Method and apparatus for resource allocation in a wireless communication system

Abstract

A method and apparatus for resource allocation in a wireless communication system are disclosed from a user equipment perspective. In one embodiment, the method includes the user equipment receiving a configuration of a bandwidth part from a base station. The method also includes the user equipment deriving a subset of frequency resources within the bandwidth part. The method further includes the user equipment receiving an indication of a resource allocation within the subset of frequency resources for transmission.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present disclosure relates generally to wireless communication networks, and more particularly to methods and apparatus for resource allocation in a wireless communication system. BACKGROUND

[0002] As the demand for mobile communication devices increases, so does the demand to transmit large amounts of data to and from the mobile communication devices. Conventional mobile voice communication networks have evolved into networks that communicate with Internet Protocol (IP) packets. Such IP packet communications can provide IP bearer voice, multimedia, multicast, and on-demand communication services to users of mobile communication devices.

[0003] An exemplary network structure is the Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN). The E-UTRAN system can provide high data throughput to enable the IP bearer voice and multimedia services described above. Currently, the 3GPP standards organization is discussing new next generation (e.g., 5G) radio technologies. Accordingly, changes to the current body of 3GPP standards are currently being submitted and considered to evolve and complete the 3GPP standards. SUMMARY

[0004] A method and apparatus are disclosed from the perspective of a user equipment (UE). In one embodiment, the method includes the UE receiving a configuration of a bandwidth part from a base station. The method also includes the UE deriving a subset of frequency resources within the bandwidth part. The method further includes the UE receiving an indication of a resource allocation for transmission within the subset of frequency resources. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0005] Figure 1 A diagram of a wireless communication system is shown in accordance with one exemplary embodiment.

[0006] Figure 2 is a block diagram of a transmitter system (also referred to as an access network) and a receiver system (also referred to as a user equipment or UE) in accordance with one exemplary embodiment.

[0007] Figure 3 is a functional block diagram of a communication system in accordance with one exemplary embodiment.

[0008] Figure 4 is a functional block diagram of a program code of Figure 3

[0009] Figure 5 is a reproduction of Table 4.2-1 of 3GPP TS 38.211 V15.7.0.

[0010] Figure 6 ​is a reproduction of Table 4.3.2-1 of 3GPP TS 38.211 V15.7.0. Figure 4 .3.1-1.

[0011] Figure 7 is a reproduction of Table 4.3.2-1 of 3GPP TS 38.211 V15.7.0.

[0012] Figure 8 is a reproduction of Table 4.3.2-2 of 3GPP TS 38.211 V15.7.0.

[0013] Figure 9 is a reproduction of Table 4.3.2-3 of 3GPP TS 38.211 V15.7.0.

[0014] Figure 10 is a reproduction of Table 5.1.2.2.1-1 of 3GPP TS 38.214 V16.2.0.

[0015] Figure 11 is a flowchart according to one example embodiment.

[0016] Figure 12 is a flowchart according to one example embodiment.

[0017] Figure 13 is a flowchart according to one example embodiment.

[0018] Figure 14 is a flowchart according to one example embodiment.

[0019] Figure 15 is a flowchart according to one example embodiment.

[0020] Figure 16 is a flowchart according to one example embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] The exemplary wireless communication systems and apparatus described below employ wireless communication systems that support broadcast services. Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication, such as voice, data, etc. These systems may be based on code division multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA), 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) radio access, 3GPP Long Term Evolution Advanced (LTE-A or LTE-Advanced), 3GPP2 Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), WiMax, 3GPP New Radio (NR), or some other modulation techniques.

[0022] Specifically, the exemplary wireless communication system apparatus described below can be designed to support one or more standards, such as those provided by the association referred to herein as the 3GPP "Third Generation Partnership Project," including: TS 38.211 V15.7.0, "NR; Physical Channels and Modulation (Revision 15)"; TS 38.213 V16.2.0, "NR; Physical Layer Procedures for Control (Revision 16)"; TS 38.331 V16.0.0, "NR; Radio Resource Control (RRC) Protocol Specification (Revision 16)"; TS 38.214 V16.2.0, "NR; Physical Layer Procedures for Data (Revision 16)"; and R1-193259, "New SID: Research on Support for NR from 52.6 GHz to 71 GHz," Intel Corporation. The standards and documents listed above are hereby expressly incorporated by reference in their entirety.

[0023] Figure 1 A multiple access wireless communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention is illustrated. Access network 100 (AN) includes multiple antenna groups, one antenna group comprising 104 and 106, another antenna group comprising 108 and 110, and yet another antenna group comprising 112 and 114. Figure 1In general, only two antennas are shown for each antenna group, but more or fewer antennas can be utilized for each antenna group. Access terminal 116 (AT) is in communication with antennas 112 and 114, where antennas 112 and 114 transmit information to access terminal 116 over a forward link 120 and receive information from access terminal 116 over a reverse link 118. Access terminal (AT) 122 is in communication with antennas 106 and 108, where antennas 106 and 108 transmit information to access terminal (AT) 122 over a forward link 126 and receive information from access terminal (AT) 122 over a reverse link 124. In a FDD system, communication links 118, 120, 124 and 126 can use different frequencies for communication. For example, forward link 120 can use a different frequency then that used by reverse link 118.

[0024] Each antenna group and / or the area in which they are designed to communicate is often referred to as a sector of the access network. In embodiments, the antenna groups are each designed to communicate with access terminals in a sector of the area covered by access network 100.

[0025] In communication via forward links 120 and 126, the transmitting antennas of access network 100 can utilize beamforming to improve the signal-to-noise ratio of forward links for different access terminals 116 and 122. Also, an access network using beamforming to transmit to access terminals dispersed randomly through its coverage area will result in less interference to access terminals in neighboring cells than an access network transmitting to all access terminals through a single antenna.

[0026] An access network (AN) can be a fixed station or base station used for communicating with the terminals and can also be called an access point, Node B, Base Station, Enhanced Base Station, eNode B (eNB), or some other terminology. An access terminal (AT) can also be called user equipment (UE), a wireless communication device, terminal, access terminal or some other terminology.

[0027] Figure 2 is a simplified block diagram of an embodiment of a transmitter system 210 (also referred to as an access network) and a receiver system 250 (also referred to as an access terminal (AT) or user equipment (UE)) in a MIMO system 200. At transmitter system 210, traffic data for a number of data streams is provided from a data source 212 to a transmit (TX) data processor 214.

[0028] In one embodiment, each data stream is transmitted via a respective transmit antenna. TX data processor 214 formats, codes and interleaves traffic data for each data stream based on a particular coding scheme selected for that data stream to provide coded data.

[0029] The coded data for each data stream can be multiplexed with pilot data using OFDM techniques. The pilot data is typically a known data pattern that is processed in a known manner and can be used at the receiver system to estimate the channel response. The multiplexed pilot and coded data for each data stream is then modulated (i.e., symbol mapped) based on a particular modulation scheme (e.g., BPSK, QPSK, M-PSK, or M-QAM) selected for that data stream to provide modulation symbols. The data rate, coding, and modulation for each data stream can be determined by instructions executed by processor 230.

[0030] The modulation symbols for all data streams are then provided to a TX MIMO processor 220, which can further process the modulation symbols (e.g., for OFDM). TX MIMO processor 220 then provides N T modulation symbol streams to N T transmitters (TMTR) 222a through 222t. In certain embodiments, TX MIMO processor 220 applies beamforming weights to the symbols of the data streams and to the antenna from which the symbols are transmitted.

[0031] Each transmitter 222 receives and processes a respective symbol stream to provide one or more analog signals, and further conditions (e.g., amplifies, filters, and upconverts) the analog signals to provide a modulated signal suitable for transmission over the MIMO channel. N T modulated signals from transmitters 222a through 222t are then transmitted from N T antennas 224a through 224t, respectively.

[0032] At receiver system 250, the transmitted modulated signals are received by N R antennas 252a through 252r and the received signal from each antenna 252 is provided to a respective receiver (RCVR) 254a through 254r. Each receiver 254 conditions (e.g., filters, amplifies, and downconverts) a respective received signal, digitizes the conditioned signal to provide samples, and further processes the samples to provide a corresponding "received" symbol stream.

[0033] An RX data processor 260 then receives and processes the N R received symbol streams from N R receivers 254 based on a particular receiver processing technique to provide NT The RX data processor 260 then demodulates, deinterleaves, and decodes each detected symbol stream to recover the traffic data for the data stream. The processing by the RX processor 260 is complementary to that performed by the TX MIMO processor 220 and the TX data processor 214 at the transmitter system 210.

[0034] The processor 270 determines a precoding matrix (discussed below) to use for a given communication link. The processor 270 formulates a reverse link message comprising a matrix index portion and a rank value portion.

[0035] The reverse link message can comprise various types of information related to the communication link and / or the received data stream. The reverse link message is then processed by a TX data processor 238, which also receives traffic data for a number of data streams from a data source 236, modulated by a modulator 280, conditioned by transmitters 254a through 254r, and transmitted to the transmitter system 210.

[0036] At the transmitter system 210, the modulated signals from the receiver system 250 are received by antennas 224, conditioned by receivers 222, demodulated by a demodulator 240, and processed by a RX data processor 242 to extract the reverse link message transmitted by the receiver system 250. The processor 230 then determines which precoding matrix to use for determining the beamforming weights, and then processes the extracted message.

[0037] Turning to FIG. 4 Figure 3 This figure illustrates a simplified functional block diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the application. As Figure 3 The communication device 300 can be implemented with a UE (or AT) 116 and 122 in Figure 1 or the base stations 110 and 120 in FIG. 1, or the relay device 150 in FIG. 1, or the Figure 1The communication device 300 includes a base station (AN) 100 and is preferably an NR system. The communication device 300 may include an input device 302, an output device 304, a control circuit 306, a central processing unit (CPU) 308, a memory 310, program code 312, and a transceiver 314. The control circuit 306 executes the program code 312 in the memory 310 via the CPU 308, thereby controlling the operation of the communication device 300. The communication device 300 can receive signals input by a user via the input device 302 (e.g., a keyboard or keypad) and can output images and sounds via the output device 304 (e.g., a display or speaker). The transceiver 314 is used to receive and transmit wireless signals, to pass the received signals to the control circuit 306 and wirelessly output signals generated by the control circuit 306. Alternatively, the communication device 300 in a wireless communication system can also be used. Figure 1 AN100 in the middle.

[0038] Figure 4 According to an embodiment of the present invention Figure 3 The diagram shows a simplified block diagram of program code 312. In this embodiment, program code 312 includes an application layer 400, a layer 3 portion 402, and a layer 2 portion 404, and is coupled to a layer 1 portion 406. Layer 3 portion 402 generally performs radio resource control. Layer 2 portion 404 generally performs link control. Layer 1 portion 406 generally performs physical connections.

[0039] The frame structure used in the New RAT (NR) for 5G is designed to accommodate various types of time and frequency resource requirements (as discussed in 3GPP TS 38.211), ranging from ultra-low latency (approximately 0.5ms) to latency-tolerant services for Machine-Type Communications (MTC), and from peak rates for Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) to extremely low data rates for MTC. A key focus of this study is low-latency aspects, such as Short Transmission Time Interval (TTI), while other aspects of different TTIs may also be considered for integration or adaptation. In addition to the different services and requirements, forward compatibility is also an important consideration in the initial NR frame structure design, as not all NR features are included in the initial phase or release.

[0040] Reducing protocol latency is a significant improvement between different generations or versions, which can improve efficiency and meet new application requirements, such as real-time services. A frequently used and effective method to reduce latency is to shorten the TTI (Time Interval) length, from 10ms in 3G to 1ms in LTE.

