Downlink control for multi-TRP transmission

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to downlink control for multiple TRP transmissions. Apparatus, systems and methods for providing downlink control for multiple TRP transmissions are disclosed. A cellular base station may provide downlink control information transmission to a wireless device, which schedules downlink transmissions from multiple transmission reception points to the wireless device. The downlink control information may include information that the wireless device may use to determine any or all of the following: physical resource block bundling size, frequency domain resource allocation, modulation and coding scheme, redundancy version, phase tracking reference signal configuration, and any of various other possible types of configuration information for the downlink transmission. The wireless device may receive the downlink transmission from the multiple transmission reception points based on the downlink control information.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to wireless devices, and more specifically to apparatus, systems and methods for providing downlink control for multi-TRP transmissions. Background Art

[0002] The use of wireless communication systems is growing rapidly. In recent years, wireless devices such as smart phones and tablet computers have become increasingly sophisticated. In addition to supporting phone calls, many mobile devices now also provide access to the Internet, email, text messaging, and navigation using the Global Positioning System (GPS), and are capable of operating sophisticated applications that utilize these capabilities. In addition, there are a number of different wireless communication technologies and standards. Some examples of wireless communication standards include GSM, UMTS (e.g., associated with WCDMA or TD-SCDMA air interfaces), LTE, Advanced LTE (LTE-A), HSPA, 3GPP2 CDMA2000 (e.g., 1xRTT, 1xEV-DO, HRPD, eHRPD), IEEE 802.11 (WLAN or Wi-Fi), BLUETOOTH (BLUETOOTH), and UMTS (e.g., associated with WCDMA or TD-SCDMA air interfaces). TM wait.

[0003] The introduction of an ever-increasing number of features and functions in wireless communication devices has also created a continuing need for improved wireless communications and improved wireless communication devices. In order to increase coverage and better serve the increased demand and scope of intended uses of wireless communications, in addition to the above-mentioned communication standards, there are also wireless communication technologies being developed, including fifth generation (5G) new radio (NR) communications. Therefore, there is a need for improvements in the field of supporting such development and design. Summary of the invention

[0004] Embodiments relate to apparatus, systems, and methods for providing downlink control for multi-TRP transmissions.

[0005] According to the techniques described herein, a cellular base station may provide a downlink control information transmission to a wireless device that schedules downlink transmissions from a plurality of transmission reception points to the wireless device. The downlink control information may include information that the wireless device may use to determine any or all of the following: physical resource block bundling size, frequency domain resource allocation, modulation and coding scheme, redundancy version, phase tracking reference signal configuration, and any of a variety of other possible types of configuration information for downlink transmissions.

[0006] Using the downlink control information, the wireless device can determine resource allocations and various other configuration details for downlink transmissions, and can therefore receive and decode downlink transmissions from multiple transmission reception points based on the downlink control information.

[0007] Thus, at least according to some embodiments, the techniques described herein may be used to support a single downlink control information format for scheduling multiple TRP downlink transmissions.

[0008] The techniques described herein may be implemented in and / or used with a number of different types of devices, including, but not limited to, any of cellular telephones, tablet computers, wearable computing devices, portable media players, and a variety of other computing devices.

[0009] This disclosure is intended to provide a brief overview of some of the topics described in this document. Therefore, it should be understood that the above features are only examples and should not be interpreted as narrowing the scope or essence of the topics described herein in any way. Other features, aspects and advantages of the topics described herein will become apparent through the following detailed description, drawings and claims. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] A better understanding of the present subject matter may be obtained when the following detailed description of various embodiments is considered in conjunction with the following drawings, in which:

[0011] Figure 1 illustrating an exemplary wireless communication system according to some embodiments;

[0012] Figure 2 illustrates a base station (BS) in communication with a user equipment (UE) device according to some embodiments;

[0013] Figure 3 An example block diagram illustrating a UE according to some embodiments;

[0014] Figure 4 illustrates an exemplary block diagram of a BS according to some embodiments;

[0015] Figure 5 illustrates an exemplary block diagram of a cellular communication circuit according to some embodiments;

[0016] Figure 6 is a flow chart illustrating an exemplary method for providing downlink control information for scheduling downlink transmissions from a plurality of transmission reception points (TRPs) according to some embodiments;

[0017] Figure 7 illustrates an exemplary scenario in which two TRPs schedule two data streams to a wireless device according to some embodiments;

[0018] Figures 8 to 9illustrates aspects of exemplary possible frequency division multiplexing (FDM) schemes for multi-TRP operation according to some embodiments;

[0019] Figure 10 to Figure 11 is a flow chart illustrating an exemplary method for determining a PRB bundling size;

[0020] Figure 12 to Figure 13 illustrates aspects of exemplary possible frequency resource allocations for FDM multi-TRP communications; and

[0021] Fig.14 is an example of a table that may be used to map scheduling bandwidth to PT-RS frequency density for downlink communications according to some embodiments.

[0022] Although the features described herein are susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof are shown by way of example in the drawings and described in detail herein. However, it should be understood that the drawings and detailed description thereof are not intended to limit this document to the specific forms disclosed, but on the contrary, their purpose is to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives that fall within the spirit and scope of the subject matter as defined by the appended claims. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0023] the term

[0024] The following is a glossary of terms used in this disclosure:

[0025] Memory medium - any of various types of non-transitory memory devices or storage devices. The term "memory medium" is intended to include installation media, such as CD-ROM, floppy disk or tape devices; computer system memory or random access memory such as DRAM, DDR RAM, SRAM, EDO RAM, Rambus RAM, etc.; non-volatile memory such as flash memory, magnetic media, for example, hard disk drive or optical storage device; registers or other similar types of memory elements, etc. The memory medium may also include other types of non-transitory memory or combinations thereof. In addition, the memory medium may be located in the first computer system executing the program, or may be located in a different second computer system connected to the first computer system via a network such as the Internet. In the latter case, the second computer system may provide program instructions to the first computer for execution. The term "memory medium" may include two or more memory media that may reside in different locations in different computer systems connected, for example, via a network. The memory medium may store program instructions (e.g., expressed as a computer program) that may be executed by one or more processors.

[0026] Carrier Medium—storage media as described above, and physical transmission media such as a bus, network, and / or other physical transmission media that transport signals such as electrical, electromagnetic or digital signals.

[0027] Programmable hardware elements - include various hardware devices that include multiple programmable function blocks connected via programmable interconnects. Examples include FPGAs (field programmable gate arrays), PLDs (programmable logic devices), FPOAs (field programmable object arrays), and CPLDs (complex PLDs). Programmable function blocks can vary from fine-grained (combinational logic units or lookup tables) to coarse-grained (arithmetic logic units or processor cores). Programmable hardware elements may also be referred to as "configurable logic units."

[0028] Computer system - any of various types of computing or processing systems, including a personal computer system (PC), a mainframe computer system, a workstation, a network appliance, an Internet appliance, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a television system, a grid computing system, or other devices or combinations of devices. In general, the term "computer system" can be broadly defined to encompass any device (or combination of devices) having at least one processor that executes instructions from a memory medium.

[0029] User Equipment (UE) (or "UE device") - any of various types of computer systems or devices that are mobile or portable and that perform wireless communications. Examples of UE devices include mobile phones or smart phones (e.g., iPhone TM , based on Android TM phones), portable gaming devices (e.g., Nintendo DS TM , PlayStation Portable TM 、Gameboy Advance TM , iPhone TM ), laptops, wearable devices (e.g., smart watches, smart glasses), PDAs, portable Internet devices, music players, data storage devices or other handheld devices, etc. In general, the term "UE" or "UE device" can be broadly defined to cover any electronic device, computing device and / or telecommunication device (or combination of devices) that can be easily transmitted by a user and capable of wireless communication.

[0030] Wireless Device - Any of various types of computer systems or devices that perform wireless communications. A wireless device may be portable (or mobile), or may be fixed or fixed at a location. A UE is an example of a wireless device.

[0031] Communication device - any of various types of computer systems or devices that perform communication, where the communication may be wired or wireless. A communication device may be portable (or mobile), or may be fixed or fixed at a location. A wireless device is one example of a communication device. A UE is another example of a communication device.

[0032] Base Station - The term "base station" has the full breadth of its ordinary meaning and includes at least a wireless communication station that is installed at a fixed location and used to communicate as part of a wireless telephone system or radio system.

[0033] Processing element (or processor) - refers to various elements or combinations of elements that are capable of performing functions in a device such as a user device or a cellular network device. A processing element may include, for example, a processor and associated memory, portions or circuits of individual processor cores, entire processor cores, separate processors, processor arrays, circuits such as ASICs (application specific integrated circuits), programmable hardware elements such as field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), and any of the above various combinations.

[0034] Channel - a medium used to transmit information from a sender (transmitter) to a receiver. It should be noted that since the characteristics of the term "channel" may vary according to different wireless protocols, the term "channel" used herein may be considered to be used in a manner that conforms to the standards of the type of device to which the term is used. In some standards, the channel width may be variable (e.g., depending on device capabilities, frequency band conditions, etc.). For example, LTE may support scalable channel bandwidths of 1.4MHz to 20MHz. In contrast, a WLAN channel may be 22MHz wide, while a Bluetooth channel may be 1MHz wide. Other protocols and standards may include different definitions of channels. In addition, some standards may define and use multiple types of channels, such as different channels for uplink or downlink and / or different channels for different purposes such as data, control information, etc.

