time T2; wherein at least one of the first PDCCH and the second PDCCH is enhanced PDCCH that is transmitted with a plurality of repetitions; and

deriving, by the processor, a timing reference based, at least partially, on the plurality of repetitions for determining whether out-of-order scheduling is supported; wherein,

upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is not supported, it is not expected to receive the second PDSCH or transmit the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1; and

upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is supported, it is allowable to receive the second PDSCH or transmit the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1.

2. The method of item 1, wherein the plurality of repetitions of the PDCCH are transmitted from a plurality of transmitting-receiving identities of a base station.

3. The method of item 1, wherein the timing reference comprises a last symbol of a reference PDCCH in the plurality of repetitions of the enhanced PDCCH.

4. The method of item 3, wherein the reference PDCCH is a last repetition of the enhanced PDCCH.

5. The method of item 3, wherein the reference PDCCH is a starting repetition of the enhanced PDCCH.

6. The method of item 3, wherein the reference PDCCH is flexibly selectable from a starting repetition and an ending repetition of the enhanced PDCCH.

7. The method of item 3, further comprising receiving a configuration signaling for determining the reference PDCCH in plurality of repetitions of the enhanced PDCCH.

8. The method of item 1, wherein the timing reference comprises a last symbol of a reference PDCCH window for the enhanced PDCCH.

9. The method of item 8, wherein the reference PDCCH window of the enhanced PDCCH starts from an earliest ending symbol of the repetitions of the enhanced PDCCH, and ends at a latest ending symbol of the repetitions of the enhanced PDCCH.

10. The method of item 8, wherein, upon detection of overlapping between the reference PDCCH window and the timing reference for the other PDCCH, the processor determines that out-of-order scheduling is supported; and upon detection of non-overlapping between the reference PDCCH window and the timing reference for the other PDCCH, the processor determines whether out-of-order scheduling is supported based on the last symbol of the reference PDCCH window.

11. The method of item 1, wherein deriving the timing reference comprises determining whether the first PDCCH and second PDCCH are from different Out-Of-Order Sets, each of which comprising one or more CORESETs and/or search space sets.

12. The method of item 11, wherein the processor determines that out-of-order scheduling is supported, upon determining that the first PDCCH and second PDCCH are from different Out-Of-Order Sets.

13. The method of item 11, wherein the processor determines that out-of-order scheduling is not supported, upon determining that the first PDCCH and second PDCCH are from a same Out-Of-Order Set.

14. The method of item 11, further comprising receiving a configuration parameter, OutOfOrderSetIndex, for each one of the first PDCCH and the second PDCCH; wherein the OutOfOrderSetIndex indicates an Out-Of-Order Set from which the corresponding PDCCH is transmitted.

In another aspect, some items as examples of the disclosure concerning a method of a NE or gNB may be summarized as follows:

15. A method, comprising:

transmitting, by a transmitter, a first Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) for scheduling a first Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) or a first Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) ; wherein transmission of the first PDSCH, or reception of the first PUSCH, is scheduled with last symbol at time T1, according to the first PDCCH;

transmitting, by the transmitter, a second PDCCH for scheduling a second PDSCH or a second PUSCH that is scheduled with starting symbol at time T2; wherein at least one of the first PDCCH and the second PDCCH is enhanced PDCCH that is transmitted with a plurality of repetitions; and

deriving, by a processor, a timing reference based, at least partially, on the plurality of repetitions for determining whether out-of-order scheduling is supported; wherein,

upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is not supported, it does not transmit the second PDSCH or receive the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1; and

upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is supported, it is allowable to transmit the second PDSCH or receive the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1.

16. The method of item 15, further comprising transmitting, by the transmitter, the plurality of repetitions of the PDCCH from a plurality of transmitting-receiving identities.

17. The method of item 15, wherein the timing reference comprises a last symbol of a reference PDCCH in the plurality of repetitions of the enhanced PDCCH.

