WO2024171520A1 - Base station, terminal, and communication method - Google Patents

Abstract

A base station of a form in which a transmission direction is set for each of a plurality of bands obtained by dividing a frequency band, the base station comprising a control circuit that causes resource allocation to vary in accordance with whether a first band corresponding to a first transmission direction is disposed discontinuously in a physical resource block, and a transmission circuit that transmits a signal in accordance with the resource allocation.

Description

Base station, terminal and communication method

This disclosure relates to a base station, a terminal, and a communication method.

The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) has completed the formulation of the physical layer specifications for Release 17 NR (New Radio access technology) as a functional extension of 5th generation mobile communication systems (5G). NR will support enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) to meet the requirements of high speed and large capacity, as well as functions that realize ultra-reliable and low latency communication (URLLC) (see, for example, non-patent literature 1-5).

However, there is room for further study regarding resource allocation methods in wireless communications.

Non-limiting examples of the present disclosure contribute to providing a base station, a terminal, and a communication method that can appropriately allocate resources in wireless communication.

A base station according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes a control circuit that varies resource allocation depending on whether a first band corresponding to a first transmission direction is arranged discontinuously in a physical resource block in a method in which a transmission direction is set for each of a plurality of bands obtained by dividing a frequency band, and a transmission circuit that transmits a signal according to the resource allocation.

These comprehensive or specific aspects may be realized as a system, device, method, integrated circuit, computer program, or recording medium, or as any combination of a system, device, method, integrated circuit, computer program, and recording medium.

According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, resource allocation in wireless communication can be performed appropriately.

Further advantages and benefits of an embodiment of the present disclosure will become apparent from the specification and drawings. Such advantages and/or benefits may be provided by some of the embodiments and features described in the specification and drawings, respectively, but not necessarily all of them need be provided to obtain one or more identical features.

Diagram showing an example of the Duplex method A diagram showing an example of subbands and guard bands in subband non-overlapping full duplex (SBFD). A block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a portion of a base station. Block diagram showing a partial configuration example of a terminal Block diagram showing a configuration example of a base station Block diagram showing an example of a terminal configuration A sequence diagram showing an example of the operation of a base station and a terminal. Diagram showing an example of mapping of Virtual Resource Block (VRB) and Physical Resource Block (PRB) A diagram showing an example of VRB and PRB mapping. A diagram showing an example of VRB and PRB mapping. A diagram showing an example of VRB and PRB mapping. A diagram showing an example of resource allocation A diagram showing an example of the mapping between Resource Indication Value (RIV) and resource allocation A diagram showing an example of resource allocation Diagram of an example architecture for a 3GPP NR system Schematic diagram showing functional separation between NG-RAN (Next Generation - Radio Access Network) and 5GC (5th Generation Core) Sequence diagram of Radio Resource Control (RRC) connection setup/reconfiguration procedure Schematic diagram showing usage scenarios for enhanced Mobile BroadBand (eMBB), massive Machine Type Communications (mMTC), and Ultra Reliable and Low Latency Communications (URLLC). Block diagram illustrating an example 5G system architecture for a non-roaming scenario

The following describes in detail the embodiments of this disclosure with reference to the drawings.

[About Subband non-overlapping full duplex (SBFD)]
"Study on evolution of NR duplex operation" was approved as a Study Item for Release 18. One of the main topics of this Study Item is support for subband non-overlapping full duplex (SBFD, also known as Cross Division Duplex (XDD)).

Figure 1 shows an example of the Duplex method. In Figure 1, the vertical axis represents frequency, and the horizontal axis represents time. Also, in Figure 1, "U" represents uplink transmission, and "D" represents downlink transmission.

Figure 1(a) shows an example of half duplex Time Division Duplex (TDD). In Figure 1(a), a terminal (UE: User Equipment) is a terminal connected to a base station (e.g., a gNB). In the half duplex shown in Figure 1(a), the transmission direction (e.g., downlink or uplink) in a certain time resource may be common between the base station and the terminal. For example, the transmission direction in a certain time resource does not differ between terminals.

Figure 1(b) shows an example of SBFD. In SBFD, a frequency resource (or a frequency band) is divided into multiple bands (e.g., subbands, RB sets, subbands, or sub-BWPs (Bandwidth parts)), and transmission in different directions (e.g., downlink or uplink) is supported for each subband. In SBFD, a terminal transmits and receives either uplink or downlink in a certain time resource, but does not transmit or receive in the other. On the other hand, in SBFD, a base station can transmit and receive in uplink and downlink simultaneously. In addition, there may be cases where a terminal does not use resources in the transmission direction in a certain time resource (e.g., resources shown by dotted lines in Figure 1(b)).

Note that although omitted in Figure 1, a guard band may be placed between the uplink band (UL sub-band: U) and the downlink sub-band (DL sub-band: D). The guard band may be used to reduce interference (CLI: Cross link interference) between different transmission directions (links).

In the following explanation, the subband configuration will be written as {X...X}, where X represents the UL subband (U) or DL subband (D). The order of notation corresponds to the order in which the subbands are arranged. For example, the subband configuration in Figure 1(b) will be written as {DUD}.

[Resource allocation method]
One of the resource allocation methods for the data channel is Resource Allocation Type 1 (RA type 1), which is used, for example, to allocate consecutive resources.

For example, the following two parameters may be used to notify resource allocation by RA type 1:
RB _start : Resource block (RB) number from which resource allocation begins L _RB : Length of consecutively allocated RBs (e.g., number of RBs)

These parameters may be combined into a single value, called Resource indication value (RIV), for example, using the following formula: where N _BWP ^size represents the number of physical resource blocks (PRBs) in the Bandwidth part (BWP):

In addition to RA type 1, VRB-to-PRB mapping may be applied to resource allocation.

VRB-to-PRB mapping is used to map from a virtual resource block (VRB) to a physical resource block (PRB). There may be two mapping methods: Interleaved VRB-to-PRB mapping, where interleaving is applied, and Non-interleaved VRB-to-PRB mapping, where interleaving is not applied.

In non-interleaved VRB-to-PRB mapping, the VRB and PRB may be the same. For example, VRB#n may be mapped to PRB#n (n indicates the RB number).

In Interleaved VRB-to-PRB mapping, the VRB is mapped to the PRB via an interleaver. Therefore, when RA type 1 and Interleaved VRB-to-PRB mapping are used for resource allocation, the VRB will have contiguous allocation, but the PRB may have discontiguous resource allocation.

As an example, we will explain a case in which RA type 1 and VRB-to-PRB mapping are applied in SBFD. In SBFD, DL subbands can be arranged non-contiguously, for example, as in {DUD}. For example, we will explain an example of resource allocation for a data channel (e.g., PDSCH: Physical Downlink Shared Channel) in a DL subband.

When RA type 1 and non-interleaved VRB-to-PRB mapping are used, resources are allocated to consecutive PRBs, making it difficult to simultaneously allocate resources to multiple non-consecutive DL subbands.

In addition, when using RA type 1 and interleaved VRB-to-PRB mapping, it is possible to allocate resources to non-contiguous PRBs, but since the position of the PRB to which resources are allocated depends on the interleaver, it may be difficult to select a VRB position that does not allocate resources on the UL subband.

[Guard band size]
The guard band may be used to reduce the leakage of CLI from adjacent subbands.

Figure 2 shows an example of guard bands in a subband arrangement of {DUD}. The size of the guard band that is set may vary depending on, for example, the size of the CLI. For example, when the CLI is large, a wide guard band (e.g., a guard band with a large number of RBs) is expected to be set, and when the CLI is small, a narrow guard band (e.g., a guard band with a small number of RBs) may be sufficient.

Here, for example, since inter-terminal interference can change depending on the combination of transmitting and receiving terminals, the CLI is not necessarily constant, and so the required guardband size can change dynamically. Therefore, it is expected that resources can be used efficiently by dynamically setting (or changing or adjusting) the guardband size according to the CLI. The following are some examples of methods for dynamically adjusting the guardband size through resource allocation.

<Guard band size adjustment method 1>
Adjustment method 1 is a method of not allocating transmission/reception resources to RBs (eg, one or more) adjacent to other subbands in the DL subband or the UL subband.

By using RBs that are not used for transmission and reception as a guard band, the guard band can be effectively widened. Adjustment method 1 is, for example, a method for widening the size of the guard band, so the size of the guard band that is set (or defined) in advance can be small.

<Guard band size adjustment method 2>
Adjustment method 2 is a method of allocating DL resources or UL resources to RBs within the guard band.

When allocating DL resources to the guard band, RBs (e.g., one or more) in the guard band adjacent to the DL subband are allocated. Also, when allocating UL resources to the guard band, RBs (e.g., one or more) in the guard band adjacent to the UL subband are allocated. Since adjustment method 2 is, for example, a method of narrowing the size of the guard band, the size of the guard band that is set (or defined) in advance may be wide.

That concludes the explanation of guard band sizes.

In one non-limiting embodiment of the present disclosure, a resource allocation method in SBFD is described.

