WO2023102841A1

WO2023102841A1 - Method, device and computer storage medium of communication

Info

Publication number: WO2023102841A1
Application number: PCT/CN2021/136843
Authority: WO
Inventors: Gang Wang; Fang Xu
Original assignee: Nec Corporation
Priority date: 2021-12-09
Filing date: 2021-12-09
Publication date: 2023-06-15

Abstract

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to methods, devices and computer readable media for communication. A terminal device receives, from a network device, first DCI indicating a set of offsets for scheduling a set of data transmissions and second DCI indicating an offset restriction for the scheduling; and in accordance with a determination that a first subset in the set of offsets is within the offset restriction and a second subset in the set of offsets is outside the offset restriction, determining at least the first subset of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling. In this way, a behavior when a cross-slot scheduling and a scheduling of a set of data transmissions by single DCI are configured simultaneously is defined.

Description

METHOD, DEVICE AND COMPUTER STORAGE MEDIUM OF COMMUNICATION

TECHNICAL FIELD

Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to the field of telecommunication, and in particular, to methods, devices and computer storage media of communication for a cross-slot scheduling while a scheduling of multiple data channels by single downlink control information (DCI) is configured.

BACKGROUND

To support new radio (NR) from 52.6GHz to 71GHz, it is proposed to use single DCI on downlink control channel such as a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) to schedule multiple data channels such as physical uplink/downlink shared channels (PUSCHs/PDSCHs) . In this way, the control signaling overhead may be reduced.

Recently, a cross-slot scheduling is introduced to achieve power saving. In the cross-slot scheduling, the minimum scheduling offset restriction is applied, and a terminal device is not expected to be scheduled with DCI to transmit a data channel in a slot within the minimum scheduling offset restriction. However, details on how to follow the minimum scheduling offset restriction when multiple data transmissions are scheduled by single DCI are still incomplete.

SUMMARY

In general, embodiments of the present disclosure provide methods, devices and computer storage media for communication when both a cross-slot scheduling and a scheduling of multiple data transmissions by single DCI are configured.

In a first aspect, there is provided a method of communication. The method comprises: receiving, at a terminal device and from a network device, first DCI indicating a set of offsets for scheduling a set of data transmissions and second DCI indicating an offset restriction for the scheduling; and in accordance with a determination that a first subset in the set of offsets is within the offset restriction and a second subset in the set of offsets is outside the offset restriction, determining at least the first subset of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling.

In a second aspect, there is provided a method of communication. The method comprises: receiving, at a terminal device and from a network device, first DCI indicating a set of offsets for scheduling a set of data transmissions and second DCI indicating an offset restriction for the scheduling; and determining, without applying the offset restriction, a set of resources for the set of data transmissions based on the set of offsets.

In a third aspect, there is provided a method of communication. The method comprises: transmitting, at a network device and to a terminal device, first DCI indicating a set of offsets for scheduling a set of data transmissions and second DCI indicating an offset restriction for the scheduling; and in accordance with a determination that a first subset in the set of offsets is within the offset restriction and a second subset in the set of offsets is outside the offset restriction, determining at least the first subset of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling.

In a fourth aspect, there is provided a method of communication. The method comprises: receiving, at a terminal device and from a network device, first DCI indicating a set of offsets for scheduling a set of data transmissions and second DCI indicating an offset restriction for the scheduling; and determining, without applying the offset restriction, a set of resources for the set of data transmissions based on the set of offsets.

In a fifth aspect, there is provided a terminal device. The terminal device comprises a processor and a memory coupled to the processor. The memory stores instructions that when executed by the processor, cause the terminal device to perform the method according to the first or second aspect of the present disclosure.

In a sixth aspect, there is provided a network device. The network device comprises a processor and a memory coupled to the processor. The memory stores instructions that when executed by the processor, cause the network device to perform the method according to the third or fourth aspect of the present disclosure.

In a seventh aspect, there is provided a computer readable medium having instructions stored thereon. The instructions, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to perform the method according to the first or second aspect of the present disclosure.

In an eighth aspect, there is provided a computer readable medium having instructions stored thereon. The instructions, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to perform the method according to the third or fourth aspect of the present disclosure.

Other features of the present disclosure will become easily comprehensible through the following description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Through the more detailed description of some embodiments of the present disclosure in the accompanying drawings, the above and other objects, features and advantages of the present disclosure will become more apparent, wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates an example communication network in which some embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented;

FIG. 2A illustrates a schematic diagram illustrating a scheduling of one data transmission by single DCI according to embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2B illustrates a schematic diagram illustrating a cross-slot scheduling according to embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2C illustrates a schematic diagram illustrating a scheduling of a set of data transmissions by single DCI according to embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 illustrates a schematic diagram illustrating a process of communication for a cross-slot scheduling when a scheduling of a set of data channels by single DCI is configured according to embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4A illustrates a schematic diagram illustrating an example generation of a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) codebook according to embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4B illustrates a schematic diagram illustrating another example generation of a HARQ codebook according to embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 5 illustrates an example method of communication implemented at a terminal device in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 illustrates another example method of communication implemented at a terminal device in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 7 illustrates an example method of communication implemented at a network device in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 8 illustrates another example method of communication implemented at a network device in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 9 is a simplified block diagram of a device that is suitable for implementing embodiments of the present disclosure.

Throughout the drawings, the same or similar reference numerals represent the same or similar element.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Principle of the present disclosure will now be described with reference to some example embodiments. It is to be understood that these embodiments are described only for the purpose of illustration and help those skilled in the art to understand and implement the present disclosure, without suggesting any limitation as to the scope of the disclosure. Embodiments described herein can be implemented in various manners other than the ones described below.

In the following description and claims, unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skills in the art to which this disclosure belongs.

References in the present disclosure to “one embodiment, ” “an embodiment, ” “an example embodiment, ” and the like indicate that the embodiment described may include a particular feature, structure, or characteristic, but it is not necessary that every embodiment includes the particular feature, structure, or characteristic. Moreover, such phrases are not necessarily referring to the same embodiment. Further, when a particular feature, structure, or characteristic is described in connection with an embodiment, it is submitted that it is within the knowledge of one skilled in the art to affect such feature, structure, or characteristic in connection with other embodiments whether or not explicitly described.

It shall be understood that although the terms “first” and “second” etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another. For example, a first element could be termed a second element, and similarly, a second element could be termed a first element, without departing from the scope of example embodiments. As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the listed terms.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of example embodiments. As used herein, the singular forms “a” , “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises” , “comprising” , “has” , “having” , “includes” and/or “including” , when used herein, specify the presence of stated features, elements, and/or components etc., but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, elements, components and/or combinations thereof.

In some examples, values, procedures, or apparatus are referred to as “best, ” “lowest, ” “highest, ” “minimum, ” “maximum, ” or the like. It will be appreciated that such descriptions are intended to indicate that a selection among many used functional alternatives can be made, and such selections need not be better, smaller, higher, or otherwise preferable to other selections.

As used herein, the term “communication network” refers to a network following any suitable communication standards, such as New Radio (NR) , Long Term Evolution (LTE) , LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) , Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) , High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA) , Narrow Band Internet of Things (NB-IoT) and so on. Furthermore, the communications between a terminal device and a network device in the communication network may be performed according to any suitable generation communication protocols, including, but not limited to, the first generation (1G) , the second generation (2G) , 2.5G, 2.75G, the third generation (3G) , the fourth generation (4G) , 4.5G, the fifth generation (5G) , 5.5G, 5G-Advanced networks, or the sixth generation (6G) communication protocols, and/or any other protocols either currently known or to be developed in the future. Embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied in various communication systems. Given the rapid development in communications, there will of course also be future type communication technologies and systems with which the present disclosure may be embodied. It should not be seen as limiting the scope of the present disclosure to only the aforementioned system.