18. The method of item 17, wherein the reference PDCCH is a last repetition of the enhanced PDCCH.

19. The method of item 17, wherein the reference PDCCH is a starting repetition of the enhanced PDCCH.

20. The method of item 17, wherein the reference PDCCH is flexibly selectable from a starting repetition and an ending repetition of the enhanced PDCCH.

21. The method of item 17, further comprising transmitting a configuration signaling for determining the reference PDCCH in plurality of repetitions of the enhanced PDCCH.

22. The method of item 15, wherein the timing reference comprises a last symbol of a reference PDCCH window for the enhanced PDCCH.

23. The method of item 22, wherein the reference PDCCH window of the enhanced PDCCH starts from an earliest ending symbol of the repetitions of the enhanced PDCCH, and ends at a latest ending symbol of the repetitions of the enhanced PDCCH.

24. The method of item 22, wherein, upon detection of overlapping between the reference PDCCH window and the timing reference for the other PDCCH, the processor determines that out-of-order scheduling is supported; and upon detection of non-overlapping between the reference PDCCH window and the timing reference for the other PDCCH, the processor determines whether out-of-order scheduling is supported based on the last symbol of the reference PDCCH window.

25. The method of item 15, wherein deriving the timing reference comprises determining whether the first PDCCH and second PDCCH are from different Out-Of-Order Sets, each of which comprising one or more CORESETs and/or search space sets.

26. The method of item 25, wherein the processor determines that out-of-order scheduling is supported, upon determining that the first PDCCH and second PDCCH are from different Out-Of-Order Sets.

27. The method of item 25, wherein the processor determines that out-of-order scheduling is not supported, upon determining that the first PDCCH and second PDCCH are from a same Out-Of-Order Set.

28. The method of item 25, further comprising transmitting a configuration parameter, OutOfOrderSetIndex, for each one of the first PDCCH and the second PDCCH; wherein the OutOfOrderSetIndex indicates an Out-Of-Order Set from which the corresponding PDCCH is transmitted.

In a further aspect, some items as examples of the disclosure concerning a UE or remote device may be summarized as follows:

29. An apparatus, comprising:

a receiver that receives a first Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) for scheduling a first Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) or a first Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) ; and

a processor that schedules reception of the first PDSCH or transmission of the first PUSCH with last symbol at time T1, according to the first PDCCH;

wherein the receiver further receives a second PDCCH for scheduling a second PDSCH or a second PUSCH with starting symbol at time T2; wherein at least one of the first PDCCH and the second PDCCH is enhanced PDCCH that is transmitted with a plurality of repetitions;

wherein the processor further derives a timing reference based, at least partially, on the plurality of repetitions for determining whether out-of-order scheduling is supported; and

wherein upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is not supported, it is not expected to receive the second PDSCH or transmit the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1; and upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is supported, it is allowable to receive the second PDSCH or transmit the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1.

30. The apparatus of item 29, wherein the plurality of repetitions of the PDCCH are transmitted from a plurality of transmitting-receiving identities of a base station.

31. The apparatus of item 29, wherein the timing reference comprises a last symbol of a reference PDCCH in the plurality of repetitions of the enhanced PDCCH.

32. The apparatus of item 31, wherein the reference PDCCH is a last repetition of the enhanced PDCCH.

33. The apparatus of item 31, wherein the reference PDCCH is a starting repetition of the enhanced PDCCH.

34. The apparatus of item 31, wherein the reference PDCCH is flexibly selectable from a starting repetition and an ending repetition of the enhanced PDCCH.

35. The apparatus of item 31, wherein the receiver further receives a configuration signaling for determining the reference PDCCH in plurality of repetitions of the enhanced PDCCH.

36. The apparatus of item 29, wherein the timing reference comprises a last symbol of a reference PDCCH window for the enhanced PDCCH.

37. The apparatus of item 36, wherein the reference PDCCH window of the enhanced PDCCH starts from an earliest ending symbol of the repetitions of the enhanced PDCCH, and ends at a latest ending symbol of the repetitions of the enhanced PDCCH.

