WO2025152165A1

WO2025152165A1 - Carrier determination for uplink transmissions in wireless communications

Info

Publication number: WO2025152165A1
Application number: PCT/CN2024/073313
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jing Shi; Xianghui HAN; Xingguang WEI; Shuaihua KOU
Original assignee: ZTE Corp
Current assignee: ZTE Corp
Priority date: 2024-01-19
Filing date: 2024-01-19
Publication date: 2025-07-24
Anticipated expiration: 2026-07-19

Abstract

This document generally relates to wireless communication involving a user device that determines a carrier for at least one uplink transmission on a normal uplink (NUL) carrier or a supplemental uplink (SUL) carrier in a serving cell when a dedicated physical uplink channel configuration for the at least one uplink transmission is not configured. After determining the carrier, the user device performs the at least one uplink transmission on the carrier.

Description

CARRIER DETERMINATION FOR UPLINK TRANSMISSIONS IN WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS

TECHNICAL FIELD

This document is directed generally to determining carriers for uplink transmissions in wireless communications.

BACKGROUND

In wireless communication systems, uplink (UL) coverage can be enhanced through use of a supplementary UL (SUL) carrier configured together with one non-supplementary UL carrier in a same cell. For UL transmission on a SUL carrier, a user device may be configured with two UL carriers-referred to as a normal uplink (NUL) carrier and a supplementary uplink (SUL) carrier-for one downlink (DL) carrier of the same cell. Uplink transmissions on those two UL carriers may be controlled by the network to avoid overlapping physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) and physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) transmissions in the time domain.

Overlapping transmissions on PUSCH are avoided through scheduling while overlapping transmissions on PUCCH are avoided through configuration in which a dedicated PUCCH (configured by pucch-Config) may be configured for only one of the two UL carriers of the cell. In addition, initial access may be supported in each of the two UL carriers. That is, random access may be performed on either the NUL carrier or on the SUL carrier. In event that pucch-Config is configured, there is no ambiguity on the carrier for UL transmission. That is, a PUCCH is transmitted on the carrier that has the dedicated PUCCH configured. In addition, a PUSCH is transmitted on the carrier by dynamic indication or on the same carrier same that the PUCCH is transmitted. However, in some situations, the pucch-Config may not be configured. As such, ways to determine the carrier for UL transmission in situations where the pucch-Config is not configured, including after the random access procedure is performed, may be desirable.

SUMMARY

This document relates to methods, systems, apparatuses and devices for wireless communication. In one implementation, a method for wireless communication includes: determining, by a user device, a carrier for at least one uplink transmission on a normal uplink (NUL) carrier or a supplemental uplink (SUL) carrier in a serving cell when a dedicated physical uplink channel configuration for the at least one uplink transmission is not configured; and after determining the carrier, performing, by the user device, the at least one uplink transmission on the carrier.

In some other implementations, a device, such as a network device, is disclosed. The device may include one or more processors and one or more memories, wherein the one or more processors are configured to read computer code from the one or more memories to implement any of the methods above.

In yet some other implementations, a computer program product is disclosed. The computer program product may include a non-transitory computer-readable program medium with computer code stored thereupon, the computer code, when executed by one or more processors, causing the one or more processors to implement any of the methods above.

The above and other aspects and their implementations are described in greater detail in the drawings, the descriptions, and the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of an example of a wireless communication system.

FIG. 2 shows a flow chart of a method for wireless communication.

FIG. 3 shows a schematic diagram of an example of wireless communication involving three bands.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present description describes various embodiments of systems, apparatuses, devices, and methods for wireless communications related to carrier determination.

FIG. 1 shows a diagram of an example wireless communication system 100 including a plurality of communication nodes (or just nodes) that are configured to wirelessly communicate with each other. In general, the communication nodes include at least one user device 102 and at least one network device 104. The example wireless communication system 100 in FIG. 1 is shown as including two user devices 102, including a first user device 102 (1) and a second user device 102 (2) , and one device 104. However, various other examples of the wireless communication system 100 that include any of various combinations of one or more user devices 102 and/or one or more network devices 104 may be possible.

In general, a user device as described herein, such as the user device 102, may include a single electronic device or apparatus, or multiple (e.g., a network of) electronic devices or apparatuses, capable of communicating wirelessly over a network. A user device may comprise or otherwise be referred to as a user terminal, a user terminal device, or a user equipment (UE) . Additionally, a user device may be or include, but not limited to, a mobile device (such as a mobile phone, a smart phone, a smart watch, a tablet, a laptop computer, vehicle or other vessel (human, motor, or engine-powered, such as an automobile, a plane, a train, a ship, or a bicycle as non-limiting examples) or a fixed or stationary device, (such as a desktop computer or other computing device that is not ordinarily moved for long periods of time, such as appliances, other relatively heavy devices including Internet of things (IoT) , or computing devices used in commercial or industrial environments, as non-limiting examples) . In various embodiments, a user device 102 may include transceiver circuitry 106 coupled to an antenna 108 to effect wireless communication with the network device 104. The transceiver circuitry 106 may also be coupled to a processor 110, which may also be coupled to a memory 112 or other storage device. The memory 112 may store therein instructions or code that, when read and executed by the processor 110, cause the processor 110 to implement various ones of the methods described herein.

Additionally, in general, a network device as described herein, such as the network device 104, may include a single electronic device or apparatus, or multiple (e.g., a network of) electronic devices or apparatuses, and may comprise one or more wireless access nodes, base stations, or other wireless network access points capable of communicating wirelessly over a network with one or more user devices and/or with one or more other network devices 104. For example, the network device 104 may comprise a 4G LTE base station, a 5G NR base station, a 5G central-unit base station, a 5G distributed-unit base station, a next generation Node B (gNB) , an enhanced Node B (eNB) , or other similar or next-generation (e.g., 6G) base stations, in various embodiments. A network device 104 may include transceiver circuitry 114 coupled to an antenna 116, which may include an antenna tower 118 in various approaches, to effect wireless communication with the user device 102 or another network device 104. The transceiver circuitry 114 may also be coupled to one or more processors 120, which may also be coupled to a memory 122 or other storage device. The memory 122 may store therein instructions or code that, when read and executed by the processor 120, cause the processor 120 to implement one or more of the methods described herein.

In various embodiments, two communication nodes in the wireless system 100-such as a user device 102 and a network device 104, two user devices 102 without a network device 104, or two network devices 104 without a user device 102-may be configured to wirelessly communicate with each other in or over a mobile network and/or a wireless access network according to one or more standards and/or specifications. In general, the standards and/or specifications may define the rules or procedures under which the communication nodes can wirelessly communicate, which, in various embodiments, may include those for communicating in millimeter (mm) -Wave bands, and/or with multi-antenna schemes and beamforming functions. In addition or alternatively, the standards and/or specifications are those that define a radio access technology and/or a cellular technology, such as Fourth Generation (4G) Long Term Evolution (LTE) , Fifth Generation (5G) New Radio (NR) , or New Radio Unlicensed (NR-U) , as non-limiting examples.

Additionally, in the wireless system 100, the communication nodes are configured to wirelessly communicate signals between each other. In general, a communication in the wireless system 100 between two communication nodes can be or include a transmission or a reception, and is generally both simultaneously, depending on the perspective of a particular node in the communication. For example, for a given communication between a first node and a second node where the first node is transmitting a signal to the second node and the second node is receiving the signal from the first node, the first node may be referred to as a source or transmitting node or device, the second node may be referred to as a destination or receiving node or device, and the communication may be considered a transmission for the first node and a reception for the second node. Of course, since communication nodes in a wireless system 100 can both send and receive signals, a single communication node may be both a transmitting/source node and a receiving/destination node simultaneously or switch between being a source/transmitting node and a destination/receiving node.

