Method and apparatus for coordinating user equipment (UE) direct beam communication

Abstract

The present invention discloses communication beam selection and management in a communication system, wherein a first or initiating user equipment (UE) and a second or target UE establish a direct communication link between them. The initiating UE may send a request to a serving base station, which may then communicate with the serving base station of the target UE to schedule one or more communication beams and / or time-frequency resources that the initiating UE and the target UE may use to perform direct beam search.

Description

[0001] Related Applications

[0002] This application claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62 / 847,782, filed on May 14, 2019, entitled “SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR COORDINATING USER EQUIPMENT (UE) DIRECT COMMUNICATION IN A COMMUNICATION SYSTEM,” the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety as if fully set forth below and for all applicable purposes. Technical Field

[0003] The technology discussed below relates to wireless communication systems, and more particularly to systems and methods for base station coordinated user equipment (UE) direct communication beam selection and management in communication systems. Background Art

[0004] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide a variety of telecommunication services, such as telephony, video, data, messaging, and broadcast. Typical wireless communication systems may employ multiple access technologies capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources (e.g., bandwidth, transmit power). Examples of such multiple access technologies include code division multiple access (CDMA) systems, time division multiple access (TDMA) systems, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) systems, orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) systems, single carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) systems, and time division synchronous code division multiple access (TD-SCDMA) systems.

[0005] These multiple access technologies have been adopted in various telecommunication standards to provide a common protocol that enables different wireless devices to communicate at a municipal, national, regional, and even global level. An example telecommunication standard is Long Term Evolution (LTE). An example of an improvement in LTE technology is referred to as 5G or New Radio (NR). The terms 5G and NR represent improvements in LTE technology, including, for example, various improvements in the wireless interface, processing improvements, and enabling higher bandwidth to provide additional functionality and connectivity.

[0006] As an example, a wireless multiple-access communication system may include multiple base stations, each base station simultaneously supporting communication for multiple communication devices, also referred to as user equipment (UE). The base station may communicate with the UE on a downlink channel (e.g., for transmission from the base station to the UE) and an uplink channel (e.g., for transmission from the UE to the base station). In some cases, it may be necessary for a UE to communicate directly with another UE. However, there are challenges in coordinating the selection of communication beams in millimeter wave (mmW) communication systems because the UEs may be in motion, the communication channels between the UEs may be highly dynamic, and the UEs may be coupled to different base stations. Summary of the invention

[0007] Various implementations of systems, methods and devices within the scope of the appended claims each have several aspects, no single one of which is solely responsible for the desirable attributes described herein.Without limiting the scope of the appended claims, some important features are described herein.

[0008] Details of one or more implementations of the subject matter described in this specification are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the following description. Other features, aspects, and advantages will become apparent from the description, drawings, and claims. It should be noted that the relative sizes of the following drawings may not be drawn to scale.

[0009] One aspect of the present disclosure provides a method for communication by an initiating communication device (UE1), comprising sending a request by the initiating communication device (UE1) to a serving base station (gNB1) of the initiating communication device (UE1) to establish direct link communication with a target communication device (UE2), the request comprising information related to the direct link communication capability of the initiating communication device (UE1), and information identifying the target communication device (UE2); receiving information identifying multiple communication beams for direct beam search between the initiating communication device (UE1) and the target communication device (UE2); and performing direct beam search with the target communication device (UE2).

[0010] Another aspect of the present disclosure provides a method for communication by a serving base station (gNB1) of an initiating communication device (UE1), comprising receiving a request from the initiating communication device (UE1) to establish a direct communication link with a target communication device (UE2), the request including information related to the direct link communication capability of the initiating communication device (UE1), and information identifying the target communication device (UE2); notifying the serving base station (gNB2) of the target communication device (UE2) of the request for the direct communication link; and sending information identifying multiple communication beams for direct beam search between the initiating communication device (UE1) and the target communication device (UE2).

[0011] Another aspect of the present disclosure provides a method for communication by a target communication device (UE2), including receiving a notification of a request for direct link communication with an initiating communication device (UE1); sending the direct communication link capability of the target communication device (UE2) to a serving base station (gNB2) of the target communication device (UE2); receiving information identifying multiple communication beams to be used for direct beam search with the initiating communication device (UE1); and performing a direct beam search with the initiating communication device (UE1).

[0012] Another aspect of the present disclosure provides an apparatus for communication, including a memory in an initiating communication device (UE1) and a processor in UE1, wherein the memory and processor of the initiating communication device (UE1) are configured to send a request to establish a direct link communication with a target communication device (UE2) to a serving base station (gNB1) of the initiating communication device (UE1) through the initiating communication device (UE1), wherein the request includes information related to the direct link communication capability of the initiating communication device (UE1) and information identifying the target communication device (UE2); the memory and processor of the initiating communication device (UE1) are configured to receive information identifying multiple communication beams for direct beam search between the initiating communication device (UE1) and the target communication device (UE2); and the memory and processor of the initiating communication device (UE1) are configured to perform a direct beam search with the target communication device (UE2).

[0013] Another aspect of the present disclosure provides an apparatus for communication, comprising a memory in a target communication device (UE2) and a processor in the target communication device UE2, wherein the memory and processor of the target communication device (UE2) are configured to receive a notification of a request for direct link communication with an initiating communication device (UE1); the memory and processor of the target communication device (UE2) are configured to send the direct communication link capability of the target communication device (UE2) to a serving base station (gNB2) of the target communication device (UE2); the memory and processor of the target communication device (UE2) are configured to receive information identifying multiple communication beams for direct beam search with the initiating communication device (UE1); and the memory and processor of the target communication device (UE2) are configured to perform direct beam search with the initiating communication device (UE1).

[0014] Other aspects of the present disclosure provide components, apparatuses and / or computer-readable media having codes configured to perform the steps of the above-described methods. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] In the drawings, like reference numerals refer to like parts throughout the various views unless otherwise indicated. For reference numerals having alphabetic character designations such as "102A" or "102B," the alphabetic character designations may distinguish between two similar parts or elements that appear in the same drawing. Alphabetic character designations for reference numerals may be omitted when it is intended that a reference numeral encompass all parts having the same reference numeral in all drawings.

[0016] Figure 1 An example of a wireless communication system according to various aspects of the present disclosure is shown.

[0017] Figure 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a DL frame structure in LTE according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0018] Figure 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a UL frame structure in LTE according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0019] Figure 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a radio protocol architecture for a user plane and a control plane according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0020] Figure 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of an evolved Node B and user equipment in an access network according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0021] Figure 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a processor and memory associated with a base in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0022] Figure 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a processor and memory associated with a user device in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0023] Figure 8 is a diagram of a communication system in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0024] Fig. 9 is a diagram showing an example of beamforming in a low-frequency wireless communication system (eg, LTE).

[0025] Fig.10 is a diagram showing beamforming in a high frequency wireless communication system (eg, mmW system).

[0026] Fig.11 is a diagram illustrating a communication system according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0027] Fig.12 is a call flow diagram according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0028] Fig.13 is a flow chart illustrating an example of a method for communication according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0029] Fig.14 is a flow chart illustrating an example of a method for communication according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0030] Fig.15 is a functional block diagram of an apparatus for a communication system according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0031] Fig.16 is a functional block diagram of an apparatus for a communication system according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0032] Fig.17 is a flow chart illustrating an example of a method for communication according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0033] Fig.18 is a functional block diagram of an apparatus for a communication system according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0034] Fig.19 is a flow chart illustrating an example of a method for communication according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0035] Fig. 20 is a functional block diagram of an apparatus for a communication system according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0036] Fig.21 is a flow chart illustrating an example of a method for communication according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0037] Fig. 22 is a functional block diagram of an apparatus for a communication system according to various aspects of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0038] The word “exemplary” is used herein to mean “serving as an example, instance, or illustration.” Any aspect described herein as “exemplary” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects.

[0039] Several aspects of telecommunication systems will now be presented with reference to various apparatus and methods. These apparatus and methods will be described in the following detailed description and illustrated in the accompanying drawings by various blocks, components, circuits, processes, algorithms, etc. (collectively referred to as "elements"). These elements may be implemented using electronic hardware, computer software, or any combination thereof. Whether these elements are implemented as hardware or software depends on the specific application and the design constraints imposed on the overall system.

[0040] For example, an element or any part of an element or any combination of elements may be implemented as a "processing system" including one or more processors. Examples of processors include microprocessors, microcontrollers, graphics processing units (GPUs), central processing units (CPUs), application processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), reduced instruction set computing (RISC) processors, systems on chip (SoCs), baseband processors, field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), state machines, gating logic, discrete hardware circuits, and other suitable hardware configured to perform the various functions described throughout this disclosure. One or more processors in a processing system may execute software. Software should be broadly interpreted as instructions, instruction sets, codes, code segments, program codes, programs, subroutines, software components, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable files, execution threads, processes, functions, etc., whether referring to software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description languages, or other.

[0041] Therefore, in one or more example embodiments, the functions described may be implemented in hardware, software, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, these functions may be stored or encoded as one or more instructions or codes on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media include computer storage media. Storage media may be any available media that a computer can access. As an example and not limitation, such computer-readable media may include random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage, other magnetic storage devices, a combination of computer-readable media of the above types, or any other medium that can be used to store computer executable code in the form of instructions or data structures that can be accessed by a computer.

[0042] The following description provides examples, rather than limiting the scope, applicability, or examples set forth in the claims. Changes may be made to the functions and arrangements of the elements discussed without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Various processes or components may be omitted, substituted, or added to each example as appropriate. For example, the method described herein may be performed in an order different from that described, and various steps may be added, omitted, or combined. In addition, features described with respect to some examples may be combined in other examples.

[0043] Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure relate to communication beam selection and management in a communication system, wherein a first UE (also referred to as an initiating UE) and a second UE (also referred to as a target UE) establish a direct communication link between them. Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure relate to communication beam selection and management in a mmW communication system, wherein a beamforming system is used to establish a communication link between communication devices. The communication devices may be coupled to the same or different base stations. In an exemplary embodiment, the base station and the UE, and / or the first and second UE may communicate using a directional communication beam.

[0044] In an exemplary embodiment, a first UE and a second UE may communicate with respective first and second base stations. The base stations may be capable of LTE communications and / or mmW communications. In an exemplary embodiment, one or more base stations may be 5G base stations, also referred to as gNodeBs (gNBs). Due to the dynamic characteristics of the communication channel due to device movement, interference, and other dynamic parameters, the directional communication beam used by a UE to communicate directly with another UE may change over time. In addition, the characteristics of the directional communication beam may change over time, so it is desirable to have a method for establishing and maintaining a direct communication link between communication devices.

[0045] Figure 1 An example of a wireless communication system 100 according to various aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The wireless communication system 100 includes a base station 105, a UE 115, and a core network 130. The core network 130 can provide user authentication, access authorization, tracking, Internet Protocol (IP) connection, and other access, routing or mobility functions. The base station 105 interfaces with the core network 130 through a first set of backhaul links 132 (e.g., S1, etc.) and can perform radio configuration and scheduling for communication with the UE 115, or can operate under the control of a base station controller (not shown). In various examples, the base stations 105 can communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., through the core network 130) on a second set of backhaul links 134 (e.g., X1, etc.), and the second backhaul link set 134 can be a wired or wireless communication link.

[0046] Each base station site can provide communication coverage for a corresponding geographic coverage area 110. In some examples, the base station 105 can be referred to as a base transceiver station, a radio base station, an access point, a radio transceiver, a Node B, an evolved Node B (eNB), a Home Node B, a Home Evolved Node B, a gNodeB, or some other appropriate terminology. The geographic coverage area 110 of the base station 105 can be divided into sectors (not shown) that constitute only a portion of the coverage area. The wireless communication system 100 may include different types of base stations 105 (e.g., macro cell base stations and / or small cell base stations). For different technologies, there may be overlapping geographic coverage areas 110.

[0047] In some examples, the wireless communication system 100 may be one or more of an LTE / LTE-A network and a 5G network. In an LTE / LTE-A network, the term evolved Node B (eNB) may be generally used to describe the base station 105, or in a 5G (also referred to as a new radio (NR)) network, the term millimeter wave B (mWB) or gNodeB (gNB) may be generally used to describe the base station 105, and the term UE may be generally used to describe the UE 115. The wireless communication system 100 may be a heterogeneous LTE / LTE-A and 5G network, where different types of eNBs and / or mWBs provide coverage for various geographic areas. For example, each eNB, mWB, gNB, or base station 105 may provide communication coverage for a macro cell, a small cell, and / or other types of cells. The term "cell" is a 3GPP term that may be used to describe a base station, a carrier or component carrier associated with a base station, or a coverage area (e.g., a sector, etc.) of a carrier or base station, depending on the context. In some examples, the wireless communication system 100 may be or may include a millimeter wave (mmW) communication network.