As used herein, the term ‘terminal device’ refers to any device having wireless or wired communication capabilities. Examples of the terminal device include, but not limited to, user equipment (UE) , personal computers, desktops, mobile phones, cellular phones, smart phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs) , portable computers, tablets, wearable devices, internet of things (IoT) devices, Ultra-reliable and Low Latency Communications (URLLC) devices, Internet of Everything (IoE) devices, machine type communication (MTC) devices, device on vehicle for V2X communication where X means pedestrian, vehicle, or infrastructure/network, devices for Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB) , Space borne vehicles or Air borne vehicles in Non-terrestrial networks (NTN) including Satellites and High Altitude Platforms (HAPs) encompassing Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) , eXtended Reality (XR) devices including different types of realities such as Augmented Reality (AR) , Mixed Reality (MR) and Virtual Reality (VR) , the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) commonly known as a drone which is an aircraft without any human pilot, devices on high speed train (HST) , or image capture devices such as digital cameras, sensors, gaming devices, music storage and playback appliances, or Internet appliances enabling wireless or wired Internet access and browsing and the like. The ‘terminal device’ can further has ‘multicast/broadcast’ feature, to support public safety and mission critical, V2X applications, transparent IPv4/IPv6 multicast delivery, IPTV, smart TV, radio services, software delivery over wireless, group communications and IoT applications. It may also incorporated one or multiple Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) as known as Multi-SIM. The term “terminal device” can be used interchangeably with a UE, a mobile station, a subscriber station, a mobile terminal, a user terminal or a wireless device.

The term “network device” refers to a device which is capable of providing or hosting a cell or coverage where terminal devices can communicate. Examples of a network device include, but not limited to, a Node B (NodeB or NB) , an evolved NodeB (eNodeB or eNB) , a next generation NodeB (gNB) , a transmission reception point (TRP) , a remote radio unit (RRU) , a radio head (RH) , a remote radio head (RRH) , an IAB node, a low power node such as a femto node, a pico node, a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) , and the like.

The terminal device or the network device may have Artificial intelligence (AI) or Machine learning capability. It generally includes a model which has been trained from numerous collected data for a specific function, and can be used to predict some information.

The terminal or the network device may work on several frequency ranges, e.g. FR1 (410 MHz to 7125 MHz) , FR2 (24.25GHz to 71GHz) , frequency band larger than 100GHz as well as Tera Hertz (THz) . It can further work on licensed/unlicensed/shared spectrum. The terminal device may have more than one connections with the network devices under Multi-Radio Dual Connectivity (MR-DC) application scenario. The terminal device or the network device can work on full duplex, flexible duplex and cross division duplex modes.

The embodiments of the present disclosure may be performed in test equipment, e.g. signal generator, signal analyzer, spectrum analyzer, network analyzer, test terminal device, test network device, channel emulator.

In one embodiment, the terminal device may be connected with a first network device and a second network device. One of the first network device and the second network device may be a master node and the other one may be a secondary node. The first network device and the second network device may use different radio access technologies (RATs) . In one embodiment, the first network device may be a first RAT device and the second network device may be a second RAT device. In one embodiment, the first RAT device is eNB and the second RAT device is gNB. Information related with different RATs may be transmitted to the terminal device from at least one of the first network device or the second network device. In one embodiment, first information may be transmitted to the terminal device from the first network device and second information may be transmitted to the terminal device from the second network device directly or via the first network device. In one embodiment, information related with configuration for the terminal device configured by the second network device may be transmitted from the second network device via the first network device. Information related with reconfiguration for the terminal device configured by the second network device may be transmitted to the terminal device from the second network device directly or via the first network device.

The embodiments of the present disclosure may be performed according to any generation communication protocols either currently known or to be developed in the future. Examples of the communication protocols include, but not limited to, the first generation (1G) , the second generation (2G) , 2.5G, 2.75G, the third generation (3G) , the fourth generation (4G) , 4.5G, the fifth generation (5G) communication protocols, 5.5G, 5G-Advanced networks, or the sixth generation (6G) networks.

Currently, it is agreed that if a UE is configured with a time domain resource assignment (TDRA) table in which one or more rows contain multiple start and length indicator values (SLIVs) , multiple PDSCHs or PUSCHs may be scheduled with single DCI. A row of the TDRA table can indicate PDSCHs or PUSCHs that are in consecutive or non-consecutive time units, by configuring multiple scheduling offset values (e.g., k0 or k2) .

In the context of the present application, the time unit may be millisecond, subframe, slot, mini-slot, orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbol or any other suitable forms. The term “across-slot scheduling” may means that an offset restriction for the scheduling is in any suitable time unit, and is not limited to be in a slot level. For convenience, the following description is given by taking a slot as an example of the time unit.

In some scenarios, a cross-slot scheduling with the minimum scheduling offset restriction may be simultaneously configured. In these scenarios, what may happen is that some of the multiple offset values in the row of the TDRA table may be within the minimum scheduling offset restriction and some other of the multiple offset values in the row of the TDRA table may be outside the minimum scheduling offset restriction. In this case, how to follow the minimum scheduling offset restriction becomes an issue. Further, associated HARQ process number management and HARQ codebook generation are also to be further developed.

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide solutions for solving the above and other potential issues. In one aspect, when both a set of offsets for scheduling a set of data transmissions and an offset restriction for the scheduling are configured, if a first subset in the set of offsets is within the offset restriction and a second subset in the set of offsets is outside the offset restriction, at least the first subset of offsets is determined to be invalid for the scheduling. In this way, a solution of handling the offset restriction in scheduling of multiple data transmissions by single DCI may be provided.

In another aspect, when both a set of offsets for scheduling a set of data transmissions and an offset restriction for the scheduling are configured, a set of resources for the set of data transmissions based on the set of offsets are determined without applying the offset restriction. In this way, another solution of handling the offset restriction in scheduling of multiple data transmissions by single DCI may be provided.

In the context of the present disclosure, the term “within the offset restriction” means “smaller than the offset restriction” , and the term “outside the offset restriction” means “greater than or equal to the offset restriction” .

Principles and implementations of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the figures.

EXAMPLE OF COMMUNICATION NETWORK

FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic diagram of an example communication network 100 in which some embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented. As shown in FIG. 1, the communication network 100 may include a terminal device 110 and a network device 120. In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may be served by the network device 120. It is to be understood that the number of devices in FIG. 1 is given for the purpose of illustration without suggesting any limitations to the present disclosure. The communication network 100 may include any suitable number of network devices and/or terminal devices adapted for implementing implementations of the present disclosure.

As shown in FIG. 1, the terminal device 110 may communicate with the network device 120 via a channel such as a wireless communication channel. The communications in the communication network 100 may conform to any suitable standards including, but not limited to, Long Term Evolution (LTE) , LTE-Evolution, LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) , Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) , Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) and Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) and the like. Furthermore, the communications may be performed according to any generation communication protocols either currently known or to be developed in the future. Examples of the communication protocols include, but not limited to, the first generation (1G) , the second generation (2G) , 2.5G, 2.75G, the third generation (3G) , the fourth generation (4G) , 4.5G, the fifth generation (5G) , 5.5G, 5G-Advanced networks, or the sixth generation (6G) communication protocols.

In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may transmit uplink data to the network device 120 via an uplink data channel transmission. For example, the uplink data channel transmission may be a PUSCH transmission. Of course, any other suitable forms are also feasible. In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may receive downlink data from the network device 120 via a downlink data channel transmission. For example, the downlink data channel transmission may be a PDSCH transmission. Of course, any other suitable forms are also feasible.

In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may receive DCI, e.g., data transmission configuration from the network device 120 via a downlink control channel transmission. For example, the downlink control channel transmission may be a PDCCH transmission. Of course, any other suitable forms are also feasible. In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may transmit uplink control information (UCI) , e.g., HARQ feedback information to the network device 120 via an uplink channel transmission. For example, the uplink channel transmission may be a PUCCH or PUSCH transmission. Of course, any other suitable forms are also feasible.

In some embodiments, the network device 120 may provide a plurality of serving cells (not shown herein) for the terminal device 110, for example, a primary cell (PCell) , a primary secondary cell (PSCell) , a secondary cell (SCell) , a special cell (sPCell) or the like. Each of the serving cells may correspond to a CC. The terminal device 110 may perform transmission with the network device 120 via a CC. Of course, the terminal device 110 may perform transmission with the network device 120 via multiple CCs, for example, in case of CA.

In some embodiments, the network device 120 may schedule one data transmission by DCI on a single downlink control channel for the terminal device 110. For example, the network device 120 may configure a TDRA table with scheduling offsets as shown in Table 1 to the terminal device 110. It is to be understood that this is merely an example, and the TDRA table may be carried out in any other suitable ways.

