WO2023164582A1 - Time- varying tci state indication for symbol-level reception beam adaptation - Google Patents

Abstract

Aspects are provided which allow a UE to receive data in a scheduled resource from a base station simultaneously over two beams or channels, where one of the beams or channels varies over time within the TTI of the scheduled resource. In various aspects, the UE may receive a DCI indicating a sequence of TCI states to be applied within the TTI of the scheduled resource. The sequence of TCI states may include TCI states corresponding to different beams or channels which are sequentially activated during the TTI. The UE may then receive data from the base station in the scheduled resource based on the sequence of TCI states. Thus, the TCI sequence indication may benefit use cases such as joint communication and radar sensing, in which a radar beam direction may change at least once within a TTI of a scheduled resource for data communication.

Description

TIME- VARYING TCI STATE INDICATION FOR SYMBOL-LEVEL RECEPTION BEAM ADAPTATION

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

[0001] This application claims the benefit of Greece Application Serial No. 20220100170, entitled “TIME- VARYING TCI STATE INDICATION FOR SYMBOL-LEVEL RECEPTION BEAM ADAPTATION” and filed on February 24, 2022, the disclosure of which is expressly incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] The present disclosure generally relates to communication systems, and more particularly, to a wireless communication system between a user equipment (UE) and a base station.

DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED TECHNOLOGY

[0003] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various telecommunication services such as telephony, video, data, messaging, and broadcasts. Typical wireless communication systems may employ multiple-access technologies capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources. Examples of such multiple-access technologies include code division multiple access (CDMA) systems, time division multiple access (TDMA) systems, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) systems, orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) systems, single-carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) systems, and time division synchronous code division multiple access (TD-SCDMA) systems.

[0004] These multiple access technologies have been adopted in various telecommunication standards to provide a common protocol that enables different wireless devices to communicate on a municipal, national, regional, and even global level. An example telecommunication standard is 5G New Radio (NR). 5G NR is part of a continuous mobile broadband evolution promulgated by Third Generation Partnership Project (3 GPP) to meet new requirements associated with latency, reliability, security, scalability (e.g., with Internet of Things (IoT)), and other requirements. 5G NR includes services associated with enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), massive machine type communications (mMTC), and ultra-reliable low latency communications (URLLC). Some aspects of 5G NR may be based on the 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) standard. There exists a need for further improvements in 5G NR technology. These improvements may also be applicable to other multi-access technologies and the telecommunication standards that employ these technologies.

SUMMARY

[0005] The following presents a simplified summary of one or more aspects in order to provide a basic understanding of such aspects. This summary is not an extensive overview of all contemplated aspects, and is intended to neither identify key or critical elements of all aspects nor delineate the scope of any or all aspects. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts of one or more aspects in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later.

[0006] In an aspect of the disclosure, a method, a computer-readable medium, and an apparatus are provided. The apparatus may be a UE. The UE receives downlink control information (DCI) indicating a sequence of transmission configuration indicator (TCI) states to be applied within a transmission time interval (TTI) of a scheduled resource. The UE receives data in the scheduled resource following reception of the DCI indicating the sequence of TCI states.

[0007] In an aspect of the disclosure, a method, a computer-readable medium, and an apparatus are provided. The apparatus may be a network entity such as a base station. The apparatus transmits, to a UE, DCI indicating a sequence of TCI states to be applied within a TTI of a scheduled resource. The apparatus transmits data in the scheduled resource following transmission of the DCI indicating the sequence of TCI states.

[0008] To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, the one or more aspects comprise the features hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed out in the claims. The following description and the annexed drawings set forth in detail certain illustrative features of the one or more aspects. These features are indicative, however, of but a few of the various ways in which the principles of various aspects may be employed, and this description is intended to include all such aspects and their equivalents.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] FIG. 1A is a diagram illustrating an example of a wireless communications system and an access network.

[0010] FIG. IB shows a diagram illustrating an example disaggregated base station architecture.

[0011] FIG. 2A is a diagram illustrating an example of a first frame, in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0012] FIG. 2B is a diagram illustrating an example of DL channels within a subframe, in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0013] FIG. 2C is a diagram illustrating an example of a second frame, in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0014] FIG. 2D is a diagram illustrating an example of UL channels within a subframe, in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0015] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a base station and user equipment (UE) in an access network.

[0016] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a radar transmitter (e.g., a base station) applying a radar beam sweep to scan a wide angular region for potential targets of interest.

[0017] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a radar transmitter (e.g., a base station) tracking a target moving in a given direction.

[0018] FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of joint communication and radar sensing.

[0019] FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a transmitter which performs a radar beam sweep to sense potential targets of interest (or to track a moving target).

[0020] FIGs. 8A-8B are diagrams illustrating examples of configurations of TCI states from which the base station may select a sequence of TCI states for varying transmissions within a TTI.

[0021] FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of a DCI which indicates a sequence of TCI states. [0022] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a look-up table or codebook preconfigured with various sequences of TCI states.

[0023] FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a DCI which indicates example configurations of different modifications or behaviors that may be applied to TCI states or durations from an indicated sequence of TCI states.

[0024] FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of a DCI including a TCI state group which indicates both fixed and time-varying TCI sates within a TTI.

[0025] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a call flow between a UE and a base station.

[0026] FIG. 14 is a flowchart of a method of wireless communication at a UE.

[0027] FIG. 15 is a flowchart of a method of wireless communication at a base station.

[0028] FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware implementation for an example apparatus.

[0029] FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating another example of a hardware implementation for another example apparatus.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0030] The detailed description set forth below in connection with the appended drawings is intended as a description of various configurations and is not intended to represent the only configurations in which the concepts described herein may be practiced. The detailed description includes specific details for the purpose of providing a thorough understanding of various concepts. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that these concepts may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well known structures and components are shown in block diagram form in order to avoid obscuring such concepts.

[0031] In joint communications and radar sensing (JCR), a base station may transmit, in the same resources, a communication signal intended for a UE and a radar probing signal that senses the presence of targets in the base station’s field of view. As the same signal may be applied for both communication and radar operations in JCR, the radar probing signal may not interfere with the communication signal to the UE. However, other than through use of identical resources, communication and radar operations in JCR are independent of each other. For example, data communication and sensing may be on different time scales (e.g., occur over different periodicities). Moreover, no coordination may exist between the communication and radar operations in JCR, other than to operate over the same resources potentially using the same waveform.

[0032] In a millimeter wave (mmW) setting, a dual beam transmission may be employed in order to support both communication and sensing operations, in which the base station may form one beam directed towards the communication receiver (e.g., the UE) at the same time that the base station forms a different beam directed towards sensing a target of interest. As the communication and sensing time scales are different, the communication and radar beams may change directions in a non-synchronous manner. For example, the base station may maintain a fixed communication beam directed towards the UE during the same time frame that the base station changes a radar beam to track a moving vehicle.

[0033] Currently, the base station indicates transmission beams for data communication to a UE via transmission configuration indicator (TCI) states. These TCI states may be indicated in downlink control information (DCI), which DCI may also indicate a scheduled resource (e.g., one or more resource blocks, slots, etc.) for the data communication to the UE. Once the scheduled resource is indicated and the transmission starts, the communication beam indicated by the TCI remains static for the duration of the communication. This duration may also be referred to as a transmission time interval (TTI). However, as previously noted, the base station may also transmit a probing signal, such as in JCR, whose beam direction may change within the TTI of the scheduled resource for the data communication. Therefore, it would be helpful for the base station to indicate to the UE information regarding the changing transmission beam (e.g., applied for sensing) so that the UE may improve receiver performance. For example, in JCR, changing radar beam transmissions may offer different diversity paths which the base station may exploit in order to improve performance of the communication link between the base station and the UE.

[0034] Accordingly, aspects of the present disclosure provide an enhanced TCI indication scheme through which the base station may provide the UE information regarding transmission beams that may change within the TTI of a scheduled resource for a data communication (e.g., radar sensing beams). For instance, the base station may indicate in DCI a sequence of TCI states indicating varying transmission beams which may potentially carry data in different directions to the UE (e.g., in response to reflections of the data signal off of one or more sensed targets of interest). This sequence of time-varying transmission beams may be formed during the same time that the base station transmits scheduled data in a fixed transmission beam to the UE. As a result, the UE may successfully receive data from the base station at a given time over two beams, including the fixed transmission beam (e.g., applied for line-of-sight communication) and the potentially varying transmission beam (e.g., applied for sensing).

[0035] Moreover, since in some cases the UE may be of low complexity with limited processing capabilities, the base station may configure primary and secondary TCI states indicating transmission beam priority to aid UE receiver processing. For example, the base station may optionally configure the TCI state of the communication beam as primary or higher priority, and the TCI states of sensing beams as secondary or lower priority, in order to allow the UE to ignore the sensing beam paths when the UE receives data in the communication beam from the base station.

[0036] Several aspects of telecommunication systems will now be presented with reference to various apparatus and methods. These apparatus and methods will be described in the following detailed description and illustrated in the accompanying drawings by various blocks, components, circuits, processes, algorithms, etc. (collectively referred to as “elements”). These elements may be implemented using electronic hardware, computer software, or any combination thereof. Whether such elements are implemented as hardware or software depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system.

[0037] By way of example, an element, or any portion of an element, or any combination of elements may be implemented as a “processing system” that includes one or more processors. Examples of processors include microprocessors, microcontrollers, graphics processing units (GPUs), central processing units (CPUs), application processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), reduced instruction set computing (RISC) processors, systems on a chip (SoC), baseband processors, field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), state machines, gated logic, discrete hardware circuits, and other suitable hardware configured to perform the various functionality described throughout this disclosure. One or more processors in the processing system may execute software. Software shall be construed broadly to mean instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subprograms, software components, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executables, threads of execution, procedures, functions, etc., whether referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or otherwise.

[0038] Accordingly, in one or more example embodiments, the functions described may be implemented in hardware, software, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functions may be stored on or encoded as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media includes computer storage media. Storage media may be any available media that can be accessed by a computer. By way of example, and not limitation, such computer-readable media can comprise a random-access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage, other magnetic storage devices, combinations of the aforementioned types of computer-readable media, or any other medium that can be used to store computer executable code in the form of instructions or data structures that can be accessed by a computer.

[0039] FIG. 1A is a diagram illustrating an example of a wireless communications system and an access network 100. The wireless communications system (also referred to as a wireless wide area network (WWAN)) includes base stations 102, user equipment(s) (UE) 104, an Evolved Packet Core (EPC) 160, and another core network 190 (e.g., a 5G Core (5GC)). The base stations 102 may include macrocells (high power cellular base station) and/or small cells (low power cellular base station). The macrocells include base stations. The small cells include femtocells, picocells, and microcells.

[0040] The base stations 102 configured for 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) (collectively referred to as Evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN)) may interface with the EPC 160 through first backhaul links 132 (e.g., SI interface). The base stations 102 configured for 5G New Radio (NR) (collectively referred to as Next Generation RAN (NG- RAN)) may interface with core network 190 through second backhaul links 184. In addition to other functions, the base stations 102 may perform one or more of the following functions: transfer of user data, radio channel ciphering and deciphering, integrity protection, header compression, mobility control functions (e.g., handover, dual connectivity), inter-cell interference coordination, connection setup and release, load balancing, distribution for non-access stratum (NAS) messages, NAS node selection, synchronization, radio access network (RAN) sharing, Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service (MBMS), subscriber and equipment trace, RAN information management (RIM), paging, positioning, and delivery of warning messages. The base stations 102 may communicate directly or indirectly (e.g., through the EPC 160 or core network 190) with each other over third backhaul links 134 (e.g., X2 interface). The first backhaul links 132, the second backhaul links 184, and the third backhaul links 134 may be wired or wireless.

[0041] The base stations 102 may wirelessly communicate with the UEs 104. Each of the base stations 102 may provide communication coverage for a respective geographic coverage area 110. There may be overlapping geographic coverage areas 110. For example, the small cell 102' may have a coverage area 110' that overlaps the coverage area 110 of one or more macro base stations 102. A network that includes both small cell and macrocells may be known as a heterogeneous network. A heterogeneous network may also include Home Evolved Node Bs (eNBs) (HeNBs), which may provide service to a restricted group known as a closed subscriber group (CSG). The communication links 120 between the base stations 102 and the UEs 104 may include uplink (UL) (also referred to as reverse link) transmissions from a UE 104 to a base station 102 and/or downlink (DL) (also referred to as forward link) transmissions from a base station 102 to a UE 104. The communication links 120 may use multiple-input and multiple-output (MIMO) antenna technology, including spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and/or transmit diversity. The communication links may be through one or more carriers. The base stations 102 / UEs 104 may use spectrum up to K megahertz (MHz) (e.g., 5, 10, 15, 20, 100, 400, etc. MHz) bandwidth per carrier allocated in a carrier aggregation of up to a total of Ex MHz (x component carriers) used for transmission in each direction. The carriers may or may not be adjacent to each other. Allocation of carriers may be asymmetric with respect to DL and UL (e.g., more or fewer carriers may be allocated for DL than for UL). The component carriers may include a primary component carrier and one or more secondary component carriers. A primary component carrier may be referred to as a primary cell (PCell) and a secondary component carrier may be referred to as a secondary cell (SCell). [0042] Certain UEs 104 may communicate with each other using device-to-device (D2D) communication link 158. The D2D communication link 158 may use the DL/UL WWAN spectrum. The D2D communication link 158 may use one or more sidelink channels, such as a physical sidelink broadcast channel (PSBCH), a physical sidelink discovery channel (PSDCH), a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH), and a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH). D2D communication may be through a variety of wireless D2D communications systems, such as for example, WiMedia, Bluetooth, ZigBee, Wi-Fi based on the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standard, LTE, or NR.

[0043] The wireless communications system may further include a Wi-Fi access point (AP) 150 in communication with Wi-Fi stations (STAs) 152 via communication links 154, e.g., in a 5 gigahertz (GHz) unlicensed frequency spectrum or the like. When communicating in an unlicensed frequency spectrum, the STAs 152 / AP 150 may perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) prior to communicating in order to determine whether the channel is available.

[0044] The small cell 102' may operate in a licensed and/or an unlicensed frequency spectrum. When operating in an unlicensed frequency spectrum, the small cell 102' may employ NR and use the same unlicensed frequency spectrum (e.g., 5 GHz, or the like) as used by the Wi-Fi AP 150. The small cell 102', employing NR in an unlicensed frequency spectrum, may boost coverage to and/or increase capacity of the access network.

[0045] The electromagnetic spectrum is often subdivided, based on frequency/wavelength, into various classes, bands, channels, etc. In 5GNR, two initial operating bands have been identified as frequency range designations FR1 (410 MHz - 7.125 GHz) and FR2 (24.25 GHz - 52.6 GHz). The frequencies between FR1 and FR2 are often referred to as mid-band frequencies. Although a portion of FR1 is greater than 6 GHz, FR1 is often referred to (interchangeably) as a “sub-6 GHz” band in various documents and articles. A similar nomenclature issue sometimes occurs with regard to FR2, which is often referred to (interchangeably) as a “millimeter wave” band in documents and articles, despite being different from the extremely high frequency (EHF) band (30 GHz - 300 GHz) which is identified by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) as a “millimeter wave” band. [0046] With the above aspects in mind, unless specifically stated otherwise, it should be understood that the term “sub-6 GHz” or the like if used herein may broadly represent frequencies that may be less than 6 GHz, may be within FR1, or may include midband frequencies. Further, unless specifically stated otherwise, it should be understood that the term “millimeter wave” or the like if used herein may broadly represent frequencies that may include mid-band frequencies, may be within FR2, or may be within the EHF band.