[0048] A macro cell typically covers a relatively large geographic area (e.g., a radius of several kilometers) and may allow unrestricted access to UEs with service subscriptions to a network provider. Compared to a macro cell, a small cell is a lower power base station that may operate in the same or different frequency bands (e.g., licensed, unlicensed, etc.) as a macro cell. According to various examples, a small cell may include a pico cell, a femto cell, and a micro cell. A pico cell may cover a relatively small geographic area and may allow unrestricted access to UEs with service subscriptions to a network provider. A femto cell may also cover a relatively small geographic area (e.g., a residence) and may provide restricted access to UEs associated with a femto cell (e.g., UEs in a closed subscriber group (CSG), UEs of users in the residence, etc.). An eNB for a macro cell may be referred to as a macro eNB. An eNB for a small cell may be referred to as a small cell eNB, a pico eNB, a femto eNB, or a home eNB. An eNB may support one or more (e.g., two, three, four, etc.) cells (e.g., component carriers).

[0049] The wireless communication system 100 may support synchronous or asynchronous operation. For synchronous operation, the base stations 105 may have similar frame timing, and transmissions from different base stations may be approximately aligned in time. For asynchronous operation, the base stations 105 may have different frame timing, and transmissions from different base stations may not be aligned in time.

[0050] A communication network that can accommodate some of the various examples disclosed can be a packet-based network that operates according to a layered protocol stack. In the user plane, the communication at the bearer or packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer can be IP-based. The radio link control (RLC) layer can perform packet segmentation and reassembly to communicate on a logical channel. The medium access control (MAC) layer can perform priority processing and multiplexing of logical channels to transport channels. The MAC layer can also use hybrid ARQ (HARQ) to provide retransmission at the MAC layer to improve link efficiency. In the control plane, the radio resource control (RRC) protocol layer can provide the establishment, configuration and maintenance of an RRC connection (which supports radio bearers for user plane data) between UE 115 and base station 105 or core network 130. At the physical (PHY) layer, transport channels can be mapped to physical channels.

[0051] UE 115 is dispersed throughout the wireless communication system 100, and each UE 115 may be fixed or mobile. UE 115 may also include or be referred to as a mobile station, user station, mobile unit, user unit, wireless unit, remote unit, mobile device, wireless device, wireless communication device, remote device, mobile user station, access terminal, mobile terminal, wireless terminal, remote terminal, handheld device, user agent, mobile client, client or some other appropriate terminology by those skilled in the art. UE 115 may be a cellular phone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a wireless modem, a wireless communication device, a handheld device, a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a cordless phone, a wireless local loop (WLL) station, a vehicle, a drone, an autonomous vehicle, an Internet of Things (IoT) device, a factory automation device, etc. UE 115 is capable of communicating with various types of base stations and network devices (including macro eNBs, small cell eNBs, gNBs, mWBs, relay base stations, etc.). UE 115 is also capable of communicating with other UEs within or outside the same coverage area of ​​a base station via D2D communication. A UE 115a coupled to a particular base station 105a may be able to communicate directly with another UE 115b coupled to a different base station 105b, such exemplary communication link being illustrated as communication link 127. In an alternative exemplary embodiment, a UE 115c coupled to a particular base station 105a may be able to communicate directly with another UE 115a coupled to the same base station 105a, such exemplary communication link being illustrated as communication link 129.

[0052] In some examples, UE 115 may be served by multiple base stations. For example, UE 115a may be served by base station 105a and base station 105b. In an exemplary embodiment, base station 105a may be referred to as a primary base station and coverage area 110a may be referred to as a primary cell (PCell); base station 105b may be referred to as a secondary base station and coverage area 110b may be referred to as a secondary cell (SCell). In such an example, base station 105a may be referred to as a primary gNB (MgNB) and base station 105b may be referred to as a secondary gNB (SgNB). However, in alternative exemplary embodiments, any base station 105 may be a MgNB and / or an SgNB. In such an example, UE 115a and UE 115b may be served by one or more of base station 105a (MgNB) and base station 105b (SgNB). In the exemplary embodiment shown, UE 115a can be served by both base station 105a (MgNB) and base station 105b (SgNB), and UE 115b can be served by base station 105b (SgNB).

[0053] The wireless communication link 125 shown in the wireless communication system 100 may include an uplink (UL) transmission from the UE 115 to the base station 105, and / or a downlink (DL) transmission from the base station 105 to the UE 115. Downlink transmission may also be referred to as forward link transmission, and uplink transmission may also be referred to as reverse link transmission. Each communication link 125 may include one or more carriers, wherein each carrier may be a signal (e.g., a waveform signal of different frequencies) composed of multiple subcarriers modulated according to the above-mentioned various radio technologies. Each modulated signal may be sent on a different subcarrier and may carry control information (e.g., reference signal, control channel, etc.), overhead information, user data, etc. The communication link 125 may use FDD operation (e.g., using paired spectrum resources) or TDD operation (e.g., using unpaired spectrum resources) to transmit bidirectional communications. A frame structure for FDD (e.g., frame structure type 1) and a frame structure for TDD (e.g., frame structure type 2) may be defined. Direct communication between UEs 115 may also be completed on the communication link 127.

[0054] In some examples, base station 105 and / or UE 115 may include multiple antennas for employing antenna diversity schemes to improve communication quality and reliability between base station 105 and UE 115. Additionally or alternatively, base station 105 and / or UE 115 may employ multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) technology, which may utilize a multipath environment to transmit multiple spatial layers carrying the same or different coded data.

[0055] The modulation and multiple access schemes adopted by the communication system 100 can vary depending on the specific telecommunication standard being deployed. In LTE applications, OFDM is used on the DL and SC-FDMA is used on the UL to support both frequency division duplex (FDD) and time division duplex (TDD). As will be readily appreciated by those skilled in the art from the detailed description below, the various concepts presented herein are well suited for LTE and 5G applications. However, these concepts can be easily extended to other telecommunication standards that employ other modulation and multiple access technologies. For example, these concepts can be extended to Evolution Data Optimized (EV-DO), Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), or other modulation and multiple access technologies. EV-DO and UMB are air interface standards promulgated by the Third Generation Partnership Project 2 (3GPP2) as part of the CDMA2000 family of standards, and employ CDMA to provide broadband Internet access to mobile stations. These concepts can also be extended to Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA) using Wideband CDMA (W-CDMA) and other CDMA variants (such as TD-SCDMA); Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) using TDMA; and Evolved UTRA (E-UTRA) using OFDMA, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20, and Flash-OFDM. UTRA, E-UTRA, UMTS, LTE, and GSM are described in documents organized by the 3GPP organization. CDMA2000 and UMB are described in documents organized by the 3GPP2 organization. The actual wireless communication standard and multiple access technology adopted will depend on the specific application and the overall design constraints imposed on the system.

[0056] The base station 105 may have multiple antennas that support MIMO technology. The use of MIMO technology enables the base station 105 to utilize the spatial domain to support spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and transmit diversity. Spatial multiplexing can be used to transmit different data streams simultaneously on the same frequency. These data streams can be sent to a single UE 115 to increase the data rate or to multiple UEs 115 to increase the overall system capacity. This is achieved by spatially precoding each data stream (i.e., applying amplitude and phase scaling) and then transmitting each spatially precoded stream on the DL through multiple transmission antennas. The spatially precoded data streams arrive at the UE 115 with different spatial signatures, which enables each of the UEs 115 to recover one or more data streams destined for the UE 115. On the UL, each UE 115 sends a spatially precoded data stream, which enables the base station 105 to identify the source of each spatially precoded data stream.

[0057] Spatial multiplexing is typically used when channel conditions are good. When channel conditions are poor, beamforming can be used to focus the transmission energy in one or more directions. This can be achieved by spatially precoding the data for transmission over multiple antennas. To achieve good coverage at the cell edge, single-stream beamforming transmissions can be used in conjunction with transmit diversity.

[0058] In the detailed description that follows, various aspects of the access network will be described with reference to a MIMO system that supports OFDM on the DL. OFDM is a spread spectrum technique that modulates data onto multiple subcarriers within an OFDM symbol. The subcarriers are separated at precise frequencies. This separation provides "orthogonality" that enables the receiver to recover the data from the subcarriers. In the time domain, a guard interval (e.g., a cyclic prefix) may be added to each OFDM symbol to combat inter-OFDM symbol interference. The UL may use SC-FDMA in the form of a DFT-spread OFDM signal to compensate for high peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR).

[0059] Figure 2 200 is a diagram showing an example of a DL frame structure in LTE. A frame (10ms) can be divided into 10 subframes of equal size. Each subframe can include two consecutive time slots. A resource grid can be used to represent two time slots, each time slot including a resource block. The resource grid is divided into multiple resource elements. In LTE, for a normal cyclic prefix, a resource block contains 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and 7 consecutive OFDM symbols in the time domain, for a total of 84 resource elements. For an extended cyclic prefix, a resource block contains 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and 6 consecutive OFDM symbols in the time domain, for a total of 72 resource elements. In other exemplary communication systems, such as 5G or NR communication systems, other numbers of subcarriers in the frequency domain and symbols in the time domain (providing other numbers of resource elements) are possible. Some resource elements represented as R 202, 204 include DL reference signals (DL-RS). DL-RS includes cell-specific RS (CRS) (sometimes also referred to as common RS) 202 and UE-specific RS (UE-RS) 204. UE-RS 204 is transmitted on the resource blocks mapped by the corresponding physical DL shared channel (PDSCH). The number of bits carried by each resource element depends on the modulation scheme. Therefore, the more resource blocks the UE receives and the higher the modulation scheme, the higher the data rate of the UE.

[0060] Figure 3300 is a diagram showing an example of a UL frame structure in LTE. The available resource blocks of the UL may be divided into a data segment and a control segment. The control segment may be formed at two edges of the system bandwidth and may have a configurable size. The resource blocks in the control segment may be allocated to a UE for transmission of control information. The data segment may include all resource blocks not included in the control segment. The UL frame structure results in the data segment including contiguous subcarriers, which may allow a single UE to be allocated all contiguous subcarriers in the data segment.

[0061] The UE may be allocated resource blocks 310a, 310b in the control section to transmit control information to the eNB / gNB. The UE may also be allocated resource blocks 320a, 320b in the data section to transmit data to the eNB / gNB. The UE may transmit control information in a physical UL control channel (PUCCH) on resource blocks allocated in the control section. The UE may transmit data or both data and control information in a physical UL shared channel (PUSCH) on resource blocks allocated in the data section. UL transmissions may span two slots of a subframe and may hop across frequency.

[0062] A set of resource blocks can be used to perform initial system access and achieve UL synchronization in a physical random access channel (PRACH) 330. PRACH 330 carries a random sequence and cannot carry any UL data / signaling. Each random access preamble occupies a bandwidth corresponding to six consecutive resource blocks. The starting frequency is specified by the network. That is, the transmission of the random access preamble code is limited to a specific time-frequency resource. There is no frequency hopping in PRACH. PRACH attempts to be carried in a single subframe (1ms) or a sequence of several consecutive subframes, and the UE can make a PRACH attempt once per frame (10ms).

[0063] Figure 4 400 is a diagram illustrating an example of a radio protocol architecture for a user plane and a control plane in LTE in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The radio protocol architecture for the UE and the eNB is shown as three layers: Layer 1, Layer 3, and Layer 3. Layer 1 (L1 layer) is the lowest layer and implements various physical layer signal processing functions. The L1 layer will be referred to herein as the physical layer 406. Layer 2 (L2 layer) 408 is above the physical layer 406 and is responsible for the link between the UE and the eNB above the physical layer 406.

[0064] In the user plane, the L2 layer 408 includes a medium access control (MAC) sublayer 410, a radio link control (RLC) sublayer 412, and a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) sublayer 414, which terminate at the eNB on the network side. Although not shown, the UE may have several upper layers above the L2 layer 408, including a network layer (e.g., an IP layer) terminated at a packet data network (PDN) gateway on the network side and an application layer terminated at the other end of the connection (e.g., a remote UE, a server, etc.).

[0065] The PDCP sublayer 414 provides multiplexing between different radio bearers and logical channels. The PDCP sublayer 414 also provides header compression for upper layer data packets to reduce radio transmission overhead, provides security by encrypting data packets, and provides support for UE switching between eNBs. The RLC sublayer 412 provides segmentation and reassembly of upper layer data packets, retransmission of lost data packets, and reordering of data packets to compensate for out-of-order reception due to hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ). The MAC sublayer 410 provides multiplexing between logical channels and transport channels. The MAC sublayer 410 is also responsible for allocating various radio resources (e.g., resource blocks) in a cell between UEs. The MAC sublayer 410 is also responsible for HARQ operations.

[0066] In the control plane, the radio protocol architecture of the UE and the eNB is basically the same for the physical layer 406 and the L2 layer 408, except that the control plane does not have a header compression function. The control plane also includes a radio resource control (RRC) sublayer 416 in layer 3 (L3 layer). The RRC sublayer 416 is responsible for obtaining radio resources (e.g., radio bearers) and for configuring lower layers using RRC signaling between the eNB and the UE.

[0067] In an exemplary embodiment, at least the MAC sublayer 410, the RLC sublayer 412, and the PHY layer 406 may be configured to perform UE-to-UE signaling and communication. In addition, the MAC sublayer 410, the RLC sublayer 412, and the PHY layer 406 may also be configured to perform UE-to-base station signaling and communication, which is described herein as part of configuring a UE for direct beam search and for performing direct beam search with another UE.

