Device, method and computer program

Abstract

A device is provided, comprising components for: determining, for at least one user equipment among a plurality of user equipments, uplink resources for use by the at least one user equipment based on activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user equipments; and providing an indication of the determined uplink resources to the at least one user equipment.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to a method, an apparatus, a system and a computer program, and particularly but not exclusively to a resource allocation strategy for uplink unlicensed ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC). Background Art

[0002] A communication system can be viewed as a facility for enabling communication sessions between two or more entities (such as user terminals, base stations, and / or other nodes) by providing a carrier between the various entities involved in the communication path. For example, a communication system can be provided by means of a communication network and one or more compatible communication devices. A communication session may include, for example, communications for carrying data for communication, such as voice, video, electronic mail (email), text messages, multimedia, content data, time-sensitive network (TSN) streams, and / or data in industrial applications, such as critical system messages between actuators and controllers, critical sensor data for steering control systems (such as measurements, video feeds, etc.), and the like. Non-limiting examples of the services provided include two-way or multi-way calls, data communications or multimedia services, and access to data network systems such as the Internet.

[0003] In a wireless communication system, at least a part of a communication session between at least two stations occurs over a wireless link. Examples of wireless systems include public land mobile networks (PLMNs), satellite-based communication systems, and different wireless local networks, such as wireless local area networks (WLANs). Wireless systems can usually be divided into cells and are therefore often referred to as cellular systems.

[0004] A user can access a communication system by means of an appropriate communication device or terminal. The user's communication device may be referred to as a user equipment (UE) or user device. The communication device is provided with appropriate signal receiving and sending devices for implementing communications, such as implementing access to a communication network or communicating directly with other users. The communication device can access a carrier provided by a station (e.g., a base station of a cell) and send and / or receive communications on the carrier.

[0005] Communication systems and associated equipment typically operate according to given standards or specifications that specify what the various entities associated with the system are allowed to do and how this should be achieved. Communication protocols and / or parameters that will be used for the connection are also typically defined. An example of a communication system is UTRAN (3G radio). Other examples of communication systems are the Long Term Evolution (LTE) of the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) radio access technology and the so-called 5G System (5GS) including 5G or Next Generation Core (NGC) and 5G access networks based on New Radio (NR) radio access technology. 5GS including NR is being standardized by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). Summary of the invention

[0006] In a first aspect, a device is provided, comprising components for: determining, for at least one user device among a plurality of user devices, uplink resources for use by at least one user device based on activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user devices; and providing an indication of the determined uplink resources to the at least one user device.

[0007] The activation probability value may define the probability that the user equipment causes data transmission.

[0008] The activation probability value may be a predetermined value.

[0009] The apparatus may include means for providing an indication to the at least one user equipment for causing the at least one user equipment to determine an activation probability of the at least one user equipment; and receiving an indication of the activation probability from the at least one user equipment.

[0010] The indication for at least one user equipment to determine the activation probability of at least one user equipment may include a time period. The activation probability value may be a ratio of the time used for data transmission in the time period to the time period.

[0011] The indication of the determined uplink resource may include an index associated with the determined uplink resource.

[0012] The indication of the determined uplink resources may include a time domain allocation and a frequency domain allocation.

[0013] In a second aspect, an apparatus is provided, comprising means for receiving, at a user equipment among a plurality of user equipments, from a base station, an indication of determined uplink resources for use by the user equipment, the uplink resources being determined based on activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user equipments.

[0014] The activation probability value may define the probability that the user equipment causes data transmission.

[0015] The activation probability value may be a predetermined value.

[0016] The apparatus may include means for receiving, from a base station, an indication for a user equipment to determine an activation probability of the user equipment; determining the activation probability of the user equipment; and providing an indication of the determined activation probability to the base station.

[0017] The indication for causing at least one user equipment to determine the activation probability of at least one user equipment may include a time period. The activation probability value may be a ratio of the time used for data transmission in the time period to the time period.

[0018] The indication of the determined uplink resource may include an index associated with the determined uplink resource.

[0019] The indication of the determined uplink resources may include a time domain allocation and a frequency domain allocation.

[0020] In a third aspect, a method is provided, comprising: determining, for at least one user equipment among a plurality of user equipment, uplink resources for use by the at least one user equipment based on activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user equipment; and providing an indication of the determined uplink resources to the at least one user equipment.

[0021] The activation probability value may define the probability that the user equipment causes data transmission.

[0022] The activation probability value may be a predetermined value.

[0023] The method may include providing an indication to at least one user equipment for causing the at least one user equipment to determine an activation probability of the at least one user equipment; and receiving an indication of the activation probability from the at least one user equipment.

[0024] The indication for causing at least one user equipment to determine the activation probability of at least one user equipment may include a time period. The activation probability value may be a ratio of the time used for data transmission in the time period to the time period.

[0025] The indication of the determined uplink resource may include an index associated with the determined uplink resource.

[0026] The indication of the determined uplink resources may include a time domain allocation and a frequency domain allocation.

[0027] In a fourth aspect, a method is provided, comprising: receiving, at a user equipment among a plurality of user equipments, from a base station, an indication of determined uplink resources for use by the user equipment, the uplink resources being determined based on activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user equipments.

[0028] The activation probability value may define the probability that the user equipment causes data transmission.

[0029] The activation probability value may be a predetermined value.

[0030] The method may include: receiving an indication from a base station for a user equipment to determine an activation probability of the user equipment; determining the activation probability of the user equipment; and providing an indication of the determined activation probability to the base station.