[0047] A base station 102, whether a small cell 102' or a large cell (e.g., macro base station), may include and/or be referred to as an eNB, gNodeB (gNB), or another type of base station. Some base stations, such as gNB 180 may operate in a traditional sub 6 GHz spectrum, in millimeter wave frequencies, and/or near millimeter wave frequencies in communication with the UE 104. When the gNB 180 operates in millimeter wave or near millimeter wave frequencies, the gNB 180 may be referred to as a millimeter wave base station. The millimeter wave base station 180 may utilize beamforming 182 with the UE 104 to compensate for the path loss and short range. The base station 180 and the UE 104 may each include a plurality of antennas, such as antenna elements, antenna panels, and/or antenna arrays to facilitate the beamforming.

[0048] The base station 180 may transmit a beamformed signal to the UE 104 in one or more transmit directions 182'. The UE 104 may receive the beamformed signal from the base station 180 in one or more receive directions 182". TheUE 104 may also transmit a beamformed signal to the base station 180 in one or more transmit directions. The base station 180 may receive the beamformed signal from the UE 104 in one or more receive directions. The base station 180 / UE 104 may perform beam training to determine the best receive and transmit directions for each of the base station 180 / UE 104. The transmit and receive directions for the base station 180 may or may not be the same. The transmit and receive directions for the UE 104 may or may not be the same.

[0049] The EPC 160 may include a Mobility Management Entity (MME) 162, other MMEs 164, a Serving Gateway 166, an MBMS Gateway 168, a Broadcast Multicast Service Center (BM-SC) 170, and a Packet Data Network (PDN) Gateway 172. The MME 162 may be in communication with a Home Subscriber Server (HSS) 174. The MME 162 is the control node that processes the signaling between the UEs 104 and the EPC 160. Generally, the MME 162 provides bearer and connection management. All user Internet protocol (IP) packets are transferred through the Serving Gateway 166, which itself is connected to the PDN Gateway 172. The PDN Gateway 172 provides UE IP address allocation as well as other functions. The PDN Gateway 172 and the BM-SC 170 are connected to the IP Services 176. The IP Services 176 may include the Internet, an intranet, an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), a PS Streaming Service, and/or other IP services. The BM-SC 170 may provide functions for MBMS user service provisioning and delivery. The BM-SC 170 may serve as an entry point for content provider MBMS transmission, may be used to authorize and initiate MBMS Bearer Services within a public land mobile network (PLMN), and may be used to schedule MBMS transmissions. The MBMS Gateway 168 may be used to distribute MBMS traffic to the base stations 102 belonging to a Multicast Broadcast Single Frequency Network (MBSFN) area broadcasting a particular service, and may be responsible for session management (start/stop) and for collecting eMBMS related charging information.

[0050] The core network 190 may include a Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) 192, other AMFs 193, a Session Management Function (SMF) 194, and a User Plane Function (UPF) 195. The AMF 192 may be in communication with a Unified Data Management (UDM) 196. The AMF 192 is the control node that processes the signaling between the UEs 104 and the core network 190. Generally, the AMF 192 provides Quality of Service (QoS) flow and session management. All user IP packets are transferred through the UPF 195. The UPF 195 provides UE IP address allocation as well as other functions. The UPF 195 is connected to the IP Services 197. The IP Services 197 may include the Internet, an intranet, an IMS, a Packet Switch (PS) Streaming Service, and/or other IP services.

[0051] The base station may include and/or be referred to as a gNB, Node B, eNB, an access point, a base transceiver station, a radio base station, a radio transceiver, a transceiver function, a basic service set (BSS), an extended service set (ESS), a transmit reception point (TRP), or some other suitable terminology. The base station 102 provides an access point to the EPC 160 or core network 190 for a UE 104. Examples of UEs 104 include a cellular phone, a smart phone, a session initiation protocol (SIP) phone, a laptop, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a satellite radio, a global positioning system, a multimedia device, a video device, a digital audio player (e.g., MP3 player), a camera, a game console, a tablet, a smart device, a wearable device, a vehicle, an electric meter, a gas pump, a large or small kitchen appliance, a healthcare device, an implant, a sensor/actuator, a display, or any other similar functioning device. Some of the UEs 104 may be referred to as loT devices (e.g., parking meter, gas pump, toaster, vehicles, heart monitor, etc.). The UE 104 may also be referred to as a station, a mobile station, a subscriber station, a mobile unit, a subscriber unit, a wireless unit, a remote unit, a mobile device, a wireless device, a wireless communications device, a remote device, a mobile subscriber station, an access terminal, a mobile terminal, a wireless terminal, a remote terminal, a handset, a user agent, a mobile client, a client, or some other suitable terminology.

[0052] Deployment of communication systems, such as 5GNR systems, may be arranged in multiple manners with various components or constituent parts. In a 5G NR system, or network, a network node, a network entity, a network device, a mobility element of a network, a RAN node, a core network node, a network element, or a network equipment, such as a BS, or one or more units (or one or more components) performing base station functionality, may be implemented in an aggregated or disaggregated architecture. For example, a BS (such as a Node B (NB), eNB, NR BS, 5GNB, access point (AP), a TRP, or a cell, etc.) may be implemented as an aggregated base station (also known as a standalone BS or a monolithic BS) or a disaggregated base station.

[0053] An aggregated base station may be configured to utilize a radio protocol stack that is physically or logically integrated within a single RAN node. A disaggregated base station 181 may be configured to utilize a protocol stack that is physically or logically distributed among two or more units (such as one or more central units (CU), one or more distributed units (DUs), or one or more radio units (RUs)). In some aspects, a CU 183 may be implemented within a RAN node, and one or more DUs 185 may be co-located with the CU, or alternatively, may be geographically or virtually distributed throughout one or multiple other RAN nodes. The DUs may be implemented to communicate with one or more RUs 187. Each of the CU, DU and RU also can be implemented as virtual units, i.e., a virtual central unit (VCU), a virtual distributed unit (VDU), or a virtual radio unit (VRU).

[0054] Base station-type operation or network design may consider aggregation characteristics of base station functionality. For example, disaggregated base stations may be utilized in an integrated access backhaul (IAB) network, an open radio access network (O-RAN (such as the network configuration sponsored by the O-RAN Alliance)), or a virtualized radio access network (vRAN, also known as a cloud radio access network (C-RAN)). Disaggregation may include distributing functionality across two or more units at various physical locations, as well as distributing functionality for at least one unit virtually, which can enable flexibility in network design. The various units of the disaggregated base station, or disaggregated RAN architecture, can be configured for wired or wireless communication with at least one other unit.

[0055] Although the present disclosure may focus on 5G NR, the concepts and various aspects described herein may be applicable to other similar areas, such as LTE, LTE- Advanced (LTE-A), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Global System for Mobile communications (GSM), or other wireless/radio access technologies.

[0056] Referring again to FIG. 1 A, in certain aspects, the UE 104 may include a time-varying TCI state reception component 198. The component 198 is configured to receive DCI indicating a sequence of TCI states to be applied within a TTI of a scheduled resource, and to receive data in the scheduled resource following reception of the DCI indicating the sequence of TCI states. Moreover, in certain aspects, the base station 180 (or other network entity with base station functionality) may include a timevarying TCI state transmission component 199. The component 199 is configured to transmit, to a UE, DCI indicating a sequence of TCI states to be applied within a TTI of a scheduled resource, and to transmit data in the scheduled resource following transmission of the DCI indicating the sequence of TCI states.

[0057] FIG. IB shows a diagram illustrating an example disaggregated base station 181 architecture. The disaggregated base station 181 architecture may include one or more CUs 183 that can communicate directly with core network 190 via a backhaul link, or indirectly with the core network 190 through one or more disaggregated base station units (such as a Near-Real Time RIC 125 via an E2 link, or a Non-Real Time RIC 115 associated with a Service Management and Orchestration (SMO) Framework 105, or both). A CU 183 may communicate with one or more DUs 185 via respective midhaul links, such as an Fl interface. The DUs 185 may communicate with one or more RUs 187 via respective fronthaul links. The RUs 187 may communicate respectively with UEs 104 via one or more radio frequency (RF) access links. In some implementations, the UE 104 may be simultaneously served by multiple RUs 187. [0058] Each of the units, i.e., the CUs 183, the DUs 185, the RUs 187, as well as the Near- RT RICs 125, the Non-RT RICs 115 and the SMO Framework 105, may include one or more interfaces or be coupled to one or more interfaces configured to receive or transmit signals, data, or information (collectively, signals) via a wired or wireless transmission medium. Each of the units, or an associated processor or controller providing instructions to the communication interfaces of the units, can be configured to communicate with one or more of the other units via the transmission medium. For example, the units can include a wired interface configured to receive or transmit signals over a wired transmission medium to one or more of the other units. Additionally, the units can include a wireless interface, which may include a receiver, a transmitter or transceiver (such as a radio frequency (RF) transceiver), configured to receive or transmit signals, or both, over a wireless transmission medium to one or more of the other units.

[0059] In some aspects, the CU 183 may host higher layer control functions. Such control functions can include radio resource control (RRC), packet data convergence protocol (PDCP), service data adaptation protocol (SDAP), or the like. Each control function can be implemented with an interface configured to communicate signals with other control functions hosted by the CU 183. The CU 183 may be configured to handle user plane functionality (i.e., Central Unit - User Plane (CU-UP)), control plane functionality (i.e., Central Unit - Control Plane (CU-CP)), or a combination thereof. In some implementations, the CU 183 can be logically split into one or more CU-UP units and one or more CU-CP units. The CU-UP unit can communicate bidirectionally with the CU-CP unit via an interface, such as the El interface when implemented in an 0-RAN configuration. The CU 183 can be implemented to communicate with the DU 185, as necessary, for network control and signaling.

[0060] The DU 185 may correspond to a logical unit that includes one or more base station functions to control the operation of one or more RUs 187. In some aspects, the DU 185 may host one or more of a radio link control (RLC) layer, a medium access control (MAC) layer, and one or more high physical (PHY) layers (such as modules for forward error correction (FEC) encoding and decoding, scrambling, modulation and demodulation, or the like) depending, at least in part, on a functional split, such as those defined by the 3^rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). In some aspects, the DU 185 may further host one or more low PHY layers. Each layer (or module) can be implemented with an interface configured to communicate signals with other layers (and modules) hosted by the DU 185, or with the control functions hosted by the CU 183.

[0061] Lower-layer functionality can be implemented by one or more RUs 187. In some deployments, an RU 187, controlled by a DU 185, may correspond to a logical node that hosts RF processing functions, or low-PHY layer functions (such as performing fast Fourier transform (FFT), inverse FFT (iFFT), digital beamforming, physical random access channel (PRACH) extraction and filtering, or the like), or both, based at least in part on the functional split, such as a lower layer functional split. In such an architecture, the RU(s) 187 can be implemented to handle over the air (OTA) communication with one or more UEs 104. In some implementations, real-time and non-real-time aspects of control and user plane communication with the RU(s) 187 can be controlled by the corresponding DU 185. In some scenarios, this configuration can enable the DU(s) 185 and the CU 183 to be implemented in a cloud-based RAN architecture, such as a vRAN architecture.

[0062] The SMO Framework 105 may be configured to support RAN deployment and provisioning of non-virtualized and virtualized network elements. For nonvirtualized network elements, the SMO Framework 105 may be configured to support the deployment of dedicated physical resources for RAN coverage requirements, which may be managed via an operations and maintenance interface (such as an 01 interface). For virtualized network elements, the SMO Framework 105 may be configured to interact with a cloud computing platform (such as an open cloud (O- Cloud) 189) to perform network element life cycle management (such as to instantiate virtualized network elements) via a cloud computing platform interface (such as an 02 interface). Such virtualized network elements can include, but are not limited to, CUs 183, DUs 185, RUs 187 and Near-RT RICs 125. In some implementations, the SMO Framework 105 can communicate with a hardware aspect of a 4G RAN, such as an open eNB (O-eNB) 111, via an 01 interface. Additionally, in some implementations, the SMO Framework 105 can communicate directly with one or more RUs 187 via an 01 interface. The SMO Framework 105 also may include the Non-RT RIC 115 configured to support functionality of the SMO Framework 105.

[0063] The Non-RT RIC 115 may be configured to include a logical function that enables non-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources, Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning (AI/ML) workflows including model training and updates, or policy -based guidance of applications/features in the Near-RT RIC 125. The Non-RT RIC 115 may be coupled to or communicate with (such as via an Al interface) the Near-RT RIC 125. The Near-RT RIC 125 may be configured to include a logical function that enables near-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources via data collection and actions over an interface (such as via an E2 interface) connecting one or more CUs 183, one or more DUs 185, or both, as well as an O-eNB, with the Near-RT RIC 125.

[0064] In some implementations, to generate AI/ML models to be deployed in the Near-RT RIC 125, the Non-RT RIC 115 may receive parameters or external enrichment information from external servers. Such information may be utilized by the Near-RT RIC 125 and may be received at the SMO Framework 105 or the Non-RT RIC 115 from non-network data sources or from network functions. In some examples, the Non-RT RIC 115 or the Near-RT RIC 125 may be configured to tune RAN behavior or performance. For example, the Non-RT RIC 115 may monitor long-term trends and patterns for performance and employ AI/ML models to perform corrective actions through the SMO Framework 105 (such as reconfiguration via 01) or via creation of RAN management policies (such as Al policies).

[0065] FIG. 2A is a diagram 200 illustrating an example of a first subframe within a 5G NR frame structure. FIG. 2B is a diagram 230 illustrating an example of DL channels within a 5G NR subframe. FIG. 2C is a diagram 250 illustrating an example of a second subframe within a 5G NR frame structure. FIG. 2D is a diagram 280 illustrating an example of UL channels within a 5G NR subframe. The 5G NR frame structure may be frequency division duplexed (FDD) in which for a particular set of subcarriers (carrier system bandwidth), subframes within the set of subcarriers are dedicated for either DL or UL, or may be time division duplexed (TDD) in which for a particular set of subcarriers (carrier system bandwidth), subframes within the set of subcarriers are dedicated for both DL and UL. In the examples provided by FIGs. 2A, 2C, the 5G NR frame structure is assumed to be TDD, with subframe 4 being configured with slot format 28 (with mostly DL), where D is DL, U is UL, and F is flexible for use between DL/UL, and subframe 3 being configured with slot format 34 (with mostly UL). While subframes 3, 4 are shown with slot formats 34, 28, respectively, any particular subframe may be configured with any of the various available slot formats 0-61. Slot formats 0, 1 are all DL, UL, respectively. Other slot formats 2-61 include a mix of DL, UL, and flexible symbols. UEs are configured with the slot format (dynamically through DL control information (DCI), or semi- statically/statically through radio resource control (RRC) signaling) through a received slot format indicator (SFI). Note that the description infra applies also to a 5G NR frame structure that is TDD.