[0068] Figure 5is a block diagram of an eNB / gNB 510 communicating with a UE 550 in an access network in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. In the DL, upper layer packets from the core network are provided to the controller / processor 575. The controller / processor 575 implements the functions of the L2 layer. In the DL, the controller / processor 575 provides header compression, ciphering, packet segmentation and reordering, multiplexing between logical and transport channels, and radio resource allocation to the UE 550 based on various priority metrics. The controller / processor 575 is also responsible for HARQ operations, retransmission of lost packets, and signaling to the UE 550.

[0069] The transmit (TX) processor 516 implements various signal processing functions for the L1 layer (i.e., the physical layer). The signal processing functions include coding and interleaving to facilitate forward error correction (FEC) at the UE 550 and mapping to signal constellations based on various modulation schemes (e.g., binary phase shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), M-phase shift keying (M-PSK), M-quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM)). The coded and modulated symbols are then divided into parallel streams. Each stream is then mapped to an OFDM subcarrier, multiplexed with a reference signal (e.g., pilot) in the time domain and / or frequency domain, and then combined together using an inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) to produce a physical channel carrying a time domain OFDM symbol stream. The OFDM stream is spatially precoded to produce multiple spatial streams. Channel estimates from the channel estimator 574 can be used to determine the coding and modulation schemes, as well as for spatial processing. The channel estimate can be derived from a reference signal (RS) sent by the UE 550 and / or channel condition feedback. Each spatial stream may then be provided via a separate transmitter 518TX to a different antenna 520. Each transmitter 518TX may modulate a radio frequency (RF) carrier with a corresponding spatial stream for transmission.

[0070] At the UE 550, each receiver 554RX receives a signal through its respective antenna 552. Each receiver 554RX recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to a receive (RX) processor 556. The RX processor 556 implements various signal processing functions of various L1 layers. The RX processor 556 can perform spatial processing on the information to recover any spatial stream destined for the UE 550. If multiple spatial streams are destined for the UE 550, the RX processor 556 can combine them into a single OFDM symbol stream. The RX processor 556 then converts the OFDM symbol stream from the time domain to the frequency domain using a fast Fourier transform (FFT). The frequency domain signal includes a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. The symbols and reference signals on each subcarrier are recovered and demodulated by determining the most likely signal constellation point sent by the eNB / gNB 510. These soft decisions can be based on channel estimates calculated by the channel estimator 558. These soft decisions are then decoded and deinterleaved to recover the data and control signals originally transmitted on the physical channel by the eNB / gNB 510. These data and control signals are then provided to the controller / processor 559.

[0071] The controller / processor 559 implements the L2 layer. The controller / processor may be associated with a memory 560 that stores program codes and data. The memory 560 may be referred to as a computer-readable medium. In the UL, the controller / processor 559 provides demultiplexing, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing between transport channels and logical channels to recover upper layer packets from the core network. The upper layer packets are then provided to a data sink 562, which represents all protocol layers above the L2 layer. Various control signals may also be provided to the data sink 562 for L3 processing. The controller / processor 559 is also responsible for error detection using an acknowledgement (ACK) and / or negative acknowledgement (NACK) protocol to support HARQ operations.

[0072] In the UL, a data source 567 is used to provide upper layer packets to the controller / processor 559. The data source 567 represents all protocol layers above the L2 layer. Similar to the functionality described in conjunction with the DL transmissions of the eNB / gNB 510, the controller / processor 559 implements the L2 layers for the user plane and control plane by providing header compression, ciphering, packet segmentation and reordering, and multiplexing between logical channels and transport channels based on radio resource allocations made by the eNB / gNB 510. The controller / processor 559 is also responsible for HARQ operations, retransmission of lost packets, and signaling to the eNB / gNB 510.

[0073] Channel estimates derived by the channel estimator 558 from a reference signal or feedback sent by the eNB / gNB 510 may be used by the TX processor 568 to select the appropriate coding and modulation schemes and to facilitate spatial processing. The spatial streams generated by the TX processor 568 may be provided to different antennas 552 via separate transmitters 554TX. Each transmitter 554TX may modulate an RF carrier with a corresponding spatial stream for transmission.

[0074] The UL transmission is processed at the eNB / gNB 510 in a manner similar to that described in conjunction with the receiver functionality at the UE 550. Each receiver 518RX receives a signal through its respective antenna 520. Each receiver 518RX recovers information modulated onto an RF carrier and provides the information to a RX processor 570. The RX processor 570 may implement the L1 layer.

[0075] The controller / processor 575 implements the L2 layer. The controller / processor 575 may be associated with a memory 576 that stores program codes and data. The memory 576 may be referred to as a computer-readable medium. In the UL, the controller / processor 575 provides demultiplexing between transport signals and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover upper layer packets from the UE 550. The upper layer packets from the controller / processor 575 may be provided to the core network. The controller / processor 575 is also responsible for error detection using ACK and / or NACK protocols to support HARQ operations.

[0076] In an exemplary embodiment, the methods described herein may be performed by a controller / processor 575 and a memory 576 in an eNB / gNB 510, and / or by a controller / processor 559 and a memory 560 in a UE 550.

[0077] Figure 6 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a base station 105 having a processor including executable code and a memory according to various aspects of the present disclosure. The base station may be Figure 1 Base station 105 or Figure 5 5G (mmW) communications. In an exemplary embodiment, the base station 105 may include a 5G circuit system 630 and other communication circuit systems (not shown). For ease of description, some operating elements of the 5G circuit system 630 may be omitted and are known to those of ordinary skill in the art.

[0078] The base station 105 may generally include components for two-way voice and data communications, including components for sending communications and components for receiving communications. The base station 105 may include an antenna 612 coupled to a 5G circuit system 630. The antenna 612 may include one or more antenna elements, may include an array or phased array of antenna elements, and may include one or more directional and / or omnidirectional antenna elements, which may be controlled individually or in groups of two or more elements. The 5G circuit system 630 may be configured to establish a communication channel with a device such as a UE 115 (not shown). In an exemplary embodiment, the communication channel may include a service beam 644 and one or more target beams 646. As used herein, the term "service beam" refers to a communication beam currently used for communication, and the term "target beam" refers to a communication beam that is available for communication but is not currently used for communication.

[0079] The 5G circuit system 630 may include a baseband system 632 and a radio frequency integrated circuit (RFIC) 633 operably coupled together via a bidirectional connection 638. The baseband system 632 may include a processor 636, a memory 637 (including software (SW) 639), and a direct beam search / management module 610, which may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., via one or more buses 635).

[0080] RFIC 633 may include an intermediate frequency (IF) subsystem 626 and a transceiver module 628 operably coupled together via a bidirectional connection 641. RFIC 633 may include one or more digital components and one or more analog components, such as phase shifters, switches, or other components configured for beamforming. In an exemplary embodiment, transceiver module 628 may be configured to communicate via millimeter wave (mmW) frequencies. As described above, transceiver module 628 may communicate bidirectionally with one or more networks via antenna 612 and / or one or more wired or wireless links. For example, transceiver module 628 may communicate bidirectionally with base station 105 and directly with UE 115 (not shown). When switching from one communication beam to another communication beam, one or more analog components in transceiver module 628 may be used. In an exemplary embodiment, it may be desirable that a first UE 115a coupled to a first base station 105a communicates directly with a second UE 115b coupled to a second base station 105b.

[0081] The transceiver module 628 may include a modem to modulate packets and provide the modulated packets to the antenna 612 for transmission, and demodulate packets received from the antenna 612. Although the base station 105 may include a single antenna 612, the base station 105 may have multiple antennas capable of simultaneously sending and / or receiving multiple wireless transmissions via carrier aggregation techniques, for example. The transceiver module 628 is capable of communicating with one or more UEs 115 simultaneously via multiple component carriers. Although omitted for clarity, the base station 105 may also include a backhaul link 134 ( Figure 1 ) has the communication capability to communicate with other base stations. Figure 6 Some elements of UE 115 are similar to or Figure 5 6. Some elements of eNB / gNB 510 of the present invention or represent examples thereof. For example, antenna 612 may be similar to antenna 520; RF IC 633 may include components similar to transmitter 518TX and receiver 518RX; memory 639 may be similar to memory 576; and processor 636 may be similar to controller / processor 575.

[0082] The base station 105 may include a direct beam search / management module 610 that may perform the direct beam search and / or management functions described herein. In an exemplary embodiment, the direct beam search / management module 610 may be configured to cooperate with the processor 636 and the memory 637 to allow the base station 105 to communicate with the UE 115 and another base station 105 to schedule resources that allow the UE 115 to perform a direct beam search with another UE 115 that may be coupled to a different base station 105.

[0083] In an exemplary embodiment, the direct beam searching / management module 610 may include direct beam searching notification logic 652 configured to process a direct beam searching request received from the UE 115. In an exemplary embodiment, the direct beam searching / management module 610 may also include direct beam searching scheduling logic 654 and direct beam search result relaying and processing logic 656.

[0084] In an exemplary embodiment, the direct beam search scheduling logic 654 may be configured to schedule communication beams and / or time-frequency communication resources for use by the UE for direct beam search with another UE. In an exemplary embodiment, the direct beam search scheduling logic 654 may also be configured to schedule communication beams and / or time-frequency communication resources for use by the UE for direct link communication with another UE after performing the direct beam search.

[0085] As used herein, the term "direct beam search" refers to a process in which a first communication device (e.g., a first user device) and a second communication device (e.g., a second user device) discover a communication beam that can be used for direct communication between the first and second communication devices. The terms "direct link communication" and "direct communication link" may refer to two communication devices discovered during a direct beam search process communicating directly with each other via one or more communication beams.

[0086] In an exemplary embodiment, the direct beam search result relay and processing logic 656 may be configured to allow the base station 105 to receive and process a direct beam search report with direct beam search results sent by the UE 115. In an exemplary embodiment, the direct beam search result relay and processing logic 656 may also be configured to relay the direct beam search results to another base station 105 and / or another UE 115; and coordinate direct link communications between the first communication device and the second communication device with another base station.

[0087] Despite Figure 6 636, but instructions associated with the logic elements in the direct beam search / management module 610 may be stored in part or in whole in the memory 637 for execution by the processor 636. The logic elements in the direct beam search / management module 610 may be software, firmware, or a combination of software and firmware configured and executed by the processor 636 to perform the functions described herein.

[0088] The memory 637 may include random access memory (RAM) and read-only memory (ROM). The memory 637 may store computer-readable, computer-executable software / firmware code 639 containing instructions that, when executed, cause the processor 636 to perform various functions described herein (e.g., perform synchronization operations, synchronize reference timing parameters, beam switching operations, etc.). Alternatively, the computer-readable, computer-executable software / firmware code 639 may not be directly executable by the processor 636, but instead causes the computer (e.g., when compiled and executed) to perform the functions described herein. The processor 636 may include an intelligent hardware device, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc.

[0089] Although in Figure 6 637, it is understood by those skilled in the art that such logic elements are generated by the operation of the processor 636 according to conventional computing device principles. That is, software, firmware, or a combination of software and firmware facilitates programming or configuring the processing system represented by such logic elements. Although the memory 637 is not referred to in detail for clarity, Figure 6637 may be of any suitable type and may have any suitable structure, such as one or more modules, chips, etc. Similarly, although processor 636 is not shown in FIG. Figure 6 636 is depicted as a single or unitary element, but the processor 636 may be of any suitable type and may have any suitable structure, such as one or more modules, chips, etc. For example, the processor 636 may include one or more microprocessors or microcontrollers. Some or all of the aforementioned processing system elements may be provided in, for example, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or other integrated digital device. It should be understood that the combination of the memory 637 and the above modules or software, firmware, instructions, etc. stored in the memory 637 in a non-temporary computer-readable form at the bottom of the logic element defines a "computer program product", as the term is generally understood in the patent dictionary. In view of the description herein, those skilled in the art will be easily able to provide suitable software or firmware, or otherwise configure the base station 105 to operate in the manner described. In addition, although the effects of each of the above-mentioned logic elements are described herein, it should be understood that the effect may be produced by the synergistic effect of two or more logic elements, or by the effect of the logic element and the conventional switch logic element or other software, hardware or network element (not shown for clarity).

[0090] Figure 7 It is a diagram showing various aspects of the present disclosure (for example, Fig.12 , 17 , 21) with a processor and a memory including executable code. The UE may be Figure 1 UE 115 or Figure 5 UE 115 may include 5G circuit system 730 and other communication circuit systems (not shown). For ease of description, some operating elements of 5G circuit system 730 may be omitted and are known to those of ordinary skill in the art.

[0091] The UE 115 may generally include components for two-way voice and data communications, including components for sending communications and components for receiving communications. The UE 115 may include an antenna 712 coupled to a 5G circuit system 730. The antenna 712 may include one or more antenna elements, may include an array of antenna elements or a phased array, and may include one or more directional and / or omnidirectional antenna elements, which may be controllable individually or in groups of two or more elements. The 5G circuit system 730 may be configured to establish a 5G communication channel with a device such as a base station 105 (not shown) or another UE 115 (not shown). In an exemplary embodiment, the communication channel may include a service beam 644 and one or more target beams 646, as described herein.