Also, particular signals can be characterized or defined as either an uplink (UL) signal, a downlink (DL) signal, or a sidelink (SL) signal. An uplink signal is a signal transmitted from a user device 102 to a network device 104. A downlink signal is a signal transmitted from a network device 104 to a user device 102. A sidelink signal is a signal transmitted from a one user device 102 to another user device 102, or a signal transmitted from one network device 104 to a another network device 104. Also, for sidelink transmissions, a first/source user device 102 directly transmits a sidelink signal to a second/destination user device 102 without any forwarding of the sidelink signal to a network device 104.

Additionally, signals communicated between communication nodes in the system 100 may be characterized or defined as a data signal or a control signal. In general, a data signal is a signal that includes or carries data, such multimedia data (e.g., voice and/or image data) , and a control signal is a signal that carries control information that configures the communication nodes in certain ways in order to communicate with each other, or otherwise controls how the communication nodes communicate data signals with each other. Also, certain signals may be defined or characterized by combinations of data/control and uplink/downlink/sidelink, including uplink control signals, uplink data signals, downlink control signals, downlink data signals, sidelink control signals, and sidelink data signals.

For at least some specifications, such as 5G NR, data and control signals are transmitted and/or carried on physical channels. Generally, a physical channel corresponds to a set of time-frequency resources used for transmission of a signal. Different types of physical channels may be used to transmit different types of signals. For example, physical data channels (or just data channels) , also herein called traffic channels, are used to transmit data signals, and physical control channels (or just control channels) are used to transmit control signals. Example types of traffic channels (or physical data channels) include, but are not limited to, a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) used to communicate downlink data signals, a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) used to communicate uplink data signals, and a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) used to communicate sidelink data signals. In addition, example types of physical control channels include, but are not limited to, a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) used to communicate downlink control signals, a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) used to communicate uplink control signals, and a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) used to communicate sidelink control signals. As used herein for simplicity, unless specified otherwise, a particular type of physical channel is also used to refer to a signal that is transmitted on that particular type of physical channel, and/or a transmission on that particular type of transmission. As an example illustration, a PDSCH refers to the physical downlink shared channel itself, a downlink data signal transmitted on the PDSCH, or a downlink data transmission. Accordingly, a communication node transmitting or receiving a PDSCH means that the communication node is transmitting or receiving a signal on a PDSCH.

Additionally, for at least some specifications, such as 5G NR, and/or for at least some types of control signals, a control signal that a communication node transmits may include control information comprising the information necessary to enable transmission of one or more data signals between communication nodes, and/or to schedule one or more data channels (or one or more transmissions on data channels) . For example, such control information may include the information necessary for proper reception, decoding, and demodulation of a data signals received on physical data channels during a data transmission, and/or for uplink scheduling grants that inform the user device about the resources and transport format to use for uplink data transmissions. In some embodiments, the control information includes downlink control information (DCI) that is transmitted in the downlink direction from a network device 104 to a user device 102. In other embodiments, the control information includes uplink control information (UCI) that is transmitted in the uplink direction from a user device 102 to a network device 104, or sidelink control information (SCI) that is transmitted in the sidelink direction from one user device 102 (1) to another user device 102 (2) .

FIG. 2 is a flow chart of an example method 200 of wireless communication including carrier determination. At block 202, a user device 102 determines a carrier for at least one uplink transmission on a normal uplink (NUL) carrier or a supplemental uplink (SUL) carrier in a serving cell when a dedicated physical uplink channel configuration for the at least one uplink transmission is not configured. At block 204, after determining the carrier, the user device 102 may perform the at least one uplink transmission on the carrier.

In some implementations of the method 300, the dedicated physical uplink channel configuration includes a dedicated physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) configuration that is not configured for the serving cell, and user device 102 determines the carrier by: when the at least one uplink transmission includes a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) transmission or a PUCCH transmission, determining the carrier to be a carrier which both a common PUCCH configuration and a common PUSCH configuration are only configured on, and wherein a dedicated PUSCH configuration on another carrier is ignored.

In addition or alternatively, in some implementations of the method 300, the dedicated physical uplink channel configuration includes a dedicated physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) configuration that is not configured for the serving cell, and user device 102 determines the carrier by: when the at least one uplink transmission includes a PUSCH transmission and the dedicated PUSCH configuration is not configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, determining the carrier to be a carrier that is configured with the dedicated PUSCH configuration.

In addition or alternatively, in some implementations of the method 300, the user device 102 determines a carrier for a PUCCH transmission to be: a carrier on which a latest physical random access channel (PRACH) was transmitted and different from the carrier for the PUSCH transmission; a carrier configured with the dedicated PUSCH configuration when the dedicated PUSCH configuration is not configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier; or a carrier determined according to a predefined criterion or a first dedicated radio resource control (RRC) signaling when both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier are configured with the common PUCCH configuration.

In addition or alternatively, in some implementations of the method 300, the carrier for the PUCCH transmission is determined to be the carrier on which the latest PRACH was transmitted and different from the carrier for the PUSCH transmission when both the common PUSCH configuration and the common PUCCH configuration are only configured on one of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier and the dedicated PUSCH configuration is only configured on the other carrier of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier.

In addition or alternatively, in some implementations of the method 300, the carrier for the PUCCH transmission is determined to be the carrier configured with the dedicated PUSCH configuration when the dedicated PUSCH configuration is not configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, and further where both the common PUSCH configuration and the common PUCCH configuration are configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier and the dedicated PUSCH configuration is only configured on one of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier.

In addition or alternatively, in some implementations of the method 300, the carrier for the PUCCH transmission is determined according to the predefined criterion or the first dedicated RRC signaling, and the carrier for the PUCCH transmission is the same as the carrier for the PUSCH transmission, or the carrier for the PUSCH transmission and the carrier for the PUCCH transmission are determined independently from each other via RRC signaling.

In addition or alternatively, in some implementations of the method 300, the dedicated physical uplink channel configuration includes a dedicated physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) configuration that is not configured for the serving cell, and the user device 102 determines the carrier by: when the at least one uplink transmission includes a PUSCH transmission and both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier are configured with the common PUSCH configuration, determining the carrier according to a predefined criterion or a second dedicated radio resource control (RRC) signaling. In some of these implementations, when the carrier for the PUSCH transmission is determined according to the predefined criterion or the second dedicated RRC signaling, the carrier for the PUSCH transmission is the same as the carrier for the PUCCH transmission, or the carrier for the PUSCH transmission and the carrier for the PUCCH transmission are determined independently from each other via RRC signaling.

In addition or alternatively, in some implementations of the method 300, when the carrier for the PUSCH transmission is the same as the carrier for the PUCCH transmission, the first dedicated RRC signaling is same as the second dedicated RRC signaling and the carrier is indicated by the same one dedicated RRC signaling.

In addition or alternatively, in some implementations of the method 300, the carrier is determined: after a random access procedure; or after the random access procedure and before a radio resource control (RRC) configuration.

In addition or alternatively, in some implementations of the method 300, a threshold for carrier selection is not provided when both a common physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) configuration and a common physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) configuration are provided to only one of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier.

In addition or alternatively, in some implementations of the method 300, a PRACH transmission is on a carrier provided with both a common physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) configuration and a common physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) configuration, when only one of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier is provided with both the common PUSCH configuration and the common PUCCH configuration.

In addition or alternatively, in some implementations of the method 300, the dedicated physical uplink channel configuration on a second carrier for a physical uplink channel cannot be configured when a common physical uplink channel configuration is not configured on the second carrier for the physical uplink channel. In any of various implementations, the second carrier is the same as the carrier determined at block 302 or different than the carrier determined at block 302. Where the second carrier is different than the carrier determined at block 302, the different carrier may be for the same cell as the carrier determined at block 302. In addition or alternatively, the second carrier is the NUL carrier or the SUL carrier. Also, in any of various implementations, the physical uplink channel is the physical channel for the at least one uplink transmission performed at block 304.