[0066] Other wireless communication technologies may have a different frame structure and/or different channels. A frame, e.g., of 10 milliseconds (ms), may be divided into 10 equally sized subframes (1 ms). Each subframe may include one or more time slots. Subframes may also include mini-slots, which may include 7, 4, or 2 symbols. Each slot may include 7 or 14 symbols, depending on the slot configuration. For slot configuration 0, each slot may include 14 symbols, and for slot configuration 1, each slot may include 7 symbols. The symbols on DL may be cyclic prefix (CP) orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) (CP-OFDM) symbols. The symbols on UL may be CP-OFDM symbols (for high throughput scenarios) or discrete Fourier transform (DFT) spread OFDM (DFT-s-OFDM) symbols (also referred to as single carrier frequency-division multiple access (SC-FDMA) symbols) (for power limited scenarios; limited to a single stream transmission). The number of slots within a subframe is based on the slot configuration and the numerology. For slot configuration 0, different numerol ogies p 0 to 4 allow for 1, 2, 4, 8, and 16 slots, respectively, per subframe. For slot configuration 1, different numerol ogies 0 to 2 allow for 2, 4, and 8 slots, respectively, per subframe. Accordingly, for slot configuration 0 and numerology p, there are 14 symbols/slot and 2^g slots/subframe. The subcarrier spacing and symbol length/duration are a function of the numerology. The subcarrier spacing may be equal to 2^ * 15 kilohertz (kHz), where /J. is the numerology 0 to 4. As such, the numerology p=0 has a subcarrier spacing of 15 kHz and the numerology p=4 has a subcarrier spacing of 240 kHz. The symbol length/duration is inversely related to the subcarrier spacing. FIGs. 2A-2D provide an example of slot configuration 0 with 14 symbols per slot and numerology p=2 with 4 slots per subframe. The slot duration is 0.25 ms, the subcarrier spacing is 60 kHz, and the symbol duration is approximately 16.67 ps. Within a set of frames, there may be one or more different bandwidth parts (BWPs) (see FIG. 2B) that are frequency division multiplexed. Each BWP may have a particular numerology. [0067] A resource grid may be used to represent the frame structure. Each time slot includes a resource block (RB) (also referred to as physical RBs (PRBs)) that extends 12 consecutive subcarriers. The resource grid is divided into multiple resource elements (REs). The number of bits carried by each RE depends on the modulation scheme.

[0068] As illustrated in FIG. 2A, some of the REs carry reference (pilot) signals (RS) for the UE. The RS may include demodulation RS (DM-RS) (indicated as R_x for one particular configuration, where lOOx is the port number, but other DM-RS configurations are possible) and channel state information reference signals (CSI-RS) for channel estimation at the UE. The RS may also include beam measurement RS (BRS), beam refinement RS (BRRS), and phase tracking RS (PT-RS).

[0069] FIG. 2B illustrates an example of various DL channels within a subframe of a frame.

The physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) carries DCI within one or more control channel elements (CCEs), each CCE including nine RE groups (REGs), each REG including four consecutive REs in an OFDM symbol. A PDCCH within one BWP may be referred to as a control resource set (CORESET). Additional BWPs may be located at greater and/or lower frequencies across the channel bandwidth. A primary synchronization signal (PSS) may be within symbol 2 of particular subframes of a frame. The PSS is used by a UE 104 to determine subframe/symbol timing and a physical layer identity. A secondary synchronization signal (SSS) may be within symbol 4 of particular subframes of a frame. The SSS is used by a UE to determine a physical layer cell identity group number and radio frame timing. Based on the physical layer identity and the physical layer cell identity group number, the UE can determine a physical cell identifier (PCI). Based on the PCI, the UE can determine the locations of the aforementioned DM-RS. The physical broadcast channel (PBCH), which carries a master information block (MIB), may be logically grouped with the PSS and SSS to form a synchronization signal (SS)/PBCH block (also referred to as SS block (SSB)). The MIB provides a number of RBs in the system bandwidth and a system frame number (SFN). The physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) carries user data, broadcast system information not transmitted through the PBCH such as system information blocks (SIBs), and paging messages.

[0070] As illustrated in FIG. 2C, some of the REs carry DM-RS (indicated as R for one particular configuration, but other DM-RS configurations are possible) for channel estimation at the base station. The UE may transmit DM-RS for the physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) and DM-RS for the physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH). The PUSCH DM-RS may be transmitted in the first one or two symbols of the PUSCH. The PUCCH DM-RS may be transmitted in different configurations depending on whether short or long PUCCHs are transmitted and depending on the particular PUCCH format used. The UE may transmit sounding reference signals (SRS). The SRS may be transmitted in the last symbol of a subframe. The SRS may have a comb structure, and a UE may transmit SRS on one of the combs. The SRS may be used by a base station for channel quality estimation to enable frequencydependent scheduling on the UL.

[0071] FIG. 2D illustrates an example of various UL channels within a subframe of a frame. The PUCCH may be located as indicated in one configuration. The PUCCH carries uplink control information (UCI), such as scheduling requests, a channel quality indicator (CQI), a precoding matrix indicator (PMI), a rank indicator (RI), and hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) acknowledgement (ACK) / non-acknowledgement (NACK) feedback. The PUSCH carries data, and may additionally be used to carry a buffer status report (BSR), a power headroom report (PHR), and/or UCI.

[0072] FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a base station 310 in communication with a UE 350 in an access network. In the DL, IP packets from the EPC 160 may be provided to a controller/processor 375. The controller/processor 375 implements layer 3 and layer 2 functionality. Layer 3 includes a radio resource control (RRC) layer, and layer 2 includes a service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) layer, a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, a radio link control (RLC) layer, and a medium access control (MAC) layer. The controller/processor 375 provides RRC layer functionality associated with broadcasting of system information (e.g., MIB, SIBs), RRC connection control (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), inter radio access technology (RAT) mobility, and measurement configuration for UE measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with header compression / decompression, security (ciphering, deciphering, integrity protection, integrity verification), and handover support functions; RLC layer functionality associated with the transfer of upper layer packet data units (PDUs), error correction through ARQ, concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC service data units (SDUs), re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functionality associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs onto transport blocks (TBs), demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction through HARQ, priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0073] The transmit (TX) processor 316 and the receive (RX) processor 370 implement layer 1 functionality associated with various signal processing functions. Layer 1, which includes a physical (PHY) layer, may include error detection on the transport channels, forward error correction (FEC) coding/decoding of the transport channels, interleaving, rate matching, mapping onto physical channels, modulation/demodulation of physical channels, and MIMO antenna processing. The TX processor 316 handles mapping to signal constellations based on various modulation schemes (e.g., binary phase-shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase-shift keying (QPSK), M-phase-shift keying (M-PSK), M-quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM)). The coded and modulated symbols may then be split into parallel streams. Each stream may then be mapped to an OFDM subcarrier, multiplexed with a reference signal (e.g., pilot) in the time and/or frequency domain, and then combined together using an Inverse Fast Fourier Transform (IFFT) to produce a physical channel carrying a time domain OFDM symbol stream. The OFDM stream is spatially precoded to produce multiple spatial streams. Channel estimates from a channel estimator 374 may be used to determine the coding and modulation scheme, as well as for spatial processing. The channel estimate may be derived from a reference signal and/or channel condition feedback transmitted by the UE 350. Each spatial stream may then be provided to a different antenna 320 via a separate transmitter 318TX. Each transmitter 318TX may modulate an RF carrier with a respective spatial stream for transmission.

[0074] At the UE 350, each receiver 354RX receives a signal through its respective antenna 352. Each receiver 354RX recovers information modulated onto an RF carrier and provides the information to the receive (RX) processor 356. The TX processor 368 and the RX processor 356 implement layer 1 functionality associated with various signal processing functions. The RX processor 356 may perform spatial processing on the information to recover any spatial streams destined for the UE 350. If multiple spatial streams are destined for the UE 350, they may be combined by the RX processor 356 into a single OFDM symbol stream. The RX processor 356 then converts the OFDM symbol stream from the time-domain to the frequency domain using a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT). The frequency domain signal comprises a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. The symbols on each subcarrier, and the reference signal, are recovered and demodulated by determining the most likely signal constellation points transmitted by the base station 310. These soft decisions may be based on channel estimates computed by the channel estimator 358. The soft decisions are then decoded and deinterleaved to recover the data and control signals that were originally transmitted by the base station 310 on the physical channel. The data and control signals are then provided to the controller/processor 359, which implements layer 3 and layer 2 functionality.

[0075] The controller/processor 359 can be associated with a memory 360 that stores program codes and data. The memory 360 may be referred to as a computer-readable medium. In the UL, the controller/processor 359 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, deciphering, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from the EPC 160. The controller/processor 359 is also responsible for error detection using an ACK and/or NACK protocol to support HARQ operations.

[0076] Similar to the functionality described in connection with the DL transmission by the base station 310, the controller/processor 359 provides RRC layer functionality associated with system information (e.g., MIB, SIBs) acquisition, RRC connections, and measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with header compression / decompression, and security (ciphering, deciphering, integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functionality associated with the transfer of upper layer PDUs, error correction through ARQ, concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC SDUs, re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functionality associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs onto TBs, demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction through HARQ, priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0077] Channel estimates derived by a channel estimator 358 from a reference signal or feedback transmitted by the base station 310 may be used by the TX processor 368 to select the appropriate coding and modulation schemes, and to facilitate spatial processing. The spatial streams generated by the TX processor 368 may be provided to different antenna 352 via separate transmitters 354TX. Each transmitter 354TX may modulate an RF carrier with a respective spatial stream for transmission.

[0078] The UL transmission is processed at the base station 310 in a manner similar to that described in connection with the receiver function at the UE 350. Each receiver 318RX receives a signal through its respective antenna 320. Each receiver 318RX recovers information modulated onto an RF carrier and provides the information to a RX processor 370.

[0079] The controller/processor 375 can be associated with a memory 376 that stores program codes and data. The memory 376 may be referred to as a computer-readable medium. In the UL, the controller/processor 375 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, deciphering, header decompression, control signal processing to recover IP packets from the UE 350. IP packets from the controller/processor 375 may be provided to the EPC 160. The controller/processor 375 is also responsible for error detection using an ACK and/or NACK protocol to support HARQ operations.

[0080] At least one of the TX processor 368, the RX processor 356, and the controller/processor 359 may be configured to perform aspects in connection with time-varying TCI state reception component 198 of FIG. 1A.

[0081] At least one of the TX processor 316, the RX processor 370, and the controller/processor 375 may be configured to perform aspects in connection with time-varying TCI state transmission component 199 of FIG. 1 A.

[0082] A base station may sense targets of interest (e.g., using radar) either as a service or in the context of sensing-assisted communications. Typically, the resources applied for sensing may share the same resources as those applied for wireless communication with a UE. Such sharing of resources may lead to efficient resource utilization in dual operations such as JCR. In one approach to achieve this dual operation, the base station may consider a data communication signal intended for a receiver (e.g., a UE) also as a probing signal for sensing targets of interest. For instance, the base station may monitor for reflections of the probing signal caused by targets present in the base station’s field of view. In response to receiving a reflected signal, the base station may infer the presence of a target such as another UE. This approach may include multiple benefits. For example, the base station need not apply different radar-specific waveforms for the probing signal, since the base station may effectively re-use the communication signal waveform for both communication and sensing purposes. Moreover, a UE which applies its available processing modules to receive the communication signal may effectively re-use these modules to receive the probing signal. Additionally, since the same signal is applied for both communication and sensing purposes, no interference between the signals may exist. Moreover, this transmission scheme is similar to that applied for multi-transmission reception point (TRP) diversity, where multiple TRPs may use the same demodulation reference signal (DMRS) port to transmit the same data. Alternatively, in another approach, the base station may transmit different signals for communication and sensing purposes, respectively; for example, a probing signal over one beam from a standalone port and a data communication signal over a different beam from a different port.

[0083] Currently, radar operations are performed in mmW bands, such as in the 76-81 GHz frequency range. Therefore, in order to mitigate the path loss prevalent in these bands, the base station may send directive transmissions via transmission beamforming, and the UE may receive these transmissions via reception beamforming. Similarly, as dual beam transmissions such as in JCR may take place over mmW bands, transmission and reception beamforming may be applied for beams in both communication and sensing operations. For example, in JCR, the base station may jointly perform communications and radar operations in a mmW band as a result of forming two beams respectively pointing towards communication and sensing directions.

[0084] In JCR, first, the base station may identify a communication beam, which points in a direction resulting in a best signal quality at the UE, through conventional beam management procedures (e.g., beam discovery, maintenance, recovery, etc.). Second, the base station may identify a radar sensing beam, which may point in a direction of a target of interest to be sensed. In one example, the radar sensing beam may be within a set of beams having different directions which the base station may sequentially scan (in a beam sweep) in order to detect the presence of potential targets over a given wide angular region. This example is illustrated and described below with respect to FIG. 4. In another example, the radar sensing beam may have a direction pointing towards a previously identified target of interest, which beam may change as a result of movement or tracking of the target of interest. This other example is illustrated and described below with respect to FIG. 5. [0085] FIG. 4 illustrates an example 400 where a radar transmitter 402 (e.g., a base station) applies a radar beam sweep to scan a wide angular region for potential targets of interest. In this example, the radar transmitter scans for targets 404 over a wide angular range by performing a beam sweep across multiple transmission beams 406 encompassing the whole angular region. The transmitter may activate each of the beams for a configured amount of time, referred to as a coherent processing interval (CPI). During a CPI 408 of a corresponding beam, the transmitter sends a probing signal over that beam, and detects whether energy has been received from reflection of the probing signal by one of the targets. If energy is detected, the transmitter may determine the target exists in the direction of that beam. The transmitter may continue this process for each beam or CPI until the whole angular region has been scanned, after which the transmitter may repeat the beam sweep process to detect targets in a dynamic environment on a periodic basis. Longer CPI durations may result in better sensing performance (due to increased processing gain). Moreover, CPIs may be in units of OFDM symbols (at least 1 symbol). If each beam has the same CPI, the transmitter may scan each direction equally during the radar beam sweep.

[0086] FIG. 5 illustrates an example 500 where a radar transmitter 502 (e.g., a base station) tracks a target 504 moving in a given direction. In this example, the transmitter has previously identified the target (e.g., in response to a radar beam sweep such as in the example of FIG. 4), and the transmitter forms a transmission beam 506 in the current direction of the target. The transmitter may maintain the transmission beam in that direction for a CPI 508. If the transmitter detects movement of the target within the CPI (for example, in response to detecting a loss in received energy from the direction of a current transmission beam), the transmitter may change the transmission beam during the next CPI to follow the target’s movement. The transmitter may continue to change transmission beams from one CPI to the next in accordance with the target’s movement.

[0087] FIG. 6 illustrates an example 600 of JCR. In JCR, a transmitter 602 (e.g., a base station) may send data in a multi-beam transmission including a first beam 604 and a second beam 606. The first beam is transmitted towards a receiver (e.g., the UE) for communicating data to the receiver, and the second beam is transmitted for sensing or tracking a potential or identified target. The first beam applied for data communication may be in a direction which the base station identifies from a conventional beam management procedure as having a best signal quality. The second beam applied for radar sensing may be in a direction of a target 608 of interest. For example, the second beam may correspond to one of the transmission beams 406, 506 in FIGs. 4 or 5 directed towards target 404, 504. As a result of the multi-beam transmission, a receiver 610 (e.g., a UE) may receive the data signal from two angles of arrival (Ao A), including in a first direction 612 corresponding to that of the first beam, and in a second direction 614 corresponding to a reflected signal from the target.