[0031] The indication for causing at least one user equipment to determine the activation probability of at least one user equipment may include a time period. The activation probability value may be a ratio of the time used for data transmission in the time period to the time period.

[0032] The indication of the determined uplink resource may include an index associated with the determined uplink resource.

[0033] The indication of the determined uplink resources may include a time domain allocation and a frequency domain allocation.

[0034] In a fifth aspect, a device is provided, comprising: at least one processor and at least one memory comprising computer program code, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, together with the at least one processor, enable the device to at least: determine, for at least one user device among a plurality of user devices, uplink resources for use by the at least one user device based on activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user devices; and provide an indication of the determined uplink resources to the at least one user device.

[0035] The activation probability value may define the probability that the user equipment causes data transmission.

[0036] The activation probability value may be a predetermined value.

[0037] The apparatus may be configured to: provide an indication to the at least one user equipment for causing the at least one user equipment to determine an activation probability of the at least one user equipment; and receive an indication of the activation probability from the at least one user equipment.

[0038] The indication for causing at least one user equipment to determine the activation probability of at least one user equipment may include a time period. The activation probability value may be a ratio of the time used for data transmission in the time period to the time period.

[0039] The indication of the determined uplink resource may include an index associated with the determined uplink resource.

[0040] The indication of the determined uplink resources may include a time domain allocation and a frequency domain allocation.

[0041] In a sixth aspect, a device is provided, comprising: at least one processor and at least one memory comprising computer program code, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, together with the at least one processor, enable the device to at least: receive, at a user equipment among a plurality of user equipments, from a base station an indication of determined uplink resources for use by the user equipment, wherein the uplink resources are determined based on activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user equipments.

[0042] The activation probability value may define the probability that the user equipment causes data transmission.

[0043] The activation probability value may be a predetermined value.

[0044] The apparatus may be configured to perform: receiving an indication from a base station for a user equipment to determine an activation probability of the user equipment; determining the activation probability of the user equipment; and providing an indication of the determined activation probability to the base station.

[0045] The indication for causing at least one user equipment to determine the activation probability of at least one user equipment may include a time period. The activation probability value may be a ratio of the time used for data transmission in the time period to the time period.

[0046] The indication of the determined uplink resource may include an index associated with the determined uplink resource.

[0047] The indication of the determined uplink resources may include a time domain allocation and a frequency domain allocation.

[0048] In a seventh aspect, a computer-readable medium is provided, comprising program instructions for causing an apparatus to perform at least the following operations: for at least one user device among a plurality of user devices, determining uplink resources for use by at least one user device based on activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user devices; and providing an indication of the determined uplink resources to at least one user device.

[0049] The activation probability value may define the probability that the user equipment causes data transmission.

[0050] The activation probability value may be a predetermined value.

[0051] The apparatus may be caused to perform: providing an indication to at least one user equipment for causing the at least one user equipment to determine an activation probability of the at least one user equipment; and receiving an indication of the activation probability from the at least one user equipment.

[0052] The indication for causing at least one user equipment to determine the activation probability of at least one user equipment may include a time period. The activation probability value may be a ratio of the time used for data transmission in the time period to the time period.

[0053] The indication of the determined uplink resource may include an index associated with the determined uplink resource.

[0054] The indication of the determined uplink resources may include a time domain allocation and a frequency domain allocation.

[0055] In an eighth aspect, a computer-readable medium is provided, comprising program instructions for causing an apparatus to perform at least the following operations: at a user equipment among a plurality of user equipments, receiving from a base station an indication of a determined uplink resource for use by the user equipment, the uplink resource being determined based on activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user equipments.

[0056] The activation probability value may define the probability that the user equipment causes a data transmission.

[0057] The activation probability value may be a predetermined value.

[0058] The apparatus may be caused to perform: receiving an indication from a base station indicating that a user equipment determines an activation probability of the user equipment; determining the activation probability of the user equipment; and providing an indication of the determined activation probability to the base station.

[0059] The indication for causing at least one user equipment to determine the activation probability of at least one user equipment may include a time period. The activation probability value may be a ratio of the time used for data transmission in the time period to the time period.

[0060] The indication of the determined uplink resource may include an index associated with the determined uplink resource.

[0061] The indication of the determined uplink resources may include a time domain allocation and a frequency domain allocation.

[0062] In a ninth aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium is provided, comprising program instructions for causing an apparatus to execute the method according to the third aspect or the fourth aspect.

[0063] In the above, many different embodiments have been described. It should be understood that other embodiments can be provided by combining any two or more of the above embodiments. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0064] Embodiments will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0065] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of an example communication system including a base station and a plurality of communication devices is shown;

[0066] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of an example mobile communication device is shown;

[0067] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of an example control device is shown;

[0068] Figure 4 A schematic diagram showing an example resource pool structure;

[0069] Figure 5 A flow chart showing a method according to an example embodiment is shown;

[0070] Figure 6 A flow chart showing a method according to an example embodiment is shown;

[0071] Figure 7 A flow chart showing a method according to an example embodiment is shown;

[0072] Figure 8 A flow chart showing a method according to an example embodiment is shown;

[0073] Fig. 9 A signaling diagram according to an example embodiment is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0074] Before explaining the examples in detail, refer to Figures 1 to 3 Certain general principles of wireless communication systems and mobile communication devices are briefly explained to aid understanding of the technology behind the described examples.