[Communication System Overview]
A communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure may include, for example, a base station 100 (e.g., gNB) shown in Fig. 3 and Fig. 5, and a terminal 200 (e.g., UE) shown in Fig. 4 and Fig. 6. A plurality of base stations 100 and a plurality of terminals 200 may exist in the communication system.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an example configuration of a portion of a base station 100 according to one aspect of the present disclosure. In the base station 100 shown in FIG. 3, a control unit (e.g., corresponding to a control circuit) varies resource allocation depending on whether a first band corresponding to a first transmission direction is arranged discontinuously in a physical resource block in a method (e.g., SBFD) in which a transmission direction is set for each of a plurality of bands obtained by dividing a frequency band. A transmission unit (e.g., corresponding to a transmission circuit) transmits a signal according to the resource allocation.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of a portion of a terminal 200 according to one aspect of the present disclosure. In the terminal 200 shown in FIG. 4, a control unit (e.g., corresponding to a control circuit) varies resource allocation depending on whether a first band corresponding to a first transmission direction is arranged discontinuously in a physical resource block in a method (e.g., SBFD) in which a transmission direction is set for each of a plurality of bands obtained by dividing a frequency band. A receiving unit (e.g., a receiving circuit) receives a signal according to the resource allocation.

[Base station configuration]
5 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a base station 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In FIG. 5, the base station 100 includes a receiving unit 101, a demapping unit 102, a demodulation and decoding unit 103, a scheduling unit 104, a resource control unit 105, a control information holding unit 106, a data and control information generating unit 107, an encoding and modulation unit 108, a mapping unit 109, and a transmitting unit 110.

Note that, for example, at least one of the demapping unit 102, demodulation/decoding unit 103, scheduling unit 104, resource control unit 105, control information storage unit 106, data/control information generation unit 107, coding/modulation unit 108, and mapping unit 109 may be included in the control unit shown in FIG. 3, and the transmission unit 110 may be included in the transmission unit shown in FIG. 3.

The receiving unit 101 performs reception processing, such as down-conversion or A/D conversion, on a received signal received via an antenna, and outputs the received signal after reception processing to the demapping unit 102. The receiving unit 101 also measures the amount of interference from the downlink signal to the uplink signal, and outputs information about the measurement result (for example, called DL-UL interference information) to the resource control unit 105.

The demapping unit 102 performs resource demapping on the received signal (e.g., an uplink signal) input from the receiving unit 101, and outputs the modulated signal to the demodulation and decoding unit 103.

The demodulation and decoding unit 103, for example, demodulates and decodes the modulated signal input from the demapping unit 102, and outputs the decoded result to the scheduling unit 104. In addition, for example, when the decoded result includes UL-DL interference information (for example, information on the amount of interference from the uplink to the downlink measured by the terminal 200), the demodulation and decoding unit 103 outputs the UL-DL interference information to the resource control unit 105.

The scheduling unit 104 may, for example, perform scheduling for the terminals 200. The scheduling unit 104 schedules transmission and reception for each terminal 200 based on, for example, at least one of the decoding results input from the demodulation and decoding unit 103 and the control information input from the control information storage unit 106, and instructs the data and control information generation unit 107 to generate at least one of data and control information. The scheduling unit 104 may also output the scheduling information to the resource control unit 105. The scheduling unit 104 may also output control information related to scheduling for the terminals 200 to the control information storage unit 106.

The resource control unit 105 may determine the size of the guard band based on the DL-UL interference information input from the receiving unit 101, the UL-DL interference information input from the demodulation and decoding unit 103, and the scheduling information input from the scheduling unit 104. Also, for example, the resource control unit 105 determines the resources to be used by each terminal 200 for downlink transmission based on, for example, the control information input from the control information holding unit 106, the scheduling information input from the scheduling unit 104, and the determined guard band size, and outputs resource allocation information to the data and control information generating unit 107 and the mapping unit 109.

The control information storage unit 106 stores, for example, control information set for each terminal 200. The control information may include, for example, downlink data channel settings for each terminal 200 (for example, information related to SBFD or resource allocation). The control information storage unit 106 may output the stored information to each component of the base station 100 (for example, the scheduling unit 104 and the resource control unit 105) as necessary.

The data and control information generating unit 107 generates at least one of data and control information, for example, according to instructions from the scheduling unit 104, and outputs a signal including the generated data or control information to the coding and modulation unit 108. The data and control information generating unit 107 may generate control information for the terminal 200, for example, based on resource allocation information input from the resource control unit 105.

The encoding and modulation unit 108 encodes and modulates, for example, the signal (e.g., data, control information) input from the data and control information generation unit 107, and outputs the modulated signal to the transmission unit 110.

The mapping unit 109 performs resource mapping of the modulated signal input from the coding and modulation unit 108 based on, for example, resource allocation information input from the resource control unit 105, and outputs the transmission signal to the transmission unit 110.

The transmitting unit 110 performs transmission processing such as D/A conversion, up-conversion, or amplification on the signal input from the mapping unit 109, and transmits the radio signal obtained by the transmission processing from the antenna to the terminal 200.

[Device configuration]
6 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a terminal 200 according to an aspect of the present disclosure. In FIG. 6, the terminal 200 includes a receiving unit 201, a demapping unit 202, a demodulation and decoding unit 203, a resource determining unit 204, a control unit 205, a control information holding unit 206, a data and control information generating unit 207, an encoding and modulation unit 208, a mapping unit 209, and a transmitting unit 210.

Note that, for example, at least one of the demapping unit 202, demodulation/decoding unit 203, resource determination unit 204, control unit 205, control information storage unit 206, data/control information generation unit 207, coding/modulation unit 208, and mapping unit 209 may be included in the control unit shown in FIG. 4, and the receiving unit 201 may be included in the receiving unit shown in FIG. 4.

The receiving unit 201 performs reception processing, such as down-conversion or A/D conversion, on the received signal received via the antenna, and outputs the received signal after reception processing to the demapping unit 202.

The demapping unit 202 performs resource demapping on the received signal input from the receiving unit 201 based on, for example, resource allocation information input from the resource determination unit 204, and outputs the modulated signal to the demodulation and decoding unit 203.

The demodulation and decoding unit 203, for example, demodulates and decodes the modulated signal input from the demapping unit 202, and outputs the decoded result to the resource determination unit 204 and the control unit 205. The decoded result may include, for example, at least one of upper layer signaling information and downlink control information.

The resource determination unit 204 determines the allocated resources based on, for example, the control information input from the control information storage unit 206 or the decoded result of the control information input from the demodulation and decoding unit 203, and outputs the resource allocation information to the demapping unit 202.

The control unit 205 may determine whether data or control information is to be transmitted or received, for example, based on the decoding result (e.g., data or control information) input from the demodulation and decoding unit 203 and the control information input from the control information storage unit 206. For example, if the determination result indicates that data or control information is to be transmitted, the control unit 205 may instruct the data and control information generation unit 207 to generate at least one of the data and the control information.

The control information storage unit 206 stores, for example, control information input from the control unit 205, and outputs the stored information to each component (for example, the resource determination unit 204 and the control unit 205) as necessary.

The data and control information generating unit 207 generates data or control information, for example, according to instructions from the control unit 205, and outputs a signal including the generated data or control information to the coding and modulation unit 208. The control information may include, for example, UL-DL interference information measured by the terminal 200 (for example, information regarding the amount of interference from the uplink to the downlink measured by the terminal 200).

The encoding and modulation unit 208, for example, encodes and modulates the signal input from the data and control information generation unit 207, and outputs the modulated signal to the mapping unit 209.

The mapping unit 209 performs resource mapping on the modulated signal input from the coding and modulation unit 208, and outputs the transmission signal to the transmission unit 210.

The transmitter 210 performs transmission processing such as D/A conversion, up-conversion, or amplification on the signal input from the mapping unit 209, and transmits the radio signal obtained by the transmission processing from the antenna to the base station 100.

[Operations of base station 100 and terminal 200]
An example of the operation of base station 100 and terminal 200 having the above configuration will be described.

FIG. 7 is a sequence diagram showing an example of the operation of the base station 100 and the terminal 200.

In FIG. 7, the base station 100 determines, for example, information regarding SBFD or resource allocation configuration (S101).

The base station 100 transmits, for example, upper layer signaling information including the determined configuration information to the terminal 200 (S102).

The base station 100 determines, for the terminal 200, the guard band size to be used for the terminal 200's downlink reception or the base station 100's uplink reception, for example, based on the CLI (S103).

The base station 100 schedules the transmission of downlink data (e.g., PDSCH) and allocates resources to the terminal 200, for example, based on the set guard band size (S104).

Base station 100 transmits a downlink control signal (e.g., PDCCH: Physical Downlink Control Channel) based on, for example, the scheduling result (S105).

The terminal 200, for example, identifies (or determines, or identifies) the resource allocation (time/frequency resources) for downlink data (e.g., PDSCH) based on the PDCCH transmitted from the base station 100 (S106).