[0088] The communicated data signal which is received in the first direction 612 may correspond to a line of sight path with the transmitter 602, and thus include stronger energy, than the reflected, probing data signal which is simultaneously received in the second direction 614, which depends on the position of the target 608 of interest. If the signals are identical or carried on the same resources, as typical in JCR, the reflected data signal may not interfere with the communicated data signal. Moreover, if the receiver 610 considers the reflected data signal direction in its processing, the reflected data signal may improve reception of the communicated data signal due to diversity gain from the multiple data paths. However, both the communicated data signal and the probing data signal may have different channel characteristics such as channel delay spread, since the overall distance traveled by the probing data signal is longer than the distance traveled by the communicated data signal, resulting in an increase in effective channel delay spread for the data signal. As a result of the different propagation delays of the communicated data signal and the probing data signal, the overall channel between the transmitter and the receiver may differ from that which would otherwise exist between the transmitter and the receiver in a single beam environment (if the radar sensing beam did not exist), and therefore the receiver may not successfully receive the composite data signal based on channel characteristics solely estimated from the communication beam.

[0089] In one example approach for handling multi-beam transmissions for communication and sensing, such as illustrated in FIG. 6, the transmitter 602 may not notify the receiver 610 of the existence of the second beam 606 applied for sensing. For example, when the transmitter indicates the TCI state of the first beam 604 applied for the data communication signal in DCI, the transmitter may not indicate a TCI state of the second beam and thus render this second beam completely transparent to the receiver. As a result, the receiver limits its reception beamforming, energy detection, and estimation of channel characteristics to correspond to only the first direction 612 of the communicated data signal, while disregarding the second direction 614 of any reflected probing data signal. For example, the receiver may determine to form a reception beam 616 solely based on the direction of the communicated data signal as illustrated in FIG. 6. This approach may allow the receiver to successfully receive the communicated data signal in cases where the communicated data signal is strong, if any energy of the reflected data signal is captured by the receiver, and if the receiver applies characteristics of the overall composite channel in its DMRS-based channel estimation.

[0090] However, this approach where the transmitter 602 does not inform the receiver 610 of the multi-beam transmission may be undesirable in general cases where the above conditions may not be met. For example, when the transmitter 602 provides a multibeam transmission for communication and sensing purposes, the transmitter generally splits energy or transmission power between the first beam 604 and second beam 606. As a result, the communicated data signal may not be strong enough by itself for the receiver to successfully receive due to the energy split across beams. For instance, if power is split evenly between the first beam and the second beam, a 3 decibel (dB) link margin loss may result for direct communication between the transmitter and the receiver. Yet, if the transmitter were to inform the receiver of the existence of the second beam, the receiver may determine that its data may arrive not only in the first direction 612 but potentially in the second direction 614 as well, and accordingly monitor this second direction for additional energy to compensate for the energy split and lead to successful reception of the composite data signal. In another example, when the transmitter 602 provides a multi-beam transmission for communication and sensing purposes, the propagation distance of the second beam may be greater than that of the first beam (due to target reflections of the probing data signal). As a result, the overall effective channel may have different channel characteristics (e.g., delay spread) than those of the direct channel between the transmitter and receiver. Therefore, if the receiver determines a reception beam for receiving the data based solely on a delay spread of the direct channel, a mismatch may exist between the delay spread which the receiver factors into its channel estimation and the effective delay spread of the overall channel. For example, if a UE attempts to receive the data in response to a TCI which indicates a quasi-colocation (QCL) of a reference signal port associated with a channel delay spread and a DMRS port associated with the communicated data signal, this channel delay spread may be smaller than the effective channel delay spread caused by the multi-beam transmission and therefore result in the UE failing to successfully receive the communicated data signal due to improper channel estimation. However, if the transmitter were to inform the receiver of the effective channel delay spread, the receiver may be able to adapt its channel estimation accordingly and successfully receive the composite data signal.

[0091] Accordingly, it would be helpful for the transmitter 602 to indicate to the receiver 610 the existence of an additional beam (e.g., second beam 606 for radar sensing) for a data signal, or the information regarding the communication path for this data signal, which indication the receiver may exploit to successfully receive the data signal. For instance, in response to the indication, the receiver may adapt its reception beamforming to combine both communication paths in the first direction 612 and the second direction 614 to compensate for transmission energy splits, or the receiver may adjust its channel estimation to avoid applying direct link/channel parameters mismatched with those of the overall effective channel between the transmitter and the receiver. Moreover, if the transmitter indicates to the receiver information regarding the second beam or channel, the transmitter is not limited to transmitting the same data signal for both communication and sensing from the same DMRS port as typically performed in JCR. For example, the transmitter may transmit an encoded data signal in the second beam 606 with a different redundancy version than that of the data signal carried in the first beam 604, in order to provide additional coding gain at the receiver for the same transport block. Additionally or alternatively, the transmitter may send different transport blocks in the first beam and second beam to the receiver respectively from different DMRS ports.

[0092] Generally, the transmitter may indicate a transmission beam or direction through a TCI state indication. The transmitter may provide this indication to the receiver prior to sending the data transmission associated with the indicated TCI state. The TCI state may indicate a beam or channel characteristic from a set of transmission beams having a best signal quality or associated channel characteristics (e.g., delay spread) previously identified by the transmitter, and the receiver may adapt its reception of the data transmission based on the TCI state accordingly. For example, if the TCI state indicates a transmission beam which will carry data to the receiver, the receiver may adjust its antennas to form a reception beam in the direction of the transmission beam to achieve best signal quality in reception. Moreover, the TCI state may indicate channel characteristics or beam information associated with a QCL source, such as a synchronization signal block (SSB) or a channel state information (CSI) reference signal (CSI-RS) previously identified as having best channel characteristics or beam properties, and the receiver may adapt its reception of the data transmission in a similar manner to its reception of the QCL source. For example, in response to receiving a TCI state pointing to a QCL source, the receiver may apply the same reception beam which was previously applied to receive the QCL source, or the receiver may estimate the channel corresponding to the data transmission based on the same large scale channel characteristics (such as the delay spread) for the QCL source.

[0093] Similarly, in order to indicate to the receiver that the transmitter will simultaneously send data in two beams over two directions (e.g., beams 604, 606), the transmitter may provide TCI state indications indicating both beams. The TCI state indications may be provided in a similar manner to those for multi-TRP transmissions, where two distinct TRPs may respectively provide over two different beams the same data signal or the same transport block encoded with different RVs at the same time. For example, the transmitter may provide a TCI codepoint in DCI which is mapped to two TCI states, including one TCI state for one TRP and indicating one beam, and another TCI state for the other TRP and indicating another beam.

[0094] However, the TCI indications conventionally provided for multi-TRP transmissions are designed to remain constant throughout the duration or TTI of a transmission. For example, if two TRPs simultaneously send a data signal in a scheduled resource to a receiver, the TCI state for each TRP may not change (and thus the transmission beam or associated channel properties do not change) during the TTI of the scheduled resource. In contrast, if the transmitter is providing a data signal for communication and radar sensing such as in JCR, the transmission beams may not remain static throughout the duration of the data transmission; that is, the TCI state indication may not remain valid for the entire duration or TTI of the scheduled resource. For example, during the time that the transmitter is communicating data to a receiver over a scheduled resource in one beam, the transmitter may send a radar probing signal in different beam directions when scanning an area or tracking a moving object or target. [0095] FIG. 7 illustrates an example 700 of a transmitter 702 which performs a radar beam sweep to sense potential targets of interest (or to track a moving target). During a CPI 704, the transmitter sends a probing data signal over a transmission beam 706, and the transmitter may change the transmission beam 706 after each CPI. While the transmitter is sweeping across the transmission beams 706, the transmitter may initiate a data transmission over a fixed transmission beam 708 to a stationary receiver. The data transmission may have a TTI 710 which is different than the CPI. For example, while the TTI may span at least one slot, each CPI may span less than one slot in duration. Since the transmitter generally sweeps through a large number of beams when scanning or tracking targets, the CPI is typically smaller than the TTI in order to allow for a reasonable overall sensing time. Thus, in the example of FIG. 7, one TTI may span the duration of 2.5 CPIs, although the duration of CPIs may be different in other examples. As a result, while the transmitter sends data over fixed transmission beam 708 within TTI 710, the transmitter may change its transmission beams 706 multiple times (across CPIs) within that TTI. Moreover, the periodicity of the CPI may not be aligned with the TTI. For example, as illustrated in the example of FIG. 7, the TTI 710 may begin in the middle of the second CPI shown. Thus, the beginning or end of the TTI may not necessarily coincide with the beginning or end of a CPI. Moreover, while in this example 700 the transmitter treats each transmission beam 706 equivalently by configuring each CPI with the same duration, in other examples at least one CPI may be different with respect to another. For example, the transmitter may maintain one of the transmission beams 706 for a longer time than another one of the transmission beams 706.

[0096] Therefore, it would be helpful for the transmitter 702 to indicate to the receiver that the transmitter will not only send data in a scheduled resource simultaneously in two beams through two TCI state indications such as previously described, but also that one of these TCI state indications may vary during the TTI of the scheduled resource. For example, if the transmitter 702 sweeps across transmission beams 706 for target sensing during TTI 710, the TCI state indicating each transmission beam will vary over time during the TTI. Thus, before the transmitter sends data to the receiver in the fixed communication beam 708, the transmitter may indicate to the receiver that the TCI state corresponding to a specific DMRS port associated with that data may change at least once during the TTI or data scheduling interval. For instance, in the example of FIG. 7 where the TTI 710 spans less than three CPIs, the transmitter may indicate to the receiver that the TCI state for a given radar transmission beam may change twice within the TTI.

[0097] To this end, aspects of the present disclosure utilize control signaling between the transmitter and the receiver through which the transmitter may indicate a sequence of TCI states corresponding to the changing transmission beams within the TTI of the scheduled resource. For example, after the transmitter 702 selects the transmission beams 706 to apply for target sensing in a given sequence such as illustrated in FIG. 7, the transmitter may indicate in DCI a sequence of TCI states respectively associated with the sequence of transmission beams. Each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states may be associated with a specific antenna port and sequentially activated for a duration or number of symbols indicated in the control signaling. Upon receiving the sequence of TCI states, the receiver may adapt its reception to change according to the sequence of TCI states. For example, if each TCI state in the sequence indicates a different one of the transmission beams 706 is active for a specified duration, the receiver may form a different reception beam during each specified duration accordingly. Similarly, when the transmitter simultaneously sends data over the fixed transmission beam 708 and a different one of the transmission beams 706 during each specified duration (resulting in a varying difference in channel delay spread or other channel characteristics over time), the receiver may adapt its channel estimation accordingly during each specified duration in order to successfully receive the communicated data from the transmitter. For example, the receiver may consider different QCL source parameters for channel estimation (e.g., Doppler shift, Doppler spread, delay spread) or beamforming within the TTI of the scheduled resource. Here, the transmitter may include a single TRP which applies the transmission beams 706, 708, or multiple TRPs which respectively apply transmission beams 706 and fixed transmission beam 708. Moreover, in contrast to the static TCI codepoint indicated for multi-TRP transmissions described above (where the TCI states remain the same or valid for the duration of the TTI), here the TCI states may change throughout the TTI (and thus a TCI state may not remain valid by itself for the duration of the TTI). [0098] FIGs. 8A-8B illustrate examples 800, 850 of configurations of TCI states from which the base station may select a sequence of TCI states for varying transmissions within a TTI. In one example, referring to FIG. 8A, the base station may provide the UE a MAC-CE 802 indicating a set of active TCI states 804 for subsequent data transmissions. More particularly, the base station may initially configure a set of TCI states in a PDSCH configuration (e.g., via parameter tci-StatesToAddModList or other name), select a subset of these TCI states from this configuration to be the set of active TCI states 804, and indicate these active TCI states to the UE via the MAC- CE 802. Generally, the base station indicates one of these active TCI states in DCI for a subsequent PDSCH transmission (e.g., to indicate fixed transmission beam 708). However in this example, the base station may alternatively (or additionally) apply multiple or all of these active TCI states for varying transmissions within a TTI of the PDSCH transmission. For example, when selecting a sequence of TCI states corresponding to the transmission beams 706 to apply for target sensing such as illustrated in FIG. 7, the transmitter may select the sequence of TCI states from the active TCI states indicated in the MAC-CE. In another example, referring to FIG. 8B, the base station may provide the UE an RRC configuration 852 indicating a set of preconfigured TCI states 854 for periodic beam-sweep cycles. In this case, rather than applying active TCI states in a MAC-CE for varying transmissions within a TTI as in the example of FIG. 8 A, here the base station may instead apply these pre-configured TCI states for the varying transmissions. For example, when selecting a sequence of TCI states corresponding to the transmission beams 706 to apply for target sensing such as illustrated in FIG. 7, the transmitter may select the sequence of TCI states from the pre-configured TCI states indicated in the RRC configuration. These preconfigured TCI states may partially overlap with, or be completely different than, the active TCI states enabled in a MAC-CE for the data transmission. For instance, the base station may provide one or more DCIs indicating a TCI state for the fixed transmission beam 708 selected from the MAC-CE 802 and a sequence of TCI states for the varying transmission beams 706 selected from the RRC configuration 852, where the TCI state selected from the MAC-CE 802 and the sequence of TCI states selected from the RRC configuration 852 may be partially the same or completely different. [0099] FIG. 9 illustrates an example 900 of a DCI 902 which indicates a sequence 904 of TCI states. The DCI may include a dedicated field 906 for indicating a variation of TCI states within a TTI of a scheduled resource indicated in the DCI (e.g., TCI states corresponding to transmission beams 706 of FIG. 7). The DCI may also include an antenna port 908 (e.g., a DMRS port) associated with scheduled data in the DCI, as well as other information (e.g., a time domain resource allocation (TDRA) and a frequency domain resource allocation (FDRA)) of the scheduled resource.

[0100] In one example, the transmission beams 706 indicated in the sequence 904 of TCI states may be radar sensing beams for target scanning or tracking, although the transmission beams are not limited to sensing beams. Thus, the TCI states indicated in the dedicated field may not be limited to a JCR setting; for instance, the sequence of TCI states may correspond to varying transmission beams within a TTI for communicating data to the receiver rather than for sensing other targets. In one example, the base station may transmit DCI 902 separate from another DCI indicating a fixed TCI state within the duration of the scheduled resource (e.g., a TCI state corresponding to fixed transmission beam 708 of FIG. 7). In another example, the base station may transmit DCI 902 standalone, in which case the DCI may indicate only varying TCI states within the duration of the scheduled resource, or the DCI may indicate a fixed TCI state in addition to the varying TCI states.