Further details of various actions of function blocks performing in an enhancement mode, any of which may be incorporated into any of various implementations of the method 300 or other methods, are now described.

For an uplink transmission involving a supplemental uplink (SUL) carrier (also referred to herein as a SUL operation) , a user device 102 may be configured with two uplink (UL) carriers-including, or referred to herein as, a normal or non-supplementary uplink (NUL) carrier and a supplementary uplink (SUL) carrier-for one downlink (DL) carrier of the same cell. (Herein, the terms “normal” and “non-supplementary” mean the same and are used interchangeably when used in combination with uplink (UL) . Correspondingly, the acronym NUL can refer to “normal uplink” or “non-supplementary uplink” , which mean the same, unless expressly specified otherwise. ) Uplink transmissions on those two UL carriers may be determined or controlled by the network device 104 to avoid overlapping between PUSCH and PUCCH transmissions in the time domain. Overlapping transmissions on a PUSCH may be avoided through scheduling while overlapping transmissions on a PUCCH may be avoided through configuration-i.e., a PUCCH may be configured for only one of the two UL carriers of the cell. In addition, initial access is supported in each of the uplink carriers. That is, random access may be performed on the NUL carrier and/or on the SUL carrier.

Additionally, for random access in a cell configured with a SUL carrier, the network device 104 may explicitly signal which carrier to use (NUL carrier or SUL carrier) . Otherwise, the user device 102 may select the SUL carrier if (and in some embodiments only if) the measured quality of the DL pathloss is lower than a broadcast threshold (rsrp-ThresholdSSB-SUL) . The user device 102 may perform carrier selection before selecting between a 2-step and a 4-step random access (RA) type. The reference signal received power (RSRP) threshold for selecting between the 2-step RA type and the 4-step RA type may be configured separately for the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier. Once started, all uplink transmissions of the random access procedure may remain on the selected carrier.

Additionally, in case the PUSCH is scheduled by DCI format 0_0, the carrier for PUSCH transmission may be indicated by a NUL carrier indicator, a SUL carrier indicator, or may be the same carrier as used for a PUCCH transmission.

In some embodiments, a NUL carrier indicator or a SUL carrier indicator (also collectively referred to herein as a NUL/SUL carrier indicator) is one bit for user devices 102 configured with supplementaryUplink in ServingCellConfig in the cell as defined in Table 1 below, and the number of bits for DCI format 1_0 before padding is larger than the number of bits for DCI format 0_0 before padding. The NUL/SUL carrier indicator is zero bits otherwise. Additionally, in some embodiments, the NUL/SUL carrier indicator, if present, is located in the last bit position of DCI format 0_0, after the padding bit (s) .

Additionally, for at least some embodiments, where the NUL/SUL carrier indicator is present in DCI format 0_0 and a dedicated PUSCH configuration (also called herein pusch-Config) , which may be a higher layer parameter, is not configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, the user device 102 may ignore the NUL/SUL carrier indicator field in DCI format 0_0, and the corresponding PUSCH scheduled by the DCI format 0_0 is for the NUL carrier or the SUL carrier for which a dedicated PUCCH configuration (also called herein pucch-Config) , which may also be a higher layer parameter, is configured.

Additionally, where the NUL/SUL carrier indicator is not present in DCI format 0_0 and a dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is configured, the corresponding PUSCH scheduled by the DCI format 0_0 is for the NUL carrier or the SUL carrier for which the higher layer parameter pucch-Config is configured.

Additionally, where the NUL/SUL carrier indicator is not present in DCI format 0_0 and pucch-Config is not configured, the corresponding PUSCH scheduled by the DCI format 0_0 is for the uplink carrier on which the latest physical random access channel (PRACH) is transmitted.

Table 1: NUL/SUL carrier indicator

Additionally, for embodiments where a PUSCH transmission is scheduled by DCI format 0_1 or 0_2, the carrier for the PUSCH transmission may be indicated by a NUL/SUL carrier indicator.

Additionally, the NUL/SUL carrier indicator is zero bits for user devices 102 not configured with supplementaryUplink in ServingCellConfig in the cell, or for user devices 102 configured with supplementaryUplink in ServingCellConfig in the cell but only one carrier in the cell is configured for PUSCH transmission. Otherwise, the NUL/SUL carrier indicator is one bit, as defined in Table 1.

In some embodiments, where a dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is not configured for the serving cell, and a common PUCCH configuration (also called herein pucch-ConfigCommon) is provided on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier of the serving cell, ways to determine the carrier for an UL transmission after the random access procedure is described herein.

Additionally, in some embodiments, all uplink transmissions of a random access procedure remain on the selected carrier for a PRACH transmission. For at least some of these embodiments, a common PUSCH configuration (also called herein pusch-ConfigCommon) is also provided or configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier of the serving cell if pucch-ConfigCommon is provided or configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier of the serving cell.

In general, a dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) and a common PUSCH configuration (pusch-ConfigCommon) are both used for the configuration of one or more PUSCH transmissions. Similarly, a dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) and a common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) are both used for the configuration of one or more PUCCH configurations. However, the common PUSCH configuration (pusch-ConfigCommon) and the common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) are provided before a radio resource control (RRC) connection is established. That is the common PUSCH and PUCCH configurations are provided during the RRC idle state and/or the RRC inactive state. In addition, the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) and the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) are provided after a RRC connection is established. That is, the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) and the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) are used in the RRC connected state. Also, in any of various implementaitons, the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) and the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) may include more details to facilitate or configure respective PUSCH and PUCCH transmissions compared to the common PUSCH configuration (pusch-ConfigCommon) and the common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) .

Herein, the term “Case C” is used to refer a situation (or case, embodiment, implementation, configuration, event, scenario, etc. ) where a common PUSCH configuration and a common PUCCH configuration are both provided or configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier of the serving cell. Common PUSCH and PUCCH configurations according to Case C are shown in Table 2 below. (Of note, the terms “provided” and “configured” are used interchangeably herein when used in the context of PUSCH and PUCCH configurations and carriers. Correspondingly, Tables 2-5 below use the terms “Provided” and “Not Provided” , but could also or instead use “Configured” and “Not Configured” , consistent with the various embodiments described herein. )

Table 2: Common PUSCH and PUCCH configurations

Also, in any of various embodiments, a dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) may or may not be provided on a NUL carrier and may or may not be provided on a SUL carrier for the serving cell. Similarly, in any of various embodiments, a dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) may or may not be provided on a NUL carrier and may or may not be provided on a SUL carrier for the serving cell. Table 3 below shows different cases of different combinations where the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is not provided on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is or is not provided on the NUL carrier and on the SUL carrier.

Table 3: Dedicated PUSCH and PUCCH configurations

As used herein, and in accordance with Table 3, the term “Case 5” is used to refer to the situation (or case, embodiment, implementation, configuration, event, scenario, etc. ) where the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is not provided on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is provided on the NUL carrier and is provided on the SUL carrier.

In addition, the term “Case 6” is used to refer to the situation (or case, embodiment, implementation, configuration, event, scenario, etc. ) where the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is not provided on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is provided on the NUL carrier and is not provided on the SUL carrier.

In addition, the term “Case 7” is used to refer to the situation (or case, embodiment, implementation, configuration, event, scenario, etc. ) where the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is not provided on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is not provided on the NUL carrier and is provided on the SUL carrier.

In addition, the term “Case 8” is used to refer to the situation (or case, embodiment, implementation, configuration, event, scenario, etc. ) where the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is not provided on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is not provided on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier.

Further, any of various situations (or cases, embodiments, implementations, configurations, events, scenarios, etc. ) may include or involve a combination of Case C and one of Case 5, Case 6, Case 7, or Case 8. In such situations, the carrier for one or more uplink transmissions (e.g., a PUSCH transmission and/or a PUCCH transmission) , including after a random access procedure in at least some situations, may be determined according to one or more of the following schemes.