Table 1 An Example TDRA Table With Scheduling Offsets In Scheduling of A Data Transmission By Single DCI

Row Index	k0/k2
0	3
1	2
2	1
3	0

FIG. 2A illustrates a schematic diagram illustrating a process 200A for scheduling one downlink data channel by single DCI according to embodiments of the present disclosure. For illustration, FIG. 2A will be described in connection with Table 1. As shown in FIG. 2A, DCI 210 may indicate a row index in a TDRA table. For example, the row index is 3 in the Table 1. That is, the DCI 210 may schedule a single PDSCH or PUSCH 211 indicated by k0=0 or k2=0. In this example, DCI 220 may indicate that the row index is 3. That is, the DCI 220 may schedule a single PDSCH or PUSCH 221 indicated by k0=0 or k2=0. DCI 230 may indicate that the row index is 3. That is, the DCI 230 may schedule a single PDSCH or PUSCH 231 indicated by k0=0 or k2=0. DCI 240 may indicate that the row index is 3. That is, the DCI 240 may schedule a single PDSCH or PUSCH 241 indicated by k0=0 or k2=0. DCI 250 may indicate that the row index is 3. That is, the DCI 250 may schedule a single PDSCH or PUSCH 251 indicated by k0=0 or k2=0.

In the example of FIG. 2A, a scheduling on a consecutive slot is shown. It is to be understood that this is merely an example, and a scheduling on a non-consecutive slot or any other time unit may also be feasible.

In some embodiments, the network device 120 may configure for the terminal device 110 a cross-slot scheduling with an offset restriction. FIG. 2B illustrates a schematic diagram illustrating a process 200B for a cross-slot scheduling according to embodiments of the present disclosure. For illustration, FIG. 2B will be described in connection with Table 1.

Assuming that the offset restriction is 2, for example, the minimum scheduling offset restriction for k0 is 2. In other words, the terminal device 110 does not expect to be scheduled in a time unit (for example, slot) with k0 smaller than the offset restriction (i.e., 2) to perform a data transmission. As shown in FIG. 2B, the terminal device 110 does not expect to be scheduled in slot 0 and slot 1 with k0=0 and k0=1 to perform data transmissions.

In the example of FIG. 2B, DCI 260 may indicate that the row index is 1. That is, the DCI 260 may schedule a single PDSCH or PUSCH 261 indicated by k0=2 or k2=2. DCI 270 may indicate that the row index is 1. That is, the DCI 270 may schedule a single PDSCH or PUSCH 271 indicated by k0=2 or k2=2. DCI 280 may indicate that the row index is 1. That is, the DCI 280 may schedule a single PDSCH or PUSCH 281 indicated by k0=2 or k2=2. The terminal device 110 is not scheduled in slot 0 and slot 1 with k0=0 and k0=1 to perform data transmissions. In other words, a row in the TDRA table with an offset smaller than the offset restriction is not expected or is invalid for scheduling a data transmission.

In some embodiments, the network device 120 may schedule multiple data transmissions by single DCI on downlink control channel for the terminal device 110. For example, the network device 120 may configure a TDRA table with scheduling offsets as shown in Table 2 to the terminal device 110. It is to be understood that this is merely an example, and the TDRA table may be carried out in any other suitable ways.

Table 2 An Example TDRA Table With Scheduling Offsets In Scheduling of Data Transmissions By Single DCI

Row Index	k0/k2
0	2
1	2	4
2	0	1	2	3
3	0	1	2	3	4	5

FIG. 2C illustrates a schematic diagram illustrating a process 200C for scheduling a set of data transmissions by single DCI according to embodiments of the present disclosure. For illustration, FIG. 2C will be described in connection with Table 2. As shown in FIG. 2C, DCI 200 may indicate a row index in a TDRA table. For example, the row index is 3 in the Table 2. That is, the DCI 200 may schedule six PDSCHs or PUSCHs indicated by a set of k0 or k2 values {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5} , i.e., PDSCHs or PUSCHs 201 to 206. It is to be understood that the number of PDSCHs scheduled in single DCI is not limited to the above example, and any other integers are also feasible.

In the example of FIG. 2C, if an offset restriction of 2 is also configured, for row index=3, some of the set of k0 or k2 values (for example, {0, 1} ) may be smaller than the offset restriction (i.e., within the offset restriction) , and some of the set of k0 or k2 values (for example, {2, 3, 4, 5} ) may be not smaller than the offset restriction (i.e., outside the offset restriction) . In this case, how to handle a scheduling with the row (row index=3) in Table 2 becomes an issue.

In view of this, embodiments of the present disclosure provide solutions for communication when both a cross-slot scheduling and a scheduling of data transmissions by single DCI are configured. These solutions will be described in detail with reference to FIGs. 3 to 4B.

EXAMPLE IMPLEMENTATION OF SCHEDULING WITH OFFSET RESTRICTION

FIG. 3 illustrates a schematic diagram illustrating a process 300 of communication for a cross-slot scheduling when a scheduling of a set of data channels by single DCI is configured according to embodiments of the present disclosure. For the purpose of discussion, the process 300 will be described with reference to FIG. 1. The process 300 may involve the terminal device 110 and the network device 120 as illustrated in FIG. 1.

As shown in FIG. 3, the network device 120 transmits 310, to the terminal device 110, first DCI indicating a set of offsets (for example, k0 or k2 values) for scheduling a set of data transmissions. In some embodiments, the network device 120 may configure a TDRA table for the terminal device 110. For example, a row of the TDRA table may indicate multiple PDSCHs (or PUSCHs) that are in consecutive or non-consecutive slots, by configuring {a start and length indicator value (SLIV) , mapping type, an offset (k0 or k2) } for each PDSCH (or PUSCH) in the row of the TDRA table. The first DCI may indicate a row index in the TDRA table, the row index indicating the set of offsets. The terminal device 110 may determine the set of offsets from the TDRA table based on the row index.

In some embodiments, the network device 120 transmits 320, to the terminal device 110, second DCI indicating an offset restriction for scheduling. For example, the second DCI may indicate the minimum scheduling offset restriction. Of course, the offset restriction may take any other suitable forms. In some embodiments, the network device 120 may transmit a list of the offset restriction to the terminal device 110. For example, the configuration may comprise a list of the offset restriction. The second DCI may comprise an indication of the offset restriction associated with the list of the offset restriction. The terminal device 110 may determine the value of the offset restriction from the configuration based on the indication of the offset restriction.

In some embodiments, the transmission 310 may be earlier than the transmission 320. In some embodiments, the transmission 310 may be later than the transmission 320. In some embodiments, the transmission 310 and the transmission 320 may be performed simultaneously. In some embodiments, the first DCI and the second DCI may be the same DCI. In these embodiments, the set of offsets may be indicated by a field of DCI and the offset restriction may be indicated by another field of the DCI. In some alternative embodiments, the first DCI and the second DCI may be different DCI.

In some embodiments, the set of data transmissions may comprise single or multiple data transmissions. For example, the set of data transmissions may comprise multiple PDSCHs. As another example, the first set of data transmissions may comprise multiple PUSCHs.

Based on the first DCI and the second DCI, the terminal device 110 determines 330 whether a first subset in the set of offsets is within the offset restriction and a second subset in the set of offsets is outside the offset restriction. In other words, an offset in the first subset of offsets is smaller than the offset restriction, and an offset in the second subset of offsets is not smaller than the offset restriction.

For example, the terminal device 110 is configured with a TDRA table as shown in Table 2, the first DCI indicates a row index of 3, and the offset restriction for k0 is 2. It can be known from Table 2 that the set of offsets is {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5} , the first subset is {0, 1} and the second subset is {2, 3, 4, 5} . That is, there are the first and second subsets in the set of offsets {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5} . As another example, if the first DCI indicates a row index of 1, the set of offsets is {2, 4} . Then only the second subset is present in the set of offsets {2, 4} .

If the terminal device 110 determines that there are the first and second subsets in the set of offsets, the terminal device 110 determines 340 at least the first subset of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling. In this regard, some example embodiments will be described in connection with Embodiments 1 to 3.

Embodiment 1

In this embodiment, the terminal device 110 may determine the set of offsets (i.e., both the first and second subsets) to be invalid for scheduling. That is, the terminal device 110 does not expect to be scheduled with the set of offsets to perform data transmissions. In other words, the terminal device 110 may determine the whole row associated with the set of offsets in the TDRA table to be invalid for scheduling.