Base station 100 transmits downlink data (e.g., PDSCH) according to the scheduling result, and terminal 200 receives downlink data (e.g., PDSCH) based on the determined resource allocation (S107).

[Resource Allocation Method]
A resource allocation method in the base station 100 (e.g., the resource control unit 105) will be described. Note that the terminal 200 (e.g., the resource determination unit 204) may determine the allocated resources assuming the resource allocation method implemented by the base station 100.

Below is an example of how to allocate resources.

In the following description, an example of resource allocation for a discontinuous DL subband configuration {DUD} will be described as an example. Also, the base station 100 applies RA type 1 to PDSCH resource allocation, for example. In this case, the base station 100 transmits to the terminal 200 control information including information (e.g., RB _start ) on the start position of an RB (e.g., VRB) including at least a DL subband, and the number of RBs (e.g., the number of VRBs, L _RB ) consecutive from the start position.

<Method 1>
In method 1, as a method for performing discontinuous resource allocation to DL subbands using RA type 1, a UL subband and a VRB that does not include a guard band (for example, a VRB that is composed only of RBs in the DL subband) are defined.

Figure 8 shows an example of a VRB consisting of a UL subband and a DL subband that does not include a guard band.

In the VRBs shown in FIG. 8, indices are assigned to the RBs (e.g., 18 RBs) that make up the DL subbands (e.g., DL subbands #0 and #1). In other words, in FIG. 8, VRB indices are not assigned to the RBs that make up the UL subbands and guard bands.

The VRBs shown in Figure 8 include RBs in the DL subband, but do not include RBs in the UL subband or guard band, so when mapping from VRBs to PRBs, the DL RBs (VRB) are mapped to the DL PRBs. For example, in Figure 8, VRBs #0 to #8 are mapped to PRBs #0 to #8 in DL subband #0, and VRBs #9 to #17 are mapped to PRBs #21 to #29 in DL subband #1.

In this way, by defining a VRB consisting of RBs in the DL subband, even if resources are allocated to consecutive RBs on the VRB (e.g., RA type 1), non-consecutive resource allocation is possible on the PRB, making it possible to make non-consecutive allocations to the DL subband using the existing RA type 1.

Here, in the above method, the guard band size is not adjusted. For example, as in the above-mentioned guard band size adjustment method 1, it is assumed that the guard band is expanded by not allocating resources to the DL subband. As an example, it is assumed that in FIG. 8, resources are not allocated to PRBs (e.g., PRB#8 and PRB#21) adjacent to the guard band in the DL subband. In this case, to allocate resources to the entire DL subband, the base station 100 allocates resources while avoiding VRB#8 and VRB#9 corresponding to PRB#8 and PRB#21. However, in RA type 1, the base station 100 allocates resources to consecutive RBs, making it difficult to allocate resources while avoiding VRB#8 and VRB#9.

Therefore, with the above method, it is difficult to achieve both non-contiguous resource allocation to DL subbands and adjustment of guard band size.

Therefore, in method 1, for example, the order in which the VRB is mapped to the PRB is changed. For example, when DL subbands are arranged non-contiguously in SBFD, the base station 100 makes the order in which the multiple DL subbands in the VRB are mapped different from the order in which the multiple DL subbands in the PRB are mapped. For example, the order in which the subbands are arranged on the VRB and the order in which the subbands are arranged on the PRB may be swapped.

For example, some VRBs that are contiguous with the first VRB (VRB#0) and belong to the same subband as the first VRB may be mapped to a PRB (e.g., an adjacent PRB) that is contiguous with the last RB of the guard band in the PRB (e.g., the RB on the boundary with the DL subband). Also, for example, some VRBs that are contiguous with the last VRB and belong to the same subband as the last VRB may be mapped to a PRB (e.g., an adjacent PRB) that is contiguous with the last RB of the guard band in the PRB (e.g., the RB on the boundary with the DL subband).

Figure 9 shows an example of a VRB that includes DL subbands and has a permuted mapping order.

In the example of Figure 9, the VRB is mapped to RBs in the order of {DL subband #1, DL subband #0} in the PRB. Therefore, the order in which the subbands are arranged on the VRB {DL subband #1, DL subband #0} is different from the order in which the subbands are arranged on the PRB {DL subband #0, DL subband #1}.

Also, as shown in FIG. 9, RBs located at the ends of a VRB (e.g., VRB#0 and VRB#17) are mapped to PRBs (e.g., PRB#21 and PRB#8) that are adjacent to the guard band in the PRB. For example, VRB#0, which is the start position of the VRB, and VRB#17, which is the end position of the VRB, are mapped to PRB#21 and PRB#8, which are positions adjacent to the guard band in the PRB, respectively.

As shown in Figure 9, PRB#8 and PRB#21 are PRBs that are close to the UL subband among the PRBs that make up the DL subband, and therefore tend to be more affected by CLI than the other PRBs that make up the DL subband. In other words, the CLI from the UL subband tends to be larger in the RBs located at the edge of the VRB compared to the RBs located in the center of the VRB. This characteristic is effective when using the RBs of the DL subband as guard bands based on CLI when performing continuous resource allocation such as RA type 1.

In FIG. 9, in the VRB, slot#0 and VRB#1 to VRB#22 are assigned as PDSCH resources, and VRB#0 and VRB#17 are not assigned as PDSCH resources. In this case, when mapping is performed from the VRB to the PRB as shown in FIG. 9, in the PRB, PRB#0 to PRB#7 and PRB#21 to PRB#29 are assigned as PDSCH resources. In this case, as shown in FIG. 9, if PRB#8 and PRB#21 corresponding to VRB#0 and VRB#17, respectively, are not used by other terminals, these PRBs can be used as substantial guard bands. Therefore, in the example of FIG. 9, in slot#0, a guard band of 4 RBs can be used between DL subband#0 and UL subband, and between DL subband#1 and UL subband.

By changing the mapping order in this way, it is possible to achieve both non-contiguous resource allocation to DL subbands and adjustment of the guard band size.

Note that in FIG. 9, an example is described in which the VRB includes a DL subband and does not include a guard band, but this is not limited thereto, and for example, the VRB may include a DL subband and a guard band.

Below, we explain the case where the VRB includes a DL subband and a guard band, but does not include a UL subband.

For example, some VRBs that are contiguous with the first VRB (VRB#0) and belong to the same guard band as the first VRB and the DL subband that is contiguous with the guard band may be mapped to a PRB that is contiguous with the last RB of the UL subband in the PRB (e.g., an adjacent PRB) (e.g., an RB on the boundary with the guard band). Also, for example, some VRBs that are contiguous with the last VRB and belong to the same guard band as the last VRB and the DL subband that is contiguous with the guard band may be mapped to a PRB that is contiguous with the last RB of the UL subband in the PRB (e.g., an adjacent PRB) (e.g., an RB on the boundary with the guard band).

By including DL subbands and guard bands in the VRB, the guard band can be reduced, for example by allocating DL resources to the RBs of the guard band as in guard band size adjustment method 2.

Figure 10 shows an example of a VRB that includes DL subbands and guard bands and has a swapped mapping order.

In the example of FIG. 10, the VRB maps RBs in the order of {guard band #1, DL subband #1, DL subband #0, guard band #0} in the PRB. Therefore, the order in which the DL subbands and guard bands are arranged on the VRB {guard band #1, DL subband #1, DL subband #0, guard band #0} is different from the order in which the DL subbands and guard bands are arranged on the PRB {DL subband #0, guard band #0, guard band #1, DL subband #1}.

Also, as shown in FIG. 10, RBs located at the ends of a VRB (e.g., VRB#0 and VRB#23) are mapped to PRBs (e.g., PRB#18 and PRB#11) that are adjacent to the UL subband in the PRB. For example, VRB#0, which is the start position of the VRB, and VRB#23, which is the end position of the VRB, are mapped to PRB#18 and PRB#11, respectively, which are positions adjacent to the UL subband in the PRB.

As shown in Figure 10, PRB#11 and PRB#18 are adjacent to the UL subband, and therefore are more likely to be affected by CLI than other PRBs that make up the DL subband and guard band. In other words, the CLI from the UL subband has the characteristic that it is more likely to be large in RBs located at the edge of the VRB than in RBs located in the center of the VRB. This characteristic is useful when allocating continuous resources, such as with RA type 1, and allocating and using resources (e.g., DL resources) to RBs in the guard band based on CLI.

In FIG. 10, in the VRB, slot#0 and VRB#2 to VRB#21 are assigned as PDSCH resources, and VRB#0, VRB#1, VRB#22, and VRB#23 are not assigned as PDSCH resources. In this case, when mapping is performed from the VRB to the PRB as shown in FIG. 10, in the PRB, PRB#0 to PRB#9 and PRB#20 to PRB#29 are assigned as PDSCH resources. At this time, as shown in FIG. 10, PDSCH resources are assigned to PRB#9 and PRB#20 within the guard band, so the guard band can be considered to be reduced. Therefore, in the example of FIG. 10, in slot#0, 2RBs can be used as guard bands between DL subband#0 and UL subband, and between DL subband#1 and UL subband.