A first scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case C and Case 5. In this first scheme, for a PUSCH transmission, if a NUL/SUL carrier indicator is present and is one bit, the PUSCH transmission may be dynamically indicated on the NUL carrier or the SUL carrier; and if the NUL/SUL carrier indicator is not present, the PUSCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted. Also, in the first scheme for a PUCCH transmission, the PUCCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted; or based on one of two carriers if both are configured with pucch-ConfigCommon. In any of various implementations, which of one of the two carrier to select may be predefined (e.g., the user device 102 may be configured to select which one of the two carriers according to one or more predetermined or predefined criterion) , or dedicated radio resource control (RRC) signaling may be employed to configure the user device 102 to know which one of the two carriers with pucch-ConfigCommon to select.

A second scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case C and Case 6. In this second scheme, for a PUSCH transmission, if a NUL/SUL carrier indicator is present and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is not configured or provided on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, the user device 102 may ignore the NUL/SUL carrier indicator field. In addition or alternatively, the user device 102 may transmit the PUSCH on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted, or on the carrier on which the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is configured, e.g. the NUL carrier. Also, in the second scheme for a PUCCH transmission, the user device 102 may transmit the PUCCH on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted; or on the same carrier for which the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is configured for the PUSCH transmission (e.g., the NUL carrier) ; or based on one of the two NUL and SUL carriers if both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier are configured with the common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) (e.g., the user device 102 may be configured to select which one of the two carriers according to one or more predetermined or predefined criterion) , or dedicated radio resource control (RRC) signaling may be employed to configure the user device 102 to know which one of the two carriers with pucch-ConfigCommon to select.

A third scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case C and Case 7. In this third scheme, for a PUSCH transmission, if a NUL/SUL carrier indicator is present and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is not configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, then the user device 102 may ignore the NUL/SUL carrier indicator field. In addition or alternatively, the user device 102 may transmit the PUSCH on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted, or on the carrier on which the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is configured (e.g. the SUL carrier) . Also, in the third scheme for a PUCCH transmission, the user device 102 may transmit the PUCCH on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted; or on the same carrier for which the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is configured for the PUSCH transmission (e.g. the SUL carrier) ; or based on one of the two NUL, SUL carriers if both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier are configured with the common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) (e.g., the user device 102 may be configured to select which one of the two carriers according to one or more predetermined or predefined criterion) , or dedicated radio resource control (RRC) signaling may be employed to configure the user device 102 to know which one of the two carriers with pucch-ConfigCommon to select.

A fourth scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case C and Case 8. In this fourth scheme, for a PUSCH transmission, if a NUL/SUL carrier indicator is not present (i.e., the indicator is zero bits) , the user device 102 may transmit the PUSCH on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted; or based on one of the two NUL, SUL carriers if both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier are configured with the common PUSCH configuration (pusch-ConfigCommon) . For example, the user device 102 may be configured to select which one of the two carriers according to one or more predetermined or predefined criterion, or dedicated radio resource control (RRC) signaling may be employed to configure the user device 102 to know which one of the two carriers with pusch-ConfigCommon to select. Also, for a PUCCH transmission, the user device 102 may transmit the PUCCH on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted; or based on one of the two NUL, SUL carriers if both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier are configured with the common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) . For example, the user device 102 may be configured to select which one of the two carriers according to one or more predetermined or predefined criterion, or dedicated radio resource control (RRC) signaling may be employed to configure the user device 102 to know which one of the two carriers with pucch-ConfigCommon to select.

In addition or alternatively, in some embodiments, including in any of the first through fourth schemes, the network device 104 may provide the user device 102 with a reference signal received power (RSRP) threshold (also called herein “rsrp-ThresholdSSB-SUL” ) in event that both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier are configured with the common PUSCH configuration (pusch-ConfigCommon) and the common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) . The RSRP threshold (rsrp-ThresholdSSB-SUL) may be a threshold value, where the user device 102 may select the NUL carrier or the SUL carrier as the carrier based on the threshold value.

Accordingly, through use or implementation of one or more of the first through fourth schemes, carrier determination for an uplink transmission on a NUL carrier or a SUL carrier can be performed using one or more predefined rules associated with one or more other channels or dedicated RRC signaling. In addition or alternatively, through use or implementation of one or more of the first through fourth schemes, a carrier for UL transmission on a NUL carrier or SUL carrier, including after a random access procedure, can be determined without ambiguity.

Additionally, in some embodiments, a dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is not configured for a serving cell, and a common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) is provided on either the NUL carrier or the SUL carrier of the serving cell. Ways to determine the carrier for a UL transmission for such embodiments, including after a random access procedure, are now described.

For at least some embodiments, uplink transmissions of the random access procedure remain on the selected carrier for PRACH transmission. That is, a common PUSCH configuration (pusch-ConfigCommon) is provided on the same carrier on which the common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) is provided for a given serving cell. This is illustrated in Table 4 below.

Table 4: Common PUSCH/PUCCH configuration

As used herein, and in accordance with Table 4, the term “Case A” is used to refer to the situation (or case, embodiment, implementation, configuration, event, scenario, etc. ) where both the common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) and the common PUSCH configuration (pusch-ConfigCommon) are provided on the NUL carrier, and are both not provided on the SUL carrier. Also, as used herein and in accordance with Table 4, the term “Case B” is used to refer to the situation (or case, embodiment, implementation, configuration, event, scenario, etc. ) where both the common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) and the common PUSCH configuration (pusch-ConfigCommon) are provided on the SUL carrier, and are both not provided on the NUL carrier. Accordingly for both Case A and Case B, for a given NUL carrier or SUL carrier, each of the common PUCCH configuration and the common PUSCH configuration are either both provided or are both not provided.

Further, any of various situations (or cases, embodiments, implementations, configurations, events, scenarios, etc. ) may include or involve a combination of Case A and one of Case 5, Case 6, Case 7, or Case 8 (as listed in Table 3 above) , and/or a combination of Case B and one of Case 5, Case 6, Case 7, or Case 8. In such situations, the carrier for an uplink transmission (e.g., a PUSCH transmission and/or a PUCCH transmission) , including after a random access procedure in at least some situations, may be determined according to one or more of the following schemes.

A fifth scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case A and Case 5. In this fifth scheme, for a PUSCH transmission, if a NUL/SUL carrier indicator is present and/or is one bit, the PUSCH transmission may be dynamically indicated on the NUL carrier or the SUL carrier. On the other hand, if the UL/SUL carrier indicator is 0 bits, the PUSCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted, which is the NUL carrier. Also, for a PUCCH transmission, the PUCCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted, which is the NUL carrier.

A sixth scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case B and Case 5. In this sixth scheme, for a PUSCH transmission, if a NUL/SUL carrier indicator is present and/or is one bit, the PUSCH transmission may be dynamically indicated on the NUL carrier or the SUL carrier. On the other hand, if the NUL/SUL carrier indicator is 0 bits, the PUSCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted, which is the SUL carrier. Also, for a PUCCH transmission, the PUCCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted, which is the SUL carrier.

A seventh scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case A and Case 6. In this seventh scheme, for a PUSCH transmission, if a NUL/SUL carrier indicator is present and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is not configured on both NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, the user device 102 may ignore the NUL/SUL carrier indicator field, and the PUSCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted, or on the carrier on which the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is configured, such as the NUL carrier. Also, for a PUCCH transmission, the PUCCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted; or on the same carrier on which the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is configured, such as the NUL carrier.

An eighth scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case B and Case 6. In this eighth scheme, for a PUSCH transmission, if a NUL/SUL carrier indicator is present and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is not configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, the user device 102 may ignore the NUL/SUL carrier indicator field, and the PUSCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted, which is the SUL carrier, or on the carrier on which the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is configured, e.g. the NUL carrier. Also, for a PUCCH transmission, the PUCCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted, which is the SUL carrier.