With reference to Table 2, if the first DCI indicates a row index of 3 and the offset restriction for k0 is 2, the first subset is {0, 1} and the second subset is {2, 3, 4, 5} . In this case, the terminal device 110 may determine a row having a row index of 3 in Table 2 to be invalid for scheduling. If the first DCI indicates a row index of 2 and the offset restriction for k0 is 2, the first subset is {0, 1} and the second subset is {2, 3} . In this case, the terminal device 110 may also determine a row having a row index of 2 in Table 2 to be invalid for scheduling. That is, for the TDRA table as shown in Table 2, if the offset restriction for k0 is 2, the terminal device 110 does not expect to be scheduled with rows having

row indexes

2 and 3 to perform data transmissions.

In this case, if the invalid rows are cancelled upon determination of candidate occasions for downlink data channel (for example, PDSCH) reception, a size of a HARQ codebook may be reduced and a generation of the HARQ codebook may be enhanced. In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may determine a set of occasions (for convenience, also referred to as a first set of occasions herein) based on all SLIVs of each row in a TDRA table configured for the terminal device 110, and determine another set of occasions (for convenience, also referred to as a second set of occasions herein) by cancelling, from the first set of occasions, at least one occasion determined by a set of SLIV values associated with the set of offsets in the invalid row. Then the terminal device 110 may generate a HARQ codebook for the second set of occasions. In some embodiments, the HARQ codebook may be a Type-1 HARQ-acknowledgement (HARQ-ACK) codebook.

For example, a TDRA table with scheduling offsets and SLIVs may be configured as shown in Table 3 and the offset restriction (e.g., the minimum scheduling offset restriction for k0) is 2. Assuming that k1 set = {1, 2} and each SLIV corresponds to S=0 and L=14 for each PDSCH.

Table 3 An Example TDRA Table In Scheduling of Data Transmissions By Single DCI

Row Index	{k0, SLIV}
0	{2, SLIV R0_0}
1	{2, SLIV R1_0}	{3, SLIV R1_1}
2	{0, SLIV R2_0}	{1, SLIV R2_1}	{2, SLIV R2_2}	{3, SLIV R2_3}

Based on all SLIVs in each row of the Table 3, the first set of occasions may be determined as shown in FIG. 4A. FIG. 4A illustrates a schematic diagram 400A illustrating an example generation of a HARQ codebook according to embodiments of the present disclosure. In the example of FIG. 4A, the HARQ codebook may be transmitted by an uplink control channel (e.g., PUCCH) 401 in slot N. As shown in FIG. 4A, all SLIVs in each row of Table 3 are listed based on the k1 set. It can be known that the first set of occasions may be determined as {slot N-1, slot N-2, slot N-3, slot N-4, slot N-5} .

As the offset restriction is 2, the invalid rows is the row having row index of 2. The SLIVs in the invalid rows are indicated by 402 and 403, and thus except the occasions determined by the valid rows, additional non-overlapped occasions determined by these invalid SLIVs are {slot N-4, slot N-5} . Then a second set of occasions may be determined as {slot N-1, slot N-2, slot N-3} . That is, the candidate PDSCH reception occasions may be reduced. Thus, the HARQ codebook may be generated only for the second set of occasions.

In some alternative embodiments, the HARQ codebook may be Type-2 HARQ-ACK codebook. For generating Type-2 HARQ-ACK codebook corresponding to DCI that can schedule multiple PDSCHs, two sub-codebooks may be generated, where HARQ-ACK bits in the first sub-codebook correspond to PDSCH (s) scheduled by DCI that schedules a single PDSCH and HARQ-ACK bits in the second sub-codebook correspond to PDSCHs scheduled by DCI that schedules more than one PDSCH.

For the second sub-codebook, the number of HARQ-ACK bits per DCI (e.g., for the first DCI) is the maximum configured number of PDSCHs. For example, serving cell #1 can be configured with TDRA table where the maximum SLIVs in all of rows is equal to 4, while serving cell #2 can be configured with TDRA table where the maximum SLIVs in all of rows is equal to 6. In this case, the number of HARQ-ACK bits corresponding to a downlink assignment index (DAI) is max (4, 6) .

In this case, if the invalid row is cancelled upon determination of a sub-codebook (e.g., the second sub-codebook) , a size of a HARQ codebook may be reduced and a generation of the HARQ codebook may be enhanced. In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may determine the maximum configured number of data transmissions based on the maximum number of offsets other than the set of offsets among rows of a TDRA table configured for the terminal device 110. The terminal device 110 may determine the number of HARQ bits for the first DCI based on the determined maximum configured number of data transmissions, and generate the sub-codebook based on the determined number of HARQ bits.

For example, a TDRA table may be configured as shown above in Table 2, the offset restriction (e.g., the minimum scheduling offset restriction for k0) is 2 and the whole rows having row indexes of 2 and 3 are invalid for scheduling. In this case, the terminal device 110 may consider only the number of offsets in rows with

row indexes

0 and 1. Thus, the maximum number of offsets among these rows is 2. The terminal device 110 may determine that the maximum configured number of data transmissions is 2. Then the terminal device 110 may determine that the number of HARQ bits for the first DCI is 2. In this way, the sub-codebook may be generated based on the determined number of HARQ bits.

So far, an embodiment is described in which the whole row in a TDRA table is disabled.

Embodiment 2

In this embodiment, the terminal device 110 may determine the first subset of offsets to be invalid for scheduling and determine the second subset of offsets to be valid for scheduling. That is, the terminal device 110 does not expect to be scheduled with the first subset of offsets to perform data transmissions. In other words, the terminal device 110 may determine a portion of a row associated with the set of offsets in the TDRA table to be invalid for scheduling.

Still with reference to Table 2, if the first DCI indicates a row index of 3 and the offset restriction for k0 is 2, the first subset is {0, 1} and the second subset is {2, 3, 4, 5} . In this case, the terminal device 110 may determine the first subset {0, 1} in the row having a row index of 3 in Table 2 to be invalid for scheduling and the second subset {2, 3, 4, 5} to be valid for scheduling. If the first DCI indicates a row index of 2 and the offset restriction for k0 is 2, the first subset is {0, 1} and the second subset is {2, 3} . In this case, the terminal device 110 may also determine the first subset {0, 1} in the row having a row index of 2 in Table 2 to be invalid for scheduling and the second subset {2, 3} to be valid for scheduling. That is, for the TDRA table as shown in Table 2, if the offset restriction for k0 is 2, the terminal device 110 does not expect to be scheduled with k0=0 and k0=1 in rows having

row indexes

2 and 3 to perform data transmissions.

In this case, a management of a HARQ process number (also referred to as a HPN or a HARQ process ID herein) needs to be enhanced. In some embodiments, a HARQ process number may be skipped for disabled (i.e., invalid) data transmissions. In these embodiments, the terminal device 110 may determine a starting offset (i.e., the first offset in a timing order) from the second subset of offsets, the starting offset indicating the earliest resource available for the set of data transmissions, and apply a configured HARQ process number to a data transmission scheduled by the starting offset in the set of data transmissions.

In other words, the configured HARQ process number may be applied to the first available enabled (i.e., valid) data transmission. For example, if the first scheduled available data transmission is disabled by the cross-slot scheduling, the HARQ process number may be skipped for the disabled data transmission, and may be applied to the first available enabled data transmission. Then the subsequent HARQ process number is incremented by 1 for each subsequent data transmission in the scheduled order, with modulo maximum number of HARQ processes operation applied. This is fully feasible since both the network device 120 and the terminal device 110 are aware of the scheduling pattern.

For example, a TDRA table with scheduling offset may be configured as shown above in Table 2. The following description is given by taking a downlink transmission as an example. Assuming that a row index indicated in the first DCI is 3, an offset restriction indicated in the second DCI is 2, and a HARQ process number indicated by the first DCI is 1. Table 4 shows an example determination of a HARQ process number. In this embodiment, the first 2 data transmissions are disabled. The HARQ process number for the first available enabled data transmission is 1, and is counted from a data transmission scheduled with k0=2, if a data transmission with k0=2 is available, i.e., the data transmission is not collided with time-division duplexing (TDD) semi-statically configuration, as shown in Table 4.

Table 4 An Example Determination of HARQ Process Number

In some alternative embodiments, a HARQ process number may not be skipped for disabled data transmissions. In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may determine a starting offset (i.e., the first offset in a timing order) from the set of offsets, the starting offset indicating the earliest resource available for the set of data transmissions, and apply a configured HARQ process number to a data transmission scheduled by the starting offset in the set of data transmissions.