[0075] In such Figure 1 In the wireless communication system 100 shown, wireless access is provided to mobile communication devices or user equipment (UE) 102, 104, 105 via at least one base station or similar wireless transmission and / or reception node or point. The base station is typically controlled by at least one appropriate controller device to enable its operation and management of mobile communication devices communicating with the base station. The controller device may be located in a radio access network (e.g., the wireless communication system 100) or a core network (CN) (not shown) and may be implemented as a central device or its functionality may be distributed over several devices. The controller device may be part of the base station and / or provided by a separate entity such as a radio network controller. In Figure 1 In the embodiment, control means 108 and 109 are shown to control the respective macro-level base stations 106 and 107. The control means of the base stations may be interconnected with other control entities. The control means are typically equipped with storage capacity and at least one data processor. The control means and functions may be distributed among a plurality of control units. In some systems, the control means may additionally or alternatively be arranged in a radio network controller.

[0076] exist Figure 1 In FIG. 1 , base stations 106 and 107 are shown connected to a wider communications network 113 via a gateway 112. A further gateway function may be provided to connect to another network.

[0077] Smaller base stations 116, 118, and 120 may also be connected to the network 113, for example, through a separate gateway function and / or via a controller of a macro-level station. Base stations 116, 118, and 120 may be pico or femto-level base stations or the like. In this example, stations 116 and 118 are connected via gateway 111, while station 120 is connected via controller device 108. In some embodiments, smaller stations may not be provided. Smaller base stations 116, 118, and 120 may be part of a second network, such as a WLAN, and may be a WLAN AP.

[0078] The communication devices 102, 104, 105 may access the communication system based on various access technologies, such as code division multiple access (CDMA) or wideband CDMA (WCDMA). Other non-limiting examples include time division multiple access (TDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA) and various schemes thereof, such as interleaved frequency division multiple access (IFDMA), single carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) and orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA), space division multiple access (SDMA), and the like.

[0079] An example of a wireless communication system is an architecture standardized by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). The latest development based on 3GPP is often referred to as the Long Term Evolution (LTE) of the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) radio access technology. The various development stages of the 3GPP specification are called releases. The newer development of LTE is often referred to as LTE Advanced (LTE-A). LTE (LTE-A) adopts a radio mobile architecture called Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN) and a core network called Evolved Packet Core (EPC). The base station of such a system is called an evolved or enhanced Node B (eNB), and provides E-UTRAN features to communication devices, such as user plane packet data convergence / radio link control / media access control / physical layer protocol (PDCP / RLC / MAC / PHY) and control plane radio resource control (RRC) protocol termination. Other examples of radio access systems include those provided by base stations of systems based on technologies such as wireless local area networks (WLAN) and / or WiMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access). The base station can provide coverage of an entire cell or similar radio service area. The core network elements include the Mobility Management Entity (MME), the Serving Gateway (S-GW) and the Packet Gateway (P-GW).

[0080] An example of a suitable communication system is the 5G or NR concept. The network architecture in NR may be similar to that of LTE Advanced. The base stations of the NR system may be referred to as next generation Node Bs (gNBs). Changes to the network architecture may depend on the need to support various radio technologies and more refined QoS support, as well as some on-demand requirements for QoS levels such as supporting QoE from the user's perspective. In addition, network-aware services and applications, as well as service- and application-aware networks, may bring changes to the architecture. These are related to information-centric network (ICN) and user-centric content delivery network (UC-CDN) approaches. NR may use multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antennas, many more base stations or nodes than LTE (the so-called small cell concept), including macro sites operating in cooperation with smaller stations, and may also employ various radio technologies to obtain better coverage and enhanced data rates.

[0081] Future networks may utilize network function virtualization (NFV), which is a network architecture concept that proposes virtualizing network node functions into "building blocks" or entities that can be operationally connected or linked together to provide services. A virtualized network function (VNF) may include one or more virtual machines that use standard or general-purpose type servers rather than custom hardware to run computer program code. Cloud computing or data storage may also be utilized. In radio communications, this may mean that node operations may be performed at least in part in a server, host, or node that is operationally coupled to a remote radio head. Node operations will also likely be distributed among multiple servers, nodes, or hosts. It should also be understood that the distribution of labor between core network operations and base station operations may be different from LTE or even non-existent.

[0082] An example 5G core network (CN) includes functional entities. The CN is connected to the UE via the radio access network (RAN). The UPF (User Plane Function) whose role is called PSA (PDU Session Anchor) can be responsible for forwarding frames back and forth between the DN (Data Network) and the tunnel established over 5G to (multiple) UEs that exchange services with the DN.

[0083] The UPF is controlled by the SMF (Session Management Function) which receives policies from the PCF (Policy Control Function). The CN may also include an AMF (Access and Mobility Function).

[0084] Now refer to Figure 2 describing in more detail possible mobile communication devices, Figure 2A schematic partial cutaway view of a communication device 200 is shown. Such a communication device is often referred to as a user equipment (UE) or terminal. Any device capable of sending and receiving radio signals can provide a suitable mobile communication device. Non-limiting examples include a mobile station (MS) or mobile device, such as a mobile phone or a device called a "smart phone", a computer equipped with a wireless interface card or other wireless interface facilities (e.g., a USB dongle), a personal data assistant (PDA) or a tablet computer equipped with wireless communication capabilities, or any combination of these or similar devices. For example, a mobile communication device can provide data communications for carrying communications such as voice, email (email), text messages, multimedia, etc. Therefore, a variety of services can be supplied and provided to users via their communication devices. Non-limiting examples of these services include two-way or multi-way calls, data communications or multimedia services, or simply access to a data communication network system such as the Internet. Broadcast or multicast data can also be provided to users. Non-limiting examples of content include downloads, television and radio programs, videos, advertisements, various alarms and other information.