[0092] The 5G circuit system 730 may include a baseband system 732 and a radio frequency integrated circuit (RFIC) 733 operably coupled together via a bidirectional connection 738. The baseband system 732 may include a processor 736, a memory 737 (including software (SW) 739), and a direct beam search / management module 710, which may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., via one or more buses 735).

[0093] RFIC 733 may include an intermediate frequency (IF) subsystem 726 and a transceiver module 728 operably coupled together via a bidirectional connection 741. RFIC 733 may include one or more digital components and one or more analog components, such as phase shifters, switches, or other components configured for beamforming. In an exemplary embodiment, transceiver module 728 may be configured to communicate via millimeter wave (mmW) frequencies. As described above, transceiver module 728 may communicate bidirectionally with one or more networks via antenna 712 and / or one or more wired or wireless links. For example, transceiver module 728 may communicate bidirectionally with base station 105 and directly with UE 115 (not shown). When switching from one communication beam to another communication beam, one or more analog components in transceiver module 728 may be used. In an exemplary embodiment, it may be desirable for UE 115 coupled to a particular base station 105 to communicate directly with another UE 115 coupled to a different base station 105.

[0094] The transceiver module 728 may include a modem to modulate packets and provide the modulated packets to the antenna 712 for transmission, and to demodulate packets received from the antenna 712. Although the UE 115 may include a single antenna 712, the UE 115 may have multiple antennas capable of simultaneously sending and / or receiving multiple wireless transmissions via carrier aggregation techniques, for example. The transceiver module 728 may be capable of communicating with one or more base stations 105 and / or UEs 115 simultaneously via multiple component carriers. Figure 7 Some components of UE115 are similar to Figure 5 5. Some elements of UE 550 of the present invention are shown or represent examples thereof. For example, antenna 712 may be similar to antenna 552; RF IC 733 may include components similar to transmitter 554TX and receiver 554RX; memory 739 may be similar to memory 560; and processor 736 may be similar to controller / processor 559.

[0095] The UE 115 may include a direct beam search / management module 710 that may perform the direct beam search and / or management functions described herein. In an exemplary embodiment, the direct beam search / management module 710 may be configured to cooperate with the processor 736 and the memory 737 to allow the UE 115 to communicate with the base station 105 and with another UE 115 to allow the subject UE 115 to perform direct beam search with the other UE 115, which may be proximate to the subject UE and may be coupled to a base station different from the base station to which the subject UE is coupled.

[0096] In an exemplary embodiment, the direct beam search / management module 710 may include direct beam search notification logic 752 configured to send a request to the base station 105 to perform a direct beam search with another UE. The direct beam search / management module 710 may also include direct beam search scheduling logic 754, direct beam search execution logic 756, and direct beam search result processing logic 758.

[0097] In an exemplary embodiment, the direct beam searching scheduling logic 754 may be configured to receive direct beam searching scheduling information from the base station 105, such as information regarding communication beams and / or time-frequency communication resources, to allow the UE 115 to have resources for performing direct beam searching with another UE.

[0098] In an exemplary embodiment, the direct beam searching performance logic 756 may be configured to allow a UE 115 to perform a direct beam searching with another UE 115 .

[0099] In an exemplary embodiment, the direct beam search result processing logic 758 may be configured to allow the UE 115 to generate direct beam search results and report the direct beam search results to the base station 105 .

[0100] Despite Figure 7Although illustrated as separate logic elements in the direct beam search / management module 710, instructions associated with the logic elements in the direct beam search / management module 710 may be stored in part or in whole in the memory 737 for execution by the processor 736. The logic elements in the direct beam search / management module 710 may be software, firmware, or a combination of software and firmware configured and executed by the processor 736 to perform the functions described herein.

[0101] The memory 737 may include random access memory (RAM) and read-only memory (ROM). The memory 737 may store computer-readable, computer-executable software / firmware code 739 containing instructions that, when executed, cause the processor 736 to perform various functions described herein (e.g., perform synchronization operations, synchronize reference timing parameters, beam switching operations, etc.). Alternatively, the computer-readable, computer-executable software / firmware code 739 may not be directly executable by the processor 736, but instead causes the computer (e.g., when compiled and executed) to perform the functions described herein. The processor 736 may include an intelligent hardware device, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), etc.

[0102] Although in Figure 7 737, it is understood by those skilled in the art that such logic elements are generated by the operation of the processor 736 according to conventional computing device principles. That is, software, firmware, or a combination of software and firmware facilitates programming or configuring the processing system represented by such logic elements. Although the memory 737 is not shown in FIG. 737 for clarity, it is not intended to be confused with the memory 737 in FIG. 737. Figure 7 737 is depicted as a single or unitary element, but the memory 737 may be of any suitable type and may have any suitable structure, such as one or more modules, chips, etc. Similarly, although the processor 736 is shown in FIG. Figure 7736 is depicted as a single or unitary element, but the processor 736 may be of any suitable type and may have any suitable structure, such as one or more modules, chips, etc. For example, the processor 736 may include one or more microprocessors or microcontrollers. Some or all of the aforementioned processing system elements may be provided in, for example, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or other integrated digital device. It should be understood that the combination of the memory 737 and the above modules or software, firmware, instructions, etc. stored in the memory 737 in a non-transitory computer-readable form at the bottom of the logic element defines a "computer program product", as the term is generally understood in patent dictionaries. In view of the description herein, a person skilled in the art will be easily able to provide suitable software or firmware, or otherwise configure the UE 115 to operate in the manner described. In addition, although the effects of each of the above-mentioned logic elements are described herein, it should be understood that the effect may be produced by the synergistic effect of two or more logic elements, or by the effect of the logic element and a conventional switch logic element, or other software, hardware or network element (not shown for clarity).

[0103] Figure 8 is a diagram of a communication system 800 with device-to-device (D2D) communication capabilities according to various aspects of the present disclosure. The communication system 800 may be composed of Figure 1 The network shown is implemented as shown, and in the exemplary embodiment, the communication system 800 includes a plurality of base stations 802 and 808 and a plurality of wireless devices 804 and 806. The device-to-device communication system 800 may overlap with a cellular communication system (eg, a wireless wide area network (WWAN)).

[0104] In an exemplary embodiment, wireless devices 804 and 806 can communicate with respective base stations 802 and 808, in which exemplary embodiments, base stations 802 and 808 can be gNBs, where the communication link is a mmW communication link. Wireless devices 804 and 806 can communicate directly in a device-to-device (or peer-to-peer) communication manner using DL / UL WWAN spectrum, can communicate with respective base stations 802 and 808, and can communicate with each other. For example, Figure 8 As shown, wireless devices 804 and 806 may communicate with respective base stations 802 and 808, and may also engage in device-to-device communications with each other.

[0105] In an alternative exemplary embodiment, base station 802 and base station 808 need not be capable of mmW communication. In such an example, as long as wireless devices 804 and 806 are capable of mmW communication with each other and with their respective base stations 802 and 808, base station 802 and base station 808 can perform the direct communication coordination described herein.

[0106] In one configuration, one or more of the UEs 804 and 806 may be equipped or located on a vehicle. In such a configuration, the D2D communication system 800 may also be referred to as a vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication system.

[0107] The exemplary methods and apparatus discussed below are applicable to any of a variety of wireless device-to-device communication systems, such as a wireless device-to-device communication system based on FlashLinQ, WiMedia, Bluetooth, ZigBee, or Wi-Fi based on the IEEE 802.11 standard or. To simplify the discussion, the exemplary methods and apparatus are discussed in the context of LTE and 5G. However, those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the exemplary methods and apparatus are more generally applicable to a variety of other wireless device-to-device communication systems.

[0108] Fig. 9 is a diagram 900 illustrating an example of beamforming in a low frequency wireless communication system (eg, LTE). Fig. 9 The antenna array 902 and 904 are included. In an exemplary embodiment, the antenna array 902 may include a plurality of antenna elements (e.g., antenna element 912) arranged in a grid pattern (e.g., a planar array) and may be located at a base station (e.g., Figure 1 and Figure 6 Base station 105 or Figure 5 In an exemplary embodiment, the antenna array 904 may also be referred to as a panel. In an exemplary embodiment, the antenna array 904 may include a plurality of antenna elements (e.g., antenna element 914) arranged in a grid pattern and may be located at a UE (e.g., Figure 1 and Figure 7 UE 115 or Figure 5 UE 550). Fig. 9 As shown, antenna array 902 may transmit beam 906 and antenna array 904 may receive via beam 908. In an exemplary embodiment, beams 906 and 908 may be reflected, scattered, and / or diffracted via a cluster located at region 910.

[0109] Fig.10 is a diagram 1000 illustrating beamforming in a high frequency wireless communication system (eg, a mmW system), which may be used to perform an exemplary embodiment of the direct beam searching described herein. Fig.10 The antenna array 1002 and 1004 are included. In an exemplary embodiment, the antenna array 1002 may include a plurality of antenna elements (eg, antenna element 1012) arranged in a grid pattern and may be located at a mmW base station (eg, Figure 1 and Figure 6 Base station 105 or Figure 5In an exemplary embodiment, the antenna array 1004 may include a plurality of antenna elements (eg, antenna element 1014) arranged in a grid pattern and may be located at a UE (eg, Figure 1 and Figure 7 UE 115 or Figure 5 UE 550). Fig.10 As shown, antenna array 1002 may transmit beam 1006 and antenna array 1004 may receive via beam 1008. In an exemplary embodiment, beams 1006 and 1008 may be reflected, scattered, and / or diffracted by clusters located in area 1010.

[0110] It should be noted that Fig.10 The antenna array 1002 includes Fig. 9 A greater number of antenna elements in the antenna array 902, and Fig.10 The antenna array 1004 includes Fig. 9 The greater number of antenna elements in antenna arrays 1002 and 1004 is due to the greater number of antenna elements in the former case (relative to the latter case) corresponding to a smaller wavelength, which allows a greater number of antennas to be deployed within the same aperture / area. The greater number of antenna elements in antenna arrays 1002 and 1004 allows beams 1006 and 1008 to have a narrow half-power beamwidth, thereby providing a higher angular resolution relative to beams 906 and 908 from antenna arrays 902 and 904. Therefore, a smaller number of antenna elements in antenna arrays 902 and 904 in a low frequency wireless communication system may result in a wider angular resolution while providing a better link margin than a mmW system.

[0111] In an independent mmW wireless communication system, high link losses (due to penetration, diffraction, reflection, etc.) may prevent the discovery of angular information of multipath. In contrast, a low-frequency wireless communication system may provide a link with higher quality (e.g., a link with a higher SNR) than a link in an independent mmW wireless communication system. This higher SNR of the low-frequency wireless communication system and the coexistence of the low-frequency and independent mmW wireless communication systems may be utilized to determine the angular information and / or relative path gain of the beamforming scheme. Since the angular information and / or relative path gain of the beamforming scheme are determined only by the relative geometries of the transmitter, receiver, and scatterer, such angular information and / or relative path gain are generally constant in independent mmW and low-frequency wireless communication systems. Although in some cases the (dominant) ordering of paths may change with changes in carrier frequency (e.g., due to differential scattering and / or absorption losses at different frequencies), in most cases this ordering may not change.

[0112] Fig.111100 is a diagram illustrating a communication system according to various aspects of the present disclosure. The communication system 1100 may include a first UE 1102 and a second UE 1104 that perform a direct beam search. In an exemplary embodiment, the first UE 1102 may be referred to as UE1 and the second UE 1104 may be referred to as UE2. In an exemplary embodiment, the second UE 1104 may initiate multiple transmit (TX) beams 1106 and the first UE 1102 may initiate multiple receive (RX) beams 1108. In an exemplary embodiment, the first UE 1102 and the second UE 1104 perform a direct beam search to discover one or more communication beam pairs (transmit beams and receive beams) on which direct communication can be performed. In an exemplary embodiment, the second UE 1104 may send a beam search signal on one or more TX beams 1106 thereof, and the first UE 1102 may attempt to receive the beam search signal on one or more RX beams 1108 thereof. Once the first UE 1102 receives the beam search signal on one of its RX beams 1108 (e.g., RX beam 1112), the first UE 1102 will know which TX beam of the TX beams 1106 (e.g., TX beam 1114) sent the search signal. In the exemplary embodiment, the first UE 1102 will then send a beam search report with the beam search results to the base station 105 (not shown) to which the first UE 1102 is coupled, and the beam search report includes one or more information identifying the TX beam 1114 of the second UE 1104 and the RX beam 1112 of the first UE 1102. In an exemplary embodiment, a transmit beam (such as TX beam 1114) and a receive beam (such as RX beam 1112) can be referred to as a beam pair, and the first UE 1102 and the second UE 1104 can communicate directly through the beam pair. One or more such beam pairs may be identified by the first UE 1102 during a direct beam search process and forwarded to the base station 105 to which the first UE 1102 is coupled. The beam pair selected for direct UE-to-UE communication may change depending on channel conditions, interference, etc. The selection of which UE initiates the TX beam and which UE initiates the RX beam is arbitrary and may be "determined by the base station 105 to which the first UE 1102 and the second UE 1104 are coupled. In an alternative exemplary embodiment, either the first UE 1102 and / or the second UE 1104 may be a transmitting UE and / or a receiving UE for the purpose of performing a beam search.