In other words, the configured HARQ process number may be applied to the first available data transmission no matter the first available data transmission is enabled or disabled by a cross-slot scheduling. For example, if the first scheduled available data transmission is disabled by the cross-slot scheduling, the HARQ process number may not be skipped for the disabled data transmission, and may be still applied to the first available data transmission. Then the subsequent HARQ process number is incremented by 1 for each subsequent data transmission in the scheduled order, with modulo maximum number of HARQ processes operation applied.

For example, a TDRA table with scheduling offset may be configured as shown above in Table 2. Assuming that a row index indicated in the first DCI is 3, an offset restriction indicated in the second DCI is 2, and a HARQ process number indicated by the first DCI is 1. Table 5 shows another example determination of a HARQ process number. In this embodiment, the first 2 data transmissions are disabled. If the first 2 data transmissions are available, i.e., the first 2 data transmissions are not collided with time-division duplexing (TDD) semi-statically configuration, the HARQ process number is still counted from a data transmission scheduled with k0=0, as shown in Table 5.

Table 5 Another Example Determination of HARQ Process Number

It is to be understood that the above determination of the HARQ process number may also be applied to an uplink transmission. In this case, if an uplink transmission is available, the uplink transmission is not collided with a TDD semi-statically configuration and synchronization signal and physical broadcast channel (PBCH) block (SSB) symbols.

On the other hand, if partially disabled SLIV (s) in a row is cancelled upon determination of candidate occasions for data transmission reception, HARQ codebook generation may also be optimized. In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may determine a set of occasions (i.e., the first set of occasions) based on all SLIVs of each row in a TDRA table configured for the terminal device 110, and determine another set of occasions (for convenience, also referred to as a third set of occasions herein) by cancelling, from the first set of occasions, at least one occasion determined by a set of SLIV values associated with the first subset of offsets. Then the terminal device 110 may generate a HARQ codebook for the third set of occasions. In some embodiments, the HARQ codebook may be a Type-1 HARQ-ACK codebook.

For example, a TDRA table with scheduling offsets and SLIVs may be configured as shown above in Table 3 and the offset restriction (e.g., the minimum scheduling offset restriction for k0) is 2. Assuming that k1 set = {1, 2} and each SLIV corresponds to S=0 and L=14 for each PDSCH.

Based on all SLIVs in each row of the Table 3, the first set of occasions may be determined. FIG. 4B illustrates a schematic diagram 400B illustrating another example generation of a HARQ codebook according to embodiments of the present disclosure. In the example of FIG. 4B, the HARQ codebook may be transmitted by an uplink control channel (e.g., PUCCH) 411 in slot N. As shown in FIG. 4B, all SLIVs in each row of Table 3 are listed based on the k1 set. It can be known that the first set of occasions may be determined as {slot N-1, slot N-2, slot N-3, slot N-4, slot N-5} .

As the offset restriction is 2, the invalid or disabled SLIVs are indicated by 412 and 413, and thus except the occasions determined by the valid SLIVs of all rows, additional non-overlapped occasions determined by these SLIVs are {slot N-4, slot N-5} . Then the third set of occasions may be determined as {slot N-1, slot N-2, slot N-3} . That is, the candidate PDSCH reception occasions may be reduced. Thus, the HARQ codebook may be generated only for the third set of occasions.

In some alternative embodiments, the HARQ codebook may be a Type-2 HARQ-ACK codebook. As mentioned above, for the second sub-codebook, the number of HARQ-ACK bits per DCI (e.g., for the first DCI) is the maximum configured number of PDSCHs. In this case, if partial SLIV (s) in the TDRA table are disabled, the maximum configured number of PDSCHs may be re-determined.

In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may determine the maximum configured number of data transmissions based on the maximum number of offsets other than the first subset of offsets among rows of a TDRA table configured for the terminal device 110. The terminal device 110 may determine the number of HARQ bits for the first DCI based on the determined maximum configured number of data transmissions, and generate the sub-codebook based on the determined number of HARQ bits.

For example, a TDRA table may be configured as shown above in Table 2, the offset restriction (e.g., the minimum scheduling offset restriction for k0) is 2, k0=0 and k0=1 in rows with indexes of 2 and 3 are invalid for scheduling. In this case, the terminal device 110 may determine that the number of offsets in rows with row indexes of 0, 1, 2 and 3 are 1, 2, 2, and 4 respectively. Thus, the maximum number of offsets among these rows is 4. The terminal device 110 may re-determine that the maximum configured number of data transmissions is 4. Then the terminal device 110 may determine that the number of HARQ bits for the first DCI is 4. In this way, the sub-codebook may be generated based on the determined number of HARQ bits.

So far, an embodiment is described in which a row in a TDRA table is partially disabled.

Embodiment 3

In this embodiment, the terminal device 110 may update the offset restriction based on a predetermined number (for convenience, denoted as N herein) , and determine an offset within the updated offset restriction to be invalid for scheduling.

In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may determine the predetermined number N based on a sub-carrier spacing (SCS) associated with the terminal device 110. In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may determine the predetermined number N based on the maximum number of data transmissions that can be scheduled by the first DCI.

For example, if a UE is configured with a TDRA table in which one or more rows contain multiple SLIVs for PDSCH with DCI format 1_1, and if a higher layer parameter minimumSchedulingOffsetK0 (i.e., the offset restriction) is configured and the minimum applicable k0 is indicated in DCI, the unit of the minimum applicable k0 may be changed to N slots.

As another example, if a UE is configured with a TDRA table in which one or more rows contain multiple SLIVs for PUSCH with DCI format 0_1, and if a higher layer parameter minimumSchedulingOffsetK2 (i.e., the offset restriction) is configured and the minimum applicable k2 is indicated in DCI, the unit of the minimum applicable k2 may be changed to N slots.

For these examples, a reference SCS timeline may be taken as an absolute time, and different SCSs may have different values of N. For example, if taking the absolute time of 120kHz SCS as the reference SCS timeline, N may be 4 and 8 for 480kHz and 960kHz SCSs respectively. In some alternative or additional embodiments, N may be the maximum number of PDSCHs or PUSCHs that can be scheduled with the DCI.

In this way, a different interpretation of the offset restriction may be done.

Return to FIG. 3, the network device 120 also determines 350 whether a first subset in the set of offsets is within the offset restriction and a second subset in the set of offsets is outside the offset restriction. If there are the first and second subsets in the set of offsets, the network device 120 also determines 360 at least the first subset of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling. The operations of the

determinations

350 and 360 by the network device 120 are similar with that of the determinations 330 and 340 by the terminal device 110, and thus are not repeated here for concise.

So far, a scheduling considering an offset restriction is described, and a behavior when a cross-slot scheduling and a scheduling of a set of data transmissions by single DCI are configured simultaneously is defined.

EXAMPLE IMPLEMENTATION OF SCHEDULING W ITHOUT OFFSET RESTRICTION

Embodiments of the present disclosure also provide a scheduling without considering an offset restriction.

Continue to with reference to FIG. 3, upon reception of the first DCI and the second DCI, the terminal device 110 may determine 330’ , without applying the offset restriction, a set of resources for the set of data transmissions based on the set of offsets. In other words, when a cross-slot scheduling and a scheduling of a set of data transmissions by single DCI are configured simultaneously, the cross-slot scheduling is cancelled or skipped.

With reference to FIG. 3, upon transmission of the first DCI and the second DCI, the network device 120 may also determine 350’ , without applying the offset restriction, a set of resources for the set of data transmissions based on the set of offsets. That is, the cross-slot scheduling is also cancelled or skipped.

As an alternative, the terminal device 110 does not expect that a cross-slot scheduling and a scheduling of a set of data transmissions by single DCI are configured simultaneously. In other words, the network device 120 does not configure the cross-slot scheduling and the scheduling of a set of data transmissions by single DCI simultaneously.

For example, if a UE is configured with a TDRA table in which one or more rows contain multiple SLIVs for PDSCH for DCI format 1_1, the UE does not expect to be configured with higher layer parameter minimumSchedulingOffsetK0 simultaneously. If higher layer parameter minimumSchedulingOffsetK0 is configured, it does not apply to DCI format 1_1.

If a UE is configured with a TDRA table in which one or more rows contain multiple SLIVs for PUSCH for DCI format 0_1, the UE does not expect to be configured with higher layer parameter minimumSchedulingOffsetK2 simultaneously. If higher layer parameter minimumSchedulingOffsetK2 is configured, it does not apply to DCI format 0_1.

In this way, a behavior when a cross-slot scheduling and a scheduling of a set of data transmissions by single DCI are configured simultaneously is also defined.