[0035] Frequency band - The term "frequency band" has the full breadth of its ordinary meaning and includes at least a segment of the spectrum (eg, radio frequency spectrum) in which channels are used or set aside for the same purpose.

[0036] Automatic-refers to an action or operation performed by a computer system (e.g., software executed by a computer system) or a device (e.g., a circuit, a programmable hardware element, an ASIC, etc.) without the need for user input to directly specify or perform the action or operation. Thus, the term "automatic" is contrasted with a user manually performing or specifying an action, where the user provides input to directly perform the action. An automatic process may be initiated by input provided by a user, but subsequent actions performed "automatically" are not specified by the user, i.e., are not performed "manually," where the user specifies each action to be performed. For example, a user filling out an electronic form by selecting each field and providing input specifying information (e.g., by typing in information, selecting check boxes, radio component selections, etc.) is manually filling out the form, even though the computer system must update the form in response to user actions. The form may be automatically filled out by a computer system, where the computer system (e.g., software executed on the computer system) analyzes the fields of the form and fills out the form without any user input specifying the answers to the fields. As indicated above, a user may invoke automatic filling out of a form, but not participate in the actual filling out of the form (e.g., the user does not manually specify the answers to the fields but rather they are automatically completed). This specification provides various examples of operations that are automatically performed in response to actions taken by a user.

[0037] Approximately - refers to a value that is close to a correct or exact value. For example, approximately can refer to a value that is within 1% to 10% of an exact (or desired) value. However, it should be noted that the actual threshold value (or tolerance) may depend on the application. For example, in some embodiments, "approximately" can mean within 0.1% of some specified value or desired value, while in various other embodiments, the threshold value may be, for example, 2%, 3%, 5%, etc., depending on the expectations or requirements of a particular application.

[0038] Concurrency - refers to parallel execution or implementation, where tasks, processes, or programs are executed in an at least partially overlapping manner. For example, concurrency can be achieved using "strong" or strict parallelism, where tasks are executed (at least partially) in parallel on respective computing elements, or using "weak parallelism", where tasks are executed in an interleaved manner (e.g., by time multiplexing of execution threads).

[0039] Configured to - Various components may be described as being "configured to" perform one or more tasks. In such environments, "configured to" is a broad statement that generally means "having a structure" that performs one or more tasks during operation. Thus, a component can be configured to perform a task even when the component is not currently performing the task (e.g., a set of electrical conductors can be configured to electrically connect a module to another module even when the two modules are not connected). In some environments, "configured to" can be a broad statement that generally means "having a circuit" that performs one or more tasks during operation. Thus, the component can be configured to perform a task even when the component is not currently turned on. Typically, the circuitry that forms the structure corresponding to "configured to" may include hardware circuitry.

[0040] For ease of description, various components may be described as performing one or more tasks. Such descriptions should be interpreted as including the phrase "configured to". The description of a component being configured to perform one or more tasks is expressly intended not to invoke 35 U.S.C. §112(f) interpretation of that component.

[0041] Figure 1 and Figure 2 -Communication system

[0042] Figure 1 A simplified exemplary wireless communication system according to some embodiments is shown. Note that Figure 1 The system is only one example of possible systems, and features of the present disclosure may be implemented in any of a variety of systems as desired.

[0043] As shown, the exemplary wireless communication system includes a base station 102A, which communicates with one or more user equipment 106A, user equipment 106B to user equipment 106N, etc. through a transmission medium. Each user equipment in the user equipment may be referred to as a "user device" (UE) in this document. Therefore, user equipment 106 is referred to as a UE or UE device.

[0044] Base station (BS) 102A may be a base transceiver station (BTS) or a cell site (cellular base station) and may include hardware to enable wireless communications with UEs 106A through 106N.

[0045] The communication area (or coverage area) of a base station may be referred to as a "cell". The base station 102A and the UE 106 may be configured to communicate over a transmission medium using any of a variety of radio access technologies (RATs), which are also referred to as wireless communication technologies or telecommunication standards, such as GSM, UMTS (associated with, for example, WCDMA or TD-SCDMA air interfaces), LTE, Advanced LTE (LTE-A), 5G New Radio (5G NR), HSPA, 3GPP2CDMA2000 (e.g., 1xRTT, 1xEV-DO, HRPD, eHRPD), and the like. Note that if the base station 102A is implemented in the context of LTE, it may alternatively be referred to as an "eNodeB" or "eNB". Note that if the base station 102A is implemented in the context of 5G NR, it may alternatively be referred to as a "gNodeB" or "gNB".

[0046] As shown, base station 102A may also be configured to communicate with network 100 (e.g., a cellular service provider's core network, a telecommunications network such as a public switched telephone network (PSTN), and / or the Internet, among other possibilities). Thus, base station 102A may facilitate communications between user devices and / or between user devices and network 100. In particular, cellular base station 102A may provide UE 106 with various communication capabilities, such as voice, SMS, and / or data services.

[0047] Base station 102A and other similar base stations (such as base stations 102B...102N) operating according to the same or different cellular communication standards can therefore be provided as a network of cells that can provide continuous or nearly continuous overlapping service to UE 106A-N and similar devices over a geographic area via one or more cellular communication standards.

[0048] Thus, although base station 102A may function as Figure 1 106A-N, but each UE 106 may also be able to receive signals from (and possibly be within communication range of) one or more other cells (which may be provided by base stations 102B-N and / or any other base stations), which may be referred to as "neighboring cells." Such cells may also be able to facilitate communications between user devices and / or between user devices and network 100. Such cells may include "macro" cells, "micro" cells, "pico" cells, and / or cells of any various other granularity of service area size. For example, in Figure 1 The base stations 102A-B shown in FIG. 1 may be macro cells, while the base station 102N may be a micro cell. Other configurations are also possible.

[0049] In some embodiments, base station 102A may be a next generation base station, such as a 5G New Radio (5G NR) base station or "gNB". In some embodiments, the gNB may be connected to a legacy evolved packet core (EPC) network and / or to an NR core (NRC) network. In addition, a gNB cell may include one or more transition and reception points (TRPs). In addition, a UE capable of operating in accordance with 5G NR may be connected to one or more TRPs within one or more gNBs. For example, base station 102A and one or more other base stations 102 may support joint transmissions such that UE 106 may be able to receive transmissions from multiple base stations (and / or multiple TRPs provided by the same base station).

[0050] It should be noted that the UE 106 may be capable of communicating using multiple wireless communication standards. For example, in addition to at least one cellular communication protocol (e.g., GSM, UMTS (associated with, for example, WCDMA or TD-SCDMA air interface), LTE, LTE-A, 5G NR, HSPA, 3GPP2CDMA2000 (e.g., 1xRTT, 1xEV-DO, HRPD, eHRPD), etc.), the UE 106 may be configured to communicate using wireless networking (e.g., Wi-Fi) and / or peer-to-peer wireless communication protocols (e.g., Bluetooth, Wi-Fi peer-to-peer, etc.). If desired, the UE 106 may also or alternatively be configured to communicate using one or more global navigation satellite systems (GNSS, such as GPS or GLONASS), one or more mobile television broadcast standards (e.g., ATSC-M / H), and / or any other wireless communication protocols. Other combinations of wireless communication standards (including more than two wireless communication standards) are also possible.

[0051] Figure 2 A user device 106 (e.g., one of devices 106A-106N) is shown in communication with base station 102 according to some embodiments. UE 106 may be a device with cellular communication capabilities, such as a mobile phone, handheld device, computer, laptop, tablet, smart watch or other wearable device, or indeed any type of wireless device.

[0052] UE 106 may include a processor (processing element) configured to execute process instructions stored in a memory. UE 106 may perform any of the method implementations described herein by executing such stored instructions. Alternatively or in addition, UE 106 may include a programmable hardware element, such as an FPGA (field programmable gate array), an integrated circuit, and / or any of various other possible hardware components configured to perform (e.g., individually or in combination) any of the method implementations described herein or any part of any of the method implementations described herein.

[0053] UE 106 may include one or more antennas for communicating using one or more wireless communication protocols or technologies. In some embodiments, UE 106 may be configured to communicate using, for example, NR or LTE using at least some shared radio components. As an additional possibility, the UE 106 may be configured to communicate using CDMA2000 (1xRTT / 1xEV-DO / HRPD / eHRPD) or LTE using a single shared radio component and / or GSM or LTE using a single shared radio component. The shared radio component may be coupled to a single antenna, or may be coupled to multiple antennas (e.g., for MIMO) for performing wireless communications. Typically, the radio component may include any combination of a baseband processor, an analog RF signal processing circuit (e.g., including filters, mixers, oscillators, amplifiers, etc.) or a digital processing circuit (e.g., for digital modulation and other digital processing). Similarly, the radio component may use the aforementioned hardware to implement one or more receive chains and transmit chains. For example, UE 106 may share one or more portions of a receive chain and / or transmit chain between multiple wireless communication technologies such as those discussed above.