[0085] The mobile device is typically provided with at least one data processing entity 201, at least one memory 202 and possibly other components 203 for software and hardware assisted execution of the tasks it is designed to perform, including control of access and communication to access systems and other communication devices. The data processing, storage and other related control means may be provided on appropriate circuit boards and / or in chipsets. This feature is indicated by reference numeral 204. The user may control the operation of the mobile device by means of a suitable user interface, such as a keyboard 205, voice commands, a touch screen or pad, a combination thereof, etc. A display 208, a speaker and a microphone may also be provided. In addition, the mobile communication device may include appropriate connectors (wired or wireless) to other devices and / or for connecting external accessories (e.g., a hands-free device).

[0086] The mobile device 200 may receive signals over the air or radio interface 207 via appropriate means for receiving, and may transmit signals via appropriate means for transmitting radio signals. Figure 2 In the embodiment of the present invention, the transceiver arrangement is schematically designated by block 206. The transceiver arrangement 206 may be provided, for example, by means of a radio component and an associated antenna arrangement. The antenna arrangement may be arranged internally or externally to the mobile device.

[0087] Figure 3An example of a control device for a communication system is shown, the control device being coupled to a station of an access system and / or a station for controlling the access system, the station of the access system being such as a RAN node (e.g., a base station, eNB or gNB), a relay node or a core network node (such as an MME or S-GW or P-GW), or a core network function (such as an AMF / SMF), or a server or a host. The method can be implanted in a single control device or across more than one control device. The control device can be integrated with a node or module of a core network or RAN or located outside thereof. In some embodiments, the base station includes a separate control device unit or module. In other embodiments, the control device can be another network element such as a radio network controller or a spectrum controller. In some embodiments, each base station can have such a control device and a control device provided in a radio network controller. The control device 300 can be arranged to provide control of communications in a service area of ​​the system. The control device 300 includes at least one memory 301, at least one data processing unit 302, 303 and an input / output interface 304. Via the interface, the control device can be coupled to a receiver and a transmitter of the base station. The receiver and / or the transmitter may be implemented as a radio front end or a remote radio head.

[0088] Ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC) is a feature of 5G that enables emerging applications in different verticals beyond traditional telecom services. Target use cases for URLLC include various delay-sensitive applications such as tactile Internet, autonomous driving, and smart factories. The first industrial standard for 5G communications, 3GPP Release 15, introduces several enhancements across multiple radio access network (RAN) protocol layers to meet the challenging goals of URLLC.

[0089] In NR Rel-15, a general URLLC reliability requirement may be 99.999% with 1ms latency for short packets.

[0090] Ungranted transmission can achieve low latency in the uplink. Under this method, both issuing scheduling requests and waiting for scheduling grants are skipped, which can provide fast uplink (UL) access results. To further reduce latency, the TTI (transmission time interval) length can be shortened. Conversely, in order to improve reliability performance without penalizing latency, it has been proposed to use transmit diversity, under which the UE sends multiple packet copies (i.e., copies) without waiting for confirmation.

[0091] Unlicensed URLLC uplink transmissions are performed on predefined time-frequency resource blocks. That is, URLLC UEs do not have dedicated resources and share a common resource pool on which they perform their transmissions (i.e., send their packet copies). The URLLC resource pool repeats in time according to a specific preconfigured periodicity.

[0092] Figure 4 An example of such a resource pool is shown with 5 TTIs and 5 resource units (RUs) 401 per TTI; thus there are a total of 25 RUs 401 in this example resource pool. Figure 4 In the example shown in , there are three active UEs and the number of packet duplications is four.

[0093] like Figure 4 As shown, each UE uses a subset of RU 401 from the URLLC resource pool for the transmission of its packet copy. The gNB decodes the received packets by using a successive interference cancellation (SIC) receiver over multiple TTIs. The subset of RU 401 used by the UE to send its packet copy can be called a 'resource sequence' (or 'sequence').

[0094] In the current specification, there are two types of uplink transmissions without dynamic grants.

[0095] In configured grant type 1, the uplink grant is provided by RRC and stored as a configured uplink grant.

[0096] In the configured grant type 2, the uplink grant is provided by a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) and is stored or cleared as a configured uplink grant based on L1 signaling indicating activation or deactivation of the configured uplink grant.

[0097] The configured grants Type 1 and Type 2 are configured by RRC on a per serving cell and per bandwidth part (BWP) basis.

[0098] For both Type 1 and Type 2, the gNB provides (through configuration) each UE with time and frequency resources that can be used for transmission. In other words, the gNB configures the time instance as well as the frequency domain resources independently for each UE.

[0099] URLLC services can be periodic or aperiodic. In the periodic case, the service arrives at the UE according to a specific periodicity, while for the aperiodic case, the service arrival may be sporadic and unpredictable.

[0100] For the aperiodic case, the activation probability of each UE may affect the efficiency of resource allocation for these UEs. The activation probability of a UE represents the probability that the UE has data to send. The activation probability may not be captured in any parameter available at the gNB. The activation probability may not be the same for all UEs.

[0101] It has been proposed to send packet copies in consecutive TTIs, where the RU used by the BEI to transmit these copies is randomly selected by the UE. Using this approach, the gNB does not know in advance the RU selected by each active UE. This may make detection and decoding more challenging for the gNB. In addition, resource allocation for any UE may be made without considering the UE's activation probability.