EXAMPLE IMPLEMENTATION OF METHODS

Accordingly, embodiments of the present disclosure provide methods of communication implemented at a terminal device and a network device. These methods will be described below with reference to FIGs. 5 to 8.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example method 500 of communication implemented at a terminal device in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. For example, the method 500 may be performed at the terminal device 110 as shown in FIG. 1. For the purpose of discussion, in the following, the method 500 will be described with reference to FIG. 1. It is to be understood that the method 500 may include additional blocks not shown and/or may omit some blocks as shown, and the scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this regard.

At block 510, the terminal device 110 receives, from the network device 120, first DCI indicating a set of offsets for scheduling a set of data transmissions and second DCI indicating an offset restriction for the scheduling.

At block 520, the terminal device 110 determines whether a first subset in the set of offsets is within the offset restriction and a second subset in the set of offsets is outside the offset restriction. If there are the first and second subsets in the set of offsets, the process 500 proceeds to block 530.

At block 530, the terminal device 110 determines at least the first subset of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling. In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may determine the set of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling. In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may determine the first subset of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling and determine the second subset of offsets to be valid for the scheduling.

In some embodiments where the set of offsets is determined to be invalid for the scheduling, the terminal device 110 may determine a first set of occasions based on all start and length indicator values of each row in a time domain resource allocation table configured for the terminal device; determine a second set of occasions by cancelling, from the first set of occasions, at least one occasion determined by a set of start and length indicator values associated with the set of offsets; and generate a HARQ codebook for the second set of occasions. In this way, HARQ codebook optimization (for example, on Type-1 HARQ-ACK codebook) may be achieved.

In some embodiments where the set of offsets is determined to be invalid for the scheduling, the terminal device 110 may determine the maximum configured number of data transmissions based on the maximum number of offsets other than the set of offsets among rows of a TDRA table configured for the terminal device 110; determine the number of HARQ bits for the first DCI based on the maximum configured number of data transmissions; and generate a sub-codebook based on the determined number of HARQ bits. In this way, HARQ codebook optimization (for example, on Type-2 HARQ-ACK codebook) may be achieved.

In some embodiments where the first subset is determined to be invalid for the scheduling and the second subset is determined to be valid for the scheduling, the terminal device 110 may determine a starting offset from the second subset, the starting offset indicating the earliest resource available for the set of data transmissions; and apply a configured HARQ process number to a data transmission scheduled by the starting offset in the set of data transmissions. In this way, a HARQ process number is managed effectively.

In some embodiments where the first subset is determined to be invalid for the scheduling and the second subset is determined to be valid for the scheduling, the terminal device 110 may determine a starting offset from the set of offsets, the starting offset indicating the earliest resource available for the set of data transmissions; and apply a configured HARQ process number to a data transmission scheduled by the starting offset in the set of data transmissions. In this way, a HARQ process number management is defined.

In some embodiments where the first subset is determined to be invalid for the scheduling and the second subset is determined to be valid for the scheduling, the terminal device 110 may determine a first set of occasions based on all start and length indicator values of each row in a time domain resource allocation table configured for the terminal device; determine a third set of occasions by cancelling, from the first set of occasions, at least one occasion determined by a set of start and length indicator values associated with the first subset of offsets; and generate a HARQ codebook for the third set of occasions. In this way, HARQ codebook optimization (for example, on Type-1 HARQ-ACK codebook) may be achieved.

In some embodiments where the first subset is determined to be invalid for the scheduling and the second subset is determined to be valid for the scheduling, the terminal device 110 may determine the maximum configured number of data transmissions based on the maximum number of offsets other than the first subset of offsets among rows of a time domain resource allocation table configured for the terminal device; determine the number of HARQ bits based on the maximum configured number of data transmissions; and generate a sub-codebook based on the determined number of HARQ bits. In this way, HARQ codebook optimization (for example, on Type-2 HARQ-ACK codebook) may be achieved.

In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may update the offset restriction based on a predetermined number; and determine an offset within the updated offset restriction to be invalid for scheduling a data transmission. In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may perform the updating of the offset restriction upon reception of the first DCI and the second DCI. In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may perform the updating of the offset restriction upon determination of the first and second subsets.

In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may determine the predetermined number based on a SCS associated with the terminal device 110. In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may determine the predetermined number based on the maximum number of data transmissions that can be scheduled by the first DCI.

In this way, a scheduling considering the offset restriction is carried out.

FIG. 6 illustrates another example method 600 of communication implemented at a terminal device in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. For example, the method 600 may be performed at the terminal device 110 as shown in FIG. 1. For the purpose of discussion, in the following, the method 600 will be described with reference to FIG. 1. It is to be understood that the method 600 may include additional blocks not shown and/or may omit some blocks as shown, and the scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this regard.

As shown in FIG. 6, at block 610, the terminal device 110 receives, from the network device 120, first DCI indicating a set of offsets for scheduling a set of data transmissions and second DCI indicating an offset restriction for the scheduling.

At block 620, the terminal device 110 determines, without applying the offset restriction, a set of resources for the set of data transmissions based on the set of offsets.

In this way, a scheduling without considering the offset restriction is carried out.

FIG. 7 illustrates an example method 700 of communication implemented at a network device in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. For example, the method 700 may be performed at the network device 120 as shown in FIG. 1. For the purpose of discussion, in the following, the method 700 will be described with reference to FIG. 1. It is to be understood that the method 700 may include additional blocks not shown and/or may omit some blocks as shown, and the scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this regard.

As shown in FIG. 7, at block 710, the network device 120 transmits, to the terminal device 110, first DCI indicating a set of offsets for scheduling a set of data transmissions and second DCI indicating an offset restriction for the scheduling.

At block 720, the network device 120 determines whether a first subset in the set of offsets is within the offset restriction and a second subset in the set of offsets is outside the offset restriction. If there are the first and second subsets in the set of offsets, the process 700 proceeds to block 730.

At block 730, the network device 120 determines at least the first subset of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling. In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may determine the set of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling. In some embodiments, the network device 120 may determine the first subset of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling and determine the second subset of offsets to be valid for the scheduling.

In some embodiments where the set of offsets is determined to be invalid for the scheduling, the network device 120 may determine a first set of occasions based on all start and length indicator values of each row in a time domain resource allocation table configured for the terminal device; determine a second set of occasions by cancelling, from the first set of occasions, at least one occasion determined by a set of start and length indicator values associated with the set of offsets; and generate a HARQ codebook for the second set of occasions. In this way, HARQ codebook optimization (for example, on Type-1 HARQ-ACK codebook) may be achieved.

In some embodiments where the set of offsets is determined to be invalid for the scheduling, the network device 120 may determine the maximum configured number of data transmissions based on the maximum number of offsets other than the set of offsets among rows of a TDRA table configured for the terminal device 110; determine the number of HARQ bits for the first DCI based on the maximum configured number of data transmissions; and generate a sub-codebook based on the determined number of HARQ bits. In this way, HARQ codebook optimization (for example, on Type-2 HARQ-ACK codebook) may be achieved.

In some embodiments where the first subset is determined to be invalid for the scheduling and the second subset is determined to be valid for the scheduling, the network device 120 may determine a starting offset from the second subset, the starting offset indicating the earliest resource available for the set of data transmissions; and apply a configured HARQ process number to a data transmission scheduled by the starting offset in the set of data transmissions. In this way, a HARQ process number is managed effectively.

In some embodiments where the first subset is determined to be invalid for the scheduling and the second subset is determined to be valid for the scheduling, the network device 120 may determine a starting offset from the set of offsets, the starting offset indicating the earliest resource available for the set of data transmissions; and apply a configured HARQ process number to a data transmission scheduled by the starting offset in the set of data transmissions. In this way, a HARQ process number management is defined.

In some embodiments where the first subset is determined to be invalid for the scheduling and the second subset is determined to be valid for the scheduling, the network device 120 may determine a first set of occasions based on all start and length indicator values of each row in a time domain resource allocation table configured for the terminal device; determine a third set of occasions by cancelling, from the first set of occasions, at least one occasion determined by a set of start and length indicator values associated with the first subset of offsets; and generate a HARQ codebook for the third set of occasions. In this way, HARQ codebook optimization (for example, on Type-1 HARQ-ACK codebook) may be achieved.