[0041] The situation becomes somewhat different when it comes to NR, as backward compatibility is not a must. The numerology can be adjusted so that reducing the number of symbols in a TTI will not be the only tool to change the TTI length. Using the LTE numerology as an example, which includes 14 orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols in 1 ms and a subcarrier spacing of 15 KHz. When the subcarrier spacing reaches 30 KHz, there will be 28 OFDM symbols in 1 ms under the assumption of the same fast Fourier transform (FFT) size and the same control plane (CP) structure, if the number of OFDM symbols in a TTI remains the same, the TTI equivalently becomes 0.5 ms. This means that the design between different TTI lengths can be kept together with the good scalability performed on the subcarrier spacing. Of course, there will always be trade-offs for the subcarrier spacing selection (e.g., FFT size, definition / number of PRBs, design of CP, supportable system bandwidth...). When NR considers larger system bandwidth as well as larger coherence bandwidth, including larger subcarrier spacing is a natural choice.

[0042] 3GPP TS 38.211 provides the following details of NR frame structure, channel and basic parameter design:

[0043] 4 Frame structure and physical resources

[0044] 4.1 Overview

[0045] Throughout the present specification, the size of each field in time domain is expressed in time unit T c = 1 / (Δf max × N f ), where Δf max = 480·10 3 Hz and N f = 4096. The constant k = T s / T c = 64, where T s = 1 / (Δf ref × N f,ref ), Δf ref = 15·10 3 Hz and N f,ref = 2048.

[0046] 4.2 Basic parameters

[0047] A number of OFDM numerologies are supported as given in Table 4.2-1, where μ and the cyclic prefix used for the bandwidth part are obtained from the higher layer parameters subcarrierSpacing and cyclicPrefix, respectively.

[0048] Table 4.2-1 in [3GPP TS 38.211 V15.7.0 with the title "Supported transmission base parameters" is reproduced as Figure 5 ]

[0049] 4.3 Frame structure

[0050] 4.3.1 Frame and subframe

[0051] Downlink and uplink transmissions are organized into frames of f = (Af max N f / 100) x T c = 10 ms duration, each consisting of ten subframes with sf = (Af max N f / 1000) x T c = 1 ms duration. The number of consecutive OFDM symbols per subframe is Each frame is divided into two equal-sized half-frames of five subframes, with each frame having a half-frame 0 consisting of subframes 0 - 4 and a half-frame 1 consisting of subframes 5 - 9.

[0052] On a carrier, there is a set of frames in the uplink and a set of frames in the downlink.

[0053] The uplink frame number i for a transmission from a UE will start T TA = (N TA + N TA,offset ) T c before the corresponding downlink frame at the UE, where N TA,offset is given by [5, TS 38.213].

[0054] Table 4.2-1 in [3GPP TS 38.211 V15.7.0 with the title "Uplink-Downlink Timing Relationship" is reproduced as Figure 4 .3.1-1 Figure 6 ]

[0055] 4.3.2 Slot

[0056] For subcarrier spacing configuration m, slots are numbered in increasing order within a subframe and in increasing order within a frame There are consecutive OFDM symbols in a slot, where depends on the cyclic prefix as given in Tables 4.3.2-1 and 4.3.2-2. The start time of a slot in a subframe is aligned with the start time of the OFDM symbol in the same subframe.

[0057] OFDM symbols in a slot can be classified as 'downlink', 'variable', or 'uplink'. Signaling of slot format is described in subclause 11.1 of [5, TS 38.213].

[0058] In a slot in a downlink frame, the UE shall assume that downlink transmissions only occur in 'downlink' or 'variable' symbols.

[0059] In a slot in an uplink frame, the UE shall only transmit in 'uplink' or 'variable' symbols.

[0060] A UE not expected to be capable of full-duplex communication and not support simultaneous transmission and reception as defined by the parameters simultaneousRxTxInterBandENDC, simultaneousRxTxInterBandCA, or simultaneousRxTxSUL [10, TS 38.306] between all cells within a cell group is expected to transmit in uplink in one cell earlier than N Rx- Tx T c in one cell (after the end of the last received downlink symbol in the same or different cell within the cell group) where N Rx-Tx is given by Table 4.3.2-3.

[0061] A UE not expected to be capable of full-duplex communication and not support simultaneous transmission and reception as defined by the parameters simultaneousRxTxInterBandENDC, simultaneousRxTxInterBandCA, or simultaneousRxTxSUL [10, TS 38.306] between all cells within a cell group is expected to receive in downlink in one cell earlier than N Tx- Rx T c in one cell (after the end of the last transmitted downlink symbol in the same or different cell within the cell group) where N Tx-Rx is given by Table 4.3.2-3.

[0062] A UE not expected to be capable of full-duplex communication is expected to transmit in uplink later than the end of the last received downlink symbol in the same cell by N Rx-Tx T c where N Rx-Tx is given by Table 4.3.2-3.

[0063] A UE that is not expected to be able to communicate full-duplex does not transmit in the uplink after the end of the last received uplink symbol in the same cell by N Tx-Rx T c earlier, where N Tx-Rx is given by Table 4.3.2-3.

[0064] [Table 4.3.2-1, titled "Number of OFDM symbols per slot, slots per frame, and slots per subframe for normal cyclic prefix" in 3GPP TS 38.211 V15.7.0, is reproduced as Figure 7 ]

[0065] [Table 4.3.2-2, titled "Number of OFDM symbols per slot, slots per frame, and slots per subframe for extended cyclic prefix" in 3GPP TS 38.211 V15.7.0, is reproduced as Figure 8 ]

[0066] [Table 4.3.2-3, titled "Transition time N Rx-Tx and N Tx-Rx " in 3GPP TS 38.211 V15.7.0, is reproduced as Figure 9 ]

[0067] 4.4 Physical resources

[0068] 4.4.1 Antenna ports

[0069] Antenna ports are defined such that the channel over which a symbol on a transmit antenna port is conveyed can be inferred from the channel over which another symbol on the same antenna port is conveyed.

[0070] For DM-RS associated with PDSCH, the channel over which a PDSCH symbol on one antenna port is conveyed can be inferred from the channel over which a DM-RS symbol on the same antenna port is conveyed only if the two symbols are within the same resources as the scheduled PDSCH, in the same slot, and in the same PRG as described in [6, TS 38.214] section 5.1.2.3.

[0071] For DM-RS associated with PDCCH, the channel over which a PDCCH symbol on one antenna port is conveyed can be inferred from the channel over which a DM-RS symbol on the same antenna port is conveyed only if the two symbols are within the resources that the UE can employ with the same precoding as used as described in section 7.3.2.2.

[0072] For DM-RS associated with PBCH, a channel conveying a PBCH symbol on one antenna port can be inferred from a channel conveying DM-RS symbols on the same antenna port only if the two symbols are in an SS / PBCH block transmitted within the same slot and have the same block index according to clause 7.4.3.1.

[0073] Two antenna ports are called quasi co-located if the large scale properties of the channel conveyed by symbols on one antenna port can be inferred from the channel conveyed by symbols on the other antenna port. The large scale properties include one or more of delay spread, Doppler spread, Doppler shift, average gain, average delay and spatial Rx parameters.

[0074] 4.4.2 Resource grid

[0075] For each base parameter and carrier, a resource grid of subcarriers and OFDM symbols is defined, starting from the common resource block indicated by higher layer signalling. There is a set of resource grids for each transmission direction (uplink or downlink), with subscript x set to DL and UL for downlink and uplink, respectively. The subscript x can be dropped when there is no risk of confusion. For a given antenna port p, subcarrier spacing configuration μ and transmission direction (downlink or uplink), there is one resource grid.

[0076] The carrier bandwidth for subcarrier spacing configuration μ is given by the higher layer parameter carrierBandwidth in the SCS- SpecificCarrier IE. The starting position of the subcarrier spacing configuration μ is given by the higher layer parameter offsetToCarrier in the SCS- SpecificCarrier IE.

[0077] The frequency location of a subcarrier refers to the center frequency of the subcarrier.

[0078] For the downlink, the higher layer parameter txDirectCurrentLocation in the SpecificCarrier IE indicates the location of the transmitter DC subcarrier in the downlink for each base parameter configured in the downlink. A value in the range 0 - 3299 indicates the number of the DC subcarrier, and a value 3300 indicates that the DC subcarrier is located outside the resource grid.

[0079] For uplink, the higher layer parameter txDirectCurrentLocation in UplinkTxDirectCurrentBWP IE indicates the location of the transmitter DC subcarrier in the uplink for each configured bandwidth part, including whether the DC subcarrier location is offset by 7.5 kHz from the center of the indicated subcarrier. Values in the range 0 - 3299 represent the number of the DC subcarrier, and the value 3300 represents that the DC subcarrier is located outside the resource grid, and the value 3301 represents that the location of the DC subcarrier in the uplink is not determined.

[0080] 4.4.3 Resource Element

[0081] Each element in the resource grid for antenna port p and subcarrier spacing configuration μ is called a resource element and is denoted by (k, l) p，μ , where k is the index in the frequency domain and l refers to the position of a symbol in the time domain relative to some reference point. A resource element (k, l) p，μ corresponds to a physical resource and a complex value When there is no risk of confusion, or when no specific antenna port or subcarrier spacing is specified, the indices p and μ can be dropped, resulting in or a k，l .

[0082] 4.4.4 Resource Block

[0083] 4.4.4.1 Overview

[0084] A resource block is defined in the frequency domain as contiguous subcarriers.

[0085] 4.4.4.2 Point A

[0086] Point A serves as a common reference point for the resource block grid and is obtained from

[0087] - offsetToPointA for PCell downlink, where offsetToPointA represents the frequency offset between point A and the lowest subcarrier of the lowest resource block, the frequency offset has the subcarrier spacing provided by the higher layer parameter subCarrierSpacingCommon and overlaps with the SS / PBCH block used by the UE for initial cell selection, expressed in units of resource blocks (assuming a subcarrier spacing of 15 kHz for FR1 and 60 kHz for FR2);

[0088] - absoluteFrequencyPointA for all other cases, where absoluteFrequencyPointA represents the frequency location of point A, expressed in ARFCN.

[0089] 4.4.4.3 Common resource blocks

[0090] For a subcarrier spacing configuration μ, the common resource blocks are numbered upwards from 0 in the frequency domain. The center of subcarrier 0 of common resource block 0 for subcarrier spacing configuration μ coincides with 'point A'.

[0091] Common resource block number in the frequency domain The relationship between a resource element (k, l) for subcarrier spacing configuration μ is given by

[0092]

[0093] where k is defined with respect to point A such that k = 0 corresponds to the subcarrier centered at point A.

[0094] 4.4.4.4 Physical resource blocks

[0095] The physical resource blocks for subcarrier spacing configuration μ are defined within a bandwidth part and range from 0 to numbered, where i is the number of bandwidth parts. The physical resource blocks in bandwidth part i are numbered from 0 to The relationship between a common resource block and a physical resource block is given by

[0096]

[0097] where is the common resource block, where the bandwidth part starts with respect to common resource block 0. The index μ can be dropped when there is no risk of confusion.

[0098] 4.4.4.5 Virtual resource blocks

[0099] The virtual resource blocks are defined within a bandwidth part and range from 0 to numbered, where i is the number of bandwidth parts.

[0100] 4.4.5 Bandwidth parts

[0101] A bandwidth part is a subset of contiguous common resource blocks defined in subclause 4.4.4.3 for a given base parameter μ in a bandwidth part i on a given carrier. The start position i in the bandwidth part and the numbering of resource blocks shall satisfy and respectively. The configuration of bandwidth parts is described in clause 12 of [5, TS 38.213].