[0101] The dedicated field 906 may indicate, for the specified antenna port 908, which TCI state identifiers 910 in the sequence 904 are active for a corresponding symbol duration 912 (e.g., an indicated number of OFDM symbols within a slot). For instance, the base station may configure in the DCI 902 a sequence of identifiers for the TCI states, and a duration of how long each TCI state is active in terms of number of OFDM symbols. For example, in the illustrated example of FIG. 9, the base station may configure two parameters in the dedicated field including a TCI state identifier sequence {0, 1, 2, 3} respectively corresponding to TCI states 0, 1, 2, and 3, and a TCI state duration sequence {2, 4, 4} respectively corresponding to the first TCI state (two symbols), the second TCI state (four symbols), and the third TCI state (four symbols). In this particular example, these values may indicate to the UE receiving the DCI 902 the following: TCI state 0 (e.g., corresponding to the first transmission beam) initially becomes active at the beginning of the transmission and lasts for two OFDM symbols, TCI state 1 (e.g., the second transmission beam) then becomes active and lasts for four OFDM symbols, TCI state 2 (e.g., the third transmission beam) next becomes active and lasts for four symbols, and TCI state 3 (e.g., the fourth transmission beam) lastly becomes active and lasts for the remainder of the TTI.

[0102] The approach applied in the example 900 of FIG. 9 may provide maximum flexibility to the base station in indicating a sequence of TCI states, since the TCI state identifiers and corresponding symbol durations may be arbitrarily selected from any of the active TCI states configured in the MAC-CE of FIG. 8A or from any of the pre-configured TCI states in the RRC configuration of FIG. 8B. However, to achieve the full flexibility of this approach, the dedicated field in DCI may be fairly large to accommodate the various combinations of arbitrarily selected TCI states for the sequence. Thus, the base station may incur significant control overhead to convey this information to the UE under this approach.

[0103] FIG. 10 illustrates an example 1000 of a look-up table 1002 or codebook preconfigured with various sequences 1004 of TCI states. The look-up table may be configured in a MAC-CE (e.g., the MAC-CE 802 in FIG. 8A) or an RRC configuration (e.g., the RRC configuration 852 in FIG. 8B) that the base station may provide or pre-configure for the UE. The look-up table may include a common symbol duration 1006 associated with each TCI state of the sequences of TCI states, and an index 1008 or code point to each sequence or row in the look-up table. Through the index, the base station may indicate to the UE which sequence of TCI states is to be applied to subsequent transmission beams (e.g., transmission beams 706 in FIG. 7) varying within a TTI of a scheduled resource for data communication, as well as a common duration of time over which each TCI state in the sequence is to be applied. For radar beam transmissions, this symbol duration may represent, for instance, a common CPI of each radar beam transmission.

[0104] As an example, referring to FIGs. 7 and 10, if the base station selects to apply the sequence of TCI states associated with IDs {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, . . . } and symbol duration ‘4’ in the look-up table, the base station may configure in a field of DCI the index ‘ 1 ’ corresponding to the selected sequence of TCI states. This configuration may indicate that initially TCI state 0 (corresponding to a first, left-most one of the transmission beams 706) will become active and lasts for four OFDM symbols, TCI state 1 (corresponding to a second one of the transmission beams 706) then becomes active and lasts similarly for four OFDM symbols, TCI state 2 (corresponding to a third one of the transmission beams 706) next becomes active and lasts similarly for four symbols, and so forth for the rest of the sequence. Thus, in this example, every TCI state identifier indicated in the sequence of TCI states may be sequentially applied for a common number of symbols or symbol duration.

[0105] In contrast to the example of FIG. 9, where the base station may configure an arbitrary sequence of TCI states in DCI, the example of FIG. 10 may be more restrictive in the sense that the sequences of TCI states which the base station may apply are limited to those pre-configured in this look-up table. However, this less flexible approach may incur less overhead, and thus be more efficient, than the approach applied in FIG. 9, since the base station may simply indicate in DCI an index or pointer associated with the sequence of TCI states (and corresponding symbol duration) rather than indicating the whole sequence and corresponding durations. The efficiency of this approach may be most realized when the transmission beams are applied as part of a periodic beam sweep for sensing potential targets (as opposed to tracking an identified target), since a beam sweep may apply the same sequence of TCI states during each period according to a fixed TCI schedule. This approach is also most efficient if the transmission beams are each maintained for a same amount of time or CPI (and thus treated equivalently with a common symbol duration), as opposed to having different symbol durations which would necessitate additional symbol duration fields in the look-up table.

[0106] FIG. 11 illustrates an example 1100 of a DCI 1102 which indicates example configurations of different modifications or behaviors that may be applied to TCI states or durations from an indicated sequence 1104 of TCI states. Here, the indicated sequence of TCI states may correspond to the first row of a look up table 1105 of preconfigured TCI state sequences (e.g., look up table 1002 in FIG. 10), although in other examples the indicated sequence of TCI states may correspond to a different row in the look up table. Accordingly, in the illustrated example, the DCI includes an indicated TCI sequence index 1106 specifying the value ‘ 1’, which here corresponds to index ‘ 1’ in the look up table, although the value may be different in other examples.

[0107] In one example, the DCI 1102 may indicate a TCI sequence offset 1108 for the indicated sequence. The TCI sequence offset may indicate which TCI state from the indicated sequence of TCI states is an initial TCI state 1110 to be applied to transmission beams varying within a TTI of a scheduled resource (e.g., transmission beams 706 in FIG. 7). A non-zero offset may compensate for situations where the beginning of the TTI is not aligned with a time of an initially formed transmission beam (e.g., an initial CPI for radar sensing). For instance, in the illustrated example of FIG. 7, the TTI is scheduled to begin during a second one of the transmission beams 706, which corresponds to the second TCI state of the indicated sequence. Therefore, as illustrated in the example of FIG. 11, the base station may configure an offset of ‘ 1’ in the DCI to indicate that the initial TCI state to be applied in the indicated sequence is the second TCI state of the sequence. In another example, if the TTI was alternatively scheduled to begin during a third one of the transmission beams 706 (corresponding to the third TCI state of the indicated sequence), the base station may configure an offset of ‘2’ in the DCI to indicate that the initial TCI state to be applied in the indicated sequence is the third TCI state of the sequence. Thus, in various examples, an offset of ‘0’ may indicate the initial TCI state is a first TCI state of the sequence, an offset of ‘ 1’ may indicate the initial TCI state is a second TCI state of the sequence an offset of ‘2’ may indicate the initial TCI state a third TCI state of the sequence, and so forth.

[0108] In another example, the DCI 1102 may indicate a TCI sequence reset indicator 1112 for the indicated sequence. The TCI sequence reset indicator may indicate whether or not, after a last TCI state in the indicated sequence has been applied, the sequence will loop back or reset to the first TCI state in the indicated sequence. For instance, in the example of FIG. 11, the base station may configure the TCI sequence to reset at 1114, in which case the base station may indicate this reset through the TCI sequence reset indicator (e.g., using the value ‘0’ in this example). A reset may accommodate situations where a duration of the TTI is longer than a total duration of the transmission beams 706 (e.g., a total CPI length), such as in the example where a full radar beam sweep completes prior to the end of the TTI, in which case a beam sweep of the transmission beams 706 may restart during the next CPI within the TTI. On the other hand, if the base station does not configure the sequence to reset in such situations, then after the last TCI state is applied within the TTI for one of the transmission beams 706, the base station may deactivate the corresponding ports associated with these transmission beams, and only the fixed transmission beam 708 may be formed within the TTI from that time onwards until the beginning of a subsequent beam sweep cycle of transmission beams 706.

[0109] In a further example, the DCI 1102 may indicate an initial TCI state duration 1116 for an initial TCI state in the indicated TCI sequence. The initial TCI state here may be the first TCI state in the sequence, or a second or later TCI state in the sequence such as indicated by TCI sequence offset 1108. The initial TCI state duration may be configured in situations where the TTI is not aligned with a time of an initially formed transmission beam within the TTI (e.g., in cases where the initial TCI state is activated prior to the beginning of the TTI, or in other words, in cases where the TTI begins in the middle of a CPI, such as in the example of FIG. 7). Thus, the initial TCI state duration may indicate a number of symbols for the initial TCI state which is smaller than a common symbol duration 1118 applied to the sequence of TCI states (e.g., common symbol duration 1006 in FIG. 10). For example, referring to the examples of FIGs. 7 and 11 where the initial TCI state corresponds to the second one of the transmission beams 706 as previously described, the TTI may begin partially after the start of the CPI associated with the second one of the transmission beams. Thus, the initial TCI state duration, here the time in the TTI during which the second one of the transmission beams remains active in this example, may be shorter than the common or default symbol duration, here the CPI in this example. Accordingly, the base station may indicate the initial TCI state duration in the DCI in number of symbols to the UE. For instance, in the example of FIG. 11, the base station may indicate that the second one of the transmission beams 706 from FIG. 7 corresponding to the initial TCI state of the indicated sequence is only active for 2 symbols, rather than the default length of 4 symbols applied to other TCI states.

[0110] In the aforementioned examples of FIGs. 9-11, the sequence of TCI states may be associated with a single antenna port, such as a standalone DMRS port. Similarly, the TCI state associated with a fixed transmission beam may be associated with another antenna port, such as another DMRS port. Thus, the base station may provide two DCIs to the UE, where one DCI may indicate, through multiple TCI states sequentially activated within a TTI, the directions of multiple transmission beams from one indicated antenna port, and the other DCI may indicate, through a different TCI state fixed within the TTI, the direction of a fixed transmission beam from another indicated antenna port. This approach may allow fixed TCI states and time- varying TCI states to be associated with different data signals or a same transport block encoded with different RVs. For example, in the case of JCR, the different signals may include a communicated data signal from one antenna port which is intended for a UE, and a probing data signal from a different antenna port which is intended for sensing potential targets or tracking a previously identified target.

[OHl] However, in other examples, the fixed TCI state and time-varying TCI states may be associated with a same data signal. For instance, the fixed TCI state and time-varying TCI states may each be associated with a same antenna port, such as a same DMRS port, in DCI. Alternatively, the fixed TCI state and time-varying TCI states may respectively be associated with different DMRS ports in DCI. In either case, the base station may provide a single DCI to the UE indicating fixed and time-varying TCI states within a TTI under this approach. For instance, in the example of JCR, the base station may indicate in DCI a fixed TCI state corresponding to a fixed transmission beam carrying a communicated data signal, and also the sequence of TCI states corresponding to the time-varying transmission beams carrying a probing data signal for target sensing or tracking. This approach may prevent interference between different data signals and provide channel diversity, since the base station may provide the same data to the UE in the same waveform (and with the same DMRS sequences in the case of a single port), but over different paths (e.g., a line of sight path over fixed transmission beam 708 and a non-line of sight path over one of the transmission beams 706 at a given time). In response to receiving the DCI, the UE may adjust its receiver according to the indicated TCI states; for example, the UE may form a reception beam to receive the data in a direction towards both directions of the fixed transmission beam and the time-varying transmission beam.

[0112] FIG. 12 illustrates an example 1200 of a DCI 1202 including a TCI state group 1204 which indicates both fixed and time-varying TCI sates within a TTI. The TCI state group 1204 may include a TCI state 1206 and a sequence 1208 of TCI states. The TCI state 1206 may indicate a fixed transmission beam 1210 within a TTI 1212 of a resource scheduled by the DCI, such as fixed transmission beam 708 in FIG. 7. The sequence 1208 of TCI states may indicate transmission beams 1214 which vary within the TTI of the scheduled resource, such as transmission beams 706 in FIG. 7. In one example, the TCI state group 1204 may be associated with a single antenna port, here referenced as a TCI state group antenna port 1216 (e.g., a single DMRS port). In such case, the fixed transmission beam 1210 and the time-varying transmission beams 1214 may carry a same data signal to the UE including DMRS over the indicated TCI state group antenna port. In other example, the TCI state group 1204 may be associated with separate antenna ports (e.g., different DMRS ports), including a TCI antenna port 1218 associated with TCI state 1206, and a TCI sequence antenna port 1220 associated with the sequence 1208 of TCI states. In such case, the fixed transmission beam may carry a data signal to the UE including DMRS over the indicated TCI antenna port, while the time-varying transmission beams 1214 associated with each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states may carry a different data signal (or a same data signal encoded with a different RV) to the UE including DMRS over the indicated TCI sequence antenna port.

[0113] The sequence 1208 of TCI states may be indicated in a similar manner to the sequence of TCI states described above in various examples with respect to FIGs. 9-11. For example, the sequence 1208 of TCI states may be represented by TCI state identifiers in a dedicated field for indicating a variation of TCI states within a TTI of a scheduled resource indicated in the DCI. In another example, the sequence 1208 of TCI states may be represented by an index or code point to a pre-configured look up table of TCI state sequences, and the DCI may include other fields which modify the sequence (e.g., TCI sequence offset, TCI sequence reset indicator, initial TCI state duration). Thus, in a similar TCI structure to that applied for multi-TRP transmissions, the TCI state group in the single DCI may effectively contain two TCI states (e.g., one TCI state for a communicated data signal and one TCI code point for time-varying transmission beams within the TTI).

[0114] While the above examples described with respect to FIGs. 9-12 allow a receiver to adapt its reception of data from the base station based on indicated sequences of TCI states, in some cases, it may not be desirable for the receiver to account for the indicated sequence in its reception. For example, in the case of JCR, if the timevarying direction of a probing data signal at a given time is in the opposite direction of a communicated data signal at that given time (or if the probing signal is otherwise in a direction which does not result in a reflected path from a target to the UE), the quality of the data communication may be unaffected. Thus, additional receiver processing at the UE for the probing data signal may be inefficient. In another example, even if the probing data signal is reflected by a target to the UE (or if the probing signal is otherwise relevant to the path of the data communication), the communicated data signal may have a low data rate or may otherwise be a reliable transmission, or the UE may be of low complexity or may be incapable of processing multiple data signal receptions at the same time. In such cases, the UE may prefer to disregard processing of probing data signal in its reception of the communicated data signal to achieve efficiency.

[0115] Accordingly, to accommodate these situations, a prioritization of fixed TCI states relative to sequences of TCI states may be provided. For example, a TCI state associated with a fixed transmission beam within a TTI for data communication may generally be categorized as higher priority or a primary TCI state, while each TCI state in a sequence of TCI states associated with time-varying transmission beams within the TTI (e.g., for sensing/tracking targets) may generally be categorized as lower priority or a secondary TCI state. In response to determining this relative priority, the UE may determine whether or not to disregard an indicated sequence of TCI states in DCI. If the UE disregards the indicated sequence of TCI states, the UE may compensate for this disregard by applying worst-case channel parameters in its channel estimation. For example, if the UE receives the data communication over the fixed transmission beam with a given delay spread, the UE may estimate the channel based on a longer delay spread than that given, in order to potentially avoid mismatches between the given delay spread and the actual delay spread associated with the overall, multi-path channel between the UE and the base station (e.g., the channel combining line of sight and non-line of sight paths).