In some embodiments where the first subset is determined to be invalid for the scheduling and the second subset is determined to be valid for the scheduling, the network device 120 may determine the maximum configured number of data transmissions based on the maximum number of offsets other than the first subset of offsets among rows of a time domain resource allocation table configured for the terminal device; determine the number of HARQ bits based on the maximum configured number of data transmissions; and generate a sub-codebook based on the determined number of HARQ bits. In this way, HARQ codebook optimization (for example, on Type-2 HARQ-ACK codebook) may be achieved.

In some embodiments, the network device 120 may update the offset restriction based on a predetermined number; and determine an offset within the updated offset restriction to be invalid for scheduling a data transmission. In some embodiments, the network device 120 may perform the updating of the offset restriction upon reception of the first DCI and the second DCI. In some embodiments, the network device 120 may perform the updating of the offset restriction upon determination of the first and second subsets.

In some embodiments, the network device 120 may determine the predetermined number based on a SCS associated with the terminal device 110. In some embodiments, the network device 120 may determine the predetermined number based on the maximum number of data transmissions that can be scheduled by the first DCI.

In this way, a scheduling considering the offset restriction is carried out.

FIG. 8 illustrates another example method 800 of communication implemented at a network device in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. For example, the method 800 may be performed at the network device 120 as shown in FIG. 1. For the purpose of discussion, in the following, the method 800 will be described with reference to FIG. 1. It is to be understood that the method 800 may include additional blocks not shown and/or may omit some blocks as shown, and the scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this regard.

As shown in FIG. 8, at block 810, the network device 120 transmits, to the terminal device 110, first DCI indicating a set of offsets for scheduling a set of data transmissions and second DCI indicating an offset restriction for the scheduling.

At block 820, the network device 120 determines, without applying the offset restriction, a set of resources for the set of data transmissions based on the set of offsets.

EXAMPLE IMPLEMENTATION OF DEVICES AND APPARATUSES

FIG. 9 is a simplified block diagram of a device 900 that is suitable for implementing embodiments of the present disclosure. The device 900 can be considered as a further example implementation of the terminal device 110 or the network device 120 as shown in FIG. 1. Accordingly, the device 900 can be implemented at or as at least a part of the terminal device 110 or the network device 120.

As shown, the device 900 includes a processor 910, a memory 920 coupled to the processor 910, a suitable transmitter (TX) and receiver (RX) 940 coupled to the processor 910, and a communication interface coupled to the TX/RX 940. The memory 910 stores at least a part of a program 930. The TX/RX 940 is for bidirectional communications. The TX/RX 940 has at least one antenna to facilitate communication, though in practice an Access Node mentioned in this application may have several ones. The communication interface may represent any interface that is necessary for communication with other network elements, such as X2/Xn interface for bidirectional communications between eNBs/gNBs, S1/NG interface for communication between a Mobility Management Entity (MME) /Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) /SGW/UPF and the eNB/gNB, Un interface for communication between the eNB/gNB and a relay node (RN) , or Uu interface for communication between the eNB/gNB and a terminal device.

The program 930 is assumed to include program instructions that, when executed by the associated processor 910, enable the device 900 to operate in accordance with the embodiments of the present disclosure, as discussed herein with reference to FIGs. 1 to 8. The embodiments herein may be implemented by computer software executable by the processor 910 of the device 900, or by hardware, or by a combination of software and hardware. The processor 910 may be configured to implement various embodiments of the present disclosure. Furthermore, a combination of the processor 910 and memory 920 may form processing means 950 adapted to implement various embodiments of the present disclosure.

The memory 920 may be of any type suitable to the local technical network and may be implemented using any suitable data storage technology, such as a non-transitory computer readable storage medium, semiconductor based memory devices, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory and removable memory, as non-limiting examples. While only one memory 920 is shown in the device 900, there may be several physically distinct memory modules in the device 900. The processor 910 may be of any type suitable to the local technical network, and may include one or more of general purpose computers, special purpose computers, microprocessors, digital signal processors (DSPs) and processors based on multicore processor architecture, as non-limiting examples. The device 900 may have multiple processors, such as an application specific integrated circuit chip that is slaved in time to a clock which synchronizes the main processor.

In some embodiments, a terminal device comprises circuitry configured to: receive, at a terminal device and from a network device, first DCI indicating a set of offsets for scheduling a set of data transmissions and second DCI indicating an offset restriction for the scheduling; and in accordance with a determination that a first subset in the set of offsets is within the offset restriction and a second subset in the set of offsets is outside the offset restriction, determining at least the first subset of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling.

In some embodiments, the circuitry may be configured to determine at least the first subset of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling by determining the set of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling. In these embodiments, the circuitry may be further configured to: determine a first set of occasions based on all start and length indicator values of each row in a time domain resource allocation table configured for the terminal device; determine a second set of occasions by cancelling, from the first set of occasions, at least one occasion determined by a set of start and length indicator values associated with the set of offsets; and generate a HARQ codebook for the second set of occasions. In some alternative embodiments, the circuitry may be further configured to: determine the maximum configured number of data transmissions based on the maximum number of offsets other than the set of offsets among rows of a time domain resource allocation table configured for the terminal device; determine the number of HARQ bits for the first DCI based on the maximum configured number of data transmissions; and generate a sub-codebook based on the determined number of HARQ bits.

In some embodiments, the circuitry may be configured to determine at least the first subset of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling by: determining the first subset of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling; and determining the second subset of offsets to be valid for the scheduling. In these embodiments, the circuitry may be further configured to: determine a starting offset from the second subset, the starting offset indicating the earliest resource available for the set of data transmissions; and apply a configured HARQ process number to a data transmission scheduled by the starting offset in the set of data transmissions. In some alternative embodiments, the circuitry may be further configured to: determine a starting offset from the set of offsets, the starting offset indicating the earliest resource available for the set of data transmissions; and apply a configured HARQ process number to a data transmission scheduled by the starting offset in the set of data transmissions.

In some embodiments, the circuitry may be further configured to: determine a first set of occasions based on all start and length indicator values of each row in a time domain resource allocation table configured for the terminal device; determine a third set of occasions by cancelling, from the first set of occasions, at least one occasion determined by a set of start and length indicator values associated with the first subset of offsets; and generate a HARQ codebook for the third set of occasions.

In some embodiments, the circuitry may be further configured to: determine the maximum configured number of data transmissions based on the maximum number of offsets other than the first subset of offsets among rows of a time domain resource allocation table configured for the terminal device; determine the number of HARQ bits based on the maximum configured number of data transmissions; and generate a sub-codebook based on the determined number of HARQ bits.

In some embodiments, the circuitry may be further configured to: update the offset restriction based on a predetermined number; and determine an offset within the updated offset restriction to be invalid for scheduling a data transmission. In some embodiments, the circuitry may be further configured to at least one of the following: determine the predetermined number based on a sub-carrier spacing associated with the terminal device; or determine the predetermined number based on the maximum number of data transmissions that can be scheduled by the first DCI.

In some embodiments, a terminal device comprises a circuitry configured to: receive, from a network device, first DCI indicating a set of offsets for scheduling a set of data transmissions and second DCI indicating an offset restriction for the scheduling; and determine, without applying the offset restriction, a set of resources for the set of data transmissions based on the set of offsets.

In some embodiments, a network device comprises a circuitry configured to: transmit, to a terminal device, first DCI indicating a set of offsets for scheduling a set of data transmissions and second DCI indicating an offset restriction for the scheduling; and in accordance with a determination that a first subset in the set of offsets is within the offset restriction and a second subset in the set of offsets is outside the offset restriction, determine at least the first subset of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling.

In some embodiments, a network device comprises a circuitry configured to: transmit, to a terminal device, first DCI indicating a set of offsets for scheduling a set of data transmissions and second DCI indicating an offset restriction for the scheduling; and determine, without applying the offset restriction, a set of resources for the set of data transmissions based on the set of offsets.

The term “circuitry” used herein may refer to hardware circuits and/or combinations of hardware circuits and software. For example, the circuitry may be a combination of analog and/or digital hardware circuits with software/firmware. As a further example, the circuitry may be any portions of hardware processors with software including digital signal processor (s) , software, and memory (ies) that work together to cause an apparatus, such as a terminal device or a network device, to perform various functions. In a still further example, the circuitry may be hardware circuits and or processors, such as a microprocessor or a portion of a microprocessor, that requires software/firmware for operation, but the software may not be present when it is not needed for operation. As used herein, the term circuitry also covers an implementation of merely a hardware circuit or processor (s) or a portion of a hardware circuit or processor (s) and its (or their) accompanying software and/or firmware.