A ninth scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case A and Case 7. In this ninth scheme, for a PUSCH transmission, if a NUL/SUL carrier indicator is present and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is not configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, the user device 102 may ignore the NUL/SUL carrier indicator field, and the PUSCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted, which is the NUL carrier, or on the carrier on which the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is configured, such as the SUL carrier. Also, for a PUCCH, the PUCCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted, which is the NUL carrier.

A tenth scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case B and Case 7. In this tenth scheme, for a PUSCH transmission, if a NUL/SUL carrier indicator is present and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is not configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, the user device 102 may ignore the NUL/SUL carrier indicator field, and the PUSCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted, or on the carrier on which the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is configured, such as the SUL carrier. Also, for a PUCCH transmission, the PUCCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted; or the same carrier on which the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is configured, such as the SUL carrier.

An eleventh scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case A and Case 8. In this eleventh scheme, for a PUSCH transmission, if the NUL/SUL carrier indicator is not present and/or is zero bits, the PUSCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted, which is the NUL carrier. Also, for a PUCCH transmission, the PUCCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted, which is the NUL carrier.

A twelfth scheme involves or may be used in combination with Case B and Case 8. In this twelfth scheme, for a PUSCH transmission, if the NUL/SUL carrier indicator is not present and/or is zero bits, the PUSCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted, which is the SUL carrier. Also, for a PUCCH transmission, the PUCCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the latest PRACH is transmitted, which is the SUL carrier.

Additionally, in some embodiments of any of the fifth through twelfth schemes, a RSRP threshold (rsrp-ThresholdSSB-SUL) is not to the user device 102 if only one of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier is configured with the common PUSCH configuration (pusch-ConfigCommon) and/or the common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) . In addition or alternatively, the RSRP threshold (rsrp-ThresholdSSB-SUL) may be provided to the user device 102 if both of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier are configured with the common PUSCH configuration (pusch-ConfigCommon) and/or the common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) . In addition or alternatively, the PRACH transmission is on the carrier on which the common PUSCH configuration (pusch-ConfigCommon) and/or the common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) is configured if only one of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier is configured with the common PUSCH configuration (pusch-ConfigCommon) and/or the common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) .

Accordingly, through use or implementation of one or more of the fifth through twelfth schemes, carrier determination for an uplink transmission on a NUL carrier or a SUL carrier can be performed using one or more predefined rules associated with one or more other channels or dedicated RRC signaling. In addition or alternatively, through use or implementation of one or more of the first through fourth schemes, a carrier for UL transmission on a NUL carrier or SUL carrier, including after a random access procedure, can be determined without ambiguity.

Additionally, in some embodiments, a dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is configured on one of a NUL carrier and a SUL carrier for a serving cell, and a common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) is provided on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier of the serving cell. Ways to determine a carrier for UL transmission, including after the random access procedure, are now described.

As previously described with respect to Table 3 (Cases 5-8) , in any of various embodiments, a dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) may or may not be provided on a NUL carrier and may or may not be provided on a SUL carrier for the serving cell. Similarly, in any of various embodiments, a dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) may or may not be provided on a NUL carrier and may or may not be provided on a SUL carrier for the serving cell. Table 5 below shows additional different cases (Case 1 –Case 4) of different combinations where the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is or is not provided on each of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is or is not provided on each of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier.

Table 5: PUSCH/PUCCH configuration

As used herein, and in accordance with Table 5, the term “Case 1” is used to refer to the situation (or case, embodiment, implementation, configuration, event, scenario, etc. ) where the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is provided on the NUL carrier and not provided on the SUL carrier, and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is provided on the NUL carrier and is not provided on the SUL carrier. In other words, the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) are both provided on the NUL carrier and are both not provided on the SUL carrier.

In addition, the term “Case 2” is used to refer to the situation (or case, embodiment, implementation, configuration, event, scenario, etc. ) where the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is not provided on the NUL carrier and provided on the SUL carrier, and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is not provided on the NUL carrier and is provided on the SUL carrier. In other words, the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) are both not provided on the NUL carrier and are both provided on the SUL carrier.

In addition, the term “Case 3” is used to refer to the situation (or case, embodiment, implementation, configuration, event, scenario, etc. ) where the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is provided on the NUL carrier and is not provided on the SUL carrier, and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is provided on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier. In other words, the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) are both provided on the NUL carrier and only the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is provided on the SUL carrier.

In addition, the term “Case 4” is used to refer to the situation (or case, embodiment, implementation, configuration, event, scenario, etc. ) where the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is not provided on the NUL carrier and is provided on the SUL carrier, and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is provided on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier. In other words, the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) are both provided on the SUL carrier and only the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is provided on the NUL carrier.

Further, any of various situations (or cases, embodiments, implementations, configurations, events, scenarios, etc. ) may include or involve a combination of Case C and one of Case 1, Case 2, Case 3, or Case 4. In such situations, the carrier for one or more uplink transmissions (e.g., a PUSCH transmission and/or a PUCCH transmission) , including after a random access procedure in at least some situations, may be determined according to one or more of the following schemes.

A thirteenth scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case C and Case 1. In this thirteenth scheme, if a NUL/SUL carrier indicator is present and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is not configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, the user device 102 may ignore the NUL/SUL carrier indicator field, and a PUSCH and/or a PUCCH may be transmitted on the carrier on which the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is configured, such as the NUL carrier.

A fourteenth scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case C and Case 2. In this fourteenth scheme, if a NUL/SUL carrier indicator is present and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is not configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, the user device 102 may ignore the NUL/SUL carrier indicator field, and a PUSCH and/or a PUCCH may be transmitted on the carrier on which the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is configured, such as the SUL carrier.

A fifteenth scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case C and Case 3. In this fifteenth scheme, for a PUSCH transmission, if a NUL/SUL carrier indicator is present and/or is one bit, the PUSCH may be dynamically indicated on the NUL carrier or the SUL carrier. On the other hand, if the NUL/SUL carrier indicator is zero bits, the PUSCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is configured, such as the NUL carrier. Also, for a PUCCH transmission, the PUCCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is configured, such as the NUL carrier.

A sixteenth scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case C and Case 4. In this sixteenth scheme, for a PUSCH transmission, if a NUL/SUL carrier indicator is present and/or is one bit, the PUSCH may be dynamically indicated on the NUL carrier or the SUL carrier. On the other hand, if the NUL/SUL carrier indicator is zero bits, the PUSCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is configured, such as the SUL carrier. Also, for a PUCCH transmission, the PUCCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is configured, such as the SUL carrier.

In addition or alternatively, in some embodiments, including in any of the thirteenth through sixteenth schemes, a RSRP threshold (rsrp-ThresholdSSB-SUL) may be provided from the network device 104 to the user device 102 if both of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier are configured with the common PUSCH configuration (pusch-ConfigCommon) and/or the common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) .

Accordingly, through use or implementation of one or more of the thirteenth through sixteenth schemes, carrier determination for an uplink transmission on a NUL carrier or a SUL carrier can be performed using one or more predefined rules associated with one or more other channels or dedicated RRC signaling. In addition or alternatively, through use or implementation of one or more of the thirteenth through sixteenth schemes, a carrier for UL transmission on a NUL carrier or SUL carrier, including after a random access procedure, can be determined without ambiguity.

Additionally, in some embodiments, a dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is configured on one of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier for a serving cell, and a common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) is provided on one of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier of the serving cell. Ways to determine the carrier for a UL transmission for such embodiments, including after a random access procedure, are now described.

A seventeenth scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case A and Case 1. In this seventeenth scheme, if a NUL/SUL carrier indicator is present and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is not configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, the user device 102 may ignore the NUL/SUL carrier indicator field, and a PUSCH and/or a PUCCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is configured, such as the NUL carrier.