[0116] In one example, referring again to FIG. 12, the DCI 1202 may indicate a TCI state priority 1222 which is associated with the TCI state 1206 or sequence 1208 of TCI states in the TCI state group 1204. For example, the TCI state priority may be a single bit field including either a ‘0’ or ‘ 1’, where one of these bit values indicates that one TCI state in the TCI state group (e.g., the fixed TCI state) has the higher priority and that the other TCI state in the TCI state group (e.g., the TCI codepoint associated with a sequence of TCI states) has the lower priority. If the DCI explicitly indicates that the fixed TCI state has the higher priority, and if the UE receiving the DCI is low- complexity or otherwise is configured to only consider a single (fixed) TCI state in its receiver processing, then in response to this explicit indication of TCI state priority in DCI, the UE may adapt its beamforming to form a reception beam towards the fixed transmission beam 1210. Moreover, in response to this priority indication, the UE may optionally disregard the secondary TCI states (the lower priority, sequence of TCI states) in its reception, even if the transmission beams 1214 associated with the sequence of TCI states do not happen to vary during the TTI (e.g., due to a tracked target being stationary during this time). For example, the UE may optionally refrain from adapting its beamforming to form the reception beam jointly towards the fixed transmission beam 1210 and transmission beam 1214, and instead only direct the reception beam in the direction of the fixed transmission beam 1210. In another example, rather than indicating the TCI state priority 1222 in DCI, the relative priority between the fixed and time-varying TCI states may be pre-configured. For example, one TCI state in the TCI state group (e.g., the fixed TCI state) may be pre-configured to have the higher priority, while the other TCI state in the TCI state group (e.g., the TCI codepoint associated with a sequence of TCI states) may be pre-configured to have the lower priority. Thus, fixed TCI states may be pre-configured as primary TCI states, while time-varying TCI states may be pre-configured as secondary TCI states. [0117] FIG. 13 is an example 1300 of a call flow between a UE 1302 and a base station 1304.

Initially, the base station may provide an RRC configuration 1306 to the UE. In one example, the RRC configuration may be a PDSCH configuration which configures (e.g., via parameter tci-StatesToAddModList or other name) a set of TCI states. Following the RRC configuration, the base station may provide a MAC-CE 1308 to the UE. The MAC-CE 1308 may correspond to MAC-CE 802 of FIG. 8A. For example, the MAC-CE may indicate the set of active TCI states 804 (derived from the RRC configuration 1306) which the base station may apply for time-varying transmissions within a TTI. For example, when selecting a sequence of TCI states corresponding to the transmission beams 706 to apply for target sensing such as illustrated in FIG. 7, the base station may select the sequence of TCI states from the active TCI states indicated in the MAC-CE 1308. In another example, the RRC configuration 1306 may correspond to RRC configuration 852 of FIG. 8B. For example, the RRC configuration 1306 may indicate the set of pre-configured TCI states 854 for periodic beam-sweep cycles. In this case, rather than applying active TCI states in MAC-CE 1308 for varying transmissions within a TTI as in the example of FIG. 8A, here the base station may instead apply these pre-configured TCI states indicated in the RRC configuration 1306 for the varying transmissions. [0118] The base station 1304 may subsequently transmit to the UE 1302 a DCI 1310 which indicates a sequence 1312 of TCI states. The DCI may also include a TDRA, a FDRA, or other information indicating a scheduled resource 1314 (e.g., one or more RBs, slots, or other resources) having a TTI over which the base station may transmit data 1316 to the UE. In one example, the DCI 1310 may correspond to DCI 902 of FIG. 9. For example, the DCI may include dedicated field 906 indicating an arbitrarily selected sequence of TCI states from the MAC-CE 1308 or RRC configuration 1306. In such case, the sequence 1312 of TCI states may correspond to the sequence 904 of TCI states configured in the dedicated field of the DCI. In another example, the DCI 1310 may correspond to DCI 1102 of FIG. 11. For example, the DCI may include indicated TCI sequence index 1106 which maps to a pre-configured sequence of TCI states in look up table 1002, 1105. In such case, the sequence 1312 of TCI states may correspond to the sequence 1004 of TCI states mapped to the indicated TCI sequence index. The look up table may be configured in the RRC configuration 1306 or a different RRC configuration, or the look up table may be configured in the MAC-CE 1308 or a different MAC-CE. In another example, the DCI 1310 may correspond to DCI 1202 of FIG. 12. For example, the DCI may include TCI state group 1204 which indicates the sequence 1208 of TCI states corresponding to time-varying transmission beams 1214. The DCI may also indicate the TCI state priority 1222 of the sequence of TCI states.

[0119] Following transmission of the DCI 1310, at 1318, the base station 1304 may transmit the data 1316 in the scheduled resource 1314 based on the sequence 1312 of TCI states. For example, referring also to FIG. 3, the base station 310 or a component of the base station (e.g., the Tx processor 316 of the base station) may sequentially form a plurality of transmission beams 1320 over different directions from antennas 320, where each of the transmission beams corresponds to one of the TCI states in the sequence 1312 of TCI states, and the base station or a component of the base station (e.g., the transmitter 318TX of the base station) may modulate a carrier signal with a data signal including the data 1316 to be transmitted in the scheduled resource over each of the transmission beams according to the sequence of TCI states. As an example, the base station may perform a beam sweep of each of transmission beams 1320 in order to sense or track a target 1321 other than the UE 1302. During the beam sweep, the base station 310 or a component of the base station (e.g., the Tx processor 316 of the base station) may individually activate each of the transmission beams 1320 for an indicated or configured symbol duration associated with each active TCI state in the sequence 1312 of TCI states, such as previously described with respect to FIGs. 9-11. Thus, the plurality of transmission beams 1320 may correspond to transmission beams 706 of FIG. 7 or transmission beams 1214 of FIG. 12.

[0120] Moreover, the base station 1304 may transmit the data 1316 in the scheduled resource 1314 directly to the UE. For example, referring also to FIG. 3, the base station 310 or a component of the base station (e.g., the Tx processor 316 of the base station) may form a fixed transmission beam 1322 corresponding to another TCI state in a line of sight direction with the UE from antennas 320, and the base station or a component of the base station (e.g., the transmitter 318TX of the base station) may modulate a carrier signal with a data signal including the data 1316 for transmission over the fixed transmission beam 1322 in the scheduled resource 1314. The base station may form and transmit data 1316 over each of the transmission beams 1320, according to the sequence 1312 of TCI states, within the TTI of the scheduled resource 1314. While this example refers to the data 1316 carried in the fixed transmission beam 1322 as being the same as the data 1316 carried in the plurality of transmission beams 1320, in other examples the data may be different. Moreover, while this example refers to the data 1316 carried in the fixed transmission beam 1322 as corresponding to the same antenna port (e.g., DMRS port) as the data 1316 carried in the plurality of transmission beams 1320, in other examples the antenna ports may be different, such as described above with respect to FIG. 12.

[0121] At 1324, following reception of DCI 1310, the UE 1302 may receive the data 1316 in the scheduled resource 1314 based on the sequence 1312 of TCI states. For example, referring to FIG. 3, the UE 350 or a component of the UE (e.g., the RX processor 356 of the UE) may form a reception beam 1326 with antennas 352 such that the UE may receive data 1316 in the scheduled resource 1314 in a joint direction facing (e.g., between) the directions of the fixed transmission beam 1322 and a reflection 1328 of the transmission beam 1320 corresponding to a currently active TCI state in the sequence 1312 of TCI states. In response to receiving a carrier signal modulated with a data signal including the data 1316 in the scheduled resource 1314 over the reception beam 1326, the UE 350 or a component of the UE (e.g., the RX processor 356 of the UE) may demodulate the data signal from the carrier signal, and the UE or a component of the UE (e.g., the controller/processor 359 of the UE) may decode the demodulated data signal. For instance, the UE or a component of the UE (e.g., the RX processor 356 or the controller/processor 359 of the UE) may decode the data following a channel estimation procedure which accounts for the channel properties of the overall channel between the base station and the UE (e.g., delay spread, etc.) formed by the paths of the fixed transmission beam 1322 and the reflection 1328 of the transmission beam 1320 corresponding to the currently active TCI state. Additionally, the UE or a component of the UE (e.g., the RX processor 356 or the controller/processor 359 of the UE) may form the reception beam 1326 in the joint direction and/or perform channel estimation procedures accounting for the currently active TCI state in the sequence 1312 of TCI states, in response to determining that the TCI state priority 1222, if indicated in the DCI 1310, does not indicate each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states are secondary (low priority) TCI states. Otherwise, if the TCI state priority 1222 indicates that the TCI state associated with fixed transmission beam 1322 is higher priority than each of the sequence 1312 of TCI states, the UE may form the reception beam 1326 to receive the data 1316 solely in the direction of the fixed transmission beam 1322, and the UE may perform channel estimation procedures to decode the data with disregard to the currently active TCI state of the sequence of TCI states.

[0122] FIG. 14 is a flowchart 1400 of a method of wireless communication. The method may be performed by a UE (e.g., the UE 104, 350, 1302; the receiver 610; the apparatus 1602). The method allows a UE to receive data in a scheduled resource from a base station simultaneously over two beams or channels, where one of the beams or channels varies over time within the TTI of the scheduled resource (e.g., as in JCR), in response to an indication of a sequence of TCI states including a TCI state corresponding to that time-varying beam or channel.

[0123] At 1402, the UE receives DCI indicating a sequence of TCI states to be applied within a TTI of a scheduled resource. For instance, 1402 may be performed by DCI reception component 1640. For example, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIGs. 7, and 9-13, the UE 1302 may receive DCI 1310 indicating the sequence 1312 of TCI states. For instance, DCI 1310 may correspond to DCI 902, 1102, or 1202, which may respectively indicate sequences 904, 1004, 1104, 1208 of TCI states according to various examples as previously (and subsequently) described. The aspects referenced in various examples may be combined with aspects referenced in other examples. In any example, the sequence 1312 of TCI states may be applied within the TTI 710, 1212 of the scheduled resource 1314. For instance, the sequence 1312 of TCI states may include TCI states which are individually activated in sequence for an indicated or configured symbol duration during the TTI 710, 1212 of the scheduled resource 1314.

[0124] In one example, the sequence of TCI states may include TCI states identified in a MAC-CE. For example, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIGs. 8A and 13, the sequence 1312 of TCI states may include TCI states (e.g., the set of active TCI states 804) identified in MAC-CE 802, 1308.

[0125] In one example, the sequence of TCI states may include a pre-configured TCI state for a periodic beam-sweep cycle, where the pre-configured TCI state is different than TCI states identified in a MAC-CE. For example, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIGs. 8 A, 8B, and 13, the sequence 1312 of TCI states may include pre-configured TCI states from the set of pre-configured TCI states 854 for periodic beam-sweep cycles. These pre-configured TCI states may partially overlap with, or be completely separate from, the set of active TCI states 804 in the MAC-CE 802, 1308.

[0126] In one example, the DCI may include a dedicated field for indicating the sequence of TCI states, and the dedicated field may include an identifier and a corresponding symbol duration for each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states. For instance, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIG. 9, the DCI 902 may include dedicated field 906 for indicating a variation of TCI states within a TTI of a scheduled resource indicated in the DCI (e.g., TCI states corresponding to transmission beams 706 of FIG. 7). The dedicated field 906 may indicate, for the specified antenna port 908, which TCI state identifiers 910 in the sequence 904 are active, along with their corresponding symbol durations 912 (e.g., an indicated number of OFDM symbols within a slot for each TCI state).

[0127] In one example, the sequence of TCI states may be pre-configured in a look-up table, a plurality of TCI states in the sequence of TCI states may be associated with a common symbol duration, and the DCI may indicate an index from the look-up table. For instance, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIGs. 10 and 11, the sequence 1004 of TCI states may be preconfigured in look-up table 1002, 1105, which table may be configured in a MAC- CE or RRC configuration. The look-up table 1002, 1105 may include the common symbol duration 1006 associated with each of the sequences of TCI states, and the index 1008, 1106 or code point to each sequence or row in the look-up table. The DCI 1102 may include the indicated TCI sequence index 1106 corresponding to the indicated sequence of TCI states.

[0128] In one example, the DCI may further indicate an offset, where the offset indicates an initial TCI state to be applied in the sequence of TCI states. For instance, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIG. 11, the DCI 1102 may indicate the TCI sequence offset 1108 for the indicated sequence of TCI states corresponding to the indicated TCI sequence index 1106. The TCI sequence offset 1108 may indicate which TCI state from the indicated sequence of TCI states is the initial TCI state 1110 to be applied to transmission beams varying within the TTI of a scheduled resource (e.g., transmission beams 706 in FIG. 7).

[0129] In one example, the DCI may further indicate whether an initial TCI state is to again be applied in the sequence of TCI states after a last TCI state is applied in the sequence of TCI states. For instance, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIG. 11, the DCI 1102 may indicate the TCI sequence reset indicator 1112 for the indicated sequence of TCI states corresponding to the indicated TCI sequence index 1106. The TCI sequence reset indicator 1112 may indicate whether or not, after a last TCI state in the indicated sequence has been applied, the sequence will loop back or reset at 1114 to the first TCI state (e.g., the initial TCI state 1110) in the indicated sequence.

[0130] In one example, the DCI may further indicate a symbol duration of an initial TCI state to be applied in the sequence of TCI states, where the symbol duration is smaller than the common symbol duration. For instance, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIG. 11, the DCI 1102 may indicate the initial TCI state duration 1116 for an initial TCI state (e.g., initial TCI state 1110) in the indicated sequence of TCI states corresponding to the indicated TCI sequence index 1106. The initial TCI state duration may indicate a number of symbols for the initial TCI state which is smaller than the common symbol duration 1118 applied to the sequence of TCI states (e.g., common symbol duration 1006 in FIG. 10). [0131] At 1404, the UE may receive data in the scheduled resource following reception of the DCI indicating the sequence of TCI states. For instance, 1404 may be performed by data reception component 1642. For example, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIG. 13, at 1324, the UE 1302 may receive data 1316 in the scheduled resource 1314 based on the sequence 1312 of TCI states.

[0132] In one example, the DCI may indicate a TCI state group including a TCI state and the sequence of TCI states, the TCI state may indicate a transmission beam for the data in the scheduled resource, and the sequence of TCI states may indicate a plurality of transmission beams to be applied within the TTI of the scheduled resource. For instance, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIG. 12, the DCI 1202 may indicate TCI state group 1204 including TCI state 1206 and sequence 1208 of TCI states. The TCI state 1206 may indicate the fixed transmission beam 1210 carrying data 1316 within the TTI 1212 of the scheduled resource 1314, such as fixed transmission beam 708 in FIG. 7. The sequence 1208 of TCI states may indicate the transmission beams 1214 which vary within the TTI of the scheduled resource, such as transmission beams 706 in FIG. 7.

[0133] In one example, each TCI state in the TCI state group may correspond to a same antenna port. For instance, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIG. 12, TCI state group 1204 may be associated with a single antenna port, here referenced as a TCI state group antenna port 1216 (e.g., a single DMRS port). In such case, the fixed transmission beam 1210 and the timevarying transmission beams 1214 may carry a same data signal to the UE including DMRS over the indicated TCI state group antenna port.

[0134] In one example, the TCI state may correspond to a first antenna port, each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states may correspond to a second antenna port, and the first antenna port may be different than the second antenna port. For instance, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIG. 12, the TCI state group 1204 may be associated with separate antenna ports (e.g., different DMRS ports), including TCI antenna port 1218 associated with TCI state 1206, and TCI sequence antenna port 1220 associated with the sequence 1208 of TCI states. In such case, the fixed transmission beam may carry a data signal to the UE including DMRS over the indicated TCI antenna port, while the time-varying transmission beams 1214 associated with each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states may carry a different data signal (or a same data signal encoded with a different RV) to the UE including DMRS over the indicated TCI sequence antenna port.