38. The apparatus of item 36, wherein, upon detection of overlapping between the reference PDCCH window and the timing reference for the other PDCCH, the processor determines that out-of-order scheduling is supported; and upon detection of non-overlapping between the reference PDCCH window and the timing reference for the other PDCCH, the processor determines whether out-of-order scheduling is supported based on the last symbol of the reference PDCCH window.

39. The apparatus of item 29, wherein deriving the timing reference comprises determining whether the first PDCCH and second PDCCH are from different Out-Of-Order Sets, each of which comprising one or more CORESETs and/or search space sets.

40. The apparatus of item 39, wherein the processor determines that out-of-order scheduling is supported, upon determining that the first PDCCH and second PDCCH are from different Out-Of-Order Sets.

41. The apparatus of item 39, wherein the processor determines that out-of-order scheduling is not supported, upon determining that the first PDCCH and second PDCCH are from a same Out-Of-Order Set.

42. The apparatus of item 39, wherein the receiver further receives a configuration parameter, OutOfOrderSetIndex, for each one of the first PDCCH and the second PDCCH; wherein the OutOfOrderSetIndex indicates an Out-Of-Order Set from which the corresponding PDCCH is transmitted.

In a yet further aspect, some items as examples of the disclosure concerning a NE or gNB may be summarized as follows:

43. An apparatus, comprising:

a transmitter that transmits a first Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) for scheduling a first Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) or a first Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) ; wherein transmission of the first PDSCH, or reception of the first PUSCH, is scheduled with last symbol at time T1, according to the first PDCCH; wherein the transmitter further transmits a second PDCCH for scheduling a second PDSCH or a second PUSCH that is scheduled with starting symbol at time T2; wherein at least one of the first PDCCH and the second PDCCH is enhanced PDCCH that is transmitted with a plurality of repetitions; and

a processor that derives a timing reference based, at least partially, on the plurality of repetitions for determining whether out-of-order scheduling is supported; wherein upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is not supported, it does not transmit the second PDSCH or receive the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1; and upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is supported, it is allowable to transmit the second PDSCH or receive the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1.

44. The apparatus of item 43, wherein the transmitter further transmits the plurality of repetitions of the PDCCH from a plurality of transmitting-receiving identities.

45. The apparatus of item 43, wherein the timing reference comprises a last symbol of a reference PDCCH in the plurality of repetitions of the enhanced PDCCH.

46. The apparatus of item 45, wherein the reference PDCCH is a last repetition of the enhanced PDCCH.

47. The apparatus of item 45, wherein the reference PDCCH is a starting repetition of the enhanced PDCCH.

48. The apparatus of item 45, wherein the reference PDCCH is flexibly selectable from a starting repetition and an ending repetition of the enhanced PDCCH.

49. The apparatus of item 45, wherein the transmitter further transmits a configuration signaling for determining the reference PDCCH in plurality of repetitions of the enhanced PDCCH.

50. The apparatus of item 43, wherein the timing reference comprises a last symbol of a reference PDCCH window for the enhanced PDCCH.

51. The apparatus of item 50, wherein the reference PDCCH window of the enhanced PDCCH starts from an earliest ending symbol of the repetitions of the enhanced PDCCH, and ends at a latest ending symbol of the repetitions of the enhanced PDCCH.

52. The apparatus of item 50, wherein, upon detection of overlapping between the reference PDCCH window and the timing reference for the other PDCCH, the processor determines that out-of-order scheduling is supported; and upon detection of non-overlapping between the reference PDCCH window and the timing reference for the other PDCCH, the processor determines whether out-of-order scheduling is supported based on the last symbol of the reference PDCCH window.

53. The apparatus of item 43, wherein deriving the timing reference comprises determining whether the first PDCCH and second PDCCH are from different Out-Of-Order Sets, each of which comprising one or more CORESETs and/or search space sets.

54. The apparatus of item 53, wherein the processor determines that out-of-order scheduling is supported, upon determining that the first PDCCH and second PDCCH are from different Out-Of-Order Sets.