[0102] An uplink transmission scheme has been proposed in which the URLLC resource pool is divided into a dedicated part and a shared part. On the dedicated part, no conflict occurs because dedicated resources are allocated to the UE. In the shared part, two or more UEs can share the same RU, which may cause conflicts. However, how to allocate the shared part of the URLLC resource pool between UEs has not been discussed, and the activation probability is not considered in this proposal.

[0103] The following addresses how to allocate resources to take into account whether the UE has data to send, and to achieve URLLC requirements. In other words, the following can provide a design for resource sequences for the UE so that the packet error probability remains as low as possible and the packet delay does not exceed the delay budget.

[0104] Figure 5 A method according to an example embodiment is shown. In a first step S1 , the method comprises determining, for at least one user equipment of a plurality of user equipments, uplink resources for use by the at least one user equipment based on activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user equipments.

[0105] In a second step S2, the method comprises providing an indication of the determined uplink resources to the at least one user equipment.

[0106] The method may be performed at a base station (eg, a gNB).

[0107] Figure 6 A method according to an example embodiment is shown. In a first step T1, the method comprises receiving, at a user equipment of a plurality of user equipments, from a base station an indication of determined uplink resources for use by the user equipment, the uplink resources being determined based on activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user equipments.

[0108] The determined uplink resources may be referred to as a resource sequence.

[0109] Some of the plurality of user devices may be one or more user devices of the plurality of user devices.

[0110] In an example embodiment, based on the activation probability of the UE, the gNB assigns a resource sequence. Each UE may be assigned a unique sequence. The resource sequence indicates the RU that the UE should use when it causes data transmission (i.e., sends a packet copy).

[0111] The resource sequence is pre-allocated in the sense that the gNB calculates the resource sequence and then signals it to the UE.

[0112] One way to signal the sequence is by sending an index to the resource sequence, in which case the gNB and UE should agree on a certain predefined codebook of resource sequences. Alternatively or additionally, the base station may send the corresponding time domain allocation and frequency domain allocation of the resource sequence. That is, the indication of the determined uplink resource may include an index associated with the determined uplink resource or the time domain allocation and frequency domain allocation.

[0113] If the activation probability of any of the multiple UEs changes by more than a threshold, the method takes into account the change to update the subsequent sequence. The subsequent sequence can then be signaled to the UE. This can provide adaptation of resource allocation to the activity profile of the UE. Updating the resource sequence of the UE may cause the sequences of other UEs to be updated.

[0114] To determine the resource sequence, the Hamming distance can be used as a similarity measure and a brute-force search method can be used. This method includes:

[0115] a) Initialize the result set with a sequence and associate it with a UE (or equivalently, with an activation probability).

[0116] b) Add to the result set any sequence that satisfies some similarity constraints on the sequences already in the result set, taking into account the activation probabilities associated with subsequent sequences. The constraints here should be chosen in a way that ensures that the result set contains sequences that are sufficiently far from each other.

[0117] c) Associating the added sequence with a (different) UE.

[0118] d) Repeat steps b) and c) until the number of sequences in the result set is equal to the number of UEs.

[0119] For example, consider a system with N URLLC UEs and a resource pool containing K RUs. The pool can be represented by a matrix where the product of the number of rows and columns is equal to K; or more generally, the pool can be represented by a vector of length K.

[0120] Resource sequence represents the subset of RUs used to send packet copies. Consider Figure 4 In the example, an example of a resource sequence is:

[0121]

[0122] The packet copies can be sent in different TTIs so that if the gNB combines these copies, maximum energy is accumulated. Furthermore, in order to benefit from frequency diversity, frequency hopping can be used, i.e. the packet copies can be sent on different frequency resources.

[0123] In this case, the set of all possible sequences can be obtained by considering all possible combinations of selecting RUs so that for any sequence, the copies are sent in different TTIs and on different frequency resources. The resulting set can be denoted by S.

[0124] In the following, an example method is described for the gNB to find a set of resource sequences to allocate to a UE. Alternative methods may be employed to determine the sequence. The proposed method may be simple and effective.

[0125] Make d(S i , S j ) represents the sequence S i With sequence S j The Hamming distance between . This distance is used as a similarity measure and it represents the number of positions where the corresponding sequences are different. As an example, for

[0126]

[0127] Then d(S i , S j )=6.

[0128] The activation probability is q1, q2, ..., q N Indicates that q1>=q2>=…>=q N . Note that q n It does not necessarily represent the activation probability of UE n, but more generally represents the activation probability of one of the (N) UEs.

[0129] The term 'result set' is used to denote a subset of a sequence of resources to be assigned to a UE. Hence, the set has a cardinality equal to N. The set is denoted by RS.

[0130] Using its knowledge of the activation probabilities, the gNB constructs the result set in the following way:

[0131] 1) Initialize the result set with any sequence (from the set of all available sequences, S) and associate the UE with the highest activation probability (here given by q1) with this sequence. to represent this sequence.

[0132] 2) For n = 2 to N

[0133] From all remaining sequences and activation probabilities, add the sequences that satisfy the following constraints to the result set:

[0134] a) Where S\RS represents the set of elements in S but not in RS.

[0135] The above constraint means that the selected sequence should produce the maximum sum of weighted Hamming distances to sequences already in the result set, where the weights are the activation probabilities associated with these subsequent sequences.

[0136] b) Where S is generated from a).

[0137] In other words, the minimum weighted Hamming distance of the selected sequence with respect to every sequence in the result set should be greater than a given threshold.

[0138] Denote the selected sequence as and compare it with the probability q n Associated.