[0054] In some embodiments, the UE 106 may include a separate transmit chain and / or receive chain (e.g., including separate antennas and other radio components) for each wireless communication protocol with which it is configured to communicate. As another possibility, the UE 106 may include one or more radio components shared between multiple wireless communication protocols, and one or more radio components used uniquely by a single wireless communication protocol. For example, the UE 106 may include a shared radio component for communicating using either LTE or 5GNR (or, in various possibilities, either LTE or 1xRTT, or either LTE or GSM), and an independent radio component for communicating using each of Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Other configurations are also possible.

[0055] Figure 3 -UE Block Diagram

[0056] Figure 3 An example simplified block diagram of a communication device 106 according to some embodiments is shown. Note that Figure 3The block diagram of the communication device is only an example of a possible communication device. According to the embodiment, in addition to other devices, the communication device 106 can be a user device (UE) device, a mobile device or a mobile station, a wireless device or a wireless station, a desktop computer or a computing device, a mobile computing device (e.g., a laptop computer, a notebook or a portable computing device), a tablet computer and / or a combination of devices. As shown in the figure, the communication device 106 may include a group of components 300 configured to perform core functions. For example, the group of components may be implemented as a system on a chip (SOC), which may include parts for various purposes. Alternatively, the group of components 300 may be implemented as a separate component or a group of components for various purposes. This group of components 300 may be (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) coupled to various other circuits of the communication device 106.

[0057] For example, the communication device 106 may include various types of memory (e.g., including NAND flash memory 310), input / output interfaces such as connector I / F 320 (e.g., for connecting to a computer system; a docking station; a charging station; input devices such as microphones, cameras, keyboards; output devices such as speakers; etc.), a display 360 that may be integrated with the communication device 106 or external to it, and wireless communication circuits 330 (e.g., for LTE, LTE-A, NR, UMTS, GSM, CDMA2000, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, NFC, GPS, etc.). In some embodiments, the communication device 106 may include wired communication circuits (not shown), such as, for example, a network interface card for Ethernet.

[0058] Wireless communication circuitry 330 may be (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) coupled to one or more antennas, such as one or more antennas 335 as shown. Wireless communication circuitry 330 may include cellular communication circuitry and / or short- to medium-range wireless communication circuitry, and may include multiple receive chains and / or multiple transmit chains for receiving and / or transmitting multiple spatial streams, such as in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) configuration.

[0059] In some embodiments, as further described below, the cellular communication circuit 330 may include one or more receive chains (including and / or coupled to (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) dedicated processors and / or radio components) for multiple RATs (e.g., a first receive chain for LTE and a second receive chain for 5G NR). In addition, in some embodiments, the cellular communication circuit 330 may include a single transmit chain that can switch between radio components dedicated to specific RATs. For example, a first radio component may be dedicated to a first RAT (e.g., LTE) and may communicate with a dedicated receive chain and a transmit chain shared with a second radio component. A second radio component may be dedicated to a second RAT (e.g., 5G NR) and may communicate with a dedicated receive chain and a shared transmit chain.

[0060] The communication device 106 may also include and / or be configured for use with one or more user interface elements. The user interface elements may include various elements such as a display 360 (which may be a touch screen display), a keyboard (which may be a separate keyboard or may be implemented as part of a touch screen display), a mouse, a microphone and / or speakers, one or more cameras, one or more buttons, and / or any of a variety of other elements capable of providing information to a user and / or receiving or interpreting user input.

[0061] The communication device 106 may also include one or more smart cards 345 having SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) functionality, such as one or more UICC cards (one or more Universal Integrated Circuit Cards) 345 .

[0062] As shown, the SOC 300 may include a processor 302 that may execute program instructions for the communication device 106 and a display circuit 304 that may perform graphics processing and provide display signals to a display 360. The one or more processors 302 may also be coupled to a memory management unit (MMU) 340 (which may be configured to receive addresses from the one or more processors 302 and convert those addresses to locations in a memory (e.g., memory 306, read-only memory (ROM) 350, NAND flash memory 310)), and / or to other circuits or devices (such as display circuit 304, wireless communication circuit 330, connector I / F 320, and / or display 360). The MMU 340 may be configured to perform memory protection and page table translation or setup. In some embodiments, the MMU 340 may be included as part of the one or more processors 302.

[0063] As described above, the communication device 106 may be configured to communicate using wireless and / or wired communication circuits. As described herein, the communication device 106 may include hardware and software components for implementing any of the various features and techniques described herein. For example, by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transient computer-readable memory medium), the processor 302 of the communication device 106 may be configured to implement part or all of the features described herein. Alternatively (or in addition thereto), the processor 302 may be configured as a programmable hardware element, such as an FPGA (field programmable gate array), or as an ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit). Alternatively (or in addition thereto), in combination with one or more components in other components 300, 304, 306, 310, 320, 330, 340, 345, 350, 360, the processor 302 of the communication device 106 may be configured to implement part or all of the features described herein.

[0064] Furthermore, as described herein, processor 302 may include one or more processing elements. Thus, processor 302 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of processor 302. Furthermore, each integrated circuit may include circuits (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of processor 302.

[0065] In addition, as described herein, wireless communication circuit 330 may include one or more processing elements. In other words, one or more processing elements may be included in wireless communication circuit 330. Therefore, wireless communication circuit 330 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of wireless communication circuit 330. In addition, each integrated circuit may include circuits (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of wireless communication circuit 330.

[0066] Figure 4 -Block diagram of a base station

[0067] Figure 4 An exemplary block diagram of a base station 102 according to some embodiments is shown. Note that Figure 4 The base station of is only one example of a possible base station. As shown, the base station 102 may include one or more processors 404 that may execute program instructions for the base station 102. The one or more processors 404 may also be coupled to a memory management unit (MMU) 440 (which may be configured to receive addresses from the one or more processors 404 and convert these addresses to locations in memory (e.g., memory 460 and read-only memory (ROM) 450)) or to other circuits or devices.

[0068] Base station 102 may include at least one network port 470. Network port 470 may be configured to couple to a telephone network and provide access to the telephone network described above. Figure 1 and Figure 2 Multiple devices of the telephone network described in, such as UE device 106.

[0069] The network port 470 (or an additional network port) may be further configured or alternatively configured to couple to a cellular network, such as a core network of a cellular service provider. The core network may provide mobility-related services and / or other services to multiple devices, such as the UE device 106. In some cases, the network port 470 may be coupled to a telephone network via the core network, and / or the core network may provide a telephone network (e.g., in other UE devices served by the cellular service provider).

[0070] In some embodiments, base station 102 may be a next generation base station, e.g., a 5G New Radio (5G NR) base station or "gNB". In such embodiments, base station 102 may be connected to a legacy Evolved Packet Core (EPC) network and / or to an NR Core (NRC) network. Furthermore, base station 102 may be considered a 5G NR cell and may include one or more transition and reception points (TRPs). Furthermore, a UE capable of operating in accordance with 5G NR may be connected to one or more TRPs within one or more gNBs.

[0071] The base station 102 may include at least one antenna 434 and possibly multiple antennas. At least one antenna 434 may be configured to function as a wireless transceiver and may be further configured to communicate with the UE device 106 via the radio component 430. The antenna 434 communicates with the radio component 430 via a communication chain 432. The communication chain 432 may be a receive chain, a transmit chain, or both. The radio component 430 may be configured to communicate via various wireless communication standards, including but not limited to 5G NR, LTE, LTE-A, GSM, UMTS, CDMA2000, Wi-Fi, and the like.

[0072] Base station 102 may be configured to perform wireless communications using multiple wireless communication standards. In some cases, base station 102 may include multiple radio components that enable base station 102 to communicate according to multiple wireless communication technologies. For example, as one possibility, base station 102 may include an LTE radio component for performing communications according to LTE and a 5G NR radio component for performing communications according to 5G NR. In this case, base station 102 may be able to operate as both an LTE base station and a 5G NR base station. As another possibility, base station 102 may include a multimode radio component that can perform communications according to any one of multiple wireless communication technologies (e.g., 5G NR and LTE, 5G NR and Wi-Fi, LTE and Wi-Fi, LTE and UMTS, LTE and CDMA2000, UMTS and GSM, etc.).

[0073] As further described later herein, BS 102 may include hardware and software components for implementing or supporting implementations of the features described herein. The processor 404 of base station 102 may be configured to implement or support some or all of the implementations of the methods described herein, for example, by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable memory medium). Alternatively, processor 404 may be configured as a programmable hardware element such as an FPGA (field programmable gate array), or as an ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit) or a combination thereof. Alternatively (or in addition thereto), in combination with one or more of other components 430, 432, 434, 440, 450, 460, 470, the processor 404 of BS 102 may be configured to implement or support some or all of the implementations of the features described herein.

[0074] Furthermore, as described herein, the one or more processors 404 may include one or more processing elements. Thus, the one or more processors 404 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of the one or more processors 404. Furthermore, each integrated circuit may include circuits (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of the one or more processors 404.

[0075] Additionally, as described herein, radio 430 may include one or more processing elements. Thus, radio 430 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of radio 430. Additionally, each integrated circuit may include circuits (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of radio 430.