Changing the mapping order in this way makes it possible to both allocate non-contiguous resources to DL subbands and adjust the guard band size.

Note that a VRB may include DL subbands, UL subbands, and guard bands (i.e., all subbands).

Below, we will explain the case where a VRB includes a DL subband, a guard band, and a UL subband. The UL subband may be located in the first RB of the VRB, or in the last RB.

Figure 11 shows an example of a VRB that includes a DL subband, a UL subband, and a guard band, with the mapping order swapped.

In the example of FIG. 11, the VRB is mapped to RBs in the order of {guard band #1, DL subband #1, DL subband #0, guard band #0, UL subband} in the PRB. Therefore, the order in which the DL subbands, UL subbands, and guard bands are arranged on the VRB {guard band #1, DL subband #1, DL subband #0, guard band #0, UL subband} is different from the order in which the DL subbands, UL subbands, and guard bands are arranged on the PRB {DL subband #0, guard band #0, UL subband, guard band #1, DL subband #1}.

For example, VRB#0, which is the start position of the VRB, is mapped to PRB#18, which is the position adjacent to one end of the UL subband in the PRB, and VRB#29, which is the end position of the VRB, is mapped to PRB#17, which is the aforementioned end of the UL subband in the PRB.

As shown in FIG. 11, even when a VRB includes a UL subband, the guard band size can be adjusted while realizing discontinuous allocation to DL subbands, just as in the case where a VRB includes DL subbands and guard bands. In addition, since a VRB also includes a UL subband, resources (e.g., PDSCH resources) can also be allocated to the RBs of the UL subband when DL transmission and reception are possible on the UL subband.

In this way, in method 1, by switching the mapping order of VRBs and PRBs, it is possible to achieve both non-contiguous resource allocation and adjustment of guard band size even in contiguous resource allocation such as RA type 1, thereby improving resource utilization efficiency.

In addition, in method 1, the existing notification method can be reused as RA type 1, so the overhead of downstream control information does not increase.

<Method 2>
In method 2, when RA type 1 is applied, a case will be described in which the rate matching function is reused as one method for excluding RBs of the UL subband and guard band as PRBs to which resources are allocated.

Rate matching is a function that does not assign PDSCH to some resources, for example to avoid interference with other base stations. For example, a rate match pattern (RateMatchPattern) is set in signaling information from base station 100 to terminal 200, and the resources set in the rate match pattern (for example, resource elements (RE) specified by RB numbers and symbol numbers) can be set so as not to be used for transmitting and receiving PDSCH.

Rate matching may also be applied to resources other than those specified by the rate match pattern, for example, to RBs on which SSBs (Synchronization Signal (SS)/Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH) blocks) are transmitted.

In method 2, this rate matching function is utilized to treat (or explicitly set) the RBs of the UL subband or guard band as resources not used for transmitting and receiving PDSCH. As a result, even if, for example, the subband configuration is {DUD} and all RBs including the UL subband and guard band are set by RA Type 1, the RBs of the DL subband are used for transmitting and receiving PDSCH, and the RBs of the UL subband and guard band are not used for transmitting and receiving PDSCH. Therefore, using RA type 1, it becomes possible to allocate non-contiguous resources to the DL subband.

Note that if the RBs of the guard band are set as resources that cannot be used for transmitting and receiving PDSCH, the guard band size adjustment method 2 (a method of allocating DL resources or UL resources within the guard band) is not applied. Therefore, for example, the following rules may be used to determine whether or not to apply rate matching.

<Rule 1>
In rule 1, when DL subbands are arranged non-contiguous, the base station 100 determines whether or not to apply rate matching based on the start or end position of resource allocation in the PRB.

For example, when the downlink control information (DCI) indicates that the PDSCH resource allocation spans multiple DL subbands, the actual PDSCH resources do not include UL subbands and guard bands (e.g., rate matching is applied). For example, the base station 100 determines to apply rate matching when the start and end positions of the PDSCH resource allocation (e.g., RA type 1) are included in each of multiple DL subbands that are arranged non-contiguously (e.g., span multiple DL subbands).

Case 1 in Figure 12 shows an example of applying Rule 1. The example in Figure 12 shows an example of frequency resource allocation for a subband configuration of {DUD}. For example, the resource allocation notification by DCI shown in Figure 12(a) indicates the allocation of PDSCH resources to the entire band spanning two DL subbands. In other words, the start position of the resource allocation by DCI shown in Figure 12(a) is included in DL subband #0, and the end position is included in DL subband #1.

Figure 12(b) shows an example of an actual PDSCH resource allocation. By applying rule 1, rate matching is applied, so the actual PDSCH resource allocation does not include the UL subband and guard band. Therefore, the actual PDSCH resource allocation is the PDSCH resource allocation shown in Figure 12(a) minus the resources corresponding to the UL subband and guard band.

In this way, by applying rule 1, PDSCH resources can be allocated simultaneously to non-contiguous DL subbands using RA type 1. This allows for more efficient data transmission and reception by allocating more resources when the data size is large.

<Rule 2>
In rule 2, when DL subbands are arranged non-contiguous, the base station 100 determines whether or not to apply rate matching based on the start or end position of resource allocation in the PRB.

For example, when the downlink control information (DCI) indicates that the PDSCH resource allocation starts or ends within the guard band or the UL subband, the actual PDSCH resource is set to the frequency resource notified by the DCI (e.g., rate matching is not applied). For example, the base station 100 determines not to apply rate matching when the start or end position of the PDSCH resource allocation (e.g., RA type 1) is included in a band different from the DL subband (e.g., the guard band or UL subband).

Case 2 in Figure 12 shows an example of applying rule 2.

The resource allocation notification by DCI shown in Figure 12(c) indicates that the PDSCH resources start from DL subband #0 and end within guard band #0.

(d) in Figure 12 shows an example in which rule 1 is applied. As shown in (d) in Figure 12, when rule 1 is applied, rate matching is applied, so resources within the guard band are not used for the PDSCH. In this case, the guard band size cannot be adjusted.

(e) in Figure 12 shows the case where rule 2 is applied. As shown in (e) in Figure 12, when rule 2 is applied, rate matching is not applied, and resources are allocated within the guard band. Therefore, for example, when the CLI is small, the resource utilization efficiency can be improved by allocating the guard band resources to the PDSCH.

<Rule 3>
In rule 3, when the frequency domain resource allocation (FDRA) field or the RIV is set to a specific value in the downlink control information (DCI), a semi-statically configured or predefined resource allocation is applied.

Here, how many patterns of RIV values exist depends on the combination of RB _start and L _RB in RA type 1. Therefore, there may be cases where the maximum combination of RB _start and L _RB does not exist for the number of bits allocated to RIV. For example, when the number of RBs in BWP is 20, 8 bits are used for RIV, so that 256 patterns can be notified as resource allocation. On the other hand, out of the 256 patterns, there are 210 patterns that can be associated with RIV. Therefore, out of the 256 patterns that can be notified, 46 values of RIV are unused.

Therefore, in rule 3, for example, a value represented by multiple bits used to notify an RIV in RA type 1 that is different from the value associated with the combination of RB _start and L _RB notified by the RIV is associated with an allocation pattern in multiple subbands.

FIG. 13 shows an example of resource allocation according to a specific pattern using the RIV value. Also, FIG. 14 shows an example of application of resource allocation according to a specific pattern using the RIV value shown in FIG. 13.

In Fig. 13, "All "1"" indicates that the RIV value is ^2N -1 (N is the bit length of the RIV). For example, when the RIV is 8 bits (N=8), "All "1"" represents 255 (i.e., 0b111111111). In the example of Fig. 13, "All "1"" is associated with allocation of PDSCH resources to all RBs including the UL subband, as shown in Fig. 14. For example, when rule 1 is applied, PDSCH resources cannot be allocated to the entire band, but in the case of "All "1", PDSCH resources can be allocated to the entire band.

In Fig. 13, "All "1"-1" indicates that the RIV value is ^2N -2 (N is the bit length of the RIV). For example, when the RIV is 8 bits (N=8), "All "1"-1" represents 254 (i.e., 0b111111110). In the example of Fig. 13, "All "1"-1" corresponds to allocation of PDSCH resources to all RBs in the DL subband (two DL subbands #0 and #1 in Fig. 14) and one RB in each guard band (guard bands #0 and #1 in Fig. 14), as shown in Fig. 14.

Also, in Fig. 13, "All "1"-2" indicates that the RIV value is ^2N -3 (N is the bit length of the RIV). For example, when the RIV is 8 bits (N=8), "All "1"-2" represents 253 (i.e., 0b111111101). In the example of Fig. 13, "All "1"-2" is associated with allocation of PDSCH resources to all RBs in DL subband #0 and two RBs in guard band #0, as shown in Fig. 14.