[0102] A UE can be configured with up to four bandwidth parts in the downlink, while a single downlink bandwidth part is active at a given time. A UE shall not be expected to receive PDSCH, PDCCH, or CSI-RS (except for RRM) outside of the active bandwidth part.

[0103] A UE can be configured with up to four bandwidth parts in the uplink, while a single uplink bandwidth part is active at a given time. If a UE is configured to use a supplementary uplink, the UE can be additionally configured to use up to four bandwidth parts in the supplementary uplink, with a single supplementary uplink bandwidth part active at a given time. A UE shall not transmit PUSCH or PUCCH outside of the active bandwidth part. For an active cell, a UE shall not transmit SRS outside of the active bandwidth part.

[0104] The description in this specification applies to each bandwidth part, unless otherwise specified. When there is no risk of confusion, a bandwidth part can be referred to as a BWP. and The index m is dropped.

[0105] 4.5 Carrier Aggregation

[0106] Transmissions in multiple cells can be aggregated. The description in this specification applies to each serving cell, unless otherwise specified.

[0107] A bandwidth part includes a frequency location (e.g., a starting location or a starting resource block in the frequency domain) and a bandwidth. When a bandwidth part (of a serving cell) is active, a UE performs transmissions (for UL bandwidth parts) and / or receptions (DL bandwidth parts) within the frequency resources of the bandwidth part (e.g., determined based on the frequency location and / or the bandwidth of the bandwidth part). Based on the subcarrier spacing of a bandwidth part, the bandwidth of the bandwidth part is at most 275 PRBs. A bandwidth part of a UE can be adapted or switched.

[0108] For example, a UE can be configured to use multiple bandwidth parts. One of the multiple bandwidth parts can be activated or active (at a time). When a first bandwidth part is active, a UE can activate a second bandwidth part (e.g., deactivate the second bandwidth part). This can enable bandwidth part adaptation or switching or changing. There are several ways to change an active bandwidth part, such as through radio resource control (RRC), downlink control information (DCI), a timer, or a random access procedure. 3GPP TS 38.213 and TS 38.331 provide the following details regarding bandwidth parts:

[0109] 12 Bandwidth Part Operation

[0110] If a UE is configured to use an SCG, the UE shall apply the procedures described in this section for both the MCG and the SCG

[0111] - When the procedure applies to MCG, the terms'secondary cell / secondary cells' and'serving cell / serving cells' in this section refer to secondary cells and serving cells belonging to MCG, respectively.

[0112] - When the procedure applies to SCG, the terms'secondary cell / secondary cells' and'serving cell / serving cells' in this section refer to secondary cells (excluding PSCell) and serving cells belonging to SCG, respectively. The term 'primary cell' in this section refers to PSCell of SCG.

[0113] A UE configured for operating in a bandwidth part (BWP) of a serving cell is configured by higher layers of the serving cell, a set of up to four bandwidth parts (BWPs) for reception by the UE (DL BWP set) in the DL bandwidth by parameter BWP-Downlink or by parameter initialDownlinkBWP with a set of parameters configured by BWP-DownlinkCommon and BWP-DownlinkDedicated, and a set of up to four BWPs for transmission by the UE (UL BWP set) in the UL bandwidth by parameter BWP-Uplink or by parameter initialUplinkBWP with a set of parameters configured by BWP-UplinkCommon and BWP-UplinkDedicated.

[0114] If the UE is not provided initialDownlinkBWP, the initial DL BWP is defined by the location and number of consecutive PRBs starting from the PRB with the lowest index and ending at the PRB with the highest index among the PRBs of the CORESET for Type0-PDCCH CSS set and the SCS and cyclic prefix used for PDCCH reception in the CORESET for Type0-PDCCH CSS set; otherwise, the initial DL BWP is provided by initialDownlinkBWP. For operation on a primary cell or a secondary cell, the UE is provided an initial UL BWP by initialUplinkBWP. If the UE is configured to use a supplementary UL carrier, the UE can be provided an initial UL BWP on the supplementary UL carrier by initialUplinkBWP.

[0115] If the UE has a dedicated BWP configuration, the first active DL BWP for reception can be provided to the UE by firstActiveUplinkBWP-Id and the first active UL BWP for transmission on the carrier of the primary cell can be provided to the UE by firstActiveUplinkBWP-Id.

[0116] For each DL BWP or UL BWP in a set of DL BWP or UL BWP, respectively, the following parameters of the serving cell are provided to the UE as defined in [4, TS 38.211] or [6, TS 38.214]:

[0117] - SCS, provided by subcarrierSpacing

[0118] - cyclic prefix, provided by cyclicPrefix

[0119] - common RB and a number of consecutive RBs provided by locationAndBandwidth, offset RBs are provided according to [6, TS 38.214] start and length L RB are indicated as RIV, set and value O carrier are provided by offsetToCarrier for subcarrierSpacing

[0120] - index in a set of DL BWP or UL BWP, provided by the respective BWP-Id

[0121] - a set of BWP common parameters and a set of BWP dedicated parameters, provided by BWP-DownlinkCommon and BWP-DownlinkDedicated for DL BWP or by BWP-UplinkCommon and BWP-UplinkDedicated for UL BWP [12, TS 38.331]

[0122] For unpaired spectrum operation, when the DL BWP index is the same as the UL BWP index, a DL BWP from a set of configured DL BWPs with index provided by BWP-Id is associated with a UL BWP from a set of configured UL BWPs with index provided by BWP-Id. For unpaired spectrum operation, the UE can not expect to receive a configuration where the center frequency of the DL BWP is different from the center frequency of the UL BWP when the BWP-Id of the DL BWP is equal to the BWP-Id of the UL BWP.

[0123] For each DL BWP in the set of DL BWPs for the PCell or PUCCH-SCell, the UE can be configured with a set of CSS and USS CORESETs per type as described in Section 10.1. The UE is not expected to be configured without a set of CSS on the PCell or PUCCH-SCell of the MCG in the active DL BWP.

[0124] If the UE is provided with controlResourceSetZero and searchSpaceZero in PDCCH-ConfigSIB1 or PDCCH-ConfigCommon, the UE determines the CORESETs for the search space sets from controlResourcesetZero as described in Section 13 and for Tables 13-1 to 13-10, and determines the corresponding PDCCH monitoring occasions as described in Section 13 and for Tables 13-11 to 13-15. If the active DL BWP is not the initial DL BWP, the UE determines the PDCCH monitoring occasions for the search space sets only when the CORESET bandwidth is within the active DL BWP and the active DL BWP has the same SCS configuration and the same cyclic prefix as the initial DL BWP.

[0125] For each UL BWP in the set of UL BWPs for the PCell or PUCCH-SCell, the UE is configured with a set of resources for PUCCH transmission as described in Section 9.2.1.

[0126] The UE receives PDCCH and PDSCH in a DL BWP according to the SCS and CP length configured for the DL BWP. The UE transmits PUCCH and PUSCH in a UL BWP according to the SCS and CP length configured for the UL BWP.

[0127] If the bandwidth part indicator field is configured with DCI format 1_1 or DCI format 1_2, the bandwidth part indicator field value indicates the active DL BWP for DL reception from the set of configured DL BWPs as described in [5, TS 38.212]. If the bandwidth part indicator field is configured with DCI format 0_1 or DCI format 1_2, the bandwidth part indicator field value indicates the active UL BWP for UL transmission from the set of configured UL BWPs as described in [5, TS 38.212]. If the bandwidth part indicator field is configured with DCI format and indicates a UL BWP or DL BWP different from the active UL BWP or DL BWP, respectively, the UE shall

[0128] - For each information field in DCI format

[0129] - if the size of the information field is smaller than the size required for DCI format interpretation of the UL BWP or DL BWP indicated by the bandwidth part indicator, the UE prepends zeros to the information field until its size is the respective size required for information field interpretation of the UL BWP or DL BWP before interpreting the DCI format information field

[0130] - if the size of the information field is larger than the size required for DCI format interpretation of the UL BWP or DL BWP indicated by the bandwidth part indicator, the UE uses the number of least significant bits of the DCI format equal to the respective size required for the UL BWP or DL BWP indicated by the bandwidth part indicator before interpreting the DCI format information field

[0131] - setting the active UL BWP or DL BWP to the UL BWP or DL BWP indicated by the bandwidth part indicator in the DCI format

[0132] If the bandwidth part indicator field is configured with DCI format 0_1 and indicates an active UL BWP with a different SCS configuration μ or with a number of RB sets different from the current active UL BWP - the UE determines the uplink frequency domain resource allocation Type 2 based on X' bits and Y' bits produced by independently truncating or padding the X MSBs and Y LSBs of the frequency domain resource allocation field of DCI format 0_1 [6, TS 38.214], where truncation starts from the MSBs of the X bits or the Y bits, zero padding prepends zeros to the X bits or the Y bits, and

[0133] - if the indicated active UL BWP has SCS configuration μ = 1 and the current active BWP has SCS configuration μ = 0, the X MSBs are truncated to X' = X - 1 bits, or

[0134] - if the indicated active UL BWP has SCS configuration μ = 0 and the current active BWP has SCS configuration μ = 1, the X MSBs are zero-padded to X' = X + 1 bits

[0135] - in other cases, the X MSBs are unchanged

[0136] and

[0137] - the Y LSBs are truncated or zero-padded to bits, where is the number of RB sets configured for the indicated active UL BWP

[0138] A UE is not expected to detect a DCI format indicating an active DL BWP or an active UL BWP change where the time domain resource allocation field provides a slot offset value for PDSCH reception or PUSCH transmission that is less than the required delay for the UE to use for active DL BWP change or UL BWP change, respectively [10, TS 38.133].

[0139] If a UE detects a DCI format indicating an active DL BWP change of a cell, the UE is not required to receive or transmit in the cell during the duration from the end of the third symbol of a slot where the UE receives a PDCCH containing the DCI format in the scheduling cell until the start of the slot indicated by the time domain resource allocation field in the DCI format.

[0140] If a UE detects a DCI format indicating an active UL BWP change of a cell, the UE is not required to receive or transmit in the cell during the duration from the end of the third symbol of a slot where the UE receives a PDCCH containing the DCI format in the scheduling cell until the start of the slot indicated by the time domain resource allocation field in the DCI format.

[0141] A UE is not expected to detect a DCI format indicating an active DL BWP change or an active UL BWP change of a scheduling cell in a slot other than the first slot of a set of slots of the DL SCS of the scheduling cell, which overlaps with the duration where the UE is not required to receive or transmit for an active BWP change in a cell other than the scheduling cell in FR1 (or FR2), respectively.

[0142] A UE is expected to detect a DCI format indicating an active UL BWP change or an active DL BWP change only if the corresponding PDCCH is received in the first 3 symbols of a slot.

[0143] For a serving cell, a default DL BWP among configured DL BWPs can be provided to the UE by defaultDownlinkBWP-Id. If a default DL BWP is not provided to the UE by defaultDownlinkBWP-Id, the default DL BWP is the initial DL BWP.

[0144] If a timer value for a serving cell is provided to the UE by bwp-InactivityTimer [11, TS 38.321] and the timer is running, the UE decrements the timer at the end of a subframe in FR1 or at the end of a half subframe in FR2 without satisfying the restart condition in [11, TS 38.321] during an interval of subframes in FR1 or half subframes in FR2.

[0145] For a cell where the UE changes the active DL BWP due to the expiry of the BWP inactivity timer, to accommodate the delay of the active DL BWP change or active UL BWP change required by the UE [10, TS 38.133], the UE is not required to receive or transmit in the cell during the duration from the start of a subframe in FR1 or a half subframe in FR2 immediately after the expiry of the BWP inactivity timer to the start of the slot that the UE can receive or transmit.