[0139] In an example embodiment, if there is a tie (ie, more than one sequence satisfies the condition), the tie may be broken by randomly selecting any one of the selected sequences.

[0140] Constraint a) ensures that any added sequence is at a maximum distance from a subset of the sequences already in the result set. Constraint b) ensures that the added sequence is sufficiently far from its closest sequence in the result set.

[0141] If the threshold value w in constraint b) is high, the obtained result set may have a cardinality strictly lower than N. If the threshold value w in constraint b) is relatively low, the obtained result set may not be the best in terms of conflict reduction. Therefore, in order to find a suitable threshold value, a higher value of w may be used initially and reduced until a result set with cardinality N is obtained. The maximum value that satisfies the latter condition may be adopted as the threshold value for constraint b).

[0142] The above has been described for URLLC services where the traffic is sporadic. In the case of periodic traffic, the network has information about when the UE's packets arrive, and dedicated resources for sending these packets may be the best strategy. For some services with sporadic traffic, when the UE joins the network, the network may not know certain information about the UE's traffic profile, such as the probability that the UE has data to transmit (i.e., the activation probability). There may also be services whose activation probability changes over time.

[0143] However, the network will at least know the type(s) of traffic expected from the UE.It is worth noting that known information about the UE's traffic profile may be sent as part of NSSAI (Network Slice Selection Assistance Information) when the UE joins the network.

[0144] The method may include providing an indication to at least one user equipment of the plurality of user equipments to cause the at least one user equipment to determine an activation probability of the at least one user equipment, and receiving an indication of the activation probability from the at least one user equipment.

[0145] Therefore, the method provides signaling for the gNB to obtain activation probability sets for multiple UEs. The gNB can thus better allocate multiple UEs in common resources.

[0146] If this information is not available when the UE joins the network, or if this information changes over time, each UE may participate in the determination of its activation probability.

[0147] This provides a method for estimating / learning the activation probability (for each UE) in cases where this information is not available when the URLLC session is established or in cases where this information changes over time (in which case resource allocation can adapt to the change).

[0148] A gNB wishing to assign a URLLC UE to network resources determines whether it knows the activation probability of the UE; this will depend on the use case(s) being considered. If the UE knows the activation probability, it may send it to the network and hence to the gNB.

[0149] If the gNB does not know the UE's activation probability at the start of the URLLC session, it can provide an indication to the UE to enable the UE to determine its activation probability value. That is, the gNB signals the UE to start collecting measurements of its activation time.

[0150] The indication may include a time period (or time window) within which the measurement is signaled.

[0151] The convergence sensitivity parameter “epsilon” may also be signaled by the gNB.

[0152] All signaling may be in the RRC (re)configuration message.

[0153] In an example embodiment, when the current time is less than the time window, the UE calculates the amount of time that resulted in data transmission within that time period. If the ratio converges to a value (+ / - "epsilon") within the time window, the UE responds to the gNB with that ratio (activation probability).

[0154] If the ratio does not begin to converge, the UE responds with an error value (to indicate non-convergence).

[0155] If convergence is not achieved within the time window, the gNB may trigger more measurements from the URLLC device. Alternatively or additionally, the gNB may indicate a larger time window for measurement and / or a higher sensitivity parameter epsilon to trigger more measurements from the UE.

[0156] Alternatively or additionally, the activation probability value may be a predetermined value. For some user equipment, the activation probability may not be determined (e.g., some time averages do not converge to the probability value). In the event that no activation probability exists for some equipment, the gNB may assume a worst case activation probability.

[0157] For example, if the gNB does not know the activation probability of the UE at the start of the URLLC session (which implies that the UE also has this knowledge), the gNB assumes that the activation probability is relatively high. In an example embodiment, the activation probability value is set to 0.1, which is considered a high value. In other words, the gNB can be considered to make a worst-case assumption about the activity profile of the UE.

[0158] The gNB then assigns the UE to resources based on its knowledge of the activation probability, as described above.

[0159] Figure 7 UE-side calculation of the activation probability according to an example is shown. The UE determines if it knows the activation probability. If yes, the UE sends the activation probability to the gNB. If no, the UE takes measurements to calculate a time average of its activation probability. If the time average converges, the UE sends the activation probability to the gNB. If not, the UE takes further measurements until there is convergence.

[0160] Figure 8 The network side flow is shown where the gNB listens to the activation probability from the UE. If the gNB receives the activation probability, it sends a resource allocation to the UE based on the reported activation probability. If not, the gNB sends a resource allocation to the UE based on the worst case assumption about activation.

[0161] Fig. 9 The signaling flow between the UE and the gNB is shown, where the network allocates resources based on the worst-case activation probability (e.g., 0.1) without knowing the activation probability of the UE.

[0162] The network sends a grant-free resource allocation based on the worst-case activation probability. The UE then reports the actual activation probability. The network then sends an updated, grant-free resource allocation based on the measured activation probability.

[0163] In an alternative embodiment, a base station (e.g., a gNB) may determine the activation probability of a UE. The gNB may fail to identify some packets sent by the UE due to packet collisions with other UEs, which may result in a less accurate estimate of the activation probability or require more time to achieve an accurate estimate of the activation probability.

[0164] The method described above can provide an effective strategy for allocating resources for unlicensed URLLC UL transmission, which takes into account the active profile of the UE. It also provides a method for learning such profiles when such profiles are not available when the UE joins the network or when they change over time.