55. The apparatus of item 53, wherein the processor determines that out-of-order scheduling is not supported, upon determining that the first PDCCH and second PDCCH are from a same Out-Of-Order Set.

56. The apparatus of item 53, wherein the transmitter further transmits a configuration parameter, OutOfOrderSetIndex, for each one of the first PDCCH and the second PDCCH; wherein the OutOfOrderSetIndex indicates an Out-Of-Order Set from which the corresponding PDCCH is transmitted.

Various embodiments and/or examples are disclosed to provide exemplary and explanatory information to enable a person of ordinary skill in the art to put the disclosure into practice. Features or components disclosed with reference to one embodiment or example are also applicable to all embodiments or examples unless specifically indicated otherwise.

Embodiments may be practiced in other specific forms. The described embodiments are to be considered in all respects only as illustrative and not restrictive. The scope is, therefore, indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description. All changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope.

Claims

A method, comprising:

receiving, by a receiver, a first Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) for scheduling a first Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) or a first Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) ;

scheduling, by a processor, reception of the first PDSCH or transmission of the first PUSCH with last symbol at time T1, according to the first PDCCH;

receiving, by the receiver, a second PDCCH for scheduling a second PDSCH or a second PUSCH with starting symbol at time T2; wherein at least one of the first PDCCH and the second PDCCH is enhanced PDCCH that is transmitted with a plurality of repetitions; and

deriving, by the processor, a timing reference based, at least partially, on the plurality of repetitions for determining whether out-of-order scheduling is supported; wherein,

upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is not supported, it is not expected to receive the second PDSCH or transmit the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1; and

upon determining that out-of-order scheduling is supported, it is allowable to receive the second PDSCH or transmit the second PUSCH with T2 earlier than T1.
The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of repetitions of the PDCCH are transmitted from a plurality of transmitting-receiving identities of a base station.
The method of claim 1, wherein the timing reference comprises a last symbol of a reference PDCCH in the plurality of repetitions of the enhanced PDCCH.
The method of claim 3, wherein the reference PDCCH is a last repetition of the enhanced PDCCH.
The method of claim 3, wherein the reference PDCCH is a starting repetition of the enhanced PDCCH.
The method of claim 3, wherein the reference PDCCH is flexibly selectable from a starting repetition and an ending repetition of the enhanced PDCCH.
The method of claim 3, further comprising receiving a configuration signaling for determining the reference PDCCH in plurality of repetitions of the enhanced PDCCH.
The method of claim 1, wherein the timing reference comprises a last symbol of a reference PDCCH window for the enhanced PDCCH.
The method of claim 8, wherein the reference PDCCH window of the enhanced PDCCH starts from an earliest ending symbol of the repetitions of the enhanced PDCCH, and ends at a latest ending symbol of the repetitions of the enhanced PDCCH.
The method of claim 8, wherein, upon detection of overlapping between the reference PDCCH window and the timing reference for the other PDCCH, the processor determines that out-of-order scheduling is supported; and upon detection of non-overlapping between the reference PDCCH window and the timing reference for the other PDCCH, the processor determines whether out-of-order scheduling is supported based on the last symbol of the reference PDCCH window.
The method of claim 1, wherein deriving the timing reference comprises determining whether the first PDCCH and second PDCCH are from different Out-Of-Order Sets, each of which comprising one or more CORESETs and/or search space sets.
The method of claim 11, wherein the processor determines that out-of-order scheduling is supported, upon determining that the first PDCCH and second PDCCH are from different Out-Of-Order Sets.
The method of claim 11, wherein the processor determines that out-of-order scheduling is not supported, upon determining that the first PDCCH and second PDCCH are from a same Out-Of-Order Set.
The method of claim 11, further comprising receiving a configuration parameter, OutOfOrderSetIndex, for each one of the first PDCCH and the second PDCCH; wherein the OutOfOrderSetIndex indicates an Out-Of-Order Set from which the corresponding PDCCH is transmitted.