[0146] When the BWP inactivity timer of a UE of a cell within FR1 (or FR2) expires for a duration where the UE is not required to receive or transmit for the active UL / DL BWP change in the cell or a different cell within FR1 (or FR2), the UE delays the active UL / DL BWP change triggered by the expiry of the BWP inactivity timer until the subframe in FR1 or the half subframe in FR2 immediately after the UE completes the active UL / DL BWP change in the cell or a different cell within FR1 (or FR2).

[0147] If a first active DL BWP is provided to the UE by firstActiveDownlinkBWP-Id over the carrier of the secondary cell and a first active UL BWP is provided to the UE by firstActiveUplinkBWP-Id over the carrier of the secondary cell, the UE uses the indicated DL BWP and the indicated UL BWP as the respective first active DL BWP over the secondary cell and the first active UL BWP over the carrier of the secondary cell.

[0148] When the UE performs RRM measurements [10, TS 38.133] over a bandwidth that is not within the active DL BWP of the UE, the UE is not expected to monitor PDCCH.

[0149] […]

[0150] -BWP

[0151] The IE BWP is used to configure general parameters of a bandwidth part as defined in Section 4.5 of TS 38.211

[16] and Section 12 of TS 38.213

[13] .

[0152] For each serving cell, the network configures at least an initial downlink bandwidth part and one (if the serving cell is configured with uplink) or two (if a supplementary uplink (SUL) is used) initial uplink bandwidth parts. In addition, the network can configure additional uplink and downlink bandwidth parts for a serving cell.

[0153] Uplink and downlink bandwidth part configurations are divided into common and dedicated parameters.

[0154] BWP information element

[0155]

[0156]

[0157]

[0158] […]

[0159] SCS-SpecificCarrier

[0160] The IESCS-SpecificCarrier provides parameters to determine the location and width of an actual carrier or carrier bandwidth. Specifically, it defines for a base parameter (subcarrier spacing (SCS)) and relative to a point A (frequency offset).

[0161] SCS-SpecificCarrier information element

[0162]

[0163]

[0164]

[0165] Frequency domain resource allocation for data channels, e.g., physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) or physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH), is done via information carried on the downlink control information (DCI) submission. The DCI can be carried on the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) that schedules the data channel. A bitmap or a resource indicator value (RIV) can be used to indicate the resources within the bandwidth of a bandwidth part. The bitmap can include multiple bits and indicate the resources allocated for the UE, e.g., each bit can be associated with one resource unit (e.g., one physical resource block (PRB) or one RBG (resource block group)), and a bit, e.g., with value “1”, indicates that the associated resource unit is allocated for the UE. For example, “1001…” means that the first and fourth resource units are allocated to the UE, while the second and third resource units are not allocated to the UE.

[0166] The resource indicator value (RIV) will indicate a set of consecutive resources allocated for the UE. The UE can derive the starting position and length (e.g., in units of resource units) of the allocated resources from the RIV. For example, if the starting position is 3 and the length is 5, then the resources allocated to the UE are resource units 3-7. 3GPP TS 38.214 provides the following details on resource allocation:

[0167] 5.1.2.2 Resource allocation in frequency domain

[0168] Two downlink resource allocation schemes, Type 0 and Type 1, are supported. A UE will assume that downlink resource allocation Type 1 is used when receiving a scheduling grant with DCI format 1_0.

[0169] If the scheduling DCI is configured to indicate downlink resource allocation Type as part of the frequency domain resource allocation field by setting the higher layer parameter resourceAllocation in pdsch-Config to 'dynamic switch' for DCI format 1_1 or the higher layer parameter resourceAllocation-ForDCIFormat1_2 in pdsch-Config to 'dynamic switch' for DCI format 1_2, the UE will use downlink resource allocation Type 0 or Type 1 as defined by this DCI field. In other cases, the UE will use the downlink frequency resource allocation Type as defined by the higher layer parameter resourceAllocation for 1_1 or the higher layer parameter resourceAllocation-ForDCIFormat1_2 for DCI format 1_2.

[0170] If the bandwidth part indicator field is not configured in the scheduling DCI or the UE does not support active BWP change via DCI, the RB indices for downlink Type 0 and Type 1 resource allocation are determined within the active bandwidth part of the UE. If the bandwidth part indicator field is configured in the scheduling DCI and the UE supports active BWP change via DCI, the RB indices for downlink Type 0 and Type 1 resource allocation are determined within the bandwidth part of the UE indicated by the bandwidth part indicator field value in the DCI. The UE will first determine the downlink bandwidth part and then the resource allocation within the bandwidth part after the detection of the PDCCH intended for the UE.

[0171] For PDSCH scheduled with DCI format 1_0 in PDCCH common search space of any type, the RB numbering starts from the lowest RB of the CORESET in which the DCI has been received, regardless of which bandwidth part is the active bandwidth part; in other cases, the RB numbering starts from the lowest RB in the determined downlink bandwidth part.

[0172] 5.1.2.2.1 Downlink resource allocation Type 0

[0173] In downlink resource allocation Type 0, the resource block assignment information contains a bitmap indicating the Resource Block Groups (RBGs) allocated to the scheduled UE, where a RBG is a set of contiguous virtual resource blocks defined by the higher layer parameter rbg-Size configured by PDSCH-Config and the size of the bandwidth part is as defined in Table 5.1.2.2.1-1.

[0174] Table 5.1.2.2.1-1 in [3GPP TS 38.214 V16.2.0] titled “Nominal RBG size P” is reproduced as Figure 10 ]

[0175] The total number of RBGs (N ) for a downlink bandwidth part of size RBG ) is given by where

[0176] - the size of the first RBG is

[0177] - the size of the last RBG is if P otherwise,

[0178] - the size of all other RBGs is P.

[0179] The bitmap has a size of N RBG bits, one bitmap bit per RBG, such that each RBG is addressable. The RBGs shall be indexed in ascending order of frequency and starting from the lowest frequency of the bandwidth part. The order of the RBG bitmap is such that RBG 0 to RBG N RBG -1 are mapped from MSB to LSB. If the corresponding bit value in the bitmap is 1, the RBG is allocated to the UE, otherwise the RBG is not allocated to the UE.

[0180] 5.1.2.2.2 Downlink resource allocation Type 1

[0181] In downlink resource allocation Type 1, the resource block assignment information indicates to the scheduled UE a set of contiguous allocated non-interleaved or interleaved virtual resource blocks within the active bandwidth part of size PRBs, except in the case of a DCI format 1_0 being decoded in any common search space, in which case the size of the CORESET 0 shall be used if CORESET 0 is configured for the cell, or the size of the initial DL bandwidth part shall be used if CORESET 0 is not configured for the cell.

[0182] The downlink Type 1 resource allocation field is composed of a number of bits corresponding to the starting virtual resource block (RBstart a resource indication value (RIV) and a length L regarding the contiguous allocated resource blocks RBs The resource indication value is defined as follows

[0183] If then

[0184]

[0185] Else

[0186]

[0187] where L RBs ≥ 1 and shall not exceed

[0188] When the DCI size of DCI format 1 0 in the USS is derived from the size of DCI format 1 0 in the CSS but applied to an active BWP with size , the downlink type 1 resource block assignment field consists of a resource indication value (RIV) and a length L regarding the almost contiguous allocated resource blocks where is given by

[0189] - if CORESET 0 is configured for the cell, the size of CORESET 0;

[0190] - if CORESET 0 is not configured for the cell, the size of the initial DL bandwidth part.

[0191] The resource indication value is defined as follows:

[0192] If then

[0193]

[0194] Else

[0195]

[0196] where L' RBs = L RBs / K, RB' start = RB start / K, and where L' RBs shall not exceed

[0197] If K is the maximum value in the set {1, 2, 4, 8} satisfying ; otherwise, K = 1.​

[0198] When receiving a scheduling grant with DCI format 1_2, the downlink Type 1 resource allocation field consists of a resource indication value (RIV) corresponding to the starting resource block group (RBG) start = 0, 1,..., N RBG - 1 and the length of the almost contiguous allocation of resource block groups L RBGs = 1,..., N RBG where the resource block groups are as defined in 5.1.2.2.1, where P is defined by the higher layer parameter ResourceAllocationType1-granularity-ForDCIFormat1_2 if the UE is configured to use it, otherwise P = 1. The resource indication value is defined by

[0199] If then

[0200] RIV = N RBG (L RBGs - 1) + RBG start

[0201] Otherwise

[0202] RIV = N RBG (N RBG - L RBGs + 1) + (N RBG - 1 - RBG start )

[0203] where L RBGs ≥ 1 and should not exceed N RBG - RBG start .

[0204] Operation in frequency bands above 52.6 GHz is under study. Since there are several different characteristics different from the lower regular bands, e.g. wider available bandwidth, larger (phase) noise or inter-carrier interference (ICI), some amendments are under consideration. Therefore, larger subcarrier spacing (e.g. up to 960 khz) and bandwidths of cells up to the GHz level (e.g. 1 or 2 GHz) are expected. 3GPP RP-193259 states in particular:

[0205] This study item will include the following objectives:

[0206] ■ Study of the changes needed for NR to support operation between 52.6 GHz and 71 GHz using the existing DL / UL NR waveform

[0207] o Study applicable numerology, including subcarrier spacing, channel BW (including maximum BW), and their impact on FR2 physical layer design, to support system functionality taking into account practical RF impairments [RAN1, RAN4].

[0208] o Determine potential key issues (if any) for physical signals / channels [RAN1].

[0209] As discussed above, resource allocation to a UE is limited within the bandwidth of the bandwidth part (BWP) of the UE (e.g., active BWP), and the resources that can be allocated to the UE depends on the bandwidth of the BWP, e.g. physical resource blocks (PRBs). To support a larger bandwidth of a cell, a larger subcarrier spacing, e.g., 960 kHz, is preferred. With the existing fast Fourier transform (FFT) / inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) size, e.g., a size up to 4096, the number of PRBs that a UE can receive is limited (because PRB * 12 should be less than the FFT / IFFT size). For example, the number of PRBs (for a bandwidth part / cell) is limited to 275. For a 960 kHz subcarrier spacing, 275 PRBs correspond to about 3.2 GHz bandwidth. In other words, when a UE operates with a (active) bandwidth part with a 960 kHz subcarrier spacing, the UE can be scheduled with resources within 3.2 GHz bandwidth. In this case, both the RF and the baseband of the UE will operate with 3.2 GHz bandwidth (or a little bit more or less considering the guard band). On the other hand, when a UE operates with a (active) bandwidth part with a 240 kHz subcarrier spacing, even if the UE supports 3.2 GHz bandwidth, the schedulable bandwidth will be reduced to resources within 0.8 GHz. In other words, if the subcarrier spacing is reduced, the candidate resources are reduced. If the difference between the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth parts is small, this difference will become more significant. Considering the limitation of the smaller bandwidth, the scheduling efficiency will also be reduced.

[0210] A first general concept of the disclosure is to decouple the bandwidth of a bandwidth part from the maximum number of bandwidths or resources that can be scheduled to a UE within the bandwidth part. A first bandwidth can be used as the bandwidth of a bandwidth part, and a second bandwidth is used as the maximum bandwidth that can be scheduled to a UE within the bandwidth part. In other words, when a bandwidth part with X PRBs is active, the maximum number of PRBs that can be allocated to a UE is Y PRBs. When a bandwidth part with X PRBs is active, the maximum bandwidth that can be allocated to a UE is Y PRBs. The bandwidth that can be allocated to a UE can be derived from the difference between the PRB with the smallest index allocated to the UE and the PRB with the largest index allocated to the UE. The difference between the PRB with the smallest index allocated to the UE and the PRB with the largest index allocated to the UE is less than Y. Y can be different from X. Y can be less than X. The X PRBs and the Y PRBs can be based on the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part. X can be greater than 275. Y can not be greater than 275.