[0135] In one example, the DCI may further indicate a priority of the TCI state relative to the sequence of TCI states. For instance, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIG. 12, the DCI 1202 may indicate TCI state priority 1222 which is associated with the TCI state 1206 or sequence 1208 of TCI states in the TCI state group 1204. For example, the TCI state priority may be a single bit field including either a ‘0’ or ‘ 1 ’, where ‘0’ indicates that one TCI state in the TCI state group (e.g., the fixed TCI state) has higher priority and ‘ 1 ’ indicates that the other TCI state in the TCI state group (e.g., the TCI codepoint associated with a sequence of TCI states) has lower priority, or vice-versa.

[0136] In one example, a priority of the TCI state may be pre-configured to be higher than a priority of each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states. For instance, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIG. 12, one TCI state in the TCI state group (e.g., the fixed TCI state) may be pre-configured to have the higher priority, while the other TCI state in the TCI state group (e.g., the TCI codepoint associated with a sequence of TCI states) may be pre-configured to have the lower priority. Thus, fixed TCI states may be pre-configured as primary TCI states, while time-varying TCI states may be pre-configured as secondary TCI states.

[0137] FIG. 15 is a flowchart 1500 of a method of wireless communication. The method may be performed by a network entity (e.g., the base station 102/180, 310, 1304; the transmitter 402, 502, 602, 702; the apparatus 1702). The method allows a network entity to transmit data in a scheduled resource to a UE simultaneously over two beams or channels, where one of the beams or channels varies over time within the TTI of the scheduled resource (e.g., as in JCR), in response to an indication of a sequence of TCI states including a TCI state corresponding to that time-varying beam or channel.

[0138] At 1502, the network entity transmits, to a UE, DCI indicating a sequence of TCI states to be applied within a TTI of a scheduled resource. For instance, 1502 may be performed by DCI transmission component 1740. For example, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIGs. 7, and 9-13, the base station 1304 may transmit DCI 1310 indicating the sequence 1312 of TCI states. For instance, DCI 1310 may correspond to DCI 902, 1102, or 1202, which may respectively indicate sequences 904, 1004, 1104, 1208 of TCI states according to various examples as previously (and subsequently) described. The aspects referenced in various examples may be combined with aspects referenced in other examples. In any example, the sequence 1312 of TCI states may be applied within the TTI 710, 1212 of the scheduled resource 1314. For instance, the sequence 1312 of TCI states may include TCI states which are individually activated in sequence for an indicated or configured symbol duration during the TTI 710, 1212 of the scheduled resource 1314.

[0139] In one example, the sequence of TCI states may include TCI states identified in a MAC-CE. For example, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIGs. 8A and 13, the sequence 1312 of TCI states may include TCI states (e.g., the set of active TCI states 804) identified in MAC-CE 802, 1308.

[0140] In one example, the sequence of TCI states may include a pre-configured TCI state for a periodic beam-sweep cycle, where the pre-configured TCI state is different than TCI states identified in a MAC-CE. For example, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIGs. 8 A, 8B, and 13, the sequence 1312 of TCI states may include pre-configured TCI states from the set of pre-configured TCI states 854 for periodic beam-sweep cycles. These pre-configured TCI states may partially overlap with, or be completely separate from, the set of active TCI states 804 in the MAC-CE 802, 1308.

[0141] In one example, the DCI may include a dedicated field for indicating the sequence of TCI states, and the dedicated field may include an identifier and a corresponding symbol duration for each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states. For instance, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIG. 9, the DCI 902 may include dedicated field 906 for indicating a variation of TCI states within a TTI of a scheduled resource indicated in the DCI (e.g., TCI states corresponding to transmission beams 706 of FIG. 7). The dedicated field 906 may indicate, for the specified antenna port 908, which TCI state identifiers 910 in the sequence 904 are active, along with their corresponding symbol durations 912 (e.g., an indicated number of OFDM symbols within a slot for each TCI state).

[0142] In one example, the sequence of TCI states may be pre-configured in a look-up table, a plurality of TCI states in the sequence of TCI states may be associated with a common symbol duration, and the DCI may indicate an index from the look-up table. For instance, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIGs. 10 and 11, the sequence 1004 of TCI states may be preconfigured in look-up table 1002, 1105, which table may be configured in a MAC- CE or RRC configuration. The look-up table 1002, 1105 may include the common symbol duration 1006 associated with each of the sequences of TCI states, and the index 1008, 1106 or code point to each sequence or row in the look-up table. The DCI 1102 may include the indicated TCI sequence index 1106 corresponding to the indicated sequence of TCI states.

[0143] In one example, the DCI may further indicate an offset, where the offset indicates an initial TCI state to be applied in the sequence of TCI states. For instance, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIG. 11, the DCI 1102 may indicate the TCI sequence offset 1108 for the indicated sequence of TCI states corresponding to the indicated TCI sequence index 1106. The TCI sequence offset 1108 may indicate which TCI state from the indicated sequence of TCI states is the initial TCI state 1110 to be applied to transmission beams varying within the TTI of a scheduled resource (e.g., transmission beams 706 in FIG. 7).

[0144] In one example, the DCI may further indicate whether an initial TCI state is to again be applied in the sequence of TCI states after a last TCI state is applied in the sequence of TCI states. For instance, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIG. 11, the DCI 1102 may indicate the TCI sequence reset indicator 1112 for the indicated sequence of TCI states corresponding to the indicated TCI sequence index 1106. The TCI sequence reset indicator 1112 may indicate whether or not, after a last TCI state in the indicated sequence has been applied, the sequence will loop back or reset at 1114 to the first TCI state (e.g., the initial TCI state 1110) in the indicated sequence.

[0145] In one example, the DCI may further indicate a symbol duration of an initial TCI state to be applied in the sequence of TCI states, where the symbol duration is smaller than the common symbol duration. For instance, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIG. 11, the DCI 1102 may indicate the initial TCI state duration 1116 for an initial TCI state (e.g., initial TCI state 1110) in the indicated sequence of TCI states corresponding to the indicated TCI sequence index 1106. The initial TCI state duration may indicate a number of symbols for the initial TCI state which is smaller than the common symbol duration 1118 applied to the sequence of TCI states (e.g., common symbol duration 1006 in FIG. 10).

[0146] At 1504, the network entity may transmit data in the scheduled resource following transmission of the DCI indicating the sequence of TCI states. For instance, 1504 may be performed by data transmission component 1742. For example, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIG. 13, at 1318, the base station 1304 may transmit data 1316 in the scheduled resource 1314 based on the sequence 1312 of TCI states.

[0147] In one example, the DCI may indicate a TCI state group including a TCI state and the sequence of TCI states, the TCI state may indicate a transmission beam for the data in the scheduled resource, and the sequence of TCI states may indicate a plurality of transmission beams to be applied within the TTI of the scheduled resource. For instance, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIG. 12, the DCI 1202 may indicate TCI state group 1204 including TCI state 1206 and sequence 1208 of TCI states. The TCI state 1206 may indicate the fixed transmission beam 1210 carrying data 1316 within the TTI 1212 of the scheduled resource 1314, such as fixed transmission beam 708 in FIG. 7. The sequence 1208 of TCI states may indicate the transmission beams 1214 which vary within the TTI of the scheduled resource, such as transmission beams 706 in FIG. 7.

[0148] In one example, each TCI state in the TCI state group may correspond to a same antenna port. For instance, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIG. 12, TCI state group 1204 may be associated with a single antenna port, here referenced as a TCI state group antenna port 1216 (e.g., a single DMRS port). In such case, the fixed transmission beam 1210 and the timevarying transmission beams 1214 may carry a same data signal to the UE including DMRS over the indicated TCI state group antenna port.

[0149] In one example, the TCI state may correspond to a first antenna port, each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states may correspond to a second antenna port, and the first antenna port may be different than the second antenna port. For instance, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIG. 12, the TCI state group 1204 may be associated with separate antenna ports (e.g., different DMRS ports), including TCI antenna port 1218 associated with TCI state 1206, and TCI sequence antenna port 1220 associated with the sequence 1208 of TCI states. In such case, the fixed transmission beam may carry a data signal to the UE including DMRS over the indicated TCI antenna port, while the time-varying transmission beams 1214 associated with each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states may carry a different data signal (or a same data signal encoded with a different RV) to the UE including DMRS over the indicated TCI sequence antenna port.

[0150] In one example, the DCI may further indicate a priority of the TCI state relative to the sequence of TCI states. For instance, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIG. 12, the DCI 1202 may indicate TCI state priority 1222 which is associated with the TCI state 1206 or sequence 1208 of TCI states in the TCI state group 1204. For example, the TCI state priority may be a single bit field including either a ‘0’ or ‘ 1 ’, where ‘0’ indicates that one TCI state in the TCI state group (e.g., the fixed TCI state) has higher priority and ‘ 1 ’ indicates that the other TCI state in the TCI state group (e.g., the TCI codepoint associated with a sequence of TCI states) has lower priority, or vice-versa.

[0151] In one example, a priority of the TCI state may be pre-configured to be higher than a priority of each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states. For instance, as previously described with respect to the aforementioned Figures including at least FIG. 12, one TCI state in the TCI state group (e.g., the fixed TCI state) may be pre-configured to have the higher priority, while the other TCI state in the TCI state group (e.g., the TCI codepoint associated with a sequence of TCI states) may be pre-configured to have the lower priority. Thus, fixed TCI states may be pre-configured as primary TCI states, while time-varying TCI states may be pre-configured as secondary TCI states.

[0152] FIG. 16 is a diagram 1600 illustrating an example of a hardware implementation for an apparatus 1602. The apparatus 1602 is a UE and includes a cellular baseband processor 1604 (also referred to as a modem) coupled to a cellular RF transceiver 1622 and one or more subscriber identity modules (SIM) cards 1620, an application processor 1606 coupled to a secure digital (SD) card 1608 and a screen 1610, a Bluetooth module 1612, a wireless local area network (WLAN) module 1614, a Global Positioning System (GPS) module 1616, and a power supply 1618. The cellular baseband processor 1604 communicates through the cellular RF transceiver 1622 with the UE 104 and/or BS 102/180. The cellular baseband processor 1604 may include a computer-readable medium / memory. The computer-readable medium / memory may be non-transitory. The cellular baseband processor 1604 is responsible for general processing, including the execution of software stored on the computer- readable medium / memory. The software, when executed by the cellular baseband processor 1604, causes the cellular baseband processor 1604 to perform the various functions described supra. The computer-readable medium / memory may also be used for storing data that is manipulated by the cellular baseband processor 1604 when executing software. The cellular baseband processor 1604 further includes a reception component 1630, a communication manager 1632, and a transmission component 1634. The communication manager 1632 includes the one or more illustrated components. The components within the communication manager 1632 may be stored in the computer-readable medium / memory and/or configured as hardware within the cellular baseband processor 1604. The cellular baseband processor 1604 may be a component of the UE 350 and may include the memory 360 and/or at least one of the TX processor 368, the RX processor 356, and the controller/processor 359. In one configuration, the apparatus 1602 may be a modem chip and include just the baseband processor 1604, and in another configuration, the apparatus 1602 may be the entire UE (e.g., see 350 of FIG. 3) and include the aforediscussed additional modules of the apparatus 1602.

[0153] The communication manager 1632 includes a DCI reception component 1640 that is configured to receive DCI indicating a sequence of TCI states to be applied within a TTI of a scheduled resource, e.g., as described in connection with 1402. The communication manager 1632 further includes a data reception component 1642 that receives input in the form of the sequence of TCI states from the DCI reception component 1640 and is configured to receive data in the scheduled resource following reception of the DCI indicating the sequence of TCI states, e.g., as described in connection with 1404.

[0154] The apparatus may include additional components that perform each of the blocks of the algorithm in the aforementioned flowcharts of FIGs. 13 and 14. As such, each block in the aforementioned flowcharts of FIGs. 13 and 14 may be performed by a component and the apparatus may include one or more of those components. The components may be one or more hardware components specifically configured to carry out the stated processes/algorithm, implemented by a processor configured to perform the stated processes/algorithm, stored within a computer-readable medium for implementation by a processor, or some combination thereof. [0155] In one configuration, the apparatus 1602, and in particular the cellular baseband processor 1604, includes means for receiving DCI indicating a sequence of TCI states to be applied within a TTI of a scheduled resource; wherein the means for receiving is further configured to receive data in the scheduled resource following reception of the DCI indicating the sequence of TCI states. The aforementioned means may be one or more of the aforementioned components of the apparatus 1602 configured to perform the functions recited by the aforementioned means. As described supra, the apparatus 1602 may include the TX Processor 368, the RX Processor 356, and the controller/processor 359. As such, in one configuration, the aforementioned means may be the TX Processor 368, the RX Processor 356, and the controller/processor 359 configured to perform the functions recited by the aforementioned means.

[0156] FIG. 17 is a diagram 1700 illustrating an example of a hardware implementation for an apparatus 1702. The apparatus 1702 is a BS and includes a baseband unit 1704. The baseband unit 1704 may communicate through a cellular RF transceiver with the UE 104. The baseband unit 1704 may include a computer-readable medium / memory. The baseband unit 1704 is responsible for general processing, including the execution of software stored on the computer-readable medium / memory. The software, when executed by the baseband unit 1704, causes the baseband unit 1704 to perform the various functions described supra. The computer-readable medium / memory may also be used for storing data that is manipulated by the baseband unit 1704 when executing software. The baseband unit 1704 further includes a reception component 1730, a communication manager 1732, and a transmission component 1734. The communication manager 1732 includes the one or more illustrated components. The components within the communication manager 1732 may be stored in the computer- readable medium / memory and/or configured as hardware within the baseband unit 1704. The baseband unit 1704 may be a component of the BS 310 and may include the memory 376 and/or at least one of the TX processor 316, the RX processor 370, and the controller/processor 375.

[0157] The communication manager 1732 includes a DCI transmission component 1740 that is configured to transmit, to a UE, DCI indicating a sequence of TCI states to be applied within a TTI of a scheduled resource, e.g., as described in connection with 1502. The communication manager 1732 further includes a data transmission component 1742 that receives input in the form of the sequence of TCI states from the DCI transmission component 1740 and is configured to transmit data in the scheduled resource following transmission of the DCI indicating the sequence of TCI states, e.g., as described in connection with 1504.

[0158] The apparatus may include additional components that perform each of the blocks of the algorithm in the aforementioned flowcharts of FIGs. 13 and 15. As such, each block in the aforementioned flowcharts of FIGs. 13 and 15 may be performed by a component and the apparatus may include one or more of those components. The components may be one or more hardware components specifically configured to carry out the stated processes/algorithm, implemented by a processor configured to perform the stated processes/algorithm, stored within a computer-readable medium for implementation by a processor, or some combination thereof.

[0159] In one configuration, the apparatus 1702, and in particular the baseband unit 1704, includes means for transmitting, to a UE, DCI indicating a sequence of TCI states to be applied within a TTI of a scheduled resource; wherein the means for transmitting is further configured to transmit data in the scheduled resource following transmission of the DCI indicating the sequence of TCI states. The aforementioned means may be one or more of the aforementioned components of the apparatus 1702 configured to perform the functions recited by the aforementioned means. As described supra, the apparatus 1702 may include the TX Processor 316, the RX Processor 370, and the controller/processor 375. As such, in one configuration, the aforementioned means may be the TX Processor 316, the RX Processor 370, and the controller/processor 375 configured to perform the functions recited by the aforementioned means.