[0076] Figure 5 -Block diagram of cellular communication circuit

[0077] Figure 5 An example simplified block diagram of a cellular communication circuit according to some embodiments is shown. Note that Figure 5 The block diagram of the cellular communication circuitry of is only one example of one possible cellular communication circuitry; other circuits, such as circuitry that includes or is coupled to sufficient antennas for different RATs to perform uplink activities using separate antennas, or circuitry that includes or is coupled to fewer antennas, such as circuitry that can be shared between multiple RATs, are also possible. According to some embodiments, the cellular communication circuitry 330 may be included in a communication device such as the communication device 106 described above. As described above, the communication device 106 may be a user equipment (UE) device, a mobile device or mobile station, a wireless device or wireless station, a desktop computer or computing device, a mobile computing device (e.g., a laptop, notebook, or portable computing device), a tablet computer, and / or a combination of devices, among other devices.

[0078] Cellular communication circuitry 330 may be (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) coupled to one or more antennas, such as antennas 335a-b and 336 as shown. In some embodiments, cellular communication circuitry 330 may include dedicated receive chains (including and / or coupled to (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) dedicated processors and / or radio components) for multiple RATs (e.g., a first receive chain for LTE and a second receive chain for 5G NR). For example, Figure 5 As shown, the cellular communication circuit 330 may include a first modem 510 and a second modem 520. The first modem 510 may be configured for communication according to a first RAT (e.g., such as LTE or LTE-A), and the second modem 520 may be configured for communication according to a second RAT (e.g., such as 5G NR).

[0079] As shown, the first modem 510 may include one or more processors 512 and a memory 516 in communication with the processor 512. The modem 510 may communicate with a radio frequency (RF) front end 530. The RF front end 530 may include circuits for transmitting and receiving radio signals. For example, the RF front end 530 may include a receiving circuit (RX) 532 and a transmitting circuit (TX) 534. In some embodiments, the receiving circuit 532 may communicate with a downlink (DL) front end 550, which may include circuits for receiving radio signals via an antenna 335a.

[0080] Similarly, the second modem 520 may include one or more processors 522 and a memory 526 in communication with the processor 522. The modem 520 may communicate with the RF front end 540. The RF front end 540 may include circuits for transmitting and receiving radio signals. For example, the RF front end 540 may include a receiving circuit 542 and a transmitting circuit 544. In some embodiments, the receiving circuit 542 may communicate with the DL front end 560, which may include circuits for receiving radio signals via the antenna 335b.

[0081] In some embodiments, the switch 570 may couple the transmit circuit 534 to an uplink (UL) front end 572. In addition, the switch 570 may couple the transmit circuit 544 to the UL front end 572. The UL front end 572 may include circuitry for transmitting radio signals via the antenna 336. Thus, when the cellular communication circuit 330 receives an instruction to transmit according to a first RAT (e.g., via a transmit chain including the transmit circuit 534 and the UL front end 572) supported by the first modem 510, the switch 570 may be switched to a first state that allows the first modem 510 to transmit signals according to the first RAT (e.g., via a transmit chain including the transmit circuit 534 and the UL front end 572). Similarly, when the cellular communication circuit 330 receives an instruction to transmit according to a second RAT (e.g., via a transmit chain including the transmit circuit 544 and the UL front end 572) supported by the second modem 520, the switch 570 may be switched to a second state that allows the second modem 520 to transmit signals according to the second RAT (e.g., via a transmit chain including the transmit circuit 544 and the UL front end 572).

[0082] As described herein, the first modem 510 and / or the second modem 520 may include hardware and software components for implementing any of the various features and techniques described herein. For example, by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable memory medium), the processors 512, 522 may be configured to implement part or all of the features described herein. Alternatively (or in addition), the processors 512, 522 may be configured as programmable hardware elements, such as an FPGA (field programmable gate array) or as an ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit). Alternatively (or in addition), in combination with one or more of the other components 530, 532, 534, 540, 542, 544, 550, 570, 572, 335, and 336, the processors 512, 522 may be configured to implement part or all of the features described herein.

[0083] In addition, as described herein, the processors 512, 522 may include one or more processing elements. Thus, the processors 512, 522 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of the processors 512, 522. In addition, each integrated circuit may include circuits (e.g., first circuits, second circuits, etc.) configured to perform the functions of the processors 512, 522.

[0084] In some embodiments, the cellular communication circuit 330 may include only one transmit / receive chain. For example, the cellular communication circuit 330 may not include the modem 520, the RF front end 540, the DL front end 560, and / or the antenna 335b. As another example, the cellular communication circuit 330 may not include the modem 510, the RF front end 530, the DL front end 550, and / or the antenna 335a. In some embodiments, the cellular communication circuit 330 may also not include the switch 570, and the RF front end 530 or the RF front end 540 may communicate with the UL front end 572, for example, directly.

[0085] Figure 6 - Downlink control for multi-TRP transmission

[0086] New cellular communication technologies are constantly being developed to increase coverage, better meet various needs and use cases, and for various other reasons. One technology currently under development may include scheduled transmissions in which multiple TRPs can transmit downlink data to a wireless device. As part of such development, it would be useful to provide a downlink control framework that can support such technology.

[0087] therefore, Figure 6 is a signal flow diagram illustrating an example of such a method according to at least some embodiments. Figure 6 Various aspects of the method may be implemented by a wireless device such as UE 106 shown in the various figures herein, a base station such as BS 102 shown in the various figures herein, and / or more generally, may be implemented in other devices in combination with any of the computer circuits, systems, devices, elements or components shown in the above figures as needed. For example, a processor (and / or other hardware) of such a device may be configured to cause the device to perform any combination of the method elements shown and / or other method elements.

[0088] In various embodiments, some of the method elements shown may be performed simultaneously in an order different from that shown, may be replaced by other method elements, or may be omitted. Additional elements may also be performed as needed. As shown in the figure, Figure 6 The method can be operated as follows.

[0089] At 602, the wireless device may receive downlink control information (DCI) for a multi-TRP transmission. The DCI may be provided in any of a plurality of possible formats. According to at least some embodiments, the wireless device may receive an indication of which of a plurality of possible formats is being used to provide the DCI. For example, among various other possibilities, such information may be broadcast by a base station to which the wireless device is connected in a system information broadcast.

[0090] As one possible format, the DCI may be provided as a single DCI transmission from a cellular base station that includes scheduling information for multiple downlink data streams. The cellular base station may provide all of the multiple TRPs from which downlink transmissions are scheduled, or may provide only a subset of the multiple TRPs from which downlink transmissions are scheduled, while one or more of the TRPs from which downlink transmissions are scheduled may be provided by one or more other cellular base stations in accordance with some embodiments.

[0091] In the case of using a single DCI transmission to schedule multiple TRP transmissions, the DCI may include completely separate / independent scheduling information for each downlink data stream, or may include some scheduling information that is common to the downlink data streams and some scheduling information that is separate / independent for each downlink data stream, for example, to more efficiently transmit the scheduling information.

[0092] In some embodiments, a downlink transmission may include physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) blocks provided by multiple TRPs using frequency division multiplexing technology, for example, so that different PDSCH blocks have different frequency resource allocations, which may each include a certain number of resource blocks (RBs), which may in turn be bundled according to any of a plurality of possible physical RB (PRB) bundling sizes.

[0093] In this case, it is possible that the DCI includes information that the wireless device can use to determine the bundle size of the (PRB) downlink transmission. For example, it is possible that different PRB bundle sizes can be configured for downlink transmissions from different TRPs. In this case, the PRB bundling-related parameters for each downlink transmission can be indicated. Therefore, at least as a possibility, the wireless device is able to separately determine the PRB bundle size for downlink transmissions from multiple TRPs scheduled by the DCI transmission. As another possibility, the PRB bundle size may be common to all downlink transmissions scheduled by the DCI. In this case, the PRB bundling-related parameters for all downlink transmissions can generally be indicated, or the PRB bundling-related parameters for each downlink transmission can still be indicated, and the wireless device can determine the common PRB bundle size based on the indicated PRB bundle size for each downlink transmission using a specified or otherwise predetermined technique, such as by selecting the maximum PRB bundle size in the indicated PRB bundle size for downlink transmission, or by selecting the minimum PRB bundle size in the indicated PRB bundle size for downlink transmission.

[0094] At least in some cases, the DCI may include information that the wireless device can use to determine the frequency domain resource allocation for the downlink transmission. For example, as one possibility, the DCI may include an indication of the frequency domain resource allocation for each downlink transmission, so that the wireless device can determine the frequency domain resource allocation for each downlink transmission based at least in part on the indication of the frequency domain resource allocation for each downlink transmission. As another possibility, the DCI may include a frequency domain resource allocation indicator that configures the frequency resources of all downlink transmissions. For example, the frequency domain resource allocation indicator may include a combined index calculated based on the starting resource block index value and the ending resource block index value of each downlink transmission. The calculation can be performed in a predetermined manner so that the wireless device can use the resulting combined index to determine the starting resource block index value and the ending resource block index value of each downlink transmission (and therefore determine the frequency domain resource allocation for each downlink transmission). At least according to some embodiments, this method can result in lower signaling overhead for indicating the frequency domain resource allocation than the result obtained by including an indication of the frequency domain resource allocation for each downlink transmission.