[0211] One way to implement the first general concept can be to limit the base station scheduling. The resource allocation field in the DCI can convey or indicate resources up to a bandwidth of X PRBs, but the base station can only schedule resources up to a bandwidth of Y PRBs. The base station can not be allowed to schedule resources with a bandwidth greater than Y PRBs.

[0212] Another way to implement the first general concept can be to develop a new way of resource allocation. Such a new way can allocate resources (e.g., candidate resources) with a bandwidth exceeding X PRBs, but the resources indicated to the UE can not exceed Y PRBs. For example, the DCI can indicate the frequency location (and / or size) of a window within the bandwidth part. The frequency location can be the first PRB of the window (within the bandwidth part). The frequency location can be the center PRB of the window (within the bandwidth part). The frequency location can be a specific PRB of the window (within the bandwidth part). The bandwidth part can have a bandwidth of X PRBs. The window can have a bandwidth of Y PRBs. The DCI can indicate resource allocation within the window. The resource allocation within the window can be done via a bitmap. The resource allocation within the window can be done via an RIV value.

[0213] The bit width / size of the bitmap can be determined based on Y PRBs. The bit width / size of the bitmap can be determined based on the size of the window. The bit width / size of the bitmap can not be determined based on X PRBs. The bit width / size of the bitmap can not be determined based on the size of the bandwidth part.

[0214] The bit-width / size of the RIV value can be determined not based on the Y PRBs. The bit-width / size of the RIV value can be determined based on the size of the window. The bit-width / size of the RIV value can be determined not based on the X PRBs. The bit-width / size of the RIV value can be determined not based on the size of the bandwidth part. The frequency location can be indicated by a field with bit-width / size of log2|X-Y|. The field 00…00 (all zeros) can indicate that the window starts from the first PRB of the bandwidth part. The window can occupy the first ~ Yth PRB of the bandwidth part. The resource allocation can be done within the first ~ Yth PRB of the bandwidth part (when the field of the frequency location is all zeros).

[0215] The field 00…01 can indicate that the window starts from the second PRB of the bandwidth part. The window can occupy the second ~ (Y+1)th PRB of the bandwidth part. The resource allocation can be done within the second ~ (Y+1)th PRB of the bandwidth part (when the field of the frequency location is 00…01).

[0216] The frequency location can be indicated by a field with bit-width / size of (notice that if X / Y is not an integer, the nearest integer can be selected, e.g., via ceiling operation or floor operation). The field 00…00 (all zeros) can indicate that the window starts from the first PRB of the bandwidth part. The window can occupy the first ~ Yth PRB of the bandwidth part. The resource allocation can be done within the first ~ Yth PRB of the bandwidth part (when the field of the frequency location is all zeros).

[0217] The field 00…01 can indicate that the window starts from the (Y+1)th PRB of the bandwidth part. The window can occupy the (Y+1)th ~ 2Yth PRB of the bandwidth part. The resource allocation can be done within the (Y+1)th ~ 2Yth PRB of the bandwidth part (when the field of the frequency location is 00…01).

[0218] The resources within the allocated window can be done by replacing the starting PRB of the bandwidth part with the starting PRB of the window and / or replacing the bandwidth of the bandwidth part with the bandwidth of the window. For example, the total number of RBGs (N RBG ) of a window of size Y within a downlink bandwidth part i is given by where

[0219] - the size of the first RBG is

[0220] - if then the size of the last RBG is else P,

[0221] - the size of all other RBGs is P.

[0222] The bitmap can have NRBG The size is 1 bit, with one bitmap bit per Resource Block Group (RBG), making each RBG addressable. RBGs can be indexed in ascending frequency order, starting from the lowest frequency of the window. The lowest frequency of the window can be indicated by downlink control information (DCI), for example, the lowest frequency relative to the bandwidth portion. The order of the RBG bitmaps makes RBG 0 to RBGN... RBG -1 is mapped from the most significant bit (MSB) to the least significant bit (LSB). If the corresponding bit value in the bitmap is 1, then RBG can be assigned to the UE; otherwise, RBG can not be assigned to the UE.

[0223] In another instance, the downlink type 1 resource allocation field is determined by the starting virtual resource block. The resource indicator value (RIV) and the length L of the contiguously allocated resource blocks. RBs composition. It is the lowest frequency of a window of size Y (e.g., indicated by the lowest frequency of the DCI relative to the bandwidth portion). The resource indication value is defined by the following formula.

[0224] if So

[0225] RIV = Y(L) RBs -1)+RB start

[0226] otherwise

[0227] RIV = Y(YL) RBs +1)+(Y-1-RB start )

[0228] Where L RBs ≥1 and should not exceed Y-RB start .

[0229] The second general concept of this invention is to extend the bandwidth of the bandwidth portion. The bandwidth of the bandwidth portion can be extended to greater than 275 PRBs. The bandwidth of the bandwidth portion can be extended by interpreting its position and bandwidth according to a reference subcarrier spacing. The reference subcarrier spacing may differ from the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth portion. The reference subcarrier spacing may be greater than the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth portion. The reference subcarrier spacing can be used to interpret the frequency position and / or bandwidth of the bandwidth portion. For example, using a 960 kHz reference subcarrier spacing to interpret the frequency position and / or bandwidth of a 120 kHz bandwidth portion can indicate the resources of the bandwidth portion across 275*8 PRBs (in 120 kHz). The reference subcarrier spacing can be indicated by the base station.

[0230] For example, when the reference subcarrier spacing of a 120 KHz bandwidth part is 960 kHz, the "locationAndBandwidth" field of the bandwidth part can be interpreted according to 960 kHz (instead of 120 kHz). The locationAndBandwidth field can point to a first PRB (in 960 kHz) and a number of PRBs (e.g., X PRBs in 960 kHz) of the bandwidth part. After the frequency location and bandwidth are derived, the PRBs can then be converted to 120 kHz. The number of PRBs in 120 kHz can be X*8. The number of bandwidths can exceed 275. The first PRB in the 120 kHz bandwidth part can be the PRB (in 120 kHz) that is closest (e.g., in the frequency domain with the starting location) to the first PRB (in 960 kHz) pointed to by the locationAndBandwidth field.

[0231] The bandwidth of a bandwidth part can be extended by adding more bits to the locationAndBandwidth field of the bandwidth part. The baseband of a UE can operate with a smaller bandwidth of radio frequency (RF). The RF can encompass the bandwidth of the bandwidth part. The baseband (e.g., IFFT / FFT) can encompass a subset of resources within the bandwidth part. For example, the RF of a UE can encompass a bandwidth of 3.2 GHz, and the baseband of the UE can encompass a bandwidth of 0.8 GHz.

[0232] Throughout this application, "window" can be replaced by "a set of frequency resources" or "a set of PRBs." The window can occupy a subset of frequency resources within a bandwidth part.

[0233] In one embodiment, a UE can receive a configuration of a bandwidth part from a base station. The UE can receive an indication of a subset of frequency resources within the bandwidth part. The UE can derive a resource allocation within the subset of resources. The resource allocation can be for a data channel received or transmitted by the UE. The UE can not be allowed to be scheduled outside the subset of frequency resources. The UE can not be allowed to be scheduled one PRB within the bandwidth part outside the subset of frequency resources.

[0234] The subset of frequency resources can be a set of contiguous frequency resources. The subset of resources can be a window. The subset of frequency resources can include a set of contiguous physical resource blocks. A frequency location of the subset of frequency resources can be indicated to the UE. The frequency location of the subset of frequency resources can be indicated by DCI. A first PRB of the subset of frequency resources can be indicated to the UE. The first PRB of the subset of frequency resources can be indicated by DCI. A bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources can be fixed or predefined. The bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources can be indicated to the UE. The bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources can be indicated by RRC configuration. The bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources can be indicated by DCI.

[0235] A subset of frequency resources can have a bandwidth smaller than a bandwidth of the bandwidth part. The bandwidth part can be an active bandwidth part. The subset of frequency resources can be indicated by DCI. The DCI can schedule resources for the UE. The DCI can indicate a resource allocation within the subset of frequency resources. A bitmap in the DCI can indicate the resource allocation within the subset of frequency resources. A bit width or size of the bitmap can be determined based on a bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources.

[0236] A RIV value in the DCI can indicate the resource allocation within the subset of frequency resources. A bit width or size of the RIV value can be determined based on a bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources. The frequency location of the subset of frequency resources and the resource allocation within the subset of frequency resources can be indicated by two separate fields in the DCI. The frequency location of the subset of frequency resources and the resource allocation within the subset of frequency resources can be indicated by two separate sets of bits in the DCI (e.g., in one field).

[0237] In another embodiment, a base station can transmit a configuration of a bandwidth part to a UE. The base station can transmit an indication of a subset of frequency resources within the bandwidth part. The base station can derive or schedule a resource allocation within the subset of resources. The resource allocation can be for a data channel received or transmitted by the UE. The base station can not be allowed to schedule the UE outside the subset of frequency resources. The base station can not be allowed to schedule PRBs for the UE outside the subset of frequency resources within the bandwidth part.

[0238] The subset of frequency resources can be a set of contiguous frequency resources. The subset of resources can be a window. The subset of frequency resources can include a set of contiguous physical resource blocks. A frequency location of the subset of frequency resources can be indicated to the UE. The frequency location of the subset of frequency resources can be indicated by DCI. A first PRB of the subset of frequency resources can be indicated to the UE. The first PRB of the subset of frequency resources is indicated by DCI. A bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources can be fixed or predefined. The bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources can be indicated to the UE. The bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources can be indicated by RRC configuration. The bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources can be indicated by DCI.

[0239] The subset of frequency resources can have a bandwidth smaller than a bandwidth of the bandwidth part. The bandwidth part can be an active bandwidth part. The subset of frequency resources can be indicated by DCI. The DCI can schedule resources for the UE. The DCI can indicate a resource allocation within the subset of frequency resources. A bitmap in the DCI can indicate the resource allocation within the subset of frequency resources. A bit width or size of the bitmap can be determined based on a bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources. A RIV value in the DCI can indicate the resource allocation within the subset of frequency resources.

[0240] A bit width or size of the RIV value can be determined based on a bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources. The frequency location of the subset of frequency resources and the resource allocation within the subset of frequency resources can be indicated by two separate fields in the DCI. The frequency location of the subset of frequency resources and the resource allocation within the subset of frequency resources can be indicated by two separate sets of bits in the DCI (e.g., in one field).

[0241] In another embodiment, a base station can transmit a configuration of a bandwidth part to a UE. The base station can derive or schedule a resource allocation within the bandwidth part. The resource allocation can be for a data channel received or transmitted by the UE. The base station can not be allowed to schedule a resource with a bandwidth larger than Z (PRBs) for the UE. The bandwidth part can have a bandwidth larger than Z. The bandwidth of the resource can be derived from a PRB of a resource with a lowest PRB index and a PRB of a resource with a highest PRB index. Z can be a fixed or predetermined value. Z can be a configured value. Z can be determined based on a capability of the UE. Z can be 275. A bitmap in a DCI can indicate a resource allocation within the bandwidth part with the above restriction. A bit width or size of the bitmap can be determined based on the bandwidth of the bandwidth part. An RIV value in the DCI can indicate a resource allocation within the bandwidth part with the above change. A bit width or size of the RIV value can be determined based on the bandwidth of the bandwidth part.