In this way, by applying resource allocation according to a specific pattern, both non-contiguous allocation and guard band adjustment become possible, improving resource utilization efficiency. In addition, by setting a specific pattern, it becomes possible to allocate resources in complex patterns that cannot be allocated with RA type 1, improving resource utilization efficiency.

　I have explained rules 1 to 3 above.

These rules may also be applied when two or more DL subbands and two or more guard bands are assigned, such as in the subband configuration {DUDUD}.

In addition, the above description describes an operation in which no resources are allocated to the UL subband and guard band due to rate matching, but the method may be applied to methods other than rate matching. For example, the above method can be applied even to an operation in which the rate matching function is not used and PDSCH resources are not allocated to the UL subband and guard band.

In addition, the base station 100 may switch between and apply at least two of rules 1 to 3 depending on certain conditions.

In this way, method 2 can achieve non-contiguous resource allocation and guard band size adjustment even in contiguous resource allocation such as RA type 1, thereby improving resource utilization efficiency. In addition, existing instructions for RA type 1 can be reused, so DCI overhead does not increase. Furthermore, method 2 does not require additional VRB to PRB mapping, reducing complexity compared to method 1.

　Above, methods 1 and 2 for resource allocation have been explained.

In this manner, in this embodiment, in SBFD in which a transmission direction is set for each of a plurality of subbands obtained by dividing a frequency band, the base station 100 and the terminal 200 allocate resources differently depending on whether or not the DL subbands are arranged discontinuously in the PRB. For example, the base station 100 and the terminal 200 may use a different VRB-PRB mapping when the DL subbands are arranged discontinuously compared to when the DL subbands are not arranged discontinuously. Alternatively, the base station 100 and the terminal 200 may determine whether or not to apply rate matching depending on the PDSCH resource allocation when the DL subbands are arranged discontinuously.

This makes it possible to simultaneously allocate resources to multiple non-contiguous DL subbands, even when applying resource allocation of consecutive RBs using RA type 1. Also, for example, even when applying RA type 1, it is possible to select a VRB position that does not allocate resources on the UL subband.

Also, even when allocating resources to consecutive RBs, such as RA type 1, it is possible to adjust the guard band size, such as by expanding or reducing the guard band. This makes it possible, for example, to allocate non-consecutive resources to DL subbands and to appropriately adjust the guard band size according to the CLI, thereby improving resource utilization efficiency.

Therefore, according to this embodiment, resource allocation in wireless communication can be appropriately controlled.

Other Embodiments
In the above embodiment, the case where method 1 and method 2 are applied to resource allocation of PDSCH have been described, but method 1 and method 2 may be applied to uplink data (for example, PUSCH). RA type 1 and VRB-to-PRB mapping can also be used in PUSCH. Therefore, when multiple UL subbands are supported, resource allocation may be difficult as in PDSCH. In this case, for method 1 or method 2, the method may be applied to PUSCH by replacing PDSCH with PUSCH, exchanging DL subband and UL subband, and exchanging reception and transmission.

In addition, in the above embodiment, a case where RA type 1 is applied has been described, but as long as the method allocates continuous resources, an embodiment of the present disclosure may be applied in a manner other than RA type 1.

In addition, in the above embodiment, a case where SBFD is applied has been described, but as long as the transmission direction (e.g., DL or UL) is set in multiple bands (e.g., subbands) into which a frequency band is divided, an embodiment of the present disclosure may be applied in addition to SBFD.

In addition, in the above-described embodiment, values such as the number of subbands, the number of DL subbands, the number of UL subbands, the number of guard bands, the number of RBs (the number of VRBs or the number of PRBs), the number of slots, the RIV value, and the number of bits for notifying the RIV are merely examples and are not limited to these. In addition, the subband configuration (e.g., {DUD}) used in the above-described embodiment is merely an example, and the number of subbands and the arrangement order of the DL subbands and the UL subbands are not limited to these.

(supplement)
Information indicating whether terminal 200 supports the functions, operations or processes described in the above-mentioned embodiments may be transmitted (or notified) from terminal 200 to base station 100, for example, as capability information or capability parameters of terminal 200.

The capability information may include information elements (IEs) that individually indicate whether the terminal 200 supports at least one of the functions, operations, or processes shown in the above-described embodiments. Alternatively, the capability information may include information elements that indicate whether the terminal 200 supports a combination of any two or more of the functions, operations, or processes shown in the above-described embodiments.

Based on the capability information received from the terminal 200, the base station 100 may, for example, determine (or decide or assume) the functions, operations, or processing that are supported (or not supported) by the terminal 200 that transmitted the capability information. The base station 100 may perform operations, processing, or control according to the results of the determination based on the capability information. For example, the base station 100 may control resource allocation to the terminal 200 based on the capability information received from the terminal 200.

Note that the fact that the terminal 200 does not support some of the functions, operations, or processes described in the above-described embodiment may be interpreted as meaning that such some of the functions, operations, or processes are restricted in the terminal 200. For example, information or requests regarding such restrictions may be notified to the base station 100.

The information regarding the capabilities or limitations of the terminal 200 may be defined in a standard, for example, or may be implicitly notified to the base station 100 in association with information already known at the base station 100 or information transmitted to the base station 100.

(Control Signal)
In the present disclosure, a downlink control signal (or downlink control information) related to an embodiment of the present disclosure may be, for example, a signal (or information) transmitted in a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) in a physical layer, or a signal (or information) transmitted in a Medium Access Control Control Element (MAC CE) or Radio Resource Control (RRC) in a higher layer. In addition, the signal (or information) is not limited to being notified by a downlink control signal, and may be predefined in a specification (or standard), or may be preconfigured in a base station and a terminal.

In the present disclosure, the uplink control signal (or uplink control information) related to one embodiment of the present disclosure may be, for example, a signal (or information) transmitted in a PUCCH in the physical layer, or a signal (or information) transmitted in a MAC CE or RRC in a higher layer. Furthermore, the signal (or information) is not limited to being notified by an uplink control signal, but may be predefined in a specification (or standard), or may be preconfigured in a base station and a terminal. Furthermore, the uplink control signal may be replaced with, for example, uplink control information (UCI), 1st stage sidelink control information (SCI), or 2nd stage SCI.

(Base station)
In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the base station may be a Transmission Reception Point (TRP), a cluster head, an access point, a Remote Radio Head (RRH), an eNodeB (eNB), a gNodeB (gNB), a Base Station (BS), a Base Transceiver Station (BTS), a parent device, a gateway, or the like. In addition, in sidelink communication, a terminal may play the role of a base station. In addition, instead of a base station, a relay device that relays communication between an upper node and a terminal may be used. Also, a roadside unit may be used.

(Uplink/Downlink/Sidelink)
An embodiment of the present disclosure may be applied to, for example, any of an uplink, a downlink, and a sidelink. For example, an embodiment of the present disclosure may be applied to a Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH), a Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH), a Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH) in the uplink, a Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH), a PDCCH, a Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH) in the downlink, or a Physical Sidelink Shared Channel (PSSCH), a Physical Sidelink Control Channel (PSCCH), or a Physical Sidelink Broadcast Channel (PSBCH) in the sidelink.

Note that PDCCH, PDSCH, PUSCH, and PUCCH are examples of a downlink control channel, a downlink data channel, an uplink data channel, and an uplink control channel, respectively. Also, PSCCH and PSSCH are examples of a sidelink control channel and a sidelink data channel. Also, PBCH and PSBCH are examples of a broadcast channel, and PRACH is an example of a random access channel.

(Data Channel/Control Channel)
An embodiment of the present disclosure may be applied to, for example, any of a data channel and a control channel. For example, the channel in an embodiment of the present disclosure may be replaced with any of the data channels PDSCH, PUSCH, and PSSCH, or the control channels PDCCH, PUCCH, PBCH, PSCCH, and PSBCH.

(Reference signal)
In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the reference signal is, for example, a signal known by both the base station and the mobile station, and may be called a Reference Signal (RS) or a pilot signal. The reference signal may be any of a Demodulation Reference Signal (DMRS), a Channel State Information - Reference Signal (CSI-RS), a Tracking Reference Signal (TRS), a Phase Tracking Reference Signal (PTRS), a Cell-specific Reference Signal (CRS), or a Sounding Reference Signal (SRS).

(Time Interval)
In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the unit of time resource is not limited to one or a combination of slots and symbols, but may be, for example, a time resource unit such as a frame, a superframe, a subframe, a slot, a time slot, a subslot, a minislot, a symbol, an Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbol, a Single Carrier-Frequency Division Multiplexing Access (SC-FDMA) symbol, or another time resource unit. In addition, the number of symbols included in one slot is not limited to the number of symbols exemplified in the above embodiment, and may be another number of symbols.

(Frequency Band)
An embodiment of the present disclosure may be applied to either a licensed band or an unlicensed band.

(communication)
An embodiment of the present disclosure may be applied to any of communication between a base station and a terminal (Uu link communication), communication between terminals (Sidelink communication), and Vehicle to Everything (V2X) communication. For example, the channel in an embodiment of the present disclosure may be replaced with any of PSCCH, PSSCH, Physical Sidelink Feedback Channel (PSFCH), PSBCH, PDCCH, PUCCH, PDSCH, PUSCH, and PBCH.