[0095] According to some embodiments, the DCI may include information that the wireless device can use to determine the modulation and coding scheme (MCS) and redundancy version (RV) of each downlink transmission. For example, as one possibility, the DCI may include an indication of the MCS and RV of each downlink transmission, so that the wireless device can determine the MCS and RV of each downlink transmission based at least in part on the indication of the MCS and RV of each downlink transmission. As another possibility, the DCI may include an indication of the MCS and RV of the first downlink transmission in the downlink transmission, and may specify a predetermined or configured method for determining the MCS and RV of each other downlink transmission. For example, in some embodiments, a common MCS may be used for all downlink transmissions, and one MCS indication may be sufficient to indicate the MCS of each downlink transmission. Similarly, in some embodiments, each downlink transmission may have the same RV, so that one RV indication may be sufficient to indicate the RV of each downlink transmission. As another possibility, the RV of each downlink transmission that does not directly indicate the RV in a predetermined or dynamically configured manner may be determined based at least in part on the indicated RV. For example, as one possibility, the RV of the second downlink transmission may be calculated based on the RV of the first transmission according to the formula RV2=(RV1+1) mod 3. The specified technique for determining the RV of each downlink transmission for which the RV is not directly indicated may alternatively or additionally be based at least in part on the resource allocation of the downlink transmission (e.g., the first PRB index of the downlink transmission), and / or based on any of a variety of other considerations as desired.

[0096] According to some embodiments, the DCI may include information that the wireless device can use to determine the phase tracking reference signal (PT-RS) configuration for downlink transmissions. For example, as a possibility, a common PT-RS pattern may be transmitted in conjunction with all downlink transmissions. In this scenario, the PT-RS frequency domain pattern for the downlink transmission may be determined based at least in part on the number of resource blocks associated with each downlink transmission. For example, a table that maps the scheduling bandwidth to the frequency density of the PT-RS may be used to determine the PT-RS frequency domain presence, density, and pattern, and the scheduling bandwidth used for mapping may include the number of resource blocks associated with a specified downlink transmission (e.g., the number of resource blocks associated with the first downlink transmission, or the number of resource blocks associated with the second downlink transmission, etc.), or may include the minimum number of resource blocks scheduled in the downlink transmission, or may include the maximum number of resource blocks scheduled in the downlink transmission, or may include the total number of resource blocks scheduled in the downlink transmission, as well as various other possibilities.

[0097] In a scenario where a common PT-RS pattern is transmitted in conjunction with all downlink transmissions, if the MCS is common for all downlink transmissions, it is possible that the wireless device can determine the PT-RS time domain pattern based on the indicated common MCS. Alternatively, if different downlink transmissions from different TRPs have different MCS configurations, the PT-RS time domain pattern can be determined at least in part based on the configured MCS of each downlink transmission. For example, the PT-RS time domain pattern can be selected based on the minimum MCS in the downlink transmissions, or based on the maximum MCS in the downlink transmissions, or based on an equivalent total MCS determined based on the MCS of each downlink transmission, as well as various possibilities.

[0098] As another possible scenario, a separate PT-RS pattern may be used for each downlink transmission. In this scenario, the wireless device can determine the PT-RS pattern for each downlink transmission, for example, based at least in part on the number of scheduled RBs and MCS associated with each downlink transmission.

[0099] In some embodiments, downlink transmissions may be provided using space division multiplexing techniques. In such a scenario, it may be that the DCI indicates a demodulation reference signal (DMRS) port assignment for each downlink transmission, and the wireless device is able to determine the PT-RS port associated with each downlink transmission based at least in part on the DMRS port assignment. For example, as one possibility, the PT-RS port for a given transmission may be associated with the lowest DMRS port index. As another possibility, the PT-RS port for a given transmission may be associated with the highest DMRS port index for that transmission.

[0100] The wireless device may receive downlink transmissions from multiple TRPs based on the DCI in 604. This may include receiving and decoding each of the multiple downlink transmissions using various parameters and configuration information provided in the DCI and / or determined based on the DCI.

[0101] Thus, at least according to some embodiments, Figure 6 The method can be used by multiple TRPs and wireless devices to schedule and execute multi-TRP downlink communications to wireless devices.

[0102] Figures 7 to 14 and additional information

[0103] Figures 7 to 14 Shown can be combined if necessary Figure 6 However, it should be noted that Figures 7 to 14 Shown in and about Figures 7 to 14The exemplary details described are not intended to limit the disclosure as a whole: many variations and alternatives to the details provided below are possible and should be considered within the scope of the disclosure.

[0104] Figure 7 An exemplary scenario is shown in which two transmission reception points (TRPs) schedule two data streams to a wireless device according to some embodiments. As one possibility, such multi-TRP operation may include non-coherent joint transmission (NCJT) communication. Other forms of multi-TRP operation are also possible.

[0105] There may be multiple options to provide a signaling framework for scheduling such multi-TRP operation. As one possibility, a single downlink control information (DCI) communication may be used to schedule different physical downlink control channel (PDSCH) blocks for UEs from different TRPs. As one possibility, a frequency division multiplexing scheme may be used to provide different PDSCH blocks. Figure 8 Possible time and frequency resource usage in one example of such a scheme is shown, where two different PDSCH blocks share the same redundancy version (RV). Fig. 9 A possible time and frequency resource usage in another example of this scheme is shown, where two different PDSCH blocks are assigned different RVs. As another possibility, a method based on spatial domain multiplexing (SDM) can be used to provide different PDSCH blocks to the UE from different TRPs. In this scenario, it is possible that different demodulation reference signal (DMRS) ports can correspond to different TRPs.

[0106] One aspect of configuring downlink communications may include indicating (eg, by a network) and determining (eg, by a UE) a physical resource block (PRB) bundling size for the downlink communications. Fig.10is a flow chart illustrating a possible scheme that a UE may use to determine a PRB bundling size for PDSCH communication according to some embodiments. As shown, in 1002, the UE may determine whether the RRC parameter prb-BundlingType is configured. In 1004, if not, the UE may determine that a default PRB bundling size (e.g., 2 RBs in the illustrated scenario) is configured. In 1006, if the RRC parameter prb-BundlingType is configured, it may be determined whether the prb-BundlingType parameter is set to dynamicBundling. If not, in 1008, the UE may determine that the PRB group size is configured by the RRC parameter bundleSizeSet2 (e.g., which may be selected from an enumerated set of PRB bundling size options). In 1010, if the prb-BundlingType parameter is set to dynamicBundling, the UE may further determine whether a value is configured in the RRC parameter bundleSizeSet1. If yes, then in 1012, the UE may determine the PRG size based on a higher layer parameter bundleSizeSet1 (e.g., which may be selected from an enumerated set of PRB bundling size options). If no, then in 1014, the UE may determine whether a scheduled set of PRBs is contiguous and whether the number of scheduled PRBs is higher than half of the bandwidth of the active bandwidth portion. If no, then in 1016, the UE may determine that the PRG size is wideband. If yes, then in 1018, the UE may determine that the PRG size is equal to 2 or 4, for example, as configured by the RRC parameter bundleSizeSet1.

[0107] In a communication framework utilizing an FDM scheme, it may be the case that physical resource blocks (PRBs) from different TRPs should not be bundled. In fact, the channels from the TRPs should be different. Therefore, in terms of determining the PRB group bundling size, it may be preferred in such a scenario that either a "wideband" group size should not be indicated, or a PDSCH block specific definition of a wideband group size should be used. More generally, it may be useful to provide a framework for indicating and determining the PRB bundling size such that different PRB bundling sizes can be used for different TRPs. Therefore, Fig.11 is another possible scheme (e.g., as a method for determining the PRB bundling size of each PDSCH block for multi-TRP downlink communications) that a UE according to some embodiments may use. Fig.10 Flowchart of an alternative method of ).

[0108] As shown, in 1102, the UE may determine whether the RRC parameter prb-BundlingType is configured for the current PDSCH block. In 1104, if not, the UE may determine that a default PRB bundling size (e.g., 2 RBs in the illustrated scenario) is configured for the current PDSCH block. In 1106, if the RRC parameter prb-BundlingType is configured, it may be determined whether the prb-BundlingType parameter is set to dynamicBundling. If not, in 1108, the UE may determine that the PRB group size of the current PDSCH block is configured by the RRC parameter bundleSizeSet2 (e.g., which may be selected from an enumerated set of PRB bundling size options). In 1110, if the prb-BundlingType parameter is set to dynamicBundling, the UE may further determine whether a value is configured in the RRC parameter bundleSizeSet1. If yes, then in 1112, the UE may determine the PRG size of the current PDSCH block based on a higher layer parameter bundleSizeSet1 (e.g., which may be selected from an enumerated set of PRB bundling size options). If no, then in 1114, the UE may determine whether a set of scheduled PRBs for the current PDSCH block is contiguous and whether the number of scheduled PRBs for the current PDSCH block is above a threshold. If no, then in 1116, the UE may determine that the PRG size of the current PDSCH block is wideband. If yes, then in 1118, the UE may determine that the PRG size of the current PDSCH block is equal to 2 or 4, for example, as configured by the RRC parameter bundleSizeSet1.