[0242] Throughout the disclosure, the disclosure can describe characteristics or operations of a single serving cell unless otherwise indicated. The disclosure can also describe characteristics or operations of multiple serving cells unless otherwise indicated. Furthermore, the disclosure can describe characteristics or operations of a single bandwidth part unless otherwise indicated.

[0243] Throughout the disclosure, a base station can configure a UE with multiple bandwidth parts unless otherwise indicated. The base station can also configure the UE with a single bandwidth part unless otherwise indicated.

[0244] Figure 11 is a flowchart 1100 from the perspective of a UE according to one example embodiment. In step 1105, the UE receives a configuration of a bandwidth part from a base station. In step 1110, the UE receives an indication of a subset of frequency resources within the bandwidth part. In step 1115, the UE derives a resource allocation within the subset of frequency resources.

[0245] Referring back to Figure 3 and 4 In one example embodiment of a UE, the UE 300 includes program code 312 stored in memory 310. The CPU 308 can execute the program code 312 to enable the UE to: (i) receive a configuration of a bandwidth part from a base station, (ii) receive an indication of a subset of frequency resources within the bandwidth part, and (iii) derive a resource allocation within the subset of frequency resources. Furthermore, the CPU 308 can execute the program code 312 to perform all of the above-described acts and steps or other acts and steps described herein.

[0246] Figure 12is a flowchart 1200 from a base station's perspective according to one example embodiment. In step 1205, the base station transmits a configuration of a bandwidth part to a UE. In step 1210, the base station transmits an indication of a subset of frequency resources within the bandwidth part. In step 1215, the base station derives a resource allocation within the subset of frequency resources.

[0247] Referring back to Figure 3 and 4 , in one example embodiment of a base station. The base station 300 includes program code 312 stored in memory 310. The CPU 308 can execute the program code 312 to enable the base station to: (i) transmit a configuration of a bandwidth part to a UE, (ii) transmit an indication of a subset of frequency resources within the bandwidth part, and (iii) derive a resource allocation within the subset of frequency resources. In addition, the CPU 308 can execute the program code 312 to perform all of the above-mentioned actions and steps or other actions and steps described herein.

[0248] In the context of the embodiments shown in Figure 11 and 12 , in one embodiment, the resource allocation can be for a data channel received or transmitted by the UE. The subset of frequency resources can be a set of contiguous frequency resources.

[0249] In one embodiment, a frequency location of the subset of frequency resources can be indicated to the UE. The subset of frequency resources can also be indicated by a DCI. A first PRB of the subset of frequency resources can be indicated to the UE. A bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources can be fixed or predefined. The bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources can be indicated to the UE. The bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources can be indicated by a radio resource control (RRC) configuration.

[0250] In one embodiment, the subset of frequency resources can have a bandwidth smaller than a bandwidth of the bandwidth part. The bandwidth part can be an active bandwidth part. The subset of frequency resources can be indicated by a DCI.

[0251] In one embodiment, the DCI can schedule resources for the UE. The DCI can indicate the resource allocation within the subset of frequency resources. A bitmap in the DCI can indicate the resource allocation within the subset of frequency resources.

[0252] In one embodiment, a bit width or size of the bitmap can be determined based on a bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources. A RIV value in the DCI can indicate the resource allocation within the subset of frequency resources. A bit width or size of the RIV value can be determined based on the bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources.

[0253] As discussed above, a bandwidth part starts with a resource block related to a frequency location, e.g. point A. The starting position or location of a common resource block (CRB) can be slightly different for different numerologies. Point A can be considered as a reference starting position or location of a carrier, shared by all bandwidth parts, regardless of its subcarrier spacing. The frequency resources that can be allocated to a bandwidth part are CRB0 ~ CRB 274, regardless of the subcarrier spacing (e.g. defined per subcarrier spacing). In other words, a bandwidth part with different subcarrier spacing cannot be split into different frequency resources of one carrier.

[0254] Taking a carrier or cell at 3.2GHz as an example, for a bandwidth part with 960kHz subcarrier spacing, CRB 0 ~ CRB 274 cover the entire carrier bandwidth 3.2GHz. On the other hand, for a bandwidth part with 120kHz subcarrier spacing, CRB0 ~ CRB 274 cover a bandwidth of 400MHz, e.g. 1 / 8 of the carrier bandwidth at a lower frequency location. It should be noted that in the frequency domain, CRB0 ~ CRB 274 for 120KHz correspond to CRB 0 ~ CRB 35 for 960kHz. In other words, a bandwidth part with a lower subcarrier spacing will only occupy frequency resources of a carrier with a lower frequency location, e.g. starting from point A or CRB 0. It is not allowed to allocate frequency resources of a carrier with a higher frequency location to a bandwidth part with a lower subcarrier spacing. Therefore, allocating resources for UEs with different subcarrier spacing (e.g. corresponding to active bandwidth parts) is not equally split across the carrier bandwidth at least for the lower subcarrier spacing. A UE with an (active) bandwidth part with a lower subcarrier spacing will be limited within a lower frequency location.

[0255] The general concept of the present invention is to extend the frequency location of a bandwidth part. The frequency location of a bandwidth part can be extended beyond the 275*8 offset. CRBs with indices larger than 274 can be allocated to a bandwidth part. The CRBs are in the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part.

[0256] The first or lowest CRB that can be allocated by the locationAndBandwidth field can be different from CRB 0. The base station indicates the first or lowest CRB that can be allocated by the locationAndBandwidth field. For example, the base station can indicate that the first or lowest CRB that can be allocated by the locationAndBandwidth field of a bandwidth part is CRB X. The base station can indicate an offset value X. The locationAndBandwidth field can allocate resources within CRB X ~ CRB X + 274. The locationAndBandwidth field of a bandwidth part can indicate a (starting) CRB / physical resource block (PRB) Y and a length of Z CRBs / PRBs. The bandwidth part will occupy CRB X + Y ~ CRB X + Y + Z - 1. The CRBs can be in the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part. After introducing a different starting CRB or offset value, the locationAndBandwidth field can allocate resources outside of CRB 0 ~ CRB 274.

[0257] CRB 0 of a bandwidth part can be derived from a second frequency location or position, e.g., point B. Point B can be different from point A. The base station can indicate point B to the UE. The base station can inform the UE which of point A and point B to use to derive the frequency resources allocated to the bandwidth part. Point B can be derived from point A, e.g., the base station indicates an offset value between point A and point B. Point B can be derived from a frequency location of an SSB, e.g., the base station indicates an offset value between a frequency location of an SSB and point B. CRB 0 can be in the subcarrier spacing corresponding to the bandwidth part. CRB 0 will have two frequency locations or positions, one corresponding to point A and the other corresponding to point B. The UE can determine which of the two frequency locations or positions of CRB 0 to use based on which of point A and point B is used for the bandwidth part.

[0258] A frequency location of a bandwidth part, e.g., a first PRB or a lowest PRB, can be extended via a reference subcarrier spacing. The reference subcarrier spacing can be different from the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part. The reference subcarrier spacing can be greater than the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part. The reference subcarrier spacing can be used to interpret the frequency location and / or bandwidth of the bandwidth part. For example, interpreting the frequency location and / or bandwidth of a 120 kHz bandwidth part using a reference subcarrier spacing of 960 kHz can indicate a resource of the bandwidth part spanning 275*8 PRBs (in 120 kHz). The reference subcarrier spacing can be indicated by the base station.

[0259] For example, when the reference subcarrier spacing of a 120 kHz bandwidth part is 960 kHz, the "locationAndBandwidth" field of the bandwidth part can be interpreted according to 960 kHz (rather than 120 kHz). The locationAndBandwidth field can point to a first CRB / PRB of the bandwidth part (in 960 kHz) and a number of CRB / PRBs (e.g., X CRB / PRBs in 960 kHz). The locationAndBandwidth field can point to CRB 81 ~ CRB 100 (in 960 kHz) (e.g., by setting a starting PRB 81 and a length of 20). After the frequency location and bandwidth are derived, the PRB can then be converted to 120 kHz. The number of PRBs in 120 kHz would be X*8. The number of bandwidths can exceed 275. The first PRB in the 120 kHz bandwidth part can be the PRB (in 120 kHz) closest to (e.g., in the frequency domain with a starting location) the first PRB (in 960 kHz) pointed to by the locationAndBandwidth field. The CRB 81 ~ CRB 100 (in 960 kHz) allocated by the locationAndBandwidth field can be converted to CRBs in 120 kHz. The CRBs in 120 kHz covered by CRB 81 ~ CRB 100 (in 960 kHz) can be allocated to the bandwidth part.

[0260] For example, CRB 81 *8 ~ CRB 100*8 (i.e., CRB 648 ~ CRB 800) are allocated to the bandwidth part. Alternatively, CRB 81 in 960 kHz is converted to the nearest CRB in 120 kHz, e.g., CRB 648 in 120 kHz. Alternatively or additionally, CRB 100 in 960 kHz is converted to the nearest CRB in 120 kHz, e.g., CRB 800 in 120 kHz. The CRBs in 960 kHz between the nearest CRB in 120 kHz of CRB 81 in 960 kHz and the nearest CRB in 120 kHz of CRB 100 in 960 kHz (e.g., CRB 648 ~ CRB 800 in 120 kHz) are allocated to the bandwidth part. Alternatively or additionally, a 20 CRB length in 960 kHz is converted to 20*8 (i.e., 160) CRBs in 120 kHz. The CRBs starting from the nearest CRB in 120 kHz of CRB 81 in 960 kHz and having a length of 160 CRBs (e.g., CRB 648 ~ CRB 807 in 120 kHz) are allocated to the bandwidth part.

[0261] The frequency location of the bandwidth part, e.g., the first PRB or the lowest PRB, can be extended by adding more bits to the locationAndBandwidth field of the bandwidth part. After introducing more bits, the locationAndBandwidth field can cover a wider range of CRBs, e.g., CRB0 ~ CRBX, where X is larger than 275. For example, X can be an integer multiple of 275. X can be 275*2 m . For example, X can be (an integer multiple of 275) - 1. X can be 275*2 m - 1. The locationAndBandwidth field can indicate that the bandwidth part starts at CRBY, where Y is larger than 275. For example, the locationAndBandwidth field can cover CRB0 ~ CRB 275*2 m The locationAndBandwidth field can be interpreted as a resource indicator value (RIV), where

[0262] The frequency location of the bandwidth part, e.g., the first PRB or the lowest PRB, can be extended by increasing the value range of offsetToCarrier. The frequency location of the bandwidth part, e.g., the first PRB or the lowest PRB, can be extended by indicating a second offset (e.g., in addition to offsetToCarrier). The UE can derive point A based on offsetToCarrier and the frequency location of the SSB. The UE can derive point B based on point A and the second offset value. The UE can derive point B based on offsetToCarrier, the frequency location of the SSB, and the second offset value. The bandwidth part (of the frequency location) can be derived with respect to point A. The bandwidth part (of the frequency location) can be derived with respect to point B.

[0263] The base station can indicate which one of point A or point B is used for the bandwidth part. The initial bandwidth part can be associated with point A only. The BWP configured by dedicated RRC signaling can be associated with point B. After introducing point B, the frequency location of the bandwidth part can be extended. The first or lowest PRB of the bandwidth part can start at a wider range of frequency locations or positions.