An eighteenth scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case B and Case 1. In this eighteenth scheme, if a NUL/SUL carrier indicator is present and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is not configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, the user device 102 may ignore the NUL/SUL carrier indicator field, and a PUSCH and/or a PUCCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is configured, such as the NUL carrier.

A nineteenth scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case A and Case 2. In this nineteenth scheme, if a NUL/SUL carrier indicator is present and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is not configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, the user device 102 may ignores the NUL/SUL carrier indicator field, and a PUSCH and/or a PUCCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is configured, such as the SUL carrier.

A twentieth scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case B and Case 2. In this twentieth scheme, if a NUL/SUL carrier indicator is present and the dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is not configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, the user device 102 may ignore the NUL/SUL carrier indicator field, and a PUSCH and/or a PUCCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is configured, such as the SUL carrier.

A twenty-first scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case A and Case 3. In this twenty-first scheme, For a PUSCH transmission, if a NUL/SUL carrier indicator is present and/or is one bit, the PUSCH may be dynamically indicated on the UL carrier or the SUL carrier. On the other hand, if the NUL/SUL carrier indicator is zero bits, the PUSCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is configured, such as the NUL carrier. Also, for a PUCCH transmission, the PUCCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is configured, such as the NUL carrier.

A twenty-second scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case B and Case 3. In this twenty-second scheme, for a PUSCH transmission, if a NUL/SUL carrier indicator is present and/or is one bit, the PUSCH may be dynamically indicated on the NUL carrier and/or the SUL carrier. On the other hand, if the NUL/SUL carrier indicator is zero bits, the PUSCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is configured, such as the NUL carrier. Also, for a PUCCH transmission, the PUCCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is configured, such as the NUL carrier.

A twenty-third scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case A and Case 4. In this twenty-third scheme, for a PUSCH transmission, if a NUL/SUL carrier indicator is present and/or is one bit, the PUSCH may be dynamically indicated on the NUL carrier or the SUL carrier. On the other hand, if the NUL/SUL carrier indicator is zero bits, the PUSCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is configured, such as the SUL carrier. Also, for a PUCCH transmission, the PUCCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is configured, such as the SUL carrier.

A twenty-fourth scheme involves or may be used for the combination of Case B and Case 4. In this twenty-fourth scheme, for a PUSCH transmission, if a NUL/SUL carrier indicator is present and/or is one bit, the PUSCH may be dynamically indicated on the NUL carrier or the SUL carrier. On the other hand, if the NUL/SUL carrier indicator is zero bits, the PUSCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is configured, such as the SUL carrier. Also, for a PUCCH transmission, the PUCCH is transmitted on the carrier on which the dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) is configured, such as the SUL configuration.

In addition or alternatively, in some embodiments, including some embodiments involving the seventeenth through twenty-fourth schemes, a RSRP threshold (rsrp-ThresholdSSB-SUL) is not provided from the network device 104 to the user device 102 if only one of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier is configured with the common PUSCH configuration (pusch-ConfigCommon) and/or the common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) , or the RSRP threshold (rsrp-ThresholdSSB-SUL) may be provided if both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier are configured with the common PUSCH configuration (pusch-ConfigCommon) and/or the common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) . In addition or alternatively, in some embodiments, a PRACH transmission is on the carrier on which the common PUSCH configuration (pusch-ConfigCommon) and/or the common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) is configured if only one of NUL carrier and the SUL carrier is configured with the common PUSCH configuration (pusch-ConfigCommon) and/or the common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) .

In addition or alternatively, in some embodiments, including in some embodiments involving the seventeenth through twenty-fourth schemes, a dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) and/or a dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) may be configured on a given carrier regardless of whether a common PUSCH configuration (pusch-ConfigCommon) and/or a common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) is configured on that same given carrier. In addition or alternatively, a dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) and/or a dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) may be configured on a given carrier only if a common PUSCH configuration (pusch-ConfigCommon) and/or a common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) is configured on that same given carrier. In addition or alternatively, a dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) and/or a dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) may not, or cannot, be configured on a given carrier if a common PUSCH configuration (pusch-ConfigCommon) and/or a common PUCCH configuration (pucch-ConfigCommon) is not configured on the same given carrier.

Accordingly, through use or implementation of one or more of the seventeenth through twenty-fourth schemes, carrier determination for an uplink transmission on a NUL carrier or a SUL carrier can be performed using one or more predefined rules associated with one or more other channels or dedicated RRC signaling. In addition or alternatively, through use or implementation of one or more of the seventeenth through twenty-fourth schemes, a carrier for UL transmission on a NUL carrier or SUL carrier, including after a random access procedure, can be determined without ambiguity.

In addition or alternatively, in some embodiments, an UL transmission after a random access procedure may include one or more UL transmissions after a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) -acknowledgement (ACK) feedback for msg4. In general, the term “msg4” refers to a message used for contention resolution in accordance with or as described or defined in any of various wireless communication standards or protocols, such as 5G NR for example. For example, in some implementations, a network device 104 may send a msg4 to a user device 102. The msg4 may include medium access control (MAC) data and/or include an identity of the user device 102, which confirms that the network device 104 has correctly identified the user device 102, and in turn, that contention has been resolved. In some of these embodiments, a dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) and/or a dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) may be provided by the network device 104 to the user device 102 using (or by way of) msg4. In particular of these embodiments, the carrier for an UL transmission on the NUL carrier or the SUL carrier after a random access procedure may be determined according to or using one or more of the thirteenth through twenty-fourth schemes as previously described.

In addition or alternatively, in some embodiments, a dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) and/or a dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is provided from the network device 104 to the user device 102 using (or by way of) RRCReconfiguration after a user device capability report. The term “RRCReconfiguration” refers to a message used to setup or modify a radio resource control (RRC) configuration in accordance with or as described or defined in any of various wireless communication standards or protocols, such as 5G NR for example. In particular of these embodiments, the carrier for an UL transmission (e.g., a PUCCH for a UECapabilityEnquiry or a PUSCH carrying UECapabilityInformation) on a NUL carrier or a SUL carrier after a random access procedure but before RRC configuration can be determined according to or using one or more of the first through twelfth schemes as previously described. In addition or alternatively. the carrier for an UL transmission on a NUL carrier or a SUL carrier after random access procedure but before RRC configuration may be determined according to or using one or more of the first through twelfth schemes as previously described.

In addition or alternatively, a dedicated PUCCH configuration (pucch-Config) and/or a dedicated PUSCH configuration (pusch-Config) is not provided by msg4 and/or is not provided by RRCReconfiguration. In such embodiments, the carrier for the UL transmission on the NUL carrier or the SUL carrier after a random access procedure or after RRC configuration may be determined using or in accordance with one or more of the thirteenth through twenty-fourth schemes as previously described.

Accordingly, through use or implementation of one or more of the first through twenty-fourth schemes with use of msg4 and/or RRCReconfiguration, and/or before or after RRC configuration, carrier determination for an uplink transmission on a NUL carrier or a SUL carrier can be performed using one or more predefined rules associated with one or more other channels or dedicated RRC signaling. In addition or alternatively, through use or implementation of one or more of the first through twenty-fourth schemes with use of msg4 and/or RRCReconfiguration, and/or before or after RRC configuration, a carrier for UL transmission on a NUL carrier or SUL carrier, including after a random access procedure, can be determined without ambiguity.