[0113] Fig.12is a call flow diagram 1200 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. In the exemplary embodiment, the call flow diagram 1200 shows a first UE (UE1) 1202, a second UE (UE2) 1204, a first base station (gNB1) 1206, and a second base station (gNB2) 1208. In an exemplary embodiment, the first UE (UE1) 1202 may be referred to as an "initiating" UE, and the second UE (UE2) 1204 may be referred to as a "target" UE. In an exemplary embodiment, the first base station (gNB1) 1206 may be a serving base station for the first (initiating) UE (UE1) 1202 and the second base station (gNB2) 1208 may be a serving base station for the second (target) UE (UE2) 1204. In another exemplary embodiment, the first base station (gNB1) 1206 and the second base station (gNB2) 1208 may be the same base station (gNB). In this example where the first base station (gNB1) 1206 and the second base station (gNB2) 1208 are the same, the gNB determines the communication beams, resources, etc. for direct beam search. In addition, as used herein, the term "base station" refers to any device that schedules transmissions and / or resources (including communication beams, time-frequency resources, etc.) for any UE served by the base station.

[0114] In an exemplary embodiment, in call 1212, the first UE 1202 sends a request to the first gNB 1206 to establish a direct communication channel with the second UE 1204. In an exemplary embodiment, the request in call 1212 may be made using a MAC control element (MAC-CE) based communication. In an exemplary embodiment, the request in call 1212 may include one or more of the following: direct link communication capabilities of the first UE 1202, the number of potential communication beams that the first UE 1202 can use for direct communication, communication beam characteristics, the number of antennas or antenna arrays or panels available to the first UE 1202, the Tx power of the first UE 1202, and other transmission capabilities of the first UE 1202, an identification (ID) of the second UE 1204, and other information identifying the second gNB 1208 (referred to as the serving gNB of the second UE 1204) in communication with the second UE 1204 (if such identification information is available), or any combination thereof.

[0115] For example, by using a discovery signal sent by the UE, the first UE 1202 may "discover" the second UE 1204, and through this discovery process, may obtain the ID of the second UE 1204, and in some cases, may also obtain the ID of the second gNB 1208. If the first UE 1202 is unable to obtain the ID of the second gNB 1208 through the discovery process with the first UE 1202, the first UE 1202 may query the first gNB 1206 to search for the gNB to which the second UE 1204 is coupled. In an exemplary embodiment, the first gNB 1206 may query the network to obtain the second gNB 1208. The core network 130( Figure 1 ) may provide information about which UE is attached to which gNB and which gNB serves which UE. The core network 130 may then respond to the first gNB 1206 with the ID of the second gNB 1208. In an exemplary embodiment, the number of available communication beams may be one communication beam.

[0116] In call 1214, the first gNB 1206 sends a communication to the second gNB 1208 to initiate a direct beam search between the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204. As an example, the communication in the call 1214 may be sent over the backhaul link 134 using, for example, an X1 communication protocol. The information in the call 1214 may include one or more of an ID of the second UE 1204 and a direct link communication capability of the first UE 1202. The information in the call 1214 may also be used to coordinate scheduling of direct beam search and / or beam management between the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204. If the initial request made by the first UE 1202 in the call 1212 does not include the ID of the second gNB 1208, it is possible for the first gNB 1206 to learn the ID of the second gNB 1208 via the core network 130 or by using one or more backhaul connections (e.g., backhaul link 134) as described above.

[0117] In calls 1216 and 1218, the second gNB 1208 and the second UE 1204 exchange information related to a request made by the first UE 1202 to directly communicate with the second UE 1204. In an exemplary embodiment, the communications in calls 1216 and 1218 may be conducted using MAC control element (MAC-CE) based communications. In calls 1216 and 1218, the second gNB 1208 and the second UE 1204 exchange information related to direct beam searching, such as a request from the first UE 1202 to establish a direct communication link with the second UE 1204, and the capability of the first UE 1202 to perform direct link communications. In call 1218, the information sent by the second UE 1204 to the second gNB 1208 may include: the capability of the second UE 1204 to conduct direct link communication, the number of communication beams that the second UE 1204 can use for direct communication, communication beam characteristics, the number of antennas or the number of antenna arrays or panels available to the second UE 1204, and other transmission capabilities of the second UE 1204, as well as other information, or any combination thereof.

[0118] In calls 1222 and 1224, if the first gNB 1206 and the second gNB 1208 agree to the request for direct UE communication, the first gNB 1206 and the second gNB 1208 exchange messages related to scheduling communication resources that allow the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 to perform direct UE-to-UE beam search. For example, the messages in calls 1222 and 1224 may include scheduling information, such as time-frequency resources that are common to the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 and available for direct beam search between the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204, and a frequency (e.g., periodicity) of how often the direct beam search is performed. The information exchanged between the first gNB 1206 and the second gNB 1208 may also include which communication beams of the communication beams available to the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 are available to the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 for direct beam search. The messages in calls 1222 and 1224 may also include reference signal (RS) information, waveform information, available communication beams, communication beam IDs, beam widths, etc. The messages in calls 1222 and 1224 may also include the sending UE (e.g., Fig.11 The ID of the UE 1104 that will transmit the beam search signal on one or more TX beams 1106, and the receiving UE (e.g., Fig.11The second gNB 1208 may be configured to receive a beam search signal on one or more RX beams 1108 and to receive a beam search signal on one or more RX beams 1108. The selection of the transmitting UE and the receiving UE is arbitrary. In the exemplary embodiment described below, in this example, the second UE 1204 may be the transmitting UE and the first UE 1202 may be the receiving UE for the purpose of direct communication beam searching. In some cases, if the direct UE-to-UE communication link between the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 may cause interference to the communication between the second gNB 1208 and any UE served by the second gNB 1208, the second gNB 1208 may reject the request of the first UE to communicate directly with the second UE.

[0119] In call 1226, the first gNB 1206 communicates with the first UE 1202 to schedule communication beams and / or time-frequency resources for direct beam searching by the first UE 1202. In an exemplary embodiment, the communication in call 1226 may be conducted using MAC control element (MAC-CE) based communication.

[0120] In call 1228, the second gNB 1208 communicates with the second UE 1204 to schedule time-frequency resources for direct beam search by the second UE 1204. In an exemplary embodiment, the communication in call 1228 may be conducted using MAC control element (MAC-CE) based communication. In an exemplary embodiment, the information in calls 1226 and 1228 may include: information identifying one or more communication beams that can be used by the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 to perform direct beam search, scheduling information (e.g., time-frequency resources that are common to the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 and can be used for direct beam search, and the frequency (e.g., periodicity) of performing the direct beam search process. The frequency of performing the direct beam search process may be affected by, for example, communication channel quality, channel interference, whether the first UE 1202 and / or the second UE 1204 are moving, changing channel conditions (e.g., may be caused by the mobility or movement of the first UE 1202 and / or the second UE 1204), or other channel parameters. In an exemplary embodiment, the direct beam search process may be performed once and then may be performed by the UE (e.g., the first UE 1202 and / or the second UE 1204). 1204) dynamically makes a determination based on channel quality, interference, changing channel conditions, or other channel parameters to determine how often to subsequently perform a direct beam search process. Alternatively, the frequency or period for performing the direct beam search process may be scheduled in advance and performed periodically based on the advance schedule. The messages in calls 1222 and 1224 may also include reference signal (RS) information, waveform information, available TX and RX communication beams, communication beam IDs, beam widths, etc. The messages in calls 1222 and 1224 may also include the IDs of the sending UE and the receiving UE, as described herein. In the exemplary embodiment to be described below, in this example, for the purpose of direct communication beam searching, the second UE 1204 will be the sending UE and the first UE 1202 will be the receiving UE.

[0121] In calls 1232 and 1234, the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 perform direct beam searching using the communication beams and / or time-frequency resources previously scheduled in calls 1226 and 1228. In an exemplary embodiment, for example, the communications in calls 1232 and 1234 may be performed using, for example, RRC communications. In an exemplary embodiment, the first UE 1202 generates a direct beam searching report based on the direct beam searching. The beam searching report includes the direct beam search results.

[0122] In an exemplary embodiment, the frequency (e.g., periodicity) with which the direct beam search process may be performed may vary based on a number of factors, such as the quality of a particular communication beam on which the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 will use for direct communication, whether the first UE 1202 and / or the second UE 1204 are moving, channel interference, changing channel conditions, and other factors. In call 1236, the first UE 1202 sends a direct beam search report with direct beam search results to the first gNB 1206. In an exemplary embodiment, the information in call 1236 may include the IDs of one or more of the following: more sending and receiving communication beams that the second UE 1204 and the first UE 1202 may use to establish a direct communication link therebetween. The beams associated with the second UE 1204 may include one or more TX beams 1106 ( Fig.11 ) and one or more RX beams 1108 used by the first UE 1202 during the following period ( Fig.11 ). Direct beam search. These communication beams are identified by the first UE 1202 during the direct beam search, and the beam IDs are forwarded to the first gNB 1206 in call 1236. The information in call 1236 may also include properties of the communication beams that can be used for direct link communication. These properties may include, for example, RSRP (reference signal received power), SINR (signal to interference plus noise ratio), SNR (signal to noise ratio), interference, delay spread, and other beam properties, or any combination thereof. In calls 1238 and 1239, the first gNB 1206 relays a direct beam search report with the direct beam search results provided by the first UE 1202 to the second gNB 1208. The first gNB 1206 and the second gNB 1208 share the information in the relevant combined beam search report to jointly determine the communication beams for the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 to use for direct link communication. In an exemplary embodiment, for each beam that the first UE 1202 can use for direct link communication, there is a corresponding beam that the second UE 1204 should use for direct link communication, forming a beam pair, such as TX beam 1114 and RX beam 1112 ( Fig.11). In call 1240, the first gNB 1206 informs the first UE 1202 which communication beam to use for direct link communication with the second UE 1204. In call 1242, the second gNB 1208 relays a direct beam search report with direct beam search results provided by the first UE 1202 to the second UE 1204, and informs the second UE 1204 which communication beam to use for direct communication with the first UE 1202. In an exemplary embodiment, the communication beam pair to be used for direct link communication between the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 can be the beam pair recommended by the first UE 1202 after performing the direct beam search in call 1232 and 1234. In an alternative exemplary embodiment, the first gNB 1206 and the second gNB 1208 may receive beam search results from the first UE 1202 (call 1236 and call 1238), but then based on a number of factors, may select a beam pair that the beam search results are not recommended by the first UE 1202. In an exemplary embodiment, call 1240 may be optional because if the first gNB 1206 selects the beam pair recommended by the first UE 1202 in call 1236, the first gNB 1206 does not need to notify the first UE 1202 of the beam pair. However, if the first gNB 1206 and the second gNB 1208 select a beam pair different from the beam pair recommended by the first UE 1202, call 1240 may be used to notify the first UE 1202 of the selected beam pair.

[0123] In an exemplary embodiment, the frequency (e.g., periodicity) with which the direct beam search process can be performed can vary based on multiple factors, such as the quality of a particular communication beam that the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 will use for direct communication, whether the first UE 1202 and / or the second UE 1204 are moving, channel interference, changing channel conditions, and other factors.

[0124] In call 1236, the first UE 1202 sends a direct beam search report with direct beam search results to the first gNB 1206. In an exemplary embodiment, the information in call 1236 may include IDs of one or more transmit and receive communication beams that the second UE 1204 and the first UE 1202 can use to establish a direct communication link between them. The beams associated with the second UE 1204 may include one or more TX beams 1106 ( Fig.11 ) and one or more RX beams 1108 used by the first UE 1202 ( Fig.11). These communication beams are identified by the first UE 1202 during the direct beam search, and the beam ID is forwarded to the first gNB 1206 in the call 1236. The information in the call 1236 may also include properties of the communication beams that can be used for direct link communication. These properties may include, for example, RSRP (reference signal received power), SINR (signal to interference plus noise ratio), SNR (signal to noise ratio), interference, delay spread and other beam properties, or any combination thereof.

[0125] In calls 1238 and 1239, the first gNB 1206 relays a direct beam search report with direct beam search results provided by the first UE 1202 to the second gNB 1208. The first gNB 1206 and the second gNB 1208 share relevant information in the beam search report and jointly determine the communication beams used by the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 for direct link communication. In an exemplary embodiment, for each beam that the first UE 1202 can use for direct link communication, there is a corresponding beam that the second UE 1204 should use for direct link communication, and these beams form a beam pair, such as TX beam 1114 and RX beam 1112 ( Fig.11 ).

[0126] In call 1240, the first gNB 1206 informs the first UE 1202 which communication beam will be used for direct link communication with the second UE 1204.

[0127] In call 1242, the second gNB 1208 relays a direct beam search report with direct beam search results provided by the first UE 1202 to the second UE 1204, and informs the second UE 1204 which communication beam will be used for direct communication with the first UE 1202.