Furthermore, an embodiment of the present disclosure may be applied to either a terrestrial network or a non-terrestrial network (NTN: Non-Terrestrial Network) using a satellite or a High Altitude Pseudo Satellite (HAPS: High Altitude Pseudo Satellite). Furthermore, an embodiment of the present disclosure may be applied to a terrestrial network in which the transmission delay is large compared to the symbol length or slot length, such as a network with a large cell size or an ultra-wideband transmission network.

(Antenna port)
In one embodiment of the present disclosure, an antenna port refers to a logical antenna (antenna group) consisting of one or more physical antennas. For example, an antenna port does not necessarily refer to one physical antenna, but may refer to an array antenna consisting of multiple antennas. For example, an antenna port may be defined as the minimum unit by which a terminal station can transmit a reference signal, without specifying how many physical antennas the antenna port is composed of. In addition, an antenna port may be defined as the minimum unit by which a weighting of a precoding vector is multiplied.

<5G NR system architecture and protocol stack>
3GPP continues to work on the next release of the fifth generation of mobile phone technology (also simply referred to as "5G"), which includes the development of a new radio access technology (NR) that will operate in the frequency range up to 100 GHz. The first version of the 5G standard was completed in late 2017, allowing the prototyping and commercial deployment of 5G NR compliant terminals (e.g., smartphones).

For example, the system architecture as a whole assumes an NG-RAN (Next Generation - Radio Access Network) comprising gNBs. The gNBs provide the UE-side termination of the NG radio access user plane (SDAP/PDCP/RLC/MAC/PHY) and control plane (RRC) protocols. The gNBs are connected to each other via an Xn interface. The gNBs are also connected to the Next Generation Core (NGC) via a Next Generation (NG) interface, more specifically to the Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) (e.g., a specific core entity performing AMF) via an NG-C interface, and to the User Plane Function (UPF) (e.g., a specific core entity performing UPF) via an NG-U interface. The NG-RAN architecture is shown in Figure 15 (see, for example, 3GPP TS 38.300 v15.6.0, section 4).

The NR user plane protocol stack (see, for example, 3GPP TS 38.300, section 4.4.1) includes the PDCP (Packet Data Convergence Protocol (see, for example, TS 38.300, section 6.4)) sublayer, the RLC (Radio Link Control (see, for example, TS 38.300, section 6.3)) sublayer, and the MAC (Medium Access Control (see, for example, TS 38.300, section 6.2)) sublayer, which are terminated on the network side at the gNB. A new Access Stratum (AS) sublayer (SDAP: Service Data Adaptation Protocol) is also introduced on top of PDCP (see, for example, 3GPP TS 38.300, section 6.5). A control plane protocol stack is also defined for NR (see, for example, TS 38.300, section 4.4.2). An overview of Layer 2 functions is given in clause 6 of TS 38.300. The functions of the PDCP sublayer, RLC sublayer, and MAC sublayer are listed in clauses 6.4, 6.3, and 6.2 of TS 38.300, respectively. The functions of the RRC layer are listed in clause 7 of TS 38.300.

For example, the Medium-Access-Control layer handles multiplexing of logical channels and scheduling and scheduling-related functions, including handling various numerologies.

For example, the physical layer (PHY) is responsible for coding, PHY HARQ processing, modulation, multi-antenna processing, and mapping of signals to appropriate physical time-frequency resources. The physical layer also handles the mapping of transport channels to physical channels. The physical layer provides services to the MAC layer in the form of transport channels. A physical channel corresponds to a set of time-frequency resources used for the transmission of a particular transport channel, and each transport channel is mapped to a corresponding physical channel. For example, the physical channels include the PRACH (Physical Random Access Channel), PUSCH (Physical Uplink Shared Channel), and PUCCH (Physical Uplink Control Channel) as uplink physical channels, and the PDSCH (Physical Downlink Shared Channel), PDCCH (Physical Downlink Control Channel), and PBCH (Physical Broadcast Channel) as downlink physical channels.

NR use cases/deployment scenarios may include enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable low-latency communications (URLLC), and massive machine type communication (mMTC), which have diverse requirements in terms of data rate, latency, and coverage. For example, eMBB is expected to support peak data rates (20 Gbps in the downlink and 10 Gbps in the uplink) and effective (user-experienced) data rates that are about three times higher than the data rates offered by IMT-Advanced. On the other hand, for URLLC, stricter requirements are imposed on ultra-low latency (0.5 ms for user plane latency in UL and DL, respectively) and high reliability (1-10 ⁻⁵ within 1 ms). Finally, mMTC may require preferably high connection density (1,000,000 devices/km ² in urban environments), wide coverage in adverse environments, and extremely long battery life (15 years) for low-cost devices.

Therefore, OFDM numerology (e.g., subcarrier spacing, OFDM symbol length, cyclic prefix (CP) length, number of symbols per scheduling interval) suitable for one use case may not be valid for other use cases. For example, low latency services may preferably require a shorter symbol length (and therefore a larger subcarrier spacing) and/or fewer symbols per scheduling interval (also called TTI) than mMTC services. Furthermore, deployment scenarios with large channel delay spreads may preferably require a longer CP length than scenarios with short delay spreads. Subcarrier spacing may be optimized accordingly to maintain similar CP overhead. NR may support one or more subcarrier spacing values. Correspondingly, subcarrier spacings of 15 kHz, 30 kHz, 60 kHz... are currently considered. The symbol length Tu and subcarrier spacing Δf are directly related by the formula Δf = 1/Tu. Similar to LTE systems, the term "resource element" can be used to mean the smallest resource unit consisting of one subcarrier for the length of one OFDM/SC-FDMA symbol.

In the new wireless system 5G-NR, for each numerology and each carrier, a resource grid of subcarriers and OFDM symbols is defined for the uplink and downlink, respectively. Each element of the resource grid is called a resource element and is identified based on a frequency index in the frequency domain and a symbol position in the time domain (see 3GPP TS 38.211 v15.6.0).

<Functional separation between NG-RAN and 5GC in 5G NR>
Figure 16 shows the functional separation between NG-RAN and 5GC. The logical nodes of NG-RAN are gNB or ng-eNB. 5GC has logical nodes AMF, UPF, and SMF.

For example, gNBs and ng-eNBs host the following main functions:
- Radio Resource Management functions such as Radio Bearer Control, Radio Admission Control, Connection Mobility Control, dynamic allocation (scheduling) of resources to UEs in both uplink and downlink;
- IP header compression, encryption and integrity protection of the data;
- Selection of an AMF at UE attach time when routing to an AMF cannot be determined from information provided by the UE;
- Routing of user plane data towards the UPF;
- Routing of control plane information towards the AMF;
- Setting up and tearing down connections;
- scheduling and transmission of paging messages;
Scheduling and transmission of system broadcast information (AMF or Operation, Admission, Maintenance (OAM) origin);
- configuration of measurements and measurement reporting for mobility and scheduling;
- Transport level packet marking in the uplink;
- Session management;
- Support for network slicing;
- Management of QoS flows and mapping to data radio bearers;
- Support for UEs in RRC_INACTIVE state;
- NAS message delivery function;
- sharing of radio access networks;
- Dual connectivity;
- Close cooperation between NR and E-UTRA.

The Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) hosts the following main functions:
– the ability to terminate Non-Access Stratum (NAS) signalling;
- NAS signalling security;
- Access Stratum (AS) security control;
- Core Network (CN) inter-node signaling for mobility between 3GPP access networks;
- Reachability to idle mode UEs (including control and execution of paging retransmissions);
- Managing the registration area;
- Support for intra-system and inter-system mobility;
- Access authentication;
- Access authorization, including checking roaming privileges;
- Mobility management control (subscription and policy);
- Support for network slicing;
– Selection of Session Management Function (SMF).

Additionally, the User Plane Function (UPF) hosts the following main functions:
- anchor point for intra/inter-RAT mobility (if applicable);
- external PDU (Protocol Data Unit) Session Points for interconnection with data networks;
- Packet routing and forwarding;
- Packet inspection and policy rule enforcement for the user plane part;
- Traffic usage reporting;
- an uplink classifier to support routing of traffic flows to the data network;
- Branching Point to support multi-homed PDU sessions;
QoS processing for the user plane (e.g. packet filtering, gating, UL/DL rate enforcement);
- Uplink traffic validation (mapping of SDF to QoS flows);
- Downlink packet buffering and downlink data notification triggering.

Finally, the Session Management Function (SMF) hosts the following main functions:
- Session management;
- Allocation and management of IP addresses for UEs;
- Selection and control of UPF;
- configuration of traffic steering in the User Plane Function (UPF) to route traffic to the appropriate destination;
- Control policy enforcement and QoS;
- Notification of downlink data.