[0109] Therefore, according to Fig.11 In the method, the PRB bundling size may be determined by the scheduled RBs within each PDSCH block. In this scenario, "wideband" may indicate that the PRB bundling is at a wideband level within the PDSCH block (e.g., and not necessarily throughout the multi-TRP downlink communication). For dynamic PRB bundling size selection, a "scheduled set of PRBs" may refer to the number of RBs for the corresponding PDSCH block. Therefore, the relevant RRC parameters may be configured on a per-PDSCH block basis, and the threshold used in step 1114 may be configured by the network using RRC signaling, or may be predefined in various options (e.g., as one possibility, as half of the maximum bandwidth of the active bandwidth portion).

[0110] This method is used to determine the PRB bundling size of each PDSCH block from different TRPs respectively. The PRB bundling size of each PDSCH block can be different, for example, according to Fig.11Alternatively, if desired, the UE may determine the common PRB bundling size for all PDSCH blocks, for example, after determining the (e.g., initial) PRB bundling size for each PDSCH block separately. For example, the common PRB bundling size may be determined as the maximum determined PRB bundling size (e.g., max(P1, P2, ..., P2)) in the configured PDSCH blocks. j ), where P j Indicates the determined PRB bundling size for each PDSCH block j). As another possibility, the common PRB bundling size may be determined as the minimum determined PRB bundling size among the configured PDSCH blocks (e.g., min(P1, P2, ..., P j )).

[0111] Another potentially important aspect of configuring FDM multi-TRP communications using a single DCI may include providing a mechanism for the UE to identify the frequency domain resource allocation for each PDSCH block. Fig.12 An exemplary possible frequency resource allocation for FDM multi-TRP communication is shown, where a first PDSCH block from a first TRP may be allocated a first group of RBs (N_RB_1), while a second PDSCH block from a second TRP may be allocated a second group of RBs (N_RB_2).

[0112] As a possibility, a gNB providing DCI for FDM multi-TRP communication may indicate two separate frequency-domain resource allocations in the DCI such that each frequency-domain resource allocation indication corresponds to each PDSCH block.

[0113] As another possibility, a gNB providing DCI for FDM multi-TRP communication may use a single frequency domain resource allocation indicator to configure frequency resources for all PDSCH blocks in the DCI. Such a frequency domain resource allocation indicator may be defined, for example, to specify the starting RB or RBG index and the ending RB or RBG index of each PDSCH block with a single indicator using a combined index. For example, Fig.13 A scenario is shown in which the first PDSCH block ("PDSCH block 1") starts at RB S0 and ends at RB S1, while the second PDSCH block ("PDSCH block 2") starts at RB S2 and ends at RB S3. Using such parameters, the value of the resource allocation field may be determined by a combination index r, which may be defined as follows:

[0114]

[0115] Where N is equal to the maximum number of RBs or RBGs within the active bandwidth portion, and M is equal to 4. Note that different combination indices and / or different parameters may be used in conjunction with multi-TRP communications including different numbers (e.g., 3, 4, etc.) of PDSCH blocks.

[0116] Another possible aspect of configuring FDM multi-TRP communications using a single DCI may include providing a mechanism for the UE to determine the modulation and coding scheme (MCS) and RV of different PDSCH blocks. As a possible approach, the second PDSCH block may be configured using the existing MCS / RV field of the second transport block. For example, the 3GPP specification document may include any or all of the following descriptions (or similar descriptions) regarding specifying the MCS / RV of multiple PDSCH blocks from different TRPs:

[0117] For transport block 1 or PDSCH block corresponding to the first TCI state:

[0118] - Modulation and coding scheme - 5 bits

[0119] - New data indicator - 1 bit

[0120] - Redundancy version - 2 bits

[0121] For transport block 2 or PDSCH block corresponding to the second TCI state (only present when maxNrofCodeWordsScheduledByDCI is equal to 2 or when the second TCI state is indicated):

[0122] - Modulation and coding scheme - 5 bits

[0123] - New data indicator - 1 bit

[0124] - Redundancy version - 2 bits

[0125] As another possible approach, one MCS field may be used to indicate a common MCS for all PDSCH blocks, and only one RV indication may be provided (e.g., to indicate the RV of the first PDSCH block). In this case, the RV of the second PDSCH block may be determined by the UE based at least in part on the RV of the first PDSCH block. For example, a specified relationship between the RV of the first PDSCH block and the RV of the second PDSCH block may be used, such as RV2=(RV1+1) mod 3. If desired, the RV of the second PDSCH block may be determined based on the RV of the first PDSCH block and the resource allocation of the second PDSCH block, for example, using the first PRB index of the second PDSCH block, or any of a variety of other methods may be used to specify a relationship between the RV of the first PDSCH block and the RV of the second PDSCH block that allows the UE to determine the RV of each PDSCH block using one RV field communicated by the DCI.

[0126] Further considerations regarding the use of a single DCI to configure FDM multi-TRP communications may include how to provide a framework that supports a UE in dynamically determining the presence, density, and pattern of phase tracking reference signals (PT-RS) associated with PDSCH blocks provided by different TRPs. For example, current methods for determining the PT-RS frequency density for PDSCH transmissions may include using a table that maps scheduling bandwidth to PT-RS frequency density, such as Fig.14 In order to make this approach applicable to scenarios where multiple PDSCH blocks provided by different TRPs are provided, it may be important to specify how to determine the PT-RS frequency density for each of the multiple PDSCH blocks.

[0127] As one possibility, one common PT-RS pattern associated with all PDSCH blocks may be transmitted. In this case, the PT-RS frequency domain pattern may be selected based at least in part on any or all of the following: the number of resource blocks in one of the PDSCH blocks (e.g., one of N_RB_1, N_RB_2, ...); the minimum number of resource blocks in a PDSCH block (e.g., min(N_RB_1, N_RB_2, ...)); the maximum number of resource blocks in a PDSCH block (e.g., max(N_RB_1, N_RB_2, ...)); the total number of resource blocks in a PDSCH block (e.g., N_RB_1+N_RB_2+...); or in any of a variety of other ways. Additionally, in this case, the PT-RS time domain pattern may be selected based at least in part on the MCS of the PDSCH block. For example, if the MCS is common in all PDSCH blocks, the PT-RS time domain pattern may be determined based on using the indicated MCS. Otherwise, the PT-RS time domain pattern may be selected based on the minimum MCS in the PDSCH block (e.g., min(MCS_1, MCS_2, ...)), the maximum MCS in the PDSCH block (e.g., max(MCS_1, MCS_2, ...)), an equivalent MCS based on a combination of MCS configurations (e.g., the MCS whose spectral efficiency is closest to the equivalent spectral efficiency calculated based on each MCS configuration), or in any of a variety of other possible ways.

[0128] As another possibility, a separate PT-RS pattern may be used for each PDSCH block. In this scenario, the PD-RS dynamic presence and frequency / time domain pattern of each corresponding PDSCH block may be determined based on the scheduling RB and MCS configuration of the corresponding PDSCH block.

[0129] For spatial division multiplexing operation, at least according to some embodiments, it may be useful to provide a mechanism for associating PT-RS and DMRS. For example, it may be possible to support DMRS port combinations of 1+1, 1+2, 2+1, and 2+2, such that each PDSCH block can be associated with 1 or 2 DMRS ports. Since different TRPs can have different phase noise level properties, it may be preferable to map different PT-RS ports to different TRPs. One way of doing this may include transmitting an independent PT-RS port associated with each PDSCH block, wherein the PT-RS port is associated with a DMRS port within each PDSCH block. This association may be specified in any of a variety of possible ways. As such a possibility, the PT-RS port may be associated with the lowest DMRS port index within each PDSCH block. For example, in a scenario where the UE is configured with a 1+2 DMRS port combination of {0; 1, 2}, the first PR-RS port may be associated with DMRS port 0, and the second PT-RS port may be associated with DMRS port 1. Alternative arrangements (such as associating the PT-RS port with the highest DMRS port index within each PDSCH block, or any of a variety of other arrangements) are also possible. At least according to some embodiments, the dynamic presence and density of PT-RS can be determined based on the predetermined RB and MCS of each PDSCH block.

[0130] In the following, further exemplary embodiments are provided.

[0131] A set of embodiments may include a wireless device comprising: at least one antenna; at least one radio component coupled to the at least one antenna; and a processor coupled to the at least one radio component; wherein the wireless device is configured to: receive downlink control information transmissions that schedule downlink transmissions from multiple transmission reception points (TRPs); and receive downlink transmissions from the multiple TRPs based on the downlink control information transmissions.

[0132] According to some embodiments, the wireless device is further configured to: separately determine the physical resource block bundling size of downlink transmissions from multiple TRPs scheduled by downlink control information transmission.

[0133] According to some embodiments, the wireless device is further configured to: determine a common physical resource block bundling size for downlink transmissions from multiple TRPs scheduled by downlink control information transmission, wherein the common physical resource block bundling size is determined based on one of: a maximum physical resource block bundling size among the downlink transmissions, or a minimum physical resource block bundling size among the downlink transmissions.