[0128] In an exemplary embodiment, the communication beam pair to be used for direct link communication between the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 may be a beam pair recommended by the first UE 1202 after performing direct beam search in calls 1232 and 1234. In an alternative exemplary embodiment, the first gNB 1206 and the second gNB 1208 may receive beam search results (call 1236 and call 1238) from the first UE 1202, but then based on a number of factors, may select a beam pair other than the beam pair recommended by the first UE 1202. In an exemplary embodiment, call 1240 may be optional because if the first gNB 1206 selects the beam pair recommended by the first UE 1202 in call 1236, the first gNB 1206 does not need to notify the first UE 1202 of the beam pair. However, if the first gNB 1206 and the second gNB 1208 select a beam pair that is different from the beam pair recommended by the first UE 1202, call 1240 may be used to notify the first UE 1202 of the selected beam pair.

[0129] In calls 1244 and 1246, the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 perform direct communication using resources scheduled in calls 1240 and 1242 and perform direct communication on the identified communication beam. In an exemplary embodiment, the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 perform direct communication using resources scheduled by the first gNB 1206 and the second gNB 1208. In an exemplary embodiment, the first gNB 1206 and the second gNB 1208 may manage the frequency or period at which the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 perform direct beam search.

[0130] Fig.13 is a flow chart illustrating an example of a method for communication according to various aspects of the present disclosure. The blocks in method 1300 may be performed in the order shown or out of the order shown, and in some embodiments, may be performed at least partially in parallel.

[0131] In block 1302, a first UE requests a direct communication link with a second UE. The request may be forwarded to a first base station 1206 (gNB1) in communication with the first UE 1202. In one example, the first base station 1206 (gNB1) is a serving base station for the first UE 1202.

[0132] In block 1304, the first base station 1206 (gNB1) initiates a direct beam search between the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204. In an exemplary embodiment, the first base station 1206 (gNB1) sends a communication to the second base station 1208 (gNB2) to initiate the direct beam search between the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204. In one example, the second base station 1208 (gNB2) is a serving base station for the second UE 1204.

[0133] In box 1306, the second base station 1208 (gNB2) notifies the second UE 1204 that a request has been made to communicate directly with the first UE 1202.

[0134] In box 1308, the second base station 1208 (gNB2) exchanges information with the second UE 1204 to establish a direct beam search with the first UE 1202.

[0135] In block 1310, the first base station 1206 (gNB1) and the second base station 1208 (gNB2) determine resources to be scheduled to allow the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 to perform direct beam search. For example, if the first base station 1206 (gNB1) and the second base station 1208 (gNB2) agree to the request for direct UE communication, the first base station 1206 (gNB1) and the second base station 1208 (gNB2) exchange information related to scheduling communication resources (e.g., time-frequency resources) to allow the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 to perform direct beam search.

[0136] In box 1312, the first base station 1206 (gNB1) schedules time-frequency resources for the first UE 1202 to use for direct beam search.

[0137] In box 1314, the second base station 1208 (gNB2) schedules time-frequency resources for the second UE 1204 to use for direct beam search.

[0138] In block 1316, the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 perform a direct beam search using the time-frequency resources previously scheduled in blocks 1312 and 1314. The results of the direct beam search provide information about communication beams that the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 can use for direct communication.

[0139] Fig.14 is a flow chart illustrating an example of a method for communication according to various aspects of the present disclosure. The blocks in method 1400 may be performed in the order shown or out of the order shown, and in some embodiments, may be performed at least partially in parallel.

[0140] In box 1402, the first UE 1202 sends a beam search report with direct beam search results to the first base station 1206 (gNB1).

[0141] In box 1404, the first base station 1206 (gNB1) relays the direct beam search result to the second base station 1208 (gNB2), and the first base station 1206 (gNB1) and the second base station 1208 (gNB2) determine which communication beams the first UE 120 and the second UE 1204 will use for direct communication.

[0142] In box 1405, the first base station 1206 (gNB1) notifies the first UE 1202 of the communication beam to be used for direct communication.

[0143] In box 1406, the second base station 1208 (gNB2) notifies the second UE 1204 of the communication beam to be used for direct communication.

[0144] In box 1408, the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 communicate directly through the selected communication beam.

[0145] Fig.15 1 is a functional block diagram of an apparatus 1500 for a communication system according to various aspects of the present disclosure. The apparatus 1500 includes a component 1502 for requesting a direct communication link with a second UE. In some embodiments, the component 1502 for requesting a direct communication link with the second UE may be configured to perform the steps in method 1300 ( Fig.13 ) of operation block 1302. In an exemplary embodiment, component 1502 for requesting a direct communication link with a second UE may include first UE 1202 sending a request to a first base station 1206 (gNB1) in communication with the first UE 1202. In an exemplary embodiment, UE 115 ( Figure 7 ) in the antenna 712, RFIC 733, processor 736, memory 739 and direct beam search notification logic 752 can cooperate to send the request; and the base station 105 ( Figure 6 ) may collaborate to receive and process the request.

[0146] The apparatus 1500 also includes a component 1504 for initiating a direct beam search between the first UE and the second UE. In some embodiments, the component 1504 for initiating a direct beam search between the first UE and the second UE may be configured to perform the method 1300 ( Fig.13) of operation block 1304. In an exemplary embodiment, component 1504 for initiating direct beam search between the first UE and the second UE may include the first base station 1206 (gNB1) notifying the second base station 1208 (gNB2) that the first UE 1202 desires to communicate directly with the second UE 1204. In an exemplary embodiment, the base station 105 ( Figure 6 ) in the antenna 612, RFIC 633, processor 636, memory 637 and direct beam search notification logic 652 can collaborate to initiate the request; and another base station 105 ( Figure 6 ) may collaborate to receive and process the request.

[0147] The apparatus 1500 also includes a component 1506 for notifying the second UE of the direct link establishment. In some embodiments, the component 1506 for notifying the second UE of the direct link establishment may be configured to perform the method 1300 ( Fig.13 ) of operation block 1306. In an exemplary embodiment, the component 1506 for notifying the second UE of the direct link establishment may include the second base station 1208 (gNB2) communicating with the second UE 1204 to notify the second UE 1204 that the first UE 1202 desires to communicate directly. In an exemplary embodiment, the base station 105 ( Figure 6 ) can collaborate to notify the second UE; and the antenna 712, RFIC 733, processor 736, memory 737 and direct beam search notification logic 752 in the second UE 115 can collaborate to receive and process the request.

[0148] The apparatus 1500 also includes a component 1508 for exchanging information for direct beam searching with the second UE. In some embodiments, the component 1508 for exchanging information for direct beam searching with the second UE may be configured to perform the method 1300 ( Fig.13 ) of operation block 1308. In an exemplary embodiment, the component 1508 for exchanging information for direct beam search with the second UE may include the second base station 1208 (gNB2) communicating with the second UE 1204 to exchange relevant information about establishing a direct communication link with the second UE 1204 and the first UE 1202 to perform direct beam search. In an exemplary embodiment, the base station 105 ( Figure 6) can collaborate to exchange information with the second UE; and the antenna 712, RFIC 733, processor 736, memory 737 and direct beam search notification logic 752 in the second UE 115 can collaborate to exchange information with the second base station 105.

[0149] The apparatus 1500 also includes a component 1510 for determining resources for scheduling the first UE and the second UE for direct communication. In some embodiments, the component 1510 for determining resources for scheduling the first UE and the second UE for direct communication can be configured to perform the method 1300 ( Fig.13 ) of operation block 1310. In an exemplary embodiment, component 1510 for determining resources for scheduling the first UE and the second UE for direct communication may include the first base station 1206 (gNB1) and the second base station 1208 (gNB2) exchanging information related to determining communication beams and / or time-frequency resources to be scheduled to allow the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 to perform direct beam search. In an exemplary embodiment, the first base station 105 ( Figure 6 ) in the antenna 612, RFIC 633, processor 636, memory 637 and direct beam search scheduling logic 654 can cooperate with the second base station 10 to schedule resources; and the second base station 105 ( Figure 6 ) may collaborate with the first base station 105 to schedule resources.

[0150] The apparatus 1500 also includes a component 1512 for scheduling the first UE to perform a direct beam search. In some embodiments, the component 1512 for scheduling the first UE to perform a direct beam search may be configured to perform the method 1300 ( Fig.13 ) of operation block 1312. In an exemplary embodiment, the component 1512 for scheduling the first UE for direct beam search may include the first base station 1206 (gNB1) sending scheduling information including communication beams and / or time-frequency resources to the first UE 1202. In an exemplary embodiment, the first base station 105 ( Figure 6 ) in the antenna 612, the RFIC 633, the processor 636, the memory 637, and the direct beam search scheduling logic 654 may collaborate to schedule resources for the first UE 115; and the first UE 115 ( Figure 7 ) may collaborate to schedule resources.

[0151] The apparatus 1500 also includes a component 1514 for scheduling the second UE to perform the direct beam search. In some embodiments, the component 1514 for scheduling the second UE to perform the direct beam search can be configured to perform the method 1300 ( Fig.13 ) of operation block 1314. In an exemplary embodiment, component 1514 for scheduling the second UE for direct beam search may include the second base station 1208 (gNB2) sending scheduling information including communication beams and / or time-frequency resources to the second UE 1204. In an exemplary embodiment, the second base station 105 ( Figure 6 ) may collaborate to schedule resources for the second UE 115; and the antenna 712, RFIC 733, processor 736, memory 737 and direct beam search scheduling logic 754 in the second UE 115 may collaborate to schedule resources.

[0152] The apparatus 1500 also includes a component 1516 for performing a direct beam search. In some embodiments, the component 1516 for performing a direct beam search may be configured to perform the steps in method 1300 ( Fig.13 ) of operation block 1316. In an exemplary embodiment, component 1516 for performing direct beam search may include first UE 1202 and second UE 1204 performing direct beam search using communication beams and / or time-frequency resources previously scheduled by first base station 1206 (gNB1) and second base station 1208 (gNB2). In an exemplary embodiment, first UE 115 ( Figure 7 ) can collaborate to perform a direct beam search with the second UE 115; and the antenna 712, RFIC 733, processor 736, memory 737 and direct beam search execution logic 756 in the second UE 115 can collaborate to perform a direct beam search with the first UE 115.

[0153] Fig.16 1 is a functional block diagram of an apparatus 1600 for a communication system according to various aspects of the present disclosure. The apparatus 1600 includes a component 1602 for sending a direct beam search result to a base station. In some embodiments, the component 1602 for sending a direct beam search result to a base station may be configured to perform the method 1400 ( Fig.14) of operation block 1402. In an exemplary embodiment, component 1602 for sending direct beam search results to a base station may include the first UE 1202 sending direct beam search results to the first base station 1206 (gNB1). In an exemplary embodiment, the first UE 115 ( Figure 7 ) can collaborate to send a beam search report with direct beam search results to the base station 105; and the antenna 612, RFIC 633, processor 636, memory 637 and direct beam search result relay logic 656 in the base station 105 can collaborate to receive and process the beam search results.

[0154] The apparatus 1600 also includes a component 1604 for relaying the direct beam search results to the second base station and determining which communication beams to use for direct communication. In some embodiments, the component 1604 for relaying the direct beam search results to the second base station and determining which communication beams to use for direct communication can be configured to perform the method 1400 ( Fig.14 ) of operation block 1404. In an exemplary embodiment, the component 1604 for relaying the direct beam search results to the second base station and determining which communication beams to use for direct communication may include the first base station 1206 (gNB1) relaying the direct beam search results to the second base station 1208 (gNB2) and determining with the second base station 1208 (gNB2) which communication beam pair the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 will use for direct communication. In an exemplary embodiment, the base station 105 ( Figure 6 ) can collaborate to send beam search results to the second base station 105; and the antenna 612, RFIC 633, processor 636, memory 637 and direct beam search result relay and processing logic 656 in the second base station 105 can collaborate to receive and process the beam search results.

[0155] The apparatus 1600 also includes a component 1605 for notifying the first UE 1202 which communication beam will be used for direct communication. In some embodiments, the component 1605 for notifying the first UE 1202 which communication beam will be used for direct communication can be configured to perform the method 1400 ( Fig.14) of operation block 1405. In an exemplary embodiment, the component 1605 for notifying the first UE 1202 which communication beam will be used for direct communication may include the first base station 1206 (gNB1) notifying the first UE 1202 which communication beam will be used for direct communication. In an exemplary embodiment, the base station 105 ( Figure 6 ) can collaborate to notify UE 115 which communication beam will be used; and the antenna 712, RFIC733, processor 736, memory 737 and direct beam search result processing logic 758 in UE 115 can collaborate to receive and process the beam search results.

[0156] The apparatus 1600 also includes a component 1606 for notifying the second UE 1204 which communication beam will be used for direct communication. In some embodiments, the component 1606 for notifying the second UE 1204 which communication beam will be used for direct communication can be configured to perform the method 1400 ( Fig.14 ) of operation block 1406. In an exemplary embodiment, the component 1606 for notifying the second UE 1204 which communication beam will be used for direct communication may include the second base station 1208 (gNB2) relaying the result of the direct beam search to the second UE 1204 to notify the second UE 1204 which communication beam will be used for direct communication. In an exemplary embodiment, the base station 105 ( Figure 6 ) can collaborate to send beam search results to UE 115; and the antenna 712, RFIC 733, processor 736, memory 737 and direct beam search result processing logic 758 in UE 115 can collaborate to receive and process beam search results.