[0264] The frequency location of the bandwidth part, e.g., the first PRB or the lowest PRB, can be extended by different starting CRBs indicated by the locationAndBandwidth field. Currently, the locationAndBandwidth field can indicate a frequency resource starting from CRB 0, e.g., among the candidates CRB 0 ~ CRB 274. The locationAndBandwidth field can indicate a frequency resource starting from CRB X. X can be greater than 0. X can be greater than 274. The locationAndBandwidth field can indicate a frequency resource among the candidates CRB X ~ CRB Y. Y is greater than X. Y can be greater than 274. Y can be X + 274. The value of X can be indicated by the base station. The value of Y can be indicated by the base station. The locationAndBandwidth field can be interpreted with the value X. The base station can indicate the first or the lowest CRB that can be allocated by the locationAndBandwidth field. The first or the lowest CRB can be CRB X.

[0265] The bandwidth of the bandwidth part can be greater than the value X. The bandwidth of the bandwidth part can be greater than the value X. X can be 275 PRBs (in the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part). In one embodiment, a UE can receive a configuration of a bandwidth part from a base station. The configuration can include a location and a bandwidth of the bandwidth part. The location and the bandwidth can be indicated by a locationAndBandwidth field. The bandwidth part can include at least one CRB with an index greater than 274. The bandwidth part can include at least one frequency resource corresponding to a CRB with an index greater than 274. The location can indicate a frequency location of a first CRB / PRB of the bandwidth part.

[0266] In another embodiment, a base station can transmit a configuration of a bandwidth part to a UE. The configuration can include a location and a bandwidth of the bandwidth part for the UE. The location and the bandwidth can be indicated by a locationAndBandwidth field. The bandwidth part can include at least one CRB with an index greater than 274. The bandwidth part can include at least one frequency resource corresponding to a CRB with an index greater than 274. The location can indicate a frequency location of a first CRB / PRB of the bandwidth part.

[0267] The lowest CRB / PRB that can be indicated by the location can be indicated by the base station. The lowest CRB / PRB that can be indicated by the location can be indicated by the base station and can not be CRB 0. The lowest CRB / PRB that can be indicated by the location can be indicated by an offset value. For example, an offset value X can be used to indicate that CRB X is the lowest CRB / PRB that can be indicated by the location. The location can indicate that the YthCRB is allocated to the bandwidth part. The first CRB / PRB of the bandwidth part can be indicated by the location and the lowest CRB / PRB can be indicated by the location. The first CRB / PRB of the bandwidth part can be indicated by the location and an offset value. The first CRB / PRB of the bandwidth part can be a CRB with an index greater than 274. The locationAndBandwidth field can indicate the frequency resources of the bandwidth part within CRB X ~ CRB Z. X can be greater than 0. Z can be X + 274. Z can be indicated by the base station. The locationAndBandwidth field can indicate the frequency resources of the bandwidth part within CRB 0 ~ CRB Z. The bandwidth of the bandwidth part can not be greater than 275 PRBs. Alternatively, the bandwidth of the bandwidth part can be greater than 275 PRBs. The CRB / PRB can be in the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part.

[0268] In another embodiment, a UE can receive a configuration of a bandwidth part. The configuration includes a location and a bandwidth of the bandwidth part. The location and the bandwidth can be indicated by a locationAndBandwidth field. The UE can not interpret the locationAndBandwidth field based on a subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part. The UE can interpret the locationAndBandwidth field based on a reference subcarrier spacing.

[0269] In another embodiment, a base station can transmit a configuration of a bandwidth part. The configuration can include a location and a bandwidth of the bandwidth part. The location and the bandwidth can be indicated by a locationAndBandwidth field. The base station can not interpret, indicate, set, or calculate the locationAndBandwidth field based on a subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part. The base station can interpret, indicate, set, or calculate the locationAndBandwidth field based on a reference subcarrier spacing.

[0270] The reference subcarrier spacing can be different from a subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part. The reference subcarrier spacing can be greater than the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part. The reference subcarrier spacing can be indicated by the base station. The UE can derive a first set of CRBs in the reference subcarrier spacing. The first set of CRBs can be indicated by the locationAndBandwidth field.

[0271] The UE can determine a second set of CRBs in the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part based on the first set of CRBs. The second set of CRBs can be associated with the first set of CRBs. The second set of CRBs can occupy the same or similar frequency resources as the first set of CRBs. The second set of CRBs can be proximate to the first set of CRBs in the frequency domain.

[0272] The first or lowest PRB / CRB in the second set of CRBs can be derived based on the first or lowest PRB / CRB in the first set of CRBs. The first or lowest PRB / CRB in the second set of CRBs can be the PRB / CRB in the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part that is closest to the first or lowest PRB / CRB in the first set of CRBs. The first or lowest PRB / CRB in the second set of CRBs can be the PRB / CRB in the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part that is at the same or similar frequency as the first or lowest PRB / CRB in the first set of CRBs. The first or lowest PRB / CRB in the second set of CRBs can be the PRB / CRB in the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part that is at the same or similar frequency as the first or lowest PRB / CRB in the first set of CRBs. The first / lowest PRB / CRB in the second set of CRBs can be the highest PRB / CRB in the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part that is at a lower frequency than the first or lowest PRB / CRB in the first set of CRBs. The first or lowest PRB / CRB in the second set of CRBs can be the lowest PRB / CRB in the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part that is at a higher frequency than the first / lowest PRB / CRB in the first set of CRBs.

[0273] The last or highest PRB / CRB in the second set of CRBs can be derived from the first or lowest PRB / CRB in the second set of CRBs. The last or highest PRB / CRB in the second set of CRBs can be derived from the bandwidth of the first set of CRBs. The last or highest PRB / CRB in the second set of CRBs can be derived from the bandwidth of the first set of CRBs and a difference between the reference subcarrier spacing and the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part. The last or highest PRB / CRB in the second set of CRBs can be derived from the first or lowest PRB / CRB in the second set of CRBs and / or the bandwidth of the first set of CRBs and / or a difference between the reference subcarrier spacing and the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part. The bandwidth of the second set of CRBs can be derived from the bandwidth of the first set of CRBs and / or a difference between the reference subcarrier spacing and the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part.

[0274] The last or highest PRB / CRB in the second set of CRBs can be derived based on the last or highest PRB / CRB in the first set of CRBs. The last or highest PRB / CRB in the second set of CRBs can be the PRB / CRB in the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part that is closest to the last or highest PRB / CRB in the first set of CRBs. The last or highest PRB / CRB in the second set of CRBs can be the PRB / CRB in the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part that is at the same or similar frequency as the last or highest PRB / CRB in the first set of CRBs. The last or highest PRB / CRB in the second set of CRBs can be the PRB / CRB in the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part that is at the same or similar frequency as the last or highest PRB / CRB in the first set of CRBs. The last or highest PRB / CRB in the second set of CRBs can be the highest PRB / CRB in the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part that is at a lower frequency than the last or highest PRB / CRB in the first set of CRBs. The last or highest PRB / CRB in the second set of CRBs can be the lowest PRB / CRB in the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part that is at a higher frequency than the last or highest PRB / CRB in the first set of CRBs.

[0275] The bandwidth part can include the second set of CRBs. The bandwidth part can consist of the second set of CRBs. The bandwidth part can encompass or occupy the second set of CRBs. The bandwidth part can include at least one CRB with an index greater than 274. The second set of CRBs can include at least one CRB with an index greater than 274. A first or lowest CRB in the second set of CRBs can be a CRB with an index greater than 274. The bandwidth part can include at least one frequency resource corresponding to a CRB with an index greater than 274. The locationAndBandwidth field can indicate a frequency location of a first CRB / PRB in the first set of CRBs. A bandwidth of the bandwidth part can be no greater than 275 PRBs. Alternatively, a bandwidth of the bandwidth part can be greater than 275 PRBs. The CRBs / PRBs can be in a subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part.

[0276] In another embodiment, a UE can receive a configuration of a bandwidth part. The configuration can include a location and a bandwidth of the bandwidth part. The location and the bandwidth can be indicated by a locationAndBandwidth field. The UE can receive an indication of a first frequency point, e.g., point A. The UE can receive an indication of a second frequency point, e.g., point B. The UE can derive the location of the bandwidth part based on the first frequency point or the second frequency point. The UE can receive an indication of whether the location of the bandwidth part has been derived based on the first frequency point or the second frequency point.

[0277] In another embodiment, a base station can transmit a configuration of a bandwidth part to a UE. The configuration can include a location and a bandwidth of the bandwidth part. The location and the bandwidth can be indicated by a locationAndBandwidth field. The base station can transmit an indication of a first frequency point, e.g., point A. The base station can transmit an indication of a second frequency point, e.g., point B. The base station can derive, determine, or set the location of the bandwidth part based on the first frequency point or the second frequency point. The UE can receive an indication of whether the location of the bandwidth part has been derived based on the first frequency point or the second frequency point.

[0278] The first frequency point can be a preset frequency point for deriving the location of the bandwidth part. If the base station does not have an indication of which frequency point to use, the first frequency point can be used to derive the location of the bandwidth part. The first frequency point can be used to derive the location of a particular bandwidth part, e.g., an initial bandwidth part or a preset bandwidth part. The first frequency point can correspond to the lowest frequency of a carrier or a serving cell.

[0279] The second frequency point can be different from the first frequency point. The second frequency point can have a higher frequency than the first frequency point. The second frequency point can have a lower frequency than the first frequency point. The second frequency point can be derived based on the first frequency point and a first offset value. The first offset value can be a (frequency) difference between the first frequency point and the second frequency point. The second frequency point can be derived based on a frequency of a synchronization signal block (SSB) and a second offset value. The second offset value can be a (frequency) difference between the frequency of the SSB and the second frequency point.

[0280] The first frequency point can be derived based on a frequency of a synchronization signal block (SSB) and a third offset value. The third offset value can be a (frequency) difference between the frequency of the SSB and the first frequency point. The second frequency point can be within the available frequency resources of a serving cell or a carrier. The second frequency point can correspond to a (particular) CRB. The second frequency point can correspond to a CRB with a certain index. The index can be indicated by the base station.

[0281] The second frequency point can be derived based on a CRB 0 associated with the first frequency point and a fourth offset value. The fourth offset value can be a (frequency) difference between the CRB 0 associated with the first frequency point and the second frequency point. The fourth offset value can be a (frequency) difference between the CRB 0 associated with the first frequency point and a CRB 0 associated with the second frequency point. There can be two CRB 0s associated with the two frequency points. For example, the first frequency point is associated with a first CRB 0. The second frequency point is associated with a second CRB 0, e.g., denoted as CRB 0’.

[0282] A number of sets of CRBs can be associated with the two frequency points. The first frequency point can be associated with a first set of CRBs 0 ~ CRB 275. The second frequency point can be associated with a second set of CRBs 0 ~ CRB 274 (e.g., can be denoted as CRB 0' ~ CRB 274'). If the location of the bandwidth part is derived based on the first frequency point, the locationAndBandwidth field can indicate the candidate frequency resource starting from the first CRB 0. If the location of the bandwidth part is derived based on the second frequency point, the locationAndBandwidth field can indicate the candidate frequency resource starting from the second CRB 0. If the location of the bandwidth part is derived based on the first frequency point, the locationAndBandwidth field can indicate the frequency resource within the first set of CRBs 0 ~ CRB 274. If the location of the bandwidth part is derived based on the second frequency point, the locationAndBandwidth field can indicate the candidate frequency resource starting from the second set of CRBs 0 ~ CRB 274. The bandwidth of the bandwidth part can be no larger than 275 PRBs. Alternatively, the bandwidth of the bandwidth part can be larger than 275 PRBs. The CRB / PRB can be in the subcarrier spacing of the bandwidth part.

[0283] Throughout the disclosure, a CRB and a PRB can be a resource block. A CRB can be replaced with a PRB. A PRB can be replaced with a CRB.