[0134] According to some embodiments, the downlink control information transmission includes an indication of a frequency domain resource allocation for each downlink transmission in the downlink transmission, wherein the wireless device is further configured to determine the frequency domain resource allocation for each downlink transmission in the downlink transmission based at least in part on the indication of the frequency domain resource allocation for each downlink transmission in the downlink transmission.

[0135] According to some embodiments, the downlink control information transmission includes a frequency domain resource allocation indicator for configuring frequency resources for the downlink transmission, wherein the wireless device is further configured to: determine the frequency domain resource allocation for each downlink transmission in the downlink transmission based at least in part on the frequency domain resource allocation indicator, wherein the frequency domain resource allocation indicator includes a combined index calculated based on a start resource block index value and an end resource block index value for each downlink transmission in the downlink transmission.

[0136] According to some embodiments, the downlink control information transmission includes an indication of a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) and a redundancy version (RV) for each downlink transmission in the downlink transmission, wherein the wireless device is further configured to determine the MCS and RV for each downlink transmission in the downlink transmission based at least in part on the indication of the MCS and RV for each downlink transmission in the downlink transmission.

[0137] According to some embodiments, the downlink control information transmission includes an indication of a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) and a redundancy version (RV) of a first downlink transmission in the downlink transmissions, wherein the wireless device is further configured to determine the MCS and RV of each downlink transmission in the downlink transmissions based at least in part on the indication of the MCS and RV of the first downlink transmission.

[0138] According to some embodiments, the MCS and RV of the second downlink transmission are further determined based at least in part on a resource allocation of the second downlink transmission in the downlink transmission.

[0139] Another set of embodiments may include a cellular base station comprising: at least one antenna; at least one radio component coupled to the at least one antenna; and a processor coupled to the at least one radio component; wherein the cellular base station is configured to: provide downlink control information for scheduling downlink transmissions from multiple transmission reception points (TRPs) to a wireless device; and provide at least one downlink transmission to the wireless device based on the downlink control information.

[0140] According to some embodiments, downlink control information for scheduling downlink transmissions from multiple TRPs includes information for determining a physical resource block bundling size for the downlink transmissions.

[0141] According to some embodiments, downlink control information for scheduling downlink transmissions from multiple TRPs includes information for determining frequency domain resource allocation for each of the downlink transmissions.

[0142] In some embodiments, downlink control information for scheduling downlink transmissions from multiple TRPs includes information for determining one or more of the following for each downlink transmission: a modulation and coding scheme (MCS); a redundancy version (RV); or a phase tracking reference signal (PT-RS) configuration.

[0143] Another group of embodiments may include an apparatus comprising: a processor configured to cause a wireless device to: receive downlink control information that schedules downlink transmissions from multiple transmission reception points (TRPs); and receive downlink transmissions from multiple TRPs based on the downlink control information.

[0144] According to some embodiments, the processor is further configured to cause the wireless device to: use downlink control information to determine a physical resource block bundling size for downlink transmissions from multiple TRPs.

[0145] According to some embodiments, the processor is further configured to cause the wireless device to: determine a frequency domain resource allocation for each of the downlink transmissions using the downlink control information.

[0146] According to some embodiments, the processor is further configured to cause the wireless device to: use the downlink control information to determine a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) and a redundancy version (RV) for each of the downlink transmissions.

[0147] According to some embodiments, the processor is further configured to cause the wireless device to: determine a dynamic presence and frequency domain pattern of a phase tracking reference signal (PT-RS) for all downlink transmissions based at least in part on a number of resource blocks associated with each downlink transmission.

[0148] In accordance with some embodiments, the processor is further configured to cause the wireless device to: determine a dynamic presence and time domain pattern of a phase tracking reference signal (PT-RS) for all downlink transmissions based at least in part on a modulation and coding scheme associated with each of the downlink transmissions.

[0149] According to some embodiments, the processor is further configured to cause the wireless device to: determine a phase tracking reference signal (PT-RS) pattern for each downlink transmission in the downlink transmission based at least in part on the number of resource blocks associated with each downlink transmission in the downlink transmission and the modulation and coding scheme.

[0150] In accordance with some embodiments, the processor is further configured to cause the wireless device to: determine a phase tracking reference signal (PT-RS) port associated with each downlink transmission in the downlink transmission based at least in part on a demodulation reference signal (DMRS) port assignment for each downlink transmission in the downlink transmission.

[0151] Another exemplary embodiment may include a device comprising: an antenna; a radio component coupled to the antenna; and a processing element operably coupled to the radio component, wherein the device is configured to implement any or all of the foregoing examples.

[0152] Yet another exemplary embodiment may include a method, the method comprising: performing, by an apparatus: any or all of the foregoing examples.

[0153] Yet another example embodiment may include a non-transitory computer-accessible storage medium that, when executed at a device, causes the device to implement any or all of any of the foregoing examples.

[0154] Yet another exemplary embodiment may include a computer program including instructions for performing any or all of any of the foregoing examples.

[0155] Yet another exemplary embodiment may include an apparatus including means for performing any or all of the elements of any of the foregoing examples.

[0156] Yet another example embodiment may include an apparatus including a processing element configured to cause a wireless device to perform any or all of the elements of any of the foregoing examples.

[0157] It is understood that the use of personally identifiable information should be subject to privacy policies and practices that are generally recognized to meet or exceed industry or government requirements for maintaining user privacy. Specifically, personally identifiable information data should be managed and processed to minimize the risk of unintentional or unauthorized access or use, and the nature of the authorized use should be clearly stated to users.

[0158] The embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented in any of a variety of forms. For example, some embodiments may be implemented as computer-implemented methods, computer-readable storage media, or computer systems. Other embodiments may be implemented using one or more custom-designed hardware devices such as ASICs. Other embodiments may be implemented using one or more programmable hardware elements such as FPGAs.

[0159] In some embodiments, a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium may be configured such that it stores program instructions and / or data, wherein if the program instructions are executed by a computer system, the computer system is caused to perform a method, such as any one of the method embodiments described herein, or any combination of the method embodiments described herein, or any subset of any method embodiments described herein, or any combination of such subsets.

[0160] In some embodiments, a device (e.g., UE 106 or BS 102) may be configured to include a processor (or a group of processors) and a memory medium, wherein the memory medium stores program instructions, wherein the processor is configured to read and execute the program instructions from the memory medium, wherein the program instructions are executable to implement any of the various method implementations described herein (or any combination of the method implementations described herein, or any subset of any method implementations described herein, or any combination of such subsets). The device may be implemented in any of a variety of forms.

[0161] Although the above embodiments have been described in considerable detail, numerous variations and modifications will become apparent to those skilled in the art once the above disclosure is fully appreciated. It is intended that the following claims be interpreted to encompass all such variations and modifications.

Claims

1. A wireless device, comprising: at least one antenna; at least one radio component coupled to the at least one antenna; and a processor coupled to the at least one radio; The wireless device is configured to: receiving, from a first TRP of a plurality of transmission reception points TRPs, a downlink control information transmission scheduling a plurality of frequency division multiplexed FDM downlink transmissions from the plurality of TRPs; and determining a physical resource block bundling size for the plurality of FDM downlink transmissions from the plurality of TRPs, respectively, wherein the determining is based on a parameter comprising at least one of: Whether to enable dynamic bundling; or whether the number of the plurality of FDM downlink transmissions from the plurality of TRPs exceeds a threshold; as well as Downlink transmissions from the multiple TRPs are received based on the downlink control information transmission and the determined physical resource block bundling size.

2. The wireless device of claim 1, wherein the wireless device is further configured to: determining a common physical resource block bundling size for the downlink transmissions from the plurality of TRPs scheduled by the downlink control information transmission, wherein the common physical resource block bundling size is determined based on one of: The maximum physical resource block bundling size in the downlink transmission; or The minimum physical resource block bundling size in the downlink transmission.

3. The wireless device according to claim 1, wherein the downlink control information transmission comprises an indication of a frequency domain resource allocation for each of the downlink transmissions, wherein the wireless device is further configured to: A frequency domain resource allocation for each of the downlink transmissions is determined based at least in part on the indication of the frequency domain resource allocation for each of the downlink transmissions.

4. The wireless device according to claim 1, The downlink control information transmission includes a frequency domain resource allocation indicator configuring a frequency resource of the downlink transmission, wherein the wireless device is further configured to: determining a frequency domain resource allocation for each of the downlink transmissions based at least in part on the frequency domain resource allocation indicator, The frequency domain resource allocation indicator comprises a combined index calculated based on a start resource block index value and an end resource block index value of each downlink transmission in the downlink transmission.

5. The wireless device according to claim 1, wherein the downlink control information transmission comprises an indication of a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) and a redundancy version (RV) for each of the downlink transmissions, wherein the wireless device is further configured to: The MCS and the RV for each of the downlink transmissions are determined based at least in part on the indication of the MCS and the RV for each of the downlink transmissions.

6. The wireless device according to claim 1, wherein the downlink control information transmission comprises an indication of a modulation and coding scheme MCS and a redundancy version RV of a first downlink transmission among the downlink transmissions, wherein the wireless device is further configured to: The MCS and the RV for each of the downlink transmissions are determined based at least in part on the indication of the MCS and the RV for the first downlink transmission.