[0165] If the gNB has knowledge of the UE's transmission probability, a more efficient resource allocation strategy can be provided as opposed to the case where the gNB does not have this knowledge. That is, considering the activation probability in the design can make the resulting pre-assigned sequence more efficient from a collision point of view.

[0166] Resource allocation may also be adapted according to changes in the activity profile of any UE.

[0167] Since the gNB knows in advance the RU that each UE uses to send its copy, the use of pre-assigned sequences can simplify and improve the detection of UE identity and received packet copies.

[0168] This method can be found in the reference Figure 2 Describes the user device or reference Figure 3 The device may include a component for determining, for at least one of the plurality of user equipments, an uplink resource used by the at least one user equipment based on some or all of the activation probability values ​​of the plurality of user equipments, and providing an indication of the determined uplink resource to the at least one user equipment.

[0169] Alternatively or additionally, the apparatus may comprise means for receiving, at a user equipment among the plurality of user equipments, from a base station, an indication of uplink resources determined for use by the user equipment, the uplink resources being determined based on activation probability values ​​for some or all of the plurality of user equipments.

[0170] It should be understood that these devices may include or be coupled to other units or modules used in transmission and / or reception, such as radio components or radio heads. Although these devices have been described as one entity, different modules and memories may be implemented in one or more physical or logical entities.

[0171] Note that while embodiments have been described with respect to 5GS and URLLC, similar principles may apply with respect to other networks and communication systems that perform unlicensed uplink transmissions. Thus, while certain embodiments are described above by way of example with reference to certain example architectures for wireless networks, technologies, and standards, the embodiments may be applied to any other suitable form of communication system other than those shown and described herein.

[0172] It is also noted herein that while the above describes exemplifying embodiments, there are several variations and modifications which may be made to the disclosed solution without departing from the scope of the present invention.

[0173] In general, various embodiments may be implemented in hardware or dedicated circuits, software, logic, or any combination thereof. Some aspects of the invention may be implemented in hardware, while other aspects may be implemented in firmware or software, which may be executed by a controller, microprocessor, or other computing device, although the invention is not limited thereto. Although various aspects of the invention may be shown and described as block diagrams, flow charts, or using some other graphical representation, it is understood that the blocks, devices, systems, techniques, or methods described herein may be implemented in, as non-limiting examples, hardware, software, firmware, dedicated circuits or logic, general purpose hardware or controllers or other computing devices, or some combination thereof.

[0174] Embodiments of the present invention may be implemented by computer software executable by a data processor of a mobile device (such as in a processor entity), or by hardware, or by a combination of software and hardware. Computer software or programs, also referred to as program products, include software routines, applets, and / or macros, which may be stored in any device-readable data storage medium, and which include program instructions for performing specific tasks. A computer program product may include one or more computer executable components that are configured to perform an embodiment when the program is run. The one or more computer executable components may be at least one software code or a portion thereof.

[0175] Furthermore, it should be noted in this regard that any block of the logic flow as in the figure may represent program steps, or interconnected logic circuits, blocks and functions, or a combination of program steps and logic circuits, blocks and functions. The software may be stored on physical media such as memory chips or memory blocks implemented within a processor, magnetic media such as hard disks or floppy disks, and optical media such as DVDs and their data variants (CDs). Physical media are non-transitory media.

[0176] The memory may be of any type suitable for the local technical environment and may be implemented using any suitable data storage technology, such as semiconductor-based storage devices, magnetic storage devices and systems, optical storage devices and systems, fixed memory, and removable memory. The data processor may be of any type suitable for the local technical environment and may include one or more of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), an FPGA, a gate-level circuit, and a processor based on a multi-core processor architecture, as non-limiting examples.

[0177] Embodiments of the present invention may be practiced in various components such as integrated circuit modules. The design of integrated circuits is a highly automated process that is generally performed by a computer. Complex and powerful software tools are available to convert a logic level design into a semiconductor circuit design that is ready to be etched and formed on a semiconductor substrate.

[0178] As a non-limiting example, the foregoing description provides a complete and informative description of exemplary embodiments of the present invention. However, when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the appended claims, various modifications and adaptations may become apparent to those skilled in the relevant art in view of the foregoing description. However, all such and similar modifications of the teachings of the present invention will still fall within the scope of the present invention as defined in the appended claims. In fact, there is another embodiment that includes a combination of one or more embodiments with any other embodiment previously discussed.

Claims

1. An apparatus for communication, the apparatus comprising means for: providing an indication to at least one user equipment of a plurality of user equipments for causing the at least one user equipment to determine an activation probability of the at least one user equipment, wherein the indication comprises a time period; receiving an indication of the activation probability or the error value from the at least one user equipment during the time period, wherein if a ratio of time for data transmission in the time period to the time period converges, the indication specifies the ratio as the activation probability, or if the ratio does not converge, the indication specifies the error value; Determining activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user equipments includes: In a case where the indication from the at least one user equipment indicates the error value, determining the activation probability value of the at least one user equipment as a worst case probability value; For the at least one user equipment, determining uplink resources for use by the at least one user equipment based on activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user equipments; and An indication of the determined uplink resources is provided to the at least one user equipment. The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the activation probability value is a predetermined value.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the indication of the determined uplink resource comprises an index associated with the determined uplink resource.

4. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the indication of the determined uplink resources comprises a time domain allocation and a frequency domain allocation.