[0284] Throughout the disclosure, a lowest CRB / PRB can be a CRB / PRB with a lowest index. A lowest CRB / PRB can be a CRB / PRB with a lowest frequency. A first CRB / PRB can be a CRB / PRB with a lowest index. A first CRB / PRB can be a CRB / PRB with a lowest frequency.

[0285] Throughout the disclosure, a highest CRB / PRB can be a CRB / PRB with a highest index. A highest CRB / PRB can be a CRB / PRB with a highest frequency. A last CRB / PRB can be a CRB / PRB with a highest index. A last CRB / PRB can be a CRB / PRB with a highest frequency.

[0286] Throughout the disclosure, a frequency (location) of a CRB / PRB can be a lowest frequency (location) of the CRB / PRB. A frequency (location) of a CRB / PRB can be a highest frequency (location) of the CRB / PRB. A frequency (location) of a CRB / PRB can be a center frequency (location) of the CRB / PRB.

[0287] Figure 13is a flowchart 1300 from the perspective of a UE according to one example embodiment. In step 1305, the UE receives, from a base station, a configuration of a configuration of a bandwidth part, wherein the configuration comprises a location and a bandwidth of the bandwidth part, and wherein the bandwidth part comprises at least one CRB with an index greater than 274.

[0288] Referring back to Figure 3 and 4 In one example embodiment of a UE, the UE 300 includes program code 312 stored in memory 310. The CPU 308 can execute the program code 312 to enable the UE to receive, from a base station, a configuration of a configuration of a bandwidth part, wherein the configuration comprises a location and a bandwidth of the bandwidth part, and wherein the bandwidth part comprises at least one CRB with an index greater than 274. In addition, the CPU 308 can execute the program code 312 to perform all of the above-mentioned actions and steps or other actions and steps described herein.

[0289] Figure 14 is a flowchart 1400 from the perspective of a base station according to one example embodiment. In step 1405, the base station transmits, to a UE, a configuration of a configuration of a bandwidth part, wherein the configuration comprises a location and a bandwidth of the bandwidth part, and wherein the bandwidth part comprises at least one CRB with an index greater than 274.

[0290] Referring back to Figure 3 and 4 In one example embodiment of a base station, the base station 300 includes program code 312 stored in memory 310. The CPU 308 can execute the program code 312 to enable the base station to transmit, to a UE, a configuration of a configuration of a bandwidth part, wherein the configuration comprises a location and a bandwidth of the bandwidth part, and wherein the bandwidth part comprises at least one CRB with an index greater than 274. In addition, the CPU 308 can execute the program code 312 to perform all of the above-mentioned actions and steps or other actions and steps described herein.

[0291] In the context of the embodiments shown in Figure 13-14 In one embodiment, the location and the bandwidth can be indicated by a locationAndBandwidth field. A lowest CRB / PRB that can be indicated by the location can be indicated by the base station. An index of the lowest CRB / PRB that can be indicated by the location can be indicated by the base station. The locationAndBandwidth field can indicate resources of the bandwidth part starting from the lowest CRB / PRB. The locationAndBandwidth field can indicate resources of the bandwidth part within or between the lowest CRB / PRB and a second CRB / PRB. The second CRB / PRB can be indicated by the base station.

[0292] In one embodiment, there can be a fixed number of CRBs / PRBs between the lowest CRB / PRB and the second CRB / PRB. The fixed number can be 273.

[0293] In one embodiment, the first or lowest PRB / CRB of the bandwidth part can be derived based on the locationAndBandwidth field and the lowest CRB / PRB that can be indicated by the location. When the locationAndBandwidth field indicates the location of (starting) PRB 0, the first or lowest PRB / CRB of the bandwidth part can be the lowest CRB / PRB that can be indicated by the location.

[0294] Figure 15 is a flowchart 1500 from the perspective of a UE according to one example embodiment. In step 1505, the UE receives a configuration of a bandwidth part from a base station. In step 1510, the UE derives a subset of frequency resources within the bandwidth part. In step 1515, the UE receives an indication of a resource allocation for transmission within the subset of frequency resources.

[0295] Referring back to Figure 3 and 4 In one example embodiment of a UE, the UE 300 includes program code 312 stored in memory 310. The CPU 308 can execute the program code 312 to enable the communication device to: receive a configuration of a bandwidth part from a base station, (ii) derive a subset of frequency resources within the bandwidth part, and (iii) receive an indication of a resource allocation for transmission within the subset of frequency resources. In addition, the CPU 308 can execute the program code 312 to perform all of the above-mentioned actions and steps or other actions and steps described herein.

[0296] Figure 16 is a flowchart 1600 from the perspective of a base station according to one example embodiment. In step 1605, the base station transmits a configuration of a bandwidth part to a UE. In step 1610, the base station derives a subset of frequency resources within the bandwidth part. In step 1615, the base station indicates to the UE a resource allocation for transmission within the subset of frequency resources.

[0297] Referring back to Figure 3 and 4 In one example embodiment of a base station, the base station 300 includes program code 312 stored in memory 310. The CPU 308 can execute the program code 312 to enable the communication device to: transmit a configuration of a bandwidth part to a UE, (ii) derive a subset of frequency resources within the bandwidth part, and (iii) indicate to the UE a resource allocation for transmission within the subset of frequency resources. In addition, the CPU 308 can execute the program code 312 to perform all of the above-mentioned actions and steps or other actions and steps described herein.

[0298] In the context of the embodiments shown in Figs. 1-3 and discussed above, in one embodiment, the resources allocated for transmission can be part of a subset of frequency resources. The resource allocation for transmission can be indicated by DCI. The size of the resource allocation field in DCI can be determined based on the bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources. Figure 15 16 In the context of the embodiments shown in Figs. 1-3 and discussed above, in one embodiment, the resources allocated for transmission can be part of a subset of frequency resources. The resource allocation for transmission can be indicated by DCI. The size of the resource allocation field in DCI can be determined based on the bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources.

[0299] In one embodiment, the base station can indicate to the UE the frequency location of the subset of frequency resources. The base station can indicate to the UE the bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources. The base station can not be allowed to schedule the UE outside of the subset of frequency resources.

[0300] In one embodiment, the maximum bandwidth of the UE can be smaller than the bandwidth of the bandwidth part. The transmission can be for a certain data channel. The bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources can be fixed or predefined.

[0301] Various aspects of the disclosure have been described. It is to be understood that the teachings herein can be implemented in various forms of hardware, software, firmware, special-purpose machines, or combinations thereof. As such, the disclosure is to be considered as being in all possible technical equivalents, which have been rendered with the principles of the teachings herein. The teachings herein have been described with the intention of being illustrative, and not limiting, of the principles and uses of the present disclosure. Various modifications of the teachings will become apparent to those skilled in the art, and the principles and uses thereof can be applied to other applications. For example, in some aspects, parallel channels can be established based on a pulse repetition frequency. In some aspects, parallel channels can be established based on a pulse position or offset. In some aspects, parallel channels can be established based on a time hopping sequence. In some aspects, parallel channels can be established based on a pulse repetition frequency, a pulse position or offset, and a time hopping sequence.

[0302] Those of skill in the art would understand that information and signals can be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and techniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that can be referenced throughout the above description can be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof.

[0303] ​Those of skill would further appreciate that the various illustrative logical blocks, modules, processors, means, circuits, and algorithm steps described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein can be implemented as electronic hardware (e.g., a digital implementation, an analog implementation, or a combination of the two, which can be designed using source coding or some other technique), various forms of program or design code incorporating instructions (which can be referred to herein, for convenience, as "software" or a "software module"), or combinations of both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps have been described above generally in terms of their functionality, whereas implementation of the described functionality can be implemented in varying ways as

[0304] Furthermore, various illustrative logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein can be implemented within or performed by an integrated circuit ( "IC" ), an access terminal, or an access point. The IC can include a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, electrical components, optical components, mechanical components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein, and can execute codes or instructions that reside within the IC, outside of the IC, or both. A general purpose processor can be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor can be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor can also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, e.g., 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.

[0305] It should be understood that any particular order or hierarchy of steps in any disclosed process is an example of an illustrative approach. Based on design preferences, it is understood that the particular order or hierarchy of steps in the processes can be rearranged, while remaining within the scope of the present disclosure. The accompanying method claims present elements of the various steps in a sample order, and are not meant to be limited to the specific order or hierarchy presented.

[0306] The steps of a method or algorithm described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein can be embodied directly in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two. A software module (e.g., including executable instructions and related data) and other data can reside in a data memory such as RAM memory, flash memory, ROM memory, EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, registers, hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of computer-readable storage medium known in the art. An example storage medium can be coupled to a machine such as, for example, a computer / processor (which can be referred to herein, for convenience, as a "processor") such that the processor can read information (e.g., code) from, and write information to, the storage medium. An example storage medium can be integral to the processor. The processor and the storage medium can reside in an ASIC. The ASIC can reside in a user device. In the alternative, the processor and the storage medium can reside as discrete components in a user device. Moreover, in some aspects any suitable computer-program product can comprise a computer-readable medium comprising code relating to one or more of the aspects of the disclosure. In some aspects a computer program product can comprise packaging materials.

[0307] While this application has been described in connection with various aspects, it will be understood that it is capable of further modifications. This application is intended to cover any variations, uses or adaptations of the application other than those expressly indicated herein, which follow in general the principles of the application and include such departures from the present disclosure as come within known and customary practice in the art to which the application pertains.

[0308] Cross Reference to Related Applications

[0309] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Nos. 63 / 062,009 and 63 / 062,037, filed August 6, 2020, the entire disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

Claims

1. A method for a user equipment, characterized in that, comprising: the user equipment receiving a configuration of a bandwidth part from a base station, wherein the configuration comprises a location and a bandwidth of the bandwidth part, and wherein the bandwidth part comprises at least one common resource block with an index larger than 274, wherein the minimum value of the index is 0; the user equipment deriving a subset of frequency resources within the bandwidth part; and the user equipment receiving an indication of a resource allocation within the subset of frequency resources for a transmission.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, the resources allocated for the transmission are part of the subset of frequency resources.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein, the resource allocation for the transmission is indicated by a downlink control information.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein, a size of a resource allocation field in the downlink control information is determined based on a bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein, a frequency location of the subset of frequency resources is indicated to the user equipment.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein, a bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources is indicated to the user equipment.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein, the user equipment is not allowed to be scheduled outside the subset of frequency resources.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein, a maximum bandwidth of the user equipment is smaller than the bandwidth of the bandwidth part.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein, the transmission is for a certain data channel.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein, the bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources is fixed or predefined.

11. A method of a base station, c h a r a c t e r i z e d b y, comprising: the base station transmitting a configuration of a bandwidth part to a user equipment, wherein the configuration comprises a location and a bandwidth of the bandwidth part, and wherein the bandwidth part comprises at least one common resource block with an index larger than 274, wherein the minimum value of the index is 0; the base station deriving a subset of frequency resources within the bandwidth part; and the base station indicating to the user equipment a resource allocation within the subset of frequency resources for a transmission.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein, the resources allocated for the transmission are part of the subset of frequency resources.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein, the resource allocation for the transmission is indicated by a downlink control information.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein, a size of a resource allocation field in the downlink control information is determined based on a bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein, the base station indicates to the user equipment a frequency location of the subset of frequency resources.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein, the base station indicates to the user equipment a bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources.

17. The method of claim 11, wherein, the base station is not allowed to schedule the user equipment outside the subset of frequency resources.

18. The method of claim 11, wherein, a maximum bandwidth of the user equipment is smaller than the bandwidth of the bandwidth part.

19. The method of claim 11, wherein, the transmission is for a certain data channel.

20. The method of claim 11, wherein, the bandwidth of the subset of frequency resources is fixed or predefined.

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