7. The wireless device according to claim 6, The MCS and the RV of a second downlink transmission in the downlink transmissions are further determined based at least in part on a resource allocation of the second downlink transmission.

8. A cellular base station, comprising: at least one antenna; at least one radio component coupled to the at least one antenna; as well as a processor coupled to the at least one radio; The cellular base station is configured as follows: providing, from a first TRP of a plurality of transmission reception points TRPs, to a wireless device, downlink control information that schedules a plurality of frequency division multiplexed FDM downlink transmissions from the plurality of TRPs; and providing at least one downlink transmission to the wireless device based on the downlink control information, wherein the downlink control information for scheduling the plurality of FDM downlink transmissions from the plurality of TRPs comprises information for determining a physical resource block bundling size for the plurality of FDM downlink transmissions, wherein the information instructs the wireless device to determine the physical resource block bundling size based on a parameter comprising at least one of: Whether to enable dynamic bundling; or Whether the number of the multiple FDM downlink transmissions from the multiple TRPs exceeds a threshold.

9. A cellular base station according to claim 8, wherein the downlink control information for scheduling the downlink transmissions from the multiple TRPs includes information for determining frequency domain resource allocation for each downlink transmission in the downlink transmissions.

10. The cellular base station of claim 8, wherein the downlink control information for scheduling the downlink transmissions from the plurality of TRPs comprises information for determining one or more of the following for each of the downlink transmissions: Modulation and coding scheme MCS; Redundancy version RV; or Phase tracking reference signal PT-RS configuration.

11. An apparatus for wireless communication, comprising: A processor, which when executing instructions stored in the memory is configured to perform operations including: receiving, from a first TRP of a plurality of transmission reception points TRPs, downlink control information scheduling a plurality of frequency division multiplexed FDM downlink transmissions from the plurality of TRPs; and determining a physical resource block bundling size for the plurality of FDM downlink transmissions from the plurality of TRPs, respectively, wherein the determining is based on a parameter comprising at least one of: Whether to enable dynamic bundling; or whether the number of the plurality of FDM downlink transmissions from the plurality of TRPs exceeds a threshold; as well as Downlink transmissions from the multiple TRPs are received based on the downlink control information and the determined physical resource block bundling size.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to perform operations comprising: A frequency domain resource allocation for each of the downlink transmissions is determined using the downlink control information.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to perform operations comprising: A modulation and coding scheme (MCS) and a redundancy version (RV) for each of the downlink transmissions are determined using the downlink control information.

14. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to perform operations comprising: A phase tracking reference signal (PT-RS) dynamic presence and frequency domain pattern for all of the downlink transmissions is determined based at least in part on a number of resource blocks associated with each of the downlink transmissions.

15. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to perform operations comprising: A phase tracking reference signal (PT-RS) dynamic presence and time domain pattern for all of the downlink transmissions is determined based at least in part on a modulation and coding scheme associated with each of the downlink transmissions.

16. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to perform operations comprising: A phase tracking reference signal (PT-RS) pattern is determined for each of the downlink transmissions based at least in part on a number of resource blocks and a modulation and coding scheme associated with each of the downlink transmissions, respectively.

17. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to perform operations comprising: A phase tracking reference signal (PT-RS) port associated with each of the downlink transmissions is determined based at least in part on a demodulation reference signal (DMRS) port assignment for each of the downlink transmissions.

18. A method for operating a wireless device, the method comprising: At the wireless device: receiving, from a first TRP of a plurality of transmission reception points TRPs, a downlink control information transmission scheduling a plurality of frequency division multiplexed FDM downlink transmissions from the plurality of TRPs; and determining a physical resource block bundling size for the plurality of FDM downlink transmissions from the plurality of TRPs, respectively, wherein the determining is based on a parameter comprising at least one of: Whether to enable dynamic bundling; or whether the number of the plurality of FDM downlink transmissions from the plurality of TRPs exceeds a threshold; as well as Downlink transmissions from the multiple TRPs are received based on the downlink control information transmission and the determined physical resource block bundling size.

19. The method according to claim 18, further comprising: determining a common physical resource block bundling size for the downlink transmissions from the plurality of TRPs scheduled by the downlink control information transmission, wherein the common physical resource block bundling size is determined based on one of: The maximum physical resource block bundling size in the downlink transmission; or The minimum physical resource block bundling size in the downlink transmission.

20. The method according to claim 18, wherein the downlink control information transmission comprises an indication of a frequency domain resource allocation for each of the downlink transmissions, wherein the method further comprises: A frequency domain resource allocation for each of the downlink transmissions is determined based at least in part on the indication of the frequency domain resource allocation for each of the downlink transmissions.

21. The method according to claim 18, The downlink control information transmission includes a frequency domain resource allocation indicator for configuring the frequency resources of the downlink transmission, and the method further includes: determining a frequency domain resource allocation for each of the downlink transmissions based at least in part on the frequency domain resource allocation indicator, The frequency domain resource allocation indicator comprises a combined index calculated based on a start resource block index value and an end resource block index value of each downlink transmission in the downlink transmission.

22. The method according to claim 18, wherein the downlink control information transmission comprises an indication of a modulation and coding scheme MCS and a redundancy version RV for each of the downlink transmissions, wherein the method further comprises: The MCS and the RV for each of the downlink transmissions are determined based at least in part on the indication of the MCS and the RV for each of the downlink transmissions.

23. The method according to claim 18, wherein the downlink control information transmission comprises an indication of a modulation and coding scheme MCS and a redundancy version RV of a first downlink transmission in the downlink transmissions, wherein the method further comprises: The MCS and the RV for each of the downlink transmissions are determined based at least in part on the indication of the MCS and the RV for the first downlink transmission.

24. The method according to claim 23, The MCS and the RV of a second downlink transmission in the downlink transmissions are further determined based at least in part on a resource allocation of the second downlink transmission.

25. A method for operating a cellular base station, the method comprising: At the cellular base station: providing, from a first TRP of a plurality of transmission reception points TRPs, to a wireless device, downlink control information that schedules a plurality of frequency division multiplexed FDM downlink transmissions from the plurality of TRPs; and providing at least one downlink transmission to the wireless device based on the downlink control information, wherein the downlink control information for scheduling the plurality of FDM downlink transmissions from the plurality of TRPs comprises information for determining a physical resource block bundling size for the plurality of FDM downlink transmissions, wherein the information instructs the wireless device to determine the physical resource block bundling size based on a parameter comprising at least one of: whether to enable dynamic bundling; or Whether the number of the multiple FDM downlink transmissions from the multiple TRPs exceeds a threshold.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the downlink control information for scheduling the downlink transmissions from the multiple TRPs includes information for determining frequency domain resource allocation for each of the downlink transmissions.

27. The method of claim 25, wherein the downlink control information scheduling the downlink transmissions from the plurality of TRPs comprises information for determining one or more of the following for each of the downlink transmissions: Modulation and coding scheme MCS; Redundancy version RV; or Phase tracking reference signal PT-RS configuration.

28. A method for operating a wireless device, the method comprising: At the wireless device: receiving, from a first TRP of a plurality of transmission reception points TRPs, downlink control information scheduling a plurality of frequency division multiplexed FDM downlink transmissions from the plurality of TRPs; and determining a physical resource block bundling size for the plurality of FDM downlink transmissions from the plurality of TRPs, respectively, wherein the determining is based on a parameter comprising at least one of: Whether to enable dynamic bundling; or whether the number of the plurality of FDM downlink transmissions from the plurality of TRPs exceeds a threshold; as well as Downlink transmissions from the multiple TRPs are received based on the downlink control information and the determined physical resource block bundling size.

29. The method according to claim 28, further comprising: A frequency domain resource allocation for each of the downlink transmissions is determined using the downlink control information.

30. The method of claim 28, further comprising: A modulation and coding scheme (MCS) and a redundancy version (RV) for each of the downlink transmissions are determined using the downlink control information.

31. The method of claim 28, further comprising: A phase tracking reference signal (PT-RS) dynamic presence and frequency domain pattern for all of the downlink transmissions is determined based at least in part on a number of resource blocks associated with each of the downlink transmissions.

32. The method of claim 28, further comprising: A phase tracking reference signal (PT-RS) dynamic presence and time domain pattern for all of the downlink transmissions is determined based at least in part on a modulation and coding scheme associated with each of the downlink transmissions.

33. The method of claim 28, further comprising: A phase tracking reference signal (PT-RS) pattern is determined for each of the downlink transmissions based at least in part on a number of resource blocks and a modulation and coding scheme associated with each of the downlink transmissions, respectively.

34. The method of claim 28, further comprising: A phase tracking reference signal (PT-RS) port associated with each of the downlink transmissions is determined based at least in part on a demodulation reference signal (DMRS) port assignment for each of the downlink transmissions.

35. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing program instructions executable by a processor to cause a wireless device to implement the operation of the method according to any one of claims 18 to 24 and 28 to 34.

36. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing program instructions, wherein the program instructions are executable by a processor to cause a first cellular base station to implement the method according to any one of claims 25 to 27.

37. A computer program product comprising instructions which, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform the method according to any one of claims 18 to 24 and 28 to 34.

38. A computer program product comprising instructions which, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform the method according to any one of claims 25 to 27.

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