In addition or alternatively, in some embodiments, in case there is one time division duplex (TDD) and/or frequency division duplex (FDD) band and two SUL bands for an operator (e.g., a cellular service provider) , different user devices 102 on different cells with the same TDD and/or FDD band and different SUL bands can be supported by each user device 102 without carrier aggregation (CA) configured or supported. FIG. 3 shows a schematic diagram of an example of wireless communication involving three bands, including a Band A(NUL#1) , a Band B (SUL#1) , and a Band C (SUL#2) . As indicated in FIG. 3, Band A includes NUL#1 and a DL carrier, Band B includes SUL#1, and Band C includes SUL#2. Note, only UL carriers are shown in the FIG. 3. However, in implementation, the DL carrier is also included in a TDD/FDD band, while only the UL carrier is included in a SUL band. In the example, NUL#1 is on a same band with a same carrier, but for different user devices 102 located on different cells comprising the same NUL#1.

Implementing different configurations in different cells for different user devices 102 can be achieved by one of following schemes, wherein different user devices 102 are located on different cells comprising at least one same carrier. The carrier could be a DL carrier, a UL carrier, a SUL carrier or a supplemental downlink (SDL) carrier.

In a first scheme, one cell is configured by a cell-specific configuration and the other cell for at least one user device 102 is configured by a UE-specific configuration, wherein one of a DL carrier and an UL carrier of the two cells is the same. For example, cell#1 with NUL#1 and SUL#1 may be configured by a system information block (SIB1) in an idle/inactive state for all user devices 102 (e.g., UE1, UE2) . Suppose for UE2, cell#1 is changed to cell#2 with NUL#1+SUL#2, which are configured by a UE-specific configuration. As a result, different user devices 102 on different cells with the same TDD/FDD band and different SUL bands can be supported by each user device 102 without a CA configuration. In some of embodiments of the first scheme, in case UE2 entered into a non-connected state, cell#1 may be served for UE2 again. In addition or alternatively, in some embodiments of the first scheme, a minimum time offset is defined or configured for the cell changes.

In a second scheme, one cell is configured by a cell-specific configuration and a configuration for the other cell for at least one user device 102 is achieved by UE-specific cell switching, wherein one of a DL carrier and an UL carrier of the two cells is the same. For example, cell#1 with NUL#1 and SUL#1 are configured by SIB1 in an idle/inactive state for all user devices 102. Suppose for UE2, after it enters into a RRC connected state, cell#1 (NUL#1+SUL#1) can be dynamically or semi-statically switched to cell#2 (NUL#1+SUL#2) , such as by UE-specific cell switching signaling. In some embodiments of the second scheme, in case UE2 enters into the non-connected state, cell#1 may be served for UE2 again. In addition or alternatively, in some embodiments of the second scheme, a minimum time offset is defined or configured for the cell changes.

In a third scheme, two synchronization signal blocks (SSB) on different frequencies on a carrier with different SIB1 information (e.g. one comprises SUL#1, the other comprises SUL#2) may identify two different cells with different NR cell global identities (NCGI) (i.e., multiple SSBs in a carrier) . Two cells may comprise the same DL carrier and the same NUL carrier, which are configured with different SUL carriers. Different user devices 102 may access different cells by implementation or predefined rules. For example, user devices 102 with an even number for their user device IDs may access one cell, and user devices 102 with an odd number for their user device IDs may access the other cell.

Accordingly, based on the above described schemes, in case there is one TDD/FDD band and two SUL bands for an operator, different user devices 102 on different cells with the same TDD/FDD band and different SUL bands can be supported by each user device 102 without a CA configuration. Also, in any of various implementations, the above-described schemes may be also applied for situations involving more than two bands (three or more bands) with two TDD/FDD bands and one SUL band for an operator, such that different user devices 102 on different cells with the same SUL band and different TDD/FDD bands can be supported by each user device 102 without a CA configuration.

The description and accompanying drawings above provide specific example embodiments and implementations. The described subject matter may, however, be embodied in a variety of different forms and, therefore, covered or claimed subject matter is intended to be construed as not being limited to any example embodiments set forth herein. A reasonably broad scope for claimed or covered subject matter is intended. Among other things, for example, subject matter may be embodied as methods, devices, components, systems, or non-transitory computer-readable media for storing computer codes. Accordingly, embodiments may, for example, take the form of hardware, software, firmware, storage media or any combination thereof. For example, the method embodiments described above may be implemented by components, devices, or systems including memory and processors by executing computer codes stored in the memory.

Throughout the specification and claims, terms may have nuanced meanings suggested or implied in context beyond an explicitly stated meaning. Likewise, the phrase “in one embodiment/implementation” as used herein does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment and the phrase “in another embodiment/implementation” as used herein does not necessarily refer to a different embodiment. It is intended, for example, that claimed subject matter includes combinations of example embodiments in whole or in part.

In general, terminology may be understood at least in part from usage in context. For example, terms, such as “and” , “or” , or “and/or, ” as used herein may include a variety of meanings that may depend at least in part on the context in which such terms are used. Typically, “or” if used to associate a list, such as A, B or C, is intended to mean A, B, and C, here used in the inclusive sense, as well as A, B or C, here used in the exclusive sense. In addition, the term “one or more” as used herein, depending at least in part upon context, may be used to describe any feature, structure, or characteristic in a singular sense or may be used to describe combinations of features, structures or characteristics in a plural sense. Similarly, terms, such as “a, ” “an, ” or “the, ” may be understood to convey a singular usage or to convey a plural usage, depending at least in part upon context. In addition, the term “based on” may be understood as not necessarily intended to convey an exclusive set of factors and may, instead, allow for existence of additional factors not necessarily expressly described, again, depending at least in part on context.

Reference throughout this specification to features, advantages, or similar language does not imply that all of the features and advantages that may be realized with the present solution should be or are included in any single implementation thereof. Rather, language referring to the features and advantages is understood to mean that a specific feature, advantage, or characteristic described in connection with an embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present solution. Thus, discussions of the features and advantages, and similar language, throughout the specification may, but do not necessarily, refer to the same embodiment.

Furthermore, the described features, advantages and characteristics of the present solution may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. One of ordinary skill in the relevant art will recognize, in light of the description herein, that the present solution can be practiced without one or more of the specific features or advantages of a particular embodiment. In other instances, additional features and advantages may be recognized in certain embodiments that may not be present in all embodiments of the present solution.

The subject matter of the disclosure may also relate to or include, among others, the following aspects:

A first aspect includes a method for wireless communication that includes: determining, by a user device, a carrier for at least one uplink transmission on a normal uplink (NUL) carrier or a supplemental uplink (SUL) carrier in a serving cell when a dedicated physical uplink channel configuration for the at least one uplink transmission is not configured; and after determining the carrier, performing, by the user device, the at least one uplink transmission on the carrier.

A second aspect includes the first aspect, and further includes wherein the dedicated physical uplink channel configuration includes a dedicated physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) configuration that is not configured for the serving cell, and the carrier is determined by: when the at least one uplink transmission comprises a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) transmission or a PUCCH transmission, determining the carrier to be a carrier which both a common PUCCH configuration and a common PUSCH configuration are only configured on, and wherein a dedicated PUSCH configuration on another carrier is ignored.

A third aspect includes any of the first or second aspects, and further includes wherein the dedicated physical uplink channel configuration comprises a dedicated physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) configuration that is not configured for the serving cell, and the carrier is determined by: when the at least one uplink transmission comprises a PUSCH transmission and the dedicated PUSCH configuration is not configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, determining the carrier to be a carrier that is configured with the dedicated PUSCH configuration.

A fourth aspect includes the third aspect, and further includes: determining, by the user device, a carrier for a PUCCH transmission to be: a carrier on which a latest physical random access channel (PRACH) was transmitted and different from the carrier for the PUSCH transmission; a carrier configured with the dedicated PUSCH configuration when the dedicated PUSCH configuration is not configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier; or a carrier determined according to a predefined criterion or a first dedicated radio resource control (RRC) signaling when both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier are configured with the common PUCCH configuration.

A fifth aspect includes the fourth aspect, and further includes wherein the carrier for the PUCCH transmission is determined to be the carrier on which the latest PRACH was transmitted and different from the carrier for the PUSCH transmission when both the common PUSCH configuration and the common PUCCH configuration are only configured on one of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier and the dedicated PUSCH configuration is only configured on the other carrier of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier.