Generally, various embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented in hardware or special purpose circuits, software, logic or any combination thereof. 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. While various aspects of embodiments of the present disclosure are illustrated and described as block diagrams, flowcharts, or using some other pictorial representation, it will be appreciated that the 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.

The present disclosure also provides at least one computer program product tangibly stored on a non-transitory computer readable storage medium. The computer program product includes computer-executable instructions, such as those included in program modules, being executed in a device on a target real or virtual processor, to carry out the process or method as described above with reference to FIGs. 1 to 8. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, libraries, objects, classes, components, data structures, or the like that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. The functionality of the program modules may be combined or split between program modules as desired in various embodiments. Machine-executable instructions for program modules may be executed within a local or distributed device. In a distributed device, program modules may be located in both local and remote storage media.

Program code for carrying out methods of the present disclosure may be written in any combination of one or more programming languages. These program codes may be provided to a processor or controller of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus, such that the program codes, when executed by the processor or controller, cause the functions/operations specified in the flowcharts and/or block diagrams to be implemented. The program code may execute entirely on a machine, partly on the machine, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the machine and partly on a remote machine or entirely on the remote machine or server.

The above program code may be embodied on a machine readable medium, which may be any tangible medium that may contain, or store a program for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device. The machine readable medium may be a machine readable signal medium or a machine readable storage medium. A machine readable medium may include but not limited to an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. More specific examples of the machine readable storage medium would include an electrical connection having one or more wires, a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM) , a read-only memory (ROM) , an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory) , an optical fiber, a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) , an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing.

Further, while operations are depicted in a particular order, this should not be understood as requiring that such operations be performed in the particular order shown or in sequential order, or that all illustrated operations be performed, to achieve desirable results. In certain circumstances, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Likewise, while several specific implementation details are contained in the above discussions, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the present disclosure, but rather as descriptions of features that may be specific to particular embodiments. Certain features that are described in the context of separate embodiments may also be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features that are described in the context of a single embodiment may also be implemented in multiple embodiments separately or in any suitable sub-combination.

Although the present disclosure has been described in language specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the present disclosure defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims.

Claims

A method of communication, comprising:

receiving, at a terminal device and from a network device, first downlink control information (DCI) indicating a set of offsets for scheduling a set of data transmissions and second DCI indicating an offset restriction for the scheduling; and

in accordance with a determination that a first subset in the set of offsets is within the offset restriction and a second subset in the set of offsets is outside the offset restriction, determining at least the first subset of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling.
The method of claim 1, wherein determining at least the first subset of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling comprises:

determining the set of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling.
The method of claim 2, further comprising:

determining a first set of occasions based on all start and length indicator values of each row in a time domain resource allocation table configured for the terminal device;

determining a second set of occasions by cancelling, from the first set of occasions, at least one occasion determined by a set of start and length indicator values associated with the set of offsets; and

generating a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) codebook for the second set of occasions.
The method of claim 2, further comprising:

determining the maximum configured number of data transmissions based on the maximum number of offsets other than the set of offsets among rows of a time domain resource allocation table configured for the terminal device;

determining the number of hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) bits for the first DCI based on the maximum configured number of data transmissions; and

generating a sub-codebook based on the determined number of HARQ bits.
The method of claim 1, wherein determining at least the first subset of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling comprises:

determining the first subset of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling; and

determining the second subset of offsets to be valid for the scheduling.
The method of claim 5, further comprising:

determining a starting offset from the second subset, the starting offset indicating the earliest resource available for the set of data transmissions; and

applying a configured hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) process number to a data transmission scheduled by the starting offset in the set of data transmissions.
The method of claim 5, further comprising:

determining a starting offset from the set of offsets, the starting offset indicating the earliest resource available for the set of data transmissions; and

applying a configured HARQ process number to a data transmission scheduled by the starting offset in the set of data transmissions.
The method of claim 5, further comprising:

determining a first set of occasions based on all start and length indicator values of each row in a time domain resource allocation table configured for the terminal device;

determining a third set of occasions by cancelling, from the first set of occasions, at least one occasion determined by a set of start and length indicator values associated with the first subset of offsets; and

generating a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) codebook for the third set of occasions.
The method of claim 5, further comprising:

determining the maximum configured number of data transmissions based on the maximum number of offsets other than the first subset of offsets among rows of a time domain resource allocation table configured for the terminal device;

determining the number of hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) bits based on the maximum configured number of data transmissions; and

generating a sub-codebook based on the determined number of HARQ bits.
The method of claim 1, further comprising:

updating the offset restriction based on a predetermined number; and

determining an offset within the updated offset restriction to be invalid for scheduling a data transmission.
The method of claim 10, further comprising at least one of the following:

determining the predetermined number based on a sub-carrier spacing associated with the terminal device; or

determining the predetermined number based on the maximum number of data transmissions that can be scheduled by the first DCI.
A method of communication, comprising:

receiving, at a terminal device and from a network device, first downlink control information (DCI) indicating a set of offsets for scheduling a set of data transmissions and second DCI indicating an offset restriction for the scheduling; and

determining, without applying the offset restriction, a set of resources for the set of data transmissions based on the set of offsets.
A method of communication, comprising:

transmitting, at a network device and to a terminal device, first downlink control information (DCI) indicating a set of offsets for scheduling a set of data transmissions and second DCI indicating an offset restriction for the scheduling; and

in accordance with a determination that a first subset in the set of offsets is within the offset restriction and a second subset in the set of offsets is outside the offset restriction, determining at least the first subset of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling.
The method of claim 13, wherein determining at least the first subset of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling comprises:

determining the set of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling.
The method of claim 14, further comprising:

determining a first set of occasions based on all start and length indicator values of each row in a time domain resource allocation table configured for the terminal device;

determining a second set of occasions by cancelling, from the first set of occasions, at least one occasion determined by a set of start and length indicator values associated with the set of offsets; and

generating a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) codebook for the second set of occasions.
The method of claim 14, further comprising:

determining the maximum configured number of data transmissions based on the maximum number of offsets other than the set of offsets among rows of a time domain resource allocation table configured for the terminal device;

determining the number of hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) bits for the first DCI based on the maximum configured number of data transmissions; and

generating a sub-codebook based on the determined number of HARQ bits.
The method of claim 13, wherein determining at least the first subset of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling comprises:

determining the first subset of offsets to be invalid for the scheduling; and

determining the second subset of offsets to be valid for the scheduling.
The method of claim 17, further comprising:

determining a starting offset from the second subset, the starting offset indicating the earliest resource available for the set of data transmissions; and

applying a configured hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) process number to a data transmission scheduled by the starting offset in the set of data transmissions.
The method of claim 17, further comprising:

determining a starting offset from the set of offsets, the starting offset indicating the earliest resource available for the set of data transmissions; and

applying a configured HARQ process number to a data transmission scheduled by the starting offset in the set of data transmissions.
The method of claim 17, further comprising:

determining a first set of occasions based on all start and length indicator values of each row in a time domain resource allocation table configured for the terminal device;

determining a third set of occasions by cancelling, from the first set of occasions, at least one occasion determined by a set of start and length indicator values associated with the first subset of offsets; and

generating a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) codebook for the third set of occasions.
The method of claim 17, further comprising:

determining the maximum configured number of data transmissions based on the maximum number of offsets other than the first subset of offsets among rows of a time domain resource allocation table configured for the terminal device;

determining the number of hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) bits based on the maximum configured number of data transmissions; and

generating a sub-codebook based on the determined number of HARQ bits.
The method of claim 13, further comprising:

updating the offset restriction based on a predetermined number; and

determining an offset within the updated offset restriction to be invalid for scheduling a data transmission.
The method of claim 22, further comprising at least one of the following:

determining the predetermined number based on a sub-carrier spacing associated with the terminal device; or

determining the predetermined number based on the maximum number of data transmissions that can be scheduled by the first DCI.
A method of communication, comprising:

transmitting, at a network device and to a terminal device, first downlink control information (DCI) indicating a set of offsets for scheduling a set of data transmissions and second DCI indicating an offset restriction for the scheduling; and

determining, without applying the offset restriction, a set of resources for the set of data transmissions based on the set of offsets.
A terminal device comprising:

a processor configured to perform the method according to any of claims 1 to 11 or claim 12.
A network device comprising:

a processor configured to perform the method according to any of claims 13 to 23 or claim 24.