<RRC connection setup and reconfiguration procedure>
Figure 17 shows some of the interactions between the UE, gNB, and AMF (5GC entities) when the UE transitions from RRC_IDLE to RRC_CONNECTED in the NAS portion (see TS 38.300 v15.6.0).

RRC is a higher layer signaling (protocol) used for UE and gNB configuration. With this transition, the AMF prepares UE context data (which includes, for example, PDU session context, security keys, UE Radio Capability, UE Security Capabilities, etc.) and sends it to the gNB with an INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST. The gNB then activates AS security together with the UE. This is done by the gNB sending a SecurityModeCommand message to the UE and the UE responding with a SecurityModeComplete message to the gNB. The gNB then sends an RRCReconfiguration message to the UE, and upon receiving an RRCReconfigurationComplete from the UE, the gNB performs reconfiguration to set up Signaling Radio Bearer 2 (SRB2) and Data Radio Bearer (DRB). For signaling-only connections, the RRCReconfiguration steps are omitted, since SRB2 and DRB are not set up. Finally, the gNB notifies the AMF that the setup procedure is complete with an INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP RESPONSE.

Therefore, the present disclosure provides a 5th Generation Core (5GC) entity (e.g., AMF, SMF, etc.) comprising: a control circuit that, during operation, establishes a Next Generation (NG) connection with a gNodeB; and a transmitter that, during operation, transmits an initial context setup message to the gNodeB via the NG connection such that a signaling radio bearer between the gNodeB and a user equipment (UE) is set up. Specifically, the gNodeB transmits Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling including a resource allocation configuration information element (IE) to the UE via the signaling radio bearer. The UE then transmits in the uplink or receives in the downlink based on the resource allocation configuration.

<IMT usage scenarios after 2020>
Figure 18 shows some of the use cases for 5G NR. The 3rd generation partnership project new radio (3GPP NR) considers three use cases that were envisioned by IMT-2020 to support a wide variety of services and applications. The first phase of specifications for enhanced mobile-broadband (eMBB) has been completed. Current and future work includes standardization for ultra-reliable and low-latency communications (URLLC) and massive machine-type communications (mMTC), in addition to expanding support for eMBB. Figure 18 shows some examples of envisioned usage scenarios for IMT beyond 2020 (see, for example, ITU-R M.2083 Figure 2).

The URLLC use cases have stringent requirements for performance such as throughput, latency, and availability. It is envisioned as one of the enabling technologies for future applications such as wireless control of industrial or manufacturing processes, remote medical surgery, automation of power transmission and distribution in smart grids, and road safety. URLLC's ultra-high reliability is supported by identifying technologies that meet the requirements set by TR 38.913. For NR URLLC in Release 15, key requirements include a target user plane latency of 0.5 ms for UL (uplink) and 0.5 ms for DL (downlink). The overall URLLC requirement for a single packet transmission is a block error rate (BLER) of 1E-5 for a packet size of 32 bytes with a user plane latency of 1 ms.

From a physical layer perspective, reliability can be improved in many possible ways. Current room for reliability improvement includes defining a separate CQI table for URLLC, more compact DCI formats, PDCCH repetition, etc. However, this room can be expanded to achieve ultra-high reliability as NR becomes more stable and more developed (with respect to the key requirements of NR URLLC). Specific use cases for NR URLLC in Release 15 include Augmented Reality/Virtual Reality (AR/VR), e-health, e-safety, and mission-critical applications.

In addition, the technology enhancements targeted by NR URLLC aim to improve latency and reliability. Technology enhancements for improving latency include configurable numerology, non-slot-based scheduling with flexible mapping, grant-free (configured grant) uplink, slot-level repetition in data channel, and pre-emption in downlink. Pre-emption means that a transmission for which resources have already been allocated is stopped and the already allocated resources are used for other transmissions with lower latency/higher priority requirements that are requested later. Thus, a transmission that was already allowed is preempted by a later transmission. Pre-emption is applicable regardless of the specific service type. For example, a transmission of service type A (URLLC) may be preempted by a transmission of service type B (eMBB, etc.). Technology enhancements for improving reliability include a dedicated CQI/MCS table for a target BLER of 1E-5.

The mMTC (massive machine type communication) use case is characterized by a very large number of connected devices transmitting relatively small amounts of data that are typically not sensitive to latency. The devices are required to be low cost and have very long battery life. From an NR perspective, utilizing very narrow bandwidth portions is one solution that saves power from the UE's perspective and allows for long battery life.

As mentioned above, the scope of reliability improvement in NR is expected to be broader. One of the key requirements for all cases, e.g. for URLLC and mMTC, is high or ultra-high reliability. Several mechanisms can improve reliability from a radio perspective and a network perspective. In general, there are two to three key areas that can help improve reliability. These areas include compact control channel information, data channel/control channel repetition, and diversity in frequency, time, and/or spatial domains. These areas are generally applicable to reliability improvement regardless of the specific communication scenario.

For NR URLLC, further use cases with more stringent requirements are envisaged, such as factory automation, transportation and power distribution, with high reliability (up to ^10-6 level of reliability), high availability, packet size up to 256 bytes, time synchronization up to a few μs (depending on the use case, the value can be 1 μs or a few μs depending on the frequency range and low latency of the order of 0.5 ms to 1 ms (e.g. 0.5 ms latency on the targeted user plane).

Furthermore, for NR URLLC, there may be several technology enhancements from a physical layer perspective. These include PDCCH (Physical Downlink Control Channel) enhancements for compact DCI, PDCCH repetition, and increased monitoring of PDCCH. Also, UCI (Uplink Control Information) enhancements related to enhanced HARQ (Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request) and CSI feedback enhancements. There may also be PUSCH enhancements related to minislot level hopping, and retransmission/repetition enhancements. The term "minislot" refers to a Transmission Time Interval (TTI) that contains fewer symbols than a slot (a slot comprises 14 symbols).

<QoS Control>
The 5G Quality of Service (QoS) model is based on QoS flows and supports both QoS flows that require a guaranteed flow bit rate (GBR QoS flows) and QoS flows that do not require a guaranteed flow bit rate (non-GBR QoS flows). Thus, at the NAS level, QoS flows are the finest granularity of QoS partitioning in a PDU session. QoS flows are identified within a PDU session by a QoS Flow ID (QFI) carried in the encapsulation header over the NG-U interface.

For each UE, 5GC establishes one or more PDU sessions. For each UE, the NG-RAN establishes at least one Data Radio Bearer (DRB) for the PDU session, e.g. as shown above with reference to Figure 17. Additional DRBs for the QoS flows of that PDU session can be configured later (when it is up to the NG-RAN). The NG-RAN maps packets belonging to different PDU sessions to different DRBs. The NAS level packet filters in the UE and 5GC associate UL and DL packets with QoS flows, whereas the AS level mapping rules in the UE and NG-RAN associate UL and DL QoS flows with DRBs.

Figure 19 shows the non-roaming reference architecture for 5G NR (see TS 23.501 v16.1.0, section 4.23). An Application Function (AF) (e.g. an external application server hosting 5G services as illustrated in Figure 18) interacts with the 3GPP core network to provide services, e.g. accessing a Network Exposure Function (NEF) to support applications that affect traffic routing, or interacting with a policy framework for policy control (e.g. QoS control) (see Policy Control Function (PCF)). Based on the operator's deployment, Application Functions that are considered trusted by the operator can interact directly with the relevant Network Functions. Application Functions that are not allowed by the operator to access the Network Functions directly interact with the relevant Network Functions using an external exposure framework via the NEF.

Figure 19 further shows further functional units of the 5G architecture, namely Network Slice Selection Function (NSSF), Network Repository Function (NRF), Unified Data Management (UDM), Authentication Server Function (AUSF), Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), Session Management Function (SMF), and Data Network (DN, e.g. operator provided services, Internet access, or third party provided services). All or part of the core network functions and application services may be deployed and run in a cloud computing environment.

Therefore, the present disclosure provides an application server (e.g., an AF in a 5G architecture) comprising: a transmitter that, in operation, transmits a request including QoS requirements for at least one of a URLLC service, an eMMB service, and an mMTC service to at least one of 5GC functions (e.g., a NEF, an AMF, an SMF, a PCF, an UPF, etc.) to establish a PDU session including a radio bearer between a gNodeB and a UE according to the QoS requirements; and a control circuit that, in operation, performs a service using the established PDU session.

The present disclosure can be realized by software, hardware, or software in conjunction with hardware. Each functional block used in the description of the above embodiments may be realized, in part or in whole, as an LSI, which is an integrated circuit, and each process described in the above embodiments may be controlled, in part or in whole, by one LSI or a combination of LSIs. The LSI may be composed of individual chips, or may be composed of one chip that contains some or all of the functional blocks. The LSI may have data input and output. Depending on the degree of integration, the LSI may be called an IC, system LSI, super LSI, or ultra LSI.

The integrated circuit method is not limited to LSI, and may be realized by a dedicated circuit, a general-purpose processor, or a dedicated processor. Also, a field programmable gate array (FPGA) that can be programmed after LSI manufacturing, or a reconfigurable processor that can reconfigure the connections and settings of circuit cells inside the LSI, may be used. The present disclosure may be realized as digital processing or analog processing.