[0160] Accordingly, aspects of the present disclosure allow a transmitter to indicate timevarying beams from a transmitter antenna port (e.g., radar sensing beams) through a TCI sequence indication in DCI. The TCI sequence indication may benefit use cases such as JCR, in which a radar beam direction may change at least once within a TTI of a scheduled resource for data communication. In response to receiving such TCI sequence indication, the receiver may adapt its beamforming weights jointly over the fixed transmission beam and the time-varying transmission beam, thus improving the likelihood of successful reception of the data over the fixed transmission beam. The fixed transmission beam and time-varying transmission beams may correspond to different antenna ports, thereby allowing for improvements to channel diversity through, for example, transmission of identical transport blocks with different RVs. Alternatively, the fixed transmission beam and time-varying transmission beams may correspond to a same antenna port and thus carry the same signal. In this case, the receiver may consider TCI state priority (primary and secondary TCI states) in order to optionally focus its reception on only the fixed transmission beam, although accounting for changes in channel estimation parameters (e.g., delay spread) associated with the secondary TCI states.

[0161] It is understood that the specific order or hierarchy of blocks in the processes / flowcharts disclosed is an illustration of example approaches. Based upon design preferences, it is understood that the specific order or hierarchy of blocks in the processes / flowcharts may be rearranged. Further, some blocks may be combined or omitted. The accompanying method claims present elements of the various blocks in a sample order, and are not meant to be limited to the specific order or hierarchy presented.

[0162] The previous description is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the various aspects described herein. Various modifications to these aspects will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other aspects. Thus, the claims are not intended to be limited to the aspects shown herein, but is to be accorded the full scope consistent with the language claims, wherein reference to an element in the singular is not intended to mean “one and only one” unless specifically so stated, but rather “one or more.” Terms such as “if,” “when,” and “while” should be interpreted to mean “under the condition that” rather than imply an immediate temporal relationship or reaction. That is, these phrases, e.g., “when,” do not imply an immediate action in response to or during the occurrence of an action, but simply imply that if a condition is met then an action will occur, but without requiring a specific or immediate time constraint for the action to occur. The word “exemplary” is used herein to mean “serving as an example, instance, or illustration.” Any aspect described herein as “exemplary” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects. Unless specifically stated otherwise, the term “some” refers to one or more. Combinations such as “at least one of A, B, or C,” “one or more of A, B, or C,” “at least one of A, B, and C,” “one or more of A, B, and C,” and “A, B, C, or any combination thereof’ include any combination of A, B, and/or C, and may include multiples of A, multiples of B, or multiples of C. Specifically, combinations such as “at least one of A, B, or C,” “one or more of A, B, or C,” “at least one of A, B, and C,” “one or more of A, B, and C,” and “A, B, C, or any combination thereof’ may be A only, B only, C only, A and B, A and C, B and C, or A and B and C, where any such combinations may contain one or more member or members of A, B, or C. All structural and functional equivalents to the elements of the various aspects described throughout this disclosure that are known or later come to be known to those of ordinary skill in the art are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended to be encompassed by the claims. Moreover, nothing disclosed herein is intended to be dedicated to the public regardless of whether such disclosure is explicitly recited in the claims. The words “module,” “mechanism,” “element,” “device,” and the like may not be a substitute for the word “means.” As such, no claim element is to be construed as a means plus function unless the element is expressly recited using the phrase “means for.”

[0163] The following examples are illustrative only and may be combined with aspects of other embodiments or teachings described herein, without limitation.

[0164] Example 1 is a method of wireless communication at a user equipment (UE), comprising: receiving downlink control information (DCI) indicating a sequence of transmission configuration indicator (TCI) states to be applied within a transmission time interval (TTI) of a scheduled resource; and receiving data in the scheduled resource following reception of the DCI indicating the sequence of TCI states.

[0165] Example 2 is the method of Example 1, wherein the sequence of TCI states include TCI states identified in a medium access control (MAC) control element (MAC-CE).

[0166] Example 3 is the method of Examples 1 or 2, wherein the sequence of TCI states include a pre-configured TCI state for a periodic beam-sweep cycle, the preconfigured TCI state being different than TCI states identified in a medium access control (MAC) control element (MAC-CE).

[0167] Example 4 is the method of any of Examples 1 to 3, wherein the DCI includes a dedicated field for indicating the sequence of TCI states, and the dedicated field includes an identifier and a corresponding symbol duration for each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states.

[0168] Example 5 is the method of any of Examples 1 to 3, wherein the sequence of TCI states is pre-configured in a look-up table, a plurality of TCI states in the sequence of TCI states are associated with a common symbol duration, and the DCI indicates an index from the look-up table. [0169] Example 6 is the method of Example 5, wherein the DCI further indicates an offset, the offset indicating an initial TCI state to be applied in the sequence of TCI states.

[0170] Example 7 is the method of Examples 5 or 6, wherein the DCI further indicates whether an initial TCI state is to again be applied in the sequence of TCI states after a last TCI state is applied in the sequence of TCI states.

[0171] Example 8 is the method of any of Examples 5 to 7, wherein the DCI further indicates a symbol duration of an initial TCI state to be applied in the sequence of TCI states, the symbol duration being smaller than the common symbol duration.

[0172] Example 9 is the method of any of Examples 1 to 8, wherein the DCI indicates a TCI state group including a TCI state and the sequence of TCI states, the TCI state indicates a transmission beam for the data in the scheduled resource, and the sequence of TCI states indicates a plurality of transmission beams to be applied within the TTI of the scheduled resource.

[0173] Example 10 is the method of Example 9, wherein each TCI state in the TCI state group corresponds to a same antenna port.

[0174] Example 11 is the method of Example 9, wherein the TCI state corresponds to a first antenna port, each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states corresponds to a second antenna port, and the first antenna port is different than the second antenna port.

[0175] Example 12 is the method of any of Examples 9 to 11, wherein the DCI further indicates a priority of the TCI state relative to the sequence of TCI states.

[0176] Example 13 is the method of any of Examples 9 to 11, wherein a priority of the TCI state is pre-configured to be higher than a priority of each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states.

[0177] Example 14 is an apparatus for wireless communication, comprising: a processor; memory coupled with the processor; and instructions stored in the memory and operable, when executed by the processor, to cause the apparatus to: receive downlink control information (DCI) indicating a sequence of transmission configuration indicator (TCI) states to be applied within a transmission time interval (TTI) of a scheduled resource; and receive data in the scheduled resource following reception of the DCI indicating the sequence of TCI states.

[0178] Example 15 is the apparatus of Example 14, wherein the DCI includes a dedicated field for indicating the sequence of TCI states, and the dedicated field includes an identifier and a corresponding symbol duration for each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states.

[0179] Example 16 is the apparatus of Example 14, wherein the sequence of TCI states is pre-configured in a look-up table, a plurality of TCI states in the sequence of TCI states are associated with a common symbol duration, and the DCI indicates an index from the look-up table.

[0180] Example 17 is the apparatus of any of Examples 14 to 16, wherein the DCI indicates a TCI state group including a TCI state and the sequence of TCI states, the TCI state indicates a transmission beam for the data in the scheduled resource, and the sequence of TCI states indicates a plurality of transmission beams to be applied within the TTI of the scheduled resource.

[0181] Example 18 is a method of wireless communication at a base station, comprising: transmitting, to a user equipment (UE), downlink control information (DCI) indicating a sequence of transmission configuration indicator (TCI) states to be applied within a transmission time interval (TTI) of a scheduled resource; and transmitting data in the scheduled resource following transmission of the DCI indicating the sequence of TCI states.

[0182] Example 19 is the method of Example 18, wherein the sequence of TCI states include TCI states identified in a medium access control (MAC) control element (MAC-CE).

[0183] Example 20 is the method of Examples 18 or 19, wherein the sequence of TCI states include a pre-configured TCI state for a periodic beam-sweep cycle, the preconfigured TCI state being different than TCI states identified in a medium access control (MAC) control element (MAC-CE).

[0184] Example 21 is the method of any of Examples 18 to 20, wherein the DCI includes a dedicated field for indicating the sequence of TCI states, and the dedicated field includes an identifier and a corresponding symbol duration for each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states.

[0185] Example 22 is the method of any of Examples 18 to 20, wherein the sequence of TCI states is pre-configured in a look-up table, a plurality of TCI states in the sequence of TCI states are associated with a common symbol duration, and the DCI indicates an index from the look-up table.

[0186] Example 23 is the method of Example 22, wherein the DCI further indicates an offset, the offset indicating an initial TCI state to be applied in the sequence of TCI states. [0187] Example 24 is the method of Examples 22 or 23, wherein the DCI further indicates whether an initial TCI state is to again be applied in the sequence of TCI states after a last TCI state is applied in the sequence of TCI states.

[0188] Example 25 is the method of any of Examples 22 to 24, wherein the DCI further indicates a symbol duration of an initial TCI state to be applied in the sequence of TCI states, the symbol duration being smaller than the common symbol duration.

[0189] Example 26 is the method of any of Examples 18 to 25, wherein the DCI indicates a TCI state group including a TCI state and the sequence of TCI states, the TCI state indicates a transmission beam for the data in the scheduled resource, and the sequence of TCI states indicates a plurality of transmission beams to be applied within the TTI of the scheduled resource.

[0190] Example 27 is the method of Example 26, wherein each TCI state in the TCI state group corresponds to a same antenna port.

[0191] Example 28 is the method of Example 26, wherein the TCI state corresponds to a first antenna port, each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states corresponds to a second antenna port, and the first antenna port is different than the second antenna port.

[0192] Example 29 is the method of any of Examples 26 to 28, wherein the DCI further indicates a priority of the TCI state relative to the sequence of TCI states, or the priority of the TCI state is pre-configured to be higher than a priority of each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states.

[0193] Example 30 is an apparatus for wireless communication, comprising: a processor; memory coupled with the processor; and instructions stored in the memory and operable, when executed by the processor, to cause the apparatus to: transmit, to a user equipment (UE), downlink control information (DCI) indicating a sequence of transmission configuration indicator (TCI) states to be applied within a transmission time interval (TTI) of a scheduled resource; and transmit data in the scheduled resource following transmission of the DCI indicating the sequence of TCI states.

Claims

CLAIMS WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:

1. A method of wireless communication at a user equipment (UE), comprising: receiving downlink control information (DCI) indicating a sequence of transmission configuration indicator (TCI) states to be applied within a transmission time interval (TTI) of a scheduled resource; and receiving data in the scheduled resource following reception of the DCI indicating the sequence of TCI states.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the sequence of TCI states include TCI states identified in a medium access control (MAC) control element (MAC-CE).

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the sequence of TCI states include a preconfigured TCI state for a periodic beam-sweep cycle, the pre-configured TCI state being different than TCI states identified in a medium access control (MAC) control element (MAC-CE).

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the DCI includes a dedicated field for indicating the sequence of TCI states, and the dedicated field includes an identifier and a corresponding symbol duration for each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the sequence of TCI states is pre-configured in a look-up table, a plurality of TCI states in the sequence of TCI states are associated with a common symbol duration, and the DCI indicates an index from the look-up table.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the DCI further indicates an offset, the offset indicating an initial TCI state to be applied in the sequence of TCI states.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the DCI further indicates whether an initial TCI state is to again be applied in the sequence of TCI states after a last TCI state is applied in the sequence of TCI states.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein the DCI further indicates a symbol duration of an initial TCI state to be applied in the sequence of TCI states, the symbol duration being smaller than the common symbol duration.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the DCI indicates a TCI state group including a TCI state and the sequence of TCI states, the TCI state indicates a transmission beam for the data in the scheduled resource, and the sequence of TCI states indicates a plurality of transmission beams to be applied within the TTI of the scheduled resource.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein each TCI state in the TCI state group corresponds to a same antenna port.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the TCI state corresponds to a first antenna port, each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states corresponds to a second antenna port, and the first antenna port is different than the second antenna port.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the DCI further indicates a priority of the TCI state relative to the sequence of TCI states.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein a priority of the TCI state is pre-configured to be higher than a priority of each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states.

14. An apparatus for wireless communication, comprising: a processor; memory coupled with the processor; and instructions stored in the memory and operable, when executed by the processor, to cause the apparatus to: receive downlink control information (DCI) indicating a sequence of transmission configuration indicator (TCI) states to be applied within a transmission time interval (TTI) of a scheduled resource; and receive data in the scheduled resource following reception of the DCI indicating the sequence of TCI states.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the DCI includes a dedicated field for indicating the sequence of TCI states, and the dedicated field includes an identifier and a corresponding symbol duration for each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states.

16. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the sequence of TCI states is pre-configured in a look-up table, a plurality of TCI states in the sequence of TCI states are associated with a common symbol duration, and the DCI indicates an index from the look-up table.

17. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the DCI indicates a TCI state group including a TCI state and the sequence of TCI states, the TCI state indicates a transmission beam for the data in the scheduled resource, and the sequence of TCI states indicates a plurality of transmission beams to be applied within the TTI of the scheduled resource.

18. A method of wireless communication at a base station, comprising: transmitting, to a user equipment (UE), downlink control information (DCI) indicating a sequence of transmission configuration indicator (TCI) states to be applied within a transmission time interval (TTI) of a scheduled resource; and transmitting data in the scheduled resource following transmission of the DCI indicating the sequence of TCI states.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the sequence of TCI states include TCI states identified in a medium access control (MAC) control element (MAC-CE).

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the sequence of TCI states include a preconfigured TCI state for a periodic beam-sweep cycle, the pre-configured TCI state being different than TCI states identified in a medium access control (MAC) control element (MAC-CE).

21. The method of claim 18, wherein the DCI includes a dedicated field for indicating the sequence of TCI states, and the dedicated field includes an identifier and a corresponding symbol duration for each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states.

22. The method of claim 18, wherein the sequence of TCI states is pre-configured in a look-up table, a plurality of TCI states in the sequence of TCI states are associated with a common symbol duration, and the DCI indicates an index from the look-up table.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the DCI further indicates an offset, the offset indicating an initial TCI state to be applied in the sequence of TCI states.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein the DCI further indicates whether an initial TCI state is to again be applied in the sequence of TCI states after a last TCI state is applied in the sequence of TCI states.

25. The method of claim 22, wherein the DCI further indicates a symbol duration of an initial TCI state to be applied in the sequence of TCI states, the symbol duration being smaller than the common symbol duration.

26. The method of claim 18, wherein the DCI indicates a TCI state group including a TCI state and the sequence of TCI states, the TCI state indicates a transmission beam for the data in the scheduled resource, and the sequence of TCI states indicates a plurality of transmission beams to be applied within the TTI of the scheduled resource.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein each TCI state in the TCI state group corresponds to a same antenna port.

28. The method of claim 26, wherein the TCI state corresponds to a first antenna port, each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states corresponds to a second antenna port, and the first antenna port is different than the second antenna port.

29. The method of claim 26, wherein the DCI further indicates a priority of the TCI state relative to the sequence of TCI states, or the priority of the TCI state is preconfigured to be higher than a priority of each TCI state in the sequence of TCI states.

30. An apparatus for wireless communication, comprising: a processor; memory coupled with the processor; and instructions stored in the memory and operable, when executed by the processor, the apparatus to: transmit, to a user equipment (UE), downlink control information (DCI) indicating a sequence of transmission configuration indicator (TCI) states to be applied within a transmission time interval (TTI) of a scheduled resource; and transmit data in the scheduled resource following transmission of the DCI indicating the sequence of TCI states.