[0157] The apparatus 1600 also includes a component 1608 for direct communication. In some embodiments, the component 1608 for direct communication can be configured to perform the method 1400 ( Fig.14 ) in one or more functions described in operation block 1408 of the embodiment. In an exemplary embodiment, the component for direct communication 1608 may include the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 communicating directly on the selected communication beam. In an exemplary embodiment, the first UE and the second UE may communicate directly with each other using the antenna 712, the RFIC 733 and the baseband subsystem 732.

[0158] Fig.171700 is a flow chart illustrating an example of a method for communication according to various aspects of the present disclosure. The blocks in method 1700 may be performed in the order shown or out of the order shown, and in some embodiments, may be performed at least partially in parallel.

[0159] In block 1702, a first UE or initiating UE requests a direct communication link with a second UE or target UE by sending a request to establish a direct link communication with the second UE or target UE. Fig.12 In one example, the request may correspond to a call 1212 and may be transmitted to a first base station 1206 (gNB1) in communication with the first UE 1202. In one example, the first or initiating base station 1206 (gNB1) is a serving base station for the first UE 1202.

[0160] In block 1704, the first UE or initiating UE 1202 receives information identifying resources to be used for direct beam search. The resources may include multiple communication beams to be used for direct beam search between the first UE or initiating UE and the second UE or target UE, and / or include time-frequency resources for performing direct beam search. Fig.12 , in one example, this information may be received in call 1226 .

[0161] In block 1706, the first UE or initiating UE 1202 and the second UE or target UE 1204 perform a direct beam search using the previously scheduled time-frequency resources. Fig.12 In one example, a direct beam search may be performed during calls 1232 and 1234. Results of the direct beam search provide information about communication beams that may be used by the first UE or initiating UE 1202 and the second UE or target UE 1204 for direct communication.

[0162] Fig.18 1 is a functional block diagram of an apparatus 1800 for a communication system according to various aspects of the present disclosure. The apparatus 1800 includes a component 1802 for requesting a direct communication link with a second UE or a target UE. In some embodiments, the component 1802 for requesting a direct communication link with a second UE or a target UE may be configured to perform the method 1700 ( Fig.17 ) of operation block 1702. In an exemplary embodiment, the component 1802 for requesting a direct communication link with a second UE or a target UE may include the first UE or the initiating UE 1202 sending a request to the first base station 1206 (gNB1) communicating therewith. In an exemplary embodiment, the UE 115 ( Figure 7) in the antenna 712, RFIC 733, processor 736, memory 739 and direct beam search notification logic 752 can cooperate to send the request; and the base station 105 ( Figure 6 ) can collaborate to receive and process the request.

[0163] The apparatus 1800 also includes a component 1804 for receiving information identifying resources for direct beam searching. In some embodiments, the component 1804 for receiving information identifying resources for direct beam searching can be configured to perform the steps in method 1700 ( Fig.17 ) of operation block 1704. In an exemplary embodiment, component 1804 for receiving information identifying resources for direct beam search may include the first UE or initiating UE 1202 receiving scheduling information from the first base station 1206 (gNB1). In an exemplary embodiment, the first UE 115 ( Figure 7 ) may collaborate to receive and schedule communication resources for direct beam searching.

[0164] The apparatus 1800 also includes a component 1806 for performing a direct beam search. In some embodiments, the component 1806 for performing a direct beam search may be configured to perform the steps in the method 1700 ( Fig.17 ) of operation block 1706. In an exemplary embodiment, component 1806 for performing direct beam search may include the first UE or initiating UE 1202 and the second UE or target UE 1204 performing direct beam search using previously scheduled communication beams and / or time-frequency resources. In an exemplary embodiment, the first UE 115 ( Figure 7 ) can collaborate to perform a direct beam search with the second UE 115; and the antenna 712, RFIC 733, processor 736, memory 737 and direct beam search execution logic 756 in the second UE 115 can collaborate to perform a direct beam search with the first UE 115.

[0165] Fig.19 1900 is a flow chart illustrating an example of a method for communication according to various aspects of the present disclosure. The blocks in method 1900 may be performed in the order shown or out of the order shown, and in some embodiments, may be performed at least partially in parallel.

[0166] In block 1902, a first base station 1206 (gNB1) receives a request for a direct communication link between a first UE 1202 and a second UE 1204. The request may be sent by the first UE 1202.

[0167] In block 1904, the first base station 1206 (gNB1) initiates a direct beam search between the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204. In an exemplary embodiment, the first base station 1206 (gNB1) sends a communication to the second base station 1208 (gNB2) to initiate the direct beam search between the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204, and may include the first base station 1206 (gNB1) and the second base station 1208 (gNB2) determining resources for the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 to use for the direct beam search.

[0168] In box 1906, the first base station 1206 (gNB1) schedules time-frequency resources for the first UE 1202 for direct beam search.

[0169] Fig. 20 2 is a functional block diagram of an apparatus 2000 for a communication system according to various aspects of the present disclosure. The apparatus 2000 includes a component 2002 for receiving a request for a direct communication link between UEs. In some embodiments, the component 2002 for receiving a request for a direct communication link between UEs may be configured to perform the steps in method 1900 ( Fig.19 ) of the operation block 1902. In an exemplary embodiment, the component 2002 for receiving a request for a direct communication link between UEs may include the first base station 1206 (gNB1) receiving a request for a direct communication link with the second UE 1204 from the first UE 1202. In an exemplary embodiment, the base station 105 ( Figure 6 ) may collaborate to receive and process the request.

[0170] The apparatus 2000 also includes a component 2004 for initiating a direct beam search between the first UE and the second UE. In some embodiments, the component 2004 for initiating a direct beam search between the first UE and the second UE may be configured to perform the method 1900 ( Fig.19) of operation block 1904. In an exemplary embodiment, component 2004 for initiating direct beam search between the first UE and the second UE may include the first base station 1206 (gNB1) notifying the second base station 1208 (gNB2) that the first UE 1202 desires to communicate directly with the second UE 1204, and may include the first base station 1206 (gNB1) and the second base station 1208 (gNB2) determining resources for the first UE 1202 and the second UE 1204 to use for direct beam search. In an exemplary embodiment, the base station 105 ( Figure 6 ) in the antenna 612, RFIC 633, processor 636, memory 637 and direct beam search notification logic 652 can collaborate to initiate the request; and another base station 105 ( Figure 6 ) may collaborate to receive and process the request.

[0171] The apparatus 2000 also includes a component 2006 for scheduling the first UE to perform a direct beam search. In some embodiments, the component 2006 for scheduling the first UE to perform a direct beam search may be configured to perform the method 1900 ( Fig.19 ) of operation block 1906. In an exemplary embodiment, the component 2006 for scheduling the first UE for direct beam search may include the first base station 1206 (gNB1) sending scheduling information including time-frequency resources to the first UE 1202. In an exemplary embodiment, the first base station 105 ( Figure 6 ) in the antenna 612, the RFIC 633, the processor 636, the memory 637, and the direct beam search scheduling logic 654 may collaborate to schedule resources for the first UE 115; and the first UE 115 ( Figure 7 ) may collaborate to schedule resources.

[0172] Fig.21 21 is a flow chart illustrating an example of a method for communication according to various aspects of the present disclosure. The blocks in method 2100 may be performed in the order shown or out of the order shown, and in some embodiments, may be performed at least partially in parallel.

[0173] In block 2102, the second UE or target UE 1204 receives a notification of a request for a direct communication link with the first UE or initiating UE 1202. The notification of the request may be forwarded from the second base station 1208 (gNB2) to the second UE or target UE 1024. Fig.12, in one example, the notification can be received in call 1216.

[0174] In block 2104, the second UE or target UE 1204 (UE2) sends its direct communication link capability. For example, the second UE or target UE 1204 (UE2) sends its direct communication link capability to the serving base station (gNB2). For example, the second UE or target UE 1204 (UE2) sends this information to the second base station 1208 (gNB2). Fig.12 , in one example, this information may be sent in call 1218 .

[0175] In block 2106, the second UE or target UE 1204 receives information identifying resources for direct beam search. The resources may include multiple communication beams and / or time-frequency resources for performing direct beam search. Fig.12 , in one example, this information may be received in call 1228 .

[0176] In block 2108, the second UE or target UE 1204 and the first UE or initiating UE 1202 perform a direct beam search using previously scheduled communication beams and / or time-frequency resources. Fig.12 , in one example, direct beam searching may be performed during calls 1232 and 1234 .

[0177] picture Fig. 22 2 is a functional block diagram of an apparatus 2200 for a communication system according to various aspects of the present disclosure. The apparatus 2200 includes a component 2202 for receiving a notification of a request for a direct communication link with a first UE or an initiating UE. In some embodiments, the component 2202 for receiving a notification of a request for a direct communication link with a first UE or an initiating UE may be configured to perform the steps in the method 2100 ( Fig.21 ) of operation block 2102. In an exemplary embodiment, the component 2202 for receiving a notification of a request for a direct communication link with the first UE or initiating UE 1202 may include the second UE or target UE 1204 receiving a notification from the second base station 1208 (gNB2) that the first UE or initiating UE 1202 requests to establish a direct communication link. In an exemplary embodiment, the UE 115 ( Figure 7 ) may collaborate to receive notification of the request.

[0178] The apparatus 2200 also includes a component 2204 for sending the direct communication link capability. In some embodiments, the component 2204 for sending the direct communication link capability may be configured to perform the steps in the method 2100 ( Fig.21 ) of operation block 2104. In an exemplary embodiment, the component for sending direct communication link capabilities 2204 may include the second UE or target UE 1204 sending its capabilities for direct link communication to the second base station 1208 (gNB2). In an exemplary embodiment, the second UE 115 ( Figure 7 ) can collaborate to transmit its ability to perform direct beam search.

[0179] The apparatus 2200 also includes a component 2206 for receiving information identifying resources for direct beam searching. In some embodiments, the component 2206 for receiving information identifying resources for direct beam searching can be configured to perform the steps in the method 2100 ( Fig.21 ) of operation block 2106. In an exemplary embodiment, the means 2206 for receiving information identifying resources for direct beam search may include a second UE or target UE 1204 receiving scheduling information from a second base station 1208 (gNB2). In an exemplary embodiment, the second UE 115 ( Figure 7 ) may collaborate to receive and schedule communication resources for direct beam searching.

[0180] The apparatus 2200 also includes a component 2208 for performing a direct beam search. In some embodiments, the component 2208 for performing a direct beam search may be configured to perform the steps in the method 2100 ( Fig.21 ) of operation block 2108. In an exemplary embodiment, the component for performing a direct beam search 2208 may include a first UE or initiating UE 1202 and a second UE or target UE 1204, performing a direct beam search using a previously scheduled communication beam and / or time-frequency resources. In an exemplary embodiment, the second UE 115 ( Figure 7 ) can collaborate to perform a direct beam search with the first UE 115; and the processor 736, memory 737 and direct beam search execution logic 756 in the first UE 115 can collaborate to perform a direct beam search with the second UE 115.

[0181] The technology described herein can be used for various wireless communication systems, such as CDMA, TDMA, FDMA, OFDMA, SC-FDMA and other systems. The terms "system" and "network" are often used interchangeably. A CDMA system can implement radio technologies such as CDMA2000, Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA). CDMA 2000 covers IS-2000, IS-95 and IS-856 standards. IS-2000 versions 0 and A are commonly referred to as CDMA 2000 1x, 1x, etc. IS-856 (TIA-856) is commonly referred to as CDMA2000 1xEV-DO, High Speed ​​Packet Data (HRPD), etc. UTRA includes Wideband CDMA (WCDMA) and other variants of CDMA. A TDMA system can implement radio technologies such as Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM). OFDMA systems can implement radio technologies such as Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), Evolved UTRA (E-UTRA), IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20, Flash-OFDM.TM. UTRA and E-UTRA are part of Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS). 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) and Advanced LTE (LTE-A) are new versions of UMTS that use E-UTRA. UTRA, E-UTRA, UMTS, LTE, LTE-A, and GSM are described in documents from an organization named "3rd Generation Partnership Project" (3GPP). CDMA 2000 and UMB are described in documents from an organization named "3rd Generation Partnership Project 2" (3GPP2). The technology described herein can be used for the above systems and radio technologies and other systems and radio technologies, including cellular (e.g., LTE) communications on unlicensed and / or shared bandwidths. However, the above description describes an LTE / LTE-A system for example purposes, and LTE terminology is used in most of the above description, but these techniques are also applicable to applications other than LTE / LTE-A applications.

[0182] The specific embodiments described above in conjunction with the accompanying drawings describe examples and do not represent the only examples that can be implemented or within the scope of the claims. The terms "example" and "exemplary" used in this specification mean "used as an example, instance, or illustration", rather than "preferred" or "better than other examples". This specific embodiment includes specific details to provide an understanding of the described technology. However, these technologies can be practiced without these specific details. In some cases, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form to avoid confusing the concepts of the examples described.

[0183] Information and signals may be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and techniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referenced in the above description may be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, optical fields or optical particles, or any combination thereof.