Furthermore, if an integrated circuit technology that can replace LSI appears due to advances in semiconductor technology or other derived technologies, it would be natural to use that technology to integrate functional blocks. The application of biotechnology, etc. is also a possibility.

The present disclosure may be implemented in any type of apparatus, device, or system (collectively referred to as a communications apparatus) having communications capabilities. The communications apparatus may include a radio transceiver and processing/control circuitry. The radio transceiver may include a receiver and a transmitter, or both as functions. The radio transceiver (transmitter and receiver) may include an RF (Radio Frequency) module and one or more antennas. The RF module may include an amplifier, an RF modulator/demodulator, or the like. Non-limiting examples of communication devices include telephones (e.g., cell phones, smartphones, etc.), tablets, personal computers (PCs) (e.g., laptops, desktops, notebooks, etc.), cameras (e.g., digital still/video cameras), digital players (e.g., digital audio/video players, etc.), wearable devices (e.g., wearable cameras, smartwatches, tracking devices, etc.), game consoles, digital book readers, telehealth/telemedicine devices, communication-enabled vehicles or mobile transport (e.g., cars, planes, ships, etc.), and combinations of the above-mentioned devices.

Communication devices are not limited to portable or mobile devices, but also include any type of equipment, device, or system that is non-portable or fixed, such as smart home devices (home appliances, lighting equipment, smart meters or measuring devices, control panels, etc.), vending machines, and any other "things" that may exist on an IoT (Internet of Things) network.

Communications include data communication via cellular systems, wireless LAN systems, communication satellite systems, etc., as well as data communication via combinations of these.

The communication apparatus also includes devices such as controllers and sensors that are connected or coupled to a communication device that performs the communication functions described in this disclosure. For example, it includes controllers and sensors that generate control signals and data signals used by the communication device to perform the communication functions of the communication apparatus.

In addition, communication equipment includes infrastructure facilities, such as base stations, access points, and any other equipment, devices, or systems that communicate with or control the various non-limiting devices listed above.

A base station according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes a control circuit that varies resource allocation depending on whether a first band corresponding to a first transmission direction is arranged discontinuously in a physical resource block in a method in which a transmission direction is set for each of a plurality of bands obtained by dividing a frequency band, and a transmission circuit that transmits a signal according to the resource allocation.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the transmission circuit transmits control information regarding the resource allocation, including a starting position of a virtual resource block including at least the first band and the number of the virtual resource blocks that are consecutive from the starting position, and when the first bands are arranged non-consecutively, the control circuit makes the order in which the first bands are mapped in the virtual resource block different from the order in which the first bands are mapped in the physical resource block.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the virtual resource block includes the first band, does not include a second band corresponding to a second transmission direction different from the first transmission direction, and does not include a guard band between the first band and the second band, and the start position and end position of the virtual resource block are mapped to positions adjacent to the guard band in the physical resource block.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the virtual resource block includes the first band and a guard band between the first band and a second band corresponding to a second transmission direction different from the first transmission direction, but does not include the second band, and the start position and end position of the virtual resource block are mapped to positions adjacent to the second band in the physical resource block.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the virtual resource block includes the first band, a second band corresponding to a second transmission direction different from the first transmission direction, and a guard band between the first band and the second band, and the start position is mapped to a position adjacent to one end of the second band in the physical resource block, and the end position of the virtual resource block is mapped to the one end of the second band in the physical resource block.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, when the first bands are arranged non-contiguously, the control circuit determines whether or not to apply rate matching based on the start or end position of resource allocation in the physical resource block.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the control circuit determines to apply the rate match when the start position and the end position are included in each of the first bands.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the control circuit determines not to apply the rate match if the start position or the end position is included in a band different from the first band.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the transmission circuit transmits control information regarding the resource allocation, including a starting position of a virtual resource block including at least the first band and the number of the virtual resource blocks consecutive from the starting position, and among values represented by a plurality of bits used to notify the control information, a value different from a value associated with a combination of the starting position and the number of the virtual resource blocks is associated with an allocation pattern in the plurality of bands.

A terminal according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes a control circuit that varies resource allocation depending on whether a first band corresponding to a first transmission direction is arranged discontinuously in a physical resource block in a method in which a transmission direction is set for each of a plurality of bands obtained by dividing a frequency band, and a receiving circuit that receives a signal according to the resource allocation.

In a communication method according to one embodiment of the present disclosure, in a method in which a transmission direction is set for each of a plurality of bands obtained by dividing a frequency band, a base station varies resource allocation depending on whether a first band corresponding to a first transmission direction is arranged discontinuously in a physical resource block, and transmits or receives a signal according to the resource allocation.

In a communication method according to one embodiment of the present disclosure, in a method in which a transmission direction is set for each of a plurality of bands obtained by dividing a frequency band, a terminal varies resource allocation depending on whether a first band corresponding to a first transmission direction is arranged discontinuously in a physical resource block, and receives a signal according to the resource allocation.

The entire disclosures of the specification, drawings and abstract contained in the Japanese application No. 2023-021552, filed on February 15, 2023, are incorporated herein by reference.

An embodiment of the present disclosure is useful in wireless communication systems.

100 Base station 101, 201 Receiving section 102, 202 Demapping section 103, 203 Demodulation and decoding section 104 Scheduling section 105 Resource control section 106, 206 Control information storage section 107, 207 Data and control information generation section 108, 208 Coding and modulation section 109, 209 Mapping section 110, 210 Transmitting section 200 Terminal 204 Resource determination section 205 Control section

Claims (12)

1. In a method in which a transmission direction is set for each of a plurality of bands obtained by dividing a frequency band, a control circuit that varies resource allocation depending on whether a first band corresponding to a first transmission direction is arranged discontinuously in a physical resource block;
   a transmitting circuit for transmitting a signal in accordance with the resource allocation;
   A base station comprising:
2. the transmission circuit transmits control information regarding the resource allocation, the control information including a start position of a virtual resource block including at least the first band and a number of the virtual resource blocks consecutive from the start position;
   When the plurality of first bands are arranged non-contiguously, the control circuit causes an order in which the plurality of first bands are mapped in the virtual resource block to differ from an order in which the plurality of first bands are mapped in the physical resource block.
   The base station according to claim 1 .
3. the virtual resource block includes the first band, but does not include a second band corresponding to a second transmission direction different from the first transmission direction, and does not include a guard band between the first band and the second band;
   The start position and the end position of the virtual resource block are mapped to positions adjacent to the guard band in the physical resource block.
   The base station according to claim 2.
4. the virtual resource block includes the first band and a guard band between the first band and a second band corresponding to a second transmission direction different from the first transmission direction, and does not include the second band;
   The start position and the end position of the virtual resource block are mapped to positions adjacent to the second band in the physical resource block.
   The base station according to claim 2.
5. the virtual resource block includes the first band, a second band corresponding to a second transmission direction different from the first transmission direction, and a guard band between the first band and the second band;
   the start position is mapped to a position adjacent to one end of the second band in the physical resource block, and the end position of the virtual resource block is mapped to the one end of the second band in the physical resource block.
   The base station according to claim 2.
6. When the plurality of first bands are arranged non-contiguously, the control circuit determines whether or not to apply rate matching based on a start position or an end position of resource allocation in the physical resource block.
   The base station according to claim 1 .
7. the control circuit determines application of the rate matching when the start position and the end position are included in each of the plurality of first bands;
   The base station according to claim 6.
8. The control circuit determines not to apply the rate matching when the start position or the end position is included in a band different from the first band.
   The base station according to claim 6.
9. the transmission circuit transmits control information regarding the resource allocation, the control information including a start position of a virtual resource block including at least the first band and a number of the virtual resource blocks consecutive from the start position;
   Among values represented by a plurality of bits used for notifying the control information, a value different from a value associated with a combination of the start position and the number of virtual resource blocks is associated with an allocation pattern in the plurality of bands.
   The base station according to claim 1 .
10. In a method in which a transmission direction is set for each of a plurality of bands obtained by dividing a frequency band, a control circuit that varies resource allocation depending on whether a first band corresponding to a first transmission direction is arranged discontinuously in a physical resource block;
    a receiving circuit for receiving a signal in accordance with the resource allocation;
    A terminal comprising:
11. The base station is
    In a method in which a transmission direction is set for each of a plurality of bands obtained by dividing a frequency band, resource allocation is varied depending on whether a first band corresponding to a first transmission direction is arranged non-contiguously in a physical resource block,
    transmitting or receiving a signal in accordance with the resource allocation;
    Communication methods.
12. The terminal is
    In a method in which a transmission direction is set for each of a plurality of bands obtained by dividing a frequency band, resource allocation is varied depending on whether a first band corresponding to a first transmission direction is arranged non-contiguously in a physical resource block,
    receiving a signal in accordance with the resource allocation;
    Communication methods.

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