A sixth aspect includes the fourth aspect, and further includes wherein the carrier for the PUCCH transmission is determined to be the carrier configured with the dedicated PUSCH configuration when the dedicated PUSCH configuration is not configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, and further wherein: both the common PUSCH configuration and the common PUCCH configuration are configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier and the dedicated PUSCH configuration is only configured on one of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier.

A seventh aspect includes the fourth aspect, and further includes wherein the carrier for the PUCCH transmission is determined according to the predefined criterion or the first dedicated RRC signaling, and further wherein the carrier for the PUCCH transmission is the same as the carrier for the PUSCH transmission, or the carrier for the PUSCH transmission and the carrier for the PUCCH transmission are determined independently from each other via RRC signaling.

An eighth aspect includes any of the first through seventh aspects, and further includes wherein the dedicated physical uplink channel configuration comprises a dedicated physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) configuration that is not configured for the serving cell, and the carrier is determined by: when the at least one uplink transmission comprises a PUSCH transmission and both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier are configured with the common PUSCH configuration, determining the carrier according to a predefined criterion or a second dedicated radio resource control (RRC) signaling.

A ninth aspect includes the eighth aspect, and further includes when the carrier for the PUSCH transmission is determined according to the predefined criterion or the second dedicated RRC signaling, the carrier for the PUSCH transmission is the same as the carrier for the PUCCH transmission, or the carrier for the PUSCH transmission and the carrier for the PUCCH transmission are determined independently from each other via RRC signaling.

A tenth aspect includes any of the seventh through ninth aspects, and further includes when the carrier for the PUSCH transmission is the same as the carrier for the PUCCH transmission, the first dedicated RRC signaling is the same as the second dedicated RRC signaling and the carrier is indicated by the same one dedicated RRC signaling.

An eleventh aspect includes any of the first through tenth aspects, and further includes wherein the carrier is determined: after a random access procedure; or after the random access procedure and before a radio resource control (RRC) configuration.

A twelfth aspect includes any of the first through eleventh aspects, and further includes wherein a threshold for carrier selection is not provided when both a common physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) configuration and a common physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) configuration are provided to only one of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier.

A thirteenth aspect includes any of the first through twelfth aspects, and further includes wherein a physical random access channel (PRACH) transmission is on a carrier provided with both a common physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) configuration and a common physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) configuration, when only one of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier is provided with both the common PUSCH configuration and the common PUCCH configuration.

A fourteenth aspect includes any of the first through thirteenth aspects, and further includes wherein the dedicated physical uplink channel configuration on a second carrier for a physical uplink channel cannot be configured when a common physical uplink channel configuration is not configured on the second carrier for the physical uplink channel.

A fifteenth aspect includes a wireless communications apparatus comprising a processor and a memory, wherein the processor is configured to read code from the memory to implement any of the first through fourteenth aspects.

A sixteenth aspect includes a computer program product comprising a computer-readable program medium comprising code stored thereupon, the code, when executed by a processor, causing the processor to implement any of the first through fourteenth aspects.

In addition to the features mentioned in each of the independent aspects enumerated above, some examples may show, alone or in combination, the optional features mentioned in the dependent aspects and/or as disclosed in the description above and shown in the figures.

Claims

A method for wireless communication, the method comprising:

determining, by a user device, a carrier for at least one uplink transmission on a normal uplink (NUL) carrier or a supplemental uplink (SUL) carrier in a serving cell when a dedicated physical uplink channel configuration for the at least one uplink transmission is not configured; and

after determining the carrier, performing, by the user device, the at least one uplink transmission on the carrier.
The method of claim 1, wherein the dedicated physical uplink channel configuration comprises a dedicated physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) configuration that is not configured for the serving cell, and the carrier is determined by:

when the at least one uplink transmission comprises a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) transmission or a PUCCH transmission, determining the carrier to be a carrier which both a common PUCCH configuration and a common PUSCH configuration are only configured on, and wherein a dedicated PUSCH configuration on another carrier is ignored.
The method of claim 1, wherein the dedicated physical uplink channel configuration comprises a dedicated physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) configuration that is not configured for the serving cell, and the carrier is determined by:

when the at least one uplink transmission comprises a PUSCH transmission and the dedicated PUSCH configuration is not configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, determining the carrier to be a carrier that is configured with the dedicated PUSCH configuration.
The method of claim 3, further comprising:

determining, by the user device, a carrier for a PUCCH transmission to be:

a carrier on which a latest physical random access channel (PRACH) was transmitted and different from the carrier for the PUSCH transmission;

a carrier configured with the dedicated PUSCH configuration when the dedicated PUSCH configuration is not configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier; or

a carrier determined according to a predefined criterion or a first dedicated radio resource control (RRC) signaling when both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier are configured with the common PUCCH configuration.
The method of claim 4, wherein the carrier for the PUCCH transmission is determined to be the carrier on which the latest PRACH was transmitted and different from the carrier for the PUSCH transmission when both the common PUSCH configuration and the common PUCCH configuration are only configured on one of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier and the dedicated PUSCH configuration is only configured on the other carrier of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier.
The method of claim 4, wherein the carrier for the PUCCH transmission is determined to be the carrier configured with the dedicated PUSCH configuration when the dedicated PUSCH configuration is not configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier, and further wherein: both the common PUSCH configuration and the common PUCCH configuration are configured on both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier and the dedicated PUSCH configuration is only configured on one of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier.
The method of claim 4, wherein the carrier for the PUCCH transmission is determined according to the predefined criterion or the first dedicated RRC signaling, and further wherein the carrier for the PUCCH transmission is the same as the carrier for the PUSCH transmission, or the carrier for the PUSCH transmission and the carrier for the PUCCH transmission are determined independently from each other via RRC signaling.
The method of claim 1, wherein the dedicated physical uplink channel configuration comprises a dedicated physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) configuration that is not configured for the serving cell, and the carrier is determined by:

when the at least one uplink transmission comprises a PUSCH transmission and both the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier are configured with the common PUSCH configuration, determining the carrier according to a predefined criterion or a second dedicated radio resource control (RRC) signaling.
The method of claim 8, when the carrier for the PUSCH transmission is determined according to the predefined criterion or the second dedicated RRC signaling, the carrier for the PUSCH transmission is the same as the carrier for the PUCCH transmission, or the carrier for the PUSCH transmission and the carrier for the PUCCH transmission are determined independently from each other via RRC signaling.
The method of claim 7 or 9, when the carrier for the PUSCH transmission is the same as the carrier for the PUCCH transmission, the first dedicated RRC signaling is the same as the second dedicated RRC signaling and the carrier is indicated by the same one dedicated RRC signaling.
The method of claim 1, wherein the carrier is determined:

after a random access procedure; or

after the random access procedure and before a radio resource control (RRC) configuration.
The method of claim 1, wherein a threshold for carrier selection is not provided when both a common physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) configuration and a common physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) configuration are provided to only one of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier.
The method of claim 1, wherein a physical random access channel (PRACH) transmission is on a carrier provided with both a common physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) configuration and a common physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) configuration, when only one of the NUL carrier and the SUL carrier is provided with both the common PUSCH configuration and the common PUCCH configuration.
The method of claim 1, wherein the dedicated physical uplink channel configuration on a second carrier for a physical uplink channel cannot be configured when a common physical uplink channel configuration is not configured on the second carrier for the physical uplink channel.
A wireless communications apparatus comprising a processor and a memory, wherein the processor is configured to read code from the memory to implement a method of any of claims 1 to 14.
A computer program product comprising a computer-readable program medium comprising code stored thereupon, the code, when executed by a processor, causing the processor to implement a method of any of claims 1 to 14.