5. An apparatus for communication, comprising means for: receiving, at a user equipment among a plurality of user equipments, an indication from a base station for the user equipment to determine an activation probability of the user equipment, wherein the indication includes a time period; Determining the activation probability of the user equipment includes: determining whether a ratio of a time used for data transmission in the time period to the time period converges; Based on determining that the ratio converges, determining the ratio as the activation probability of the user equipment; or determining an error value based on determining that the ratio does not converge; and providing, during the time period, an indication of the determined activation probability or the error value to the base station; An indication of determined uplink resources for use by the user equipment is received from the base station, the uplink resources being determined based on activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user equipments, wherein the activation probability value of the user equipment indicating the error value is assumed by the base station to be a worst-case probability value. The apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein the activation probability value is a predetermined value.

7. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the indication of the determined uplink resource comprises an index associated with the determined uplink resource.

8. The apparatus according to any one of claims 5 to 7, wherein the indication of the determined uplink resources comprises a time domain allocation and a frequency domain allocation.

9. A communication method, comprising: providing an indication to at least one user equipment of a plurality of user equipments for causing the at least one user equipment to determine an activation probability of the at least one user equipment, wherein the indication comprises a time period; receiving an indication of the activation probability or the error value from the at least one user equipment during the time period, wherein if a ratio of time for data transmission in the time period to the time period converges, the indication specifies the ratio as the activation probability, or if the ratio does not converge, the indication specifies the error value; Determining activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user equipments includes: In a case where the indication from the at least one user equipment indicates the error value, determining the activation probability value of the at least one user equipment as a worst case probability value; For the at least one user equipment, determining uplink resources for use by the at least one user equipment based on activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user equipments; and An indication of the determined uplink resources is provided to the at least one user equipment.

10. A communication method, comprising: receiving, at a user equipment among a plurality of user equipments, an indication from a base station for the user equipment to determine an activation probability of the user equipment, wherein the indication includes a time period; Determining the activation probability of the user equipment includes: determining whether a ratio of a time used for data transmission in the time period to the time period converges; Based on determining that the ratio converges, determining the ratio as the activation probability of the user equipment; or determining an error value based on determining that the ratio does not converge; and providing, during the time period, an indication of the determined activation probability or the error value to the base station; An indication of determined uplink resources for use by the user equipment is received from the base station, the uplink resources being determined based on activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user equipments, wherein the activation probability value of the user equipment indicating the error value is assumed by the base station to be a worst-case probability value.

11. An apparatus for communication, comprising: at least one processor and at least one memory including computer program code, the at least one memory and the computer program code being configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to at least: providing an indication to at least one user equipment of a plurality of user equipments for causing the at least one user equipment to determine an activation probability of the at least one user equipment, wherein the indication comprises a time period; receiving an indication of the activation probability or the error value from the at least one user equipment during the time period, wherein if a ratio of time for data transmission in the time period to the time period converges, the indication specifies the ratio as the activation probability, or if the ratio does not converge, the indication specifies the error value; Determining activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user equipments includes: In a case where the indication from the at least one user equipment indicates the error value, determining the activation probability value of the at least one user equipment as a worst case probability value; For the at least one user equipment, determining uplink resources for use by the at least one user equipment based on activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user equipments; and An indication of the determined uplink resources is provided to the at least one user equipment.

12. An apparatus for communication, comprising: at least one processor and at least one memory including computer program code, the at least one memory and the computer program code being configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to at least: receiving, from a base station, an indication for a user equipment among a plurality of user equipments to determine an activation probability of the user equipment, wherein the indication comprises a time period; Determining the activation probability of the user equipment includes: determining whether a ratio of a time used for data transmission in the time period to the time period converges; Based on determining that the ratio converges, determining the ratio as the activation probability of the user equipment; or determining an error value based on determining that the ratio does not converge; and providing, during the time period, an indication of the determined activation probability or the error value to the base station; An indication of determined uplink resources for use by the user equipment is received from the base station, the uplink resources being determined based on activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user equipments, wherein the activation probability value of the user equipment indicating the error value is assumed by the base station to be a worst-case probability value.

13. A computer-readable medium comprising program instructions, wherein the program instructions are used to cause an apparatus to perform at least the following operations: providing an indication to at least one user equipment of a plurality of user equipments for causing the at least one user equipment to determine an activation probability of the at least one user equipment, wherein the indication comprises a time period; receiving an indication of the activation probability or the error value from the at least one user equipment during the time period, wherein if a ratio of time for data transmission in the time period to the time period converges, the indication specifies the ratio as the activation probability, or if the ratio does not converge, the indication specifies the error value; Determining activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user equipments includes: In a case where the indication from the at least one user equipment indicates the error value, determining the activation probability value of the at least one user equipment as a worst case probability value; For the at least one user equipment, determining uplink resources for use by the at least one user equipment based on activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user equipments; and An indication of the determined uplink resources is provided to the at least one user equipment.

14. A computer-readable medium comprising program instructions, wherein the program instructions are used to cause an apparatus to perform at least the following operations: receiving, from a base station, an indication for a user equipment among a plurality of user equipments to determine an activation probability of the user equipment, wherein the indication comprises a time period; Determining the activation probability of the user equipment includes: determining whether a ratio of a time used for data transmission in the time period to the time period converges; Based on determining that the ratio converges, determining the ratio as the activation probability of the user equipment; or determining an error value based on determining that the ratio does not converge; as well as providing, during the time period, an indication of the determined activation probability or the error value to the base station; An indication of determined uplink resources for use by the user equipment is received from a base station, the uplink resources being determined based on activation probability values ​​of some or all of the plurality of user equipments, wherein the activation probability value of the user equipment indicating the error value is assumed by the base station to be a worst-case probability value.

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