[0184] The various illustrative blocks and components described in conjunction with the disclosure herein may be implemented or executed with a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an ASIC, an FPGA or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in an alternative, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

[0185] The functions described herein may be implemented in hardware, software executed by a processor, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software executed by a processor, the functions may be stored on or transmitted by a computer-readable medium as one or more instructions or codes. Other examples and embodiments are within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure and the appended claims. For example, due to the nature of software, the functions described above may be implemented using software executed by a processor, hardware, firmware, hard wiring, or any combination thereof. The features that implement the functions may also be physically located in different locations, including being distributed so that the parts of the functions are implemented in different physical locations. As used herein (including in the claims), the term "and / or" used in the enumeration of two or more items indicates that any one of the listed items may be used alone, or any combination of two or more listed items may be used. For example, if a composition is described as comprising components A, B, and / or C, the composition may individually comprise only A; only B; only C; a combination of A and B; a combination of A and C; a combination of B and C; or a combination of A, B, and C. Additionally, as used herein (including in the claims), "or" used in a list of items (e.g., a list of items that begins with phrases such as "at least one of" or "one or more") means a disjunctive list, for example, a list of "at least one of A, B, or C" means A or B or C or AB or AC or BC or ABC (i.e., A and B and C).

[0186] Computer-readable media include computer storage media and communication media, including any media that is convenient for transferring a computer program from one place to another. Storage media can be any available media that a general or special-purpose computer can access. As an example and not limitation, computer-readable media can include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, flash memory, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or can be used for the required program code components carried or stored in the form of instructions or data structures, and any other medium that can be accessed by a general or special-purpose computer, or a general or special-purpose processor. In addition, any connection is properly referred to as a computer-readable medium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website, server or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL) or wireless technology (such as infrared, radio and microwave), then the coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL or wireless technology (such as infrared, radio and microwave) are all included in the definition of the medium. As used herein, disk and disc include compact disc (CD), laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk and Blu-ray disc, where disks usually reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproduce data optically with lasers. Combinations of the above are also included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0187] As used in this specification, the terms "component", "database", "module", "system", etc. are intended to refer to computer-related entities, whether hardware, firmware, a combination of hardware and software, software, or software being executed. For example, a component can be, but is not limited to, a process running on a processor, a processor, an object, an executable file, an execution thread, a program, and / or a computer. As an illustration, both an application running on a computing device and a computing device can be a component. One or more components can reside in a process and / or an execution thread, and a component can be located on a computer and / or distributed between two or more computers. In addition, these components can be executed from various computer-readable media having various data structures stored thereon. Components can communicate by means of local and / or remote processes, such as according to a signal having one or more data packets (e.g., data from a component interacts with another component in a local system, a distributed system, and / or across a network such as the Internet with other systems).

[0188] Although aspects and embodiments are described in this application by illustrating some examples, those skilled in the art will understand that additional implementations and use cases can appear in many different arrangements and scenarios. The innovations described herein can be implemented across many different platform types, devices, systems, shapes, sizes, and packaging arrangements. For example, embodiments and / or uses can be generated by integrated chip embodiments and other devices based on non-module components (e.g., end-user devices, vehicles, communication devices, computing devices, industrial devices, retail / procurement devices, medical devices, AI-enabled devices, etc.). Although some examples may or may not be specifically targeted at use cases or applications, the innovations described may have a variety of applicability. The range of implementations can range from chip-level or modular components to non-modular, non-chip-level implementations, and further to aggregated, distributed, or original equipment manufacturer (OEM) devices or systems including one or more aspects of the described innovations. In some practical environments, the devices in combination with the described aspects and features may also include additional components and features for implementing and practicing the claimed and described embodiments. For example, the transmission and reception of wireless signals must include many components for analog and digital purposes (e.g., hardware components including antennas, RF chains, power amplifiers, modulators, buffers, processors, interleavers, adders / summers, etc.), such as Figure 5 , Figure 6 and Figure 7 The components shown in the base station and UE of FIG. The innovation described herein is intended to be practiced in devices, chip-level components, systems, distributed arrangements, end-user devices, etc. of various sizes, shapes, and configurations.

[0189] The previous description of the disclosure is provided to enable those skilled in the art to make or use the disclosure. Various modifications to the disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other variations without departing from the scope of the disclosure. Therefore, the disclosure is not limited to the examples and designs described herein, but is given the broadest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A communication method for initiating a communication device UE1, comprising: The initiating communication device UE1 sends a request to the serving base station gNB1 of the initiating communication device UE1 to establish a direct link communication with the target communication device UE2, wherein the request includes information related to the direct link communication capability of the initiating communication device UE1 and information identifying the target communication device UE2; Receiving, from the serving base station of the initiating communication device, information identifying a plurality of communication beams to be used for direct beam search between the initiating communication device UE1 and the target communication device UE2, wherein the information identifying the plurality of communication beams to be used for direct beam search is determined based on information exchanged between the serving base station of the initiating communication device and the serving base station of the target communication device; as well as A direct beam search is performed with the target communication device UE2.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: Based on the direct beam search, generating a beam search report having at least a beam ID of a selected communication beam of the target communication device UE2; as well as The beam searching report is sent to a first base station associated with the initiating communication device UE1.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein: The beam search report also includes: identification of communication beams that can be used by the initiating communication device UE1 and the target communication device UE2; and At least one of a reference signal received power RSRP, a signal to interference plus noise ratio SINR, a signal to noise ratio SNR, interference and delay spread of the identified communication beam.

4. The method according to claim 1 further includes receiving IDs of at least one transmit beam and at least one receive beam from the multiple communication beams, the transmit beam and the receive beam forming a beam pair for direct link communication between the initiating communication device UE1 and the target communication device UE2 after performing the direct beam search. 5 . The method according to claim 1 , further comprising receiving resources for direct beam searching, the resources comprising time-frequency resources for the initiating communication device UE1 and the target communication device UE2.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The request to establish direct link communication may further include one or more of the following: An identification of a communication beam available to the initiating communication device UE1; beam characteristics of the communication beam available to the initiating communication device UE1; The transmission capability of the initiating communication device UE1; or any combination thereof.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The frequency at which the direct beam search is performed is dynamically adjusted based on changing channel conditions.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The multiple communication beams to be used for the direct beam search are determined by the serving base station gNB1 of the initiating communication device and the serving base station gNB2 of the target communication device based at least on the request and one or more capabilities of the initiating communication device UE1 and the target communication device UE2.

9. A communication method of a target communication device UE2, comprising: receiving a notification of a request for direct link communication with the initiating communication device UE1; Sending the direct communication link capability of the target communication device UE2 to the serving base station gNB2 of the target communication device UE2; Receiving, from the serving base station of the target communication device, information identifying a plurality of communication beams to be used for direct beam search with the initiating communication device UE1, wherein the information identifying the plurality of communication beams to be used for direct beam search is determined based on information exchanged between the serving base station of the initiating communication device and the serving base station of the target communication device; as well as A direct beam search is performed with the initiating communication device UE1.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising receiving a beam searching report having at least a beam ID of a selected communication beam, the beam searching report being based on the direct beam searching. 11 . The method according to claim 9 , further comprising receiving time-frequency resources for the initiating communication device UE1 and the target communication device UE2 to use for direct beam searching.

12. The method according to claim 9, wherein: The request to establish direct link communication may further include one or more of the following: An identification of a communication beam available to the initiating communication device UE1; beam characteristics of the communication beam available to the initiating communication device UE1; The transmission capability of the initiating communication device UE1; or any combination thereof.

13. The method according to claim 10, wherein: The beam search report also includes: an identification of a communication beam that can be used by the initiating communication device UE1 and the target communication device UE2 for the direct communication link; and At least one of a reference signal received power RSRP, a signal to interference plus noise ratio SINR, a signal to noise ratio SNR, interference and delay spread of the identified communication beam.

14. A communication device, comprising: A memory in the initiating communication device UE1; A processor in the UE1; The memory and the processor of the initiating communication device UE1 are configured to: The initiating communication device UE1 sends a request to the serving base station gNB1 of the initiating communication device UE1 to establish a direct link communication with the target communication device UE2, wherein the request includes information related to the direct link communication capability of the initiating communication device UE1 and information identifying the target communication device UE2; Receiving, from the serving base station of the initiating communication device, information identifying a plurality of communication beams to be used for direct beam search between the initiating communication device UE1 and the target communication device UE2, wherein the information identifying the plurality of communication beams to be used for direct beam search is determined based on information exchanged between the serving base station of the initiating communication device and the serving base station of the target communication device; as well as A direct beam search is performed with the target communication device UE2.

15. The apparatus according to claim 14, further comprising: Based on the direct beam search, the memory and the processor of the initiating communication device UE1 are configured to generate a beam search report having at least a beam ID of the selected communication beam of the target communication device UE2; as well as The memory and the processor of the initiating communication device UE1 are configured to send the beam searching report to a first base station associated with the initiating communication device UE1.

16. The device according to claim 15, wherein: The beam search report also includes: identification of communication beams that can be used by the initiating communication device UE1 and the target communication device UE2; and At least one of a reference signal received power RSRP, a signal to interference plus noise ratio SINR, a signal to noise ratio SNR, interference and delay spread of the identified communication beam.

17. The apparatus according to claim 14 further includes the memory and the processor of the initiating communication device UE1, which are configured to receive the ID of at least one transmitting beam and at least one receiving beam from the multiple communication beams, and the transmitting beam and the receiving beam form a beam pair for direct link communication between the initiating communication device UE1 and the target communication device UE2 after performing the direct beam search.

18. The apparatus according to claim 14, further comprising the memory and the processor of the initiating communication device UE1 being configured to receive resources for direct beam searching, the resources comprising time-frequency resources for the initiating communication device UE1 and the target communication device UE2.

19. The device according to claim 14, wherein: The request to establish direct link communication may further include one or more of the following: An identification of a communication beam available to the initiating communication device UE1; beam characteristics of a communication beam available to the initiating communication device UE1; The transmission capability of the initiating communication device UE1; or any combination thereof.

20. The device according to claim 14, wherein: The frequency at which the direct beam search is performed is dynamically adjusted based on changing channel conditions.

21. The device according to claim 14, wherein: The multiple communication beams to be used for the direct beam search are determined by the serving base station gNB1 of the initiating communication device and the serving base station gNB2 of the target communication device based at least on the request and one or more capabilities of the initiating communication device UE1 and the target communication device UE2.

22. A communication device, comprising: a memory in the target communication device UE2; A processor in the target communication device UE2; The memory and the processor in the target communication device UE2 are configured to: receiving a notification of a request for direct link communication with the initiating communication device UE1; Sending the direct communication link capability of the target communication device UE2 to the serving base station gNB2 of the target communication device UE2; Receiving, from the serving base station of the target communication device, information identifying a plurality of communication beams to be used for direct beam search with the initiating communication device UE1, wherein the information identifying the plurality of communication beams to be used for direct beam search is determined based on information exchanged between the serving base station of the initiating communication device and the serving base station of the target communication device; as well as A direct beam search is performed with the initiating communication device UE1.

23. The apparatus according to claim 22, further comprising the memory and the processor in the target communication device UE2 being configured to receive a beam search report having at least a beam ID of the selected communication beam, the beam search report being based on the direct beam search.

24. The apparatus according to claim 22, further comprising the memory and the processor in the target communication device UE2 being configured to receive time-frequency resources for the initiating communication device UE1 and the target communication device UE2 to use for direct beam searching.

25. The device according to claim 22, wherein: The request to establish direct link communication may further include one or more of the following: An identification of a communication beam available to the initiating communication device UE1; beam characteristics of the communication beam available to the initiating communication device UE1; The transmission capability of the initiating communication device UE1; or any combination thereof.

26. The device according to claim 23, wherein The beam search report also includes: an identification of a communication beam that can be used by the initiating communication device UE1 and the target communication device UE2 for the direct communication link; and At least one of a reference signal received power RSRP, a signal to interference plus noise ratio SINR, a signal to noise ratio SNR, interference and delay spread of the identified communication beam.

27. A communication initiating device, comprising: A component for sending, by the initiating communication device UE1, a request to establish a direct link communication with a target communication device UE2 to a serving base station gNB1 of the initiating communication device UE1, wherein the request includes information related to the direct link communication capability of the initiating communication device UE1 and information identifying the target communication device UE2; A means for receiving, from the serving base station of the initiating communication device, information identifying a plurality of communication beams to be used for a direct beam search between the initiating communication device UE1 and a target communication device UE2, wherein the information identifying the plurality of communication beams to be used for the direct beam search is determined based on information exchanged between the serving base station of the initiating communication device and the serving base station of the target communication device; as well as Means for performing direct beam searching with the target communication device UE2.

28. A target communication device comprising: means for receiving a notification of a request for direct link communication with an initiating communication device UE1; A component for sending the direct communication link capability of the target communication device UE2 to the serving base station gNB2 of the target communication device UE2; A means for receiving, from the serving base station of the target communication device, information identifying a plurality of communication beams to be used for direct beam search with the initiating communication device UE1, wherein the information identifying the plurality of communication beams to be used for direct beam search is determined based on information exchanged between the serving base station of the initiating communication device and the serving base station of the target communication device; as well as Means for performing direct beam searching with said initiating communication device UE1.

29. A non-transitory computer readable medium having instructions stored thereon, wherein when the instructions are executable by one or more processors, the one or more processors are caused to perform the method according to any one of claims 1-13.

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